Birthday Wishes

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AH BOH !!!

Love and blessings from your favourite (only) nephew.

Aidan's first haircut - VIDEO

Finally! We got ahold of the video of Aidan's 1st Professional haircut, taken last year.

Voila! Take note especially to what he says at 0:33.

Toilet training part 2

I've been taking heaps of pics of Aidan with our new camera, but I've yet to put them up. I will soon, I promise. As soon as I find my card-reader!

On another note, toilet training is well underway, and bubba's received numerous stars over the last week, and chocolate rewards, for 'going' in the toilet. Weeheee! Of course we've had a couple accidents along the way, but so far, none on the couch!

Anyhooos, just a short update, will post pics soon!

New Year New Look

Hope you like it!

Small shout-out to anyone who has the time and inclination. Our blog needs a new mast-head, so if you're willing and able to do it for GREAT publicity on this blog (heeheehee), please let me know if you can help!

Toilet training part 1

Now that's it's the new year, I'm officially starting to toilet-train Aidan.

Officially, I say, because last year we tried, but not fully consistently, mostly on account of me. I wasn't very consistent at putting him on the dunny and asking him to go. Or when I did, he was more interested in playing with the toilet paper roll and flushing than really with the actual business of going.

Yesterday, however, was a semi-improvement. We finally bought some underwear at Best & Less (for only $1! I bought TWELVE pairs!!) and the day before I'd let him go nappy-less and he did a wee on the floor (and then the rug later in the evening!). It served its purpose - to show him the consequence of not going in the toilet. Of course if we're out of the house the nappies go on...don't want accidents in public!

Anyways, back to yesterday. I'd popped him into the bathtub for his shower, and asked him to go. And he did! On command! And he could control it! Stop and go, stop and go... there was a lot of cheering going on in that bathroom I tell ya! And a chocolate mini-muffin reward. And this morning I popped on his new underwear, which turned out to be too big, so I had to clip it together with a BULLDOG CLIP.

Proof

Hey I can't help it if he's a lot tinier than the ang moh kids around here ok?! It's the smallest size they had!

NB: Routines are finally back in order, he's back to feeding himself again, and eating the foods he used to eat (rejected bread and all his favourite stuff in Singapore!) HOWEVER....he's still waking TWICE a night, once at 2am, once at 5am...argffff

Duck Tales (woo ooo!)

Tuesday was particularly eventful - we spent the morning touring Singapore uniquely (haha) from the river's point of view.

We got to see the Flyer unobstructed, the Merlion, the impending IR... and Aidan was bored bored BORED throughout the whole experience!

I think he had the most fun when we disembarked and he got to play with his duck whistle (which really sounds like a duck! A German tourist standing behind my Dad at the counter asked him to blow the whistle and promptly bought it for...HUNTING!!)

*grumble* I could've saved the $$ spent on him and just bought the duck whistle straightaway from the counter. That said, my parents and I really enjoyed the tour, and our tour guide was pretty entertaining, throwing bits of useful information interlaced with historical fact. Like how the Swissotel Stamford's (formerly the Westin) the world's tallest building...20 years ago. And how the record holder for its vertical marathon last year of 1336 stairs clocked in at 6 mins 46 seconds. SIX minutes!! That's faster than the LIFT!!

I love the prize though - you get return tickets to the Big Apple, with an invitation to climb the Empire State Building. As the guide campily proclaimed, "So yes, ladies and gentlemen, your prize for climbing a really tall building...is to climb another really tall building!!"

My little ducky's big adventure:

All aboard!!

*Gasp* You mean we sit in it and not eat it?!

Off we go with our fellow tourists

Finally! A clear view of Aidan's favourite Flyer

And the Merlion
(NB: I only just found out what it means "to merlion" thanks to hubby
regaling me with story of NS drinking days) .

"This is my country...this is my land..."

Quack quack!!

Wiley coyote

Aidan set this up this morning, while playing Lego with Gran.



He said, "This is Mama, Dada, Aidan and Baby!!"

Hmmm.... methinks he's dropping A MAJOR HINT. Did somebody put him up to this??!!

Innocent eyes...bah!

Tube talk

Our morning ritual of breakfast has taken a new turn, with Aidan rejecting all bread and bread-like products. This means he won't eat sandwiches, buns, not even the chocolate-swirled ones!

Added to that, he hops onto his grandparent's couch and says, "I want TV!"

And apparently he has an aversion to any forms of encouragement given on-screen:

Ellen: Blah blah blah....hooray!!! (Audience claps)

Aidan (sipping his Milo): No clapping! Nooo clapping!

Me: It's all right, they're just cheering for the people on stage.

Ellen: blah blah blah....chicken! (audience cheers AND claps)

Aidan: Stop it! Stop clapping!!!

In conclusion, all he ate this morning were the dried berries from my cereal, his Milo, and a small bite of his peanut butter-and-chocolate-swirl bread. That's it.

Good grief, which kid in his right mind REJECTS PEANUT BUTTER-AND-CHOCOLATE-SWIRL BREAD?!!

Sleuthing: The Mystery of the Sleepwalker

Dear Aidan

You did the most adorable thing tonight. Dada and I came home from a movie (Sherlock Holmes, a pretty enjoyable Robert Downey Jr-Jude Law brom-com action detective noir film - how many genres could Guy Ritchie fit into it?!) to find you snuggled up under the covers, in OUR bed!

I think you did that last night too when you mysteriously appeared beside me in the middle of the night. I had no recollection of you crying out, or calling me, or even me lifting you up to sleep with me. I deduce you must have climbed up on your own!

I love snuggling with you, hugging you and cuddling you. I wish you'll stay little forever.

Love,
Mama

Homeward bound

We're having a really terrific time here in Singapore, eating and catching up with people and spending quality time with family. And Christmas, oh Christmas!

I have to say, there's definitely more of a Christmas atmosphere here than in Melbourne. The extravagant lights, throngs of people, piped Christmas music, Christmas cheer, it all brings back a rush of memories and revelry.

Some pics via Just-whatever.com






Lunch was special at my family's where everyone got together to swap presents and stories (Uncle Y's being the most outrageous as usual, something about his Chinese god-daughter hooking up with an Angolese diplomat's son and bearing his child. And its political/legal/moral ramifications.) And we ate and ate and ate.

I think my parents are really enjoying the time with their little grandson - they've been babysitting him, and watched him after the party as we went to catch Avatar 3D. (Pretty amazing movie, a wholly created world! [My hip parents had already caught it before we did - Dad was proudly announcing that he got to watch it on his Senior Citizens pass - just $4 only okay?!]) It's great to see Mum and Dad pouring so much joy and seeing it reciprocated, with Aidan saying "I want to go Por Por's house" (to see/play with the fish in the fake pond apparently) pretty often, or "Por Por where?" Seems like my parents' doting have paid off handsomely. ;p

Of course he's also been having heaps of fun with his cousins and living with Gran and Grandad too - who've been spoiling him with lotsa treats.

Anyhoos! Aidan's much needed haircut - click to see a bigger pic:

A New Addition

On Monday, we welcomed to the world a brand new little brother for Aidan.


No, don't jump your guns, IVY and STEVIE had the baby, not me! Lil' Zacharaiah!! We've been eagerly anticipating your arrival, and now here, you are, you gorgeous thing!



Brilliant thing is, Aidan's been completely enamoured with lil' Z. He's been kissing him, patting him, and telling him off like a big brother does ("No more crying Zachariah!"). And this morning he said "Mama, mama, help me mama! Mama, mama, help!" To which I frantically replied, "What's wrong??!!", and he said, "No, Zachariah cry, 'Mama, help!'" How CUTE!!


And then tonight, just before bed, he copied my exercises! Leg lifts, tricep dips and star toe-touches. It was adorable! "Mama, Aidan try!" I should've taken pictures. But I've taken heaps of videos lately (like one this morning, singing another rousing rendition of Twinkle Star, this time with diamond fingers...will upload it soon!)

What a cutie!

Another milestone!

Aidan can wear his pants on his own now!! Woohoo! Just taught him to pop down, put one leg in, then the other, and voila!

So proud of the little bubs. Now if he can only stay put and do a number on the toilet, instead of rolling the toilet paper around, or asking me to sing Around the Mulberry Bush over and over again.

Aidan on the "phone"

The funniest thing the other day, he picked up our XBox remote control and started talking into it like a telephone.

Conversation was varied, ranging from ordering Chicken & Pasta, to asking Guo Jin about drums. Hilarious!

Here it is; it's pretty long though, and a tad boring towards the end, but still pretty funny:



Thing is, Aidan LOVES watching himself on this video (or any video of himself for that matter). Quite hiao lah. Haha!! He can watch it over and over again!

The Big Three O

Aidan fed himself noodles with chopsticks the other day. CHOPSTICKS. Albeit the kind with handles for training little kids, but he's pretty adept and handling food with it. Impressive!!

We got the Pororo ones from Mama Moo, as well as this thing called the Wean Machine for mushing up baby food, as a baby shower pressie for Ivy, and an anti-bacterial spray (rather than the alcohol gels which are nasty on my dermatitis-ridden hands).

In other news, I had a whole gadzillion of these at my b'day party over the weekend:



which is probably why I fell sick and am still nursing a sore throat. But thanks Candice they were lovely! And she actually gave me the recipe, which I'm dying to try out!




EG has more photos which he'll upload to FB soon!

It was a terrific weekend, I felt so loved! Friday nite out with the girls, a whole day of parties on Saturday with beautiful weather - Ivy's baby shower and Jin's housewarming - followed by a walk around the Flemington Twilight craft markets and dinner (if you can call eating at 5.30pm dinner) at Hellenic Republic where I got stuffed fatter than a Christmas turkey.

Then Sunday with a celebration in the park (great weather again!) with friends. And food prepped by Ivy. Who can ask for more?

Thanks for journeying with me!

Imaginarium

I think Aidan's got an imaginary friend named Momo. He asked me today, "Momo, where?" then answered his own question, "Outside!" He then proceeded to the hallway, and shouted, "Momo, where are you?"

It's quite curious, this Momo creature. So far, I've sussed out that Momo is a HE, and he's GREEN. And he's NOT a DRAGON. Hmmm....interesting!

It's so hot in Melbourne this week that I'm glad we had swim class this morning. And we bumped into May with Faith and Caleb who were there with their Mainly Music mother's group! Lots of great splashing around and it was pretty crowded; I reckon everyone had the same idea - escape the heat in the indoor pool. Chubby little kids in floaties, mums keeping and eye on them, and some Dads too (an aside: I spied a really cute Dad today, looks a lot like that guy from Glee but better looking. Looks like the pool's the new mixer! And don't worry...EG is still the best looking Dad in the world... *disclaimer*)

Here's hoping the weekend gets cooler with all the parties we're having (including the Big Three-O!!!)