Rainy season?

When I was pregnant, I was thinking that when Caleb comes out in July/Aug, I will "suffer" because these months is usually a hot season in Singapore. I prefer the cold because at least if its cold, we can always wear more layers of clothes but not otherwise.

Today was another rainy day as I brought Caleb back to the clinic for another urine test because his previous urine sample had some contamination, so it was not accurate. It was quite interesting as we gave Caleb some water to pee and immediately when he drank, the pee just flowed out. How funny.

Though it was a rainy day, Caleb still did not sleep well in the afternoon. He cried a lot and seeks a lot of attention. Vicky and I had to take turns to carry him and "bounce" as we hold him. I do hope from all these carrying and "bouncing", I would shed off some kilos. Ha.

Here is a cute picture of Caleb which I took days ago.Check out his "wig"



At night, Vicky cooked for her first time- hainanese porkchops. She usually cooks sweet and sour pork but after eating pork chops which my mum cooked, she decided to try it as well. I must say its a good try.

Here is a picture of my dinner tonight.

To do or not to do..that is your choice!

This afternoon, I was taking out my previous issues of parenting magazines from underneath my coffee table and reading them again. I chanced upon this article which I do not remember reading it before...how strange. It was an article called," Does he love the maid more?" from 2007 May issue of Family" magazine.

Now that I have a maid because of Caleb, it really caught my attention. The article read about a mom who woke up one night when her son was crying. When she went to him, he began to yell and only calmed down when her maid came into the room to hold him.

Another incident mentioned in the article was about a child who fell down but instead of running to her parents for help and comfort, she cried for the maid and ran past her parents into the open arms of the maid.

When I read the article, I was reminded of a similar incident that happened few weeks back. One night, I was woken up by Caleb's wailing. So, I went to the maid's room to check on him. His crying sounded really very miserable. So, I decided to carry him to calm him down. But when I carried him, his crying grew louder and more miserable. I used all different methods of carrying him but ended up in vain because he just kept crying louder and louder.

After running out of ideas to calm him down, my maid took over and almost immediately, he quietened down and held close to my maid. I was saddened that I was not able to do that and I have to admit, a little jealous as to why Caleb stopped crying when my maid held him.

From that time on, I told myself that I have to get more involved with my child so that he would feel more comfortable with me. Even though I stay at home and take care of him, I feel I can do more things with him and for him.

For the first 2 weeks since I had Caleb, CT and I have not even tried bathing him or even seldom change his diapers because the maid does a very good job and we are just not confident of doing so since we are first timers.

But since that incident, I told the maid that I would bathe Caleb everyday and change his diapers.

It is really easy to get stuck with the convenience of a good maid but I believe strongly that it is our duty as parents to let our kids know from young that we are there no matter what happens.

Most humans will not do something when they see that there is someone there who is already doing it and somemore, when that person is doing a good job.

Another example would be the convenience of staying with parents. I once had lunch with my colleague who is already 40 years plus of age with 2 kids. He mentioned to me proudly that his family stays with his parents because his parents do the laundry and cook for his family as his wife does not know how to cook.

When I heard that, I was rather disgusted by the fact that he has no sense of responsibility- his responsibility as the head of the family and a father. What would his kids think? They would probably think that it is ok not to know how to cook or clean up the house etc, because I can always rely on someone else to do that for me.

Given our culture/tradition, most parents would want or even pressure their kids to stay with them even after they get married so that they have company and even see their grandchildren everyday despite having to cook more or do more laundry.

But my personal opinion is that we just have to watch the line between convenience and responsibility. Even if there is such convenience out there for us, we still need to take responsiblity- to spend more time with our children, doing the basic things that all parents should do (bathe your child, change diapers, prepare food amongst other activities) and as well as set a good example for your children and..don't be lazy!

Still jaundice..

Caleb went to the clinic again for his "regular" blood test for jaundice. So, we left the house at about 920am after his feed. The clinic is at Tampines which is only 15 mins away. So quite near.

The nurse also took his urine test and I was wondering how they make a newborn pee. So, I watched and learned. The nurse first poured this blue liquid on a cotton ball and rubbed it on Caleb's "brother". Then Caleb still didnt pee. So, the last resort was to squeeze dry the cotton ball and let the liquid pour over hs "brother", giving him the sensation to pee..and he did. The nurse then quickly got hold of the bottle to catch his pee cos it was shooting out. How interesting.

After that, he took his blood test and the doctor drew blood from his hand cos she caught a nice big vein on his hand. Poor Caleb was crying..def broke my heart.
Even after reaching home, when we wanted to take out the plaster, he was still bleeding. Sigh..



Anyway, after bringing him to the clinic, I dropped by at Giant since I was on the way home to get some groceries and of course, Caleb had to come along. He caught the attention of a some shoppers and Giant workers who were there as they went up to Caleb and asked me how old is he and how cute he looked. All it takes is a baby to break the ice.



He was sleeping the whole time when we were out shopping and only woke up once we reached home. Sigh...what an irony!

Because he still had jaundice, we continued sunbathing him which he enjoys a lot.



Hope next time when he grows up, he will be a nicely tanned, looking all strong, muscular and sporty! hehe..

Does Caleb smile or cry more?

Well most of the pictures of Caleb which I put up shows him smiling and all. To clear this misconception-well, Caleb cries more often than smile. As most proud parent would do is to show their child's smiling face rather than him crying, right?

I have not taken many pictures of him crying and would not wish to put up in my blog since I hope to maintain a nice, clean reputation of him being cute and handsome. Ha.

Just this week, I caught him smiling again...I really wonder what babies are thinking when they make all sorts of funny expressions.



How I wish I can read a baby's mind to understand my child better...



Anyone heard of the dunstan baby language? It is about understand baby's language only from 1-3 months old where they will make sound reflexes. Here are the translation of what they mean:

Neh="I'm hungry"
Owh="I'm sleepy"
Heh="I'm experiencing discomfort"
Eair="I have lower gas"
Eh="I need to burp"

It is interesting and I have only master the "Neh" and the "Eh" as one time, I heard the "Eh" sound and I started burping him to see what I think is true and after that, he stopped crying. I realised about this baby language through the Oprah show and for those who know, I am a huge fan of Oprah since I stayed in the States for almost a year and that was probably my favourite programme since it is at times, quite inspirational and educational. So now that I am on maternity leave, I stay home and watch Oprah too! They show in Hallmark Channel every 9-10am on weekdays.

I just wished I could master more of this baby language to ensure Caleb stays happy and satisfied all the time..just like this.

Cranky Caleb

Caleb has been rather cranky since 3 weeks old. He has been crying much more and sometimes, for no rhyme or reason. He loves to be carried even in the wee hours of the night and when place him down on his bed, after few mins, he would start crying.

He definitely sleeps less,cry more and eat more now. And because he cries too much, we have to think of ways to amuse him or change our carrying positions all the time to make him stop crying. This is a new way of carrying him and keeping his mouth shut as thought brillantly by CT...



Caleb at once became so comfortable inside the sling and fell right asleep.



CT thought of this so that he can have both his hands free to play his computer. Oh well..

Happy Birthday Singapore

Today is National Day and this year, it's the first time the celebration will be held in Marina Bay, instead of the National Stadium. In my opinion, its definitely better since the scenery is nicer and there's water where organisers can make use of to make the celebration more entertaining.

Today also marks the day where Caleb officially goes out, other than the usual doctor's visit as my relatives will be holding a BBQ session at their place and they invited my family.

We left the house at about 630pm. Caleb was actually waiting for us as we were the ones who were not ready.



Look at his huge eyes after waking up and all ready to go



Though it was Caleb's first time out officially, he was just sleeping soundly at the house.

It was a nice gathering at my relative's place as my cousin, Choon, came back to visit and will be going back Australia soon. So, he would miss Caleb's 1st month party. I have to add that the party was more lively as my cousin's kids and Janine was running around playing. Here are my cousin's kids- David and Jody



David is really cute and smart as I conversed with him like an adult.Well, I kind of believe that the first-born child is usually smarter. You think?



I will now leave you all with pictures of the National Day Parade. (Pictures gotten from Straits Times)Enjoy!

Happy Wedding Anniversary

Today is our wedding anniversary. A date easy to remember which was chosen intentionally by CT. I still remember vividly on 8 Aug 2003 where CT took leave on that day, and met me outside Hai Sing Catholic School gate for me to finish my National Day celebration in school. I had half day that day since it was just celebration and I was doing my practicum in that school at that time. Wasnt a full-fledged teacher then.

After CT picked me up, we took bus together to his house and he then knelt down and presented me a bouquet of flowers to ask me to be his girlfriend. After I said yes, he sent me home to my house and told my mum and grandaunt who was in my house at that time what happened. They were very happy for me.

Few months later in Oct, CT proposed to me in East Coast Park and in 8 Aug 2004, we got married. So, 8 Aug is a very significant date for both of us-the day we became gf, bf and the day we were married.

So of course for our third wedding anniversary, we went to East Coast Park to relive the good old days. There were lots of people and I was quite surprised there were even people "surfing".I never knew Singapore waters had waves to start with. :)



We went to a HK cafe in ECP for dinner. I didnt really enjoy the dinner but it was alright since I guess its the company that matters. After that, we noticed a toy racing car competition where the competitors raced in a course with their toy. Quite interesting. We then walked to the beach and sat down to talk. Talk about our future with our child and how we would still make it a point to spend alone time together.



On the way home, CT dropped by to buy flowers for me.



He said 3 flowers to represent our 3rd wed anniversary. I quickly commented that I cant wait to celebrate 25 years or 50 years of wedding anniversary!

Punggol Spirit

Yesterday, my place had an Observance ceremony where our MP, Ms Penny Low and Teo Chee Hean graced the occasion where there were live performances, songs, lucky draw etc etc which started early in the morning.



Feeling the great atmosphere of the place, it reaffirmed once again how proud I am to be staying in this neighbourhood. I love my place and am proud to be called a Punggolian.

Not only is this place vibrant with lots of activities like Racial Harmony, Observance Day, Chinese New Year Celebration where streets are closed for parades, frequently having pasar malam, it is a small estate where people know one another and where we gather for BBQ Sessions in Punggol.



Punggol has even its own diving club where they meet to go on diving trips together as well as makan sessions in Malaysia which all stemmed from the Punggol forum where we exchange ideas and interests. Punggol forum also has its own car decal..



I even got a baby stuff from a resident who was giving away her stuff as her kids are quite big already. Well, that is the spirit I enjoy and am happy to be here.

Caleb also celebrated the Observance Ceremony by wearing red. I think he looks great in red! This is a picture of Vicky and Caleb.


As usual every sunday, my whole family comes for lunch after church. My mum would cook a big feast for all of us!

Here are my parents with Caleb

Worried..

Last night, Caleb was crying so much that I went over to take a look. Vicky told me that he has not been sleeping well as he cannot breathe properly through his nose. He was breathing quite heavily. I was worried, so got onto the internet at that time, which was 5 am to search if there was any baby/child clinic that opens 24 hours or on sundays.

After searching for a few, I went back and talked to CT about it. We talked from 5 plus am till about 7 am about how best to take care of Caleb and anything and everything under the sun. We just shared and talked. It was nice.

This morning, we woke up officially at about 8am as we were woken up by loud noises in the park as the people were testing the mics and getting ready for a celebration of national day downstairs.We went to see Caleb and saw there was something in his nose, which explains why he couldnt breathe properly. Vicky told us she tried using a cotton bud but didnt dare to put it in because his nostril is so small and was afraid we would push it even further in.

CT and I went out for breakfast in a coffeeshop which was further away in Punggol.We had to drive there. I had Mee Rebus, while CT had a very nice prata. I would say nicer than Jln Kayu..cos its fluffy and crispy.

After eating, we passed by a clinic which was open and so we thought of going home to fetch Caleb and bring him to the clinic to clear his nose. However, as we got back, CT suddenly had a brillant idea to use a ear digger to try getting the thing out from his nose. And so we did..and it worked!!

Ok, the following pictures are not for the faint-hearted. Be prepared...here is what was inside Caleb's nose! That thing was even bigger than the size of his nostril!






We were so glad to have taken it out and saved on the doc's fee..

More expressions and poses

I must say it is interesting to just stare at Caleb. That is one of the things I do at home..simply stare. At times when he sleeps, I may just get a glimpse of his smile. Besides smiling, his lips would be puckered at times in a kissing position, or sometimes, yawn, stretch in many different ways..

Here is a picture taken recently in a "thinking man" position. I have a friend who came my house and when he saw Caleb, he immediately said, "Wha..he looks serious man!" Ha.



Here are his other poses and positions..





and next, this is what the chinese idiom says,"si jiao cao tian" (direct translation: 4 legs facing the sky)



With all these different poses, it keeps me entertained..

Enjoying my confinement

Though I get about 4-5 hours of sleep every night, I still find it a joy to be in confinement for a number of reasons.

Here are the following reasons..

1) I get to spend quality time with my son
2) When he is sleeping, I have some time by myself doing things I like to do. E.g. Playing computer games, surfing the net, reading a book, watching my VV drama in cable
3)My mum specially cooks food for me at least 4 times a week which is yummy. She has even cooked western food for me during this period! ( steak, chicken chop, pumpkin soup, grill corn). Thank God for my modern mum!
4) I have a very experience maid who has been very helpful and efficient in taking care of a lot of things around the house.
5) To sum it all, I enjoy this 'freedom' of confinement (oxymoron, isnt it?). I have heard stories of friends who strictly follow the confinement rules (e.g. wearing socks, long pants whole day, stay in bed most of the time and strictly eat only confinement food, no bathing etc)...and I thank God I do not have a nagging mum or in-law or confinement lady to breathe down my neck.

The only confinement rules that I obey prob is to bathe in hot herbal water/dried ginger skin and prob eat SOME confinement food. Reason is, I am not that picky with food and I enjoy bathing in steamy hot water. So, I do not mind all these.. :) That's about all I follow. *ngiak ngiak* ;p

Some of my relatives and friends ask me how come my blog always have pictures of food (before caleb is born). Well, I enjoy eating and CT and I used to visit popular eating places all around singapore to try the food. Food is probably one of my passions as most Singaporeans do too. Anyway, now that Caleb is born, I will probably balance my blog with food and him now. :)

Check out some food I eat..some of which my mum provided,and some vicky cooks

-steam egg with minced meat, chinese kailan with fried beancurd and black fungus,chicken rice wine, Japanese unagi eel, papaya fish soup



another typical meal..

-spinach, chicken with potatoes, steam fish

Day of jabs

This morning, brought Caleb to the clinic again in Tampines for his BCG and Hepatitis Jab. These jabs should be done in the hospital but he was under 2.5kg. So, the doc had to wait for him to be above 2.5kg first before he can get his jab. When we reached the clinic, the nurse weighed him and he now weighs 2.9kg (without has diapers). Just within 2 weeks, and he has increased 600g.

The hepatitis jab was more painful as Caleb cried quite loudly. But quickly, he went back to his normal state after we quickly picked him up to sayang him. He also had his usual jaundice blood test. So this morning, he was poked many times. I must say he behaved quite well with no prolong crying. Proud of him. Vicky and I promised that today, we will give him special treatment since he 'suffered' so much this morning.

The clinic called later in the afternoon to tell me that they still need to monitor his jaundice level and told me to go back clinic couple of weeks later. Sigh. So troublesome. The reason is that breastfed babies recover from jaundice much later. Anyway, so this afternoon, caleb was topless while sunbathing. He was really sexy and hot as he showed his muscular body to me. He was actually smiling while enjoying his sunbathing..



Here is a closer shot of his wide smile with his gums showing(where the teeth should grow on)! I am so glad I managed to catch this shot. It was only recently that he has learnt how to smile. Looks like he has so quickly forgotten about his morning jabs.

My baby has changed

Over the past 2 weeks since Caleb's birth, we have noticed that he has changed quite a bit from his hospital picture. He has become meat-ier and his face is more round with baby fats. He has probably looked more like a baby now than 2 weeks ago. When he first came out, he seemed like a kid who was only reduced to bones weighing at only 2.3 kg.

And just within 2 weeks, he has changed quite a bit. I was just wondering to myself that I have to spend all the time that I have with him if not, I will miss noticing such changes in my son which I do not wish to miss. I would love to notice every small minute change that is taking place so that many years down the road, I will not regret missing out anything and will be proud to say that I have done a good job as a parent being there for him and being sensitive to him.

Here is his picture in hospital...

BEFORE




And his picture now..(when he was sleeping comfortably in my arms)
AFTER



Don't you think there is a huge difference now? So for all parents out there- please take interest in your kids and be there for them if not you will start regretting as you cannot turn back the clock. Enjoy every moment...

Father and son bonding

Weekends are the days CT can really spend full day with Caleb when he is awake. So today, CT manage to "play" with him and spend time feeding him as well. I think its a guy thing to be kind of rough as CT shakes Caleb vigourously to wake him up and will make really loud noises as well. I have to keep reminding CT that he is only a newborn and very fragile, don't be so rough...

Here are some shots of CT and Caleb.

Below is a shot which CT always does to Caleb-kiss him accompanied with really loud noises against Caleb's rosy cheeks. Check out Caleb's reactions...



CT finds it a thrill to make Caleb really irritated..just to wake him up.




And just before Caleb goes to sleep for his afternoon nap, CT feeds him while still playing his computer game. All parents got to learn this skill of feeding with no hands. :)






Here is a shot taken at night when both father and son are resting..





And to wrap it all up, here is a picture of father and son whom everyone claims that Caleb looks like the dad. But from my astute observation, Caleb's face is changing and he seems slightly different now. But oh well, the daddy still wants to claim the glory and pride of his son looking like him...for now.

Caleb 2nd visit to clinic

Caleb's first visit to the pediatrician was 23 July 07 (Monday) and it was to follow up on him and to check on his jaundice level by taking blood test. The result was ok and this time round, he went today again for another blood test to monitor his jaundice level. Because of what happened to me last night, CT took half day leave to bring Caleb to the clinic while I rested at home.

Caleb was all dressed up before he left the house to prevent him from catching a chill since the weather these few days have been rather chilly.



Not forgetting his bonnet...



Have you noticed how plump he looks now? He has grown heavier and more meaty now..