Category: Family

The birth of a baby brings so much joy, excitement, and hope for the future. However, it takes a toll on new moms. We’re sleep-deprived, overwhelmed, hormonal, and we’re still learning how to care for our new baby.

Thanks to the support of my family and friends, I was able to survive the postpartum period, physically recover, and have my mental health fully intact. This is not always the case for every mom who gives birth. 

Some moms may not have their close family and friends near where they live. Some women do not have the finances or the proper home setting to fully take care of their new baby. There may also be some who had complications from giving birth that make it difficult to take care of the baby during the first few weeks. 

We all need to do our part to support moms after the baby is born. On the other hand, many of us do want to help but don’t know how. Here are 7 ways you can help a new mom after birth:

1. Prepare Meals for Her

One of the best gifts you can give a new mom is a wholesome meal. She needs something to provide her energy throughout the day and night while providing her and the baby with nutrients if she is nursing. 

Cook her favorite dish or prepare freezer entrees so she has it ready in her freezer when she’s ready to eat. Set up a meal train with friends and family to bring a homemade meal each day to get the new family through the first week or so. 

If she is breastfeeding, include ingredients to improve her milk supply like moringa. Try to use my chicken tinola with moringa recipe here. This dish is what my friends and husband made for me when my son was born to help increase my milk supply. 

If you prefer to buy food, use Uber Eats to deliver mom’s favorite restaurant meals. You can also set up a group gift with other friends and family members with eGifter to get her choice of restaurant gift cards to feed her for several weeks. 

For cheaper options, you can get her discounted restaurant deals through Groupon. You could also create a gift basket with her favorite drinks and snacks to nourish her through the night feedings. 

2. Treat Mom

Giving birth is hard work but the real work comes during the weeks after the baby is born. Treat the new mother to something delicious or fun to brighten her day and congratulate her for her hard work. 

Take her out for a haircut, a mani/pedi, or even just for a walk around the park for fresh air. Give her and the hubby a night off so they can go to the movies or have a date night. 

You can also get her a box of her favorite chocolates or bring her her favorite drink from Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. You can even send her a box of yummy lactation cookies that will help her produce more milk. 

Create a self-care gift basket for her with these fun products:

• 24k golden eye masks to moisturize and reduce dark circles, puffiness, and wrinkles from lack of sleep
• Shower bombs with essential oils to reduce stress even for 5 minutes
• Motivational water bottle to encourage her to drink more water especially when nursing
• Massage gun to get those knots out from sleeping in the reclining chair while the baby is napping
• Amazon gift card because she’ll probably be shopping for last-minute essentials at 2 am while nursing baby

For more gift ideas for new moms, check out my posts 6 Breastfeeding and Pumping Station Must-Haves and Mother’s Day Gift Guide. 

3. Subscription Box

A fun way to support a new mama is by providing her with a monthly subscription box. Cratejoy offers a variety of subscription boxes that will help new mothers through the postpartum period and their breastfeeding journey. 

Some of Cratejoy’s most interesting new mommy subscription boxes include: 

• The Cater to Mom subscription box includes postpartum essentials that are organic, natural, vegan, and cruelty-free. 
• The Mama Bird Box provides self-care items perfect for a tired and overwhelmed parent.
• The Mother Snacker subscription box delivers snacks and other unique items. You can have this as a one time present or as a 3, 6, or 12-month subscription. 

Subscription boxes are ideal gifts for new moms lives far away from you and you want to surprise her with something special every month. 

4. Give Her a Helping Hand

Help a new momma by offering to cook, clean, or run errands for her. Offer to watch the baby for an hour or two so she can get a nap, eat, or shower. If they have other children or pets, take them out for a walk or play with them outside. 

Use Meal Train Plus to split up childcare, housework, rides, and other tasks with other family and friends. It makes it easy to schedule and organize errands for new moms at home. 

Send her organic and non-GMO groceries through Thrive Market or ready-made meal kits through Blue Apron. I can’t stress this enough how helpful it is to provide new mothers with wholesome meals. 

More importantly, ask her if you can do a specific task for her instead of asking her if she needs anything because she’ll have so many things on her to do list, she won’t know what to ask you. 

5. Respect Her Wishes

If the new mama wants no visitors for the first two weeks, don’t stress her out by showing up unannounced. If you are allowed to visit, don’t overstay your welcome. 

Don’t take or post baby pictures if the new parents haven’t posted anything on social media. The important thing is to ask before you do something. 

In these current times, the new mom might ask you to wear a mask and use hand sanitizer before holding the baby. She may even ask that you not visit if you have any sign of a cough or cold. 

Respect her wishes to reduce the stress she already has in navigating motherhood. 

6. Check-In With Her

According to the Center for Disease Control, 1 in 8 women experience symptoms of postpartum depression. It’s important to check-in with a new mother to see how she’s doing and managing this new and stressful period in her life. 

Being a new mom can be quite lonely especially during the long newborn nights. Send her a text, give her a call, or send her a funny new mom card. 

Let her know that your relationship with her hasn’t changed. Include her in events and parties. Just because she’s a parent doesn’t mean she can’t do the same things as before.

Sometimes all she needs is someone to listen to her talk about her struggles. It may not be the same conversation that you used to have or you may not relate to it but it would really help her release some of the tensions, anxieties or worries that she’s been having. Sometimes that can be a gift in and of itself.

If she is experiencing symptoms of postpartum depression or postpartum anxiety, encourage her to talk to her doctor and seek assistance. You could even offer to go to the doctor with her or watch the baby during her appointment. 

You should let her know that she should not be ashamed or hide what she is going through. 

Be that person she can talk to or count on for support. Make sure she gets the services she needs to be healthy for her and her baby. 

7. Let Her Know She’s Doing a Good Job

One of the simplest ways to help a new mom is to know she’s doing a good job whenever you see her. This reminder can really brighten her day and renew her confidence in her new role. 

Most of the comments I’ve received since giving birth is about how well my son is growing. Even though I value these compliments, the one that stays with me the most was whenever my friend would look at my growing son and tell me “good job mama!”. 

I never realized how rare we moms hear this compliment. We often get unwanted and unsolicited comments or advice. We may sometimes compare ourselves and our kids to others. There are also times we can never get anything right, nothing gets done, and we don’t know what to do. 

Get her this fun mug or this cute onesie for the baby so she can be reminded of how well she’s doing everyday. 

Telling a woman that she’s doing a good job as a parent is a wonderful reassurance that we have done well to take care of our children despite everything. It reminds us that what we do is good enough. We don’t have to be supermom and we don’t have to have a pinterest worthy family life. We just have to be the best mom we can be at that time. 

I hope these tips have provided you some great ideas to support a new mom after birth. If you have anything else to add, please comment below!

Related Pregnancy and Postpartum Articles

• 6 Breastfeeding and Pumping Station Must-Haves (for Small Spaces)
• My Best Friend Malunggay: Moringa for Breastfeeding Moms
• Mother’s Day Gift Guide

In 2020, many parents are now working from home while taking care of their children. In the past few weeks, students have also returned to school but are now attending their classes online. 

If you’re like me, this is the first time you are working from home. It’s always been my dream to work from home so I can take care of my toddler and see him grow up. However, it hasn’t been a smooth transition these past couple of months.  

Balancing remote work and home life is not easy but here are essential items for new work from home parents. 

1. Laptop

Laptops are better than desktop computers for parents working from home. Laptops provide the flexibility of working in any room in the house and in any space. If your laptop is fully charged, you don’t have to worry about finding an outlet for a couple of hours. You can bring it everywhere. 

I use my laptop in the bedroom, living room, and outdoors depending on where my toddler wants to go for the day. Sometimes, I’ve used it in bed while waiting for my son to fully fall asleep.  

I got my HP Pavilion x360 2-in-1 laptop in March when I first started to work from home due to the pandemic. My old Macbook Pro was heavy, slow, and outdated. I needed something compact, light, fast, and affordable. After much research, I bought this HP Pavilion x360 2-in-1 11.6″ Touch-Screen Laptop. 

I like that I can convert it from a laptop to a tablet in seconds. It’s super light that I can safely hold it and my wiggling toddler when we go to different rooms in our house. It’s even sturdy enough to survive minor bumps, drops, and a large coffee spill a few months ago. 

Find a laptop that fits your needs. If most of your work is through email, documents, spreadsheets, and Google Drive, an HP Pavilion laptop like mine is suitable and affordable. 

2. Wireless Mouse

A mouse is a remote work must-have if you have multiple windows open and are working on multiple spreadsheets. I find that the scrolling and reaction times on laptops are not as fast as using a regular mouse. 

I also hate that the touch pad is very close to the rest of the keys. I tend to have more accidents when I work on spreadsheets using the laptop’s touchpad than a regular mouse. 

Get a wireless mouse so you have one less chord cluttering your desk space. It also means one less wire for your toddler to pull off the table when you are working.

3. Surge Protector with USB Ports

Surge protectors are important to protect all of your electronics when working at home. You don’t want to be caught up in the middle of work then something happens to your outlet and shuts down your laptop without giving you time to save anything. 

Get a surge protector that has more than enough outlets for all of your electronics. Make sure it’s long enough to reach your desk and get one that’s mountable so you can keep it out of reach of young children. 

This Belkin Surge Protector has over 26,000 reviews and 4.5 stars on Amazon but I like it because it has 2 USB ports that eliminate the use of charging blocks for electro like my iphone. These blocks are bulky and can sometimes block other outlets on your surge protector. 

4. Wireless Earphones

Working at home means a lot of zoom meetings. It’s important to get proper earphones so you can clearly listen and speak to your co-workers. You also need earphones that block out noise you have at home like talkative toddlers. 

I like wireless earphones because they eliminate the wires that my toddler likes to grab when I am nursing him. It also means I can easily leave my phone on the table and wash dishes or play with my toddler. 

These Ankers Wireless Earphones are perfect for those working remotely. It has four microphones and has technology to improve the sound of your voice while reducing background noise. 

5. Laptop Cooling Pad

If you’ve worked on your laptop for several hours, you know how hot it can get. A cooling pad can make it more comfortable to use your laptop on your lap. In addition, it can prevent it from overheating and improve the lifespan of your laptop. 

I am using the KLIM Wind Laptop Cooling Pad right now. It has four fans that quickly cool my laptop but it’s still quiet. It’s also lightweight, has an extra USB port, and has two inclination levels so I can adjust the height of my laptop. 

Get the same laptop cooling pad here. 

6. Second Screen

My HP laptop screen is only 11” inches. I refuse to get bigger screens because it’s too bulky and it’s not travel-friendly to me. At home, I use our bedroom TV or living room TV as my second monitor. I connect my laptop via an HDMI cable so it’s easy to switch from TV to computer monitor. 

Having two monitors is the ultimate productivity hack.  It’s useful when you are working with multiple spreadsheets or when you need to have multiple windows open at once. It’s also so easy to cross-reference documents when writing emails since I can see everything. 

In addition, when you are on a video call and need to share your screen, you can share one screen and work on the other. 

You can find computer monitors for under $100 on Amazon. If you have time to wait, buy one during Black Friday for a deeper discount. 

7. Orthopedic Seat Cushion

Working at a desk all day can contribute to poor posture, back pain, eye strain, and other health problems. One way to alleviate the pains of a sedentary job is to get a memory foam seat cushion. 

I bought the Xtreme Comforts Seat Cushion a few years ago when I was suffering from butt, back, and thigh pain from working in my desk job all day. I’ve been using it off and on over the years and it still retains its firm shape. 

I like that I can use this seat cushion for any type of chair. I am currently using it with a plain folding chair we have at home and it still provides me with enough support to work several hours without pain.

8. Virtual Private Network (VPN)

A Virtual Private Network, or VPN, protects your private information when you are online. It’s especially important to use a VPN when using public wifi so your online activities and information is protected. 

We have been using Surfshark for several months now to watch Netflix in other countries but I also got it to protect us when we do shop or surf the internet. 

I like Surfshark because we can protect all of our family’s devices. There’s no limit. 

I also use the features like CleanWeb which blocks ads, trackers, and malware and HackLock which provides me alerts when my emails are at risk of being hacked. 

Surfshark costs only $1.99/month which is such a steal for protecting your privacy and online information. If you sign up using my link, you can get an additional 30 bonus days. 

9. Cloud Storage

Google Drive is the perfect place to keep notes, documents, pictures, lists, videos, and calendars. You don’t need to have notepads or planners when you can just use Google apps and sync everything to your computer, phone, and other devices. 

This means that you can just use your phone to work in situations where you can’t really use your laptop (i.e. putting your toddler down for a nap). You also don’t need to worry about losing or replacing flash drives or hard drives since everything is stored in the cloud. 

Bookmark Google Drive to your frequently used web browsers for quick access to your files. Since I use Gmail for multiple accounts, I bookmark my work Google Drive to my Mozilla Firefox web browser and I bookmark my blogging Google Drive to Google Chrome. 

For personal Gmail accounts, you can download Back Up & Sync to sync your files and photos to your Google Drive instead of saving it to your computer. If your organization already uses G-suite, you can download Drive File Stream which is the basically the same thing but you can sync files in shared drives and you can’t upload photos or videos to Google Photos. 

10. Insulated Water Bottle

With any job, it’s important to stay hydrated to keep yourself healthy. I fill my 24 oz Tervis Harry Potter tumbler with cold brew coffee to start my day. Then I refill it with regular cold water or cold green tea throughout the day. 

I like that my Harry Potter tumbler keeps my drinks hot or cold for long periods of time. It’s also clear so I can quickly glance at it to see how much more water I need to finish to meet my daily water goal. Check out their other cool designs at this link. 

I calculated that I need to fill my 24 oz tumbler 5 times to meet my water consumption goal. I also calculated that I should finish the tumbler at 9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm, and 9pm. Having these goals help ensure that I am properly hydrated throughout the day. 

Additional Tips for Parents Who Work At Home

If this is the first time you are working from home, make the transition easier for you by recreating your work environment and routine as much as possible. Dress up, have a cup of coffee, and turn on your Spotify work playlist. This will help you get into your work mindset even though the environment is different. 

Secondly, take frequent breaks to alleviate the pain and effects of sitting and working on the computer the whole day. Download and print my checklist below to put near where you work to remind you of what you need to do to take care of your body during these breaks. 

I hope this list is informative and provides you with tools that will help you be more productive at home. Get these products from my links above for yourself, your spouse, your co-workers, or anyone you know who is struggling to work remotely. 

What product can’t you live without when working at home? Comment below!

Related Articles for Work From Home Parents

• Top 5 Educational Apps for Toddlers
• 10 Fun Things to Do When Stuck at Home
• 3 Parenting Hacks to Encourage Toddler Reading

It’s already a few weeks into August and I almost forgot that August is National Breastfeeding Month! Before my son was born, I made a goal to try and breastfeed my son until he turned one. My son is almost two years old and still breastfeeds. 

Our breastfeeding journey was not without difficulty. I was a new mom and I was sleep-deprived. There were so many things to learn about nursing and pumping. There were also a lot of supplies that I had to buy, clean, and organize.

Make breastfeeding and pumping easier for you by creating a station. When you’re sleep-deprived, you’re going to be glad that you have everything all set out for you. Recruit your husband or partner to help refresh the items in your station so everything is prepared for you to nurse or pump. 

1. Get a 3-tier rolling cart

The first thing you need to set up your breastfeeding and pumping area is a 3-tier rolling cart. I used a cart like this when I finally figured a way to organize my breast pumping station. 

However, I would recommend this rolling cart because it has a tabletop. The flat surface makes it easier to access pump buttons, set up pump parts, and label bottles. 

A three-tier rolling cart is perfect if space is an issue at home but it provides enough storage for all of your much-needed breastfeeding items. The wheels and handles also make it portable so you can move from room to room and you are not stuck in one place. 

You can use the first tier to store your breast pump and have a place to write your labels. Use the middle tier for items you use at each breastfeeding or pumping session like nursing pads, bottles, nipples, wet wipes, and pump parts. Use the bottom tier for supplies that you need but don’t use as often like a haakaa, nursing cover, and manual breast pump. 

2. Storage containers

Your station also needs storage containers to hold all of the small items that can easily get lost like pump membranes and valves. Make sure that the containers you use have lids to protect it from dust. 

This organizer storage box is great because you can clearly see what’s inside. It’s also stackable and multi-purpose so you can reuse it for office supplies or other items when your child gets older. 

You can utilize whatever containers you have at home but make sure to carefully clean it and use it only for your nursing and pumping supplies from now on. You don’t want to contaminate your pump parts or milk. 

3. Breast pump and supplies

Even though many moms like me exclusively breastfeed, we also pump milk to store in the freezer for long periods of time that we’ll be away from our babies. You can get a free breast pump from your insurance but you are still responsible to get most of your supplies. 

Keep a small supply of clean bottles, nipples, flanges, tubes, and other pump parts in your breastfeeding cart. Use milk labels if you pump into bottles or write directly on the breast milk storage bags. If you’re in a pinch, you can also use masking tape as labels. 

Write down the date, time, and amount to help you use the oldest milk first. I included the time to help me keep track of my pumping schedule and output when I used to pump several times a day. I also like to write the amount because breast milk expands so it’s hard to tell how much is in a bottle when frozen. 

4. Hydration and Nutrition for Mom

Breastfeeding takes a lot of liquid and nutrition out of us moms. It’s important we keep ourselves hydrated and properly fed to keep our bodies healthy and to have a consistent milk supply. 

Keep a bottle of water in your breast pumping cart so you always have a drink within reach. Get a cute hydro flask bottle like this. The Hydro Flask brand is awesome because their bottles keep your drinks hot or cold for a long time. Consider adding a bag of milkmaid tea to your drink to help increase your milk production. 

You should also keep some snacks in your nursing station for when you are hungry. Stock up on protein bars, dried fruit, crackers, nuts, and lactation cookies to tide you over. 

Don’t forget to eat regularly even if you are tired. Consume healthy foods that contain galactagogues like oatmeal and moringa to help increase your milk supply. Try my Filipino chicken soup recipe with moringa. It’s the perfect dish for breastfeeding and pumping mamas.

5. Cleaning supplies

To keep your breastfeeding and pumping station clean and safe for baby, keep the following supplies in your cart:

• Baby wipes
• Hand sanitizer
• Medela quick clean wipes (for pump parts, pacifiers, or other accessories)
• Burp cloths
• Napkins or washcloths

You’ll be prepared for every spit up, leak, or spill especially during the first few weeks after birth.

If you’re worried about keeping clean while nursing during this pandemic, check out this video from the World Health Organization on breastfeeding during COIVD-19:

6. Other Supplies

There are a few smaller items that you should also keep in your breastfeeding and pumping cart: 

• Nipple butter: to ease cracked nipples or chaffing from pumping
• Nursing pads: to catch leaks
• Haakaa breast pump: to suction milk in the other boob while you are nursing
• Long phone charger: so you have a full battery to use your phone while feeding
• Hair tie, clip, or headband: to keep your hair out of the way

In addition, you will need something to keep track of your breastfeeding and pumping data. Your doctor will ask you for this information during baby’s checkups but it is also helpful for you to keep track so you can recognize patterns in your baby’s eating schedule and your milk output. 

Download my free breastfeeding and pumping log below. This template will help you remember your last pumping or nursing sessions during those first few weeks when you are sleep deprived. 

Bonus Essentials

If you have more room in your home and budget, consider these registry must-haves for breastfeeding. These items will provide you with more comfort and support as you begin your breastfeeding journey. 

Rocking recliner chair

If you have space, I would get a dedicated rocking recliner chair. You can use it to pump, nurse, take a quick nap, and put the baby to sleep. 

One of our friends was kind enough to give us their old recliner chair like this one since their son is older. For the first three months after birth, I spent most of my time between the recliner and bed. I also put my nursing and pumping cart right next to it so I can easily access my supplies. 

If you can afford it, this recliner is a breastfeeding station must-have because it has massage functions, cup holders, and a side pocket for extra storage. Add it to your baby registry or ask your partner to get it for you as an early Mother’s Day Gift. Hint hint!

Nursing cover

Nursing covers are good to have when you are feeding your baby outside of your home and you want some privacy. Keep one with your rolling cart in case you are feeding your baby and have visitors. It can also be used as emergency burp cloths or blankets when needed. 

You should also check out this multipurpose nursing cover. You can use it as a car seat cover, stroller cover, and even as a scarf. 

Breastfeeding pillow

My cousin gifted us a Boppy nursing pillow and we still have it today. It helps to support you and baby while breastfeeding or bottle-feeding, which reduces back and arm pain. It also helps support the baby during tummy time or when he or she is learning to sit up. 

If you are a plus-sized mom like me, I would recommend getting the My Brest Friend nursing pillow. The strap secures the pillow to your body so you don’t have to adjust the pillow, you, or the baby so often. The front of the pillow is flat to prevent the baby from rolling and there’s a small pouch to keep a bottle or your phone. 

Create your breastfeeding and pumping station

I hope this list gives you some great ideas to create your breastfeeding and pumping station at home. Comment below if you have these items in your station or if you have suggestions to add. Please also share this list with other expecting or new moms to help them build their cart. 

Related Articles

• My Best Friend Malunggay: Moringa for Breastfeeding Moms
• Things No One Told Me About Giving Birth
• How to Keep Your Young Children Safe this Summer

A friend of mine recently called me to ask me about my experience in planning for a child, pregnancy, and giving birth. After I hung up the phone, I realized there were a lot of things that no one really told me about labor and delivery. 

I did a lot of research in anticipation for the day I was going to be a mom. I read books, listened to audiobooks, and I attended a pregnancy program with my health provider. All of my questions were answered so I welcomed labor with an open mind and prepared for all scenarios. 

I had natural delivery at a local hospital. That day, I was almost 38 weeks pregnant and I was supposed to go to work but I felt irregular contractions so I stayed home. I rested and used an app to time my contractions. Around 9pm, the contractions were regular and I couldn’t take it anymore so we went to the hospital. 

I got an epidural that stalled my labor for a couple of hours. After an hour or so of pushing, my son came out at 6:25 am. It’s been a year and a half since I gave birth. Looking back, there were a lot of things I realized I never knew about labor and delivery.

1. Back labor

I only heard about back labor a few weeks before I gave birth when my cousin told me she experienced it. It sounded painful but I thought it would just be like regular back pain that I felt from time to time. I didn’t realize it was worse than contractions until it happened to me. 

According to the American Pregnancy Association (APA), back labor is the intense pain or discomfort felt in the lower back during labor. 25% of women experience this while giving birth and it is usually due to the position of the baby. 

It doesn’t hurt the baby but it can cause some complications especially if the baby is in an unfavorable position. There’s no way to totally prevent back labor but there are many ways to manage it during labor.

In an article from Romper.com, 20 moms describe what back labor felt like. Some choice words from this article include “stabbed with a burning hot blunt object”, “like someone stomping and twisting my spine”, and “being ripped open by a chainsaw”. 

I entirely blocked out the pain that I can’t remember what it feels like but my vague memories of it were closest to Nicole’s description in the article: a sword being run through me. However, mine included vomiting and diarrhea for some reason. 

I wanted to stay at home as long as possible so I tried my best to stay until my contractions were closer apart because I did NOT want to be sent home. To get through the pain, I had my husband apply a fistful of counterpressure to my lower back while I was on my hands and knees. It was still so painful that I even had him do it while driving us to the hospital (do not do this!). 

I wish I had my handheld massage gun then to use on my back. We’ve been using it for several months. It’s so strong and it has different massage heads to target different types of pain. This definitely would’ve helped reduce my back pain and take the pressure off my husband to massage my back harder. 

2. Need to pee in a cup

You expect to pee in a cup every time you visit your midwife or OBGYN but I did not realize that I needed to do another urine test at the hospital at the height of my back labor. I don’t know how I managed to do it before getting into the hospital bed but I did. 

It’s a good thing they made me do it because they found I had Group B Strep even though my initial screening during one of my doctor’s visits indicated otherwise. I had to take antibiotics while in labor through my IV to prevent it from passing to and infecting my son at birth. 

3. Nobody looked at my birth plan

I kept an open mind about labor and delivery but I still came up with a birth plan because I wanted to make sure that I had an active role in how the birth went. It took me a couple of hours to come up with a birth plan that I was satisfied with. I printed a couple of copies for my husband and the hospital but no one asked for it and we forgot all about it. 

It’s a good thing I was flexible and went with the flow. I was also thankful that the doctors and nurses kept me informed and I was able to provide consent when needed. 

So if you’re thinking of creating a birth plan, do it anyway! Even if you throw it out the window because the situation changes or you forget about it, the process of creating a birth plan will help you figure out what you want and don’t want. 

Discuss specific situations and decisions with your partner so they can advocate on your behalf. Discuss your birth plan with your doctor so he or she can tell you what’s possible and what’s not possible where you plan to give birth. 

If you need help developing a birth plan, I’ve created a free and easy to use template. Download it below!

4. Urinary catheter

If you get an epidural, you will usually get a catheter to pee. Somehow, the thought of this made me fearful but I didn’t even notice when it was put in after the epidural and I didn’t feel it when they took it out. 

I was able to use the bathroom just fine afterwards but I did have an accident once when I didn’t get to the bathroom in time. I guess my bladder was still figuring itself out. 

The hospital provides disposable pads, underwear, and ice packs. However, I would recommend getting your own so you can get some that are more comfortable for you. Buy a pack of disposable underwear to use during labor and postpartum. For postpartum, I would also recommend postpartum ice maxi pads, an upside-down peri bottle, perineal spray, and a sitz bath for a more comfortable road to recovery. 

5. Pushing sideways

Doing my research on labor and delivery, I became familiar with the many different ways a woman can push out a baby. One I didn’t expect was the side-lying position. How can I possibly push sideways?

According to EvidenceBasedBirth.com, positions like side-lying takes the weight off the tailbone and reduces the use of vacuums or forceps. Also, in an article by TheBump.com, Lindsey Bliss, a birth doula, talked about how side-lying can help the baby to come down and rotate. 

A couple of hours after I got the epidural, I was told to go on my side to start pushing. A peanut-ball was placed between my legs for support. Whenever I bore down, my husband was there to push my top foot up towards my chest. 

It felt super weird to be pushing like this. Maybe it was the epidural, but, for the most part, I didn’t feel like I made any progress. Somehow I was making progress because I pushed like this for an hour or so before I returned to lying on my back to finally deliver my baby. 

Get your own peanut ball here to help you during labor. 

6. Breastfeeding doesn’t feel natural

Soon after my son was born, I was expected to start nursing him. I met with a lactation consultant in my hospital room and she showed me how to feed my son. I had to scoop up my boob like a big hamburger and shove the whole thing in his mouth to help him latch properly. It didn’t feel natural. It actually felt weird for a few weeks and sometimes a bit painful. 

If you are struggling with breastfeeding, KellyMom.com has a great article to help you through this process. I met with two lactation consultants and asked them a lot of questions to make sure I was feeding my son correctly. My husband was also active in these appointments so he helped me make sure my son latched on correctly at home. 

My friends and family were kind enough to make me soup with moringa regularly which helped to increase my milk supply. Nipple cream is also helpful for breastfeeding moms because it helps with cracked and painful nipples. Be on the lookout for signs and symptoms of plugged ducts or mastitis so you can make sure to get the help you need from your doctor. 

7. Baby has separate expenses

Before I gave birth, I calculated the cost of natural delivery and C-section. I also got a call from the hospital giving me an estimate for both. The amount was pretty close to what I was expecting. 

I prepared for these expenses by signing up for a health savings account at my work. The program took a designated portion of every paycheck so I can set it aside for qualified medical expenses like doctor’s visits, medication, and birth. I maxed out the account that year because it covered most of the cost of labor and delivery.

After paying the bills at the hospital, I was surprised to find another bill in the mail for about $1300. I thought it was a mistake so I called the hospital. They explained that my son had a different bill because he was a whole new person. What? This was not in our budget. 

If you are figuring out the cost of labor and delivery with your insurance, make sure to ask if the estimated costs include both of you. Ask if they have a payment plan that you could join. For my son’s bill, the hospital gave me 20% off the bill if I paid in full instead of using the payment plan. There are options out there for you. You just have to ask. 

Everyone’s situation is different

Every mom’s experience with labor and delivery is different. It can differ with each baby, delivery setting, and other factors. You just have to be prepared for all scenarios and be flexible whenever the situation changes.

Has any of these things above happened to you or someone you know? Are there other things about labor and delivery that you wished someone told you? Comment below!

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Summer is finally here! Who am I kidding? It’s summer all year round here in Honolulu! It’s just hotter and the days are longer. We go to the beach every week but we make sure to practice social distancing. This is easy to do now since there’s a significant decrease in the amount of tourists on the island. 

With an active toddler who wants to be outside everyday, we have to be diligent in making sure that he stays safe and healthy while still having fun. As an over-prepared mama, I try to research and keep abreast of news and information to keep our son safe.

Below, I’ve organized them into six categories (or the 6 Ss of Summer Safety as I like to call it!). Here are some important tips to keep your young children safe this summer: 

1. Sun

According to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), skin cancer is the most common cancer in the U.S. but it is also one of the most preventable. Protect you and your children from skin cancer and sunburn by wearing sunscreen, protective clothing, and by staying in the shade.

Sun Screen

The AAD recommends that sunscreen should be broad-spectrum, have an SPF for 30 or higher, and be water-resistant. When applying sunscreen, don’t forget the ears, neck, scalp, and your feet that is not covered by shoes or sandals.

Check out the AAD video below on how to properly apply sunscreen:

We’ve been using Banana Boat Simply Protect Sunscreen Lotion Spray because it’s easy to put on a wiggly toddler who wants to jump in the water. You could also use Earth Mama Organics Mineral Sunscreen Lotion. It’s organic and gentle on sensitive skin. Both are reef-friendly which is important for our local marine life. 

Shade

You should also avoid playing in the sun between 10am and 4pm when the sun’s rays are strongest. We usually go to the beach between 4pm-6pm when the sun is setting since sunset is around 730pm. Even if it is cloudy, your child can still get sunburn so make sure to wear sunscreen, hats, covered clothing, and even sunglasses. 

When we spend several hours at the beach, I like to take our WolfWise Popup Beach Tent with us. It is UPF 50+, water repellant, has a lot of ventilation, and can provide full privacy if I want to change or nurse at the beach. 

Proper Hydration

When playing, make sure your child drinks a lot of water and take breaks in the shade to avoid dehydration and heat exhaustion. Learn these signs and symptoms to make sure your child gets the proper care before this happens to them. 

Even if we go to the beach just for an hour, we always pack cold water in our Hydro Flask. We get super thirsty after swimming and it keeps our water cold for several hours. 

Never Leave Children in Cars

Most importantly, never leave children in the car even with the windows cracked open even for a few minutes! According to KidsAndCars.org, an average of 39 children die in a hot car every year. 

Put precautions in place to avoid leaving your child in the car intentionally or unintentionally. Some of these include checking your backseat often, setting reminders for yourself, leaving your purse in the backseat, having a check-in system with someone, and so forth. 

This is one of my greatest fears so I make sure to frequently check the backseat using our Munchkin Car Mirror whenever I go out with my son. I also leave my purse in the back so I have a reason to check the backseat when I leave the car. 

If you are out and see a child left in a car, get them out and call 911. 

2. Swim

Proper Supervision Around Water

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Drowning is responsible for more deaths among children 1-4 than any other cause except congenital anomalies (birth defects). This can happen in the pool, beach, lake, or even the bathtub. 

This is why it is so important to properly supervise young children around water. Whoever is watching or playing with the children should not be distracted. He or she should be constantly on alert in case the child falls into water. Never leave the child alone with a body of water even for a second.

In Hawaii, there’s a saying that goes “never turn your back on the ocean”.

You never know when a rogue wave will catch you by surprise (this has happened to me many times) so you must respect the force of the ocean, be on your guard, and heed the instruction of lifeguards and surf advisories. Learn to read the signs at the beach about rough currents or jellyfish warning signs. Wear life jackets when out to sea on a boat or kayak. 

At home, make sure your child doesn’t have access to the toilet or bathwater alone. If you have a pool, make sure it is fitted with a fence or other safety measures. 

Swimming and Water Safety Classes

In addition, parents or guardians should learn Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) or at least take a class on water safety or swimming. My husband and I know how to swim and have had a class on infant CPR. We try to teach our son to swim whenever we go out but we’ll also invest in swimming classes when these programs open up again. 

3. Stranger Safety

There have been so many news stories of attempted kidnapping of children nowadays here in Hawaii. Parents.com has a great article to teach kids about stranger safety at different age groups. As a mother, my anxiety has increased but I have safety plans in place to make sure my child is not abducted in any way.

Whenever we’d go out for a quick shopping trip, my son and I would stay in the car with the AC on while my husband shops (or vice versa). Our rule is to make sure to lock all the car doors and close all the windows to prevent anyone from strangers from entering the car. Even if it’s just a quick trip to 7/11, we always lock all our windows and doors. 

When I am out alone or with my son, I make sure to park in high traffic and well-lighted areas to ensure that I can scream for help if something bad happens. 

Since our son is such an active toddler, we recently bought him a Kids Backpack with Safety Leash. We hope to use it to keep him close and prevent him from running into oncoming traffic or get lost in a crowd when we travel. I’ll also keep his identification and information inside his backpack in case of emergencies. 

Child ID Kit and Emergency Cards

Ready.gov has a Child ID Kit that you can use to provide information to law enforcement to quickly help you find your child. We were able to get a free Child ID card for our son at a safety fair at the mall last year. I keep it with our important documents in case of emergencies. 

I’ve also created a FREE In Case of Emergency Card Template that you can use. There are two copies in the template. Print one for your child’s backpack and one for your wallet. Make it waterproof by using these Self-Sealing Laminating Pouches. Download the template below.

Communication and Emergency Plans

When our son grows up, we’re going to make sure to teach him how to keep himself safe. We’re going to keep our lines of communication open to make sure he is comfortable talking to us when people make him uncomfortable or if he gets in a bad situation. We’ll also develop an emergency plan as a family for different scenarios like natural disasters, traveling, getting lost, or car accidents. 

4. Screen

Monitoring Screen Time

For young children, they may not be on tiktok or facebook yet but it’s important to monitor what they are watching or playing on the ipad or computer. Start creating boundaries when they are young so they know what they can and can’t do when they are older and have their own phones and social media accounts.

For my iphone and my son’s ipad, I use Screen Time and Guided Access functions to limit the apps that my son uses. Screen Time limits your child to specific apps, functions, and content. On the other hand, Guided Access limits a user to one specific app. Apple Support has detailed instructions on how you can set up Screen Time and Guided Access on your iphone or ipad. 

We use these functions because we’ve noticed that our son is now familiar with the regular YouTube app and has started watching related videos on stuff like trucks. Even though he is not watching anything inappropriate, I’ve removed this app and added his shows on the YouTube Kids app so he is limited to what I choose for him. This also keeps him from buying things accidentally since there are a lot of ads on the regular YouTube app.

We also try to limit his screen time by playing outside and reading to him but it’s been difficult in these current times when we are mostly stuck at home. Because of this, I try to make sure that most of the apps that he is using are educational. 

Emergency Information

If you have an iphone, you can easily call for help and alert your emergency contacts through Emergency SOS. This is incredibly useful for emergency situations where every second counts.

I’ve also sent our immediate family members our emergency and medical information through the Notes app on my iphone. When my son was under the care of our babysitter, I used the app to share his information in case something happened. I then removed her access when he was no longer under her care. 

It’s important to let your emergency contacts know that they are the first people who will be contacted in an emergency, the information you will be providing to them, and the steps to take. We live far away from most of our immediate family members so we have to depend on our friends to provide information to first responders for us and to our family in case something happens to us. 

5. Sickness

Cold and Flu Prevention

Even though it’s not flu and cold season in the summer, you and your family can still catch this from others who are sick. Encourage your child to eat healthy foods, exercise, and get enough sleep to strengthen their immune system. Avoid people who are sick and teach your child the correct way to wash his or her hands.

Here’s a fun video from the CDC about proper handwashing:

The best method to avoid the flu is to get a flu vaccine every year with you and your family. If you or your child are already sick, make sure to stay at home and rest. Don’t go out and pass it to others. 

Food Poisoning

Summertime means a lot of gatherings with family and friends. Potlucks and BBQs are fun but you should be careful to practice food safety to avoid food poisoning. Some great tips from the CDC include proper food storage, cooking food thoroughly, and keeping food and cooking areas clean. Be on the lookout for the signs and symptoms of food poisoning to know how to treat it at home or when to call the doctor. 

Recreational Water Illness

Your child can get sick from contaminated bodies of water like the beach, hot tubs, and pools. The American Academy of Pediatrics stresses that your child do not drink pool water but this is also relevant for other sources of water like the ocean or streams.

It is also important to shower before and after swimming to remove germs. Moreover, you should cover open wounds with waterproof bandages to prevent infection. 

6. Stings and Scrapes

Emergency Kit

As we spend more time outdoors, we are much more prone to insect bites (and the diseases they carry), scrapes from playing, and allergic reactions. Protect you and your children by keeping insect repellant, aloe vera, first aid kit, and allergy medication on hand. Now is the time to create a mini-emergency kit for when you go out and review the expiration dates on the products you have. 

You can also buy a Portable First Aid Kit that you can keep in your car or bag when you go out and about this summer. 

Safe Play

Keep children safe in the playground by checking if it is too hot or if there are broken pieces that may hurt the child. Supervise them around stairs, trampoline, water, and high places where they can fall. In addition, children should be kept far away from fireworks, grills, and fires. 

If the child is old enough to use bikes or skateboards, make sure they wear protective equipment like helmets and learn bike safety. Proper footwear is important when your child is on wheels but also for other activities like hiking and sports. 

Responding to Emergencies

Parents or guardians should know the signs and symptoms of concussions, marine animal stings, insect bites, burns, and allergic reactions. You must also know how to respond to these emergencies to reduce further injury or infection. I highly encourage you to take classes in first aid and CPR. It will really make a difference when an emergency situation occurs. 

Preparation is Key

The tips above are not exhaustive. There are more areas that are not covered here that may be applicable to your situation. For example, in Hawaii, hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. Preparing your emergency supplies and plans is an important activity to do with your family this summer. 

Do your research. Take summer safety classes with your children to learn more tips. Practice these safety tips with your children and your other family members. The important thing is to be prepared and prevent these situations from happening to keep our young children safe. 

Do you have any other suggestions to add to this list? Comment below to let me know!

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Here in Hawaii, we are approaching hurricane season. I have to evaluate our emergency supplies to see what has expired, what needs replacing, and what I need to add. With the current pandemic, I’ve been even more eager in making sure we have enough supplies to last for at least 14 days in case we don’t have the finances later on. 

Why do you need to prepare emergency supplies? After a natural disaster or emergency, you will need to make sure that you and your family can survive on your own for a few days. Sometimes electricity or water will be cut off so you need to make sure you have supplies to cook, receive communication and news, see in the dark, eat, drink, and keep warm. 

The hard part about preparing your emergency supplies is the overwhelming amount of items that you should add to your supply to be prepared for any emergency. This is why I created my free Emergency Supplies Inventory Tracker. You can download it below. The Emergency Supplies Inventory Tracker will help you better organize your supplies and create a faster way to re-evaluate your supplies every year. 

Along with the Emergency Supplies Inventory Tracker, here are some simple tips to set up your stockpile of emergency supplies:

Get the basic checklist at Ready.gov

There are many emergency supply checklists out there that you can use. As a beginner, you can go to Ready.gov, to get a basic list of supplies you need to build your emergency kit. 

The website also provides you with other information to prepare for different disasters and emergencies. Ready.gov even has games for kids to teach them about disasters and building emergency kits. It’s important to go over this information with your family to prepare yourselves for these scenarios. 

3-day emergency kit

Begin by creating a 3 day emergency kit for each family member using what you already have around the house. You may have unused backpacks, random flashlights, and travel toiletries lying around. Mark these off your checklist and add them to your bags. 

You will find that you will need more supplies to add to each bag. This is ok. Once you inventory what you have, you can start shopping for what you need. 

Don’t forget to include copies of important documents (insurance and health policies for example), IDs, and spare cash in your bags. 

Add supplies that are unique to each family member

Some family members require medication, certain clothing, glasses, or feminine hygiene supplies. Young children need diapers, snacks, milk, and toys. If you have pets, you will need to have food, collars, and medications on hand. 

You need to make sure that their bag has their specific supplies. You should also label or mark which bag belongs to which person to make it easier for them to access what they need in an emergency. 

Emergency supplies shopping tips

Whenever you go shopping online or in store, add a few emergency items to your shopping list. This will allow you to gradually build up your 14 day supply when you buy a little at a time and when you can afford it. 

Another tip is to shop for these supplies at the Dollar Tree where you can get generic supplies for cheap. We don’t have a Dollar Tree in Hawaii so I would suggest shopping at Daiso for cheap utensils and hygiene items. 

You can also buy a couple of travel toiletries from Walmart for around $1 or buy larger toiletries then put them in smaller travel bottles. This tip is good for your 3-day emergency backpack as you have limited space. 

In addition, to save money on your first aid kit, get some generic over-the-counter medicine like tylenol and anti-diarrhea. At Walmart, you can find whole bottles for around $1. Just make sure the expiration date is far in advance. 

Some of my Amazon recommendations

These are some items that we have already added to our emergency supplies:

• Eton Rugged Multipowered Portable Emergency Weather Radio & Flashlight: We currently have one at home but I want to add one more as a backup. I like that it can be powered by a rechargeable battery, hand crank, or solar-powered. It has an AM/FM radio, flashlight, and can receive NOAA weather information. You can also use it to charge your phone in an emergency. 
• FLYDWV 325L Lightweight Packable Waterproof Travel Hiking Backpack Daypack: These are the backpacks we are using for me and my husband’s emergency bags. I like that they are lightweight, waterproof, foldable, and spacious. There’s also space for water bottles on the side and a chest clip for more support. 
• Hydro Flask Standard Mouth Water Bottle: We each have one in our emergency backpacks. These are great to keep hot or cold drinks the same temperature for several hours. The best part is their lifetime warranty so you can get it replaced for free if it is defective after normal and appropriate use.
• 5 Galloon Buckets with Matching Gamma Seal Lids: We have these types of food-grade buckets at home but we have four white buckets with black lids. This is for long term food storage. We have a bucket each for the following: white rice, brown rice, baking supplies, and miscellaneous supplies. We got these mainly to keep pests out of our sugar and rice but these are also useful for keeping long term emergency food supplies.

Regular inventory of emergency supplies

The Free Emergency Supplies Tracker will help you figure out when items will expire, what’s still missing in your stockpile, and what you need to update. It’s important to take a regular look at this list so you can rotate items out and update what’s need. You can put the expiration dates in your google calendar to help you keep track of these dates or make it a point to check this tracker every 6 months

Final thoughts

I’ve been working on our family’s emergency stockpile for several years. It’s a work in progress but we’re at a point now that I can safely say we’re preparing for the upcoming hurricane season. 

Download my FREE Emergency Supplies Inventory Tracker to get started and prepare yourself for emergencies. The best time to start stockpiling your emergency supplies is now rather than later. 

As you prepare your emergency supplies, you must make emergency plans with your family. Figure out how you can communicate with each other if you are not together, where you can meet, evacuation routes for your home, and how to use items like a radio or walkie-talkie. Involve everyone in the household in this discussion including young children who can understand so everyone is prepared when disaster strikes. 

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Our son is 19 months now and his ipad use has increased since we’ve been home. We do try to limit his ipad use but there’s only so much you can do when stuck at home for more than two months now. 

Technology is such a big part of our world that children get exposed to it at a young age. We don’t want our kids to get addicted to the internet and social media but we want them to grow up technologically savvy so they can navigate the modern world. The key is to set limits and practice healthy technology habits. 

I’ve downloaded several learning apps for our son so he can improve his vocabulary. He has been using these apps for the past few weeks and we were surprised at how much he has learned in a short period. Here are my top five favorite educational apps for toddlers: 

1. ABCMouse ($49/year)

ABCMouse is one of the first educational apps we’ve introduced to our son on his ipad and it’s his favorite. They currently have a special offer of up to 49% off the annual subscription which means it only costs $49/year. You also need wifi or data to access this app. 

My son has been using it for about a month now and he knows how to navigate to the games and puzzles by himself. This is usually where he spends his time because he is still a toddler and a lot of the other parts of the apps are for kids pre-school and above. The app has taught him how to recognize colors and butterflies. He’s also starting to recognize and say letters through the games and puzzles that he’s been playing. 

Try it for 30 days free here. ABC Mouse is available in the App Store, Google Play, and Amazon.

2. Fish School – 123 ABC for Kids (free)

Our son loves pointing out fishes to us that he sees on TV or at our friend’s house. He can’t quite say the word he and calls it “pssh.” I got this app for him because it’s a toddler educational app that incorporates his love of fishes. The great thing about this app is that it is available without wifi or data. 

Fish School teaches him numbers 1-20, the alphabet, shapes, colors, imaginative play, differences, and matching pictures. This app is easy for him to use and navigate on his own. The app also has soothing music so I enjoy using this app with my son. In addition, I really like that this app is free and it doesn’t have in-app purchase buttons so my son doesn’t accidentally buy something using my account. 

Fish School is available in the App Store, Google Play, and Amazon. 

3. The Wheels On The Bus (free; $7.99 full version)

The Wheels on the Bus is one of the first songs that our son recognizes. This also one of his favorite app because he likes anything with wheels. I tried the free version but I had to convert to the paid version when I realized how much our son loved this app. The free and paid version is available without wifi or data.

It’s a fun learning app for toddlers. There are puzzles, coloring pages, games, matching, songs, and many more activities related to the wheels on the bus song. The Wheels on the Bus app is also easy for a toddler to play on his or her own. Through this app, our son has learned how to do the car puzzles, coloring, and games on his own.

The Wheels on the Bus app is available in the App Store and Google Play. 

4. YouTube Kids (free)

YouTube Kids is a free app that lets parents control what kids watch on YouTube. Parents need to sign up for a free YouTube account to choose what videos to add to the app. The great thing about this app is there are no ads and limited functions so toddlers don’t accidentally like, buy, or watch something inappropriate. Unfortunately, you need wifi or data to access the videos in this app.

The videos that we have in the app and the channels that we subscribe to are all educational. Our son watches nursery and learning songs from Coco Melon, Little Baby Bum, Badanamu, Dave and Ava, and Robie 317 (Filipino nursery rhymes). Through these songs, we can see that he is starting to say letters, colors, and animals. 

YouTubeKids is available in the App Store and Google Play. 

5. Sago Mini World (Free; $6.99+ full version)

Sago Mini World is an educational app that encourages imaginative play. There are 30+ different worlds like camping, big city, zoo, farm, and friends. We are currently using the free version Sago Mini World is a subscription-based app with monthly and yearly plans but it is free for the first month if you want to try it out. This app is also available without wifi or data. 

My son and I like playing with this app because there’s no structure or limits. It’s free play and it teaches him about cause and effect. If we move this animal here, then it goes in the lake. If we press the sun, all the animals go to sleep. The imaginative play he does in this app also manifests to real life. We’ve been noticing that he’s been playing pretend with his cars more often. 

Sago Mini World is available in the App Store and Google Play.

Using apps like these are great tools to help toddlers learn their letters, colors, and numbers in a fun way. However, it’s important to set limits and find other ways for children to learn, such as a regular reading routine, so they are not dependent on technology. 

What educational apps do you use for your toddler? Comment below!

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As a new mom, I was concerned about breastfeeding. Even before I gave birth to my son, I was reminded several times to make sure to eat some chicken tinola with malunggay. It is believed that malunggay (or moringa) is a galactagogue that helps increase breastmilk production but it also has other nutritional benefits for a new mom.

This is why my friends brought me chicken tinola with malunggay at the hospital shortly after I gave birth. I also ate it several times in the first few months (thanks to my husband!) to increase my breastmilk supply.

You can add moringa to other things to eat (like scrambled eggs!) but eating it in a chicken soup like this is very comforting for a new and tired mom. I’m so glad that we are now living in a place where I can easily pick malunggay in our front yard. Let me know if you want some! 

Malunggay Increase Milk Supply

In addition to a regular pump schedule, malunggay has helped me exceed my breastfeeding goal of one year. My son even had a hard time taking the bottle and would rather drink straight from the tap so all the pumping I was doing was to maintain my supply while I was at work.

The milk I pumped for him was donated in the past year to three different moms and babies who needed them. I gave over 100 oz of frozen milk to each of them on three separate occasions. Now that my son is over a year old, I’m trying to wean him but it’s hard! 

Because of my experience, I want to share our chicken tinola with malunggay recipe below to help breastfeeding moms like myself. Even if you are not breastfeeding, this is a yummy dish for everyone in the family especially around wintertime or cold/flu season.

Buy organic chicken and vegetables at places like Whole Foods for a more wholesome meal. You can also cook chicken tinola on an Instant Pot to save time. Please note that these measurements are just estimates as, like many Asian cooks, we just measure by taste and memory!

Recipe: Chicken Tinola with Malunggay

Ingredients

• 6 pieces Boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cubed (you could also use other parts of the chicken but you have to make sure it’s thoroughly cooked inside)
• 6 cups of water or chicken broth
• 1 cup malunggay leaves (add more if you want!)
• 1 medium Green or unripe papaya, cubed
• 1 Knorr chicken cube (use only if using water)
• Half an onion, diced/minced/however you like it (I don’t like the texture of onions so I use onion powder or cut them in huge slices so I can easily pick it out)
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 thumbs of ginger cut into small stripes
• 1-2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 light dashes of black pepper

Instructions

1. Saute onions, garlic, and ginger with the vegetable oil in a large pot.
2. Add chicken pieces until it gets a light sear.
3. Add the water plus chicken cube or just chicken broth.
4. Let it boil until the chicken is fully cooked. Remove the scum.
5. Once the chicken is fully cooked, reduce the heat to medium and add the papaya.
6. Continue cooking until the papaya is fork tender then add the malunggay. 
7. Add fish sauce and black pepper to taste. Put in one tablespoon of fish sauce at a time until it reaches your desired taste because it can get too salty!
8. Eat with rice!

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This is the second week of our home quarantine and we are running out of things to do at home. I thought we’d drive each other crazy by now since we live in a small space. I’m settling into my work-from-home routine while helping my husband take care of our toddler. We limit our trips outside of the house to grocery runs so it’s been hard for a non-homebody like me.

Everything we need is at home but we miss worshiping at the chapel, going to the beach, and seeing our friends in person. With an active toddler, we have to keep things interesting or he’ll be stuck watching TV all day. Here are 10 fun things to do when stuck at home:

Self-Care

One of the best things to do when stuck at home is to take this time to take care of your health. Get enough sleep, eat nourishing meals, and do what makes you happy. We’ve been catching up on our favorite shows on Netflix and Hulu but we make sure not to stay up all night binge watching. Any Crazy Landing On You or Hi Bye Mama! fans?

We’ve used facemasks, got a deep tissue massage gun, and made dalgona coffee. I also try to make sure that we incorporate a lot of fruits and veggies in our diet even though my son hates it. Self-care for you could include facetiming old friends, DIY foot spa, exercise, or reading a good book from the library. Do what makes your heart happy.

Pray and Practice Gratitude 

In this uncertain time of anxiety and worry, it’s important to pray and look to God for comfort and peace. Check out this video from incmedia.org: Turning to the Bible During Uncertain Times. You could also have a family prayer or connect with fellow church members online.

In addition, you should practice gratitude and be thankful for what you have and experienced. I know this is really hard to do during difficult times, but practicing gratitude is not about ignoring the bad things that you are feeling or experiencing. It is about focusing on the good things in your life instead of the bad.

Actively practicing gratitude when times are tough will help you see the bigger picture of your situation and give hope that things will get better. More importantly, it will help you change your mindset so you can survive, find solutions, and take control of your situation. 

Clean Out Your Closets

Use this time to do some spring cleaning! Go through your closet and pick out which clothes you don’t use or have outgrown. You can figure out which items to toss, donate, or give to a friend.

A lot of donation centers are closed due to COVID-19 but you can organize and store them until they’re open. We’ve recently cleaned up the second bedroom that we’ve used as storage. We’ve shredded old paperwork, sorted items to send to our parents, and organized our son’s old clothes to sell at Rhea Lana.

Limited Time Outside

You can still go outside even under home quarantine. Each city has different regulations for going outside so do your best to follow them. Our city allows us to go outside to exercise but we must practice social distancing. You can run around the park or go swim at the beach. You just can’t hang out there.

At home, we have a small covered outdoor space. Once a day, we’d go outside with our son so he can run around. This is his favorite time of the day. If you work from home and have a laptop, take your work outdoors sometimes and sit in the sun while responding to emails. 

Start a Small Garden

Even if you don’t have a green thumb (like me!), you can try growing a small garden. It’s a fun activity to do when stuck at home. Most importantly, it will save you some money because you’ll have fresh herbs and vegetables at home.

Use whatever outdoor space you have available like a balcony or window sill. You can also a couple of air-purifying plants to bring more oxygen and life into your home. These are good because they are resilient and easy to care for. My husband has saved the stalks of green onions and bok choy from our recent recipes to grow them from cuttings. We are also planning to grow some eggplant and herbs in our small outdoor space.

Donate Blood

I know this means going out of the house but many people still need blood. If you are healthy, haven’t been in contact with any sick person, and can give blood, please do. The staff take great care to provide a clean and safe environment for you to donate blood. 

My husband and I just recently donated blood at Blood Bank Hawaii. We had an hour gap between our appointments so we could go home and take turns watching our son at home. Make at appointment at this link.

Try Something New

If there is something you’ve been meaning to try, now is the time to do it at home You could learn a new language, take up a new hobby, or learn a new skill. My husband has made homemade bread and tres leche cake while I’ve been learning and improving my blog.

Try your hand at sewing face masks for your family and friends. Sewing is a great skill to learn to save money on clothes. You could make new clothes or fix broken ones. You could even earn money from this.

Complete a Challenge

I’ve seen a lot of quarantine challenges on social media lately. You could complete one of those tiktok dance challenges with your friends or set up your own exercise challenge like 30 days to 100 bur-pees. There are even simple ones where you share your favorite bible verse or an old picture of you as a couple.

As a family, try to challenge yourselves to come up with creative dishes using only what you have in your pantry or using only canned goods. You never know how much fun and creativity will come out of these challenges.

Do a Virtual Tour

See if your favorite museum, zoo, or park offers virtual tours, online exhibits, or live cams. Google Arts & Culture has an online exhibit on Harry Potter by the British Library. San Diego Zoo has several live cams of penguins, elephants, and tigers.

Maybe you’re thinking of visiting a new place. Why not check it out online? Walt Disney World Resort has a virtual tour to help you plan your trip. You never know what new things you can learn about a place especially in the comfort of your own home.

Send a Surprise Gift

If you still need ideas on what to do at home, you could really make someone’s day by sending a surprise gift. Use a delivery service like Uber Eats to send a friend their favorite milk tea or their favorite sushi. Send your parents or grandparents a board subscription box through CrateJoy to keep them busy for the next couple of months. If you are thinking of making face masks, you could make a bunch to send to a local hospital. 

It’s not the amount or type of gift that matters. It’s the thought that counts.

What fun things have you done while stuck at home during this quarantine? Share them below!

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While I was pregnant, I read an article about creating an email for your child and writing to them. I thought it was a great way to preserve memories. When the child is older, you’ll give him or her the password to the email. They’ll see all that you wrote and recorded for them. I finally started writing a couple of months before my son’s first birthday.

Creating an Email Address

Gmail makes it so easy to create an email address for your child or baby. I used Gmail since this is what we regularly use. I also cc’d the emails to me so I can save them in my own email in case something happened.

I usually write every couple of weeks about what events happened, what new things Avi has learned/done, dreams for the future, and funny moments like putting books in our hands to read to him. I’d attached pictures in every email so he could see what I’m talking about.

Gmail makes it so easy to look back at our photos to remember what happened. I back up my iphone photos to my Google photos then I can go back to see what photos to upload and also what has happened since I last wrote to Avi.

I can’t figure out how to share videos directly between Google photos and gmail but that’s ok because I’ve also added my son’s email to my Google drive family plan and I’ve shared my Google photos with him.

I like using the monthly paid storage for Google drive instead of my phone’s iCloud because it’s accessible across different devices and it’s easy to share the storage space with family members. The only hard part is I’d sometimes get lazy because nothing significant happened or I’d forget to write to him for a while.

Electronic Memories

So far, it’s been a good way for me to preserve memories to tell Avi in the future. I can quickly send an email to Avi from my phone while in bed or in the car when my husband picks me up from work. I don’t have to worry about printing photos, writing and making mistakes, or running out of space.

I initially wanted to create a baby book, journal or something physical for him. However, I did not want to add more junk in our house. I also figured it’s one less thing to bring with us when we move.

In addition, if there’s ever a fire or natural disaster, I can easily retrieve our photos and emails online. The only problems I can foresee are if someone hacked into our accounts (this is why you need strong and updated passwords, etc) or if the entire world’s servers go down (then it’s the end of the world!).

If we do have more children, I’ll create one email for each of them and send separate emails. I could also send them one big email too when there are events that involve all of them. Keeping memories like this may not be for everyone. However, this one way that may be useful for busy parents like me to keep track of our babies’ milestones. 

Share this with someone you know who wants to preserve memories of their child.

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Before our son Avi was born, I dreamed of being the mom that always reads to her child every night. I wanted him to grow up to be an avid reader like me. I bought him several books to get us started when he was only a few months old. It was easy to read to him regularly because I was on maternity leave for three months.

Once I got back to work, our storytime grew more infrequent. We only read to Avi when we remembered to read to him. I even got a couple of mini-scoldings from his doctor about making sure to read to him regularly to develop his vocabulary.

After these visits, I got even more books but we failed to create a regular routine of reading with Avi. After some trial and error, I finally figured out a couple of simple hacks to help us incorporate reading into our everyday life:

Keep Books in the Diaper Bag

I usually keep one or two small and lightweight books in Avi’s diaper bag. This makes it easy read to him when he’s bored or fussy when out of the house. I even found some tractor books that had wheels on them so these doubled as toys!

Make Books Visible at all Times

I keep a couple of books in his crib and in the living room. Seeing them everywhere at home reminds me to read to Avi instead of letting him watch TV all day. It also helps to remind me to put my phone down and take time to read and play with him.

Leave Books in the Car

My husband and son usually drop me to work and pick me up at the end of the day. During these trips, especially in the morning, I would read to Avi instead of having him watch his ipad. I read him the same 3-4 books then try to swap out for a new set the following week. You can tell he likes this part of our morning drive because he’s pretty attentive when I read to him and he gets really cranky when I finish the last book!

Avi has yet to develop a proper vocabulary but you can tell it has made an impact on him. Whenever I would finish reading to him, he would clap his hands and cry for more books. Sometimes he would grab books on the shelf to browse through on his own. Just yesterday, we noticed that, when Avi wants us to read to him, he would bring a book and put it in our hands!

I’ve also started to incorporate Filipino children’s books to our storytime so Avi can learn Tagalog. I usually read 4 books to him at a time: two books in English and two books in Tagalog with English translations. It’s been a fun lesson for both of us since I really have to brush up on my speaking and reading skills!

In addition, I’d like to eventually start borrowing children’s books from the library to save money. However, Avi is still at the age where he bites books and pulls of pages.

Although we still have to develop a regular routine of reading to our son, these have helped us incorporate reading in our daily lives. 

How do you incorporate toddler reading in your everyday life?

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