Quentin | just some tings.

Tag Archives: Quentin

QT revisited

Posted on July 30, 2014 by enitsuj

good grief, I haven’t written much about this child of mine, have I? It’s so hard to not write and then go, oh wait a minute, Ollie did that too. So meh.

Is this what it is like being a second child or having a second kid?

arrr matey!

QT is a little bit more special to me. I worry constantly about his development cos he arrived 6 weeks earlier. The PD mentioned a slight head lag during one of his visits and that got me googling head lag. Oh the plethora of information. I told Donald, “oh no, QT could be autistic!” hahah. damn you, Google.

I was determined to help QT be on par with Ollie at real age. I worried when he wasn’t lifting his head long enough.I worried when he didn’t flip. But of cos all that came to wrought. He did it his own way, all 6 weeks later, on par with Ollie at corrected age.

I heaved a sigh of relief.

QT still occasionally copped a couple of smacks frm Ollie but very rarely. I enjoyed watching the both of them at play. QT is starting to engage with his brother and would grin and smile each time Ollie grins or smiles at him. The two of them will squeal after one another (my poor ears) but it is all quite funny.

QT has his way of letting you know his displeasure by yelling his head off. Very very vocal. When quiet, he exudes this super zen look on his face, with the occasional quiet smile. Oh and he is sooo ticklish. Hahaha. I just love tickling him. Those chuckles are such music to my ears.

And he is my koala baby. A couple of weeks ago, I realised that he has been fairly physically attached to me. Well, apart from feeding, he is glued to me in the carrier when we go out, anywhere. And now, he will only sleep better if he sleeps on me or on Donald. The only way I can get any work done or any sleep for that matter. He clings on to my top for dear life if I am carrying him. I guess he is making up for all the moments we left him to himself when he was an infant haha.

I mean..seriously, second time round we realised that newborns are awesome! They actually let you eat in peace! The midnight feeds are NOTHING compared to being able to eat without being interrupted.

But QT is pretty cool. As his main caregiver, I have to say him reserving his best smiles for me and following me around with his eyes if he is carried by someone else is such a major perk. It sure as hell gives me a satisfaction that he knows who his momma is =P

There are days which totally drives me bat shits, having to babywear QT around and deal with Ollie, who absolutely wants to do what 弟弟 is doing. Those days, I tell Donald I will reconsider having a third kid. Haha. Then he takes over and I go do the dishes and veg out, and after I’m like okay! We can have another kid! again. This momma needs time out too.

But we’re good. The three of us. We poke fun of each other and then we laugh, we nap and then we wait for Daddy to come home.

And we do it all over again

Category: Daily, Kids, Parenting | Tags: Quentin

double milestones

Posted on June 21, 2014 by enitsuj

hey monsters,

yes, both of you. what is going on here?? are you guys up to no good??

conspiring

I knew you guys were up to something when the two of you exchanged this look.

let’s start with you, Ollie. all of a sudden, you are randomly announcing that you need to go (do a wee). Or if I asked you if you needed to go, you would say ok. And in both situations, you would actually go on the toilet. Hmm, looks like you are ready for undies eh?

Well, yes..and no, Daddy’s undies do not go on your head. *sigh*

You also randomly started announcing that you had done a poo, in your own Ollie way. “*grunt*ooooooh, mummy, need wipes and change diaper!” hahaha. A little too late to get you to the toilet, but hey, that works. Little toddler steps at a time okay? No rush. For now, you can waddle around in your poopy diaper, whilst yelling/asking me for wipes and “change diaper!”.

And that spelling. Wow. You blew me away when you learnt how to spell “toilets” by heart in just 2 hours. Daddy pointed out the word to you on a sign at the airport, and you recited the letters out. And the rest was history. Now, mummy’s going to teach you how to spell “library“. muhaha..cos that is going to be one of your favourite places to be at. =P Yar, of course. Now that you know how to use the word “favourite” too.

And you, young man. Yes, you, Quentin. Did you just like decide that you will flip yesterday??? *throws hands in the air*

I’m proud of you, don’t get me wrong. I had been worried about your progress..cos you were born 6 weeks early. Your 哥哥 had been able to flip at 3 mths and here you were..already 4.5 mths old. But hey, taking away the 6 weeks, you are pretty much on par. So yay! *high five*

You had been giving me signs when I have been guiding you to roll to your tummy by pulling your hand. You were slowly getting less reliant on me pulling you and using your stomach muscles to help you roll. Daddy reminded me that those nights you were nursing every 2-3 hours were just advanced warnings you were going to surprise me soon.

But both you and 哥哥 at the same time?? What is this, post Mother’s Day present? Hahah. Well, thank you then. I am very pleasantly surprised.

Time really flies and almost half a year has gone by. Both of you are doing very well. And I’m proud. Thank you for letting me be your mum. It is my privilege and I love you guys.

xoxo
Mummy

Category: Kids | Tags: developmental milestones, milestones, Oliver, Quentin

Review: Mustela Stelatopia

Posted on June 12, 2014 by enitsuj

Update: 14/6 – QT’s skin at this point is unbelievably baby smooth. There are no signs of any redness, nor rough skin around his neck. The dry patches on his thighs have disappeared as well. There are still some rough bumps on his elbows but it has lessened compared to before using the cleansing lotion and emollient cream. It is pretty amazing, but I still have my questions about the ingredients.

A brief search on the internet told me that one of the ingredients, cyclopentasiloxane, is a silicone fluid. So obviously when I read that, my brain went in all directions and all I can think of is the word silicone. And Donald didn’t help when each time I told him to feel QT’s smooth skin, he said “each time you tell me to touch QT’s skin, all I can think off is that we are applying silicone on him.” Right.

Well, I have replied to Mustela’s request for a feedback on the samples and the team have read this review as well. The Managing Director, Denise Ang, has responded and said that she will get back to me regarding the ingredients. I would love to hear what she has to share about the products.

So stay tuned!

—————————————–

QT’s eczema is an 眼中钉 in his and my daily life. My mom said “wah…chubby also got downside.” -_-” *cue comparing Ollie’s baby smooth skin and QT’s chor puay (rough skin)*

At present, QT’s bath & moisturising routine involves using Sebamed Bodywash, Mustela Vitamin Barrier Cream, Little Innoscents Intensive Soothing Cream for his neck and QV Cream as a body moisturiser. The LI Intensive Soothing Cream has been keeping the eczema at bay. There are still that occasional day of redness when the weather is very hot, but otherwise it is manageable.

Recently, Mustela offered samples to the public via FB for their Stelatopia range. They stated that it was for babies with either 1) dry & eczema prone skin or ; 2) extreme dryness and pulling. Well..it’s a no brainer for QT’s skin right?

mustela’s stelatopia for dry & eczema prone skin

first thought was…they are pretty tiny samples. How on earth am I gonna see results in a couple of days? Fret not, cos let Auntie Justine tell you why hor…

cleansing lotion

this is how much I need to use for QT’s face. Double that amount for his hair, double that amount for his legs, quardruple times the amount for his trunk and arms. Which means that tiny little sample could last QT a couple of baths and more. It doesn’t lather up with bubbles when I apply it on QT’s wet chubby body, but I do get the feeling like it is a little soapy. It is also fragrance free, and QT seems to come out of the bath feeling clean.

I am still getting used to this whole soap-free, fragrance-free thing when it comes to QT. Especially when I am so used to lathering up Ollie with bubbles to the high heavens and he comes out of his shower smelling…so nice. Argh.

QT, Y you have chor puay?? okay, mummy’s genes. I know I know.

On to the emollient cream that came with it.

emollient cream

the cream comes off a little watery, easily spreadable over the body. Yet when you rub it in, it seems to leave an initial slightly greasy feel to the skin. However when it has been rubbed in and dried off, the skin feels smooth and non-greasy. It actually feels moisturised. You know, the feeling on your face after you removed your face mask in an air-con room? haha. That kinda smoothness.

We have been using this for the past couple of days, and I am liking the results (click photo for bigger picture).

QT’s neck over 3 days

Top Left (TL): 10/6 Redness due to using of QV Cream on the neck last week. QT was on the Little Innoscents Intensive Soothing Cream for two days before the 10th & the redness was already dying down.

TR: 11/6 First use of cleansing lotion and first application of emollient cream.

BL: 12/6 Neck felt smoother and wasn’t as red / aggravated as before, skin seemed more moisturised and wasn’t flaking.

BL: 12/6 Red bumps doesn’t feel as raised and seemed lesser.

As mentioned earlier, I was using the Little Innoscents Intensive Soothing Cream for QT’s neck. It worked just as well at the Mustela’s Emollient Cream in reducing the redness and keeping the eczema at bay. However, the emollient cream was able to smoothen the skin a lot more. It is something that i think is hard to see unless you felt it.

My struggle with this is the ingredients for these two products. I barely recognise half of the ingredients although it is stated that it is parabens-free, whereas I knew what the ingredients on the Intensive Soothing Cream was. On one hand I was leaning towards an organic solution for his eczema, on the other hand, it was really nice to feel baby soft skin on QT. Yup, this is coming from a mom who is using cortisteroids for her own eczema issues.

To give Mustela credit, one of the ingredients of the emollient cream is sunflower oil which is a wonderful gentle oil that works wonders on poor skin conditions. It is also hypoallergenic and is safe for babies as their core focus is on baby skincare.

I guess at the end of the day, it is a personal choice. I would be happy to continue using these range of products until QT’s eczema clears up.

Just another day in a mother’s evolving quest to solve this eczema riddle.

Category: Reviews | Tags: eczema, Mustela, Quentin, skincare