First Anniversary of My Blog!

Yes Yes, today is the 1st anniversary of my blog. One year ago on 30April i was motivated to start the blog because of my baby. I wanted to journal the journey so i have something to tell my grandchildren *gosh i actually think that far ahead*

I am actually pretty amazed that i could keep up blogging for the past year. Thanks to all my sisters and friends whom have been so encouraging through appreciating my tips and updates though we can't meet up that often anymore.

Hopefully this momentum can continue till my 2nd, 3rd, 4th .... child ... *ok that's a joke not a prophecy*

Cheers to sharing our lives through blogging! Happy Birthday First Chronicle!

Wish Come True!!

Before ...

... and after! ~~

Can you spot the difference? Ok not the hairband. Look closely. LOOK closely *hint hint*

Ta-Dah! ~ Yessss baby "suddenly" developed double eyelids! She was born with single eyelids with slight double eyelid on top but hardly visible. Then all of a sudden she woke up one day with the double eyelids. I thought she didn't have enough sleep, but the doubles had been there for more than 2 weeks now *hehe*

This is a hilarious topic in the family because eric has single but me double eyelids. And i was totally lamenting why baby had to look like him from Day One. Ok, seems like the "look like daddy quota" is up and after 4 months baby decided looking like me is a much better deal for life! Woahaha ~~

Oh yeah btw this is my secret (shallow) wish coming true :P

The Great Flipper

Notice how baby turns away from the boring bumper to 抢镜头 and get the maximum exposure possible on the camera!

5 Months!

Huh? Did i really grow that much?

YAY! Baby is 5 months already! It was a really remarkable past month where baby has achieved significant milestones!

1. She took to the bottle
Cheeeeers! ~~~ I don't have to say anything more on just how thrilled i am! There are many benefits to bottle feeding actually. I find that i could gauge how much and how frequent she drinks, so it is now easier to get into a routine. Plus, expressing into a bottle means your foremilk is mixed with the hindmilk and it ensures baby is getting both to absorb the necessary nutrients. Really thank God for this seemingly impossible task!

2. She loves rice cereal via spoon feeding
A lovely mummy friend recommended me to get the Heinz Rice Cereal for babies suitable from 4 months. I mixed a few teaspoons with breast milk and baby just can't get enough of it! She loves being fed from the spoon and would sometimes hold on so tightly to it like she wanted to feed herself! This is really a great first step to introducing solids in the coming months!

3. She flips over and does her mini-pushups
I was still a little worried about her motor development as pple was telling me babies should flip by the 3rd month! Well i guess each little one has their own pace, and by now she's such a great flipper you can't leave her alone for even one moment! So mummy frens, do not be overly anxious as each baby has their own timetable :)

4. She licks her toes
Oooh yeah, sounds thoroughly yucky doesn't it? She's been a bit of a gymnast, grabbing that pair of little feet and slurping them all around. Babies explore by taste so anything and everything her hands can get hold of, you know where it lands!

5. She grasps for her toys
First, we had to ply open her fingers. Then she holds on to the toy when we give it to her. Now she stretches out to grab her point of interest. And if you take the toy away, she screams! Wowo fierce lady in the making! ~~

Delightful Breakfast!

It's an open secret who's the 一家之煮 in the family. Hubby took the effort to make me a sumptuous breakfast today! Shreds of chicken mayo mixed with lettuce strips embalmed between gardenia whole meal bread pressed just well in the sandwich maker! Visual-looking and finger-licking goodness! ~

I had to torture hubby with my half-past six dinners each monday but i get a wonderful treat once i open my eyes. Life is just SO unfair isn't it? ^_^

Monday Practice

It's Monday once again and the perfect timing to make a guinea pig out of my unfortunate husband ^_^

Dish: Sweet and Sour Prawn
Description: Small sized prawns fried with dried chilli and scallion simmered in mixture of chilli sauce and ketchup
Verdict: Sauce was nice with a little sweet taste while prawn had a nice chew, though it tasted like it was a little overcooked
Rating: 3 out of 5

Dish: Stir Fried Lady's Fingers
Description: Sliced fingers lightly fried with garlic and cut chilli with a dash of bean sauce

Verdict: Veg cooked just right retaining the good crunch; bean sauce gave it the saltiness while the chilli balanced up the whole dish. Color was just right too!

Rating: 4 out of 5

Dish: Stir Fry Celery with Anchovies

Description: An ad hoc creation because i couldn't think of what to go with the veg and then i remembered the little fishes!

Verdict: Veg was very very crunchy and the anchovies gave it a great taste! The anchovies could be fried to be more frangrant and crispy though. Taste is good but the overall presentation looked bland

Rating: 3 out of 5

Dish: Sambal Brinjal

Description: Sliced brinjal with garlic and scallion with spicy sambal sauce to add the zest!
Verdict: Tastes way better than it looks. Brinjal was a little overcooked and looks so BLACK ^_^ But the softness and sambal made it yummy

Rating: 2 out of 5

Tracy GAMBATE! ~

Getting a Maid

Some of my friends have been checking in with me regarding getting a maid, since i just got mine a couple months ago. Below are some information if you are thinking of getting a maid.

1. Required by law to take a e-learning (FDW-EOP) certification before you can employ a maid. Go to http://cec.sp.edu.sg/webapps/login/ to complete the online course. Should take you less than an hour and $30. After you complete it, your particulars will be sent to MOM so you are ready to apply work permit for your maid.

2. You need to first determine your criteria, e.g. Nationality? Age? Married? Height? Language spoken? Primary Role (baby-sit or elderly care)? You can contact any maid agency by looking through newspapers, or recommended by friends, or surf online. Give them your requirements and they will try to match against their current database. For my case, i email my request to many agencies through the web and they send me bio-datas of maids which they think might fit my criteria.

3. The bio-datas will tell you the basic particulars and experience of the maid. Of course photo is also attached so you can find someone who is pleasant to your eye. You may want to ask the agent more about the person, e.g. Can i interview her? Can i speak with her previous employer?At this time, you do not have to pay anything to the agency yet.

4. It is important to ensure that the maid meets your primary need. For example, if you want the maid to take care of your children, then look out for her experience in this area, even if she cannot take good care of your dog! After looking through so many bio-datas, it is true that it is almost impossible to find the "perfect maid" (just like we can't find the perfect mate!!), so you have to weigh the most desired criteria.

5. Once you finalize on your choice, this is the time to pay $$! Three types of fees:

a. Agent Fee - this is one time service fee to the agent, may range from $88 to $588. Look out if the agent will provide free replacement if you are not satisfied with your maid. Some agents have unlimited replacement within one year; some only one free replacement within six months.

b. Insurance - mandatory to buy insurance for the maid. There are different plans but the most common one is about $200 plus.

c. Placement Fee - this is a little difficult to explain, please bear with me. For the maid to work in Singapore, she has to pay a sum to the agent for finding work for her. It could be 4 or 5 months of her salary. Suppose her salary is $350 and she has to pay the agent $1400 (4 months' salary). So the maid will "borrow" $1400 from you, and you pay $1400 to the agent on her behalf, and she works 4 months for you free of charge. On the 5th month, then you start paying her the regular salary of $350. Sometimes, the agent will require you to pay the maid a nominal $20 from month 1-4, of which you will then deduct $80 on the 5th month from her pay. In summary, you need to pay upfront a lump sum though in actual fact you are not losing out in any way.

6. The amount of the placement fee, as well as the salary actually depends on the maid's experience. A worker without any experience may be paid $320 while one with two years' experience may be $370. For those whom have worked in Singapore for many years may command $400 or more. You also need to take note if the maid is entitled to any days off. If there is mutual agreement without days off, then you have to pay additional $20 to "buy up" the leave. For example, her salary is $350, and you buy up her off day, so you have to pay her monthly salary of $370.

7. Other considerations include

- Does she have a handphone? Would you allow her to have one?

- How many friends does she have in Singapore? Would she want to call/write to them?

- Does she want an off day?

Ok, hope this helps! It is definitely not easy to get a suitable helper, but exercising caution and doing detailed planning in advance may mitigate the risks involved.

Happy searching! :)