Monthly Archives: April 2009

April 16th, 2009

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Apple Porridge

I read from this mom’s blog that she used apples to cook her 2-year old toddler’s porridge. I tried it the other day and I must say, it tasted good. I like the sweetness and the fragrance of apple in the porridge.

BBC's 1st bday, purple cauliflwr, bbc eats egg 003 by you.
This is the pot of apple porridge for Baby C. Other ingredients included a fist-sized piece of mui yoke (lean pork), ma yau fish, brocolli, purple sweet potato, pumpkin, 2-3 pips of garlic (good for warding off cold virus and makes the porridge tastier too), rice and millet. Even for someone like me who don’t like eating porridge find that the pot of porridge is simply sweet and tasty… even without salt, yums!

Cassandra, Feeding baby solids, Food for toddlers

April 15th, 2009

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A Little Miracle Happened Today

This morning, I collected Baby C’s urine to have it tested again. Though it wasn’t at the advise of our doctor, I just knew that I had to have her urine tested again…. first in the hope that the test today will show that the WBC (white blood cells) has dropped and second for other antibiotics to be tested in the sensitivity test, so that there is a suitable antibiotics to treat Baby C.

I prayed hard that first, it would be quick and fuss-free to collect her urine as we were in a hurry to reach the hospital. Prayer number one was answered – her pee was collected in under 15 minutes (which was quite rare – we normally require half an hour at least), yay!

I also prayed hard that the pesky E.Coli bacteria would be flushed out from Baby C’s body through her pee and my prayer was answered again. The minute I walked into our doctor’s office, she said in a lively mood : “her urine is ok…. look, everything is ok!!” I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw negative in the WBC and RBC columns! This is indeed wonderful. In just less than 5 days, the WBC of 20-30 went down to 0! I even had doubts that the urine results were hers.

After chatting with our doctor, she advised that it’s not necessary to feed Baby C antibiotics every night anymore. Whether she eats the antibiotics or not, she would still be getting a UTI every month… and the pesky bacteria are so smart that they have all become resistant to all the antibiotics! So we have agreed to stop her on antibiotics. Anyway we will be seeing her again next week after we have received news from the surgeons in London (hopefully by this week). In the meantime, I will enjoy my 1 week of not having to feed her antibiotics. I also have to feed her with lots of fluid to flush out all the bacteria from her body.

Baby C’s pee in specimen bottles. As the distance from our house to the hospital takes approximately 25 minutes, we were advised to put ice cubes in a plastic bag holding the specimen bottles.

Since we were in a hurry to reach the hospital this morning, I had to multi-task to save time. I fed my sweetie-pie breakfast in front of the TV, with her favorite Baby Bright VCD turned on (to distract her)…. with her legs opened up…. and my maid collecting her pee! Thank God, we had more than enough pee collected in under 15 minutes, phew!

Thank you Lord for answering my prayers! I hope the surgery can take place soonest possible…. before another UTI attacks my poor baby…. and that the surgery will be a 100% success in fixing Cassandra’s urinary problem, once and for all, amen!

Cassandra, Kidney Reflux

April 14th, 2009

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Bacteria Resistant To All Antibiotics!

The sensitivity report for the urine culture done on Friday last week is out today. I was shocked when I saw the report. The E.Coli bacteria is resistant to all 9 of the antibiotics tested in the sensitivity test. I have always been told by our doctor that E.Coli is the ‘friendliest’ of all bacteria as it’s easy to treat the bacteria with antibiotics. Bacteria like Klabsiella and Proteus – which sometimes attack Baby C are harder to eliminate and if my sweetie-pie is attacked by such bacteria, she would require antibiotics jabs or drips.

When I called our doctor this afternoon, she told me she doesn’t really know how to treat my baby…. coz those pesky and stubborn bacteria are resistant to all the most commonly used and save-to-be-used-on-human antibiotics. She sounded a tad pissed off that we did not listen to her earlier advice and that of the surgeon’s, to get Baby C operated on immediately. Because Baby C is still not operated on yet, she keeps getting UTIs to no end…. and this time round, she got it again though she just had 9 doses of antibiotics jabs less than 2 weeks ago. I understand what our doctor was thinking about but on the other hand, this is our child. The surgery involved is about removing 20% of her right kidney. We as parents are just trying our best to salvage that 20% of her right kidney coz if removed, it can never ever be re-attached.

We’re really in a fix now. We will bring Baby C to see our doctor tomorrow and hopefully she will be able to think of another antibiotics to treat my poor sweetie-pie. I’m also hoping that the bacteria can be flushed out completely from Baby C’s pee without the need for any antibiotics. This had happened once. In the meantime, I really hope there will be an answer from the surgeons from London by tomorrow. I really hope the surgery can take place ASAP.

Cassandra, Kidney Reflux

April 13th, 2009

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I’m Feeling Better Today

Thanks to everyone who commented in my earlier post – thanks for your advice and suggestions. After popping 2 more Panadol Actifast last night and slept at 10:30pm (which was considered very early for me), the throbbing pain on my head, teeth and jaw is gone today. I could even jog for half an hour and exercise on my fitball this morning. However, I still have phlegm and I hope this will go away by itself in a couple of days.

Though Baby C didn’t get bitten by the cold and throat infection virus, the sad thing is she still has E.Coli bacteria in her pee (urine culture done on Friday, results out today). I’m really upset coz she just had 9 doses of painful antibiotics jabs less than 2 weeks ago. Could it be those virulent bacteria are already resistant to the antibiotics? I wish the surgeons in London could give us an answer by this week. I can’t wait for the surgery to take place coz if it doesn’t, my poor baby would have to endure more pokes and pricks to no end.

Cassandra, Cold and sore throat, Kidney Reflux, Me

April 12th, 2009

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Feeling Really Sick… Again :(

Me, it’s me being bitten real hard by the cold bug again, the dunno how many umpteenth times in 2 months. Never have I been this weak and susceptible to coughs and colds in my life. This time it’s pretty bad again. The phlegm is dark green, thick and sometimes hard too! Ewwww…. and it smells foul too. I think the infection this time is pretty bad coz my head is throbbing and the pain goes all the way down to my teeth and jaw… and all these pains are on the right side, as if I’m semi-paralyzed! I’ve been popping on Panadols but that do not seem to make me feel better. I better see the doctor to get some antibiotics coz I feel really weak and I hope Baby C doesn’t get bitten by the bugs too.

I think my weak immune system could be contributed by the fact that I’m still breastfeeding and my sweetie-pie is sucking me dry and sucking all the nutrients away from my body, like a leech… for the past 1 year! This is making me contemplate weaning her off my boops and start her on formula. I just can’t go on falling sick so often. What say all you experienced breastfeeding mums out there?

Breastfeeding, Me

April 10th, 2009

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Baby C’s Breakfast

This is my sweetie-pie’s breakfast:

BBC's 1st bday, purple cauliflwr, bbc eats egg 001 by you.
From top clockwise : plain water, Millenium cactus juice with probiotics powder in yellow cup, freshly squeezed orange juice mixed with her other health supplements (that’s the only way she would willingly drink her yucky tasting supplements), 3/4 egg yolk of a free-range egg with unsalted butter and Gardenia white bread with unsalted butter.

My sweetiepie would only eat her egg with butter as the egg yolk is a tad dry. This bread-lover also wants some bread to go with the egg, otherwise she would spit out the egg yolk. However, if the egg is fried, she would gladly chomp it down. I’m glad she could tolerate eggs (I started her with egg yolks at 11.5 months) and has no problem eating them as eggs are one of the most nutritious food for kids.

Cassandra, Feeding baby solids

April 7th, 2009

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Organic Milkmaid Tea

Baby C will be turning one in just a few days and I’m glad that I am still breastfeeding her. Though I’ve received unkind and uncalled for remarks from some people saying that breastmilk is of no value after 1 year, I am resolute to keep breastfeeding my sweetiepie until she’s 18 months, that is if she still wants my milkie.

To keep my supply from flowing, I still swear by organic milkmaid tea and mother’s milk tea. Milkmaid tea and mother’s milk tea are made up mainly of fenugreek, a herb commonly used to increase milk supply. According to Kellymom.com, Fenugreek can be used short-term to boost your supply or long-term to augment supply and/or pumping yields.

This tea ain’t cheap, costs about RM2.60 per bag. But oh well, it’s still way cheaper than buying formula milk powder right?

Breastfeeding, Cassandra

April 4th, 2009

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My Tough Cookie

My sweetiepie is really one very, very tough and brave baby. Yesterday she was given her 7th and last jab on her butt, which is already swollen and covered with tiny holes…. poor, poor bubba! As usual, Alycia and my maid were distracting her with my handphone and a torchlight from the doctor’s table whilst the doctor administered the jab. This time, my brave little sweetiepie only cried for a short while and after the doctor was done with the jab, my sweetiepie stopped crying and everything was back to normal, as though nothing had happened! And she happily continued to play with my handphone. My 2 older girls were far less ‘lembik’ than her when they were her age. Most babies would go on crying for hours if not the whole day after a jab. But my tough cookie is cheerful and bubbly again the next minute. This makes me love her even more. I am really very amazed with this little tough cookie’s resilience. I pray all these pokes and pricks on my poor sweetiepie will be over very soon.

Cassandra

April 1st, 2009

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Baby C Just Won’t Eat Jar Food Or Cereals

I’ve tried many brands of jar food and cereals for my sweetiepie but she just hates eating them. I know homemade food and porridge are by all means healthier and tastier but jar food and cereals are by all means so much more convenient, aren’t they? They’re God-sent for busy mummies. Sometimes when we need to go out and don’t have time to cook porridge, jar food is such a convenient food to feed her but nope, she just won’t eat them!

The other day, during our stay at Hilton Sentral Hotel, I tried my luck with a jar of Healthy Times organic mango chicken baby food for Baby C during breakfast. I thought she would accept it as it is a savoury food, with chicken. I was delighted when she did not spit out her first spoonful (well, it was just a quarter of spoon) of the baby food. However, with the second and third and following spoons, she was merely forcing herself to swallow the food down her throat. I gave up and gave the jar food to my maid who liked the taste of the baby food and used it as bread spread!