Highchairs & Pears

About all the things that we fall in love with as we ride the course of parenthood. Things that we're bursting to share for their beauty, functionality, safety, fun, thoughtfulness & a host of other romantic reasons.

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Dear Followers, thank you for your interest. Please continue following me on Facebook. The journey is just getting started. Look forward to sharing more with you.

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CaliBowl non spill bowls for toddlers! These bowls are curved inwards at the top so that whatever your little one attempts to scoop falls into the spoon as it glides up the walls of the bowl. Of course whether the food falls off your little one's spoon en route to his/ her mouth is another messy matter!

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When I first delivered my baby, I fretted about many things to do with looking after her & nearly none to do with looking after myself. But the one thing that I really thought about for myself was how to lose all the pregnancy weight.

I had put on a stunning whooping astounding 25 kg. The task that loomed ahead was daunting, depressing even. And I know I was harsh on myself but it was so important to my sense of normalcy that I could lose all the weight. Fast.

There were so many options - personal gyms, spin classes, power plates, Pilates, yoga, Zumba, you name it - all added together to confuse me. When I came across Hypoxi, I felt like I had struck lottery!

This was an exercise regime that required only 30 mins of my time (perfectly located in the CBD so I could manage a lunch hour workout), sounded like very easy work (turns out I could even work on my iPhone while I cycled in the air chamber), & promised that I would lose the weight in inches as well as in kilos. Oh & Hypoxi was a workout that was compatible with my slow healing diastasis recti.

I did not need to diet, only to follow the nutritional advice ON DAYS THAT I DID HYPOXI, so not everyday. I could pretty much still eat whatever I wanted to stay healthy while breastfeeding. I hate to diet plus breast feeding mothers should never diet, so that really worked for me.

How does it slim you? Well, without getting too technical, it’s pretty much a machine that you cycle in. Yep, cycle, nothing you haven’t done before. Nothing you have to “pick up at your age”. The air pressure in the machine directs your increasing temperature downwards so that instead of losing fat from your face, arms & chest first, you start shedding from your tummy, butt & thighs!

It isn’t a miracle, don’t get me wrong. You need to stay committed. But I’m just saying that staying committed is super easy with Hypoxi. No skin off your back really. Plus you get measured now & then so you want to stay on track for sure.

After finding Hypoxi, I stopped my power plates regime because that started to just seem like too much work! And 3 months later, I reached my target of pre-pregnancy weight! Not down from 25 kg of course. I had lost half of that with the delivery itself & some more after that. I started off about 7 kg heavier when I first weighed in at Hypoxi. Yayyy … I highly recommend this regime, post pregnancy or if you’re just feeling fatish. (If you are not a breast feeding mother, you can achieve even quicker results by using the Hypoxi Dermatology Comfort machine before you get on the trainer.)

Oh did I mention Margaret Cermak, the owner of Hypoxi Singapore, is a fabulously encouraging lady? You’ll absolutely love her. If you’re bored during the workout, she’ll even chat with you so the half hour swishes by!

Check it http://www.hypoxi.com.sg

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Powder Byrne Luxury Family Holidays (check out www.powderbyrne.com) has officially won my vote of confidence.

This is a family holiday agency that allows you to have an adult ski holiday with kid in tow. How? They have a crèche for the young ones, a Yeti club for the kids & a Snowzone group for the teenagers! So all the children get their day of play with friends their age & professional supervision. While you get to ski on your own or with a Powder Byrne guide, stopping for a pint every now & then.

For us, the crèche was of greatest interest since our baby girl is only 9 months old. Being fervent skiers who absolutely need to ski at least thrice a season for a couple of weeks each, skipping one season while I was pregnant was pure torture. So we really needed to ski this season. Question was, how? Okay, I’m sure some people would say “bring your maid” or “bring your parents”, but we don’t have a maid (by choice) & we wanted our own family holiday with just us 3.

When we found Powder Bryne it was like we struck bloody lottery. Only for 400 Euros more a week, we would have access to the crèche set up by Powder Bryne in the resort hotel that we would stay at! The crèche would be run by UK qualified child carers who were part of the Powder Bryne team. We were sold.

If we were ever nervous, Powder Bryne put us at ease with long distance calls to discuss our baby’s feeding & sleeping schedules before we even boarded the plane. Upon arrival, we were led to the crèche which was beautifully done up. We met Alice, the crèche manager, who quickly set our hearts at peace.

We’ve been skiing 5 days now with baby in safe hands. It’s been wonderful finding our freedom again without having to worry about her. Did I mention we are in Flims, Switzerland? It’s really pretty here.

*Power Bryne does summer holidays too like golf holidays.

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It's been a while since I wrote. I've gotten into the swing of working motherhood in the meantime. It's a crazy ride out there, balancing pumping with meetings & missing baby with moderated freedom. Through thick & thin, the Baby Einstein Bendy Ball has been the solution. She takes it with her to infant care, has it with her while eating her meals & basically I have it strung to my bag everywhere. It's that one toy she absolutely loves & I'm grateful acts as that constant in her life. She never rejects it or ignores it. Offer it her & she smiles while grabbing it towards her mouth to chew on. I have no idea why it's so wonderful to her. I'm guessing its easy to hold & bite, colourful & makes a ringing noise? Whatever it is, I'm glad we have it! I'm sure my friend Sonia will agree!

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K I know this is not rocket science & there are in fact plenty of equally useful baby food storage options around. But I just wanted to share that I use these Baby Cubes. Each are 1 oz so it's easy to mix n match a meal, easy to clean, fill, freeze, stack & remove. The lids are attached too so you won't lose parts.

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Gazing on her sleeping

Motherhood brings to you a sort of love that you never even knew existed; a crazy kind of joy & surreality that you never before imagined. It gets you high with one smile, one gaze, one tiny finger.

As she sleeps on my shoulder, I look softly on her beautiful baby face, remembering that now she’s grown up enough to eat solids, to sit up by herself, to behave at dinner (or not), to call out “ummy” (“ehma”, “umma” or just “mm mm”) when she wants me, to stretch out her arms to be carried, to glance once at me before laying down carefully on my shoulder to rest.

6.5 months. What a long short time.

What a wonderful time.

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Come on, I keep saying, I’m right here where you can see me. I need to drink water, eat & pee too! I’m already only doing the bare necessities to keep myself alive. I don’t take long baths or go to the cinema. I don’t even really sleep! And you are still anxious that I might leave? Seriously, come…

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That was how I felt for the 5 mins it took me to write that post. 5 mins later, I picked her up, kissed her & continued putting her to nap. That’s motherhood: a series of emotions, conflicts & moments. We all do our very best. We love our babies to bits. But it’s ok to feel like you’ve had enough once in a while, for a split second. It’s ok to be real.

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Separation Anxie-fuckin-ty

Come on, I keep saying, I'm right here where you can see me. I need to drink water, eat & pee too! I'm already only doing the bare necessities to keep myself alive. I don't take long baths or go to the cinema. I don't even really sleep! And you are still anxious that I might leave? Seriously, come on. The screaming doesn't help, it just drives me into myself, where I hear but hardly listen & look but hardly see. I forgot to tell you I have a real talent for blocking noise out. Like right now while you scream in your cot & I write this post. I didn't really mean for you to have to cry it out. But if you're not napping after 45 mins of me carrying you at bloody 7kg, I'm sorry, cos that's all I've got today.

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Fisher Price's Step N Play is a saviour when it comes to having some time to yourself. The numerous sounds & playthings on that console occupy baby for a good period, sufficient to kick back a morning coffee & devour a peanut butter sandwich. It also allows you to walk away without worrying that the new roller will roll off her ginormous playmat onto the marble floor. The foot panels ensure that every time baby kicks, a melody distracts her. A good investment.

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Hate or Debate: Cloud B Sheep Sheep. Well, we don’t exactly HATE it but it’s simply pointless. The “womb” sounds have never fooled our little girl & therefore never soothed her. I’m not saying babies aren’t calmed by “womb” sounds. I’m saying those created by this popular sheep are overrated. Sheep Sheep now hangs by her neck outside of the cot, as a decorative piece reminiscent of traitors hung from castle walls.

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Baby Steps

Today is my first day back at work. I’m ill from staying up at night with baby (frequent wakes due most likely to constipation) but I’m determined to take this step forward into the office.

Having a baby comprises of many baby steps back to YOU. First you must embrace the changes to your body & your life during pregnancy. Then you must go through labour & recover from the trauma within a few hours so that you can focus on caring for your newborn. You then need to learn how to breastfeed & care for a tiny life. You will discover how to cope with the overwhelming responsibility of sustaining a life outside of your womb & thereafter how to fit that responsibility into your own life. And then it will be time for that step back into society. Your heart weeps for the separation from your baby. (Separation anxiety. Ha! Felt more by mum than by baby most times.) But your childcare arrangements are in place & you’re mentally prepared to do this. Heck, you’re even looking forward to it. Because this means you are getting closer to you. Baby steps.

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Coffee & lunch at Jones the Grocer on a Friday afternoon last week signified the small beginning of my new found freedom. The feeling of being able to look forward beyond tomorrow is god-sent, albeit accompanied by a certain amount of mother’s guilt. Anyhow, I’ll take it.

I’m talking about my baby starting infant care (“little school” as we say it to her). It’s a nice step forward in our lives together, offering me some time to go back to doing my thing while she explores interaction with other babies. Finding the right little school also means I have peace of mind while pursuing the rest of my life.

Only mothers who look after their babies all by themselves will understand what I mean when I say: “I can see my life again & it’s beautiful with baby in it.”

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The Kate Spade Stevie is possibly the most ideal diaper bag since it combines designer luxury with functionality. It is one of the cheaper designer diaper bags on the market too, alongside Marc Jacobs.

Stevie’s lining, pocket tiering, adequate compartments & considerate features like waterproof easy to clean material & straps to hook small shopping bags on, make Stevie a real utility bag. Plus, its zipper is so easy to pull close AND OPEN that you can do so with one hand. There are loads of designer bags out there that are just not designed for real mummy use. My Burberry is useless as a messenger bag that hangs too low & is impossible to manoeuvre with one hand (yea, all parents only have one hand free most times). I have another beautiful snake skin leather bag from Not Rational that I use to doll up an outfit but otherwise it is waaay too heavy to lug around.

A good friend of mine said she didn’t want a Kate Spade because every mom seemed to have it, that is until she realised WHY every mom had it! So true.

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Wet Bag by Pupsik Studio is a 2-in-1 bag that keeps clean clothes dry & soiled clothes separate. Not rocket science really. But pretty well done up: lightweight so it doesn't over strain your diaper bag, there are many different patterns to choose from, waterproof, doesn't crumple when you stuff it into bag & is really spacious despite how flat it looks. Good buy if you like keeping your diaper bag neat & pretty like I do.

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Sock Ons are ingenious little creatures that hold baby's socks on so that you get to keep the pair in tact. Think: ankle guards. That's how they slip on & secure the socks. They are really lightweight & comfy, so they don't add extra unwanted warmth to baby's feet. You can get them off Amazon but strangely, nobody seems to ship these to SG. I got my cousin in the UK to mail them to me. Somebody ought to bring them in.

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Apparently Madonna went out & bought one, rocketing Power Plates to fame. Well, I’m not one who usually falls for subtle endorsements, whether paid or not. But I’ve trained on Power Plates since 2 months post partum & I’m a firm believer.

Okay, Power Plates did not make me lose a lot of weight really fast. So that part is disappointing considering all the hype about how 25 mins on Power Plates equals 2.5 hours at the gym.

For me, Power Plates helped with sculpting my body back to shape after it stretched beyond recognition over 9 long months. It also helped with closing the gap created by my diastasis recti. The exercises designed by my personal trainer, Ella at Croyez Studio, have worked mini wonders. From 4 crazy fingers width, I now have half a pinky to go. Yay.