Egg and vaccinations

Little Pichan has been getting his vaccinations like a good boy, and today it is his MR and Chickenpox. Thankfully, Yokohama gives the chickenpox vaccination for free, whereas other places (like my old town) don't.

Before Pi gets the MR vaccination though, we were told by the doctor that he has to eat raw egg.. Yuk! Not to mention I had no idea how to prepare it, so the nurses told me:

Get warm, white rice

crack an egg on top

mix through thoroughly

eat.

I would put "enjoy" as the last step, but Pichan really wasn't keen on that. He kept spitting out each mouthful until it dribbled down his chin. I don't blame him at all.

However today, I decided to try it again, but a little differently...

Crack and egg into a bowl and whisk.

Season with white pepper

toss half the egg away

add freshly cooked 'okayu' (very runny rice porridge)

stir well.

I was surprised, but Petey actually liked it. He kept opening his mouth wide for more. Maybe because of all the boiling watery okayu the egg was cooked more. Or maybe because the black pepper gave it a nice taste.

Either way, he is not allergic (I think). So off to the doctors we went. This time, they gave him the two shots at once (two different needles). It makes life much easier (instead of going every week), though poor Petey wasn't impressed with it. 

Banana goodness smoothie

Lately I have been getting into smoothies. I think they are perfect for me because they make an easy, healthy snack that I can have on the go (gosh knows Pi doesn't like letting me sitting down). Because I am still breastfeeding, I really need to get a much calcium as I can (and I am crap at that). So drinking milk kills two birds with one stone. I also pour a little bit of milk in Pichans cup with a dash of my smoothie so he thinks he is drinking the same thing (Gosh knows I can't have anything without having to share...)

Banana goodness smoothie recipe:

1 banana
150mls of milk (preferably vitamin D fortified)
5-6 ice cubes
1 tablespoon of chia/flaxseed blend.
1 tablespoon of rolled oats
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of honey

Blend until smooth.


There is goodness in just about all ingredients (except the sugar- though I need that for energy). Rolled oats and the Chia blend *may* help with milk production too.

Here are some benefits of Chia and flax seeds for nursing women.

Chia seeds have fatty oils, protein, calcium, fiber and anti-oxidants. These nutrients will help develop the brain functioning of your child. Aside from that, it will also help you to produce more milk. 
Like sesame seeds, flaxseeds contain phytoestrogens that can influence milk production.



Note: The Chia/Flax seed blend is hard to get in Japan so I buy mine off i-herb.com




http://www.iherb.com/Carrington-Farms-Ready-To-Eat-Flax-Chia-Blend-12-oz-340-g/49514

"helping"

The little man is coming on in leaps and bounds. No walking yet, but he loves "helping". He grabs the cloth that I wipe his highchair down with, and scrubs away with it. He loves sweeping with the broom. He knows/says the words "dirty", and "yukky". This morning he touched the bin, then sat down and brushed off his hands saying "yukky". Every time I take off his dirty nappy he says "dirty".

Mind you, he gets into everything. I caught him one second away from trying to eat a week old piece of chicken out of the bin. I might need to buy another baby gate....

Do I want to read that... Nope, nope and nope

One on the biggest changes for me as parent has been my inability to read any news article involving children. It just stabs me deep inside when I see a headline and think "Nope, there is no way I could stand reading that". Today's gem from BBC news was "Man rapes one day old baby".  Just, no! Mind you, it wasn't the kind of thing I wanted to read before, but now it cuts deep to a personal level.

I find even watching movies has changed for me. I can't really enjoy any movie where kids get injured, or parents die leaving the kid alone. Even the start of something as innocuous as Guardians of the Galaxy got me all watery as all I could think of is "what if that happens to Pichan".

To counter this, I will be reading a lot more happy stories, and enjoying movies where everybody lives, and nobody gets hurt... They still make those, right?



hedgehogs always put me in a better mood...