Cruel Fact

31st December 2010
Will mark the last day both mommy & Ethan weekdays stay at mom’s house. This will also symbolizes the end papa’s “maximum freedom” weekdays life back at our own home.

To my parents & grandma, thank you for having to accommodate 2 extras headcount for the past 21 months. Thank you for putting up all the nonsense Ethan had created.

The seniors had done their utmost best to care for Ethan. Whenever he falls sick, they fret & try to soothe the boy to make him a happy kid. Whenever he rejects his food, they try all means & ways to coax him by coming out with the little one’s favorite food so that he will not go hungry. They feel ecstatic over small reactions like a kiss or even a hug from the boy. They take care of every trivial issues concerning the little one.

Not once have they ever complained that they are tired nor have they rejected me when I asked for time off in the evenings to spend some time with friends. Not a word of complaint & not a penny more richer for taking care of Ethan.

There is nothing in this world one would yearned for, having the best of help rendered in taking care of the little one allowing a full time mommy to work in PEACE. I hoped the seniors will be less stress & happier with a kid lesser to fuss & will lead a healthier lifestyle.




3rd January 2011
Will mark the beginning of Ethan’s school life. Yes little one will be attending full day school at the child care just across our house. Someone once told me I was being cruel to put the little one in school when he is not even 3 years old. Thank you for reminding me that but on a serious note, I am left with no other alternative.

I felt bad! I felt lousy. I wanted the best of both worlds. I wanted my parents to take care of Ethan yet at the same time I wanted him to be disciplined in school. But knowing this arrangement is simply impossible, the feeling is atrocious. I was in dilemma struggling mode for a while…

To simply continue our weekdays stay at bp or to balance out family time. I choose the latter !!!

Mommy's 2nd Letter to Ethan

亲爱的宇乐,

2 years ago on 3rd Oct @ 8am, I checked myself in to Mount Alvernia bravely waiting excitedly for your arrival. Not knowing what to expect, the level of pain mothers have to go through & following blindly what was being told to . This marks the begining to my "can-never-get-enough-sleep" new phase in life.

Although at times you really drive me insane (I really mean INSANE), I can never be angry with you. Your little act, witty smile, fiery temper & stubborn character had brought heaps of splendid moments to the family.


Barney agar agar + chocolate cake - 姑妈 bought it

We celebrated your birthday by bringing you to the zoo.



Neighbour Blythe jie jie came over to sing a birthday song for you. But you were soo shy.



For the past year this is what we braved through together:-

26th Oct 09 - Prevenar Jab I

21st - 31st Dec 09 - Persistent Fever

12th Jan 10 - Prevenar Jab II

28th Jan 10 - Had tongue tied surgery @ Mount Alvernia

2nd April 10 - Diaperless in the day

19th May 10 - Finally walking

7th Jun 10 - Hand Food Mouth Disease (HFMD) with high fever, 40.1 being the highest

22nd - 26th Aug 10 - Persistent fever that lasted 5 days

8th Oct 10 - MMR (Mumps, Measles, Rubella + Chicken pox)
Graduation Jab

In summary, he has 16 teeth in all (4 more to go) & only confident enough to walk on his own @ 19 months old. When he needs to pee or big business require, he will say "hmmhmm" & run to get the potty over.

Weight: 12.8kg

Height : 0.875 metres

Favourite food : Meat - any meat can be BBQ meat, beef, chicken, mutton or pork

Favorite breakfast : Eggs - any form

Favourite bread : Pandan round bread

Daily milk consumption : More than 4 intakes of 260ml per consumption & still having his daily night feed

Favourite toy : Any ball - round objects be it orange, water-melon or moon

We had spent a total amount of $1,693.81 for all the jabs (7 jabs) taken since birth.



宇乐, 妈妈希望你健健康康, 快快乐乐.

爱你的妈妈

@ 23 months old

Ethan will be turning 2 in less than a month's time. Time really flies.

Some basic things he picked up over the past 1 month:-
- Operates a CD or DVD player
- Whines & stick like a superglue
- Keeps his shoes in the shoe cabinet at a designated place
(if that particular slot is taken up, he will throw that pair of shoes that takes up his slot on the floor & put his shoes in)

What
- Likes to reply "mai" (no in hokkien - see the potential of being a typical hokkien soldier)
- Tell us he is scared whenever he sees a real airplane or just a picture
- Pronounce banana as 'nana'

I am amazed by how kids learnt from each other.

22months

At 22months, he seems to have grown & apparently understand the instructions given to him.



His favourite cartoon turns out to be Barney (he rejects it initially) & favourite song is the Channel 8 - Monday - Sunday serial show 爱 . From Monday through Friday, he will hume the song @ 7pm.



Just the other day, I was sharing Ethan's progress with my bestie Jus. She enlightened me -- Terrible 2, Notty 3 & Fantastic 4. I was stunned. Ethan, I had always hoped you can be -- Goodie 2, Superb 3 & Amazing 4.

Boys are afterall boys. Friends always tell me no matter how, boys tend to be a level more active than girls. I wonder how true....

@ 21 months

Less than 3 months before he turns 2 years of age & the so call NOTTY TWO symptoms had surfaced. As much as I hated to say, he is even more cranky when he is sleeping. He will toss & turn & cry for nothing. ( To make myself feel better, I link this to his notty two)



Another factor might be due to the absence of his pacifier & I deemed myself as doing the right thing for refusing to "return" him the pacifier since he rejected when had HFMD more than a month ago.



His devil behaviour really live up to Ethan's name. Despite being a baby devil, he is still my beloved Ethan..

HFMD

7th June 2010 (Monday)

- As usual, left for mom's house in the morning at 0730hrs. On the way to mom's house, Ethan had his daily dosage of milk in the taxi.5 minutes drive away from mom's place, Ethan started to feel uncomfortable and vomited everything out on the taxi. I was soaked with his milk vomit. My bag, my outfit, Ethan's bag. Everything.

- Fever started to escalate after this vomiting session but given paracetamol to contain the high fever.

- Cousin Enric was diagnosed with HFMD at 11.30am.

- Mommy panicked. Requested to take a week off as I need to isolate Ethan away from the HFMD Enric.

- Fever continue to escalate @ 3pm. Sponged & fed Ethan with medicine.

- Brought him back to own house. Highest temperature attained 40.1.

- At 2130hr decided to bring him to the 24th hours clinic at Mount Alvernia.

- Despite the little kid having such high fever, we were being put at the isolation corner. Waited for 83mins to be precise just to see the doctor. The sick boy of course feeling hungry & sleepy cried & cried.

- When it was Ethan's turn, the doctor merely took a look at Ethan & diagnosed it as mild throat infection. He said panadol is enough to kill the infection. Unless otherwise we are worried he will get a cough & runny nose. Being paranoid, I requested for the medicine.

- Went home with the irrelevant medicine, all I can do is to feed him with Bhufen (above 38.5 medicine) & panadol drops concurrently.

- Damaged incurred - $45.15

Over the night, Ethan did not sleep well as he is hungry yet unable to drink milk. I had to keep sponging him becos his temperature was way too high.

8th June 2010 (Tuesday)
- Woke up crying, cannot drink & fever still remains so high. So we decided to bring Ethan to see the paediatrician at Kinderclinic.

- Despite having to wait, the waiting time is still shorter than the 24 hours clinic.

- PD diagnosed Hand Foot Mouth Disease & given spray just to numb the ulcer so that Ethan can drink better. PD advised to stay at home for the rest of the week.

- Damage incurred - $83.55

- Ethan continued to feel so uncomfortable. Unable to drink despite hungry. Per swallow of saliva results in pain causing him to yell & scream.

- At one point, his hands tremble when he held his milk bottle yet unable to drink the milk as it is causing him too much pain.

9th - 13th June 2010
We are all at home recuperating for the lost energy.

Finallly ....

Water Splashing

At 19th months, he weighs 11.7kg with a height 83.3cm & a head circumference 50.5cm (big head).



Finally finally & finally, Ethan is walking & pacing around the house by himself. He is like a spidery little rat on the loose now.


Tired from walking


This little cheeky fellow
- shouts out for "boy boy" at everyone now
- always call out for "ma" in a very sweet tone (visualise my blissful look)
- refuse to call for "pa" when requested unless otherwise he wants the father to carry him. If not he will be making a "gee" sound.
- enjoys dancing when he hears - twinkle twinkle little star , if you are happy & monkey song


This is the way to brush his teeth

I definitely have to admit Ethan has a fiery temper.....

A Good Father

Each of us has our own definition of "GOOD". To me a good father is someone who:-

1. makes every effort to play with the child

2. sacrificing his sleep for his son - eg waking up for his night feed , wakes up to put back the pacifier into the child mouth , fan the child when the child is feeling extremely hot

3. makes sure the child favourite toys are being washed before he comes back for the weekend

4. being bullied by the child (hahaha) eg : climbing a long fleet of stairs up on the hill whilst carrying this gem twice over a day.

Ethan with his leg on the father

In simply, he might not be very rich, he might not be very well-educated, he might not be able to bring big bucks home now & he can even postphone playing his favourite hobby - computer games. BUT he spends every quality time with his son.

没大没小

Ethan, Mommy say I am glad you have a good father !! What's more can I ask for?

18 months development

Being 18months old he is still barely walking. I am unsure if it is pure laziness or the slow development in the brain. But he is definitely not a whinny good boy sitting still. He crawls like an itsy bitsy spider, climbs like a gorilla, shouts & screams like a whining boy. People around me had been telling me boys are slower in developments. I wonder how true these statements are. But nevertheless thank you for these assurances.

Am I cool?

Developments of Ethan @ 18months

1. Able to recognise pictures of apple, orange, potty, dog, cat & any food - he will say "mummum"

2. Daddy's boy he is - shouts , yells & screams for his father - papapapapaa & all my neighbours will know that the weekend boy is back.

3. Able to identify at alphabets like A, B & C with some mumblings


4. Call "yaya" despite meeting his grandpa once a week - supposed to be "yeye"


5. Favourite hobby - watches singalong CD & raises up his hands like dancing
I have to admit I like & hate TV. On one hand children will grow to addictive of TV if the parents allow the child to be exposed excessive TV. On the other hand, it does help them to learn children songs.

Sulking look

6. Diaperless in the day - knows how to say "hmm hmm" either to poo or pee. Sometimes he is just playful "hmm hmm" all the time. Most of time he wants to pee. At times we ignore his "hmmmhmm", we end up having to clean the poo on his pants.

These days we enjoy kite flying at Marina Barraage. Even Ethan is soo obessed with the kites in the sky. He will go "wow wow wow". He likes it when we allow him to play with the water at the water fountain ..

18 Months old

Update of my dear Ethan @ 18 months

Trying & trying..

Junior Super Boy

Million dollar look

Play time....

17 months old

Ethan had turned 17 months old begining of March. Being a 17th month old toddler, I should be saying he is quite slow in his progress:-

1. Still crawling like a spidery mouse instead of walking

2. Deposit every single item picked from the floor just like a vaccuum cleaner

3. Owns 12 teeth in total

4. Climbs on anything & everything - escalator, steps, double decker bed, coffee table & many more

5. Shakes his head with every question asked like

- do you want to drink milk, shakes his head yet lie down at the mattress waiting for his milk

- do you wan to eat biscuits , shakes his head yet clapping happily for the biscuit

- do you love mommy , shakes his head yet using his hand to "saynag" my face

It is a growing process when mommies tend to worry about every single stage of their kids growing process.

When they are in our stomach, we tend to eat any food that we deem is beneficial to the baby.

When they came, we tend to worry if they have had enough to drink.

When they start to flip, we tend to worry if they will crawl.

When they are crawling, we tend to worry if they will walk..Now I am at this stage, when is Ethan going to be walking...Generically he is supposed to be walking that is what the books says.

I guessed many more worries ahead. No wonder everyone says, mommies are the greatest in this world.

Those Days..

Today is just one of those darn days when things do not flow as nicely as the way you want it just like a piece of jigsaw puzzle.

Nah.....it should one of those days when one feels frustrated over the slightest darn things. Last day of CNY, I should still be stuck in the joyous mood of celebration & feasting. I am not having menopause nor arguments at home. It is just some emotions running high & dry.

Sometimes it is really hard to attain a balancing point. Friends who stay with in laws will never understand the requirements & responsibilities of a DIL whom stays alone, the need to ensure that the grandchild bonding well with the paternal grandparents on weekends. On the other hand, friends who do not stay with in laws will never understand how hard it is to stay with in laws.

Life is sooo ironic ironic ironic..Reckon I am just too tired trying to juggle & balance it well trying to be a good wife, mother to Ethan, daughter & daughter in law.

Nevertheless, I am still a happy yet tiring working mom.

2010 - Chinese New Year

1st day of CNY at in laws house

Chinese New Year had always been the busiest busiest period especially after we had Ethan...Lots of places to visit, lots of things to buy & not forgetting lots of spring cleaning to be done. With the crawling mouse at home, I can barely do spring cleaning. The only precious time left to do spring cleaning is when he is taking nap in the noon or sleeping at night.

Some random pictures taken of Ethan being a 16th month old toddler...

2nd day morning

2nd day evening - mattress collapsed on him & yelling for help

Trying to focus...

Act smart by climbing the doubledecker bed steps

May all our loved ones roar excellent health, abundant wealth & happiness in the year of Tiger. HUAT arrr...

Tongue-Tied

YES as the subject title says.... Ethan is tongue-tied

Been contemplating whether to proceed or to push it to a later date. On this day, the mommy finally decided. To make decision on this, it is really tough trust me. I had been fighting & struggling with myself. Should I or should I not...Who would want to put your gem under general anaesthetic?

Digging nose before going to the hospital

What is Tongue-Tied

The generic term for tongue tied is also known as short tongue or Ankyloglossia. The ‘lingual frenum' is the cord that stretches from under the tongue to the floor of the mouth. Tongue-tied is the term used when the lingual frenum is short and restricts the mobility of the tongue. This may result in unclear speech as he grows older next time.

What causes it

Tongue tie often runs in families which means Ethan got it inherited from either the mommy's or father's family. There are more tongue-tied boys than girls.

How did I find out

On 7th November 2009, both mommy & Ethan went to a picnic at changi beach with her ex colleagues..A very observant mommy- Mrs Tham saw Ethan's tongue when he cried & told me this. Trust me, no one around me even my family had noticed that his tongue curved in at the tip forming a heart shape.

Thereafter, went to 2 Paediatricians to seek opinions on this and was being referred to a Paediatric Urology who suggested to have surgery ASAP. As tongue tied will often affect a child's speech as he grows older. I was so even surprised that new born babies also went for surgery..

How is it treated

The treatment for tongue-tie is a simple operation called a frenulotomy. A doctor snips the string at the base of the tongue, called the frenulum, with special scissors. Bladeless & no bleeding with just some sore.

The Big Day
Today,28th January 2010 (Thursday), we checked into Mount Alvernia Day Surgery Ward at 7am preparing for the 9am operations The toughest task is to fast. Ethan has to fast for 6 hours. Which means from 3am onwards, no milk no food & not even water...We reached there, check in & Ethan has to change into the hospital robe. At about 830am he started feeling hungry & cranky. We took out all sorts of toys to divert his attention but to no avail. He jusgt wants his milk & get out from the ward.

Father & son in surgerical outfit

Doctor came at 915am, the father has to accompany the son into the operating theatre as I could not bring myself to see Ethan being pinned down by the nurses so as to breathe in the "sleeping gas". I was being told the surgery will be done & finished shortly. True enough, about 15 minutes after I left the father & son, both reappear from the theatre door with Ethan crying & a stone look in him as he had just slept & awoke.

He cried becos he is hungry & the numbness in his tongue. Continue crying becos he is hungry yet not allowed to consume any milk till 1015am. What we did was to give him the magic PSP (also useless), all he wanted was the biscuits from the dispensing machine outside the ward. Believed me, his cries will definitely gained lots of sympathy points.

Being a rebellious mom, I could not bear the thought of Ethan extensive crying. So I went to make some milk in a small container, bought the biscuits from the dispensing machine & started feeding him with biscuits crumbs & milk using the spoon. Though he had not drank alot, at least it filled partial of the stomach.

Tired from crying

Thereafter he went back to the bed in the ward & sleep till it was time for discharge. Back home, he is the same cheery like boy though i know there is still some soreness. What amazes me now is he can stick out his tongue like a normal kid.

I would rather I suffer on his behalf than having Ethan to inflict any pain. Ethan when you read this, please forgive me for making you go through this painful task. Maybe I was a nasty bad hearted person in my previous life that is why is repayment time..

My Teddy Bear & TV Addict Son

Ethan being the youngest at my mom's place "enjoys" the liberty of being "bullied" by the cousins staying there..Here is a picture of how his hair is being pulled..

A typical day at mom's house

On a fairier note, Ethan is also not someone to be trifled with. He will use his secret weapon "the pacifier" to throw at the "someone". I am soo glad he knows how to protect himself.. Boys no matter how are boys who will fight all the time.

This weekend, Ethan seems to have grown. He seems to take simple instructions like :-

1. Look at in the sky - Point into the sky & say "blah"

2. Drink your milk- he will lie down on the floor

3. Going out - "khai khai"

4. Watch TV - sit down on the floor & stare at the TV

On the same note, he loved a brown teddy (someone give it to me sometime ago)..He kisses, hug it & carry it with him when he sits the walker...Even though I replaced the teddy bear with a same size "POPEYE", he screamed & yelled as if opposing my action as he only wanted that bear..This is the soft soft side of Ethan..

Being a fussy mom, I should be saying I hated Ethan to be a TV addict. He is soooo glued to a certain DVD..So we have had no choice but to convert the DVD into the PSP so that whenever we go out, in 1 way or the other should he behaves cranky, the magic is to draw out the PSP just to keep him occupy.

This son...likes this disc from Baby genius which shows nursery songs like Old Mac, BINGO, Apples & Bananas, Row your boat...etc and it lasted 30 mins to complete the whole show.When the show ended, he will gestured to tell us -- nomore....

Slouching..& glued to TV....

Pray pray pray @ 15th months

Ethan is such a big boy who simply loved to pray. He can pray at every single GOD. Some cute side of my dear devoted Ethan:-

• Started praying at the "Cai Sheng Ye" at the entrance of AMK Hub NTUC.


• Mom's house neighbour with an Indian GOD at the door
  
• Mount alvernia Hospital - Mother Mary on the wall with a mini table with flowers


• Church along Upper Bukit Timah

Prayinggggg

Went for Prevenar Jab II @ 15 months..

Weight: 10.63, Height: 78.5cm & head circumference: 49cm

Still active..despite crying out loud in PD clinic
N otty Act Caught..playing syring+ cup + spoon