Google Mom, Internet Mom, Online Mom, 21st Century Mom, all na MOM!

Whatever name they choose to call you and I (young moms), Google mom, internet mom, online mom, don’t mind them! Yes we’re the new generation moms and we’re proud of it. Lol. Mine is internet mom, that’s what my mom calls me and I like the name. In this day and age, with all the technology and research materials available at our fingertips, it will be very sad if we as parents suffer or even allow our kids suffer what we suffered growing up/ still suffering, when help is readily available on the internet. Yes, I agree that we shouldn't ignore all the admonitions of our parents and grandparents and other ‘well-meaning' family and friends. However, times have changed and we need to embrace REALITY.

When I found out I was pregnant, I sharply registered on BabyCenter.com (this website should be the Bible of every prospective, expectant, and current mom), where I was well informed of everything happening in the life of my unborn child. It tells you the size of the baby at different stages and all the developmental milestones accomplished. At 20 weeks, when I read that I could check out the sex of my baby, I sharply went 2 days after.

Information is key! Ignorance kills! All parents in this 21st century need to be well informed, and information is surplus online. Please don’t play with your child’s health, its dangerous. If your 2 months old son is coughing, Google it! Google is your friend! If you don't know how to use it, here’s how it works, just type inside the Google search box, “my 2 months old son is coughing what should I do”. Won’t you rather be a Google mom with a child that’s alive, than a respectful and obedient daughter or daughter in-law whose ‘poor’ son died because you didn’t treat him well and in good time?  Wisdom is profitable to direct.  If you’re pregnant, do as many pregnancy scans as you can do, it won’t kill your baby. Do you know how many mothers and children have been saved just as a result of carrying out a simple scan? I am one of such.

On a lighter note, check out some Nigerian myths that I still do not agree with below, but sometimes I just oblige for the sake of respect and so that PEACE can reign. Please kindly share some that you know of in the "comment" section below.

1. The Yoruba tribe, and maybe others too, recommend that pregnant women always have a little piece of iron on the body (esp clothes) e.g. safety pin, to ward off any evil spirits or attacks.
2. Pregnant women should not walk in the sun. I don't know why.
3. Babies should not be carried out of the house until they’re few months old (except immunization days, baby  dedication/thanksgiving day for Christians)
4. When a baby has hiccups, cut a little piece of thread and put on the head. This is supposed to stop the hiccups.
5. Babies shouldn't look at mirrors.
6. You shouldn't count the number of children a man has.

 Please kindly share some of your experiences in the comment section below and feel free to explain some of the myths I've listed above if you feel like doing so.

Thanks for reading.

Please tell someone about this blog and kindly drop a comment below. Anonymous comments are very much welcome.

YOYO

Dadu

Online moms! ‘Birds of the same feather flock together’.

So, a good friend of mine, who’s also a first time mom (ftm) invited me to a bbm group of young wives/moms/moms to be, and I’m glad she did. We talk about anything and everything. Health, beauty, food, family life, in-laws, especially mothers in law (MIL), sex, spirituality, work issues, and general life issues. It has really been a blessing to know that you’re not alone in your problem or issues and you have friends and sisters that have your back. We pray, support, motivate, advise, encourage, rebuke, congratulate, celebrate and inspire each other.  Serious family issues are discussed; mother and child well-being matters and a whole lot of other matters are well dissected from different cultural, social, ethnic and religious angles.

I must mention that I also belong to a smaller group of moms, but this is on a larger scale and more ‘hard core’. Lol. (EP Moms, take note). Since joining this group of beautiful moms, (yes, beautiful because we've had a little get together few weeks back), I’ve learnt a couple of things, some of which can’t be shared here, lol. I even have a mentor there, she mentors me on a very important area…you can take a wild guess. Some topics that we’ve discussed include, how to manage helps, how to relate well with in-laws, food ideas for babies, how to celebrate or mark babies 1^st birthday, immunizations, and many others.

I don’t know if I’ll like for us to increase in number, cuz we’re presently almost 50. I always try to make sure I’m connected to the internet/ use my mobile data as often as I can, cuz if not, it can take almost an hour, if not more, to read up all the messages for the day. And trust me when I say there’s never a dull moment there. It’s a school on its own. We even have a class monitor. Lol.

I must also add that some have even found long lost 1st, 2^nd and even 5^th cousins, friends, former colleagues, ex boarding house bunk mates, so this is a mini Facebook oo.

At this junction, I’ll like to suggest that if you’re a young mom, (or you know someone who is) who’s sometimes as clueless as some of us are please join a support group or better still start one. You’ll be glad you did. And even if you already know so much as a young mom, others can learn from you and not make the same mistakes you made.

In conclusion, please remember that ‘Iron sharpenth iron’, ‘no man (woman) is an island’ and ‘birds of the same feathers flock together’. Have a lovely day!

Please tell someone about this blog and kindly drop a comment below. Anonymous comments are very much welcome.

YOYO

Dadu

A first time mom's baby check-list. Do you really need to buy that? (My candid advice)

Hi there, recently 2 pregnant friends who will also be first time moms, asked me to advise them on what to get and what not to get for themselves and their babies. We all know that first time moms are always very excited when it’s time to shop for their newborns and sometimes we (wink wink) tend to overdo it. Most first time moms (ftm) who have some available cash to spend on their babies buy things that "they like", which are not necessarily what the child 'needs'. I'm going to make a list of what babies 'need', 'want' and also what mothers 'need' and 'want'.

I have had to sell some excess stuff I bought, and i have also given out some that i couldn't sell. So, if I were to rate myself on a scale of 1-10 on the importance or necessity of the things i bought for my son and myself, I’ll give myself 8 (not bad right?). I pride myself in being a good organizer and event planner. For birthday parties, baby showers, bridal showers etc., I'm your 'to-go' girl. Just call on me. I should really work on this gift of mine and make it financially profitable, hehehe. Like i mentioned earlier, these lists are subject to available money at your disposal and they shouldn't be taken too seriously. It is wise to always plan according to your family finances, in other words, cut your jacket according to your size. 

Before i go into these lists, please note the following:

1.      It’s best to find out from your close friends and families to know what they plan to give you before going on a shopping spree and end up with 2 or more of the same thing. 

2.     If you choose to know the sex of your baby or babies, it will be a good idea to let your friends and family know this, except you're one of those superstitious people ;), because i don't think it'll be nice if you use a pink blanket or swaddle cloth for your baby boy, or wear blue clothes for your baby girl, which i have seen some moms do. If you however choose to keep the sex of your baby a 'secret', please tell them to only buy unisex things  for your baby/babies.

3.     Remember that God can decide to bless you with both sexes,(except you do IVF and choose the sex of all your children) so you wouldn't want to buy a blue car seat for your next boy child all because you were too excited about your baby girl and chose to buy only pink stuff.

To be contd...

Momore .....with me at the salon. Happy boy.

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YOYO

Dadu

Baby please, does mummy really need to be awake every night to feed you?

Hi there, so its been over a week since I put up a post here, and i must confess, i have  missed doing this. My son is 11 months and a week old and he still wakes me up at night to feed. What am i doing wrong? I try to make sure I feed him before he sleeps. It's bad enough that i don't and can't sleep early, i still have to wake up in the middle of the night to feed this young chap.

I try to do the needful, bathe/clean him up, reduce the noise that gets into the room, dim the light of the room, and so on. I really can not remember the last time he slept all through the night.

I need help o. Experienced mums and fellow first time mums who do not have this issue can give practicable advice on how to deal with this issue should kindly do so.

I have been busy planing his 1st birthday coming up soon and i am very excited about this. I'll like for us to share ideas and suggestions on how to plan for a baby's 1st birthday party. Thoughts on cakes, venues, photography, video, party packs, menu, DJ, clowns seating arrangement, and so on are all welcomed. So please feel free to drop your ideas, advice, suggestions or any other useful information as comments here. Please share your experience on planning for this type of party and even if it didn't go as you planned, please don't hold back. Tell us how to avoid the mistake you made and how you dealt with the issues.

Do have a blessed week.

Momore biting/ eating the steering wheel cover of daddy's car. 

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 YOYO

 Dadu

Update on the Terrible rashes & the Magical Ointment update!

Hi there, a big apology to those who must have been expecting to read an update on my previous post, or to even get the name of the "magical ointment". The name of the magical ointment is..... (drum roll please...) "Altargo" and its made by...... . So after so much contemplation on whether to buy or not to, i eventually bought this "superglue-like", '5g' ointment for N2000. I used it for about 3 days and Voala!, the rashes disappeared. I was so ecstatic! i finally conquered the annoying rashes. However, the skin on the places where the rashes were, started peeling off, which i guess is not a bad after all.

Altargo has done it for me. I'm sure my son also feels so relieved. Poor boy. This however doesn't mean that all other stuff like, Baby Tribotan, Agnesia powder (this actually helped with his diaper rash), Shea butter and blue seal Vaseline, that i used do not work, its just that i was to impatient to see them work in their own time, its just that i wanted a "quick fix",which thankfully i got.

So here are the lessons learnt from my experience, try to keep the baby relatively cool by using the AC, fan or natural air, bathe baby twice daily, and always clean baby up after sweating. I also did few things that I'm not proud of, all in the name of finding a solution to the rashes. E.g using a mixture of Sudocrem and "silver bird Eucalyptus oil" and also using Skineal without mixing it with Shea butter or Vaseline which can leave a baby with an uneven skin tone.

The "magical" ointment

Happy boy always

   

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YOYO

Dadu

Rashes again? Oh no.

Hi there, rashes have 're-visited' my baby's body, and this very annoying and irritating. I'm not even sure if its a rash or an allergy. I've tried so many things and some seem to work for a while and then stop, while others do little or nothing. The only new thing I've introduced to his diet is the light brown millet pap (not the reddish ones), which i have decided to stop for now because of the rashes. I have just finished 'battling' with cough and cold, so I'm still skeptical about the whole "keep him cool", "don't over dress him", advice i get from people. Some will say, "aha, wear two items of cloth for him", others say "don't stuff him up". Can you 'see' my dilemma? 

I saw a Dr and he prescribed an ointment for my son, and when i got to the pharmacy, i couldn't buy it because i didn't have enough money on me. However, i must also add that the ointment was "so small", about 5 ml, just like the size of the popular "super glue". I was like "what is this"? Why is this tiny thing so expensive? But i guess it wasn't the poor attendant's fault, because she didn't answer me, she only smiled. As i was busy lamenting, another female customer advised that i use original shear butter, "ori", or blue seal Vaseline. My friends, i have tried these two options but all to no avail. Maybe i am just too inpatient to see a possible solution to the end, but can you blame me, i don't like the way the rashes look and feel on my "Oyinbo" (meaning light- skinned) and will do anything (reasonable) to get rid of it. 

So, I have finally resulted to buying this "magical" ointment and trust me, it will (not must) work like real magic, because i can't take this any longer. I used to feel that mothers' whose babies have rashes and other skin issues are not neat enough or are careless, (yes, shame on me) but now, i know better.

In all of this I'm still thankful because, he's very well, no fever, still the happy boy i know. I was just telling a fellow 'first-time-mom' like me that the rashes doesn't seem to bother my son and that its only me it disturbs. But not to worry, I'll surely come back here in less than 48 hours to give a "testimony", after i must have used the "magical" ointment on these stubborn rashes.

 Thanks for reading this post and laughing at (or with) me, i really appreciate it.







 (Btw, you must have noticed by now that my son adores the camera, Lol. Like mother like son.)



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YOYO

Dadu

He took his first steps today...Yipee!!

Hi there, Momore took his first steps today!!!! I'm so happy and everyone needs to hear this. Lol. I was somewhere waiting to be attended to, and while waiting, Momore's foster brother (living with us) pointed my attention to the fact that he had taken a step unaided. I was flabbergasted! I immediately took my phone and started recording his every action, hoping he would repeat the steps again, and he sure did. I made up to 10 short videos. I was very ready for this because recently, a friend told me when her daughter took her first steps but sadly, she wasn't able to make any videos, and that was when i told myself that i had to be ready for mine. Hehehehe.

We were all so excited that we totally forgot we were not at home and started laughing whenever he took one or two steps. I guess he knew i was recording, as he kept entertaining us and sometimes even made me forget that i was a bit disappointed that i couldn't see the person i went there to see.

In short, it was a lovely day for us. I have at different points been anxious to see him sit, crawl, stand, speak clearly, clap, walk, and all these have been achieved. I know experienced moms and others too will say that my work has just begun, but "abeg" (means 'please') i can't to see him walk very well, run, go to school, date ;), graduate from Uni, get married etc. It’s been a wonderful journey so far and i know it can only get better. I am however very grateful to God for giving me the grace to "mother" this wonderful boy and i pray for such grace for everyone who prays for same too.

Tell someone about this space and kindly drop a comment below.

YOYO

Dadu