Mum's 2 weeks into work...

So fast, it's been 2 working weeks for mummy now. To much relief, and really thank God, Estella is bonding well with her Popo.

We witnessed some new developments for Estella:
1) her 2 bottom teeth are really prominent now... teething rusks have become a good time filler for her whenever she wants to gnaw on something.
2) standing up in the play-pen and cot with support! Strong legs... The first encounter really came as a surprise: she was standing in her cot in the middle of the night, crying for someone to carry her! I mean, I used to find her lying down crying lor...
3) her new repertoire - new sounds, 'screams', squeals of delight, and new syllabus she's trying to make. Coming to a full range of baby-talk. Let a dear friend listen to a recording of her voice which I keep in my hp. Haha, the comment came back 'just like the mother - many words...'
4) a lot more mobile now... She's getting really good with leopard crawl now. Haha, she crawled out of her room to look for daddy in the study the other day! Amazing...

Blogging is gradually becoming a luxury, in the interest of so many other things. But will still try to update as much as I can. Thanks for taking time to read! :)

Her First Official Hair-Cut...

i.e. a haircut not done by Mama...

Take a look! More refreshed look, right?

Priceless Grin ;)

Toothless is priceless! Haha, in the context here... Estella's toothless days are over, with her bottom 2 mini munchers emerged just this week!

Estella's Got Her 1st 'Chop' on the Passport!

It was a long ride... our very first road trip... to Cameron Highlands! Thank God that Estella was really cooperative throughout the journey. She had definitely enjoyed the 120 hours of focused attention from both dad & mom. ;)
Climbed the mountain, sipped the tea, breathed in the fresh air, and enjoyed every minute of family bonding. :)
A scenic drive at the BOH Tea Estate! Very beautiful journey up and down the mountain. However, we were surprised that the teabags sold up at the mountains were more expensive than those we saw in the provision shops. Paying for the freshness? :x
Enjoying the cool climate and freshly-brewed tea at the teashop with a splendid view, 1500m above sea-level.
Estella definitely enjoyed the warm cuddle from daddy. Look at her blissful smile. :)
On this trip, we also witnessed 2 new milestones. For the 1st, she can sit up unsupported for quite long during her playtime! She also spent a fair share of time entertaining both dad & mom with her consecutive roll-overs and mini 'leopard-crawl' on the king-sized bed!
Two, this girl is fast! She can stretch and reach for toys she has eyed, like this!
Thank God for His protection upon us throughout the trip, and the beautiful nature He has created. Simply AWED... :)

Estella is 6 Months Old Today

Yes... Estella's 6 months old already! Guess what I discovered over the weekend? There is a tiny white sprout on her lower right gum... The little food munchers are emerging. That explains for the 'extra-wet' drool that some aunties and uncles have encountered. ;)No pictures to show yet.

... And oh yes, she's got her own highchair that she can sit pretty comfortably in now. Can you see her waving to you in the picture?:)

Estella's Outing to the Nature

Out in the nature! It was a really nice adventure that day. The slow drive through the 'Monkey Road' (i.e., road full of monkeys) followed by our little stroll at Lower Pierce Reserviour and a delicious yummy pizza. Estella's definitely enjoying these outings, as much as Mama does! One observation, Estella sure drew a lot of attention, from the waiter to the waitress to the customer buying a take-out at the pizza place...

Thanks to Auntie Nana for making these outings possible!!! More more... Hee...

Estella's Outing to Baby Luke's Place

Thank God for friends who move along the same season of life. It was our second visit to Pat & Pin's Place - once before, and another after Baby Luke's arrival. It's quite easy to spot homes with newborns. The floor space is easily dominated by toys and baby stuff, something which I can identify with back home. Thanks to Pin's wonderful tips on babycare, diet, lobangs for toy-rental, and simply the wonderful friendship in walking through motherhood together... Oh, Uncle Kenneth % Auntie Esther were there too! Look how at ease they are with babies! ;)

Energy Abounds!

With longer wake-time, our little darling has shown us a new side of her :) Her energy abounds! Playtime has become her favourite now. Mummy caught some of these shots recently.

There she goes... she managed to make her way from the mattress to the ABC mat. It's amazing seeing how she'll inch her way towards the object she has set her eyes on. Crawling soon?


Sounds and light intrigue her most during this period of time. A handy toy to keep her occupied. Her saliva's all over too. Ha ha!


"Darling, please don't eat the worm" - Can u see the caterpillar springing out from the book? She loves tugging at, and oh well, munching it!

Praise God! She'e getting stronger by the day. Her first attempt to sit up and read. *Applause. Applause from mama* Keep growing, girl! :)

Yummy World, I am ready! :)

She seems all ready for the makan world! Once again, she's enjoying the cereal. Latest - she's trying out this new organic brown rice cereal from Earth's Best, recommended by Auntie Pin2. And... she's quite strong really. It's not that easy to get the spoon back. Haha... Yummy Time Wrestle :)
"Estella, give mummy back the spoon..."

Studio Shots

Our first family outing at the studio! On this day, we were invited to do a complimentary photo-shoot. After a series of makeup, poses, coaxing Estella for her precious smiles, shoots, photo-selection, ... TA-DA!!! We've picked these 2 pics, completely free-of-charge! Hmm... I must say it was a rather emotional decision not to buy the rest of Estella's pics. Afterall, the salesperson sure knew how to slant the sales-speech to first-time parents for their first-born!

Beating the cold at Expo

May look a little over-sized for now... but well, we really don't know how soon she'll outgrow that... Let's just wait and see. :)

Babe, what're you watching?

This is my first DVD session. Mommy hardly lets me watch the TV unless it's Hi5. Title of movie: The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Well, it's my daddy who managed to find this title. I can see that mommy enjoys the movie a lot. Wondering who is the one liking Pooh Bear...

Moms & Babes

After many attempts to arrange for this meet-up, it finally happened! Wow, the babies have already grown so much... The oldest babe of all is Eljiah (Jan baby), followed by Estella and then John (both March babies with the same EDD initially!!!).. Hmm, just realised it's in alphabetical order as well. BUT, if you just look at the hair alone, you might think Estella is the oldest...

Wow, we have all moved on from the Preggo-Club to join the Mommy-Club already. These 2 wonderful ladies are fellow colleagues from the same company, same department. Imagine the amount of excitement that was brewing when we saw how our bellies swell. Ha, not forgetting the loads of info exchanged during those periods which we went through... ('pukey' mornings; appetite changes; clothes can't fit anymore!;shopping, shopping & more baby shopping!!!)

Thank God for the great companionship! Let's watch our little ones grow... :)

Tasty Toes!!!

Well, what can I say? This is also a new milestone for a baby! At this stage, any exploration is mostly done with the mouth, well, toes included... Aren't you amazed at how flexible babies are?

Yummy Time!

Estella has started on her semi-solids the moment she turned 4-month-old… Looks like she is learning to enjoy her cereal (with her toy as well…)Thanks to Auntie Yushan for the recommendation & starter kit.

Haha, just some recollections...

Day 1: Every spoonful in, there'll be half a spoonful out. Half the time I was 'catching' the food that coming out from her mouth. Thinks she's also enjoying the new experience... Afterall, mummy has been trying to keep things out of her mouth all these while. Finally, it's the other way round...

Day 2: Still playful with the cereal... Was very helpful, and she helped to smear the cereal all over her mouth.

Day 3: Even the bib is not spared... She begins to help herself with the bib too... "No, no.. Estella, eat the cereal, not the bib!!!"

...

Week 3: Very helpful lately. She wants to hold the spoon herself, and she absolutely enjoys 'biting' on the spoon. Mummy is still looking out for the little white sprout. On the way soon?? :)

Delayed Post

Some dear friends/colleagues who have met and even carried Estella. Thanks for the precious time spent! It was great catching up... :)

Fair Baby?

Visit to Auntie Yushan & Baby Jayden

It's always so adorable to put babies side by side... On this day, we visited Baby Jayden again!

Baby photography is not as easy...

Which style suits best?

Hmm... Regarding Estella's top-hit comment "wa, a lot of hair hor...", it's true. Not only a lot of hair, but it's getting longer too. Well, maybe it's a passing phase, but her hair seems to stand taller. So this fine day, 3 new hair styles were tried out. Which do you think suits her most?

1. With a hairband? 2. With a hat? 3. With a bandana?

Peace at last

Here's a pic of Estella & her Sheepo!! :)

Praise be to God!! We finally have a closure to Estella's UTI episode 6 weeks back. Last Sat, Estella cleared both the urine and the MCUG (it's a process where a dye is inserted into her bladder, with x-rays photos taken to make sure that urine does not flow back to kidney, a potential condition for babies with UTI) tests! This means, she can be off ALL medication completely now, no more antibiotics needed!!

Thanks to all who have prayed with us. The Lord is good. :) We'll continue to pray Jabez's prayer... 1 Chronicles 4:10 "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain."

The Most Frequently-Made Comment is...

After 16 weeks, here are some interesting facts...

Comments/Questions About Estella:
1) "Wa, she has a lot of hair hor..." ~ 76%
2) "Eh, look more like Dad or Mom???" ~ 9%
3) "How many weeks now?" ~ 7%
4) "Boy or girl, huh?" ~ 5%
5) Others ~ 3%

Finger-licking Good!

Estella has been 'savouring' her fingers lately. Like this...

Sitting Upright?

Look at Estella! She's learning to sit in a more upright position now. Doesn't she look so comfortable on the sofa?

THANKSGIVING: 3 months already!

See how time flies... She's already 3 months old now! Thank God that she 1) can sleep through the night (uhoo! No more wee hours feedings); 2) can fall asleep on her own (no need to carry/coax/rock/walkaround till she falls asleep); 3) enjoys each bathtime; 4) has minimal gastroesophogeal reflux (no need to change clothes so many times within a day); 5) coos and makes sounds, smiles and even laughs out loud (how endearing each time she beams her smile); 6) finally has no more cradle cap (after 2 haircuts and lots of scalp massage with olive oil)...

Looking forward to more thanksgiving reports. ;)

Little Star Adventure

Deep in thoughts huh...
Playing with her musical mobile
Sound asleep baby...

Here's a more detailed writeup of what happened over 24 - 27 May... and till now.

Well, it was a normal Wednesday afternoon. Estella wasn't quite her usual chirpy self. She seemed more lethargic and tired than usual, and didn't want to play much (which she usually does in her awake hours). Finally when she was supposed to take her afternoon feed, I got to really wake her up. She was feeling so warm, her temperature measured 38.2 degree! Oh my! After researching all the websites on Dr Spock, Dr Greene, Dr Sears and Baby Centre on infant fever, ... it's time to page for our paediatrician. His advice was for us to go A&E immediately. John and I swiftly did that.

It was a looonnng wait at the A&E(as expected)... Finally, the doctor who saw her called for our PD to come in and check her. And... she had to be warded for observation IMMEDIATELY... Finally when the PD came, and upon diagnosis, it was time for decisions. Well, you see, if Estella is just like you or me, a fever is much easier to handle. However in her case, a bacteria infection was suspected, but exactly what infection it was, some tests needed to be done, i.e., urine and blood tests, and waiting for the tests reports. In the meantime, the PD adviced antibiotics to be administered. (well, that was already 1215am on 25 May)

How was the antibiotics administered? 2 choices: through drip or needle injection 2 times a day for 3 days. While a painless (or rather, 1 time pain) method is chosen, it was quite a sight to see how the PD insert the 'needle' into her tiny vein on her tiny hand. Oh, she is such a brave girl... and THANK GOD, her fever went down by the next morning.

When the report came out 3 days later, it was confirmed that she had urinary tract infection. And after 3 nights of stay, she could finally be discharged on Saturday. She needed 1 week of strong antibiotics to make sure the bacteria go away completely. (That's on top of her gastroesophogeal reflux medicine she was already taking)

1 week later, review was done. Ultrasound scan on kidney and bladder was done. Urine test was done again too. Thank GOD again, she cleared these tests. All these were done to ensure there would be no further complications to her kidneys and bladder.

From now to 6 weeks later, she would just need 6 weeks of mild antibiotics and 1 more test (MCUG) to ensure she does not have VUReflux. (Too many medical terms.. if keen, you can read this http://itsa.ucsf.edu/~newman/Imaging%20after%20UTI%20for%20Parents_13Aug02.htm)

Thanks for all your prayers, support and encouragement. In the meantime, please continue to pray for her when you remember her.

Afterthoughts: Well, all these are written after the first-time mommy has calmed down and processed through all the multiple "Firsts". So much to learn from this whole incident. Stay calm, do research on these baby issues, most important, TRUST in God, pray continually, and rally fellow bros and sistas to pray too! All glory and thanksgiving be upon God Jehovah alone.

Getting Ready For Bathtime...

playing peek-a-boo...

FUNPICS

Playtime for Estella.. I love her smile!!!

Sunshine after the rain...

The past weeks have indeed been a roller-coaster ride, with the gastroesophogeal reflux, high fever(leading to discovery of urinary tract infection), and the cold/cough. So much medicine for a little one. But THANKS BE TO GOD! (And thank everyone who has been faithfully praying for her recovery & well-being) As of today (6 June), she only needs the mild antibiotics once a day. This is tremendous improvement from 7 types of medication earlier.

Estella has also made discovery of her hands recently. Almost a week back back, I noticed she was sucking the right hand and studying it intently whenever she brings the hand before her face. Yet a few days back, she did the same to her left hand. It must be quite a wonder to her that these 2 drummies are so tasty! Soon, I think she's going to place her feet into her mouth as well. Ha, that's how a baby explore their own limbs.

She has also learnt to focus on the sea creatures on her musical mobile. Ahh... she's simply so adorable whenever she attempts to make conversations with the moving Purple Seahorse, Green Polka-Dotted Octopus and Pink-Lipped Puffer Fish!

Praise God! She's much better now... feeds well, plays well, and her sweet smiles simply melt our hearts.