Baby Jarrett's 1st cereal

At 5mths day 2, Jarrett got his 1st taste of rice cereal. I would have preferred to wait till he's 6mths old, but I need to get him ready for solids in case he doesn't take to frozen breastmilk when I'm away. Anyway, don't think the little fellow will have problems eating solid, he gulped down his cereal in no time and was screaming for more.

Baby Jarrett Meets Baby Aidan Monster

Chic babies meet at the Marmalade Pantry for Sunday Brunch..of cos all they had were breastmilk...maybe that was why they didn't look too excited....and looked a tad disgruntled too, I think....

lazy afternnon at Coffeebean

The little one had lots of fun at coffeebean last Sun. All everyone heard at the little, cozy outlet was Jarrett's screams of laughter. And dun yell at me, I swear I had a decaf.

I left my brain at home this morning

I have been trying really hard to get to the office earlier, so I can squeeze in more work. But it all back fired this morning. Woke up at 6.45am to nurse Jarrett and thought I could start preparing for work right after tucking him back to bed. Wrong....I fell back in bed myself and didnt' wake up till 8.30am. Still alright I thought. On the way to the office, I stopped at Caltex to fill up the tank....only to realise I LEFT MY WALLET AND PHONE at home! Too late to drive off as the aunty had already started the pump! Argh...............panic panic.........went into the station hoping to borrow a phone to call SOS but staff said phone is strictly for staff only and for work! Darn!

I think I must have looked darn desperate cos the aunty in Old Chang Kee (right in the station, yum yum) took pity on me and offered me her personal HP. So sweet of her. I am so going back tomorrow and buying lots and lots of curry puff from her!

My colleague Jack was depatched as the SOS guy! 10 mins later, petrol paid and I rushed off in my blue wheels! So I didn't turn up at work earlier, and got into more trouble instead. Sigh......the brain's not working too well I tell you and I heard it's a common problem shared among all mummies.

Someone sexy's waiting for me in bed

Breastmilk cheap?

I have been stuffing myself with food since baby was born. I kid you not when I say I am eating more than Wx now "GASP"! And for people who know how much Wx can eat, it's scary isn't it? The amount I am eating.

I do not eat huge servings (thou the servings are definitly bigger than what I used to eat) at one go, but I am constantly snacking along the day, right up to before I hit the bed. Sometimes I even grab a snack when I wake up at 3am to express milk. It has reached a point where even my bro-in-law couldn't help but made a remark on it. Wx has been quite concern too and put it very "nicely" that maybe I shouldn't be eating so much.
Well, honestly, I think it's terrifying too but I really cannot help it! I am constantly hungry! If I don't prepare snacks for work, I'll be going round looking for (others) food. I'm like the starving dog in the office. My energy level will also dip all the way down. No food, no energy.
My sis has taken pity on me and has been bringing me snacks (so sweet of her.. infact, she has been doing so since I got pregnant). My mum always let me have the first pick whenever she brings snacks over, which also means I get to have double servings!
I used to share my food with Wx, half of it would go to him. These days, he's lucky if he gets a taste of what I am eating! If I share, I'll end up telling him "Know what? My tummy feels empty" and I am the one who has to keep hinting for supper. The poor dear simply can't keep up with me.

So people who think breastfeeding is cheap, think again. Wx will have to rob the bank soon to feed me, and with my investments in 2 electrical pumps, 1 manual pump, over 2 dozens of milk bottles, hundreds of milk bags and tonics, I really don't think there's much savings at all. Infact, I think we may be spending more. Now..don't get me started on why THEN I want to breastfeed. Seriously...

Botak Jarrett

After months of "fighting" with the Mr., I finally gave in and shaved Jarrett botak.

BeforeThis was why we had to shave him. The Grandma screamed murder the moment I causally brought up the subject of shaving but as one can see, Jarrett has been "plucking" himself bald for weeks! The moment he managed the gripe, he had been pulling out his hair. So to save him the trouble and the pain...I gave in and we shaved him (DIY) 2 Sats ago. All done at home, with a Philips hair shaver. Took us quite a while as the little one got very frustrated and angry. We nearly gave up and wanted to run off to the hairdresser, with half a shaven head. Haha..but decided to try my hand at it and managed to finish the job. So half done by daddy and half done by mummy. We are darn proud of ourselves! Not very easy ok, with a screaming baby, plus with each shave, my heart was bleeding. I really like his hair! If he had not been pulling out his mop of hair, I wouldn't have agreed to shave it all off.

After. Freshly shaven! My Botak Jarrett.
Turned out lots of people like it, they have been cooing over him since then.

Brunch at Mimolette

Very serious about food

still prefers milk....

First trip to Botanic Garden & Grandpa's Birthday dinner

Jarrett's first trip to the Botanic Garden and he was a big hit with the babes.

Grandpa's little darling. Cousin's little cutie.

Lucky Jarrett!

This came in the mail last week, all the way from London.
Mummy's the birthday girl but Jarrett got the present. He's one lucky kid, showered with lots of love from all corners of the world!

Baby Jarrett: Thank you Aunty Tricia! I love the book, I've got "That's Not My Puppy". Looks like my mummy and Tyler shares the same taste when it comes to books!" LOL

and a few of daddy's fav pics

I know this is an old joke..but i really can't resist posting this

We weren't kidding when we said Jarrett loves being Superman.

Wx's getting kick out of the room.

No..we didn't have a lovers' quarrel but Wx is under quarantine. The old man has got the cough since yesterday and in our household, when one of us gets sick, he/she gets boot out of the room! Sorry dear, u are either sleeping on the couch or the guest room tonight. With the baby around, we have to be more careful now. Instead of just sleeping apart, we have also enforced the rule of wearing a mask and washing our hands before we touch Jarrett. Contact with the little one is to be kept to a minimal. So it's the case of "Can see but cannot touch".

Why so fussy? Cos......
1) If the little one gets sick, he will not be able to tell us what's wrong with him, so he'll resort to his only way = cry

2) If we do not know he's crying because he's not feeling well, it will result in a lot of irritation and anger and we may mistaken it as him being cranky and which.... may further result in more irritation which.... may lead to us scolding him for the wrong reasons.

3) As parents, we all hate the feeling of helplessness when it comes to our children. It's not a nice feeling knowing that your baby is not feeling well and because he can't tell you what to do, you don't really know what to do to make him more comfortable. I know of some mummies who break down when their little ones fall ill.

4) Heartache. Please see above point 3. U ever see a baby cry till his face's red, tears all over his face and you don't know what to do?

5) I don't mean to say small = weak, but if you are able to prevent a little one from falling sick, shouldn't u do it?

So Daddy's off duty for the next few days, till he gets well. If U read my earlier post, you'll know I am in deep shit cos I'm exhausted. Of course I love to take care of Jarrett, he's my precious little meatball...but I really appreciate having Wx around. He's been great with the baby whereas I am more like an apprentice. So if u call me anytime these few days and if I sound flustered, u know why.

Exhaustion has done me in..

I'm a bad mummy. I did the unthinkable yesterday. I hit my baby "wail.....................". In case you are thinking, no..i didn't bash him against the wall or kick him in the head...it was a tap on his hand but I am dying from shame and eaten by guilt ever since. How could I hit my precious little meatball??? I am a monster!!! The father has been shaking his head at me which adds on to my guilt.

What made me snapped was exhaustion. I have been trying to be a supermom, and boy, it's not easy. Having to juggle a career with motherhood and being a wife is no joke. After a long day in the office, I return home each day, eager to spend some time with my son, but along the way, there are endless chores to be done. There were a few times where I felt like I was going to black out. I know I should take it easy and probably leave the baby with my in laws who are all too eager to take up the duty of babysitting overnite but I want to spend time with my baby too. 24hrs are no longer enough, I feel like I am racing against time and at times I feel like my heart is going to pop out from my chest as I run from one place to the next. I even feel like sleeping when I am behind the wheels.

So on Sunday when the little one just wouldn't calm down and stopped crying, coupled with my super duper low tolerance level whenever I am very tired, I snapped and hit him on his hand. I am not feeling very proud now. Exhaustion is not an excuse. Mummy's sorry Baby Jarrett.
I now understand the saying "when a parent beats a child, it's the parent who will hurt more".

Jarrett's in the Lourve!

Jarrett's First Mail!

Look what came in the mail yesterday! Jarrett's first mail at 13th week! Aunty Jean had sent him a "Will Work for Milk" T-shirt! How sweet!

Baby Jarrett: Thank you Aunty Jean! MUACK MUACK!

It's a day for celebration!

Pastor Yen Ming came over to give blessing prayers for Jarrett and our house today.

In all the 9 years we have been together, WX had probably said the acceptance prayer a few times, but today was special. I will not say more, but I feel most grateful & blessed. He's not going for baptism anytime soon, but this is enough for me now. God works in miraculous ways.

Sunday outings - Church! and then shopping ;-)

Bumper Mat

We bought this before Jarrett was born. KS? Maybe..but I wanted to use this when I had my post-natal massages which was good cos it protected my parquet from getting oil stain. Since then, it has been kept in the storeroom, waiting for baby to grow up.

For a while, I thought we were a bit frivolous to spend so much ($266) when there are so many more affordable options available, eg. mattress, ABC mat, playmat,foam mat etc. After all, it is just to create a play area for baby rite. Plus, the grandparents thought we are crazy, after all babies of olden days were brought up just fine without any fancy mats at all.

Well, last weekend, we brought it out from the store room, clean it up and put it out. I had a series of activities planned for my time alone with Jarrett (see earlier post). Well, my doubts about the expenditure were put to rest! I must now say, the bumper mat is a good investment! Why?

1) It's colourful and attractive
I also like it that it can doubled up as an educational "toy" with ABC and nouns printed on both sides.

2) Very comfy and cooling
Definitly very comfortable to lie on. Infact, I spent one afternoon napping on it with Jarrett.
As for the cooling part, it doesn't feel like latex mattresses or rubber mats where you feel very warm after lying on it for a while. Or maybe it's due to my ceiling fan? But doubt so, cos there are days where I sit perspiring on my sofa.

3) Low maintenance
Ultra important to me! It can be easily clean with cloth and warm water. I use Dettol, since it's the first time Jarrett's using it, otherwise, warm water is seriously sufficient.
I also don't have to worry about stains (think milk, pee, drool stains etc...baby??), musty smells from storage, dust mites etc.

4) Baby cannot tear out individual pieces to munch on

The only bad thing I can think of (so far) is the weight. It weighs a tonne! But otherwise, I am definitly pleased with our choice.

My first weekend with Jarrett

Yes, I have been a mother for 10 weeks, and no, prior to last weekend, I had never really been alone with Jarrett. There were a few times where Wx had to go out for 1-3hrs, leaving baby and I at home but being a newborn, Jarrett spent most of the those time sleeping.

So last weekend was the first time I was really alone with Jarrett. For one whole week, I was feeling so stressed about THE WEEKEND! I whined to everyone who would listen to me and thought of ways to prepare myself.
For those who are not aware, Wx has been the one doing most of the work when it comes to taking care of Jarrett. I mostly only nurse, comfort and play with him. My sis laughed at my anxiety and told me when the time comes, I would automatically slip into maternal mode and enjoy myself.

Was she right? Yeap..she was! I enjoyed myself alright. There were a few stressful moments like lugging my 12kg pram into the car boot with a fussing baby and Jarrett crying when I was cooking noodles, but overall, the weekend was a success. I have picked up a few new skills along the way, like eating with a baby on my lap, driving alone with Jarrett and operating my stroller which is not easy ok! I did mention it's 12 kg rite?

By the time Wx returned home at night, Jarrett had fallen asleep in my arms. I felt a profound sense of achievement and motherhood had never felt so great. I'm definitly looking forward to more time alone with my baby son.

Taken over the weekend just before he took his nap.

Elvis no. 2!

Constipation??

The daddy says I'm a bad mummy to post this pic. Am I? This is way to cute not to share, no?

Taken when Jarrett was pooing..

Jarrett's up!

At week 8!

Jarrett has always refused to do tummy time. Each time we tried, he would simply lie there and start crying and screaming, not even bothering to try lifting up his head a tiny little bit. So on the 17th Feb, we just thought to try our luck and guess what! The little guy just surprised us with this sudden development and stayed upright for quite a while, until he remembered it was milk time that is. LOL...

Jarrett and the tub

Jarrett has some major issues with bathing. He's super terrified of it. He used to love it in the first 3-4 weeks, always calm and happy in the tub. But in recent weeks, whenever we put him in the there, he'll start crying and screaming in fear. It has gotten so bad that whenever we change his diapers or clothes, he'll start crying too, thinking it's bathing time again. We have tried all sorts of ways, introducing bath toys, songs, tapping his chest, placing wash cloths on his chest. U named it, we most probably have tried it.
In desperation, we have resorted to stripping down and bathing with the little one. We have tried it twice so far, and both times worked. He sobbed a little at the begining, but he'll remain quiet and calm after a while but this cannot be a long term solution cos 1) I cannot ask my MIL to do the same thing when I am back at work and 2) It's rather dangerous showering with a slippery baby, esp one who is struggling so much.

Jarrett fallen asleep halfway through his bath. We think it was because he was so scared he "fell" asleep.

Jarrett with Godpa Adrian

Visiting Godpa on CNY. Showered with lots of love, with Godgrandma (?) looking on.

Jarrett loves his Baby Bjorn, a gift from Godpa. He loves to people watch from it and loves the rocking motion so much that he always Zzzzz after a while.

Jarrett's 1st CNY!

If I charged $5 for each pic taken with him (as suggested by my bro), I would have been able to earn quite a pretty sum that day..haha...

Week 7, Day 6

At week 7, day 6, Jarrett has managed to sleep through the night for the first time! We are hoping he'll keep to this new sleeping routine and not a one time thing due to the exhaustion from the CNY holidays.

2nd outing (back dated post)

was a failure....Jarrett just slept and slept and slept.....

When he gets cranky.....

..we'll try all sorts of methods to calm him down. Strangly, whenever we place him in weird position, it helps! This is one of them which totally cracks us up but if it works, who's complaining rite? He even fell asleep and stayed that way for quite a while.

Jarrett's 1st outing

Our first official outing (PD visit and grandparents house not counted) with Jarrett was a success! The little fellow was most well behaved and didn't fuss much, which is good cos it means more outings in future.


At the end of the day, Jarrett was exhausted! A trip to the mall, and then to mummy's office and finally Grandmama house might have been too much for a 4 week old baby.
(not looking too good in his car seat cos Jarrett has reflux and we didn't want to take the chance of him puking all over his new Maxi Cosi, thus the waterproof sheet. So bad of us...)

Jarrett and his throne

The Papasan bouncer is just too comfy, within mins, Jarrett fell asleep.


Thank you Uncle Mervyn, Aunty Brenda and Baby Kayden!

Hip hip hurray!!

5 weeks post delivery and my favourite pair of Levis is back in action after 6-7 months of hibernation!

Our wedding cake

Kept in the freezer for 1 year 10 months, served on Baby's full month celebration.
This is a western practice, believed to bring luck or something, I can't really remember.
I just thought it will be fun to do so, but needless to say, most didn't dare to go near it after hearing it was nearly 2 years old. Haa....only Adrian and Jean were game enough to eat a slice each. None of us got sick ok! Plus I soaked it with good whiskey the night before.

Breastfeeding

It's not easy. Infact, it is extremely difficult in the first 3 days before the milk "comes in", esp. so for 1st time mummy who has never breastfed before. You will have to face countless people telling you that the baby is starving each time the baby cries. Couple that with the post-natal hormones, it can drive you crazy. The only ones telling you to try harder and stick to breastfeeding are the lactation consulatant and most of the nurses. Other than that, most people, especially the grandparents, were telling or rather nagging at me to feed baby with formula. Even the PD was telling me that, never mind that he should know better than anyone that colostrum is best and enough for babies in the first few days after birth.
And then there is the 1-2 hourly feed, which is especially tough in the wee hours in the morning. It's the worst at 3am when you are most sleepy and half the world is sleeping.

I am quite surprise alot of people still believe cow's milk is better than breastmilk. A girlfriend was shocked Baby Jarrett's on total breastfeeding and said she's doesn't believe in it. This is coming from a very educated and well read mother. No offence to those mummies who give their babies formula milk, I am just very pro-breastfeeding and believe that by doing so, I am providing my child with the best nutrition. There are many articles and books on the benefits on breastfeeding. Not only is it good for the baby, it is also good for the mother. It reduces the risk of breast and ovarian cancer, osteoporosis and high blood pressure in later life. It has also been shown that babies on breastmilk score on average 8-10 point higher in IQ tests. The list of benefits goes on...I'm thinking the MOH should try harder in educating the public on the good of breastfeeding. Apprently, not enough is done.

I am not pointing the finger at mommies who formula feed their babies, it is very much a personal choice. I just wish more people are aware of the benefits of breastfeeding. "Cow's milk is for little calfs, and breastmilk is for babies", that's God's idea when he created the world ;-) I'm sure He created the cow with the intention of using it as a spare, not as a replacement.

Oh btw, I "fired" my PD. I much prefer to work with someone who shares the same values as me, that breast is best and yes, Baby Jarrett is eating well. Infact, we find his little double chin quite adorable.

Baby Jarrett

Little Jarrett loves bath time!
We named this the Shrek pussy cat look
and this is the chickpea face which we abs adore!
Fashion shoot? Ha..