by Aquiwee
I have recovered from my very first fever and I'm back to my usual up and bouncy self.
Here I am with my fascination with our heatpump and my mom's phone....
Monday, August 17, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Aqui's First Fever
Ronnel, Aqui and I survived our very first emergency moment. Aqui had a fever (nearing 39C) the morning after her vaccination. Even though we were prepared for it, nothing can prepare you for the anguish and near-panic you'll feel when you see your child burning in fever and pain. I'm just so thankful that Ronnel and I didn't panic and had the sense to check our "What-to-do-in-case-of-fever" references. We put off giving her medication (the GP prescribed one in case the fever doesn't go away). After a few hours of cooling and feeding her, her temperature went down to 37.5C which was great news. She was still very grumpy and cranky. Her cries were still of pain. I noticed that her cries were of a different decibel than her usual cranky-"I'm-bored" cries. Last night, she was a whole lot better and was even smiling and playing with us. I couldn't help but get up every hour or so last night to make sure the fever doesn't come back. This morning, she was her usual playful self. Her cries were back to normal and she was starving. We're staying home today as well to make sure she's 100% recovered. I'm sure God will understand if we miss church today.
Here she is with her very first fever.
Here she is with her very first fever.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
3 months and Aquiweefied!
Aqui is now 3 months old! Weeee! Time does fly so fast, doesn't it? I still haven't fully internalized that I'm a mommy now. hehe. Sometimes, I feel this is all a dream, that I have been blessed with a little angel but whenever she starts to coo, smile and poo (!), yup, I know this is for real.
Immunisations Again
Aqui got her 3-month immunisation shots this afternoon and as expected, it pained me to see her undergo such pain. This time, Ronnel was there to experience it with me. I remember the first time when she got her sixth week shot and I broke down in tears as Aqui's cries were like glass shattering in my heart. This time I was more prepared and didn't shed a tear but it doesn't mean it was an experience we liked. Aqui seemed to have a sixth sense about it and started crying the moment we stepped in the clinic. She knew something was up. Her cries pierced through our ears (and the clinic doors!) the same time the needle pierced her chubby thighs (there were two shots). I suppose it was good that it didnt take much for her to recover. After a few minutes of feeding and a lot of cuddling, she was back to her normal smiling self. She was a bit grumpy in the afternoon but thankfully, she wasn't difficult at all (neither did she have fever... well, still 12 hours to go).
Too Sleep Trained
It turns out that there is such a thing as too much sleep training. The other night, Ronnel was on Aqui duty and Aqui started wailing. I was on the shower then so it was all up to Daddy to pacify Aqui. He heated up the milk, carried her, lulled her but still, the wailing didn't stop. After a while, he put Aqui down on her bassinet to get the heated milk and presto, silence was upon the room. Yup, all Aqui wanted was to sleep and be left alone on her bassinet. The same thing happened to me yesterday morning when she woke up at around 530 am (from sleeping at around 9pm last night). She was hungry so I fed her. We played a bit, she pooed, I changed her, she pooed again, I changed her again and at around 630, I knew it was time for her to sleep. I sang her lullaby (this is her cue to sleep) and she was actually a bit drowsy and then she started to cry. I thought she was hungry again, but she wasn't. Or she pooed again, but she didn't. After a while, my arms were getting numb (she was getting heavy!), I decided to put her down on her bassinet. Voila, she stopped crying, closed her eyes and sucked her thumb to sleep. The irony of Aqui! She cries because she is being cradled and lulled to sleep whence she just wants to be left alone! I can read her thoughts now.. "Mommy and Daddy, you were the ones who trained me to sleep on my own and now, you can't leave me alone? What The Fish!?@%" hahaha.
Happy 3 Months Aqui!
As usual, we celebrated her month-day with her (our) favorite cake. Ninang Laiz and Tito Rommil dropped by to help us finish the food. hehe. Here are some of her pictures to celebrate her 3rd month.
Immunisations Again
Aqui got her 3-month immunisation shots this afternoon and as expected, it pained me to see her undergo such pain. This time, Ronnel was there to experience it with me. I remember the first time when she got her sixth week shot and I broke down in tears as Aqui's cries were like glass shattering in my heart. This time I was more prepared and didn't shed a tear but it doesn't mean it was an experience we liked. Aqui seemed to have a sixth sense about it and started crying the moment we stepped in the clinic. She knew something was up. Her cries pierced through our ears (and the clinic doors!) the same time the needle pierced her chubby thighs (there were two shots). I suppose it was good that it didnt take much for her to recover. After a few minutes of feeding and a lot of cuddling, she was back to her normal smiling self. She was a bit grumpy in the afternoon but thankfully, she wasn't difficult at all (neither did she have fever... well, still 12 hours to go).
Too Sleep Trained
It turns out that there is such a thing as too much sleep training. The other night, Ronnel was on Aqui duty and Aqui started wailing. I was on the shower then so it was all up to Daddy to pacify Aqui. He heated up the milk, carried her, lulled her but still, the wailing didn't stop. After a while, he put Aqui down on her bassinet to get the heated milk and presto, silence was upon the room. Yup, all Aqui wanted was to sleep and be left alone on her bassinet. The same thing happened to me yesterday morning when she woke up at around 530 am (from sleeping at around 9pm last night). She was hungry so I fed her. We played a bit, she pooed, I changed her, she pooed again, I changed her again and at around 630, I knew it was time for her to sleep. I sang her lullaby (this is her cue to sleep) and she was actually a bit drowsy and then she started to cry. I thought she was hungry again, but she wasn't. Or she pooed again, but she didn't. After a while, my arms were getting numb (she was getting heavy!), I decided to put her down on her bassinet. Voila, she stopped crying, closed her eyes and sucked her thumb to sleep. The irony of Aqui! She cries because she is being cradled and lulled to sleep whence she just wants to be left alone! I can read her thoughts now.. "Mommy and Daddy, you were the ones who trained me to sleep on my own and now, you can't leave me alone? What The Fish!?@%" hahaha.
Happy 3 Months Aqui!
As usual, we celebrated her month-day with her (our) favorite cake. Ninang Laiz and Tito Rommil dropped by to help us finish the food. hehe. Here are some of her pictures to celebrate her 3rd month.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Good (Long) Night Aqui! (and some random tips)
Aqui is sleeping so I'm taking the opportunity to blog...
I'm so proud that Aqui has joined the ranks of sleeping-thru-the-night babies (like her classmate Riley). Last night, I gave in to the advice of the other mums here (PIN group and facebookie mum Lisa) to leave Aqui alone and just let her sleep through the night. In the past, I wake her up at around 2 or 4 for a feed whenever I hear her suck her thumb noisily. I've done this as I'm worried that she might get ulcer or something from hunger (I really believe that hunger can burn holes in your tummy!). But since most of the babies around us seem to start sleeping through the night at this age, I gave in as well. I was advised that if Aqui was hungry, she would definitely let me know with a cry. The result - Aqui having slept through from 10pm to 6am and me- having no sleep at all! I was so worried that I won't hear her cry so I watched her sleep. In the morning, both of us had eyebags-- her, from having her first long sleep and me from having no sleep at all. I hope this is the first of her many sleep-thru-nights. Soon, we may even be moving her into her own room. I guess I'm glad that I meet other mummies (&bubs) to hear their opinions and share tips and advices.
It is truly a relief to know that Aqui and I are not the only ones going through these stages. I wish there was something like this for friends in the Phils and Malaysia who are first time mums as well. Sure, they have the luxury of receiving advice from their families and relatives nearby but getting advice from people who are going through the same things at exactly the same time sure beats the heck out of "historical" advices. In a way, I am blogging for them as well. They might not leave written comments on my blog but we email and chat sometimes and I feel warm all over whenever they tell me that they've read my blog and picked up something that will help them caring for their newborn. So friends, don't fret - we might be miles away but I assure you, whatever you're going through with your little one, I have gone through it as well (well, most of it) and so have other mums here. And I'll do my best to document it and share them with you.
Let me leave you with some of these handy tips:
1) Breastmilk is best for babies. Yup- not only for eating but for any skin rash! I spray breastmilk after the night feed on Aqui's face whenever she has those red blotchy rashes and they're gone in the morning!
2) Babies do smell. Aside from their poop smell, the creases when left alone will smell. Aqui is growing fast and storing a lot of fat too! It's getting harder to clean the "hidden" areas like her neck, the back of her knees, her armpits etc. If left alone, rash can form and it'll be red and smelly! Aqui had that for a few days in the neck and at first, I decided to just wash it and pat it dry but it got worse so I put on some baby powder. But then I found out the powder can cause lung problems if inhaled so I switched to a cornstarch based powder especially designed for heat rash. I'm now looking for this Huggies Liquid Powder which is the best for these baby rashes as it's in liquid form so there is no risk of inhalation at all.
3) Barrier creams are great but airing baby's bum is best. Although they say that your baby's bum will tell you what it needs, it really doesn't do that, right? My pedia prescribed a zinc-castor oil paste to use on Aqui's bum and I use this on every nappy change. I've also used another brand, Bum Balm, which is made from essential oils and beeswax and found that we liked this more -- but is quite expensive so we use this only at night and when going out. Apart from this, we take every opportunity to air her bum and even expose it to the morning sun. I'm proud to say that her bum is as smooth and silky as can be!
4) Don't wait for baby to develop on her own - Help her reach her full potential. I think that's the gist of all the Plunket DVD's I've seen so far. All the baby movements, exercises and activities point to one thing - help your baby develop as early as possible. Yesterday, we were taught how to stretch baby's legs to help her learn how to roll over when the time comes. Tummy time is for baby to learn to crawl early and exercise the neck. Some mums even give solids to their babies as early as 4 months - it all depends on how your baby adapts.
5) Any language spoken with bubs 3 years and below will never be forgotten. That's what one of the PIN group mums told me yesterday when I posed the question on what should bilingual parents use with their babies. The advice is to use the native tongue when speaking with your little one otherwise your child will pick up your accent and that won't go well when it's time to go to school. So speak the native tongue since your child will easily pick up the local language at school or around the neighborhood anyway.
So that's it for now. Hope you find these useful.
Sa uulitin!
I'm so proud that Aqui has joined the ranks of sleeping-thru-the-night babies (like her classmate Riley). Last night, I gave in to the advice of the other mums here (PIN group and facebookie mum Lisa) to leave Aqui alone and just let her sleep through the night. In the past, I wake her up at around 2 or 4 for a feed whenever I hear her suck her thumb noisily. I've done this as I'm worried that she might get ulcer or something from hunger (I really believe that hunger can burn holes in your tummy!). But since most of the babies around us seem to start sleeping through the night at this age, I gave in as well. I was advised that if Aqui was hungry, she would definitely let me know with a cry. The result - Aqui having slept through from 10pm to 6am and me- having no sleep at all! I was so worried that I won't hear her cry so I watched her sleep. In the morning, both of us had eyebags-- her, from having her first long sleep and me from having no sleep at all. I hope this is the first of her many sleep-thru-nights. Soon, we may even be moving her into her own room. I guess I'm glad that I meet other mummies (&bubs) to hear their opinions and share tips and advices.
It is truly a relief to know that Aqui and I are not the only ones going through these stages. I wish there was something like this for friends in the Phils and Malaysia who are first time mums as well. Sure, they have the luxury of receiving advice from their families and relatives nearby but getting advice from people who are going through the same things at exactly the same time sure beats the heck out of "historical" advices. In a way, I am blogging for them as well. They might not leave written comments on my blog but we email and chat sometimes and I feel warm all over whenever they tell me that they've read my blog and picked up something that will help them caring for their newborn. So friends, don't fret - we might be miles away but I assure you, whatever you're going through with your little one, I have gone through it as well (well, most of it) and so have other mums here. And I'll do my best to document it and share them with you.
Let me leave you with some of these handy tips:
1) Breastmilk is best for babies. Yup- not only for eating but for any skin rash! I spray breastmilk after the night feed on Aqui's face whenever she has those red blotchy rashes and they're gone in the morning!
2) Babies do smell. Aside from their poop smell, the creases when left alone will smell. Aqui is growing fast and storing a lot of fat too! It's getting harder to clean the "hidden" areas like her neck, the back of her knees, her armpits etc. If left alone, rash can form and it'll be red and smelly! Aqui had that for a few days in the neck and at first, I decided to just wash it and pat it dry but it got worse so I put on some baby powder. But then I found out the powder can cause lung problems if inhaled so I switched to a cornstarch based powder especially designed for heat rash. I'm now looking for this Huggies Liquid Powder which is the best for these baby rashes as it's in liquid form so there is no risk of inhalation at all.
3) Barrier creams are great but airing baby's bum is best. Although they say that your baby's bum will tell you what it needs, it really doesn't do that, right? My pedia prescribed a zinc-castor oil paste to use on Aqui's bum and I use this on every nappy change. I've also used another brand, Bum Balm, which is made from essential oils and beeswax and found that we liked this more -- but is quite expensive so we use this only at night and when going out. Apart from this, we take every opportunity to air her bum and even expose it to the morning sun. I'm proud to say that her bum is as smooth and silky as can be!
4) Don't wait for baby to develop on her own - Help her reach her full potential. I think that's the gist of all the Plunket DVD's I've seen so far. All the baby movements, exercises and activities point to one thing - help your baby develop as early as possible. Yesterday, we were taught how to stretch baby's legs to help her learn how to roll over when the time comes. Tummy time is for baby to learn to crawl early and exercise the neck. Some mums even give solids to their babies as early as 4 months - it all depends on how your baby adapts.
5) Any language spoken with bubs 3 years and below will never be forgotten. That's what one of the PIN group mums told me yesterday when I posed the question on what should bilingual parents use with their babies. The advice is to use the native tongue when speaking with your little one otherwise your child will pick up your accent and that won't go well when it's time to go to school. So speak the native tongue since your child will easily pick up the local language at school or around the neighborhood anyway.
So that's it for now. Hope you find these useful.
Sa uulitin!
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Meeting More Bubs
by Aqui
Mom and I attended another mommies and babies gathering around the neighborhood, this time, it was the Plunket In Neighborhood (PIN) group. I got to meet other babies and saw Orion again (it turns out that we fell under the same PIN group because we're neighbors). Orion was surprised to see me wide awake! We watched a Plunket DVD on baby exercises and activities. I got tired from our get together and dozed off the moment I got home.
Look at our pics. I do get around, don't I?
Mom and I attended another mommies and babies gathering around the neighborhood, this time, it was the Plunket In Neighborhood (PIN) group. I got to meet other babies and saw Orion again (it turns out that we fell under the same PIN group because we're neighbors). Orion was surprised to see me wide awake! We watched a Plunket DVD on baby exercises and activities. I got tired from our get together and dozed off the moment I got home.
Look at our pics. I do get around, don't I?
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