Our Precious Ley Ley

Buy Spectacles for Mummy

2009-02-06T14:31:00.002+08:00

I had to write this down before it slipped my mind again..given my short memory. =P

The joy of parenthood is that the little ones can say the sweetest things that make your heart melt and goes "awwwwww"

Recently i had been reminding Darrell to be careful not to play too rough in case he accidentally spoil my spectacles..

Yesterday while tucking him to bed, he said to me, "Mummy spectacle spoil Darrell will go buy for Mummy..Darrell go and buy and come back Lilydale and give Mummy....very pretty one.."

Aint it sweet..really melt my heart!

Imagination

2008-07-08T17:45:00.002+08:00

Totally amazed by the imagination kids have!
Sunday Mil brought a spray can back as the original one is not functioning quite well. Darrell started playing with it and moments later...the spray can has turn into a nail polish! He opened the spray can and use the tube portion to "paint" his toenails and afterwhich asked me to "give him" my toes and fingers and he proceed to "paint" them for me. Its quite amusing to watch him and his imagination in action...afterall to us adults..spray can is a spray can ...

Recent Update

2008-07-08T16:59:00.002+08:00

@ 25th Month Old, Darrell:

1) loves anything pink
2) can speak in sentences
3) is afraid of the dark
4) is down to 1 nap per day
5) is getting very cheeky
6) loves to eat (just like his parents and that explains our size..wahaha)
7) doesnt like puzzle - no patience for it (cannot blame him, his mom doesnt have patience for puzzles as well)
8) likes to beat the ants
9) partially toilet train (for poo only..still needs to work on the pee)
10) loves to play with his kitchen set

Changes

2008-07-01T18:48:00.003+08:00

Time really flies!! Look how much Darrell has grown!

Drama King

2008-07-01T18:20:00.003+08:00

This was captured yesterday night when we are going to bed...usually i will be the one tucking Darrell in...but hubby was feeling tired from the late nights he had due to Euro 2008...he decided to sleep earlier than his usual timing..when Darrell saw his papa..he gets all cheeky again

Mummy come back...

2008-06-16T17:14:00.004+08:00

I always dread Monday as that would mean weekend is over and i have to leave my precious with my in laws while i head off for work =(

Today Darrell woke up slightly later than his usual timing and me and hubby had to leave for work soon. As he was drinking his milk and seeing us leave, he called out "mummy" with the 不舍得look..and when he saw me walking towards the door bidding him farewell..and he said "mummy...come back..."

My heart just melt and crumbled...

This is the way to eat Chocolate Puff!

2008-06-09T16:38:00.003+08:00

This is the way to eat choco puff..choco puff..choco puff...this is the way to eat choco puff...all over my face!

Videos from the Treasury

2008-05-27T16:20:00.005+08:00

These 2 videos are one of many treasured possession..simply love looking at them..am glad that i manage to capture the moments! The videos are captured when Darrell is barely 1 month old and he is suckling in his dreams..hehe

Me & my new Pink Microphone!

2008-05-25T16:42:00.002+08:00

Ah Yee bought me a new microphone for my birthday! And best of all its in my favourite pink colour! Look at how i enjoy singing into it!

Picasso @ Work Part 2 aka Painted Face

2008-05-21T22:10:00.003+08:00

I love painting so much i decided to paint on my face! Can you hear Mummy's amused and dismay voice?!

Picasso @ Work Part 1

2008-05-21T19:46:00.002+08:00

Mummy finally decided to let me do painting!! Yeah! Its been a long time since she bought the Crayola paints but never started me on them. Mummy bought some ladyfingers and cut them into slices. Look at their pattern!! So interesting!! I never knew ladyfinger can be used as a "paintbrush"! Look how focus I am!

One Two Buckle My Shoe

2008-05-20T21:23:00.000+08:00

Mummy taught me this sometime back and nowadays we love to recite together..look..i even have actions to accompany my "recital"!

客人来。。看爸爸。。。

2008-04-20T21:32:00.000+08:00

This is the 1st song my Ah Mah taught me....look how cheeky i am when singing it..got 2 versions..

Japan Trip - Day 1 Part 3

2008-03-28T13:58:00.000+08:00

Yeah! We finally reached Narita Airport! OMG! We have to take another aeroplane as we are transiting to Osaka?! But i am bored with aeroplanes already...i wanna go out and play....So off we go for another hour plus of plane ride to Osaka..as this is an internal flight, they have no seat for me..i have to sit on Mummy's lap.

After we reach Osaka Airport, we have to look for our tour guide Uncle Xiao Zhong..he is a short, slight on the plump side uncle...finally..everyone is "found" and we head of to have dinner.

Dinner was a eat all you can chinese style dinner..but according to Gong gong, mah mah, pa pa and mummy..food is so so only..nothing great..afterwhich we are off to our hotel.

Mummy wasnt please...she had specially requested for cot to be provided but there was none..the tour guide said that Japanese arent used to the cot so hotels dont usually provide them. She was really not thrill (you can see her face change colour) when she discover besides having no cot, we are given twin bed instead of at least a queen size bed..so in the end, i have to share the tiny single bed with Mummy. As its a foreign place i couldnt get used to sleeping and i keep crying till 2.30am before i finally fall asleep..poor Mummy..she only slept for 3 hours and then she is up packing and preparing things for our Day 2 activities.

Japan Trip - Day 1 Part 2

2008-03-28T13:23:00.001+08:00

OooOOoooOO..so that is how an aeroplane looks like from inside...wow..i even got my own seat and i am paying infant rate...hiak hiak..what a steal! I cannot use the bassinet as i am over their weight requirments...its ok..didnt miss much anyway..hehe

I self entertained myself by looking around the aeroplane interior with interest and look at how much i am making myself comfortable!! Daddy and Mummy specially bought a portable DVD player and pack some of my favourite Hi-5 dvds along...Mummy says Hi-5 DVDs are a god send to her as it keeps me from roaming all over the aeroplane..

Oh..but i throw out milk after we are 3 hrs into the flight..i think its the cold milk i drank..Mummy asked for milk from the air stewardess and its cold..i drank 2 small cups..guess my stomach is not use to cold milk..so i threw up..Mummy is visibly upset and guilty that she should not have given me so much cold milk..and she didnt bring extra set of pants for me..so i was pantless with my diapers on for the remaining hours in the plane..i have the blanket to cover my modesty and to keep me warm...it took Mummy quite sometime to wash away the vomit on my shirt and pants and left it on plane for them to dry..

Meanwhile, i didnt let this incident deter me from exploring..i was busy exploring and curious about anything i can lay my hands on and thankfully (according to Mummy) i slept for an hour or so which keeps me from getting into my mischief..hehe

Japan Trip - Day 1 Part 1

2008-03-28T13:03:00.004+08:00

Yeah! We are off to Japan today! My 1st trip overseas in an aeroplane (altough Mummy & Daddy said that when Mummy is pregnant with me, i already travelled to Phuket and Hong Kong...ah??? like that also can?)!

Anyway we woke up very early as our flight is 8.30am and we need to be at the airport at 6.30am to wait for our SA Tour Group Leader Auntie Grace.

Look at how excited I am!

My 1st Playgroup Trial @ Kids Loft

2008-01-26T20:03:00.000+08:00

Mummy signed me up for a playgroup trial @ Kidsloft for some social interaction as well as exposure to other enrichment programmes other than Shichida

We reached the class late at about 1.20pm as we went out later than our pre-set time (Daddy wasn't happy as he dislike to be late)

The theme of the class is green so Mummy prepared a Bossini green tee shirt for me. We had story telling session about making a green monster appearing and disappearing. It was so fun! Mummy was pleasantly surprise that i am able to concentrate on the story telling as she had brought me to her company Christmas celebration but i wasnt interested in the story telling segment.

Afterwhich we had an Art and Craft session where we get to make grapes..its my 1st contact with glue and oh my..its really sticky..Mummy forgotten to take a pic of my grape masterpiece =(

Next we have a snack session! Yuppie! We are taught to ask for our snacks. Notice that the bowls/cups are green too!

Music today is beating the drums to the Jungle Beat..i am able to follow Mummy's instructions to take the mat and drum. Mummy was proud that i did not rush and push anyone to get the musical instrucments and instead stood there to wait for my turn.
There was parachute play too but i was too scare and didnt want to participate and clung tightly to Mummy.

After the whole session, Mummy likes how Teacher Lavina conducted the session and she is seriously considering signing me up for the programme..*decisions decisions decisions* =P She hasnt decided yet...probably will give it more thoughts after CNY.

Daddy's Morphing!

2007-12-13T01:15:00.000+08:00

Mummy is really very into the morphing tool...look what she did to Daddy!

Morphing into a Celebrity

2007-12-11T23:30:00.000+08:00

Look-alike Meter (Part 3)

2007-12-11T23:15:00.000+08:00

One more!

Look-alike Meter (Part 2)

2007-12-11T23:05:00.000+08:00

Hehehe...decided to play with the heritage meter...kekeke..

Look-alike Meter

2007-12-11T23:00:00.000+08:00

Found this interesting site from other mummies blog..hehe..decided to try it out..kekeke..

Surprise 2: Drinking from packet drink

2007-12-09T00:09:00.000+08:00

You wont be able to escape from Darrell if he saw you holding on to a packet drink..he will sure want to "tax" a few mouths from you..and to keep him from drinking more can be a difficult task...we literally have to show him that we throw away the packet drink before he believes our claim that the packet drink is "no more"...any glimpse of the drink sitting on the table will set him asking for more and he will not believe you if you tell him "drink no more"...

What happen today really surprises us...We're at my parents place and they have some green tea packet drinks at the kitchen...Darrell took one packet and started playing with it in the living room with my mom and hubby looking after him while i attend to his porridge. Suddenly i heard some commotion...at 1st i thought maybe Darrell had hurt himself but there was no cries from him...nevertheless i decided to check out what had happen..

Aiyo..according to hubby..Darrell pluck out the straw which is still intact in its plastic cover and tries to pierce through the green tea packet but unable to do so...then he tries to test if he is able to drink any green tea through the straw in this manner...which of coz he cant...however, even before anyone of them can react, Darrell who seems to discover the "truth"...got the straw out and pierce through the green tea packet and immediately helped himself to a big mouthful followed by a exclaimation of "Good" and a similar hand gesture!

Everyone was stunned as all these while he wasnt taught "all the how tos" to drinking from a packet drink and all these are mastered solely by observing, especially from me, (as i fed him Smoo drinks quite few times) how the adults "prepare themselves" to drink from the packet drink.

Kids nowadays never fail to surprise!

Surprise 1: Demonstrating preferences

2007-12-06T23:58:00.000+08:00

Darrell has always love to steal a few bites from me whenever he catches me having my dinner. Today is no exception...what is different is that on previous days he will just take anything i give him without much fuss, however, today is pretty different. I gave him some rice and potato from my bowl and he was munching away when suddenly he let out a whine and i asked him, "Why Darrell? Why are you crying?" and Darrell mouthed out a "Dont like!" and point to the potato...and i asked him further, "You want rice?" and he responded with a "Yeah". I was really surprised and amused at the same time as no one taught him the phrase "dont like" and i am not sure where he concoted them from..probably he heard that from our daily conversation. In addition, this is the 1st time i have seen him establising a preference over food and making a conscious effort to make sure his preference is taken note of....awww...my boy is really growing up...

On your mark..Get Set..RUN!

2007-10-19T19:25:00.000+08:00

Its really amazing how a few days of going back home late (like after 10pm...) due to work commitments can let me missed out alot on Darrell's development. For one, i didnt even know he can run already! This week by the time i reached home, he is either drinking his milk and getting ready for bed or already in dreamland. I think he only see me for less than 4 hours for this week.

Yesterday i manage to go off a little earlier reaching home at about 9.30pm....and the next minute when i reached home, i saw him running off in his unsteady steps at lightning speed and i had to chase after him fearing he might fall or knock himself into anything he can knock himself into..

The funny sight is that while he is running, he was shouting "Ma Boh! Ma Boh! (aka drunk)". This is because mil was commenting that his running like ma boh...so that's where he pick up the words..HAHAHAHA..its really hilarous seeing him running and puncuating his run with Ma Boh Ma Boh! But of course, extremely tiring having to chase him as if you are running a 50m sprint....*puff puff puff*

Up & Down

2007-10-19T19:14:00.000+08:00

Darrell is an early bird and its very rare occasions that he will sleep past 8am unless he is really very tired. So last Saturday as usual, he woke up in the early hours (to me) of 7.30am and on seeing hubby still snoring away, he crawled to hubby and pulled his ear with the up & down actions and at the same time while pulling, mouthing "Up & down...up & down...up & down" (hubby is still sleeping while Darrell continued his act..muahahaha).

I was caught by surprise as i didnt know he had mastered and understood the meaning of up and down...

This week, hubby was telling me that Darrell was standing and trying to squat and while doing these uttering "up & down...up & down...up & down.."

Must have been a very cute sight..too bad i was really bog down with work and missed out all the actions..the woes of working moms...sigh..

Irony

2007-10-11T00:43:00.000+08:00

Life can be such an irony as i was telling hubby....when your children are in their early years where they needed you the most, we had to be busy working so that we can provide them with the best within our means....and when we can start to slow down our pace to have more time for them, its where they start to display their independence and dont require so much of your time and attention anymore....

I have been toying with the idea of becoming a homemaker so that i can spend more time with Darrell as well as coaching him...there are so many things to learn & discover yet so little time and this is especially so as hubby hectic work is keeping him from coming home early and my work place is of some distance from home and by the time i reach home, its already 8.30pm or later if i need to OT. Thankfully, mil is of great help and has been taking good care of Darrell so that i can have some peace of mind at work.

I decided to shelf my plans of being a homemaker to X days/months/years after some health issues from both sides of our relatives. It dawn to me that while Vitamin M is not the most important thing in life it is certaintly is critical when it comes to life-saving issues. My recent cyst operation had cost me around $7k so god knows how much its gonna set you back if its something major!

SO .... in the meantime, i will have to continue to don that white collar of mine and try to manage as best as i can a balance in family time vs work.

Decision Making

2007-10-11T00:00:00.000+08:00

Ever since Darrell started to walk by himself more confidently, he will take every opportunity to try to walk and roam around the house. Tonight as usual he was busy roaming the house and he came to the display shelf of which we had put a vase there. He is aware and has been repeatedly told he is not suppose to touch the vase and as he stood beside the display shelf, he mouthed "Touch!". I decided not to tell him he is not suppose to touch the vase and observed what he will do next. He stood beside the display shelf and looked at the vase for awhile and after some deliberation said "No No!" and proceeded to walk away and even turned back to tell the vase "Bye Bye!"!

Development at 16 months Old

2007-10-09T20:36:00.003+08:00

At 16 months old, Darrell can:

Physical/Motor Skills

walk by himself although not very steadily (Darrell started walking by himself towards the end of 15th month old)

zip & unzip

fasten & unfasten a velcro

Scoop using a spoon and put it to his mouth

Stir using a spoon

stack a few blocks

Self feed himself using pincer grip

drinks from a straw

wave byebye

do friend kiss

squat

Language Skills:

Papa (his very 1st word)

Mummy

Darrell

Mee Mee (aka Mummy)

Mah Mah (Grandmother)

Gong Gong (Grandfather)

Gu Gu (aka 舅舅）

Gou Gou (aka 姑姑）

Ah Yee (aka 阿姨）

Gor Gor (aka 哥哥）

Jie Jie (aka 姐姐）

Mei Mei (aka妹妹）

Di Di (aka 弟弟）

Uncle

Auntie

Ball (one of his favourite toy)

Mooooo

Lizard

Byebye

See You

Milk

Bottle

Water

Bubble

恭喜

发财

guava (said it as ah vua)

banana (said it as nanana)

bike (for motorcycle)

taxi

train

truck

lorry

bicycle (said it as bi'ker)

clouds

dark dark

Tee Orh Orh (aka 天黑黑）

thunder

raining

lighting

light

bright bright

oven (said it as ah b'en)

hood

cooker

steamer (said it as eem'er)

walk walk

gai gai (as in go out to play)

shoe

socks

peacock (said it as pi ca!)

touch

no no

cream (said it as krem)

clock

book

bear

star

flower

snail

moon

there

where?!

watch

luggage (said it as ah gage)

baby

no more

paper

tree

tractor

horse

blanket

paint pot

teapot

lychee

cake

bread

nice nice

dirty

brush teeth

claypot (said it as eh pot)

boat

engine (he means fire engine)

rice

night night

morning

button

pain pain

please

抱抱

carry

fish

burger

cut cut

chop chop

knife

blinking

飞机

some more

one more

hot hot

cold cold

wet wet

pizza

aircon

turtle

rabbit

crab

eyes

nose

mouth

cheeks

chin

hand

hanger

door

keys

lock

ready

good

pour

upstairs

boy boy

girl girl

tigger

pooh

eyeore

orange

apple

pear

peach

lemon

mouse

Orh Orh (as in sleep)
abit

iron

ginger

bowl

plate

spoon

fork

chopstick (he said it as op stick)

duck

frog

hair

umbrella (said it as armbrla)

clothes

pumpkin

mango (said it as ah go)

brinjal

corn

菇 (aka mushroom)

clip

read read

buggy

rainbow

biscuits

sweets

cheese

A to Z

snake

goat

tiger

1 to 11

Next milestone to needs to work on:

practice more walking
learn to walk backwards

learn to climb steps

learn to bend over and pick up things

learn to run

learn to jump on the spot

learn to self feed from spoon

learn to drink from a cup

more finger activities

Sis ROM @ Laguna Country Club on 29th Sept 2007

2007-09-25T20:37:00.000+08:00

It was Sis's ROM today and i woke up exceptionally early to prepare the necessary things like porridge and pack Darrell's stuffs so that we can set off early and would not be in a rush.

Her ROM ceremony is at 12.15pm (cocktail starts at 11.45am) and i was planning to be there early around 11am so that i can feed Darrell his porridge there.

However, Darrell refuses his morning nap and only slept at 10.30am. I had to wake up him at 11.15pm to change into his clothes and we hurried off to Laguna Country Club. By the time we reach its about 11.35pm and thankfully we met Mom and she brought us to the suite to put our stuffs. As we are running out of time, i decided to feed Darrell milk instead of the porridge i cooked earlier.

The deco for the ceremony is nicely done up in romantic shades of white and pink don with balloons and roses of similar colours. Petals line the walkway where they will march in.

As for Darrell, he is enjoying himself watching aeroplanes fly past and playing with all the aunties & uncles.

The climax of the event is Sis & Leonard arriving in the buggy before marching in to take their vows. After the exchange of vows, balloons are released into the air.

After the ceremony its time for lunch buffet at the restuarant. The centre of attention would be the cupcakes from Pine Garden (partially sponspored by mua..keke..) with the assorted colours & flavours. So nicely done up that some guests even thought that the cupcakes are only for display! The chocolate cupcakes are the most popular flavours and are gone in minutes. Luckily i manage to savour 1.

Uncle Patrick brought along his beloved possessions - Lychee soaked in Chinese wine. You wil need an acquired taste to be able to appreciate the wine. Hehe. Being a non drinker, its quite potent for me =P

Lunch Buffet @ Laguna Country Club on 15th Sept 2007

2007-09-15T20:05:00.000+08:00

As sis ROM is around the corner, she suggested bringing Mom & Dad to Laguna Country Club the venue where her ROM is to be held to get Dad familiar with the venue (so that he would not be lost and drive to some other place on the actual day) and at the same time have a family gathering.

We were late reaching at 1pm as Darrell was sleeping. The theme was Thai food for the day and the spread was quite satisfactory. Darrell meanwhile enjoys himself with Dad & hubby as they brought him to the porch to view the aeroplanes that flew past the vicinity. Each time an aeroplane flew past he would exclaim, "飞机！飞机！" and when the plane flew out of sight he would wave and say, "Bye bye!".

My 1st Swim...and my parents too

2007-09-15T17:20:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary

as i caught a flu during my cruise trip and am unable to try out the new swimsuit Mummy has bought me, she decided its time for my "maiden" swim. Anyway, its also Daddy & Mummy "1st swim" at our condo's swimming pool after staying there for over 4 years!!

Mummy had bought a whale float for me very very long time ago at an Isetan sale @ Tampines Mall and finally i am able to use it now. Look how happy i am in the float! At 1st Mummy is still worried i might find the water too cold...but her worries are unfounded as i enjoy every moments in the pool.

We had to leave after 20mins in the pool as the sky darkend and threaten to rain. Hope i will get my next swim soon!

1st Trip to McDonalds

2007-08-11T20:17:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

i am so happy today as Mummy & Daddy brought me to McDonalds for the 1st time! We went to the outlet at Suntec City as Mummy wanted to bring me for a haircut. Mummy suggested to Daddy to have breakfast at McDonalds as she wanted to eat hotcakes. I am very excited as there are so many "M"s around and I keep mouthing "MMMMMMMMMMMM".

Mummy also fed me some of her hotcakes..WOW! I didnt know hotcakes tasted so good. I kept asking Mummy for more!

After our breakfast, I took a picture with this uncle Ronald McDonald. Hehe..he looks so funny with his red hair & lips!

I hope Mummy & Daddy bring me to McDonalds again soon!

1st Cruise Trip on Star Virgo - Day 3

2007-08-10T19:04:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

its our last day for our star cruise trip. I must say i really enjoy myself despite having the running nose although Daddy & Mummy are tire out entertaining me...hehe.

Breakfast is at Bella Vista at Deck 6 and they are serving Western international breakfast & pastries. Wow! Just look at the spread from Mummy & Daddy's plates! YUMMY!!!! I ate some pastries and also my baby biscuits.

After breakfast we headed to check out and pay the outstanding bills. Next is back to room for packing up. Mummy gave me some flu medication as i am still having running nose and i slept when the medication kicks in.

Daddy & Mummy decided to skip lunch as i was still sleeping soundly in the cot and they decided to let me rest instead of waking me up to go to lunch.

I feel so refreshed after the nap!! OOOooOOOooOO...we are approaching the cruise centre!

So byebye Star Virgo for now! Hope to see you soon!

1st Cruise Trip on Star Virgo - Day 2

2007-08-09T18:10:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

i woke up to my surprise that my room has changed only to remember that Daddy & Mummy brought me on a cruise trip. Hey i got a sea view!!

Breakfast is at the The Pavilion Room on Deck 6 as Mummy has cravings for chinese food. Yummy! They served us Dim Sum & other delicious food. Mummy brought along my baby biscuits and she also fed me some Bao. Finger-licking good!

After breakfast, we went around exploring. As i am still having flu, Mummy & Daddy decided against bringing me to the pool to play. SOB! SOB! Since going to the pool is ruled out by majority (2-1 votes) and as i still cant walk by myself, there doesnt seems to be much activities that a toddler can do. Daddy & Mummy brought me to the games arcard to take a look..hehe..i even sat on a motorcycle! Look at how cool i am!

I also explored the Galaxy of the Stars/ The Observatory on Deck 12.

*Yawn* Its time for my flu medication and afternoon nap. Finally some rest for Daddy & Mummy...keke

Time for lunch! OOoOOooOO its Japanese food at Samurai Restaurant on Deck 8. Mummy loves Jap food! While Mummy & Daddy are busy eating, i spend my time playing with whatever i can lay my hands on (Mummy is thankful i am confine to the highchair) and making funny faces at the aunties waitresses serving us much to their amusement. I even attracted the attention of an uncle who is residing in Qatar and on 2 months of holiday stint (WOW! 2 Months!). He gave me a sweet and requested to take a photo of me which Mummy agreed. Its a pity Mummy did not take a pic of me playing with the aunties and the nice uncle.

After lunch its back to the room for R&R and Mummy brought my favourite Noddy books along to keep me occupied in the cot. I really enjoyed reading the books...look how crumpled they are now...hehe..

Dinner is at Mediterranean Buffet as Daddy is attracted to the cakes they are serving. We sat at Table 10 and this time round i get to eat some of the cakes and ice-cream...YUM YUM! I saw this Jie Jie talking very rudely to the uncle waiter that her table is not cleared (actually there are alot of empty tables around but not sure why she has to pick a table which has some plates and utensils left by the earlier family? Certainly strange). Daddy & Mummy were telling me i must ask properly and not be rude.

After dinner we went to the Galaxy of the Stars to take a look at this evergreen singer 尤雅. She is having her meet the fans session for her concert on Star Cruise on Sat. It was really packed and no available seats so we head back to our room enjoying the view from our balcony. Look at me and Daddy! Dont you think we look alike? Hehe!

1st Cruise Trip on Star Virgo - Day 1

2007-08-08T17:34:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

Daddy & Mummy decided its time to bring me along for a holiday and they booked a Star Virgo 3D2N Malacca/KL cruise trip as they felt its more family friendly. Mummy is very excited and she bought me a swimsuit so that i can swim in the pool on the cruise.

But alas! On the afternoon of the day for our cruise trip, Mummy discovered that i am having running nose! Mummy gave me some medicine to take hoping the running nose will subside and praying at the same time no fever will develop. She decided to pack extra tissue papers and flu/fever medication along.

My running nose still continues but seeing i am as active as usual, Daddy & Mummy decided i should be ok.

We proceed to the Singapore Cruise Centre at Harbourfront to check in and board the cruise. As we booked the Balcony class, we have "Red Carpet" treatment where there is a separate queue for checking in. Checking in is quite fast but queuing to get onto the cruise is another matter. There was a very long queue for boarding and Mummy carried me for whole 45mins before someone from the cruise centre spotted us and let us go through the security checks without having to queue further. Mummy is thankful for the uncle otherwise, we would have to queue for another 20mins i reckon.

When we reached our room @ Deck 11, Mummy discovered that there was no cot in the room even when she had requested for one during the booking. Daddy called up the housekeeping and requested for one. As we wait for the cot to come, Daddy & Mummy started unpacking and i started exploring the room..hehe..Look how busy i am!

Sob Sob! We waited for an hour and no cot came. Mummy is already getting very frustrated as its going 11pm and i am very sleepy from my flu medication. She called up the housekeeping and voiced her displeasure (its already very mild according to Mummy's standard) and in 10mins the cot came. However, much to Daddy & Mummy's horror, they realise that the cot is missing a panel and it created a big gap which Mummy worried i might slip and hurt myself. Seeing how tired i am, Mummy decided against calling up the housekeeping, she placed a pillow in the cot to "block" out the gap and tuck me to bed.

By the time i slept its about 11.45pm. Daddy went out to explore and also fill his hungry stomach at the Mediterranean Buffet on Deck 12 while Mummy stayed behind to look after me. Later he packet a Hokkien Fried Prawn Mee & Char Kuay Teow back for Mummy from the Blue Lagoon which is open 24hours.

By then the Star Virgo has left the Singapore port and heading towards Malacca. Mummy saw some lightning and reckon its going to rain. Daddy & Mummy enjoy some company alone (with me sleeping) before they head to bed.

1st Trip to Night Safari

2007-08-04T19:25:00.000+08:00

Its been quite a while since we brought Darrell out and Hubby suggested the night safari as Darrell has not been there before and its also near to our house.

I had wanted to proceed to the Night Safari earlier as i am worried of the crowds but father & son are soundly asleep in dreamland that i decided not to wake them up.

By the time hubby and Darrell woke up, its about 7.30pm. At 1st i was apprehensive if we should still proceed to Night safari as by the time we reach there and spend some time buying tickets it would be reaching 8pm and tram ride is an hour long which would means 9pm ... however after much consideration, we decided to just proceed to Night Safari to have a family night out.

When we reach, thankfully there wasnt a long queue at the ticketing counter and after purchasing the tickets, we headed off to queue for the tram ride. Darrell sat on my lap and was busy looking around once the tram started moving. He even roared when i pointed to him the lion and told him to roar..haha..We came quite close to some animals that are not in captive and got me a little scare they might get too close to my comfort...thankfully my fears are unfounded.

However, i still prefer going to the zoo as its easier to see and more chances of photo taking. Not much photo activities for Night safari as flash is not allowed.

Happy Mummy

2007-07-15T20:16:00.000+08:00

Its the 2nd week of Darrell's Shichida lesson and i am glad he is enjoying himself in class. He's really jolly and smile alot today. After lesson we brought him to in laws place for dinner and to fetch my in laws back.

He is really in a good mood today and keeps smiling & laughing. While i was carrying him and playing with him, he stretch out both of his hands to my face and move it towards his and give me a "love love" (love love = forehead to forehead, its a display of affection for Darrell). I am really pleasantly surprise by his gesture and of course beaming with delight!

1st Term @ Shichida - 8th July 2007

2007-07-08T20:16:00.000+08:00

We 1st found out about Shichida from the June mommies in the SGforum and has been contemplating sending Darrell there when he is about 6 months old...but held back because we felt the fees rather steep and that he is alittle too young to handle classroom activities by himself.

The thoughts of sending him to Shichida resurfaced again in April as he approaches 1 year of age and hubby & I felt its a good time for him to try out some enrichment classes. My JC classmate who is now a secondary school teacher is also sending her daughter to Shichida and some of the June babies are attending lessons there as well, hence, it should be quite a good program.

We registered him in April for July class and the slot given to us is 2.30pm Sunday. Kissbb from the June forum are also in the same class. So cute Aiden & Brayden!

The teacher assigned to the class is Teacher Esther. I find her very friendly and sunny. The 1st lesson is a blur to me as it was conducted very fast pace...makes me feel a little slow as well...hahaha..

Aside from having some occassional fuss when he needs to returns the materials, Darrell seems to be enjoying himself in the class. Good Job Darrell!

Darrell can sip from a straw!

2007-06-19T10:53:00.000+08:00

As a working mom, am always at a disadvantage in the sense, its so difficult witness the 1st milestones that our child go through...have not really reconcile myself with this "reality". Everytime i think about this i will sulk...yes..sulk..bian zhui..only wishing i can throw a tantrum too ..wahahaha

But i am a happy mommy today! Coz i witness my beloved Darrell sipping water from a straw for the 1st time!!!!! YEAH!! I am Happy mommy I am a Happy mommy!

It all started when i notice babies younger than him are sipping water from water bottles and drinking from straws and got me wondering maybe its time to train Darrell to drink water from straws too.

In any case, i started digging my toyogo drawers as i remember i have quite a few drinking cups. I finally dig out Pigeons Mag Mag decided to give Avent a miss as its a drinking spout no straw....sterilized the mag mag..and ready for action!

1st attempt: 17 June (Sunday) Fill the Mag Mag with water...and try putting straw to Darrell's mouth...end up bitting the straw and the cap...more interested and curious about the drinking cup than really drinking it. Manage to take a sip out of pure luck..wahahaha..after that no longer interested

2nd attempt: 18th June (Monday) Decided to let Darrell try drinking from Mag Mag again. But as usual, bite the straw and refuse to suck from the straw...after which i just left the Mag Mag with him to let him explore it...and to my surprise, he pick up the Mag Mag and put the straw to his mouth and started drinking! I praised him for being such a clever boy and of course making mommy so happy..keke!

Discovering "Take"

2007-06-17T09:55:00.000+08:00

Darrell is getting more vocal than ever, realise he picks up words rather fast as compared to physical mobility.

Recently, he is able to mouth the word "Take", though it sounded more like "Dake" and he has been finding it very useful to him.

For things such as remote control, my Sony Ericcson 800i handphone, biscuits and anything that interests him, he will be going "DAKE! DAKE! DAKE! DAKE! DAKE!!" and stretching out his hand so let you know he wants that item.

Sometimes, he will just mouth the word "Dake" out of the blue and we'll look around and tell him "here got nothing for you to take la"

I am 1 Year Old!

2007-05-30T14:36:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

i am 1 year old today! Daddy & Mummy specially took leave to bring me out. Can you guess where we are going to? Its the DUCK TOUR! YEAH!

We reached Suntec City at about 1pm after i woke up from my morning nap and have my lunch. Mummy had wanted to buy the 2.00pm tickets for Duck Tour however its fully booked so we had to purchase tickets for the 3.00pm tour. As there is still a long wait for our Duck Tour, Mummy & Daddy decided to go for lunch 1st. We headed to Crystal Jade Restuarant. Mummy said i am very well behave today at the restuarant and did not fuss alot. Of course! I am a big boy now! After lunch we walk around the shopping mall before heading to the Duck Tour counter.

Our tour guide is this Gor Gor call Alan. He gave us very detailed descriptions of the places the Ducky brought us to. I am so amazed by it! One minute we are on the road and next minute we are on the sea!!! We saw the Navy researching for National Day too! As its an hour ride on the Ducky, i am feeling hot and started to perspire and fuss a little. After awhile i fell asleep in Daddy's arms.

After the Ducky ride its back home. I guess i must be really tired as i fell asleep in the car again.

At night after dinner, Daddy brought us out to 兜风 and we headed to my favourite haunt - Changi Airport! Its Mummy favourite place as i overheard her telling Daddy, "Where else can you find a big place with aircon, food, clean toilets & security?".

1 Year Old Birthday Celebration

2007-05-26T20:36:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

as i will be turning 1 soon, Mummy & Daddy decided to have a celebration for me. They booked the function room for dinner and invited alot of relatives & friends over.

Preparations for my birthday party started 1 month before the actual event. Here's what Mummy & Daddy did:

ordered 2 birthday banners from Celebrate Express
ordered my birthday clothes from Gymboree
ordered a 3D Winnie the Pooh cake from Ecreative
ordered a Winnie the Pooh Agar Agar from Mr&Mrs Chan who are highly recommended by alot of mommies in the SGforum
ordered balloons from Grefio. This is a last min decision by Mummy as she wanted to jazz up my birthday party.
placed order with YLS Catering

Menu for Dinner

Fried Pineapple Rice
Fried Bee Hoon
Chicken Curry
Duck with Sea Cucumber
Sweet & Sour Pork
Deep Fried Butter Prawn
Lohan Vegetables
Deep Fried Crab Claw
Fried Black Pepper Slice Fish
Almond Jelly Cocktail
Fruit Punch

Its so fun! I received alot of presents and thank you to everyone! I hope i have been a good host! I really love my Winnie the Pooh cake however its too huge and needs to be "dissected" to be given away otherwise we will have to eat the cake for several days. Just look at how the cake is being cut by Mummy. Oh Poor Winnie the Pooh!

The agar agar is yummy too..Mummy gave me abit to try ...*slurp*.

Its a night of fun & laughter! I was so busy eating & playing even until wee hours of the night!

Thank you to everyone for making it such a merry and joyful day for me!

Very active

2007-05-22T19:58:00.000+08:00

Every since Darrell gain mobility with with ability to crawl...he's getting extremely active...and of course..into lotsa mischief...crawling to the table where we put our laptop, pulling wires, mouse, keyboard...anything he can lay his hands on..and very determine too! Whenever we carried him away from the "No-No Zone", he will crawl back again...phew..sure needs lotsa energy! He doesnt like to be placed into his Safety 1st activity centre and playpen nowadays, will "cry" and "cry" waiting for everyone to "save" him.

Unsuccessful attempt No 1

2007-05-22T19:00:00.000+08:00

Have been trying to get Darrell to call me MaMa or Mummy but not successful. =(
The closest he ever get to calling me is sometime back he is crying in hunger and i am rushing to make him his milk and he let out a loud "MAAAARR MEEEE!" but i reckon he is not really calling me but more like out of desperation let out any sound he can think of...hehe

Mummy: Darrell call Mummy..
Darrell: Bird... (he is able to pronounce bird now, mil has been showing him birds flying in the sky and telling him its bird. Ever since he know how to say it, cant stop saying it)
Mummy: Nono...call Mummy.
Darrell: Bird...
Mummy: Yes yes..Mummy know you know how to say bird...now say Mummy..
Darrell: Bird...
Mummy: ...........

Hand Signs

2007-04-30T13:35:00.000+08:00

We have been teaching Darrell some hand signs with Bye Bye being one of the 1st but he took a liking to clap clap and that was his very 1st hand signs. Subsequently, after "Clap Clap", he started twisting his hands and we soon realise its actually "No More"...and then came "Milk Milk" by opening and closing his fingers. Byebye really took quite awhile and it happen on last fri when my in laws are fetching Darrell to my parents place and i waved byebye to him and he wave back! Finally after such a long wait! YEAH!

Darrell vs Winne the Pooh

2007-03-15T16:11:00.000+08:00

Somehow or rather, Darrell has quite a resemblance to Winnie the Pooh. Hubby says it must have been due to me hugging the Winnie the Pooh baby toy which i bought at Changi Airport when i am pregnant. He told me he will ban me from hugging Winnie the Pooh to sleep next time i am pregnant. But dont you think Darrell looks cute!?

Air Con, Light, Long Bus, Mini Bus, Fish

2007-03-12T19:33:00.000+08:00

Darrell has been able to understand "Aircon", "Light", "Long Bus", "Mini Bus" (shuttle bus for our condo and how mil calls it) & "Fish" and whenever we ask him where are the items, he will turn and look at them in the direction correctly. He loves long bus especially as there is a 806 that will turn into our neighbourhood and if you tell him "Long Bus Long Bus!", he will look out of the window and look at the bus and then smile happily.

Look! I Can Clap!

2007-03-12T19:30:00.000+08:00

Not sure when it actually started but Darrell has been able to understand the command "clap" as well as being able to do the clapping actions...so nowadays, we'll just ask him "Darrell..clap hands hands" or "Darrell...clap clap". Its very cute to see how he does his clappings.

Darrell has 2 teeth!

2007-03-12T19:02:00.000+08:00

Initially i was quite worried about him being still a "bo gey" at 8 months while quite a number of his peers are already sprouting teeth when they are around 6~7 months time...finally he started teething with all the drooling and saliva dripping like running water from a tap...and the constant munching on his toys.

The "usual norm" is that when baby teeth, they will LS or develop a fever...but Darrell is pretty different in the sense instead of LS, his stools will become round and hard like a pebble/stone shape. My mil commented that some babies will develop hard stools like Darrell when teething. This is interesting and new information to me.

He is now sprouting his 2nd tooth and the white edges is starting to appear...will try to take a pic of his teeth as soon as i get the chance to make him open his mouth and stay there...wahaha

Darrell is sick!

2007-03-08T19:10:00.000+08:00

We noticed that Darrell started developing a cough around Wednesday and at 1st we thought its his usual faking of cough but it became too often to be that and mil also informed us that she suspect he had running nose.

Not wanting to take any chances, hubby and I decided to bring him to the doctor. We decided against bringing him to the usual PD at Glen E as we have no time and they closed at 5pm. We brought him to Ooi Baby and Child clinic at Yishun Ave 11 instead which closes at 9pm. The bad thing is they dont allow us to make any appointments so me and hubby got to rush back home from work to bring him to the clinic.

As it was his 1st time to the clinic, he was pretty wary of the surroundings with his usual frown and looking very worried. He keep sulking and looking at the thermometer placed at his left armpit and wondering what is that thing the nurse stick onto him (LOL). He cried twice when the nurse tried to take his weight and height on 2 separate occasions. Though he relaxed abit after we coaxed him alittle looking around at the kids in the clinic waiting for their turn. I must say its rather crowded...could be the flu season yet again....

When its was Darrell's turn to see the doctor, he was back to his wary and cautious appearance. His nose & eyes started to turn red when the doc examine him with the stethoscope and was making alot of the "nnn...nnn..." sound. He cried when she lay him onto the table to examine his throat for any infection.

That is Darrell..hehe..little timid boy adventure at the clinic...

My 1st CNY Celebration - Day 2

2007-02-19T17:02:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

its Day 2 of CNY celebrations! Oh boy! Do you know what it means!?!? It means more good food and more ang baos! Kekeke!

Today's events are more packed than CNY Day 1!
1st stop: Lao Khim's home
2nd stop: God Po Po and Gong Gong's home
3rd stop: Ah Gong & Ah Mah's home

Mummy dress me up in yellow. Its an outfit bought by my Ah Mah. Do i look nice it it? Thought i looked like a little emperor.

I really enjoy myself today..so many uncle & aunties to play with me! Plus my favourite babysitter Uncle Darrick is here too!

My 1st CNY Celebration - Day 1

2007-02-18T16:41:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

*dong dong chiang! dong dong chiang!*

Yippee! Its my very 1st Chinese New Year! Such a joyous occasion for me! However, Mummy is feeling a little sad as its mummy's 1st CNY without great grandmother around. *Pat Pat Mummy, cheer up! you have me! I'll make you happy!*

Look at my CNY Day 1 outfit which Mummy bought for me! Its so 红彤彤! I looked like a small little ang bao! Kekeke!

新年快乐 to my Daddy, Mummy, Ah Mahs, Ah Gongs, 姑姑s，阿姨s，舅舅s and my granduncles & aunties and anyone that knows me！
恭喜发财 to everyone！
Most importantly 红包一个来！！！

My 1st Reunion Dinner

2007-02-17T21:17:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary

Its my 1st 除夕 and its a big day for alot of Chinese as we have to go home and have 团圆饭. Alot of restuarants are booked very early for this occasions. However, we will be eating at home to avoid the crowd.

To add on to the occasion and her craving (hehe), Mummy ordered 盆菜 from this famous chinese shark's fin restuarant at Chinatown. We queued (yes i joined in the queue too!) for over 1 hour before we manage to collect the 盆菜. Its a good thing that Uncle Darren & Darrick (they are really good with babies!) are around to take care of me while Mummy & Lao Yee jostle with the crowd as Mummy did not expect having to queue for so long. Anyway, Mummy is very unhappy with the restuarant for such bad management that she decided not to buy 盆菜 from them for the future CNY and also she feels that the taste of their 盆菜 is not that fantastic.

A slight incident happened when we collected the not so tasty 盆菜 and about to go to my grandparents place for reunion dinner. Mummy noticed an auntie whom mummy think is in her 50s with thick make up and oversprayed hair and she was staring at the crowd queuing at the restuarant. Not paying much attention to that auntie Mummy walked past her carrying me as we head back to our car. Suddenly, Mummy felt a hard knock and its this auntie trying to bypass us and she just ram into Mummy & me! Mummy is really mad and she let out a fiery "HEY!!!!!!!!" and she glared very fiercely at that auntie. Without any apologies, the auntie just quickly walked away. This got Mummy really mad!! If not for the fact its eve of CNY and seeing that i wasnt hurt, Mummy would have chased after and lashed out at the auntie (dont play play ok..my Mummy is 小辣椒!)

Tonight menu is steamboat and the 盆菜. Yummy!!!! Too bad i cant enjoy the meal as i am not on solids as yet.

金玉良言？

2007-02-13T18:12:00.000+08:00

Its interesting to observe what grandparents and us as parents say to Darrell...sometimes it can be quite amusing...

Mommy: Darrell...got miss mama??? Mama miss you alot...got miss mama anot.....
Daddy: Handsome boy la...
Paternal Grandmom: Whyyyy?? Whyyy dont wanna drink millllk millllk...tummy flat flat liao lor...
Paternal Grandpa: Heeeeee
Maternal Grandmom: 笑笑。。为什么没有笑笑？笑眯眯啦。。
Maternal Grandpa: 劭磊。。。啊你去gai gai ah....

Me bathing at Lor Ah Soo

2007-02-10T20:14:00.000+08:00

I am at Ah Gong & Ah Mah house at Lor Ah Soo and Mommy wanted to bathe me there as i had not taken my bathe in the morning at home and mommy say i am smelly (humph..where got!?) . Ah Yee decided to take this opportunity and take a few pictures of me. But Ah Yee only send mommy 2 pictures of me..donno why..maybe she keep the rest for herself...kekeke...Next time i must charge copyright liao.

Darrell 1st haircut

2007-01-13T19:56:00.000+08:00

Darrell hair is getting longer and messier and as Chinese New Year is approaching, we thought it would be good for him to get his 1st hair cut and since its January, in the event of any bad haircut, there would still be time for the hair to grow out.

We brought him to the Junior League at Suntec as we are not very familiar with other available children salons. Seems like there is a slight queue in front of us - we are number 11. Thankfully we did not need to wait for very long and Hubby carried Darrell for the haircut. Am so glad that his 1st haircut went smoothly without alot of fussing.

However, i had a some regret bringing Darrell for the haircut...no doubt his hair is much neater now..but he lost that baby look after the haircut and now looks more like a little boy....such a dilemma!

1st Christmas Celebration - 23rd Dec 2006

2006-12-23T20:17:00.000+08:00

I have always wanted a Christmas tree to add on to the festive mood of Christmas as well as have fun decocrating it. And this year i am all the more bent on getting one as its Darrell 1st Xmas! So me and hubby started "tree-hunting" from Taka, Isetan, Metro and finally decided on one from Robinson. The tree comes attached with lights so it save us the hassle of buying the lights. But we soon discover that having the lights attached to the tree is not as convenient as we think as it creates some difficulty in moving and setting up the heavy tree. Ornaments are purchased from Taka Times Square and Metro.

As this unresourceful Mummy cant seems to find any Santa costume in SG, i resorted to ordering from US which is quite costly. After the purchase i found out from Dor wherei can get cheaper ones in SG..sigh..too late...=P

I invited my family over for a mini celebration party and sis ordered from Marketplace @ Raffles City a xmas festive package which is stated as a 10 pax pack. However, we are really appalled and amuse at the same time by their large servings when we opened the package and felt it could feed more like a 20 pax! I had also ordered a Log cake from Prima Deli which tasted delicious! Ah Yee brought a smoked salmon platter from a wholesaler and yum yum! Mom made salad as well....SHOIK!

And as expected, we couldnt finish all the food so its "rationed" out to the guests to bring home..kekeke..

As for Darrell...he isnt in top form today..seemingly sleepy and grouchy and i think its something to do with the costume as well which is little thick and spongy for his comfort...

Naked Moments..hehe

2006-11-18T10:17:00.000+08:00

Darrell can now flip quite well..and takes every opportunity that he has to flip..including time to go for his bath.

Battle with Pacifier

2006-10-15T08:35:00.000+08:00

Darrell has been pulling his pacifier out from his mouth and trying to put it in. Sometimes he'll succeed but at times, he'll end up sucking the sides of the pacifier. Its quite interesting to observe how he tries to perfect the "skill"

To Mummy with Laugh

2006-10-15T08:30:00.000+08:00

Dearest Mommy,

i know you've been thinking that i associate Daddy to playing and you to carrying and feeding. Hehe...well that is because Daddy got a comical face and i know he cant feed me as well as you mah...

Mommy, i really love playing with Daddy! He makes silly noises and he talks to me on different things...i always look forward to him coming back from work. Whenever i see Daddy, i'll feel excited and will start kicking and flagging my arms because i know its playtime! Sometimes Daddy is so comical that i really laugh out loud!

Mommy, lately you seem depressed and sad. Is it because i laughed & giggled with Daddy and you are wondering how come you never experienced that with me? Hmmm..i'm not sure why i never laughed out loud or giggle when you are playing with me but i think its because i know Mommy you are the disciplinarian so I got to behave myself in front of you. Hey, i No Stupid okay....

Mommy, i know this morning you are pretending to be asleep hoping that i will fall asleep after playing with my fingers right? Hehe, i'm too smart for that! I knew you wont be able to resist playing with me and I am right! You got up from bed and started to play with me! Yeah! Foil plan to con me to sleep!

Mommy, i wanna let you know that besides being a playful boy, i'm also capable of giving surprises! As you got up to play with me by making silly "achar! achar! achar!" sounds, i decided to give you my biggest laugh and giggle for the day! Oh my, your eyes really open big big when you heard my laughter! Heeee! I can tell you are very excited and happy too! Maybe you wanna blog this down? I dont see you taking any video of me laughing ler? So wasted, i love being on candid camera. You must be too surprised to remember taking the video. =P

Mommy, here's to you ....with laugh...kekekeke

Laugh Laugh,
Baby Darrell

Darrell 1st Lantern Festival

2006-10-06T23:30:00.000+08:00

Its Darrell's 1st lantern festival and i am bent on bringing him down to the pool area to walk around with him "carrying" his lantern. So days before i was frantically trying to search for THE lantern but cant really find one that pleases my eyes. I wanted a airblown kind of lantern so that its not too heavy for Darrell and he wont hurt himself if he decided to grab and wack it towards his face. There are a few selections but not cute, so in the end, the fear of not having a lantern for Darrell drove me to grab a robot shape lantern from Cold Storage at Northpoint. Its a backup lantern. I finally decided on a Mickey Mouse lantern for him which is selling in Popular. I had initially wanted Winnie the Pooh lantern but thought somehow it looks abit "evil" so decided to give it a miss.

Me and hubby were out on friday afternoon for some "time off" to ourselves and when we reached home about 6.30pm, Darrell is playing in his cot. Mother in law had just given him his evening shower and suggested we let him take a nap before bringing him down as he has not slept since 4.30pm. As we notice him looking abit blur and his eyes are getting smaller we decided to let him snooze awhile first thinking that he will at most sleep for an hour. So we carry him to our bed and let him sleep there. What a mistake! Darrell slept from 6.45pm all the way till 1am and we had to wake him up for milk!

We were wondering if its because we put him onto our bed for him to sleep that he thought its bedtime now and end up sleeping longer. Anyway, to console ourselves (maybe mummy needs more consolation), we took some pictures of the lanterns and also decided that with the haze, we probably wont be bringing him either.

是！？不是！？

2006-10-06T22:00:00.000+08:00

Its Tummy Time!

2006-10-06T07:30:00.002+08:00

Me and hubby took leave today to spend more time with our precious. Darrell dont usually sleep past 8am unless he is very tired or had a late night. He woke up this morning at about 7.30am. and was looking around the room Hubby was sound asleep as usual and i was pretending to be asleep as i want to observe what Darrell will do next. Would he after looking around and seeing Mummy is asleep decide to follow suit or would he just be contented playing by himself? Well...he played with his fingers for awhile and continue to look around and all of a sudden, he let out a ear piercing cry. This is a frightened cry and our dear Darrell has always been a timid baby, he must have thought we have left him behind all alone. His cry even woke hubby up. We quickly went to pacify him and give him a hug. I assure him that Daddy and Mummy will never leave him and him his morning tummy time to help him strengthen his neck muscles.e is in safe hands. After that much assurance, he's back to his playful self and we decided to give his tummy time!

Darrell & Hubby's "Sneeze"

2006-09-29T23:46:00.000+08:00

Darrell loves playing with hubby..i think he has now associate play=Papa. Whenever he sees hubby around, he'll just smile and gets excited. After we came back from Taka and mom in law given him his evening shower, i carried him to the living room for him to play with us. Hubby pretended to sneeze in front of Darrell and to our amusement, he likes out a chuckle and continue to do so whenever hubby pretends to sneeze. This is a rare sight as usually he'll only smile and look extremely happy but without any laughter. Not to waste this chance, i quickly grab our digi cam and ask hubby to video his laughter while playing with him.

New toy for Darrell

2006-09-29T23:00:00.000+08:00

We were at Takashimaya this afternoon to shop for mooncake and to get Darrell's 1st lantern. We couldnt find a suitable lantern for Darrell as the ones available are mostly those that uses candles. The batteries operated lanterns are pretty limited in designs and i dont find those available appealing. We decided against buying one at Taka and decided to shop around since we still have abt a 5 days more to Lantern Festival. What caught our eye was this yellow looking rattle with a smily face that gives of a cheerio sound when you start shaking it. We thought it looks cute and is light enough for Darrell to grab its handle. For $2, i think its one of the cheapest toys we ever got for him - what a steal!

Darrell the Sleepy Boy

2006-09-29T21:35:00.000+08:00

Me & hubby took leave today to take a break from work. Mom in law took care of Darrell yesterday night as hubby was tired from the fast few days of late night working. Darrell woke up around 5am for his milk and his last feed was about 9.30pm! Mom in law had tried to feed milk at 1.30am but he refused and cried.

I woke up at 7.15am and Darrell is already way awake and playing on his rocker with mom in law. He's getting more playful by the day and loves to look at the newspapers and listen to people talking.

After bathing him together with mom in law (yes, yes...am still not confident bathing Darrell myself plus this mummy is an extremely clumsy and accident prone one), we placed Darrell in his cot and i noticed he's getting sleepy and starting to get cranky....I carried him to our bed and he fell asleep soon after. Just look at how he zzz!

Darrell & Ernie

2006-09-28T19:34:00.000+08:00

This is my 1st attempt making Darrell sit
on a sofa...so to make it more "memorable",
i placed Ernie to "accompany" him.

He looks quite bewildered to the on-goings and
but he seems to be enjoying his very 1st sitting
experience on the sofa

On our own for the first time!

2006-09-23T23:53:00.000+08:00

Today marks the very 1st day we're on our own taking care of Darrell without mom in law's help. She has an appointment with the hairdresser near her house and father in law has wedding dinner at night so they left our place very early in the morning to go back to their Serangoon home.

I am feeling very excited that we'll be spending time together truly as a family of 3 which we had never done so before. Excited at the prospect of being a "full time" mom for the weekend and also looking forward to using the "motherhood" skills that i have picked up from both grand mothers during the last 3 months.

Darrell woke up around 8am which is about his usual timing and i played with him till about 10am....carry him to our room for him to execute his mission of waking hubby up......hehehe..coz its bathing time!!! I am still not very confident bathing Darrell all by myself so hubby is there to help and also make use of this time to have some bonding session with Darrell since usually by the time hubby is back from work Darrell is already in dreamland.

All went quite well for the day with Darrell only fussing for his feed and diaper change. I must say its can be quite tough having to entertain him for a few hours nonstop....being not a very creative and imaginative mom..i usually find myself runnin out of ideas..and energy!

Darrell is getting quite playful and not wanting to sleep..maybe we have been playing with him for too long. Anyway hubby decided to take a nap on the mattress we put in the living room and i decided to leave Darrell with him on the mattress while i went to go the household chores. A short while later, i found that Darrell has fallen asleep beside hubby. Its such a warmth feeling looking at father & son that i cant help but smile from within.

We realise that the fridge had nothing much left and decided maybe we can leave Darrell at my parents place while we go and handle the groceries. We reached my parents place at about 2pm and everyone is looking foward to meeting Darrell again. But unfortunately he started to cry after my mom carried him over from me at the door step. We tried to pacifiy him but to no valid. Dad suggested maybe Darrell can start to recognize places and people and wanted Mom to "hand over" Darrell to me..but mom tried once more to pacify him but couldnt pacify him. When i took him over to pacify him, he is still sobbing and clinging to me...poor boy...i carried him around the house and telling him not to be scare and its grandparents house...it took awhile to calm him down but he doesnt seems to relax. We brought him back around 5pm and decided that we'll bring him for lunch and dinner at my parents place again the next day for him to familarize himself with my parents house.

Dinner is packet food from nearby food centre - hokkien mee, char kway teow, fried carrot cake & Indian rojak! Manage to finish everything except hokkien mee which we decided to save it for tomorrow.

Darrell is quite cranky during the night and we have a hard time trying to pacify him as well as smoothing him to sleep. Maybe its the "drama" in the afternoon that makes him very insecure. He cries everytime we try to carry him or put him down onto the playpen or rocker. We decided to let him sleep on our bed for the night with me sleeping beside him to make him feel secure while hubby sleeps on the mattress on the floor. Its my 1st time sharing bed with Darrell..i must say its a very wonderful feeling!

He started fidgeting in his sleep around 6am so i knew its diaper change time. Got ready the new diaper but before i could even slip it under him, he decided to relieve himself like the Niagara Falls! I couldnt even react fast enough..just had to grab whatever was available to block "the splish & the splash"! When i switched on the lights to change him, was wondering why are there wet spots on the bed beside his head...and i took a closer look...OMG! He had urinated onto his face! He was smiling at me when i carried him back to the cot to change him..and refuse to sleep anymore! What's hubby doing during the whole episode? He slept through it! Hahaha!

Cereal Time!

2006-09-16T16:30:00.000+08:00

Darrell has reached 4 months and i was contemplating if i should start him on semi solids. I finally decided to start him on cereals when he reached 4 and 1/2 months time just to be on the safer side in case his digestive system isnt that ready yet and also feels that its pretty boring just to drink milk..okay okay..maybe its the mom feeling bored feeding only milk..lol

I bought Frisocrem cereal for Darrell as it indicated that its suitable for babies from 4 months onwards and the convenience of it having milk included in the cereal.

16th Sept is the day i have pick to be his 1st tasting experience on cereal! So exciting! Brought him over to in laws place and we took some pics of his 1st taste on semi solids..i cant say he really likes it but its a good start though.......

Baby Massage @ Thomson Medical Centre

2006-08-26T16:32:00.000+08:00

We found out that TMC is offering baby massage course and we thought its a good way to bond with our precious and also we were told that it will help to improve the "wind" condition in Darrell. We noticed that Darrell seems to have alot of wind in his tummy and he always end up having to lift his legs up to release the air very often..hence are quite concern..given how uncomfortable he looks, hence, we decided to sign up for the course.

Its exciting for me and hubby as it marks our very 1st outing without mil with us. We are a little concern if we can manage Darrell without mil's help but we decided to go ahead anyway.

The course is split into 2 Saturdays and its such a joy seeing all the little cute babies present at the baby massage class!

I asked hubby to be the more "hands on" party so that he can share some father-and-son bonding as he is usually working late and has little time for our little darling. Look at how fatherly hubby is! *awww*

Who turn out the lights!?!

2006-08-18T22:00:00.000+08:00

Me & hubby are quite a playful bunch so we decided to be "innovative" and placed a hanky onto Darrell's head with the hanky covering his eyes to observe how Darrell will react. Its quite a cute & funny moment...erm well..maybe to us but not to little Darrell.

p/s: each time i showed this video to people, they say i am torturing Darrell especially my boss whose reaction is as big as a volcano eruption. Torture meh?

Darrell's 1st injection at the PD

2006-07-14T16:30:00.000+08:00

Its Darrell 1st injection at the PD's and i am looking forward to seeing him as i have not seen him for days. Mother in law brought him back to Serangoon so that i can concentrate on helping out at my grandmother's wake and also because of pantang reasons. Its really a torturing period for me mourning grandmother's death and at the same time pinning for my baby. Finally i get to see him today!

I went to Serangoon first before sister in law drove us to Glen E. I was a little shock when i saw Darrell. Its only a few days and he changed. He kinda grew and his face is so chubby! ITS REALLY VERY CHUBBY! I took a few pics of him to show hubby as he couldnt make it for Darrell's injection. Decided to take a video also as a "momento" since its Darrell very 1st injection at the PD's clinic. I was quite worried when we reach the clinic: (1) Will Darrell feel pain, (2) Will he keep crying? (3) Will he develop fever & (4) Will i cry?

Darrell 1st Month Celebration on 25th May 2006

2006-06-25T18:43:00.000+08:00

Dear Diary,

today seems such a busy day..well...at least for my Daddy & Mummy..keke..i overheard something about it being my 1st month celebration..OOooOOooooOOO..

For Chinese (i think), its a taboo to celebrate birthday after the actual day, hence, Daddy & Mummy decided to have the celebration on 25th May 2006 a Sunday. They booked our condo function room from 2pm to 6pm. Mummy felt its a weird timing and she is not sure to call it a Lunch or a Tea. Wasnt much of a choice in the timing given this is the timing for afternoon slot.

Mummy selected this outfit for me. But alas! When my Ah Mah helps me put on...its too big!

Mummy had to re selected another outfit much to her disappointment as she had specially bought this romper for me for my 1st month celebration. But alas once more! The 2nd outfit which is a Precious Moment design is still too big! Finally Mummy decided on this Tollyjoy outfit with a dolphin design on it and phew...it fits! And as always, i look cute!

The food from Elsie Kitchen smells good! Too bad i still cannot lavish on them yet..sob sob!

Alot of uncles & aunties come and play with me today, they even brought me alot of ang baos and presents! Thank You very much!

Mummy is surprised that i am able to sleep thru the day. She was initially worried that i will be grouchy with the commotion that is going on. Keke..i put on my best behaviour as its my big day mah! I even got myself a part time baby sitter - Uncle Darrick! Just look at him carrying me..isnt he a pro?!

Visit from Auntie Vivian & Auntie Wendy

2006-06-20T12:59:00.000+08:00

Mummy feels bored cooping at home for her confinement and i think on the verge of going bonkers. She was very thrilled when Auntie Vivian and Auntie Wendy decides to pay her a visit. Of course their intention is not to see mummy...but to see ME! LOL!

But i wasnt very cooperative when they came over....fussing nonstop so Mummy cant really have a good chat with them...but i did played with them for a while after their KFC dinner which mummy ordered for them. Hope they like it...looks good to me too bad i cant eat it. Mummy says i am too young for it..humph..

Look! Pictures of me and Auntie Vivian & Auntie Wendy!

Pics & Video of Baby Darrell

2006-06-04T10:36:00.000+08:00

Here's some pics Darrell

Darrell's Birth Story

2006-05-30T12:04:00.000+08:00

I was expecting myself not able to sleep the night before the surgery but surprisingly i managed to grab a few hours of sleep. Its difficult to describe how i feel now...i would say its a mixture of feelings. From excitement on finally being able to meet Darrell face to face to feeling scared (scare is an understatement!) as i do not know what to expect from the surgery and also the extent of the surgery wound that follows.

Here's the birth story:

5.30am: Woke up and make myself a hot cup of cereal and ate abit of bread to fill the stomach as i am not suppose to take in any food and water 5 hours prior to the surgery scheduled at 11.30am.

5.45am: Took a long shower. Wanna make sure i enjoy the shower in view of all the confinement rules that follow - no bathing no washing of hair...i wonder how am i going to survive all these rules considering i am somemore that needs to wash my hair daily...oh well, will worry about that later...

6.00am: Double check again to see if all the necessary items that i need to bring are all in place. Gosh 2 big bags! KS syndrome strikes!

6.15am: Woke hubby up for him to shower and have breakfast

6.45am: Left for Glen E. Trying to act "normal" and be brave!

7.15am: Reached Glen E and proceed for registration

7.30am: Was lead to Room 504 by the Glen E staff

7.30am ~ 10.00am: Was asked to change into the hospital robe and after which its a waiting game. Getting very nervous as the clock ticks by. Now wishing i had opt for GA or if something can just knock me out. All this while hubby was chatting with me to ease my nervousness...but its not helping....boohoo..i can start to feel my stomach churning. Mom/Sis in law went back Serangoon but will be coming back later.

10.00am: Nurse came to shave me

10.30am: Was given medication to release the bowels. The nurse assured me its not painful and i felt the cold liquid gushing into me and the bowels loosening. I am instructed to wait for 5mins or so but i think by 2 mins i couldnt take it anymore quickly rush to the washroom. Who in the world can hold for 5 mins!? Mom & Dad reached and waited in the room with me.

10.45am: Finally the moment is here! 2 nurses came and i was transfered to another bed and was pushed out of my ward and to Level 4 where the Operating Theatre is situated. Mom & Dad followed me down as well. Fear engulfs me. Now i really wish there is something to knock me unconscious. I was stationed at the "parking area" waiting for my turn. Hubby was led to another room to change into the hospital outfit. I feel like a child suffering from separation anxiety...wanted to cry liao. While waiting at the parking area, a happy face greeted me. Its Dr. Chin Kin Wuu. He is very friendly and cheerful with this chirpy tone but that cant seems to chase away the fears from me.

11.00am ~ 12.01pm: I was pushed into the operating threatre and my, it really looks very white! There was music in the background but i dont think i am enjoying it very much..hahaha. Dr Chin advise me that he will 1st put me on drip, take a sample of my blood for Cordlife and subsequently administer the epidural. I am really getting scare now...i keep looking around for hubby but he is not in the operating room yet...was praying very hard that they had not forgotten to let him in.

Its time to administer the epidural - GULP! I was asked to curl like a "C" and not to move. Need some help from the nurses to curl me due to the tummy =P. Throughout the whole process i was grabbing one of the nurse's hand very tightly and gritting my teeth. I could start to feel my lower body going numb and i am really hated the feeling as its very uncomfortable as all the numbless sets in. Boohoo! The nurses forgotten to draw my blood for cordlife when they administer the drip so now they have to "poke" me at my right hand =( Now i have 2 hands being "poked" and my tummy is about to be cut up!

The nurses started cleaning my abdominal area and one of them commented that my baby is very active. I wasnt aware of the movements due to epidural effects till i touched the side of my abdomen. Hehe Darrell has always been so active during my pregnancy.

Dr Chan arrived at the operating theatre and i saw him washing his hands. I started shivering uncontrollably and was later told by Dr Chin its a side effect of the epidural. For a moment i thought i am shivering due to my fear and keep trying to tell myself to calm down...hahaha. Finally hubby came into the operating theatre (PHEW!) and he held my hand. Seeing him makes me feel much calmer.

I realise Dr Chan started operating on me when i heard some noises alike that of vaccum cleaner and that i felt some pressure of being pulled at the abdominal area . Dr Chin started pushing my abdomen and i heard Dr Chan commenting that the baby is curled up and in a breeched position and they had to retry a different way of getting him out. I started to get worried if Darrell would be ok....Dr Chin started to pushed against my abdomen real hard again after Dr Chan give the go ahead. Anticipation & excitment reaches the peak!

12.02pm: Baby Darrell is born! He weighs 2.614kg and measures 50cm.

This fateful day - we made it!

2005-10-07T11:00:00.000+08:00

Am working from home today and it marks the 29th day of my cycle. My menses are yet to arrive and i am getting rather nervous praying "Big Auntie" wont come knocking at my door.

Been feeling weird lately - keeps feeling very hungry in the morning and having this consistent craving for nasi lemak and as well as this strain at the tummy area. Not wanting to relate those "observations" as pregnancy signs, i brush them aside as me being paranoid and thinking too much about wanting to hit the jackpot.

Was talking to a friend in MSN and telling her about the "signs" and halfway through our chat, i told her i needed to go for toilet break. When in the washroom, i couldnt contend my curiousity anymore. I took a ClearBlue pregnancy test kit and decided to just proceed to test to satisfy my curiousity urge.

The test result was immediate.....and it showed a + sign! I was stunned (as i have been conditioning myself to expect a negative since its still too early and pregnany kit might reflect the incorrect results) and at the same time excited! Tears beamed in my eyes.

I quickly dialed hubby office number and informed him of the test result. Hubby is just as stunned & excited as me and being a cautious person, he asked me to go to the clinic near our house to get a confirmation. As its approaching lunctime, i decided to quickly rush to the clinic. Unfortunately, much to my disappointment, the clinic uses this small and tiny test kit that cant produce any conclusive results. Its showing a very very faint + sign and the doc diagnosis was that he cannot confirm the pregnancy. I was cursing under my breath that they wasted my $18 and yet no conclusion was reached.

After work, i rushed to Northpoint and grab a few different brands pregnancy test kits from Watsons and rushed back home. The various test kits also produces faint +ve signs but nothing as obvious as the 1st test i did with ClearBlu. I waited for hubby to come back home and showed him all the test kits. After some discussion, we decided to visit Dr Chan to get his confirmation and also for him to determined if we can proceed to our Phuket trip which we had booked sometime back.

The 12th Day & Beyond...

2005-09-20T10:33:00.000+08:00

Today marks the 12th day of my cycle and its time for me to visit Dr Chan for him to monitor the effect of clomid. I was a total blur not knowing what to expect so i just follow whatever instructions Dr Chan has since i put my faith in him.

Dr Chan did a scan and concluded that i have one egg from my right ovary that is ripe but nothing from the left ovary. He instructed me to babydance with hubby on the 12th (which is today), 14th, 16th and 18th.
Called hubby up and told him about Dr Chan's instructions. Unfortunately, this month happen to be a very hectic and busy period for hubby and the earliest he reaches home is around 11pm. Its very stressful having to keep to the schedule when you are half asleep. Sometimes i wonder if we will jeopardize our chances as by the time hubby reach home during the "scheduled" day, its pass midnight already.

I started to think what if this time round we dont succeed? How many cycles do we need to go through? Would i be able to accept & manage the disappointment? Alot of what ifs keep replaying in my mind......

Right now, i'm keeping my fingers cross and hoping for the best.

How it all started......sometime in Sept 2005

2005-09-01T21:51:00.000+08:00

Me & hubby have been married for over 1 & 1/2 years...and throughout the course of the marriage we have been asked umpteen times by well wishers when are we going to add to the family unit...mom has been nagging and even more so when i update her "oh so and so is pregnant or so and so has delivered". Mother in law also hinted "subtlely" during CNY when she suddenly carried hubby niece Kristen to my lap. I wasnt amused then by the nagging or hints.....always felt that having children is not as simple as participating in lucky draw where if you pick something you dont like you can just cast it aside. Having children to me is a lifelong commitment and i only want to start a family when i am ready as to me children are gifts and not burden.

Have visited Dr Chan Kong Hon in Glen E in April 2004 and he diagnosed me with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS ) which explains why i have been having irregular menses. He asked if we intend to start a family then and if so, he'll prescribed us medication to help regulate my menses. We told him not at the moment and he told us to let nature take its course for a year and if by then we still have not "strike", we'll look for him.

Like any SG working couples, its hectic lifestyle and i must admit we have not been faithfully trying to "strike". A year has past and i started to realise i have been paying attention to couples with babies and even took to smiling at them (the babies not the couples). Its something i would have not done in the past. Even hubby also commented that i have been looking at babies very often...hmmm..i guess maternal instincts have finally kick in?

We decided maybe its time to really embarked onto a new journey....Parenthood.

We visited Dr Chan and told him we feel it time for us to start a family and knowing that my menstrual cycle is in a total mess, Dr Chan prescribe medication for me to induce the menses and clomid to be taken from the 2nd day of the menses. I also need to visit him for checkup from the 12th day of my cycle....so here offically kickoff our journey to parenthood.