Baby X renamed

It just occurred to me that with the passing of Baby X's first birthday, he can no longer, rightfully, be called 'Baby' X anymore. Indeed, if his recent actions and behaviour are any indications, Baby X has moved beyond the 'baby' stage already.

'Babies' are those that allow you to hold lying down in your arms, stays where you leave them, don't protest when you remove them from the bath tub, plays any toy you give them and drinks milk dutifully without pushing it away with his hand. Our boy nowadays exhibits his independence and exercises his human rights like a grown up. You can never force him to open his mouth if he doesn't want to. You cannot trick him to stay longer in one place than he wants to. And you absolutely do not pretend to ignore him when he wants you to carry him.

Hubby and I have this intuition that he's gonna be more than a handful compared to his brother. Maybe our memories fade with time but I believed KK was much more an angel at this age. I certainly don't remember KK arching his back and screaming in protest when I took him out of the swimming pool. It may have to be that the 'Naughty Corner' punishment be applied to him sooner or later.

So from today, I officially remove the title of 'baby' from Baby X. He shall be known as "XX" henceforth in my blog.

Club Med Cherating (16-19 Dec 2007)

After a long drive from Malacca to KL, then across the peninsular of Malaysia, we finally arrived at Kuantan. The journey was smooth and blessed with good weather. Baby X was initially cranky but he still managed to sleep for about 2 hours in the car. From Kuantan, it was another 30 minutes past kampongs and malay huts before we arrived at Club Med, Cherating Beach.

Inside Club Med, it is a world of its own. A GOs (Gentil Organizers) was waiting for us when our car pulled up the driveway. We offloaded our bags and while Hubby went to park the car, we were led to the reception area where glasses of cold tea & water and cold towels were waiting for us. After a brief introduction, we were led to our room. We had 2 adjoining rooms, one with a king size bed, the other had 2 single beds. The rooms are modern and clean and the bathroom, though simple, is tastefully decorated. They knew we had a baby and as per what I read from the internet, they prepared a baby cot, changing mat and a bottle warmer with baby toiletries. But what amazed me was, they even prepared a potty and baby bath tub! I was worried about how to bathe Baby X but now my problems are solved.

Since we arrived around 6pm, our first activity was dinner. Hubby had warned me not to dress too shabbily for dinner but I had no idea HOW dressed up they are gonna be! The GOs were dressed like they are going to a dinner party! (I discovered later that there is a theme every night. The next night was ‘elegant white’ and all the GOs were in white.)

When I entered the restaurant, I know why you’ll look out of place in shorts and flip flops. The restaurant is as posh as those at 5 star hotels. The buffet area is almost as big as the dining area! There are so many choices that you need about 15 minutes just to walk around and see everything. I tried some Korean, Chinese and Japanese that night while Hubby and KK feasted on pizza and pasta from the Italian corner.

The next 2 days, it drizzled a little but mostly when we were asleep or indoors having our meals. Otherwise, it was sunshine all the time. Praise God!

There were so many reports about floods in Kuantan recently that I was so worried about the rain affecting our holiday. But this shows that prayers does work and miracles do happen.

Everyday, KK joined the Mini-Club after a quick breakfast. The good thing about Club Med is that they have activities organized for the kids the whole day. They’ll bring the kids to lunch at 12 noon and also provide them with another snack at 4pm. You pick the kids up again at 5.30pm to shower them and dress them for dinner. At dinner, the kids have a choice to dine together and join in the night activities till 9pm or they can remain with their parents. At 9.30pm, there will be a show presented by, you guessed it, all the GOs. The show normally follows the theme of the night. Even the restaurant and the bar will be decorated to reflect the appropriate theme.

KK spent the whole of the next two days with the GOs and other kids at the Mini-Club. He even wanted to have dinner with them and joined them for the after dinner activities. He did bungy bouncing, walked on the tight rope, played water games at the pool, picked sea shells & built sand castles at the beach plus a whole lot of other games. Seeing him being independent and having fun is our greatest joy. It also leaves us with more time to manage Baby X.

Baby X is a challenge especially at meal times, especially since he developed a cold after we got there. There’s the challenge of feeding him. If Baby X decides not to eat something anymore, he’ll not open his mouth no matter what you do. And if he’s tired of sitting in the high chair, he’ll bug you until you lift him off. We had to give him all sorts of stuff to try to keep him inside the high chair while we try our best to enjoy the sumptuous buffet spread. Ice cubes, plastic soup spoon, paper cups all became toys for him but by the 2nd day, even those became boring. Worse, he’ll purposely drop these things and then bend dangerously over the high chair to see where it goes. Often, we end up eating alone at the table while the other one brings Baby X for a walk.

All in all, despite the many trying moments and the long car rides, it was a good holiday. Club Med has a concept that suits our family. We had a lot of joy watching KK enjoy himself and exploring new horizons in Mini-Club. We loved watching Baby X too discover his new surroundings. In between, we even managed to squeeze a few moments to try archery and sailing. Hubby even took part in a mini tournament for archery and won the Bronze medal. We were also blessed with good weather and a smooth journey on the roads. I just can’t wait for Baby X to grow up so he can go into Mini-Club too!

Road Trip

Today, our family set off on our first road trip holiday to Club Med Cherating. We decided to stop over in Malacca enroute so that the entire journey would be more bearable for the 2 little fellas. Last night, it was frantic packing and as usual, majority of the stuff packed were meant for the sustenance of the 2 little ones. In general, the smaller the size, the larger the amount of luggage.

We sat off a little late at about 9.30am but thank God, the timing was rather good. Baby X fell asleep in his car seat at about 10.30am and surprisingly stayed asleep until about 12.20pm. After he woke up, I fed him cereal in the car. He gulped in all down and finished in time for a toilet break and a stretch of the legs. As we progressed on, Baby X was a happy and satisfied boy in the car. However, KK was starting to get restless. I allowed him to climb to the back of the car to play with Baby X.

Soon, we arrived at Malacca and after another 30 minutes, we approached the Renaissance Melaka Hotel, just as Baby X started to get impatient with being inside the car.

The wait to check in was a bit long and Baby X pooped while waiting. Luckily our room was ready, so we quickly got there and changed Baby X. It was a nice and comfortable room though the beds were rather high. Baby X had a taste of its height when he tumbled off from the bed accidentally. Thankfully, he only got a shock and nothing else.

We had a late lunch at the hotel café. We wanted to try their new Italian restaurant Olio which opens today but they only start at dinner. Nonetheless, we met the Director of Operations who went out of his way to ensure we get our pizza and pasta from the Olio kitchen served to the café. It has been a good experience so far.

Thanks to Hubby’s gold membership status, we stayed at the Club floor and were allowed access to the Club Lounge. Which is where I am now - having a cuppucino, typing my blog and using their free internet access to post. Hubby is having a glass of wine while the kids are playing nearby.

Since Baby X only slept for 30mins for his afternoon nap, I gather we’ll have to retire early tonight. We’ll probably go back for a bubble bath and eat the leftover pizza for dinner.

One Year Ago...

One year ago today, I was staying in Thomson Medical Centre, feeling acomplished after having delivered a baby just a few hours ago. It didn't seem too long ago when I was trying very hard to push the baby out into the world and feeling anxious to see how he will look like. I remembered wondering to Hubby if he thinks our new baby has Downs Syndrome since he has single eyelid. Thankfully, the pediatrician confirmed he wasn't the next day.


























Baby X @ 1year old vs Baby X 1 year ago


How fast time flies! Today, it's exactly one year since the day Baby X squeezed through the birth canal and arrived into our lives.

From a baby who only lies where you place him, Baby X has developed into an active toddler. Baby X is now learning to stand up on his own. He does this exercise very well when he's on the bed. Somehow he knows that that's a safe place to practice. He's also very good at expressing his wishes although he has yet learnt to speak. He will point his finger at the thing he wants or the place he wants to go, making some sounds to tell you 'get me that' or 'go there'. When he gets bullied by his brother, he will look at you with a miserable look and complain by making whining sounds. When he's happy, he will smile, jump, bounce and clap his hands. He really is a happy baby and his arrival has brought a lot of extra joy to the family.

The boys of the family

Happy Birthday Baby!

Today we celebrated Baby X's first birthday. His actual birthday is on Thursday but we celebrated earlier. Baby X of course, is oblivious to the fact that he's the star of the party. But this party is planned with an eye on the future. Hubby and I took lots of photos and video as evidence, in preparation for the day Baby X is discerning enough to ask us whether he had a birthday party when he was one year old. You see, when you have more than one kid, perceived fairness amongst the siblings is very important. Small injustice can be misinterpreted and insignificant acts compared to mean more love for one over the other. Today, we had the whole works - food, cake, champagne and gifts. Baby X should not have any reasons to complain in the future.

It was a simple lunch affair with only close family invited. Baby X woke up after a nap to see his grandparents, aunt and uncles waiting for him. He looked a little bewildered but soon he warmed up and enjoyed all the attention.

The theme for the menu was Japanese & Korean. We had sushi, kimchi, miso tofu soup, beef bulgogi and cupcakes, lychees from Mauritius for dessert. But like Huddy stated, the feasting is all on us. Baby X had his usual porridge for lunch. Well, he did have a taste of his birthday cake. Baby X's birthday cake was decorated with Doraemon's face. I think he's cute, like Baby X.

Child Care Fatigue (CCF)

The past few days at home has been crazy. There can simply be no rest in a household with:

• A 5-years old brother who cannot stop talking and getting jealous of his 11-month old baby brother.
• A baby who is on the verge of walking and talking, making very dangerous and wobbly attempts to stand up holding on to anything his little hands can grasp.
• A maid who sometimes feels like my third child, requiring lots of supervision and rescuing.

Over the last week, I've made coloured ice, dyed napkins, watched Transformers on DVD, made playdough using natural ingredients (Leng, your recipe works!), watched Bee movie, created a volcano made of playdough and simulated an erruption with KK. I've also fixed back the arm of Bonecrusher transformer at least 100 times and nearly thrown KK out of the house for talking back. I'm feeling "child care fatigued".

There's this trait common in both my sons, they cannot play independently. I think there's some genetic defect. KK needs a constant playmate. And since his little brother is not yet grown up, he's bugging me to play with him everytime. I try to oblige but sometimes I literaly have to command him to play by himself. Baby X, he's showing signs of this trait. He's happy just crawling around me as long as I sit nearby. But once I move off, he will follow me. Why is it that some kids can just sit on their own for 1 - 2 hours playing their toys quietly and mine can't?

KK has just finished packing his toys grudgingly and Baby X is asleep, thankfully. I guess it's time for me to think of the next activity. Let see, maybe we'll make some cut-out sandwiches with condensed milk and thousands/hundreds. I definitely need a cup of tea.

Oh My 10 Dog!

Communication with KK is getting complex and exhausting. There is a lot of explanation, reasoning, arguing and repeating necessary when talking to my dear 5 year old nowadays. Occasionally, we had no choice but to use threats and authority to move on. Here's a summary of what he is all in one.

1) The 'Ah Beng'
Recently he's picked up a lot of new phrases from his friends in kindergarten. For example:
"Come on, baby!", "What's up, baby?", "What the hell!" and " Wah lau!"

Actually, he's got no idea when I asked him if he knows what 'hell' means. He's just blindly repeating them because they sound cool.

2) The Lawyer.
KK is also getting to be more and more skillful in negotiating and arguing. Whenever we try to enforce some rules like finishing his food, he'll bargain for discounts on duration and concessions on quantity. He'll also question you 'why' certain decisions are made and argue with you till the cows come home or you give up.

Yesterday, Grandmum brought him to Toys 'R' Us and bought him his Christmas present. We told him that he had to wait one month until Christmas to play with his new toy. He couldn't wait of course. So he kept questioning why he has to wait and is it Christmas already tomorrow? Finally, Grandmum gave up and allowed him to open his present on the condition that he finishes his dinner within 1 hour that night. Even then, there was alot of bargaining and we had to reason till we were breathless before he finally finished his food and got his wish.

3) The Reader.
KK is still an amatuer when it comes to reading, though he's developing. Yesterday, he was looking at me read a message on Facebook.

The message goes like this: "Oh my god, 10 years..."
This is what KK read out loud, "Oh my dog, oh my ten dog!"