Before Faith was born, I had a dream pregnancy: No morning sickness, not too many cravings, no battle with weight gain. I attended Labour classes at Mamalink with Christine Choong and Breastfeeding classes with Gina Yong of the Total Breastfeeding Advocates Network (TBAN). I had read "What to expect when you are expecting" and "Babywise" by Gary Ezzo.
I thought I was fully prepared.
Boy was I wrong!
Breastfeeding was a challenge from the start. Many family members had never successfully breastfed for more than 1 month and were strong formula advocates. My mum however encouraged me and together with Gina's book 'Got Milk?', baby Faith, my husband and I fought a good fight to get breastfeeding going.
Faith started sleeping through the night at 6 weeks and we were so thankful for a decent night's sleep.
Then the problems started 2 weeks after my maternity leave ended.. Faith started to refuse the bottle despite mummy's and daddy's efforts. I think she broke both her grandmother's and great-grandmother's heart when she refused to be fed by them! The battle continued and 2 month old Faith started showing temper tantrums whenever she was being bottle-fed and drank as little espressed breastmilk as possible. As a working mummy at a Big-4 Accounting Firm, I was wrought with worry, hurrying back from work everyday to feed Faith!
Soon, I realised that Faith would not settle for anyone except me, her mummy. I quit my job with no idea what would happen, and was a full time mummy for 2 months before starting work at my husband's legal practice part time where there was a baby room so that Faith could be with me at all times and I could keep myself busy. The battle continued when Faith started solids, and I decided it was time to take matters into hand.
I had researched about baby signing extensively before Faith was born and had shortlisted a few different Baby Signing systems. American Sign Language (ASL) seemed to have the most resources and its use was fairly widespread as our local Malaysian sign language was based on it too. I bought them all from America and started teaching Faith from 8months. Although all systems are beneficial, I chose to follow the Baby Signing Time series as it's DVDs were the most interactive and musical. My baby loved to listen to the catchy songs and pretty colors. She would try to move her hands along to mimic Rachel's (the host) movements. Almost instantly, she started to respond and by 10 months, there were no more tantrums. She was able to tell me when she had eaten enough, when she wanted to potty, when she wanted me to breastfeed her etc.
Faith is now 16 months old and recent sharing with other mums has led me to start to train for my Baby Signing Time Instructors License. I have just launched my e-shop below, which will enable you to download Baby Signing Time videos, Signing Time Series One and Two. If you would like to receive 5% off your purchase, please email me at ymeiosis@gmail.com with Subject: Baby Signing to receive a coupon code which you can use during checkout.
Soon, I hope to start offering baby signing playgroups, classes and home visits after completing my qualification. But for now, let me share with you ...
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How to Start Signing with your baby:
Its easy to teach. Just start with a few signs and talk while you sign, eg
"Do you want milk? *sign milk*
More more more? *sign more more more*.
Later, try to reinforce buy letting them watch Signing Videos. You may get these at my e-shop . If you would like to receive 5% off your purchase, please email me at ymeiosis@gmail.com with Subject: Baby Signing to receive a free Parent Success Guide and a coupon code which you can use during checkout.
The first few signs you should try, which were most useful to me are:
(1) Milk (open,close fist),
(2) More more more (bring your 3 middle fingers on left and right hand to touch each other 3 times),
(3) Eat (Bring all your fingers together, then move towards ur mouth),
(4) Sleepy (2 hands by cheek, then head fall down like dozing),
(5) Potty (shake fist up and down).
(6) All done (move two hands concurrently fr L to R like no more)
(7) Hurt (2 index fingers meet)
(8) Where (2 hands palm facing up)
(9) Shoes (2 fists, bang against each other)
(10) Please (rub chest)
(11) TQ (fingers touch mouth)
(12) Sorry (hand touch forehead)
(13) Wash Hands (Palms rub up down)
(14) Brush Teeth (Index finger up down on teeth)
(15) Up (Index point up)
(16) Down (Index point down)
(17) Stop (Palm straight out)
(18) Go (Index pointing in front twice)
(19) Hot (Palm to mouth)
(20) Cold (Arms shaking)
(21) Yes (head nods)
(22) No (head shakes)
(23) Play (Thumb and little finger up, 3 middle fingers down, shake hand)
(24) Outside (Palm facing down changes to Palm facing up)
(25) Ball (2 palms facing in like squeezing a ball)
(26) Good Girl, clap hands (Clap hands)
(27) Dog (pat thighs)
There are many more.. especially fun ones like cat, bird, horse, flower, etc which you see often..
but these should be enough to understand your child quite well.. and say byebye to tantrums =)
Hope these helps u mummies/ daddies.. feel free to contact me at ymeiosis@gmail.com if you'd like to chat more! Happy Signing!
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Visit my Baby Signing e-shop!
Click here (goo.gl/Oj4Go)
*If you would like to receive a free Parent Success Guide and 5% off your purchase, please email me at ymeiosis@gmail.com with Subject: Baby Signing to receive a coupon code which you can use during checkout.
Ameizing Baby Signs e-shop is an amazing, user-friendly, self-contained software environment where you can browse, purchase, instantly download, and enjoy high quality Baby Signing Time video titles. You get every bit of the quality of a DVD, and in some cases better! Going digital has many benefits:
No waiting for deliveries. No shipping and handling charges. Never out of stock. No lost or damaged shipments. Order and start watching in just minutes! |
Watch anything you've purchased in just 3 clicks, whether you are connected to the internet or not. No more hassles with players, remote controls or TV inputs. | |
Unlike discs that can get damaged or lost, you'll never lose your digital purchases, even if you buy a new computer or your hard drive crashes. |
Manufacturing of discs contributes heavily to pollution, and 1.6 billion discs go into landfills every year. Enjoy the advantages of digital and save the planet while you're at it! |
Instant delivery.
Instant Access.
Safe.
Eco-friendly.Frequently Asked Questions:
How long does it take to download a product?
It depends on the speed of your internet connection, but with a fast broadband connection, you can start watching in just a few minutes while the rest of the product downloads in the background.What quality are the downloads?
The video and audio quality are every bit as good as a DVD, and in some cases, you will get better quality on the download (with an HD product).Will I get everything that comes with the DVD?
Yes, any additional materials, like PDFs, sheet music, tab, software or student materials are included.Can I watch my purchases on my iPad or iPhone?
Absolutely! Ameizing Baby Signs is compatible with the "MOD Mobile" app in the Apple App Store. If you have a $99 Apple TV, you can also beam your video wirelessly to your TV via AirPlay! Please see the "Help Center" in the Ameizing Baby Signs software to find out more.Can I enjoy my digital purchases even if I'm not connected to the internet?
Yes! Unlike streaming systems, you can take your laptop to a cabin in the woods, the beach or on an ocean voyage and watch anything you've purchased in full quality.Can I access my digital purchases on a different computer than the one I purchased on? What if my hard drive crashes or I buy a new computer?
Unlike a disc, that might become scratched, warped, or lost, you will never lose access to a Ameizing Baby Signs purchase. Follow these steps to access your purchases:- Download and install the free Ameizing Baby Signs Player app onto your second computer using one of the buttons below:
- Click the "options" button in the upper right hand corner and choose "Refresh owned products"
- Follow the prompts and enter in your email address and password
Can I watch my digital purchases on my TV?
Absolutely. If you have a laptop (or a desktop computer near your TV), a DVI to HDMI cable is only about USD$15. Here is a wonderful guide on connecting your computer to your TV.Or, if you have an iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch and an Apple TV, with a tap of your finger, you can beam videos wirelessly to your big screen via AirPlay.
Three ways to get fast international customer support:
Have a question or problem? We are here to help!1. Instant Help:
Just click the "Help Center" button in the upper right of the main screen, where you'll be able to get instant answers to 90% of your questions. If you don't see the answer you're looking for, click the “contact support” button or email ymeiosis@gmail.com2. Help on the web:
Go to help.leapingbrain.com, which is monitored by people in multiple countries, and during U.S. business hours and evenings, you will usually get a reply within 15 - 30 minutes. Often, you’ll hear back from us nights, weekends and holidays!3. Email:
You can also email techsupport@leapingbrain.com if that’s more convenient for you.If you are contacting us outside normal business hours, we appreciate your patience, and pledge we will answer your question or resolve your problem as soon as possible! We are relentless when it comes to providing excellent customer support!
