Recently I was talking to my friend about our kids and the topic somehow arrive at brushing of their milk teeth. So far I've only wiped Jonas's teeth and gums with a clean damp cloth but haven't started on "real" brushing(with toothbrush) yet. She told me I should start soon as she read an article that says the milk that the kids drink will harm their milk teeth if not cleaned properly and can definitely cause cavities. I decided to find out more by doing a Google search on how old toddlers should start brushing.
Most of the sites advised to start even before the first tooth appear preferably around 4months old. Babies are actually born with their teeth formed but are just hidden beneath their delicate gums. Parents or caregivers should use a clean damp cloth or a soft silicone finger toothbrush to gently rub the gums in order to prevent bacteria from forming on the surface. When the first tooth appear, continue cleaning with the finger toothbrush or you can switch to a normal toothbrush. The ideal toothbrush head should be small for easy maneuvering in LO's small mouth and the bristles should be soft. This should start at about 6months of age and done at least twice a day to get kids used to the idea of brushing their teeth. Usually most kids will be taking solids at this age thus brushing is important to prevent the sugars from harming their milk teeth. A tinge(about size of a rice grain) of fluoride toothpaste can be used but do not try rinsing their mouth with water as they may swallow the toothpaste. Instead, teach them to spit out the excess toothpaste and leave abit of it on their teeth for the fluoride to work better. It was highlighted that the ingestion of fluoride can cause diarrhea. By the time they reach 2years old, the amount of fluoride can be increased to about a pea size. Brush their teeth and gums gently in a circular motion as they are still very delicate. If a child struggles, you can try letting him hold his own toothbrush. With some practice, kids will learn that they need to brush their teeth. Try to let them watch you brushing so that they can learn too. Adult supervision and assistance will be needed until they can do it by themselves. I also read about flossing in between their teeth on one of the sites but I wonder if it could be possibly done since getting them to start brushing is already such a challenge. On another website, it states that a child should be brought to the dentist before he turns one which I felt was too early. However, it is a good idea to start bringing them for half yearly dental visits at a younger age before going to primary school in order to ease their fears about visiting the dentist.
Armed with this newly gained knowledge, I bought a Kodomo brand toothbrush suitable for 0.5-2year old and a tube of fruity gel Kodomo toothpaste for Jonas. I've been trying to make him brush his teeth without much success for the past few days. After I start to brush his teeth, he'll start to suck at the toothpaste shortly and prefers to bite the bristles and the toothbrush head. Then he wants to hold the toothbrush. When I try too hard, he'll turn his head away or shake his head indicating that he don't want to brush. I guess he's still too young to understand what we are doing. But I'll persevere with it and not give up. Hopefully he'll like to brush his teeth soon as I noticed he already have half of his milk teeth grown(about 10). He is currently 18months old and I'm abit regretful I didn't start him on it earlier. So with this bit of information shared, I hope you will have a better experience then me when taking care of your kid's oral hygiene.
For the entire month of October, I was busy with house moving and there were tons of stuff to unpack even though I already threw away quite a lot. So when I finally found time to bring Jonas out, I was relieved (of my chores) and he was elated. I decided to bring him to the Singapore Botanic Gardens which is a few MRT stations away from our new place. I thought it was a good idea to be outdoors post hazy days to get some Vitamin D from the sun.
We reached the garden at about 1pm. The MRT alights right at one of its side gates (Bukit Timah gate) which I thought is very convenient and I'll definitely want to bring him there again. I remember N years ago, it was always difficult to travel there whenever my parents want to bring us for a visit.
As it was a Sunday when we went, I noted several groups of people having picnics there (locals and foreigners). On one hand it shows the diverse racial harmony that Singapore is well known for, however on the other hand I wonder if it portrays a good image of us to tourists as sometimes picnic goers can get quite rowdy. Singapore Botanic Gardens being named by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site is well known to tourists and we certainly hope they will leave Singapore with a good impression of the country and our people. Anyway that aside, Jonas got tired shortly after reaching and fell asleep in the stroller while having his milk feed as he usually naps around that time. I made a mental note to bring him there earlier on our next visit.
I did some research online prior to the trip and my husband and I tried to look for the way to the Jacob Ballas Children Garden. There are signage pointing to the direction of the location indicating how far we are from it. But we find it somewhat confusing as the signage are few and far apart making it difficult to deduce the exact way we should go. When we finally found our way after getting lost for a few times, we decided to have our lunch first at the Kidz Cafe outside the Children Garden. Jonas was still sleeping but we decided to wake him up for lunch so that he'll have the energy to run later. He woke up grouchy at first but I managed to bring up his spirits by bringing him to walk around the vicinity outside the Children Garden.
I spotted some squirrels jumping between the trees inside the garden (which was visible from the outside as it was merely fenced up) and brought Jonas for a closer look. But I had a shock when two of them jumped onto the top of the fence just inches away from our faces I took off quickly with Jonas in my arms. Innocent Jonas was just laughing away.
Lunch was a simple fare of sausage spaghetti for me while Jonas shared fish and chips with my husband.
Point to note every time I pay a visit to places of interest -- Do Not buy food from there. It was as always overcharged. I paid $9.10 for tomato sauce spaghetti with one chicken sausage. I might as well have the fish and chips which I think cost $7.90. For my next trip to the Zoo, we shall have a hearty breakfast before going and I'll pack sandwiches and snacks to eat there.
We started exploring the Children Garden and Jonas was happily running around pulling my husband behind him.
There was a Treehouse playground which was quite unique but only for 5-12 year olds.
There was a sensory area for kids to have a feel and smell the plants. Photosynthesis was being explained with simple diagram charts. There was even a water play area which we couldn't let him go to because we did not bring extra clothes for him. The Children Garden is not very big so we proceeded to other parts of the Botanic Gardens after awhile. I found out from the staff that it'll take us approximately 45min to walk from where we were (which was known as the Bukit Timah core) to the other side of the Botanic Gardens. We decided to just stay and roam around where we were. As we were passing by the Eco lake, we noticed some people aiming their cameras at something on the edge of the lake. We stepped in to have a closer look and found two black swans standing by the lake and they seem to be sleeping. We wanted to stay for longer but alas it started to drizzle. Although there are shelters, we didn't want to be trapped by the rain not being able to go anywhere. So we quickly walked back to the MRT station but I did not forget to take a memorable photo outside the Garden before leaving.
Overall it was an enjoyable trip to spend time with the family. But I would certainly start the day earlier so we can cover a bigger area on our next trip. The more popular attractions like the National Orchid Garden are on the other side of the garden which is nearer to the main entrance. I would highly recommend the Botanic Gardens for nature loving families by spending the day having a picnic or taking beautiful pictures with the picturesque background.
