Adventure, baby!

parenting

30 sweet moments only parents have

30 sweet moments only parents understand via christineknight.me

Ahhh parenting, it’s one of those amazing experiences where the highs are euphoric and the lows make you want to cry in a corner and hope it was all a bad dream. Let’s take a few moments today to celebrate all the victorious moments that can only be appreciated if you’re parent to a small human or two.

  1. When the furby’s batteries run out.
  2. When the kids are finally asleep …
  3. And there’s wine in the fridge.
  4. When the babysitter puts the kids to bed instead of you.
  5. When you have a night with friends and it’s like the kids don’t exist (except for when you pull out your phone and scroll through the pics of them looking insanely cute that day).
  6. When you have an hour to watch TV and there’s a new episode of Nashville on Hulu.
  7. When you’re out the door early!
  8. When you arrive anywhere on time and not disheveled.
  9. When you go out minus the kids and your handbag is miniscule.
  10. When you’re having a night with the ladies and can wear white pants.
  11. When you land a morning spot for your kid in nursery school.
  12. When you push the stroller to a train station and find there’s an elevator.
  13. When the kid eats their entire meal without a “That’s yucky!”
  14. When you pick up your kid from school and their lunchbox is empty.
  15. When it’s Mother’s Day or Father’s Day and the kid brings home handprint artworks from school.
  16. When you wake up the next morning and everyone is in the same bed they started the night in.
  17. When you wake up and it’s 8am, not 2am, or 4am or 6am, but 8am!
  18. Every time you drink coffee or strong black tea and the instant rush that results.
  19. When you get a pedicure and no one screams at you for an entire hour, plus you can look at your phone guilt-free the entire time.
  20. The rare times when you get something right and your kid beams at you instead of scowling. Bought the right sugar-free-but-still-tasty breakfast cereal today, yay!
  21. When your kid says “Thank you” and “Your welcome” in public and you feel like your job is done.
  22. The one night when your kid says they’ll put themselves to bed and you can go eat your dinner.
  23. When you take your kid to see a show and they stay in their seat the entire time.
  24. When you get off a long haul flight and the people in front turn around to say they didn’t even know there was a kid sitting there.
  25. When your kid’s teacher says they’ve had a great day and you feel like everything’s going to be A-okay.
  26. When your kid stands up for another at the playground, and you think your heart is going to burst with pride.
  27. When you can say without a doubt that you’re done with toilet training for good.
  28. When you celebrate your birthday doing something you want to do, like getting that pedicure.
  29. When your kid says they love you and you melt into a puddle.
  30. When your kid outs your favourite beverage and you laugh your ass off because your kid is so awesome you just can’t stand it. “I like milk, Daddy drinks coffee and Mommy likes wine!”

This article first appeared on MommyNearest.

What I Know About My Parents Now That I Am One

Things I Know About My Parents Now That I'm One #parenting #family christineknight.me

Our parents are the lynch pins of our lives in many ways. They’re the force that gave us life, cared and provided for us, and taught us about the world. I’ve always looked up to my own parents with love and admiration but once I had a child of my own, I began to see them in a whole new light.

They were sleep deprived
My mother always tells me about my brother’s refusal to go to sleep at night. My dad would have to get the car out and drive in circles around the block to get my brother to go to sleep in the car seat and then transfer him into his bed. Even though I obviously knew that my parents raised us from babies, the details of our babyhood were never really talked about that much until I had a child of my own—and now the funny stories won’t stop coming!

They did their best
I thought my parents were experts in parenting when I was a kid. So, of course, any mistakes they made were a horrible let down because of my expectation of perfection. I was a pretty horrid teenager in retrospect. I judged my parents, criticizing what I saw as their failings and, basically, was an ungrateful brat. I always saw the ways they failed (like if they said the wrong thing, or gave me the wrong gift) instead of where they succeeded. What I see now is parents who loved their kids a huge amount and tried their very hardest to make them happy—parents who were just regular people, muddling their way through this parenting business, who made mistakes and got things wrong, too. They did a pretty darn good job.

They put us first
My mom was a public school teacher. She left her job after my brother was born and didn’t work again until I started preschool at age 5. She was out of the work force for eight years, and didn’t have child care if she ever needed a break from us kids. Her career probably took a big hit but her focus was always on what was best for us. Now I’m facing my own dilemma finding a balance between raising my child and working, I feel the enormity of the personal sacrifice my mother made to stay home with us.

They sacrificed a lot
I remember my weekends as a kid as a blur of dance classes and birthday parties. My parents remember their weekends of my childhood as a blur of driving me and my brother all over the city, and waiting for us to finish whatever it was we were doing so they could drive us back home again. I actually cringe when I think of how I took this for granted. I never once thought that maybe they wanted to do something on a Saturday except chauffeur me around. Now that I drive my daughter around I get it—I don’t want thanks because I enjoy her enjoyment but I do now tell my parents how grateful I am for their time.

They showed us the world
One of the absolute best memories from my childhood is a wonderful eight week trip we took to Hong Kong, London, Europe and Egypt. I constantly pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. This trip (back in the late ‘80s) must have cost my parents a fortune and they had obviously saved up for a very long time. It was the one big family trip we did all together. While I’m sure they enjoyed the trip immensely, I’m also sure they had no way of knowing the effect it would have on my and my brother’s lives. This wonderful experience opened my eyes to a world outside of my little suburbia. It gave me the wanderlust bug that hasn’t stopped moving my heart and feet all around the world. We were a family who were big on experiences rather than material things and it’s a lesson I am trying to replicate now for my daughter.

They loved me hard
And still do! My whole childhood I felt loved, but it wasn’t until I had a child of my own that I really saw, for the first time, everything my parents did for me through the eyes of an adult. I finally felt the magnitude of their love for me—and it was humbling.

This article first appeared on MommyNearest.

 

70 Signs You’re A Sleep Deprived Parent

70 Signs You're A Sleep Deprived Parent #family #parenting #kids via christineknight.me

We’ve all been there—some of us are there right now. You’re tired and on the verge of collapsing. Everything is a little fuzzy. You probably already know that you’re a sleep deprived parent. But just in case you aren’t 100% sure, here are some of the ways you can tell you need a good night’s sleep.

1. You put the milk in the cupboard.

2. You put a teabag in a cup to steep and discover it the next day.

3. You don’t know what day of the week it is.

4. You go to the kitchen to get something out of a drawer and by the time you get there you’ve forgotten what you needed.

5. Your kid is running around with no undies on because you forgot to give them a fresh pair after their last accident.

6. When you roll out of bed, heaven help anyone who tries to talk to you before you get your first hit of caffeine.

7. You made coffee with cold water because you forgot to boil the kettle.

8. You find yourself napping at work.

9. You mistake your hairspray for deodorant.

10. You wash your hair with body wash.

11. You keep signing forms with your maiden name even though you changed it when you got married more than two years ago.

12. You try to put the bread away but end up putting paper bags into plastic bags and forget the bread entirely.

13. You’re calling the children by the pet’s name and vice versa.

14. You make your child a cheese sandwich, put it in the fridge and give your child a giant block of cheese instead.

15. You walked away from the ATM without taking your money.

16. You stop at the green lights while driving.

17. You look everywhere for your sunglasses that are perched on your head.

18. You find cartons of milk in the freezer from who knows how long ago.

19. You pour mouthwash into your contact lens case instead of saline.

20. You find your watch in the crisper.

21. You give the kids “top and tail” wipe downs at night to avoid bath time drama.

22. Your phone is always missing, usually turning up in the fridge.

23. You try to plug the phone charger into the baby instead of the phone.

24. You put cat food into your salad instead of tuna.

25. You find yourself spitting toothpaste straight onto the floor instead of the sink while brushing your teeth.

26. You make your kids dinner earlier so that you can trick them to go to bed earlier.

27. You make forts in the living room so the kids can play by themselves and you can lay on the cushions and still supervise with one eye open.

28. If you have a newborn in particular, you haven’t washed or changed your clothes (except undies) for over a week.

29. You put Desitin on your toothbrush instead of toothpaste.

30. You find your umbrella in the fridge.

31. While holding your baby, you ask your spouse where the baby is.

32. You wash your hands with moisturizer.

33. You lose your keys, cups, debit card and find them all in the trash. At least you know where to look when you “lose” things!

34. You have trouble making a cup of tea—you make it with no water, or make a cup then put in the fridge (leaving the milk on the counter) or you make a cup of tea minus the tea.

35. You roll on insect repellent instead of deodorant.

36. During the night, you roll over in bed to pat and shush your husband.

37. You walked out of the house all “done up” with make up, nice hair and a nice dress, but wearing fluffy pink Ugg boots.

38. You give the baby a scoop of cereal and a scoop of coffee for breakfast.

39. You wear your T-shirts inside out.

40. You sign an email with “xxxxx” to your boss.

41. You pour milk into the coffee machine tank.

42. You fall asleep standing up while rocking the baby to sleep.

43. You try to answer the phone with the TV remote.

44. You sleep in the same clothes you wore during the day and just stay in them them next day because hey, you’re already dressed, right?

45. You ask a question and forget the answer the moment it was given and have to repeat the question.

46. You want to call your friends at 6am. You’ve been up since 4am with the baby after all, so 6am seems like a decent time to call.

47. You lie down to “play” with the baby but you’re secretly having a two-second power nap before getting hit with a toy.

48. You put your newborn’s diaper on the toddler.

49. You catch the train home from work and then remember that you drove to work that day.

50. You turn up to your child’s “meet the teacher” appointment…a week early.

51. You put cayenne pepper on your cereal instead of cinnamon.

52. You try to open your front door using the car keys.

53. You wash your face twice because you can’t remember if you washed it the first time.

54. You put your undies on inside out or backwards.

55. You answer your phone when the baby’s toy one rings in the stroller.

56. You find a pair of undies in your hair that you mistook for a scrunchie.

57. Strangers stop you in the street to tell you your dress is on backwards/tucked into your underpants.

58. You’ve left the house in very wrong shoes.

59. You cracked an egg into the garbage bin and put the shell in the pan.

60. You’ve poured your smoothie/coffee/wine into a sippy cup.

61. You step into the shower in your pajamas.

62. You rock the cart at the supermarket when you’re there without your baby. And sometimes, it’s not even your own cart, but a stranger’s cart that you’ve accidentally walked off with.

63. You put salt in your coffee instead of sugar.

64. You microwave your iPhone instead of a heat pack.

65. You book your child into classes in the wrong borough.

66. You catch the train to work on a Saturday.

67. You roll insect repellant onto your face instead of sunscreen.

68. You forget your ATM pin number that you’ve had for 20 years.

69. You tell strangers your baby’s name is Justin when they ask (when in fact, it’s actually Jonathan).

70. You try to fold the stroller down with the baby still inside it.

This article was first published on MommyNearest.

Parenting Around The World: Beverly Burgess In Singapore

The installment of parenting abroad is brought to you by Beverly Burgess, a blogger and marketer extraordinaire. Beverly lives in Singapore with her three boys: husband Chris, and sons Hunter (4) and Carter (almost 3). Beverly has also lived in Australia and China, which is where her first son was born.

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Giving birth in Shanghai

Both my husband’s and my companies moved us to Shanghai to look after regional operations, which was an unforgettable experience for us. We had a huge culture and language shock, but loved our time there.

My pregnancy was a bit of a surprise, and none of our friends were pregnant or had children, so I really stood out – we still went out clubbing when I was full term! I was out daily and out jogging three times a week until the day I went into labour, much to the shock of the locals – I was told it’s uncommon for local women to venture outside when they’re in their 3rd trimester.

I gave birth in an expat hospital and the care given was superior to any other country. It was absolute luxury, but did cost almost US$20k!

As I gave birth during winter, we had to deal with a newborn in sub-zero celsius weather. We were always bundled up and baby bath time was a real headache. Thankfully, we lived in the middle of the city so everything was within a few mins walk. I could easily pop outside to pick up a few groceries and get my hair washed and blow dried (which cost only about U$8).

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Moving from Shanghai to Singapore

My husband’s company transferred us to Singapore when our son Hunter was 4 months old, and I made the decision to quit my job to be a full-time mum. It was the right decision for us – Singapore’s air quality is much better, and we found everything simpler and cleaner.

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Pregnancy in Shanghai vs in Singapore

The stark contrast of being pregnant in Singapore was very evident to me when I was pregnant with our second child, Carter. Seeing a pregnant woman in Singapore is fairly common, so no one pays much notice. In China, being pregnant meant having a lot of people (especially the older folk) fawn over you – I felt like I was having a royal baby there!

Childbirth in a Singapore hospital meant having access to one of the world’s greatest health care, but also felt like a production line in comparison to the extremely personal service in Shanghai where there were only 2 to 3 women staying in the maternity ward, and 6 nurses on staff.

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Adjusting to life in Singapore

Singapore is easy living, it’s fun for singles and safe and accessible for families. Everyone speaks English and it boasts excellent restaurants, shops and kid-friendly activities. I haven’t heard any parent complain about making the move to Singapore! The expat population is huge and our area is also very multicultural, so our neighbours are Europeans, Australians, Americans, Japanese, etc.

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Play time

Water play is HUGE in Singapore, thanks to the constant heat and humidity year round. We swim 3-4 times a week, go to water playgrounds, and have lots of pool parties with friends. Singapore also has indoor playgrounds galore, which you can often find us at. And, of course, dining – take your pick of any cuisine you feel like eating, and there’ll be a restaurant serving it near by!

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Safe and accessible

Everything is easily accessible, malls and restaurants are almost all very family friendly, and the weather is always warm. It’s also an extremely safe country with low crime rates, something that we really appreciate now that we’re parents.

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

The school system

The local school system is (in)famous for being notoriously cut throat. Grade One kids come home with homework (and wait til you see the level of knowledge they’re expected to have!), and primary school children are known for going straight from school, to enrichment classes or tuition, to going home to do homework. There is little time for simple things like going to the playground.. and they’re only seven years old!

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Raising multicultural eaters

Singapore is so multicultural that we eat the world’s cuisine, as I like to call it. We cook a lot of pastas, roasts, and also rice dishes.

Singapore is also renowned for their hawker centres, where you’ll find delicious food stalls at great prices. Some of the top choices for local food are Hainanese Chicken Rice, Laksa noodles, and Chicken Satay. They’re delicious!

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Holidays abroad

What’s surprising is that, despite being in Asia, a lot of Singaporeans go on holidays in Europe, America, and other countries on the other side of the world! Singaporeans love to travel.

But if we want to stay closer to home (and spare us all a painful long-haul flight), then popping over to places like Bali, Hong Kong or Japan is an excellent choice since there are often cheap deals on flights to these places.

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Making friends

It was very easy to make friends with our neighbours, who are almost all expats and eager to make new friendships. It’s unfortunately much harder to go beyond a casual acquaintance with a local, because many have deep set friendships with people they went to school with and have always hung out with all these years. It can be extremely cliquey and they generally will not invite an ‘outsider’ to hang out with their old school gang!

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Kids and discipline

Singaporean children do display better discipline, due to the intensity and expectations of being in a local school. In general, though, Singaporeans are quite a blessed bunch and almost every family has a domestic helper to do all the household chores and cooking, so the children are very fortunate that they are usually not expected to help out at home!

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.me

Parenting and societal norms

It’s normal for both parents to work in Singapore, and to work long hours. Because of this, time with their children is precious, so parents are willing to splurge on amusement parks, childrens plays, and dining with their kids. I’ve never seen more families out shopping and eating with very young children (especially late at night) than I have in Singapore!

Because both parents often work, Singaporean kids usually have a late bed time. Toddlers can sleep at 10PM! My kids are actually an anomaly as they have a 7PM bedtime (my husband and I really value our adult-only peace and quiet!).

Parenting Around The World: Singapore via christineknight.meBeverly Burgess is a social media addict, having worked in the online space for 7 years at Microsoft and eBay. Having blogged for over two decades across Australia, China and now Singapore, Beverly entered an alternate universe at warp speed when she went from career-driven shopaholic and social butterfly … to juggling being a wife and a mother of two kids.

All within three years.

The career is now replaced with the privilege of being a full-time mum, but the urge to shop and socialize still remains (albeit with two obliging children in tow).

And, she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Beverly blogs at: http://beverlys.net
You can also find her on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/BeverlysNet

Linking up with Bron and Karin.

Am I Being A Good Enough Mum?

vaucluse-house-high-tea-41

I honestly didn’t think motherhood would be so emotionally hard. Pre-kid, I imagined I would pop out my little one and then get back to my regular daily life—just with a sidekick in tow. What I didn’t imagine was all the second guessing I would be doing about my own mothering skills. I’m constantly obsessing that I’m not doing the right thing and always assume I’m falling short of what I want to be, which is a really great parent. Here are 10 worries I currently have about my parenting:

1. Is she having too much TV/iPad time?

I’m sure the fact that I’m giving her any TV or screen time is bad. She knows all the words to the Barney and Friends songs and is now onto Strawberry Shortcake.

2. Is she eating enough nutrients?

Actually, she won’t eat most things. Her diet is basically white pasta (no sauce), eggs, fruit and toast. The only vegetable she’ll eat is corn on the cob.

3. Is she okay at daycare?

I hate leaving my daughter with strangers and daycare is no exception. While I’ve done the best I could to choose a reputable facility, I still worry constantly over whether it’s the right place for her.

4. Is she getting enough sleep?

My child has been a bad sleeper since birth. At age three she still wakes up most nights. I’m exhausted and I worry about how tired my daughter must be! How can I help her to get the sleep she needs so she’s not rubbing her eyes all day?

5. Does she have too many toys?

Have I spoiled her with too much ‘stuff’? I don’t know, but I know I’m always feeling insecure about it.

6. Does she need siblings?

My husband and I are 99.9% sure that we’re happy with our single child, but am I doing her a disservice by making her an only child?

7. Am I sending the right message?

When I hear the same words I’ve spoken offhand repeated by her little chirping voice I resolve over and over again to be careful what I say around her. I want my daughter to believe she is strong and amazing and can do anything. The thought of my careless words destroying her self-esteem kills me.

8. Am I setting a good example?

I try, really I do, but curse words sometimes come out and all kinds of thoughtless other things that I really shouldn’t be saying around someone who is a sponge and absorbs everything I say.

9. Do I yell too much?

I’m sure the answer to this is yes and I hate it.

10. Am I being patient enough?

I’m an impatient person at the best of times. I’m trying so hard to be more patient with this tiny person sharing my life. I know I say “quick quick, we’re running late!” too often. We need more days with slow footpath ambling, pointing out spider-webs and picking up fallen leaves. These are the happy days that my child loves, the moments she tells her daddy about when we get home.

This article first appeared on Mommynearest.com

Parenting Around The World: Zurich, Switzerland

I’m starting a new parenting series today: a view into what life is like for parents around the world. My first parent is Thien Lan Weber, a French-born Vietnamese professional (and blogger!), who, after living in Australia for 12 years, recently moved to Zurich, Switzerland, with her husband, Emmanuel, and their two sons (aged three and six). The couple are both originally from France (Thien Lan from Paris, Emmanuel from Nancy in Eastern France). Says Thien Lan, “Call me a Parisian (although I look Asian) but don’t call him a Nancy boy though!”

Parenting in Zurich

Their current home is Gockhausen, a cute village in the mountain surrounded by the woods, but only a 15 minute drive from the city centre. A big change from their old home on Sydney’s Eastern suburbs, where they lived close to the beach. 

Thank you so much Thien Lan for sharing your amazing insight into life as a parent in Zurich.

Parenting in Zurich

A climate change
The first thing people said when I moved from Sydney to Zurich was: “What a change!” Indeed, the climate is not the same. Captain Obvious would say it’s much cooler here. In fact when we arrived last September, the summer was unusually long and the weather was mild up to Christmas. Mild here means above zero degrees. But here are a few things I like about this climate:

  • Less wind, so much less wind, which means a 15 degree feels much warmer than winter in Sydney where the breeze coming straight from Antarctica chills me to the bones
  • Snow! The kids discovered snow last month. It was magical. In particular when Frozen the Disney movie is so popular.
  • Ski. We discovered a very child-friendly ski resort just an hour drive away from where we live. The kids have been twice so far and my 6-year-old is making amazing progress. He can go down a small slope by himself and avoid a few obstacles. Much easier to pick up than surfing.
  • No running barefoot. Sorry Aussie friends but that habit of yours (well, some of you) grosses me out. In fact it’s the opposite here: kids (and grown up alike) take their shoes off before entering someone’s house and change from snow boots to slippers when they enter school.
  • Shopping! Great excuse for me to buy a whole range of clothes I didn’t have back in Sydney. Lucky I got given Ugg Boots as farewell gift. I can’t live without their comfort and warmth. But I got to buy lots of knitwear and a super cool down jacket that protects me up to minus 5 or 10 degrees Celcius, woohoo!

The inconvenience of this new climate though, is:

  • Rugging up the kids: long sleeve polo shirt + jumper + down jacket + beanie + gloves + warm socks + snow boots. I gave up on the scarves thanks to turtleneck jackets. My 3-year-old had two months of why-do-I-have-to-wear-a-jacket type of tantrums. Then they often forget their beanies or gloves at school, just more hassle to your everyday life.
  • Less opportunities to play outdoor BUT eventually, as long as it’s not raining, I’m happy to get them to rug up and play outside in the woods or at the small playground in front of our house.

Parenting in Zurich

Early Independence
The Swiss want their kids to be autonomous from a very young age. Kids walk back to school by themselves from the age of three or four. I see small groups of pre-schoolers learning how to cross the street. My six-year-old goes to school by himself, it’s only three minutes walk through a bit of woods over a wooden bridge. So picturesque! But that’s my biggest pride so far and that’s why we chose to live in this village.

Parenting in Zurich

Outdoor lifestyle
Most building blocks comprises of a small playground with either swings or slides, so it’s very convenient for kids to play outside and have play dates without making a mess at home.

We also love our nearby lake. We went for a swim a couple of times in September and the water and the air were around 20 degrees Celcius. For 3 CHF(4.3AUD) you have access to a beach with manicured grass, change rooms, lockers, ping pong tables, water play and playground, access to the Lake via rockstairs or via waterslides, diving board and a few platforms further in the lake from where you can swim to and  take a breathtaking view of the coast.

The mountains are also wonderful. Not just for skiing but as landscape background. Beautiful with snowy tops.

Parenting in Zurich

Learning to share facilities
For the first time ever, we need to get used to sharing a washing machine and dryer with strangers. In most buildings you have one set of washing machines and dryer to share among all the tenants with a roster on when you can wash your clothes, i.e. once a week plus weekends if needs be. With the kids playing in muddy snow it’s not always convenient. Lucky my husband is very organised so he plans it all ahead. I know I’m lucky, he takes care of the washing. And I also bought more pants to get through the week so we need to wash our clothes less.

Cleanliness and convenience for kids
All playgrounds are clean, maintained and have toilets. Café and restaurants toilets are all spotless too. Sometimes they have change tables. Sydney wasn’t too bad for that but Paris is outrageous.

Following local customs
The Swiss society is known for abiding by rules and being very clean. When we spilled a Coke on the floor at Maccas we felt like we had to clean it up, straight away. Stairs and common areas in your building are spotless and neighbour watch is extreme.

While everyone being strict on following rules keeps everything clean and safe, it can also get annoying when taken to the extreme, such as an old lady I noticed who recorded all the license plate numbers of the cars parked in our street one day. From what I’ve been told, she is annoyed that our street is being invaded by non-local parents who drop off their kids at the school.

Location, location, location
We love our proximity to France and the rest of Europe. The whole point of the move for us was to be close to family and being only three-and-a-half hour drive from Nancy, we get to see my in-laws quite often. And from Nancy I can hop to Paris which is only one hour and 20 minutes away by high speed train (and leave the kids with their Grand Ma so I shop and dine freely). Zurich is also three-and-half hour drive from Burgundy with its world famous wineries and Michelin Star restaurants. Further down the region we can visit my former-dorm mate and best friend from university who also has two boys and so similar point of views about life, career and education although we have been 20,000 km apart for all these years!

Parenting in Zurich

Exposure to culture 
Museums are free to kids, and all have clean toilets, free cloakrooms and lockers, and no crowds at all! There are also many old castles you can visit and learn about the history and customs of the area in a fun and interactive way. Farms organise arts and crafts activities like pumpkins decoration contests and candles making.

What we eat
Affordable organic fruits and veggies and Cordon Bleu (chicken schnitzel with melted cheese and ham inside) is a national dish. The kids love it.

On the downside, Sashimi is extremely expensive. Switzerland is not exactly know for its coast and fish market. A visit to a Sushi train cost us 200 CHF ($279 AUD) for us four on our second day in Zurich. Never again! We shifted to cheese instead: fondue, raclette. As long as we don’t mention sashimis to the kids they won’t ask for it. Lucky we’ve got a nice Vietnamese joint 10 minutes drive. It’s 20 CHF = 29 AUD for a bowl of pho, which is pretty cheap lunch according to local standards.

There are also no babycinos in Zurich! And kids’ meals are around 15 CHF with free cordial drink, although I found a nice café that makes you pay as many CHF as your child’s age.

Picking up the local language
The challenge for us is to learn two new languages. The local language is Swiss German, which sounds like Dutch, but the written language is German. It’s hard for the kids to learn German and maintain English being enrolled where they are at a French School. Fortunately, the French system starts at three years old so the little one goes to school full time and half of the week is in German. The six year old has 45 mins of German, four times a week, and for me, I enrolled in intensive classes to refresh my seven years of German classes, forgotten after almost 20 years of not practicing.

A challenge with not speaking German yet is needing to enroll the kids in activities in languages that they do speak – either French or English. We are fortunate enough to have after school activities organised by the French school almost every day. Wednesday afternoon is free though so we have to find our own. We live eight minutes walk from a pony club so I enrolled my six-year-old. Although the instructors could speak English, my son didn’t bond much with the experience, the local kids (all girls), nor the ponies to be honest. We also tried English-speaking football and that was better.

To keep up swimming classes our only choice is German-speaking classes, but for music where my son’s motivation is really not there yet, I don’t want to ruin it by choosing the local classes in German. My strategy will be to start with asking one of the French teachers that he absolutely loves to show him a few things on the guitar. It’s a big disappointing to have to choose this route because the local music school is subsidised by the city and is well structured, reflecting the long arts tradition in Europe. I didn’t have the luxury to have a private teacher when I grew up in Paris and took lessons at the Conservatoire with lots of exams, hard work and competition.

Making new friends
Only the language barrier is preventing us from meeting friends with the locals. However, the French school network is very tight and helpful, Facebook groups like “mum’s and mum’s to be in Zurich” works wonders with replies within the hour to any question you might have, small or big. And I discovered many other English speaking networks which all about sharing and helping each other.


thien lan weberThien Lan Weber is a French born Vietnamese professional with 15 years consumer marketing experience in Blue chip companies. She is also a mum of two boys and recently stopped corporate work when she relocated from Sydney Australia to Zurich Switzerland for family reasons.

She now follows her passion writing a blog with restaurant reviews covering Zurich and France. Her style is all about practical tips like dining out with kids or career shifts for working mums. She’s currently refreshing her German, helping some Mumtrepreneurs with their marketing, takes time to play the piano and helps her eldest son when he’s stuck in his Skylanders video games.

You can follow Thien Lan’s adventures as an expat in Zurich on her blog, http://www.thienlan.me. You can also find her on LinkedIn.

Wanderlust

The Four Things You Need To Know About Newborns

The Only Four Things You Need To Know About Newborns via akissgoodnight.co

I’ll never forget those first torturous months of parenthood. Second guessing every decision I made, Googling everything from “swaddle too tight?” to “dropped iphone on babys head”. My complete lack of confidence in my parenting ability made me seek advice from any source possible. I read every book from The Happiest Baby On The Block to The New Basics, and found so many opposing ideas on every part of baby’s life that I was left paralyzed with confusion as what to do with this new, screaming, red-faced creature.

Fast-forward to almost three years later. With a toddler who managed to survive despite my lack of parenting skills, I feel vastly more confident around babies. When friends who are about to have a new baby come to me with questions, my best advice comes down to these four, simple points:

1. You can’t spoil a baby

Does this sound familiar? “Don’t hold the baby all day or it will get used to it and won’t go to sleep by itself”, “Feed the baby every four hours from birth” (ignoring all the wailing in between). Great advice given to new parents by people who don’t have to live with their newborn baby. “You’re spoiling the baby!” My feeling is that life with a newborn is hard enough without trying to persuade him/her that it doesn’t want what it wants. The one thing that made life easier for me was realizing that this tiny new creature had NO IDEA where it was or what it was supposed to be doing in this brand new life. The baby was confused, scared and needed me. So that’s what I did – I gave the baby what it needed to make both our lives as easy and pleasant as possible. I held, fed, and slept on-demand for those first few months while baby was adjusting to life on the outside. There is plenty of time for feeding and sleep schedules in the coming months. How about we all just focus on getting through each day as best we can for those first, hard months?

2. Do what you need to do

Mothers have so much pressure put on them to do what’s right for the baby, even if this is completely opposed to what’s best for the mother. If we all remember that we’re all doing the best we can and stop judging each other, it’s much easier for moms to put their own health and wellbeing as a priority, and do whatever they need to do to survive. This might mean bottle or formula feeding. It might mean taking a break and getting a sitter, or even going somewhere overnight to just get a full nights sleep. Whatever you need to survive, that’s what’s best for your baby.

3. When you’re at breaking point, get help

Those moms who look like they’ve got it all together? Secret: they’re probably putting on a really good front. Being a first-time mom is so hard, even if some women make it look easy. If you’re struggling, miserable, lonely, depressed – get help. It does not mean you’re not a good mother if you need help – it actually makes you a smart mama. If you don’t have friends or family nearby to listen, lend a hand, take the baby, or take you out for wine when you need a break, then hire help if possible. Don’t struggle alone thinking it makes you a failure if you’re not coping. We’ve all been there and felt like we couldn’t make it another hour let alone another day.

4. Enjoy the good parts

I had such a difficult baby that I absolutely HATED it when people told me to “enjoy every moment”, particularly when most of her early moments were pure misery for me. I suggest enjoying the moments that are great, and trying to survive the rest. Do not feel guilty if you don’t enjoy every single moment. Yes your baby will grow super fast, and yes these moments are precious. They can also be super hard, particularly in the beginning, when every day seems to stretch into eternity. And you know, life in general isn’t amazing and enjoyable every second of every day – even for non-parents. So take the pressure off. If you can enjoy and cherish a part of each day, I’d say you’re doing pretty well.

Disclaimer: I am not a baby expert. Not by a long shot. This is just what worked for me. Good luck new mama, I’m rooting for you!

This article first appeared on Mommynearest.com

The Edge of Three

The Edge of Three via akissgoodnight.co

Age two started out sweet. Big smiles, mispronounced first words and learning to run. But somewhere over the past ten months, sweet two turned into challenging-almost-three. It’s truly an age of split personalities—easy going, joyful and happy one minute, then devastated, howling, and limp noodle on the floor the next. This age is hair-pullingly frustrating, and heart-meltingly beautiful, all bundled together. Here are some of the highlights and lowlights of this challenging age:

Meltdowns over nothing
You didn’t cut the crusts off the sandwich—cue meltdown. You DO cut the crusts off—cue another meltdown. The thrashing tantrums come hard and fast with no warning.

Toilet training
This isn’t fun, and it takes a lot longer than three days for most children. It’s frustrating and hard for the whole family, and something best avoided until you feel it’s absolutely time to be done with diapers.

Food wars
Suddenly your “I’ll eat anything” kid, who shoveled down broccoli, green beans and begged for carrots, will now only gingerly pick at a piece of plain herb or vegetable—after carefully removing any sign of offending sauce. Your toddler is surviving on air and crackers.

“I’m a big girl”
Or boy, of course. Your toddler now wants to do EVERYTHING by themselves, and will actually repeat actions like walking down stairs or climbing up on a chair if they’re assisted or carried the first time. Frustratingly. the “I’m a big (girl/boy)” often occurs mid-meltdown, when said toddler is in a puddle on the floor and refusing to walk/put their pants on/have their hair brushed/go to the potty.

The bedtime routine
At some stage, your toddler will climb or fall out of their crib and need a toddler bed. At this point, your evenings as you know them will be over, and you’ll need to retrain the kid to stay in their room. Yes, easier said than done. Prepare for several nights (dare we say it, even weeks?) of a certain little person discovering they can actually leave their room during the night to come and disturb your precious Scandal watching time—or, God forbid, wake you during the night seeking milk, water or a hug.

The Edge of Three via akissgoodnight.co

Big words
Basic words and short sentences turn into complicated words and phrases almost overnight: “I hear my echo!,” “We’re sharing, mommy!,” “Daddy said I could watch the iPad!.” Your baby has turned into a big kid—which means it’s officially tIme to start spelling out F.R.O.Z.E.N. unless you want to be watching it on repeat from dawn till dusk.

Song and dance
Little kid breaks into “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, with all the words absolutely perfect. (Wait, when did they even see Aladdin?, you might ask yourself!) This is the age of making up songs (“I have a little dog, I have a little dog!”) and dancing with joy on the sidewalk when a car drives past with “Happy” pumping out the windows.

Frozen
The Disney movie is so crazy popular with toddlers, it deserves it’s own section. One of the most entertaining ways to start the day is when you hear the knock, knock, knock on the bathroom door while you’re trying to shower—followed by “Do you want to build a snowman?”.

Being schooled on technology
Your toddler probably is now able to use the iPad better than you can. So next time you can’t figure out how to play a game or watch a video or turn it on, just ask your child …

Hugs and kisses
Right after those meltdowns come the hugs so vigorous they almost take your head off. “I love you Mommy, you’re my best friend!” is exclaimed as frequently as the wet noodle maneuver occurs, and is literally the best thing about having a toddler. That, and the exuberant kisses that cover your face from morning to night. More of this unexpected affection, please!

This article was first published on Mommynearest.com

Reasons My Toddler Is Whining

Reasons My Toddler Is Whining via akissgoodnight.co

My mum warned me that once my child started talking, that I’d regret wanting her to talk so much as from then on, the talking never stops. Of course, I didn’t listen, and was so desperate for little Cheese to start talking. Over our summer visit to Australia, her speech finally exploded. Somethings are insanely cute, like “I love you Mummy!”, “You’re my best friend”, “Tulips are Mummy’s favourite!” (they are!), “I’ll be right back!” (so not true, she’s never right back). Others, not so cute, like “Calm down Mummy!”, or “Just stop it, Mummy!”. Ugh.

Worst of all though, is the whining. I was worried that age two would bring tantrums. Thankfully, no tantrums, but OH MY GOD, THE WHINING! Some days there are none, but some days, it’s literally non-stop all day long.

Here are today’s top whines.

She wanted to try bread in Whole Foods. I got her bread. It wasn’t big enough. “Want BIGGER BREAD!”

She wanted a bandaid on a graze on her toe. Socks and shoes went over the top. She wanted to pull her shoes and socks in the playground off to see the bandaid.

Couldn’t find Anna. Found Anna. Couldn’t find Anna’s dress. Found Anna’s dress. Couldn’t find Elsa’s dress. Found it! Can’t put either dress on. “BROKEN!!!”

Scooting was too hard. “NO MORE SCOOT!”

Breakfast was her usual favourite, Cheerios and milk, and strawberries. “DON’T LIKE CEREAL!” (Dramatic hand sweeping motion.) “DON’T LIKE BUBBIES! (Crap. Now what am I going to feed her?)

Wanted to take Anna and Elsa dolls to preschool. Told her they’d get lost so they needed to stay home. “NOOOOOOOO ANNA ELSAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!” Charges around the living room holding onto Anna and Else for dear life. Dolls need to be (lovingly) removed by force. Whining turns into crying.

A lady on the street admired her Cinderella dress. “DON’T LOOK AT MEEEEEE!”

Didn’t want to push the button to call the elevator, so I pushed it instead. “BUT I WANTED TO PUSH ITTTTTTTTT!”

I gave her Cheddar Bunnies and she wanted Gold Fish. THEY’RE THE SAME THING!

She did a poo in her nappy and I tried to change it. “DON’T TOUCH ME DON’T TOUCH ME DON’T TOUCH MEEEEE!!!!”

Toddlers, yay! Now someone please pass me the wine.

A Day Alone With My 2-Year-Old


I’ve really enjoyed my toddler being at her 2s programs since September. Four days a week, she goes to one of two schools, where she is in either a 2 or 3 hour drop-off program. Add in the 2 hour nap, and I get several solid hours of time to myself four days a week to work on freelance assignments and my websites. Yesterday, however, was a reminder of life without school – and it was scary.

Now that school is closed for two weeks (TWO WEEKS!!!) and my babysitter is on holiday (an actual holiday, minus children – jealous), it’s just all me, all day. We usually have every Friday completely together, so I didn’t think much of our “holiday” time until yesterday happened.

6:30am: She wakes up. I go to get her out of her room only to be told “No Mummy, want DADDY” and have the door slammed in my face.
6:45: She stops whining for Daddy and comes out into the living room, where I am already on my 2nd glass of Coke Zero. We play with the iPad, Playdoh, tiaras and stuffed animals until my husband wakes up.
9:15: My husband gets up. He needed extra sleep after getting up with Cheese during the night. I steal a quick shower while he tries to convince our toddler to eat some form of breakfast that doesn’t come in a pouch, and then heads off to work.
9:45: Cheese realises Daddy isn’t coming back. Everything goes downhill and no amount of Play Doh will fix it.
11am: I try and put her down for a nap. She’s so exhausted she’s almost rubbing the eyes out of her head. She insists “No nap!” even as her eyes are rolling back.
11:10: 10 minutes of screaming for milk and “bubbies” (strawberries). I comply with both.
11:30pm: Loud banging from her room tells me she is still awake and possibly abseiling from the ceiling.
11:33: “BOO BOO KITTY!” and more crying (she wants a hello Kitty bandaid for her abseiling injury).
12:15: The muttering and crying stops and I think she’s gone to sleep.
12:17: The voice at the door “MUMMYYYYY where aaaaare you?!”. Argh. I go in and notice she has pooed. Change diaper and put her back down to even more protesting and whining.
12:50: She has now been screaming for 20 minutes. I can’t find the noise cancelling headphones and am going out of my mind. I offer milk and try and put her back to bed.
1pm: I give up and let her out of her room. I make her a grilled cheese sandwich that she won’t touch. She eats an entire punnet of strawberries and demands chocolate milk. Nice try.
3pm: We play with all her toys while I beg her to eat something with protein or even carbs in it. Building block houses for her princesses, Play Doh again with the talking Elmo Shape & Spin that I always tread on during the night, and sing Twinkle Twinkle and Wheels on the Bus along with the iPad.
4pm: It’s time to leave the house. We are meant to be going to a Christmas party in Williamsburg but I’m too exhausted to take her on the subway. Instead we stroll towards Kids Club for an open play session. We don’t reach the end of the block before she falls asleep in the stroller. Of course. I now have about an hour of walking the streets to do to give her the nap she needs.
4:45: I find myself in Red Hook. I have walked a long way.
5pm: I walk to the new Whole Foods in Gowanus and relish shopping without someone whining and grabbing everything in her reach. I slowly browse shelves, checking out brands I usually whizz past. I find a gingerbread house already baked and assembled, ready for decorating – the day is looking up!
5:45pm: She wakes up when I’m at the cash register – somewhat surprised to find herself in Whole Foods. We stroll home.
6pm: We stop outside a church to listen to the bells. Cheese asks for “more bells!” very insistently. Sadly I can’t deliver on more bells, so we head home.
6:15pm: Home, and I’m so tired I can barely stand. I throw pasta leftovers in the microwave and serve them to Cheese for dinner, along with her beloved “bubbies”. She won’t touch a thing and demands to watch BOTH the iPad AND the TV at once. I’m too tired to put up a fight, so put Barney on the TV and her favourite video, Feist’s “1234”, on the iPad. I collapse on the couch next to her high chair and beg her to eat.
7pm: My husband gets home. I nearly cry with relief.

Only two weeks left until school starts again. Not that I’m counting down or anything.