Estella: Big Girl's Bike!

Our Christmas present for Estella this year - a pinky, flowery, super-sweetie-pie bike from Toys 'R' Us - SPARKLES!

Trying on the bicycle...
Helmet in place...Making her starter rounds...
I must say Estella is such a natural when it comes to cycling! Well, that night's incident proved so...
With our arms full from the shopping trip, Estella demanded to be carried from the carpark to home. There was no way to do that with Eliana in my arms, with a day-pack, a big bag full of gifts, and of course, the bike! So we had no choice but let her cry her way from carpark 2B to ground floor. Since she insisted she didn't want to walk, John had a witty idea to transport everything - by getting Estella to cycle! Well, so she sobbingly cycled from carpark ground floor to the covered walkway, into the lift, out of the lift, and to our doorstep! She made it without us really giving her much riding lesson... She just followed us in her bike to keep up with us. Well, she made it! Ha ha, so funny, what a way to start cycling!

We hope you like the gift, Estella! We are looking forward to more cycling outings with you. Daddy & Mama love you! :)

Eliana: 3 months old & 1st 'chop' on Passport

Eliana has had an earlier chop on her passport than her jiejie (Starrie's was at 6-month-old mark)! It was just a simple trip with 2 other families up at Malacca. Good fellowship with our dear friends. Thank God for the experienced mothers in the same trip who helped take care of Eliana. :) Can you spot her in Auntie Winnie's arms?

She had been an easy passenger in the drive up and down Malacca. As long as the car was in motion, she spotted this position. See this nice and comfy car seat? It's a hand-me-down gift from Auntie Pooja. (Thanks again, Pooja, if you read this!)

Also to put on record, Eliana has just had her 2nd 6-in-1 jab. Good girl, she didn't cry though she was alert throughout. She is now 6.5kg! Eliana is moving on to the 2nd batch of clothes with labels that say 3-6 months, or even 6-12 months. She recently coos and smiles so much. Also capable of a wide selection of sounds like 'woo's, 'ahh's, 'goo-goo's and 'ga-ga's. She is also sleeping more at night, and we are almost there with the 'sleep thru the night' routine. Perhaps she takes after Starrie in this aspect. Starrie started giving mama more rest when week 14 came. I think Eliana is probably able to achieve the same milestone. Jia you, Eliana!! Mama loves you!

Estella: Graduation Pics

I am so tickled by her pose! Hands on the waist please...
Featuring her teachers and friends from the Playgroup...
There she is, on her favourite Miss Koo's laps...

Wow... The standards sure have moved over the years. The other day I signed the consent form for this graduation photo-taking session for Estella's school and we are pleasantly surprised with the outcome. It costs us S$18 for these pics. Well worth it!

Thank God, Estella is much better from her stomach flu already... :)
*beam*
*relief!!*

Estella: Mama wants you to get well soon... & some of Mama's reflections

I was awoken this morning by Estella's chatty conversation with Daddy and not the usual Eliana's cry for milk. Somehow, it was exceptionally relieving to hear her chirpy voice this morning.

So, what exactly did Estella say to me this morning?
"Mama!", "Estella vomit on Daddy, wet"; "Estella cry", "Estella cough cough; cannot cough cough at meimei, must cover mouth", "Estella not feeling well, see Uncle Melvin", "Uncle Melvin gave Estella medicine", "Daddy's mask same! Uncle Melvin (wears a) blue mask", "Estella sleep on Daddy('s) shoulders", "Daddy carry Estella", "No school today, cannot sing with friends", "Estella vomit on car seat also, wet wet. Daddy wash..."
Though it may seem like the things she told me sounded 'messy', nothing beats hearing her usual self.

Last night was really trying... Here's what happened:
6:00pm: Mommy Chng called to say Estella was refusing water and food the whole afternoon, was feeling feverish all over and appeared weak...
6:01pm: I called John to relate Estella's condition. He got worried, left the office immediately, and drove at maximum speed to reach Estella...
6:30pm: John was concerned as Starrie did not run to the door to greet him (which is something she does without fail each time daddy fetches her). Instead, he found her lying listlessly on the sofa watching Barney. He rang the clinic immediately to make an appointment with the dc. There were ~20 patients ahead in queue at that time...
7:10pm: Starrie reached home, on daddy's shoulders. She threw up in the car during the journey and was too weak to walk. She refused to take a shower so John gave her a hot towel instead. She was hungry but only wanted milk. After finishing her feed, she just laid on her bed to rest.
8:00pm: Clinic queue cleared substantially. John brought Estella to clinic. She couldn't hold down the milk and vomited everything out, mainly landed on John who was holding her... very 'lang bei'...
9:00pm: Reached home (again) finally. Bathed and slept straightaway. It was also good for us to administer the medicine while she was sleeping... it's the bullet kind which needs to put into the anus...
...
...
2:00am: Another dose of bullet...
...
...
...
7:00am: Woke up for milk and more medicine...

Well, I read somewhere someone wrote before that "having a child is difficult; having another one is 10x more difficult". Somehow, I am feeling like that. It's being amplified especially when one child is sick. In project-management terms, it's like having multiple concurrent tracks but you have only 1-2 persons (Daddy and/or Mommy) 100% responsible for outcome/s. I am extremely thankful to God that Eliana has been a relatively baby to care for (could be due to experience). Because, it's so vital to have 1-on-1 time with Estella. Eliana also slept so soundly from 10:30pm (all the way till 7:30am with a 4:30am feed in-between). Which, was necessarily... as I had really wanted to extend help and care to not just Estella, but also to the very worn-out Daddy who chauffeured Estella to-and-fro places & gone through 2 pukes with her.

Here's my admiration for my Dearest Chng Ah Dear:
You have taught me to stay calm through it all, not by mere words, but through your actions...
You have taught me unconditional love for the children, not just in times of comfort, but when you were covered in Estella's vomit and had to stand in queue at the clinic for a hour...
You taught me patience, despite all the fatigue, discomfort and bodyaches, you were gentle in your tone, and demonstrated patience beyond imagination...
You have taught me to look to the Lord and not be led by the chaos at the moment...
You have taught me so much, and I am truly grateful to be parenting the 2 darling girls with you...
I thank God for you...

I really can't imagine going through all these without the Lord.
Lord, my life is in Your hands, and so is my family... I am glad You are the one holding us up.
I put my trust in You.

This incident also caused me to be so grateful to my mom... Why did I give her so much nonsense during my teen years?

Thank God for the privilege to be a mother. I really pray that I can be faithful steward to the Lord who entrusted them to us. Estella & Eliana, Mama loves you!!

Eliana: Sleep, baby, sleep...

These 2 days are more refreshing for me...
cos Eliana is sleeping longer hours at night.

Week 10: 11:20pm - 6:40am
Week 10 Day 1: 2am - 7:30am

Jia you, Eliana!! Mama wishes to sleep more at night...

Estella: 'Car book?!'

This night I had the luxury to pat Estella in bed since Eliana had already zzz-ed. After applying moisturizer for her, she insisted that she wanted to wash her hands. (as she sucks her thumb to sleep...) So she asked Daddy for help since he was nearer to the bathroom (in the master bedroom).

When she returned, I just casually asked her..
Mama: Daddy not asleep yet?
Star: No, Daddy reading...
(Thinking naturally John would be reading his bible, which would be a good influence... I went on...)
Mama: Oh, Daddy must be reading his bible right?
Star: No... Daddy reading car book...
Mama: !!!??? (speechless)
Thinking to myself... Hmm, a kid is really so truthful! They just state the plain truth!

By the way, car book refers to John's car magazines/brochures... She learnt about them while staying in Bishan.

Estella: Care to be pretty now...

I was reminded to get more hairclips for Estella after her emotional meltdown when we accidentally left her pink Miffy hairclip behind at Popo's house...

Just last Monday when I was shopping at Chamelon, I almost lost myself amongst all the pretty hair accessories. Thanks to Ah Yee and her hairband... Estella actually started liking us to tie her hair! What a miracle! Maybe it's also due to the full length mirror we have fixed recently.

Eh, so what did Mama buy in the end?? Well, almost S$20 worth of clips and bands! Now, these are nicely stored in her Heart-shaped box which she can pick and choose every morning. Ha ha... yes, Estella will have to pick her hairclip before leaving for school! She has some room here to exercise autonomy: pick her choice!

Estella: Many, many strings of words...

I need to blog this... lest I forget... Is it to do with my memory? I am just trying very hard to celebrate the milestones of our 2 darlings!

At 32 months, Estella has many, many strings of words that really amazed me! Getting chattier than ever! When did I discover this? During her morning poo-time yesterday. While waiting with her, she was narrating her world to me... Telling me about her "going to school later"; "daddy fetch"; "cannot watch tv now... not now; can watch tonight, OK?"... she wants to "wear flower shoes" and "not yun shoes"... "Estella button her uniform"... "shower, wash body only; don't want to shampoo"..."eat peanut sandwich in car"... "little bit, not too much"... "mama stay here, with mei mei"... "mei mei small, cannot go to school yet"... yada yada..

Of course, many of these are what we have told her. Now it's her turn to articulate, which means she has internalised them! Melts my heart especially when she remembers the lessons learnt (esp those out of her Notti Corner).

Last Friday, she surprised Uncle Melvin by telling him "I have runny nose, cough and phlegm...". Well, Uncle Melvin just looked at John unbelievably! Of course, while waiting for her turn, John also rehearsed with her how she can narrate her symptoms to the doctor...

(Ha ha... when I told Ah Yee the incident, she went "Star can say PHLEGM!!???)

Wooh... She loves this cake!!!

In the not-very-long food list of Estella... cake is one of them.
However, not all cakes though... Ask Ah Yee.

Estella is 32 months old (2years 8mths)

It's like the passing of a wink! See how she has grown into a big girl now... Can't help it but sometimes I call her 'young lady' nowadays.


It's also a milestone I guess...
Mama's heart is so full of thanksgiving...
Estella indeed is such a joy and blessing. Thank You, Lord!

Our Family Ritual - Go to ECP!

With great fond memories, we are always visiting this place... Courtship days, early marriage days (with-no-kids-yet) , pregnant days (with Estella), three-some times (with Estella in stroller, then Estella toddling around, then Estella could run around, and now Estella riding her bicycle away!), pregnant days (with Eliana), and now... the whole family again!

Eliana is 2 months old!

Here's the crossing... over the second month! Keep growing, baby!

See the similarities?

Little Sunbeam... (Oct 08)

This day Auntie Yushan came to visit... While I worked on some chores in the kitchen, she took this pic on her HP to show her excellent job of cooing Eliana and made her smile so happily!
When I see this pic, I thot... 'Hmm... Haven't I seen the shot somewhere before???!'
Haha... it turns out that Estella has a similar pic taken at the same angle. Take a look...
Now's the time to vote if the 2 girls look alike!
Little Starrie... (May 06)

Also just to put on record:
Eliana now weighs 5.0kg, and stand at 55cm, when she took her week 6 jab. She might turn out to be taller than Estella next time...
Here are Estella's stats again...
Date: 9 May 2006
Age: 9 weeks 2 Days
Weight: 5.14kg (v 3.14 at birth)
Height (or rather, length): 54 cm (v 51cm at birth)

Eliana is growing well...

Look what she's reading!

The 3 'E's...

Elise... Evan... Estella!
Eliana is way too young to join in the rolling & tumbling fun. As ever, they enjoy one another's company tremendously. Let's wait till Eliana is able to run along with them. Wouldn't that be even more exciting? Already thinking ahead of camping trips, outings, stay-overs...

Ahh... reminds me of all the mischief & fun I used to have with my cousins...

My Two Darlings & Look who's talking!

Our two darlings... The joy of our lives.
Some verbatim captured lately...
1) Estella: Mama, mei mei cry ... Estella go see...
And Estella runs ahead of me to check Eliana out

2) Estella: Mei mei small... Estella big
With her two hands stretched out right in front of her... Like 'Big Fish; Small Fish'.

3) Popo: Can you leave mei mei here at Popo's house?
Estella: NO! Mei Mei go home with Estella (looking protective...)

4) Estella: Mei mei small... Mama burp burp mei mei.... Daddy burp burp Estella!
Both just drank milk. Estella clung on to Daddy for a burp!

5) Estella: Estella and Daddy go shopping. Mama and Mei Mei stay here...
Just before leaving the house for some grocery shopping with Daddy.

The New Frenzy... Dresses

Guess it's in every girl's growing up. Estella has taken a liking for dresses lately. It is taking a much longer time to pick her clothes after each shower. Show her a dress and chances are that's it! Or else, you can literally overturn the wardrobe and she still doesn't want to wear what you've picked.

Why does 'autonomy' and 'independence' ring so loud in my ears?

Estella's on her way to school...

Some time ago, I mentioned about posting a pic with Estella in her uniform. From the time she has learnt how to button/unbutton her clothes. Now, every morning, she would insist putting on her uniform herself. During the week when I started my leave, John and I had the chance to walk her to school. It was a beautiful stroll...

Eliana's long overdue ticker...

OK, long overdue ticker for Eliana! She is here since 10 Sept 08.


Q1. Does Eliana look like Estella when she's born?
Yes and no. The mama thought the two of them look alike. However, there are some differences of course. Estella had thicker, straighter hair; and also a more prominent double-chin (wooo!)

Q2. Would Eliana get her personalised blog?
Yes and no. The new blog was started, but the mama thought it's too troublesome to update 2 blogs. So this shall be it... still figuring out how to write new posts next time. It's good to advocate sharing from young. :)

Q3. Do you think their personalities will be similar?
It's too early to tell. However, Eliana does make a lot of 'sounds' and expressions that we had never heard in Estella before. Hmm... and Eliana is also slightly higher-pitched. Let's just see them grow...

Estella is now a BIG SiSTER!

The day has arrived... that Estella gets to see her mei mei finally!
Estella's all ready to present her gift to mei mei. She has chosen this gift herself and even helped in the wrapping.
She puts the baby giraffe into mei mei's bassinet...

The Sporty Side of Her

A very focused look...
The first strike...
More hits...
The triumphant smile...

Just have to post these pics as they reflect the sporty side of her. Doesn't she look like a softballer/baseballer in the making?

Her 1st Book Prize

This came as a pleasant surprise to all of us...
Estella has won 1st prize in the colouring contest held in her school during National Day celebrations. Good effort there, Estella! Keep it up! :)

Here's her winning entry. It was pinned up at the entrance of her childcare centre. :)

Our Limited Three-some Time

With Eliana's arrival date drawing closer, we are treasuring every three-some moment like these. Mommy won't be pregnant forever, and this look too, will change!

Our regular walk at ECP...


Mommy's Darling Girl - Estella!

Estella with her hairband (finally)

This one is for Ah Yee, who is still waiting for a successful attempt to help Estella wear a hairband.
Here's how she looks like... Doesn't she look stylish with the sling bag too? :)


Mid-day Humour: This is the Xiao Wan Zi that Shups has commented about... Quite alike right?!

A Voice that Melts Daddy's Heart

'Happy birthday to Daddy, Happy birthday to you!!!'
Yes, Estella was capable of melting Daddy's heart on this special day. A big thank you to all the great frens who had pulled this celebration together at (well, we always claim the most kiddy-friendly restaurant) Globetrotters! It was definitely a great catch-up time. For those who have not seen Estella for a long time, you might have been pretty entertained by her new range of vocab.

We are thankful for friends to join us in celebrating friendship, special events, and Estella's new milestones! :)

We are going to the zoo, zoo, zoo....

Another trip to the zoo... Cos Mummy knows the next one will have to be months from now.
Estella was a lot more engaging this round since she knows the animals' names better! Eh, this was her 3rd visit so far... :)

Of course we visited the Children's Playland for her sake. The good old favourites never fail to win her heart. She always enjoys the swing & slide. There seems to be some new features coming up. Good suspense - we will come and explore again!

Her other highlight was the icy cold, sweet and chocolatey Cornetto!!! Barney songs have got such great influence over her... "ice cream, ice cream, cold & sweet..."
Of course, the biggest draw for her was still the tram ride, which she called the 'CHOO CHOO TRAIN'! It's such a convenient way to tour the zoo with the unlimited rides. Not just Estella, I enjoyed the rides too. It's too high a call for me to walk the zoo in the third trimester.

The zoo remains a great place we want to go back to regularly. Lots of nature, animals, greens... and SPACE! (on a weekday morning) I can see how Estella's eyes sparkle when she sees how her favourite animals come alive before her eyes. This is definitely 1000x more exciting than seeing the pics on her books or watching them on TV!

Button you must wonder...

A new learning experience today for Estella - BUTTONS!!!

"I can do it by myself..." She has been spending this afternoon practising buttoning and un-buttoning. No fanciful books or props - just 1 of her fav polo-tee and You You!

I must say she has succeeded after 15min of perseverance. Mama is so proud of you, Darling!!!

Terrific Two!

It's never been more fun than now! Our babbling 2yr plus toddler is now practicing a whole new array of vocabulary to have her way. Some new observations lately:

1) '1 more time' (holding up her index finger with a pleading look), whenever she wants to read her book again, or watch that video again, or even snooze in for the morning...

2) 'Please' (with a pleading look), whenever she wants her way. She has learnt over repeated teaching the last few weeks she WILL NOT get her way if she whines...

3) 'Rain, rain, go away', no, she's singing this when it rains... BUT deliberately sprinkling water at whoever bathes her. Yes, rain on us indeed...

4) 'Estella takes car to school; Daddy takes bus to school' - her longest sentence so far.

5) 'Daddy, hug & kiss', her must-have before she sleeps each night... So endearing, isn't it?

I have so much to blog about her... but maybe later...

star mumblings

mama: can gong gong go to your house?
star: no
mama: can waipo go to your house?
star: no
mama: can ah yee go to your house?
star: yes

*******************************************
ah yee: can i tie your hair for you?
star: no
(ah yee puts a hairband on star)
star: (removes hairband) no no no

******************************************
mama: i've got a joy joy joy joy down in my heart
star: WHERE
mama: down in my heart
star: WHERE
mama: down in my heart;
star: (where)
mama: i've got a joy joy joy joy down in my heart
star: WHERE
mama: down in my heart to stay