Literally.
This is a post to remind myself to have my eyes wide awake when I express the next time round.. Which is in the next few hours. Painstakingly made a good 70ml only to topple it on the bed; left with 40ml of goodness and a very upset me.
No point crying over split milk they say.
When Charley was born, she was directed to a pediatrician (PD) recommended under my gynae. Me and the hubs didn’t really went to google much about this PD. Or we did, and the Internet has very little info about her. Our PD is Dr. Ratna Sridjaja.
You can see Charley doing ‘breakdancing’ as Dr. Ratna does the routine checkup for her, haha!
If you’re heading towards Gleneagles to deliver your baby, I’m highly recommending her to be your PD. Dr. Ratna is someone who spends time addressing any concerns about your little one and doesn’t at all seem at all mindful of the silly questions we have being a first-time parent. She’s an Indonesian who could speak Bahasa Indonesian, English, Mandarin and a little bit of Hokkien. She’s also eloquent, very gentle and interacts very well with our baby. Dr. Ratna works at SBCC Baby and Child Clinic. She has a very personable character and needless to say, I am very satisfied with her professionalism and her working style. Once I called the clinic because I was anxious to check on Charley’s bowel movements; she returned my call via the message left by her nurse. You know how some clinic doesn’t practice this and recommends you to bring your kid to the clinic instead? *PUI* I can safely say on behalf that Charley enjoys having her as her PD while in my case, I would say, ‘take my money DR!’. I’m still shock that no one wrote much about this doctor in the forums at all!
After so many plus points about Dr. Ratna, the only low-side for us was that she’s mostly stationed at Gleneagles. As we stay in the north, it’s really not travel friendly for us to go down all the way to Gleneagles all the time; not cost and time efficient. She’s only at SBCC AMK on Tuesdays and that meant that if there’s any emergency cases, we would have to look for an alternative doctor. That said, I brought Charley to SBCC AMK last Monday to check on her bowels..she’s having this inconsistent bowel movement and I’m very concern. The doctor attended to our baby was Dr. Goh Han Meng.
Dr Goh was a very patient doctor in my opinion. He took the time to explain to me in details on the signs and symptoms that I should look out for in Charley’s case and he mentioned that she’s actually doing alright. It was a case of formula suitability. We were quite on the same page that we didn’t want baby to have any medications unless really necessary and so I went home with Probiotics, a supplement that is suppose to let baby develop good bacteria in the intestines. I really hope this works for her but she’s still having runny poo poo, I’m not sure if it’s the BM or it’s the formula. But she’s still gaining the weight as per normal so it’s not a case of diarrhea. Dr Goh also returned my call via a message from the nurse. In the call, he also took the time to explain to me on my queries. I think most doctor would have love to hang up the phone call asap but he didn’t appear so. Instead, he offered that I email him updates if I was still very concern (and that’s what I did!). I’m not able to tell if he’s good at what he does in one visit, but in this one visit, he seems like someone I would bring my kid to for checkups. What works for me may not work for you, so I guess it’s the same with doctors! 🙂
Who’s your PD and who do you recommend then?
We have been out with Charley a few times that we have quite a good insight to what should be in her diaper bag. I finally understand now when my gf says that I would no longer have a place for my own bag, instead, my bag would probably be downgraded to a necessity pouch (wallet, keys, iphone) within my baby’s bag. True that.
The first few times we went out as it was time to bring the baby to the PD. Since we are at this topic, I would like to recommend Dr. Ratna Sridjaja if you’re delivering at Gleneagles. More about PDs next post. Subsequently, we had to go cause its my turn at the gynae. Thereafter, I had to bring her to check on her bowels. So my cabin fever wasn’t that bad as all these trips were made during my confinement, which is still taking place as we speak.
So…
Charley’s magical bag consist of:
1. Diapers: We’re using Huggies newborn and she’s definitely growing out of it. Upgrading to size S soon to protect her modesty. I bring about 4 diapers out each time (im usually out for a short period of time for now because newborns do not have any eat/ sleep patterns yet!) because she have really explosive moments at times.
2. Diaper rash cream: I have a sample pack and I’m loving the convenience of it.
3. A set of new clothes: her explosive moments… have their moments. ‘Nuff said.
3. Food: when we’re out, she drinks formula so we won’t be caught midway with no area for breastfeeding. In any case, she’s taken a liking to bottle feeding instead of latching direct and when she’s hungry, she has no mood to even try latching. Also, my supply has not build itself up to its maximum so I’d rather her tummy get filled instead of having her crying her lungs out where we are at. Food also includes a hot thermal and cool water bottle with two infant milk bottles. My baby have sudden feeding urges and sometimes I may not be in time to clean the bottle up before her next feeding time.
4. Wet wipes and dry tissue paper: for changing of diapers and/or cleaning up basically anything!
5. One extra swaddle: just in case.
6. Portable changing mat: comes along with my diaper bag so we’re good. I prefer having my own mat because its cleaner and more hygienic for the baby..
7. Some plastic bags: for temporary storing of garbage if you’re at a inaccessible place.
8. Her health booklet: if we’re going to the PD.
9. Hand sanitizer: when you’re out with a newborn you need really good hygiene habits.
Maybe that’s all, maybe I’ve missed out a little, but that’s the gist of the bag. So what’s inside your baby’s diaper bag?
So there I am, amidst doing my confinement and fussing over the little one. I actually found some time to review this new app that allows me to do grocery shopping without having to step out of the house. Speaking of which, if not for those few trips to the gynae and PD, I would have fainted due to cabin fever. So I’m very thankful that the doc trips are scheduled as such!
So what is Redmart? It is a service provided via an app that eliminates the hassle of you popping to the store to grab your essentials, especially heavy and bulky ones. Think diapers, formula milk, rice etc. I was quite intrigued by the idea of such service because I used to talk about it. Someone could deliver a carton of pads to my residence since I need to use it every month! Haha!
So since Charley’s diapers were running out and it was pretty much sold out everywhere (we’re using Hugggies for Newborn, it must have been so awesome to be sold out even in Malaysia!) I downloaded the app and we went to Redmart.
Pros of the Service:
1. I like the cleanliness, ease of use and aesthetics of the app. Okay, you really don’t like clutter when you’re shopping on your mobile right? Redmart is easy to navigate and use. The colors of the pages are soothing to the eyes and the product images are clear. Everything is nicely categorized as per product type.
2. Free delivery above $49! (Don’t ask me why such funny number) Definitely easy to hit when you’re a new mum like myself. We didnt go eco-friendly with diapers due to some reasons and newborn changes diapers like nobody’s business! So I clicked away to 4 more packs of Huggies and we’ll be trying out 1 pack of Merries for Newborn. If Huggies is out of stock at least my daughter have an alternative that doesn’t irritate her skin.
3. Price point was pretty decent. I must say that their items are competitively range that I’ve no idea what they are earning from after paying their delivery man.
4. I like that they allow payment via credit card at the door. Very hassle free. You know when you pay online you have so many things to fill up and still got to verify card?
5. They actually sent a reminder SMS to remind you about the delivery and payment a few hours before they reach your doorstep.
Room for Improvement:
1. They stated same day delivery but when I was finished with my order at 6.16pm, they asked me to choose next day delivery and the delivery slot available was 5pm onwards. Maybe it was stated to be during working hours, but i wished that the information was put across somewhat clearer.
2. There are a variety of items available for shopping, but when it comes to the chocolate range there’s only Ferrero Rocher.. gotta work on that!
3. Could have a function to add on items after you’ve submitted your orders. Ok I tried to add on by calling in to the operator a tad too late and despatch was already out. My bad.
4. Generally could increase the variety of more non-perishable items. I’m hoping they can turn into an online Carrefour.
5. Have a clearer product description as per original packaging.
One thing for shopping online for groceries is that you are not able to choose what was sent to you. You know how often people just choose the second arrangement in-line on the shelves? Like I bought a pack of potato chips I would prefer to take the second pack because I feel that the first pack may be broken into pieces. Very Aunty right? But I don’t care.
The delivery came by at 5.30pm today and the transaction was completed within 5 mins. I like! If the prices and quality of service maintains at this standard I would definitely engage their service for a long way down the road. We’ll see!
The above are my two cents worth, in no way am I paid to review this app. Thus, my user experience is in no way compromised and is a truthful review of what I actually feel when shopping at Redmart.
Now, back to my darling girl!
This is a follow up post on what should really be in your hospital bag. Previously I’ve written about what I’ve brought along.. guess what? Plenty of things were left unused and we ended up lugging everything back. Note that I was too confident earlier that we were able to. That’s no easy feat considering you have a baby in tow and stitches of pain that makes you unable to stand, sit, bend well. The latter pretty much makes you feel like a mummy.. I’m talking about the Egyptian ones.
1. For all post caesarean delivery, you do not need to bring a lot of your own maternity pads. Heck, you probably cant even change your own pad and the nurses had to do it for you. Really, forget about all the shyness you have in you and just lay there while the works are done. The only time you need to use your own is from day two onwards when your doc gives the go ahead to remove catheter and when you’re discharging from the hospital.
2. A few sets of maternity nursing bra/undies – I survived with just one actually. In fact, if you’re in a pro-breastfeeding hospital like Gleneagles (GEH), they bring baby to you everytime when they’re hungry. They are on a routine of 3 hourly, so forget about your bra because before you felt like you’ve slept, you’ll be awake to nurse or take a blood pressure. As for undies, remember I said that you can’t really walk to change yourself? You’re on a catheter so its all day two onwards.
3. PJs, Bathrobes, Socks, Slippers – GEH maternity robe is very….maternally designed. I guess everyone was wearing the same but with different prints. No matter how hip hop one is, when you’re delivering here..you will transform into a mumsy totally.
Haha, see what I mean? Here’s me and my little one who’s a few days old. ME, a little filled up with water retention.
Forget about your own PJs. I wore my own slippers throughout even though they provided bathroom slippers.
4. Toiletries – They also provided all the toiletries. I didn’t managed to shower at all (pardon the stink!) but I was given a wipedown. So, you don’t need to bring the toiletries unless you prefer to use your own. GEH used La Source from Crabtree & Evelyn if you must know.
6. iPad, iPhone, charger and a fully charged camera – I would totally just ditch the iPad and my camera and just use iPhone camera instead. Nothing beats looking at my newborn.
7. SNACKS – We ended up not eating any of what I’ve brought along because GEH provides serving of food which includes Breakfast, Lunch, Tea, Dinner. They give you biscuits and milo if you get hungry. Albeit not super tasty but you won’t have much appetite anyways.
8. Maternity Bed Mats – GEH provides!
I hope this list gives you a clearer picture of what should go into your bag. I was so lost being a first time parent that I practically wanted to bring everything but I’m glad I’ve learned! 🙂
If you haven’t already knew by now, we have a new addition to our family!
Little Ms. Charley!
It’s pronounced as ‘Shar-lee’ btw. I know the name is not very gender specific but that’s the way we like it. Currently we are trying to fix up her chinese name. Initially we didn’t think about going to a master to calculate the suitability of her name based on her bazi. But since we have went for a horoscopic caesarean.. We might as well go for everything isn’t it? After all, laying out her ‘life’ with all the complementary elements in her name is just a small thing, the big things are the ones she’s going to create on her own ability. Thanks to Master Lee (you can find out more about him here). He has been really nice to come all the way to my place to explain to me and hubs on the selection of names because I was unable to go around due to my wound. Master Lee was also the one who calculated the time and date for the delivery. Unlike others, he doesn’t charge any fee should your delivery not fall within the time/date he has given to you.
These days we have been trying to learn her cues and cope with her needs. But of course, as with most babies, she naps quite a fair bit and can get really unsettled at times when she’s not getting enough from her feeds. She will then proceed to show off her awesome cutie pie face of pekchekness:
It’s the start of a brand new life chapter together for the three of us and I can’t wait to share about every single thing in relation to my little heartbreaker. Mummy and Daddy loves you Charley! ❤
Little Pockets Full 