Camera-Action!

It was one of the loooooooooongest photoshoots I've ever done. Little JR refused to be put down, and only wanted me.

(Model wearing Rachel Scrunch Top)

So I had to carry Baby JR while styling the models, ironing, and organising the clothes and taking the photos. Had to balance somewhat with baby on me.

He nursed......


.....and he slept, & he played. Cheeky fella...

And I was super-exhausted after the photoshoot!

Outdoor Concert

Another outing. We are "super-deprived" of concerts now with baby *hehe*, so outdoor concerts are so welcome!

It was cloudy earlier and threatened to rain but well, it ended up well. The weather was cool & windy. No showers at all! YAY!!!

The group performing - Joyful Strings were great! Even the little ones are really pro. They play with choregraphy too. They even played their violins while hula-hooping, and bouncing on balls! Very very impressive!

I found this videoclip of that day's performance online too, that shows a close-up of the group of really young ones (3yrs & above) joining in the performance with some Suzuki pieces. And looking really cool as they danced & performed!


We certainly had a wonderful outing. Ah....and it sure tempts us to put JR to Baby Suzuki Classes like those kids too! *haha*

Charity Dinner

Was performing with the Strings Group in school. I have done this many times before, but this time, it was quite a task as I had to work the practices with the Group around Baby JR's schedule.

And on the night of the performance, we had to bring the little baby along. I planned the whole day's schedule so that hopefully baby would not be too cranky at night. It was somewhat "risky" to bring him out at that time of the night since it was his bedtime.

We did a run through (rehearsal) with the String Boys while there, and then I tried to give JR a good feed before the Dinner started (and hence the performances).

The boys looked really spiffy that evening, all dressed to the nines in their tuxedoes. To have a breastfeeding-friendly outfit, I just wore my black Jean Tank Top inside my buttoned coat & black long pants. That was quite dressy enough. And I could breastfeed baby easily too, as can be seen from the photo!

Aerial III

So comfy sleeping in the baby pouch.

Aerial II

3-month-old baby sitting in the pouch (legs inside)

Tummy Filler

As a breastfeeding mother, I get hungry often, and with an in-arms 2mth-old (ah - JR just turned 3 mths-old yesterday!), it's not always possible to get a more decent snack in between meals.

I've found an oatmeal drink to be a quick & easy tummy filler. Just a few spoons of instant oatmeal mixed with a little hot water, and when oatmeal is well-mixed, I add in chilled soymilk from the fridge. I did say it's to be a quick to prepare item, right? That's why it has to be "instant" oatmeal and not rolled oats (to be cooked), and soymilk is the ready-to-drink kind from tetrapacks or pre-prepared.

Oh, and another good thing about oatmeal? It is good for your milk supply!

Swimming

It was a beautiful sunny afternoon , so JR went for his first swim today!

Ah ... this was BEFORE we stripped him down bare. ;-) He wore a pair of cutesy swim diapers that are available from CLA & Bumwear.

When we first put him into the water, he had this "what is this?" look. But before long, he was kicking away with such intensity, enjoying every bit of the experience! He was so tired out from the exercise that he drifted off to dreamland soon after the swim! Just as well too, as it poured heavily the rest of the afternoon.

Going to Church

As it is every Sunday, we go to Church.

It does tend to be a fairly stressful outing for me as I would always be worrying that the baby might kick up a fuss and cry during service. This is often every new parents' concern. Many new mothers would worry as to whether it is alright to nurse in church too (yeah, it is ok!).

If baby is sleeping and shows any sign of waking, I'd quickly try to nurse him before he starts to cry. On the other hand, if baby is awake and looking around when the service is going on, I'd look out for signs that he is getting tired and needs to nurse to sleep. That's me keeping alert so as not to have baby & me creating a scene in church - baby fussing with his cries and me fussing with trying to latch him on to nurse and quieten him down. Oh well, and there are times when the rocking, swaying, or nursing does not work and baby still wails ..... I'd have no choice but to spend a good part of the service outside pacifying baby JR.

Today, baby was fairly manageable. He was sleeping, waking only to nurse. Whew! (Nursing in my trusty Selina Top and a beautiful silk sling).

Sleeptime Marathon

A coincidence, but he's obviously communicating that it's bedtime!

As with every evening, baby does his Marathon Nursing sessions each night before he finally gets down to rest for the night. For those new mothers, do note, it IS normal for a baby to nurse very frequently and even seemingly non-stop in the evening hours. They are essentially tanking up their little tummies as they ready themselves for a longer stretch of night-sleep.

As the non-stop nursing leaves me rather much an invalid for that part of the day, I would plan not to do much for those few hours.

To cope, I would eat dinner early, bathe quickly and change after an early evening walk with baby and be ready to simply "veg-out" in front of the TV in my bedroom by 7+pm. I would also prepare 2 mugs/tumblers of drink on my bedside table to keep myself hydrated. Then I would just watch TV programmes or read while he nurses. He would usually finally get to deep sleep by 9pm or so. Some nights, it does get quite neverending and last until 10 or even 11pm! Do prepared for this and plan to basically do nothing much but relax at this time of the night when you have a newborn or young baby.

When would a baby outgrown the evening marathon nursing pattern? Seriously, I don't remember. *haha* It will eventually!

Shopping with Baby

Going out to the stores with baby is quite a journey to be planned for. I can't say it's mostly a breeze bc with baby "on" me, usually, I can walk and see the items, but it is rare that I can stand to *study* the items I want to buy. I generally would have to have an idea what I need to get, and then just pluck them off the shelves/racks quickly.

I'd need to allow extra time in my shopping trip in case I need to breastfeed the baby or to change baby's diapers. Believe me, after a 9year gap between babies, I do need to get the hang of nursing in public once again too! I had to think through how I could reach in to undo my bra discreetly but quickly, how to pull down and stretch out my nursing top and latch baby on - again, quickly but discreetly. Initially it was fairly nerve-wrecking. It has become easier with practice. So, for new mothers, trust me, you'll get the hang of it. Practise at home first if you need to! (Here in these photos, I am at Ikea with 2-month-old JR in a Navy Sateen Sling and nursing in a Selina Top)

See how I used the upright side-sitting position to carry JR so he can look around. This is very similar to the Hip Carry position. I have the edge of the sling up to his shoulders/neck for greater support since he's such a young baby.



I'm always happy when a much-needed trip out is at it's end, breathing a sigh of relief.

Here I am back from one such trip.

I was glad to be able to finally be able to fit into one of my favourite tops - the Belle Nursing Top , and after a tiring trip out, I was simply glad to crash out at home with baby nursing away.

MRT Ride

Baby had his 1st MRT Ride today.

We took a 15min walk to the station. Without fail, the swaying motions as I walked lulled him to sleep on the way.

He must've sensed something different as I boarded the train though. He woke and looked all around. Couldn't miss out on all the "action", I guess!

He drew quite a fair bit of attention looking the way he did, peeping out from his pouch!


I'd compromised on "luggage" for this trip since it was a fairly short one, and only used a waist-pouch. Didn't need to bring much for a breastfeeding baby anyway. I realised that I should just have worn my sneakers instead of my sandals so that the walk would be more comfortable.

Anticipation

The look of anticipation as I pick him up to nurse. His cries will quieten to a soft whimper or even stop, while he waits for me to get ready and position him to nurse:

I just had to capture this look!

Business Trip

All cosy, and quite a nuisance in the corporate world nevertheless, but I had to bring my nursing product manager along, yah?

Keeping Hydrated

As a breastfeeding mother, you might find yourself thirstier than normal. Probably hungrier than normal too! It is important to eat & drink to your demand too, just like baby needs his milky when he's hungry.

On hot days, I like to have something other than water to drink, and I find chilled roasted barley tea to be really refreshing. And it's so easy to make. These are usually easily bought from supermarkets that stock Japanese foodstuff. This tea can simply be put into a tumbler and filled with room temperature water and left in the fridge to chill and would be all ready to drink as & when you feel like it.

Another one of my current faves while out (yeah, I get thirsty so often!) is papaya soymilk freeze/shake! The one from Jollibean is Icy Cold with frozen papaya and ice-cubes all blended into a frothy coolant. The Mr Bean version is creamy and filling. Both are tasty, high in vitamin C, and....some mothers claim that it is great for their milk supply. For me, well, I don't see a significant difference in my milk supply since I nurse baby so frequently, and don't often express breastmilk, but it's a wonderful beverage that I love!

Sashimi Pig-Out

Public Holiday! Dh & I went to Ikoi and gorged on sashimi and all our other faves. The different types of fish soup, the fish-head, the rolls, and the tempura.

Dh had toyed with the idea of bringing the carseat. Thankfully I decided against it. I was hoping to get a floor-seated table, but alas, being a public holiday, the place was so crowded although we had a nice, albeit small corner table. But it would not make sense to put a carseat on the floor in such a crowded place. Even a stroller would be at risk here!

JR was cosy in his sling, charming those at the next table for a while and fell asleep for the rest of the meal and all the way home, nursing off & on. Whew!!!! We managed to eat. And JR had delicious fishy milk after. *haha*

It's useful to wear nursing clothes with empire-waistline nursing access when nursing baby in the sling. This day, I wore a Liana Top - another of my favourites as this top is shapely and really flatters.

And for all those sashimi lovers out there - yes, it's ok to for breastfeeding mothers. The main danger is mother getting food poisoning from raw fish. If this happens, this usually stays localised in the gastrointestinal tract and does not pass into breastmilk. Mom might feel mighty terrible though! So do keep to established restaurants for clean sashimi.

Umm-Umm-Ahhh

This 2-month-old loves to mumble, grumble, yabber-jabber - generally quite responsive:

A Cuppa

I like to have my cuppa herbal brew each morning. Not with my breastfast, but generally about 15minutes or so after, as I'm reading the papers, nursing the baby or just getting my things ready for that day. No sugar, just fresh clean & green taste.

I like to make the drink fresh each time instead of a big pot. And I find these fillable teabags that you can buy from most supermarkets very convenient for use with loose dry herbs. I like a thicker brew, so would put 2 teaspoons of the loose herbs in one bag, fill it with hot water from the airpot and leave it to steep for around 10 to 15 minutes.

As for the loose herbs, I like to empty them into an airtight container, as it's easier to scoop the tea leaves from such a container as opposed to the pack that it comes in,

I store my "pot" of herbs in the freezer. Your pack of loose herbal tea leaves come with a pack of food-grade dessicant. Use this together when storing your herbs.


This dessicant pack can be *revived* by just heating in the microwave to dry, and reusing.

Pamper Mom

Yeah, we need to look good too! I would like to do this too! One of you moms sent this photo along to me some time ago. Impressive!

And have heard about so many moms who've just brought their nursing babies along for hair treatments, pedicures/manicures, but oh well, I've yet to find the courage to do so myself!

Kudos to all you brave moms out there! And for those of us (me included), we know, we know...we can do it too...imagining. ;-)

Dining out with Babe

Certainly we'd like to have baby fit our lifestyle instead of the other way around. The only way to do this is just to bring breastfeeding baby with us. Practice makes perfect.

Here are some moms who show how they've done it! Nursing in public during meals out.

I love this photo. It's so natural.


Claudine with nursing baby at a wedding dinner, no less!


With young baby on a mothers' lunch-out at Thai Express.


Dining at Fish&Co, during a World Breastfeeding Week Event.



And that's me, nursing baby ... in a Selina Top & Sateen Sling .....

.............. while enjoying a refreshing dessert!

Flash Ed

Baby's Chinese Language education starts here. Opera, no less. *haha* .

2mo JR was cooing and oohing at the googlebox. Maybe the characters are flashy, eh?

Germs Galore

A big household is the most unhealthy equation, especially for a newborn. Dh had a month-long cough from the time JR was born. By the time JR was 1mth old, he was having a dry cough. It didn't seem to bother him and he had no problem nursing, so we were quite cool about it. I figured that he wouldn't be too friendly with medicine. We still brought him to the clinic just to make sure his airways & lungs were clear, but for added treatment, I decided to try TCM. The 医师 would check baby, then recommends the 推拿 treatment for the ailments he has. They also prescribe herbal packs 药包 for baby to use on his belly.

JR's cough ceased for several weeks, but a week ago, suddenly I heard him coughing in the early morning hours - again!!! *sigh*. He must have caught it from his brothers who were down with flu/fever over the weekend. I brought him to the GP who said once again, that his lungs were clear. So I brought him to 推 again. This time, the herbal packs specifically say for 感冒. He still is his active self, except for the cough and stuffy nose. He still has no problems nursing, thankfully!

Sadly though, the presence of his cough a week on, made me bring him this time to the pediatrician, only to have him tell me the same thing that the GP & the Yishi said. His lungs are clear and he'll be fine since he's fully breastfed. Oh well, thankfully after that, his cough started clearing. He's been alert, active, & nurses with no problems all this while. Shows how breastfeeding helps a young baby weather illness.

When his cough was phlegmy, we helped alleviate the coughing spells by putting him to sleep in an inclined position on a firm pillow. We also filled a sock with some rice grains and had that heated up a little and placed on his chest to help with any congestion.

We also put some Snuffle Babe Vapour Rub on the soles of his feet. Not sure if it's an "urban legend" or not, but it seems to help us when we have coughs, so since baby's feet are covered in his sleepsuit at night and he always wears socks during the day, we just add a dab on his soles for his comfort.

This is where I brought JR:

Traditional Chinese Tui Na Massage (suitable for infants and children):
Yu Guo Chinese Physician Acupuncture & Physiotherapy Pte Ltd
8-B Jalan Masjid #01-04 Kingston Terrace, Singapore 418929 Tel : 64474761 (Behind Kembagan Plaza, near Kembagan MRT. If driving, park at Kembagan Court).
Mon - Fri: (except Wed) 9:00 am - 12:30 pm, 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Sat: 9:00 am - 12:30 pm, 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Sun: 9:00 am - 12:30 pm (Closed on Wed & Public Holiday)

Concert outing

I love going to concerts, and frequently go for both Chinese & Symphonic Orchestral performances with our older children. However, with a young baby, this is just not possible for at least awhile. We took the opportunity instead to go for an outdoor SCO concert at the Turf Club.

We were early. JR took a nap and had his milky. I had the pouch on, which provided extra coverage since I still need to guide JR on the initial latching on as he's still quite a young baby. Wearing a nursing top with an empire-level nursing opening helped with easier access.

He woke just as the concert started. He seemed a little dazed at first but stayed awake the rest of the time, watching, and watching, eyes huge and super *kaypo*...and pooping. *HAHAH*

It was a fairly good outing. Poor JR didn't like the drive home. Must have been past his bedtime. ;( Was wailing the whole journey.

One-Armed Damsel

How does all this "newsfeed" get done if I have a 5-minute-napper?

I have him with me at my workstation! My handphone would be within reach, so's my camera so that I can snap precious moments to share. My files and work samples are closeby too. And interestingly, with the past 2mths' back-to-back revision for school exams, you'd see that there's schoolbooks on my printer. Baby JR then nurses off and on while I put things together. Quite a task when I am often left with only one-hand to use!