Ace's Birthday Party

No More Nen Nen!

Thanks to my mother, Ace has stopped wanting breast milk!!! Yes, have officially weaned Ace off breast milk as per my plan to do so when Ace turns one year old!

Though I expressed milk when I was at holiday cos I dun want to engorge and then feel shitty during my holiday.. I just expressed lesser and lesser each day....

When I came home, my mum told me that she has already trained Ace to:
1) Drink from milk bottle onli
2) hold his own milk bottle
3) drink at specific timings and not ask for milk all the time
4) Sleep early

So I just happily feed him formula.. the good news is I also never express my milk BUT my breasts never engorged.. they just decided to co-operate and has stayed soft till today! Yay! I am so happy.. i was so worried about how to wean but it all turned out to be a breeze! Thanks to my mum!

It is quite nice to have a well trained baby who:
- doesn’t fidget for milk in the car
- who sleeps early without us trying so hard to make him sleep
- and now sleeps through the nite till morning, only waking at 6 or 7am for milk..

Initially I couldnt quite get used to waking and making milk.. found it to be such a hassle.. but since he is able to wake at 6,7am, it is not that bad.. at least I am kind of awake.. these days.. I just auto walk into the kitchen, boil water, pour water in, put powder in, shake, go back to the room.. and feed ;) It really is a lot easier than feeding 1000 times throughout the day as and when he likes it...

It is really something worth celebrating.. so I happily told fellow mum, Ivy, whose son, Denzel is 2 mths younger than Ace tat I have managed to wean Ace and she is envious.. cos she sayz Denzel will refuse to drink bottled milk and cry and cry and after one hour.. she will just give in.. i suggested tat she go for a holiday as well.. hiak hiak.. ;)

Now, I just need to find another way to bond with Ace...

PS: I love you, Mum!! Thanks for your help!

Motherhood Starts ALL OVER

On the last day of our tour on 22 June, we woke up and then we went to the pool, went for another massage and had to get ready to leave the place.

Missing Ace
It is strange. The first two days I was there, even though I thought about Ace, I didn’t really miss him. I would see so many cute ang moh babies there and think about him but I never really missed him cos I have not felt so relaxed in a long long time.

But by the third day, I started to miss him a little and by Thursday, I started to miss him much. Kept seeing his cute little face in my mind…

Maybe it was cos I knew I was going to see him soon… The journey back was a long one. We reached SG at 11.15 and by the time we reached home, left our bags and went to fetch Ace, it was already near mid night…

Motherhood started at 0000
When Ace crawled towards me and smiled, my heart was filled with such joy! Gosh! I miss my son! And we had to ration hugs between Daddy and me cos we both missed him so bad…

But reality set in very quickly as I realized suddenly that I was actually all tensed up and working very hard as a mother. I suddenly realized tat when I am a mother, I am at all times more alert in case my son- falls, crawls, bangs his head against something, hurts himself.. etc…

I din realize how routine my job is and how much I was into my job as a full time mother until i had a break from it! SHIOK AH!

Have to keep holding on back to him.. have to carry him.. and all the burdens I left behind in Hua Hin after all the massage and time in the pool came right back..sigh.. never easy to be a mother ;)

Must work hard, must buy house/condo with a pool, must go for MORE holidays!!!

Hua Hin- Day 3

We slept through the football matches the night before and woke up quite early for our breakfast.

Never eat cornflakes before ah??
Max super geh kiang… he has never eaten cornflakes for breakfast before and so he wanted to try.. but as he did not drink milk, he tried to mix them into soy bean milk… that sounds like a good idea.. cept tat the milk was HOT and the cornflakes all turned soggy.. DISGUSTING!

There wasn’t much to do today and so we decided to practice our swing for golf. While picking up the clubs, I signed Max up for a mini World Cup organized by the hotel. When i signed up, there was only one person signed up... PAUL from England... who plays everyday.. hahaha...

Golf Practice
Boy, was it tough to practice. What makes it even tougher is that there was no teacher to guide us along.

Swing and swing.. pick up the balls.. it was quite aimless to just swing and not know how we are doing... not to mention tiring and warm in the sweltering hot sun too...

We gave up after 30 minutes because we were not sure if we were doing it right.. we decided we had better get teachers to teach us the RIGHT method to play when we go back to SG.

Rest and Relax
Since there was nothing much planned for that day, we went to the pool again. This time we rested and slept at the pool and by the time we woke up, Max had turned charcoal black already.. hahahah

Not wanting to be too indulgent, we decided to save our money for massage today and we signed ourselves up for the Thai Massage course!

After a good rest, we changed and went for our lesson!

Thai Massage
We learnt Thai Massage and it was such fun.. but it was rather tough to remember all the steps.. I tried to take photos and alas my memory stick was full :( so this is all I have to show you.. (by the way, those are Max's legs.. hahaha.. teacher demo using Max as a model)

After I finished the class, I went back home to write down what I remember in my ‘wu lin mi ji:’.

But before I could complete it, Max suggested tat we go back to the ice cream place so off the road we go.

Back in ice cream place, we ordered a huge ice cream… This time round, we decided to order one with a cone so tat we could eat the cone as well.. Max as tempted to make our own creation but after a while we got enticed by the ROCKY ROAD combination and tat was wat we chose...

After ice cream, we rushed back for Max’s soccer tournament.

Soccer Tournament
It was a game of the visitors against the staff.. the visitors won.. and the top scorer was a 9 year old little boy from Sweden!

While the boys were playing soccer, I was busy talking to one of the soccer mate’s wife. Turned out that they were newly married and on their honeymoon.Gosh.. they have been in Hua Hin for 10 days.. I am in day 3 and already bored to death.. cannot imagine being there for 10 days!

But I think ang mohs are different. They like to bring books and go out to the pool to read. They like to really relax while I just like to go out and do things. Max says it is cos they dun have the sunny weather in places like UK. They dun have public outdoor pools like us and in the soccer mate’s wife’s words, “The sun is never out long enough. By the time you apply the sun screen, it is all gone…”

Anywayz, they won themselves a voucher that entitles them to a free drink at the Elephant bar.

And then we went back to our room.. and while Max was bathing, I tried to complete my secret guide to Thai Massage… when he was done, we went out to explore the night market again…

Max the great bargainer
Well, this time cos we had time on our hand, we managed to walk slowly through and even manage do sit down and eat some of the things sold in the night market.

We had thai kway tiao, green curry, vegetable tempura and fried vegetables.. and all tat for 280baht only! Eat until we so full till we cant walk man!

Then after that we carried on with our shopping and bought me a skirt, a Bermudas for max, a diesel shirt and shorts set for Ace.

But the purchase we are most proud of is this shirt we bought at 100 baht. Actually hor, the t shirt is selling for 129 but I liked it and wanted to get it at 100 baht. Alas the shopkeeper was not around.. when she came, we realized she could not speak english.. so we signed ‘100’ to her but she just shook her head, looked silly and smiled…

Who talk first who will die.. so we smile back at her and asked her the same question and kept quiet..

She shook her head.

Who take action first who will win and Max took out 100 baht note.. asked her, “OK?” gave it to her and rolled the shirt up and put it into our paper bag ;) And it was ours.. for 100 baht.. and the best part is the shopkeeper just smiled to us after tat.. hahahaha..

After lots of shopping, we went back to the hotel to pack and then by then I was so tired I just hit the sack the moment my head touched the pillow.

Hua Hin- Day 2

We woke up bright and early for our breakfast. After one day of rest, my nose was feeling much better.

Breakfast for us was quite ok even though we were vegeterian.. and it was great tat they had a wide variety of fruits like jambu, mango, lychee, dragon fruit, jack fruit and even some other strange looking ones tat i dunno wat it is called...

After breakfast, we explored the hotel and tried to find out more about hua hin and what we could do there. We found out that there is a wine buffet.. we were quite interested but not quite sure if they would provide food as well...

The hotel was kind of nice as well.. it was big and there were alot of gardens and in the gardens, there were alot of those animal sculpture made plants..

We saw something interesting.. cos at the hotel cafe... we saw football chocolates! Made in loving memory of the world cup.. muahahahaha...

Max searched the map while I lazed around… He said tat there is a night market and we decided to visit it.. Hua Hin looked like a simple place from the map.. only a few places to visit.. i think if you want to TOUR hua hin, you can finish doing tat within half a day! the places are as far as me walking from City Hall MRT to SUntec onli..

It's strange.. when I am in SG, I would never want to wake up this early.. but now tat I am here, I just wake up and cannot sleep... but the hotel bed is very comfy.. and i guess this explains why I like to nua on it most of the time when i am in the room...

Also, we found that the hotel actually organized many courses and classes in the day. We signed up ourselves for golf lessons (at my insistence cos Max thinks it is a boring and stupid game).

After that we went out and walked around the whole of Hua Hin central.. we managed to find out where the night market is and we walked ONE BIG ROUND… after walking past so many tailor shops, I too decided to have a suit made and went back to Sajid and Jack to negotiate for a good price.. hahaha.. after which we continued walking around…

It was hot and our legs were tired.. and then we had an exciting discovery!

Ice Cream Place
We came to this wonderful ice cream place and had an ice cream there.. and it was interesting! You could choose your own flavours and toppings and they would ‘fold’ the ice cream on this frozen steel plate… looks absolutely yummilicious and tasted fantastic and we are thinking how nice if there is a branch in SG…

After ice cream, we went shopping and I bought a lovely pair of shoes for only 350 baht!!!! Best buy ah!

Then we went to find something to fill our stomachs since ice cream dun make good lunches ;) Still having some time to spare, we went for a foot massage for one hour and had a heavenly time resting there…

Golf Lesson
After that, we rushed back for our 3pm golf lesson. We met Patti and Martin from Switzerland at the lesson and after the lesson, Max has become a golf convert! All because of our teacher, Soo…

Soo says that he used to be from the military services and jumps parachutes… (just like Max) he used to think tat golf is a stupid and boring game and a waste of time (just like Max)… he also refused to play the game and would much rather play soccer cos he loved soccer (just like Max)… alas, he injured himself at age 32 and could no longer play soccer.

By chance, he picked up golf and has never looked back since! So he told Max that Max should try the game… cos after he got hooked, he played everyday and in a few years, he got into the Thailand PGA.

Now, Max is aspiring to learn golf and says he aspires to get into PGA within 5 years! :) When we are financially free, Max says he will play golf for hobby.. :P hehehehe..

Anywayz, Soo says Max has potential.. ;) As for me, I am just happy if I can hit the ball.. I tried to keep my arms straight by my breasts keep getting into the way.. hahahaha.. din help that they were full of milk since Ace was not there to drink it…

The golf lesson was only 45 minutes but our backs were aching from all the swinging and thus we decided to go and relax ourselves in the pool. I headed straight for the jaccuzi to sooth my aching back.. ahhh…..

Fitting
After the golf lesson, we went back to the hotel to bath and rest. After that, we went out again to explore the night market. It was kind of like pasar malam lah.. we even went to Hua Hin Shopping mall.. hahahha… it is the most ‘kok’ shopping mall I have ever seen cos all the merchandise is all over the place.. but the things are not cheap…

As our fitting was set at 9pm, we were quite rushed for time and rushed through the night market. Max kept looking at the roadside stalls selling food and said that if he were not vegeterian, he will buy one of each and eat till he LS!

But still, damage was done.. we finished our ‘shopping’ by buying a pair of Bermudas for me, a t shirt for me, a doodle pad for Ace, a LIVERPOOL jersey for Ace.

Despite the town being very small, we got lost and only finally made it to fitting at 9plus.

Fitting was a strange affair to me as this is the first time that I tailor make clothes.. but it was fun ;) I was actually quite amazed by the fact that they could get the outfit ready in such a short time and that the suit loooked so cute without sleeves.. hahahaha...

After fitting, Max made me walk one big round to search for a better place to eat.. By the time we had dinner and walked back to our hotel, my feet nearly died!

Hua Hin- Day 1

Well, many have asked me how was my holiday... so here's more about our holiday...

xxx xxx xxx

We were supposed to reach the airport at 7.30am in the morning. We woke up bright and early to send Ace to my mum’s place. On the way there, I hugged Ace tightly and told him that I would be back soon.. but nevertheless.. he was just happily sleeping in my arms and never once stirred.

Since a few days ago, I have been telling him:
- that I will be going on a trip
- that even if he dun see me, I still love him..
- that I will be back in 4 days (and I will count to 4 with him)
- that he dun have to miss me
- that he must be a good boy and enjoy himself at Waipo’s house

I noticed that when I give him advance notice and repeat again and again, he is always happy.. but if I dun, he gets cranky and misses me much…

Anyway, after we sent him to Waipo’s place, I gave him a kiss, and went on our way to the airport… everything was as before when I went on the HK trip last year :) (To view post about HK Trip Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, click on link )

At the airport
When we reached the airport, we checked in and went to Mac Donalds for breakfast. As I had slept very late early the night before (I was busy sending out emails till 4am in the morning…), I had my bad sneezing day again.

It was the first time I was taking a budget airline. But other than no TV to entertain me and no food offered, I din feel tat it was all tat different.. anywayz, it din really bother me since I was really tired and slept all the way on the plane from SG to BKK and then we took a 3 hour cab ride from BKK airport to hua hin.. and I slept through that too.. hahahaha..

Finally when we arrived at the hotel, I was really thirsty and hungry.. and so, I was pleasantly surprised to find them serving me chrysanthemum tea in their little elephant glasses.. very cute right? Max almost wanted to bring them home.. only to find tat they cost 250baht each..tat’s about a little more than $10 each…

We went to our room.. and it was sort of cosy in a colonial way… and then we decided to venture out to find some food and to walk around a little…
Lunch was yummy.. maybe cos we were hungry since it was a little more than 3pm SG time by then.. we had GREEN CURRY and Tom Yam soup tat day.. YUMMILICIOUS!

Our Adventure at the Tailor
After that, we decide to go check out the tailor and their rates. After speaking to the salesman, Sajid and Jack, we decided to make a suit for Max.. alas, in the midst of measuring Max and bargaining the price… (from 6000 baht to 4800 baht for one suit and two shirts), it started to pour…

We couldn’t believe our eyes when the water level started to rise and rise and rise. Sajid told us that this happens 2-3 times every rainy season and we were THAT LUCKY to see that… it rose so high tat Sajid and Jack had to go out and move their motorcycles (most pple ride bikes there) in case it couldn’t start if the water went into the exhaust pipes…

So there was nothing we could do but stay in the shop. Max was happy since he was concentrating on calling his kakis about their fav topic of this month- World Cup. As for me, I was just busy sneezing… and taking pictures :)

Finally, after waiting for half an hour, in an act of desperation, we decided we had better leave the tailor shop by hook or by crook.. cos Sajid told us tat it could take another hour before the water would subside…

What to do then?! We were both in long pants and sneakers… at last resort, we took cue from Sajid and Jack and rolled up our trousers, took out our shoes and sock and walked barefooted…

It was quite a scary experience to me because the water was black and dirty and there were many places where I couldn’t see the floor and din know wat was underneath me and where next to step. Luckily, the locals there are very helpful and kept pointing the way.. we hopped, jumped and walked all the way till we past the massage shop and Max suggested tat we went in for a massage.

Gee, that must have been the BEST idea that he has had in the whole day.. hehehehe.. it was a heavenly 2 hours.. the masseur was really good.. and 2 hours in heaven only costed 500baht!

After the massage, it was still drizzling though… so we went to the store nearby and bought a pair of slippers each and then proceeded to search for a place to have dinner.

Hua Hin is a boring place. There are many of the same shops around… most of the time, you will see tailors, optical shops, seafood restaurants, pizza restaurants.. and so we ended at a pizza restaurant that provides games for you to play… we had so much fun playing the game tat we bought a set home… hehehehe…

After that, we explored a little bit and went back to our hotel room to rest and watch soccer. We also decided that we would try to give Ace a little brother or sister since it has been our original plan to try for baby number two when Ace turns one years old ;)

And that spelt the end of our first day in Hua Hin.

Ace's Birthday Wish List

Because there have been so many people asking me WHAT SHOULD THEY BUY FOR ACE'S Birthday, I have decided to post Ace's birthday wish list.. if you are buying a particular item, just mention in the comments section.. hahhaah if not.. dun buy.. just come and visit him and play with him more also is a very good birthday present ;)

FYI, I will not be holding a huge party for him.. just a small celebration at home since I think he probably will not be able to appreciate all the hoo ha...

Anywayz, I got this list from the internet and added in other lthinkgs based on the questions I have been asked...

Large building bricks: These light cardboard bricks are big enough to stack up into a fort or wall, or any other way your toddler wants. But the most satisfying part of the process continues to be the finale — when the walls come tumbling down.
Note: Actually he already has 6 of those plastic bricks.. but I guess a set of wooden one tat he can use to build things and topple or destroy will be nice...

Push and pull toys: Heavily weighted push toys can give your beginner something to lean into as she motors around your home. Wagons can be ideal. Pull toys are for slightly advanced walkers who can look behind them as they move forward. Give them something to look at: Pull toys that flap, bobble, squeak, or in any other way make a scene are favorites. To find out more about walking and your toddler, click here.
Note: This one quite expensive.. but well, if anyone got lobang to get it cheap/second hand or someone wants to donate to Ace a second hand one.. i will be more than happy to accept it:)

Sorting and nesting toys: Toddlers love to sort, stack, unsort, unstack, and basically reorganize their lives. Sorting and nesting toys are great fun for those who are trying out their early problem-solving skills.
Note: This one he already has one set of sorting cups.. but he doenst like to stack or sort them.. he just likes to destroy them after I HAVE STACKED them up.. hahahah

Climbing gym: A tiny gym can give your toddler a safe place to climb, hide, slide, and practice all her emerging motor skills — over and over again. But these sets can also be pricey and are quickly outgrown.
Note: Wah.. no need so kua zhang lah... my house also no place to let him hide and slide.. go downstairs the playground can liao mah...

Balls: Any ball that's easy to grasp will be a hit with this group — underinflated beach balls, vinyl balls, cloth balls. Stay away from foam balls that could end up as a mouthful. This is the age at which you can introduce your child to "catch." Start slowly — she'll begin to get the back-and-forth rhythm with some practice.
Note: I have one plastic pink one tat squeeks.. dun mind some other balls as well..

Washable crayons and paper: Let the scribbling begin! Hand your toddler no more than a couple of crayons at a time — you don't want to overwhelm her — and tape the paper to the floor so she can make her mark without dragging the paper along with her.
Note: Hmm... okie.. this one I will try soon.. Crayons, anyone?? :P

Ride-on vehicles: This mode of self-locomotion may be even more popular than walking. Many small ride-on toys have models with handles for an adult to push when the child gets tired. Avoid the electronic versions — they're expensive and take away from the fun of getting around under your own power.
Note: Yes, electric makes my life very difficult as well.. as busy as I already am, really dun wish to run after ace to chase after is motor bike or wat... I think there are many on the market tat double up as push toys as well..

Tool bench or toy kitchen: Junior fix-it kids or aspiring chefs will get hours of play out of plastic or wooden models scaled to their size. Sets like these give a child a chance to emulate the things he sees adults doing, and they'll continue to hold his interest for several months as his play gets more sophisticated.
Note: Gee, i dun really cook.. so I am not so sure if the toy kitchen will help.. hahahaha.. but well, I guess when he grows older, he would appreicate it.. i loved to play with such toys when i was younger...

Picture books: Your toddler will enjoy more advanced picture books showing familiar objects and activities. She may also start to take pride in her own library and the chance to pick out a favorite for you to read. For more ideas, see our recommended books for toddlers.
Note: MEgan Gan ma says she will buy educatoinal books.. actually, ace has alot of picture books and flashcards already.. i think story books are what he dun have.. he only has two books so far.. which I got tired of reading to him.. but he still loves.. hahahaha...

Shoes: Well, waipo heard tat she is suppose to get him shoes.. i will leave this one to her... anywayz, at this age, they dun need many shoes.. cos he cant really walk very well and wun be walking outside anywayz.. so you dun have to think about this..

Clothes: Well, ace actually has l0ts and lots and lots and lots of clothes at home and hasnt finished wearing all of them yet. So it is not really a need...

PS: Ace has already recieved his FIRST PRESENT from Gwen Ah Yee... it is a Barney steering wheel... quite fun.. i think I had more fun with it than him.. muahahahahahha... cos he doesnt know how to press all the buttons yet.. but leh.. he quite enjoyed it.. it kept him entertained for 30 min yday ;) hee hee....

PPS: I am overseas from 18-22nd (this is pre-posted). If you need to contact me, email me at verityy@yahoo.com (if it is not urgent).

I am NOT going to work

The other day I was in the lift with Beth and Summer…

“So are you going to take up the job?” Beth asked me..

I was confused for a moment and did the “huh?” thing with my mouth opened… Just how did she know I was thinking of going to work?

“Sorry lah, I read your blog that you were going to work.. “ she explained…

Well, everyone.. just in case you would ask me on the streets again.. I am not going back to work.. CONFIRMED.. hahaha ;)

Well, I had initially wanted to go back to work to build some new contacts.. but have found that I really could not bear to leave Ace behind…

When I said I wanted to go to work, at the back of my mind, I kept thinking to myself:
“God, will I miss Ace growing up? Will I have less time for him? Will he cease to recognize me? Will I be able to teach him less.. will he love me less…”

Anywayz, I found a good solution to stay at home, build contacts and continue to do wat I am doing now.. hiaks… so I am happy… as for wat will I be doing.. stay tuned on this blog :) Shhh……

PS: See.. my son so cute.. how can I bear to leave him home alone rite??:P

Smile, Ace, Smile

Singapore has started a 4 millions SMILES CAMPAIGN...

Hahaha.. like the Mr Brown Podcast says.. just because a group of ang mohs coming to SG..
But well, ever the patriotic family we are, we have sent in our pictures.. together with Ace.. hehehe...

http://www.smiles2006.com/module/mural&int_cur_position=3828&h=6381

Welcome to Singapore ;)

Bath time Ace AGAIN

PS: Well, bet you didn't know that NOT filtering your shower is bad for your health, your hair, your wrinkles, your skin and your home environment:P

To find out more, you can read about why Filtering your shower is important and why there are good reasons to filter your shower...

Telephones

Ace loves telephones...

I am not sure is it because their buttons light up or because he sees me talking happily to phone all the time...

One thing for sure.. he loves phones.. handphones, telephones.. all the same.. but he draws a line at toy phones though i dunno why...

When he is at home, he will like to reach out for my handphone, Daddy's handphone.. or even crawl all the way to the cordless phone and reach out for it...

At Waipo's house, he will aim for Ah Yee's phone and also the telephone at Waipo's place...

Because he likes phones, we bought him a $30+++ toy phone from Mothercare.. but alas, he doesnt even give a hoot about that phone and will just wave it and throw it away!

Maybe it doesnt look like a real phone bah... Really wonder how he can tell the difference though...

Anniversary

A week ago, me and Daddy celebrated our wedding anniversary...

Well, cos we already agreed that we will celebrate during our tour.. so that day was a 'working day' as usual.. Daddy still went to work.. I still went for my seminar... but then, because that day is special, we decided to go somewhere special after our meeting to celebrate together...

But because Ah Yee was with us.. she came along too... And tat is why I took a picture of her.. co commemorate us having a HUGE LIGHTBULB.. hahaha...

Then she volunteered to take pictures for us ("So that I can make myself useful at least..") and she also sponsored our desserts for the night ;)

It has really been fast.. two years only and I can't believe so much has happened... I have gotten married, I have been to a great honeymoon in switzerland.. I conceived.. delivered and helped this cute little thing grow from a 3.36kg baby to a 11.3kg toddler... and it has just been two years?

But as I look back... in the two years.. many people I know have died, have divorced, have seperated, have left as well... time really flies and sometimes, we really dunno wat is going to happen tommorrow.. so I guess it is really important that people cherish the things right in front of them....

Well, many pple are envious of me.. they say I have had a good life in the past two years.. i can't say I would disagree with them.. like i was telling my fren the other day.. i think a hubby like max and a baby like ace are hard to come by.. ;) so i really feel blessed.. but I also told them that they can be like me too.. all they need to do is to do wat I did.. and learn and know wat i do.... But guess most people just like to do the same things that they have been doing but expect a different results..

Anywayz, we are going celebrating our wedding anniversary... come 19-22JUne, we will be going to Hwa Hin for a holiday... will tell you all about it when I get back ;)

This is more important than MILK!

As you know, Ace is the kind of baby who would not cry unless:
- he is asking for milk
- he wants to sleep
- he really hurt himself...

Other than that.. he usually dun kick up a fuss.. though occasionally he will suffer from seperation anxiety and cry when I leave him at Waipo's house and go out...

But I have discovered something that is MORE IMPORTANT than MILK to Ace: TV ADS! (BTW, tat's Ace how Ace looks like when he is engrossed with TV ads..)

Yes, Ace loves to watch TV Ads. While I was initially strict about not letting Ace watch TV, it has come to a point where I would imagine a imaginary shield covering his eyes when I sit down to view my favourite Da Chang Jin and I sheepishly continue to watch.. hahaha...

Initially, he would watch along happily with me.. but over time, he got bored and as his attention span was short, he developed a love for Advertisements.

You could watch anything on TV and he wouldnt give a dime... but come TV Ad time, he will push you out of the way just to get a glimpse of the ad and his eyes will not even blink!

Mummy says it is this is because Ads are short and becuase Ads are repeated, babies love them. This is because babies and children do not like things that are completely new. When something is introduced to them for a few times, they will remember some parts of it and it will intrigue them .. but when they are so familiar that they know everything inside out, they will lose interest...

I think this is quite true.. few weeks ago, we were watching Toy Story 1 together with Ace and he couldnt be bothered. But last week, when we watched Toy Story 2 with him, because he had already been exposed to it, he managed to watch for 30 min and even laughed along with us when it came to the funny bits!

What is amazing is tat TV Ads are more important to Ace then milk cos he can be drinking halfway and once the Ads come on, he will stop and watch, only to continue sucking when the ads end...

The other day, I left him at Waipo's house because I was going for a meeting. As I was locking the door, he crawled his way to the door and then he cried loudly and didn't want me to leave. At that precise moment, a TV ad came on (he was back facing the TV okie) and somehow he just knew that and turned around to stare at the ad.. and so I left and he has clean forgotten about Mummy..

See.. tv ad even more impt than me.. sigh...

Well, Maybe mediacorp should consider making short ads that are good for children.. eg.. teach them manners and stuff... hhahaha

Heat Wave

It's really hot these days.. and this is what Ace likes to do right after his bath...

Getting him to put on his clothes is a struggle.. wonder how my frens who are doing their confinement are doing.. so poor thing.. no air con and no fan...

Gong Gong Gong

Ace has a new toy... My bell at my altar...

You see, I am buddhist and belong to the singapore soka association... I chant Nam Myo Ho Ren Ge Kyo and on my altar, there is a bell which you sound when you do your prayers..

Now that Ace is mobile, he always likes to climb to my Gohonzon area and then he will strike the bell and laugh...

Uncle Joe, whose son is 6 mths older than Ace, says that he has since kept his bell inside the drawers because when his son was about Ace's age, he will go to the bell and strike it lightly.. now that he is older, he will strike the bell LOUDLY...

Well, I am hoping I can teach Ace not to strike the bell so that I dun have to keep it.. :)

Mum tells me that Ace is probably a buddhist in his previous life... cos since very young, he has been able to do the kneeling action which is unlike most children she has seen.. also, the other day while he was at her altar, she passed him some prayer beads and he put it in his hands, kneeled down and started mumbling to himself as if he was chanting like her! She was so amused! heheheh...

Niang Niang dun leave me

PS: Just being boh liao. hahahhaah... I think i caught the Da Chang Jin (Jewel in the Palace- Korean Drama) virus..

(*sings* Da Chang Jin song)
La la la laaa lala la la la la
La la la laaa lala la la la la

Starring:
Niang Niang a.k.a Ace’s Laobu- Angel
Chang Jin: Ace Chua
Pillar: Max Chua

Niang Niang: What happened??

Chang Jin: 小的斗胆并报，是小的把客厅弄乱了… It’s me..

Niang Niang: Chang Jin, you have really disappointed me. Didn’t I tell you not to take all the clothes off the sofa and throw it on the floor? How long more do you want me to pick up and pack up after you?

Chang Jin: Niang Niang, I am aware that it is my fault. 小的知错了。

Niang Niang: Everyday I bath you, feed you, sacrifice my figure to give you milk… I dote on you and play with you, teach you things and sacrifice my career to stay at home with you… but is this how you will repay me…. You have really disappointed me… I don’t want to see you anymore.. now.. GO!!

Chang Jin: Nooooooooooo… Niang Niang… Noooooooooooooooooo… (Hugs pillar) please dun ask me to go… I will be good.. I promise.. I will learn.. I will do anything you ask me to do… please dun ask me to go….


(*sings* Da Chang Jin song)La la la laaa lala la la la la
La la la laaa lala la la la la

Cassanova Ace 2

So where did Ace learn tat from???? ;)

Well, initially I did think that Ace learnt that from Daddy... cos well... if i were to tell you a little bit more about me and Daddy's first date, you would understand...

You see.. me and Daddy were match made by Godma Karen... who happens to be my bestest fren and Daddy's long time fren... one day, while Daddy was still studying in UK, Karen just called me one day and asked if i minded tat she passed my email to another fren of hers...

She called me at 12 midnite just to tell me that this guy is cute.. he is nice, he is great and that all their parents loved him.... and even forbid me to have boyfren and insisted that I should wait until he comes back from UK...

So.. tat's how me and Daddy met.. after Karen gave us our respective emails... we started talking cock over email.. kind of talked about getting together.. but we always stopped short and decided that we should meet in real life when he comes back before we decide whether or not to be together cos the net personality we know may not be the same as the real person right?

Anyway, it goes that on the day that Daddy came back, he actually kept it as a surprised and just called me when he is back to meet me at Bedok Reserviour... hahaha...

When I met him.. he gave me a sunglass that is sealed with tissue as a makeshift blindfold, held my hand and brought me to a special place to show me the surprise presents that he has bought for me... within the same night, he also kissed me and hugged me.. just like Ace did.. hahahahahhaa.. all when we had just met! :) (How we went steady.. is another story.. hahaha)

But you see.. all that happened way before Ace was even concieved leh...

Then I thought maybe it is cos Ace always sees me holding Daddy's hand, kissing Daddy and all that...

And when I described the story to Jez Ah ma, she told me tat Ace may have learnt it from her daughters, Oracle and Tashi! Cos the two lovable girls will always come to Ace and blow him kisses and hug her whenever they see him. That is why he associates greeting other children with kisses and hugs.. hahahah ;)

But then again, he was not tat excited when he was playing with Denzel or Zhiyuan... well, maybe it's just the universal law that Opposites Attract?? :)

Cassanova Ace 1

My baby Ace is already blooming into a Cassanova at age 11 months...

The other day, we brought him to Zhishi's son's full month party and he met Zhishi's niece there... She is about 2 mths older than Ace and is usually a very friendly baby who overwhelms other babies with her friendliness...

Things were different tat day though.. cos Ace took the initiative and this is wat happened...


Max's reaction? "I din teach him that hor.. I didn't teach him that hor..."

Jez Ah Ma says Max "此地无银三百两..." Hahaha...

SO where did Ace learn tat from?? hehehe.. read Cassanova Ace 2 to find out...

Ace Bleeds

Ace was bleeding badly the other day.

Well, Daddy was at home and playing with him and you know.. when the boys get together, they play rough games..

I think overall, Ace was a lot rougher than Daddy cos he has no concept of safety and doesn’t seem to have any fear of falling, of hurting other people or of hurting himself…

Anyway, Ace was trying to bounce up and down and suddenly lost a footing, fell down and knocked his jaws against Daddy’s thighs… and then he gave a blood curdling scream and started crying VERY VERY LOUDLY.

Gee… I have never seen my son cry so loudly before even when he hurt himself of fell down previously… remember the time he fell and had a big bruise on his forehead? (http://verityy.blogspot.com/2006/02/whats-big-blue-and-swollen.html) He didn’t cry that loudly as well…

When we looked at his face, then we realized why…

He was probably in a lot of pain because his his gums were bleeding and his teeth were all red but we couldn’t figure out where the blood was coming from. As he cried and cried, the blood mixed with his saliva and there was a rim of red around his lips…

I quickly used tissue to wipe the blood off but we still did not know how to stop the bleeding as we had no idea where the bleeding was. At last resort, we gave him VP to take cos I remembered that Aunty Rebecca said that when her grandson fell down and hurt his head, she used the VP and bleeding stopped completely.

After taking 2 VP, he stopped crying but when we looked at his teeth (btw, Ace has got 7 teeth now.. 4 prominent ones and 3 that are coming out…) his teeth did not seemed aligned anymore….

“Dun tell me he knocked his teeth crooked.. my thighs so hard meh?” Daddy asked me…

It seems so improbable for that to happen.. so we tried to play silly games with him like Peek-a-boo to make him laugh and smile… and his teeth did really seem kind of crooked cos while his two front upper and lower teeth used to be centralized… his front lower teeth seem to have shifted like 1 teeth space to the left.. so strange…

Then Daddy had a very good observation. “Maybe he is the one who shifted his jaw to one side cos if he closed this jaws together now, it hurts his wound…”

Well, and I guess daddy was right cos after a few hours when we tried to make him luff to look at his teeth again, it was okay already…

Phew… scared me to death man... Thank god for VPLUS!

Take it out

Ace has a fascination for taking things out…

Taking my stuff out of my bag, taking his toys out of the container.. taking the cups out of his stack a cup stack…

And he really loves this game. If you would give him a container full of knick knacks like key chains, toys and what nots, he will try his best to take everything out of the container and throw everything out. Then you quickly put everything back into the container and he will get very excited and try to take it out faster than you put in.. the amazing thing is, this game can amuse him for a good 20 minutes! :)

When you put him in the playpen and he gets bored and whiny, just stack his stack-it-cups together and he will try to take everything out. Put them together and he will take it out, put them together and he will take it out again.. and if you do it again and again, he will take it out again and again…

But he will show no sign of knowing how to or wanting to put things back (sigh.. dunno learn this bad habit from who.. ahem… *blush*) so I thought he doesn’t know how to put things back…

However, the other day, he want to Yeye’s house and Nai Nai gave him a toilet roll and a ball and showed him how to put the ball inside the toilet roll… and he went on to repeat the process for about half an hour… (PS: He stared at Nai Nai expectantly when Nainai forgot to clap for him when he has put the ball inside the toilet roll.. hahaha.. see, babies love encouragement..)

So he DOES know how to put things back in… hehehe.. maybe just that he doesn’t want to.

Well, my son is a rather hao lian baby.. instead of staring at the whole process of his hands putting the ball in, after N times of putting the ball into the toilet roll, he will look at us while his hands put the ball into the roll.. and then give a smirk tat says, “See, I am so clever I dun even have to look now!”

Really cannot tahan this boy man... :)

I Am Very Clever

I am glad to inform everyone that Ace can now crawl around and just suddenly stand up on his own without any help from the surroundings.. meaning, he does not need to hold on to things at the side and can just stand up on his own because his knees are legs are strong now…

However, he still can't walk without help. He will take big steps if you however are willing to hold his hands.. really very comical.. hahahaha...

Whenever Ace stands up, he will clap because he knows that he has been clever. What a clever baby, he knows how to encourage himself even at such a young age! Hahaha…

Well, as parents, we will of cos clap along with him and tell him, “You are such a clever baby, Ace.. yeah….”

But sometimes we forget and he will stare at us and give us the, “Why are you not clapping for me?????” kind of look.

It seems, however, that Ace likes to do that more often at Waipo’s house than in our house.. maybe our house is too messy and has too many obstacles.. muahahahaha…

Nevermind.. now tat I am confirmed not going to work (I think Ace still most impt to me), I can stay at home and clean house… and play with him.. can b/feed him… and do a lot of other things like shop with my other SAHM frens…:D

Nipple Fascination

Being a b/fed baby at 11 months, Ace is a baby who is very curious about nipples and breasts... whenever he sees them, his first reaction is to squeeze them and see if there is milk coming out...

He tried squeezing Yeye's nipples...
He tried squeezing Ah Yee's breasts...

More often than not, he does the below whenever Daddy is playing with him...

Well, dunno if this 'childhood fascination' will make him into a 'breast man'?? ;)

Anywayz, if you are near him.. be sure to try to keep your clothes on I dun know wat he might do to your nipples hor..

PS: He is good at squeezing things and the other day, while asking for more food, he pulled at my arm by pinching my skin.. as a result, both my left and right arms have got scratch marks.... so dun say I didn't warn you! :P