No more messy meal times

It’s Mommy Tip day again!

When my baby was still learning to accept food, she would often end up wet and sticky after meal times.

To minimize the mess, I experimented with various types of bibs. 100% cloth bibs were out right from the beginning because the liquid from her rejected food would soak right through to dirty her clothes. Cloth bibs with PVC backing was what worked for us – the cloth would absord the liquid, and the PVC lining behind prevented it from soaking through. But even after switching to cloth bibs with PVC backing, her clothes still often ended up wet and sticky.

So I tried out PVC shirt bibs and rubber bibs. The PVC shirt bibs had long sleeves and fronts that reached all the way down to cover her tummy. The rubber bibs had catchment areas at the bottom to capture all the icky lumps of food that didn’t manage to make their way into her mouth. Strangely enough, she still got wet and sticky.

Finally, I realised that she was always wet and sticky after meal times because the food was dribbling from her mouth down to her chin, all the way down to her neck, bypassing the bibs, onto the collars of her clothes, then soaking through to her body.

So, just before feeding her, I would fold a hanky over and over again, until it was a small thick wad, then tuck it under her bib, over the collar of her clothes, to absorb the dribbling mush. Did it work? Let’s just say, from then on, I seldom had to wipe her down and change her clothes every single meal time. So, this is my tip for mommies who abhor food messes. Happy feeding!

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Sling your baby comfortably & safely please

As you can tell from the addition of another category, “Directories & Badges,” in my sidebar, I’ve joined a number of mommy blogger directories and also put up a couple of badges for the stuff I believe in. One of the directories I’ve joined is Blogamama. Blogamama has an ongoing Monday Mommy Tip Meme and I’ve decided to participate!

I was out shopping for some baby supplies over the weekend and spotted 2 mothers slinging their babies wrongly. Here are the 2 most common mistakes when slinging your baby, their repercussions, and how to make them right:

1. Mistake
Sling cups baby’s bottom when baby is in the upright position.

Repercussions
Mother ends up supporting her baby’s bottom with both hands.

Baby may slip down and out of the sling when mother lets go.

Make it right!
When slinging baby in the upright position, mother must make sure to bring the sling all the way down to the back of baby’s knees, and not just to the end of baby’s bottom. If sling is brought all the way down to the back of baby’s knees, baby will sit comfortably in the sling with his bottom tucked securely inside the sling. Otherwise, baby will dangle from the sling in a most dangerous manner.

2. Mistake
Sling is gathered all on the mother’s shoulder and bunched up towards the mother’s neck.

Repercussions
Mother’s neck, shoulder and back starts aching after just a while and aches continually for as long as she slings the baby, and even after she takes the baby out of the sling.

Mother also tends to hunch over due to baby pulling the weight forward.

Make it right!
Sling should always be spread out over the mother’s shoulder to cover a few inches of the mother’s arm as well. With the sling cloth stretched a few inches over the mother’s arm, it won’t bunch up to gather at the mother’s neck. This way, baby’s weight is distributed evenly over the mother’s shoulder instead of concentrated at the side of the mother’s neck.

So these are my 2 tips for slinging your baby. And because I’m generous, here’s an additional one: Always make sure that the sling cloth is spread out as widely and neatly as possible over your back. It’s not only more comfortable not to have cloth bunched up against your back, but it also helps to distribute your baby’s weight evenly across your back. You’ll find that you’re able to sling your baby for a longer period of time, with better posture, and most importantly, safely! Happy slinging!

PS. I know it’s Tuesday here in Singapore. But Blogamama is located in the States and it’s still Monday there.

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