Be an Environmental Friendly Parent.

I believe that as a parent, I owe it to my children to make sure they live in a sustainable planet. Therefore, I always advocate to my fellow new parents that being environmental friendly will ensure we live a cleaner planet for our next generations when we pass on.

I happened to have a conversation with my spouse who went to a recent baby fair with a fellow new parents. As she was describing their loot, I realise how wasteful can a parent get. Not only they are wasting precious cash which can be save up for their children, they are creating plenty of waste which can be harmful for our environment.

So as a responsible parent we should always try to reduce the wastage we create by following some simple rules.

1) Don't buy more than what is necessary

I know sometime it can be tempting to buy things in a bundle as they often offer cheaper deal. However, if you buy more than you need and your child out grown it you will end up create unnecessary waste. So if possible, share the bundle with another parent. If that is not the option, just buy what is needed.

2) Take hand me down

Buying new items like clothing, toys or book can be quite wasteful, so taking in hand me down is a great ways to save the environment. You will give old item a new purpose and most of the time your children will out grow it pretty quickly. Just make sure you clean them up before giving it to your kids.

3) Reduce the use of diapers and baby wipes

This might be an inconvenience but if you truly want to help the environment this will have the greatest impact. Although diapers decompose fairly quickly, the amount we are using right now can fill up our landfill faster than it decompose. Baby wipes DO NOT decompose naturally so it has to go into landfill. So as much as possible, use cloth nappies and wash your babies instead of using baby wipes.

All of this might not be practical as every parent face different issue that prevent them from being environmentally friendly. However we can all chip in and do a little bit, our environment will be slightly better.

Unconventional ways of raising children

I have rather unconventional ways with raising my children... At least to the older generation Asian parent.

I am an Asian parent and my children have to be raise up by certain standard in order to be considered a good parent.

But I do not care.

I allow my children to use tech products (iPad, Smartphones, computers etc..) as and when they please.

I feed my children fast food at least once a week.

I don't force my children to study and they will only read a book when they are ready to.

I give them freedom of choice when it come to their clothes, the food they want to eat and the way they want to do things.

My parenting style is that I lead by example.

If I want my son to read a book, I make sure I read one beside him.

If I want my daughter to eat healthy, I make sure I can eat healthy food as well.

If I want my children to sleep early, I make sure I go to bed by 10:30.

I do not want my children to do something because "dad say so" but rather do it because it is the right thing to do.

This doesn't mean I do not discipline, I do.

I disciple them when they do not show respect to others freedom, when they misbehave in public which causes inconvenience to other and when they cause harm to others physically.

I have been criticize by the older generation, they think that I am spoiling my child.

The older generation can say all they want about how I raise my kids.

I believe in what I do and how I do it.

You should too because only you know your child the best.

Father Figure

If you have ever read "Rich Dad Poor Dad" you will know that Robert Kiyosaki is lucky enough to have 2 fatherly figure. This allow him to compare and contrast how this 2 person think, which in turn affect their physical result.

I feel that I am luckier as I have 3 fatherly figure in my life who teach me how to be a better person.

My first fatherly figure is my biological father. He is the most hardworking man I have ever seen, he often work up to 80 hours a week just so he could provide a better life for our family. He is not rich but he does his best. He show me that a person can make it through life with hard work and respect for other people. His guidance have help me secure many sincere friendship and respect from fellow colleagues.

My second fatherly figure is my father-in-law. He is a photography enthusiast, he often show me pictures he have taken and the thought process before he press the shutter. A humble man with a big heart to share, he thought me the importance of passion and how having something you are passionate about can help you live a happier life.

My third fatherly figure is my mentor. He may not be as successful as the entrepreneur seen in publication, but his perseverance have allowed him to live an above average lifestyle. He pulled me up when my business is in the red and shared his valuable experience so I can apply them to my business.

Although this 3 men lead very different life, their lesson is fairly similar. They all encourage hard work, passion and happiness. I am thankful to have them in my life, for it is their guidance that gave me hope for a better tomorrow.

I strive to provide the same guidance for both my children.

Daddy's Guide: How to get baby to sleep?

For a Daddy, the greatest fear is to take care of your little ones alone. Especially when it come to getting your infants to sleep.

Let's face it, we dad do not have the luxury of breast feeding the baby to sleep and we also do not possess the gentleness that can sooth baby to sleep. So putting an infant to sleep is challenging but it doesn't mean it cannot be done.

Here is a way I find useful which I used on my 2 kids during infancy and I hope it help you have a better night rest.

Step 1: Check if the baby have a wet diaper or is hungry

First step is to eliminate anything that will wake your child up unnecessarily, that means to say change your baby diaper and feed your baby if needed.

Step 2: Create a calm sleeping environment

You can achieve this by lowering the curtain, switching off bright light and turning on your side table lamp.

Step 3: Tired your baby out

This step might seem abit cruel but if used conservatively it can be quite effective. I will allow my baby to cry it out for about 5 minutes. This will tired the baby abit to make it slightly easier to put them to sleep.

Step 4: Switch on baby videos with lullaby

This can be done concurrently with step 3. You can on baby videos with some lullaby, the purpose of this is to fixate your baby attention to a single spot.

Step 5: Proceed to hug and sway your baby to sleep

At this point your baby should be crying heavily, proceed to sooth your baby by gently swaying your baby in your arm. After awhile you will realize your baby is attracted by the video playing and will slowly stop crying.

Step 6: Put your baby down slowly

Once your baby start to become dreamy, you can slowly put your baby down and gently pat the little one to sleep with the video and music still playing. You can switch off the video once your baby is fully asleep, but I prefer to leave it on to maintain the environment.

I find this method especially useful if you combine it with pacifier, but it works fine for me both with and without pacifier.

Please note that this method may not work on all babies, so you might want to tweak the method to better suit your little one. Good Luck!

Survivor: Young Parent Guide

My journey as a young parent begin when I were 22, back then my wife is only 20 and we just got started working in the corporate world. Needless to say we weren't earning a lot and I have to think of ways to make end meet with less than $3,000 in combine income. Looking back now, I realize I made many money mistake but I manage to pull through with many help and personal sacrifice in order to feed my kids.

So I compile a list of things young parent can do to help them survive financially so you can minimize making the same money mistake I do.

Here we go~

1) Staying with your parents

I know it is tempting for young couple to want to have a place to call your own. But having a place while your kid is still in infancy will not only increase your living expenses by means of rent and utilities, you will also have to make special arrangement to take care of your child. Therefore, staying with your parent can not only minimize your living expense, they act as a caretaker for your child as well.

2) Both you and your spouse must go to work

Once you have manage to convince your parents to act as a caretaker, it is advisable that both of you go to work. Combine income from 2 person can allow you to have more money to save up for the future and working mom usually qualify for many subsidies which will be useful once your child hit toddlers age.

3) Take hand me down from others

Children grow up real fast, so buying things like clothes, toys, pram or even baby cot is not really worth the full price. So as much as possible, take hand me down from other parents whom their children have out grow. Most parent are more than happy to pass them to you, just make sure they are in good condition and safe for your child.

4) Buy only necessities

As much as possible try to buy only necessities, in the market it is fill with baby products that look good but are actually quite useless. You don't need a baby wipe warmer or an overprice blender to make baby food. So stick to the necessities and try to take hand me down or DIY to save money.

So basically, it all come down to how much you are willing to sacrifice to secure a better future for your little family. All the measure mention above are only temporary as when you grow older and your income increase, a better lifestyle will await you and your family. Good Luck.