A Funny Conversation

Daddy was giving a cheese cracker to the little one...

Mummy: I don't know why you bought that bag of crackers. They're too hard for her to chew.

Daddy: You should ask yourself. You bought it.

Mummy: No you bought it.

Daddy: You bought it!

Mummy: You were the one who put it into the trolley.

Daddy: Now think about it, why would I deny if I really bought it.

At this time both of them realized what was going on and turned to look at the little one, sitting on the couch innocently watching TV while munching her cracker.

Mystery solved.

*Munch munch*

F1 driver in making!

1st class photo

Jae's 1st class photo @ GUG. It's also her last lesson for the term, she enjoyed the most today. It could be because she has been practising all the action songs for the past 7 lessons and finally she can do all of it by herself without much assistance from mummy. She will stretch out her hand when teacher draw a picture on her hand. She knows how to close her eyes for 3seconds and count down for the zoo puppet to come out from the magic bag.

Well Done Jae!

Happiest moment!

Teacher Eerie and Teacher Reana

Last class @ GUG!

It's her 1st time and she seems to enjoy crawling thru it.

2nd Last Swimming Lesson

Jae and her swimming buddy, Hannah

KL

Watching Jae grow up each day, a little taller, a little smarter and well, a little more mischievous makes me feel more alive than any other time in my life. I have my high in my career. But that kind of high always go away after a few days and everything's back to normal. Not this one. Everyday's a new discovery for me and the kid. I wish I can do more for her. Find time to bring her to the museums and exhibits instead of shopping malls and food courts everyday. Have the energy to read her a story before bedtime or something. 

We are planning for a trip to KL and Ipoh on Christmas. It'll be her first trip out of this little island. Everything is planned around her, from the time of departure to the mode of transport, to minimize our little princess' fussiness. 

Let's hope it'll be fun!

GUG and Swimming

Back when I was small, there's nothing like pre-kindergarden. There's kindergarden and no kindergarden. Sending your kid to a pre-kindergarden/nursery was somehow unnecessary to the people of those time. Now, there's a playgroup school round every corner. New methods from Europe, Japan and US. Left brain, right brain. All of them promise to make your kid a smart alec before she even go to kindergarden. Such kiasu-ness. Jeez I don't even remember how I spend my days before I went to kindergarden.

We have almost decided to end her swimming lessons by the end of this term. Nothing new taught. All the same old routine everytime. But I know Jae loves swimming. Hopefully we'll be able to find another class that teaches something fresh. We are also contemplating if we need another term at GUG. Somehow I'm not very convinced by it. I don't mind the drawings and toys but I thought the lessons can be better. Jae is happy as long as there's toys and new things for her to break.

Maybe we'll send her somewhere else. Somewhere with a smaller playgroup, more songs and dancing and perhaps muppets too. I know these classes wouldn't be cheap. Oh well we shall see. It's got to be worth it at least.

Jae now spend more than 8 of her waking hours at the center, much more than the 4 hours we get to spend with her after school. I'm not sure if this is the right proportion or not. None of the people I know from my generation grew up in the childcare center. Back in those days childcare is almost unheard of. Nanny maybe. Childcare no. 

She's enjoying herself at school. A little too much now. The teacher told us she's been going around sinking her brand new teeth into other babies. We didn't know if we should laugh or what. At least we know she's not being bullied over there.

Swarmed

Both of us have been really busy with our own work lately. Good thing is Jae has generally been a good girl, going to school without much fuss and coming back for her daily shopping trip. 

She's still having runny stool. Seems like she didn't really recover from her previous diarrhea two weeks ago. And it's starting to develope into a problem as she's having tummy ache throughout the night. We switched to soymilk for the moment, try to wash her hands with soap as often as we can. The doctor gave us quite a bit of medicine for her. Hopefully she can recover soon.

Other than that, she still has her appetite, energy and smile on her face!

Vast Improvement

There's a vast improvement in the process of getting into the center today. She didn't fuss as I walked in. She waved at a kindergarden teacher and give a friend kiss, by herself. She didn't even make a sound when she saw Mdm Yip coming out with a thermometer! All she did was let out two whines of discontentment as we were trying to measure her ear temperature. After that she went over to Mdm Yip's open arms herself, and waved ME goodbye! I am a little surprised! 

Good job Jae! I'm so proud of you!

GUG

Mummy enrolled her to the class at Novena. She used to bring Geraldine there before we have Jae and she thought Jae would love it. True enough Jae enjoys her new Sunday class. According to mummy, she would run around when the singing is on and sit still when the teacher is telling something. 

The class isn't cheap, but well, anything for our little princess.

Smiles Smiles Smiles

There's more smiles on Jae's face this week. Slowly but surely she's getting used to the routine of going to school. The caretakers are also getting the hang of her from the look of the daily reports. They now know she loves singing, looking at animal pictures and having fruits. 

Of course, she's still very clingy at the evenings, especially right after we got her back but that's out of the window as soon as we hit the road to the malls for shopping and food. She's enjoying her food, her toys and her trips. Another incentive is she gets to go out with me to get breakfast and papers every morning. 

She's starting another week tomorrow. Let's hope she's looking forward to it.

Better

She did a lot better today! A bit of grumble when she saw me at the gates but other than that she didn't make a big fuss from everything. It makes of both very happy as well. She's finally settling into the new routine. We can finally rest our mind and focus on our work. 

Peace.

Friday is no good day

Today is my first attempt to bring Jae to the center. Mummy has been bringing her there whole week. So I thought a change might helps. Boy it wasn't easy. Jae started weeping the moment we stepped into the center. She kept pushing for me to turn around and pointed at the door. I gathered enough courage to press the door bell for someone to come open the gate. One of the caretaker came, saw her and begin to take her temperature. Little Jae was so afraid of her she started crying even louder when the caretaker touched her. But the caretaker went about grabbing her head and measured her ear temperature anyway. I swear, seeing her grab my child by the head to stop her from turning around, I almost wanted to slap the caretaker in the face. I've never seen my kid so afraid of another person. What the fuck have they been doing to my kid? 

By then I was already half decided to turn around and go home. The shootbird-eyes told me my kid is running a slight temperature. Sweet. So I pick up the bag and carry her back home.

Think she caught the bug from mummy. Silly woman was feeding the kid with her own spoon when she was telling her sister-in-law that she's having diarrhea and cannot share the cups. 

Brought the little one to a doc in the evening. She's feeling much better now. Still very clingy. But at least she started eating. The center will be closed on Monday. After that, I don't know how we smoothen out her transition. I wish there's an easier out. I hope our parents will be more ready to help out. But the reality is we got to depend on ourselves now. It'll be tough for this period. I just hope this transition will be short and without unnecessary problems.

Mummy is sick!

I think I'm going to fall apart. Not feeling very well since last night, and today I have been going to the toilet so many times that I lost count, stool just run like water. My body just don't feel right, I can't describe what is wrong with me. No appetite and feel like puking after drinking some water.

I think I'm diagnose with "WSS" aka Worry-Sick Syndrome.

I miss Jae! :(

3rd

It hurts to see little Jae suffered quite a bit at the infant care. It's only 3rd day and she's got an abrasion around her left eye and today she was totally out of voice. Mummy said she cried the whole morning that's why. Now she's left with a little coarse squeaky voice. She was also very tired by the time I fetch her back at 7. I tried my best to keep her happy after that. Kind of like a make up for the terrible time she must be going through at the center. So I brought her to the playground, to the petrol kiosk to pick up some drinks, played toys with her and even carry her around the house while chatting to her.

She lost a bit of her cheerfulness. Can tell she's visibly shaken or unhappy. I wish there's an easier way for this. She's always on the top of her voice when she cries and if we let her go on she'll start vomitting her food. So that's why we never let her cry for too long to cause damage. She's a very smart kid. We prefer to talk logic to her.

Unfortunately we don't call the shots at the center. I do however, want to know what happened to her left eye the other day. We got daily reports on paper but nothing was mentioned. Am rather pissed by the fact they arn't being honest about it. I understand kids do fall down and get injured. But at least they should come clean and let us know what happened. I won't blame them. I just want to know what has been done.

It seems like I'll need to speak to someone tomorrow.

1st Day

Jae survived her 1st day. She was ok when we brought her in and she played by herself for awhile and even disturbed other baby. She succeeded in waking up two of them. By the way, she's the oldest there! She started crying realising that I'm not around and the play area was not fun anymore. Her freedom of 13mths gone! My heartached to see her cry till she fell asleep, she never have to go through this at home. We will make sure she stop crying before we put her back to sleep. I almost cried watching her from outside.

I went home at about 12pm, did some work, tidy up the house, vacuum and mop the floor (it has been weeks since we last mop the floor), change the bedsheet, clean up the kitchen and fridge, throw away all the expired food stuff, cans, sauces, etc. And finally cook her porridge and prepare Claypot chicken rice for dinner. I already cannot remember when was the last time I prepared dinner, I think it was 2yrs back! So much have been done, I'm happy!


I picked her up at about 5:30pm. She was playing by herself, but she cried the moment she saw me. For the 1st day, she did well, at least she is well-behaved and did not fuss as much as we though. For that, I rewarded her with few pieces of chocolate cookies!

"Jae, you are such a brave girl. Mummy and Daddy love you!"

Chemistry 101 - BPA

I'm sure if you have been watching the news or walking by the baby stores you would have caught glimpes of this acronym on things like BPA-Free milk bottles etc. Not many are trained to recognize the chemical name and since these BPA-free products are usually 2-3 times more expensive than the regular ones you are using, my bet is you would have probably think they are just a marketing gimmick and pass on them.

Well, have a good read on what I'm about to tell you. Then go back to the shops and have a closer look. 

I'll try to avoid as much chemistry terms as possible. First of all BPA stands for Biphenol A. "Bi" means two, phenol refers to the benzene rings (the 2 hexagons) which are often refer as carcinogen (cancer causing). The problem with BPA is that beside containing the toxic benzene rings, it also disrupt the hormones in the body, possibly leading to development problem of the brain, behavior and prostate glands. 

Now, the polymer or plastic widely known as PVC, that is commonly used for pipes, flexible hoses and wire insulations uses BPA as a manufacturing ingredient to make the originally rigid and brittle plastic flexible and easier to manufacture. The problem is BPA that is added will migrate to the surface of the plastic, a process that is called leaching. That is why PVC has been banned decades ago for any uses that comes in contact with our food supply. But till now, PVC is still used for some toys.

Back to the usual milk bottles. The crystal clear glassy looking bottles are actually made of PC, polycarbonate, which looks beautiful and is also very resistance to breakage. Polycarbonate is made using BPA in the polymerization process.  It's recently found that the leaching of BPA increases tremedously under heat. The hot water that is used for making the milk formula is enough to cause a substantial release of BPA into the water. 

Many countries has expressed concern over this issue especially with the baby milk bottles. Canada has banned all PC bottles late last year. Few days ago, US FDA admited they have erred and underestimated the effects of BPA leaching from polycarbonate under certain usage condition (such as heat) and is currently moving to ban or replace all PC bottles from the shelves. Unfortunately our local media and government agencies have not picked up the tab and help raise awareness. Maybe they are still busy looking for melamine...

So have a closer look at the BPA-free products next time. I think taking health of the babies into consideration, the cost of these BPA-free products is worthed it. 

If you are wondering if your bottles are made of PC, a quick visual check should be able to give you a strong clue:

1. Is it a bottle for drinking liquid?

2. Is it almost colorless? (Not always though)

3. Is it hard (can't be squeezed by hand) and unbreakable

4. Is it almost 100% transparent (like looking through a piece of glass)

5. Does it bear the plastic identification of 7? See below

If your answer is "yes" for at least 1, 3 and 4 you can be quite sure it's PC. Meaning you should keep away from it. Point number 5 is a clear give-away.

Another plastic to keep away from is PVC, which bears the number 3. No container for food or water or even toys should be made of PVC.

Btw if you are wondering if your favorite plastic nalgene bottle is made of PC, it is. Color is added to these bottles for aesthetic reasons. Didn't you read the news last year?

1st Day

In a few hours time, our little queen will be on her way to her first day in school. I prefer to think of the child care as school because I would like to think she's going to be learning stuffs, although I kind of know that wouldn't be true.

She's not sleeping well tonight. Not sure if it's the excitment of school or the excessive chocolate her aunt and grandpa was feeding her earlier. I suspect it's the latter. Mamma's getting her to sleep. Can't afford to be a panda on the first day.

I'm going to be out for appointment the whole day. Can't really check out on her. I hope she'll be okay there. Fingers crossed.

Jae's singing again!

Just not long ago, Jae sang her 1st song! 10 months later, she sings again! This time with action and expression!

Bal, Mummum, Dar, There!

Velociraptor on a chase for "mummum"

And there you have it, all the words an intelligent human will ever need to satisfy the basic survival needs. You have "bal" which you have to agree is very close to "ball". Then "mummum" which unfortunately doesn't mean her parent. It's food basically. "Dar" is "car" and "There" means "Get you lazy ass up and follow me to where I'm pointing".

Jae is growing at a very fast rate eversince she stablized on her walking. I think partly because she now has a pair of hands free to explore the things in her world. Now she can make funny faces, act cute, show off her on-the-spot U-turn and her new dance moves all while standing in front of the TV. I guess this is what people mean when they say this is the cutest period of a kid.

We love every new trick she tries to show us, often with applause and cheers, Jae, in turn will clap her hands too and give us a wide ugly un-girly smile. Of course beside her smile you will also notice some new bruises on her face. This girl is so curious she's always running around climbing up and down. Its impossible to keep her from falling unless we tie her to the ceiling.

It's time to start child-proofing the house!

Geraldine's 2nd Birthday!

Geraldine birthday was on the 23rd Oct and it was also our 14th Anniversary! While dolling myself for a sumptous dinner with hubby, Geraldine came over and started playing with my cosmestic! So, I did a make over for her! Ta-da... Isn't she beautiful!

*I can't stop laughing looking at this picture... Whahahahaha*

Walking in Marina Square

Today I declare Jae's passed with crawling and cruising and is now officially a walker!

Jae the 13th

Q&A

Q: Describe your child's character.

A: Extremely curious kid with un-childlike physical strength to get to places she is curious about. Also extremely hot-tempered, coupled with recently acquired moves like "slap-a-dad" and "Ultimate flying toys", equates to one kick-ass kid. Other than those mentioned Jae's actually a very nice girl. Really.

Q: What is her daily habit?

A: Wakes up in the late morning. Some milk. Snack. Poop. Bathe. Snack. Play. Milk. Nap. Snack. Meal. Poop. Snack. Snack. Bathe. Milk. Sleep. In exact order.

Q: What is the one thing that will comfort her when she's unhappy/crying?

A: Snacking.

Q: What is the one activity that your child enjoys?

A: Climbing up to your arms and point at the cabinet that keeps her snacks.

Q: Any other advise/details you would like to let us know about your child?

A: Avoid crying. I mean the kid. Her cries are more like swearing at your ancestors than it's like baby cries. However if it is unavoidable please do not treat it personal and take it out on my kid. Because if you do, her dad will not hesitate to come and ask about the health of your mother, father and ancestors :)  

Another Father and Daughter photo

3mins Pancakes

Got this from the supermarket - Shaker pancakes. It's real simple! Add water and shake. Viola! You're ready to make some nice little pancakes. Jae likes "Star" and hubby likes Mcdonald's pancakes, so I got both of them..... Star and Round Pancakes!

Not bad right!!! Taste good too!

Jae agrees with me! It's yummy!Enjoying her pancakes
See finished! More pls Mummy!

Infant Care + Child Care

This week was a care center hunting for us. In total, we have visited about 10 infant/child care center. We are looking for a place to put Jae for long term. We have been by her side for over a year now, and it has been the most wonderful time for us. We almost put a halt to our career (more like a slow down!), guiding her thru this vulnerable journey. Watching her grow, seeing her smile, her laughter and witnessing her every "first", all these bring smile to us, and nothing can be replace. I'm sure I'm going to miss all these moments when we put her with someone's care.

It is about time, we have to shift back to our career and at the same time, let my mum gets back her freedom. I'm really thankful for her taking care of Jae ever since day 1 from hospital, her dedicated care for me during my confinement and sacrifices she made during this year. Knowing she's still a recovering cancer patient, I have to be fair to her. Jae is a toddler now and can be demanding some time and my mum can't carry her for long. Now it's time for her to slow things down and enjoy her retirement and just enjoy playing with her grandchildren. She used to spent alot of time doing up her aquarium and she travels alot, now it's time for her to get back her life and do what she likes and go wherever she wants to go. Thank you Mum!

Back to center hunting, we have narrowed down a few centers and found some really good ones. We will be finalising this few days and she will start her "school" in Nov 1st.

"Jae! Mummy going to miss you!"

I love Ice Cream!

Mummy, what's that?

Wow... it's ice-cream!
Let me try some!
Yummy.. it's good!
Don't waste mummy!

Fish Rocker

Daddy got me this when I'm only 8mth. Geraldine jie jie have been rocking on it all these time while I watch helplessly. Finally, after months of practise, I finally climb onto it myself and rock and rock and rock... Jie Jie now likes to rock with me! Sometime, she will sit infront but most of the time, I prefer to be the one controlling.. hee hee!

Family Getaway

One weekend, we packed our bags and headed to Sentosa for a 1-day family getaway. We checked into Silosa Beach Resort and got ourself a Roof Garden Suite that comes with a private jacuzzi. Jae had a great time playing in the Jacuzzi while Daddy sunbathing half-naked. We spent most of the time in the Suite and the rest, some shopping and dinning at VIVO. It was really an enjoyable day and time well spent.

Bye Mummy! I'm going up for some sun-tanning!

Look Daddy ! I can see the ships...
Bonding time with Daddy
Showering Time @ the Basin!

Grandma and Jae

What a shot. God knows what they were up to.

Jae's Walking

Why do I sense trouble?

Father and Daughter!

I can't imagine how did they end up sleeping like this. Daddy was snoring so loud and Jae can still sleep so soundly! What a father and daughter in one fine afternoon nap!