Back from Shanghai! Happy New Year!!!

We are back from Shanghai. It was cold there. Didn't do a lot of sightseeing, only Jinmao tower, Waitan, Qipulu party cos of the weather and partly because I had blocked duct so couldn't stay out for more than 4 hours at one shot as I need to pump. But we did manage to make a day trip to Hangzhou, Xihu, I borrowed my cousin Shirley's battery operated pump. But it's not the best season to appreciate the scenery cos it was cold and misty. Shopping at Shanghai was disappointing as it's all winter wear now but we did manage to get a skirt and pyjamas set for RaeAnne at Qi pu lu. Had to buy a lot of 'tu can' at West Lake if not there'll be no souvenirs for my relatives and dept colleagues. :P

We chose to come back from Shanghai today so that we can spend New Year's Eve with RaeAnne. My brother was very nice and brought RaeAnne, Wai po and Nai Nai to the airport so that we can see our darling sooner. :) She was a bit aloof at the airport, didn't seem excited to see mummy and Daddy. Must be due to the 5 days absence. According to Nai Nai, she slept through from 11+pm to 8+am today after ye ye fed FM last night at 10+pm. BF her at 9pm and she slept around 10pm. :)

P.S. It was a good thing that we did not bring RaeAnne to Shanghai. It's really too cold there, just found out that my cousin's 3 year old gal has just fallen sick there. Flu, fever and ulcers, poor gal. Hope she gets well soon.

RaeAnne's first Xmas!

Merry Xmas! It's Xmas Eve today but the wettest one I ever remember. It rained for the whole day since the wee hours of the morning and the rain didn't stop until 9+pm. Luckily Mummy is on half day today so that made up for it. Daddy spent the morning and made a nice Xmas lunch for Mummy. There's salad, roast chicken (turkey wannabe) and bread. Technically, Daddy only made the salad since the rest were store bought but it's the effort that counts. Mua Mua Mua. :)

It's RaeAnne's first Xmas. Since our little darling cannot stay up so late for Santa Claus or it will be way past her bedtime. We let her open her Xmas presents right away when we came back from Nai Nai house at 8+pm.

Maybe she's a bit sleepy and tired. According to Nai Nai, she didn't nap at all past 10am so her reaction at seeing the presents were quite mild. She only smiled when she saw the big milk bottle. Maybe next year, she'll be eyeing her presents under the Xmas tree and will open them herself. ;)

RaeAnne's 11 Month (+1 day) Photo

As promised, this is RaeAnne's 11 month photo. Taken shortly after her dinner of porridge. :)












Brought her for some shopping at the NTUC at nearby Community Centre. :)

RaeAnne is 11 months old today!!!

RaeAnne is 11 months today. Just one more month to your birthday! :)

Milestones at 11mths

- 8.2kg and 71cm long
- Cruising quite well
- Can stand quite confidently with just one hand support or by leaning her weight on something. Stands occasionally for a few seconds
- Points where she wants us to go
- Can imitate gesture for 'bye bye', 'french kiss', 'exercise', 'no more'. Still learning to do 'gong xi gong xi'. Very impt for CNY.
- Recognises her name "RaeAnne", "Gal Gal" and "Hui Hui"(but sometimes take a while to acknowledge it if she is engrossed)
Qihui (still getting used to it)
Kay Ris (still a lost cause cos nobody calls her that)
- Recognises 'No' and 'Cannot' - will pout and whine when we stop her from putting things into her mouth. Will even cry and scream if the forbidden toy is taken away from her :P
- Separation anxiety especially during Mummy's nan nan time. But quite ok to leave the house without Mummy or stay with ye ye and Nai Nai while Mummy & Daddy go out.
- Can drink from straw, will chew on it if not thirsty.
- Self feeding, still far from it except stick biscuits. Too pampered by ye ye, nai nai and Daddy who feeds her all the time.
- Potty training, just started. Mummy bought a new 'simple' potty yesterday. The fisher price potty was too high tech for Ye ye and nai nai.
- Favourite words - Apple and Ba ba ba and Ah Ba.
- Favourite foods - Frisocrem cereal (tastes like horlicks), porridge and Apple (but must be sweet), rice, sweet fruits and whatever else Daddy and Mummy are eating (she'll stare intently at our food and her mouth will move as if she is tasting it)
- Favourite toys - Apple shirt, Apple toy, toys that make noise. She will hold it firmly if it's a new toy/object. Once she tires of it, she will throw away and look around for it. If she sees it, will make noise and point at it.

Mummy remembered at work that RaeAnne is 11 months today, must take photo but forgot after reaching ILs place. Too many things on my mind. Daddy is feeling under the weather and sleepy from the medicine he took so he also forgot. By the time, Mummy remembered again, it was nearly 11pm and you have already fallen asleep. Took a photo of her sleeping instead. Sorry darling, Mummy & Daddy'll take another one tomorrow to make up for it ya. For the record, you look beautiful both awake and asleep. :)

Kisses

Today, when we were at my mum's place, I was holding RaeAnne in a standing position on the sofa when she leaned forward and kissed my nose. Was surprised, and said, Darling you kissing Mummy ah? Wondering if she was trying to kiss something else and accidentally kiss me instead. But she did it two more times, almost looked as if she was aiming for my lips too. Haha, Mummy has been showering kisses on RaeAnne all this while, usually on her cheeks and forehead and hands. Can't wait for her to reciprocate and give Mummy and Daddy big kisses too. :)

RaeAnne could almost stand at Wai po's house today. She was playing with her toys and leaning on the bamboo chair but she will let go at sides when she is engrossed. Maybe she can really stand soon. :)

RaeAnne at Singapore Flyer!

Decided to bring RaeAnne to Singapore Flyer today because the discounted tickets I bought from our company union is expiring on 31 Dec 08. And we'll be in Shanghai from 27 Dec - 31 Dec. Asked ILs to go with us but only MIL was keen. Our tickets were at 1130am and we reached there at 1115am despite our best efforts to be early. Mummy got up at 730pm to cook porridge for RaeAnne.

Luckily, there were seats but unfortunately, we couldn't have a cabin to ourselves but it was still ok. Took some photos of RaeAnne in the cabin and at the Flyer mall. :)

RaeAnne at Singapore Flyer, so difficult to get her to smile cos she was so curious about the other passengers and the xmas decorations hanging at the ceiling. :P

Pensive Sir stamford raffles look with Nai Nai

Father & daughter having fun at Singapore Flyer.

Still monkeying around after the ride.

P.S. RaeAnne slept from 12+am - 6+am on Thurs night and 1am - 7am last night. Mummy and Daddy are surprised. Hope this trend lasts. :)

Carter's Warehouse Sale

Went to the Carter's warehouse sale at 43 Tampines Street 92 behind Tampines Safra after work since so near to my workplace. Bought quite a lot of clothes for RaeAnne. All for less than $50! Shop Bao4 chou2 since I didn't get to shop at all in HK. :)

RaeAnne played happily with Ye Ye today and hubby managed to capture it on video. :)

RaeAnne also went for her second flu jab at PD today. Hubby went with MIL in afternoon cos we didn't want to bring her in the evening when she'll be cranky. :P She is 8.3kg and 71cm long. She cried when the nurse held her for the jab. Looks like so far only the 3rd 6-in-1 jab which I missed, she didn't cry. :P


RaeAnne started saying 'ba ba ba' today. The other day, MIL said she called 'bo bo bo' for BIL. Looks like she's calling everyone except me, gal gal, Mummy jealous liao. :/

Happy Anniversary! Part 2

Happy Anniversary!!

Yes, it could have been better planned... :(
It was all Piggy Daddy's fault for taking things for granted...
Sorry Piggy Mummy for disappointing you...

Happy anniversary!

Today is our ROM wedding anniversary. Seemed like so long ago when we ROM at Sentosa on 16 Dec 2004, four years ago but it's our first ROM anniversary as parents. Took leave today, wanted to spend some quality time together as a couple without RaeAnne. For once, didnt' want to interfere or hint hubby about the celebration. It's the fourth anniversary after all, he should know my expectations. Was pleasantly surprised, when hubby gave me a cute looking neck massager that I can use while pumping past midnight. I hadn't prepared his present yet cos I bought a laptop for him last month while he bought me the N85 hp.

Upon hearing that I'm on leave last night, MIL said she wanted to go market and asked us to bring the baby over this morning instead of them coming over. RaeAnne was cranky last night, she slept at 11+pm (don't know if it's because we brought her to Century square to buy her Mag Mag stage 3 straw at 8+pm). She woke up many times in the night so hubby and I were exhausted. It was 10am when hubby brought her over to MIL's house while I continued to catch up on sleep, waiting for him to come back and wake me.

By the time, I woke up again, it was already 12 noon and hubby was not in. He had just come back from MIL place cos he forgot to bring the mag mag straw when he went over at 10am so he made another trip. Was a bit upset that it's already lunch time and I haven't pumped, how to go out for lunch like that. Saw LC yesterday due to blockage so including massaging and pumping, we left home at 1+pm. It was too late for the lunch buffet which hubby promised. So he said we'll play by ear and go for buffet dinner instead. He suggested lunch at Jacobs cafe but I wasn't keen cos Changi Village is so near home, feel that we can go there anytime. Instead I suggested Marche, vivocity cos restaurants that need long car rides have been out when we are with RaeAnne.

We had salad, pizza, pork knuckle and root beer. Hubby was keen on dessert but he wanted to save his stomach for the buffet dinner. We shopped around after lunch at Daiso, Page one, precious thots and Mini toons. We bought a Xmas present for RaeAnne at Mini toons. We have finally bought a Xmas tree on Thurs night and wanted to put presents under the tree. Hubby also went to Music Junction to look around, felt bad that I didn't give him anything today so I bought him a DVD as a present.

By that time, it was already 5pm and I needed to come home to pump again. Logistically, it was not possible to go out again for buffet dinner because we won't be able to rush back by RaeAnne's feeding time which is 7+ to 8+pm. So hubby called back to ask ILs to cook our dinner while we set up the Xmas tree with lights and decorations. Brought RaeAnne to walk walk at Tampines Park before walking home.

Thought she will be happy to see the Xmas tree, even had the video cam ready but she wasn't interested at all. Maybe because the Xmas tree had just the lights and no music or she's too wary of it. She was more interested in the musical greeting card we bought from Page One, though she was a bit scared when I suddenly opened the card and music came out. :P Nursed her many times, before she finally fell asleep at 10.45pm. Hubby fell asleep even before RaeAnne.


It's a first time our ROM wedding anniversary dinner was not at some hotel or overseas. Instead it was hakka yong tau foo that MIL made. Can't say it was romantic. Guess that's the difference after we become parents. Though I think we could have celebrated our ROM anniversary and relived our usual celebrations if there was proper planning from the start, instead of leaving everything last minute and lassiez flaire. Lesson learnt, Sigh.

Baby Gathering at Pasir Ris

The Piggy family went to a Baby Gathering today!

It was raining the whole day but thankfully the sky cleared in the late afternoon so we made our way to Pasir Ris for the gathering hosted by Lyn, Jan08 mummy.

We were a bit late and most of the people were already there and enjoying themselves. This time, we bought pastries from Prima Deli instead of making the usual salad.The babies were playing and 'socialising' happily on the mat and RaeAnne soon joined them. But RaeAnne was very shy and kept to herself most of the time. It was only after a while that she warmed up a little and starting playing and making noise. But even then, RaeAnne didn't play with the other kids nor the other adults. Unlike some other babies who were trying to engage and attract the attention of Piggy mummy especially when she was trying to feed RaeAnne her porridge.

Think RaeAnne is not used to socializing because she seldom go out especially on weekdays when she is looked after by ye ye and nai nai. Also, when Daddy and Mummy bring her out on weekends, it's always to Wai po house and she doesn't get to interact with other babies nor strangers. Since it's been difficult to convince Ye ye and nai nai to bring RaeAnne out, maybe it's time to look out for some enrichment classes for RaeAnne on weekends.

Here's RaeAnne playing with herself.


Warming up a little...


The Group Shot!

RaeAnne Fell from Bed...

Poor RaeAnne fell from bed the second time today.
Daddy Piggy feels very guilty. Happened so fast that Daddy Piggy had no time to react. Poor RaeAnne cried so loudly and pitifully after that. Had to take Mummy Piggy's sayang sayang to calm her down...

RaeAnne is sleeping soundly now after drinking milk. Hope she has a gd night sleep and wakes up happy tomorrow and has no 'ba lu ku'.

Good night! :)

RaeAnne can drink from Straw!!!

Wanted to train RaeAnne to drink from straw for the longest time. When I tried giving her the Mag Mag cup with stage 3 straw when she was 8-9 months old, she didn't know how to suck the water up. See her so kelian so change back to stage 2 spout. Ever since then, we didn't try again. Was motivated when I read that a Feb 08 baby can drink from straw so last night brought some cheap plastic straws to MIL house and ask her to cut into two and train RaeAnne. Today when I went after work, she told me RaeAnne immediately knows how to drink from straw, no need to train at all. Faint! When I got back, I upgraded her Mag Mag to stage 3 straw and true enough she's happily sucking the water. I still have 2 Avent trainer cups who were bought and not used. Looks like got to sell or give away liao. :P

Oh ya, RaeAnne has been shaking her head since 2 weeks ago. Wonder where she learn it from. But she'll shake her head from time to time, quite funny to see her do it actually. ;)

Back from HK trip. :)

RaeAnne has made her maiden journey to Hong Kong and back. :) Super drama man, reached airport on Sat one hour early cos already contacted customer service to book seats on Friday. End up the 11+am flight was overbooked and they bumped us off to next flight with compensation (SGD197, USD$75 onboard shopping voucher and $15 lunch voucher per pax). Was a nightmare cos next flight was 4:25pm, 5hours away.

The aunties were not keen to travel back home, end up got to come back to airport again so my poor RaeAnne had to eat and sleep at Billy Bentley pub at T1 cos that was the only place with a couch. We reached our hotel only at 11pm and I only got to sleep at 130am cos had to nurse RaeAnne and she had difficulty falling asleep that night. Probably new environment and after the drama at airport. Didn't put my baby in the bassinet in the end cos only 1 seat was available and don't want to sit alone with baby. Anyway, the check in staff said bassinet is more for babies below 6 months. If baby more than 12 kg, may not be suitable. My baby haven't hit 10kg but I think she'll attempt to crawl out of the bassinet. But very tiring when baby wants to sleep lor. Got to hold her while eating my airplane food, juggling act. :P Weather was cool and dry there. A bit cold on Sunday but Mon and Tues were ok. Hotel was not fantastic, walls too thin but it's clean and they lent me a baby cot which was very useful for RaeAnne to stand. The room had only twin beds so I had to sleep with RaeAnne cos I had to wake up and feed her in the middle of the night.



We went on city tour on Sun morning and went to Causeway Bay to pray. Disneyland tour was on Monday and it was a very sunny day. We were not seen anywhere without an umbrella at the aunties' insistence. We spent more time at Fantasyland where RaeAnne went on the carousel and the teacup rides. Our little gal enjoyed herself.





We went shopping at Harbourcity but didn't buy much but Xmas decorations and the view at Star Ferry was nice. Pity we didn't manage to meet Mylife, Jan MTB, at HK. Was at Elements waiting for her to call but she was busy with the baby. Couldn't wait indefinitely with the whole kampung who were waiting for me to go to Harbour city. Poor hubby didn't get to go to HMV to buy his DVD though it was only 100 metres away.



Nursing and baby rooms are sorely lacking in HK. Better off wearing diaper pants for babies, at least easier to take off and replace. Elements shopping mall has a very nice baby room with 3 changing areas and even 1 cubicle that can be locked for breastfeeding. Too bad not all shopping malls got same standard. At the airport, I had to BF RaeAnne in the toilet, couldn't find the baby room anywhere. :/ The aunties were very helpful during the trip to bathe and feed RaeAnne. Brought milk powder, cereal, Heinz jar food, pigeon baby porridge to HK. End up she only take BM and fresh porridge which 2nd aunty made every morning. Overall, it was a good trip cos I had a lot of family support though I came back with a headache and sore throat due to not drinking enough water in the dry weather and lack of sleep. :)

Special request from the Feb mummies. Packing list for RaeAnne's trip. Don't faint, it's a long list cos I wasn't sure what she'll need so this kiasu mummy brought everything. ;P

Things to bring Diaper bag
1. 1 cardigan/jacket
2. 1 extra set of clothes in ziplock bag (top, bottom, socks)
3. 1 pair of long socks
4. Diapers (day & night)
5. 2 Diaper pants
6. 1 Bib
7. Tiger Hot water flask
8. Milk powder dispenser (tiered)
9. Pigeon mag mag bottle
10. Pigeon feeding bowl with spoon
11. Extra baby cutlery set
12. Pink thermos food jar
13. Baby biscuits
14. Bottle warmer with 1 clean milk bottle inside
15. Small wet baby towel in ziplock bag
16. 1-2 toys (cloth book and toy camera)
17. Baby medicine (eg. Panadol syrup, forehead plaster, what else?)
18. Baby bjorn carrier
19. Clean cloth diaper
20. Baby hat

Baby luggage Bag
1. Electric bottle warmer? (didn't bring in the end)
2. Bottle brush? (didn't bring in the end, but would have been useful )
3. Sponge in ziplock bag
4. 1 hat
5. Hair clips (didn't bring in the end)
6. Baby Bottle detergent
7. Baby clothes liquid detergent
8. Milk powder (put in lock & lock airtight container with spoon)
9. Baby cereal (bring whole tin or put in lock & lock container with spoon)
10. Pigeon porridge/baby food/jar food
11. 1 extra milk bottle
12. Extra bibs
13. Extra diapers (day & night)/diaper pants
14. Extra tissue/wet wipes
15. Baby clothes (long sleeves, rompers, pyjamas, long socks etc)
16. 4 Baby face towel (2 for feeding, 2 for bathing)
17. Non slip bath mat (small) (forgot to bring in the end)
18. Ruyi oil
19. Baby lotion
20. Baby shampoo
21. Baby comb
22. Baby shower gel
23. Baby bath towel
24. Baby waterproof changing mat?
25. Mosquito repellent lotion?
26. Plastic container (use as water scoop?)
27. Tiger thermos food jar? (can cook porridge in short time, didn't bring in the end)
28. Travel kettle
29. Ear thermometer
30. Something familiar for bed time? Pillow? Soft toy?
31. Bedtime zipper sack
32. Breast pump (mini electric plus cos it's most portable)
33. Stroller? (didn't bring in the end)

Swimming on Sunday

RaeAnne went for a swim on Sunday. Ok ok, she didn't really swim. Mommy piggy held her and she was happily splashing and playing with the water. Unfortunately, the session was a short one as dark clouds soon brought rain and we had to quickly scurru to Nai Nai's place to take shelter and allow RaeAnne to be bathed. V good experience for her!!

RaeAnne at Sakae Sushi

After our success at the coffee shop today, Mummy decided to 'cheng sheng zui ji' and bring RaeAnne out for dinner today. We showered her around 515pm then fed around 530pm before leaving the house around 630pm cos Mummy needed to pump before leaving the house. There was a queue at Sakae sushi but the serving staff was very nice, she has a 8mth old baby gal too so was trying to engage RaeAnne but she was still a bit shy though she smiled at the nice lady. Here's her shy shy, stranger anxiety look when the nice auntie talked to her and stroked her hair. Quickly hug Daddy close. Haha. :P

Mummy and Daddy has a fast meal while RaeAnne sat in her not very high 'high chair'. We fed her biscuits in between. But our poor darling was getting tired, maybe it was her early dinner and early bath. She knocked out at 8pm in the baby bjorn carrier when Mummy went to NTUC to buy the floor cleaner. But when we reached home, she woke up. Even after latching her on, she was wide awake. End up Daddy and Mummy had to entertain her and she finally fell asleep close to 11pm. :P

This is her 'naughty' look, soon followed by 'bored model' look when Mummy tried to take more photos of her at Sakae sushi. So bad, never give Mummy face. :)

P.S. oh ya, Daddy experimented by just laughing at her for no rhyme and reason and our little gal really looks ready to cry. Mummy had to pretend that Daddy was laughing at Mummy before she stop midway though her nose was already red. Poor darling, Daddy bully you? Hee.

RaeAnne's first visit to coffee shop

Haha, Daddy and Mummy have been quite scared to bring RaeAnne out to non shopping mall area cos no high chair, no aircon and no nursery room. But we've finally brought RaeAnne to nearby coffee shop cos Mummy has craving for dim sum. Brought the seat and sack that I bought long ago and it turned out to be a good thing cos RaeAnne was on her best behaviour, even the cleaning aunty praised her for being so 'guai' and sitting still on the chair. Mummy's just glad I didn't waste money on the seat & sack or else it'll be another white elephant. Showed MIL the sack & seat and she said we should bring it to Hong Kong. RaeAnne's very fascinated with the birds, carried her and followed the birds and she was so thrilled. :)

RaeAnne's flu jab

Forgot to mention that RaeAnne has her flu jab on 21 Nov evening. She was grouchy even before we went to PD cos Daddy and Mummy were late and she was fed early. She cried in the car, but quietened down when we reach the clinic. But when the PD wanted to check her for assessment, she had stranger anxiety and started clinging to me and whining liao. Had to hold her while PD jabbed her. She cried very loudly, this time Daddy had it down on camera cos we already missed capturing the 3 6-in-1 jabs. Luckily she didn't develop a fever tough though we monitored for a few days.

Oh ya, FIL bought wheat based Frisocrem for RaeAnne and she tried it on Monday, apparently she likes it. I didn't really like it cos it contains FM so she's taking more and more FM. But I was the one who bought the rice based Frisocrem so can't complain lar. Anyway, we brought it her for the weekend. Mummy too tired from working to cook porridge. The last week has been bad, really feel like being a SAHM. :P

Today, MIL told us something interesting. FIL was carrying RaeAnne and watching TV. There were some senior citizens talentime thingy on tv and the lady on stage dressed up in something 'kua chang' and was singing. Probably, something funny so the audience laughed loudly at her. RaeAnne saw these people laughing and started crying loudly. Wish I was there to witness for myself. Don't know why she cried. 1) because she thought they were laughing at her or 2) because she understands how it feels to be laughed at and feels distressed (cos everytime daddy or MIL laughs at her, she cries). My poor sensitive baby gal. Skin so 'thin', next time how. Don't worry, Mummy promise not to laugh at you ya? :) hahaha.

RaeAnne is 10 months old!

Went for my dental appt, boo hoo, the tooth cannot be saved as it is cracked all the way. Got to extract. Sigh, mixed feelings, feeling sad that I have to extract the root canal treated tooth. Wish I had more info about it 10 years ago, would have done a crown. But it has given me a lot of pain on and off. Heart pain that I got to pay so much for implant after extraction also. Really feel miserable cos I'll be going for holiday soon. Hate to be 'bo gey' for my trips but worried that I'll have toothache over there and end up having to seek emergency dental treatment. Even worse. :(

Got to keep reminding myself to put things in perspective, after all RaeAnne is 10 months today. She's healthy and growing well so I got lots to be thankful about. Mummy & Daddy so busy running errands, including collecting air tickets from two tour agencies so put her at nai nai place. Was super engorged by the time we came back so will quickly pump before going to fetch her. :)

Here's a photo of RaeAnne at 10 months old on the playskool convertible car/walker that we bought for her. Can see her two bottom teeth clearly in this photo. :)

RaeAnne slept early today

I has been nursing a toothache since last weekend. Pain is getting worse and I need panadol to relieve pain but dental appt is only coming Sat. Sian, the dull throbbing pain is getting on my nerves and there's nothing I can do about it because it involves my root canal treated tooth which cracked a few months ago before i could do a crown. :P Very pek chek at work cos extra workload and got some irresponsible colleagues who just pass the buck around and don't do their work. Really feeling overwhelmed already, luckily today RaeAnne guai guai and slept early at 10pm, maybe it's because she didn't sleep a lot in the day. I prefer to think of it as she is understanding that Mummy is very tired physically and psychologically. Will go and rest after pumping. Will try the mouth rinse I just bought, hope it helps relieve the pain. :P

It's now 11.45pm and she just woke up for another feed.

Car Seat

RaeAnne 'kok' her head on the floor just now shortly after this photo was taken. Hubby finally fixed up her big car seat again because she outgrew the small bassinet one. We let her sit in it to 'condition' her but after a while he removed the buckle and she continued sitting happily in it. I was trying out the Moms in mind sling which I put in cold storage for a long time cos don't know how to use it. Hubby was trying to help me and the next thing we knew, she fell forward and knocked her head, it was a loud thud and she wailed immediately. I quickly carried her to sayang her but she continued crying. But luckily she stopped crying when hubby started to beat the floor because she was distracted by the noise. Poor RaeAnne, sorry, mummy and daddy distracted and careless. Her forehead looked a bit red but no obvious bumps, heng ah.

RaeAnne at Pu Tien

Made potato puree for RaeAnne but it was a mini disaster. Not sure if it' the typeof potato I used (russett potato) or because it should not be blended. The paste was so sticky and gluey, I thought I was making potato paste. Luckily I also made porridge so plan B was to blend the still 'grainy' porridge and feed RaeAnne that instead. :P RaeAnne surprised us by standing on the bed again. Wonder if she's practising standing on the soft surface because it's easier for her to balance?

We went out for dinner with my parents and brother because my parents birthdays were in Nov. Actually mum's actual birthday was last Sunday 9 Nov 08 but I remembered it too late to organise a celebration. Hee. Decided to go to Pu Tien, which newly opened at Tampines Mall B1. Fed RaeAnne and bathed her before we left so she was in good behaviour. She was in a greedy mood and ate a lot of 'xiao man tou' and teething biscuit, hubby said it's cos everyone around her was eating. Haha.

Oh ya, wanted to capture RaeAnne's two bottom teeth for the longest time but she refused to open her mouth long ago for a good shot. Decided to post the photos that I took on 4 Nov anyway though it's a bit blur and Hubby had to pry her lips open. Sorry, darling. :P Her bottom teeth is longer now and more obvious. :)

RAEANNE CAN STAND!!!!

Before everyone gets too excited, the feat only lasted only 3 seconds, haha, before she sat down with a thump. She was standing with support on the mini Arms Reach bassinet when she reached over to take the Combi teething ring that Mummy was passing to her to chew. Then when Mummy was trying to keep the teething ring cover, Daddy said heh, be careful, you'll fall. Then, lo and behold, Mummy looked up while Daddy looked on in wonder. Our baby gal stood for a few seconds holding the teething ring with her legs wide apart. Jia you jia you RaeAnne. Maybe you can stand on your own two feet by the time we go to Hong Kong in 3 weeks time. Or maybe even walk a bit? Ok ok Mummy knows I'm being greedy. Human nature mah... ;)

Hunted all over for RaeAnne's favourite Heinz Multigrain cereal but it was out of stock at Giant & Tampines Mall NTUC. We bought the Heinz Multigrain Banana flavour but she hates it. Mummy has to make home cooked porridge tomorrow. Hopes she guai guai takes it. Really no patience to feed her sometimes cos she keeps fidgeting and refusing to open her mouth. BF is so much easier compared to feeding her solids. :P

Oh ya, RaeAnne started taking one meal of FM since last Monday. Long story why i'm doing partial bf. It started because i kenna mastitis again on 3 Nov so supply affected. Because after changing to L teats, my gal suddenly started drinking 160 to 180ml. Then my ils opened 1 new tin of formula milk when RaeAnne cried for 2 hours non stop last mon afternoon. FIl was desperate to try anything when she continued crying n rejected ebm so he opened a new 900g tin of Friso 2. Once opened, the FM must be consumed in 4 weeks n i already threw away 1 unfinished complimentary tin so sim tia to throw away another big tin. Weekend busy look after her so latch n latch but hardly pump so ebm not enough. Anyway, my gal still rejects fm when she's awake. She only tolerates it when she wakes up at night n blur blur. Nowadays, she sometimes take FM in the day, sometimes rejects.

I still have bouts of guilt when I see hubby feeding FM at night when I'm around. Feel as if I'm depriving her of goodness and being selfish. But I try to comfort myself. I've been BF her for almost 10 months and I'm going to shanghai without her in end dec. Thinking must train her to take some fm before i go to shanghai. If not, ils will have a very hard time feeding her when i'm not around. Also, my menses still has not returned so maybe with partial BF, my hormones will be back to normal. If not, I can't even plan for no. 2 next year. :P

More Updates!!

Hihi, this is Piggy Daddy doing a late night cameo. :) (it's 1.50am and Piggy Girlgirl has been fed and sleeping soundly for a while now... hope she sleeps thru the night!)
Haven't been posting for a while... sorry Piggy Mummy.. :P

Anyways, some updates:
Piggy Girlgirl can cruise now. That's right! According to Piggy Nai Nai, she has been circumventing her baby piano with great success recently. Keep it up Girlgirl!

Piggy Girlgirl developed some rashes recently and we had to bring her down to see the doc. Found out that she has eczema. Poor thing. :( But fortunately with the prescribed medication, she is making good progress and her skin is much better now. Now we have to keep her cool and comfortable at all times.

Today, Girlgirl slept early which is a rarity. Normally she sleeps at about 10 plus 11ish but tonight she was out by 8 plus 9. Hope this is not a one off thingy, so that Piggy Mummy & Daddy can have more rest. (Will soon beocme Panda Mummy & Daddy soon..)

Alright, that's all for now.
Piggy Daddy is up at night working on his new book. That's right! Hope to get this book out by early next year, so rushing to get it out now...

Cheers!!

Updates

Been so busy at work and looking after RaeAnne who is sleeping later and later that I have no time to blog. Got to post based on memory now. :P

Sun afternoon, went to Bx (Feb mummy) house for playdate. Prepared a salad, a few people told me they like it. Paiseh, cos this time, I bought most ingredients ready made including the dressing cos got no time to prepare in the morning. Did add in hard boiled eggs, dry fried bacon bits and pine nuts for flavour. RaeAnne got to try out some new toys but she was a bit shy among the babies.

I kenna mastitis again on Monday morning. :P Looked after RaeAnne on our own last Sat & Sun, for once did not bring her to ILs place. Keep latching on but hardly pumped cos I was also thinking of dragging my pumping duration too. Luckily, KK LC, Yen Ping agreed to see me before she goes on 1 month long leave.

Then on Monday afternoon, MIL said RaeAnne cried loudly for 2 hours from 1+pm - 3+pm, refused to be pacified. They tried ruyi oil, changing from EBM to FM, everything but it didn't work. They panicked and called hubby who rushed down but RaeAnne had fallen asleep by then. Hubby brought the thermometer and she was not running a fever. Not sure why she was cranky. Wondered if it was because she did not see ILs for 2 days so was distanced from them or because she was just teething or grouchy. RaeAnne's two bottom teeth are quite obvious now, about 2mm long. Tried to take her photo but she refused to open her mouth long enough for me to take a good photo.

RaeAnne has started releasing her support when standing up and she only falls after 2seconds, not bad, think she may be able to stand without support soon.

Finally collected photos

RaeAnne woke up every 2 hours last night, I want to peng san. Today brought her to ILs so that we can rest a bit. She didn't sleep much in the day so ILs let her sleep from 5pm to 630pm even though I protested that it's already evening, should not let her sleep anymore. Sleep until 630pm, at night how to sleep. FIL so 'stylo' told me, never mind, it's ok, let her sleep here lor. So, I thought ok, if they are going to let her sleep here tonight then I hands off lor.

Who knows later when I told hubby, he went to tell his mum that leaving baby here tonight and she didn't say anything, act blur. Then hubby said we bring her back cos MIL like not keen to keep her. He saw my 'buay song' face and he said he will stay up and look after her. It's already 11pm, she still so energetic, I'm going to bo chap liao. Told him since you cannot control your parents then you got to suffer the consequences lor. Actually hubby still suffering from his cough, quite poor thing also. :P

RaeAnne is screaming and crying now, don't know if it's because she wants to sleep or not. We tried to leave the airconditioning in her room just now and I bf her there but she didn't fall asleep either. Hubby's carrying her now, looks like he can't manage. Got to carry her....

RaeAnne finally fell asleep at 1120pm after I nursed her to sleep. Sigh, what a long day.

RaeAnne is 9 months today! :)

It's 22nd Oct and RaeAnne is officially 9 months old. I've been BF her for 9 months so far, exceeded target by 50% since I planned to BF her until 6 months. Quite proud of myself actually. Think I can slowly start introducing more FM and freeze the EBM I have so that can last her longer. Hee. :)

Dressed her up in the 3 piece Carters Apple pyjamas set which I bought from Babycentre.com. They are meant for 12 months but she can wear them already though the long pants are still a bit long. Bought some new hair clips for her from a forum mummy but MIL cut her fringe and hair these 2 days so she looks a bit tomboy with the hair clip. We tried the different hair clips on her but had a hard time making her smile cos she doesn't like us to pin things on her hair. Hee.

Think she's losing her baby looks and looking more like a toddler nowadays. Can even see her big feet from one of the photos. Sigh, my little gal is growing up so fast. A bit 'bu she de' but yet can't wait for her to sleep through the night. Dilemma :P

Bo Gey no more

Feeding FM as last feed didn't work. Made 120ml but she only drank about 100ml. Finished feeding her at midnight but she woke up at 2:50am. Same duration as BM. :P

Yesterday FIL told us RaeAnne has two bottom teeth cutting out too. True enough, I feel it when I put a finger in cos she'll bite me. Yeah! :) Hope that doesn't mean she'll bit me when I BF her though. :P

I tried giving RaeAnne baby carrot sticks too. She enjoys holding it but doesn't really want to eat. Made porridge for RaeAnne again today with pork, sweet potato and carrot. Use the tiger food jar but the porridge was not mushy enough, looked like teochew 'muay' instead of cantonese 'chok' so in the end put it back to the stove to boil a bit longer. Still save some gas compared to if I didn't use the food jar at all I guess. Put everything into the new allerhand food bag I bought. Just nice to fit in the Thermos food container, lock & lock container of cereal, her biscuits and the pigeon food container. RaeAnne ddidn't eat much of the porridge in the day when I made it. But when my small auntie fed her at my mum's place, she ate quite a bit. She still didn't like the taste of sweet pototo though cos she tried to gag when we fed her.

So far, RaeAnne has tried the following foods. :)

Puree
1. Avocado
2. Sweet potato
3. Carrot
4. Broccoli
5. Heng Cai (local spinach)
6. Corn
7. Peas

On its own
1. Cooked rice (1 grain which FIL fed)
2. Apple (mashed)
3. Kiwi (asked MIL to put on food previously cos recommended after 8mths cos too acidic)
4. Banana (asked MIL to monitor cos heard it causes gas)
5. Heinz teething biscuits
6. Heinz baby rice/multigrain cereals

In porridge
1. Pork (for broth only)
2. Baby Corn
3. Gor Ghee (threadfin)
4. Sweet Potato
5. Spinach
6. Local Spinach
7. Pumpkin

Feeding RaeAnne with FM

Tonight is the first night I fed FM to RaeAnne. Not that she had not taken FM before but it's the first time I personally fed her. Actually, hubby was supposed to feed her but she cried and cried when hubby tried to feed her. When I took over and gave her the bottle of FM, then she happily drink. Feels bittersweet though, it's as if she already associate mummy with milk cos I BF her so she trusts me but feels as if today I 'pian' her to drink FM cos I want to see if it'll help her sleep through or at least wake up less often. Guilty guilty. :P

Ye Shanghai Ye Shanghai

We are thinking of bringing little RaeAnne to Shanghai since I won a lucky draw prize from Century Square Mid Autumn Festival lucky draw. Will probably go from 28 Dec when my cousin is at Shanghai. Hubby received another call from Century Square today, so qiao, we won $100 voucher, a consolation prize. Century square is going to be our favourite mall from now on. ;) Nai Nai asked us to buy some towels for RaeAnne cos she's getting too big for them. Hee. :)

Today Daddy brought RaeAnne to NTUC when she cried and didn't sleep after latching on. When he brought her back at 9pm, she was already sound asleep. Good job Daddy! :) But she woke up 1 hour later at 10pm, Mummy latched her on to put her back to la la land. :) Mummy suffered a very stiff neck and back cos she woke up so many times last night. My colleague, a physiotherapist, saw me in such a bad state with my numerous 'salonpas' plasters that she offered to massage for me. Wa, heaven. :)

Sensitive Little RaeAnne

This evening, when hubby was modelling RaeAnne on the babybjorn carrier in front of the mirror at ILs place, RaeAnne tilted her head to one side. Daddy and Nai Nai were amused by her cos she looked very cute with her 'tou wai wai'. Machiam like trying to pose. Daddy mimicked her pose and Nai Nai laughed even more. Then my darling princess 'bian zui' and started crying. Aiyoh, I think she thought Daddy and Nai Nai were laughing at her. Had to get her out of the BabyBjorn carrier and sayang her, kept on praising her to soothe her. Hubby tried to lighten the mood by playing her favourite 'peek a boo' game but she ignored him. Poor daddy, next time he'll be outnumbered by a sensitive wife and sensitive daughter, hee hee. ;)

Forgot to note down RaeAnne's milestones. She can raise her hand and do bye bye gesture spontaneously 50% of the time. She's also babbling more, always ma ma mah, meh meh or ba ba ba. At first thought she was calling mama but realised that she calls everything/anyone that she wants ma ma or ba ba. :P

For the past few nights, RaeAnne has been quite 'guai', she slept at 9+pm after I latched her on. But she usually wake up less than half an hour when she falls asleep so got to latch again before she'll sleep longer. I'm not complaining but at least it's an improvement. But she changes all the time, hope it keeps up. Had to work today cos there's medical coverage. Made use of the opportunity to use up my remaining JL vouchers before they expire. Don't know what to buy so RaeAnne got a new Leapfrog learning drum and a Hello Kitty dollhouse which we will keep until she can play with it. :)

Fun Fun Aquaduck!!!

Today RaeAnne went swimming, first time at the big pool!!! She was at Aquaducks trial with other Jan08 babies at The Pines Club. Daddy and mummy were rushing and late by half an hour cos we were not familiar with the location. The coach was very professional. She had so much fun although she didn't look like it. Wanted to upload videos but there's an error. :P

Woke up again

RaeAnne woke up again around 10.45pm. Latched her on while hubby went to buy supper. Just managed to put her back to sleep. Hope she sleeps longer this time. :)

Cry it out

Very very busy at work. No time to blog these few days. My boss's last day is next Wed so she started to do handover liao. Found out yesterday at dinner that ILs fried the organic broccoli and baby corn that I bought for RaeAnne. Asked MIL and she not very happy. Sigh. Organic food so exp, I bought so that they can cook for bb without boiling to get rid of pesticide and instead, they cook it for our dinner because FIL said don't cook will spoil while MIL said bb don't like to eat broccoli and can't take corn. Don't like to eat also must keep letting her try right? If not will grow up to be picky eater.

Anyway, came back and made broccoli and green pea puree for RaeAnne yesterday. She took only a bit, as usual, she dirtied her shirt so don't dare to give her too much also. Hubby tried Cry It Out method to make RaeAnne sleep in the cot yesterday. Poor gal cried for more than 20 mins, from the time I was finishing up the puree, washing up the container, until I showered and finish shower. She was still crying even though I asked hubby to feed some water. She stopped crying only to drink water. :P Heart pain to hear her cry like that. End up I latched her to comfort her then she fell asleep.

Went to see LC today cos still can't clear a small lump. Shun bian asked her about CIO method and she said it can take up to 1 week to work and have to gradually increase the duration. Cannnot suddenly let her cry for so long. Anyway, she also said have to be consistent. I really don't think ILs will have the heart to do it so told hubby not to waste his time if he's not going to follow through with ILs.

Tonight, scared history repeat itself so latched her for very long once we came back from ILs place so that she can sleep early. Maybe we were lucky, she slept at 9pm but woke up again 15 mins later, then I latched her again, this time she slept around 930pm and until now. Keeping fingers crossed. Oh ya, we weighed her again today but she was still only 8kg. :P

Homemade porridge

Finally made porridge for RaeAnne today. Ils have been making it for her all this while. Soaked the rice overnight, then use the sliced pork ILs gave me yesterday to make pork broth to cook the rice. Boil the porridge for very long until soft and stir into the puree heng cai that she didn't finish yesterday to cook some more. She tasted the first mouthful, was going to make her 'wanna puke' face but hesitated and swallowed, didn't 'puke' after all. Finished about 2/3 of a small shark fin soup even though she had milk half an hour ago so I consider it a success. :)

More steamed purees

I got quite fed up cos I tried blending steamed carrot and steamed heng cai today and same problem with some pieces of veg still not blended smoothly. So, today, I got 'brainwashed' to buy a small blender at Isetan (the type with promoter with microphone) at $69.90. Saw the demo, even brown rice grains also can blend into powder. Hope it works better lor. RaeAnne's reaction was yucks to the carrot and heng cai though ILs already putting that into her porridge. :P Took some meat from MIL today, will try and make porridge for her tomorrow. Can add in those pureed veg that I made and she didn't finish. :)

Puree broccoli

Bought organic broccoli from NTUC at Eastpoint today, steamed the flower parts and tried to make puree broccoli for RaeAnne today but she hates it. Keeps making the want to puke face. :P Wonder if it's because it's not soft enough. Somehow, some parts of the broccoli can't be pureed until smooth. Only the broccoli stuck under the blade is softest. End up I can only scrap those part to feed. Never mind, veg is good for her, will keep trying. Ate most of the puree broccoli myself, added a bit of salt so it tastes not bad. :)

FIRST TIME RAEANNE CALLED MAMA?

RaeAnne attended Su-Anne cheh cheh's birthday party at Aranda Country Club yesterday. She was in a good mood before we went cos she slept for nearly 2 hours and I bf her after she woke up. We reached there at 3:15pm. But there were too many unfamiliar faces and she cried 4 times in total. The most serious one was when she was frightened by the party horn the other kids were blowing. Her whole face turned tomato red and she only stopped crying after 1 min, long by her standards. We let her try out the toys my cousin rented. She was apprehensive and her expression was guarded maybe because of the unfamiliar surroundings. Side note, RaeAnne is able to feed herself with the milk bottle, don't know exactly when but Nai Nai mentioned it on Tues and we witnessed it on Wed. She'll turn the bottle left and right as if it's her steering wheel though. Oh ya, RaeAnne was 72cm long when we measured her last week. :)

Had a very frustrating evening. Today, spoke to MIL and found out that FIL is against feeding RaeAnne pureed or mashed vegetables. He insists to add it to porridge. Doesn't accept that letting baby try the pure taste of vegetables is to get her used to the taste of veg alone without being masked by rice and other foods. Exposing her to new tastes is also recommended by baby books. Sigh, never expected to face resistance from him, especially since he is educated and an ex teacher. Expected him to be more open to new ideas instead of sticking to old ways.

Also found out that MIL boiled the vegetables before putting into the porridge (to get rid of pesticides as advised by her friends) but that means all the Vit C is lost. Tried to explain to her but she didn't seem very convinced cos she said that's how her friends taught her. The blind leading the blind. WORSE not only is hubby unwilling to talk to them, he somemore can tell me in front of MIl that it's ok to boil the veg first, grr... HELLO DADDY!?!, can you please read this http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/VegetableRecipes.htm before you side with your mum. Vit C is water soluble, that's why all baby recipes ask for the vegetables to be STEAMED not boiled. Sigh, I work in a hospital for so long, this kind of basic nutrition knowlege I also know, but no one believes me. :/ Too tired to argue and fight with the whole family.

But in the end, my baby's the one who suffers due to ignorance right? So someone's got to do it, and who else but Mummy, so off we went to buy vegetables from NTUC this evening after we picked up RaeAnne. Wanted to let her try it out tonight but she slept at 930pm, earlier for once but she woke up after I finished my shower. Had to latch her on again, keeping fingers crossed now. :P

FORGOT TO MENTION! THINK RAEANNE CALLED MAMA for the first time. When we were in the car driving back home. We were a bit late and she wanted her milk. Wanted to wait until we reach home before latching her on since it was such a short ride. But hearing her cry and call Ma... followed by Ma... 1 sec later. Not sure whether she's calling for milk or mama but it made my heart melt so latched her on anyway. Sure enough, when I had to unlatch her just a few mins later, she cried pitifully and had to be pacified by hubby. :)

Busy weekend

Brought RaeAnne to collect her first passport at ICA on Sat morning. Tried out the Baby Bjorn carrier on Friday night and she's quite happy to be in it so we used it at ICA. Should have bought it and used it earlier because the weight limit is 10kg and RaeAnne is already 8 kg, hope we can still use it for her HK trip.

Received a piece of good news on Friday. Century Square office called me and told me that I've won their grand prize of 4d3n free & easy trip to Shanghai. Was quite skeptical at first but remembered that I did fill up a lucky draw coupon for their recent Mooncake festival promotion. Checked the letterbox and there is an official letter from Asiamalls. YEAH!!! Hope there are no travel restrictions though cos can only travel during school holidays and we are already going to HK in early Dec.

Brought RaeAnne to a colleague's daughter's one year old birthday party on Sunday. She cried twice when someone wanted to carry her. Sigh, our gal still very shy. She was also a bit cranky cos she slept at nai nai house on Sat night and slept only at 1140pm. Heard from MIL that she rejected FM and porridge and ate very little. End up I have to BF her in the car and we missed the cut cake ceremony. :P

RaeAnne loves Yeye & Nai Nai

Started having a blocked duct since yesterday night. Tried to apply the KK LC instructions to clear it myself. Very tired about recurring blocked ducts, I have been massaging these 2 weeks since coming back from KKH. Don't know why after I recovered, the other side is now blocked. Think it's an indication that it's time for me to stop BF. It's difficult to continue when I keep having such episodes.

Was not feeling good so went to rest right after dinner at ILs. When I woke up, we wanted to bring RaeAnne home as usual but at the door, she actually cried and wanted ILs to carry and didn't want to leave with us. MIL had to carry her for a while and FIL switched off the music he was using to amuse her. Had to distract her before she agreed to be carried by me to go home. Sigh, told hubby before that the day when our baby prefers other caregiver (be it ILs, Maid, nanny etc) to me, should be the day that I quit.

Maybe my thinking is a bit extreme, maybe she was just having fun playing with ILs (must admit, they have more patience playing with her esp FIL always coming up with innovative games and actions to amuse her). But it still feels sad that my baby whom I spent 9 mths carrying her in my womb, another 8 months breastfeeding her including 5 mths looking after her at night on our own prefers someone else other than Daddy and Mummy. :( But, I'm sure RaeAnne made Yeye and Nai Nai very happy today with her gesture. They must have felt very 'wo xin' that the love and concern they showered on her is reciprocated. I should feel happy that she enjoys their company but at the same time, I feel sad for myself. Sigh, the dilemma and heartache of a full time working mum.

RaeAnne is 8 mths old

RaeAnne is 8 mths old today! :) Mummy knocked off late so Daddy helped to weigh her, she is 8kg. Just nice. :)

Milestones
Can crawl very well
Can pull herself up from sitting position and stand with support
Not cruising yet but starting to shuffle her feet sometimes
Still babbling, can't call mama or papa yet.
Taking 2 feeds of solids a day - porridge and cereal
Knows how to high five and wave bye but not consistent.
Separation anxiety especially among strangers

Teething

Went to Bedok Blk 85 food centre for dinner cos we gave MIL a lift to Bedok this evening. Had to take turns with hubby to eat but at least got to eat the foods I have not eaten for a long time, famous bak chor me, satay, sambal 'la la', fried prawn hokkien mee and of course sugarcane juice. The drink I loved so much while preggie. Hee. We bumped into my small uncle and family, after warming up, RaeAnne let my small uncle carry her. Such a relief. Too bad, by then we had finished our food. :)

RaeAnne very cranky these few days, just saw a hint of her two bottom teeth at the back of her gums. Think they should be erupting soon. She's turning 8 mths tomorrow. Her teeth growth a bit slow. :P She keeps biting my nipple now, maybe cos her gum was itchy. Ouch ouch. :/

Milk intake

MIL said RaeAnne drank 140ml of EBM at one shot today. Yeah, way to go girl. Although she's still drinking lesser than the other Jan babies I know (150-210ml of EBM/FM), hope she'll close up on the gap soon and sleep throught the night. :)

Lantern Festival

Today is zhong qiu jie ba yue shi wu, which means little RaeAnne is 8 months old today according to lunar calendar. Bought her a plastic lantern for her first lantern festival celebration but it was too heavy and she keeps dropping it. Can't buy the paper type cos she'll eat or crush it with her hands. Not able to take a photo of her holding the lantern, my aunt had to help her. Maybe next year she can hold her own lantern. :P

Poor RaeAnne fell from the bed this afternoon. First time this happened. I had was latching her on in the bedroom. And she fell asleep, can't transfer to cot or she'll be sure to wake up so I put her on our bed. Wanted to sleep with her but remembered I need to wash the new baby bjorn carrier I bought. Couldn't shout for hubby from bedroom so I put bolster and pillow on the side she's sleeping but forgot to block the side with the small cot and went to look for hubby who was doing some work in the living room. Told him she's sleeping on our bed but he no action so I went to take the baby bjorn carrier into the washing machine so that can use it next weekend. Half way through, heard her crying. Hubby went to attend to her, continue to do my laundry then I heard hubby shouting. Rushed to the room, hubby told me that she fell and he found her in crawling position on the floor. Quickly hug her and sayang her until she stop crying. Sorry darling, both daddy and mummy were tired out from looking after you and got complacent. We should never have left you alone. Bolsters and pillows are moveable objects, you can stlll plow through them since you can already crawl quite well.

Hubby was very heart pained n wanted to rush her to KKH A&E straight away. But I decided to call KKH ask a nurse hotline first cos I dun think the dr will do much except ask us to monitor. Nurse asked me to check her head and limbs for injuries, all seems ok. Luckily, she's back to usual self after crying for a while. Happy, active, crawling and playing like normal. Need to observe 72 hours for any abnormalities in behaviour eg. vomitting. Anyway, lesson learnt for me, hope hubby did too. Don't take things for granted. Housework and school work can always wait. Baby can't. :(

Car seat & baby bjorn carrier

Finally gave up and put back the old car seat. RaeAnne was happy in it for almost 10 minutes then she started fussing again. She'll cry and whine and want me to carry. I blamed it on the fact that I started to rescue her when she was unhappy in the new car seat and this gal learns fast. However, I refused to relent, never give chance cos this is the old car seat and she was able to sit in it for long time previously. Had to ignore her cries when I went to visit my friend Debbie who just gave birth to baby Emma.

Baby Emma is so sweet, small face but really big eyes. Been so long since I carried a newborn that I carried her in upright position same like my daughter then realised it should be cradle position for newborns then quickly changed. Sorry, Emma. She fell asleep when I carried her though. :)

Received our BB Bjorn carrier which I bought from ebay auctions. Brand new and only $88. Think it's a good deal, got to wash it then let RaeAnne try. Hope she likes it. :)

BF Career

Read a very cute mummy's BF resignation letter to her baby gal http://ncyunited.multiply.com/journal/item/64. Made me think of my own BF career especially since I kenna blocked ducts again on Monday. Tahan on my own, took leave on Tues to try and clear, keep applying hot towel and massaging. Did not get worse but not any better too. Gave up and went to see KK LC Yen Peng today. She helped me to clear the remaining lump, ouch ouch! Said I got infection (cos my gal twist and injured the nipple) when the flow was not good due to blockage. Had to start on antibiotics.

Was thinking of quitting my BF career too cos push factor was busy workload and kenna blocked duct (I counted, total of 7th times including this time!?!) but after seeing LC today at KKH, she reminded me the pull factors to keep my BF job (she said the nutrients and antibodies which will not be destroyed even if most times she only gets heated EBM). Also, if BB drink BM, she will take in say vit B, C, D & F which she needs and it's in BM. But if BB take FM which has vitamins A-Z, she will end up with extra stuff that she doesn't need and this gets stored as fat around her vital organs. That's why FM fed babies are so big but it may not be healthy, that's why childhood diabetes and hypertension is so common nowadays.

She even psycho my hubby and ask hubby to talk to ILs which have not been very encouraging since RaeAnne turned 6 months and hubby did talk to them. Told his parents BM is better, other people can BF until 2 years old, not true that BM is not nutritious after 6 mths. So my replacement (FM) has been laid off for now though position is still open should I retire. And, Baby RaeAnne is safe from my resignation. Hee.

RaeAnne's Car Seat

Have been getting frustrated cos RaeAnne doesn't like to be strapped in her new car seat and that makes bringing her out on long car rides difficult. Gave her a lot of toys within reach but don't know why she just doesn't like this car seat.

Anyway, after reading the "What to expect in the First Year" and they recommend taking the car seat home to let baby sit in it and getting her conditioned. So ask hubby to take out and bring to ILs place. True enough, she started whining and stretching her hands out for 'bao bao' once we strapped her in. Bo bian had to take her out.

Then, I had an idea. I put her dolly inside the car seat and strapped dolly in. Then we told her we are bringing dolly to gai gai. MIL was carrying her then, when she saw dolly sitting in her car seat, she start to make noise and reach out in the direction of the car seat liao. So, we took out dolly and strapped her in, then give her dolly to play, this time, she sat in it for 10 mins before making noise again. WAH, told hubby our daughter possessive man, even though she doesn't like the car seat, seems like she wouldn't let dolly have it either. hehe. ;)

Added RaeAnne's Professional Shots :)

RaeAnne's first professional shots

Brought RaeAnne for her first professional photo shoot at ABC Photo Studio at Bishan in the afternoon. Didn't go so well cos as usual we were late and rushing. PIE jammed and hubby took wrong turn. RaeAnne was grouchy from long car ride cos she still doesn't like to be strapped to the car seat and I was coughing away so had to hold her in the car. Everytime she struggles and twists around got me started on another coughing attack so got quite impatient towards her. Sorry darling, Mummy didn't mean it. :P Just remembered that when hubby and I took our wedding photos at the studio, I was also sick. Hmm... looks like there's something about me and photo studios that just don't gel. ;P But luckily, we got some good shots despite the bad start. See the slide show for pics. :)

Oh ya, before I forget, something interesting happened yesterday. Yesterday when we finished the photo shoot, hubby and I needed to go get lunch, it was already 3pm by then. Hubby joked with the photograher and his assistant. Why don't both of you take care of her while we go downstairs and eat? My girl immediately 'bian zui' and want to cry. So kelian like that when daddy want to abandon her. Had to quickly comfort her no lar, daddy bear to, mummy also don't bear to leave her there. My baby gal so sensitive, like Mummy. :P

A Momentous Day!

Today is Teacher's Day. It's also my girl's Graduation Day because she graduated from BM cos I let her try Friso2 today. Have been meaning to let her try FM so that I can gradually cut down on my pumping interval. Have been feeding her BM only from 2months plus till now other than supplementing with solids. Hopefully once I give FM, she can drink her fill before sleeping then no need to wake up for night feeds. Today, FIL made it cos I don't have the heart to do it myself. RaeAnne finished nearly 90ml of it. FIL said, "she likes it, drink even faster than BM". Sigh, feel a bit sad hearing that actually, asked hubby repeatedly. "How, gal gal don't need me already". Sigh, mixed feelings but I guess I should be happy that she did not have any problems switching to FM bah but still feel a bit sad that I'm cutting our special link. :P

Baby Jumper Gym

Poor mummy still sick, finally surrendered after 5 days when my cough syrup finished, and went to see GP today who prescribed non drowsy cough syrup and strong antibiotics. If not really couldn't make the trip to bring RaeAnne to Baby Jumper Gym at Bukit Batok today. :P We went for the trial for Little crawlersw with the other Feb MTB mummies, Bx, goodbbb & Lezy. They don't let us take photos or video there but we sneaked in a photo or two. I was feeling stoned from my cough but they flashed similar cards for our baby to pick out (eye movement), then they flashed cards with text and pics (chinese & english) then we did some exercises and sing songs with the baby using musical instruments (rattler & hand bells), then we went to the gym area to let baby crawl and play with monkey bar. The flash card thing is a real eye opener. This blur mummy can't even spot the difference between the 2 cards but our babies can pick out the right card. I'm amazed. ;P RaeAnne enjoyed herself at least in the beginning part before she started crying. Don't know it was because she was overstimulated or because she follow the other babies who were crying. Fun, but I don't think i'll sign up cos too far from Tampines. They said they'll be opening a branch in the east next year so we'll see. http://www.bjg.com.sg/programs_crawlers.htm

Object permanence & high chair

RaeAnne started playing a game with FIL. She will drop her face towel and FIL will catch it on its way down. She laughed and chuckled so loudly. Hubby said she'll also start looking for the thing that she deliberately dropped. Looks like she has reached another milestone, object permanence. Where she knows that the thing that is dropped is still around somewhere. :)

My mum and aunt came to visit and they made baby porridge for RaeAnne with fish soup and carrot. But she didn't eat a lot probably cos the texture was too sticky. But nothing that a little bit of hot water can't do. Hubby brought her to ILs place in the late afternoon after my mum & aunt left cos he was visiting someone in hospital and I was too concussed to look after RaeAnne alone after taking my cough syrup. Asked hubby to bring the leftover porridge over and ask ILs to feed. I've been sleeping and sleeping since taking cough syrup but at least it's working. Coughed up some phelgm with blood just now. Yucks! show that this cough really affected my throat quite badly. But hopefully the worst is over and I'm on the road to recovery.

Bought a second hand Mama & Papas high chair for RaeAnne. Was selling at motherhood forum for $80, usual price: $240. Decided to get it cos she has a similar changing mat which my colleague lent me and she loves it so thought the padding for this high chair is the same so should be quite comfortable for her. :)Our little gal is growing up so fast. Still remember when I went to soup restaurant with my cousins, she can't sit on baby chair so we had to put her in a stroller but now, she has her very own high chair liao. :)