Papa's away

Hubby's gone off to Myanmar this time so I took leave a few days. With Jo Ern, I am pretty much house-bound if he's not around.  My parents live too far away for me to drop by any time I like.  At most, I nip out to the nearby shops, banks or small market (I am constantly amazed at the crowd despite things being so expensive, can be double Tesco prices or more).  Then I quickly come back and check that the maid hasn't run away with Jo Ern, hehe.  I'm really glad of the maid though - at least I can have a nap, surf the net or potter about the kitchen in peace. The cuttlefish and two new fish recipes turned out well, and today I tried my hand at 'lor bak gou'/carrot cake.

And let's see what Jo Ern is up to...

Grabbing and stuffing sweets, wrapper and all, into her mouth

Messing around with Papa's snacks under the coffee table

Playing with Papa's back-scratcher and remote controls

Hubby, quickly come back ok?  I won't be responsible for any damage or loss of your property!

Anakku mat

Some baby things I bought were rather a waste. Top of the list are two packs each of breastpads and maternity pads.  A colleague told me they were a must, then I couldn't remember whether I'd already bought them and bought the second in case I hadn't.  Eventually I had no need for breastpads. And the sheer size of the maternity pads horrified me... how am I supposed to wear this thing??  Hehe.  Didn't use a single one.

One thing worth the money though, is this Anakku mat. Jo Ern was sleeping with us and either due to her being yet to grow into a size suitable for a standard newborn diaper or said diaper wasn't properly put on, her diapers frequently leaked a bit.  So hubby went and bought this Anakku mat which was small enough to fit onto the bed without us having to lie on plastic too.

So first, it was for leaks.

Mat bigger than baby

Then it served to indicate how Jo Ern was growing.

Baby now longer than mat

And now, it's one of her favourite toys!

Oo, mat!

Not to waste any time... Eat!

EAT! CHOMPPP!! Don't give chance!

Nine months update

If I put my tongue like THIS, I can feel my two teeth

Skills

Ah quite a few new ones in recent weeks. Her creeping speed has shot up, enough to get into some mischief before someone notices.  She loves to scoot to the amplifier/DVD player and mess with the buttons.  Our TV nights are now punctuated by exclamations of 'Aiya!' and a rush to remove the little troublemaker.

She can crawl down from the bed (mattress is on the floor but it's still a few inches high) by herself and go rummage in my book collection or hubby's CD collection.  She can move from a sitting position down to her tummy. And most recently, vice versa as well.  Last night I had a hard time getting her to sleep as she was so busy practising.  Every time I looked, aiya the baby is sitting up AGAIN! 

Character

A tad too timid. The good thing is she's often voted the most well-behaved at my parents' place.  Bad thing is, she cries at the sight of most relatives outside our immediate circle.  She would continue to cry too, and not warm up eventually.  Erm funny that she's perfectly fine with the kueyteow soup lady, the kopitiam fellow, the Indon plate-washer, staff at the bakery or our makan shop... basically strangers who come to say hello, play or even carry her.

*edit* The home guard just said a gentle hello to her and she burst into a LOUD wail.  Oh dear, how to handle this scaredy cat??

Weight

This one has me worried.  The scales haven't been moving much at all.  She LOOKS like she has grown, and she does drink her milk and eat her food, but she's still only 7.5kg.

Oh and finally, two bottom teeth.  :)  I was so excited to see the first one but she would always poke out her little tongue and block my view!

Matching things

Zzzzz... ok can still sleep so these bedsheets are fine with me

How do you match baby things to yours? Buy everything in the same pattern! Hehe. I love the colour combo and bee-and-flower motif of these bedsheets. The quality isn't great - the material creases - but these should last long enough.

Those jarring yellow and red Korean pillows are there for a purpose: To block the open cupboard space under my bedside table. Previously they prevented Jo Ern from accidentally scooting head-first into that space. Now they prevent her from going rummaging inside. Of course, she is finding the pillows convenient to support herself while she inspects my stuff ON the table. Then she helps herself to anything she feels like... must teach her the concept of respecting Mummy's property. :p

2011 already?

Pom-pom is fun! Come and join me, come!

Somehow the significance of the new year didn't hit me until I saw other bloggers recapping the year and rounding it off nicely. I think I should too, but it's an easy job coz this whole year was just about Jo Ern! Starting 2010 in my third trimester, having Jo Ern in April, muddling through the first few months, her first smiles, her being able to turn over, to lift her head, to sit, to creep... I feel impossibly lucky having this cutie-pie in my life. Here's to many more happy years to come. Happy 2011 everyone!

Sleeping angel

I am tired out from shopping. Please don't disturb ok?

I do like watching Jo Ern sleep. Firstly, that's when she doesn't require any attention. And she does look adorable all KO-ed out!

.

Sleeping routine: Wake up around 8am, morning nap around 11. Wake up for food and then afternoon nap. Sometimes evening nap too if environment not too noisy otherwise she will kaypohchee look around and we can forget about getting her to sleep. She can nap for 3-4 hours straight when at home, though at my parents' place naps are much shorter. Bedtime is when I sleep, around 10.30 or 11pm, which is actually rather late for a baby. Next year I resolve to sleep earlier and wake up earlier, and not be forever late for work. :)

.

I oi-oi and don't disturb mummy

Xmas present

What a fantastic toy! Thank you Ah Koo and Ah Kim

Taste and see if yummy or not

.

Hubby and I don't celebrate Christmas but my sis-in-law does. So Jo Ern got her very first Xmas present. I love it! It's so colourful and there are lots of things you can do with the components. Jo Ern... well she does prefer the box at the moment!