Breastfeeding is the most natural thing to do, NOT?

There's one thing im very passionate about when it comes to motherhood, and that's breastfeeding. Not only is it best for baby, but the bond derived from having a baby nestle close to you as he feeds is simple amazing. Bottle fed babies and their mothers are missing out on a lot! What's been boggling my mind is why breastfeeding has become such an alien thing for mothers to do. A lot of people around me, from relatives to friends are all having trouble breastfeeding. Most times i dont want to interfere cos the more i know the more frustrated i get by their sheer ignorance and lack of drive. A relo recently complained that she didnt have much milk (she had given birth 2 days prior), and they had already bought formula to supplement the baby's feed. The thing is, no mother has a litre of milk hanging from her boobies right after birth. It's about supply and demand, and in the initial stages there is no milk, there's only colostrum! I am by no means an expert on this subject matter, but i do read, and im still breastfeeding my 19month old. A friend told me that her baby doesnt want to breastfeed because the nurses at the hospital had introduced the baby to the bottle. The poor little thing is only 4 weeks old! This is another thing that peeves me...incompetent nurses! When you're at the mercy of nurses in hospital, know your rights and know what's best for baby!!! When i was told that Ciku had to be fed formula in order for the treatment for jaundice to be effective, i asked the nurses how they would feed her. The nurses said that they could bottle feed or use a teaspoon. Knowing that babies can get confused between a bottle teat and a mummy's nipple, i opted for the latter, and i know for a fact that the nurses complied cos later on Ciku was a pro when fed with a spoon. For future mothers out there, do read up, cos where there's a will, there's a way! Think about it, why would you want to feed your precious bundle a concoction of milk powder, corn starch, palm oil and other things, when there's mother's milk that's not just nutritious but can also prevent babies from catching the flu, colds etc? Breastfeeding has so many benefits, and it really is the best gift you can give your child. These benefits include; lowered risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), increased intelligence, decreased likelihood of contracting middle ear infections, cold, and flu bugs, decreased risk of some cancers such as childhood leukemia, lower risk of childhood onset diabetes, decreased risk of asthma and eczema, decreased dental problems, decreased risk of obesity later in life, and decreased risk of developing psychological disorders. Breastfeeding also provides health benefits for the mother. It assists the uterus in returning to its pre-pregnancy size and reduces post-partum bleeding, as well as assisting the mother in returning to her pre-pregnancy weight. Breastfeeding also reduces the risk of breast cancer later in life. (Source: wikipedia).

My Ciku is 19months old!

My baby is inching closer and closer 24months, that milestone which will mean no more boo, and the fact that another year has gone by!!

Right now her pronounciation has become quite good. Bird is no longer "bard", and Mammy has been replaced with "mummy". It never fails to amaze me just how much she's progressing and developing. She can now tell me what sounds animals make, such as a lion, cat, dog, bird, duck. She's also been playing with a wooden puzzle with pegs in it. It's a really good one by Melissa & Doug because it has 4 basic farm animals, horse, cow, pig and sheep with their respective babies. Right now we've taught her that the little ones are baby horses, cows, pigs and sheep, but i guess in time we can give them their proper names.

Ciku's now also extremely attached to both me and hubs. When i go get her, she'll always ask for daddy, followed by 'Yaya'...yaya, you know who you are. At night she'll only settle down when daddy gets home, and that's proving tiring on me.

Have i already said that she knows the words, soup and soap? She loves washing her hands and tasty soup always gets a, "MORE" from her.

Plan Toys

Yesterday evening, husband and i discovered the world of Plan Toys and we're in love! Im totally loving their vision:

"We create toys that inspire children's imagination as well as promote their physical and intellectual development. We're also proving that it is possible to maintain superior quality standards while steadfastly following a path of environmental and social responsibility."

Not only are they responsible makers of children's toys, but the toys are wonderful!! For more information, please visit them at http://www.plantoys.com/

PS i love wooden toys!!

Evil MMR booster shot

Ciku had her MMR shot last Monday evening. She's normally good with all her shots, with just a mild fever, if any. However, with this booster shot, it took 2 days to manifest itself into an outright vomit fest! It was scary and sad, seeing Ciku throw up everything she tries to eat or drink. She started throwing everything up from Wednesday evening, all the way to Thursday morning. I had to take EL to take care of her. Daddy did too, thank goodness. The worst part was that she even threw up in her sleep! I'd have to clean her up and comfort her cos she'd get really upset.

I was up with her all night, bt sleep came at around 5.30am -8am. I gave her breastmilk all the while since it's easily disgestible. Ciku's ok now, Alhamdulillah. I kinda think that she's quite bratty now, maybe cos we were very flexible on her while she was ill!

The pix above is of Ciku at the clinic. She got really worried when she spotted the doctor across the hall cos he's the one that administers all her shots!

Ciku's Stats

A trip to her paediatrician has resulted in us knowing that Ciku is:

Weight: 12.4kg

Height: 89cm

She is in the top percentile of babies her age, and has been since she was a wee bub! However, she was of average height and weight at birth (3.05kg, 38cm).

Vocab update

Ciku's vocab's still growing. Here's the list as of today:

1) TV - Weewee

2) Eye

3) Nose

4) Mouth

5) Hand

6) Feet

7) Head - Ed

8) Hair - Air

9) Pasta - Ta ta

10) Juice

11) egg

12) bread

13) Mummy - Mammy

14) Tok Wan - Wan

15) Amma

16) Horse

17) Egg

18) Helicopter -

19) Truck

20) Bus

21) Bike

22) Wiley - why-yee

23) Banana - Na na

24) Pak Su - Su

25) Susu - Sooo

26) Butterfly - fly

27) Maryam - ya ya

28) Bag

Ciku also has a habit of introducing her parents to strangers. The cute thing is when she asks us to change the channels, she'll either say "Weewee" or "More".

18 months and counting!

Ciku turned 1 1/2 two days ago, and boy can you see the changes as she makes her way into toddlerhood! She's a very cheeky little thing and has started to test her boundaries in every situation. Until recently she was shouting her 'PEEEEESH' (please), 'MORE', and 'BOOOO's, but that changed when Oma showed us that all we needed to do was to give her an example of how to say things. She's now back to being sweet and polite....when she feels like it!

My little book worm is currently 11kg, wears diaper size XL, as well as clothing for 2 to 3 year olds.

Seeing that Ciku's now such a big girl, it's also time to start thinking about having another addition to the family. Im in the midst of psyching myself up for it. I hope i'll have an easy time delivering...it'd be so weird if i had a relatively easy time with Ciku, then have something complicated happen for #2. Good luck to me!