Cooking Tips & Recipe

[sophie]

starz,
Oops, I kind of forgot confinement means recovery

Forgot that I may be slightly weak and getting up and down from the floor will be difficult. Luckily you reminded me! OK, will probably go get a sofa bed to sleep in the room with baby

Nope, don't think I'll be getting a CL cos too expensive, plus it's during CNY period. MIL has offered to come and stay with me for the first few weeks, so if I cannot squeeze the cot into my room, I'll let her sleep in my room, and I bunk in with baby in baby's room with sofa bed then.

Choc,
LittleCat has a point... you breastfeeding right? Can take XO?

 

[sophie]

Krisjoy,
How's your water retention? I was flipping through the Prenatal and Confinement Cookbook by Ng Siong Mui, and saw this recipe which may be useful for you.
Looks a bit fancy served in the melon itself... for me, I'd prob dice and dump everything into a pot, skipping the innards.

Winter Melon Soup
Traditional mothers used to cook this clear, soothing melon soup for their daughters towards the later stage of pregnancy. One of the main efficacies of the melon is to relieve water retention in the body. So, those with swollen legs during the advanced stage of pregnancy can rely on this soup

1 winter melon, about 1.5kg
200g chicken, diced
100g Chinese ham, diced
1 chicken gizzard, diced
1 chicken liver, diced
3 Chinese dried mushrooms, soaked and diced
100g carrot, diced
10 medlar seeds, rinsed briefly
10g snow fungus, soaked and torn into florets
2 slices old ginger
1 teaspoon salt

1. Wash and dry melon. Cut across the top of the melon, about 3 inches from the stem. Retain this portion as cover. Remove the seeds and piths from the inside. Cut the rim of the melon into a zigzag pattern. Place the melon into a large soup bowl.

2. Prepare all the other ingredients and put them together with 800ml of hot water into the melon. Replace the top of the melon.

3. Steam the melon and its contents for about 2.5hrs or until the melon turns soft. Add seasoning. Remove ginger slices before serving.

4. Serve soup and contents hot. Use spoon to scrap the wall of the melon carefully to serve the soft melon flesh.

 

[krisjoy]

Sophie,
I am seeing my gynae next tues and see what he says abt my water retention. But if he gives me MC again, think I'll not take it cos quite pai-say to take too much MC...
Thanks for the soup recipe! Will get my MIL to cook it for me. Ya, I'll also skip the innards. Your MIL is so kind

Just make sure that you reat well during confinement and dun do house work if possible. As for baby, actually it is better to let him/her to sleep with MIL bcos you are supposed to rest. Just a suggestion...

 

[cupcake]

Van, sorry to hear abt ur dd. Hope she gets well soon.

Starz, ur cookies look delish!!! U must b a baking expert.

Sophie, I only goes for jabs if it affects my face. Dun wanna look like a fish head with swollen lips and eyes...

Actually I quite enjoy being preggie...can have reason to eat alot of things. Maybe thats y I was huge towards the last stage. My mood also better. The tough part only comes when the confinement lady left and I had to handle the baby alone, but now that my gal is turning one (she juz took her 1st few steps!!) I am enjoying every moment spent with her.

 

[cheerful747]

cupcake...agreed, kid takes the first step is the cutest stage. That was what happened when my boy turned one two months ago...

I understand what you are and will be going through...I was so moody when my cl was about to leave cos I cannot handle two....

Regarding the peranakan recipie, I think mrs leong has got very good cook book in the bookshop.

My gal had stomach flu when she was two years old, back from Los Angeles...Took her one week to recover..basically, milk dilated, and no oily food...best way to recover is to take plain porridge and small meals...

 

[iceystarz]

littlecat,
hehehe.. i only "tested" a couple of pieces.. didnt dare to eat much lah.. u think i not scared one meh??? still v busy ar... so late still nv go for ur lunch... how's both ur boys getting along???

sophie,
if u gettin sofa-bed, do try to get one that's firm n not too low / wobbly hor..
i agree with krisjoy.. already "persuaded" my mum to take care of my baby overnights liaoz.. hopefully she can cope with e late nites, n i can cope with my conscience lor...

krisjoy,
u got confinement lady? or who doing for u??? how's ur preparation coming along???

cupcake,
paiseh lah... no lah... i'm also a newbie in cooking n baking.. i just like to take my mum's recipe book (cos she attended cake-baking n cooking classes at community centre before) to try every now n then... hehehe.. now got my "own" kitchen, so can wreck havoc in it...

i also enjoy being preggie... last time i used to control my diet, cos i do tend to put on weight easily... these few months been heaven.. just eat n eat... after delivery then i worry abt slimming down lah...

 

[starry]

Sophie,

i suppoer Starz comment on dun sleep on the floor. My bed is quite low and even after confinement i feel difficult to get up and already backache carrying my bb. Must rest well during confinement hor.

Van, i thought yr dd is getting better? wat happen? take care ya.

 

[nice_to_shop]

hi all,
Thanks 4 all the concerns n well wishes.

My dd complained stomach ache after dinner n vomit n fever this morning.

She's on glucose n antibiotics drips 2gether. Blood test shows high white blood cells,meanr infectin but dun knw where. PD n PD Surgeon nd 2 discuss wat 2 do next.
everything so unexpected,didnt pack anything for overnight stay here,hopefully she can b out 2mrow.

 

[ann]

sophie, that's ggod that you have stopped the medicine. So how's your condition now?

sp, sophie and krisjoy, I brought my son to Loke skin clinic and luckily I'm in queue no 3 so didn't wait that long. Doc says my son might bitten by some bugs or mosquito?? Which i don't think is from mosquito. Not food allergy. I will let ds take the medi and see how it go. Thanks all!

sophie, i went to see the wok at OG. Saw the u-like, they got demo on the xue di zhi but the promoter not around when im there. The wok looks good but expensive at $178. Might get one of it or superwok. The meyer wok at $45 is teflon coating so is no good.

van, what happened to your dd? Keep us posted about her condition.

littlecat, we have recovered. Thanks!

starz, nice cookies!

 

[krisjoy]

Annlee and Van,
Hope your ds and dd recover soon!

Starz,
I hv engaged one CL from Johor. She charged me $1800. Decided to get one cos my MIL too elderly to do it and my mum is the modern kind who does not know much abt confinement rules..I'll be seeing my gynae next week and I am now 30 weeks. You are ahead of me right? When is your EDD?

Joy,
This is what most mummies face when their CL left. I am quite worried too. Not sure if I can cope with bb. My sister also had mother blues when she was left with her bb. So she called her CL to extend another month...

 

[cheerful747]

Hi Krisjoy

I had post natal blue after cl left cos i cannot cope. I actually asked cl to come back and help for another two weeks, just to help around , not so much on the food...

I was so desperate at one stage and just get my aunty just sit around with me to keep me company for three days when hubby out of town. I gave her a hundred dollars for sitting a few hours in my house...I am so blue then and just wanna someone to be around...

Guess initial stage is tough but once got the hang of it, should be fine....Now, for me, I know that stage cannot go on forever, so I hired a maid to help....

 

[ann]

choc, congrats!

I've have seen the buffalo brand in OG but not sure is it the same one cos im looking at the wok which is stainless steel and says is healthier choice to use it but is expensive ard $200+.

sophie, I think the bassinet is expensive if only using them for few months. You sure letting your bb sleep alone in one room? cos you might not hear him crying if the door is closed or you might want to get a baby monitor so you can hear them anywhere in your house.

Or you want to sleep with bb in your bed but of course must be careful not to press on them or let them fall. Very tiring for you if you chose on sofa bed.

starz, i'm having dinner at lavendar food court and passby lai huat balachan fish. Alot of people there. Now i know where is it.

 

[cheerful747]

Choc
Congrats..just discovered that you just gave birth...what is your baby name and how old are your gals now?

Take good care and rest well.Do not be like me, mop the whole house during confinement as mil fried fish and made the whole house so oily...and I cannot take it....Now, lower back pain till I thought I was going to be paralyse at one stage....

 

[ann]

Joy747, you mopped the floor during confinement.... how can you do that?? you must be resting.
I'm also having depression after my first pregnancy. After I give birth, i cried every night... maybe hormone imbalance and my MIL is doing confinement for me. Although is nice of her to help me on confinement but having alot of disagreement during that time really makes me feel bad.

Taking care of my elder son is not easy as he is a light sleeper and i breastfeed him every 2 hrs in the night and sleeps only one hr after feeding so fall sick at that time.

After my ds2 is born, i can't take it or cope anymore and that's why we hired a maid to help.

I think doing confinement is important... i eat the wrong food at that time because my MIL don't know about confinement food and ask ard so arga arga cooked it, not enough rest and carry bb all the time. After confinement, I got lotsa problem on me, like body ache and neng ar. So my friend told me if i give birth to second one must really do a good one and so i did... honestly my body felt so much better after the confinement, more energy and body ache almost gone except neng ar still around.
So mummies really must take care of the body!

 

[sophie]

Hi all,
You girls are right about the bassinet. I just went to a friend's place to play with her 4.5mths daughter - woah, I didn't realise babies are so strong leh... I think a bassinet cannot hold a baby for more than 2 mths, so will change my mind about buying it and just stick to a cot. Thanks for all your advice!

Will also think carefully about whether to let baby sleep with MIL in the baby room, cos I also heard from some friends that if not enough sleep, it'll affect recovery period. Guess I am just paranoid about baby not "bonding" with me if I don't sleep in same room as baby - maybe cos I myself am not that close with my mum, so I don't want the same thing to happen with me and my baby.

Joy,
You mopped floor during confinement? How come MIL fry the fish and never clean up the floor? *sigh* But also very difficult to discuss this kind of things with MIL.

annlee,
It is possible that hives could come from some bugs. Bug bites makes the body release histamines too. Heh, can kaypoh a bit - what medicine did Loke clinic give your ds?

 

[cheerful747]

Hi All

Mop floor cos mil inconsiderate and she loves to fried.Anyway, cannot expect her to mop the floor too...anyway she does not stay with me and supposed to help for few days only....

Yap, I know supposed to rest, but what to do...Anyway, no more number three baby...so have to live with the pain...I guess, for those who has not rested well during the confinement...its best to have a good one the next time round....

 

[nice_to_shop]

hi all,my dd hs just bn pushed into operating theatre,pd surgeon said her intestine is blocked.
i posted a msg earlier but doesnt seem to appear.
thanks for all ur concern n well wishes.

 

[sophie]

Van,
Sorry to hear that your dd has to do an op.
Will pray for her recovery, and meanwhile, take care of yourself too, OK?

 

[waterbibi]

Van,

Omg sounds quite serious! But don't worry too much yah..I am sure she's in good hands.

Annlee,

Did Loke prescribe anthistamines?You take care too...have chicken pox also need plenty of rest.

Girls,

About confinement food, I thought of catering normal food( for me and hub) and asking my mother to help make herbal soups when my turn is here to reduce clean up.Think I will ban any form of cooking in my house during confinement.

 

[ah_cat]

Van,
How's the op? Will pray for your dd on speedy recovery. In the meantime, u got to take gd care of yorself too.

Joy,
U really remind me of my confinement too. I have a daytime CL & she is so lazy to do the housework until the whole house was so oily... soo I have to mop the floor. Then almost everyday, she will MIA for couple of hours in the daytime so I do not have enuff rest at all. On top of that, my gal had colic & she only sleeps 1 hr per nap!! Then after the full month celebration, hubby went to states & I was left alone with the cranky baby. I was almost dying of stress... and lucky my Mom brot me back home to recoup. I think it was the most stressful period I ever have in my entire life.. haiz

 

[waterbibi]

Sophie,

I must check out Spotlight and fabric shops with my hub( I dislike going alone).

Sewing is a bit tiring because you've to think quite a bit on how each portion fits and what the craft book is talking about.Craft books' directions are normally vague.

If you have time, you can do a bit of sewing now.But place your sewing machine at a fixed place so you don't have to carry the heavy machine around all the time.

 

[krisjoy]

Van,
Hope your dd is ok after the op and u take care too!

Annlee and Joy,
I am doing my confinement in my mom's place then will move back to my MIL's place while waiting for my new house to be ready. During this period, I am afraid that I may hv disagreements with my MIL cos our generations are so far apart and may do things differently. I am also afraid that I may suffer from depression from all these stress...crossing my fingers...

Amelia,
U can try catering for confinement food instead of normal food cos there are certain things that we can't eat during confinement e.g. cai-xin, yam, etc...I feel that eating the right food is important during this stage as it is the only time you get to heal and 'tiao' your body. Your hubby can also eat the confinement food with you...

 

[choc06]

Hey van, what time is dd coming out from op? Praying that everything will be alright .. Must be tiring for you ! Take ess of chick in the morn to bu yourself, take care !

Cat, Soph, the alcohol in the XO evaporated while double-boiling, and it leaves a very nice after taste with the coconut. I take it aft I fed the baby at night.. so I can have a good zzzz.. hehe..
My aunt gave me another recipe for another "bu" soup, supposed to cantonese style.. One bowl of ginger juice and one bowl of XO (dom also can, but too sweet), double boil with one black chicken.. it's supposed to "qu feng"..

Yah soph, better not sleep on the floor, wait cannot get up !
I let bb sleep with me and hb together, cos I can nurse the bb while lying down..

Hey Joy, my girls are 6 and 4.. bb's name is Reuben. What about yours ?

yah, agree with Joy and annlee, do a good conf, I can feel the diff bet my first 2, the first one, my mum did 2 weeks for me, I didn't rest well, aft that , got backaches.. 2nd one, I rested a lot and drank DOM every night, wore socks(don't laugh hor), I felt stronger aft that and seldom fall sick.. One thing I must do, is to wash hair every other day..

I also can't stand oily floor, my CL cooks very well, but my floor is sometimes oily aft that.. I told my ang that aft she leaves, I'll do a major spring cleaning .. I can see stains on my kit cabinets ..

Hey annlee, yah.. the buffalo br stainless steel pot and frying pan.. my CL says it's very good..
The 1lit rice pot is 62 bucks, the bigger ones are more ex..

My sis bought the U-like wok with the xue di zhi, her maid says it's very good and when she deep-fries, she doesn't use lots of oil

Hey starz, anybody doing your confinement ? I had a malay lady do massage for me, and do the "bengkung" wrap around my tummy and she used lime chalk.. I can see that my tummy is flater and maybe also breastfeeding helps.. I put on about 19 kgs ! 3 kgs went to bb only..

Hey Krisjoy, I'm also worried about not being able to cope aft CL leaves, plus my ang going overseas when bb turning 2 months.. so I nurse bb at night during this month, so that I don't have to wake up to make formula milk for him.. I'll ask CL to feed bb expressed milk in the afternoon, so I can rest..
The thought of how to bring dds to sch with bb early in the morn frightens me, but just take it one step at a time.. Are you working aft bb's born ?

 

[waterbibi]

Krisjoy,

I worry about confinement food being too heaty for me and hub, and I have heard of moms being sick after taking confinement food.

 

[waterbibi]

DOM seems quite compulsory for confinement...what's the difference between DOM and Yomeishu?

Sophie,

What do you think of dress-making course you took some time back?Is it good?I am thinking signing up for it...but a little undecided too.

 

[cheerful747]

Van
Hope your baby is fine.Keep us posted and take good care of yourself too....

Choco6
I have a gal, deanna,p1 and boy, aedannv 14mths. I understand what you meant by baby sleeping and have to bring the other one to school...I almost stressed up and break down due to tis as I do not want to disturb baby schedule.....No choice, get people to help and look after baby for a while and I drive to pick the big one up then.....

Cat tail, I washed my hair everyday too.I mop the house once and that was bad enough to harm me. Confinement lady arrived after baby out from ICU...Better as mil go home....

Amelia, usually while you are in confinement , your body will tend to be able to take heaty food....try a bit and see how.....I am a heaty base person too.

Krisjoy
Agreed, eating the right food is very impt. Too liang like bao cai, kang kong, celery are the no no....Anything that is too cooling should avoid.

Any baby here is on enfa milk powder?

 

[iceystarz]

morning ladies...

Van,
ur dd shd be out by now rite?? how is she, better?? ya, pls take care of urself.. take a short rest when she's sleeping so u have energy.. n remember to eat something.. so tat u can take care of her... *hugz*...

krisjoy,
my EDD is 7 Nov.. i'm suppose to be 31 or 32 weeks (i also blur liaoz..), but gynae lastweek "declared" me as 33weeks... so i'm quite confused, is it bb bigger or wat??? but he never tell me to watch out.. so i guess everything is normal lor...

annlee,
next time u muz try e fish at lai huat then... hehehe...

sophie,
maybe u can try pushing ur bed against a wall, so can let bb sleep with u on ur bed temporarily.. there is this soft n smaller "bassinet"/"moses basket" that is sold at kiddy palace.. its slightly bigger, n got no "legs" one.. for u to put baby to sleep beside u on ur bed, in case u scare accidentally roll-over onto baby... this acts as a divider, so no accidents... mayb u can go take a look to see if its suitable for u or not...

choc,
my mum will be doing confinement for me.. she's also not very "traditional" type.. so she won't be having ALOT of rules n regulations lah... but she does "hearsay" somethings.. plus i'm sure she'll be asking around...
hehehe... 19kg is not that scary lah.. i'm almost there liaoz, already put on 17kg... n still got 2mths to go..
i have tentatively booked a massage lady.. thru recommendations from e other MTBs thread.. hopefully she can work wonders on me too lor...

abt CLs...
i''m a pretty "tee kee" person sometimes, n i'm quick tempered.. dont think anyone other than my mum can "tahan" my temper when i reli flare up... i was worried cannot get along with CL, plus $$$ wise, CL is way too ex... so i tot long-term wise, i'll rather my mum quit her job, n help me continue take care of my bb even after confinement...

amelia,
i'm a very "heaty" person by nature, before preggers i almost everyday take cooling stuff... but now no choice, early pregnancy got to refrain from taking cooling stuff.. n confinement still have to "bu".. otherwise next time regret...

 

[waterbibi]

Joy,

Think I will ask the normal caterer to omit certain "liang" ingredients then ask my mom to prepare a bit more confinement dishes at HER home hehehe...better for me and hub..also I don't feel like cleaning the kitchen during confinement.

Your kids' names are so unique.

...When I have a gal next time, I may name her Mindy.

 

[choc06]

Yah amelia, sometimes, the food can be too heaty for a normal person..My ang is one of them.. He 'll have sore throat and ulcers aft that. My CL will cook normal food and veg for all of us and a conf dish and soup for me..My friend tried the conf tingkat, she says the portion is so big that 2 persons can share it..

Hey Krisjoy, keep yourself happy when you doing confinement.. I didn't do well the first time and also kena a little depression !

Wah Joy, your children have very nice names ! I think I'm like you.. my mil also fries fish without mopping aft that.. worst still, her clothes can be hanging in the kitchen !I can'y stand sticky oily floor too..When's your bb popping ?

My MIL insisted that she wanted to do for me this time round, I gave her one day before the CL came.. She changed my bb using wrong side of the diaper, with the front picture at the back .. haha..

 

[cheerful747]

Amelia
You many try neo garden catering which they does confinement catering. I used their normal catering for baby first month and one year, it was good and reasonable.

Choc6,I closed shop liao.Two is enough. Thanks for compliments. Their names are actually identical except play around with the letters.

Startz. I am equally tiki...no one can fight my temper too. I went round fetching my daughter to school and to chinese doctor during my confinement .MIL at home and complaint to my mum when my mum called my house cos mil dare not tell me off. Mum called and screamed at me for running around and I told her if I do not do it, will she do it for me since no one help me,....guess what, that keep her quiet....I feel that, many tend to nag and nag, but come doing, is really another story...sigh...glad is over....

Good to have a massage lady. I put on 7kg in total and baby weigh 3kg.I did massage for a week, just to make sure that womb is properly put back in place....

 

[ann]

van, hope you're dd recover soon! Be strong ok!

krisjoy, shld be ok staying with your MIL for a while since your waiting for your house to be ready. Don't think too much when staying with MIL


Amelia, I have ask my confinement nanny about diff between DOM and Yomeishu. She says most ppl prefer yomeishu cos is not too sweet. I'm not sure cos only taken DOM and is sweet. Actually don't really have to take DOM cos if you can afford, take martell or xo like some of the mummies doing here.
I took some wine like mao kai chao, it suppose to warmth the body and expel the wind.

sophie, cannot sleep on the floor during confinement later got rheumatism. Will let know the medi for my son later cos he's sleeping in my room now.

 

[sophie]

Van,
Is your dd better today?

Amelia,
Regarding sewing, my mum banned me from doing it now, cos have to do a lot of bending to cut patterns etc, so she says next time then do. For now, she does the simple alterations for me

As for the dressmaking course, I took it at the AMK CC. Teacher name is Lim Gin Foong. She's very patient, and first lesson onwards, you learn how to cut pattern and start sewing A-line skirt already. Cheap too... $65 for 8 lesssons.

As for confinement catering, I heard these 2 are nto bad http://www.natalessentials.com/ & http://www.neogarden.com.sg/menu_confinement.cfm
But I still may not cater, cos they close for a few days over CNY, so I might as well cook my own food or my mum has offered to cook then get her maid to bring over for me, cos my MIL doesn't know how to cook confinement food

For your hubby, these food may be too heaty, but after giving birth, my TCM says that the body is totally liang, so taking a bit of confinement food should be OK.

Choc,
Wow, your soup recipes all look very good! I shall tell my mum about it... maybe she can cook for my sis

Thanks for review on U-like wok too!

 

[ann]

Amelia, the confinement food is for you not your hb. My hb took some of my confinement food and sore throat, body heaty after that. But if you hb an take heaty food then no problem.

Joy747, you can still do confinement right now, they called it 'xiao zhuo yue'(little confinement) by taking the herb soup. I know these from my malaysia friend and have seen these on Taiwan programme show. If you need more infor just let me know

 

[sophie]

Choc,
Your MIL very cute! Put on diapers the wrong way? Haha... no wonder you needed a CL!

Krisjoy,
Vitasence running more promos on their website! I thought of checking it out cos they will surely need to come up with something to counter Watson's 20% off...
Option 1 is not bad huh? -> Buy 4 items, get free revitalising tonic + membership free, and next time membership will give 20% off.

starz,
Thanks for the bassinet on bed idea. I was also thinking about that last night, but my bed very heavy to move, and my mum sure scold me if I start to move furniture around... scared wait dong(4) tai(1) qi(4). Think I will just shut my toilet door and not use my master bedroom toilet, then put cot next to my bed there, cos once cot is being put there, it blocks the toilet door till only a very skinny person can squeeze in... haha, don't think I will be that skinny person after giving birth!

Joy,
You only put on 7kg in total?

For full-month catering, my sis is using Mum's Kitchen at http://www.mumskitchen.com.sg/Menu8.asp
Can't wait to try it and see if it's good! *drool*

 

[ah_cat]

Joy,
I tot I am the only one here that wash the hair everyday..heehee...
Anyway, hang on for this period life will be better after tat. Btw, your kids really have such a beautiful names.

 

[ann]

Hey mummies, I'm taking their DIY herbs during confinement. Their herbs is good for mummies doing confinement and also specialise in doing 'xiao zhuo yue'.http://www.peiling.com.my/

 

[choc06]

Joy, you good hor.. 7 kgs only ! Envious leh.. too late now lah.. So you must be very slim .. Can't wait to go swimming.. weather so hot, my thighs , tummy and arms are flabby !

Eh Soph, my MIL very kan cheong over this little boy.. I don't want all the attention to be on this one cos my girls will feel it !

My CL also double boiled korean ginseng with pork for me.. very bu and every meal there's soup made with dang shen, red dates, huai san, and wolfberries.. She uses this basic stock to cook mee sua with pig's kidneys ,lean pork and fried ginger..then add some dom, XO or chinese wine. No salt is added.

Amelia, Dom is very sweet and hot(after taste) and Yomeishu is not so.. think Dom more for women and Yom for general health.

Also, there's another wine call "Hui ji bu yao jing" sold in supermarket.. sometimes I drink that too

Eh cat, know what? My bb always sticks out his tongue like a see hum

.. thanks to the kilos of hum I ate..even my sis said that !

 

[cheerful747]

Hi All wondeful mummies out there

Can feel that you all are a fantastic and caring mummy out there...ever ready to share....

Sophie, yap I put on total 7kg only as I am very careful in what I eat and make sure its goes to the baby and not me...therefore, I shed the weight almost instantly.....The trick is take more protein and fibre, even during pregnancy.....

Annlee..thanks for info...but me scared of bu...I will end up too heaty...so, just stay this way....

By the way, choc06, I just gave away hui ji bu yao jing to granny as its too heaty for me....

Cat-tail...thanks. Was headache when choosing boy's name...but I like Alphabet A, so aiden, ayden, and aedan and discovered aedann is actuall deanna in jumping sequence, also, aedann means A CLASS in chinese sounding and that is why...hahahah

 

[little_cat]

van, how is your dd now? do take care of yourself too.

amelia, not to worry during confinement u can take lots of heaty stuffs. But after the 28 or 30days have to watch out, if got symptoms feeling heaty better stop.

For me definately need a CL. my mom is too old also she is not in singapore. No MIL.
Also i find the most important during confinement other than food is rest. so definately need one CL can stay overnite.

eh i admire u gals can still mop the floor??

i have a fren she even use boil water to brush teeth... can't imagine how to mop floor?

starz, i thot u so solid mah, still can eat heaty food.. but hor really 'choi','choi' dun get sick at this moment. yesterday nite i feel my temp higher like going to have fever. so drink lots of water and sleep early.
Today feeling better, but the noise and the phelgm problem still there.. must take care !!
Later i am going to drag my hb to makan and check the maid thing.
He is damn one kind, i ask him when to go get the cot,he said no need so early. ask him to check maid thing, he said why need maid so early? so early do what?
i told him the maid not queueing there waiting for u big boss to say Yes and follow u home, u need to wait and those doucmenation thing...
i was so mad with him the other day.
Sometime i feel like asking him, do u know when your son will be born?
Seriously i have feeling he might pop in end Oct, so left about 1.5 month, but no baby cot yet, maid thing still 'thinking', baby clothes not wash yet, and didn't check also...
sigh...

 

[little_cat]

choc, haha u so funny!
eh must post photo leh!
hmm.. that reminds me that i have to 'REMIND' my hb to buy the camera.

Sophie, after all the nice tips on camera and i pass all the info to him, he still no action leh..
sigh...we are really the opposite characther, i like to do get thing settle fast, he will take his own sweet time...

so the old folks still prefer boy hor?
me this one also boy, the auntie like showing me headache face... cos she got 2 girls. also my elder son is like giving her lots of 'headache' that she can't handle liao...

 

[krisjoy]

Hi Choc,
Yes, I'll still be working after bb is born. Hence to find a bb sitter but must be around my MIL's place so they can help bring bb home in case me and hb work late...btw, how is it coping with 3 kids? Ny hb wants 3 but i was thinking 2 is enuff cos not sure whether can cope..

Annlee,
I spoke with my CL when I engaged her and she also recommend that I bring along all the hard liquors that I have like Martell, XO, etc..She will incorporate them in her cooking. She also asked me to buy Nuo Mi Jiu (Glutinous rice wine) as well. Luckily my SIL is Hakka and her mom is preparing the wine for me..

Sophie,
Are you getting anything? For me, I am not buying at the moment cos still enough to last me a few more months...

 

[sophie]

annlee,
That website looks good leh. I especially like the Prenatal Tips and the part on 7-day menu - looks yummy and not too heaty. But where to buy their packets of herbs if really interested?

Joy,
Protein + Fibre... OK... heh, gonna munch some prunes now.

Choc,
Yeah, must not let the girls feel it. I'm the 3rd girl in the family, and then after me, came twin boys. When my brothers were born, my dad and grandma were super kan cheong over them. They had the largest birthday parties and nothing for me and esp. my 2nd sis, so we're sort of "neglected", I think. Not very good for our self-esteem when young, I must say. But now old liao, gotten over all these, plus it's not my brothers' fault, so we're all good friends. But the younger years were terrible, cos I always felt I was "picked up from the dustbin", or that maybe the nurse got me mixed up with another baby at the hospital

LittleCat,
I am going to Kiddy Palace at Toa Payoh later. It's not the cheapest place to get a cot, but I'll keep a lookout for you if there are any sales/promo!

Krisjoy,
I'm tempted to get the Cell Renewal Serum, Pore Clarifying Essence and maybe stock up on 2 bottles of cleanser leh, but Cell Renewal Serum got Vit A... during preggie, better not use or eat too much Vit A! Are you a member? If not, then when I do take on this promo and become a member, can let u use the 20% discount too.

My mum just learnt how to make rice wine from my Hakka grandma

I'll have to learn it from my mum one of these days to prevent this tradition from dying out! I sniffed some commercially bought rice wine - not as fragrant as homemade ones and got funny color!

 

[little_cat]

thanks Sophie!

do take care while you go shopping.
My family the same, all the boys got previeledge. cos 6 girls 3 boys mah...
i have a sis she is damn poor thing, cos she is in the middle, she always kena forgotten! when we have supper, or buying gift or preparing new year clothes, she will be the one kena missed out!
for me although is girl, but cos i am the last one still get some attention not as bad as my poor sis!
somemore her complexion abit darker, the rest of us very fair one, so more 'roumours' saying she is pick up from dustbin!
We better dun do that to our kids... but now i find some of my fren's their famly prefer girls leh...

 

[sophie]

LittleCat,
I think your sis and my 2nd sis suffers from the "Middle Child Syndrome". They get forgotten, and my sis grew up always needing acceptance and attention, so she always has to have a boyfriend on hand to shower her with love. Plus, she'd do what my parents want her to do just to gain acceptance, like going to whatever school they want her to go to.

For me, not so bad cos youngest girl like you, although the attention given to me are not always the positive ones... heh, most of the time it's beatings cos my 1st sis and I didn't get along. Plus, I always do things my own way, even choosing schools for PSLE, didn't even consult my mum & dad at all!

Hope to find some bargains on cot later!

 

[choc06]

Eh cat, your friend who used boiled water to brush teeth , is it Zoe Tay ?
Now can buy cot liao.. and wash clothes..

yah.. old folks say no preference.. but I think deep in their hearts , they want boys lah !

Kris, my hubby wants 4 ! Now, reality hasn't set in for me yet.. when CL leaves, my "nightmare" will start.. got to have handy cooking gadgets and equipments around and also simple recipes on hand.. dunno how i'm going to cope esp when ang goes overseas..

Wah soph, you have a pair of twin bros? It was my ang's dream of having a pair of twins.. I told him to dream on ! During the scan, he harboured the hope that there'll be another bb hiding at the back of this one.. I told him "xiao ah !"

My 2nd one is feeling a little jealous liao.. kept getting into trouble these few days..

 

[cheerful747]

I agreed, old folks tend to prefer boys though in the mouth says both sex are the same...

I only have a younger brother and my mum still prefers boy tho there are only two in the family....

I make sure I do not make the same mistakes...I always feel that boys are the one that is marrying out eventually...gals are sweeter....but there again..ren yang wo, wo yang ren and eventually responsibilities over, its my turn to see the world....

 

[iceystarz]

Joy,
wah... u super "can" leh.. muz be really good at self-control.. 7kg.. i hit tat mark in my 1st trimester i think...

coincidentally, me n hubby just decided on my boy's name lastnite.. n its Ayden Tan.. hehehe.. sounds similar to urs hor.. i didn't realise it sounds "A class" in chinese.. just cos it meant "Firm & Strong".. i just scared i get a super-stubborn boy next time only.. take after me..

sophie dear..
of cos not u move e bed lah.. this kind of "work" is done by MEN... heheh.. but check with e elders whether they oppose moving furniture or not.. cos e marital bed is very very "precious" during pg.. cannot cut/sew/or do anything on e bed one.. (superstitious..)

choc,
can share share somemore recipes by ur CL??? my mum reli dont know confinement dishes too.. i already bought her a couple of cookbooks... but these books from taiwan/malaysia.. sometimes cant find e ingredients here... so "steal" ideas/recipes from here better... hehehe...

littlecat,
eh.. my hubby opposite from urs leh... he wants to get everything done.. keep nagging n nagging at me to finish buying all e required stuff.. cos he very very busy with work.. he scared after i deliver he cant take too many days leave, during confinement i cant go out, nobody buy all these things.. so he wants everything done, prepared asap lor...
y dont u go shopping urself or with ur frens/sisters to get those things tat dont need his decision? like e camera.. n baby cot, since they do delivery...

 

[starry]

Talking abt depression
i was hving mild depression then bcos conflict w my mum. she keep 'hogging' the bb and i feel i cannot bond & get real upset. Plus she dun believe BF. sigh! After confinement i m fine n able to take care of bb on my own.

sophie,

moving bed better seek opinion fm the old folks. Last time, i shifted my bed abitto allow more space to walk bcos i m getting big . Coincidentally, i hv mild bleeding a week later and my mum scolded me.

Starz
U can try the recipe by MIM,
http://www.momsinmind.com.sg/confinementrecipes.html
http://www.aromacookery.com/aromacookery/2005/08/pork_and_ginger.html


Here is some menu for confinement catering . Maybe u can follow those dishes
http://www.newbaby.com.sg/Menu%20in%20use.htm

 

[cheerful747]

Starz
I scared cannot get back in shape so no choice have to be very discipline and that is why quite stress in eating instead of enjoying eating during pregnancy...thank goodness, my gynae is nice enough to monitor growth of the baby for me....

Ayden is a nice name...I also spent quite a bit of time on the chinese name, send to you long zi and at the same time, filled up my choice name after much reseach...lucky, everything is approved but It took me three weeks to go through the names in the books....strokes, ba zi etc....

 

[krisjoy]

Sophie,
I'm not a member yet..thanks in advance for your offer

In this case, then u better not use the cell renewal seurm first. I also stopped using cos I am quite lazy now. I only apply the whitening essence at nite.

Yes, I agree. The commercial ones smell funny. I still like my SIL mom version. She used that to cook the hong-zhao-ji. Very fragrant!

Choc,
Your ang is so funny! you know when i was young, my mom told me when my brother was born, I was also jealous with him. I guess it's children's instincts lor..must slowly explain to them...