Breastmilk Keepsake Jewelry

When I've stopped pumping in January this year, I still had a few packets of frozen breastmilk in the freezer. Donating them was one of my options to clear them off but I didn't want to just bid them farewell like that. I mean, they signify an important milestone I achieved in life. I thought of keeping one frozen packet and give it to Charlotte when she turns 21. Though I'm quite certain that she might feel clueless of what to do with it hahaha. Maybe she could continue to keep it until she's a mother herself and tells my newborn cucu, "See, this was what I used to drink when I was your age."

Ya.... right....

Anyway, one day I stumble upon a post on Facebook (I mean, where else, right?) and this seller was selling breastmilk keepsakes. And that's it! A keepsake! For the sake of keeping lol. After comparing the price and do some rough research, I contacted the seller. It's not cheap, honestly. Here's what she quoted me

European Bead (breastmilk/ baby's cord/ baby hair)
1 for RM250
3 & above RM200/pcs
Free Glitters, Shimmers, Colors, Flakes, Foil
Add On Name additional RM15 for per bead

The price is slightly cheaper than a Pandora bead. But it's made from my own breastmilk! So after contemplating much, I decided to place my order. Since I was among the first batch to order, I was able to enjoy an additional 10% discount. I ended up paying RM180 per bead.

My order was as below

♥ 1 full bm (faceted) with gold glitter.
♥ 1 full bm (faceted) with added name - Charlotte (lobster font)
♥ 1 half bm + half pink (faceted)
♥ 2 full bm (faceted) with pink glitter

I also got to get a complimentary pendant cause they were running birthday month promo. So on top of the beads, I also  got myself a complimentary full bm pendant.

I placed my order in March. Since the response was overwhelming, I was told that my order can only be delivered around July. I was fine with that, thinking that it could be a birthday gift to myself. Each bead needs approximately 30ml (1oz) of bm. I handed the seller 1 bag (10oz) of frozen bm ans waited patiently.

My beads came in August instead of July.

Let me show you my keepsakes ♥ ♥ ♥

Pretty right?

They came with a complementary bangle but I'm not wearing it. I'm wearing 2 in my Pandora bracelet and keeping the rest in Charlotte's Time Capsule Box :)


They came in boxes like that, just in case you're wondering. You can also see my breastmilk pendant on the left.

There is a bottle of wax powder with a wax cloth included for the beads, to prevent them from tarnishing.

Also included is a care card, teaching you how to take care of your keepsakes.

Of course I was not happy when there was no news and I have to ask them for updates myself. But I got them in the end all is well now. Just that I won't share who this seller is. If you're interested to get these keepsakes for yourself, you can simply search through Facebook and you can find a number of result.

Just in case you're wondering, I never join any of these groups and the seller is not shown in the result here. I'm just showing you that you can easily find them on facebook. Do compare the prices and look through the reviews before deciding who and where you wanna get your keepsakes from.

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Caring Moms Bazaar 2016

If you're a Facebook user and you're a mom/ lady/ home-based business woman, you've probably heard of this Facebook group- 

JOBS for Caring Moms MALAYSIA - Babysitter, Tutor, Daycare

A community founded by Shera Ann Bosco and her friend Umesh in April 2016. Within a short period of 4 months time, this group has grown tremendously and it now has 48 thousand members (and counting).
The aim of this group is written in it's group description itself and I quote

Many Stay At Home Moms are very resourceful and skillful at what they do, juggling kids, work part time, and managing the home. Many are also looking to supplement the income. 

Full time working moms, need peace of mind at work. If the kids are well taken cared of, they work in peace. 

This group aims to connect the SAHM and the FTWM with the hope they can work together, bringing up children, with peace of mind, hassle free in a nice home environment. 

If you are a service provider, feel free to advertise your service.
- Babysitting.
- Daycare.
- Tuition.
- Personal Shopper.
- School Transporter. 

For SAHMs, use this as a positive opportunity to supplement your income and enjoy what you love doing. 

For singles please feel free to spread the word and introduce this to a friend in need.

Bottom line - a support system.

I joined this group since the beginning of it and I have to say, the community here is supportive and amazing. There are many home-based service providers such as food caterers, child care providers, tutors, home-based beauticians, cleaner services, etc. You name it, they have it. But if you can't find it, ask and ye shall find hahaha.

I personally had tried a few services and erm they're all related to food hahahahaha. I've ordered

Bottle drinks from Yuki Teoh


Baked Macaroni Lasagna by Mimi Azura Amin


Lily's Homemade Sausages

HomeBrew Coffee, Tea & Chocolate Drink by Kai Lee Tan

Ok la there's one non-food related service. I've also tried

Eyebrows and Eyeliner embroidery service by Jasimin Juliet De Silva

These are just a tip of the iceberg. Imagine ALL the other services you could get from this group! Let me show you some interesting ones that I might consider spending on later.


Homemade Cartoon Pao (available in Melaka though)


Homemade Vege Pasta by Vi Vien Woo


Dehydrated Fruits for Detox Water by Joo Sing.

Amazing, right?

My experience with these services has been amazing thus far. Oh, I'll be writing my experience on my embroidery soon. Do stay tune for that :)

Since this group has grown tremendously within a short period of time, they decided to do something more bizarre - to organize a bazaar!!! Omg that's so rhymed lol!

Date : 20 & 21 Aug 2016 (Saturday and Sunday)
Time : 10 am - 8 pm
Venue : Evolve Concept Mall, Ara Damansara
Event Details: Click HERE

There will be lucky draw with exciting prizes to be won. Also 2000 goodie bags up for grab!
Up to 100 of food, beauty products and handicrafts will be available. There are also fun activities lining up such as kids colouring contest and fashion show.


If you're travelling from outstation to attend this bazaar, the committees have actually negotiated good rates with PJ GARDEN HOTEL. Located just 6km from Evolve Concept Mall. Kindly book early to avoid disappointment.

If you're interested to go, mark your calendar now and spend your weekend there! Don't say I bojio!

Gentle Reminder : Please bring enough cash and leave your stomach empty before heading over :)

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Breastfeeding after going back to work

It has always been one of my biggest concerns before going back to work.

Will I be able to continue breastfeeding Charlotte until she's 2?

Or until she weans off the breast herself?

As mentioned before, I've stopped pumping since January this year. Though I had time to stock some up before starting work but I was too busy just juggling with life.

I understand that after 1 year of age, breast milk is not the main food intake anymore. It's more like supplement on top of her 3 proper meals. I initially didn't wanna give her any other form of milk to substitute breast milk but at the same time, I was afraid that she'd feel left out if she sees her friends taking the bottle but she's not. So I bought her Oat Milk powder.

She's taking the Oat Milk twice a day. Once during breakfast and once during snack time when she's at the nursery. But when she's with me or during the weekends, I don't give her any oat milk at all cause the fresh and genuine one is always readily available lol.

So, am I still breastfeeding her?

Hell yes.

Every morning after she wakes up, I let her take her time to nurse as long as she wants. After sending her to the nursery, I let her nurse a while more or until she's satisfied. Now that she knows that I'll leave after nursing, she's taking the breast longer.

Then after work, when I pick her up, I'll let her nurse before we head home together. When she's at home, I'll just let her nurse as much and as long as she wants. She's now more fussy and demanding and I kinda expected that cause maybe it's her way of showing dissatisfaction for leaving her for so long during the day. Though tiring and often sore, breastfeeding her is one of my ways to compensate her. So ya, not complaining. Not complaining.

How's my boob feeling for not nursing for at least 9 hours?

Soft. No engorgement at all. It does feel a lil full but bearable. Of course there's a stream of relieved and satisfaction when she nurse on after I pick her up from the nursery. Sometimes I would wonder if my supply is running low when she nurses hard and long but I still see milk around the nips when she unlatches so I guess there's nothing to worry? Also, I sometimes pinch my nips to see if my milk still sprays during bath time lol. Sorry ya if too much info. But my point is, as preached by every other lactation consultant, supply = demand. As long as she demands for it, at this point, I'm still positively sure that I'll be able to supply to her.

Lately, I came across this article from a writer whom I admire. It's not really relevant to what I just wrote up there but this is one of the reasons why I'm more determined to let Charlotte wean off the breast herself as she has her own timetable for
it. If you're still breastfeeding your little one, I hope this encourage you to continue on breastfeeding as long as you and your child mutually desires. Don't let anyone or anything discourage you.

Cheers.

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Childcare and Nanny Hunt

So I'd spent almost a month searching high and low for a nanny/ childcare center for Charlotte before my new job commences. My cousin said that as long as I'm not picky, I should be able to find a nanny anywhere any time.

True.

But the thing is, I've been more or less the sole care taker for Charlotte. And it's hard for me to just let go of some habits that we've been building.

Some of the things that we have not done or had ditched are

- Never sleep in a sarung (hammock).
- Never use the walker.
- Never use the pacifier for soothing.
- Never use mobile devices to distract her during our meal time so we can eat in peace (only uses when I need to cut her finger nails and toe nails)
- No screen time for more than 2 hours daily.
- Ditched the bottle at 5 months old and has been direct latching since then.

Do I sound like a tiger mom? I don't think so. We practice these because it works for our family.

My initial ideal nanny would be someone who stays in the same area as us. So I put up a notice on our condo's notice board in search of a nanny. The notice was up for 2 weeks. I was quite hopeful cause the last time I posted it up, I received quite a number of calls. But this time, no one calls! Until towards the end of second week, I finally received a call from a nanny who just lives a few floors below us. She charges rm900, excluding food. The price was way higher than I expected but we arranged for a meet up anyway.

We arrived at her doorstep at the scheduled time. I like the place. It was clean and air conditioned. The lady was a soft spoken one. BUT!!! She was taken back when she knew that Charlotte was already over a year old. She was expecting a 2 months old baby cause it'd be easier to take care and for the baby to get used to her. She was obviously not interested to look after Charlotte though she didn't say it upfront. She just kept saying that she needs to see if the 2 kids she was looking after can get along with Charlotte or not (erm... really!? the 2 kids could positively get along well with a 2 months old baby but might not get along well with a 1 year old toddler?). So it was a no go for all of us.

The second nanny I found was someone staying quite a distance away from my house but I could en route there on my way to work. She has 3 children but they would only come home in the evening. Her place is small, roughtly 700 sqft? And not really baby/ toddler friendly. When I asked her what will she do with Charlotte during the day, she said she will place her in the living room in front of the TV. She will have to take her nap there too. In front of the TV, right next to the main entrance.

This is roughly how the place looks like. I'm not sure about you but for an almost walking toddler to be confined at a little place in front of the TV the whole day sounds very pathetic to me. There's nothing else she can do. No brain stimulation activities. Even though she charges me rm800 (excluding food), I still have to pass.

The third nanny that I came across was introduced by someone from a FB group who happens to stay near me.She did warned me before meeting that nanny, that she's a very Chinese lady. As in she talks loudly and rudely. Also, she has a jobless son who stays home everyday. I didn't feel comfortable by the sound of it but I thought, no harm giving her a visit.

True enough, this petite aunty is one of those typical pasar aunty. Loud, rude, uneducated and conservative. Her house was quite dusty and her taxi driver husband repairs spare parts in the front compound so there're a lot of sharp tools lying around. I asked her some questions and I'll let you judge for yourself if she's fit to be a nanny. Conversations were carried out in Cantonese.

Me : So, where are you going to place Charlotte during the day?
Nanny : You have walker mou? Put her in the walker la! Or sarung la sarung. You got or not?
Me : She has never used a walker nor sleeps in a sarung before.
Nanny : HUH!? So you let her walk everywhere she wants at home!?
Me : I have a play yard at home.
Nanny : Bring here la!
Me : No way. I need it at home. And it's troublesome to carry the play yard here and there everyday.
Nanny : Hmpf! (Shakes head) So how? I also dunno how.
Me : (proceeded to ask anyway) She's still breastfeeding and has not taken the bottle since 5 months old...
Nanny : Huh!!! So big already still not using the bottle!? Then how to feed aaa!?!?

This lady is clearly a big NO for me.

The fourth nanny was introduced through an agent. She just came back from New Zealand almost a year ago. She has 3 daughters. Her house is clean, floor is especially slippery cause she said she mops everyday. She charges RM850 (food is not included) but I have to pay a one-time RM425 agent fee. She looks kind and sounds friendly. The only thing that I worried was her having to leave Charlotte with her eldest daughter for 5 minutes everyday to go fetch her younger daughter back from a kindy nearby. My dear, anything could happen within that 5 minutes. Nowadays it only takes less than a minute for a stranger to break into the house to kidnap a child. And are you sure you only need 5 minutes? What if the teacher needs to talk to her about her child?

In the end, I settled with a nursery nearby my work place. I visited the nursery before visiting the second nanny, actually. The care takers in the nursery are mostly Malays but I am fine with that cause I was well taken care by Malay nurses during my confinement at a confinement center, so I have no issue with that. Also, the care takers are said to be diploma holders in nursing. The principal said the medium is in English though some of the care takers' English is questionable. The center charges rm700 monthly and that includes food (breakfast, lunch and tea time snacks). There is a one-off registration fee and miscellaneous charges but if I divided it, I'm still paying not more than rm850 per month. The environment is clean and air conditioned, a lot of space for the kids to run around. The ratio of teacher to kids is 1:5.  They have activities such as art and craft or singing nursery rhymes at least twice a week. There will be TV time but not more than an hour a day.

So ya, in the end, I decided to send Charlotte to a nursery instead of a babysitter cause it's more affordable and at least she gets to interact with her peers and learn of different interaction dynamics.

Most importantly, wherever you wanna send your child to, the parent(s) has to feel comfortable where he or she is sending the child to. If one is not comfortable with the choices given, don't give up and continue searching until you find one. It's definitely hard sometimes cause the care takers might not be as patient as you are to your own child. You might have a bunch of things to worry but worrying too much doesn't help. So if you're comfortable with the one you found, all you can do is trust that they will take good care of your child. So far, I find the childcare is doing it's job well by updating me everyday when I pick Charlotte up or whenever I call in to check on her. It makes leaving her for work easier each day.

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Charlotte is attending Nursery

I've been so busy before my new job commence! It was exam week on the last week of my teaching life so there was a lot of things to prepare for my students. Then on the only week that I was jobless, I had to send Charlotte to her new nursery while I run some errands everyday. I have so may things that I wanna jot down but couldn't find time, until now.

Let me start off with Charlotte attending nursery for the first time.

My initial plan was to send her there an hour or 2 the first day, and then gradually increase the hours throughout 2 weeks' time until she's more comfortable with the new environment. But since I only had one week left before starting my new job, I had no choice but to go cold turkey.

So on the 1st of August, 2016, the first day of sending her to the nursery, I let us took our time to slowly wake up. Slowly as in for her to nurse as long and as much as she wanted and for me to just take in every moment and  emotion I had.

After we're both settled, we had breakfast at a cafeteria nearby. I fed her her breakfast I prepared and had mine quietly. Then we headed to the nursery together. It was a long ride. Well, the distance was a long one anyway. So I prayed. I ask the Lord for forgiveness, for only seeking him when I needed to. I also ask for His protection over her. Keep her safe, let her enjoy herself and have a good rest.

We reached the nursery around 11.45am. It was almost nap time for the kids. Charlotte was feeling rather sleepy, too, as she almost dozes off in the car while we were on our way. I quickly nursed her. I brushed her head over and over again, while telling her not to cry too much and try to take a nap. I also reassured her that I'll be back very soon to get her home. My water pipe was already broken the moment I stepped into the nursery and it couldn't stop leaking until I left. The moment I handed her to the carer it was basically waterfall pouring for the both of us. But my experience as a kindergarten teacher told me that leaving the scene as soon as possible is the best for all of us. For the carer to settle her down, for Charlotte to calm down soon to register what's going on and for me to pick myself back up.

I went into the car and cried my lungs out. It was a really heartbreaking moment but I embraced it. I honored my feelings and I allowed myself to cry as much and as loud as I needed to. Honestly, I felt so much better after that.

I went back almost 4 hours later as I had a meeting with someone nearby. I called the nursery twice in between to check on her. The second time I called was almost around 3.30pm and she hasn't taken her nap then. So I rushed over to pick her up. But when I was there, I saw her sleeping in a carer's arms. She has finally gone down for her nap 5 minutes before I arrive.

Here she's sleeping alone in the room cause the rest of the kids were already up from their naps.

It was heartening to see how tired and worn out she was but at the same time I felt relieved cause she's finally taking her much needed rest. So I left her there and went to a nearby Starbucks to wait for her. I went back an hour later to wake her up and brought her home.

According to the carer, she cried for half an hour before settling down. According to the carer, Charlotte was considered an easy baby (toddler) cause there are others who would cry the whole day.

She continued to go to the nursery the next 3 days and we were both making progress. According to the carer, she would only cry for about 10 minutes before settling down. After that she would walk everywhere exploring everything. She would also mingle with her friends. She takes her food well and eats a lot too. I, on the other hand, shed some tear on the second day and felt alright from then onward. Maybe because I get updates from the carer everyday or whenever I call in to check on her so I feel fine and 放心. So I guess it's either God hears my prayer or God hears my prayer lol.

Hopefully soon, we can bid farewell happily every morning.

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