6th and 7th Month of Pregnancy

I forgot to post a record of my 6th month of pregnancy. It was very uneventful though. There were no problems and I was feeling great. Enjoying the last month of my 2nd trimester. All that "boring-ness" is now gone. I am now into my 7th month and my last checkup I had to do the glucose tolerance test. Sadly, I failed. My jaw dropped when the nurse said "you're diabetic." I couldn't believe my ears. My last 3 pregnancies were all smooth sailing. No problems nor complications (well, except for retained placenta during birth). Well, I guess this is what happens when you get pregnant at an older age.

Change is never easy. Having to change my eating habits is a great challenge for me. Cutting out rice and noodles is a big adjustment. Especially since it's been my staple food since I was a baby. Now I have to think of healthier food choices - wholewheat bread, high-fiber crackers, no-sugar peanut butter, more vegetables, smaller but more frequent meals, low GI (Glycemic Index) food etc.... My sugar craving is still there. I've had to practice a great deal of will power. No more Ribena and Milo. Only plain water. No more bread with butter and kaya. No more bananas, mangoes and rambutans (okay, got curi-curi eat a bit, but very minimal). Now it's back to apples for me. No more "char kuey teow". Now thinking of the cakes and jelly I'll have to skip during the kids' birthdays next month. I also bought some lemons a couple of weeks ago to make Lemon Bars. Guess that idea has to be thrown out the door. I've also started my morning walks again. They say exercise helps to control the blood sugar level.

Although I'm constantly worried about my condition, this worry is good for me. So, what am I worried about? Well, let's take a look at what complications Gestational Diabetes can bring:

• Since baby has so much sugar to feed on, baby might grow too big. They call it macrosomia. Then I will have problems when trying to give birth. Instead of a normal vaginal delivery, I might end up having a cesarean.
  
• After baby is born, baby may have a low blood sugar level. There is also the risk of breathing problems.
  
• Baby might have jaundice.

Here are some of my other concerns:

• Although gestational diabetes goes away after baby is born, there is no way to be certain that what I have is gestational diabetes. I will have to be tested again 6 weeks after delivery to see if I'm still diabetic. So, is this really gestational diabetes or Type 2 diabetes? There is no way to know now.
  
• If I get pregnant again, it's very likely that I will have gestational diabetes again. I know, I know, some of you are saying, "you already have 4, you want some more babies?" So okay, this is the last one okay (unless have accident-lah).
  
• This increases the chances of me developing Type2 diabetes later on in life. It seems there is a link between the tendency to have gestational diabetes and type 2 diabetes.
  

Although I'm whining about this, it really is a good wake-up call for me. If this is gestational diabetes, then I have to endure this for only another 3 months or so. It's better I start making some lifestyle changes now before I have this condition for life and have to be on medication.

Well, today I have to do BSP (blood sugar profile test). I have to go to the clinic and get my blood tested 4 times - 8am, 12pm, 4pm and 9pm. Before my 8am appointment, I had to fast for 10 hours. The other 3 times, I have to fast 2 hours before. We'll see how today's test go.

On my to do list is going to the hospital to meet with the dietician. That will be good coz' I'm not sure if my diet is correct now. Am I eating enough? Eating too much? Eating the right stuff? Oh, and if you're wondering if baby is a boy or girl..... I DON'T KNOW YET! I'm meeting the doc tomorrow to go over today's BSP results. I'll see if I can get them to do a scan.

Who Says Kids Can't Lie?

Yesterday at church, K and KokoD were sitting in the front row. Me and babyD were sitting directly at the back of them. BabyD feeling a bit restless, snuck up behind jie-jie and poked her back. Of course jie-jie turned around. Immediately babyD pointed to KokoD and said "koko do".

Then, he snuck up behind KokoD and poked him in the back. KokoD turned around and babyD innocently pointed to me and said "mommy do."

Cheeky little fella. Who said kids can't lie?

Kids, Beach, Pool and Swimming

Oooh, it's been a while since I did some digital scrapbooking. Thought I'd give the lazy me a kick in the butt and do one today.

Well, while our American counterparts are starting their summer holidays, we parents in Malaysia have just survived a 2-week school holiday. Kids are back at school again and the noise level in the house is down a notch. The first week of our holiday we spent a night at Port Dickson... courtesy of my mom. We don't go on trips a lot and so I thought it would be a good treat for the kids. Plus, they got to do some bonding with their grandmother.

So, off we go armed with buckets, a plastic spade, swimming floats and a mat to sit on. The kids all ready in their swimming suits, excited and full of energy. I thought we were going to spend a nice evening on the beach, listening to the soothing sound of waves and enjoying the gentle sea breeze. It wasn't even hot out. It was a nice, shady evening. Well, we spent probably 15 minutes on the beach. Yup... around 15 minutes... that's all. You see, we were at the yacht club and they have a swimming pool. The kids would rather enjoy the swimming pool then the beach. In a way, I don't blame them though. Port Dickson isn't the greatest beach around. The water was kinda dark green-blackish. They only went in ankle deep. Even I didn't really encourage them to go in. The water at the swimming pool was definitely more enticing. So, we went all the way to a beach for a holiday, to spend time in a swimming pool. Life is funny.
(Plus, that night was my Desperate Housewives night and right when the show was starting, the tv goes blank on me. Aaargh! Apparently, we share a booster with another room and they must have turned it off, causing me to stare at a static screen. Thank goodness for repeats.)

Anyway, I've always known how much my kids love swimming. I feel bad cause I don't take them to the pool much. Watching my two older kids frolicking in the kiddy pool with floats just didn't sit right with me. So, I finally signed them up for swimming classes. Did a bit of homework and finally settled with Dolphin Sport Adventure at the Panasonic Sports Complex in Shah Alam. It's called "Kompleks Sukan Negara" now. I believe their classes are one of the most affordable ones around.

We've gone for 2 lessons so far. The kids love the idea that they get to swim every week now. Their instructor is very friendly. He seems to handle kids quite well. K is learning quickly. KokoD almost drowned last week. Heheheh. Well, they had to jump from their instructor to the wall. He jumped and didn't quite reach the wall. K said she had to reach in to pull him out. Poor KokoD. He's not so enthusiastic about swimming now. But I know compared to his other 2 siblings, he is the most uncomfortable in the water. I could see that even when he was a baby. So, it'll take him a while to learn to swim. He'll have to get over his fear first.

Anyway, I was watching the instructors a bit when they were having toddler lessons. So, just from observation, here are a few tips.

MAMAS TODDLER SWIMMING TIPS

• Idea is to get your child comfortable in the water. Play with them in the kiddy pool. Splash a round. Part of playing could be to put their face in the water. You could also blow bubbles and have them learn to do the same.
  
• Go to the big (adult) pool. Hold them and bounce them around. You can also let them float, like they are swimming.

Okay, that's not much. I'll need to do more observing. In the meantime, if you have any tips to add, please do so.

Oh, and very important when you take your kids swimming... take a flask of hot drink with you and snacks. They get cold and hungry!

Colic Baby Remedies

One of the things a parent fears and dreads is having a baby that cries and cries inconsolably. We know that crying is the only way baby can communicate their needs to us. But when you are faced with a colicky baby, it's difficult to figure out what that need is.

CLICK HERE FOR AN EXTENSIVE LIST OF COLIC BABY REMEDIES

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I remember one night, when my eldest daughter was still a baby, she just screamed her little lungs out. We carried her, rocked her and did all we could think of to soothe her but she just kept on screaming. In the end, we bundled her into the car and went for a ride hoping that would help. Thank goodness, it did.

Now, let me be clear that she was not a colicky baby. That screaming incident was just a one time thing. But it was enough to give me a glimpse of how a mother with a colic infant feels: worried, helpless, sad and frustrated. If that girl of mine didn't stop crying, I think I would have joined her. I cannot imagine having a baby scream like that for several hours, several times a week for several months. It will definitely drive any parent crazy.

Well, to all parents that are currently trying to survive infant colic, I hope you find that magic colic baby remedy that will stop your baby's colic days fast.

Here are a few ideas that might help:

1. Baby Massage.
   If you believe your baby's pain is caused by gas trapped in your baby's stomach, then there are several baby massage techniques that can help to release the gas. Here are some suggestions:
   - holding the baby's knees, fold it up to the stomach and hold for 15-30 seconds.
   - holding the baby's feet, move the legs in a bicycle motion.
   - bending baby's legs at the knees, cross it and then rock from side to side.
   
   Below is a video on how to do a circular massage on baby's tummy. You'll probably understand better watching a video than me trying to explain how to do it.
   
   
   
   Here in Malaysia, the old folks (and some new folks) highly recommend using YuYi oil. It's a blend of oils traditionally used to rid baby’s stomach of wind. What you do is put a few drops in the palms of your hands and rub your palms together to warm up the oil. Then go ahead and administer the circular massage as demonstrated in the video above.
   
   Did I use YuYi oil for my children? Yes indeed. I'm not sure if it helped to prevent colic. All I can say is that my kids were not colicky (crossing fingers coz' another baby is on the way). Of course, YuYi oil is not available to everyone in the world. But there are plenty of baby massage oils available in the market.
   
   
2. Gripe Water
   This is what our parents and grandparents probably used. But, you have to be careful on the kind of gripe water you buy. There are some gripe water that include artificial ingredients, preservatives, sodium bicarbonate and alcohol. It's important you inspect the ingredients when you buy gripe water. Search out gripe water that use natural ingredients such as chamomile, fennel, peppermint and ginger.
   
3. Baby Wearing
   "Don't carry baby too much or you'll spoil him/her". That's what a lot of well meaning folks tell you. I, on the other hand, will tell you otherwise. If you carry your baby when they need you, they'll grow up to be happy, independent individuals. Of course, your arms will get tired. That's why it's good to invest in a good baby sling. Baby is comforted by your closeness and also the motions of being in a sling. I don't know how those Indonesian maids do it. They just use a piece of sarong and with one hand, tie it into a sling. I had an Indonesian girl I met at the hospital teach me but I wasn't much good at it. Don't know if I was doing it wrong or what but it kept coming loose or it hurt my shoulders. So, unless you are an expert like them, get a good sling that will keep baby snug and your shoulders and back pain-free.
   
   
4. Change Your Baby's Formula
   Some baby's colic may be due to the formula milk they are taking. Some mother's have mentioned how changing their baby's milk to a hypoallergenic formula was the trick to getting rid of their baby's colic.
   
   
5. Rhythmic rocking
   Put a baby in your arms and you automatically start to rock or sway right? Well, here is another way to rock baby: Put baby face down on your lap and gently sway your knees. This may help baby get rid of wind or gas in the tummy.

Ok, if anybody wants to add to the list of colic baby remedies, please go ahead. I'm sure there are lots of desperate mothers out there who will appreciate your input.

Mommy Burnout

It's the school holidays and that means life gets a little crazier for moms. As it is, my kids have been at each others throats since yesterday. Thanks goodness my mom suggested we take a 1-day holiday to Port Dickson. We will be leaving tomorrow. Let them dispense some of the extra energy at the beach.
Anyway, I know mommy burnouts are common. If you are looking for a way to survive your mommy burnouts, check out this guide. Click on the picture below:



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Buy this and you also get access to ALL of the Mom's Talk eBooks Family, Food & Parenting Resources:

1. Guide To Stress Free Holiday Entertaining
2. Guide To Freezing It and Loving It
3. Guide To Organizing Your Life
4. Guide To Stopping Bedwetting
5. Guide To Raising Healthy Kids
6. Guide To Stress Free Easter Holiday
7. Guide To Family Budgeting
   

Need A Facial Assistant?

I bought a facial mask that is clear in color. Directions were to peel it off after it's dried. Well, guess who decided to step in to be my facial assistant?

Funny thing was, I pretended that my skin was coming off. So, as he peeled off the mask, he would ask with a concern look... "mommy, pain?" Hehehehe. Notty mommy! Anyway, he did a great job and look how serious he is at doing the job too.

Mama's Parenting Tip:

1. Try to involve your children in the many things you do.
2. You can play a joke on your children once in a while. But make sure you tell them the truth afterwards and don't hurt their feelings too much. Hahahaha.
   

Used Golf Bags For SALE!

I've got 4 used golf bags sitting in my house. Anybody interested in buying one, please write to me. New golf bags these days are so expensive. So these used bags are ideal if you (or someone in your household) are just picking up the game. I can meet up at PJ, Subang or Bkt. Jelutong to hand over the bag(s).

Here's a little bit about the bags:

1. Black Saujana Bag - 9" opening. Quite heavy and very sturdy. Like a competition bag. Still in pretty good condition. RM150
2. Green bag - 9" opening. Still looks quite good. Not very heavy. RM90
3. Plaid bag - 8.5" opening. Also quite light. Strap is torn (refer to photo below). You might want to change it. RM80
4. Maxfli bag - 8.5" opening. Looks a bit worn but definitely still usable. RM80

Yummy Recipe For Kids:Tau Joo Belly Pork

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Now that I'm back in the kitchen again, thought I'd share this delicious dish with you. It's "Tau Joo Belly Pork". To my Malay readers, sorry "ini tak halal".

At first the idea was to cook "Tau Yew Bak" (Belly Pork in Soy Sauce). But then, I wasn't quite in the mood for that and decided to tweak it a bit and make "Tau Ju Bak" instead.

Ingredients:

• Belly Pork (Sam Chan Bak)
• Garlic - Just peel off the skin, no need to chop up. Cook the pips whole.
• Chinese mushroom - soak to soften. Then cut to smaller into bite size.
• Hard boiled eggs
• Marinate - Soy sauce, dark sauce, oyster sauce, salt, pepper, sugar
• Tau Joo (Fermented Bean Curd)

How To Cook:

1. Marinate the pork for about 1 hour or more.
2. Put little bit of oil into the wok.
3. Fry the garlic for a few minutes, then add in the marinated pork (along with the marinate sauce).
4. Throw in the chinese mushroom as well and stir fry for a while.
5. When pork is about 3/4 done, add 2-3 pieces of Tau Joo and some of the juice too. How much Tau Joo depends on how much pork you are cooking.
6. Stir fry for about 1-2 minutes.
7. Later, add enough water to cover everything in the wok. For me, I like to transfer everything into a pot.
8. Turn the fire down to medium and let cook until ready (45min - 1hr).
9. Last of all, add the hard boiled eggs.

KokoD loved this dish a lot. This was his comment "Mommy, I'm not hungry anymore but I'm still eating because it tastes so nice." He ate 3 helpings of rice for lunch.

My taste buds was also tingling for something a little spicy that day, so I also cooked "Kacang Botol With Sambal Hay Bee" (Four Angled Beans with Spicy Dried Shrimp). Mmmm... Yummy!

Stylin' With Hair Gel

Since KokoD was a baby, his father has been cutting his hair. And it's been the same style of haircut until recently. KokoD no more wants to follow his daddy's and little brother's almost "botak" (bald) hairstyle. The last few times DH took out his hair shaving gadget for a cutting session, KokoD outrightly refused a haircut. His hair has grown out and now he has been trying to get it to stand up.

I'm tickled pink by how vain my little boy is getting. He wets his hair everytime he has a bath just so he can comb his hair up. But of course we know that water doesn't hold the hair up forever, so we finally decided to get him some hair gel. It's funny how he doesn't like the way I style it for him, he must do it HIS way.

My baby with his little "botak" head.

Now my little man, stylin' his hair and all. (Sob, sob). He is not too happy here. First time trying out the hair gel. Couldn't get it the way he wanted. Complained that his hair is a bit too long. Mommy calling him "Mr. Porcupine" didn't help either.

Today seems to be a better hairday. He got it the way he likes. No more complains about hair being too long and sticking out too much. You can tell how happy he is just by the big smile on his face. Father still insists he shave it all off. Sigh!

Do You Know What is "Chee Cheong Pau"?

Sometimes, it's a mystery what BabyD is saying. He doesn't pronounce words very clearly and loves to leave out certain consonants. Well, the other day we were trying to figure out what he was saying. It sounded like "Chee Cheong Pau". Only after he started to sing "Are you sleeping..." did we figured it out he was actually saying "Ding Dong Bell". Enjoy his singing!

Mother's Day!

Forgot to put up a post to wish all mothers, "HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!"

As for me, mother's day came, mother's day went. Nothing special. Went to church as usual. Since I'm in the primary organization (nursery teacher), I helped the kids make some lollipop flowers for their mothers. Two sisters (the primary president and her counsellor) were busy making sure all the mothers would get one, nobody made for them. So, I crafted a few more at home and added some "extras" to the gift.

Grabbed a small decorative cup, added shreded crepe paper and some candy. Stuck the lollipop candy on top.

Recycled a glass jar, had my daughter stick some gold stars on it, added some shreded crepe paper and then threw in some candy. Top it off with the lollipop flower and a carnation.

It's really interesting how I got the carnation. DH is working on a Malaysian florist website and he went over to the lady's (her name is Mei) house to discuss some details. I went along with him coz' he also had other errands to run and it's easier if someone sits in the car so you don't waste time looking for parking. Plus, it was a great excuse to get my Mother's Day treat: Ipoh Chicken Rice over at Jln. Gasing. Anyway, back to Mei's house... She's such a nice lady... She gave me a basket of floral arrangement. And then when we were about to get into the car to leave, she comes running out of the house with a box of Ferrero Rouche chocolates to give BabyD because she said he was so good to wait for his daddy. Nice lady huh? I forgot to take a picture of the flowers but it was Geberas and Carnations. If you want to see her wonderful floral masterpieces, go to her website -- http://allcoloursflowers.com/
At the moment there's only one link to "Mother's Day" flowers. There are more products coming up. DH and me are working on the site and will be uploading the new pages soon. If you are looking for floral gifts, do look for Mei. Once again, she's such a nice lady! I'm sure you'll be happy doing business with a nice lady :)

Okay, so what did I get my mom? Well, I haven't gotten it yet but I know she likes the solar garden lights I have in my garden. I'll be getting a few for her as her Mother's Day gift.

As for my kids, my daughter made me a Mother's Day card. Errr... that was it. I guess mommy is special to them everyday so Mother's Day is no biggie. Heheheh. Yeah, that's what I like to think :)

5th Month Of Pregnancy

Last check up, weight has gone up another 2kg. I'm now at 69kg. I'm eating like normal again and have been thoroughly enjoying the mango season. I'm also back in the kitchen cooking. Skills are a bit rusty but children have yet to complain. (They don't dare. Muahahahaha. Just kidding). The energy is back up again. I'm not pooped out after doing laundry and preparing lunch. Still need my afternoon nap though.

The weather has been crazily hot but I think my heat generator is also on overdrive now. Even though today was cooler than other days, I was still sweating and feeling like I was being BBQed. I'm so hoping I win an air-conditioner from the LG Life's Cool contest over at The Star Online. I have an aircond in my room but using it will drive my electric bill up the wazoo because of a compressor problem. So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed. DH said we have to live prudently. I agree BUT this is a NEED, not a want. Pregnant ladies have special privileges don't they? Sigh!

My stomach is now the size of a little watermelon. I can still wear my rubber-waisted house pants but have to pull out the maternity dresses for church. The tummy is not as big as it can be yet but I'm already finding it a tad difficult bending down to put on my pants. Great excuse to get my kids to do things for me. Hahahaha.

It was such a relief to hear the baby's heartbeat during my last check up. Once again the nurse tried with one of those doppler gadgets. She did take a while but we found it. I've also felt baby move more often now. Nurse's advise before I left -- drink milk! Not just any milk but those specially for expecting mothers. I'm not really a milk drinker and I didn't really bother much with it with my last 3 babies. Nevertheless, I am being obedient and got myself a packet of milk for pregnant ladies.

Well, the 2nd trimester is suppose to be the best. I totally agree! I'm at 20 weeks now, so I'm half way there. Don't know when the doctor will scan again coz' I'm eager to know the sex of the baby. People have been asking too. Which do I prefer? I have no preference. As long as baby is healthy and obedient, I will be happy!

A Parent's Dilemma In Getting Children To Study

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Once again the school exams are coming up. How are your children with studying? As for me, I'm sought of in a dilemma when it comes to getting my daughter to study. I don't want to be a nagger, but I also don't want to neglect my role as a parent.

It would be easier if our children naturally had the knack for studying. Life would be blissful if they would hit the books without us saying a word. Unfortunately, my daughter has inherited my bad qualities of procrastination, sleeping in, and wasting time. Her type is the "play first, work later" kind. She really has a carefree life, and I'm not sure if that is a bad thing or not.

Anyway, below are some of our parenting dilemmas when it comes to our children's studies:

• Like all parents, I also want my children to excel. I know my daughter is quite smart. Not a genius but at least have the ability to be somewhere near the top of her class. Afterall, one of the reason I'm a SAHM is so I can give them the best nurturing. So, all that nurturing should bring about some good right? Plus, she is only in Std.2 and in a kebangsaan (national) school. We all know that the education level isn't as high or as tough as the chinese school. And the stuff she is learning is nothing new to her as I've taught her most of it before. SO, expecting her to pass with flying colors is really reasonable. It is within her capabilities.
  
  BUT THEN...
  
  We all know it's not very healthy for a parent to put too much expectation on a child. It might put too much pressure on them or make them despise school and learning. You don't want them to feel that they are a disappointment or a failure. That would just hurt their self esteem. The previous school exams, I kept reminding my daughter to study. But I didn't sit her down and force her to do work. I wanted her to learn that the results she get is directly related to the effort she puts in. I wanted her to learn that excellence is HER decision, not mine. Well, her results came in and some subjects were good and some were not. She had done better before. I asked her if she was satisfied with what she got, and she said "yes". So now, should I be happy that she is satisfied even though she could have done better? Or should I harp on the fact that her easy attitude had yield average results? "Should I set the expectations for my children or let them set their own expectations?"
  
  
• When I was growing up, my mother left me to do my own studying. Fortunately for her (and for me), I was self motivated when it came to studying. On the other hand, I know some of my friends' parents watched them like a hawk. As parents, there are two ways to approach our children's studying:
  1. Encourage self motivation and self learning.
  2. Hold their hand, push/force/coach them to do the work.
  
  Of course if you ask any parent, the first approach would be the ideal. The second would require much effort and discipline on our part. Would you like to know which is the right way? Or are you more interested in which way works? The right way doesn't always work and the one that works isn't always right. Hope I haven't confused you yet:)
  
  Let me elaborate further...
  
  I think most of us will agree that self motivation and self learning is the right way. Afterall, if they are going to be successful in life, the drive has to come from within. One day, they are going to leave us and will have to take care of themselves. If we don't teach them to be independant now, what's going to happen to them in the future?
  Unfortunately, leaving our children to do their own homework and studying doesn't mean they will do it. We might end up having to meet the teacher to explain missing/undone homework or see a lot of red marks in their report card. Worse if our children are being hit on the hand for work not done correctly (yes, we all know it's happening in the chinese schools). So, now self motivation may be the right way but may not work for the child. We know that some children really need to be pushed and closely monitored. They won't like it and you also run the risk of making them hate school. BUT that may be the only way to get decent, if not good, results. Also, there is the argument that young children need the discipline and guidance. They are new to school and exams and need someone to teach them how to revise and prepare. Like a baby who is just learning to walk, you hold their hands until they are steady and can walk by themselves. So, the coaching and "hawk eye" may be necessary for self motivation and self learning to take place later.
  
  So what is our parent's dilemma? Figuring out if our approach is going to benefit our child or if it will make matters worse. Like with my daughter, I don't want to push her too much and cause her stress. She might rebel instead. But I'm afraid if I don't push her, she will just take things easy and not live up to her potential. Plus, every child is different. What works for one parent will not necessarily work for another.
  
  
• Then there is the fact that straight A's on a report card doesn't guarantee a child's future success or happiness. There are so many aspects to intelligence, not just maths or science. Your child's talent may not lie in academics. If that's the case, why worry about what position they are getting in class? Why have such a narrow vision on your child's ability? Plus children may be late bloomers. I know I didn't start getting good results in school till Std.6. Maybe my daughter is the same? Plus, the fact that I was good in golf did not show up in my report card.
  
  BUT THEN...
  
  We also know that good results in school may be necessary to further other interests. For example, my good results earned me a scholarship so I could pursue my golfing interest overseas. So yes, a report card does not reflect your child's true talent but unfortunately the system is such that good grades do get you a little further in life. So, what is our dilemma? To worry or not to worry?

I guess when it comes to our children's studying, the tough part is finding a balance! To expect but not expect too much, to push but not push too hard, to be worried but now worry too much. Aiyayayay, if only we could see into the future to see what fruits our parenting methods will yield.

Top 10 Reasons eBook Marketing Rocks

When I wanted to learn how to do business online, I chose to sell children's books. Although it was fun to shop for the books and I believed I was helping many mother's out there, it turned out to be an unlucrative business. Of course if I had the capacity to expand the business as big as Amazon, then maybe it would have been worth my efforts. But I'm just a SAHM trying to earn some extra bucks. It turned out to be too much work and not enough pay. Anyway, I don't regret doing it. It was my "learning lab". My online bookshop is still around, but rather than sell physical books, I'm now selling e-books. My target are still parents and include topics such as parenting, education, work from home, home management and personal improvement.

Why the change?
Well, one of the main things is that it allows me to own an international business. A business that is not confined by geography. If you sell physical products, your main target would be those around your locality. Selling to oversea clients is still possible but shipping is usually a pain.

eBook marketing is one of the most lucrative ways of making money on the Internet. It’s inexpensive to get started, there is minimal upkeep and the profit margin is huge. Whether you want to earn an extra few hundred dollars a month, or make a full-time income online, eBook marketing can be just the ticket.

eBooks are easy to create, sell and deliver and services like Mom PLR eBooks make it even easier.

If you are wondering if you should venture into eBook marketing, read on to find out the top 10 reasons eBook marketing rocks:

1. eBooks are popular.

Despite the so-called economic downturn, the demand for eBooks continues to increase. According to the International Digital Publishing Forum, sales of eBooks in the United States increased, from US$8 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 to over $17 in the last quarter of 2008. There’s no doubt that the demand for eBooks is high.

2. eBooks are easy to write.

You don’t have to be an expert or a writer to create and market your own eBooks. In fact, you don’t have to write them yourself. Services like Mom PLR eBooks create the eBooks for you, and all you have to do is to market them (and Mom PLR eBooks makes marketing easier, too).

3. eBooks are “green”.

Because eBooks are digital, they don’t require paper, ink and fuel to print, store and ship. This makes eBooks attractive to consumers, who are becomingly increasingly concerned about the environment.

4. eBooks are inexpensive to produce.

Because there’s no printing involved, all you need to produce an eBook is software to transform the text file into a PDF. This software is bundled in Mac computers, if that’s what you use, or is available inexpensively for Windows users. Plus, it’s super easy to update an eBook and make it more current, and you won’t be left with stockpiles of old or obsolete versions. That said, if your customers want a printed version of your eBook, you can easily make it available as well through print-on-demand services.

5. eBooks are cheap and easy to store.

If you were selling physical books, you would have to think of where to store all your stock. You could keep them in your house, or pay for storage space elsewhere. With eBooks, all you need is web hosting, which you can have for as little as $5 a month (and getting even cheaper). Plus, you don’t have to worry about protecting stocks from dust, rain, mold and rodents.

6. eBooks are free and fast to deliver.

You can “deliver” an eBook to your customer as quickly as you send Email. This is a big advantage, especially to customers who need to have the solution to their problems right now - like the Mom who is up at 2 am wondering how she can get her baby to sleep through the night.

7. eBooks can be consumed “on the go”.

Everybody’s so busy running around nowadays, and we like being able to bring information with us wherever we go. With a digital book reader or cell phone, your customers will be able to bring their eBooks with them anywhere. They’re much less bulky than printed books.

8. eBooks can be transformed into other information products.

From a marketing point of view, each eBook is a potential gold mine. You can: split it up into articles, short reports, or eCourses. You can transform it into audio and video. You can use it to provide regular content in membership sites. Or, you can combine individual but eBooks into “the ultimate resource” for your niche. As a member of Mom PLR eBooks, you’ll get a 5-day eCourse, newsletter topic ideas, and more tips for using and marketing your monthly eBook.

9. eBooks make it easy to cross-sell and upsell products.

A really cool feature of eBooks is they allow you to hyperlink to websites. This means you can add affiliate links to products or services that are relevant to the eBook’s topic. You could also link to other eBooks that you sell, including higher-priced products and continuity programs. This is why some marketers make money from giving away eBooks.

10. eBooks are interactive.

eBooks are going high-tech! You can now add audio and video files into them. You can insert a survey form that the reader can instantly submit via the Internet. All this makes for a richer experience with eBooks, which is sure to make them even more irresistible to consumers.

In short, eBook marketing is one of the easiest ways to earn passive income online and Mom PLR eBooks makes it even easier.

Click here to try Mom PLR eBooks. Use coupon code “10 off” to get $10 off your first month of membership.

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• Marketing to Digital Moms: How To Reach Out To Today's Tech-Savvy Moms (mamasbagoftricks.blogspot.com)

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Sports Day 2009

Sports Day - A day that's full of fun. That's how I remember it when I was in school. I was always active in sports. My main event was the high jump. But besides competing and winning medals, I loved the thrill of cheering for my teammates and friends.

Unfortunately, my idea of sports day has changed. Now, it's a time to be roasted in the sun. This year was the second time of attending the sports day at my daughter's school. But this year, KokoD was also involved as the preschoolers also get to join in.

The preschoolers are wearing orange T-shirts. See my poor little boy roasting in the hot sun, waiting for their turn. This 'kan-cheong' mommy standing close on stand-by with big bottle of Isotonic drink and hat.

See, his hair already turning brown colour. Hahaha. Actually, his hair is naturally brown. I don't know why. But I'm sure the sun just made it more light brown.

Their sports day is stretched over 2 days - Sat and Sun. Saturday is more for the younger primary children (Special Ed. class, Preschool, Std 1-3). They have the 50m or 80m dash and also "sukaneka" (fun team games) such as balancing a ball on a spoon, throwing bean bags, filling up bottles with water etc.... Sunday is when they have the relay races.

Well, this year K is again running the 80m individual race. I told her to tell her teacher we are not available on Sunday, so no relay races for her. Definitely learned my lesson after what happened last year. Last year, her event was the last on the agenda. We waited for HOURS. In the end, there was a mix-up during the race: Her partner had taken someone elses baton. So, when K got to the pass-off point, she couldn't find who to pass the baton to. She stood there, holding the baton, looking around very confused. In the end, she just passed it to someone from another team. So all the waiting, waiting, waiting ended up in a lousy ending. I wanted K to experience the fun and thrill of Sports Day like I remember it. Unfortunately, it wasn't very thrilling for her.

Well, this year is another "fantastic" experience. The kids have been practicing for their sports day in the hot sun the entire week. Friday night, K develops a fever in the middle of the night. Saturday morning I gave her some fever medicine and told her if she don't feel any better, tell the teacher that she can't run. I kept checking on her before her event to see how she was and she said she's fine. Well, guess what happened as she was running the race? SHE FELL! The poor girl. I asked her why she fell? She said she was trying to run faster. Well, this is my little analysis: her body is already weak, so when she try to run faster her body cannot keep up. Hence, the dust eating episode. Poor girl had sand in her mouth when she crossed the finish line. Thank goodness she didn't hurt herself. So again, another lousy sports day ending for K. Well... maybe not entirely. Her team took first place in the "sukaneka" event.

"Wah, so many gold medals for me????"

KokoD on the other hand had a better outing. He ran the 50m dash and took 3rd place. Even the "sukaneka" events, there is no loser. Everybody wins a medal, even if your team was last.

Who can spot what's wrong with this picture? Look at the colour of the medals closely. KokoD is standing in 3rd place but his medal is silver. Aiyoh, lucky this is not Olympics man!

In the end, what is the result of Sports Day 2009? SICK CHILDREN!!!! The heat these days is so terrible and the kids had to roast themselves the whole week. K had fever, followed by KokoD and BabyD. Now, DH also not feeling well. What to do? Just keep giving medicine and chase them to keep drinking water. So, where's the excitement of Sports Day??? Sigh! Sadly, it is no more.

BUT, I did learn one thing.....
You can turn a chair upside down and turn it into a garbage bin! And I literally had to go back to school to learn that. Hahahaha.

Mamas Parenting Tips for Sports Day:

• Always arm yourself with 1-2 big bottles of water, hand fan, umbrella, hat and some food when you attend Sports Day. Oh, of course don't forget your camera.
• Expect to wait, wait and wait. Very rarely do these things start on time.
• Don't take toddlers or babies along. If you can, leave them home. Not only is it too hot for them, they will not have fun there.
• You don't have to confine yourself to the spectators tent. Well... not in my case. I was like a mother hen making sure my children didn't "pengsan" (faint) or something.
• Bring a book/magazine to read or something to do because you're going to be waiting, waiting, waiting. I think I cannot mention the "waiting" part enough.
• When you go home, have a goooood rest in an air-conditioned room. Aaaaaaaahhhh.

Supermummy Amazing Blogger Award

Malaysian Supermummy is hosting the first Supermummy Amazing Blogger Award and I'm one of the nominees. What does that mean?

I NEED YOUR VOTE!

(Just click on the banner below. You'll be taken to the Malaysian Supermummy website. Nothing to fill out. Once click, your vote is already recorded. Contest ends 30th April 2009)

Well, am I really a supermummy? I think we all are in our own ways.

How about an Amazing Blogger? Well, not as amazing as some other mommies but I'm trying my best. I share my experiences and hope it enriches someone. Of course I am also trying to make some pocket money online. But until I get a 4 figure check in my mailbox every month, I'm still short of Amazing!

Anyway, let me just list a few things about me (related to supermummy) so you know who you are voting for:

• Have 3 children and all delivered without anesthetics. Ouch!
• Breastfed all 3 (for 1-2+ years) coz' didn't want to spend extra money on formula milk. Oh, and of course breastmilk is best! Hahahah.
• Still moping wee-wee off the floor.
• I'm very thankful if I only have 1 basket of laundry to do a day.
• I'm an advocate of child labor - what I mean is I make my children do house chores.
• A strong believer that we should constantly read books to our children.
• Gave up my good golfing track record to raise this family BUT I don't regret it. I'm waiting to join the senior tour. Hahahah.
• I can breastfeed a baby, stop WWIII (it feels like that when siblings start to squabble) and blog at the same time. I'm sure you can do this too. Its just something every mother is equipped with. After that we need to give ourselves a break so we don't succumb to mental breakdown.
• I hide from my kids when I eat ice-cream, sweets and other junk foods. We're not suppose to let them eat too much of these unhealthy foods right?

Ok, so that's a little about me. And because I know you're going to vote for me (heheheh), I'm giving you a heartfelt "thank you" gift. It's a free e-book called "HEALTHY SNACK AND MEAL IDEAS FOR YOUR WHOLE FAMILY". Just click on the title to open the file up or right click and select "save target as" to put it straight into your hard drive.

This free-ebook is only available until the 30th April, which is also the date the voting ends.

REMEMBER!

VOTE FOR ME!

CLICK ON THE BANNER!

4th Month of Pregnancy

Morning sickness is over. YIPPEE! I'm eating better and have a little more energy now. Last check up at the clinic, I put on about 3kg. I'm now 67.4kg. This little baby likes spicy food. I've been enjoying Tom Yam noodles and anything with sambal. It's funny I never ate spicy food growing up. Now, I love it! So, what do you think? Spicy baby means boy or girl? Hahahaha.

I'm still eating apples like crazy. And must have my mint sweet after meals too. I find that I can't eat much even though I now can eat. I'm get bloated easily and feel like I'm having indigestion. I guess baby is getting big and that means less stomach room. Which is sad coz' the other day we celebrated the Relief Society Birthday at church and the food was super yummylicious -- the lamb was tender, the sauce tasted great, the mash potatoes with gravy was heavenly and the teriyaki chicken was to die for. I wanted to eat more but was not capable anymore. Sigh!
(By the way, the Relief Society is the women's organization in my church and it's now 167 year old. It's one of the oldest and largest women's organizations in the world.)

When I was at the clinic for the checkup, the nurse used a doppler device to hear the baby's heartbeat. Unfortunately, she couldn't detect it. Then she asked if I've felt the baby move. I answered "no". This all got me a bit worried. I mean, no heartbeat, no movement... WAH, is baby ok? BUT the nurse didn't seem worried and just said, "maybe too early." Checkup was last week and I was around 16 weeks preggy. Did a little research on the internet and read that you can pick up a baby's heartbeat from 10 weeks onward. But some could only detect about 15-18 weeks. So the next checkup, I should definitely be able to hear it.

About feeling baby move, I think I felt something a few days after the checkup. It was like little bubbles popping. I quickly called kokoD to put his hand on my belly and he said he felt it too. But I haven't felt anything since. Belly is getting bigger and my bump will start to show through my clothes soon I'm sure. So, that's a good sign that baby is growing.

Summary of my 4th month of pregnancy:

• Increased appetite
• Increased energy levels
• Bloating and indigestion
• Constipation
• Bump beginning to swell
• Already have stretch marks from previous pregnancies.
  
• No matter how hard my kids are trying to hear baby's heartbeat by putting their head on my belly, they can't hear it that way. Sorry kids!
• Maybe felt baby's movement for the first time.
  

Getting Better At Bahasa Malaysia

Image via Wikipedia

Since going to kindergarten and mixing with all the Malay students there, KokoD's Bahasa Malaysia has improved. How do I know his Bahasa is getting better?

1. He uses the word "bodoh"* to scold his sister. (Of course with much disapproval from me!)
2. He will often answer me in Bahasa e.g. "tak mau"*, "faham mak"*
   
3. He diligently memorized the national anthem "Negaraku" and today he was singing "padan muka, padan muka, padan muka"* to the tune of Negaraku. (Errr... no intentional insult to the national anthem, just kids being crazy. Also reprimanded by me already okay. Don't send the police to my house ya.)
4. He comes home telling me about his friends in school which shows there is communication going on. I asked him if they are speaking Malay, and he said yes. I asked if he understands what they are saying, he says yes. I ask if he talks to them, initially he said no. But these days, he says yes.

Note to parents:

• Kids pick up a lot of bad language in school. Even though I'm happy KokoD is picking up the language quickly, not everything he is learning is good.

Translation for non-Bahasa speakers:
*bodoh = stupid
*tak mau = don't want
*faham mak = I understand mom. Teachers usually repeat this phrase in school "faham tak?" (do you understand?) and the children will chime together "faham cikgu" (understand teacher).
*padan muka = serves you right

How Do You Encourage Creativity In A Child?

I find that KokoD has quite a creative mind. He is able to fill his time with legos, blocks, workbooks, drawing, sometimes reading, computer games, cycling and other stuff without bothering me much. I like how he occupies his time independently.

A friend of mine graciously gave us a set of big blocks and I thought the kids would be bored with it after a while. But they still take it out to play occasionally and haven't abandoned it. KokoD really does a better job than me at creating things. He makes robots from his legos. He made a helicopter and airplane with the big blocks. I caught him making this a few weeks ago:

So, how do you encourage creativity in a child?

• I'm no expert but I believe having time for free play is important.
  
• Also giving them toys and tools that encourage them to create like legos and blocks. Not forgetting making readily available lots of recycled paper, stationary and art materials. I really don't fancy toys that require battery and make a lot of noise.
  
• In the beginning you may have to spend some time teaching them how to play with the stuff. But you don't need to include a whole lot of instruction. Just show them how to work it / use it / assemble it, give some examples to showcase the many possibilities of what can be created, then let them have fun with it. There is no right or wrong. For example, if they color an apple purple, don't tell them it's wrong.
  
• Praise, praise, praise.
• Show your appreciate their creation. I still keep most of my girl's "cards" and mini books that she made for me. These cards and mini books are really small pieces of paper that she took time to write and decorate. After a while, this bunch of tiny papers will look like junk. But she knows I keep them and that is my way of saying "your work is appreciated." Even taking pictures of what they have done is motivation for them. Sometimes they will make something and run to me shouting "mommy, take a picture of this!" Another thing you can do is hang their creation on the wall or stick it up on the refrigerator. Showcase it.
• Allow them to observe what you do. Don't chase them away and say they are "disturbing". Yes, they may be disturbing but they are learning too. One way to make them "less disturbing" is to involve them somehow. So, if you are cooking, maybe let them name the ingredients you are using. If you are folding clothes, give them a hankerchief and let them figure out how to fold it. The trick is to keep them occupied with something related to what you are doing but that will also keep them out of your way.
• Read more books and less television.

Children can be creative if you give them time to be creative. Hope your children are not too busy doing homework or trying to score A's that they have no time to create.

Marketing to Digital Moms: How To Reach Out To Today's Tech-Savvy Moms

Gone are the days when the word "Mom" conjures images of a female who cannot operate the video recorder or navigate her way through the latest video game, and only switches on the computer to send an email to Grandma.

According to a study published in 2009 by Razorfish and Cafemom, up to 27 million (84%) of Moms online are tech savvy. They use Web 2.0 platforms and shop online. In fact, they use communication technology and social media to connect with others, find advice and information, express themselves, do research on products they're interested in, and simplify their multi-tasking lives.

"Digital Moms" have become so dominant on the Internet that the researchers concluded they are not a niche, but are rather the mainstream.

If you aren't reaching out to digital Moms online yet, you might just be missing out on a significant market. Consider these numbers from the United States Census Bureau:

• Women control 80% of household spending. Even if they earn only a part or none of the total household income, women determine how much of the household income will be spent.
• Women do 60% of online shopping. Women do a lot of research online before making a purchase and actually make up more than half of online shoppers.
• Women buy 81% of all products and services. Women shop not only for themselves, but also for the home, family members, gifts for friends, teachers and associates.

The problem is, many online businesses just don’t seem to know what to do when it comes to marketing to digital Moms. They make the mistake of treating all Moms online as if they all had the same needs and reasons for using the Internet. Not true, according to the Razorfish/Cafemom report. For example, younger Moms tend to be more comfortable with social networking and mobile surfing. On the other hand, Moms 45 years old and above gravitate more towards online news, product reviews and podcasting.

What is the best way to reach out to today's digital Moms?
Here are three tips:

1. Provide relevant content. Some of the online Mom's interests depend on what life stage she is in. For instance, digital Moms with young children naturally look online for information about parenting and child health. But there are topics that most digital Moms are interested in, no matter how old their children are. These include fashion and cooking.
   
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2. Be present in the channels digital Moms are using. Again according to the Razorfish/Cafemom study, more than half of digital Moms use email, search engines, social networks, gaming and online news. Emerging channels used by about one-third of digital Moms include online videos, consumer reviews and blogs.
   
   Aside from PLR Ebooks, your monthly subscription to includes a 5-day Ecourse and 26 newsletter topic ideas - perfect for digital Moms who use Email everyday. If you're interested in providing consumer reviews, All Private Label Content includes 10 product profiles reviews every month.


3. Know the particular needs, interests and online habits of your Mom audience. Digital Moms have varying needs and surfing behaviors, depending on their age and their children's ages. The best way to accurately understand your particular Mom audience is to listen to them. Ask your list subscribers what their concerns are. Conduct your own surveys. Hang out in Mommy forums. Pay attention.>/li>

The majority of mothers online are digital Moms. They are tech savvy, smart consumers who make informed decisions when shopping online. They're also online for social networking and even gaming. But they have varying needs depending on their life stage and their children's ages. To market effectively to digital Moms, you need to give them what they're looking for online, be where they are, and pay attention to their needs. Take care of digital Moms and you'll have a profitable online business.

Easter Ideas For Your Family

2 weeks ago we did our Easter party for the children. Almost every year they do egg coloring. This year, the Primary president wanted to do something different and asked me for some ideas. I suggested we put chocolate eggs into a decorated container along with an Easter message and pass it out to friends. So she got some small plastic containers and the children stuck stickers onto it. We put in some colored crepe paper that had been shredded to make it look like a nest. Then added the chocolate eggs on top.
Another craft we did was a lollipop flower. Here is what it looks like:

You can write your messages on the petals making it a more personal gift.

Click here for more instructions on how to make a lollipop flower. You can make this for lots of occasions, not just Easter. I made these for Mother's Day, Valentine's Day and even Teacher's Day. If you are more adventurous, you could try making Candy Bouquets.

Need more ideas for Easter Sunday? Grab these free quick 'n' easy Easter ideas!

9 Simple Ways to Get Your Kids to Eat More Veggies

Image via Wikipedia

More Help Can Be Found At Dine Without Whine

It seems like a never-ending battle with the kids. Although you and I know veggies are delicious and they’re also good for you, they act like vegetables are a plague they want to avoid at all costs.

If you need creative ways to get your kids to eat more vegetables, here are 9 ideas to incorporate into your daily meals right away:

1. Make healthy choices readily available and put the sugary and greasy snacks away. This doesn’t mean totally depriving yourselves of these delightful treats, but making healthy eating a normal part of your day goes a long way to helping kids develop better eating habits.

2. Add veggies like carrots or even asparagus to smoothies. Kids love fruit smoothies and they’ll never know you put in a little of those dreaded vegetables in.

3. Sneak vegetables into other foods. For example: Add grated carrots into spaghetti sauce or make a zucchini chocolate cake.

4. Try dip. You know kids love to dip everything. Just make sure they know they have to eat the dip stick and not just lick it!

5. Take your kids shopping with you. Let your child pick out a new vegetable in the grocery store that they’ve never tried. Then prepare the vegetable together.

6. Be patient and consistent. Avoid having a tantrum yourself when your child has a tantrum about vegetables on their plate. Sometimes it will take several times of serving the same food before your child is even willing to try it.

7. Make it artistic and fun. Place veggies into a smiley face on your child’s plate or decorate a pizza with them.

8. Let them choose: raw or cooked. Some children may have a definite preference as to whether their veggies are cooked or raw.

9. Plan your meals. Sometimes it’s easy to forget the veggies when you don’t have a plan…allowing your kids to get into the habit of veggie-free meals. Plan your meals and grocery lists in advance, so you won’t come up short on the greenery.

To make your meal planning a whole lot easier, sign up for you 1 ¢ no-risk trial at Dine Without Whine. They put together your weekly dinner plan and even make a quick and easy printable grocery list for you.
Click here to get started

Family Outing to FRIM

This is about our family outing to FRIM (Forest Reserve Institute of Malaysia) during the last school holidays. We wanted to go somewhere near and cheap - so FRIM was the right choice for us. The day was really quite interesting and at the end, there were a lot of "thank you"s to say to Heavenly Father.

First of all, the car tyre was flat even before we left the house. DH managed to replace it. About 10 minutes into our journey, there was a weird sound from under the car. It was getting louder and clearly, something was wrong. DH said maybe it was the car's arm coz' the mechanic did say it needed changing. We turned around to go home. Poor KokoD was really disappointed. He was looking forward to playing at the waterfalls.

The car was getting difficult to maneuver but we managed to get home all right. The moment DH got down from the car, he figured out what was wrong -- he hadn't tightened the nuts on the wheel when he changed it. He couldn't tighten the nuts when the car was jacked up. He was going to do it after he lowered the car down. But the kids were being noisy (as usual) and he claimed to be distracted (as usual), and so forgot to proceed with the tightening. Soooo, we got those nuts tightened and off we went again.

First stop at FRIM was to go look at the huge Toman fish they were rearing at a pond. DH said there was an 8 feet Toman but we didn't see it. I think the biggest we spotted was about a 4 footer.

On the bridge looking for the elusive "monster" Toman.

Then off we went to the waterfalls. We picked a spot towards the bottom of the falls because K had scrapped her knee earlier in the week and couldn't walk properly. (In fact, she was hopping on 1 leg the whole week, like she was suffering from a broken leg. But that is another "dramatic" story). So, there was no way we could climb higher.

This looks like a nice place but it's too high for K to climb.

Here we are at the lowest part of the falls.

BabyD at first complained that the water was too cold. He chose instead to help himself to the goody bag. This boy just loves to eat. Throughout the day, his hobby is looking for things to eat.

But eventually, he found his way into the water and enjoyed himself thoroughly. They splashed around for about an hour or so. When they declared they were ready to call it quits, DH made a surprising discovery as he was helping them get out -- SNAKE!


Yes, lurking nearby under the rocks was a black and yellow snake. That just made getting out of the water a speedier process. No one got hurt (including the snake). We cleaned up at the public toilet nearby and headed to look for a place to eat lunch. KokoD was a bit traumatized... actually not really traumatized but quite disturbed. He kept saying "stupid snake, stupid snake." In the end we had to tell him we were kidding just so he would stop saying "stupid snake."

GRATITUDE LIST FOR THE DAY

• DH didn't give up on the idea of going to FRIM even when he saw the flat tyre (and that his mood didn't turn black as thunder.)
• We didn't get into an accident because of the loose tyre that was wobbling all over the place as we drove.
• That the snake didn't decide my kids look like yummy lunch or decide to join in the fun.
• I didn't get morning sickness while we were out (but crashed on the bed when we got home).
  

London Bridge Is Falling Down - New Version

This is KokoD's version of the nursery rhyme London Bridge is Falling Down:

London bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down,
London bridge is falling down,
My fat lady.

Build it up with iron balls, iron balls, iron balls,
Build it up with iron balls,
My fat lady.

3rd Month of Pregnancy

I'm already a little past the 3rd month of pregnancy but the morning sickness is still around. It's not too bad during the day time but I really get uncomfortable in the evenings. At least I'm hardly puking anymore. Energy level is still down. Doing a little bit of work still exhausts me. If I need to do anything, it has to be in the morning. That's when I feel the most normal.

Eating is still a big problem. Gone is my appetite for noodles like "Chee Cheong Fun". Now, the only thing that strikes my fancy are sandwiches: chicken ham- a slice of cheese- pieces of apple, tuna in mayo-scrambled eggs-pieces of apple.

I was eating a lot of oranges last month. This month, the fruits of choice are watermelon, plums and apple. The mango tree at the back of my house started fruiting. What good timing. I managed to pull some down (while getting bitten by some angry red ants) to make 3 jars of pickled mangoes. Aaaah, a pregnant women's dream food.

I don't know what kind of mangoes they are but they are not that sweet. Anyway, I pluck them green so I have sour mangoes -- just nice to be pickled or to eat with rojak sauce. To pickle it is very easy. After cutting it up, I just rub them with salt. Leave it on for a while. Then I add on lots of sugar and put them into jars. After 1-3 days, you will see the mangoes give off some juice. So, don't need to add water or anything. This is how my FIL did it, so I just follow his method. I'm sure there are other ways to pickle mangoes.

Last checkup at the clinic, I lost 2kg. I'm now 64.2kg. I've not been below 65 kg for a looooong time. I'm sure I will start piling up the weight once I get my appetite back. I'm soooo looking forward to eating curry mee.

The tummy seems to be getting a little bigger. I haven't felt baby's movement yet. Hmmm... when do you start feeling the baby move? Pregnant for the 4th time and I still don't know this fact. Hahahah.

Baby Milestones: 27 Months Old

I guess I shouldn't call these posts "baby milestones" anymore coz' BabyD is really more of a toddler now. It's been a while since I've done an update on him so I'm sure I'm going to leave something out. Well, these are some of his latest developments:

• He still isn't speaking very clearly, so he still gets a lot of puzzled faces from us. Most of the time we only hear the vowels in the words. For example, "orange" becomes "o-in". But the important thing is that he is trying to speak and is now able to string 2-3 words together. You just need to have a mother's ears to interpret what he is saying. Actually... let me rephrase that... you need to have MY ears coz' I think other mother's won't get what he is saying either:)
  
  
• He likes to count. I'm surprised that he can count from 1-12 and not miss a single number.
  
  
• He still loves to read books. I now leave out the last words to the sentences in the book and let him fill in the blank.
  
  
• He is pretty good in playing matching games. He can identify which pictures are the same. I will sometimes do activities with him to match shapes, colors and alphabets. I played a memory game with him -- you know, picture cards that are laid face down and you try to pick 2 that look the same. I was surprised that he could remember where some of the pictures were.
  
  
• He is now a computer addict! I introduced him to starfall.com a few weeks ago and now he is hooked on it. After 1 week, he learned how to navigate the mouse. He now will move the mouse and click the images on his own. His favorite alphabets would be "T" (that's where the choo-choo train is), "A" (coz' he loves the dancing astronaut), and "Z" (coz' it's got that catchy "zig-zag" song).
  He can even do some of the activities on the website. For example, there's one where he has to put the capital A in one basket and the smallcaps A in another. He gets it done with 100% accuracy. And for the letter T, he has to identify which of the 3 letters don't make the /t/ sound. He gets that right too. Okay, I'm sorry if I sound like I'm bragging. Really, that is not my intention. I'm just always amazed when they learn things so fast.
  
  
  Even though engrossed with the computer, he still can take a break and give mommy a pose for the camera. Now a pose means saying "cheese" and making the peace sign.
  
  
  
• He is totally weaned off breastmilk. I decided to do it 1 week before Chinese New Year. I tried using the chilli sauce trick but it wasn't very successful. I also tried the "nen-nen is injured and have to put a bandaid" trick (which worked for KokoD) but that failed too. So, I had to use the cruel method - just refuse to give in. Sigh! Stressful I tell you. Sometimes I would be able to distract him with other goodies like juice or biscuits. If he was sleepy, I would bargain and say I would sing him to sleep instead. I must say, he is really a good little boy and give in to some of my bargains. Unfortunately, bargains don't work at 4am. Mommy and daddy just have to endure the angry screaming. Poor neighbours too. Thank goodness we didn't receive any complains. I would say his early morning protests lasted for about 2 weeks? Or maybe it was 1 week but felt like more. Hahahah. Anyway, it just goes to show that there is no one way to wean a child. I had to do it differently for all 3 of mine. You just need to find a way that is suitable for the child.
  
  
• We are still working on the potty training. There are still plenty of accidents. A successful day depends heavily on our memory to remind him to go. And though he will tell you that the toilet is the place to poo-poo, I still need to catch the little grunts that indicate there is some "big business" going on.
  
  
• He is very thoughtful and quite well mannered. If you do something for him, he will immediately say "ta-too" -- that means "thank you." One night, he laid his head on my tummy. After a few seconds, he got up and looked at me. Pointing to my tummy, he said "ba-bee? Uack, uack?" He was concerned if he slept on baby, I would feel like vomiting. Hahahah. Now that is consideration I wish my other 2 kids would practice a little.