Happy New Year 2008

We celebrated the beginning of 2008 with food and champagne. It is Lucas's third year - born in 06, and now it is 08 and he is not even two! Looking back, I do not remembered how I managed the pregnancy period, and trying first two months after he was born, and now, the mobile toddler. I should congratulate myself for the job well done......ahem.
Let me try to recall what is he up to now - he can pronounce some words very well such as 'door', 'up', 'down', 'back', 'book', 'ball', 'more', 'bye bye', 'there', 'no', 'open'. His two word sentence is 'no more' and then gesture with his hands. He just loves to throw anything he can get hold off. Just today, when he was about to throw the house key, I said 'no'. He looked at me, threw the key and said 'no more', then gesture with his hands. That really caught me dumbfounded.
His favourite toy is 'mote' (remote control). He has 10 teeth now, four at the bottom and six on top.
We are still working hard on his sleeping habit. We let him sleep with us on our bed and then transferred him to his cot. This is not working well now that he knows how to get down from our bed. So, now, we put him on his cot and let him fall asleep on his own without us being around. Of course, he cried. The last time we timed, he cried for 15 mins before he falls asleep. We are timing it everytime and see how long does it takes for him to sleep without crying...
I am also planning to start potty train him again. I tried when he was 11 months old and he refused to even sit on it for a minute. Hope he is more ready for it this time round.

Quiet Days

Lucas has been staying with my family since Tuesday. This time, he did not cry his heart out. I think he is enjoying himself. Each time I called home and asked how is he doing, my sisters will say 'Oh..he has so much fun playing hide and seek', or 'No, he did not cry at all' or 'We are taking him out soon' ...
And meanwhile, Dominic and myself are enjoying a few quiet days. We are finally catching up with our sleep and TV show. We slept 10 hours a day, watching season 3 of 'Desperate Housewives', season 4 of '24', 'Next', 'No Reservation'...savouring it while it lasts!

Merry Christmas

Fighting over TV remote control

Father and son have started fighting over gadgets in the house. Yesterday, Dominic was watching 'The Amazing Race' and Lucas decided he wanted to watch the TV too. Lucas took the TV remote and change the channel. Then he pressed his favourite button, the on/off button. It gives him immerse satisfaction when the result is instant. And there it goes:
Dom: Lucas, give Daddy the remote.
Lucas: {press the on/off button more frequently}
Dom: Lucas, Daddy is watching TV. Go take your bath.
Lucas: {Look at Dominic and continue pressing the button}
Dom: Lucas, give Daddy the remote. {Try to take from his hand}
Lucas: {scream..}

At the end, nobody gets to watch the TV!

I need a bigger place

I was having a conference call with my boss on Friday from home. It was from 5pm to 6.30pm, and that happens to be Lucas's dinner time. And my god...he was screaming for 1 hour! My boss heard that and wanted to quickly end the call so that I can attend to him. This boy has learned to be very assertive. If he wanted something, we give make a lot of noise to make sure he gets it. The only way out is to distract him. So, only Friday,
1) he wanted to eat more papaya but the nanny did not want to give him. She thinks he has enough fruit. So, he decided to scream.
2) while the nanny was cooling his food, he screams again. He wanted it NOW.
3) While eating his dinner, he wanted to feed himself using his hand and the nanny refused. There goes another good minutes of screaming.

I was quite furious - don't know with Lucas or with the nanny (told her to keep him quiet before the conference call started) or both. And then I told myself, I need a bigger house. We have outgrown our two bedroom apartment. Next year resolution - move to a bigger house??!!

Not interested

A few weeks ago we were toying with the idea of putting up the Christmas tree or not. Our main worry was Lucas bringing down the tree and hurt himself. Then, when we were at shopping malls, Lucas was all excited about the Christmas deco. Pointing his tiny finger at the ornaments and said 'ball'. That was what prompted us to decide so swiftly. Now that our tree is up, he is not interested at all, which is good for us - not worry that he will bring the tree down; and sad cause we wanted him to enjoy looking at the tree like when he is in the mall. I was planning to get him some gifts so that he can have some fun unwrapping presents, and now I am having my second thought.
This month also saw us breaking a number of rules. We minimise Lucas's intake of sugar, salt,spice and oily food. But these few days, we allowed him to have a small piece of chocolate every day. Dominic got Lucas an advent calendar. Advent is an European tradition where children get small gift everyday in December leading to Christmas day. Most Advent calendar has a window for everyday in December and a picture of an ice-cream, candy, lollipop etc. The Advent calendar Dominic got has windows that open to real chocolate. And since it is Christmas, we do not want to deprive Lucas. We just decided to allow Lucas to have some adult food on Christmas day with us. It will not be memorable for him and us if Christmas day is just another ordinary day.
Christmas eve is usually spent at my in-laws' place. We had our dinner there and then had our presents open. Christmas day itself is a quiet day for us. We get to relax at home. This year we are cooking roast duck with red cabbage. I had to google the recipe and prepared our shopping list. Hmmm..can't wait...

In the mood for Christmas

Initially, I planned to involve Lucas in our Christmas tree decoration...just like how he is involved in doing laundry. But he doesn't seem to be interested in a bare tree. So, I have to do it myself. I will see how he will react tomorrow when he sees the tree with the decoration.
This year, we bought a fresh cut tree from Ikea and a new set of ornaments. I got bored with the ornaments that we have been using from the last five years. I changed the color theme to sky blue, and Dominic bought some very nice ornaments from Germany. There is a sentimental ornament we have for Lucas. It is a musical ball which says 'my 1st christmas'. It plays Silent Night. This is Lucas's second Christmas...how time flies. Last year he was sleeping throughout the eve's dinner. This year, I think we will have a hard time trying to get him to sit on his chair throughout the eve's dinner.

Learning Fast

I haven't been posting for a while. Work is getting busy and Dominic has been travelling. For the past few days, Lucas was showing off what he learns.
1. Whenever I do laundry, I will make him participate in the chore. I asked him to put the dirty laundry into the washing machine to keep him occupied. Yesterday, he 'did' his own laundry. He dragged his laundry basket into the washing area, and place his laundry into the washing machine. Then the took his washing detergent and wanted to open the detergent compartment. Dominic and I were so surprised that he knows the drill. We took some photos and I will try to put them in a slide.
2. He has been showing off his dancing skill. He will say 'dance' and then bend both his knees, kick one of his leg, and make a small jump. This is his new-age dance.
3. He knows and can say 'bread', 'grapes'.
4. His molar tooth is coming out and it is making him cranky at times. He will put one finger from each of his hand into his mouth. His appetite has not been good as well. He hardly finish his solid and skip the night feed.
5. He wants to feed himself when eating solid. He holds the spoon with his left hand (left handed?). He needs to be guided on how to hold the spoon correctly. Most of the time, half of the food is on his shirt, his high chair and the floor. Lots of cleaning for me.
6. He enjoys brushing his teeth, more of biting the toothbrush to ease his itching gum.

Christmas is around the corner, and we have just put up our Christmas tree. This year, we bought a fresh cut tree from Ikea. Later today, we will decorate the tree with Lucas. Our hope is he will enjoy the decoration and yet leave the tree alone. That will be a challenge for us to teach him. And I have not started my Christmas shopping.

Lucas in Bali

We took Lucas to Bali last week. It was his first 'holiday'. Spent 3 nights there. We stayed at Intercontinental in Jimbaran, a beach resort. Lucas just loved the beach! Playing with the sand is the only thing he can keep himself occupied for hours. It is his best 'toy'. Now, we are cracking our head looking for a decent beach for weekend trip, and without burning a hole in our wallet.

I was last in Bali back in 2001. This is my second trip and I still find it a beautiful island. Life can be quite laid back and peaceful. We spent a day visiting tourist attractions in Ubud (arts and cultural area), sunset at Kuta, and sight-seeing padi fields. And we spent a day lazing on the beach. And I had a Balinese massage. What a holiday.

Lucas is 13 months old

Lucas turns 13 months today. His new development or milestones are:
1. He weighs 10 kg (22 lbs).
2. He is 77 cm (30 in) tall.
3. He babbles a lot but can say 'mama', 'mum-mum' (food), 'bird', 'ball', 'book', 'down', 'ty' (aunty), 'da' (daddy), 'there'.
4. He can gesture 'no' with his hand. Quite cute.
5. He eats 3 solids (breakfast, lunch, dinner) and 3 feed of milk, 7 oz each feed a day.
6. He can walk quite steadily.
7. He knows how to protest when he is being told to do something he doesn't want or like. Eg. when I tell him to 'stop throwing your spoon', he will raise a voice a bit and babbles away.
8. He can feed himself very well with his hand but not spoon.
9. He sleeps an average 12-14 hours a day.
10. He has 6 teeth, 4 on top and 2 at the bottom.
11. He is also getting naughtier. Terrible two starts early for him!

Lucas is walking

Finally, the day we have been waiting for is here. Lucas is walking! He can take more than 10 steps and seems happy practicing it.

Getting Better at Gymboree

With work now, there is less time to blog and less time to observe Lucas's development.
I took Lucas to his Gymboree class this morning. I must said I am very pleased with his development. I was just thinking that seeing him interacting with other children gives me a perspective on how he is faring.
He used to cling to me all the time during the class. If I put him down, he will pull my shirt and refused to let go. Now, he breaks from his comfort zone and explore on his own. He will crawl to places of interest to him. He will go to the tunnel and crawl happily thru the tunnel. That is a big achievement.
He used to hate the parachute. He just did not like to be sitting on it or under it. Now, he will not make any fuss. He just sit there and look, or rather stare at his play-mates. The most interesting observation is when the instructor put two chests of 'treasure' aka toys in the middle. Lucas will be the second toddler to crawl there and help himself. I suppose he is not shy person. He will empty the chest until he finds one that interests him. If any of his play-mate takes his toy, he will not (yet) snatch back. That shows he is not aggressive. I think both are good characteristics.
I realised he matures a lot more after he hits his first birthday or rather he is developing his character steadily.

Full time working mom

Now that I have been working for 2 weeks after my one year maternity leave, I can share some thoughts as working mom.

1. THEN: I used to take my shower, blow dry my hair, put on some makeup and leave for the office. All these would take half an hour. If I have extra time, I can have a cup of coffee and a slice of toast.
NOW: It takes much longer to prepare (if I have to go to the office).I have to prepare Lucas first. Have to time his feeding time, sleeping/nap time, nappy time. Then, I will have my shower, blow dry my hair and no makeup. I would say I am lucky if all these take an hour, and not forgetting anything behind. (I send Lucas and the nanny to my in-laws's place if I have to go to the office).

2. THEN: It was not a big deal to forget some items from the grocery shopping. Dropping by the supermarket is an easy task.
NOW: Being able to do grocery shopping twice a week is a luxury. By the time I am done with Lucas's grocery (his list goes like this- broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, pumpkin, carrots, mushroom, cheddar cheese, macaroni, sweet potatoes, eggs, apples, strawberry, banana, papaya, grapes, mangoes, fish, chicken, minced meat), I am too tired to think what I should do for my own meals. So, grocery usually means Lucas's food. We will just do take-away or Dominic's parents are kind enough to share with us their home cook meal. Bless them.

3. THEN: I have Lucas the whole day and usually wish he sleeps more so that I have more time to do my own things.
NOW: Officially, I have Lucas an hour before I starts work, an hour during lunch, and an hour and a half after office hour, before he goes to sleep. Now, I treasured his waking hours more, and I understand what it means to have quality time.

Looking back, taking a year off to take care of Lucas was a good decision, and can be better. I raise him the way I wanted it to be. There is no worry if the nanny or day care will change his routine/diet and confuses him. Now, I tell the nanny his routine and still manage to keep an eye (the beauty of working from home). The downside is, Lucas is extra clingy to me. He is like glued to me. Whenever he sees me, he will crawl to me, asking for attention. Hope this will not make him less independent.

Happy Birthday

Lucas celebrated his first birthday on Saturday. His grandma whom he called Omi baked him a cake - a healthy cake with less sugar and butter. It was a small event with Dominic's family and cousin. We gave Lucas his birthday cake and ice-cream. He was all happy throughout the 'party'. We had it during tea time.

Not that he is no longer a baby, he definitely tortured us this weekend. Cried when he is not being carried at home, cried when we put him in his car seat, cried when we put him on his stroller. We are just wondering if his running nose is causing him to be such a cry baby or he is showing us his true color?? Is this the beginning of his toddler-hood? Hope NOT!

First two days

Lucas greeted my first day of work with his running nose! It started on Sunday but got worse on Monday. He did not sleep well as his nose was blocked. He is breathing through his mouth now. We almost took him to the doctor yesterday but changed our mind after that. Thought maybe we should let his body build up his immune system by fighting the virus without any medication. When he woke up and cried again just now, we decided to take him to the doctor tomorrow for sure. Poor boy. Feel sorry that we let him 'suffer' .

First day of work was okay. My eyes (I was wearing contact lenses) were very dry after staring the the computer for 8 hours. I have a lot of e-training to do on my first week. By today, my second day, I had my notebook all setup for remote logon. From now on, I will be working mostly from home .. clap clap clap...
I am coming down with a sore throat..another sickko at home...

Urh..no time to upload pictures of Lucas. Will do it when I have more time hopefully.

Good Friday

Lucas and I had a good day yesterday. I finally managed to do some shopping after all the previous failed arrangement. My sister came along and helped to entertain Lucas while I shopped and tried on clothes. When you are in a mood to shop, everything look nice! There I was walking home with a few shopping bags:-) Lucas was happy too. He get to go out and see new things and not worry if I am going to make him go to sleep. Later at night, he went to sleep a happy boy - made no fuss and sang himself to sleep. If only this can happen more often ...but it will be too taxing to the wallet.

Happy Birthday - Lunar Calendar

Lucas celebrated his Chinese or lunar birthday today. He was born on the fifteenth day of the eighth month in Chinese or lunar calendar. It is also known as mid autumn festival (the moon is at its roundest on this date) where the Chinese eats mooncake. My family celebrated the festival every year and it is easy for them to remember Lucas's birthday. We had the dinner at my parents' house and Lucas had cup cake and presents from cousins and aunties. It is a low key celebration. Lucas was so tired and sleepy when it was time to eat his cake. He was cranky when it was time to open his presents. Looking back, I am glad we did not throw him a party. I think it will be to much for him to enjoy himself.

We will have another low key celebration on his normal or English calendar with Dominic's parents.

Phobia

I was planning to do some shopping this afternoon and intended to bring Lucas and the nanny. I thought I will need to nanny to watch Lucas if I am in the fitting room. Dominic first agreed. Then suddenly he called me to the room and said 'After Nurin's case, anything can happen while you are in the fitting room. Lucas can disappear and the nanny will just said 'I don't know where did he go' '. I got very worried. Nurin's case was a very tragic story. She walked to the night market alone and never returned. A few days later, they found her body badly tortured and abused, and she is only 7-8 years old.
Then I managed to ask a friend who is free and interested to come along. I felt better. However, the plan was not meant to be ... my mother in law came to visit Lucas and by the time she leaves, it was too late to go shopping.
In recent days, there are so many news of missing children never found, or found dead. I am now not planning to leave the nanny and Lucas alone at all until I get to know or trust her better. What a society we live in?? Time to emigrate??

Weekend in Penang

We drove to Penang on Friday and returned on Sunday. It was a very pleasant and relaxing trip. I did nothing much except than eat and sleep and chat. The reason for the trip was to catch up with some relatives, and to 'show' to relatives how much Lucas has grown since they last saw him in April. Lucas was of course very well behaved when he wants to. He was very friendly and happy throughout the stay. And yes, he impresses them again. The relatives also spoilt him with some delicious home cook food....cookies, tasty porridge.
Lucas has 2 young cousins in Penang. One is 7 years old and another is 7 months old. The 7 years old cousin wanted to play with him but Lucas is too young to know it. The cousin ended up watching Lucas play on his own. And the 7 months old is too young to know what's going on. It will be better when Lucas is a bit older. Maybe by then, the older cousin will find him too 'kiddie'.

We have not been taking a lot of photos of Lucas. Part of the reason is we do not go somewhere special, and secondly, we are getting lazy. Even the new DSLR did not excite Dominic to click away.

Full of Activities

Lucas continued his Gymboree class on Tuesday. This is not the Music class (they are not offering Music for under 16 months), but the normal class. Gosh..the class was big for a Tuesday morning. There were about 10 babies there. The coordinator was quick to add that 3 babies are having replacement class and 2 are on trial. The class is meant for babies from 10 - 16 months and Lucas is the youngest, I think. He is not walking and when he was crossing the bridge, the actually sat there. I had to carry him cause he is creating a queue behind him. He did not like the parachute at all. Made a fuss when I tried to make him sit on it or under it.

We also found a swimming instructor for him. Now he is swimming on Wednesday. The instructor is teaching him to blow bubbles. He is happy in the water and as usual, drink lots of water each time. Luckily, he is not discouraged after drinking the water. The funny part of his swimming is there is an entourage cheering him. His grandparents, the nanny, myself and Dominic are there watching him...like a superstar. Well, afterall, he is our superstar.

We are taking a trip to Penang for the weekend to visit some relatives. This is going to be Lucas's third trip ( 5 hours drive including pit stop) and hope he will not make a big fuss on sitting in his car seat.

Lucas, the terror

We had a wedding dinner to attend on Saturday night. My sister was so excited and told me to leave him there and pick him up on Sunday. I of course was happy to have a volunteer babysitter. Little did she know what is she getting herself into!
Lucas was happy and friendly till bedtime. My 2 sisters and parents tried to put him to bed at 9 pm and he did not sleep till 11pm. That was also Lucas's record. He usually sleeps by 8.30pm and 10.30 if we have an outing. Lucas cried on and off for 2 hours too. The four of them have to take turns to carry him. According to them, they tried every method imaginable! Took him for a walk in the garden, look at the fish pond, try to put him in all the bedrooms but still failed. He felt asleep cause he could not keep himself awake any longer at 11pm.
Meanwhile Dominic and myself were having such a quiet and peaceful time. For once, we can sleep without worrying if Lucas is going to be awake before us. That was wonderful.

Now, I am not sure if my family will volunteer to babysit Lucas overnight anymore...

Gearing for 1st Oct

I've received an e-mail today asking me to go to office on the first day of work (1st Oct) to collect my notebook, secure ID, and sign some document. And the next 1-2 days in the office with my team members. It looks like I need to be in the office a bit more frequent in the first few weeks to familiarize with the office environment/procedure, getting to know who is who etc.. I am worrying and missing Lucas already just with the thought of leaving me for so long ( more than 4 hours??) a day!!

I 'review' my wardrobe this week to see if I have enough clothes for the few days I need to be in office. Amongst things I have done:
- Threw away a big bag of clothes. They are either too 'old fashion' or not in so good shape anymore.
- Put my maternity clothes in a corner.
- Send 2 trousers and 2 skirts to be altered. All 4 are too big. I bought them when I was at my fattest, and now I am 4 kg ~ 8.8 lbs less. However I told the seamstress not to make it too tight - I know I will put on some weight soon.

I need to buy some jackets. I lent my sisters mine when I was pregnant, and now it seems the jackets belong to her.

Anything but Mama and Papa

Lucas woke up from his nap, looked at the fan, pointed his finger (his third finger) and said 'pan' (fan). Yesterday, he saw some birds flying and said 'bird' (he can pronounce this word quite well). He is saying anything but mama or papa or mommy or daddy or anything close...sigh...

The nanny has been here for 3 days and she is getting closer to Lucas. Today, she actually kisses Lucas on his arm when she arrives and before she leaves for the day. She looks like she means it, and not to please me or put up a show. When she washes Lucas's hair, she actually massages his scalp! I found out today she showered 20 toddlers a day when she was working in the kindergarten.

Nanny's First Day

Lucas's nanny started working today. She arrived early, around 7.40am, just after Lucas was awake. She did quite okay. Lucas did not cry when she carry him, neither was he thrilled. I let her changed Lucas's diaper, and feed him. I did not want her to bath Lucas today (afraid if she will walk away for seconds while Lucas is in the tub), but instead showed her how I shower Lucas. Tomorrow I will see how she shower Lucas. From now on, it will be shower for Lucas.
It was a 'luxury' day for me!
- I can go to the toilet without worrying Lucas will knock the door or cry in front of the toilet door
- eat slower and enjoy my food instead of gulping it down
- sit down and read the newspaper while the nanny chase after Lucas
- the dishes are done if I leave them on the kitchen sink
- hmm..now thinking of getting my facial done (my facial lady does house call)

I will be starting my work on 1st October and hopefully by then the nanny can take care of Lucas without much of my help. But I am not planning to leave Lucas and the nanny alone at home, at least not in the near future. Here, there are so many horror stories about maids/care givers abusing/neglecting the babies. I can't help but be extra cautious.

Weekend

Over the weekend, Dominic was reading Isis's blog and Lucas crawled over to him. Dominic then pointed at the picture and said 'Isis and Anastasia'. Lucas looked and smiled. He then pointed at the picture. He remembers his friends!
Lucas is a person who don't believe in save the best for last. When he is eating his Cheerios or grapes (two items we let him feed himself), we will eat the perfect one first. If he picked up a not round Cheerios or squashed grape, he will put them back on the tray. He will only eat the not so perfect shape last. And he has this habit - he will always keep a piece of the food on his left hand while he is busy feeding himself using the right hand (he is a right handed I assume). When he finished the all the food on the tray including the not so perfect one, he will eat the piece on his left hand. Wonder what does that tell about him.
Early Saturday morning, we took him to the Lake Garden (our version of Central Park in NY) and hoping to find a kiddie swing. Much to our dismay, there isn't any. In fact, Lucas came back with a few mosquito bites. We took Lucas to the swimming pool twice. Surprisingly he is not as excited about the pool as before. Wonder he is discourage after drinking lots of pool water each time. I am looking for a swimming instructor. Hopefully, he will enjoy the water better with the right technique.

Lucas is 11 months old

My little darling is 11 months now. How time flies. Around this time last year, I was finishing my job and busy preparing for his arrival. And now he is such a big boy.

- he weighs 9.2 kg (20 lbs)

- his height is 76 cm ( 30 in). He is on 75%.

- he can pick up food using this thumb and index finger and put them into his mouth. In fact, his action looks so dainty.

- he recognises most things and people he sees/touches daily.

- he can point using his index finger. However, he prefers to point using his third finger!

- we think he understands what we are telling him, but he is not talking. He babbles a lot.

- he was put on potty once, but cried and crawl away. Needs lots of work here.

- he understands the meaning of 'no' but chooses not to obey it

- he crawls fast and can even climb the sofa. Still not walking. Dominic is ''pressuring' him to either walk or talk by next month - his first birthday.

We are still toying about his first birthday celebration next month. Should we just buy him a cake and celebrate with his grandparents or we throw him a party at Gymboree and invite our friends with young babies (since he has no friend yet).

Don't leave me alone, even for a minute

Life seems more hectic here for doing the same thing or nothing. Now that Lucas is such an 'adventurer', he cannot be left alone even for seconds. While Dominic was on bed reading and keeping an eye on him, he managed to crawl off the bed and fell..twice! If I let him out of sight for a minute, I will have no idea what he will bring down or put in his mouth. The house can never be child proof. He is strong enough to topple the dining chair, pull anything within his reach down. That leaves me hardly any free time. During his nap, I will have to do dishes (no dishwasher here), mop the floor (tropical country is very dusty), and laundry (no dryer here). Cooking is only possible when Dominic is around.
I got a verbal job offer which is supposed to start on Monday Sept 10th. We are still finalizing the working arrangement (can work from home) and waiting for the black and white offer letter. In preparation for my work, we interviewed a baby sitter this morning. She is to start work on Thursday. She is a Filipino but lived in Malaysia for more than 20 years. She married a local and have 2 children (aged 20 and 17). She is to come to my house Monday to Friday 8am to 7pm. Hope she is reliable and good with Lucas. We are paying her RM1200 (US$350) a month.
Dominic bought a new camera, a Sony digital SLR. He still have no time to download Lucas's picture to the PC. I will post some photos once he gets around it. He has been busy too - working from 7.30am to 8.30pm most days. Lucky thing is he can work from home for most part of it.

Settling Down

It is almost a week now that we are home. I must say our jet lag is almost gone. Lucas's routine and sleeping time is back to normal. Dominic and myself are getting there. We have finally unpacked and store away some of Lucas's out grown things to make space. We stored away Lucas's out grown clothes (it all came out to be 3 big bags), his bouncer and infant car seat. The house is filled with his toys, playpen etc scattered everywhere. My brother came to visit last weekend and the his first comment was 'You need a bigger house'. At times, the house looks really messy. Well, we don't get many visitor, so it is okay.
I have been sending Lucas to his grandparents for 3 days. Each visit lasted 2-3 hours. The first day, he cried after 1 1/2 hour. The second and third day were fine. The grandparents were very proud and said he was such a good boy. We need to get him used to seeing other people besides both of us.
I had a phone job interview today. Thought it was okay, I did not ace all the questions but managed to impressed them on 2-3 questions. Will know the outcome next week. This is job mainly working on a 'virtual' environment ...whatever it means - working from home??

Nursing Jet Lag

On the first day, our time system is all fused up. Lucas slept at 4pm (all M'sian time) and woke up at 3.30am! I slept at 7.30pm and have to wake up when Lucas wakes up. Dominic was up at 4am. We looked at each other and wondering what do to with Lucas. It is too early for anything. By 5am, we already had our breakfast. That was the earliest breakfast we ever had.
And when it comes to feeding, I am still lost. It took me a minute to recall his last feed and if I should be giving him milk or solid. And today is Lucas first time rejecting his porridge. Wondering if he does not like the fish (I don't even remember what fish did I buy this morning) or the spinach (usually it is brocolli) or both. Will have to try again tomorrow with the chicken. He is asleep by 5pm today. Let's see what time will he get up tomorrow.

Home Sweet Home

It was a mixed feeling leaving LA; sad to leave and at the same time happy to be going home. We knew from the start that LA stint is only temporary and we tried our best to make full use of our stay. And sure we did. We did so much that we fell like we have been in LA for a year.
The journey was good. Lucas slept for about 9-10 hours in the 20 hours flight. That was a great relief. We caught some sleep and a movie too. Baggage were not an issue too. We did not exceed the weight allowance and the customs did not give us any trouble in KL.
When we first get into the house, it was nice to see how Lucas reacted. He enjoyed his toys like he never have them before. He doesn't remember his bed or room. Look around for a few good minutes until he is satisfied. Forgot all about his bath equipment and changing table he had here. Basically, it is a brand new place for him to explore.
With the 15 hours time difference, even I am confused. It is like should he has his solid or milk? should he go to sleep or stay awake? He has been sleeping since 4pm here (that's 1am LA time) and I have no idea if he is napping or is that his 12 hours sleep.
Guess I better get some sleep too (it's 7pm here, that's 4am LA). Else, I will have difficulty staying awake when he wakes up.

Pack, pack and pack

It is the most dreadful time of any journey..packing especially with baby. We came with 3 check-in baggage, and we are leaving with 5 check-in baggage!! The addition are Lucas's car seat, and a bag with our shopping accumulated during our stay here. I am still wondering how did we accumulate so much during 4 months stay here. We hardly bought anything for ourselves except Lucas. Yes, blame it all on Lucas...haha
I am almost done with 2 baggage. Aim to finish another 2 tomorrow. And 1 on the last day. The saddest thing about this packing is we have to throw away so many things, despite giving away Lucas's outgrown clothes. All the unfinished food in the kitchen will have to go to the dustbin - olive oil, garlic, onions, bread etc...They are people without enough food and here we are throwing away food. We should have plan this better.

Lucas bids farewell to his playgroup

Today is a happy and sad day. It is Lucas's last time at his playgroup. The mommies throw Lucas a going away party and it is also Morgan's first birthday on Tuesday. We had food, cakes, balloons and lots of fun.

Dominic and I have been discussing this for sometime now. When we get back, we need to find activities and friends for Lucas. Every morning, we took Lucas for a walk to the apartment lobby to collect our newspaper. On the way, the apartment maintenance workers will greet him, he will point to the pool, fountain, flowers, and smile to the apartment manager's dog. In KL, newspaper is delivered to our doorstep.

No more playgroup, and no more kiddie swing. One of the first thing we need to do is find a park with kiddie swing! Then see if we can start a playgroup or get invited to one by friends.

No more beach and sand on weekend. Nice beaches in KL are a few hours drive and cannot be done on a day trip.

No more leisure walk. KL is always hot and humid. It is very unpleasant to put him on the stroller for a leisure walk.

It is really amazing during our short stay here, we get to meet so many nice people. We should thank Lucas for bringing friends to us. Good job Lucas.

Hmm..now we really have to think hard what to do with his time.

Last Week

Last weekend was our last weekend in LA. Dominic was off on Friday and we took the opportunity to do last minute activities. We went shopping on Friday..mostly Lucas's items and gifts. Bought him some toys and clothes. I am going to miss children shopping here. The clothes are adult looking (not necessary cartoon all over the place) yet so cute, and toy varieties are plentiful. Saturday was a long day. We went to Irvine, an hour drive from here to visit friends, Yee Hooi and Seng Kee. We intended to stay until 6 pm but instead got home at 11pm. It was a good trip. Went to Corona Del Mar (a beach) and ate very good Chinese noodles, and more importantly catching up. Sunday was spent at Long Beach Aquarium. Went with Isis, Maricel, Cymbie, Anastasia, Azan and Phil. I was a bit skeptical at first if Lucas is going to like it as he did not like Getty Museum. Lucas loved it. He was all excited and did not want to sit on his stroller. He wanted to be carried to get better view, and managed to stay awake for the whole outing despite being tired from Saturday's trip. Glad we did it.

Job Search Again..

My job search has resumed. Sent my CV for a few headhunters but nothing materialize yet. It is either the job requires travelling, which I tried to avoid as I have Lucas now, or the pay it too low. Let see what works out. When I told Dominic about my job search, it will usually ends with two options:
Option 1:
Me: If I don't get a job, you will have to bring home the bread and butter.
Dom: Bread and butter is not a problem, just no caviar or lobster or US steak everyday.
Me: Bread and butter everyday is boring. Must have some varieties like vege and meat.
Conclusion: No problem if he is the sole bread winner, just need to be frugal.

Option 2:
Dom: You sure you want to go back to work? Looked at this messed up kid (some misbehaved kid we encountered). You want caviar or lobster or US steak or a messed up Lucas?
Me: We make sure he doesn't grow up to be messed up.
Conclusion: Trying to make me feel guilty.

Lucas at birth, 4 days old, 5 weeks old, 3 months old

Lucas was 2.82 kg (6 lbs +) when he was born. Looks like the okay size to be in.

We, being the first time parents, under-fed him during his first week. He lost 18% of his birth weight in the first week, where most babies lost 10% only. He looks like an old man in his bath, with the wrinkles on his forehead.

Then on the end of first month, we must have over-fed him. He ballooned to about 4kg (9 lbs).

By his third month, he lost most of his hair!

Talk about fluctuation, just look at the new-borns!

Cheerios, Green Peas and San Diego

We had some relatives over and drove to San Diego for the weekend. I always thought San Diego's only attraction is Sea World. How wrong was I! It is a big city and has numerous interesting attractions. One need to spend a few days to see San Diego. We spent a night there and managed to see quite a fair bit. Went to the Balboa Park (not the world famous zoo though), Old Town, Coronado, and Embarcado. Not bad considering there were 6 of us and a baby.
Lucas had to eat commercial baby food. I got him new flavours - turkey, vegetable and cereal; green peas and rice cereal. The turkey was fine but the green peas sure reacted. He farted the whole night. I guessed that must be the green pea's work! He also ate non-stop. When we sat down to have our meal, he had to have something to eat too. I gave him Cheerios and he was gulping them. That was like an hour non-stop eating cheerios. He has learned to feed himself. He can pick up food using his thumb and index finger and put them in his mouth. Gone were the days where he pulled my hand to ask for food. Now, he just helped himself until the cheerios on this tray is finished.
It was quite hot in San Diego. On the second day, we walked along the bay and Lucas has a mild 'California tan'. When we got home, his body was feeling warm but luckily it was not high temperature. Must be too much sun. With the fart, warm body and excitement, it took us till midnight to put him to bed!

Clingy

Since I am the primary care-taker of Lucas, he has been extremely clingy to me. He must be able to see me at all times..never mind if I don't carry him. When I am in the bathroom, we will knock the bathroom door. When I am in the kitchen, he will crawl there and hang on to my leg. When he doesn't see me, he will crawl around the house looking for me. I have a lists of to-dos when we get back to KL:

- childproof the house!

- Send him to the grandparents more often. He needs to socialize more, and it is good for him to be close to his grandparents, aunties, uncles and cousins.

- take him out more often to playground, outing.

- potty train him.

- train him to fall asleep on his own. Right now either me or Dominic has to accompany him until he falls asleep.

Lucas is 10 months old

We desperately wanted to weigh Lucas as he was last weighed in May at 18lbs (8.2kg). We have no weighing scale in our apartment here, we had to go to Target to 'borrow' the scale. He is now 20lbs (9 kg), but he definitely feels heavier. The growth looks marginal, but he is eating well. We are not too worry at the moment. Our next mission is to 'borrow' measuring tape from a shop, if we find any.
Lucas has his adventure in various food now. He likes cheese (especially mozzarella), peach (he used to refuse to open his mouth for peach), grapes, and strawberry.
He has yet to stand on his own and walk. He has been crawling since he was six and a half month but no sign of walking yet. Maybe it is a blessing in disguise - easier to keep an eye on him.
Lucas still enjoys swimming. Dominic is teaching him is to blow bubble in the water. He has been drinking lots of pool water. And he does not like to sit on his ducky float anymore...not exciting enough.

Sleeping Well

My sister called yesterday, and after chatting for a while, she suddenly asked:
Sis: Why it is so quiet? Is Lucas sleeping?
Me: Yes.
Sis: What time it is?
Me: 8.30pm.
Sis: You mean Lucas will sleep until tomorrow morning?
Me: Ya. He will wake up between 7.30am to 8am.
Sis: No food for 11 - 12 hours?
Me: No.
Sis: Wow...is that why he is fat? Sleep so much.
Me: Urg...

Yes, Lucas sleeps quite well. He sleeps 11-12 hours at night (occasionally he cries in the middle of the night - dreaming) and naps 3 times in the daytime ranging 45 mins to 1 hour each nap.The difficult part is putting him to sleep!
And just as we said this, he woke up twice yesterday night!!

Scolding

Lucas now knows when he is being scolded. And he will do most babies do, cry.

Incident 1: He was grinding this teeth when I was feeding him one day. I told him a couple of times 'No'. Then my patience ran out when he happily grinding his teeth for a few good minutes. I raised my voice and said 'Stop grinding your teeth. You teeth will be gone before they are fully grown'. From my expression and tone, he probably sensed that it was not good and decided to cry. I had to pacify him by saying 'It is okay...Mommy loves you'. He then stopped crying.

Incident 2: Dominic was reading a book and Lucas swing his hand at the book and tore a bit of the book jacket. Dominic was shocked (it was a book borrowed from the library). Dominic raised his voice a bit and said 'Lucas, NO'. He looked at Dominic for a few seconds and decided to cry. Dominic was in shocked again and said asked me why was he crying so loud. I told him Lucas think he is being scolded. We had to pacify him again by saying 'Daddy is not scolding him. Book is meant for reading, not tearing'. We gave him the same book and told him to turn the pages gently. He was very careful with the book after the incident.

Incident 3: Lucas was eating my handphone. I was a bit frustrated after telling so many times not to put the handphone into his mouth. I might have raised my voice and said 'Lucas, don't put the phone in your mouth. It is not food'. Again he cried, and I have to pacify him.

He is beginning to understand face expression and tone of the voice.

Last weekend, we took him to an open air concert by California Philharmonic. We left the house at 5pm and only got home at 10.30pm. He was really well behaved and enjoyed himself. He did not cry at all, and managed to keep himself occupied throughout the whole concert. Bravo. Even Dominic's colleagues were surprised that he was so well behaved. We did have fun too. We brought a mat and food and had a little picnic during the concert. Living the California way.

Time to leave..soon

Time flies. We are leaving LA on 22 August. That is less than 1 month from today. Our headache is just getting started. We are listing to-dos such as cancelling magazine & newspaper subscription etc. I guess the biggest headache will be to pack all our belongings and bring them home. We came with 3 check-in baggage with total weight 70kgs (154 lbs). Our baggage allowance is max 5 pieces with total weight not exceeding 90 kgs (200 lbs). Now that we have accumulated more during the last two and a half month, the 20 kgs will be challenge. Hmm...I think worse come to worst, we will leave Lucas's things behind..the high chair and car seat, too-small clothes.

Lucas had his last music class yesterday. It was great avenue to meet people - babies and mommies. And now we even have playgroup weekly! Yesterday was also the first time Lucas crawled to other babies. I noticed that for the past weeks, he has always been clinging to me during the classes. Yesterday, he actually crawl nearer to other babies. I need to work on this more. He doesn't seem to like to interact with babies. He likes adults. Funny.

Today, for the first time, he actually place his beer bottles into the laundry basket. In a few weeks time, I shall be training him to tidy up all his toys. This is getting exciting. He is learning fast everyday.

Playground

We took Lucas to Lacy Park again today. He truly enjoyed it. He was at the kiddie swing, had his dinner at the park, and sat on the grass. Dominic was so afraid that Lucas does no want to walk on the grass. He was happy throughout the whole trip! We will do this more often. The sad thing is when we go back to KL, which park can we take him? Lake Garden?

He cried when Dominic leaves for work in the morning. He probably thought his father is going to the park without him. I have to tell him 'Daddy is going to office and Lucas stay at home'. Don't think this statement registered in his mind yet.

Growing Fast

Lucas is growing so fast and building his character steadily. He learns and understands a lot more these days...he should be.

- When I sing to him, he will look at the stereo cause I usually play the CD and sing along.

- He bounces himself when he likes the song. I presume he is dancing.

- He knows when to clap when the song 'If you are happy' is being played.

- He sings too, but nothing close to the original song. The sounds and tones are definitely different ...continuos...from his normal talking (babbling)

- He likes to interact with adults - stared at them and tried to talk by saying 'urhh'. He is not very interested in babies his age.

- He is my 'shadow'..follow my everywhere I go...kitchen, bathroom etc. He must be able to see me else he will go crawling looking for me. This may pose a problem when I go to work later.

- His favourite toy is empty beer bottles. He likes to hold them, hit them together to make noise and learning to roll the them. I am just wondering if I need to get him proper toys that help to develop his mind. The books preach human is the best toy. So, I am holding on buying proper toys until his concentration span is longer.

- He is learning new words and can associate much faster. I bought him Cheerios finger food on Monday. I have been saying 'Cheerios' each time I gave him some. The next day, when I said 'Cheerios' he knows exactly what am I talking about.

- He is beginning to understand what is 'no'. When he crawls to the fireplace, I will say 'no'. He will look at me and crawl nearer, then stop to look at me (to get my re-confirmation). I say 'no' again, and he crawls away from the fireplace.

- He is so active and hardly can lie down for long. Changing him usually requires 2 people. One to hold him and another to change him.

-He is quite a patient baby. When he crawls to a place and I stand in his way, he will crawl around me until he gets through. He has yet to throw any tantrum. His impatience is food. He used to cry when I am slow. Now, he understand 'wait' and give me a few minutes grace period before he screams.

- Putting him to sleep is easier now. I just lie on the bed with him and he will entertain himself until he falls asleep. Sometimes. he will climb to my chest and want to be rocked to sleep.

He is generally a happy baby. Smile quite easily (after the staring). Couldn't ask for more.

Eventful Week

Last week was really eventful. I had a university friend from Vancouver visiting for a few days. I left uni in 1993 and she stayed on to do her MBA. She came to Malaysia in 1996/97 and almost fainted due to the heat and has refused to come again! That was the last time we met. Last week she came to visit. It was really great catching up with her. We talked like we have not lost any time despite not seeing each other for 10 years. That was really good.

Lucas went for a playgroup today for the first time. It was at Lacy Park, a very nice park I did not know exist. The weather is just perfect too. The mothers from his music class-mates invited us. Lucas somehow interact more with other babies in outdoor activities. He at least tried to talk and play ball with other babies. I wonder if the idea of a playgroup in a public playground will work in M'sia. Hmm..maybe not. It might be too hot and mothers will be most likely stuck in the traffic at around 6pm or still working in the office. Logistics can be a problem too...Bangsar, PJ, Subang, Cheras - which playground to meet??!!

Lucas is 9 months old

Lucas is nine months old. He has been in this world as long as he has been in the womb. Actually, he has been out 3 weeks longer than he was in the womb. He was born on the 37th week. Some of his milestones and new experiences are:

- He can clap his hands. We have been teaching him for the past few weeks and are glad that he finally can do it. He is happy with his achievement too.

- He has two tooth. The funny thing is he has one on the lower gum and one on the upper gum! Most babies has a pair on either lower or upper gum. The upper teeth is quite big. Looks like he will get bugs bunny teeth.

- He likes to hear new noises such as moving squeaking door, and hitting 2 beer bottles together.

- He is talking a lot with different sounds. Too bad we do not understand him. He vaguely said mama, daddy, beer, map.

- He can associate with most of his daily routines and toys. Word such as 'nien nien' (milk), 'oi oi' (sleep), 'kai kai' (go out), 'mum mum' (eat), 'pom pom' (bath), diapers, lotion, beer, coca cola, water, hold your bottle, handkie, boat etc.

- He has a taste of beer and ice-cream. We are the bad parents.

- He has been to a full screen theater for 40 mins documentary and he was able to sit through the documentary. He moved a lot but at least did not make a fuss.

- He has a first proper hair cut in a hair salon. The first 2 -3 mins are fine, then he made a fuss. He doesn't like people to touch his head.

First Outing in US

Taking the opportunity of Independence Day holiday, we took a trip outside LA. I must said it was a very brave decision of us but we were glad we did it. We took Lucas on a 6 days trip outside LA by car. In KL, we hardly took him out. The thought of packing for him is not very encouraging. Lucas had a luggage and 2 boxes! Dominic and myself only had a luggage. Here, we desperately wanted to see something and had no choice but to take him along. How circumstances can change a decision so drastically!

Santa Barbara and Solvang

Our first stop was where else other than factory outlet again (it was on the way and we needed to stop to feed Lucas..excuses, excuses). We spent an hour there. Then we adjourned to Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara is a hippy town with Spanish architecture and nice beaches. We stayed at Solvang, a Danish town. Yup..visiting 'Europe' right here in California. Lucas was quite excited and behaved himself.

San Simeon and Cambria

Next we went to Hearst Castle in San Simeon. The castle is like those castles in Europe but this is located in the middle of nowhere. We stayed at Cambria, a very relaxing town by the Pacific Ocean. We enjoyed Cambria very much. Don't mind going again. We also managed to eat delicious seafood dinner at reasonable price.

Hearst Castle is not baby friendly i.e. not stroller allowed. Dominic has to carry him on a back pack baby seat. It is like carrying a 10kg rice on his back and walked for an hour. The weather was hot too. The heat wave did not make it any easier.

Monterey

Next stop was Monterey, another town by the Pacific Ocean. The most scenic drive on the coastal highway is from Big Sur to Carmel. It is very scenic indeed. Highly recommended. The pictures taken was like postcard. Lucas was showing sign of tiredness. He has been sleeping less than 12 hours for the last 2 days.

San Francisco

When we hit our final destination San Francisco, we were all quite tired. After spending a few days in laid back towns, San Francisco seemed hectic. We tried to catch the fireworks as it was July 4th, but the crowd was just too much. The live band the the music in Hard Rock (we had dinner there) were deafening. Lucas cried and wanted to be carried all the time. He was very uncomfortable with the loud noise. We had to hurriedly eat our dinner and make our way back to the hotel.

The public transport sucks or rather too many visitors. The queue for the cable car, bus and train are impossible (we found this out after buying the day pass for US$11 each). We ended up walking most of the time and did not manage to cover many places.

Lucas had his first haircut in a salon in Chinatown.

The weather near the bay is very pleasant. But once we were an hour from the bay, the weather hit 105 Fahrenheit! It was no fun in such heat.

Come to think of it, we managed to d0 quite a but considering we had a 9 months old baby in tow.

We are of course glad to be home now. Time to have a break from a break..sounds familiar?

Hard Rock Hollywood and Rodeo Drive

We wanted to go somewhere near last weekend and ended up at Universal Studio and Rodeo Drive.Hard Rock short glasses are one of our collectors item.So we drove all the way to Hard Rock Hollywood which is inside Universal Studio compound. We have to pay US$10 to park the car! As Lucas was in tow, we did not go to the theme park. Just hanged out at the City walk (shopping and eatery area). One day entrance fee to the theme park is about US$63 for adult. Don't remembered things are so expensive now.
Then we adjourned to Rodeo Drive. What a place to be! It was just fun to do 'people watching' and 'car watching'. There were those who looked like super 'tai-tai'; Julia Roberts in 'Pretty Woman'..yup...high leather boots and super short mini skirt; very stylish people, tourists like myself, and Paula Abdul (Dominic claimed he saw Paula Abdul). If you want to be in the 'ultimate' car showroom, all you have to do is stand on the road. Those nice and expensive cars were just cruising along.
Some shops are having summer sale. The sale here is very different. The store has nothing that shouts 'sale'. Only a smaller sale sticker. So, here I was pretending to be rich and walked into the store. I must say the variety and service are very good, but the price is not so irresistible. Lucas was charming all the salesladies and salesman in the shops, but too bad they don't give extra discount for having cute baby.

It's Summer and Berries Season!

Yesterday was officially the first day of summer. The weather is getting hot (90-100 F) but at least one hardly sweat here. It is too dry. There was a red flag warning ..something new to me... What that means is the weather is very dry and occasionally there will be gusty wind. If there is a fire, it will spread real fast. The warning is to stay away from red flag area as indicated in the weather report. Usually that means stay away from areas with trees like hiking trail or national park. If one happened to be in a residential area and the fire starts...pray hard.

It is also berries season. Cherries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, and whatever berries are being sold and it is cheap (compared to obscenely expensive in M'sia). You can get a packet with about 1 lbs for US$2! Nectarines, peaches and apricots are in season too. What a perfect time to be here!

Fell off the bed

Lucas fell off the bed yesterday! To be exact, he fell off twice since we came here. I usually had him on my bed for daytime nap. His room is facing the road and can be noisy when the garbage truck is around, and his bed is not very comfy. The mattress is covered with an un-removable waterproof bed sheet. It feels very 'plasticky' even with a cloth bed sheet on it. He had a bruised nose now. Dominic was singing 'Rudolph the red nose reindeer' to him yesterday. Hope this nose is not flattened.

Lucas also has better vocabulary. He speaks with different sounds, but nothing understandable yet. Wonder what would be his first word? Beer like his father?

Father's Day

Sunday was Dominic's first Father's Day. As a present, he was given a few hours 'off'. So, he went shopping on his own and came back with a book for each of us!

This weekend was water and water again. I think we will be taking a break from water next weekend. We took Lucas for a swim in the apartment's pool. The water was too cold for Dominic but just nice for Lucas. Father was shivering and son was having a good time. We also ventured to Long Beach. It is quite a nice town but we did not find the nice beach. The beach that we went to was not so clean. Luckily, Lucas is too young to realise that. He still enjoyed playing with the sand.

On the way back, we drove on the Pacific Coast Highway or popularly known as Highway number 1. It is a very very long highway and only certain stretch is facing the Pacific Ocean. Definitely need to google the most scenic stretch. On the way back also, Lucas decided to torture us. He cried in the last 20 mins journey and continued for another 30 mins at home. sigh...when will he learn that he will not be picked up while he is sitting in his car seat.

Asian Community

There is a common trait among Asians...whenever they go, they like to feel 'at home'. 'At home' here means living near other Asians. Here are my two observations:
1. When I was in Melbourne, I realised that most Asians live in this neighbourhood called Glen Waverly. If you asked any of your friends, relatives who moved to Melbourne, you will be 80% right if you guess Glen Waverly.
2. If you asked your friends or relatives in LA, 80% of getting it right if you guessed Arcadia. The first time we went to a shopping mall in Arcadia , we were surprised with the number of Asians we saw. We blend in so well.

Then I was just wondering why. I talked to some friends and these are two main 'magnets' for Asians:
1. Good and reputable public schools in the neighbourhood, and this is true for both Glen Waverly and Arcadia. This shows how much Asians emphasize on good education. The TV was showing spelling competition and the contestants are all Asians!!
2. Good Chinese restaurants. This makes the restaurants in Chinatown pale in comparison.

If you drive around Asians neighbourhood, you will find plenty of nice cars on the road. M'sians and S'poreans especially are deprived of driving nice car. Cars cost a leg and an arm. When they are in Australia or US, they usually go crazy. Even Dominic is dreaming of his Audi and BMW here.

Asians value never die whenever they go - good school, good food, and nice car.

New Food

We have been introducing new food to Lucas. He has only been eating carrot, broccoli, spinach, fish, sweet potato, rice cereal, apple and banana. Quite a limited variety. So, we introduced chicken, yoghurt, finger food and bread. He did not react differently to chicken..assumed he could not tell the difference from fish. He loves the yoghurt cause it has lots and lots of sugar! And this yoghurt is specifically for babies! I am stopping the yoghurt for the time being until I find a sugar free yoghurt. He likes his finger food but he does not know how to feed himself. He still could not pick up food using this thumb and index finger. He will hold the small biscuit in his palm. The small biscuit melts in his hand instead of in his mouth! The selection is limited. Ran out of idea on what to feed him. Maybe when he has more teeth, choices will be better.

It is weekend again. Have no plan yet. Dominic bought him a duck float. Looks like it is going to be swimming or the beach again. Maybe this weekend, we will check out a dim sum place called Din Tai Fung. The S'pore branch has very good 'xia long poa'.

Motherhood and Vanity

I was at the Gymboree class last Saturday and the facilitator asked what do we do during our free time. Two out of four mothers said they go for pedicure and manicure. That got my thinking when was my last pedicure and other beauty regime. All the vanities have been reduced tremendously or does not exist anymore.

1. I used to go for facial once a month and now it is every 3-4 months. My beautician was hinting during my last facial that my face dark spots are getting darker and more. Need facial more frequently, she said.

2. I used to go for pedicure once in a while. The last pedicure was before Lucas was born. Maybe August 2006.

3. Makeup does not exist after Lucas was born. Not even when I was attending wedding dinner. All the nice eye shadow and eye liner have been cold storage. Hope they don't have expiry date.

4. I can't remember when was the last time I blow my hair and gel my hair. Again, it must have been before Lucas was born.

American homemakers do take initiative to look good compared to Asians, or rather me. They blow their hair and put on makeup everyday (even though they are not planning to go out). I always tell myself to do something about it but never get there. You see, I don't want to look like an 'ah soh' ..and that takes effort.

Shopping and Shopping

Today was such a heavy day for the wallet. We went to Camarillo Factory Outlet and went wild...kind of. There are things that we planned to buy and some unplanned. There were our purchases:

1. Luggage to replace our worn out one. We bought a Samsonite. It is expensive after conversion but we think it is still cheaper than KL.

2. Villeroy and Bach dinner set for 4. This was unplanned. I saw this during my trip to Melbourne and thought it was too expensive. Then I saw it here and the price is just irresistible. Now the headache is how to bring this home! I have this habit of buying dinner set when I go traveling. The last purchase was Noritake from Japan.

3. I bought a Coach handbag. The shop was packed with people like a wholesale shop. The clearance items are a good deal. That explained the crowd.

4. Sandals for myself and Dominic.

5. Shorts for Dominic. He completely forgot to being any shorts.

6. Clothes for Lucas. We are now buying him clothes for 2 years old! Osk B Kosh are so cheap and nice. Each top is onlyUS$5 include denim material. In KL, the cheapest is probably RM50 during sale and the design is not so cute. We got Lucas quite a few from Osh and Carters. I don't think we have Carters in KL.


We will not be shopping for a while...and I mean really a while, except for food.


On Saturday, we took Lucas for another core learning class at Gymboree. He did not enjoy this class that much. He even cried when I lied him down the mat. Looks like we will only we sending him to the music class. Actually, he doesn't need the class. The real reason is for me to network with other mothers. I can get valuable tips such as where to get good pediatrician, daycare baby sitter. He can also play with other babies his age, which he has not done before.

Gymboree offers 'friday date nite'. Parents can drop the baby there on Friday from 5pm to 9pm for US$40. It is like a baby-sitting. It is very difficult to get a baby-sitter here, just like M'sia.

And Dominic took Lucas to the apartment swimming pool or more precise the heated jacuzzi spa. He loves water. I think he has a mild tan now. He was very fair.
We have not weigh Lucas for a month now. He is definitely heavier and taller which he should be. We were guessing he is more than 9 kg now. His last weight was 8.2 kg. Hope he will learn to walk soon..a bit heavy to carry him for long. But hmm..maybe not so fast. Harder to keep an eye on him when he is walking!

He is 8 months old

Lucas is eight months old today. He had quite a few new adventures today.
1) He sleeps in his own room now. He slept from 10.30 pm to 7.30 am without crying (at least I didn't hear it).
2) He ate peach for the first time today and obviously doesn't like it. After a few spoons, he refused to open his mouth.
3) He attended a music class at Gymboree. He was happy to be playing with other babies, and singing in the car on the way home.

For an Asian, he is quite a big size. The pediatrician said he is a king size. When we were in the music class today, there were other 2 babies. One is a day older than Lucas, and another is a year old. Lucas is the biggest amongst them. Talking about American size!

We moved again

Yup...we moved three times in three weeks. First we moved from KL to a LA hotel, then to an apartment for 2 1/2 weeks and now this new apartment. This will be our last pit stop. I must said the apartment we are staying now is quite nice. Modern furnishing and quite high tech. The drawback is this is not a service apartment. That means I have to do all the housework...cleaning bathroom and windows are not my favourite chores!

The master bedroom is smaller than usual. The baby crib is a bit too big to be in the room. So, today Lucas is sleeping on a separate room! Let's see how long and how well we can take this arrangement. And this boy knows when we are in a grocery store. He will cry in 20 mins each time we are doing grocery shopping. He probably said 'Again..so boring'

We were at the Venice Beach yesterday since Lucas enjoyed the beach trip last weekend. Getting there was a nightmare. This boy cried for more than half an hour in the car! He wanted to get out from his car seat but it is against the law to travel without car seat. Once we get there, he was all smiley. We called him little rascal...just like we bought him the hat (in picture) which said 'little rascal'...and the hat was bought before he was born. We already known then....haha..

Venice Beach is more of people's beach. Quite a number of South Americans families. There are a number of street performers, stalls selling sunglasses. trinkets, tattoos and piercing..US version of pasar malam.

I used to be earning decent income in KL and now I cutting coupons to save a few dollars! That is quite a 'nice' change but hope not for long.

Living on US$50 a day?

This weekend activities were all unplanned. On Friday, we initally planned to go to the park. So, we drove there and found out that the parking is US$5 and it is mostly hiking trial ..i.e. not stroller friendly. So, we decided to skip it. Then we found this street of old shop houses called Monrovia Old Town. We walked around there instead. By chance, we found a shop run by two sisters which does baby hands and foot imprint. Of course we walked in and do some inquiry. We were so impressed by the sample they have and decided to have Lucas's hands and foot imprinted. That set us back by US$167! On the way back, we were wondering if we can get the imprint done in KL. Typical of us...spend first, think later. Anyway, it was interesting and these sisters have lots of story to tell. The photos are just the 'raw' cut. We have to wait for 4-6 weeks to see the end result.

Then on Saturday, we planned to go to LA zoo. We drove to Griffith Park and walked a bit. Most of the park is still closed due to fire a few years ago. Then we proceed to LA zoo. Lucas was nicely sleep when we get there. So, we drove around to let him sleep a bit longer. Of couse, we got distracted and ended on Mulholland Drive. It is a very scenic road to drive on. On most part, the road is sitting on the edge of the moutain. So, we get a very good view of whole of LA. Unfortunately, it is hazy.

Sunday will be hot and sunny. This time, we are planning to go to Venice Beach, near Santa Monica. Hope we will actually get there this time and not distracted to something else.

Dominic has an allowance of US$50 a day. We are trying to live within the budget...haha....Most of the time, we managed except when we have to do some shopping like buying Lucas warm clothes, buying high chair and car seat, doing the imprint........So far, we have lots of days to catch up!

Teething and Snoring

Last weekend has been an eventful weekend. We managed to explore some part of LA. But it also exhausted Lucas. These days, he snored when he sleeps. First, I thought his nose was blocked (he sleeps on his stomach) and quickly went over to check on him. Then the thought of asthma came to my mind. But he seems to be sleeping peaceful. Then I realised he was snoring! Can a seven and a half month old baby snores? His lower gum has teeth/tooth erupting out soon. This boy is really growing fast.

Cooking dinner can be so simple here. We have been buying meat (beef, pork and chicken - raw and cooked). Then we bought flavoured rice and salad. For dinner, we either pan fried or microwave the meat, had salad (no cooking required), and again microwave or boiled the flavoured rice for 5 mins. viola.........complete dinner is ready. No chopping, marinating etc. After eating, all dishes go to the dishwasher. Again viola.....kitchen is clean. How wonderful to have dishwasher and microwave.

I have also been looking for a suitable Gymboree class to send Lucas to. It is supposed to help them develop their mind and hand eye coordination. Have to work out the logistics part of it i.e. what time is Lucas usually awake, what day I can get the car. It costs US$168 for 2 hours a week for 2 months. That comes out to be about US$10 / hour.

Memorial Weekend

It is the memorial weekend and we had our first outing. We were supposed to meet up with a friend but she is down with cold. So, we did not want to take the chance to spread the germs to Lucas. We had a fruitful outing.

On Friday, we went up Mount Wilson Observatory. It is about an hour drive from Pasadena without getting lost. The moutain is more than 5000 feet above sea level. Lucas did not enjoy this trip that much. It is a windy road leading to the peak (like our road to Cameron Highland but wider). Lucas vomitted when we get up there. Guess he was having car motion sickness. On the way down, he cried. The difference in pressure must have make his ears uncomfortable. Next time we go, it will be without Lucas. He was not impressed at all.

On Saturday, we went to Santa Monica beach. This is much better. We can tell he was a lot happier. He had fun on the swing and on the sand. He might grow up to be a beach bum. Santa Monica is quite a nice place. No wonder quite a number of actors live there, like Marcia Cross (Bree from Desperate Housewives).

Sunday is a famous and fame day. We drove passed Beverly Hills. Nice houses and cars (mostly convertible or coupe). Then we went to Hollywood. Hollywood Blvd is packed with tourists. Not only foreign tourists but local as well. Did not see anyone famous. Only their hand print and leg print.

It has been sunny for the past few days. We had to get Lucas sun block and I think he has a bit of sun burn on his cheek. He enjoyed going out now and getting used to sitting on his car seat. When he sees his Daddy, he is jumping with happiness. He knows Daddy will take him out and Mommy will only take him to grocery shopping. Smart kid!

Time to explore

This weekend will be a long weekend. It is a Memorial Day on Monday 28 May. A lot of people will either go for holiday or balik kampung. We are planning something as well. We are meeting ex-colleagues who live an hour drive away from us. She suggested that we go to Disneyland which is the half way. Dominic think that place will be jammed pack with holidays makers. Will need to finalize the plan. According to my friend, Disneyland has a section for infants. She has two young children herself. It's called small small world with musical and moving cartoon. We will definitely check it out sometime. During dinner, we were joking. If Lucas asked to go to Disneyland when he is 5 years old, we will take out the photos and tell him 'You have been there!'.

Our holiday plan during the 4 months stay here...err..three and a half now....is to go to Las Vegas and San Francisco. Dominic has some cousins living on the East Coast and we will all most likely meet in Vegas. This will be in July as the children are having summer holidays. A bit too hot for Vegas...but nevermind.

San Francisco is not firmed up. It is a nice city and would like to go again. I was last there in 1992!!

Then, I would also like to go to Vancouver. Have 2 good friends there. But this will be a bit difficult to arrange. Too far to drive and flight will cost a lot as it is an international flight. And we don't have Canadian visa.

That should bring us till September.

Explosive Energy

We are here for a week now. Things look to settle down. Lucas is sleeping through at night (but he can do better). He sleeps at around midnight and wakes up at 7 am for milk and goes back to sleep until around noon. I am trying to get him to sleep by 10 pm and wakes up at 8am for milk.

This little boy has so much energy! Maybe the weather suited him better. He also seems happier. He enjoys our bed so much. He sleeps better on our bed than his own bed, which is actually a play-pen padded with blanket and bedsheet as mattress. The apartment is fully carpeted except for the kitchen. I do not let him crawl on the carpet as I thought it might be unhygenic. So, I usually put him on the bed or sofa as 'playing area'. He simply enjoys playing on the bed. He holds on to the head board and starts singing. Now and then he will let go of one hand and seems to be happy with his own achievement!

At seven and a half months, Lucas seems to understand what I said. Twice a day I will apply lotion to his face and put on some lip balm. Yesterday, I had his toy, the lotion and lip balm on the bed. And I asked him "Lucas, where is the lip balm? Where?' He looked at me and pick up the lip balm! Then I asked "Where is the lotion?". He picked up the lotion! So, now my next goal is to teach him not to cry unnecessary.