Ya. And I had this beautiful mental picture of Hannah hugging mommy dearly when I picked her up after work on the first day…
It was time for me to start adjunct teaching this week and so our dear girl had to be sent to an infant care centre. I brought her there the week before to get familiarised with the new environment and care-givers. She adapted to the change very quickly on her first day; didn’t cry for mommy, drank all her milk, slept on her own and played with whatever toys given. When I went to pick her up, she was so engrossed in her own little fun that she ‘bo hew’ (ignored) me even after I called her name a few times. (Confession: I was so immersed in my new work environment that I didn’t even miss my darling girl on the first day too! Hee hee :)) Oh well.
Here’s a video clip of her at the infant care centre taken on day three. The two other babies staring at my video-cam were so cute lah. :)
wow, hannah’s grown up le! independent le =) wa… the daycare centre has so many babies!! is there a “programme” or “curriculum” (typical singaporean LOL) other than bounce in the chair, eat, sleep? do they read stories to her and talk to her?
CY n Ling Ling, jiayou! hope you guys can find a nearer daycare soon! =)
Hi Ann,
Ya, time flies…she’s no longer so baby-ish already. :P My friends and colleagues who are mothers always miss their kids in their infant stage as they were so small and endearing. They have been telling me to enjoy Hannah’s first year as there are many milestones she would go through.
There are about 4 care-givers to 12 babies at her infant care centre. And no, there isn’t any curriculum. The centre basically took care of the physical welfare of babies, e.g. personal hygiene, timely feedings, naps and some play time. I suppose the only educational element lies in their ‘educational’ toys. I’m not particular at this juncture as I can help her learn at home from afternoon onwards.
THis centre has a pleasant environment and good ventilation. The travelling distance is also manageable. The care-givers are accommodating to parents’ requests as well. For eg, Hannah’s porridge is customised to the range of foods she can eat so far. Every baby has a file which has daily records of temperature, feeding times (including the amount of water, milk and porridge taken), porridge ingredients, time of bath, time of diaper change, whether bowels are normal and nap times and duration. Of course, it is not perfect as Hannah has developed some rash on her chest on her 2nd day there (and I still don’t know the cause) and the cleaning is not always thorough when she had a bowel movement. Every new baby has a 2-week trial period where parents can give 24-hr’s notice to withdraw the baby from the centre if they wish to. We’ll see lah. :)
rash on chest? could it be damp bib left there for too long? or she drool but it wasn’t cleaned up soon enough so her chest is perpetually damp? hm… just my guess.
when chris and i send west n claire for boarding (so we can go overseas), we miss them too but are thankful they have a nice nanny (the lady who delivered them). and their our pets… i can imagine children of parents… parents must miss them and worry about them even more.
Wah, not bad eh. You have some knowledge about baby rashes :P Ya, I was guessing along the line of saliva or heat rash. Since heat rash should go away when the skin is allowed to cool down, saliva is most likely the culprit. Thank God that the rash has started to fade after I applied some soothing lotion. :)
Make babies lah. You guys may end up poor and lonely but the journey will make your life fuller and richer in the spiritual sense. :D