Today’s Motherhood

If you spot one of these shy and furry creatures right at your doorstep, don’t be alarmed. They are native, nocturnal animals called common palm civets, locally known as toddy cats, which live in our forests and parks. Five of these adorable toddy cats are currently on display at the Night Safari, boosting its collection of endangered native animals and enabling visitors to learn more about this species.

Visitors can now observe the toddy cats and their nocturnal foraging behaviour in a huge enclosure simulating a ‘kampong’ scene. To reflect the species’ history in Singapore, the exhibit features chicken coops, coconuts and baskets, which convey a typical village feel. The ‘kampong house’ is made of real thatched roofs and house plants that are commonly found in villages such as banana trees, serai and tapioca.

The toddy cat - known as musang in Malay - is one of the last wild carnivores which can still be seen around residential areas in Siglap and forests in Bukit Timah, the Central Catchment, Pulau Ubin and Pulau Tekong. They range in parts of South Asia and Southeast Asia. The animal earned its name from its apparent liking for the sap from palm trees that is used to produce the alcoholic drink, ‘toddy’.

The toddy cat enclosure covers a total area of over 126 m² and is one of the latest exhibits to open at the Night Safari.

“We would like visitors to leave our parks with increased knowledge and awareness of wildlife conservation through our animal exhibits. In this case, we hope they will appreciate some of our native species such as the common palm civets, so as to minimise human-animal conflict in our urban environment. It is important that we preserve the natural wildlife of Singapore for future generations to come” said Mr. Kumar Pillai, General Manager of Night Safari, which is operated by Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), together with Singapore Zoo, Jurong Bird Park and the upcoming River Safari.

Another unique feature of the exhibit is that it has an educational interpretive where visitors can learn more about the plight of this wild resident of Singapore, whose natural habitat has been encroached by humans through the years. It also showcases items associated with the animal such as packets of kopi luwak, one of the world’s most expensive coffee beans produced from coffee berries that pass through the toddy cat’s digestive tract. Known to be excellent climbers with a preference to stay in trees, these Night Safari residents will also enjoy climbing up and down three finely crafted tree trunks and vines.

WRS is currently working with various governmental organizations such as the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore and National Parks Board to rehabilitate and relocate captured toddy cats. We have rehabilitated and released a total of 57 civets since 2009. More recently, WRS is looking into radio-collaring civets to be released into the wild to study their range, survival and integration of this species in the new habitat.

The Night Safari had collaborated with the National University of Singapore to study the toddy cat population, specifically in the Siglap and Opera Estate areas. The project aimed to educate and encourage residents to live harmoniously with these creatures of the night. Recently, a team from Night Safari also conducted a talk on these native animals to students at Temasek Junior College.

Photo credit: Wildlife Reserves Singapore

LEAP SchoolHouse will be giving away their Year End Programmes worth more than $640 to their Facebook fans

To take part simply click “LIKE” on LEAP SchoolHouse Facebook page and they will be giving away their Year End Holiday Programmes as prizes listed as follows:

• 1 X 5 Days Programme - Amusant in Learning worth $320
• 1 X 5 Days Programme - Literacy Jive worth $320

Terms & Conditions:

• Prizes are not exchangeable
• Judges decision on winners are final
• Winners shall be in the age group of 4 to 6 years of age to join in the holiday programme

Contest will end on 18th November 2011

Like LEAP SchoolHouse today :)

Congratulations to the winners of Edu Quantum Learning Resources Making Your Home Safe For Your Child Quiz.

The correct answers to the quiz are as follows:

Question 1: In the kitchen handles of cooking pots sticking out of the stove may attract inquisitive young children to pull at the handles and overturning the pots onto themselves. What should you do to prevent such accidents from happening?

A. Buy pots with shorter handles so that they do not protrude over the edge of the stove.
B. Ensure that all handles of cooking pots are turned inwards.

Correct Answer (B) : Ensure that all handles of cooking pots are turned inwards.

This will prevent young children from pulling at the handles and overturning the cooking pots and pans onto themselves.

Question 2: In the bathroom children are often not old enough to know what’s safe and what’s not. Many accidents within the toilet involve water and drowning. What can you do to prevent such accidents?

A. Ensure that the water level in the bath tub is not too high.
B. Ensure that children in the bathroom are under close adult supervision at all times.

Correct Answer (B) : Ensure that children in the bathroom are under close adult supervision at all times.

Never leave children alone in the bathroom, especially the bathtub, even if it is for a short while.

Question 3: Many Singaporeans live in high rise HDB flats today. Many of these homes have windows which are often left wide open. What can you do to prevent children from climbing out of the window?

A. Keep curtains drawn so that children will not see the window.
B. Install window grilles and keep them locked. Remove chairs, stools and other furniture near the window that children may climb onto.

Correct Answer (B) : Install window grilles and keep them locked. Remove chairs, stools and other furniture near the window that children may climb onto.

Installing window grilles and keeping them locked will keep your children from falling out of the windows accidentally.

Question 4: In the bedroom some parents allow their baby to sleep on the same bed. This is dangerous as the adult may roll over and suffocate the baby. What can we do to prevent such accidents?

A. Place a pillow between the adult and baby.
B. Adults and babies should never sleep on the same bed

Correct Answer (B) : Adults and babies should never sleep on the same bed.
In this way, there is no risk of the adult rolling over and accidentally suffocating the baby.

The 10 lucky parents who each won a booklet of 10 MacDonald’s meal vouchers are:

1. Lin Pei Yan
2. Estrelita Agrabio Gomez
3. Heng Puay Ling
4. Chia Su Chen Sharon
5. Linda De Silva
6. Ivy Ng
7. Khong Shi Ngiaw
8. Soh Zi Xuan
9. Zhou Lijuan
10. Low San San

The 5 lucky parents who each won a copy of “WHAT HAPPENS TO ME AT THE HOSPITAL” are:

1. Chew Junfang
2. Lim Yar Mei
3. Ting Pek Yen
4. Liz Chen
5. Sharmila Suppiah

The 20 lucky parents who each won a set of STABILO drawing kit are:

1. Emily Ng
2. Eio Kok Hui
3. Teresia Suryasindhu
4. Elizabeth Khoo Bee Ling
5. Ting Bee Bee
6. VENITA PREETI MARTIN
7. Joanna Gok Yin Yin
8. Tan Yeow Leng
9. Serene Ng
10. Ralleeah Naina Mohamed
11. Rina Lim
12. Tan Boon Hing Doreen
13. Rachel Tan
14. Mdm Marites Zamora Devonshire
15. Wendy Pang
16. Ang Yen Ling
17. Chew Poh Hoon
18. Shing Yen Susanto
19. Felicia Poh
20. KOH KIM HOON

Every participants will also receive complimentary $30,000 personal accident cover for their child/children.

A representative from ELITE ADVISORY SERVICE will be contacting all winners with regards to the collection of their prizes.

**Winners will be notified by email individually.

** Terms and Conditions apply

The prizes are sponsored by Albert Ng & Associates and Elite Advisory Services.

Christmas Promotion: Order Piaget IQ Math™ Series Online and enjoy FREE Local Delivery.

Click “Like” on Bridge Learning’s FaceBook Fan Page to receive free delivery CODE.

Ends 26 Dec 2011

Congratulations to the winners of The Birth Shop Win Moms In Mind Baby Slings Contest. They have won for themselves a Moms In Mind Baby Sling worth $45.90 includes a “live” sling demo on how to use the sling in 5 different positions at our showroom.

Below are the names of the winners:

1. Ana Cristina Medina
2. Clara Fu Pei Shan
3. Loo Hwei Ling Linda
4. Normashita Osman
5. Priscilla Teo

Note : Winners will have to self collect the prize and sling demo at the showroom.

*Winners will be notified by email individually.

** Terms and Conditions apply

The above contest is proudly brought to you by The Birth Shop

Exclusive Screenings of Barney: Big World Adventure – The Movie at Cathay Cineplexes this Year-end School Holidays

The friendly purple dinosaur takes to the big screen this holiday session from 19 November 2011

With the year-end school holidays around the corner, Cathay Cineplexes is pulling out all the stops to attract the family crowd with its alternative movie offering, Barney: Big World Adventure – The Movie. In the movie, Barney and his friends travel around the world to make new friends and immerse in diverse cultural experiences.

Barney: Big World Adventure – The Movie will be screened exclusively at Cathay Cineplex Cineleisure Orchard and Cathay Cineplex AMK Hub from 19 November 2011, and patrons can get their hands on the movie tickets from as early as 4 November 2011.

To complete the movie-going experience and family outing, patrons can treat all in the family to a Barney Popcorn set which includes one regular popcorn and one Minute Maid Pulpy fruit drink at a promotional price of S$5.80. Children will even get to bring home a pair of Barney kids’ shades that is available at S$3 with every popcorn set purchase.

Priced at S$8 per ticket, patrons can go about their bookings via Cathay Cineplexes’ e-ticketing site, www.cathaycineplexes.com.sg, over at the box office counters or through Cathay Cineplexes’ iPhone application, iCathay.

Your child’s love for reading is the best foundation for success! Learning to read and write are the two crucial skills a younger learner needs to master.

Their entire education depends on them being skilled and confident readers and writers. The love for reading is best established in the early years as it will be difficult to build a strong relationship with reading in the later years – when reading becomes immediately demanding in primary school.

Reading is not about just reading aloud; it’s about Thinking. Here at MindChamps, we offer a revolutionary approach that engages your child’s emotions and intellect to help them achieve active understanding in all that they read.

Our Programs

• Joey Program (3 years old)
• Panda program (4 - 5 years old)
• Dolphin Program (5 - 7 years old)

Our Centres

1) MindChamps Reading @ Toa Payoh
490 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh HDB Hub, Biz 3 #05-12 Singapore 310490

2) MindChamps Reading @ City Square Mall
180 Kitchener Road #07-06 Singapore 208539

Please call contact Jeslyn 9009 0526 to book for a free comprehensive reading assessment.

Toa Payoh

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City Square Mall

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What are some of the milestones during a pregnancy? Today’s Motherhood speaks to Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, Dr John Yam to find out more…

The duration of pregnancy leading up to the delivery of your baby is divided
into three trimesters.

1st Trimester (weeks 1-12)

The urine pregnancy test usually becomes positive around the time of your missed period. Sensitive breasts, a feeling of bloatedness & mood swings are some of the symptoms you may experience.

You should have an ultrasound scan early to determine that the pregnancy is safely located in the womb & to establish the period of gestation. The first trimester is crucial as it is the time that baby’s organs are developing.

It is important that you take folic acid supplements at this time. Your doctor will start seeing you on a monthly basis from now. Besides checking your weight, blood pressure & urine, routine blood tests will also be done to look at, among other parameters, your blood level, blood group & immunity to conditions such as hepatitis. Your doctor may also discuss options regarding testing for Down’s syndrome.

2nd Trimester (weeks 13-28)

At around 12-14 weeks, as the womb enlarges, you may start to feel a bulge in your lower abdomen. Your centre of gravity may start to shift - you may feel clumsier & begin to ‘waddle‘ more. Lower back pain, leg cramps & irregular tightening of the abdomen may also occur.

At 17-20 weeks, you will feel your baby move for the first time. At around 21-22 weeks, a detailed fetal anomaly scan will be done to determine that baby’s crucial organs are normal. Towards the end of the second trimester, baby’s growth will accelerate. The rapidly expanding womb may exert pressure upwards (causing you to feel more breathless), & downwards (leading to piles, dilated veins & leg cramps). Depending on the situation, your doctor may increase the frequency of your clinic visits.

3rd Trimester (weeks 29-40)

You will start to feel heavy from now, as your weight increases at a rate of about half a kilogram every week until you deliver. The symptoms you experienced earlier will also worsen - breathlessness, backache, pressure symptoms, constipation, piles & leg swelling.

In addition, you may have difficulty sleeping at night with the enlarged womb causing you discomfort, & baby’s movements will interrupt your sleep. Water retention will cause numbness in the hands & pressure of the womb on the bladder will sometimes lead to urinary incontinence.

You should be on the lookout for regular contractions, which may be a sign of labour. (Irregular tightenings, or Braxton Hick’s contractions, are usually mild, ‘practice’ contractions that are not significant - they are Nature’s way of preparing the uterus for the final moment when it must contract with sufficient force to expel the baby into the world.)

Other symptoms to look out for include, bleeding, amniotic fluid leakage & decreased fetal movements. These should prompt an immediate admission to hospital.

Dr JOHN YAM
Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, Gleneagles Hospital
Adjunct Clinical Tutor, Duke University - NUS Graduate Medical School

This article was first published in Today’s Motherhood Magazine Jul 09 issue Page 8

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photography takes an instant out of time,
altering life by holding it still.
- dorothea lange -

these moments that you wish to take out of time ­ the goosebump moments full of love and emotion, the wild and silly moments full of giggles and laughter, all those moments you resolve to hold in your heart forever, but all too soon they fade…

the goal of nina tantzen photography is to capture these moments so that you can vividly remember them for years to come. nina wants her images to bring a smile to your face, and fill your heart with this warm-fuzzy feeling that sends you through your day with an extra little kick in your step.

nina tantzen is a natural light photographer, specializing in maternity, newborn, baby, child and family photography. photo sessions will be in the comfort of your own home or on a location of your choice. nina’s style is natural and candid. she looks to capture your family just as they are ­ the real relationships and personalities, the smiles, the seriousness, the things that make your family unique. nina doesn’t do a lot of posing, she won’t ask your kids to force a smile or say cheese, and ­most importantly ­ she won’t leave until she feels she’s gotten a set of stunning images to last a lifetime.

website: www.ninatantzen.com
facebook: www.facebook.com/ninatantzenphotography
email: nina@ninatantzen.com