5.5 months

He'll turn 6 months in a week! I haven't start solid yet. But he showed so much interest with things we put inside our mouth.
So I give him a carrot stick to chew which only last a few minutes before he let it go. A few days ago we tried a table spoon of brown rice cereal with breastmilk. He cleaned the bowl!

I am trying to go slow in this matter due to food allergy he may have in the future. Once I read a research in the newspaper that starting solid before 6 months may develop food allergy in child.

Alright, it means that he gotta wait a bit..another 1 more week and we'll do slow on cereal for him.

Baby Skincare Products, Are they safe?

These days, walking down the aisle of huge supermarket could be a daunting experience which sometimes we often have a vague idea of what items good and needed for us. We see most of the products for baby that we find in the counter claim to be "safe" and"gentle". Advertisements of the baby and health care products traditionally highlight the "soft", "pure" and "safe" qualities so it is sound logical for consumers to trust the products for the baby delicate skin. I think the most effective advertising ever will be in the hospitals for new parents with goodie bags of baby products.

Recently, I was invited for breakfast session at my friend's house with some other ladies in Pasir Ris for a discussion about "How to read the labels of most of the products". This session is facilitated by Delphinia Tam who created the baby products from ONLY natural ingredients which do not harm the delicate skin of the baby. She has two kids which one of them had suffered eczhema. The name of the baby products is "Four Cow Farm". I did not know about this until my friend gave me a present for my second newborn a month ago. I have been carrying around their Calendula Cream everywhere even to hot and humid Bali about 2 weeks ago to help reducing heat rash on Raffael skin.

The study done by The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics discovered that most of children's hair care and bath products contain cancer-causing chemicals, specifically formaldehyde and dioxane.

After my first child was born and admitted in the ICU since day one for 2 months, I asked myself what can I do to ensure I am providing her healthy and good environment. I didn't trust most of the brands offered for baby. I personally subscribe the blog Healthy Child, which update me with the latest information about harmful chemicals and suggesting a good lifestyle for the family. My feelings just right, after careful research I've done the outstanding brand which most people trusted such Johnsons & Johnsons is no longer safe. By the way, my paeditrician recommended me not to use J&J lotion brand for my son.

I have been using mostly organic products of baby shampoo, lotion and gel for my kids because I thought it is common sense these days to switch into something better. But I have no idea that what is appear "organic" for a product may not processed organically nor even certified by the Environment Agency. So, I made a lot of research about this.

For this particular session I attended to, I learned to read the labels right. Why do we need to do it? Do I sound paranoid about this? Maybe I do. It is because recently there are more "convincing" products out in the market using dangerous chemicals although it is small amount but they are used for everyday life. I realized that on having healthy family the responsibility will be depending on the mothers. By being informed and educated on what the products to consume we contribute to the health of our loved ones.

Delphinia Tam managed to guide us on how it is important to understand the ingredients of the baby skincare products. Most of the ingredients contains mineral oil or petroleum derivatives, i.e from crude oil, Petrolatum a.k.a Petroleum Jelly, Propylene Glycol and PEG (Polyethylene Glycol). It is because they are cheap to use and can last pretty much forever on the shelf. Of course, they will also contain strong preservatives to extend a product's shelf life. Parabens (such as methylparaben, ethylparaben, butylparaben and propylparaben) are preservatives linked to tumours in the breast and skin.

I personally love to smell baby after bath and slathered with soft perfumed lotion. But No! Most of the lotions with fragrance are synthetic compounds derived from petroleum!

From my findings, there are some less toxic alternatives for lotion:

• Aloe Vera Gel - food grade (Lily of the Desert)
• Vitamin E oil - food grade
• Olive Oil (organic is best)
• Lanolin cream (organic only). Note: Lanolin is derived from sheep and is a common allergen.

If we are ever going to need to use the baby oil, I learned that the best oil is the olive oil or sesame oil that we can find in kitchen counter. The good brand and package of baby oil from the famous brand had been gone process which may be harmful for the skin. If it is good and clean to eat, it must be good for the skin too.

Therefore, I have gathered some infos about the harmful ingredients which we can look out everytime we purchase the products;

• Parabens: It is used as preservatives in many baby products, including lotions, baby washes, wipes and other products for children. It can cause allergic reactions, skin and eyes irritations. Beside it can cause cancer, it also have been shown to harm human sperm. There are several specific parabens such as Propylparaben, Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, butylparaben and others. It can be found in so many products, children can be exposed to it repeatedly everyday.

• Formaldehyde: It is used in at least one baby wash product. It is a probable human carcinogen which associated with gene damage, mutations and developmental problems

• Benzhetonium Chloride: It is used in some baby wipes and it is highly toxic. Ingesting even a small amount may cause vomiting, collapse, convulsions, coma or death

• Benzyl Alcohol: It is found in some baby lotions and diaper rash treatments. It is a moderate skin and eye irritant, and larger exposures can lead to vomiting, diarrhea, respiratory distress and even death

• Triethanolamine and Cocamide DEA: It is found in some shampoo and lotions. Cocamide is used in some bubble baths. If mixed with nitrosating agents, it can become carcinogenic. Both are irritants, and Triethanolamine can cause dermatitis.

• Polyethylene Glycols: It is found in cleaning products and lotions. It should not be used on damaged skin due to concerns over kidney toxicity.

• Isopropanol: It is found in at least one shampoo. It can cause dizziness, loss of cordination, headache, confusion etc.

• Phenoxyethanol: It is found in some baby cleansing cloth. It can cause central nervous depression: nausea, vomiting and sometimes diarrhea, headache or other pain.

• Sulfates: This is including Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate which can be found in any shampoo, lotions, cream bath etc. It can cause irritations and it is linked to eye/corneal damage

Darn, I feel that I re-learn the chemistry back again. This reality is not fair, but it is reality. It is the job of the parents to be educated and informed about it.

These brand, Four Cow Farm is created by a mom and a grandmother from the family farm in Blackall Range Mountain, Australia. Their goal is to give parents and babies the best natural and organic skincare products possible. Their products are handcrafted and time-tested recipes ranges from baby creams, balms and washes.

Four Cow Farm has also a blog, and some of the useful informations we can find is here about toxins and chemicals . We can also purchase online the products and delivered within Singapore.

To find out more about them or purchase the products click on their website is http://www.fourcowfarm.com/

OUR VIRTUAL INSANITY ... DOES TECHNOLOGY BRINGS HAPPINESS?

For those who suffers O.C.D = Online Compulsive Disorder

and us who keep checking emails every 10 minutes in the toilet, in the restaurants, in our kids end of the year concert and before we go to bed.

"Futures made of virtual insanity

now always seem, to be governed by this love we have

For useless, twisting of our then new technology

Oh now there is no sound for we all live underground

~ Jamiroquai

I love the song...and I love it being the hit in 1999, I think. Well this is before we wi-fi(ed) the (whole) world and Blackberry or IPhone arrived.

I am not a gadget person who responds and follow the instruction of computer-TV for yoga exercises, playing tennis or rafting.....

If you don't have a TV, no cellphone, no high speed Internet access at home, don't write emails, are not on Facebook, not on MySpace, and don't know what Twitter is... - Gee, what century do you life in? Do you actually exist?

Many of us equate technology with progress, improvement, and an increase of happiness. Even if the actual value of a gadget in terms of progress is not clear, they are often a source of novelty, and novelty - in technology, as much as in art, entertainment, science, or your peer group's gossip - can be pretty much addictive. For these reasons, technological developments are mostly considered positive changes, which in turn leads us to push forward these changes and incorporate them rapidly into our daily lifes.

But it must not necessarily be the case that these changes are good and lead to increased happiness. It needs time for us to judge on the advantages and drawbacks of changes. Dealing with unwanted side-effects is not an easy task, not one that takes place automatically, and not one that an invisible hand guides; it requires care, thought, and political institutions that ensure happiness is sustainable even on the expenses of dopamine-kicks. Instead of 'Can Technology make us Happy?', the question we should then actually ask is

If technology makes us unhappy, will we be able to realize and correct our mistakes in a timely manner?

Gratin Dauphinois of my mom-in-law's style

Gratin Dauphinois, originally uploaded by L'Aubergine Grillée.

Among other things I learned when I was going to get married with this French man is cooking Gratin Dauphinois with my mother in law in Paris. It is like a 'French food boot-camp' for me. Oh wait, "French culture boot-camp". She or perhaps Ludo who called her to give me a short course on cooking his favourite mom's foods. I know, I should've known this coming from him. At the end of my stay in France after our wedding, I've got a folder of recipe of her son favourite food!!! That's the role of the French mom, making sure the son is eating well in this tiny Asian country with surrounded by oriental cuisines. Oh well.

Before I know him I did not have a clue about European foods beside eating out in the restaurants which claim French cuisine in Singapore. I suppose it is DeliFrance :-), affordable food closer to French. Or maybe when I visit Paris for work.

When I saw the potatoes were almost gone bad in the kitchen, I would love to quickly turn it into something 'homey' which most of the ingredients are pretty basic in our fridge. This Gratin which means a top crust consists of crumbs from cheese and butter is a homey food for most French. It is classic and warm. On Gratin Dauphinois, she advised me to put the thin sliced potatoes neatly so it will be nice to see as well as eating it. Since my 'short course on French cuisine' with his mom, I started to appreciate alot from it. Because it is fast and simple compare to so many steps and ingredients of Asian cuisine, and it tastes good.

Talking about making homemade foods, we are trying to teach the kids to learn to love eating-in. In Asia especially in Singapore, the food stalls are everywhere and they are pretty clean and affordable. Some of them are good. But the idea is to make the children appreciate good nutritious foods prepared at home and sitting with the family to enjoy the food. In this age, every foods prepared really fast as there is no time for us to even prepare them in the kitchen. It comes in the easy to carry package, of course with lotsa chemicals and preservatives. If not, they would not have long shelf-life.

Having quality time together during dinner, It is something that I was lacking off when I was young because we ate in front of the TV to entertain us.

So now, we turn off the TV and We prepare the foods together and sit to eat with family.

Hopefully someday I can teach the kids to cook good food which I believe it is one of the quality time with the family.

Gratin Dauphinois

Ingredients:

1 kg potatoes
1 litre creme fraiche or sour cream
2 cloves garlic
2 cups milk
2 eggs
Swiss gruyere cheese
a pinch of ground nutmeg
salt and pepper

Steps:

Peel the potatoes and slice them thinly and put them in the bowl of water so it won't discoloured.

Heat the milk with the nutmeg to just below boiling; allow to cool.

In a bowl; beat the eggs and cream together. Add the salt and pepper.

Gradually pour the lukewarm milk into the bowl while stirring.

Rub the garlic in the bottom of the dish and spread the butter over it. Put layers of potatoes, alternate with cream mixture and diced garlic. Finish them with layer of cream mixture and cheese gruyere.

Bake them in 180 deg for an hour.

Carrot Cupcakes for the Year of Rabbit!

"Les carottes ça rend aimable" (Eating Carrots make people agreeable)

The shops were closed during the Chinese New Year. Everybody did a groceries a day before to prepare for the celebration. And I was craving for something sweet. And we bought sooo many carrots lately because those are one of the vegetable we love for snack, stir-fry, salads, soups etc. But I was getting sick of snacking the fresh cut carrots, that explained because I am not French. But Noelia, she looooooovvveeess it for snack like the father.

So I thought, there must be something more from carrots than usual carrotes rapees or snack. There, I found it could also be a dessert. How versatile! However, I am not usually fond of cupcakes. But this time the carrot cupcakes is a good and easy size of carrot cakes, so I can control how much I indulge in this delight...

Carrot Cupcakes

Ingredients:

For Cupcakes:

2 cups of non-bleached Flour
2 cups of granulated sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking soda
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
4 cups carrots freshly shreded
2/3 cup nuts chopped
1/4 cup raisins (optional)

For Cream cheese icing:

1 package of cream cheese
1/4 cup of butter, softened at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup of icing sugar


Steps:

Preheat oven 180 deg C. Prepare the muffin pan and line with baking cups. In medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and mix everything well.

In large bowl, beat eggs with electric mixer until foamy. Add oil in a thin stream and beat well. Add flour mixture to egg mixture slowly and mix well. Fold in carrots and nuts also Raisins. Spoon into baking cups.

Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the fork inserted in center of the cupcakes comes clean.

For cream cheese icing:
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter together with an electric mixer. Add vanilla and then add icing sugar slowly until smooth and creamy. You can also put 2 teaspoon of grated orange peel for flavour.

Happy Lunar New Year 2011

Happy Lunar New Year 2011, originally uploaded by L'Aubergine Grillée.

Wishing you a Happy and prosperous Chinese New Year 2011! May a year of Rabbit bring luck and good health....

Getting ready ...

Lesenfants, originally uploaded by L'Aubergine Grillée.

I am going at full speed back to my project which I have been paused for a while. This will be when mon chou, Raffael at 5 months on 7 march 2011. At the moment, I am gathering some tools, finances, bits and pieces to put together.

The project of collection of children clothes and accesories design by me using good quality fabrics hand-picked by me. It is sewn delicately to suit the children.