Pop Goes the Belly Button

Belly button pops out in pregnancy? You'd find it difficult to wear all those figure-hugging styles then. I've found using Nipple Stickers to be quite effective. Try it yourself! ;-)

There are several different styles available in stores - clothlike-cover, satin-cover. Chose the style you prefer.

Maternity Options

Asides from wearing double-duty nursing clothes, I also had some favourite maternity tops. Well, obviously I needed pants and jeans and shorts too! It's convenient that we have a maternity store in-house at E-Biz Moms!

Here's what I grabbed:
Pants/Jeans/Shorts
Swim Tankini - 1 set

And a couple of the tops that I liked:

I had this in 2 colours.


The Rose hue was pretty:


And this dress was really flattering! I wore this for several concerts and events with boots - about the safest footwear when I was 7 to 8mths preggie with a HUGE belly!


I also found the tops in the Bellychic range useful for dressing up!
http://www.bellysima.com/

6 weeks on

6 weeks preggers...crazy me scaling THE Great Wall

Real Tired after that!!!!

Just Preggers

Just pregnant.

Performing for the last 2 times with the Orchestra before I "retired" to 9 months of morning sickness.




Rainy, rainy day, and poor acoustics outdoors:

No, I'm not giving prizes for guessing which is me, but I'm in the violins and quite visible in both videos actually.

Quick Tonic

An easy tonic for energy & blood circulation.

Simply have a little DOM heated up so that the alcoholic spirit evaporates, then add in a bottle of Chicken Essence. Then just "kan-pei!".

More Confinement Recipes at:
http://www.momsinmind.com.sg/confinementrecipes.html

Confinement Recipes

Have had confinement food on my mind this week because of a friend. Have cooked some simple dishes, so am sharing the recipes here.

Red Wine Chicken - it's simpler than I thought.


Marinate Chicken pieces with 2 TBS Fermented Rice Paste (Red) and 1 TBS Rice Wine.
Soak Wood Fungus (Mok Yee - I didn't use for this batch in the above photos)
A few Chinese Mushrooms (soaked), optional.
Leave for 30 minutes.
Prepare 2 TBS of Old Ginger (cut into thin strips).
Heat pot and put 1 TBS Sesame seed oil.
Fry Ginger strips until fragrant. Add wood fungus to fry.
Then add in the marinated chicken and fry.
Add in another TBS of fermented rice paste.
Put in a bottle of Chicken Essence.
Put in half a cup of Rice Wine or DOM.
When sizzling, add in another 3 cups of hot water.
Stir everything, then leave it to come to a boil, then simmer for awhile.
While waiting, use another pot to boil the mee sua, drain and dish out in a bowl. Pour the Chicken Rice Wine Soup over the Mee Sua.
Garnish with Spring Onions.

--
And if you prefer not to have Reddish Wine Soup for your meal, here's another Chicken Wine Recipe:
Heat saucepan and put 2 TBS Sesame Oil.
Fry 2 TBS Ginger Strips until fragrant and put in Wood Fungus(soaked).
Put in Chicken and stir fry until half cooked.
Pour in 3 Cups Hot Water into the saucepan and let it simmer for 30 minutes.
Bring it to boil and add in Mee Sua.
Then put in the 2TBS DOM/Rice Wine and stir.
--

And for all the ginger you wish to use, here's tip on how to have them in strips:

Use a potato-peeler to "peel" the ginger into very thin slices. Then use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut these thin slices into strips. Easy, eh? And they are so fun to fry into crispy strips!

Breastfeeding Info

Just found that National University Hospital's breastfeeding pages have quite useful practical information, including photos for storage of milk.

http://www.nuh.com.sg/healthinfo/breastfeeding/1_breast_feeding.asp

Cleaning Ameda Pump

Reference: Image of Pump & Parts
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/104/265721157_668e6581e0_o.jpg
Pump Setup: Illustration


The only parts you need to clean are:
1. Funnel
2. Valves
and of course the bottles you are using (can be universal-standard-neck milk bottles of any brand)

For the valves, each time you are done pumping, you slowly hold the bottom of the valve and ease if off the funnel. Put it in a cup or bowl of soapy water if you do not have the time to wash it right then. Do not let the milk dry out on the valve. Wash with soap using your fingers only and gently. No brushing required.

The funnel can be washed with soap as like any other household containers and sterilised accordingly.

AS for the Bellow & the cap(on top of bellow), sterilisation is not required. If you find that it has become dusty, just wash lightly with a little diluted soapy water. The tubings do not need washing or sterilisation

For sterlising, you may wish to read the tips here:
http://momsinmind.blogspot.com/2006/10/sterilizing-breastpump.html

Motherhood Exhibition 2007

Vist us at the Motherhood Exhibition :

Dates: 7 to 10 June 2007
Time: 12noon to 10pm (Sunday: 12noon to 8pm)
Venue: Singapore Expo Hall 5A, Booth C11 & C12





And don't forget to print out your Discount Coupon. More details on our website:
http://www.momsinmind.com.sg/weeklyspecials.html

Share your Pix!

The beauty of the mult-shot functions of a digital camera! You catch every moment in between the actual poses you want! This almost looks like a photo of us grooving! See how baby is kicking her legs and moving her body back & forth!

Do share your cutest Baby pouch photos too. Nice smiley ones, moms & dads with babies, cosy moments, funny moments ...

So, go get your digital cameras clicking away and mail it in to us at momsinmind@gmail.com .

Note: by sending in your photos, you are agreeing to allow us usage of the photos on our website or publication materials, as required, in it's altered, edited, or orginal format.

New: MIM Baby Pouch

At special introductory price of S$40 for the Month of March 2007 only!

A new way to wear your baby. Our new Baby Pouch keeps you & baby happy, it's comfortable and best of all, it's easy to use!

Use the same Baby Pouch from the Newborn Stage to Toddlerhood ! Carrying positions are the same as for the Sarong-Style Baby Slings: Cradle, Lying-Down, Side-Sitting, Kangaroo, Hip-Carry, Snuggle, Piggy-back.

Visit us at the Baby Pouch product webpage to buy!

BCF: Photos

We've been real busy at the Babycare Festival this weekend. Here's some of the "action":



More photos: Online Album

Babycare Festival 2-4 Mar 07

Come join us at the BabyCare Festival at Suntec Singapore ! Moms in Mind's booth will be right next to the Nursing Room.

What BabyCare Festival 2007

When 2 - 4 March 2007
TimeFri & Sat, 11am – 9pm;Sun, 11am – 8pm


Where Suntec Singapore Hall 401
Booth: H11 & H12

To See where Our Booth is:
*Click* on MAP below:


We will have special buys and fabulous new nursingwear styles and even new products at the Festival!

More Details at:
http://www.family.sg/editorial/article.aspx?id=453&sc=23&grp

Visit our BLOG for More Updates on Promotions & Events @ the Fair :
http://momsinmind.blogspot.com/ (*click* on Link Text).

Bra Special

Your favourite padded nursing bra is at a Special S$30 for this Babycare Festival ! Most comfortable, stylish & easy-to-use! Grab yours at this babyfair !

Breastfeeding Help

If you expect to give birth during this time, do be prepared and know where to get help. It would also be good for currently breastfeeding mothers to be prepared. Many hospital Lactation Consultants may be on leave during this period as well. Have other Counselling Hotline numbers and Lactation consultants Mobile or Pager numbers handy so that you can get help if need be. Here’s a List that would be us eful for you:

Mrs Doris Fok at 9-6387660
National University Hospital 6772 5955

KK Women's & Children's Hospital: Ms Cynthia Pang 96310687 / 63948232
KKH Ask-a-Nurse -- 1900-5568773

Mt Alvernia Hospital: Sr Kang 98399477 / 6347 6641

Joyful Parenting Tel: 6488 0286
Breastfeeding Mothers' Support Group 63393558

Thomson Medical Centre 91193502

Older "Baby"

Some friends or relatives may have misconceived ideas about older babies who are still breastfeeding. This often results from not having seen or been around such babies - more of a case of “lack of information”. They would find it strange to see a walking and talking “baby” playing happily and then running to Mummy to nurse. Think of the situation as a learning experience FOR THEM. On your end, it is your baby and your life, and you have continued breastfeeding because of the bonding and your belief & observations of the benefits.

Continue to trust in your beliefs!

Well-Wishers

It is so common for friends and relatives to share their thoughts and experiences when you visit them with your baby.

They are often well-meaning, but may hurt your feeling though, especially if these remarks come unexpected. Do go Prepared for such situations and take a non-personal approach to this remarks. Try not to take these remarks as a form of an “attack” on your parenting choices. Rehearse some non-commital responses like “I'll think about it” or “That's the way the baby likes it” or “The doctor ordered it, and you'd get on with your visit with fewer thorns in your family relationships.

To avoid less fussiness and less criticisms, try to watch your baby's signals so that you breastfeed your baby BEFORE the baby is so extremely hungry and is bawling his heart out. He will then draw quite a fair bit of “Unwanted Criticism” from all the relatives! And it would take a much longer time to pacify than if you had not put off trying to breastfeed him when he was still calm.

Do try to plan your visiting around your baby's naptimes. Some babies are great with travelling, s ome are not. So do watch your baby's cues. If he becomes fussy, request to sneak away to a another room for some mommy-time. Or pop him in the baby sling for some down-time. A walk outside your relative's house or their garden may help too.

Have fun and enjoy your baby! The upside of the Chinese New Year holidays will also be that your baby would receive lots of attention, lots of “hong baos” and might be so excited over all the colourful festivities.

Nursing in Front of Others

During the Chinese New Year Period, it would be inevitable for you to meet up and have reunion and gatherings with family, relatives & friends. What to do if baby wants to nurse?

If you're uncomfortable with nursing among them, do ask if there is a room you can use. If that is too awkward, try to create your own private space by either going to a corner of a sofa where there are fewer people around, or turning to the wall or window to latch baby on.



If it is during a dinner at a restaurant (or even at home), you might find it that the table, being at you waist and sometimes chest level, does provide some measure of "privacy". Basically, the table blocks you and baby nursing. Just bend down a little to latch baby on, straightening your body up only after baby is nursing comfortably.

It would certainly be easier if you are wearing nursing-accesible clothes.

Do visit the Link to this Article below for a full description on how to nurse in public or at least in front of others:

Article: How to Nurse Discreetly in Public

Resistance

With the abundance of Bak Kwa, Pineapple tarts, prawn rolls, love letters, and loads of other new year goodies, getting a sore throat and being heaty is not unusual. Do remember to keep hydrated, and keep up your Vitamin C intake.

For those who are tired out, do try the very traditional confinement drink. It's great for your energy level and thus great for your milk supply as well. Red Dates Tea! You can boil up and pot and drink it cold too!


RED DATES TEA
(Helps revitalise general health. Drink as often as you like - It's Tasty!)
http://www.momsinmind.com.sg/eggs.html

8 red dates
50g black beans, pan-fried without oil
20g Dong Sum / "dangshen" (codonopsis pilosula)
4 slices old ginger

Rinse all the herbs. Put them in a crockpot and fill it ¾ full with HOT water. Boil for 2 hours.

For me, I usually just put all the ingredients in the crockpot the night before, filling it with normal tap water. By morning, there will already be a nice big pot of fragrant Red Dates Tea to drink for the whole day.

Keeping up with Baby

Following on with our posts yesterday on being busy with New Year preparations; one great way to keep up with baby is to carry baby in a sling.


With baby in the sling, you can have baby close to you. Baby will fuss less. You can talk about what you are doing and baby will learn more this way by sharing in your duties. You will be less inclined to put off breastfeeding your baby as he is close with you. You will also find it easier to be out & about with baby in a sling.




To learn more about using the sling, do take a look at our Instructional pages:
http://www.momsinmind.com.sg/demo.html

Do also take a look at photos of other parents - Moms & Dads, and even siblings, carrying babies in our sling!
http://www.momsinmind.com.sg/slingphotos.html

Happy Holidays!

The holidays are a frantic time for us, especially one as busy as Chinese New year! There's new clothes to put out, Hongbaos to prepare, the house to clean up & decorate, food & goodies to stock up on ... our To-Do list would probably be endless! With young children around, the tasks can be quite challenging.

In the midst of such tight schedules, the one important thing is: Don't put off breastfeeding your baby! Very often during busy festive periods, breastfeeding moms try to do just one more last thing before feeding baby. Before you know it, baby is tired and has fallen asleep, or baby could be so distressed and is not willing to nurse properly. Another common occurence in our family setup could be, the grandmothers or maids may see that you are too busy to breastfeed baby, and they would simply take baby away and give baby a bottle. All this will affect your milk supply and baby's well-being. Remember, Supply = Demand. Breastfeeding regularly & frequently is the key to maintaining your supply.

And don't forget yourself! Get some rest when you can, and tank up on water and vitamin C to keep your resistance during this busy period.