Let’s set the scene – A baby is born.
A: Alright…now what?
B: There’s the confinement, of course.
A: Great…then what?
B: Well, after the confinement comes the…erm…that celebration la!
Has that happened to you? Trying to recover from childbirth in itself is already a huge undertaking. Of course, we’re not detracting from the fact that you’ve given life to a little one. All things considered, who really has the time to go look up things that should be done for the full month celebration?
That’s why we’ve come up with this handy little article for you to bookmark and read through on the things you really need to keep in mind for celebrating your little one’s full month celebration in Singapore.
What Is This Full Month Celebration Thing?
When a newborn turns one month old, according to traditional Chinese culture, a large celebration is organised to recognise the completion of the mother’s confinement month as well as the infant’s first complete month of life.
The Full Moon Celebration is the name of this event. It serves as a formal manner to meet the baby’s relatives and acquaintances. The baby’s hair is shaved on this day, and the mother takes her first ginger water bath since giving birth. Friends and family assemble to bless the newborn. The newborn receives gifts in the shape of gold jewellery or “ang pow” (a red packet containing money).
What’s In The Celebration?
Nowadays, family-hosted feasts are the norm for celebrations. If the baby is a female, visitors may send gifts of cash in red envelopes or occasionally jewellery and gold. In exchange, they are served dinner and given plates of pickled red ginger and red eggs.
One would distribute an odd number of eggs if it’s a boy, and an even number of eggs if it’s a girl. The circular shape of the eggs represents harmony, unity, and new life, and the colour red is associated with luck and happiness. For the same reasons that mothers consume it after giving birth, ginger is provided as a yang food to balance the body’s qi.
The hard-boiled eggs are dyed red by dipping them in red food colouring. The eggs are frequently boiled in water that contains salt and vinegar to make the shells more porous, which helps the eggs absorb the dye more quickly. The eggs are allowed to chill before being offered to loved ones, friends, and attendees of the full moon feast.
Other Bits In The Celebration?
Yes, there are other minor details to take into account, but these are more of suggestions rather than absolute traditions that you must adhere to.
Shaving of the hair
Many people still follow this custom of shaving or trimming the newborn’s first head of hair when they are celebrating the little one’s full moon.
According to the tradition, a baby’s first head of hair is tainted by the mother’s blood after delivery and must be shaved at one month of age in order for the child to go on to have thick, healthy hair in the future.
Bath time
The infant will be bathed in water that has either been infused with pomelo leaves or flowers after having his or her hair shaved. This is thought to purify the child, ward off danger and evil, and symbolise the child’s regeneration for a good life.
Paying respects to the ancestors
Yes, as is the way with Asian traditions, remembering one’s ancestors is a significant one…even if the celebration is centred on the official news of the newborn baby’s arrival. Generally, this is done to seek the newborn’s ancestors for their blessings so the child will have a long, healthy, and happy life by paying respects to them and introducing the baby to them.
Common Treats?
Alright, we mentioned earlier that there’s red eggs. Yes, the red eggs are quite the mainstay. However, in South East Asia, there are other little flourishes that we have placed upon this celebration.
Take for instance the iconic Ang Ku Kueh that is quite popular with our local Singaporean celebrations. It’s a traditional Chinese pastry that’s made from glutinous rice flour. Then there’s also the Ang Yi.
All of these traditional treats are usually coloured a striking red colour as is symbolic of Chinese culture, and is used to represent luck and happiness for the little one.
However, fret not, as with the passage of time, so has the modernisation of the treats. These days, it would not be out of place to find a cupcake or swiss roll here or there with, perhaps, a marble cake or fruit tart or brownie thrown into the mix for good measure!
Closing Words
While the traditions are not as strictly adhered to anymore in this modern era, the treats are somewhat of a commonplace thing especially when we’re talking about celebrations here in Singapore. The most important thing to remember when celebrating your baby’s full month now is simply this – Have fun.
Really, it’s about spending time with loved ones and family to lavish well-wishes upon your little one and to munch on some tasty little treats. After all, what’s more important than spending time with friends and family?
Speaking of munching on tasty little treats, whether you are looking for a traditional full month cake package or even a modern and contemporary baby full month celebration package, we’ve got it all covered right here at Celegift!
That’s right, how do you think we’re able to write about these things? We’re literally dealing in the business of celebrating baby full month celebrations.
Remember those tasty little treats we were talking about earlier? Yeah, we deal in those as well. From Ang Ku Kueh to the iconic Red Eggs; Brownies to Fruit Tarts; Swiss Rolls to Custard Puff; the list goes on.
So, head on by our homepage to check out our full month package selections today and if you buy a minimum of 10 boxes, we’ll deliver everything to your house for free along with a personalised baby e-card!
