Moo Moo and Chickenpox

Moo Moo was down with Chickenpox on Saturday. Early morning when i bath Moo Moo, i saw about 10-20 blisters like red spots all over her body. Moo Moo was feeling great that morning. No fuzz, no fever just slight itch and she is as normal as usual. I thought it was some insect bites or allergies and hence apply only some insect bite lotion to the spots.

Throughout the day, Moo Moo had not show any signs of discomfort. She played with her nieces and nephews, watched TV, ate a big bowl of noodles for lunch, had her afternoon nap at 2:30pm to 5:00pm. She woke up as active as usual, we even went out for some bicycle ride and dinner. However, the red spots doesn't seems to subside throughout the day and hence we end up visiting the Doctor on Sunday morning.

The doctor confirmed that it is chickenpox. Chickenpox is caused by a virus called Varicella Zoster and toddler will still get chickenpox even after taking the vaccine at 1 years old. However, Kids who do get it after they've gotten the shot often get less severe cases, which means they get better quicker. If a kids gotten the shot at 1 years old and had not get chickenpox after age of 5, a second shot of vaccine is usually given to boost up the immune system.

New chickenpox usually stop appearing by the seventh day, though they may stop as early as the third day. It usually takes 10-14 days for all the blisters to be scabbed over and recovered.

The doctor prescribe Moo Moo with calamine lotion to soothes the itch. So far, Moo Moo had been doing well with the chickenpox. The only worries is on me as i am currently pregnant with No.2 and had not had any chickenpox before. I remember taking the vaccine about 10 years ago but can't really remember how many shot i had. Do read this article found here if you are interested to know more about Chickenpox During Pregnancy. Hoping for a fast recovery and zero infection.

Jigsaw Puzzle and Child Development

I am a jigsaw puzzle lover since i am young hence i introduce Moo Moo to jigsaw puzzle when she is merely 1 1/2 years old. I bought her a box of jigsaw puzzle which consists of 8 sets of 4 to 6 pieces each. At first, she won't have the patient to even sit down to finish 1 set hence the puzzle is used to teach her the different type of insects featured instead. Later, she started to gain interest on the ladybird image and started to work on it. However, i found that although there are merely 4 pieces for the puzzle, its quite hard for a toddler to actually put it in the correct manner.

Later on, i found a nice 12 piece puzzle during one of my visit to Tesco which cost merely RM2. Moo Moo played with the puzzle occasionally but had not really master it until recently. Moo Moo finally managed to finish the 12 piece puzzle with a little bit of guidance and hint from me. She had been playing with it every night before bedtime for the past 1 week and she will usually demand to replay at least 3 to 4 times per night.

Jigsaw puzzle is truly an educational toy for toddler. It helps to improves hand-eye coordination, develops shape/size recognition, develops logical thinking and perseverance attitude and enhances spatial relation skills and social skills.

I will definitely buy Moo Moo a new set of Jigsaw Puzzle soon.

Touching moment with Moo Moo

Moo Moo had a bit of diarrhea last Sunday. She had been poo pooing for at least 3 times since after dinner till bedtime.

Moo Moo and I was already in bed. I had actually dozed off while Moo Moo is still playing with my handphone. Suddenly, Moo Moo tell me that she wants to poo poo. She wake up by herself, walk to the bathroom, take off her pants and diapers, take out her potty, sit on the potty and do her big business.

I woke up from my sleep and went to check her out. When she saw me waking up, she demanded that i go back to sleep. I told her that i will need to help her with the clean up after her big business and yet she demanded again that i go back to sleep.

I felt so touch and blessed.

Moo Moo and Ants

Meal time is always like a war time between me and Moo Moo as she just can't get to sit still and eat properly. She loves to run about and end up dropping bits and pieces of her food on the floor.

Last Sunday, while Moo Moo was in her usual doings during her dinner time, a group of ants actually appears and started moving bits of the rice on the floor.

Me: Girl, you see? The ants are moving your rice.

Moo Moo was so angry to see what the ants are doing. She started to demand that i chase those ants away!

Me: Just let the ants move your rice. They also need to eat.

Moo Moo gets angrier and make a fuss.

Me: If you want to take back your rice, go do it yourself.

Moo Moo gets down from my lap and tried her best to stop the ants. She tried to touch the ants with her fingers but she is scared. At the end, hubby teaches her to blow the ants away! As soon as she learns the tactic, she starts doing it whenever she sees ants moving her food on the floor and she will then pick up the food and pass it to me.

Me: If you don't want the ants to come and move your food, please open up your mouth and eat properly.

It's really cute to see Moo Moo's reaction for such a small issues. Hope that she will learn from this lesson, sit properly and eat in a better manner for the next meal.

Health, Fertility and Supplements

It's always sad to get news of a miscarriage or fertility issues among friends and relatives. The woman is always the one that have to go through so much and get the most blame when issues like this happens. I always believe that it takes two to make a healthy baby. Both men and woman have to be responsible for this and should work together to find out the reason and also to find a solution to it.

According to the Malaysia Total Fertility Rates (2011 est), the fertility rates are decreasing for the last 10 years. Total fertility rate (2011 est) is standing at 2.67% as compared to 3.13% for year 2003.

What might be the issues behind this?

A study published in the April 2004 issue of the Journal of Reproductive Medicine, showed a correlation between fertility supplements and pregnancy rates. The double blind study (in which neither the researchers nor the subjects knew who was taking placebo and who was taking the fertility supplements) conducted at Stanford University, involved thirty women between the ages of twenty-four to forty-six, who had not been able to conceive. After five months, five of the fifteen women taking fertility supplements conceived, while there were no pregnancies in the placebo group.

In fact, research and clinical practice come down on the side of fertility supplementation for both aspiring parents. Regardless of which one of you has been diagnosed with an imbalance, increasing both partners' level of health has been linked with higher pregnancy rates. This is of course common sense-the healthier the genetic material, the healthier the child. To cite just one of the fertility related studies that validates this theory: A 1962 study published in the International Journal of Fertility found that miscarriage was more common with low sperm counts.

We need to have a healthy body and a healthy lifestyle to be fertile. Unfortunately due to our hectic lives, it is almost impossible to get all the nutrients we need from food alone. Besides, when i learn about the nutrient depletion from our food as compared to 10 years back, it freaks me out!

I would like to share two website i found from my online research, Nourishing Life and Fertile Heart that talks about health, fertility and supplements and hope that my friends, relatives and readers will benefit from it and be encourage to start a healthy life.

Immune Injection - Hepatitis A at 2 Years Old

Last Saturday, i finally brought Moo Moo for her Hepatitis A injection. She was supposed to get the injection when she is 2 years old. However, she had been on and off with fever, flu, cough for the first few months of her 2 years old mark. *Touch wood* finally she is sick free for the past whole month and hence it's time to bring her for the injection.

We reached the Doctor's clinic at around 9:30am. There were already a lot of patients waiting and we were No.10 on the waiting list. Moo Moo was weighted. She is now 11.5kg. She had gained 1.5kg in less than 2 months time. No wonder it's getting harder for me to lift her out of the car!

Moo Moo doesn't seems like herself as she had not been playing much at the clinic as usual. Maybe she got scared with all the cries from other babies that got their injection that morning. We waited for about 30 minutes and finally it's Moo Moo's turn. She didn't greet the doctor with her usual smiling face and had actually timid away from the doctor's hand shake and greetings.

Moo Moo laid sideways and the injection took less than 10 seconds. Moo Moo is really one brave girl. No whining nor crying as usual but she do complain of buttock pain.

After the injection, she is back to her usual self, waiting happily for her medicine at the counter. She will need to come back in 6 months time for the Hepatitis A booster. Something to note, toddler will not get fever after Hepatitis A injection unlike most of the immune injection hence no fever medicine is prescribed.

To award my brave little Moo Moo, we spend almost an hour playing at the nearby McDonalds indoor playground. She had a great time there and even managed to finish one whole set of Happy Meal Breakfast which consist of 1 Sausage McMuffin, 1 Fruit Cup and 1 cup of Ribena. She even walloped up some of my french fries and sundae while on our way home.

Milestone - Brushing her Teeth

Brushing Moo Moo's teeth has not been hard since birth.

I had started to introduce her with the Pigeon Training Toothbrush when she is about 15 months old. She loves to imitate us adult brushing our teeth and will usually bite hard to it and run around the room. *Parents, do be very careful as a toothbrush in a baby's mouth who are running around is very dangerous as baby might tripped, fell and hurt herself.

She had no problem holding on to the toothbrush and inserting it into her mouth. Later, i introduce her with baby toothpaste. Do be extra careful when choosing toddler toothpaste. A little fluoride is a good thing for your child's teeth, but swallowing too much of it over time can lead to a condition called fluorosis. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends waiting until your child is at least 2 to use fluoridated toothpaste. Hence, i bought her "First Teeth" (Note: It's quite expensive)

She is in love with it as she loves the taste of the toothpaste. She always ends up eating the toothpaste and asking for more rather than brushing her teeth.

Months of training goes by and she is on and off the teeth brushing routine.She is still at the stage where she will bite on the toothbrush rather than brushing it. When her supply of "First Teeth" Toothpaste runs low, her interest runs low too.

Last month, i bought her a stool so that she can stand higher and reached the wash basin to wash her hands on her own as it is getting harder for me to lift her up. I also change her toothpaste to Pureen Fluoride Free Toothpaste and put her toothbrush at a lower level so that she can reach it easily.

It must have makes her feels that she has grown up more!

She finally did a few stroke brushing her front teeth and i will usually helps her with the others. Sometimes, she will demand to help me brush my teeth with my toothbrush too when i am brushing hers.

Preparing ourselves for bed is now officially another special playtime/bonding time for us.

Supplements during Pregnancy

Pregnancy is one time in a woman's life that doctors agree they need supplementation. During the first visit to the family physician or obstetrician, they will usually prescribe what had become known as prenatal vitamins. Intended to boost nutritional intake which are usually a multiple vitamin with extra folic acid.

Studies shows that woman who are taking at least 400 to 800 mcg of folic acid prior to becoming pregnant substantially decrease the risk of their child having a neural tube defect (spina bifida or hydrocephalus). This protection does not occur when supplements are begun two to three weeks after a woman discovers she is pregnant. Therefore, if there is even a slight possibility of becoming pregnant, a woman should be taking nutritional supplements.

My gynae had advised me to take folic acid throughout my first trimester. When i am in my 12 weeks, he suggested that i should take additional calcium, fish oil and other multivitamins. He introduced me Obimin Pluz which contains vitamins, mineral, DHA, EPA, folic acid and many more, all inside 2 tablets.

Since being pregnant with No.2, i had been reading a lot about Nutrition and Supplements in hope to give something better to No.2. Coincidentally, one of my friend suggested this book "Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements" by Lyle MacWilliam to me. The book scientifically rated and compared over 1,500 US and Canadian supplements (mainly multivitamins). It's actually an eye opening to see that many of the popular brands available in Malaysia failed the test badly and is actually containing toxic.

I was then introduced to the product USANA (the No.1 brand in US/Canada according to the book). I am hoping to check on Obimin Pluz's scores with the book however the product is not included in the test as Obimin Pluz is from Indonesia. Since supplements are a must during pregnancy, why not choose a good brand? Hence i had since started taking Essentials (Multivitamins), Active Calcium Plus, Biomega III Plus and Proflavanol from USANA.

The great things about it is that i don't have the urge to puke anymore as compared to the time when i was taking Obimin Pluz. There's no fishy smells that makes me sick. The size of the tablets are almost the same as Obimin Pluz tablets (except Proflavanol) and it is easily dissolved in water.

I am taking the tablets twice a day and am hoping for the best for the little ones.