recording baby milestones with digital voice recorder?

realized how our babies grew up way too fast? in the blink of an eye, it seemed, my little bundle of joy turned from infantile to a toddler and i was wondering where have all the time gone? From being a baby who can do nothing more than consume 2 ounces of milk every 2 hours, shake his head from left to right or giggle much to our heart’s delight, he is now up on his feet, running about and is all over the place that I was having a hard time keeping up. His vocabulary also improved from the occasional whimper to full blown wails, to his first “mama” and now to endless unintelligible babbles I was baffled to decipher and decode, but nevertheless, always bring me a certain surge of joy and delight. He would even sometimes break into a song of his own words + melodies.

It is true, what they usually say, “they will not be babies forever” and we ought to savor each and every moment and opportunity that we have. Now it seemed I was pressed for time to document every little change that occurs, to jot down the list of all his accomplishments in a month, and, if possible, to record every babbling he made.  How I wish I can have a mini voice recorder, the ones with VOR recording (voice operated recording), a long time recording of up to 260 hours (imagine 260 hours of jared’s songs and gibberish and constant pleas of ’mama” – bliss!) and would instantly activate when a sound is present. That way none of jared’s litanies would be left unrecorded. maybe i should check out record your life inc. and see if there is something that fits my meager budget. 
High Quality Voice Recording
or if not, maybe i’ll contend myself with the good old-fashioned way of recording those baby milestones – making imprints + bookmarks in my memories.
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my little fuzzy eater

most of this bowl of rice krispies and milk ended up on the floor

feeding jared has never been a problem, well,  not until he started eating solids that is! 

when he was a little, tiny (err, he was never really tiny) baby, feeding him is easy-peasy. a 2-once bottle of milk will be gone by a minute and a half you’d wonder where it went. when he turned 6 months and had his first taste of baby food, my problem started! 

uncomfortable with the alien texture in his mouth, he would either choke on it, throw it all up and the food will either end up on the floor, or on mummy’s clothes and face or worse, left lonely, untasted and untouched! sometimes feeding him can be quite frustrating, a dramatic episode off a soap opera, or plain and simple traumatic! who would not be traumatized seeing your baby’s eyes bulge and redden as he choke on the food you lovingly prepared for him? it was sure one reason for mum to have a bad day.
i’ve consulted with his pedia and scan parenting magazines and online articles on tips on how to whet his appetite, i even consulted with other mum friends for advice and even give him appetite-enhancing baby vitamin hoping his love of food will develop.


so far, here’s what i’ve done:

  • vary his food each meal so he will be accustomed to different kinds of taste and texture
  • make sure i tag him along when the family eats so he’ll get the hang of it and probably be enticed to eat too
  • introduce different varieties of food to him like fruits, vegetables, yogurt, and breads 
  • i even ordered these lovely pocoyo plate and bowl online thinking he will be inspired to eat knowing how much he adores pocoyo (am now thinking of buying these lovely terramoto ceramic blue polka dot dinnerware, maybe it would be inviting enough for him to finish his soup or veggies)
  • am brushing up on my cooking skills so i can prepare delicious meals for the little man, so far i’ve managed to cook ground beef with veggies and tomato sauce, some vegetable dishes because i want jared to be a healthy eater when he grows up. come to think of it maybe i must beef up the kitchen as well just to be prepared for the growing feeding need of my growing baby. maybe i should get that stove with propane grilling with bronze burners or that  #5 rubber stopper wine bottle (err, on second thought, i probably won’t be needing this one yet!)
  • i make it a point to always serve his favorite, like i noticed he enjoys eating and he does eat a lot when he has soup, and he simply love yogurt and yogurt drink so i make sure i give him those regularly

so far it has been an on-and-off ball game, he would enjoy one meal and he can finish a bowl,  then he will find the next one uninteresting, just a spoon and he is done. i am discovering new ways and means to improve his solid food eating habits, he will be 17 months tomorrow, he ought to be consuming more solids and slowly weaning on milk, right?

 
any ideas mummies?

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finally, a loyalty card for mums!

as part of my resolution to be a budget savvy mum, one thing i thought of doing is enrolling in membership loyalty programs for the supermarkets and department stores i frequent. i’ve started doing that last year by getting my sukicard from mercury drug. and what a great way to begin that journey by enrolling in the baby company mom card! you earn 4 points for every P200 purchase of baby company items and 1 point for every P200 purchase of non-baby company items in any sm department stores. apart from that, you can also enjoy exclusive privilege and treats given to baby company mom card members only, among them:
  • exclusive and special discounts and freebies
  • vip access to special events
  • tips from mom and health experts
  • meet and greet with celebrity mums
  • members-only sale events
moms with kids ages 0-3 years old may apply for membership, all you need to do is approach a baby company specialist and ask about it. the membership requires a P500 purchase of any baby company item, which for sure will be quite an easy task for us mummies since we are always in dire need to replenish our baby’s stocks or update his wardrobe or buy him a new toy, right? accomplish the Baby Company Mom Card Membership Application Form (MAF) and you will get your card in no time. your card will be activated in 10 days and shall be valid for 3 years.
so what are you waiting for? head on to your nearest baby company outlet by january 15 to get your brand new mom card and start earning those reward points now. and don’t forget to visit their site and their facebook page from time to time to know about their latest promos.
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toddler talks

did you ever encountered being way too frustrated when your baby cries and you gave him milk but he cries even harder? you checked his dappy, tried to soothe him, cuddle him, only for the cries to turn into wails, and alas, a full-blown tantrum? you are on the brink of pulling your hair and still just can’t decipher what he needs? then walks in your husband and carries the baby for a while and viola, the baby is sleeping like a log?
such a familiar scenario right? been there so many times i really wished my son can simply blurt out his requests to make life easier for both of us.but no such luck! a 16-month old cannot just articulate all of a sudden right? but i’ve found a few tips to lead you successfully to that very first Tate-a-Tate with your precious little one:
  • Talk as much and as often as you can directly to your toddler.
  • Try to make some of your conversations just between you and him. 
  • If you are talking, or reading, to him and an older sibling, your toddler will not get as much repetition and explanation as he can use, and as much as he will get if he is alone with you. 
  • Look at him while you talk. 
  • Let him see your face and your gestures. 
  • Let your toddler see what you mean, by matching what you do to what you say. “Off with your shirt,” you say, taking it off over his head; “Now your shoes”, removing them.
  • Let your toddler see what you feel by matching what you say with your facial expressions. This is no age for teasing.
  • Act as your toddler’s interpreter. You will find it much easier to understand his language than strangers do and he will find it much easier to understand you and other “special” people than to understand strangers. 
  • Share enthusiasm, emotion and emphasis; whether you are talking about a flood of love for your toddler or a flock of rare birds in the sky, those are the speech qualities that will catch and hold his attention and motivate him to try and understand what you are saying.
if you’ve made teaching your toddler to talk one of your resolutions for 2011, head on to the babycentre for more info and tips on toddler talk.
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a stay-at-home-mum’s guide to toy buying

now that the christmas season is finally upon us, i am sure you are all in such a hurry to buy gifts for your children, nieces and nephews and inaanaks.  here are interesting and helpful tips you should remember in buying those children toys:
safe – children’s safety while playing with these toys are of sterling importance. of course who would want harmful chemicals like bpa lurking their baby’s toy as he chews away on his new soft book or swallowing a part of his toy car, or a car simply unraveling as your child mounts it. so make sure to check the label if that particular toy you have in mind passed standards on safety and do check if they are environment-friendly as that would mean no harmful chemicals are used in your toys.
age-appropriate – make sure you buy toys approriate for kids for simple reason that toys for older kids tend to have smaller bits and pieces which are utterly dangerous to smaller and younger babies for threat of being accidentally swallowed. 
educational – playing must also be learning time so make sure the toys you buy is not only something the kids will enjoy at play but will also be an instrument in learning too. pop-up books, board books for little babies and big story books are best bet for this!
bear these in mind as you do a round-up of christmas shopping for your loved ones and you can never go wrong.

happy gift-giving!

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