First tooth!
Finally! After waiting and waiting (seems to do a lot of waiting!), at 10 months I finally detected a single tooth coming out from his bottom gum. I only noticed it because Gregory has a tendency of sucking on my index finger when eating sloppy food so I was able to feel the “nub”.
Yes!
April 21, 2008 No Comments
Tummy roll
Well, Gregory started to roll from his back to stomach since last week. We are overjoyed (and relieved) that he achieved this milestone but didn’t realize that the amount of our sleep will be reduced either!
Apparently, he has not quite figured out how to roll from his stomach to back just yet so he is waking us up multiple times during the night because he is stuck! Just this morning, after hearing his cry, I found him on his stomach, stuck in a corner of his crib.
We were so focused on getting him to roll from his back to stomach that we never bothered to re-inforce the other.
So dads out there,
April 8, 2008 No Comments
Rolling in the bed
Well, we’ve waiting for Gregory to start flipping from back-to-front and vice versa. After 10 months of agonizing suspense, he finally started to do just that last week! Hooray!
For those new parents out there, don’t get discouraged if your child is not progressing on his or her milestones “on-time”. Most experts say that progress varies greatly among infants.
The unfortunate result from this milestone achievement is that now he is flipping on to his stomach, crawling to a corner in the crib,gets stuck and cries during the middle of the night! We feel like we have regressed back to our sleep deprivation stage! Thank goodness that I am a stay-at-home dad so that at least one of us can stay up at night.
Of course, I need to work during the night on my web ventures so I guess it’s not too bad?
April 1, 2008 No Comments
Zone Alarm Internet Security V7 and WSJ.com
As a stay-at-home dad but working on web ventures, I need to be “plugged-in” to what’s going on in various financial markets. I subscribe to many newspapers and magazines to get this info, but my favorite is WSJ.com. Everything was working fine until I upgraded my firewall to Zone Alarm Internet Security V7.
The upgraded firewall some how did not see WSJ.com as a valid website (this is the error text I saw in Mozilla/FireFox browser when I typed in http://www.wsj.com):
==============================================
Server: IBM_HTTP_Server
X-DEBUG-BOX-IDENT: sbkj2kwebp07
X-DEBUG-MODULE-VERSION: DJCS mod_mon 0.7.0.0.2.1
X-DEBUG-REQUEST: /home/us
X-DEBUG-NAMESPACE: content-wsj
Set-Cookie: HOMEPAGE=remove;domain=.wsj.com;path=/;Expires=Thu, 01-Jan-1970 00:00:10 GMT;max-age=0
Set-Cookie: user_type=subscribed; domain=.wsj.com; path=/; Expires=Fri Mar 16 08:23:16 2018; max-age=315360000
Set-Cookie: TR=055055107101118105110; domain=.wsj.com; path=/; Expires=Fri Mar 16 08:23:16 2018; max-age=315360000
Set-Cookie: REMOTE_USER=*******; domain=.wsj.com; path=/; Expires=Fri Mar 16 08:23:16 2018; max-age=315360000
Set-Cookie: wsjproducts=placeholder; domain=.wsj.com; path=/
Set-Cookie: djcs_auto=pjjNoCW%2FfYv1sTZa6hGeM9mA%3DG; domain=.wsj.com; path=/; Expires=Sun Mar 17 08:23:16 2013; max-age=157680000
Set-Cookie: WSJIE_LOGIN=placeholder; domain=.wsj.com; path=/; Expires=Sun Mar 17 08:23:16 2013; max-age=157680000
Set-Cookie: djcs_session=M1Yo%2BHJYSHi8JYw%2BgwNHK8DDRQAbooyqqjIR6LwbNyQlWm7iKVuo%2BkvVePdQ%3DG; domain=.wsj.com; path=/
Set-Cookie: djcs_perm=M1205787824%2Fcxdg0QQ%3D%3DG; domain=.wsj.com; path=/; Expires=Sun Mar 17 08:23:16 2013; max-age=157680000
Location: http://commerce.barrons.com/auth/v1/login?.pd=M1205837028ttjKT6GBmYZV2P0%lSgdoIUoQG&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Fhome%2Fus
Cache-Control: max-age=15
Expires: Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:23:31 GMT
Keep-Alive: timeout=2, max=43
Content-Type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1
Transfer-encoding: chunked
358
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC “-//IETF//DTD HTML 2.0//EN”>
<html><head>
<title>302 Found</title>
<script language=’javascript’ src=’http://127.0.0.1:1025/js.cgi?pca&r=25302′></script>
</head><body>
<h1>Found</h1>
<p>The document has moved <a href=”http://commerce.barrons.com/auth/v1/login?.pd=M120583oQG&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Fhome%2Fus”>here</a>.</p>
<hr />
<address>IBM_HTTP_Server Server at online.wsj.com Port 80</address>
</body></html>
<script language=’javascript’>postamble();</script>
==============================================Reading the error log, it wasn’t clear what the exact problem was but from my limited networking experience, I figured it had to do with how WSJ.com uses load balancers with different URL addresses. After fooling around with various settings, I got WSJ.com and ZA ISS v7 to work together. To make it work, follow these directions:
- Close down all FireFox browser(s)
- Open up the ZA control panel by clicking on the ZA system tray icon (lower right hand corner of Windows XP)
- From the left navigation side bar, click on “Privacy”
- There will be three tabs on the right side (Main, Site List, Cache Cleaner)
- In the “Main” tab, make sure the following items are checked:
- Cookie Control = Medium
- Ad Blocking = Medium
- Mobile Code Control= Off
- Then click on the “Site list” tab
- Look for “online.wsj.com” entry; If you see it, skip to step #10; if not, continue following steps
- Click the “Ad” button (bottom section)
- In the URL pop-up box, type in “online.wsj.com” then hit ok
- From the same “Site list” tab, find the line item “online.wsj.com”
- It should already have green check marks for the following items: Mobile Code, Session, Persistent and WeBugs.
- Move your mouse over to the “Private Header”, then left click once on the red X adn check “Allow”.
- Re-start Mozilla/FireFox/IE browser and you should now have access to WSJ.com!
As a matter of security, log into WSJ.com to save your cookie, then change the cookie settings to “Maximum” (step 5) to eliminate junk cookies from being set in your computer.
Hope this helps!
March 18, 2008 No Comments
Do you want to save money on diapers and wipes? Read here!
After changing more than 2,000+ diapers during the last 9 months, I consider myself to be some sort of a diaper expert. I gained my expertise by facing many, many diaper leaks and unmentionable poo explosions, which incidentally were enough to make a man cringe and cry at the same time. Coupled with sleep deprivation and early morning hour eyes-half-open-but-I-am-still-sleeping diaper changes, I quickly learned to appreciate a good, quality diapers and wipes.
Here are some tips I hope you find them valuable:
Diapers – There are many brands to choose from: Pampers, Huggies, Luvs and other countless store/generic brands. In my opinion, Pampers is the best, closely followed by Huggies. Someone cane chime in to let me know if they are all manufactured by the same company, but I definitely see differences in material quality and design.
- Pampers Swaddlers/Cruizers - Pampers diapers seemed to be little bit softer than Huggies; they were also more flexible so they adapted to the baby’s body shape well. As long as we bought Pampers on sale with coupons, price differences were negligible.
- Huggies – Huggies just came out with a new line touting curved diapers (much like Pampers). Huggies materials seemed more dense than others so it felt stiff as I was putting them on Gregory. I’ve also had more leak incidents with Huggies than Pampers.
- Luvs and other generic store brands – Maybe my experience is unique but they did not fit well, nor hold up the liquid well.
TIP #1: When changing a diaper, remember that the back side (with glue tabs) are thinner than the front side – very convenient to be aware when you need to change diapers in a semi-dark room (yes, I’ve put on diapers inside-out and backwards many times)
TIP #2: This applies to boys only. Make sure his you-know-what is pointing down when putting on a new diaper! Upper section of the diaper does not contain as much absorbing materials as the bottom section. This alone will guarantee that you will not have a leak!
Baby Wipes -I have tried 3 different unscented wipes so far and I chose Berkley & Jensen Baby wipes as the best choice:
- Huggies Natural Care Wipes – Huggies wipes had the best “cotton” feel; unfortunately, sheets clumped together badly when being removed from a container so I ended up wasting a quite a bit of clean wipes. Huggies wipes also ripped easily during use (which can’t be good when cleaning up poo explosions!)
- Pampers Sensitive Wipes – Pampers had the best mix of cotton and polyester feel; wipes separated easily when being removed and they stretched well instead of being ripped. Unfortunately, Pampers Sensitive Wipes were the most expensive one out of the three brands.
- Berkley & Jensen - I have been pleasantly surprised with Berkley & Jensen; Wipes didn’t rip easily and they were uniformly moist. Although not as soft was Huggies or Pampers, but Berkley & Jensen was approximately ½ the cost of other brands.
TIP #1: Make sure to wipe all those little skin folds between legs!
Good luck with your diaper changes!
March 12, 2008 No Comments
Importance of selecting a good pediatrician/office….
Our little boy managed to get us into panic last night. About 1 hour after eating Gerber’s banana (1st food) for the 2nd time, he got into a sudden sneezing frenzy. He sneezed some food through his nose as well as coughing up mucous stuff. I quickly grabbed the bulb nasal aspirator and extracted most of the yucky stuff. He was a bit lethargic so I wanted to feed him some water but I wasn’t sure how much or if I should even give it him. I definitely did not want to give his usual night time formula to add to the mucous situation, so I ended up leaving a voice message on the nurse’s line at my pediatrician’s office. A nurse called within 45 minutes, and after going through a list of questions like how is he doing now, is he laboring for breaths, etc., we decided to give him some diluted formula (4 oz water, 1 scoop of foruma) and keep a close eye on him. I was very impressed with my pediatrican’s office, so here is what I would recommed when choosing a pediatrician:
- If at all possible, choose an office with at least 2 doctors so that when one is not available, the other doctor can see you;
- Make sure to see as many different doctors as you can at this office; after 8 months, we do have a favorite doctor, but early on we made sure that we saw all 8 doctors;
- Ask your neighbors to see who they use; I can’t stress enough the importance of selecting an office that is near your house. We initially selected one near the hospital where my wife was delivering (30 minutes away), but decided to switch to the one that was 10 minutes away. Trust me, you can’t no longer get ready in 10 minutes and leave; everything takes at least 20 minutes longer so closer the office, less stree you will feel when you are running late;
- Make sure the office has designated hours for regular checkup vs. sick visits. Our pediatrician’s office has morning hours reserved for regular checkups and afternoon hours for sick visits. Yes, yes, you can visit during either hours if you have a scheduling conflict but you can’t be too cautious with your little one, at least in the beginning. Some have suggested selecting an office with segregated areas but come on, everyone walks through the same door and goes to the same counter space right? Can a single half-wall partition really filter out germs? That’s like saying you want to sit in a non-smoking area when the smoking area is right next to you;
- Of course, make sure your pediatrician is in your health insurance company’s network. $15-20 co-payments quickly add up! And yeah, increase your FSA (flexible spending account during open enrollment. You will need at least $500 the first year.
If your wife has not delivered yet, it’s very important to shop around now! Pediatricians vary greatly so you need to talk to many, many different doctors. I’d suggest selecting someone who’s in their mid 40’s. I didn’t want someone that was too young (lack of experience) or too old (lack of latest techniques/knowledge).
Just keep in mind, when the baby arrives, everything, I mean everything will more more hectic!!
Here are some useful links I found during my research:
February 19, 2008 No Comments
Moving to a convertible car seat….
Well, little Gregory seemed to have finally out grown his infant carrier/stroller seat that doubled as a car seat. He is about 28.5″ tall and weighs little over 21 lbs so he is certainly within Graco infant stroller’s specification but whenever we strapped him in, we noticed that the belts were rather tight against his shoulders. So, we decided to bite the bullet and buy a convertible car seat (convertible means it can go from rear- to forward facing settings).
We did some research using ConsumerReports.org, Wall Street Journal and ToysRUs and decided on the Britax Boulevard car seat. Some of the key highlights were:
- High build quality, made in USA
- Deep side wings for additional protection against side impact
- Rear-facing until 35 pounds*
- Forward-facing until 65 pounds
- A unique feature using Versa-teather which prevents the seat from rolling over
Of course, all these features cost money. This unit happens to be the most expensive at $300. However, due to it’s build quality, high ratings and safety features, we decided to buy one (and go on a cheese-and-mac diet for few weeks!).
We haven’t had a chance to put it in the car, but I would recommend that you first review the britax boulevard manual and decide.
February 14, 2008 No Comments
Lead toys are bad. What about toys with PVC or vinyl?
Apparently, there is trouble in the toy land again. This time regarding the use of PVCs. Today’s Wall Street Journal article talks about:
Protests Spur Stores to Seek Substitute for Vinyl in Toys
By Joseph Pereira, The Wall Street JournalAfter recalling millions of toys to protect consumers from lead paint, toy makers face growing pressure over another material, a plastic found in myriad playthings, from balls to dolls.The Toy Industry Association, the manufacturers’ trade group, says polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, in toys poses no safety risks. Still, retail giants Inc., Corp. and Corp. have started programs to get rid of some of the toys and other products that contain PVC, bowing to pressure from environmental activists concerned that children who chew on PVC could ingest dangerous chemicals. Some of these chemicals have been banned in the European Union and will also be illegal in California under a law effective next year……..
……..Depending on how it is made, PVC frequently contains lead or other toxic metals. Vinyl chloride, used to make PVC, has been identified by the Environmental Protection Agency as a carcinogen. Certain chemicals in the phthalate family, which often are used to soften PVC in toys and other products, have been linked by researchers to developmental and other health problems in children…………..The PVC toys that Ecology Center identified included the Fashion Fever Barbie doll from Mattel and a Classic Tinkertoy construction set from Hasbro. Mattel says it doesn’t believe that PVC poses a danger and Mattel is “in the exploratory phase with a variety of different companies for alternative plastics.” Hasbro says, “We’ve always had a policy to look at alternative materials we use in all of our toys and games, and that certainly includes PVC recently.” Both Mattel and Hasbro say they are now using a nonphthalate as a plastic softener.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has warned that phthalates like those used to soften plastic have been known to cause cancer in rats, and hormonal and developmental disruptions in children’s reproductive organs. A study of 96 baby boys in Denmark and Finland published in 2005 found that those fed breast milk from mothers who had ingested higher levels of phthalates had less testosterone at three months of age than boys exposed to lower levels. It wasn’t known how the mothers had ingested phthalates.
Another study, published in December, of 102 Bulgarian children aged 2 to 7, said that those exposed to a certain phthalate in dust were more likely to experience wheezing problems. Researchers are still trying to determine how these chemicals can enter a child’s system….chief research chemist at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says, “What we know is that phthalates at very high exposure levels result in adverse health effects in animals.”
I just don’t get. Don’t toy manufacturer’s recognize that product safety should be their primary goal? Better yet, maybe we should all start buying simple wood toys?
February 12, 2008 No Comments
Unleashing my laptop
With constant diaper changes, feedings, playing in the pen, and putting him down for naps, I am never in one place for long period time. And because I also need to attend to many business activities, my laptop has to stay with me pretty much all day. That means my current laptop’s (HP nc8430) battery time of 2.5 hours isn’t nearly enough and carrying the external power supply brick is not a workable solution for me.
My solution? Buy a secondary battery which will allow me to remain “tether-free” for a long period of time. After much researching, I chose HP Ultra-Capacity battery (Model EJ092AA) and I am very happy with it. Although the specification said it will last up to 10 hours, the key operative word is “up to”. After going through several battery conditioning cycles, I can last approximately 8.5 hours with my primary + secondary batteries. So here are my quick Pros and Cons:
Front View
Side View
Bottom View
Pros
- Battery came with its own power supply so it can be recharged on its own
- Quick recharge time (90 minutes to recharge 90% capacity)
- Sloped shape – will tilt your laptop about 5 degrees which makes typing much easier
- ~8.5 hours of continuous battery power
Cons
- It adds almost 3 pounds to the laptop’s weight
Overall, I feel that I am more productive then before with HP’s ultra-capacity battery. No more fumbling around for a power supply and have electrical cords dangling everywhere!
February 11, 2008 1 Comment
Ages and stages….
I always get confused between infant, toddler, etc., so I did a quick research and came up with the following:
- Newborns (0-3 months)
- Infants/babies (4-12 months)
- Toddlers (13-36 months)
- Pre-schoolers (3 – 5 years)
- Grades K-2 /kindergarten (5-8 years)
- Elementary/Grade school (8-12 years)
- Junior High (13-14 years)
- High School (14-17 years)
Just keep in mind that these general guidelines so don’t think they are set in stone!
February 11, 2008 No Comments