My Baby is on Strike

I cannot belive you are on a milk strike. You have always been a milk junkie. Many people told me that it is part of a toddler's early growing years. Is this what they call a toddler's transition? Whatever it is, I am not liking it. It's frustrating and kind of scary because I want you to grow and get all the nutrients you need. Like all mummies, I worry. For your calcium intake.

Are you bored of the taste or are you just being controlling? Hard to tell. But after 2 days of milk battle with you, I know it is no good to force the issue because I am always the loser.

We need to make peace.

I hope this is going to be a temporary strike and and goes away soon. And I have to remember to keep my cool.

Too many meltdowns, too little milk.

I am on a mission now to crack my head on how to coax milk into your diet.

You name it, I did it.

Yucks!

This moo moo milk looks interesting.

Let me give it a try.

Mmmm. Not bad.

Let me see if it is organic.

Let me taste again..

Ummmmm.... Not too bad.

I'll make do with this.

Can I have more?

Daily Dish

It's been awhile since I last updated on your daily diet. Great changes. Now that you are a growing toddler and I am not around for most of your mealtimes. Extra efforts to ensure you are still following my choice of diet for you. I still do the marketing and planning of menus and popo will do the execution.

I realise your palate change as your taste buds develop. you used to turn your nose up at my cheese sauce but lately you chomp down 3 cubes of cheese at julia gabriel. Recently I had unwillingly noticed some signs of you becoming a picky eater. You have great potential of being one. For your record, both Dad and myself are really fussy eaters ourselves.

Therefore, healthy eating is the single most important gift that I can give you. And I have to start early. it is much easier to prevent a poor diet than to remedy one.

Food, I think is vital to the mother-child relationship. A new born baby's first feed is an iconic bonding moment. That nurturing tie lasts all our lives (at least for the mums!)Every daily meal is an expression of love. Even now, my mum is driven by that compulsion, the absolute need to keep me alive and well through food.

For the record, your meals schedule:

8am- 240ml of Enfagrow milk

10am- breakfast (wholemeal bread or cookies)

1230pm- Lunch (Porridge/macaroni/pasta stars/ noodles cook with vegetable/meat stock with fish and 2 types of vegetables)

3pm- 240ml of Enfagrow milk

430pm- Teatime (Bread/Yogurt/ Biscuits/cheese)

630pm - Dinner (Rice with double boil soup/Chicken or Beef or Pork + steam Egg + 2 types vegetables)

730pm- Fruits (Banana or Kiwi or Oranges or Grapes or Apples..... whatever in season)

0930-1 piece of wholemeal bread with cheese or vegemite or peanut butter. Or pigeon cookies

1130pm- 240 ml of Enfagrow milk

You are starting to get sick of your usual diet. I see signs of you being suspicious about your foods at mealtimes. I am scratching my head and researching on cooking recipes now. Anybody out there can help? I need recipes that are fun as well as healthy.

I have been restricting you on any other kind of drinks other than water. Yes, plain old water. That is good for you. Your only beverage for the last 17 months. (besides milk, of course) Don't feel deprived, my dear. Believe in your mama! But all these are going to change now that you are approaching toddler hood.

I have got your drinks menu ready. Now, if we can just complete your food menu before next month.....
Stay happy and healthy!

Too much is No good

Last week, you started having mild diarrhea. You used to go like once a day around noon and rarely 2 times a day. But then last weekend, the frequency increased and the stool is soft and at times loose. At the same time, you had these little bumps on your tummy. I was getting concerned but monitored a few more days and watched your diet closely.

Then we decided to bring you to see Dr Terence Tan on last Tuesday. As much as I like Dr Tan very much, I hate to go and see him. He is too popular and the queue to see him is unbelievable. We reached the clinic about 1145hrs, hoping to be the last one before they closed for morning session. But we only managed to see him at about 1420hrs.

Anyway, you are not going to believe this. He took one glance at your tummy and said that the rash was caused by the 'chinese Ruyi' medicated oil we applied on you... ehh but you started using the oil since birth. He said some babies reacted slower. ok...

Then we told him about your dierrhea. After listening, he announced with a big smile that you have had too much nutritious food- too much fibre in your diet. WHAT?????? ok ok I admit that I have been pumping you with loads of greens. Your daily porridge is cook with vegetable+ meatbone stock (ingredients- leek/ sweet potatoes/ cabbage/ carrots/ parsnip +meatbone)

In addition to that, I make sure you have 1 main (fish/chicken/beef/ pork) and 2 side dishes (zuichinni/tomatoes/ broccoli/ cauliflower/pumpkin/peas/corn/spinach/ french beans/kailan....) per meal. ANd of course you will have your daily fruit- apple/ peach/ nectarine/ pear/ mango/papaya/banana.....

Dr Tan advised me to reduce the fibre intake. So I stopped using the vegetable stock for a few days and cut down on your vegetable. I concentrated on your protein and iron intake instead- eggs/ tofu/lentils/ beef/ liver. Your porridge for the last 5 days looked plain and bland. But thank goodness you did not fuss over it.

But you were still having loose stools so I called Dr Tan whom advised me to go for a stool test. So on Tuesday I took your soiled diaper to the clinic for the lab test consisting of Rotavirus, stool culture and stool Feme. The results came back fine and I was so relieved!!!!

You are better now. Soiling your diapers only twice or thrice a day. I have to be really careful now. I guess too much is really no good.

Food Glorious Food

I have been wanting to post an update on your gastronomic adventures since your arrival in middle earth. SO at 10.5 months of age, this is an updated list of what you had ingested so far:

Vegetables
carrots
sweet potato
butternut squash
spinach
tomatoes
potatoes
zuichinni
parsnip
Broccoli
cauliflower
Green beans
French Beans
kailan
Peas
corn
Leek
Choysum
cabbage
onions

Fruits
Apples/ Bananas/ Pears/ Guavas/ Mangoes /Papayas/ Peach/ Apricots

Fish
Pork
Chicken
Turkey
Liver
Beef

Misc/ Supplements
silverfish powder/ Flaxseed/ Lentil/ Tofu/ Yogurt (vanilla)/ cheese/ unsalted butter/ wholemeal bread/ Pasta stars/ Brown rice/ Japanese rice/ eggs/ Barley cereal/ multigrain cereal/ wolfberry/ chinese yam/ toothipeg/ pigeon biscults (all kinds)

Did i miss anything? I think i did.

Food Glorious Food

I have never been interested in cooking until you came along. In fact both your dad and me were never adventurous in food. Friends always label us boring when it comes to food. I have never worry about food nutrition but now I wonder what kind of ingredients/ diet I am giving you.

Most importantly, I love watching you savouring your food. You seem to love everything that I cook for you (except pasta in cheece). You are a great motivation and inspiration!

I have a record book to record down all the foods that go into your tummy to ensure you have a balance diet. YOur enjoyment in food really inspire me to source for more nutritious yum yum for you. I started to do some research and read books.

And thanks to Auntie Ameeta who gave us our first baby's cook book from Annabel Karmel. This book started me going! I love bringing you along on my supermarket trips to look for fresh and nutritonal ingredients. And I tried to give you organic whenever possible. So your diet is now 99% organic. I have had many people commenting on my decision to go organic. It is a personal choice and a mother's choice. So to all these people- pls reserve your views to yourself. Thank you.

I want you to be a happy and healthy baby!