New Mum On The Block

Ashley Turns One

2009-12-09T23:05:00.007+08:00

09 December 2009. Wednesday

I seriously think that my blog's gone to Neverland. I've left blog world for so long, if they ever had a rule on dormant blog sites, mine would have vanished into thin air !

In my hiatus from blogsphere, both the kiddos have taken over our space and lives. Aiden turned 3 in June and Ashley's now 13 months old. How time flies. Hats off to mummies who have to work and get home to cook dinner, put the kids to sleep and then log on to blog. I seriously need time management here. By the time both kids are in la-la land, I too would have joined them, if not any earlier.

Last month, we celebrated Ashley's first birthday with family and close friends. Of course, the party would not be complete if we did not have red eggs (especially for 1st birthdays...) and loads of food. So I took the easy way out > catering from a reliable nyonya restaurant at Damansara Perdana. No mess & easy peasy. MIL insisted on making her curry kapitan even though we could have catered, but I was not one who was going to complain.

And of course, any parent who has organized parties for children would tell you their woes in creating goodie bags that caters to children of various ages and gender unbiased. I know I know..... you might think why would you have goodie bags for guests attending your baby's 1 year old??? Well, it's like this.... when your baby has an older sibling, and when your baby can't fend for him/herself, the older sibling will automatically claim that it's his/her party and therefore entitled to invite his friends. So our poor Ashley had to settle for her older brother singing the birthday song to himself, blowing her candle and cutting her cake (claiming that she's too small to hold a plastic knife - 'it's dangerous ah').

All in all, a good party. Oh by the way, most of Ashley's presents have been claimed (confiscated) by the tai-kor-tai.....

Ashley in her dress ready for her party

Yummy fruit jelly cake we ordered for her birthday. (Costs us a bomb!)

The 'morning after' ....opening pressies from uncles, aunties and friends.

Ashley is 3 months

2009-02-13T16:19:00.005+08:00

13 February 2009, Friday

Here's a quick update of Ashley, she turned 3 months last Sunday:

Weight : 6.3kg

Length : 56cm

Diet : 4oz Breastmilk every 3 hours during the day

She can now sleep through most of the night, waking up only once for a feed. She smiles and coos at everyone that plays or talks to her. She hates being by herself and usually calls out for attention if left in the cot for too long. Ashley loves sucking on her fingers, especially her left thumb (just like her older brother).

Being a girlie girl, she still needs her beauty sleep so she actually sleep alot for a 3 month old; waking up in the day only for feedings and playing for at most half hour before wanting to go back to sleep again. At first I was a bit apprehensive as she may not want to sleep at night, however she seems to have no problem sleeping at night.

Here's a photo of Ashley taken a couple of weeks ago. Look how fat she's grown! Time sure flies and I'm trying to enjoy babyhood as much as I can - as I may most probably stop at 2!

Ashley wearing what-used-to-be Aiden's pyjamas

The Arrival of Ashley Chan

2009-02-08T19:21:00.006+08:00

08 Feb 2009, Sunday

My hubby comments last night : " What happened to your blog? It's been idle for the past 4 months. As usual, must be a passing phase for you...."

No, it's not. It's just that I've been enjoying (err...ok, most days enjoy but some days I really want to climb walls) our little arrival. I've not blogged about her at all - not that I dont want to. However, I wanted to spend those precious 3 months with her as much as I can, before getting back to the grind.

Boy oh boy, I knew that it was going to be difficult with 2 children under age 3, but no one prepared me for the tired days and long nights. If I was not tending to aka breast feeding the small one, I'd be spending my time with Aiden. This left little time for me to rest, let alone shower or eat.... The most challenging time was between the second to eight week. Ashley was latching on the me every 1.5-2 hours and just when I had her schedule fugured out, she began to have colic for the next 3 weeks or so. Phew....

Well, it certainly is getting much better now, and our baby Ashley is also sleeping through the night. We lurve her to bits and really is the apple of our eyes. And the clothes....I know everyone's advice about buying too much, but those dresses, skirts, hairbands.....arrrgh! I cant help it!! I'm consolling myself that since this is our second baby, we're not spending on the big ticket items such as bottles, sterilizers, baby cot and other essentials.

I've just gotten back to work last week, so once Ive got my work sorted out, I'll be back with more updates on Ashley and of course Aiden.

Leaving you with Ashley (photo taken Day 20). This beautiful photo was taken by Jasmine & Sue who did a photoshoot of Ashley in December. I'll certainly blog more about this in the next couple of weeks. Thanks Jazz & Sue for leaving us with beautiful pictures of Ashley that we'll cherish for years to come!!!

Name: Ashley Chan Xinmei

DOB: 08 Nov 2008

Weight: 3.01kg

Short Takes

2008-09-22T10:58:00.011+08:00

22 September 2008, Monday

Mid Autumn Festival

It was a quiet affair with my family. We went for a quick dinner in the vicinity of our neighborhood. It was also raining for most of the evening, so we were really confined to our car porch compared to last year where some of the children in our neighborhood gathered in my neighbor's house to celebrate the event.

This year, my parents bought Aiden a battery operated latern (Mickey Mouse in an Aeroplane) with flashing lights and music – 'It's a Small World After All'. Of course with no volume control for this made in china product, the song really gets to you after awhile!

what's left of our mooncake, by the end of the evening. Note : candles are from my wedding!

Aiden's lanterns from previous years...

Having a good time with the grandparents...

Hmm... can my Mickey Mouse move on it's own?

Dont Bug Me...

The Garden Helper

Aiden is a real helper around the house these days. He insist on helping me carry this and that around the house and proves his independence and capability by wanting to do most of the things himself, much to our amusement.

One of them is being our little garden helper. He loves to water the garden and insists on having his own watering can. He also forbids us to water the pots that he is attending to, and makes us stand far far away…

Posing for a picture

Enuf water ! My candle wax will die !!

Let's water this patch now...

Falling In Love...

2008-08-28T14:43:00.009+08:00

28 August 2008, Thursday

......with Pangkor Laut.

at the entrance/jetty

at the Spa Village

Sea Villas

path leading to our Beach Villa

picture perfect

Emerald Bay

Pangkor Laut

2008-08-26T14:30:00.020+08:00

26 August 2008, Tuesday

continue from here…

Day 2

I woke up quite early to catch the morning rays (okaaay … did not manage to catch the sun rise) way before the 2 boys got up. As Aiden is still on his restricted diet of no chicken/egg produce, I actually brought the slow cooker along to make his daily porridge. Time was spent preparing his meal, and by the time the 2 lazy pokers got up, we moseyed our way to breakfast.

I could really enjoy this life of doing nothing and having time on your hands to just enjoy the sea breeze, good food and great company. What more can one asked for?

Here's Aiden with his new friends, none of them could speak English by the way, in the library corner after breakfast. Hubby and I spent a quiet morning reading papers/books and surfing the net.

at the library

You're too young for Scrabble dear

Later in the afternoon, we had lunch by the beach – appropriately named Emerald Bay, the water was as green as emerald. Aiden, being a city boy that he is, was complaining all the way: that he had dirt (actually sand) in his sandals. It was really a comical sight for us, where he is playing with sand sitting on a towel! Noticed his displeasure every time sand got onto the towel!

The beach looks fun!

Mmm - check out those babes

Mummy - I dont like the sand!

Get the sand out of my towel!

You poor city boy...

We celebrated Hubby's birthday and our wedding anniversary earlier, since we were in a resort; and I had made arrangements earlier for a birthday cake celebration (by the way the resort gave this to us complimentary!) which they had promptly served after our Haagen Daz ice cream dessert during Dinner. It came with musicians who did a duet in front of us, singing romantic songs....

chocolate mousse cake

So that was the end of Day 2, after a lazy after dinner stroll, we went back to our Villa to enjoy the remaining part of the evening.

Our Short Escapade

2008-08-15T14:40:00.021+08:00

15 Aug 2008, Friday

What an eventful weekend it was last week. So many people were celebrating the auspicious 08-08-08 date, with weddings and births; we decided to "run away" to where the tag line of the resort was "One Island, One Resort".

It was absolutely fantabulous, I really don’t know what other words can describe our short but beautiful holiday, even though we had the little one with us. Some of my friends lamented why bring Aiden along, when it's a holiday set for a romantic interlude. But I couldn’t bear to leave him behind whilst we soak ourselves in the sun, sea and fun.

We left KL early on Friday morning hoping to catch the 11am ferry via Lumut, but alas, we missed the boat by a mere 5 minutes. It didn’t help too with hubby getting a speeding ticket along the way (!!). Trying to keep to mood up, we waited for the next ferry which took us to the island at 2pm.

Boy oh boy, the service is like "mou tak teng" – upon stepping onto the jetty, it was like one guest relation officer to one couple/family. They knew us by names and after a cool welcome drink and speedy check in, we were whisked to our villas.

Some photos of our Beach Villa:

the bedroom

expansive bathroom, check out the open air bath tub at the end

I like the little window next to our closet

bathroom amenities

Day 1
We had late lunch, almost at 330pm at an informal bar/lounge overlooking the sea and the infinity pool. Thereafter, we all sauntered to the Spa reception to check out the Spa Menu and facilities. Aiden had a good time feeding the koi fish and turtles there, whilst lou kong had a personalized session with an Ayurvedic doctor.

After that, all three, Aiden, soaked in our villa's open air bath tub. It was heaven / bliss.

More photos:

bar overlooking infinity pool / beach

bliss...

Aiden checking out the babes

At the Spa Village

Having loads of fun

Aiden in our bath tub

We had late dinner at 830pm with Chinese sit down consisting of fish, succulent prawns and scallops with asparagus; overlooking the sea (although we couldn’t see much in the dark!). Yummy....

So that's our First Day, more updates to come in my next post... in the meantime, I leave you with this:

to be continued....

Long Hiatus

2008-08-09T12:07:00.003+08:00

09 August 2008

Well I certainly took a long break from blogging.... I certainly will be back real soon with stories to share from the weekend break :)

Have a Good Weekend Everyone

Cheerio
Milkmaid

Birthday Celebration with Paternal Grandmother and In-Laws

2008-06-10T11:21:00.013+08:00

10 June 2008, Tuesday

* backdated post - had this drafted out, but did not post it earlier*

The privilege of having 2 birthday parties means double the food, double the fun & celebration and Aiden gets to blow candles for 2 cakes! We had the second 'makan session' last Sunday at MIL's favorite restaurant – Oriental Pavillion @ Jaya 33, PJ.

Two incidents happened on that day, well... something that we did not expect anyway. First one was that I totally forgot all about my brother who was supposed to have lunch with us. The point being I was supposed to fetch him to the restaurant, but we were already halfway there when I realized what had happened. OMG! When I called him, he was still asleep (12 noon) and finally sleep won and he didn’t manage to make it. I was a bit sore about the whole thing as I wanted to have him around since my parents were still in Japan.

We took a drive to Taman Desa to pick up Aiden's Elmo jelly cake prior to lunch. I must say this lady's house is amazing – she had at least 3 large Fisher & Paykel fridge in her home to store all her jelly cakes and her whole garden is full of fragrant pandan plants.

Okay, less talk and some photos to share:

Aiden's Elmo Jelly Cake

Blowing the candles

I think this made him puke...blame it on daddy..

shake, shake, shake... what's in there?

I'm overwhelmed by all this attention!

Second incident: Aiden was really chatty yesterday and more active than usual. It makes me wonder if he was aware that it is his big day. I think he had a little too much to eat; one whole bowl of home made porridge, followed by some "chee cheong fun" and "char siew pau". Unfortunately though, halfway through lunch he gave a loud belch and proceeded to throw up on himself. Luckily I managed to "save" him by having most of his lunch on my cupped palms . Anyhow, it was grandma to the rescue as she gave him a set of new clothes for his birthday. So we opened her present and fortunately was required only changed his pants as his shirt was still ok.

shy cousin Erika

Aiden with cousin Sharren

Thank you all for coming to my party..

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AIDEN

2008-06-02T16:08:00.001+08:00

01 June 2008, Sunday

I remember the day when you came to us
Just like it was yesterday
The operating theatre was all abuzz
Doctors and nurses were kept at bay
Just waiting for the arrival
Of Aiden Chan Zhiwei

I remember the first time I set eyes on you
It was love at first sight
You looked a little forlorn and blue
Perhaps you were cold with fright
Don’t worry my little darling
You're just not used to the sound and lights

I remember holding you in my arms
My tiny little bundle of joy
Your eyes still closed, so were your palms
My heart sang out 'Oh my little boy!'
This is really God's miracle
My limbs grew as weak as baby bok choy

We've watched you grow, your laughter, tears and pains
Your first crawl, first step, even first fall
You've made me fall madly in love all over again
When I hear this word "Mummy" - you could finally call
It makes my heart sing
I'm so proud, I feel ten feet tall

So my little precious take your own time
To discover yourself and the wonders of life
For daddy & mummy will be there a lifetime
To see you through the mountains that you climb
I LOVE YOU my little darling
Smile, you'll always be on my prime time!

Tantrums

2008-05-28T12:05:00.004+08:00

28 May 2008, Wednesday

Could it be what they call the Terrible-2 syndrome? Of late, my son has been quite difficult to handle:

Screams At The Top Of His Lungs
1. When he doesn’t get his way
2. When we take something away from him

Clings To Mummy
1. I am not allowed to go anywhere in the house without him
2. I have to carry him everywhere I go, even to the loo!
3. Wants to sleep on the same pillow as me during bedtime

Acts Defiantly
1. Purposely does something to make me angry, when he knows its wrong
2. Throwing rice grains on the floor
3. Throwing toys out the window
4. Throwing milk bottles underneath the TV console

My colleague once told me that when she was pregnant, her 2 year old son started acting protective and clingy. Even though the little boy did not understand it, maybe there was a sixth sense that mummy is in the "nesting" mode and he felt threatened.

Well, I certainly hope that Aiden will get out of this mode soon enough as it really tires me out and puts my patience to the test. Then again, just when I'm about to slap his hands, he will turn around, smile and call me "Mummy, Mummy…." hugging my leg.

Mummy says if I'm naughty, I'll need to sit in the basket and cant come out till I say sorry

Early Birthday Celebration with Maternal Grandparents

2008-05-26T14:44:00.010+08:00

27 May 2008, Tuesday

My parents will be off to Japan this week, so we celebrated Aiden's birthday with my family last weekend. It was just dinner for the 6 of us (including my younger brother) and after contemplation; we ended up in Bijou @ Mont Kiara.

My brother got Aiden a small chocolate cake - I think it was so that both grandparents could see Aiden blow the candles out, more than the cake was meant for Aiden's consumption. However, because it was his birthday, I gave Aiden quite a lot of it, although he's technically allergic to eggs. Why I say technically? That's because he had an allergy test done when he turned one, and besides eggs we found out that our little boy was also allergic to chicken. We've been very careful since then to give him anything with egg produce. Last Saturday, I was a little more adventurous, but thank goodness he did not breakout in rashes or made his eczema worse.

And here's his surprise gift from my Dad – a bicycle! It was really funny because the first thing that Aiden did was pull at the pedals and got his plastic screwdriver out to take the bicycle apart….. He wasn't really interested in getting on the bicycle until we thought him how to, but he still can't coordinate his feet with the pedals. So we just pushed him around the hall with him ringing the bell.

My birthday cake....Yummy Yummy !

Getting ready to blow the candle

ok - if I stare long enough maybe the flame will die off by itself?

THANK YOU AH KONG & AH MA !

T - G - I - F

2008-05-23T17:04:00.003+08:00

23 May 2008, Friday

I am so glad it's Friday. It's been 10 days since my maid's departure, and I am already feeling the strain. H~E~L~P. So here's my weekday routine without a maid:

7:30am Alarm goes off…..
7:40 In pajamas, prepare Aiden's food and sterilized bottles for the day
8:00 Get dressed in record time
8:15 Shoot out of the house with Aiden (if hubby doesn’t take him)
8:45 Drop him at MIL's
9:00 Enter office car park (phew no road kills!)
l
l
l
6:15pm Pick Aiden up
7:00 Arrive at mum's house (stays in my neighbourhood) and deposit Aiden
7:03 Get home to clean house & kitchen mess, water the garden, shower
8:00 Walk to mum's to collect dinner & Aiden
8:30 Eat dinner with hubby at home (hubby strolls back around this time)
9:00 Clean kitchen mess from dinner, prepare for tomorrow, play with Aiden
10:00 Milk for Aiden
10:15 Bedtime for Aiden
11:00 Bedtime for me

We used to cook dinner at home, but without the maid, mum has graciously offered to cook for us. Thanks Mum!

Although it's not a lot of work, but with the added bump-in-the-belly, house chores do certainly tire me out these days. Of course, everything changes when I look at this little fella smile and call me "Mummy" ………

The Things He Say...

2008-05-21T17:11:00.003+08:00

22 May 2008, Thursday

Boo-Boo : Book
Wow Wow : Dog
Meow : Cat
Baass : Bus
Big Tuck : Big Truck
Pak Pak (high) : Park / Trees
Pak Pak (low) : Bathing
Nen Nen : Milk
Baby : Baby
Car : Car
Tar : Star
Tak : Tag
Toy : Toy
Elmo : Elmo
Spidey : Spiderman

Mum Mum : Eat
Chit : Sit
Pou Pou : To be carried
Up Up : To be carried
More More : Wants more of whatever that he's having, be it toys, food
Yes : Yes
No : No

Body Parts He Can Identify With in English, Malay and Hokkien (Chinese Dialect)

Eyes / Mata / Bat Chiu
Nose / Hidung / Pee Kong
Mouth / Mulut
Tongue / Lidah / Hee Yah
Teeth / Gigi
Ear / Telinga
Body / Badan
Hands / Tangan / Chiu
Fingers / Jari
Nails / Kuku
Leg / Kaki / Ka

WHERE IS TA-TAAK (Kakak)?

2008-05-14T17:35:00.001+08:00

14 May 2008, Wednesday

After completing her obligatory 2 years with us, our Indonesian maid decided to go home to her family. I must admit that having her around, we have had more time to ourselves and never needed to worry about the household chores and dinner meals.

Her initial thought was to stay but she changed her mind in the end, citing family health and her growing son. Timing couldn’t have been more perfect as it was less than 2 months to her departure and we had to quickly scout for her replacement. We did not managed to find one until mid April and now we are faced with a situation of being without a maid for at least another 6-8 weeks. Bummer…

Anyhow, back to the objective of this entry. We were initially concern about how Aiden was going to take to her departure. He had grown quite attached to her, not surprising, as she spends the most time with him; and of late I noticed that he will call out for her if she is not in sight - "Ta-taaak, Ta-taak".

Yesterday, she left us to the agent's office. Aiden went round the house looking for her, going into her room calling for her. He came out looking forlorn and shook his head whilst twisting his wrists indicating that she could not be found. We explained to him time and time again that she has gone home, but I don’t think my little one understood me. In the end, I gave up and just said that she has gone out.

Back to reality, I now need to spend an additional hour after work to clean the house, and wake up an additional half hour earlier to prepare Aiden's food and bottles, before getting to work. Not to forget cleaning up the kitchen mess only after Aiden's gone to bed. We will certainly miss the convenience of having her around and waking up to breakfast, mopped floors and laundry out hanging to dry. I just hope I'm this lucky again with the new maid.

Baby - What Are You Up To?

2008-05-14T11:13:00.008+08:00

14 May 2008, Wednesday

So this is what happens when one does not drink 8 glass of fluid in a day (am not sure if this is true for toddlers - maybe not!) or enough fruits.

Aiden has turn against drinking water in the past month, we've tried many ways to get more fluid to him from Ribena to Water Melon juice to Barley and Honey. All in avail... This is until we discovered his passion for Honey Dew juice. And the fact that he likes ice cold drinks and drinking from a straw. I guess my little boy's growing up now.

Of late, we also find that he's beginning to reject his porridge when he see's adult food on the table. We're beginning to give in these days, and he's taking more of our food than his own...

* warning, please view the following at your own discretion

Trip To Singapore

2008-04-11T17:15:00.005+08:00

10 April 2008, Thursday

Aiden took his maiden trip to Singapore last month. It certainly was quite exciting for hubby & I, and we had planned this up as early as February. I planned for a day's leave and took Aiden for to make his very first passport! I must say that our Immigration Department's services has stepped up of late, and I was surprised by their somewhat efficiency. Because I had Aiden in tow, we didn’t have to queue for the submission of documents, and managed to get into a special waiting line for oldies, preggies and exceptional cases. It took us all but less than an hour and I was surprised to hear that we could even collect the passport after 3 hours. Well, of course I didn’t want to wait and chose to return at the end of the business day, just as they were about to close. It took me less than 5 minutes this time.

It wasn’t a real holiday per se, as we were attending hubby's cousin's wedding. It was beautiful – held under a marquee at Fort Canning Park. Although it got a little warm towards the end of the night, as it was held outdoors under like a hundred spot lights.

We stayed here, managed to get a special deal through the internet. Although it's not smack in the middle of the city, it was a stone's throw away from the MRT station and we had no trouble getting around for the 3 days that we were there.

The stay was considerably short as we took a mid morning flight to Singapore and we could do much on the first day. Aiden was such a good boy, and slept immediately after lunch. We could not do much thereafter but to get ready for the wedding that evening. So voila, that was Day 1 gone….

On Day 2, we took a quick breakfast along Orchard Road, and headed for Tangs – we found out that there was a Baby Promotion that weekend. We bagged ourselves ~ err ok, more for Aiden, a Maclaren stroller – that was going for less than SGD250.00! We thought it was quite a steal. We then had dim sums with relatives and that took us to mid afternoon. We were quite pooped by then with all the walking and decided to return to the hotel to rest. Of course Aiden missed his routine nap but he was as perky as ever at the hotel and we really didn’t get much rest at all!!

That night, we went to visit our Godson and their parents who were based in Singapore and Aiden didn’t wait soon enough to make their apartment his new home. When we wanted to leave at the end of the night, he waved bye bye to us and promptly settled himself on my Godson's bed to continue playing!!

We left Singapore in the mid afternoon flight the next day, suffice to say we didn’t really do any serious damage to our pockets.

Leaving you with some photos of Aiden …

Taking his photo was a nightmare - it was close to 15 mins and 10 takes after that we managed a decent shot

Jumping - jumping - jumping: at the hotel in Singapore

Ma mee - can we take this bed home?

Ma - Mee

2008-04-09T17:41:00.002+08:00

09 April 2008, Wednesday

After a long hiatus from writing - you could call it many things such as writer's block, no time, too busy although I would beg you not to think that I'm too lazy; I'm finally trying to pick up from where I left off. Which is rather difficult, because 3 months is really a long time and lots to update on Aiden's development thus far.

Well, let me keep it simple and just share on the latest development which has me beaming from ear to ear every time I hear Aiden say it. After a 22-month wait, Aiden's finally able to call me Mummy! He's had the problem with pronouncing the "i" in Mummy. All this time, he calls me Ma Ma; which sounds like what you'd call your paternal grandmother in Cantonese.

He surprised me one day with a soft version of Ma-Mee (literally soft so much so I had to prompt him to repeat – which of course he didn’t). It took another full 24 hours before I heard it again. Now he's able to call for me without me prompting him to, usually runs to me, calling me at the same time.

The other word he frequently uses when he wants to get our attention is "B" – actually short for Baby. Maybe I should stop using terms of endearment as freely as I usually do ~ I usually call my hubby – "B". This is especially when I need to call him loudly – usually he is either downstairs and I'm upstairs or vice versa. These days, Aiden will stand at the top of the stairs, hanging on to the baby gate, and yell "B, B" for anyone. He even calls out to the maid saying "B" .

So there you go, my first entry and I promise to do better next time huh?

Aiden's New Home

2008-01-15T16:42:00.000+08:00

15 January 2008, Tuesday

[yet another backdated post]

Aiden was very excited when he got into his new home. It fitted him perfectly, and this was one home where he could actually reach for the windows and doors! Both mummy and daddy stood aside proudly while he explored this new place and after a good 10 seconds, he declared it His.

You may be wondering if we just bought a new place? Actually, no….

this new place is just the right height for me

check out the window - I can actually reach the sill

ahh - let's get comfortable

Daddy - can we take this home?

Aha - Caught you there! This was taken on Christmas Day in Westin Hotel, KL. The 3 of us, hubby, baby and 1 splurged 1 night and stayed in the hotel on Christmas' Eve. We had a 5 course set dinner at EEST (a restaurant in Westin) and later on took to the KL lights around Bukit Bintang area and Pavilion. Of course Aiden had the most fun exploring the hotel room and huge bathroom and didn’t get to bed until 1130pm that night. As for me and hubby, we slept on Westin's trademark "Heavenly Bed" full of bliss……

Aiden's First Mail

2008-01-14T11:43:00.000+08:00

14 Jan 2008, Monday

[backdated post]

I was so excited – on behalf of Aiden that is, when I saw a package in our post box! It was Aiden's first mail, all the way from Sydney Australia.

It's from Little Phoebe and I've uploaded some photos that we took of Aiden whilst he opened the package. Noticed that he's already in his pajamas getting ready for sleep, but we kept him up anyway!

Mommibee- I don’t think the photos did justice to your present :)

A BIG THANK YOU, HUGS & KISSES from Aiden to Phoebe ! Look at the last picture, where Aiden has put Phoebe's photo next to his cheek. We asked him to "sayang" Phoebe !!

Preparing for Christmas 2007

2008-01-14T11:11:00.000+08:00

14 Jan 2008, Monday

[backdated post]

Here's Santa's little helper….well, not so little anymore eh? Now, he can help me hang ornaments on the tree (errr – I think it was more like removing and destroying the ornaments on the tree).

When I was putting up the tree, I recalled Xmas 2006, when he was barely 6 months old and was presented with a walker by my parents! How time flies!

Psst - there will be several backdated posts coming ahead as I have not updated my blog for so long !

K-K-C Amongst Others

2007-11-09T14:36:00.000+08:00

09 November 2007, Friday

Bliss for me … I am off today from work so that makes it a 4-day weekend for me, with yesterday being Deepavali. Much as I am enjoying the break, Aiden isn’t with me today. Instead I am babysitting a bunch of workers who are here to do some renovation works in my house.

Now with Aiden totting along everywhere we go, safety at home becomes a priority and our renovation is partly due to that. ZMM can attest to this as she lives in the same neighbourhood as I am in. Hopefully everything gets sorted out by the end of the weekend so that at least I'm able to have peace in the house without the workers' tools hankering away.

Now back to the title of the post, you must be wondering what K-K-C is? In short, it's the little boy's "teapot spout" in the Chinese dialect – Hokkien. Aiden's maternal grandfather thought him this one day, and ever since then, if anyone asked him where his K-K-C is, he will pat with his hands on his diapers pointing to his private part. *LOL*

Our little boy is sure growing up fast, picking up what we say and do almost instantly. Eg:

Takes the feather duster and cleans the table (follows the maid)
During bath time, he is able to walk to the cupboard and pick out his face towel for showering, walks into the shower and waits for me
Uses his toy (which aids him to walk when he was much younger) and pretends that it's the vacuum cleaner and hovers below the table and chairs pretending to clean
Wipes the table with the cloth if he accidentally spills water / food
Gets cheekier and pushes the limit when it comes to bedtime. He now sleeps at 930pm
Starting to get picky with food depending on moods. There are days when he rejects his fruits but will say yes to his favourite yoghurt the next minute

Well, I guess that's really the joy of watching your kid grow up…

Aiden after his hair cut 2 weeks ago

My New Chair

2007-10-24T17:31:00.000+08:00

25 October 2007, Thursday

This was a newborn gift from MIL which we did not open for Aiden until recently. When we got around to assembling it last weekend, Aiden was really excited and was engrossed with the little light and plastic book attached to the table for a little while....err... noticed when I said "a little while"; cause after half hour, he had abandoned the new toy !! Arrgggh.

Here's some updates about him (I forgot to do so on his 16th month):

takes baby yoghurt on alternate days and I have finally started him on fish and also pork
still takes 6-7 oz of milk, 3 times a day

He has become more attached to me, especially in the mornings, and I can practically do nothing cause he hangs on to my leg like a monkey :)

He is able to recognize:

certain shapes (round, triangle, start and square) and is able to fit these blocks into the shape sorter
yellow colour. why I mention this is because he has been observing me plucking yellow leaves from my hibiscus plants, and he surprised all of us last week, by going to my plants and plucking only yellow leaves and gently lay them at the bottom of the flower pots!!

To Give Or Not Give

2007-10-16T23:24:00.000+08:00

16 October 2007, Tuesday

(Part 1 of our trip to Siem Reap)

That is the question that constantly plagued Hubs and I when we visited Siem Reap some weeks back. Apart from visiting the astounding ruins of what we have come to know as Angkor Wat and its surrounding temples such as Angkor Thom; Hubs and I were overwhelmed with the level of poverty and the sight of grubby children and pleading young mothers with comatose babies can be pretty hard to bear.

So it's an aged old question for us, and we all know that most of the time pity is what moves us to give but is giving always the right thing to do? Also, due to this tourist habit of giving in to child begging, many of the poor Khmer parents are forced to send their children to beg while they stay at home. According to Friend's International, Khmer children have the capacity to earn up to 10 times more as compared to their parents take home pay if they were both working full time.

Some of the most disturbing scenes of beggars in Cambodia are those involving mothers with young babies. Hubs and I experienced this during a boat ride out in the Tonle Sap Lake. During a leisure stop by the tour guide, a small sampan guided by a young mother and her 3 children – a teenage girl, a young boy around 5 years old and a baby stopped by our boat. As though on cue, the teenage girl started to plead with me to buy a can of soft drink or some bananas; the little boy (only in short pants) was crying and it was obvious his mother was scolding him. We didn’t know what the girl was saying (they were Vietnamese), and all I understood was these 3 words "Please … buy something". I was cajoled into buying a can of soft drink for USD1, of which I gave to the boat driver. They awful thing was that as soon as they kayaked away, the teenage girl stopped her pity look and talked in normal tones with her mother and the boy had stop crying altogether. They were heading towards their next target some 100 meters away…

Here are some photos we captured of the Floating Village where Khmers and Vietnamese (we were told they were refugees) live together:

to be continued..

Note: NGO's and welfare workers in Cambodia seek for tourists to help children and the community through various alternatives. They have a huge network managed by Friends –International with the support of Cambodia Ministry of Tourism, USAID, UNICEF, AusAID amongst many others.

Aiden Is Now Walking

2007-10-08T10:23:00.000+08:00

08 October 2007, Monday

Logging in from my new office already....been so busy last week, that I have yet the time to sort out our photos from the trip to Siem Reap.

I'll try to do so by this week. In the meantime, here's a short clip of Aiden walking.

H~E~L~P: this mummy and daddy very tired from running after him !

We're Going on A Holiday

2007-09-27T09:38:00.000+08:00

27 September 2007, Thursday

We're going on a holiday tomorrow, just Hubs and me!! So I'm leaving you with several pictures of our travel destination (hee hee) and will update all with more details when I return. Have a cheerful weekend ahead ...

We're On The Move Too

2007-09-26T16:49:00.000+08:00

26 September 2007, Wednesday

It seems like moving office is a trend this couple of months? You can read about it in Pinky's blog and also Shannon's some months back.

My Company will also be moving into a spanking new building come end of this month. We've been told that it's going to be a much nicer and bigger office plus better facilities. On the latter, I cannot deny because the location that we're at currently, does not give us much choice in terms of food outlets, services such as banking or retail outlets.

The new office promises all of the above, and since it's strategically located near shop lots, I'd say that we're going to save on petrol and parking fees. Some of us were invited to visit the new site last week, and I must say that it looks much better than our existing office with a lot more meeting rooms and hot spots (teleconference rooms). That's important as we have embarked into the open-concept workstations where only Head of Departments get rooms.

More importantly, there's a huge gym right below us with swimming and spa facilities. I'm going to get back to my gym routine, which I have neglected since Aiden came along. It's going to be sandwich days for me whilst I hit the machines during lunch hour.

Also, I have been tasked to oversee to my department's relocation, so it's been a tiring 2 weeks of late, dumping, shredding, archiving and packing! My department deals with a lot of confidential documents and based on our record management policies, we cannot throw them out.

You'll see what I mean..and this is just for the first round of transfer due tomorrow. There'll be two more rounds next week! So, I leave you here with our boxes, and will update all when I get to my new office early next month.

Cheeky Smile

2007-09-24T11:46:00.000+08:00

24 September 2007, Monday

Here's our boy with a cheeky smile on his face. Picture taken last night after an evening's outing to Bangsar Village Grocers for our regular groceries and dinner at Banquet (sister restaurant to Cafe Cafe).

I wonder if he'll still have this smile on his face come weekend as both Hubs and I will be going away for 3 days ~ without the baby !! Let's hope everyone 'survives' the ordeal - the parents, the baby and the caretakers.

Trip(s) to the Barber

2007-09-21T10:25:00.000+08:00

21 September 2007, Friday

*backdated post*

Aiden absolutely hates the trips to our local barber. The first time we took him there, he was apprehensive. Especially when we placed him on the wooden plank. Here he is when he was about 9 months old - preparing to give his loudest wail.

The second time we took him there was just before his first birthday; he barely had his tush to the wooden plank (placed across the arm rest because he's too small for the chair!) when he screwed his face up in preparation of what's to come. This time he cried from start to finish.....

My poor baby..little does he know it, but we're set to go meet Mr Barber very very soon..

Mooncake Festival

2007-09-17T13:31:00.000+08:00

21 September 2007, Friday

In celebration of the upcoming mooncake festival, my neighbours had organized a potluck party last Saturday. The idea of course was to bring together all the children, toddlers and babies in keeping this tradition alive.

I had made some of my famous *ahem ahem* potato & chicken salad together with some agar agar (jelly) to bring over. We also brought over Aiden's fish lantern bought last year but of course he was too small then to play with it. At the peak of the party, we had a total of 16 kids either running about, crawling, feeding and even dozing....

Here's Aiden with a battery operated lantern - what to do, he was more interested in this one compared to his traditional fish latern :(

Let me go, I want to walk by myself..

Mummy, how come she's got a bigger lantern than mine?

Aiiieeee - karate kiiickkk...

I Think I Can…I Think I Can…Yes I Can

2007-09-17T12:58:00.000+08:00

17 September 2007, Monday

Here's a look at Aiden's first steps. He's been able to do this for a couple of weeks now, but recently became more confident of himself and is able to walk for a good distance of 4 feet without aid. He still looks like a mini drunkard doing so though….

Yesterday, he surprised all of us by squating up and down unaided!

Mummy, Daddy... Look at Me... I Can Walk

Hooray Clap Clap Clap

2007-09-11T13:39:00.000+08:00

11 September 2007, Tuesday

Aiden is getting really good at clapping hands these days. For any accomplishments such as throwing diapers into the bin or soiled clothes into the laundry basket or simply being happy, he will clap his hands and give us this silly grin.

I know that each baby/toddler have their development milestones, but I still think that this is long over due for him when compared to what this little lady can do.

Hooray, watch me clap, clap, clap

My Birthday In History

2007-09-10T14:19:00.000+08:00

10 September 2007, Monday

I was tagged by Pinky sometime ago, but only finally had the time to do this:

Go to Wikipedia
Type in your birthday and search your birthdate: 28 March
From the results, list down 3 events, 2 births and 1 holiday

Events
1978 - US Supreme Court hands down 5-3 decision in Stump v. Sparkman, 435 U.S. 349, a controversial case involving involuntary sterilization and judicial immunity.
1980 - Jesus family tomb is found at Talpiot Tomb in Jerusalem
2005 - The 2005 Sumatran earthquake rocks Indonesia, and at magnitude 8.7 is the second strongest earthquake since 1960.

Births
1944 - Ken Howard, American actor ( does anyone remember to TV series : The White Shadow?)
1961 - Byron Scott, American basketball player

Holidays
Slovakia, Czech Republic - Teachers' Day

These are the people who have participated so far:

Mommyness is Happyness
This is a Miracle
Life’s Prisms
Rooms of my Heart
Life’s a Rollercoaster
Keeyit’s Wonderful Life
Lingzie’s Tummy Treats
Lilian Chan’s 5xmom
Adrian’s void sky
Sasha's Tags & Such
Lemonjude's Memoirs.:*CRoSs mY hEARt*:.
Pinky's Thots

What about these mommies:
Baby Shern
Everyday Healy
Zoop's Ranting On Life

The Spa Village

2007-09-05T00:39:00.000+08:00

06 September 2007, Thursday

Hubs gave me a reprieve from the little tyke on Day-3 of our holiday so with much guilt (okay the guilt lasted for 15 mins only) I waltzed towards the Spa Village located at the east wing of the hotel. I had made prior reservations for a 50 minutes Balinese massage and was told to be there 10 minutes prior to the set time. What surprised me was that all their massages/treatments come with a 45 minute tea bath. So I actually had close to 2 hours of peace and me-time....Ahhh, it was heavenly bliss.....

Less talk and more photos? Mine does not do justice, so here's the site to the Spa Village.

Clockwise from left: My four-clawed bath tub filled with crysanthemum flowers and other nice smelling herbs; An open massage bed should you choose to have it there; The Waiting Room in between the tea bath and massage; Tea bags for eyes, and coarse sugar and lemon to scrub elbows and knees plus cold honey lime juice to keep your senses tingling....

(Top) : Trying my very best to keep my dignity and let you see what I experienced...Bliss; (Bottom): The massage room with Miss Ae

Our Merdeka Holiday (Part 2)

2007-09-05T00:36:00.000+08:00

05 September 2007, Wednesday

We started our journey to CHR late because we by the time Aiden got ready, after his milk, bath and fruits, and WE got ready ~ hubs had to drive to at least 2 petrol stations to top up the black oil in the car plus we had to drop the maid off at MIL's; it was already noon and very close to Aiden's lunch time. Our journey had barely started when we had to make a pit stop at the Sungai Buloh rest stop to feed Aiden his porridge.

Aiden was excited with all the commotion that he missed his morning nap. This was all the luggage we took, less than half compared to our first trip to Bukit Tinggi last year. The red SKII bag was filled with Aiden's paraphenalia

The journey up was so-so, Aiden was so tired from the out-of-norm activities in the morning that he was cranky and cried for most of the time during the journey up. He fell asleep for an hour just before reaching Tapah but promptly woke up when we reached Simpang Pulai. From then on, he was like a little terror in the car, cryingfor a good half hour before he managed to fall asleep again. This time he slept all the way to our hotel. For those who are planning to go, take the Simpang Pulai way. It's a good route to use.

We didn’t venture out on Day 1 but spent most of the time at the hotel; starting off with tea and scones at the Jim Thompson room. Perhaps we had set our expectations a little too high, as the scones were a disappointment, but given the ambience and level of service – one is willing to give this an oversight. The sandwiches and crispy spring rolls had made up for it.

At the Jim Thompson room prior to check in. Note the background....ahhh bliss

The bedroom was quaint looking, with a colonial feel to it, given the 4 poster bed, wooden flooring plus white wooden blinds on the windows. Personally the bathroom was a tad too small for me given that this is a boutique hotel, and I thought that they should have provided us with a proper baby cot versus a Graco play pen with a thin mattress.

Our bedroom. Notice the Graco play pen which is supposedly their baby cot. All the bedrooms come with a small balcony overlooking the golf course

The evening quickly passed and we had our first meal, dinner at the Dining Room. I must say that the service of the staff was close to excellent as they always made sure our needs were met. The quality of the food was quite good, and vegetables were very fresh. Hubs had a steak and I settled for cod fish. Although it was a 4 course dinner, we only managed 3, and had the waiter sent us our dessert in the room because Aiden needed his sleep.

We began Day 2 with a hearty breakfast, and went for a car ride around Cameron's. We did not make a lot of stops as Aiden fell promptly asleep once more in the car. I have not been to Cameron's for almost 3 years now, but I must say that development and commercialization sure is setting in at the highlands. You see stalls selling "fresh strawberries / jam" & "fried mushrooms" almost everywhere you turn. I'm glad that we chose to go on a weekday as we had most to the highlands to ourselves with little traffic.

At the Reading Room with Aiden doing his balancing act

Hubs was so kind to volunteer in taking care of Aiden for the rest of the afternoon when I decided to visit the Village Spa. I'll update about this in another post. Actually, the guilt lasted for maybe 10 – 15mins : from my room to the entrance of the spa. After that, it was just me, the aromatic oil and the masseur. Bliss….

Dinner was quite the repeat of Day 1 as Gonbei, the Japanese restaurant, was closed for maintenance. We reckon it was a just a nicer way to put it, but in reality it was because there were not enough guests in the establishment on a weekday. However, the staff was nice to prepare a Japanese set meal for us at the Dining Room. Verdict: not as good as Gonbei in KL. Given another chance, I would have chosen the set menu once more.

One set back with the hotel is the location as it is situated facing the main road leading towards Brinchang and out of Camerons. Being the eve of Merdeka Day, we were inundated with bikers between 11am till nearly 4am out having a good time. As it was also a stretch of straight road, they tended to speed and honk their horns. Normally, I would have brushed this away, but with a sleeping baby, every time a group of bikers sped by, I would cringe. Let's just say it was not a good night for all 3 of us, as Aiden woke up several times in the night crying.

It was our last Day at the resort, and having experienced a cranky baby in the car on our way up, we decided to leave Cameron's slightly earlier, timing it with his morning nap. After a quick stop at Kea Farm ~ what to do, I had to go buy my RM1 per packet vegetables and mushrooms; we made our home. It was a blissful ride as Aiden slept the moment we left the hotel all the way to Tapah.

I asked Hubs this question on our way home: "Did you enjoy the trip, B?" He just said "Let's wait till the baby is much older before we go on our next trip….yawn"

Nevertheless, I had an enjoyable time with both my babies and definitely am looking forward to many more to come.

Our Merdeka Holiday (Part 1)

2007-09-05T00:17:00.000+08:00

04 September 2007, Tuesday

Here's a preview to the hotel that we stayed in. I will update more when I get the pictures sorted out; amidst the tons of work waiting for me in office...

15 Month Update

2007-09-03T15:54:00.000+08:00

03 September 2007, Monday

Here's my monthly progress update for the little tyke who turned 15 months on last Saturday, 01st September.

Weight : still the same, between 10.3 – 10.5 kg
Height : did not measure, but reckon his grown taller because his pants are shorter now
Food intake : no change, except he takes more biscuits now in between meals

Comprehension
Fully understands "No" and "Yes" and will response with head bobs or shakes when asked a question. Further emphasize "No" by turning his body away, and pushing away with his hands.
Takes on what I call 'Level 2' instructions; for example: Take the biscuit and feed daddy or Take your duck-duck and give to mummy.

Physical Ability / Agility
He is now able to take a few steps on his own, but of course falls onto his rear end after that. He loves to play the balancing game on his own and gets a good laugh out of it. He recently learnt to balance on his head and toes (inverted-V) on the bed and ultimately try to summersault. We think it's very dangerous because he may twist his neck doing this!!

Verbal Skills
Papa, Mama, Mmm – Ma, Mum Mum, Ainya-nya-nya, Phuuh and others which I cannot even begin to pronounce. I recently noticed that he will cry Ma-ma asking me to carry him, especially in the mornings.

Word Association
He can match many pictures from his A-B-C book when we tell him to such as Duck, Socks, Baby, Elephant, Clock, Flowers, Bear, Ball amongst others.

Others
His level of separation anxiety seems to have increased with age. This is more so at in the mornings when he wake up or when he gets cranky from lack of sleep.

Checking In

2007-08-30T13:03:00.000+08:00

30 August 2007, Thursday

Greetings --- checking in from our hoilday resort. Yes, we are at Caomeron Highlands, and having a great time. Got free internet here ...so die die must make use of it.

Brrrr ~it's really cold here and not what we had initially expected....well we're off to lunch now. I'll share with more photos when I get back.

Happy Merdeka Hols everyone.

Our Holiday Destination

2007-08-28T16:27:00.000+08:00

28 August 2007, Tuesday

Some of you have been asking where we're off to tomorrow? Here's the road map ~~ shhh, for those whom I've told. But anyway, it's not that difficult to guess.. (for Malaysians that is)

One Word

2007-08-28T16:07:00.000+08:00

28 August 2007, Tuesday

Thought I'd do one, just for the road. Thanks, Slave Mum:

Where is your cell phone? Table
Relationship? Is there one after a baby?
Your hair? Long
Work? Yes
Your sisters? No
Your favourite thing? Books
Your dream last night? Zzzz
Your favourite drink? Coffee
Your dream car? Beemer
The room you're in? Cold
Your shoes? Brown
Your fears? Loneliness
What do you want to be in 10 years? Entreapeuner
Who did you hang out with this weekend? Family
What are you not good at? Politics
Muffin? Blueberry cheese
One of your wish list items? Beemer
Where you grew up? PJ
Last thing you did? Yawn
What are you wearing? Jade
What aren’t you wearing? Diamond
Your pet? Nil
Your computer? Office
Your life? Great
Your mood? Superb
Missing? Aiden
What are you thinking about right now? Holiday
Your car? Small
Your kitchen? Nice
Your summer? Year-long
Your favourite colour? Purple
Last time you laughed? Today
Last time your cried? Dunno
School? Ancient
Love? Bitter-sweet

I'd like to tag:
Chanel
Jazzmint
YF Mami

Weekend Updates

2007-08-27T11:21:00.000+08:00

27 August 2007, Monday

Fireworks @ Putrajaya

Let's just say the only fireworks that was happening was in the car as we travelled towards Putrajaya. We only left our home @ 830pm on Saturday and already there were signs and indication that it wasnt going to be a great fun night out. We brought Aiden along for the car ride hoping that he'll fall asleep sometime, but to our horror he started to cry halfway there. Secondly, as we were aproaching th exit to Putrajaya, we were caught in a massive jam (I'd say about 3kms) prior to toll. We made the decision there and then to turn back and head on home. By now, Aiden was bawling his little head off, and hubby decided to make a pit stop at the nearest rest stop, to have teh tarik whilst I calm Aiden down. He refused thereafter to get into his car seat, uurrgggh, so I had to carry him. We made sure hubby took the left most lane and drove slowly home. Jeezzz ~ sob sob. For more photos of the event, check out Jazzmint's Photoblog.

Hubby's birthday

We celebrated hubby's birthday on Saturday together with Mum and MIL to a treat at Oriental Pavillion @ Jaya 33. His actual birthday is today, but because my MIL pantang, today is the 15th day of the 7th month in the Lunar Calendar ~ Hungry Ghost Festival. The celebration wasnt a biggie - but I got him a polo T from here , and partially paid for his spectacles with this brand name. It wasnt a total surprise for him lor - cause he accidentally found the receipt to the polo T and the extra big box hidden behind my clothes in the cupboard!! Aiya !!

This year, he had 2 birthday cakes, actually one was of cup cakes ordered from CupCakeChic and the other from Secret Recipe.

Planning Our Holiday

Yippee ~ this is something that I've been looking forward to for the past one month. We'll be leaving for our 3D/2N holiday on Wednesday morning. Will post more about this with pix when I return over the long holiday.

** Notice I still have no photos cause something wrong with my connection and I cant upload any !! Arrrrggghh

Growing Up

2007-08-23T15:13:00.000+08:00

23 August 2007, Thursday

Our boy has grown by leaps and bounds in the last month, and I sometimes look at him whilst he is asleep, thinking to myself- it's been nearly 15 months since he was born, and in this time he has more than tripled his birth weight and grew by more than 15 cm.

I used to be able to hold him in one arm and right now, I can barely carry him with both for more than 5 minutes. He continues to amaze us with his learning ability and realize that he is growing up really quickly. He can now demand to be brought here or there, throw tantrums and yet melt our hearts in one second with his giggles and laughter.

He loves all types of containers big or small, and loves opening and closing tops. He also loves all types of remote controls but of course is not able to differentiate one from another. So he'll point the Astro controller towards the fan, and vice versa. He knows the remote control for the auto gates, and will constantly play with it and watch the gates move.

He can now stand for a long time whilst playing with his toys, twisting his body around and yet maintain his balance. The only thing is that when he needs to get to another place he will still sit down and crawl.

He is able to show affection without us prompting him. I frequently catch him looking at me for a long time, pats me on the shoulder and puts his head on my shoulder. This is especially so in the evenings when I get home.

Finally, he's pretty good at climbing the stairs and sometimes without our knowledge too!! He took to our stairs with gusto last week and when my maid found him, he was already halfway up the stairs. I swear I only left him for like 15 seconds max.

Note : Aaarrghh...something wrong with blogspot. I cannot upload photos!!

Tag: 080808

2007-08-14T14:38:00.000+08:00

14 August 2007, Tuesday

Got this tag from Chanel (and reminded twice to do this *blush*), and I really don’t know what I’ll be up to on that day since it's a weekday so I'd probably be buried in a mountain of office work. But here's what I wish I'd be doing:

At Home: Curled up at home with a nice cuppa and a good book
Holiday: Trekking in Tibet

I've seen this go around, so I guess I won't be tagging anyone here.

*********************************Instructions :**Start Copy**

Proposition: My plan on 08.08.08

Requirements: Share us your plan on 08.08.2008.

Tag Mode: 5 blogger

1st - You leave their blog and post link and add to the list below.
2nd - Let the blogger you want to tag know they been tagged by comment in their blog or etc.
3rd - Leave me a comment so that I can compound all your links in a final list on 08.08.2008.
What They will do on 08.08.2008
Xilly want to create a list of 08.08.08 plans.
Chooi Peng was at Hokkaido on 08.08.08
Chin Nee want to be at home with family
chanelwong want to spend time with family
Milkmaid wants to chill out in Tibet

Back To Nature

2007-08-13T14:07:00.000+08:00

13 August 2007, Monday

Pictures say more than a thousand words, so I'll let them do the talking. Let's just say that our toddler is wearing both mummy and daddy out....I cannot begin to imagine how it'll be when he starts walking !!

This was taken at my mum's place. It was hilarious to see him go around the post as he could not walk yet, and did not dare to crawl on grass!

Inspired by Jazzmint's post on FRIM, we decided to go on a picnic yesterday. Weather was perfect and we had a great time...

Aiden turns 14 months

2007-08-06T10:57:00.000+08:00

06 August 2007, Monday

*backdated post*

Our boy turned 14 months last week on 01st August. There seems to be an upscale to his mental development this month as we observed, he is now able to comprehend many things beyond our imagination.

Let me give you some examples:

Yes / No
He mostly understands the meaning of "Yes" and "No" – We constantly ask him questions and if he doesn’t want to do something, he will shake his head left and right. He will nod if he wants something or ask you to do something.

Bottle Caps/Plastic Wares/Tubes
He loves putting on and taking off cap covers, bottle tops or plastic covers. Usually takes off caps/covers, peers into the box or bottle, and puts the caps/covers back on. Of course we have to untwist the tops for him first. (Here, he will return the bottle to you and "peel" the cap whilst nodding his head!) He entertains himself this way for a long time.

Peek-a-boo
I usually play this game with him around the sofa set; by hiding behind furniture and calling to him. He will crawl to the direction of the voice, but by the time he gets there, I would have moved to the opposite end. I will play this game until he gets angry and hits the floor with his hands in frustration. Last week, he surprised me by peeking below the sofa to look for my feet. When he saw them, he laughed! What a smart boy!

Catch me if you can
When sitting on our king size bed after his shower, he will usually crawl very quickly to one end and make me run to him (I am scared that he will fall down). Upon seeing me, he will quickly do an about turn, and run to the opposite end of the bed. Then I will need to run around the bed to the other end. It's really quite funny to see him crawl up and down as if daring me to catch him. Hmm – not so funny when I have to run around and around trying to catch him!

And finally, after many moons, Aiden is now able to stand on his own without support. He has not learnt to take his first step yet ~ but I hope that it will be soon.

*cheeky grin*

Caught Red Handed

2007-08-01T10:23:00.000+08:00

01 August 2007, Wednesday

Step 1
- Convince caretaker to lift me up onto the kitchen table
- Gives a cheeky grin and points to the cookie jar
- Manages to convince caretaker to open jar
- Sticks my hand into jar to grab organic cornflakes

Step 2
- Greedily stuff cornflakes into the mouth

Step 3
- As you can see, my fingers are still not well coordinated, hence the extra push to ensure bits of biscuits do not fall out

Step 4
- Repeat Steps 1 - 2 - 3

Of Walkers and Baby Gates

2007-07-23T17:04:00.000+08:00

23 July 2007, Monday

Some of you would have seen Aiden in his much loved walker (see below pix). We have been extremely careful about the amount of time he spends on it based on advise by doctors and books on babies' muscle development and delayed walking etc etc.

Anyway, I have one less worry about it now, since his discovery of tv knobs, Astro decoder, HiFi system and all other "illegal" switches and knobs, Aiden has since refused to get onto the walker. He'd rather explore on his own.

That's besides the point, as this post is about warning mummies and daddies on potential danger of walkers even though the modern ones come with a rubber stopper at its base to stop it from moving forward when it hits uneven flooring. Aiden has learnt to carry the walker, yes - carry the walker and does a mini jump so that the walker will surge forward thus missing the rubber stopper altogether and he'll get onto the other side of the room. I have several uneven sections in my house, to differentiate between my internal courtyard/living room and wet/dry kitchen and Aiden's been jumping across for the past two weeks in both mine and my mum's place.

The danger is if he does this between the internal courtyard and living room, where the floor height between the two is about 6 inches, the walker will probably do a flip / summersault. I don’t know where he got this idea from, but you know how toddlers are these days. They learn very fast.

So these days, we have to confine him to the playpen or settle with him crawling on the floor which is much safer. Time to invest in baby gates real soon…

picture of him and walker taken during Xmas 06

recent picture of Aiden, with sexy top!!

Day of Tags

2007-07-20T10:26:00.000+08:00

20 July 2007, Friday

1-O'clock , 2-O'clock, 3-O'clock - Rock

Wow – Awarded Rocking Blogger. Thanks Sasha, we mummies sure ROCK! This makes me feel like when I was back at school and we were given Stars to pin next to our names for our punctuality, neat handwriting, perfect scores for exams.

Can I pass on this Star now to these wonderful mommies who I believe rocks the net!

WMD
Mommibee
Healy

~~~~~~~~~

4 – 4 – 4 – 4

I guess it's quite true that Chinese don’t like the number 4. But I owe this tag to Mummy of 2 Angels and Pinky already:

Four Jobs In My Life:
1. Waitress during my university days in Adelaide. It was in a Thai Restaurant and I remember I had to cut kilos after kilos of beef and chicken meat for stir fry before the shop opened for dinner. Money was good at the time so I slogged through it ~ AUD10 per hour.
2. Was paid to sit for psychology test during university days. University researchers needed to conduct these tests for their papers etc etc and they paid students to do so! Easy money and was paid like AUD 30 for each paper.
3. HR Associate in a telecommunication company. Was my first job and I had to do anything and everything plus was paid peanuts for it.
4. HR Manager the current company I work for. I'm not complaining as there's good work challenge for me and with a work life balance culture here, I get to go home to Aiden early enough.

Four Countries I've Been for Vacation:
1. China – Shanghai, Beijing
2. India – New Delhi, Agra
3. France - Paris
4. Italy – Rome & Venice

Four of My Favourite Food (this is really hard because I have so many):
1. Anything Italian
2. Anything Japanese
3. Durian Pancake from Lai Poh Heen Restaurant, Mandarin Oriental
4. Xiu Long Pau from Shanghai Restaurant, JW Marriot

Four Places I'd Rather Be Now:
1. At home curled up with a good book plus coffee
2. At home with my little cutie pie Aiden
3. At a beach front with both loves of my life enjoying the morning breeze and sea spray on our faces
4. Ye Old Smokehouse with a good book enjoying scones and tea

Four Friends To Tag:
1. The Blue Ranger
2. WMD
3. Nadia
4. Chanel

Texchem Warehouse Sales (13 – 14 July)

2007-07-19T16:59:00.000+08:00

19 July 2007, Thursday

I received an email from Chanel last week Thursday on the above and un-knowingly went all the way to Subang (near Giant) during lunch time on Friday to see if there were any goodies to pick up.

Why I said un-knowingly? Because this is my first time there and I thought being a weekday, the crowd should be manageable, and since it opened at 12 noon on that day, I thought I might be one of the lucky few early birds to get in.

Boy oh boy, was I wrong. Firstly, the road leading to Texchem was blocked (crazy policemen) as of all times, they had to check for cars with expired road tax. You won't miss Texchem because there were cars parked at least 200m before that and you could already see people coming out carrying bags after bags of goodies.

I looked at my watch ~ 1230pm. Sales had only started for only half hour and the queue is like super long!! I was lucky to get a park approximately 100m away from the entrance. Cut story short, by the time I got in, most of the Lego items 'sudah sapu' by people!! And one must be prepared to be shoved by people to get the toys that you wanted. They were also selling food stuff but I did not venture into the crowd of aunties and uncles scrambling for the last few Kellog's box or Ibumie noodles. Phew - cut story again, I definitely came out with more than a few feathers ruffled ~

My goodies I got ~ for nieces and big baby (hubby) if we cannot wait till Aiden turns 8 years old to play. I certainly don’t want to leave the boxes in my store-room and have this happen to me!

Lego for big baby or if we can wait that long for Aiden to grow up

Barbie accessories for my neice (Xmas present)

Sweeper from movie Robots for Aiden

Push toy for Aiden (he lurves this toy)

Weekend Updates

2007-07-16T11:28:00.000+08:00

16 July 2007, Monday

Allergy Report

We got a call from the doctor's over the weekend (finally after 3 long weeks) on the result to Aiden's allergy test. He was tested to be highly positive (is there such a thing?) aka highly allergic to Chicken, Egg White and Egg Yolk. Our doctor also recommended that Aiden stay away from them for at least the next 1 year, aiyoo ~ that means till he turns 2.

On the positive note, his allergy test returned as negative for Pork, Anchovies and Fish. However, we are still going to be super cautious when we try out any of the above new foods as I've heard from a blogger mummy that a negative test may not always be true if the baby has not had any of them before. (which is the case for Aiden)

~~

YES – NO

Another update on what Aiden learnt over the weekend:

YES : Bobs his head up and down, sometimes quite vigorously too

NO : Shakes his head left to right to left, again but it's really funny to see him at the start of the shake because he finds it difficult to do so. He must put his chin to his chest before he can shake his head!!

Does anyone know how to teach a toddler to understand the meaning of Yes or No? Right now, he's only doing it because we ask him to.

~~

Jogoya Restaurant, Starhill KL

We thought we'd try out this place on Saturday night, so I called on Saturday evening to make a dinner reservation. The hostess was very courteous and told me to take down my reservation number – D79…. Aiks! Sounds like Durian lar….

We got there around 8pm, and boy oh boy, you should see the spread of food!! Sorry huh, we were too engrossed with baby plus orientating ourselves so that we could find our way back to the table (yes the place can fit like 1,000 people!) that I forgot to take photos!! Aiden was such a darling and didn’t fuss on bit throughout dinner. I think it was also because we bought a whole Tupperware of his organic biscuits, so he was busy munching on it.

Anyhow, I'd recommend it if you have a good appetite and if you are a seafood lover. It aint exactly 5-star dining, but if you want a good fix of unlimited soft shell crabs, unagi, cod, fresh oysters, coconut drink and Haagen Daaz ice cream, then this is it! Oh, I must mention the dessert spread is yummy with a wide selection on mochi too! Dinner per pax is RM88++.

It was also a birthday treat for my maid – oh what the heck, it's only once a year.

Panda Eyes

2007-07-11T17:41:00.000+08:00

11 July 2007, Wednesday

Here's the story:

10 July
8:30pm Mummy and Daddy kissed Aiden good night…

11 July
2:30am Aiden woke up for some apparent reason. Was scratching his right ear
2:45am Gave him 4oz milk
3:00am Aiden still wide awake
3:30am Gave him 2oz milk
3:45am Aiden still wide awake
4:00am Mummy resorted to driving him around the neighbourhood
4:45am Aiden fell asleep in car but woke up again in his bed!!
5:00am Mummy zonked out, Daddy took over

Dunno what happen here cause Mummy in La La Land

6:30am Aiden FINALLY went to sleep
7:00am Voila, PANDA EYES for Mummy and Daddy

- END -

Home Sick

2007-07-09T16:37:00.000+08:00

09 July 2007, Monday

This confirms that Aiden pines for his bedroom and bed when it comes to sleeping at night. Hubby and I went for a wedding dinner last Saturday (auspicious 07-07-07) and I was a little apprehensive on how he would behave during bedtime. We took him to Mum's place in the evening prior to going out.

When I called in at 9pm, Dad told me that Aiden refused to go to bed. Each time Mum took him upstairs, he started to cry. They resorted to switching off the lights but he still cried. Dad said that they may end up going for a car ride to get him to fall asleep.

The second time I called at 10pm, Aiden was already fast asleep. But not until my parents took him on a car ride which lasted for at least 20 minutes, before he fell asleep.

It's strange that babies can really differentiate between day time naps and night time sleep. Well, I guess my boy will need more training, because Hubby and I will be going on a holiday later in the year and he's staying home with Mum or MIL!!

My Obsession

2007-07-05T11:21:00.000+08:00

4 June 2007, Wednesday

I normally do not succumb to freebies or spend a certain amount of money to get some cheap toy. So when the promotion came around to collect little stamps with a card for you to stick on – I thought to myself, errr ~ okay I'm doing it since I buy my toilet necessities from them and also purchase off the counter drugs once in a while. I think I even threw out like 2 stamps in the early days of the promotion.

Then it's like addiction cause this promo gets to you. Soon, I was visiting the store just to purchase something to get a stamp – and lo and behold, there were even times when they had double promotion!! For the same amount of money spent, you get double the amount of stamps.

So with promotion coming to an end soon, and by now, I was still short of 7 measly stamps to go!! Here's the story:

Jaya Supermarket @ June 26
Purchase RM150 worth of goods to get 6 stamps. Purposely bought an item which had a double stamp promotion so I got 1 extra stamp

At Home @ June 26
*damn* Miscalculated !! I actually needed 8 stamps and not 7!!

KLCC Mall @ June 29
Went to Guardian there intending to spend RM25 of don’t know what yet, so that I can redeem my beloved soft toy. I've been eyeing him for a long while how. Paid, got my stamp, stuck it onto the card; and promptly told the cashier:

Me: I want to redeem my Eeyore please

Cashier: Ahh – sorry no more Miss. Only got Winnie Pooh and Rabbit

Me: *gasp*! Never mind, I go redeem from another store then

SS2 @ July 01
Me: Lou Kong, stop here for awhile. I want to see if this branch has my soft toy

Lou Kong: Okay.

(Walks into the store, in front of me there was an Aunty. She beats me to the cashier. )

Aunty: You have the donkey ah?

Cashier: No more la. Only Winnie and Rabbit!!

Me: !! Are there any more coming in?

Cashier: Maybe you can try next week?

Amcorp Mall @ July 02
(I was in my office and calls Lou Kong who was at the Mall)

Me: You in Amcorp Mall ah? Please check for me the store there to see if there is Eeyore… Puleez don’t forget ah.. important le…

Lou Kong: Ok…

Guess what ??? It was the last Eeyore in the store !! ……. Yippee!! I'm so happy…You must think I've gone off the rockers or something. I think I would have driven to SACC Mall , Shah Alam and the SEA Park branch if Amcorp Mall did not have it. Come to think about it, you need to spend RM625 max at Guardian just to get a soft toy?? Oh boy…..

Tag: SAHM versus FTWM

2007-07-03T16:54:00.000+08:00

03 July 2007, Tuesday

I got tagged by WMD on this one. Personally, I was hoping no one would ask me because deep down I wish I could be a SAHM. I know, I know the grass is always greener on the other side…. I am currently a FTWM, used to be a SWG (Single Working Gal) then met my husband and became a MWG (Married Working Gal). Hee hee hee.

Anyway, back to the tag: Top 3 reasons why I choose to be a FTWM, mind you it's like a tussle and needed to get my thoughts straight:

Angel : I would love to stay at home and take care of Aiden, maybe make money via PPP or something. Cook healthy food, and have dinner ready for hubby by the time he comes home. Also, have loads of time to tend to my garden.
Devil : But then again, I get bored easily and am afraid I don’t have enough patience with kids. I'm okay to take care of babies/toddlers over the weekend, over the holidays, but day in day out? What if I get mad or frustrated with my kids and start smacking them? Personally, no offence to SAHM's – I think you are the best, but it's probably not my cup of tea. Well, not for now anyway.

Angel : When I go happen to be on leave and go shopping on a weekday, I've come to realize that it's such a wonderful wonderful feeling not having to queue at the cashier, plus I get good parking spots. You'll find SAHM's and the likes out shopping or having a cuppa then. I feel so envious as they have no cares or worries.
Devil : I'm quite an independent gal and of course still need to pamper myself now and then. If I don’t work, then how am I going to pay for this, this and this? And for the baby, this, this and this?

Angel : A job's a job. SAHM is also a job. Just that you're rewarded in a different way. And I'm sure I can get used to Aiden's laughter and smiles. I will also get the opportunity to hear him say his first word, take his first step and experience with him the wonders of life.
Devil : I've got a stable job, don’t need to work late, plus I get comprehensive medical coverage for the family. The company I work in believes in personal and leadership development and that is very important to me, considering the line of work I'm in. I shouldn’t be complaining too much because the company provides flexi work arrangement and believes in work life balance.

So there you go, verdict is in ~ I'll stick to wearing Prada for now :)

~~~Instructions~~~

Here’s how it works:

1. So easy peasy, if you were given a choice, would you be a SAHM or FTWM? Just provide 3 darn good reasons.

2. Include your post link to the list below and Finally,

3. Tag another three mommies

List:

1. Immomsdaughter prefers to be a SAHM

2. Miche prefers to be a SAHM too.

3. SYH prefers to be a PTWM.

4. Shoppingmum is definitely a SAHM material.

5. WMD definitely prefers FTWM

6. Milkmaid prefers to be a FTWM

Finally, let's hear from other mummies:

Chanel, Shannon & G

13 Month Update

2007-07-02T17:37:00.000+08:00

02 July 2007, Monday

Here's the 13 month update on Aiden. Seems like just yesterday that I was doing the 5 month update, and now my boy is officially a toddler ~ oh well, he's been a toddler since he turned one but he'll always be my little baby!

Statistics
Weight : 10.2kg
Height: 76.4cm

Food
0830: 7oz milk
1000: 1 fruit
1200: 1 bowl (progressing to more than 1 bowl soon!) porridge
1430: 6 oz milk
1700: 1 bowl porridge
2030: 6 oz milk
With rice cracker snacks in between meals

Naps
Usually skips morning naps these days (but will sleep if in the car going out on weekends) and will sleep in the afternoon for 1.5 – 2 hours. He sleeps by 8:30pm at night.

Verbal Cues
Can understand and points to most of his soft toys at home. Recognizes people and points to:

Papa (dad)
Mami (mummy)
Kakak (maid)
Ah Mah (maternal grandmother)
Ma Ma (paternal grandmother)
Ah Kong (maternal grandfather)

Comprehension
This is something new that he surprised me with last week. He can now do these actions when we tell him to:
- Wave Bye-bye
- Open his mouth and say "Ahh"
- Kong-Xi Kong-Xi by clasping his hands together (aiyo Chinese New Year also over already – preparing for next year maybe?)

Mobility
Still prefers to crawl or cruise. Doesn’t like to sit in the walker much these days, and prefers to be on the floor. He has recently progressed to crawling on his knees, if you've read here, he was crawling army style all these time! People say because he is heavy….

My Garden

2007-06-27T13:10:00.000+08:00

27 June 2007, Wednesday

Since we moved into our home 3 years ago, I've been quite passionate about making it as homely as possible (a wifely instinct? Har har). This includes my little patch of a garden; it's not very big, perhaps 5 feet by 12 feet? I have invested on nice grass and took countless trips to Sungai Buloh to buy flowers and plants. This is where I find solace after a hard days' work in the office. Even when I was preggie, I used to spend at least half hour each day after work in the garden be it weeding, clearing dried leaves or just having a cuppa. Hubby will get quite stressed out cause I was still weeding the garden when I was 8 months pregnant. Ever seen a hippo trying to sit on a small plastic stool weeding?? Well – that's how crazy I was.

Anyway, I thought the fruits of my labor will go down the drain with the coming of Aiden, but thankfully I have a maid whose just as passionate about gardens as I am ~ or maybe it's just an excuse for her to sit out and people watch!! (I forbid her to talk to other maids).

Here are some of my flowers in full bloom taken yesterday:

So, is there any horticulturist out there?

Tag : My 7 Vanity Sense Facts

2007-06-27T10:25:00.000+08:00

You Are 40% Vain

Okay, so you're slightly vain from time to time, but you're not superficial at all.
You are realistic. You know that looks matter. You just try to make them matter less.

How Vain Are You?

Tagged by G of Mommibee

My 7 Vanity Sense Facts

1) My regime for face care has somewhat diminished since the birth of Aiden. I am still using the same range of products by SKII, but dont spend the amount of time that I should be on application of creams considering the amount of mulah I paid for them. I currently use SKII face cleanser to wash my face and round off with the toner and treatment essence.

2) Facials ? Ha!! The only time when I was diligent in using facials was pre-wedding period just to make sure my face 'wat wat' and 'leng leng'. Hee hee hee.l So to make up for it before I go to sleep, I add on SKII's Whitening Source (for face), Refining Treatment (for T-zone) and Eye treatment film (for fine lines near the eyes)

3) When I step out of the house, it's compact powder and just a stroke of lipstick. That's it! Unless I have a dinner to attend, maybe some blusher and eye liner for me. I had my eyebrows shaped and colored some time ago, so I guess I dont need to bother with them. I think the colour is fading but I'm just too lazy to go back and get it done. So what the heck, my eyebrow and haircolour doesnt quite match up!!

4) I'm quite vain about my finger nails, I will usually get a mani and pedi when I get a haircut. I will usually ask for a buff or french mani cause the colour tends to chip within several days. With a buff, it will last longer. I dont mind a dark colour - prune or burgundy for my toes

5) I prefer casual capri pants with a top or sun dresses. It's simply too hot for jeans these days. Plus going out with a toddler in tow, I need to be comfortable as I need to bend or carry him often

6) I shampoo my hair every day (cannot tahan cause of the humidity in KL) in the evening. I had my hair straightened last month (something like re-bonding but it's called re-laxing) so I dont need to bother with blowdrying. Just wash, conditioner and towel dry. Voila !

7) I used to dye my hair brown/light brown pre-pregnancy days, but am just not bothered these days. So it's just jet black.

So let's see what the other leng lui mummies are doing:

Zara & Zaria's Mama of My Two Girls

Nadia of Chubbyschmubby

Pinky of Pinkythots

Yfmami of WMD:Wife, Mother, Daughter

Short Updates from the Weekend

2007-06-26T09:59:00.000+08:00

27 June 2007, Wednesday

Twin's Birthday

We went for our neighbour's (name is Leng) twins' 1 year old party last Saturday. Their names were Aidan (yes - just like my Aiden except for the spelling) and Caitlin. Needless to say, Aiden had a great time there. I think there must have been at least 30 odd kids there.

I wanted to share about the cake that Leng ordered from Lillian after she saw Aiden's cake – it was a 2 tiered cake with 2 toddlers, a boy and a girl of course, with 2 teddies which they cannot go without. What was interesting was she had Lillian design 2 dragons going across the peripheral of the bottom later, with heads meeting in the front as her surname is Loong (dragon in Cantonese).

We stayed for an hour plus and had to leave thereafter as it was Aiden's dinner time. As one year olds turn out to be, he was more interested in the presents piled in one corner and kept wanting to open them! It was really funny as the one that he kept pointing to was the one we wrapped and gave to the twins.

Top: Birthday cake with dragons; Bottom: Aidan Loong & Aiden Chan

--

Room Service Deliveries

When life was just the 2 of us (hubby and wifey) we would frequently go for nice dinners and explored restaurants in Klang Valley. Now that the little tyke is on board, we've hardly have the opportunity to do so anymore and it doesn’t help when Aiden's bed time is 8:30pm.

Some of you may have heard of Room Service Deliveries where you can call and select food from a range of restaurants, and for a small fee, it will be delivered to your home. I know that it's not like the best way to have a good meal, considering that it doesn’t quite as cheap after you add in the delivery charges, but hey – that 's the best that we can do if we want to have a nice meal in the comforts of home, and Aiden gets his much needed zzz's.

Okay, this is not a PPP for SCB – but thought I'd share with you if any of you were interested. For first time customers, and if you have a SCB credit card, they will waive the delivery fees of either RM10 or RM15, depending on where you stay. Otherwise, it'll be 10% discount off the delivery fees.

On Sunday night, hubby and I ordered Indian food from d'Tandoor restaurant, since I couldn’t get my fix of crabs (Bandar Menjalara was too far and Aiden was sleepy from the play at the park). Yummy!!

Tips – try to order food where you can re-heat. Items such as burgers, TGIF is one of the participating restaurants, are no good as they get soggy by the time it reaches you.

M-M-R Jab and Allergy Test

2007-06-26T09:25:00.000+08:00

26 June 2007, Tuesday

Aiden went for his M-M-R Jab on Saturday morning, a quick pinch of his bottom left cheek by the paed and he gave a loud Wail! Ouch !!! But after 5 seconds he was alright. He seems okay so far and no fever has developed.

Some of you would already know that I wanted to have an allergy test conducted because of this. His paed suggested some group of foods which we may potentially start since his now 1 year old; so we decided on these:

Pork
Chicken
Fish - Cod
Ikan Bilis (Anchovies)
Egg White
Egg Yolk

It's weird the way seafood was categorized, and fish was specifically Cod. We reckon that if he tested negative for Cod, we'll still go ahead and try other types of fish. We selected anchovies as it is usually used to make stocks for porridge or soup based noodles.

The allergy test was different from the skin scratch test done on Bee in Australia. Our doctor recommended blood to be drawn and sent to the lab for testing. It was really a traumatic experience for Aiden as blood needed to be taken from the vein of his arm and when the medical technician prepared his swabs and needle, Aiden could definitely sense what was happening (maybe because he could feel me tensing up) as he started whimpering even before the needle got near his arm. It took a long time for blood to be drawn, as it is more difficult for babies – possible the vein is small, and the technician kept poking and prodding him for nearly a whole minute. All this time Aiden kept wailing and wailing; we had to hold his other hand down and I was glaring and telling the technician off!! I think he got really pissed at me as I was grumbling to my hubby that he didn’t know what he was doing, and he was taking so long. The technician just told me "I told you it was difficult for babies!" and he huffed off…. What gives man!!

Sorry no pictures here as both parents were so stressed out by the whole affair that we forgot all about it! So keeping our fingers crossed and that the tests will come out negative. I'll update with the results next week.

Little Rascal

2007-06-22T12:43:00.000+08:00

22 June 2007, Friday

Aiden still cannot walk on his own, although he cruises quite well now. He's still quite lazy though and would usually sit on his bum-bum after a short while of standing. Mummies and daddies with walking toddlers would think ~ "Ahh...this woman crazy… you should enjoy while you can!!"

Nevertheless, Aiden makes up for it with his adventures climbing everything and anything:

1. Climbs the person's shoulders who is carrying him
2. Climbs the staircase
3. Climbs the sofa
4. Climbs headboard (tries to - but of course cannot reach)
5. Climbs on mummy/daddy if we are lying down with him

Here are some pix of him trying to climb this teak bench. He was actually trying to reach for some toys in a paper bag behind the bench. This reminds me of people rock climbing. See how he doesn’t have a ledge to lever himself upwards so he uses his fingers and arms to pull his whole body up…

here we go....

ahh - one leg up...

two legs up !!

Please excuse maid's face in pix. I was busy snapping photos and she had to make sure Aiden doesnt fall and smack his face!!

Eczema

2007-06-21T09:41:00.000+08:00

21 June 2007, Thursday

I have not shared with many of you that my little darling has eczema since he was 3 months old. Many people say that this is quite a common occurrence amongst babies under 1 year old, and most of the time it will go off when the baby becomes older.

This condition is hereditary, and from the looks of things, I don’t think that it will go away in the near future. We've gone from one skin lotion to another cream and right now I have a cupboard which has a range of unfinished bottles of lotion all from the experiments/trial and error we had to go through to find the right one from him. He now uses Cetaphil lotion which costs a bomb (thank god I can claim for these through my company benefits). On occasions, when the skin gets red from scratching, I have no choice but put some steroid cream to avoid infection. There are new findings in the market on non steroid creams available but unfortunately there hasn’t been much clinical trials conducted on babies/toddlers. I dare not try it on Aiden and his paed has not encouraged we do so too.

Every night, we have to put 2.5ml of antihistamine (either Zyrtec or Piriton) so that he gets a good night's sleep. I really pity him when he cannot fall asleep because of the itch.

I've had many advices from friends / relatives on alternative methods from using yam powder to oxidized water (?) to relief his itch. Sorry, maybe my brain has been wired to evidence based medicine after having been in the pharmaceutical industry for the last 8 years.

Aiden has not been able to go on seafood as of yet, so no fish and I only tried chicken once. Right now, he has his daily intake of 1 bowl of porridge, twice a day with a mixture of pumpkin, carrot, sweet potato, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli or baby spinach. I usually mix 3 different coloured vegetables with at least 1 sweet tasting vegetable daily. I also recently started him on red rice, millet and quinoa bought from the organic shop for health reasons.

I think this is also one of the reasons why he wakes up in the middle of the night as he is uncomfortable from the itch. Nevertheless, Aiden is a happy and healthy baby. I guess this is something that we have to manage as there is no cure for eczema. We are taking him for an allergy test (see baby Phoebe's allergy test)this weekend as we intend to start him on dairy such as cheese/yoghurt and at least chicken so he has his intake of meat protein.

Things He Knows

2007-06-12T11:18:00.000+08:00

12 June 2007, Tuesday

In the living room

Me : Where's the Fan?
Bebe : Looks at ceiling for Fan and smile

Me : Where's the Clock?
Bebe : Looks for the Clock on the wall and smile

Me : Where's the Ball?
Bebe : Looks for Soccer ball and finds it and smile

Me : Where's Ah-Kong (grandpa)?
Bebe : "hooh – hooh" – looks at the front door or top of stairs - *blank face* when cannot find his grandpa

In the bedroom

Me : Where's the Piggy Pig – Oink Oink?
Bebe : Looks at the sofa chair, finds it and smile

Me : Where's the Ducky Duck – Quack Quack?
Bebe : Looks for the Duck, picks it up and smile

Me : Where's Erin the Elephant – cause I dunno how to make elephant sound
Bebe : Grabs elephant by the trunk and smile

Me : Where's Daddy?
Bebe : Looks at the bed – then the door – then all over the room *blank face*

I'm trying to teach him body parts for weeks but he doesn’t seem to have the interests in learning

My Playful Boy

2007-06-07T14:11:00.000+08:00

07 June 2007, Thursday

Aiden is at the stage where he's totally aware of the surroundings and is able to response to questions/commands. He kind of knows the consequences of the actions that he takes, and will usually do the complete opposite of what we tell him to.

2030 - 2100 hours
Obediently goes to sleep in his own cot. Either me or hubby will keep him company until he falls asleep.

0100 - 0200 hours
Wakes up, stands up in his cot and goes "huuh" "huuh" "huuh". He wants to get into our bed to sleep with us. At this point, I'm too damn tired to think of consequences of my actions and will usually comply.

0200 – 0700 hours (on good days which unfortunately I can count with 1 hand)
Sleeps right through without any incidents

0200 – 0700 hours (on most occasions)
Wakes up once in the middle of the night, we don’t know what time as it's still dark, to play. Will usually pull at mummy or daddy's hair, nose, mouth and pull himself to standing position at the headboard. Will play 't-i-m-b-e-r' by himself aka let himself fall backward onto the bed. Usually accidents will happen because he'll hit our head or body!!! Goes back to sleep after half hour to one hour.

0710 hours
Mummy and Daddy will usually wake up groggy and with a backache cause Aiden takes up most of the space on the bed even though we have a king size bed

H~E~L~P : I need advise on how to stop Aiden from waking up in the middle of the night. We tried to ignore him, but he will cry if we don’t bring him to our bed!

A Letter to Aiden

2007-06-01T11:23:00.000+08:00

01 June 2007, Friday

Dear Aiden

A year ago, today – mummy was scheduled to deliver you by C-section at 11am. This was the long awaited moment by both mummy and daddy, as we waited in anticipation to see you arrive into our world.

Mummy was wheeled into the operating theater at 10am and waited at the corner of the waiting area, whilst watching the nurses and doctors move around going through their daily chores oblivious to an anxious mother, scared out of her wits, wondering if everything will be okay and if you will be delivered safely.

Then came the time when two of the nurses wheeled mummy into the Operating Room # 9 (I can still remember passing by each room). It felt extra cold in there and the room smelled of antiseptic wash. Both the gynecologist and anesthetist were already in the room chatting away, and soon prepared mummy for the operation. Mummy was put on local anesthetic to numb the lower body and soon the drug took effect and all mummy could do was move her upper arms and body.

It was a frightening moment when the doctor said that he was ready to make an incision, and mummy prayed hard that the drug was working at the optimum level – 200% if possible! There was a lot of movements and the doctor was telling me soon that they were going to extract the cord blood for storage. Yes mummy and daddy opted to keep your cord blood as medical insurance. At this point in time, mummy kept talking nonsense to the anesthetist, like asking him what the graph means, why are there so many buttons and knobs and even said that the machine used to monitor heart rate, blood pressure looked like a DJ console.

It certainly felt like an eternity but soon I heard the matron said that she could see your head – and the doctor said that there are about to take to baby out. The first words that the matron mentioned was, "Wah! This one's got a lot of hair". A few seconds later, you were born and announced to the world of your arrival with little screams which sounded like beautiful music to mummy's ears.

From that moment on, all fears and worries about the operation went flying out the window, as all mummy could do was focus on your cries which went from one corner of the room to another. I assume they were cleaning you and preparing you to be weighed. Shortly after, a nurse brought you to my side, and all mummy could do was smile, kiss your cheek as tears rolled down mummy's own. No words can explain the immense joy the first time I saw you after waiting for 9 long months. The feelings are also shared by daddy when you were brought into the waiting room.

Have a blessed birthday my dear son with many many more to come. Mummy and Daddy loves you.

With All My Love,
Mummy

The Party Preparation

2007-05-30T16:35:00.000+08:00

30 May 2007, Wednesday

This post is for first time mummies and daddies who fretted like me about a month before our first born's first birthday aka parents with no experience hosting a kid's party:

The preparation for Aiden's party started way back in May. I already had in mind where to obtain the cake from and the choice of caterers were many (or so I thought). Upon checking with the caterers, I found that most already had bookings for the day and could not take on any other jobs unless I came to collect the food myself. Since it was only for a small group of 25, I opted for that, plus made some others myself.

I had also sourced for party wares from Toys R Us, and managed to obtain party packs, hats, balloons and streamers to brighten the house. This was a first for me, and had to steal/learn ideas from kids' parties that we have attended in the last year or so. Errr come to think of it, the only parties we've been to of late, has been kids' parties.. that's really sad…har har.

Oh yeah, I must add that we were "el cheapo" ~ so no balloons from Balloons Bouquet, and smart me decided to use the basketball pump which of course did not work!!. In the end, between me and my maid, we blew like 20 odd balloons (of which at least 6 burst in the middle of the night); Got strings to tie them up and asked my tall hubby to hang from the curtain rods, and doors.

I also made a collection of Aiden's pictures from birth till present, the idea obtained from here, and hung them across the wall where we had our buffet line. As for the party packs, I actually bought ready made party packs (the ones with face masks, balloons, rattles), took them apart and fitted them into my own party pack; and included other goodies such as cookies and sweets.

Tip: if you have children in different age group, then to customize your party pack. For instance, for babies I replaced cookies with baby biscuits.

Back to food, we only catered: Fried Mee, Portuguese Devil Chicken and Sambal Fish. On the home front, I made steamed rice, green vegetables, chicken mushroom cocktails with cheese and my ever famous chicken sandwich (self proclaim). My cousin sister was nice to make red eggs (according to my mum – this is a must) for us.
Tip: at kids' party we need to ensure that there are non spicy stuff for them.

We always worry that there wont be enough food, and believe you me, there will ALWAYS be leftovers, so it came to no surprise that we were left having the same for dinner that night and also for the following day.
Tip: only order for 75% of your total number of guests as the variety of food will keep them full. If you serve your mains (noodles/rice) in smaller portions or smaller trays at a time, your guests will not pile their plates. In this way, your food will also stay fresh.

Well, hope this helps and happy planning ~

Aiden Chan Zhiwei

2007-05-29T14:25:00.000+08:00

29 May 2007, Tuesday

I was tagged by Chanel some two weeks ago, but did not realized this until this week, so this is the meaning of my boy's name:

AIDEN

Gender : Boy
Origin : Gaelic
Meaning : Little Fire
Pronunciation : AY dan

The meaning of Zhiwei
Being non Chinese educated, it was hard for me and hubby to look for a suitable Chinese name for Aiden. We wanted one that would not require too many strokes and which we could pronounce without sounding like a mouthful. So out came books, calls to aunties and even ex-colleagues to help. My husband was quite certain he wanted Aiden to have a name with a meaning of "Wisdom", hence the character "Zhi". "Wei" on its own does not have a meaning, but his name as a whole means it is a person of great wisdom; which I hope is what he will turn out to be one day.

You might ask why only one word? I guess just to be a little different from the conventional 2-worded names. This was suggested by my MIL.

My tags (only 2):

Pinky Thots – Jeremy
The Blue Ranger – Ethan

**Start Copy**Proposition: What is the meaning of your kid’s name?

Requirements: write about what or how or why you giving the name to your kids.

Quantity: FIVE PEOPLE.

Tag Mode:
1st - You leave their blog and post link and add to the list below.
2nd - Let the blogger you want to tag know they been tagged by comment in their blog or etc.

Msaufong-SQ & Kiki
Shoppingmum and Kids-Justin and Isabelle
Chooi Peng-Kai Wen
Judy-Terry
Dragonmummy-Nicole and Marcus
Jasmine-Faythe & Vyktore
Anggie–Jeremy Chang Ee Jay

Chanel–Jeriel Lim Jing Yong
Milkmaid – Aiden Chan Zhiwei

Aiden's Birthday Party

2007-05-28T10:58:00.000+08:00

26 May 2007, Saturday

I guess pictures says a thousand words so, I'll let them do the talking. We decided to celebrate Aiden's birthday a week earlier, and because of his early sleep schedule, we invited our relatives and some close friends over for lunch on Saturday:

This is my toy. Dont touch!...

I am willing to share my car though...

Geez ... who are all these people in the house?

Aiden's Gorgeous Birthday Cake
(Guess most of you would know from whom I ordered it from)

Aiden lurves ducks

Snap shots of Aiden's aunties, friends, cousins, grandmas, great grandma too

Little Matthew is our neighbour @ 14 mths. He can walk and run already!

These are some of Aiden's cousin and friends.

Do you see lil Caitlin on the car? She's really adorable.

The Morning After Mother's Day

2007-05-14T17:03:00.000+08:00

14 May 2007, Monday

A Belated Happy Mother's Day to all mummies old and new.

It was a first for me being a first time mum, and my 2 weekend nights were taken up by dinners. On Saturday night, we took my mum out for dinner at Tony Roma's in Sunway Pyramid. Okay, so we were kinda expecting pork ribs (like in Singapore & Shanghai) but of course, we are in M'sia so they only serve beef ribs here. It was pack to the brim (we actually had to wait half hour before we got a table).

Aiden was such a good boy that night and was screaming and playing with his grandparents. Oh, and I have tried giving him mash potatoes from here and he takes it quite well. Service was quite poor – I really don’t know if it is from the lack of training or because they were really really packed that night. All in all – I give it a 6 out of 10.

Sunday was another adventure to Pantai Seafood Centre (near Kampung Kayu Ara). This is the fastest 8 course dinner we had --- this time I went with my MIL, SIL and their family. We did not make reservations, so we had to be there at 645pm to have dinner and be out of there by 8pm cause there was another family coming in at that time!! Food on that night was so-so only and I think it was due to the immense crowd. But I give credit that it is a great place for seafood, but do call in for reservations on weekends.

Verdict : I you want to have a nice dinner with good service without the wrath of customers who are waiting for tables breathing down your neck; then do it at least 1 week before the actual day.

PS: Referring to some blogs on Mother's Day being slightly of an overkill and that we should not wait until that day to show appreciation to our mothers --- well, I totally support and agree!! But had to "sek chou" abit here – so bought 2 small bouquets of flowers for both mum and MIL. And of course who is to complain when 1 was also at the receiving end – lou kong bought me half dozen tulips from Petaling Street (wholesalers and much cheaper)

MY List

2007-05-11T14:05:00.000+08:00

11 May, 2007

Okay - after having read this in several blogs and always say I need to do this, but never had the time. So here goes :

Introduction
The purpose of My List is to gather all Malaysian blogs under the banner of unity and creating a huge bookmark. So much richness can be found within our very own Malaysian blogs and this will open up our minds and hearts to the lives of our fellow bloggers.

Dateline for Participation
31st May 2007

Important Guidelines
- One reminder email will be sent once the final list is updated on this page after the deadline.
- All participants must then feature a brand new post before 15th of June with the final updated and complete list of participating Malaysian blogs downloadable directly via the email or from this dedicated My List page.
- All My List Post must be permanent and accessible.

How To Participate
- Download My List in Text format.
- Make a new post promoting My List and guide your fellow Malaysian readers to this page if they are keen to participate.
- Copy the entire Text File you downloaded.
- Paste it at the end of your post.
- Publish the post and ensure all links are in working order.
- Submit your contact details and the permanent url of your MyList post by using this contact form.
- Your blog url will then be added to the list.
- Post a new post of the final My List after receiving an email notification as mentioned in the guidelines above. This is done to ensure everyone will benefit from this even those who participate later or close to the deadline.

My List Participants BERSAMA MEMBINA KEJAYAAN THE BITCH CLUB Artmaker BlogWawasan.com life is beautiful Adino Online Penang Homes Physical-e A Mom's Diary Health Freak Mommy mrdefinite.com - It’s hot Tracking Movies SquareCookies MonkeyWong Voice of a Glass Doll Online Article Directory Bambang Wise Life Advice Kaklong Online Portal Down Memory Lanes Sleeping Princess Online Bisnes Forex Marketing Blog project010 ProTechWang.Com Bleargh Pigeon Card Pianologist KCLau’s Money Tips The Great Swifty Speaketh Mr & Mrs. Imran If fate allow our destinies to meet From chopstix to steak knives Where's My Noose? Duke Amiene Rev Mum & Kids In Wonderland Yum-Yum Cuisine Software, Web Development and Technology just another ordinary story Mummy In Vain's Little World How To Solve Your Question FáLLiÑg LéÃVéS add this to my life Free Encyclopedia High Paying Keywords try-test arshad's photojourney EvelynHolic RajaBLog.info Lovelymummy's Bay My Yummy Cruise Home Sweet Home Lovely Mummy OnlineBisnes Malay Blog Purest of e2wen MyAnimes MySpace Blog Badruzamani.Org Parenting Life Forum Newbie Bisnes Internet & Blogger Mohd Sufian A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words hcfoo's blog Amazing Grace The Sanctuary Welcome To cHrIstInA_YY's Pink World Defying Destiny Dead Boredom Seeking Freedom Travelogue An amazing & adventurous journey Erin Nurjenna [B][E][A][U][T][I][F][U][L] Fluffy's Day Off My Fairy-Tale Once Upon A Time Money Making Blog Bubba Stuff Little Raymond's quaint melody Seraph Chronicles Route Brumeuse Coder's Talk Reggae And SKA Art Of ApOgEE THE VEGEMASTER LIFE Boonage Coretan Pengalaman Mat Silverhorsegunnysack BLUEAPPLE scribbles Diet & Detoxification Karma Kameleon Hsien's Dirty Little Secret The Rojak Blog keeyit My Life Online Fun Stuffs Donny's Bits Nicholas Chan's Blog dream of's DESIGN strike freedom 115 Truly Malaysia It's another new day Lisan's Scribbles Ramblings of a 22 years old The Towering Joe Life's a Breeze Life's Roller Coaster AceOne118 In His Time in His time The New Sanctuary a life full of surprises Sketches of Life Shannon's Old Space Pikey Dude SEO & Online Marketing Blog ShowMeMoneyBiz.com Snapshots kahpengBlog I am Who I am yung . silent whisper Simple Life One blog.One girl.One story The World Through My Eyes Why Malaysia? Etcetera~Etcetera Giddy Tigers Make Money Online: Exploring The Dark Side of Blogging Xilly's Blog Malaika Xiao Yu My Home Recipe SQKIKI’s Simple Tech Nukilan Jejari Azhad ITCHY HANDseng Just My Lil' Organic Life Oooh La La... Weird World of MerapuMan Fibre Art The World at My Fingertips Organic Income Organic Parade Shopping Flavor Daily postings of a chung ling student Something about LAI KennyP’s Technology Blog Women Mumbles KuKuJian.com Lyon & Wien Under The SUN Crumbs In Life SotongZai's Flow In the Ocean allthingspurple Christene's Kitchen toxicle.org [ Wood ] [ Earth ] [ Cheap ] [ Flight ] COMtech Ah Ling's blog Memoirs.:*CRoSs mY hE@Rt ~WoOLaLA~ vivivava Design My Mothering Corner Shoppingmum’s Home Office My Filling Station Shopping Mum All about Beauty Shoppingmum and Kids datotalrandommessy.grey Notes from my heart Joy Montessori wahlau's online hut Cedric’s Asylum mott’s mutterings Just My Thoughts delephant Incoherent Ramblings HOT STUFF Make Money Online with Malaysia Love AGLOCO MONTESSORIMUM.COM Funky Cookies Earn Money Online PabloPabla's Whatever Make Money with Blogging Paris Beaverbanks Free Links Giveaway Free Blogger Templates Blogsreview.Net Making a Living 5xmom How to be a Better Blogger My Women Stuff Hochiak! Delicious Asian Food Best Recipes Champagne Tastes on a Beer Budget Daryl's Discovery Journey The fluff must go somewhere

Sleeping Positions

2007-05-11T12:19:00.000+08:00

11 May 2007, Friday

This is my boy's favorite sleeping position nowadays. Dont know why, but we reckon that he was on the verge of sitting up, but fell back asleep again. Ever since he learnt to sit up by himself, he will automatically do this, even when he is half asleep.

This has been our little problem for the past 3 weeks, Aiden tends to sit up when he is half asleep during the night, and then actually wakes up because if this act !! Once he realises that he is awake, he will pull himself up on the cot and start calling for us. We tried to put him on our bed so that we get a good night's rest, but he does the same as well. Then the nightmare begins cause he will pull at our hair, nose, ears and lips, even though I try to ignore him, hoping that he will fall asleep.

By now, he would be up for a good half hour and will only go back to sleep after some milk... Sigh. For the past several weeks, lou kong and I have been looking like zombies in the day because of this. Hopefully (fingers crossed) this will phase out on its own. Eg, last night was good cause he slept right through!!

Shake a bon-bon

11 Months Old

2007-05-10T15:59:00.000+08:00

10 May 2007, Thursday

Our little angel is now 11 months and 1.5 weeks old!! I can still remember him when he barely fit in one arm. Nowadays, he doesn’t like to sit still and we cannot stand stationery whilst carrying him. He likes us to walk around, especially the kitchen area where he can explore opening cupboards and drawers.

Meals
He is still on 3-4 feeds of milk, 2 meals and 1 serving of fruits. I am intending to introduce breakfast, like bread or cheese soon. Anyone with ideas on what to feed 11 month old babies would be helpful. Aiden now has 4 teeth with the 5th on the way. Yesterday, I was at Jaya Supermarket and bought for him a box of Muesli with Apple (Nestle), which I intend to start this weekend.

Mobility
He is now able to cruise but still has the urge to sit down (without warning) so we have to watch over him every so often in case he fall backwards or hit his head. He is aware of falling as I caught him on day with both hands lifted from the baby cot bar and he nearly fell. But he realized just in time and quickly grab the bar before he fell. The look on his face was absolutely a classic!!

Comprehension
He experiences separation anxiety whenever I leave his sight, especially at night or early in the morning. He was never like this, and now he will give his manja look and wail! He can now protest when he does not get things his way.

Verbal Cues
Can say "mum mum", "mama" and "papa" but again all involuntary. The only one that we are sure he can absolutely relate to is when he sees his bowl, he will say "mum mum".

He relates to these few words and will look at it when we ask him:

Me : Where's the Fan?
Aiden : Looks to ceiling and at the Fan

Me : Where's the Clock?
Aiden : Looks around until he finds the Clock

Me : Where's the Ball?
Aiden : Looks for his Soccer Ball and stare at it

Me : Where's Papa?
Aiden : Stares at daddy [if daddy not around, looks at the main door]

3 more weeks to his Big Day…wow, time really flies!

Aiden loves books / magazines. Here he is with my Mensa newsletter

Bye Bye Mommie

2007-05-09T13:23:00.000+08:00

May 09 2007, Wednesday

After having read the post by Shannon's mum, I was inspired to write this. Every morning, I have to face a grumpy crying baby when I drop him at my mum / in-law's home. He will usually grab and dig his fingers into my upper arm (ouch) at the same time kick his legs. When grandma carries him, he will then cry the manja cry for 10 secs or so before settling into a grouchy mood. I will then need to leave quickly or else he will pull out his hands and ask for me to carry him.So heartbreaking ya, and that's when I wish I did not have to leave to work.

On the flipside, I always look forward to coming home to him, as he will squeal, laugh whilst crawling towards me at the front door. When I carry him, he will continue to laugh and pat his hands with happiness. Somehow, it does not really work the same when Daddy comes home, but Aiden will usually greet daddy with a toothy smile and grab his tie/shirt button.

It really is a wonder to me these feelings that I have for Aiden and I guess no words can explain the unspoken joy and happiness a mummy will feel for her child.

Facts on Aiden

2007-04-24T14:49:00.000+08:00

April 24th 2007, Tuesday

Got tagged, so here goes: Didnt seem like it was from the baby's perspective cause many of the questions were "adult"ish?

On the Outside
Name: Aiden Chan Zhiwei
Date of birth: 01 June 2006
Current status: Army crawl and has learnt how to pull himself up to standing position
Eye color: Black
Hair color: Black
Righty or Lefty: No preference – he'll use the hand that is the nearest to grab what he wants
Zodiac: Gemini

On the Inside
Heritage: Cantonese
Fear: Going near the sofa cause that means he has to sit put with mummy!
Weakness: "mum mum" – means eat in Cantonese

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow
Your thoughts first waking up: "Hmm – yawn stretch – where's everyone?"
Your bedtime: 830pm – 900pm
Your most missed memory: "I want to play with that thing-I'm-not-suppose-to-have, which you took away from me!!"

Your Pick
Pepsi or Coke: "What is that? I only get to drink water and milk, occasionally, barley water"
McDees or Burger King: "Uh uh, not suppose to eat this, cause mummy says I'll turn to a junkie"
Single or Group Dates: group dates if there are a lot of friends to play with
Adidas or Nike: I think he's a Nike baby, although he does have some adidas sweaters
Lipton Tea or Nestea: please see answer to pepsi or coke
Chocolate or Vanilla: Hubby loves chocolate, I love vanilla, I think Aiden will have to make do with vanilla & chocolate swirls!
Cappucino or coffee: Hmm… isn’t caffeine bad for babies?

Do you…
Smoke: Of course not la
Curse: Ya – everyday at mummy cause she doesn’t let me play with the remote controls!

In the past month
Drank alcohol: Aiden put his nose into glass filled with white wine. I think the alcohol fumes made him dizzy ha ha !!
Gone to the mall: Oh yes, nearly every weekend
Been on stage: Not with Aiden

Eaten sushi: Yes many times with Aiden but of course he will go ooh ahh. At the conveyor belt
Dyed your hair: Hmm, which reminds me that I need to do my hair soon

Have you ever…
Played a stripping game: Har har, yes – and a few times in a day too!
Changed who you were to fit in: Nope

Marriage
Age you’re hoping to be married: Are we still in the 19th century?

In a guy/girl (from Aiden's perspective)
Best eye color: Flexible
Hair color: Flexible
Short or long hair: botak can ar? Cause I also not much hair now

What were you doing?
1 minute ago: Probably playing with toys
1 hour ago: Just ate lunch
4 1/2 hours ago: Napping or playing with toys
1 month ago: Oh dear, it will either be playing, sleeping, eating, poo-ing or crying
1 year ago: Alamak, Aiden still in my tummy lar, enjoying the warm amniotic fluid

Finish the sentence (from Aiden's perspective)
I love: to put my fingers in mummy's mouth
I feel: great after a good night's sleep
I hate: going near the sofa – mummy's still trying to figure that one out!
I hide: some of my toys underneath the playpen mattress
I miss: my daddy!
I need: to be carried around so that I can see what's the view like from up there

Ok lah - not gonna tag anyone... for now...

Aiden Turns 10 months

2007-04-12T15:52:00.000+08:00

Thursday, 12 April

Gosh - I think that it's been like 2 months since I visited my own blog. I shall not even venture into sharing with you the tons of reasons - mainly, err no make that 99% due to work. Plus I rarely log in from home, and my weekends are packed with activities that I hardly have time...

Aiden is now 10 months and has really grown by leaps and bounds in the last 2 months. I've been lamenting about his slow development - at that time he could not crawl let alone sit up straight. He's now crawling (army style!!) and we can hardly keep him still. Phew !!

Some updates on Aiden:

Weight & Height

He hasnt been to see the dr lately so dunno. He should be heavier and taller cause it's hard to carry him for more than 5 mins and his jumpsuits are getting tighter. Last check was 10kg.

Meals

He still has 4 milk feeds in a day, with 1 portion of fruits (breakfast) and 2 portions of porridge (lunch and dinner)

Dextricity

Able to pick up small objects with his fingers, able to point with index finger and manuevour into corners or small spaces to pick up things. I am beginning to find non-descriptive items picked up by him where serious spring cleaning would not have even picked up !

Comprehension

Able to understand when I point at something and he will follow suit. Sometimes I like to sit back and observe him during play time. He'll be taking toys out from his toy box and systematically move them from left to right then back into the box again. I really wonder what he's thinking about sometimes

Knows the concept of "object permanence". If I disappear behind the wall/door or go into another room asking him to wait for me, he will usually sit and stare at the same spot where I last was and wait for my appearance again!

He is also more independent now and knows what he wants. Ie he will cry when an object is taken away from him and usually defies us by holding tight on the item and stomping his feet (This is when he is in the walker).

Mobility

He can crawl army style, on his belly, using his feet and hands to push forward. He is also able to pull himself to standing position when left in the playpen or cot. If we are holding him, he will usually try to crawl over our shoulders. So it short, like a worm !

Keeping it short and simple, hope that I can keep posting more consistently from now on.

aiyo - caught in action *censored ah*

Aiden Turns 8 Months

2007-02-15T16:26:00.000+08:00

15 February 2007, Thursday

*backdated post*

This is like 2 weeks backdated, and with reference to my post this afternoon (Precious Time), you'll understand why. Aiden turned 8 months on 01 Feb, exactly 2 weeks ago. So let's look at his development :

Weight : 9.5 kg
Height : dunno lar
Food : 7oz milk each feed; organic rice cereal w veggie for lunch; pureed fruits for tea

Sleep : 2 or 3 naps during the day; sleeps by 830pm and usually wakes up at 730am

Dexterous
He is very skilled at picking up small objects and loves to examine each object (especially new ones) in great details. He can also pull his body up using the rail on his cot.

Verbal Cues

Can say MaMa, MumMum and PaPa - but of course as and when he wants to. The only consistent word, in which we think he truly understands in MumMum (in Cantonese it means eating) because he will repeat that word over and over again each time we put him on the high chair, and feed him. In fact he will say MumMum in between each spoonful of cereal. It is really quite funny.

Vision

Of course he now has this "separation anxiety" syndrome; and each time we leave him on his cot/pen/mattress he will start to whimper if we were to walk away from him. He can also see very fine objects. One day, I caught him staring near my face whilst changing him, and then he reached out to grab what I thought was air, but in actual fact, it was a single strand of my long hair near my face !!

Personal Trait

Funny boy I have here, why I say this is because when he is sleepy, he will suck his right thumb and put his left arm across his eyes. He goes to sleep like this... so if you were to look at him, he really looks like a mini adult trying to catch 20 winks.

Physical

Sigh - another month has passed and my lil boy is still very lazy. We call him the Leaning Tower of Pisa cause he cannot sit up straight, and also cannot crawl; although he is trying very hard to. Does anyone have any ideas on helping my son crawl?

Pic is blur cause downloaded from my handphone. His fav "toy" which he will leave it there and play with other toys. It is actually the linkadoos from Fisher Price

Precious Time

2007-02-15T13:14:00.000+08:00

15 February 2007

Much to what this entry is titled, I am left wondering what has happened to my time in 24 hours that really leaves me with none/zero/zilch time for myself these days.

I read with wonder all the mummy blogs and the time that they have spent writing about their babies and children; and wonder why I cant. Much as I love to, I dont even have time to read their blogs, and for those of you who know my trend by now, I usually end up reading like 10 posts at one go !!

So here's a glimpse of my 24 hour-life (weekday) in a nutshell:

0620am : Wake up
0630 - 0650 : Express Milk
0650 - 0730 : Get ready for work, sometimes Aiden is awake so I give his his morning feed
0730 - 0830 : Send baby to mum's or MIL's home/Stuck in traffic jam to work
0830 - 1745 : Work, work, work. Sometimes no time to read blogs.
1330 - 1400 : Express Milk
1800 - 1900 : Fetch Aiden and take him home
1900 - 2030 : Baby time (shower, feed and play)
2030 - 2100 : MY time (shower and relax before dinner)
2100 - 2300 : Dinner, Watch TV, read papers and Express Milk
2330 / 0000 : ZZZZZzzzz

Sigh - such is my daily routine...Dont get me wrong, but I know that life definintely changes with a baby around, and I love Aiden to bits. I rather cancel appointments with friends just to be home with him and it seems my life revolves just around the baby and my family. When I go shopping, it's always straight to the babies section. When we go to restaurants, it is always a place to accomodate him. (Once we went to a place with no baby chair, and we actually walked out of the restaurant !) Sometimes I miss him so much that I'll drive over to MIL's place during lunch time just to play with him for 20 mins (OK la - distance from my office to house is only 5 mins)

Am I overdoing it? Do you think this is healthy for us in the long term?

Home Alone

2007-01-19T13:18:00.000+08:00

19 January 2007, Friday

Dunno why, I seem to be so busy at work, I don’t have time to blog much less read my fellow mummy bloggers' entries. Wah Wah Wah – I miss the Bloggers' Meet too Sob sob….I dunno bout it wor….

So here's some lil updates, Mr Chan (lou kong) went on company trip to Shanghai Wednesday nite and wont be back until Sunday. This is the first time he'll be apart from us for so long and seriously, I am abit scared to be alone with Aiden (plus the maid) for so many nights.

To top it off, Aiden fell off the bed (again!!) on Wednesday, just a couple of hours before Lou Kong left to the airport…aiyooo me so sakit hati... his forehead now has a blue black spot. I called my mum when it happened and she heard him shrieking in the background. So guess what happened? She appeared at our doorstep wihin the next 10 mins! (She lives on the next road). Talk about timing….. because Aitden woke up twice in the middle on the night, probably having nightmares due to the fall.

He's still on organic Rice Cereal (brand : Earth's Best) and now I mix either carrots, pumpkin, sweet potato with it. Gonna try out Spinach this weekend. Anyone got any other ideas on what 7 month old babies can eat? He's still a vegetarian because of his sensitive skin, so I dare not try scallop, ikan bilis (anchovies) or chicken yet.

Now Aiden no longer wants us to hold him nor wants his chut chut when going to sleep. He has this habit of rolling to the left then to the right (for about 10 mins) and with some gentle pat pat on his buttocks, he falls asleep. Also, when we try to give him his chut chut (previously he cannot sleep without his chut chut), he cries because he knows that it relates to sleeping. Nowadays, he will play until he is very very sleepy only then will he take his naps. I guess my lil boy is growing up.

Another funny habit is shouting and screaming. But this is not related to crying or being irritated. He loves to shout and shout for no reason. Aiyo *slaps forehead*, so embarrassing when we took him out to the restaurant last weekend. Any mummies out there facing the same thing with your 7 month old?

Mr Chan trying to get his son to become an accountant??? Oh NOOO.....

With his new car seat. He has outgrown his old baby carrier cum car seat

My Two Front Teeth

2007-01-04T12:34:00.000+08:00

04 January 2007, Thursday

* yet another backdated post*

"...All I want for Xmas is my 2 fronth teeth, my two fronth teeth, see my two front teeth..."

Yippee, my lil darling has sprouted 2 teeth and this happened over Xmas when I was on a long break. We knew that this was coming as his gums have been swollen for the past 3 weeks and just the week before we saw it, he has been fussy about drinking milk. Possibly painful for him so he only drank a little bit at a time.

Then on the weekend before Xmas, I used a clean finger (mum thought me this) to feel his gums, and sure enuf, I could feel something hard just underneath his gums. Two days later, we saw whitish parts on his lower gum!!!

Now, my lil baby eats voraciously, can finish 7 oz milk in one sitting, followed by pureed fruits. Here is a pix of him, I had to tickle him to make him open his month and then quickly take the photo. If I were to pull at his lower lip, all he does is stick out his tongue....Ah, my little cutie pie....

Aiden Turns 7 Months

2007-01-04T11:36:00.000+08:00

see me stick my tongue out... that's for not lettng me out of this chair!!

04 January 2007, Thursday

Oh my….there is so much to write about Aiden and his development. For a first time mum, I guess everything is a new experience and I am totally in awe with him although we've had him for 7 months.

Weight : 9.3kg or thereabouts (we have not weighed him since he turned 6)
Food : 7 oz milk each time; 1 serving organic rice cereal w veggie; 1 serving pureed fruit
Interval : Every 3.5 hours during the day

Dexterous
It's the grab-what-you-can season! He cannot sit still, and would pull at almost everything. It makes carrying him a chore because he would lunge at anything that he fancies. Just the other day, he did a back bend when I was carrying him causing me to nearly drop him. Of course anything that falls into his hands will literally go into his mouth. Oh yeah, if he cannot find anything to grab, he will start to pull at your nose, lips and spectacles (my hubby wears specs)

Verbal Cues
Talk, talk and talk. Even at 7am, when he is awake, he laughs and talks to his toys and his all time favorite blanket. He seems to play peek-a-boo with his own blanket and giggles. Even both hubby and I cant help but wake up and laugh with him. He loves it when I sing nursery rhymes to him, and will try to sing along, by making sounds together with me.

Comprehension
He is able to understand "No" when I firmly tell him so. This happened one day when he pulled a magnet from the fridge door and tried to eat it. He turned down his mouth when I said "No" but dare not put it into his mouth. He looked at it longingly, and threw it away soon after. We tried to same thing again the following day, and when I said "No" once more, he cried but once again dare not put it into his mouth. Now when I bring him near the fridge, he would look at the magnets, and is very hesitant to pull at it.

Vision
We play peek-a-boo with him to make him realize that we are still behind the door/wall even though he cannot see us. Sometimes he waits in anticipation for us to appear again. Sometimes he loses interests, forgets and cries thinking that we have left him. He also loves playing with his own image in the mirror.

Personal Trait
My next door neighbor nick-named him The Friendly Baby. That's because Aiden smiles at everyone that smiles at him. The only time when he cries out in fear is if he sees a stranger talk to him and mummy/daddy is not within sight. He probably thinks that we left him.

Physical
He's an expert in turning and rolling all over the place. But my lil boy still has a long way to go cause he still cannot sit without support. The best he can do is to sit in a high chair, or his booster seat.

Short Takes (Not So Short After All)

2006-12-27T21:52:00.000+08:00

01 January 2007, Monday

First and foremost --- HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL........ This is really an outdated update of Aiden, but what the heck...some of the info also not valid anymore, cause I tried to post the day Taiwan got hit by earthquake. Mana tau la....then after that got so busy with family and all that......

-------------------------

I started experimenting with organic rice cereal a couple of weekends ago, and he doesn’t seem to take it too well. After a couple of tiny spoons, he'll start to fuss. I have even tried mashed carrots for a change but he doesn’t seem to like it as well. At first I thought he wasn’t that hungry but when I gave him milk, he gulped it all down. I am wondering now if I started semi solids too late….

(Latest updates, Aiden lurves organic rice cereal mixed with carrots. Today, I tried giving him 2 tbs and he took it all in. Even cried when there was no more....yippeeeee)

I'm so happy that Xmas season is here, and we had put up our tree some weeks back. Aiden has been so excited with the tree, especially when it is lit up at night, he kept wanting to grab the baubles and lights. Here he is with all the presents underneath the tree. You can see the big big Xmas gift from his ah-kong (grandpa) and ah-ma (grandma) on the right….it's a walker!! Suffice to say, Aiden got the most gifts from his uncles, aunties, and grandparents…..
(Aiyo, this weekend gotta take the tree down liao....susah betul)

He is still unable to sit unaided, and needs support for his back most of the time. Here's one of him with daddy's Xmas present – the infamous Lamaze Elephant.

Ah, and finally Boxing Day has arrived… and look what my little cutie is up to. We let him try sitting on the walker, but instead of whizzing around (I know, I know, I think I'm over ambitious), he seem more interested in the toy on the right. Notice his frustration as he's trying to get the toy in the mouth but he cant reach it!! He got really frustrated after trying for 15 mins…

Here's what we’ve been up to:

24/12 (am) The Curve (taking photos with blue blue Xmas trees)
24/12 (pm) Sri Ayutharya for dinner with my family

25/12 (am) Mid Valley Mega Mall (taking photos with the gingerbread house)
25/12 (pm) Dinner at MIL's house **

26/12 (am) Visit to Grandma's house (Aiden's great grandma)

27/12 Much needed R.E.S.T.

28/12 Parents coming over for dinner; will be making sirloin steaks, and pork ribs

** The most unfortunate thing happened at MIL's house. For the first time in Aiden's 6 months and 28 days, he fell off the bed!!! Even with bolsters and pillows around him, he managed to roll right off the bed. My poor baby…….

Aiden Turns 6 Months

2006-12-12T17:11:00.000+08:00

12 December 2006, Tuesday

Aiden turned 6 months on the 01 December. Yea – mummy here getting a little lazy with the monthly update of him, hiaks!!

Weight : 9.15 kg

Milk Intake : still the same…..6 oz, sometimes 7 oz in the morning

Interval : 3.5 to 4 hours

Sleep : same-o same-o, sleeps at 730pm till 730am (1 feed at 5am)

I haven’t started Aiden with solids yet, as he has extremely sensitive skin. My paed recommended him to start only after 6 months, of which I only started experimenting on weekends with organic rice cereal. The first time had it, he spitted everything out…..on the 2nd try he was skeptical but took it anyhow. I think he didn’t quite like to taste, because it was a bit bland, even though I had mixed it with milk.

Then last week, I got a box of Rusk (mooted by Jazzmint who started Vyktore already with this for evening snacks…) and fed him some yesterday evening….Voila…. he lurved it….smacking his lips and sucking his tongue…..

Dexterous
Very good with small or large objects and able to transfer his toy from left to right hand easily. Strong grip and usually when he is our arms, he likes to stretch out his fingers and pull at the person's lips or nose. I've got a bruised lower lip for proof!!

Verbal Cues
He is a very talkative boy. When left alone, he will sing, coo, and talk to his toy. Can now say "mum mum" , "pa pa", "ma ma" but this is of course all involuntary. Otherwise, he likes to yell and test the volume of his vocal chords until he coughs.

Comprehension
Knows when someone is talking to him, and enjoys the sight of people around him. He understands when a person walks away, and will usually cry when he sees someone leave his sight. When we clap our hands and reach out to him, he will likewise reach out as he knows that someone is about to carry him.

Personal Traits
It's funny how babies develop new "habits" or "traits" everyday. Nowadays, Aiden likes to sleep on his left side, with his right leg swung across his body. When we put him on his back, he will automatically move to his left side. There are also times where he doesn’t like to be held to sleep and rather fall asleep on is own in his cot!! Strange but I wish he could do this all the time ~ but it is only a trend during the night. Oh, how I wish this is true for his afternoon naps too, that would be such a wonderful burden off my mother and MIL's shoulders. Now it is akin to carrying a 10kg rice bag around!! Hahaha

Physical
Lastly, my darling is still quite lazy, although he is very quick at turning around from his back to his tummy and vice versa, and spinning 360 degrees on his back, he still cannot sit on his own yet. He is now able to stand for at least 5 seconds with light support under his armpit.

3-D Sculptor

2006-12-08T23:40:00.000+08:00

08 December 2006, Friday

Oh I'm so excited!! I've waited with great anticipation to collect this for many weeks now wondering how it will turn out. Wanna see what we did for our little prince? Read on....

I stumbled upon 3-D sculpturing for babies and adults via The Baby Loft. The concept is not new, I'm sure most of you have seen this before in shopping malls where you could dip your hand into wax and voila, no sooner than 5 minutes, you've encasted your hand.

And the result……………

We absolutely lurved it. Aiden was 18 weeks when we got his foot and hand (fist) encasted. You could always do it for new-born, I thought that would have been nice. And the lady sculptor was very nice, because the first time Aiden had his hand molded, it didn’t quite come out right, and she patiently did it all over again. The material or clay (felt more like plastersine) used for molding is really soft as we could see all the fine lines on his foot and hand, including his nails too.

I would recommend for those who would like to have a keepsake of their child, as this is also the only time you could see their tiny fingers and toes. It’s that feeling that you have being a first time parent (mum or dad) and you want to do almost anything and everything for your baby. *guilty*

I had forgotten to take my camera along to capture the process...aiyo really regret liao.

Baby Contest

2006-12-05T12:05:00.001+08:00

05 December 2006, Tuesday

Last month, I was inspired by an entry blog by Rachel's Mummy on Baby Contest. So I "buta buta " submitted one of Aiden's photo for the November contest to try for fun, and subsequently send emails to my colleagues and friends to vote liao. Eh, sorry lioa I did not blog about this and got all the mummies to vote ~ very busy these days and cant blog all the time too.

Then I read that Rachel's Mummy had also sent in her baby's photo for the second time and for the same month. Aiyo, so we were like competing in the same month, and she had managed to secure more than 900 votes!!! Very "keng" lar...

So you can imagine to my surprise when I received an email yesterday to say that Aiden won the second prize for November's baby contest!!! Baby Aiden ~ mummy and daddy are sooo proud of you......Here's a caption from the site:

Shannon - hope you dont mind and also did not realise that we are competing in the same month. I still think Rachel is so cute and hugable, she deserves to be First...:)

For more info on November winners (baby category), click here.

Sleeping Position & Sucking Thumb

2006-11-24T15:09:00.000+08:00

24 November 2006, Friday

This is what happens when he learnt to flip, wriggle, shake & stretch. We use to have only the upper portion of the cot padded with the cot bumper. Nowadays, Aiden will wriggle his body all the way to the lower portion of the cot, hence his legs caught in between the wooden rungs. Last week, we caught him on his tummy with both legs sticking out. He woke up crying in this position….So we finally decided to pad all four sides of his baby cot!

This picture was taken at 11pm last night, looks like his pillow and blanket is of no use…

Now, I've wanted to write about this for several weeks now, but did not have the opportunity to take pictures when he was in action. See here these photos…..what this naughty boy is up to….SUCKING HIS THUMB…..

These pictures are taken at 4am this morning, when he woke up for "nen nen"….
(yawn, mummy had to get camera ready last night to catch him in action)

Here he is, at it again at 8am this morning, on my bed when I was getting ready for work:

H~E~L~P~....dont want him to have this habit of sucking thumb, but he seems to prefer it over his "chut chut" (pacifier)

Bukit Tinggi (Part 2)

2006-11-21T11:41:00.000+08:00

21 November 2006, Tuesday

Good Morning

Day 2 was a little more difficult as Aiden started to act up after his 9am feed. He actually woke up at 530am (as usual) for his middle of the night feed but refused to go back to sleep. So we let him play by himself (cause I was so sleepy) until bath time at 830 before his first day feed.

Here he is in action (we did not bring his bath tub so we had to use the sink !!):

Breakfast

We were having breakfast when Aiden decided to show his true colours – screaming and screaming at the Coffee House when I tried to put him to sleep, which took me a good 20 minutes ~ aiyoyo, so embarrassing. He finally went to sleep and I finally got to eat around 1020am …

All of us dutifully trooped back to the room so that he could nap for awhile before we attempted the Japanese Garden

Japanese Garden - 2nd attempt

We finally got to the gardens around 11am...okay no garden pictures but one of the koi pond

Rabbit Farm

Quite a disappointment here as it was drizzling when we got there and all the rabbits were burrowed in their hidey holes (made of hay). There was only 1 measly rabbit out, of which I quickly took a picture with when the rain stopped.

In Summary:
Holidays will never ever be the same as to when it was just me and Lou Kong. Now with a baby in tow, our schedule revolves around his sleeping and eating time. Don't expect to get much out of holidays (sight seeing and all the adventurous stuff) at this stage. But we certainly had an unexplainable kind of fulfilment and joy just by spending time with our bundle of joy.

Bukit Tinggi (Part 1)

2006-11-20T16:40:00.000+08:00

20 November 2006, Monday

Preparing for the Trip

I learnt that there is no difference between a 2-day weekend getaway and a week long holiday. You still have to pack everything short of the kitchen sink!! So for those planning for a holiday, please take heed. We packed all of Aiden's makan stuff into a huge laundry basket, including boiled drinking water and a thermos of hot water from home.

Our car boot was filled with his pram/stroller, laundry basket, and a large plastic bag for other miscellaneous items which didn’t go into the overnight bag : pampers, wet wipes and his toys.

Checking-In

We arrived just short of 12 noon, and went straight to check-in. As usual, mummy here had a whole list of requirement in accordance to priority. (We had booked for a 2 bedroom suite)

- 2nd bedroom must have twin bed (My maid came along and my mum has to share the bedroom with her)
- Hubby wanted a 2 storey duplex (Downstairs kitchen, dining and living room, Upstairs 2 bedrooms)
- I wanted top floor with golf view (Less noise coming from the courtyard)

The hotel managed to fulfil our requirements but we had to settle with a jungle view. Not bad considering that the hotel was fully booked due to school holidays and corporate trainings from 3 different companies.

Lunch

We had pasta and pizza for lunch (so expensive liao) – costs us close to RM100 and was not that great. To top it off, all of us were still hungry after the meal and had to buy buns and cakes for tea. As Aiden was getting fidgety, we thought that we'd try to visit the Japanese Garden after a short nap.

Japanese Tea Garden (Day 1)

Our first attempt to visit the Garden on Day 1, we took the shuttle (open air) to the top. When we arrived at the gardens, it actually started to rain ~ sigh….. So we went up the steep steep hill (aiyo – so scary) and down the steep steep hill and back to the hotel....

So "potong steam" lar…..

Here he is prior to the trip:

Dinner (Day 1)

This was the first time we took Aiden out after his night feed and falling asleep at 8pm. We went to their Coffee House and had their BBQ buffet. Actually there was no choice because the ala carte menu is not served until after 10pm. Food review: 4.5 out of 10. Lousy and we were charged RM45++ per pax. All was well and Aiden slept soundly, until the Live Band (aiks!) came on. He managed to sleep for another half an hour before he was woken up by the lady screeching…hmm......

We makan fast fast, and made our way back to the room where Aiden promptly fell back to sleep (Phew!)

We spent the remaining evening in the living room enjoying coffee and chatting with my mum (something which I seldom do nowadays). The climate was cool and it was a refreshing change from the stifling air and the city's hustle and bustle.

* Hotel was actually very nice to provide us with a complimentary baby cot:

Going Away This Weekend

2006-11-17T10:06:00.000+08:00

17 November 2006, Friday

We are going on a holiday....yippee. Although it may not be totally exciting, as you see it, but nevertheless, I'm excited cause it’s the baby's first trip outstation and baby's first holiday.

Since it's our first time, we are trying not to be too adventurous, so somewhere near and for only one night. So, what do I need to pack…….bottle sterilizer, breast pump (important!!), diapers, liquid wash for bottles, pram, flask, clean drinking water, small towel, large towel, bibs, blanket, baby clothes, baby lotion, nappy rash cream….eeeeekkkkksss!!!!

And mind you, only ONE NIGHT ah!! So, can you guess where we're going?

PS: My maid, Tina, is very happy cause we seldom take her out. So, she's been cleaning the house all week in anticipation of being away this weekend…

MIGF 2006

2006-11-13T16:08:00.000+08:00

14 November 2006, Tuesday

Last weekend, Lou Kong surprised me (okay la – not a surprise cause I've been badgering for him to take me somewhere nice for dinner), with a reservation to one of the participating outlets for Malaysian International Gourmet Fest 2006.

All done in perfect timing, we took baby over to Mum's place for his dinner feed and zoomed off to Westin. This is probably the first time we are out together alone for a nice dinner ever since my delivery, so it was a dinner I truly relished.

Dinner was excellent, considering the number of courses (7 in total) and although each course was smaller than usual, it was a certainly a mouth watering experience. The idea of the food fest is for chefs to showcase their talents, and most of the time, the restaurants will host international chefs flown in for the occasion.

The only set back was that the place was packed, being a Saturday night, and we had a table near the open kitchen (right in the middle of the restaurant) so there was a lot of human traffic around us. Every so often, you'll hear waiters talking behind you, calling for orders to the chef. Sigh ~ so much for a romantic night out…

Here's the menu (which I "kapok") from Prego's.

Note: If you pay by VISA, you will get a RM50 voucher which you can use in your next visit. The only condition attached is voucher is only applicable on Mon – Friday.

Aiden Turns 5 on 1st Nov

2006-11-06T11:38:00.001+08:00

Get Your Own! View Slideshow

07 November 2006, Tuesday

Here are some updates on Aiden as he turned 5 months last week:

Weight : 8.8 kg
Height : Dunno, but must be growing cause his long pajama suit cant fit anymore.
Food : Still drinks 6-7 oz
Interval : Every 3.5 to 4 hours during the day

Dexterous
He is now very efficient at grasping and holding toys within his reach. Usually grabs his hanging mobile toys and gets frustrated because he cannot pull it down. He still has the tendency of putting everything into his mouth. Continuously plays with his fingers, especially when he wakes up from sleep and there is no one to attend to him. He also likes to pull his left mitten out with his right hand, so we always find him with one white glove on (Like MJ har har).

Verbal Cues
He loves to talk, talk, talk waking mummy and daddy up at 7am. He loves to test his vocal chords, saying oooh, ahhhh, ahgooo, or just making noises whilst playing with his fingers. I noticed that he likes looking at green plants and talking to them. This happens when I carry him from my mum's place back to my house in the evening ~ mum lives on the next road. Do you think he is a horticulturist in the making?

Comprehension
He is now able to distinguish between family members, caretakers and strangers. Yesterday we took him shopping and one aunty at the shop started to play with him. He cried out loud (manja cry with large tear drops) for no apparent reason but quickly stopped when he saw me. The same thing also happened once with my mum's friend some weeks ago.

Vision / Kepoh (Busy body)
He now likes to watch tv (when it is turned on) whilst drinking milk, or follows anyone that walks pass him. It is especially hard feeding him in the shopping complex as he will be too busy turning his head left and right and forgets about his milk. We usually need to find a quite corner and face the wall or somewhere with less human traffic.

Personal Traits
Albeit to my earlier entry on the same topic, I shared that he likes to go shopping on his pram. Well, he now doesn’t really like to sleep/sit in there, and demands to be carried after an hour or so…so troublesome. And a 9kg weight soon feels like 90kg!!! (Even when we have the Baby Bjorn baby carrier)

Physical
Aiden can now turn quite efficiently, especially when he is naked, and doesn’t have the heavy diapers in the way, and holds his head up whilst on his stomach. (Pix in action) It's still very much one-way, as he is still unable to flip from his tummy to his back as of yet.

Thermos Warehouse Sales

2006-11-05T22:41:00.001+08:00

06 November 2006, Monday

Okay, so yesterday I was screening through the newspaper and stumbled upon an advertisement on Thermos Warehouse Sales in Subang Jaya. Aiden wasn’t up to his usual self the past few nights (keeps waking up and crying – and we don’t know why). We think that this could be the beginning of his teething, but better pay a visit to the doctor to be on the safe side. No fever, no flu but go see anyway.

Coincidentally, the paed is also in SJ, so we dropped by the sale after his visit.Well well, what do you know. As usual, the word SALE usually attracts hungry-for-sale-aunties like moths to flame; and by the time we got in, the queue to pay was going from one end of the room to the other end.

Me : Aiyo, dowan lar. Look at the queue. So long, and it's near baby's feeding time…

Lou Kong : Up to you la, I carry him you take a quick look

Me : Okay (and spots a colleague of mine in the queue)..Hi!! Did you get anything much?

Colleague : Ya --- got the Shuttle Chef. Looks quite worth it….

Me : Psst, do you mind if I go pick up the items and pass you the list so that you can pay for me???

Colleague : Can la..go and choose, quick...quick

And so began my 15 min hunt for bargain items. Here’s what we got:

Lou Kong insisted that we buy this for Aiden….goodness knows it'll be at least another 1 year before he can use this:

The practical me got something for his bubur (porridge) next time:

Another carrier for his bubur (this one is a purchase with purchase):

Got a jug for the house:

The finally a WOK …..mine old one is too small, the maid is complaining that it's quite hard to fry the fish ~ oil spattering everywhere:

This pot came FREE with the Wok, comes with a deep fryer functionality and egg steamer too:

So….please don’t ask me how much I spent…..Oh my….now I feel really AUNTY.....does anyone out there feel the same?

Tagged

2006-11-02T11:14:00.000+08:00

02 November 2006, Thursday

Alamak - got tagged by Shannon. So here goes:

1. Are you happy/satisfied with your blog, with its content and look? Does your family know about your blog?
Ok – lah. I wish I had more time to "beautify" and add more pix and files; but what to do, work from 9-6pm, come home to baby and family. Before I know it, it's time to zzzzz. Yes, my family knows about the blog, reads it most of the time

2. Do you feel embarrassed to let your friends know about your blog or you just consider it as a private thing?
Of course not, but of course I don’t go heboh heboh to all lar. But I love to post development and pictures of my cutie pie…If people read it and post comments, I'm okay

3. Did blogs cause positive changes in your thoughts?
Yes,

4. Do you only open the blogs of those who comment on your blog or you love to go and discover more by yourself?
No, I will read blogs that comments on mine, but at the same time, I link to other interesting blogs/sites via blogs I read

5.What does visitors counter mean to you? Do you care about putting it in your blog?
Yeah I have a counter, just interested to see how many people visit my blog

6. Did you try to imagine your fellow bloggers and give them real pictures?
Ha ha…Most of the time

7. Admit. Do you think there is a real benefit for blogging?
Of course, I find it mentally refreshing having able to share Aiden's development with fellow bloggers. I do learn may things too from them

8. Do you think that bloggers society is isolated from real world or interacts with events?
Of course not!!

9. Does criticism annoy you or do you feel it’s a normal thing?
I would think it normal cause everyone is entitled to their thoughts. But if it were to happen to me, guess I'll feel upset for awhile

10. Do you fear some political blogs and avoid them?
Nope – just read. No harm in that

11. Did you get shocked by the arrest of some bloggers?
No

12. Did you think about what will happen to your blog after you die?
Actually the thought did cross my mine…..guess it will just die along with me ~ I don’t think my lou kong will continue lar. I would like to archive it and share this with Aiden when he grows up

13. What do you like to hear? What's the song you might like to put a link to in your blog?
My favourite is R&B, soul music. Nah – don’t think I'll link any songs to my blog. Although I have a recording of Aiden's crying when he was 1 month old as my ring tone on my Nokia. (Don’t think bloggers would be interested in his wailing when they visit my site)

To tag others:
Aiyo – dowan lar… so charm one. Ehh…ok maybe 1 cause I haven’t seen her write in her blog for quite some time now. Here goes:
Chanel Wong

Holding bottle

2006-10-24T20:53:00.001+08:00

24 October 2006, Tuesday

Here's an update on Aiden, since I havent been blogging for some time. He can now hold his bottle (for a few seconds) and is beginning to play with his food. I understand that babies tend to be playful when they are 5-6 months onwards? Well, it is true for Aiden ~ now doesnt want to finish his milk, instead play with the teat and pull at it.

He still likes to stick his finger into his mouth, and everything else that he can grab hold of, I wonder if he is teething. Both daddy and I checked but no bumps on his gums wor....

Come on ...steady does it....

And here's of him sucking his finger...

And "keong keong" ...trying to teach him to to "keong" for the upcoming CNY !! Har har

New Milestones

2006-10-14T17:13:00.000+08:00

13 October 2006, Friday

Aiden seems to be acquiring new skills at the speed of lightning these days. Oh how I wish I am a SAHM (Stay At Home Mum) to watch him grow and discover himself. Here's what I discovered about him in the past two weeks:

Recognizes his name and turns to the person whose calling him

Becomes more skillful at grasping toys and is nearly always on target

Realizes that he can stick more than 2 fingers into his mouth, and depending on mood, will stick either 1-2 (when bored) or 3-4 (when hungry and tired)

Giggles when we tickle him

And finally, the biggest milestone of all:

Tries to turn but gets stuck, his right arm is tucked under his body so he gets very frustrated and cries.

We reckon his booty is too heavy and coupled with his diaper, he cant fully turn his whole body. My poor baby will then get quite frustrated. Here’s a picture of him in action:

Aiden Turns 4 Months

2006-10-01T18:41:00.000+08:00

01 October 2006, Sunday

Today, little Aiden turns 4 months. We love him to bits albeit interrupted sleep during the night. But who am I to complain when he only wakes up at 530 am for a feed, he goes to sleep by 8pm at night. So here’s his progress so far:

Weight : Around 8 kg or more (he was 7.35kg 4 weeks ago)

Height : Dunno (he was 61 cm 4 weeks ago)

Food : Milk, milk, glorious milk, around 6 - 7 oz per feed

Interval : 3 hours to 3.5 hours during the day

Day Sleep : approx 1 – 1.5 hours before 12pm, 1.5 hours after lunch, 0.5 hours in the evening

Night Sleep : sleeps by 8pm and wakes at 8am. Wakes up for a feed at around 530 am and goes back to sleep

Verbal
He is mainly talkative in the mornings and after feeds. Can say "ah goo", "hmmm", and chuckles and "coo"s at anyone that smiles or talks to him. He giggles when someone tickles him at his ribcage. He is also able to make other non-verbal sounds (don’t know how to spell them) when playing on his own.

Dexterous
He plays with his fingers all the time. Initially, he was trying to stick his fist into his mouth. Last week, discovered his fingers and now sucks his index and third finger (prefers his right hand). He is able to use his foot to push himself to his side (prefer his left leg). Able to reach out for a toy but misses it most of the time, gets tired and rather sticks his hand into his mouth.

Comprehension
Loves the Peek-A-Boo game played using his small hankie. Laughs when you clap your hands, because he thinks that he will be carried. Braces himself with his neck when you say 1-2-3, because that's when we pull him up from his elbow. He also opens his mouth in anticipation for his milk, when you put a small hankie underneath his chin.

Vision
He loves to be carried vertical so that he can see the world go by. Is able to follow you around the room and will cry when you leave his sight (when he is manja or tired).

Personal Traits
He loves to go "kai kai" (shopping/jalan jalan) in his little pram. Is usually contented remaining in the pram as long as it is moving. Will cry when the pram stops or when he is tired/hungry. I have a feeling that he may grow up to be a little tyke, as he knows who to bully (usually the mum). Will yell and scream to get what he wants, at this age either sleep or eat right? But will want to suckle even though he is not hungry. Must be because he is "nipple deprived" during the day?

The Many Faces of Aiden Chan

2006-09-25T16:51:00.000+08:00

25 September 2006, Monday

I realise that I cannot share much about Aiden at this point in time because he is not able to turn/crawl/walk/talk. All he can do is Smile/Gurgle/Laugh and on the flip side Sulk/Cry/Whimper/Wail.

So it's up to Mummy and Daddy to interpret his "noises". Sometimes we get it right, sometimes no matter what we try ~ he still yells his little lungs out.

Thought I'd share some "cheerful photos with you. See if you can interpret what he's thinking about. Sometimes I think he sees me as a human walking milk bottle. Cause he's so manja every time he see's me and wants to "mum mum" (eat, in his case drink milk) only...hahaha