Darling is now 19 Months Old!

My Darling baby gal just turned 19 months old on Monday. Time doesn't seem to wait at all. She's getting really grown up these days.

Solid Foods

She loves her greens. Favourites are french bean, bayam, carrot, yao mak, Choy sum...
She used to love egg and salmon, but lately it seems a bit boring for her. All time favourite is Shiitake mushroom, still loving it from the start till now!
Porridge has became the history, she could spend her while meal just on plain rice or noodles, of course we complete that with her favourite vege and sometimes fish or meat.
Oh yes, she enjoyed her first chicken drum stick last weekend, one was not enough and asked for second one!

Motor Skill

She can twist and turn to open almost any jar with cap. Medications or supplements should be placed somewhere out of her reach.
Going up and down the bed and sofa very skilfully.

Senses

We've been exposing her out of the house without shoes. So she can explore and really feel the tiles and grass barefooted. A bit hesitated to step on the grass at first, but with distraction and company, she started enjoying walking over it. Keeps herself busy plucking Grandpa's plant and peeking over the fishes. Each time we go out to play, one of her usual activity will be "wok wok wok".

About 3 weeks ago, we had a family trip to Kuantan Hyatt, a very nice and relaxing place. Darling was having her horrible first experience on the beach when the first wave hit her legs. She's got a shock and chill, from then onwards she refused to go down to even touching the sand. Basically crying the whole time till we left the beach! :(

Nursing

I'm proud of my nursing champion who still nurse like a pro. That's her usual bedtime routine to chill out on me and have her nen-nen before drifting right into dream land.
Lately she can even unlatch and ask to latch on the other side. Where's my baby who would just nurse quietly till sleep?!

This is another habit that I'm trying to break. Nursing to sleep is something that I wished I did differently from the start. It's easier for moms in the beginning but as they grow, you won't wish to carry on that habit. It makes it so hard for other family members to settle them as they're too used to sleep with nen-nen. So it's almost impossible for mommy to take a break. Hubs tried to help in the beginning but it gets harder till he learned that he could never settle her to sleep as he doesn't have nen-nen. So night time routine has always been my one-man show.

Speech

She's been a little chatter box speaking with her own cutie language. Speaks to her lovey, speaks to the books, speaks to the adults. All in sentences that only she can understand :) We would answer her like we know what she's talking about. But if we got it right, she'll be very delighted.

Also, she sings better now. Used to be just single words from the lyrics but now sings a little longer. She remembers every single song that we played for her. From the CDs, from Daddy's car player, from Grandpa's music videos.

Potty

Darling learned to alert us whenever she feels like having bowel movement. She could even tell us before she wanna pass urine. Whenever we hear "Mm Mm", we'll put her on potty immediately for her to do her business.

It's really a major milestone as we've been trying that for quite some times.

Mommy so proud of you!
Mmmmmmuah!!

Murungai Curry with Sardine

First Attempt of Murungai Sardine Curry!

Finally Mel got me a few sticks of fresh Murungai. And I made an effort to leave work early to cook.

Half way cooking, Hubs join in the fun to prepare the chapatti and roti canai. It took me about 1.5hour for the cooking and finally we ate at 9pm!

It's diluted as we kept adding water to boil but without adding extra curry powder and salt. So we had to top up with a bit of soy sauce to make it edible. Overall not too bad for my first attempt!

Here's the recipe from Mel:

Sardine Curry Recipe

Sautée the onions, garlic, spices 1/2 teaspoon, add 1/4 teaspoon of fenugreek seed, curry leaves and green chilli.

Once slightly cooked, put in 2-2.5 tablespoon of fish curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon of tumeric powder and one cup of water.

Wait for it to simmer then add more water, put in veges and Murungai.

Halfway boiling, put in sardine into the boiling pot. Once potatoes are softened, ready to serve.

Breastfeeding Toddler

Breastfeeding a toddler!

I'm proud to say that my 19-month-old Darling still a nursing champion, only getting stronger. Each night, that's her bedtime routine to have her nen-nen before falling asleep.

Her favourite position is climbing on me, lie on her stomach comfortably to have her milk. Lately she learned to ask for the next breast after emptying one!

Expectedly, people around us are often amazed that why are we still breastfeeding? My toddler is going to be 2-year-old! Let's see what's the benefits of breastfeeding a toddler.

The American Academy of Pediatrics currently recommends that "Breastfeeding should be continued for at least the first year of life and beyond for as long as mutually desired by mother and child.." * The World Health Organization and UNICEF recommend that babies be breastfed for at least two years.

Breastfeeding a toddler helps with the child's ability to mature. Although some experts say a toddler who is not weaned will have difficulty becoming independent, it's usually the fearful, clingy children that have been pushed into situations requiring too much independence too soon. A breastfeeding toddler is having his dependency needs met. The closeness and availability of the mother through breastfeeding is one of the best ways to help toddlers grow emotionally.

Breastfeeding can help a toddler understand discipline as well. Discipline is teaching a child about what is right and good, not punishment for normal toddler behavior. To help a toddler with discipline, he needs to feel good about himself and his world. Breastfeeding helps a toddler feel good about himself, because his needs are being met.

Just as babies do, toddlers receive health benefits from breastfeeding. Your milk continues to provide immunities and vitamins, and can help protect your toddler from illness and allergies. If your toddler does get sick, nursing will help comfort him. In fact, a toddler with an upset stomach may be able to tolerate nothing but human milk.

Is any of these benefits convincing enough for you?