There are ways to make spitting up happen less. You may burp your baby one to two times during each feeding instead of only once at the end. For babies who tend to spit more often, you may keep

the baby in an upright position by holding him in your arms or placing him in an infant seat after feeding. This keeps the head of the baby higher than his stomach and it will decrease the chance of spitting up. If you have to put him down immediately, you may elevate the head of the mattress with a rolled up towel. Never use a pillow to keep the baby in an upright position. Don't wait till the baby gets frantically hungry to feed him or force him to eat more than his stomach can hold to avoid spitting up.

Hiccups after feeding are also common in infants. They will be gone after a while. If you want to do something to relieve your worry, you may burp the baby or let your breastfed baby suckle for a longer while. If he's on the bottle, a few sucks of lukewarm water may stop them.

In the first few days after birth, babies will pass thick dark-green substance called meconium. Once the meconium is cleared, the breastfed babies will have yellowish stools, which are soft and even slightly runny in consistency. They will have frequent bowel movements, sometimes after every feeding. The formula-fed babies will pass stools 2-3 times a day only. Their stools will usually be tan, yellow-green or green in colour and their consistency will be no firmer than peanut butter. Whether breastfed or bottle-fed, as long as the baby is feeding normal and consistency of the stool is soft, it is regarded to be normal. However, if you find the baby has frequent bowel movements with watery stool, he may have diarrhea. When babies have diarrhea or streaks of blood in the stool, or have vomiting, fever, fatigue or poor appetite, take them to the doctor, preferably with their soiled nappies for inspection.

The frequency of bowel movements will decrease with baby's growth. It is perfectly normal for some babies to have bowel movements every other day or every few days. However, if the baby has to strain because of hard and dry stools, he may be constipated. It usually happens in bottle-fed babies. In that case, they may need to take more fluid. When preparing milk, be sure to follow the manufacturer's directions exactly on the proportion of formula and water. You may need to give the baby extra amounts of fluids to replace the loss in hot weather or when going out. If you find that his constipation is due to neither lack of fluid nor concentrated milk, take the baby to the doctor for consultation. Never give your baby laxatives or enemas without your doctor's advice.

Member : Yan Yin Ling

My son ‘Chi Fung’ is now seven-months-old and he is a mixed race. He has a name with the meaning of ambition and handsome.

I am happy that I can accompany him during his growing up, and I now can experience the feeling of ‘sweet’ when every time I look at him.

I like singing very much and so, no matter when I feed him, bath him or play with him, I like to sing some songs that, of course, must be suitable for baby to him. He must response to me happily by moving his arm or foot when he hears my songs. I believe the baby can feel the happiness from the mother when we take care of him with our heart.

Basically, I am a young mother and only 22-years-old. As I know there is only once growing up in one’s lifetime, I am willing to give up my job and take care of him with all my heart. I always talk to him “You are my only baby”.

Meanwhile, I would like to thank for my husband’s support. I feel gratitude to him for letting me to keep my entire mind on taking care of our baby. At last, I wish my baby could grow up happily and healthily within the love of parents.