A is for Active

Time flies and I am already 8 and a half months old. I am getting more and more active. I am so energetic that mummy wonders where I get my energy from. I am definitely not a small eater, neither am I a big eater. I have been consuming 4 feeds of milk and 2 feeds of solid-food since 5 months old. The portion of porridge/cereal has also increased significantly. However, I seem not to be putting on weight as fast as before due to the increase in physical activities. I will spend my waking hours playing, reading, observing, learning, jumping, crawling, dancing by shaking my body and the list goes on...Let me show you some evidence of me busy in action.

Jumping like an expert in my jumperoo..Mummy finds me so hilarious..Hear my screams of excitement


Turning and flipping


Laughing and playing


Crawling and smiling to the camera

My feeding schedule at 6 months

Time files and I am already more than half a year old. After I started on solid food on my 5th month, my feeding schedule and amount for consumption has changed. Here is my typical schedule when it comes to eat, chew, burp..

Elijah's Feeding Schedule for 6th month
5.30 a.m. 220ml of milk
9.00a.m. small piece of biscuits + water
10.30 a.m. 220ml of milk
1.30 p.m. 1/2 to 3/4 bowl of cereal + puree* + 50ml milk
4.30 p.m. 150ml of milk
7.30 p.m. 1/2 to 3/4 bowl of cereal + puree* + 50ml milk
11.30 p.m. 220ml of milk

*apple, pear, pumpkin, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, spinach and fish purees are what I normally have. Sometimes, I will have banana and carrot.

Of course, this is just a guideline and I will tend to consume more or less depending on my mood and appetite.

Here a picture of mummy and me when we waited for our turn at Dr Ong's clinic for my final 6 in 1 jab. I weigh 7.7kg and measure 67.5cm long at 6 months 2 days old.

My first taste of semi-solid food

Mummy started to introduce me to semi-solid food when I turned 5 months 1 day old on 18 July 2009.

Mummy has been preparing for this day since a month ago by reading up and buying all the necessary bowls, spoons, storage cubes, hand-held blender, Healthy Times brown rice cereal etc.

She found these two books really come in handy. They contain easy to prepare recipes for purees and porridge from 4 months and up. "Top 100 Baby Purees" by Annabel Karmel and a local published book, "First Food" by Anna Jacob & other co-authors.

To date, I have eaten brown rice cereal, apples, pears, bananas, carrots, pumpkin, spinach and sweet potatoes. They are all so yummy! Mummy and po po both agree that I like semi-solid food more than milk.

Here's me having my very first taste of semi-solid food on 18 July 2009.




See my love-hate relationship with the apple from my facial expression. Mummmy thinks I look extremely cute here.



Mummy will steam the ingredients and then make them into purees. She will then transfer them to small storage cube to have them frozen.

I am 5 months old

I turned 5 months old on 17 July 2009. Mummy has been waiting eagerly for the day to arrive as she wants me to have my first taste of semi-solid food. More about the introduction of solid food will be posted up separately.

Mummy DIY-ed by weighing and measuring my length at home as I will not be going for my vaccination this month. I weighed approximately 7.2kg and measured 67cm long at 5 months 2 days old.

About me..
I place everything I can get hold of inside my mouth.

I roll to my side in my sleep and even manage to flip in my space-constrained cot.

I chuckle whenever I am tickled.

I laugh and squeal whenever I play.

I cry and scream louder as my lungs get stronger.

I make noises when I am bored.

Daddy says I 'buay tiam buay teo' (a description in hokkien). Meaning I have a pointy butt and cannot sit still and therefore need to be entertained at all times.

See, I am so determined to pull daddy's finger


Got it! I won! I am stronger than daddy to overcome his resistance

Fearless for the needles

I took my 5 in 1 vaccination and rotarix with Dr Ong on the same day as my 3 months assessment. Mummy had initially wanted me to take 6 in 1 but Dr Ong advised not to as it is too lethal for small babies and the tendency to develop a fever is very high.

Dr Ong was so skillful and swift while giving me the injection that I did not cry at all. I still smile at Mummy when she picked me up. Mummy and po po praised me for being a brave boy. However, when the nurse administered the oral dose of rotarix using the syringe, I fussed and shook my head.

I was prescribed a bottle of antidote for fever and mummy had to monitor my temperature for the next 24 hours. The trigger temperature for fever is 38 degree celsius when taken with a ear thermometer or 37.5 degree celsius when taken at the arm pit.

Mummy conscientiously took my temperature and thought that I might not have a fever after all since 20 hours had passed. She had a shock of her life when she stared at the digital display. It read 38.4!

She reacted very fast by feeding me the medicine, sponging me and putting the cooling pad on my forehead. My temperature dipped to 37.6 half and hour later and mummy was so relieved. I could play and smile at mummy. All thanks to mummy for taking care of me.

Feeding stress

Mummy brought me for my vaccination and 3 months assessment on 19 May 2009. She has been looking forward to this day as she needs to get some assurance from my paediatrician regarding my feeding habits and growth. She is very concerned about me drinking lesser than when I was one month old. I used to drink about 120ml of breast milk/formula 7 to 8 times a day. But right now, I am only consuming 150ml 5 times a day. I also do not really like to drink milk and will cry and refuse to suckle. Mummy will need to spend about an hour to feed me most of the time.

Dr Ong said it is normal for 3 months old babies to drink lesser than before and reassured mummy that different babies have different feeding habits. He said some babies need to be half asleep or suckle on the pacifier on and off while feeding. It is still considered normal and should not be a cause of concern. Mummy was so relieved to hear that and tears were welling up in her eyes as she recalled the stress and worries she experiences everyday when she feeds me.

In fact, he mentioned babies' weight gain will slow down at this stage and should double their birth weight when they reached 4 months. I have already doubled and Dr Ong told mummy not to feel stressed or compare my weight with other babies who were born heavier. Mummy hopes that this is just a passing phase and I will soon be drinking well.

I weighed 6kg at 3 months 2 days old.

Wind, wind, go away

wind, wind, go away
don't ever come back to Elijah again

wind, wind, go away
don't ever come back to Elijah again

This is what mummy will sing to me when I cry between feeds or during feeding.
It is really a challenging task looking after me as I will fuss and cry, lately accompany with screams, everyday since I was about 5 to 6 weeks old. Mummy has tried many ways to get rid of my wind. Ru Yi oil, rid wind baby drops, Gripe water, burping me in different positions etc..

Colic has disrupted my feeding so much that I will cry after every few suckles and I am drinking lesser. Daddy and mummy feel very heart aching seeing me suffer. Mummy says colic is a vicious cycle and the more I cry, the more air I will take in.

On 17/4/2009, Mummy brought me to a paediatrician even though my condition has improved slightly. She was told to continue giving me rid wind 3 times daily and Gripe water once a day. The paediatrician merely prescribed a bottle of probiotic drops for me to boost the good bacteria and strengthen my gut. He assured mummy not to be too concerned over me drinking much lesser as my weight gain was satisfactory, 1 kg gained since I last weighed 3 weeks ago.



I was prescribed the last product shown in the picture

Information taken from: http://www.biogaia.com/Page/Standard/147/What-is-Lactobacillus-reuteri.aspx

What is Lactobacillus reuteri?
Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) is one of the most well researched probiotics with respect to health effects and safety. The bacteria strains used in BioGaia Probiotic products were originally sampled from human body sites.

L. reuteri has a natural health-promoting role and it is scientifically proven to help protect us from the actions of harmful bacteria in the stomach, the gut and the mouth. L. reuteri also strengthens our immunity.

BioGaia Probiotic products deliver live friendly Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri). The products are intended for the support of gut, immune and oral health.