Electric Toothbrush for Kids

I was initially quite hesitant about getting an electric toothbrush for the kiddo because I was worried the vibrations might be too strong and damage his teeth growth. We came across the Marcus & Marcus Kids 2-Min Timer Sonic Silicone Electric Toothbrush ($29.90) and it proved to be a good addition. 

There was a point our toddler was resisting toothbrushing. I am not sure why but somehow when they lose momentum (We gave him some slack when he fell down and hurt his lip, thinking there might be a hurting blister.), they just lose interest in teeth brushing. And I would have to come up with something snazzy all over again. 

1. Just like Mummy. I personally use an electric toothbrush myself. So I guess kiddo was really excited, probably thinking this is an adult moment that he is sharing the same sort of toothbrush as me. We would clink our toothbrushes (as though we are drinking), every time we brush our teeth. 


2. The vibrations are really gentle. And so, I am very approving of this. And it set at 2 minutes per use which prevents him from playing / brushing too long. 


3. The bristles are soft. In fact, they look more like gum cleaning pads. Kiddo seems to like it more than the bristled brushes and would allow me to clean his back teeth too!





4. It is battery operated (1 AAA battery). I love battery operated brushes because I am so absent minded that I will misplace my charging wires. Especially when you are travelling overseas, batteries are easily replaceable. 


5. The brush heads are replaceable. ($7.90) . For hygiene purpose, it is important to replace them and I don't want to keep buying the complete set!


6. Kiddo really enjoy teeth brushing! And I think that's the most important reason. In fact I bought a rather cute looking (non-electric one) for use at our other home, but nope he is not interested in them at all. :'(

Busy Book for Little Fingers: Hi Buy Mama

By now a lot of you may know that our little one is homeschooled. Many people have always been asking how we keep our little one "advanced", you can follow us on this series and take some reference on some of the toys, books and stimulation we use so that you can add on to your own curriculum as well. 

I have heard about busy books for the longest time and frankly I couldn't really quite understand the appeal it would have on a child. After watching my son tinkle around with them, I was like wow this thing works. He actually sat for a good 30 mins, ignoring Cocomelon (Well done!) and was just focused on interacting with some of the pages. 

Our Busy Book is from Hi Buy Mama, they basically have 2 versions. One was the Friendly Hedgehog Toddler Busy Toddler ($59.90) which was for the younger kids and the other was the Otterly Fun Busy Book ($76.90). We decided that the Busy Book was more appropriate for him even though he was not even 3 years old because he has pretty much grasped most of the key skills in the hedgehog book.

At about the 22 months old mark, I was planning to inculcate in him a teeth brushing routine, ease him into toilet training, identify colours and emotions effectively. And I felt the Otter Book could help me achieve these aims better. Tip: As parents, I feel we should take the recommended age as a guide and not a firm rule. We need to know what is the current development level of our child and find resources that suits them. 

Our LO definitely had preference on some pages over the others. His favourite include the fishing, teeth brushing and the zipper. If you are training your kid to brush your teeth, I would strongly recommend an interactive book like this. Our LO got so excited about brushing the Hippo's teeth that it was quite effortless to re-start him to brush his own. (Yes, I lost momentum once when I was in first trimester.)

The fishing page with the magnets intrigued him the most. To date, he would still be fishing and "feeding" us his catch. He still haven't quite understand the like and unlike poles of the magnet and would occassionally be frustrated how come he can't catch the fish at times. We have also mastered 2 colours - pink and orange (both in English and Mandarin) and have figured out emotions (this was mainly to reenacting more than the book). Overall, we are pretty pleased with the book and would deemed this as a value for money "enrichment programme".

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Milestone Unlocked: Teeth Brushing

I feel so proud of myself someway or another because I have successfully motivated my kid to brush his teeth (again). Initially, I did managed to make him brush his teeth without toothpaste (Read here!) but because of my nausea during the first trimester, I lost momentum and so did he. 

It was particularly worrying because our little one actually had a full set of teeth. And I was scared with all the sweet munching (yes he has a sweet tooth like me), he might end up loosing his teeth or even worse with unsightly teeth decay if we didn't put in effort to help preserve them. 

It started off with him fiddling with his Busy Book (You can read more about our review from Hi Buy Mama here!) I noticed he was very keen in helping the Hippo brush his teeth so I thought this could be time. Coincidentally, there was a sale at MotherCare and I picked up some adult looking toothbrushes and flouride-free toothpaste recommended by a random mother. 

To not lose the momentum this time round, I quickly set up his toothbrush and toothpaste in a nice cup. He would step on his stool every night and morning to brush his teeth with me. I realise he enjoy brushing with me and would imitate my actions. This also became a bonding session. Hope this article helps other parents who are struggling to instil a teeth brushing routine.