How To Start Caring for Your Hamster

Buy a plastic easy to clean cage with round edges on the inside so that it's safer and even easier to clean. I recommend Habitrail OVO Suite.

One hamster per cage, please. Hamsters are solitary animals. Try not to pair them unless you really know what you're doing.

When bringing her home, be careful not to shake the box too much. Quickly assemble and get her new home ready. If possible, put in a little bit of the original bedding from her old cage at the pet store to help her feel secure.

I found a really good bedding. Ground walnut chips! They're not dusty (which I really hate in other types of bedding), and they last longer. Ours last almost two weeks before we need to change it.

Hamsters want a quiet safe corner to sleep. Put some light bedding in her room. I use the shredded paper variety (store-bought).

Never wake a sleeping hamster. Leave them alone if they are not in the mood to play.

To familiarize her with you, just put a piece of sunflower seed on your palm then put your hand gently in her cage. Let her climb into your hand voluntarily. Never grab at them. Never speak too loudly. They are easily startled if you do. I guess it's hard being a really small animal.

Do not buy cheap hamster food that looks colorful but not natural. Buy one that contains lots of oats, some sunflower seeds and corn. Just buy one mixed bag is enough. They don't really need much treats. But buy them some pieces of wood like apple orchard chips or branch. They love to sharpen their teeth on those.

If your tap water is not drinkable, better fill their bottle with boiled water or mineral water.

Why i love iPad2

1. Zero power up time. No need to restart like your laptop.
2. Super thin and light.
3. Super connection (for 3G).
4. Nice apps for toddlers.
5. It comes in pink!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad2

Feeding Herself at 23 months

Babies grow so fast! Emma is 23 months. Almost two years old!

It's like only yesterday we brought her home from the hospital.

She is a BLW baby. She started eating solids only at 6 months old. Never cereals or porridge in those early days. But big chunky finger shaped steamed vegetables or fruits. She can suck all the goodness out of fresh fruits and veggies, mushrooms, even steak cut into strips! She had been loving life because of it. I never had to force her to eat her meals!

At one year old, she started to grab the spoon and feed herself, copying us. Then she also tried her hand at chopsticks. She never poke her face with it. She can gauge the distance from the spoon/chopstick to her face. Because she is used to feeding herself.

It was so delightful to see her eat by herself everyday three times a day, seven days a week! Sitting with the whole family, having a peaceful meal together.

Whether it's at home our or outside, she sits by herself and eat by herself without too much interference from us. She even joins the conversations with us.

I wish every baby could have such a wonderful weaning experience! Instead of force feeding with a spoon and swallowing mashed food.

If you are looking for the best way to wean your baby, read the latest book on Baby Led Weaning. I hear the new edition is even better because it comes with recipes! I might buy another one myself.

Just want to praise the Lord for my baby.

Psalm 100

A psalm. For giving grateful praise.

 ¹ Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
 ² Worship the LORD with gladness;
   come before him with joyful songs.
³ Know that the LORD is God.
   It is he who made us, and we are his^[a];
   we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

 ⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
   and his courts with praise;
   give thanks to him and praise his name.
⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
   his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Footnotes: a Psalm 100:3 Or and not we ourselves

BLW Checklist

Baby-led weaning is the best thing for our baby. I really do believe that. I feel sad when I see children being spoon-fed. Because actually we rob them of the joy of touching and eating food just the way it is.
Emma never had any mush, or mashed up food (except when it is supposed to be mashed like buttered potatoes or rice porridge). She is healthy, chubby and loves mealtimes!

I'd love to share some of the things you might need to go on the BLW journey:

• Invest on an easy to clean, sturdy highchair. Don't take one with intricate nooks at the bottom or on the legs. Imagine yourself pouring a bowl of spaghetti down the top. If you can clean it reasonably well, take it. Here's a link to the Gulliver ikea wooden chair that Emma uses.
• Always spread enough old newspaper underneath. You'll never know.
• Have lots of non-moisturizing baby wipes handy.
• Clean the surface of the table before eating. Foods always manage to escape the plate and into her mouth. Use anti-bacterial wet wipes, or just regular baby wipes mentioned above.
• Use a disposable table mat when outside or in a restaurant if possible. If not, just wipe as you would at home. Unless you are at a food court.
• Clean fresh fruits or vegetables thoroughly in running water before giving it to her.
• Always be positive and praise her eating. Never scold her for spilling food when she didn't mean to. Just enjoy our time with her and try to let her be as much as possible. Don't wipe her face all the time.
• Remember to start only when she is 6 months old.
• Remember that her main food is milk (breast or formula). These mealtimes with you is PLAYTIME until she turns one year old.

honey for a child's heart blog!

http://tumblon.com/honey

I stumble upon this wonderful blog by an author that I consider my 'mentor' in reading books to my son!

I read her book 8 years ago when Nathan was still two years old.

Many a wonderful daily reading cuddles later, Nathan is now an avid reader. (In fact we've had to pry away books from him because it's time to eat, or study, or sleep!)

I've always loved books but her Honey For A Child's Heart taught me principles of reading and sharing books with my family. Thank you, Gladys!

In her blog you can find book recommendations, and wonderful insights on all time favorite books for all ages.

Countless times I've copied her list of books for the young from her book to look up in our local library or bookstore. My son always loves it ( I also read them to kids when I volunteer as reader at the library). And always, I love them, too!

Not all books are equal. Read only good books. Especially to our children.

happiness is Watching your baby devour food with gusto!

BLW works!

Emma is now 7 months old. She's eating all kinds of stuff with us on the table. I'm watching the sugar and salt content, though. She mostly eats steamed vegetables, and grilled meat or pan-fried tofu.

In this photo above, she is munching on a shiitake mushroom, lightly pan-fried with olive oil.

So she could eat spaghetti and meatballs with us. Steak and baked potatoes. Grilled fish with miso. Etc.
She snacks on crackers with soft camembert cheese. Bread with cheese. Steamed japanese sweet potatoes.
She eats tons of fruits and veggies!

She does not choke because we observe what the book advises us to do with her.
I strongly recommend all parents and would be parents to read the book before doing this. Once you get the hang of it, it's so useful!
Our mealtimes is a happy occasion, three times a day!
We must treat meals for her as playtimes, as exploring time, instead of a chore.

Plus, Emma is still fully breast-fed. Thank God for that.

I'm lovin' it.
http://www.baby-led.com/

Going out with baby

Tips on how to always be ready for trips with your baby/toddler:

• Replenish the diaper bag once you get home. Don't wait until your next trip.
• Bring wet wipes, tissue, change of clothes and diaper, bibs.
• Strawberries, apples and oranges are my favorite take out food for Emma because they stay fresh a long time uncut/unopened. We can always cut stuff up with a table knife at the restaurant.

got milk?

http://www.whymilk.com/

As a breastfeeding mom, drinking low-fat milk is my morning routine.
It's a huge source of calcium for my breast milk.

The calcium in fresh milk is the best because it is the easiest to absorp. That's why I always drink milk.
For my bones, and especially, for my baby.

baby-led weaning

http://www.baby-led.com/

I started baby-led weaning (BLW) with Emma about a month ago. She was a few weeks shy than 6 months. What a wonderful thing to see!

At first she just play with the food, feeling the textures. Putting it into her mouth, of course, but we knew she never actually ate it. Until a few days ago when she just turned 6 months. I started to notice her swallowing. Sometimes her face look funny as she experienced the swallowing process. But after a couple of seconds she went for more.

She also looked like she was gagging a few times. Then the food came out of her mouth safely. She was not choking, because choking means no air and so she won't make a sound. The gagging was actually a good reflex that sends the food out. Just like the book (above) says, that the gagging reflex on the baby's tongue is located near the front, not near the throat like adults. Nevertheless, I was holding my breath every time she seemed to be gagging. But tonight, she didn't gag anymore.

I say, what a find this book is!
My family are loving the results of me reading the book. Even the elder brother (10) read some parts to better assist me. We enjoy eating meals together. Three times a day during the holidays because big koko don't have to rush to school.

I get to eat my food instead of spoon-feeding her. In fact the less obvious attention we pay to her, the better for her to enjoy the meal.
In these early days, before she is one year old, meals will continue to be more play and less duty to eat.

I love steaming vegetables for her. Broccoli, snow peas and sweet potatoes are her favorite! As long as they're cut in a shape that will help her hold around that chubby little hand. Also fruits like bananas, apples, pears, whatever we have at the meal, we try to share with her. As long as it is not high in sugar and salt. I gave her slices of hamburger steak and chicken also, when I happen to cook or buy them. She tried a slice of char siew last night. I know I bought it from the food court, but I used my judgment. She loved it. She sucked on it almost the whole time.

Before she turned 6 months, we took her for holiday in a foreign country. We had lunch at the poolside because her brother was swimming. She sucked for 20 minutes on a piece of chicken wing (I took away the skin).
At the breakfast buffet she devoured pieces of cold turkey, salami, cheese and tomatoes. By devouring I mean trying them out, sucking them, gnawing at them, not necessarily swallowing them. Babies get a lot of goodness from sucking it only, anyway.

So it has been a great ride, and a very satisfying one. I knew the great idea of letting the baby feed herself would work and I couldn't wait to try it. But still I am pleasantly surprised that it really worked. It really works splendidly.

Of course the cleaning of the high chair and the surrounding area after every meal is more than usual. But with a 10 year old elder brother at hand, BLW is a lot more enjoyable (wink!). I just invest in a very nice, easy to clean Ikea high chair, and that's it.

Most importantly, Emma enjoys every meal time with us. I could tell she loves discovering the new tastes and textures, not only with her mouth but also with her hands. She's just loving it. She really bonds with the whole family over the meal. Perfect.

breastfeeding

I just love breastfeeding.
I'm told it's really useful and profitable for the baby. It builds her antibody. It is the most easily digested, and will provide everything she needs. She does not even need to drink water as long as she is on full breastfeeding.
Yes, I'm finding all of them quite true and more. The bonding time is priceless.
I love it that I can provide for my baby fully just by breastfeeding. She is 5 months now and perfectly healthy. Growing up so fast, talkative and her hands grasping at everything interesting near her.
WHO recommends that we give the baby solid food only after 6 months old. I'm planning to breastfeed her as long as I can, even up to 2 years.

I'm just so thankful that I can enjoy this period of my life. With my first child I didn't have fun, I couldn't stand the pain. I ended up fully breastfeeding only for 3 months. With this one, I was ready and fully committed to it. So when encountering problems, I did not give up.

My advice to all new mothers is just to commit yourself to it.
Breastfeeding is really the best for our baby.

happiness is Seeing your daughter smile to a picture of shinkansen on the wall

(picture taken from http://digitalcitizen.ca/ with thanks)

When my son was a baby, he loved to look at a pooh plush toy sitting beside his changing table every time he was being changed. I remembered that lesson to heart. Before Emma was born I looked for a vivid picture, maybe in black and white, that might be her company beside her cot or changing table.

At the last minute, I found an old place mat of Shinkansen from my dining room. I almost threw it away a year ago, we've had it for so long.

I'm glad I didn't.

I knew the stark blue on white and the cute smiley face would attract a baby, hopefully would make her feel better during changing time.

I involved the big brother to paste it on the wall beside her changing table. He is now happy that she likes it.

Indeed, it works like a charm !

Emma always looks at the picture automatically since she was a newborn, and now even coos and smiles to it. Countless times we have thanked God for it, because it stops her from crying.

Little shinkansen has really been a comfort to Emma during those dirty diaper times. And a big help to us.

Choo choo!

my Mosaic today

Want to create something like this?

Below are some questions to get you going. Then simply go to Flickr and type your answers into the search bar. From the results, click on one of the pictures that you like most. Once the page with your picture opens, copy the URL. Go to the Mosaic Maker, set up your mosaic, and paste your URLs. Click Create. Easy as that.

What is your first name?

What is your favorite food, drink, dessert?

Where is your dream holiday?

What do you love most in life?

What is your favorite color?

etc.

Have fun and please send a comment to share with me what you've created!

1. Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), 2. text decay, 3. Red sky (north Jakarta dawn), 4. llibreria - bookstore - Amsterdam, 5. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mylittlerascal/171041835/, 6. St. Patrick's Cathedral, 7. Holiday Time in Chicago, 8. Cup of Cappucino, 9. i can taste summer! a.k.a. childhood summer! a.k.a. childhood reminiscence! a.k.a. those were the good times!

Pasta Lee

Our family love a pasta meal. Any aglio olio pasta with no complicated topping. I even get my son to eat vegetables this way.

Here's my trusty pasta recipe. I learned all my basics from Jamie (Oliver, that is)!

Into a pot of boiling water, add some olive oil, salt, and your favorite pasta (spaghetti and penne pictured). Let boil gently for about as long as the packet tells you (8-11 minutes).

Give or take five minutes before the pasta is ready, heat up a pan with some olive oil. When it's hot, add sliced garlic until fragrant.

Put in sliced sausages, sun-dried tomatoes or cherry tomatoes, sliced mushrooms, asparagus or arugula/rocket leaves, chilli padi; whatever you want. Sprinkle some dried oregano, dill, a pinch of salt and crushed black pepper.

When the pasta is al dente (not too soft, not too hard especially in the core), pour most of the water out of the pot. Then season the pasta with a splash of olive oil, oregano, salt, and crushed black pepper. Mix thoroughly.

Remove the pan from the fire, and dump the pasta into the pan. Mix well.

Serve.