So when do you start introducing television to your babies? That is an interesting question, considering that we're now in the technology age, it's not just television anymore. There's computer, iPad, smart phones, etc.

Nowadays, when hubs and I are walking around in shopping malls or restaurants, we noticed many parents sitting their babies with an iPad in front of them. I have to admit, it IS so much easier using the iPad or smartphone to distract the babies/kids, in order to have some peaceful quiet meal. And there shouldn't be any harm if the babies are watching educational programs rite?

I came across this video by Dr Dimitri Christakis, who spoke about Media and Children in a TEDx event. Dimitri Christakis is a pediatrician, parent, and researcher whose influential findings are helping identify optimal media exposure for children. He mentioned that those educational programs on TV may actually overstimulate a child's mind, which in turn, leads to lack of attention span as they get older, especially when they're exposed to TV before the age of 2.

I was down with sore throat, flu and cough last week. Typically, I'll get a sore throat, followed by fever, then flu and finally cough. My cough can usually last up to 2 weeks, even with cough syrup.

A friend of mine introduced coconut oil to boost my immune system and advice me to try and avoid taking the usual medicine for flu and cough. So I bought myself a bottle of virgin coconut oil from BMS Organic shop. It was selling at RM56+ for a 750ml bottle. At that time, my sore throat was almost gone, and I starting to have flu already.

I took a tablespoon of coconut oil, three times a day, and popped in vitamin C tablet as well. The next few days, I still had flu and started coughing a little, but that was it. It seemed to be 'under control'. By the third day of taking coconut oil, the flu and cough was gone. Yay!!! And that was without taking any antibiotics, flu or cough medicine.

I googgled about coconut oil and discovered the below:


So I guess I'll be taking coconut oil from now on. :)

Additional good reads:
http://www.thevirgincoconutoil.com/articleitem.php?articleid=217

I'm so happy to be able to start exercising again - with my energy up and morning sickness gone. I wanted to start things slow, since I've not been exercising the past three months.

I didn't want to sign up for formal prenatal classes yet, so I thought I'd just start with some light stretches on my own first. I was regularly practising yoga pre-pregnancy, so I was comfortable doing some yoga routines on my own.

I googled for prenatal yoga videos online, and found this routine which I absolutely love. I've been doing it a couple of times now, and it has help relieve my backache a little. I love how her routines includes learning to make connection with the baby and at the same time, stretches the body to make it more flexible for labour and delivery.

Now that I'm finally over my morning sickness, the days certainly look brighter and the skies look bluer!! I still get occasional bouts of headache in the evening, but most of the time, I'm feeling good!

I'm super hungry most of the time now, but I still try to keep my meals small, but frequent. Stomach space is shrinking a little, to make room for the baby to grow, so I can't eat too much at any one time anyway. I'm also getting slight backache now, so moving around or getting up from a sitting position needs to be done at a slower pace. Oh, my baby bump's starting to show and my clothes are all getting tighter. Time to go shopping!!

I started experiencing slight constipation during my 14th week of pregnancy. It took a little longer than usual, although I was still able to 'do it' every day. I was worried things may go out of hand, so I was determined to keep constipation at bay.

The one thing I found most efficient in getting my bowel movements 'smoother' was papaya. I really love this fruit. Just one big slice of papaya, and the next day, wooooosh, everything comes out much easily. I never knew papaya to have laxative effects! According to google, papaya contains the natural digestive enzyme papain which supports digestive health. The vitamins, fiber and water content also helps to maintain a healthy colon.

Since I was not able to buy papaya everyday, my second best solution was to drink more water. I've had trouble drinking too much water earlier on due to my morning sickness. Before pregnancy, I've always been drinking lots of water. I think I usually drink 3-4 liters of water everyday, but it probably dropped to 1-2 liters during my first trimester. My lips cracked the whole time during my first trimester, and I had occasional nose bleeds, which my doc said was due to dehydration.  However, I started drinking like a camel the moment my morning sickness was gone, and toilet visits were also much smoother.

After weeks of being 'stuck at home' due to my morning sickness, I'm longing to go out. A gateaway, more like it. A pre-baby holiday, for hubs and I to enjoy the company of just the two of us, before our new addition comes into play. Hubs and I were actually planning a trip to Japan early next year, until we found out I was expecting.

So a baby-moon would be lovely. It may happen or it may not, seeing that I still haven't fully regain the so-called '2nd trimester feel good energy', but there's no harm planning rite?

Some places I've thought of:

Pulau Redang - have been wanting to go back Redang, since the last time I went was many many years ago. But will have to scrap that, since it's the monsoon season now, and going to the east coast would be out of the question

Next best local island option: Pangkor. Perhaps trying out the oh-so-extremely-overpriced Pangkor Island Resort

Back to nature relaxation: Tanah Aina, AwanMulan

Krabi, Bali

...hmmm, where else..

I'm so so looking forward to this ultimate preggo indulgence, to be pampered, to rest and relax, before sleep deprivation and midnight feedings become the norm.

I came across this article when my friend posted it in Facebook. As a soon-to-be-mum, I found it absurdly hilarious, although I'm pretty sure they're quite true - it's the comic side of parenting. I just can't help but to re-post it here.

Source: Unknown

Women: To prepare for pregnancy
1. Put on a dressing gown and stick a beanbag down the front.
2. Leave it there.
3. After 9 months remove 5% of the beans.
Men: To prepare for children:-
1. Go to a local chemist, tip the contents of your wallet onto the counter and tell the pharmacist to help himself
2. Go to the supermarket. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
3. Go home. Pick up the newspaper and read it for the last time.

Test 2: Knowledge

Find a couple who are already parents and berate them about their methods of discipline, lack of patience, appallingly low tolerance levels and how they have allowed their children to run wild. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's sleeping habits, toilet training, table manners and overall behaviour.
Enjoy it. It will be the last time in your life that you will have all the answers.

Test 3: Nights

To discover how the nights will feel:
1. Walk around the living room from 5pm to 10pm carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 4 - 6kg, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly.
2. At 10pm, put the bag down, set the alarm for midnight and go to sleep.
3. Get up at 11pm and walk the bag around the living room until 1am.
4. Set the alarm for 3am.
5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2am and make a cup of tea.
6. Go to bed at 2.45am.
7. Get up again at 3am when the alarm goes off.
8. Sing songs in the dark until 4am.
9. Put the alarm on for 5am. Get up when it goes off.
10. Make breakfast.
Keep this up for 5 years. LOOK CHEERFUL.

Test 4: Dressing Small Children

1. Buy a live octopus and a string bag.
2. Attempt to put the octopus into the string bag so that no arms hangout.
Time Allowed: 5 minutes.

Test 5: Cars

1. Forget the BMW. Buy a practical 5-door wagon.
2. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment. Leave it there.
3. Get a coin. Insert it into the CD player.
4. Take a box of chocolate biscuits; mash them into the back seat.
5. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.

Test 6: Going For a Walk

1. Wait.
2. Go out the front door.
3. Come back in again.
4. Go out.
5. Come back in again.
6. Go out again.
7. Walk down the front path.
8. Walk back up it.
9. Walk down it again.
10. Walk very slowly down the road for five minutes.
11. Stop, inspect minutely and ask at least 6 questions about every piece of used chewing gum, dirty tissue and dead insect along the way.
12. Retrace your steps.
13. Scream that you have had as much as you can stand until the neighbours come out and stare at you.
14. Give up and go back into the house.
You are now just about ready to try taking a small child for a walk.

Test 7: Conversations with children

Repeat everything you say at least 5 times.

Test 8: Grocery Shopping

1. Go to the local supermarket. Take with you the nearest thing you can find to a pre-school child - a fully grown goat is excellent. If you intend to have more than one child, take more than one goat.
2. Buy your weekly groceries without letting the goat(s) out of your sight.
3. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys.
Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.

Test 9: Feeding a 1 year-old

1. Hollow out a melon
2. Make a small hole in the side
3. Suspend the melon from the ceiling and swing it side to side
4. Now get a bowl of soggy cornflakes and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon while pretending to be an aeroplane.
5. Continue until half the cornflakes are gone.
6. Tip the rest into your lap, making sure that a lot of it falls on the floor.

Test 10: TV

1. Learn the names of every character from the Wiggles, Barney, Teletubbies and Disney.
2. Watch nothing else on television for at least 5 years.

Test 11: Mess

Can you stand the mess children make? To find out:
1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains
2. Hide a fish behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.
3. Stick your fingers in the flowerbeds and then rub them on clean walls. Cover the stains with crayon. How does that look?
4. Empty every drawer/cupboard/storage box in your house onto the floor and proceed with step 5.
5. Drag randomly items from one room to another room & leave them there.

Test 12: Long Trips with Toddlers

1. Make a recording of someone shouting 'Mummy' repeatedly. Important Notes: No more than a 4 second delay between each 'Mummy'. Include occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet.
2. Play this tape in your car, everywhere you go for the next 4 years.
You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.

Test 13: Conversations

1. Start talking to an adult of your choice.
2. Have someone else continually tug on your shirt hem or shirt sleeve while playing the Mummy tape listed above.
You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.

Test 14: Getting ready for work

1. Pick a day on which you have an important meeting.
2. Put on your finest work attire.
3. Take a cup of cream and put 1 cup of lemon juice in it
4. Stir
5. Dump half of it on your nice silk shirt
6. Saturate a towel with the other half of the mixture
7. Attempt to clean your shirt with the same saturated towel
8. Do not change (you have no time).
9. Go directly to work

You are now ready to have children. ENJOY!!

I experienced bouts of insomnia throughout my first trimester. There were nights where I would be tossing and turning the whole night, while other nights, I would fall asleep, only to wake up at 3 or 4am and not being able to sleep after that.

From what I read, it's actually quite common for one to experience insomnia during pregnancy, especially during the first and third trimester. During the first trimester, the body is going through hormonal changes, while the third trimester is due to sleep disturbances such as frequent urination, heartburn and backaches.

I've compiled several tips which I have found to help me sleep better (at times!):

Go to bed at night when you're tired, instead of following your usual sleeping time

If you wait till your sleeping time, the tiredness may have passed, and you may find it difficult to fall asleep.

Listen to relaxing music before sleeping

To calm down your mind and soul.

Avoid watching tv, computer or reading books before sleeping

Sometimes, the things you watch or read may trigger your mind to start racing again, thus making it harder to fall asleep. A rule of thumb is also to avoid having a tv in the room.

Jot down problems and thoughts instead of keeping them recycled in your mind

As I'm a born worrier, I find this very helpful. I'll imagine pulling out my problems or thoughts from my head (kinda like Dumbledore in Harry Potter movie), putting it in a balloon, and letting it slowly float away.

Exercise is a great way to relax

I haven't actually done this yet, but I'm itching to do it. I've always been exercising before my pregnancy - either swimming, walking or yoga. But I had to stop during my first trimester due to the morning sickness symptoms.

Hopefully these few tips will help you as well.

I love bread. I love the smell of fresh bread baking in the oven in the morning. I love walking past bakeries and am almost, always, tempted to walk in and buy the whole store. I will gladly choose bread over rice most of the time. Which is why not being able to eat bread during my first trimester had been difficult.

On good days (when I'm not experiencing indigestion or heartburn), I'll be hungry most of the time. And eating bread, no matter how much, just wasn't enough to keep me full. As a result, and I'm left feeling dizzy due to the hunger pangs.

I had to then turn to rice, brown rice specifically. That managed to keep the hunger at bay. I ate rice throughout the day, every meal, even breakfast. There were days when I got really tired of rice, but I had no choice, I had to eat it anyway.

The reason for this is quite simple. Rice, especially brown rice is complex carbs, whereas bread, is processed food, containing simple carbs. Complex carbs are processed by the body at a slower rate, thus providing a longer lasting energy. By contrast, simple carbs provide the body with a sudden surge or energy, but the blood sugar dips quickly, and I'm left hungry again.

So for now, rice it is. Oh double cheese burger, how I miss thee!

My sister recommended me to try Sea-band, which is basically an anti nausea wrist band, to help with my nausea. She herself uses it to help with her motion sickness, and it has helped her a great deal.

It's basically a wrist band, with a small ball on the inner side of the band. The ball needs to be positioned on a particular acupressure point called "pericardium 6" (p6), which is known in traditional Chinese medicine to relieve nausea.

A better explanation by Sea-band:


As my sister had a spare, she gave it to me to try. I later found a Malaysian blog shop selling it, and bought a pair for myself for RM35. Initially, it seemed to help. But after wearing it for several days, I realized that it didn't really help me that much. It has been reported to work on some people, but perhaps just not everyone.

I have a new found appreciation for lemons and grapefruits!

I have always been drinking hot lemon juice first thing in the morning before I was pregnant. I find that it's a very refreshing way to start my day, apart from the fact that it's beneficial for the digestive system. But somehow, I stopped when I found out I was pregnant. As for grapefruit, I've never really been a fan of it, due to the slight bitter-ish taste.

However, as I was experiencing frequent bouts for indigestion and heartburn throughout my first trimester, I was looking for natural ways to elevate the discomfort without having to resort to drug-based remedies.

I started taking lemon juice whenever I have indigestion. I read somewhere that drinking or eating something citrusy helps, so I tried. It does help, but then it made me hungry even faster. And I didn't like that, as being hungry means I need to eat, and since I had very lousy appetite during my first trimester, the act of eating was a torture.

Then my dad chanced upon the use of grapefruit skin to help elevate nausea. My sweet dad was going through some of his old food related books, to see what kind of food is suitable for pregnant women. One of his books talks about food that can cure/help relieve ailments based on Chinese belief, and it mentioned that boiling grapefruit skin in water and drinking it as 'tea' throughout the day helps with nausea.

Unfortunately, the grapefruit skin tea drink didn't quite help me with nausea. However, I soon discovered eating the grapefruit itself whenever I had indigestion and heartburn helped me a whole lot! And it doesn't make me hungry even faster after that, unlike lemon juice.

And so, grapefruit is now, always, readily available in my fridge, for days when my digestive system is acting up.

My first trimester hit me like a tornado. It was quite overwhelming considering this was my first pregnancy. I certainly had not expected it to be that difficult.

The symptoms started somewhere in mid week 5. I'm now almost towards the end of week 11, and it still has not fully gone yet. I am nauseated and dizzy throughout the whole day. My appetite went down the drain and being hungry all the time makes it worse. I get heartburn frequently, especially towards late afternoon and night. Sleeping is difficult due to the frequent heartburn, bloatedness and nasal congestion. I'm put off by the smell of certain food, including cooking oil, so cooking at home was a no-no. The only thing I want to do most of the time is sleep.

Working was difficult as well. Luckily, I was able to work from home until I was 'fit' enough to go back to office.

Hubs was pretty supportive throughout the whole period. He did all the cleaning and washing! The only unfortunate thing was he doesn't cook much. And that's where my parents came in. I stayed with them for a couple of weeks, just so that I could have home-cooked meals. Eating out was a no-no, as the food was mostly too greasy for me.

All in all, my first trimester had consisted of the longest weeks of my life. Hopefully things get better soon *cross fingers*