What is my Breastfeeding Secret ?

This post is specially dedicated to my cousin sister Chris who is expecting her baby in Aug and my 2 BEST of friends Mei and Yen who are expecting their baby in Sept and Oct. For me, I was very fortunate to know a good friend who has given me a lot of motivation, encouragement and support during the early confinement weeks. KC - a BIG thank you for that !! Now its my turn to pass along my sharing with all my mommy-to-be and also the daddy-to-be friends.

When I was pregnant, I keep on asking friends about breastfeeding because I wanted the best for my lil baby. I keep on remembering the phrase that Josie told me "Breastfeeding is the most time consuming thing in the whole wide world, but it is worth it".

I have to admit breastfeeding at the beginning is indeed the toughest thing to do right after the delivery of a baby. After delivery of a new born baby, our body is going through a major restructuring of hormonal changes and this experience could be overwhelming for some mom. Some of us may experience "Baby Blues" or Post Delivery Depression. I remember that that time was quite difficult for me as our mood swing due anxiety and lots of things to worry about.

Here are a couple of things to take note to be successful in breastfeeding a newborn:-

#1) First Feeding is very important. The colostrum has high concentrations of nutrients and antibodies. IT is also high in carbohydrates, high in protein, high in antibody and low in fat (as human newborns may find it difficult to digest). Newborns have very small digestive systems, and colostrum delivers its nutrients in very concentrated low-volume form. It has mild laxative effect, encouraging the passing of the baby's first stool, which s call meconium. This clears excess bilirubin, a waste product of dead red blood cells which is produced in large quantities at birth due to blood volume reduction, from the infant's body and helps prevent jaundice.(This part is taken from Wikipedia, I did not write this :P)

#2) Supply & Demand. The economic theory of supply and demand is the only concept that you will need to remember while breastfeeding. The more you feed or express, the more the brain will be programmed to simulated the breast milk (BM) production. It is perfectly normal if your baby request for milk every 2-3 hours. My baby was a small eater during the confinement period and she only consume around 3 oz every 3 hours. This allows me to actually have extra time to express the remain ding using a breast pump. There are 2 reason for that, firstly to simulate more demand so that the production can increase and secondly, to stock some supply of BM if your baby suddenly go through a growth sprout. I remember that the baby will usually go through a growth sprout in the 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. But each baby is definitely unique.

#3) Buy a good breast pump. I have purchased a single Medela Electric for ~RM 350 and have used that during the confinement month. After that, I realize that it is not efficient to express the milk fast enough during the working hours. So after the confinement month, I went out to purchase a double Medala Electric Pump which cost RM 598. The initial investment may be a bit shocking to me as well but I can guarantee you that it is all worth it. For a formula fed baby, the amount of money parents need to pay for the milk powder supply ranges from RM 150 to RM 200 per month and it gets more when the baby is growing due to the increase intake. The initial investment of the breast pump is nothing compared to that. Some moms prefer to use the single pump from Avent which has been said to have very good vacuum. But the disatvante of the single pump is it will take longer for each pumping session. Having to work in a hectic organization, expressing 2 times in office is very time consuming. So I finally resort to using the double Medela electric pump

#4) Resting. It is very very important that we get the rest needed. Delivery is a very hectic process for the mom and the baby. So try to get as much sleep as possible. Try to get some sleep when your baby is sleeping too.. It is very much needed to help you to gain the energy for producing the required amount of BMfor your new born. Not forgetting that you will need to wake up in the middle of the night at least 1 or 2 times to breastfeed your baby. So if you can catch any sleep during the afternoon nap it would be good.

#5) Drink more fluid, soup, natural milkmaid organic tea to help boost the fluid in your body. At average, we need to drink around 8 glasses or 2 liter of water a day. As a nursing mother, we definitely need to drink more than that. The Chinese tradition believes that during confinement period, we should be drinking water but need to drink the herbs, red dates, dried longan as our daily water consumption. I was really against this believe and drank the amount of water I needed. Apart from drinking just water, it would be good to drink fish soup as it also contains DHA and Omega to help provide the required nutrition for your baby.

#6) Storing BM. After expressing you need to store the BM in the fridge. The rule of thumb of storing it in the fidge is it can be kept from 3-5 days. If it is being kept in the freezer, then it can be stored up to 3 months. While warming the milk, do not boil it under the fire. All that is needed is to warm it in a hot cup of water of a bottle warmer.

#7) Nipple Confussion. Of course, direct feeding is more beneficial for both the mother and baby. It encourages a lot of bonding between mommy and baby. However, for baby whom are aged below 6 weeks old are encouraged to be fed directly and not to bottle feed so often to avoid the confussion from the baby. Some baby may have a preferance over a method and reject the other method totally. So you will need to select a method which is prefered by your baby.

For the moment, this is what I can think of as a sharing pieces for all of you. I will continue to post more information on breastfeeding and encourage and promote breastfeeding to our babies !

PS: Fathers-to-be, after reading this, please do understand that your wife go through a LOT for your baby so give them all the support and love that is needed.

Baby Crawling contest Emily Won!!

Today, as usualy I went home to my mom's house for lunch and my mom read in the papers about a baby crawling contest in Sunshine Square @ Bayan Baru in conjunction of the 1 Stop Baby Essential Fair. So we decided to give Emily a try to enter the contest.

We went to Sunshine Square at around 2pm and the hall is filled with moms and baby :) Of course, my first thought is "Would Emily be afraid of so many babies?" "Is she going to be able to crawl on the stage" and many many more. To my surprise, she was not shy at all !! Here are some of Emily picture after we put her on the stage. Emily immediately started to crawl to the middle of the stage while the other babies are just sitting at the side.
In no time, Emily was already socializing with some other baby on the stage. See what she did removing the "R" from the floor mat (Thats what she do everyday on ours at home :P) She is definately the baby in Spotlight as she was wearing the CUTE Drybees Pink Retro diaper (to go with her pink skirt). A few mommy even come over to ask about that !

At 2.30pm, the organizer passed us 1 piece of Pet Pet disposable diaper and requested all moms to change their baby to wear the Pet Pet disposable diaper for the contest. Well, of course, all of the moms put their baby on stage and started to change them! I actually need my sister's help to change Emily as she is such a wriggly baby.

Emily was the 1st 2 baby that was put on stage for the contest. My hubby was with her on one end of the floor mat and I was on the other hand waving a "CD" at Emily (thats the secreat of her victory). We just don't know why Emily loves CD's compatred to the other Fisher Price toys.

Below is the Video of Emily speed when she was crawling from one end to the other end. In only 8.6 seconds !!

Of course, after that, none of us actually thought that she would have a chance to win the competiton as there are more than 26 babies there. So we just waited for the whole session to end.

There were around 5 consolation prices and after the 2nd winner was announced my sister said to me "Angie, Emily is going to be the winner". I was not able to believe it but the MC made the annoucement and it says " The Winner of the Baby Crawling Contest is Emily Ooi" . OMG we were sooooooooo proud of her !! Or rather we were so proud as parents ! Our 11 month old baby is the winner of the Baby crawling contest !!

Look at the proud Mama and Papa on stage receiving the 1st Price.

Now, I have 3 packets of XL disposable diaper.. what am going to do with that ?? Hemmm.....

What's your past time?

Some like to fish, some like to swim, I like read books and watch TV.
Do you know what my Hubby's with his favorite past time is ? Check out his video below..

Breastfeeding 101

Making The Breastfeeding Decision : 8 Reasons to Consider Breastfeeding

Still not convinced breastfeeding is right for you? Here are eight more important medical findings you should consider.

1) Breastfeeding could increase your baby's intelligence level. Researchers in one study followed a group of babies into their teens and 20s, documenting intellectual development and cognition along the way. The result: Babies who were breastfed were simply smarter.

2) Breastfed babies have better pain relief and less stress. In one study, doctors found that both crying and "grimacing" -- expressions of pain and stress -- were dramatically reduced in babies who were breastfed, compared to those who were not.
Heart rate was also lower in breastfed babies, even when subjected to stressful or painful medical procedures. What's more, researchers report that preventing stress in an infant's early life may have positive benefits on how important brain chemicals are processed later in life, which may in turn help him or her better cope with stress and anxiety.
The American Academy of Pediatrics also points out that breastfeeding during a painful procedure for baby, such as a needle stick, provides pain relief.

3) Breastfeeding can help your child build better bones. That means your child will develop a stronger skeletal frame. Doctors in one study showed that at age 8, children who were breastfed three months or longer had a stronger bone density in their neck and spine than those who were breastfeed less than three months, or not at all.

4) Breastfed babies get plenty of cholesterol. Compared to baby formula, mother's milk is packed with cholesterol. And while that's not so great for adults, cholesterol for babies is needed for proper growth and development. Some research shows that the high cholesterol content in mother's milk may help nutritionally program a newborn's metabolism in a way that reduces susceptibility to high cholesterol and other dietary fat problems later in life.

5) Breastfeeding may control obesity later on. Research shows how high levels of the protein hormone leptin -- abundant in mother's milk -- influences a baby's growth and body composition development. Ultimately this can affect an infant's ability to be satisfied by food and the ability to self-regulate caloric intake. The end result: Breastfeeding may help your baby control weight and protect them against obesity later in life. Other studies show that breastfed babies also generally have lower insulin levels, which in turn can also help control obesity.

6) Breastfeeding may mean less risk of asthma. If your baby is at risk for asthma or other respiratory ailments, breastfeeding may offer some protection. A group of Australian researchers found that breastfeeding had a protective effect against asthma even when the mother herself had this breathing disorder. In another study, doctors found that even a few short weeks of breastfeeding following birth offered some measure of protection against the development of asthma.
7) Breastfed babies have stronger immune systems. Because your breast milk contains an array of disease-preventing immune factors, doctors have long known that nursing can protect your baby from a variety of illnesses. Recent studies show that protective effects of breast milk may be permanent. Even after baby is weaned, the immune system remains stronger than in infants who were not breastfed.

8) Breastfeeding cuts the risk of allergies. If you're looking to protect your baby from multiple allergic diseases, including allergic rhinitis or even atopic dermatitis, breastfeeding can do it. Researchers found that babies who were breastfed exclusively during the first two years of life were less likely to have any of these problems.

Taken from Web MD. Published September 29, 2003. Medically updated May 2005.

Reason why Mom's choose Cloth Diaper

Recently, more moms are moving over to Cloth Diaper as opposed to Disposable diapers. Below article has been taken by Susan Doak from Baby By You on the top 10 reason why mom choose cloth diaper but

I can tell you at least 5 reason I move on to Cloth Diaper:-

1) Ease to use. My mom don't have to wash and fold at least a dozen of lampin every 2 days. Both my parents are very concern about using disposable diaper, so they both resort to using the traditional Lampin for the past 10 months. Even though Emily can be potty trained and sometimes, she does not even wet 2 lampin per day, my mom still need to wash around a dozen of lampin on a weekly basis. With this cloth diaper, she only need to wash 4 cloth diaper and 5 insert and NO need to fold them. Imagine how much time and effort is saved to do other more productive work.

2) Health. I know that my baby is safe wearing cloth diaper. In the past, during the weekend I use to put on the disposable diaper for Emily because I just can't manage to change the lampin every 30 mins or so. Ended up, she has diaper rash and her skin turn red. When my parents are over my house and see Emily with the disposable, you know "who" gets the comment... With cloth diaper, I know that its not only save but I can kiss the rash and red skin good bye !

3) Save money!! I use to be concern if I put on a new disposable diaper for Emily will she poop on it immediately ? Especially when she is breastfeed, it always happen. ended up, we have to spend a lot of $$ on the disposable. With the cloth diaper, I don't have to be concern if she poop and there goes the Mamy Poko (and say there goes 80 sen). The cloth diaper well taken care off, it can be passed on to my next baby and even to my sis's baby if she doesn't mind :P

4) I am crazy over Cloth Diaper because it is so CUTE !! After I start to purchase a piece of Bumwear cloth diaper, I was so in love with the concept of the product. It leads me to go Google for more information on cloth diapering. After that, another 6 pieces of Drybees!! Sometimes I can't believe why I did not come across the cloth diaper when I went to US and shop for her cloths and toys but I could not find any store that carry cloth diaper. Only recently I know that the profit margin is low therefore it is not always available on a brick & mortar store. If I would have found out about it earlier, I guess I would have even had more fun time dressing up Emily

5) Environment. Of course, disposable diaper is very convenient, you just need to throw it away when its soiled, or change it after 5 hours or so. BUT everyday, when I throw a disposable diaper away I would be very concern about how many trees that I am chopping that day. Most of the time, I throw away 5-6 disposable diaper a day during the weekend, guess how many trees I have chopped down.

Hopefully I m doing something good by sharing the cloth diaper to my family & friends and start converting them :)

Below is the reason given by Susan Doak from Baby By You.

The Top Ten Reasons To Cloth Diaper by Susan K. Dodge-Doak
http://www.BabyByYou.com

#1. Your baby's comfort.
Would you like to wear stiff paper (and/or plastic) underwear 24 hours a day? The comfort of cotton and knowing I was providing the best possible comfort for my daughter was the #1 reason I switched to cloth diapers, and why I still love them so much today.

#2. The environment.
Leave a cleaner world behind for your baby, and your grandchildren. Disposables leave behind an average of 2.7 tons of non-biodegradable waste (not to mention the waste produced by manufacturing them alone) per child. Compare that to a few dozen cotton diapers, and the responsible choice also becomes an easy one.

#3. Save money.
With disposables, some estimate you spend an average of $2000 per child. Cloth compares at only an average of $150-$350 per child (with the added but minimal cost of electricity and water to launder them). What a great excuse to start a college fund for your baby now, and you can rest assure that your money is being well-spent and not going to "waste" in a land-fill!


#4. Potty training is easier, and happens earlier.
It's a little-known fact that cloth diaper children potty train earlier, and with less effort on their parent's part. This has mostly to do with the fact that when a cloth diaper is wet, they can feel the sensation. Chemical laden disposables can feel so dry, your baby never gets a chance to understand what their body is doing.

#5. Cotton diapers are gel free.
Polyacrylate gel in diapers is a relatively new phenomenon, and no one really knows what the long term effects are. It also leaches moisture from your babies skin. Additionally, disposables are full of dioxins. While non-organic cotton cloth diapers can also have dioxins, they typically are washed out within the first few pre-washes (before your baby will ever wear them), however one-use-only disposables are never rid of them. Additionally, and perhaps the most compelling reason to use cloth diapers, is that disposable diapers containing polyacrylate gel are suspected of exacerbating, and even causing, asthma .

#6. Cloth diapers are so much better looking.
Photographers still traditionally photograph diapered babies in cloth diapers, simply because they are so much cuter! Today they are available in as many prints and colors as their are fabrics available, not to mention the combination of choices you have with twill, flannel, hemp, terry and more. Imagine how many classic baby photos would suddenly become less "quaint" with a baby wrapped in a disposable diaper. I prefer to bring my groceries home in paper and plastic, not my baby!

#7. More fun for Mom.
While not every mother (or woman, for that matter) is a born "shopaholic", most moms I know just love how fun it is to shop for cloth diapers. There are unlimited choices today in cloth diapering, like all-in-one, terry, flannel, contour, prefold, fitted and other contemporary-style cloth diapers. And when you are on a budget, swapping is a great, and economical, way to try the latest new "rage" in cloth diapers.

#8. Better cushioning for baby's bum.
We all know that babies and toddlers have their fair share of bumps and spills! Cushy cotton provides a much softer "landing pad" than a flat paper diaper.

#9. Convenience.
Convenience? Yes, convenience! You'll never have to worry about making another late-night trip to your grocery store for a package of disposable diapers.. You'll never have to hold your nose while emptying and re-bagging one of those complicated "Diaper Genie ®" contraptions.. And you'll have approximately two bags less of garbage to haul to the curb every week!

#10. Being a leader is much more fun than being a follower.
Stand out from the crowd and show you care to give your baby the very best, including the way you diaper. It's so much more fun to share the joy of cloth diapering with other mothers (who are usually very curious!), than to waste time clipping the latest coupons for the cheapest disposable paper diaper.

Dinner at Manhattan Fish

The whole family went for dinner last week. Another outing for the Father's day weekend. This was the 3rd consecutive week that we went out for dinner that week.

This time Uncle Kok Wee treat us at Manhattan Fish. We had a lot fried, grill, cheesy and baked fish with lots of chips. We got to keep remembering to take the pics before the meal and not after the meals :)

Crazy about Cloth Diaper

Lately, I have been so into cloth diapering. thanks to a few good friends Sin Dee & Sandra that has shared this wonderful cloth diaper to me and now my Emily has benefit a lot from the cloth diaper.

I have started to fall in love with cloth diaper and starting to recomend this wonderful product to my friends and family. Its such a pity that I only got to know about this after Emily was 10 months old (should have know about this much earlier !)

Here are some of the pics of my cute Emily wearing Drybees Orchid (above) and Drybees Pink Retro (below). Don't you just love the cute prints :)

Sandra is of course the expert in Cloth Diapering and I have learn sooooooo much from you!!. Thank you for sharing the wonderful Drybees information with me and I will pass on this knowledge to my friends and family members.

Emily is a very wriggly baby and trying to get her down tryin to change her diaper is very challanging. The Drybees velcro /aplix makes it much easier to change her and my mom and dad who takes care of Emily during the day can't agree more.

Another picture of Emily wearing Magenta color from Bumwear. She is slighly small size for Bumwear as it is a 1 size diaper.

Taking the pictures of Emily is not easy, we took around 40 pics during the weekend but only a few of them can be used. She is just move too much (like her daddy) !

Fathers Day Celebration

This year is a special year for both me and CK, because we are first time parents and of course, first time celebrating Mothers Day and Fathers Day. CK is going to hear her first "Papapapapa" from Emily for the Father's Day 'gift'.

Emily is starting to babble words like papa (yeah papa first and not mama), ho ho, goo goo, nana dada (yeah still no mama yet) but I am sure that she will learn pick up how to call Mama soon (she is a pretty fast learner).

Here is a pic that we took during our Father's day celebration at the a very famous and recomended Nyonya Cafe called Nyonya Breeze @ Abu Siti Lane. The food there is very delicios but the wait for the food is very long, probably due to Fathers day.

From the pic you can see that Emily is quite tired because we have been taking a lot of picture of her wearing the cute hairband and she is just too tired out of smiling. Its was a fun fun day out as Jolene came back from KL to visit us and of course.

Angie's Blogging

For the first time in so many years, after reading so many blogs, Angie's blogging now.
The main motiviation is to keep all updated about my dearest baby girl's progress and also the big and small stuff that happens in my simple yet not that boring life :)

Happy Blogging Angie !