The recent admission of a 3 year old in the ICU of KK children's hospital as a result of contracting the seasonal swine flu, starts me thinking if Singaporeans are civic conscious would we be in a better position to prevent the pandemic from spreading? I am sure one may conclude with a resounding yes. But hey how many actually walk the talk?
I recalled when ngee ann postponed their first day of school, both chris and I were hoping that SP may do the same so he could work from home since students are so well travelled these days. However that didn't happen. In fact Chris ultimately did fell ill, not a result of the influenza, but overheatiness caused by superb durians from malaysia!! He got a fever the very next day, which slowly developed into flu like symptoms. Fortunately, being kiasu parents, we've pre-prepared couple of boxes of N95 masks (high quality German make direct from source- let me know if any one is keen on stocking up, we are so good at sourcing that we manage to get them at a good factory price). So chris wore them whenever he came near Nat or me. He wore it in the car, in the room and aircon places. He even insisted that I wear it too as there is still a 5% chance of risk. We wore it when we went to crowded places and not surprisingly we nvited lots of stares. Friends mentioned that we were really civic conscious to wear the masks as we shop along Orchard and Tampines One. This gets me to my point. With stats on H1N1 increasing on a daily basis till the extent that authorities decides to produce sporadic reports and only highlight the ICU cases, it goes to show that the level of civic consciousness remains at an unhealthy standard.
Personally I've encountered colleagues who were ill but did not have the decency to wear a face mask or stay away from the workplace. One mentioned that she is not responsible for the rest falling ill.. then WHO should be playing a preventive role? I was shocked to hear such a selfish remark! Doesn't she knows that her presence jeopardises the health of all within the same department / building and potentially spread to the families and wider social circle... Would wearing a facemask make one any less professional? It's all aesthetics! Yes you may find some shunning you for the day but at least one has done his/her part to prevent others from falling ill. I am sure this is not an isolated case and many could relate to this. So how could authorities prevent the spread of H1N1 when there are so many culprits out there who are not at all civic conscious and cares only about their external appearances? Perhaps we should learn from the Japanese! Japanese have no qualms about wearing a face mask as a preventive measure and it does not in any way hinder their professionalism nor make them aesthetically less appealing!
Looking from another perspective, though we use the term 'Kiasee' ( afraid to die) colloquially, we never seem to do well at relating it from a preventive perspective. In this instance, if people are afraid to catch H1N1, shouldn't kiasee-ism drives us to want to wear a face mask every where we go and keep young children and the aged at home or not go to overly crowded places?
I believe civic consciousness stems from showing consideration and it starts at home. As a parent I find it important to inculcate these values to my children. With consideration, you will find that you'll not only be doing what's right for yourself, naturally you'll start to think for the others around you. Yeah, the attitude of our society will not change overnight, but I hope it'll change for the better and civic consciousness should not be a restricted vocab used only to describe the Japanese in this part of the world.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Unique Wedding March !
Saw this really fun wedding march on yahoo. Would recommend this as the way to go in replacement of the typical wedding march! Perhaps something to think about when Chris and I hit the 50th year wedding anniversary when we resolemnise our marriage again!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0
Sunday, July 26, 2009
5 months
At 5 months, Nat is now able to sit up with pillows propping her up. Her preferred position is no longer lying down, she yearns to be carried upright like a big kid or supported on her underarm so she could pretend to walk. She has the cutest giggles as she sashays from mummy to daddy =) !
At breakfast she even wanted to grab a slice of the roti prata from my plate. Her moto skills are swiftly developing and I was almost not quick enough to stop her from putting the prata into her mouth! Amazing how baby's physical developments comes fast and furious at 5 months. She's capable of easily bringing an object to her mouth for oral exploration. She stares at me whenever I eat and opens her mouth when I bring the food down to her level to tease her sense of smell. Looks like she can't wait to be weaned and try her hands in solids!
I am also under the impression that her reading skills may have improved tremendously as well. She spends more time staring at each page, looking at the colourful details and slowly using her fingers to flip the pages as she goes along.
She could concerntrate on the tv really well. Comparing her with one of my friend's kid, aged 9 months. She definitely has a longer attention span when it comes to cartoon viewing! Not sure if this will indirectly cause her to be anti social, or it might be a relative thing where she chooses between looking at the kid play or watching a colourful screen which changes scene every few seconds. Chris say we have another Sharon in the making since I too get so engrossed with whatever's shown on the tv.
At breakfast she even wanted to grab a slice of the roti prata from my plate. Her moto skills are swiftly developing and I was almost not quick enough to stop her from putting the prata into her mouth! Amazing how baby's physical developments comes fast and furious at 5 months. She's capable of easily bringing an object to her mouth for oral exploration. She stares at me whenever I eat and opens her mouth when I bring the food down to her level to tease her sense of smell. Looks like she can't wait to be weaned and try her hands in solids!
I am also under the impression that her reading skills may have improved tremendously as well. She spends more time staring at each page, looking at the colourful details and slowly using her fingers to flip the pages as she goes along.
She could concerntrate on the tv really well. Comparing her with one of my friend's kid, aged 9 months. She definitely has a longer attention span when it comes to cartoon viewing! Not sure if this will indirectly cause her to be anti social, or it might be a relative thing where she chooses between looking at the kid play or watching a colourful screen which changes scene every few seconds. Chris say we have another Sharon in the making since I too get so engrossed with whatever's shown on the tv.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Challenges
It's been more than 2 weeks since I've updated my blog! Here's giving you a quick flashback on what you've missed.
Firstly, I've started working,which explains the recurring guilt of 'I have not spent enough time with baby'.So more hugs and cuddles from both daddy and me whenever we have a chance to carry her.
Secondly, Nat is now looked after by her grandmamee who, like all grandparents, dotes on her. We still bring her home each night, persevering with nite feeds. Think this is the least I could do as a mom.
We've watched Harry Potter and the half blood prince, complimentary tickets from attending Kim Seng Young PAP's AGM. We've also attended the Lion's Appreciation Dinner on Friday. Doesn't seem like a long list huh? And tell you what I've totally forgotten about the time when weekends just zip by and it's monday again! Dread to be reminded now!
So what were my biggest challenges at work and home? I must say it's balancing time for expression, work and sleep!
Past couple of weeks had gone by like a mad rush. Now I fully understand what a working Mum has to go though!It's really a uphill task trying to complete what needs to be done at work and slotting time to express myself. I strive to express every 4 hours but haven't been succeeding at all! Perhaps it's due to the tonnes of work waiting for me or it might be that I've slackened and was taking double the time to get things completed? I think it's definitely the former... now that the unit is starting it's recruitment cycle again, so much more needs to be done and so little time!
Situation worsen when I have back to back meetings lined up, had no choice but to push back expression time. Rather than the ideal 4 hours interval, it became 5 /6 hours. Not only do I feel engorged, I feel really guilty for not playing my role as a mother well! Cause reduction in expression frequency may reduce milk production and quantity would thereby be affected. Natalie now takes about 600mls in the day, whereas I only manage to pump about 4/500ish ml in the office. Demand exceeds supply! Each time I delay expression, I've got to pump for more than 30mins to express it all out or try to rush expression by increasing the suction speed. Playing both roles well is really a struggle. I know my priority remains with Nat and my goal is to feed her on EBM till she reaches 12 months. It'll be even better if I could last longer and push till her 2nd birthday. What I need to do is to stick to the expression slots ( 8am, 12noon and 4pm) religiously and not allow work to supersede. Easy to say, but action requires loads of determination and discipline!
The other challenge would be waking up in the middle of the night to feed Nat. Pushing last feed to 11ish pm kinda help delay late night feeds from 2am to 3am. Since I started working, waking up now becomes a struggle! Her daddy who can't hear a single cry before could now react even faster than me! Fortunately, he'll help carry the crying baby to me for feeds. At least I don't have to physically get up and walk to the cot. Wanted him to help with bottle feeding for Nat's last feed, but it don't quite seem to work. It's probably the way he holds her or the intensity of his perspiration which can't seem to stop following even in the aircon environment and worsen each time Nat starts to cry. Chris gets irritated with himself and Nat too felt it and seems uncomfortable with the feeds. I would still have to take over to ensure that she finishes the bottle. So rather than feeding her from the bottle ( and we were just too tired to wash up after that) I have resumed direct feeding.
Firstly, I've started working,which explains the recurring guilt of 'I have not spent enough time with baby'.So more hugs and cuddles from both daddy and me whenever we have a chance to carry her.
Secondly, Nat is now looked after by her grandmamee who, like all grandparents, dotes on her. We still bring her home each night, persevering with nite feeds. Think this is the least I could do as a mom.
We've watched Harry Potter and the half blood prince, complimentary tickets from attending Kim Seng Young PAP's AGM. We've also attended the Lion's Appreciation Dinner on Friday. Doesn't seem like a long list huh? And tell you what I've totally forgotten about the time when weekends just zip by and it's monday again! Dread to be reminded now!
So what were my biggest challenges at work and home? I must say it's balancing time for expression, work and sleep!
Past couple of weeks had gone by like a mad rush. Now I fully understand what a working Mum has to go though!It's really a uphill task trying to complete what needs to be done at work and slotting time to express myself. I strive to express every 4 hours but haven't been succeeding at all! Perhaps it's due to the tonnes of work waiting for me or it might be that I've slackened and was taking double the time to get things completed? I think it's definitely the former... now that the unit is starting it's recruitment cycle again, so much more needs to be done and so little time!
Situation worsen when I have back to back meetings lined up, had no choice but to push back expression time. Rather than the ideal 4 hours interval, it became 5 /6 hours. Not only do I feel engorged, I feel really guilty for not playing my role as a mother well! Cause reduction in expression frequency may reduce milk production and quantity would thereby be affected. Natalie now takes about 600mls in the day, whereas I only manage to pump about 4/500ish ml in the office. Demand exceeds supply! Each time I delay expression, I've got to pump for more than 30mins to express it all out or try to rush expression by increasing the suction speed. Playing both roles well is really a struggle. I know my priority remains with Nat and my goal is to feed her on EBM till she reaches 12 months. It'll be even better if I could last longer and push till her 2nd birthday. What I need to do is to stick to the expression slots ( 8am, 12noon and 4pm) religiously and not allow work to supersede. Easy to say, but action requires loads of determination and discipline!
The other challenge would be waking up in the middle of the night to feed Nat. Pushing last feed to 11ish pm kinda help delay late night feeds from 2am to 3am. Since I started working, waking up now becomes a struggle! Her daddy who can't hear a single cry before could now react even faster than me! Fortunately, he'll help carry the crying baby to me for feeds. At least I don't have to physically get up and walk to the cot. Wanted him to help with bottle feeding for Nat's last feed, but it don't quite seem to work. It's probably the way he holds her or the intensity of his perspiration which can't seem to stop following even in the aircon environment and worsen each time Nat starts to cry. Chris gets irritated with himself and Nat too felt it and seems uncomfortable with the feeds. I would still have to take over to ensure that she finishes the bottle. So rather than feeding her from the bottle ( and we were just too tired to wash up after that) I have resumed direct feeding.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Panda Eyes
Since the day she fell ill, Nat has been waking up at least twice in the night at 2 and 4ish AM! I've tried pushing back her last feed from 1030pm to 11ish and it didn't reduce her frequency for feeds. Should I allow her to cry till she falls asleep in exhaustion? Sounds cruel right? And it'll definitely wake the entire household. Don't think I'll be able to withstand not rushing to cuddle when she cries atop her lungs and it'll be difficult to soothe her back to sleep.
Anyone with workable solutions? Please let me know.
Anyone with workable solutions? Please let me know.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Milk blister part 2
Nat's feeding definitely helped! She has punctured the blisters and now the duct openings are visible. Though painful at the point of puncture, at least the pain doesn't stay!
Linguistic Developments
Nat's attempts at talking sounds like stream of conscious monologues of cute baby noises strung together. Alphabet flash cards and large popout books forms her daily reads. Check out the video below to hear it 'live'!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Milk Blister
Got a tiny milk blister ( looks like a tiny white pimple) when I wake up this morning! It's painful whenever the baby suckles!Fortunately it's not thrush or mastitis or anything more serious. Suspect it might be caused by the pump. Have been trying the maximum speed yesterday cause I wanted it to express much quicker!!
According to my yahoo results, milk blisters usually develop on the upper areola and are thought to be caused by a plug of thickened milk, which then seals over and becomes inflamed. The most common contributing factor that causes these conditions is a back up of milk in the breast (milk stasis). Milk statis can be caused by poor position and latch, abrupt reduction in the amount of breastfeeding, breastmilk oversupply, irregularities in the breast from previous surgeries or injuries, or constriction of the breast caused by a too tight bra.
They can remain from several days to several weeks, healing on their own by peeling away the outer layer of skin. If blisters are persistent, they may need to be peeled open by a gynae. Puncturing the blisters on my own could lead to an infection. Breastfeeding would be the most effective method to promote drainage of the breast,whereas milk expression is recommended as the second choice.
Well, this means I'll have to wait till it goes away on it's own by increasing Nat's feeding frequency.
According to my yahoo results, milk blisters usually develop on the upper areola and are thought to be caused by a plug of thickened milk, which then seals over and becomes inflamed. The most common contributing factor that causes these conditions is a back up of milk in the breast (milk stasis). Milk statis can be caused by poor position and latch, abrupt reduction in the amount of breastfeeding, breastmilk oversupply, irregularities in the breast from previous surgeries or injuries, or constriction of the breast caused by a too tight bra.
They can remain from several days to several weeks, healing on their own by peeling away the outer layer of skin. If blisters are persistent, they may need to be peeled open by a gynae. Puncturing the blisters on my own could lead to an infection. Breastfeeding would be the most effective method to promote drainage of the breast,whereas milk expression is recommended as the second choice.
Well, this means I'll have to wait till it goes away on it's own by increasing Nat's feeding frequency.
Nat has started to read on her own!
It so amazing the speed in which babies develop! I was just teaching her to sign with her hands and if you were to view the video attached you could see that she is putting in deliberate effort to view every page and even manage to flip the pages when she is done! Amazing isn't it?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)