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Friday 27 September 2013

Baking Hazard

Recently, I baked two loaves of lemon poppy cake:


Then, as I was putting away the ingredients back into the larder, I saw this:


Alcohol! 

So those lovely loaves went to my girl friend instead (she is not Muslim and doesn't mind her loaves spiked). Waste not...

Note to self: read ALL ingredients and expiry dates no matter how long it takes at the supermarket, especially when trying out new products!
Thursday 26 September 2013

Spring Cleaning

It is Spring in Australia, and I am joining the Spring Clean season from Kuala Lumpur.

It will be great for my soul and somewhat OCD nature.

I didn't do much in my final trimester and confinement period. It is only fair that I catch up with myself now at the store room...


...as well as at the wet kitchen



See you again soon! 

*busy mode on*

Wednesday 25 September 2013

RecycleMonster


We bring cartons, bottles and cans to the play school that The Little Girl is enrolled into as materials for arts and crafts sessions. 

The recyclable materials have often come home as Eric Carle's Very Hungry Caterpillar or a train or a flower. Creative results that never cease to amaze me.

Unfortunately, my nightmare lies with accumulating and storing the materials for at least a week before bringing those recyclable materials to be dropped off at play school, once weekly.


(Before: traffic hazard)

*insert ashamed face here*


(After: milk and drinks storage at most bottom shelf, paper & carton in Samla Box with lid on second from bottom shelf, plastic bottles and cans in Samla Box with lid on middle shelf, Phillips Airfryer on second from top shelf, extra toilet rolls, kitchen rolls and tissue paper boxes go on the top shelf upon return from the grocer's before being placed into the cupboards). 

In my haste, I forgot what the Ikea shelf is called as it was an impulse purchase one desperate morning. I'd prefer it in white to blend in with the rest of my fixtures and I would love to spray paint it but I am having so much on my plate right now.

I really wish that Jenny Komenda can help me out with suggestions as to how to DIY this little space into something prettier!


Monday 23 September 2013

Ziplock & The Diaper Bag

I have been a Ziplock mummy since 2010 when The Little Girl was born. I still am, for Bean.



Clean diapers to last us a trip out for the day, a set or two of clean clothes for each kid and diaper cream usually go into transparent, water tight Ziplock bags. Helps to keep dirt/dust and spills out until we need them. 

Sophie The Giraffe goes into her own Ziplock too, she is just special that way because anything that goes into Bean's drooling mouth better has some form of hygiene control! Well, Ziplock helps to lock in the drool after Bean has had a go at her. I wouldn't like my entire diaper bag smelling like drool...

I also use a zippered swim bag to keep small items like comb, thermometer, tissue packets, hand sanitiser, safety scissors, nail file and toilet seat liners handy. 

I usually have a separate swim bag that has the hospital record book too. Modular wise, I can add the one with hospital record book on trips to the paed, and put it away into the drawer at home when we are done with it to keep until the next paed appointment.

Weight of my diaper bag counts a lot to me. The lighter, the better! 5 to 6 kg tops.  Bulk of the weight comes from wet wipes. When the bag is light I double check that I have not run out of wet wipes! More about this later.

My diaper bag comes with padded changing liner that is washable but I only ever use that on top of hospital liners as all changing tables in public areas contain bacteria and virus that I cannot even pronounce. 

After use, we usually dispose of the hospital liners. These hospital liners are great for change on the go, absorbs spills and accidents really well. Obviously they befit the sole purpose they were invented.

As a mother of two, I carry a box of wipes. Forget the small packets of 10s! They tend to run out on me when Bean does a major mess!

Fashion wise, I don't only carry the one and only diaper bag the way I used to. I find organising things into its own Ziplock or swim bag helps a lot when I pack my bag for the day. I include or omit what I pack especially if The Little Girl is away at play school and won't be coming along. That way, I carry less weight on my already aching shoulders.

My own stuffs are simple. Wallet, iPhone, house keys in its own pouch to prevent scratching other stuffs especially the wallet, car access card and a small vanity bag. 

The Little Girl tends to ask me to bring the iPad along if the trip is long, can you imagine how much extra weight that adds? But I digress...



To contain our mess, we also use recycle able scented nappy liners in small size which we buy from Sainsbury's. Really useful in packing up soiled diapers etc before chucking the lot into dustbins. That way, if the dustbin liner breaks, you won't find our mess bursting out to create the second pile of shit, literally.

Better end this before you feel disgusted by my post. This is intended to be a helpful guide to new mothers and fathers who are trying to figure out the best way to organise their diaper bags, especially for that first ever day out with baby!

Reminder: always service your diaper bag. Refill and replenish whatever is exhausted, recycle what you can and dispose of your garbage responsibly.

Have a fun day out!

Care to share what goes into your Ziplock and diaper bags?


IronMonster



Our Brabantia Size D iron board with over flowing baskets filled with washed and dried laundry waiting to be sorted, folded, ironed and hung.

The Little Girl loves the sorting bit and it really helps. She is too young to do the rest though. Attempts at folding clothes have often resulted in even more work for Mummy but that does not mean that we stop practising.

Can someone please send me an IronFairy to deal with this mundane and time-consuming chore?

LaundryMonster

Before


After

Saves me a lot of time and bending when sorting laundry. Mere difference of an extra basket resulting in better efficiency and effectiveness. White, colours, black.

Previously,  the light colour basket had to be sorted again into white and colours. How silly of me!

What's your tip for fighting the LaundryMonster? Do share!

Sleeping Through The Night

This calls for celebration! *doing cartwheels*
 
Bean has been "doing his nights", "il fait ses nuits", STTN, sleeping well, doing his 6 hours. Call it what you wish. The fact that he started doing it at 2 months old now debunks the myth that fully breastfed babies do not sleep for long hours. 

I wish I could say this in my MIL's face outright (I can't because it would be deemed rude/uncouth/tactless).
 
He started with 3 hours. Then 4. It gradually moved to 5. He would sleep as long as his diapers stays dry. Lately, 6 hours. Well, his little tummy can only contain so much milk before it is all digested and he starts to feel hungry.
 
If you chance upon this entry because you need that slight encouragement, mere statistics or true conviction that young babies CAN and WILL STTN...here, print this and show it to your nay-sayers non-believers (confinement ladies, MILs, etc.) I would urge you to shut out the negativity/sleep-myth and just keep breastfeeding.
 
Breastfeeding has nothing to do with sleep. Formula does not make babies sleep for longer (my MIL's strongest arsenal against me when I was nursing The Little Girl every 2 hours for 30 months was that I should have given her formula so that everyone will benefit from some sleep. Ma, I love you but I don't subscribe to formula is better than breastmilk argument so yes, I did rather suffer the sleep deprivation).
 
How do I know?
 
Because The Little Girl breastfed for 35 months and she only did her STTN at 30 months. For me, the numbers don't lie.
 
It boils down to the individual child, I kid you not. The Little Girl is super-glued to me, until today. She feels insecure when her mummy-radar beams a low signal (even way before I was pregnant with Bean). By low signal I mean being in the same house but different room.
 
Bean, on the other hand, is happy to play with me, feeds then sleeps. I love how he has his own "life", he knows when to play, how to tell the difference between night and day and enjoys his daily routine.
 
So, good luck with your bundle of joy and happy breastfeeding!