Today’s Motherhood

Rocio by Bonbebe, a classic and elegant 4 IN 1 Cot Bed with gently curbing ends, solid and sturdy, made from Russian Pine with a natural finish. It can be used as a Baby Cot, Play Pen, Sofa Bed and Junior Starter Bed.

Infantino will be having promotion for Bonbebe Rocio 4 IN 1 Baby Cot from 13 to 30 Sep 2010.

Free 5 pcs Bedding Set worth $69.00
Free Fibrelux Safety Mattress worth $139.00
Free BabyBow Mobile worth $59.00
U/P : $766
S/O : $399

For more information, call 65-6272 4628 or email enquiry@infantino.com.sg

Remember to check out Bonbebe Freestar stroller promotion.

Infantino will be having promotion for Bonbebe FreeStar Stroller from 13 to 30 Sep 2010.

Free Bonbebe Front Bar worth $29.90
Free Munchkin Stroller Organiser worth $29.90
U/P : $349
S/O : $249

For more information, call 65-6272 4628 or email enquiry@infantino.com.sg

At present, an intelligent child is not solely that one who excels in the academics. This concept was proposed by Dr. Howard Gardner in 1983. He suggested that there is more intelligence beyond the traditional intelligence quotients. This was accepted by the modern society at large as children are actually formed distinct from each other and are special in many ways.

This idea of multiple intelligences is one way of discovering and honing extreme human potential in different fields of endeavor. They are the following:

• Linguistic Intelligence. If your child excels in this field, he is the word-smart type. He can get familiar with long string of words, he gets inclined with poetry, he can tell stories, and can even read at a very early age without being taught by others.
• Logical and mathematical intelligence. Your child may not be very interested in literature but he could be the number or reasoning smart kind of a person. He gets interested in chess or checkers, sees patterns, has the ability to organize blocks and formulate logical reasons.
• Spatial Intelligence. The picture-smart kid has the ability to visualize pictures in his head, draw in correct perspective, finds ways easily, look at pictures and images and copy them right and even anticipates the movements in space. You can test this intelligence as you throw out the ball and the child is able to catch before it hits the ground.
• Bodily Kinesthetic intelligence. The child is body-smart once he exhibits ability to perform well in plays and puppet shows, climb, run, jump, hop and skip.
• Musical Intelligence. Children interested in music are called the music-smart. They remember songs without even knowing the lyrics, sing in tune, and make or produce various sounds.
• Social or Interpersonal Intelligence. No man is an island for people smart kids. These kids are capable of solving quarrels, care for others, good leaders and they make friends easily.
• Intrapersonal intelligence or the self-smart. Children who are independent and accomplish things on their own could take pride of the intrapersonal intelligence.
• Naturalist intelligence. The nature-smart kid shows affection to the natural world around him. He finds interest in creatures and could identify them easily.

Knowing your child’s inclination would help you to prepare activities that would enhance his intelligence. Understanding these multiple intelligences will help you discover and unveil your child’s hidden talents and hone them for improvement and proper utilization.

The WotWots DVDs Giveaway. Read our review of The WotWots Series and stand a chance to win a set of The WotWots DVDs. 3 sets of 4 DVDs each to be won. See end of post for details. Contest ends 4 October 2010!

The WotWots is a series of adventures between two soft-puppet aliens, a brother and sister, who came to explore planet earth in their power-steamships and end up in a local zoo. The series of The WotWots series comes in four set of DVDs including

• Sneak-a-peak a Flamingo
• Sneak-a-peak a Peacock
• Sneak-a-peak a Tiger
• Sneak-a-peak a Zebra

The WotWots DVD Reviews:

The adventures between SpottyWot and DottyWot are really exciting, educational and entertaining which is an appropriate choice for the young kids .

Of course there are some playful conflicts and differences between the two siblings along the way. Instead of focusing on the conflicts, the series highlighted on how to manage conflicts such as taking turns and cooperation. I believe that this is an effective method of modeling pro-social skills among young children.

The combination of real-life documentary into the animation series is excellent for young children. This will allow them to separate fantasy and real world; and to be able to relate to their own experiences and immediate environment.

On top of that, every episode focuses on a particular vocabulary. The narrator decodes the word repetitively, allowing children at home to follow-along as well!

Let your kids enjoy the joy of discovery as they embark the zoo journey with SpottyWot and DottyWot at The WotsWots!

Giveaway Contest

We have 3 sets of 4 The WotWots DVDs worth $59.60 each to giveaway. Total 3 winners. All you have to do is

1. Join Today’s Mother Mailing List below (existing members need not sign up again)

2. Be a fan of Innokidz in Facebook

3. Answer a simple question below

Closing Date is 4 October 2010.

The prizes are sponsored by

Terms and Conditions Apply.

Study Smart Workshop will show you how to make learning fast, easy and fun. Free preview is on 25th Sep from 2.00pm to 4.30pm at Family Life Centre This Study Smart workshop covers

• Supermemory
• Learning Maps
• Self-Motivation
• Goal Setting
• Power Reading

Contact : 68484767
Address of Family Life Center : 167 Geylang Road #03-06 Grand Plus Building Singapore 389242

For more details, visit http://successedge.wordpress.com

Cultivating good study habits in your child is perhaps the one of the most powerful gifts you can give your child to help him succeed academically.

“Effective study habits are nurtured and cultivated from young, and not a natural gift that children are born with” Helping to cultivate the good study habits will also boost the confidence massively in your child.

However, being aggressive with your child is not the right way to make him improve his studies. Here are some ways to do it.

1) The first thing that you need to make your child understand is what he can achieve by scoring good results as most children have no idea what they are studying for. Most children study because they have no choice or because they want to please their parents.

You can give your child examples of successful personalities and how they achieved their dreams. Understand what your child’s dreams are and work together in that direction.

2) Make a nice study area for your child. Keep the place clean and the atmosphere serene. Make sure it is clear of distractions like television and toys. This will help your child concentrate better. It will be very helpful if you can put up some inspirational quotations to motivate your child when he is discouraged.

I actually have a compilation of 50 powerful quotes which I get my students to paste on their desk on a weekly basis. And it has encouraged them tremendously.

3) Take time to clarify any doubts that your child is facing. Look through your child’s textbook, so that you are also aware of the subjects and what the child is studying. If there is a need, engage a private tutor to help your child in his weaker subjects. When your child sees that you are interested in his studies, it will help him improve faster.

The key is to show sincerity and genuine concern, not a fierce attitude. If you always scare your child, he may not open up to you, and you will not know what the actual problem is.

4) When your child is not studying, casually ask why. Get them to discuss the subjects and the doubts that they are facing. Help them to clarify those doubts and make it seem easier to your child rather than condemning him on not understanding simple things.

5) Finally, do remember that every child has his own capacity. Don’t force your child to be seated in front of the books all the time. It is just forcing your child to do something that he doesn’t want to do. Such an approach has been proven to fail! And it will make your child dread his studies more.

Give your child enough time and exposure so that the mind gets refreshed. Encourage him to take part in some light physical activities. It will help him study and absorb information better.

Follow these 5 simple steps, and practise them constantly. They are proven ways to cultivate good study habits and a sustained interest in studies.

Article by Study Grandmaster. To nurture your child into a genius, visit www.studygrandmaster.com

This article was first published in Today’s Motherhood Magazine Oct 09 issue Page 20

Updated 27 Nov 10
Thank you for your participation. The Top 4 Voted Entries in our Coverpage Baby Photo Contest are

They have won for themselves a full sponsor of one Perfect Mini² package worth $118 sponsored by Colorful Photography.

1. Chloe Chan (Coverpage Winner)
2. Zhang Xuan Li
3. Miquel Samson
4. Forrest Ang JunLin

Their photos taken by Colorful Photography will be published in Febrary March 2011 issue of Today’s Motherhood Magazine and the winner will be the Coverpage Model of the same issue.

The Coverpage Photo Contest - Baby Photo Contest Nov-Dec 10 is on-going now. To submit a photo, please go to Baby Photo Contest Nov-Dec 10

Today’s Motherhood Coverpage Photo Contest Sep/Oct 2010 is open for submission. The contest theme will be Photogenic Baby Contest.

1. You must be a subscriber of Today’s Motherhood mailing list to enter the contest. To subscribe

2. Only ONE photo per child (multiple entries will be deleted)
3. File size of photo must not exceed 1M btyes.
4. You can only submit photo of your own child.
5. Age of child is 5 years old or less

For details of prizes, rules and regulations, terms and conditions and how to enter the contest, please see details at Coverpage Photo Contest.

The contest will be an INTERNAL voting contest by Today’s Motherhood panel of judges. The judges decision are final and no correspondence shall be entertained.
Closing Date : 20 Oct 2010

This Baby Photo Contest is held together with Colourful Photography.

Steps To Submit a Photo:

1. Click Upload Photo below
2. Select an image to upload : You can either choose from your harddisk or a WebURL (Note : File size must be less than 1M bytes)
3. Caption : Please enter photo description
4. Enter Your Name, Your Email (the one used to join our mailing list)
5. Key in Your Phone Number, Your Child’s Name, Your Child’s Birthday
6. Click Submit
7. Once the photo shows up, click Done

For enquires, please email support@todaysmotherhood.com

Terms and Conditions Apply

To submit a photo,

Select an image to upload:	Browse for file  Enter URL Import Image by URL
Caption:
Your Name:
Your Email:
Your Phone:
Your Child's name::
Your Child's birthday:

4.  Forrest Ang JunLin

3.  Miquel Samson

2.  Zhang Xuan Li

1.  Chloe Chan

When my son, Vee, was about 14 months old, I decided to start weaning him off breastmilk – the perfect and best milk for human beings. The main reason is that his regular suckling day AND night is doing too well in child-spacing.

Weaning off breastmilk means I needed to search for an alternative toddler’s milk source for him, amongst the huge variety of milk available in the market. Since all mothers would need to go through a similar thought process when weaning the toddler off breastmilk or after he outgrows infant formula, this article shall share with you six important considerations.

1. How Much Milk to Drink?

My son was breastfed latching on exclusively (except for the odd occasion) on demand, so I had no idea how much milk he drank. These are what I found out:

• His paediatrician mentioned 500 to 600ml of dairy products per day is sufficient after one year old, mainly for the calcium.
• Calcium intake recommended in the U.S. for children 1 to 3 years old is 500mg per day (Source: AAP Policy)
• 240ml of milk or 240mg of yoghurt provides about 300mg of calcium (Source: AAP Policy)
• “Unless advised otherwise by your baby’s doctor, limit your toddler’s cow milk intake to no more than 24 ounces a day.” and “excessive milk consumption is a common cause of iron deficiency anemia in toddlers” (Source: AskDrSears.com

Too little milk may mean lack of calcium and fat, while too much milk could affect the child’s appetite for other nutritious solid foods. Therefore, a fine balance is needed.

As different brands of milk provide varying levels of nutrients, remember to check and compare the labels.

2. Whole Milk or Formula?

While formula milk is formulated to meet the nutritional needs of children, there are many exclusively-breastfed babies and toddlers who do not accept its taste.

There are also mothers who are not convinced about feeding their children highly-processed food regularly, which is why they breastfeed in the first place. AskDrSears.com mentions “”we do not recommend follow-up formulas that contain corn syrup. They are nutritionally unwise and unnecessary.”

On the other hand, whole milk is recommended only to children above 12 months old. This means infants should drink breastmilk and/or formula milk up to at least their first birthday.

As whole milk is not fortified with vitamins and minerals, a common concern is if it would provide sufficient nutrition for a growing toddler. Our home-visit nurse suggests supplementing whole milk with a multi-vitamin to ensure that the child receives all the necessary nutrients.

3. Milk from Cows, Goats or What?

Some mothers have mentioned that they feed their toddlers with goat’s milk or soy milk. After more Googling around, I found others who opt for oatmilk and rice milk (these are essentially health beverages, not really milk per se.) Some interesting findings:

• Goat’s milk may be easier to digest and less allergenic than cow’s milk. (Source: AskDrSears.com)
• “Milk alternative beverages not containing appropriate quantities of protein and/or vitamins and minerals for toddlers should carry a warning label as to their inappropriateness for this age group. “(Source: Severe Nutritional Deficiencies in Toddlers Resulting From Health Food Milk Alternatives, PEDIATRICS Vol. 107 No. 4 April 2001, p. e46)

Even though goat’s milk may have slight benefits over cow’s milk, it is less common in the market. Some children, such as my son, are allergic to soy, so they have one option less to choose for toddler’s milk.

4. Organic or Non-Organic?

Organic milk is an attractive option because the manufacturers commonly avoid the use of pesticides, hormones, genetically modified organisms (GMO) and harmful chemicals in producing the milk.

After surveying two brands of organic whole milk, I realised that their prices are 2 to 3 times that of regular whole milk, which would not fit well into many families’ budget.

5. Cows: Pastured (Grass-Fed) or Confined (Grain-Fed)?

There are some people who are opposed to drinking milk from grain and corn-fed cows. In nature, cows are supposed to feed on fresh grass, instead of grains. Even organic milk may come from cows who are confined and fed on organic corn most of the time, depending on the relevant organic certification standard.

Usually, the animals’ diet is not disclosed on the milk package. To find out, it is necessary to read the manufacturer’s website or contact them directly.

6. Regular Pasteurised or UHT Milk?

Ever wondered why some milk are kept in the refrigerator while some are stored in room temperature for up to 6 months? These are two useful terms to know:

• High Temperature Short Time (HTST) or Flash Pasteurisation: The liquid moves in a controlled, continuous flow while subjected to temperatures of 71.5 °C (160 °F) to 74 °C (165 °F), for about 15 to 30 seconds.(Source: Wikipedia)
• Ultra High Temperature (UHT) Processing: partial sterilization of food by heating it for a short time, around 1 to 2 seconds, at a temperature exceeding 135°C (275°F), which is the temperature required to kill spores in milk. (Source: Wikipedia)

Regular pasteurised milk usually costs more than UHT milk, is UHT milk is good enough?

Apparently, a study by Carbonaro (2000) concludes that “the in vitro digestibility of proteins in UHT treated milk was significantly impaired compared to pasteurized milk.” Furthermore, AlKanhal (2001) concluded that “this reduction in nutritional quality might be significant for children who are solely dependent on this type of milk in their diet.” (Source: The Effect of Heat Treatment on the Nutritional Value of Milk, Erin Gillis, September 1, 2005)

It seems that regular pasteurised milk maintains more nutritional integrity than UHT milk.

Conclusion

There is a wide array of alternative milk available for toddlers and the ultimate choice depends on balancing your child’s nutritional needs, family budget and special circumstances such as allergies. Hope this article would ease your search for the ideal toddler’s milk.

About the Writer

MieVee is a Stay-At-Home-Mum with a 16-month old son, Vee. She supports breastfeeding, cloth-diapering, babywearing and green living

This article was first published in Today’s Motherhood Magazine Aug Sep 10 issue Page 12

Congratulations to the winners of Today’s Motherhood Giveaway Of Norton Internet Security Contest. They have won themselves a copy of Norton Internet Security NIS 2010 worth $59.

Below are the names of the winners:

1. Cecilia Tan
2. Chris Choo
3. Jesslyn Lim Mei Yin
4. Koh Lay Koon
5. Low Tiam Siong

Remember to read this article for Tips To Keep Your Family Safe Online

**Winners will be notified by email individually.

** Terms and Conditions apply

The prizes are sponsored by

Our Norton Internet Security Survey results showed that the top 2 concerns of Today’s Motherhood parents are their children going to objectional sites and sites with viruses.

Therefore, we would like to share with you Four essential S.T.A.R tips to keep your family safe online.

S is for Software: The security software you use needs to be updated regularly and constantly assessed to suit the changing level of your online interactions.

Let technology work to your advantage and not at the expense of your online safety.

T is for Talk: It is a parent’s responsibility to keep their children safe online by connecting with them through regular conversations (not interrogations). Kids spend hours online and it is hard to constantly monitor the websites they visit. They are a lot savvier with technology and explore online activities such as chatting, emailing, gaming and posting personal information and images on websites. Regrettably, online predators have become adept at using these technologies to approach children and teens.

Parents need to have frequent talks and set rules and let them know what are the dos and don’ts:

• Limit the time your children spend online
• Tell them not to instant message or email people you and they don’t know
• Tell them to never give any personal information to anyone you don’t know
• Let them know what kinds of websites you expect them to avoid
• Make sure they know that they should tell you if something weird or unexpected happens

Always ask questions in the conversation you have with your children. Ask:

• What websites they’re visiting
• With whom they’re instant messaging or emailing
• If anything weird has happened to them online, and so on

A is for Awareness of REAL online risks (i.e. Internet predators, cyberbullying, etc.)

Protect you and your family against identity theft

Identity theft is a two-step process. First, someone steals your personal information. Next, they use that information to impersonate you and commit fraud. Most identity theft occurs in one of the following ways:

• Cyber thieves rifle through stolen emails, or trick you into revealing sensitive details
• With phishing and pharming, thieves use fake emails and websites to impersonate legitimate organisations
• Hackers and viruses can infiltrate your computer to steal data or capture account names and passwords as you type them

Online gaming addiction opens kids up to greater dangers

Chatting online with other game players may expose your children to online predators. Predators go where kids go online, and where better than a fantasy world that includes children? Also, gaming addiction can take a toll on your pocket. Many popular online games require that players buy the game, then pay monthly subscription fees.

One can buy additional characters and accessories from the gaming website and by maintaining an open connection between your computer and a gaming website/chat room, this can lead to intrusion and possible theft of your identity and financial records on your home computer or network. It is important to have good Internet security software installed on your computer and more importantly when you are gaming online.

Cyber bullying: Anti-social behavior online

The good news is, technology offers today’s kids more ways to connect, socialise and communicate than ever before. The bad news is that some kids are abusing the technology by engaging in cyber bullying – a cruel anti-social behavior perpetrated either online or via mobile phones, often anonymously, mostly by tweens and teens, and sometimes by troubled adults.

• Cyber bullies use text messages on mobile phones, or email, instant messages, social networking blogs, or web pages to harass, embarrass, and intimidate other kids
• The bullying takes many forms, from spreading false rumors and posting embarrassing pictures to sending offensive messages, repeated harassment (sometimes sexual), stalking, threats, and even extortion

Get educated – stay in tune with their kids’ online activities and learn about the new technologies such as the popular social networking sites, which are very popular amongst teens. Predators have recently begun using these sites to approach and sexually assault young teens, thus the need for parental control in play.

R is for Rules: set online safety rules for your family and be consistent

Set Internet Policies: According to the Norton Online Family Report (2010), although 7 in 10 parents have set rules surrounding their kid’s use of the Internet, it appears that children’s perception of these rules are that they are outdated, as 61% of children believe that they are more careful with their online activities than their parents.

As the Internet becomes a larger and larger part of our lives, establishing boundaries for online activity between parents and children is increasingly vital. Like anything else, open dialogue and clear expectations are most important steps. Parents don’t have to “out-tech” their kids to protect them.

Create family policies for email, IM, blogs, and social networking accounts, including the kinds of programs your kids can use. Use the Norton Parental Control feature in Norton 360 version 4.0 if this is your current security software to block access to restricted programs and sites. Taking these initiatives will hopefully enable parents to develop their knowledge of what their child does on the Internet whilst encouraging the child to interact safely and learn how to value and protect their personal privacy and identity online.

Monitor your kids’ accounts: Make sure you know who your children are meeting online. Match the online identity of every person they communicate with to make sure it’s someone you know and trust. Regularly check their buddy lists and address books for new and unfamiliar names.

Make the Internet a family activity: Maybe more important than anything else, keep your computers in a central part of the house; that way you can stay involved and keep an eye on what your kids are doing.

Article published with permission from Symantec