Lately I've had to start thinking about daycare for bub. I said I'd take a year off and I'm still planning to but with how quickly the year is going by, it's already time to start. When I was pregnant, I was told to get in early on the daycare waiting lists as they're much sought after. We put bub onto two lists when I was about 37 weeks. To be honest, I didn't take it seriously then - how can you when bub hasn't arrived and I hadn't actually decided on a name for the little guy. I think he went onto one of the lists as 'Baby Heng' - well what did the daycare centre expect when bub was still in my tummy.
One of the biggest considerations for us choosing a daycare is the location. There's a few in our area but all are bordering on the long walk/take bub in the car distance. I visited Little Zak's the other day (had heard a lot of good things about them but hadn't gotten round to get on the wait list) just to test how long the walk would be. Ended up being a 10 minute walk and then a 15 minute walk to the station. I said to hubby that that would be doable if you don't mind the big hills and the glisten of sweat after the walk. Though when I think about it, the thought of getting the car, parking the car when it's just a 10 minute walk, well the walk sorta wins.
Anyhow, popped back today after I made an appointment to do a centre tour and was taken around and shown what goes on should I decide to put bub there. We aren't even starting yet but the thought of daycare made me a little sad - my little guy is growing up too quick! Me aside, the centre was great though and we got ourselves on the wait list. I asked a whole stack of questions which I'm going to jot down for my other centre visits (thinking I should visit a few and make an informed decision then).
- Is there parking for drop offs and pick ups?
- What is the cost for the day and what does it include?
- Are there spots available now?
- How many staff are there per child?
- How many kids are there per day?
- What are the opening and closing times?
- What are the penalties for a late pick up?
- What is the check in process? esp. if someone other than the parents are doing a pickup?
- When can we start?
- How would you recommend starting daycare for a mum that needs to go back to work 5 days?
- What food to do you feed?
- What is the program for the day?
- What is the opt out process? How much notice is required to cut back on days or leave the centre?
- Is the price fixed for the year or will there likely be a price increase?
Part of me doesn't want to think about daycare but the reality of it is that it's creeping up on me quick. Time please slow down.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Sunday, February 22, 2015
162/365 - my bub thinks the bumbo is a toilet
For bub's baby shower, he was generously gifted a red bumbo seat + tray by my long time best friend. For those that don't know what it is, it's essentially a moulded plastic seat that props bub up and supports them up whilst they are unable to sit up themselves. You can read all sorts of web literature that discourage you from using a bumbo seat as they say its not great for bub's development and by no means does the product actually say that it would encourage bub's physical and muscle development. As a new mum, I do read a little bit but like with all things baby related (walkers, jumpers etc.) they're not made to place bub in for long periods of time so if you use infrequently, it surely can do no harm?
We only started bub in the seat when he was 4 months which is when the manual says to start using it. Sometimes I think I should've started using it a bit earlier as bub has been growing quite a bit and getting him in and out of the seat has been a tight fit. Thought tight is good as it mean bub is supported in the seat but I'm guessing this seat isn't going to last him long at the rate he's growing.
At first I thought the seat was fantastic, bub could sit up and see us and with him starting solids, we could feed him seated in the chair. He was getting rather cranky being on his back and tummy and being able to sit up meant he could join us at the dinner table for meal times. He loved it! Then the grunting started. Wedging bub out of the seat and looking down, there you have it, he did a poo. We've had close to an 80% hit rate with him sitting in the seat and pooing. A number of times the bumbo has had a thorough washing and well, there doesn't seem to be any signs of it slowing down. My bub thinks the bumbo is a toilet and he does his business in there and usually it's within the first 10 minutes.
I jokingly said to my husband that we should just cut a hole in the bottom by the time we have to toilet train bub. It really isn't a bad idea and well, given he's using it as a toilet, I'm not so sure about passing it along to any mums-to-be.
Thursday, February 19, 2015
159/365 - And we're rolling
I'm finding a big part of motherhood is watching/reaching those baby milestones. At first it's baby holding their own head up and before you know it, you are waiting for them to roll, to eat their first solids and so the list goes on. From the start, the nurses stressed the importance of tummy time to prevent flat head but then it's ever so important for baby's muscle and brain development. If you read what's out there, they say a baby should/may start rolling from around 3 months but at the end of the day it's really up to the baby. They'll roll when they want to roll.
Admittedly this was a milestone I'd been keen my eye out on for awhile. Mainly cause at the start I had bub on the chaise bit of our sofa but more recently moved him onto a bigger mat on the ground. He may have done an accidental roll on the sofa one day which prompted me to move him to the ground but even then I thought it was an accidental roll where gravity was doing its thing. And well for about 2 months I didn't think my bub showed any inclination that he was about to roll, he would happily lie on his tummy or his back and that was about it.
Seeing a few of the bubs at mother's group, I did notice though that most of the early rollers were generally lighter babies. My theory is that heavier babies find it more difficult to roll as there's more weight to pull across. If you think about it, it takes a lot for even a grown up adult to bring themselves into a roll. And well, my baby is turning into a bit of a chunker. Not quite fat but definitely dense so I figured it was going to take him some time.
Well bang on 5 months, I popped him down at grandma's in the midst of reassuring mum that he doesn't roll and guess what he does. Two rolls in one go and mum just looks at me as if I'm nuts. All week I keep putting him down on his tummy and there's another roll. Now I'm constantly turning him back over so he's not quite so much the upturned cockcroach. So yes, there's our story of rolling from tummy to back. I believe the next milestone is back to tummy. He's definitely getting there as he's started to grab his feet and doing 180s on his back. Fun times ahead!
Admittedly this was a milestone I'd been keen my eye out on for awhile. Mainly cause at the start I had bub on the chaise bit of our sofa but more recently moved him onto a bigger mat on the ground. He may have done an accidental roll on the sofa one day which prompted me to move him to the ground but even then I thought it was an accidental roll where gravity was doing its thing. And well for about 2 months I didn't think my bub showed any inclination that he was about to roll, he would happily lie on his tummy or his back and that was about it.
Seeing a few of the bubs at mother's group, I did notice though that most of the early rollers were generally lighter babies. My theory is that heavier babies find it more difficult to roll as there's more weight to pull across. If you think about it, it takes a lot for even a grown up adult to bring themselves into a roll. And well, my baby is turning into a bit of a chunker. Not quite fat but definitely dense so I figured it was going to take him some time.
Well bang on 5 months, I popped him down at grandma's in the midst of reassuring mum that he doesn't roll and guess what he does. Two rolls in one go and mum just looks at me as if I'm nuts. All week I keep putting him down on his tummy and there's another roll. Now I'm constantly turning him back over so he's not quite so much the upturned cockcroach. So yes, there's our story of rolling from tummy to back. I believe the next milestone is back to tummy. He's definitely getting there as he's started to grab his feet and doing 180s on his back. Fun times ahead!
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
154/365 - 5 months and lots of vegies
In the last month, bub has reached so many milestones I'm actually having trouble keeping track. Actually it's keeping me busy to the point that it doesn't stop. I guess that's what you call the life of a mum!
It started with the rice cereal which he smashed bowlfuls at his leisure. Beginning with one tablespoon he more than quickly was eating about three tablespoons. To be honest, I reckon he could've eaten the entire pack if he wanted to. Great thing about the rice cereal is that it doesn't come back up. Having dealt with a frequently posseting baby for the last 5 months, this was certainly a refreshing change. So rice cereal done, it was then onto the vegies and fruits.
I followed a few books to start; 'Save our Sleep Feeding', Annabel Karmels 'Weaning' and Fiona Wilcock's 'Feed your baby day by day' but to be very honest with you, none of the meal plans seemed to work or not in the order that the books recommended. I took maybe a couple days off as it was getting a little stressful trying to get bub onto the vegies and then came up with my own meal plan and it's been working a treat.
Day 1-4: Zucchini with rice cereal (50/50). 1 meal a day
Day 5-7: Pumpkin with rice cereal (50/50). 1 meal a day
Day 8-10: Carrot with rice cereal (50/50). 1 meal a day
Day 11: Pear and rice porridge (50/50). 1 meal a day
Day 12+: 2 meals a day rotating the above combos
I've bulk pureed the zucchini, pumpkin, carrot, pear and also apple so there's enough to last me awhile yet. Next on my list is sweet potato, swede and avocado. And I won't lie, this whole getting bubs on solids is hard work and chews up a lot of time. When they say it takes 10 times to get bub liking something, they are right! Even when you sit bub down for one meal, he still pulls faces at me on the first few bites and maybe after the tenth bite he actually gets into it and starts opening his mouth for the food and wanting more.
Exciting times ahead!
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
136/365 - 4 months, slow down please!
4 months with bub has been the busiest by far, I'd say even busy than the first month he arrived! Where should I even start, I guess it all started with the 4 month top up immunisations. A little cry at the doctor's and like the 2 month immunisations, they conked him out. Didn't think much of it as he took the 2 month immunisations really well so given these were the same immunisations, you'd think he'd handle it like last time. He slept like mad for the day following, then I noticed a little bit of a temperature but that soon passed. And well then the craziness sorta kicked in.
Up until this point, our little boy had managed to sleep through the night (by that I mean a good 8-9 hour stint without waking up or a feed) and as if on cue with the immunisations, he went back to being like a newborn. Lots of fussiness during the day and at night just before he had to go down. Then it was waking up at 1 or 2am in the morning for a feed, then up again at 6am. Hubby and I had gotten quite used to the sleep throughs so to go back to the early days was a struggle! At the moment he's still teasing us with the wake ups in the middle of night. We had one night where we thought he was going back to normal but then back at waking up, party in his cot again the next.
A friend mentioned to me the 4 month sleep regression - apparently it's when babies go back to behaving like a newborn. A little bit of reading on the internet tells me it has a lot to do with bubs learning new things and lots of neurological development happening at this time. It makes sense - I would be overwhelmed too if I were the little guy. In the space of turning 4 months (just a mere 2 weeks), he's been:
- Sitting in his bumbo (and using it like a toilet). We have a 4/5 strike rate of him pooing in it. I guess I can't complain, he's starting his toilet training himself.
- He's sitting in his high chair at mealtime
- He started rice cereal and had a taster of apple puree and pumpkin (not the biggest fan of the latter two but will be a bottomless pit when it comes to rice cereal)
- He's been playing with his toes and sticking his foot in his mouth
- Hasn't managed a roll yet but has had both hands on feet bobbing from side to side on his back
- He's been growing exponentially. Already close to 8kg and his 3-6 month clothes (which say up to 8 kg) are seriously no longer going to fit.
- He chuckles a lot now when you play with him and gives you the shy-est and biggest grin when you smile at him
So yes, not quite yet through the 4 month but it already feels like mum and dad have run a marathon with this little guy. Can't wait to see what he gets up to next!
Up until this point, our little boy had managed to sleep through the night (by that I mean a good 8-9 hour stint without waking up or a feed) and as if on cue with the immunisations, he went back to being like a newborn. Lots of fussiness during the day and at night just before he had to go down. Then it was waking up at 1 or 2am in the morning for a feed, then up again at 6am. Hubby and I had gotten quite used to the sleep throughs so to go back to the early days was a struggle! At the moment he's still teasing us with the wake ups in the middle of night. We had one night where we thought he was going back to normal but then back at waking up, party in his cot again the next.
A friend mentioned to me the 4 month sleep regression - apparently it's when babies go back to behaving like a newborn. A little bit of reading on the internet tells me it has a lot to do with bubs learning new things and lots of neurological development happening at this time. It makes sense - I would be overwhelmed too if I were the little guy. In the space of turning 4 months (just a mere 2 weeks), he's been:
- Sitting in his bumbo (and using it like a toilet). We have a 4/5 strike rate of him pooing in it. I guess I can't complain, he's starting his toilet training himself.
- He's sitting in his high chair at mealtime
- He started rice cereal and had a taster of apple puree and pumpkin (not the biggest fan of the latter two but will be a bottomless pit when it comes to rice cereal)
- He's been playing with his toes and sticking his foot in his mouth
- Hasn't managed a roll yet but has had both hands on feet bobbing from side to side on his back
- He's been growing exponentially. Already close to 8kg and his 3-6 month clothes (which say up to 8 kg) are seriously no longer going to fit.
- He chuckles a lot now when you play with him and gives you the shy-est and biggest grin when you smile at him
So yes, not quite yet through the 4 month but it already feels like mum and dad have run a marathon with this little guy. Can't wait to see what he gets up to next!
Sunday, January 4, 2015
112/365 - we have a squealer!
I didn't pay much attention to it when it first happened. He looked at me so charmingly, smiled and out came a squeal. It was really very cute! Now it's been a couple of days now and every time he's happy and/or excited, the squeals come frequently. There's been times where it's reached an ear-piecing octave and my hubby has shuddered from afar. When I mean ear-piercing, it's like when someone scratches their nails on a blackboard repeatedly and yes, it's been getting a little annoying.
Mr Google tells me that this is quite normal for a 3-4 month old. Apparently it's when babies find their voice and when a baby discovers something for the first time, they find it fascinating and keep doing it. They like the repetition. Various mums on various forums say that it comes and goes, other's have had a squealing child till their toddler years. My husband keeps looking at me each time he squeals and I keep telling him it's not me, he's learnt it himself. Babies are certainly smart little things!
Well squealing aside, I really can't complain. The bub has been eating and sleeping well. Going out in the hot weather hasn't been great, it's made him rather fidgety and cranky but most of the time I think it's mum and dad getting fidgety and cranky too from the weather. We went out for a friend's BBQ on Saturday and by the time we came home, the whole family was pooped, bub fell asleep all sprawled out over the sofa, dad was curled into a ball. I managed to stay awake till that night where I conked out and didn't wake till 10 the next morning. I'm hoping for some more moderate weather to return soon!
Mr Google tells me that this is quite normal for a 3-4 month old. Apparently it's when babies find their voice and when a baby discovers something for the first time, they find it fascinating and keep doing it. They like the repetition. Various mums on various forums say that it comes and goes, other's have had a squealing child till their toddler years. My husband keeps looking at me each time he squeals and I keep telling him it's not me, he's learnt it himself. Babies are certainly smart little things!
Well squealing aside, I really can't complain. The bub has been eating and sleeping well. Going out in the hot weather hasn't been great, it's made him rather fidgety and cranky but most of the time I think it's mum and dad getting fidgety and cranky too from the weather. We went out for a friend's BBQ on Saturday and by the time we came home, the whole family was pooped, bub fell asleep all sprawled out over the sofa, dad was curled into a ball. I managed to stay awake till that night where I conked out and didn't wake till 10 the next morning. I'm hoping for some more moderate weather to return soon!
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
92/365 - 3 months
Little Liam turned 3 months! I'm not sure what's more alarming; that he's doubled his weight or that I've been a full time mum for 3 months now - both scary but also satisfying at the same time if that makes any sense. It's a funny thing being a mum and each day I'm still learning and hoping that I'm doing the best, though to be honest I'm not sure if the mummy-in-training plates ever come off!
To mark his 3 months, we went to the Solids Session at the Health Clinic where we learnt about how to introduce solids to the little bubs. Half of my mothers group was there also and it was amazing to see how far we'd come; every baby had grown so big! I think most of us had just gotten the hang of feeding our bubs milk (whether it be breastmilk or formula) and well, introducing solids is the next step and ah, things are to change again! One thing I've learnt about motherhood is that things are constantly changing!
They recommend that you don't start your bub on solids till about 6 months though many will start to try from 4 months. There's studies to support the starting of solids as early as 4 months and others where you delay till 6 months. I'm thinking I'll probably start bub on solids at 4 and just see how he goes. If he doesn't like it, we have time to work up to it. At the end of the day, it's really what bub wants, bub gets.
I've already been looking forward to the starting of solids. Bibs, storage pots, portable tubs and baby spoons are all at the ready. Bub is getting there I think, he's holding his head up now and his baby tongue protrusion has gone which they say is a sign for baby readiness. It would definitely be a lot easier for solids once bub can sit up and we can put him in a highchair to feed him so let's see how we go in the next month.
Exciting times ahead!
To mark his 3 months, we went to the Solids Session at the Health Clinic where we learnt about how to introduce solids to the little bubs. Half of my mothers group was there also and it was amazing to see how far we'd come; every baby had grown so big! I think most of us had just gotten the hang of feeding our bubs milk (whether it be breastmilk or formula) and well, introducing solids is the next step and ah, things are to change again! One thing I've learnt about motherhood is that things are constantly changing!
They recommend that you don't start your bub on solids till about 6 months though many will start to try from 4 months. There's studies to support the starting of solids as early as 4 months and others where you delay till 6 months. I'm thinking I'll probably start bub on solids at 4 and just see how he goes. If he doesn't like it, we have time to work up to it. At the end of the day, it's really what bub wants, bub gets.
I've already been looking forward to the starting of solids. Bibs, storage pots, portable tubs and baby spoons are all at the ready. Bub is getting there I think, he's holding his head up now and his baby tongue protrusion has gone which they say is a sign for baby readiness. It would definitely be a lot easier for solids once bub can sit up and we can put him in a highchair to feed him so let's see how we go in the next month.
Exciting times ahead!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)