Breast pumps

This is not a sponsored post. The below opinions and comparisons are made based on my own experience and it is not related to any advertising campaign and I am absolutely not against any companies/products mentioned below.

There are many types of breast pump of different brands available in the market ranging from below a hundred to few hundred, and I would say it is worth to invest in a good breast pump.

I have used both Avent Isis and Medela Harmony pump before, both are manual pump and both are good. But if you want me to choose one that I prefer more, it’d be the Medela Harmony and here are my reasons:

1)Medela Harmony has let-down mode that simulates baby’s initial rapid suckling to initiate faster milk flow later when we switch to expression mode.
2)It has soft, flexible breast shield that massages the breast & areola. I find that Avent Isis breast shield is not as comfy.
3)Easier assembly and cleaning — fewer parts than other manual pumps including the Avent Isis (I think it has 9 parts)
4)Compatible with most standard baby bottles, so you can attach bottle of any size to collect the milk. Unlike the Avent Isis which we can only attach with the wide neck storage bottle.

No. 4 is essential to me because the Avent Isis comes with a 4oz wide neck storage bottle but I pump 7oz each time, so I have to stop pumping when the bottle is full, pour out the milk to another bottle and continue pumping, it’s really a hassle especially when I pump in the office. I know I can buy a bigger Avent bottle but it is pricey and how many I need to buy right? With Medela Harmony, I just attached any standard bottle (any brand) of 8oz size and I can pump without any “interruption”.

I prefer a manual pump than electric pump, though the electric ones could pump in a shorter time and won’t tired our hands, but I still prefer to do it in manual way, where I get to control the pace myself, I feel more humanly touch. :-)

Milk supply - Part 2

So of you might have heard or tried on this recipe, which is said to be able to boost up our milk supply. Well I've tried it a couple of times and it helps. This soupd is also good to consume during confinement too.

Papaya Soup with Pork Ribs 青木瓜排骨汤

Green Papaya 青木瓜
Pork Ribs* 排骨
Red Dates 红枣
Kei Zi 杞子

Method:
1. Wash the exterior of the green papaya clean, remove seed but leave the skin intact. Cut into pieces.
2. Boil the pork ribs, together with green papaya pieces red dates & kei zi for about 2 hours and it's ready to be served.
3. You may add a little salt to taste if you desired.

Note:
It must be green papaya.
The papaya skin must remain intact for cooking this soup.
* For those who doesn't consume pork, can replace with fish bone or chicken carcass.

Milk supply - Part 1

I've talked to many mums and I realised that one of the major concern for nursing mums would be on milk supply. Some won't have the milk flow during the first few days or week, esp. the first time mum. It's often frustrated and upset when no matter how hard we try to pump, we can only get very little milk, I was in the situation before and hence I do feel the pain.

I'm lucky that my milk flow was established starting the 2nd week and I managed to breastfeed my son for 8 months and now still breastfeeding my daughter who is turning 5 months old next week.

The most important thing to maintain the milk flow is to let baby latch on whenever possible, it helps to stimulate our body to produce more milk. Try to pump on regular basis if can't feed direct, in order to maintain the supply. Apart from that, make sure we drink enough fluid, be it water or soup.

Read here and here for more details on how to increase/maintain milk supply.

Food sterilizer

Have you heard of food sterilizer or ozonizer? I've heard about it but didn't bother to get one, until my son Dillon has started to take table food, I became more concern about the quality of food that we eat.
It was then my brother pass me this ozonizer he no longer need to use, because he is now a vegetarian and he only eats organic vegetables. How lucky I am, it saves me a couple of hundreds as I know one ozoniser easily cost around seven to eight hundred.

This is one of the ozonizer I saw at the Health Fair last week, it comes with 3 years warranty and cost RM 880!!
The ozonizer can sterilise the meat & vegetables, eliminates residual of pesticides and hence keeping the freshness longer. As I only go to market once a week and thus it is vital to keep the freshness of food as long as possible. Normally I will wash the meat clean and put in the ozonizer for 30 minutes, then only I'll portion them into individual food bag and keep in the freezer for one week consumption.

1st time making enzymes

These are the 2 types of enzymes I've made during the "DIY Enzymes" seminar on Saturday.

The one on the left is called Beet root Xiwu Enzyme Vinegar, it helps to nourish & promote blood circulation, esp. benefit those having anemia or fatigue problem.

The other one is Maitake Enzyme Vinegar, it helps to regulate blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, triglyceride & phospholipids. Maitake is a type of fungus, which contains high level of beta-glucan that helps to boost immune system.

The fermentation process takes about 2 weeks before the enzyme can be consumed, so I left these 2 containers at a dry cool place now and will observe the process.

DIY Enzymes

I came to know about "DIY Enzymes" through a newspaper article and I've also read about it in some websites & blogs.

Enzymes can help our body in many ways, hence promoting a stronger immune system and healthier body. As I've always has the passion in DIY (just like I DIY baby food), I've attended the seminar on "DIY Enzymes" at PWTC on Saturday.

In the seminar, I have learned about the basic ways to DIY enzymes and also the correct way to consume enzymes. I've also bought the recipe book so that I could make the different types of enzymes not only for myself but also for my family, each individual would have a different need of enzymes.

I will share my progress in making enzymes and some recipes too in this blog soon.

I reached 100th post finally

I have just realised today that I have already reached my 100th post in this blog, bravo to myself!

I must admit that I post in this blog much lesser compare to the other, which has already got 183 post by now. But anyway, I will try to update this blog more often :)

If you have visited this blog before, you may noticed that I've changed the template because some said that it is very hard to read my post in the previous template which is a dark background.

So here it now my blog in a brand new look starting today, hope you like it. :)

Shu Uemura's SALE

This might be the time to shop for some cosmetic items for yourself for the upcoming parties & dinners during the festive seasons.

Here is the Shu Uemura Family & Friend's sale that you have been waiting for:

Date: 27th November 2007 (Tuesday)
Time: 10.00am - 3.00pm (only 5 hours!)
Venue: SHU ATELIER, LOREAL OFFICE Level 13A, (14th Floor)
Uptown 2, Damansara Utama, PJ.

ALL MAKE UP & SKINCARE ITEMS AT 50% AND MORE!! (Cash & Credit Cards accepted)

Friday's Humuor - Telephone Bill

The phone bill was exceptionally high and the man of the house called a family meeting...

*Dad:* People this is unacceptable. You have to limit the use of the phone. I do not use this phone; I use the one at the office.
*Mum:* Same here, I hardly use this home telephone as I use my work telephone.
*Son:* Me too, I never use the home phone. I always use my company mobile.
*Maid:* So what is the problem here? We all use our work telephones.

Have a happy weekend! :)

Everyone can own an online shop

To set up a retail business involves a lot of resources especially if we need to rent or buy a shop lot and to hire employee. Therefore to minimize the overheads, many people would opt to have an online shop to start their retail business.

Things had never been easier with Ashop Commerce, even if you only have fair knowledge about internet and online business, setting up an online shop now is just a click away and it is hassle free.

The hosted shopping cart software by Ashop Commerce is not just user friendly but also affordable. Other than that, it provides full technical support and customer service to help you to set up, to run and maintain your online business. You will also get a customize shop design and have the personalized look that you need.

You can now sign up for the 10-days free trial to experience all the advanced features for yourself.

My Crazy Eight

It's been a while since I kena tagged, maybe coz people reckon that I don't do the tag timely.... hahaha. Anyway, thanks to Judy for passing me this tag.

8 THINGS I’M PASSIONATE ABOUT
1)Reading.
2)Spending quality time with my family.
3)Planning activities, parties & gatherings.
4)Live a healthy lifestyle (i.e. eat well, sleep well & be happy).
5)Doing Yoga (which I just started recently).
6)Sharing experience & info on motherhood & baby care with other mummies.
7)Breastfeeding & preparing food for my kids.
8)Last but not least, Blogging :)

8 THINGS I WANT TO DO BEFORE I DIE
1)Travel to as many places as I could.
2)Eat the food that I haven't tried before.
3)Take a family portrait with my parents & siblings.
4)Take a family portrait with hubby & my kids.
5)Tell my parents & siblings how much I love them.
6)Write a letter to my kids of what I wanted to say to them.
7)Spend all the time I could have with my hubby & kids.
8)Sign up to pledge my organs & tissues.

8 THINGS I SAY OFTEN
1)Ok
2)Huh? What?
3)Never mind.
4)Don't worry.
4)Please
5)Sorry
6)Thanks
7)No no (to my son)
8)Dear (calling my hubby)

8 I’VE RECENTLY READ (seldom have luxury time to read book leh...)
1)Baby & Toddler food recipe book
2)Crayon Sin Chan comic book
3)Mother & Baby magazine
4)Content Asia magazine
5)Bedtime story book for Dillon
6)Bedtime story book for Kaith
7)Oxford dictionary (haha, this one consider not?)
8)IKEA catalogue, Tesco brochures (hahaha these are my favourite reading materials):P

8 SONGS THAT I COULD LISTEN TO OVER AND OVER
Hard to decide, there are too many songs I like. Skipping this.

8 THINGS THAT ATTRACT ME TO MY BEST FRIENDS
1)Sense of humour
2)Good listener
3)Friendly
4)Easygoing
5)Caring
6)Helpful

Ok la 6 is good enough, more than that I'll be perfect liao..... hahaha LOL :)

8 THINGS I’VE LEARNED THIS PAST YEAR
1)Blogging.
2)Writing paid post in my blog.
3)Manage my time for a baby & a toddler.
4)Found a balance between work time & family time.
5)Learn to sing many nursery rhymes (hehe)
6)Spend thrift on baby stuff
7)Yoga (just started anyway)
8)To be a MC for wedding reception

Reviews of Online Casinos

There are a few thousand online casinos out there for gambling online and it's really not easy to know which is the best in terms of games offered, features, bonus structures and graphics before we try them out. To cut off the hassle and save time, it's better for us to read the online casino reviews first before we signup.

I personally find that the online reviews are comprehensive because it provides ratings on game experience and bonuses offered by each online casino. I think these are important factors that most people would look into to decide which casino is best for online gambling. Furthermore, each review provides the reasons to play that is straight forward and easy to understand. I also like the screenshot provided in each review page which enable me to get a sneak preview of that particular online casino.

What's more, the review website has offered signup bonus banners on every review page where some of these bonuses are even greater than what the online casinos offer directly, to me this is just too good to be true.