Joven's Full Month Celebration

We brought Baby to a good friend's son's first month lunch today at their new place.

Here are some photos we took there:



Just look at our baby! I think he can easily pass off as a new born! He is also drinking as little as a newborn!


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Baby swimming 3

The pool today was not very crowded. Baby didn't have to wait to swim.

This session, he was sleepy and didn't care to swim much and kept going round and round in circles. But, still he was all smiles when he saw daddy and mummy and the spectators at the window. :)




Of course, we didn't forget our family photo...



Me with Baby: Look behind us and you'll find the photos of my colleague's triplets! :)

After that, we headed to buffet at Conrad...


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Nov Celebration 6 - Lobby Lounge Conrad

To round off the Nov celebrations, I decided that we should go for some afternoon tea. I'm glad we chose the Lobby Lounge at Conrad Centennial Hotel.

They really do offer a wide selection of green, black and "mixed" teas to go with your pastries. I chose the green "Chun Mee" while CP had the "Singapore Sling" tea. The tea comes in a "Sleeping Teapot". You let it "sleep" if you want your tea stronger, let it stand if you prefer a milder taste.





Free refill of sandwiches, buffet spread of pastries.




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The story about Baby and his Drumstick

I don't know what it means but this is another custom to follow on baby's 4th month...


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4th month Vaccination

Baby had his 2nd dose of 6-in-1 jab and last dose of rotavirus oral vaccine yesterday.

Like the last time, he developed a fever. This time it was 37.7ºC. He seems so normal - still active and playful - that it was hard to tell that he was running a fever if not for the thermometer.

Trying to bring down his temperature by having better air circulation, putting on cooling patch on his forehead and feeding more often. The weather was of no help - yesterday was hot and stuffy and today was rainy and cold... Have been monitoring his temperature hourly, hope the fever would subside by today.



Picture on the left: DC with A inside the clinic, taken before the jab.



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Baby is 4 months old

He's sooo full of sounds now and he's such a smiley! :D He has begun to discover his hands and puts everything in his mouth. He is constantly drooling and he loves to suck his fingers and he looks sooo cute when he's doing that sucking action, oh yes you must listen to that sounds he makes!

His hair started dropping since last month and strands of hair can be found on his pillow. We took him for a hair trim last Sat. He looked so refreshed in his new hairstyle (no longer look like a girl girl) but he definitely don't like his hair to be touched!

His neck is now much firmer and could support his head already. However, he still doesn't like to lie on his tummy and would always fuss up when we try to turn him around!

Baby has been to many many places and we even took him to fine dinning (Yes, we were crazy enough to do that)! He was very uncooperative that day, crying for his milk, being cranky and pooing in his Burberry bodysuit during the meal! It was quite an experience!

We started taking him swimming and he enjoyed it very much, so we signed him up for 10 sessions of swimming sessions. He was such a natural in water, just like his daddy! :)

His schedule is quite routine now. He sleeps between 10 and 11pm at night until the next morning. I could manage my time very effectively and finished lots of things including naps while he's sleeping! Now that taking care of him becomes a breeze (I was doing such a good job looking after him!), I'm so reluctant to go back to work! But sigh, it is still not time to quit working... in fact, I've already gone back to work last week and had handed over Baby to my in-laws to take care during the day. So far so good...

Next month, will he be able to roll over and crawl? I can't wait to know!


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Baby Swimming 2

We bought Baby back for swimming today.

Unlike the first time, this time, maybe after yesterday's experience he was not as excited.

But, he did amaze me with his swimming styles! His first swimming session, he just kicked vertically vigorously. This time, he decided to use less effort and I saw him try the dog style (legs behind), the back style (legs in front and half floating body) and for many times, he kicked against the tub wanting to push and propel himself backwards! Haha, that part was so funny - the tub was not wide enough for him to bring himself far back and so, he ended up being bounced back to the front! Caught him springing many times, it looks like fun to him! We were certainly entertained as well! :)

Photo time:

Talking to duckie

We planted a duckie on his head, hehe... :P

There were many more photos with the duckie... and then finally, photos with daddy and mummy!




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Baby's haircut

Brought Baby for his haircut. Yeh, finally! A lot of people has been asking us whether we are going to cut his very long hair - his doc being one and his grandparents from both sides too.. We've been waiting because we were told that the tradition is that you only cut the hair on the 1st, then the 4th month and not anywhere in between. Probably because the neck is stable by the 4th month... Many suggested shaving him bald but, we rebelliously decided that botak is not for him and gave him a trim instead. :P

3 persons to hold him during the haircut.

He didn't like it and kept crying. It also affected his mood and he refused to swim after that! Only managed to soak him in water for a few minutes. Lucky for us, the center refunded us the session, it was very kind of them!


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Nov Celebration 5 - Dan Ryan's!

I've been crying out for some good steak. Longbar Steakhouse wasn't too satisfying so I made sure that we should get it right this time. What better place than Dan Ryan's? Did I also mention that it's no-holds-barred feasting for Nov as well? :D

It's been almost 10 yrs since I last visited it. I used to got there with CP when we were dating, so much so that I can still remember the decor. Little has changed when I stepped back in again. I still remember the seats and the posters on the walls :)



True enough, the 12 oz ribeye doesn't disappoint. At half the price of Morton's or Longbar, it's fantastic. It's grilled nicely, just a slight burnt taste and juicy on the inside. You can see the grilled marks on the slab of meat quite clearly. I can never understand how some restaurants can cook that steak until it's almost black ...

There is no fanciful sauce to go with it, you just dig into it plainly. Sweet and juicy!



What you have though, is sea salt to go with the steak.



CP had trout, which wasn't really their specialty. Nothing great to it. If you hate bones, then this isn't for you too.



The dessert is to-die-for! It's the best molten chocolate cake ever! Right now, it's at the top of my list! It's the first time I saw such overflowing molten chocolate, not to mention the cake was warm and moist. Topped with a generous scoop of vanilla ice-cream, it's heaven!



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The language dilemma

What language should I teach my baby?

I heard this discussion on radio in a cab when I was on the way to find DC and I thought now is the time to really ponder about this. Shall it be English? Mandarin? Dialect? Foreign language?

No doubt English and Mandarin will be taught during class but I thought we should really build the foundation from young. English is more widely used in Singapore, so I'm inclined to speak to Baby in English. However, Mandarin is an essential language for him to communicate to his grandparents. Then, there is worry that the dialect we use to communicate to our parents would die in our hands.

We are a greedy lot - In the end, we speak mixture of English, Mandarin, the grandparents speak the dialects (Cantonese and Hokkien) and of course, the "baby language" to him. Let's hope the little fellow will not get confused!


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Useful Reference Tables for New Mummies

A compilation of info taken from various sources, very useful for new mummies...

How much sleep is required?

Sleep Guidelines
Age	Nighttime Sleep	Daytime Sleep (number of naps)	Total Sleep
1 Month	8.5	7 (3)	15.5
3 Months	10	5 (3)	15
6 Months	11	3.25 (2)	14.25
9 Months	11	3 (2)	14
12 Months	11.25	2.5 (2)	13.75
18 Months	11	2.25 (1)	13.5
2 Years	11	2 (1)	13
3 Years	10.5	1.5 (1)	12

Breast Milk Storage

Breast Milk Storage Guidelines
Room Temperature	Refrigerator	Freezer compartment	Freezer	Deep Freezer
4-8 hours (May be left at room temperature for up to 10 hours if the temperature is below 72°F, 22°C)	Three to eight days	Up to 2 weeks	3-4 months	6-12 months
66-72°F, 19-22°C	32-39°F, 0-4°C	Temperatures vary	4°F, 20°C	0°F, -19°C
Use at next feeding or discard	Transfer to freezer within 8 days, use, or discard	Once frozen breast milk is thawed, it should be used within 24 hours. Do not refreeze.	Once frozen breast milk is thawed, it should be used within 24 hours. Do not refreeze.	Once frozen breast milk is thawed, it should be used within 24 hours. Do not refreeze.

*Note: Leftover thawed milk from a feeding must be used immediately or discarded.
Thawed milk can only be kept at room temp for 1 hour.


Singapore Immunization Chart

Immunization Table
Age	Vaccine	Immunisation Against
At Birth	BCG Hepatitis B - 1st Dose	Tuberculosis Hepatitis B
1 Month	Hepatitis B - 2nd Dose	Hepatitis B
3 Months	DPT/DT - 1st Dose Oral Sabin - 1st Dose	Diphtheria, Pertussis & Tetanus Poliomyelitis
4 Months	DPT/DT - 2nd Dose Oral Sabin - 2nd Dose	Diphtheria, Pertussis & Tetanus Poliomyelitis
5 Months	DPT/DT - 3rd Dose Oral Sabin - 3rd Dose	Diphtheria, Pertussis & Tetanus Poliomyelitis
5-6 Months*	DPT/DT - 3rd Dose Oral Sabin - 3rd Dose	Diphtheria, Pertussis & Tetanus Poliomyelitis
1-2 Years	MMR - Primary dose	Measles, Mumps & Rubella
18 Months	DPT/DT - 1st Booster Oral Sabin - 1st Booster	Diphtheria, Pertussis & Tetanus Poliomyelitis
6-7 Years (Pri 1)	Oral Sabin - 2nd Booster MMR - Booster dose	Poliomyelitis Measles, Mumps & Rubella
10-11 Years (Pri 5) See Note	DT-containing vaccine - 2nd Booster** Oral Sabin - 3rd Booster	Diphtheria & Tetanus Poliomyelitis

* The 3rd dose of Hepatitis B vaccination can be given with the 3rd dose of DPT
and Oral Sabin for the convenience of parents.

** Can use either :
Diphtheria-tetanus vaccine; or
Combined tetanus, reduced diphtheria and acellular pertussis vaccine

Note: Children in Primary 6 in 2008 will still receive the MMR booster and DT 3rd booster. Children in Primary 5 (2008 -2011) will receive the MMR booster and DT 3rd booster.

Data taken from here.


How much nutrition is required?




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A Brand New Life

After staying at home for 3+ months, I'm finally return office as a mummy! It's another period of adjustments... just when I'm used to taking care of the baby at home, i have to start all over and get used to waking up and preparing for work, get used to the work environment again (i see some new changes and new faces at work), get used to going lactation room, etc.

Day 1 in office, the first thing to do is to check out the lactation room - the place where i'll hang out frequently.

Very clean n thoughtfully decorated - there's a fridge, mirror and cute baby posters inside but it's really cold inside...


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I heart video calls

Another video call. This time from Mummy to Daddy!



This is fun. As usual, Baby is fascinated and sooo cute! :)


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Nov Celebration 4 - Pizzahut!

On the big day itself, we went to Pizzahut! I love birthdays. You always get great discounts. We have a free regular Hawaiian pan pizza with order of any ala-carte pizza. Quite the right portions for my parents and us.







Related Tweet:
15 Nov 2009, 11:31 PM, CP: On full stomach - eating our way through our very own novemberfest!


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An Easy Threesome

Finally, a fuss free way to extend your LCD real estate. The UV+ 16 USB LCD adapter lets you easily hook up a monitor using a USB port. It runs video well, needless to say, web pages and other applications display like your primary monitor. I did notice an extra of 15% CPU load when running video on it. Well, it's not a dedicated graphics card after all.

Tested it out on my Macbook Pro too. It works perfectly with MacOS version 10.5.8. In fact, the driver integrated with MacOS better than Win XP. In Win XP, I had times when the USB driver wasn't loaded correctly and I had to unplug and plug back the usb connector.

Those of you out there who wanted to connect another 2 extra monitors to your iMac or Macbook, get it from Amazon at US$58.95.





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爱心早餐

Birthday brought forward...

DC had a hearty breakfast today!


Did that in a rush (must complete before baby wakes up for his first feed!). There's certainly room for improvement, I'll do a better job next time! :P


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Nov Celebration 3 - Les Amis

After yesterday night, I really thought hard about bringing baby Aaron along to Les Amis. In the end, we still went ahead. As we were reaching there, it started to pour. Was that a sign of things to come ...?

Les Amis was a restaurant that CP had wanted to go for a long time. Somehow, we have been to a number of fine dining restaurant but not Les Amis. What better time to go than on my birthday month.

We went expecting greatness and were not disappointed. Truly deserving of being in the Top 10 of the Miele Guide.

Great service, the door was opened even before we stepped up to the entrance. Our stroller was carried up by the attendant and we were shown to our private dining room.





MY worse fears came true. Baby Aaron started throwing tantrums again. Back to feeding him again, in turns.



Then he pooed ...

Well, in the end, it was still an enjoyable lunch, much more than Longbar Steakhouse the previous evening. The rain cleared up by the time we finished, which aptly summed up the situation - 雨过天晴.



Finally, my birthday gifts. We walked over to ION Orchard after lunch and chanced upon this pair of cufflinks from Burberry. Well, needless to say, CP bought it for me as she bought all my cufflinks. Nice!



That was a bonus gift. My actual gift was discovered by me two days before in our home - LV Boston Reversible belt! Doubly nice!!




Related Tweets:
10 Nov 2009, 11:56 PM, CP: Oops, 穿帮了！DC found his secret present, it's supposed to be a surprise on his birthday! I should have hid it in a more concealed place! ;P


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