Xavier been moving about his playmat pretty fast, zooming from one end to the other end when he sees his target, which usually is his mirror. But he seems to be doing so only with one leg pushing (the other leg kicking air). Hope he install "twin turbo" soon and use both legs.
Below is a video of what I mean, although he was not in a mood to show just how fast he could move till nearing the end of the clip.
Wednesday, 12 August 2009
Monday, 10 August 2009
Xavier is changing infant-care center
Xavier is currently in an infant-care near our place. The main reason for choosing that infant care is due to convenience (since its just across the road), the flexible opening hours (up to 9pm at night) and its very reasonably priced.
I had known this infant-care center was a basic needs center where they will feed the baby, change his diaper when its full and put him to bed. I also thought since the baby is still young, he would not be needing to learn much anyway. Well I was totally wrong. Xavier seems to be very bored at the center with little stimulation. In fact, I suspect he is on the bouncer from the time we bring him there to the time we pick him up. That center is so small he doesn't even have the space to crawl and explore. The only time he gets to practice crawling is when he is at home with his playmat.
Hence we decided to look for another infant-care center that has the space for him to crawl and move around and where the teachers would stimulate the little minds (be is singing, story-telling, flash cards, exercise, massage, what have you).
So we went to check out four infant-care centers during one of the days we were on leave. On the list are Sunflower Baby House, Cherie Hearts, Babies Inc. and Pat's School House Baby Haven. We were unimpressed by Babies Inc. and Cherie Hearts but Cherie Hearts is a franchise so different centers might different in experience.
Sunflower Baby House came highly recommended by Eric and Elsie as their son is in there. And needless to say we were equally impressed by the facilities in the center and by Angela (the business manager). She is very detailed in her explaination of the facilities and the programs the baby would go through, she was also very willing to share with us her knowledge as a parents of three kids. Xavier had just caught the cough then and she told us of the clapping method to help loosen the phlegm which was what the physiotherapist did when Xavier went for his Chest Therapy at Mt Alvenia. This center ranks top on our list and the only reason why Xavier is not going there is because of the location. Its located at Turf City. Believe me I have spent a few nights thinking of the best logistics solution to put Xavier there but in the end, its just not feasible.
Pat's School House Baby Haven is a branded center. Many parent who have considered infant care or child care center would have heard of them. They have set a high standard in terms of facilities and programs as well as price. The center has facilities for activities for both indoors and outdoors and the programs seems very engaging. We seen a teacher telling a story to a few infants and was pretty impressed. The location is definitely more manageable than Sunflower since its beside KK Hospital. We had somewhat set our mind on this center when my colleague suggested we have a look at Learning Vision.
We checked out Learning Vision on a Saturday. The facility is pretty big (for a CBD area center) but the programs ain't as impressive as Sunflower or Pat's. It was a Saturday so we didn't see the teachers in action. The whole place is centralised air-con so it might not be such a good thing for babies (I mean letting babies be in air-con room for half a day almost everyday is not such a good thing right?). But in the end, we decided to put Xavier here. The main reason is to balance the need for Xavier to be stimulated and engaged in activities in a center which has the space and the facilities for him to move about and explore, and the convenience and sanity of the parents.
We hope the center would be a good choice for him. I will update again when he starts in the new center. For now, I will be working on sleeping earlier and waking up earlier as soon I would need to drive the whole family to CBD and park, all before 7am every day (my car is a off-peak car).
I had known this infant-care center was a basic needs center where they will feed the baby, change his diaper when its full and put him to bed. I also thought since the baby is still young, he would not be needing to learn much anyway. Well I was totally wrong. Xavier seems to be very bored at the center with little stimulation. In fact, I suspect he is on the bouncer from the time we bring him there to the time we pick him up. That center is so small he doesn't even have the space to crawl and explore. The only time he gets to practice crawling is when he is at home with his playmat.
Hence we decided to look for another infant-care center that has the space for him to crawl and move around and where the teachers would stimulate the little minds (be is singing, story-telling, flash cards, exercise, massage, what have you).
So we went to check out four infant-care centers during one of the days we were on leave. On the list are Sunflower Baby House, Cherie Hearts, Babies Inc. and Pat's School House Baby Haven. We were unimpressed by Babies Inc. and Cherie Hearts but Cherie Hearts is a franchise so different centers might different in experience.
Sunflower Baby House came highly recommended by Eric and Elsie as their son is in there. And needless to say we were equally impressed by the facilities in the center and by Angela (the business manager). She is very detailed in her explaination of the facilities and the programs the baby would go through, she was also very willing to share with us her knowledge as a parents of three kids. Xavier had just caught the cough then and she told us of the clapping method to help loosen the phlegm which was what the physiotherapist did when Xavier went for his Chest Therapy at Mt Alvenia. This center ranks top on our list and the only reason why Xavier is not going there is because of the location. Its located at Turf City. Believe me I have spent a few nights thinking of the best logistics solution to put Xavier there but in the end, its just not feasible.
Pat's School House Baby Haven is a branded center. Many parent who have considered infant care or child care center would have heard of them. They have set a high standard in terms of facilities and programs as well as price. The center has facilities for activities for both indoors and outdoors and the programs seems very engaging. We seen a teacher telling a story to a few infants and was pretty impressed. The location is definitely more manageable than Sunflower since its beside KK Hospital. We had somewhat set our mind on this center when my colleague suggested we have a look at Learning Vision.
We checked out Learning Vision on a Saturday. The facility is pretty big (for a CBD area center) but the programs ain't as impressive as Sunflower or Pat's. It was a Saturday so we didn't see the teachers in action. The whole place is centralised air-con so it might not be such a good thing for babies (I mean letting babies be in air-con room for half a day almost everyday is not such a good thing right?). But in the end, we decided to put Xavier here. The main reason is to balance the need for Xavier to be stimulated and engaged in activities in a center which has the space and the facilities for him to move about and explore, and the convenience and sanity of the parents.
We hope the center would be a good choice for him. I will update again when he starts in the new center. For now, I will be working on sleeping earlier and waking up earlier as soon I would need to drive the whole family to CBD and park, all before 7am every day (my car is a off-peak car).
Thursday, 6 August 2009
Baby Tips 1: Useful Items
Quite a number of friends around me are going to be first time parents or are already parents of a newborn. Xavier is going to be 6 months old in two days time. So I thought I share with you guys some of my experience as a father of a 6 months baby. Do note that I am no expert and the following are thoughts from my personal experience.
I will start of with baby items which are useful:
1) Guardian Underpads - These are waterproof sheets which comes in very handy to contain the spillage or soiling. They come in two sizes: 17" x 24" and 30" x 30". We usually stock up on the 17" x 24" (they seem to be out of stock when we most need it) as we find the size very handy. We use them on changing tops, lay a sheet when we are changing outdoors and let him sleep with the sheet on the lower half of his body. I even used it to put in between a towel and my sofa when I did his naked portraits. It has saved me from dealing with a mess when his diapers fail to contain his output.
2) Pigeon Baby Wipes - This one needs no introduction. One of the popular wet wipes in the market, it does its job well. Wait for offer then buy the 6 large packs for maximum value.
3) Desitin Creamy - The only napper rash cream I trusted and used so far. It helps prevent and heal diaper rash really well. Like recently he had a very red ass from the infant care (dunno what they do there) and we used it extensively over the weekend to help heal it. I literally cream his rash area like icing on a cake.
4) Combi Nail Cutter - We tried a few baby nail cutters before Elsie recommended we try this curved scissor by Combi. The curved shape ensures you do not end up cutting the baby's finger by accident.
5) Beco Baby Carrier - Not everywhere is stroller friendly and there will be times when you prefer not to use a stroller. That is when a baby carrier is useful. Lilian had tried those sling type before but found the strain on the single shoulder too much to bear (especially when Xavier is nearly 10kg). She narrowed down to two which she finds useful, Beco Baby Carrier and Ergo Baby Carrier. Both are similar in that the baby is in a natural sitting position when carried and it distributes the weight between the shoulders and the waist. We settled for Beco as it enables transfer of the baby (from one parent to another) without taking him out of the carrier.
6) LG Baby Playmat - These colourful playmats are developed by LG Chem. Its great as it is cushioned and very colourful, so it becomes a very good play area for the baby. Especially useful for the baby to roam and discover how to move and crawl. Babies need to learn and practice how to move and crawl. It doesn't suddenly just wake up one morning and start crawling. So you need to give him the space to "practice". The link is actually a vendor whom we found from the Singapore Motherhood forum. The design and pricing are available on the link as well as how to order.
7) Attractive toy - Ok this is really subjective but the bottomline is find a toy that your baby really likes. For Xavier, it happens to be the Lamaze First Mirror Lilian bought for him. He loves this mirror so much that you can put it anyway on the mat and he will crawl to it (and attempt to eat it. Maybe he find himself too irresitable). This mirror has been his main crawling "training" tool.
8) Hand me down clothing - The 1st six months your baby is gonna grow so fast there is no point buying him nice clothes. Ok maybe a couple for special occasions but the rest of the time, try to get hand me down clothing. They are soft (due to repeated washing) and very comfortable for babies.
9) Thermometer - Get one which gives you fast and accurate reading. Eric and Elsie gave us the Braun ThermoScan Ear Thermometer and it works great, plus the ear filters are also easily available. Baby have no patience for you to put those under the armpit or in the ass thermometers.
10) Rechargable Batteries - With a baby around you will find that suddenly you will have many stuff around you that uses batteries. Things like fans, cot mobiles, toys, rocker that plays music all uses batteries. And if you want to save money in the long run and be more friendly to the environment, use recharable batteries. I use Sanyo Eneloop. They have cool adaptors which converts their AA size batteries into C and D size batteries.
Hope you find the above items useful as well.
I will start of with baby items which are useful:
1) Guardian Underpads - These are waterproof sheets which comes in very handy to contain the spillage or soiling. They come in two sizes: 17" x 24" and 30" x 30". We usually stock up on the 17" x 24" (they seem to be out of stock when we most need it) as we find the size very handy. We use them on changing tops, lay a sheet when we are changing outdoors and let him sleep with the sheet on the lower half of his body. I even used it to put in between a towel and my sofa when I did his naked portraits. It has saved me from dealing with a mess when his diapers fail to contain his output.
2) Pigeon Baby Wipes - This one needs no introduction. One of the popular wet wipes in the market, it does its job well. Wait for offer then buy the 6 large packs for maximum value.
3) Desitin Creamy - The only napper rash cream I trusted and used so far. It helps prevent and heal diaper rash really well. Like recently he had a very red ass from the infant care (dunno what they do there) and we used it extensively over the weekend to help heal it. I literally cream his rash area like icing on a cake.
4) Combi Nail Cutter - We tried a few baby nail cutters before Elsie recommended we try this curved scissor by Combi. The curved shape ensures you do not end up cutting the baby's finger by accident.
5) Beco Baby Carrier - Not everywhere is stroller friendly and there will be times when you prefer not to use a stroller. That is when a baby carrier is useful. Lilian had tried those sling type before but found the strain on the single shoulder too much to bear (especially when Xavier is nearly 10kg). She narrowed down to two which she finds useful, Beco Baby Carrier and Ergo Baby Carrier. Both are similar in that the baby is in a natural sitting position when carried and it distributes the weight between the shoulders and the waist. We settled for Beco as it enables transfer of the baby (from one parent to another) without taking him out of the carrier.
6) LG Baby Playmat - These colourful playmats are developed by LG Chem. Its great as it is cushioned and very colourful, so it becomes a very good play area for the baby. Especially useful for the baby to roam and discover how to move and crawl. Babies need to learn and practice how to move and crawl. It doesn't suddenly just wake up one morning and start crawling. So you need to give him the space to "practice". The link is actually a vendor whom we found from the Singapore Motherhood forum. The design and pricing are available on the link as well as how to order.
7) Attractive toy - Ok this is really subjective but the bottomline is find a toy that your baby really likes. For Xavier, it happens to be the Lamaze First Mirror Lilian bought for him. He loves this mirror so much that you can put it anyway on the mat and he will crawl to it (and attempt to eat it. Maybe he find himself too irresitable). This mirror has been his main crawling "training" tool.
8) Hand me down clothing - The 1st six months your baby is gonna grow so fast there is no point buying him nice clothes. Ok maybe a couple for special occasions but the rest of the time, try to get hand me down clothing. They are soft (due to repeated washing) and very comfortable for babies.
9) Thermometer - Get one which gives you fast and accurate reading. Eric and Elsie gave us the Braun ThermoScan Ear Thermometer and it works great, plus the ear filters are also easily available. Baby have no patience for you to put those under the armpit or in the ass thermometers.
10) Rechargable Batteries - With a baby around you will find that suddenly you will have many stuff around you that uses batteries. Things like fans, cot mobiles, toys, rocker that plays music all uses batteries. And if you want to save money in the long run and be more friendly to the environment, use recharable batteries. I use Sanyo Eneloop. They have cool adaptors which converts their AA size batteries into C and D size batteries.
Hope you find the above items useful as well.
Saturday, 1 August 2009
Xavier's First taste of Pumpkin
As Lilian starts to introduce new food to Xavier every week, she got a tool to help with mash the stuff so she dun have to pound it. When she took out the U-Like Blender, it looked like one of those retro blender, bright orange with a transparent top. She also got the "Baby Cubes" to store the mashed stuff for the rest of the week.
So this week's menu is Pumpkin. Lilian usually do not like pumpkin, but somehow she could not help herself to the warm tasty pumpkin while cooking it for Xavier.
Xavier was pretty receptive to it.
But boy it was a messy food to feed. He would have his hands over the spoon and his mouth, then proceed to touch his toes. Lilian probably used half a box of tissue to clean him while feeding him. Look at that innocent face with the pumpkin "lipstick".
He was eating big mouthful of it happily till he almost choked. Thinking it was too thick, we diluted it slightly and also gave him some water. After that he just had the disgusted look on his face and refuse to eat more pumpkin. Thinking he wasn't that ready yet for pumpkin, I told Lilian maybe we try again tomorrow.
While it turned out he had poo in his diapers and was damn uncomfortable, hence he didn't feel like eating (I can imagine why). So after cleaning his butt and changing the diapers, he happily finished the rest of the pumpkin. Good job my boy.
So this week's menu is Pumpkin. Lilian usually do not like pumpkin, but somehow she could not help herself to the warm tasty pumpkin while cooking it for Xavier.
Xavier was pretty receptive to it.
But boy it was a messy food to feed. He would have his hands over the spoon and his mouth, then proceed to touch his toes. Lilian probably used half a box of tissue to clean him while feeding him. Look at that innocent face with the pumpkin "lipstick".
He was eating big mouthful of it happily till he almost choked. Thinking it was too thick, we diluted it slightly and also gave him some water. After that he just had the disgusted look on his face and refuse to eat more pumpkin. Thinking he wasn't that ready yet for pumpkin, I told Lilian maybe we try again tomorrow.While it turned out he had poo in his diapers and was damn uncomfortable, hence he didn't feel like eating (I can imagine why). So after cleaning his butt and changing the diapers, he happily finished the rest of the pumpkin. Good job my boy.
Reventón is here!
Lamborghini Reventón. Many people would have heard or seen a Lamborghini. It's a pretty common sight at Raffles Place area (man where do these people get so much money?!?). But not many people heard of Reventón. And who would blame them, given that only 21 were made (and none in Singapore).
What made this car so unique is the design of the whole car, which was inspired by the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor. From the paint work to the strong styling to the aircraft cockpit like dashboard and display, this is one unique car that one might not be able to own even if he has money to buy.
Well I dun have the money to buy even the steering wheel so the closest I could get to was an Autoart 1:18 die-cast model. When Jacky emailed that the new stock for it is in, I went down that very day to buy it. Below are some photos I took (more at my Flickr).
I am satisfied with the attention to details by Autoart. Jacky prefer the MR version (which is limited to 500 pieces and are already sold out), but that brand of handmade die-cast is out of my league.
What made this car so unique is the design of the whole car, which was inspired by the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor. From the paint work to the strong styling to the aircraft cockpit like dashboard and display, this is one unique car that one might not be able to own even if he has money to buy.
Well I dun have the money to buy even the steering wheel so the closest I could get to was an Autoart 1:18 die-cast model. When Jacky emailed that the new stock for it is in, I went down that very day to buy it. Below are some photos I took (more at my Flickr).
I am satisfied with the attention to details by Autoart. Jacky prefer the MR version (which is limited to 500 pieces and are already sold out), but that brand of handmade die-cast is out of my league.
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