Step By Step

STEP BY STEP...

As your little one takes her first steps, is she equipped with the right pair of shoes to cross this milestone?

Among the many milestones that many parents wouldn't want to miss, watching their baby take her very first step is listed as one of the most important. By the time she turns one year old, you would already have witnessed that special milestone that would have left you beaming with pride. Babies usually begin to walk at around nine to twelve months old. However, some only begin at sixteen months old, and this is okay.

Baby Steps

Before your little one begins to walk, she would learn to sit, roll over and crawl. When she is around eight months old, she should begin to start pulling herself up to a standing position. Babies that are working on pulling themselves upright learn that there are something in the room, what we call the 'pillars', are things that would not move when pulled. Before this age, they expect that all things would move if pulled.

As the next few weeks pass, she would move on to cruising. She would be holding on to tables and couches to take her where she needs to go. And before you knew it, she may be taking her first step towards independence. Keep in mind that every child develops at their own pace.

And still growing...

Walking around barefooted will help your little one develop tactile functions on top of balance and coordination. Do this at home where it is safe. Walking on grass and sand is also good for development of foot muscles too. Children needs to also be trained on gluteal (butt) muscles too. Activities such as crawling, kicking and swimming are great for strengthening hips, thighs and calves.

Walking Tall

It is important to invest in a good pair of shoes for your little one, though this can be costly, especially when she will outgrow her shoes in just a matter of months. Children's feet grow very rapidly, and is always good to have a professional to measure their feet every two to three months' to ensure that the shoes are of the correct size.

Take care not to buy a size larger than her current feet size, as this would only make her walk more clumsily, or fall and hurt herself. Shoes should not be too tight to cause blisters, corn or in-grown toenails. We do not want that to happen. Say No No to high heels as these would cause calf muscle tightness and reduce the development of a proper arch. Flip flops are also not recommended though they are comfortable to adults, but definitely not for kids. They would tend to claw their toes to grip the flip flops. This cause them to overuse their small muscles in their feet and calf muscles.

Always remember, comfort is the key.

SHOE SHOPPING TIPS

Guidelines to shopping a good pair of shoes for your little one.

- shop later in the day. Your little one's feet would expand to about five per cent at the end of the day so this ensures you get the correct size.
- outline your child's foot on a piece of paper and cut it out. Bring it along during shopping, and insert the cut out into the shoe. You will know that the shoe is too tight if the sides get crumpled up.
- how to check for fitting? Insert your pinky finger between the shoe and her heel. If the width of your thumb can fit between the tip of her toes and the tip of her shoe, that would prevent her toes from bumping against the end of her shoes when she runs.
- It helps to let your little one toddle around the store for a while, then check for any irritable spots to ensure the shoes are comfortable.

Have a fun time shopping with your little one. ^_^

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Online Resources for the Modern Mothers

As modern mothers, Internet is a powerful and most resourceful tool. Anything and everything we need can basically be found on the web, from getting information, to buying groceries and many other tasks. Whatever you can think of. However, given this tool, mothers need a good range of web sites to save more time and make the most informed decisions.

Below are some useful sites that are good as references. Of course, do comment on this blog if you have some other good ones to share with us.

General - Pregnancy, Baby related

Baby Center

What to Expect

Weaning - A food guide, Do's and Don'ts

Homemade Baby Food Receipes

wholesomebabyfood

First Month Favours

Papa Mama

Sweetest Moments

Toy Rental

Toy Rental World

Toy Rental Club

My GrowingToys

Kidz Loft

Baby Care

Mam Baby

Diapers

Agape Babies

Baby Play

The Little Gym

Baby Jumper Gym

My Gym

Baby SPA

Education

Pelican Publishing

Learning Tech

Baby Concept

Forums

The New Age Parents

Singapore Motherhood Forum

The Asian Parent

Mummy SG


Cord Blood Banking

Cordlife

Stem Cord

Baby Health Therapy

Osteopathy

Post Natal Massages

Jamu Wellness

Babies Bellies


We welcome website contributions to share with mothers out there. Leave us a note if you wish to contribute.

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Abbott Nutrition Parenting Congress 2012

Raising a Little Thinker Parenting Congress 2012
4th August 2012 @ Grand Copthorne Hotel, Singapore

I have recently just attended a parenting congress on the topic of raising a little thinker. Though my daughter is only barely eight months old, I thought it would be good to listen to advice from experience people around.

As it is, nowadays, parents are more concerned, or rather, 'overly' concerned about how to teach their children to be intelligent in order to excel and have an edge over the others in school. Are we really going to direct our children into this path? I reckon not. As parents, we would rather have children that is intellectually intelligent to be able to survive in this society, not academic only.

So, how do we teach our children to be more intelligent? They need both the potential and the right environment in order to meet this goal.

To successfully acquire intelligence, first, children need to accept facts that are presented to them. They need to also be able to remember and store those facts, and retrieve them whenever requested to. Then we need to help them combine these facts, penetrate into their little minds and let them discover, means helping them to think. Lastly, use those learned facts on problem-solving. This few steps can be used on teaching a child to tie his own shoe laces.

However, when is the appropriate age to teach a child all these? The answer is as early as possible. The older a child gets, the harder it is to learn. The golden time is the first six years of a child's life. If you start since the baby's birth, it is even better. Why? Because, babies learn at a superb speed. Always remember, learning is inverse function of age, and parents are the best teachers to their babies. In fact, babies understand their parents more than the parents understand them. Imagine, babies know if they cry, parents would immediately pick them up and cuddle them. When they get bored of something, they would protest and the parents would stop that activity. So, how clever are babies!

Singaporean parents are often than not, very busy on their work and the daily chores at home to spend more time with their children. We need to learn to RELAX. Take deep breath and embrace the surroundings. More time spent with children means more bonding and learning. It is best to catch hold of the morning till before the afternoon nap time to bond with them, as they are the most energetic and most alert. Having said that, we also need to spend quality time too. Find out what the child likes and do more of it with them. I know, most parents would protest and say, "But we are just too busy to even sit down and play with our children. Chores are piling up if we do that." Yes, and how do these parents distract the attention of their kids? By giving them gadets like TV and iPads. Right? Feel guilty.

Advice from the speakers of the Congress recommend that parents should avoid letting children watch TV or iPad at least for the first three years. Children learns through visual and hearing senses. By speaking naturally to them, they listen and absorbs. Some even speaks beautifully when they know how to talk without attending Phoenic classes. In my humble opinion, it is not totally bad to allow children to watch education DVD on TV or on iPad, as long as we limit the amount of time. This is also to prevent putting plenty of strain on their eyes. Isn't it?

So, parents, think about how you would like your children to grow up. You are the key to raising a little thinker!

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