Cute Animation

Cindy sent me this link..very cute leh!

Animation vs Animation

It’s not easy to create a nice flash…I learnt the basic and had done some simple animation before.  Can make me become crossed-eyed de! Have to count the bars (aka the timeline), have to create the symbols, make them move…aiyo! But it’s quite fun actually.

Kudos to those who can do such beautiful and cute animation!

Free Samples and Freebies!

Ok, I am getting real here. I love to receive free samples and freebies (who doesn’t?).  Especially after I have my girl.  I mean, it could be just a sample diaper or a one-time feed of milk powder, but to me, it’s a potential opportunity to save some hard-earned money. Also, the samples allow me to test the product first before making a real purchase. 

I have a few friends who had asked me where to get those samples and freebies.  I am going to share them here so that the other parents can “benefit” too. :D

1. Abbott - You can get free samples of Similac, Gain, Grow, Pediasure, Isomil milk powder.  If you are expecting, they will also send you this booklet on “Naming your baby”. Sign up as their member too! They will send you a 400g tin of milk powder when your baby is 6 months old and 1 year old.  And I must say they are very prompt in this too
2. Dumex - You can get samples on their Mamil Gold series or the Nutrakids Cereal if your kid is ready for semi solids. For pregnant ladies, you can get the Mamil Mama!
3. Enfa - Here’s the Enfapro, Enfagrow & Enfakid or Enfamama milk powder. If you sign up as the club member, they will send you a 400g tin of milk powder when your baby is 6 months old. After which, they will send 2 packets of the 1 year old milk powder.  But if I remember correctly, their membership has an expiry date.
4. Nestle -  You can’t ask for free samples over the Internet for nestle.  But there’s a customer service number which you can call to ask for NAN sample and Brown Rice/White Rice cereal samples.
5. Goo.N Diapers - Register and get a free sample of the Goo.N Diaper.
6. Huggies - Register and request for samples.  You can request up to two samples per product per household.
7. Sometimes Drypers also gives samples but information can be found in their advertisements in magazines for mothers.  They will usually require you to sms to ask for samples.  Huggies does that too.  So look out for those advertisements!
8. Collect a free babyplus bag when you join the FairPrice BabyPlus Club. There are goodies in the bag!
9. Depending on which hospital you gave birth to your child, you will get a Bag of Love or the Baby Plus guidebook. Check out here.
10. If you are staying in the southwest district, you can get a babybliss cash-card valued at $38! This amount is good for paying off some ERP or car park charges right?! For those who do not drive, you can buy your baby items and pay off using the cash-card.  Check out details here.

Do note that these freebies are for those who are staying in Singapore.  For information about samples and freebies in other parts of the world (for example, US), check out bestfreestuffonline.

Hope this helps!

The 5 must-have in case your kid is sick at home

With a new baby or a kid at home, what’s the 5 must-have for a mother in case your kid is sick?  I swear by these :

• Ear Thermometer

Invest in a good one. Or at least a decent one. You will never know when you need it and when you need it, YOU REALLY NEED IT. Personally will recommend a ear thermometer instead of those which you need to stick into the kid’s mouth or armpit.  Most kids will be too active for you to do that!  There are a few brands to chose from, check out Safety 1st Hospital’s Choice Accu Light Ear Thermometer .

• Medicine issued by doctors

I’m a kia-su mum! I have extra cough syrup, fever syrup, running nose syrup in my fridge for emergency cases.  I am not encouraging mothers to feed your kids medicine unnecessarily. But these medicine act as a back-up plan.  For example, if kid is running a fever of 38 degrees in the middle of the night with no other symptoms, instead of rushing to the 24-hour clinic or hospital, you can try the medicine and sponging method.  Or that sometimes kids are prone to having running nose due to weather changes, and it’s very mild but still adding discomfort to the child, you can feed the running nose medicine.  Take note that all these medicine are issued by doctors, and not self medication which you buy off the shelves from pharmacies. And that if the problem still persist or sickness became more serious, please bring the kid to the doctor.

• Fever Cool Plaster

These come in handy when kid has a fever, though I don’t think that it is as effective as sponging. But these can relieve you for awhile instead of those constant sponging and get you some rest. Usually I will use this when the kid is sleeping and I too need some rest. And this plaster will stick on the forehead and will seldom drop off, unlike the sponging method. Something off the topic, if you chose to sponge your child, please use tap water.  It’s cool enough to start of the sponging. You do not need to use ice water, and it might cause headache to the child due to the sudden coldness.

• Decongestant Capsules

These are oil that come in capsules form and it helps to clear blocked noses and congestion.  I will squeeze the oil into a handkerchief and tied it at the cot during the night.  It helps the kid to have a better sleep during the time she has a blocked nose. There are a few brands in the market and it is easily available in pharmacies such as Guardian. I am using this brand called “Karvol”. I simply love this!

•  Biscuits

You must be wondering what does biscuits have to do when a kid is sick? Well, these help me alot when it’s time to feed the kid medicine!  Find out what you kid loves.  It could be that favourite puff or that favourite animal biscuits. I will usually show Dawn her favourite puffs (which is Gerber Finger Foods Puffs, 3 Strawberry and Apple Puffs and 3 Banana Puffs(6 per Pack)) and tell her that she has to take the medicine first before having her little biscuit. It simply helps.

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Hope this bit of information is useful for those new mothers or mothers-to-be

Great Book!

I just finished reading this book yesterday. It’s a great book! It offers many parenting advices which I had not thought of or came across from any other books or online articles which I had read before. It lives up the the name of “Darn Good Advice”! Advices includes handling the temper of the child in different situations (which I find it very handy!).

Recipe : Potatoe & Fish Pureed

Mom had been preparing this pureed for little Dawn. It’s just adding fish to the usual potatoe pureed but the sweetness of the fish makes this pureed taste so much better.

Required

1 potato
Fish slices
Expressed breast milk, formula milk or warm boiled water

Directions

Cut the potato into four or five pieces and boil for 15 minutes or until completely soft.
During the last 3-5 minutes, put in the fish slices and boil till cooked.
Place the fish & soft potato into blender or food processor. You can also use a potato hand mesher.
Add 1 tablespoon of fluid at a time until you have a smooth puree of potatoes.

Recipe : Potatoes Pureed (4-9 mths)

Required

1 potato
Expressed breast milk, formula milk or warm boiled water

Directions

Cut the potato into four or five pieces and boil for 15 minutes or until completely soft.
Place soft potato into blender or food processor. You can also use a potato hand mesher.
Add 1 tablespoon of fluid at a time until you have a smooth puree of potatoes.