Playtime with Mummy

Jayna: Let me try to grab this toy...

Jayna: Yay! My very first book!

Take a look at what she does with the book in this video...

More Nail Art

I don't quite like this design. It has too much of a "Disney Princess" feel to it and I'm far too old for such girlie patterns. I actually chose a really elegant dark purple for the base color and I thought some white or yellow roses with silver or black trimmings would have be more suitable. Sigh... Next time, I really must ask properly the nail artist what she has in mind before I let her do it.

Ultimate Sling Baby

You won't believe how much Jayna loves to be carried. She can hardly stand to be left alone in the playpen, bouncer, high chair or bed for more than 10 min. She is so much more sticky to me than Joash was. Thus, I have to carry her most of the day accept during her naptimes. Thank God her naps are longer than Joash's! (2-4 hours vs 15-45 min) As she gets heavier, my arms can't stand the weight any longer, so I resort to putting her into the sling while I go about my daily household chores, cooking and attending to Joash's needs. It sure is exhausting. Now I feel like those women in the countryside I see on TV carrying babies on their backs while doing chores and tending the fields! hahaha...

Playing in Water

More Pool Time

A Family Shot?

Jaclyn: Okay, smile, everyone!!!
Jayna: Sorry, no can do. Busy chewing sling...
Joash: I wanna get down and play some more!
Joshua: Thanks ah, you are blocking me lor.

Today, we had a fun time at a Christmas Party with the other bible study mates and their families. We took the chance to have a dip in the pool together. But once again, due to the weather, Jayna could only tolerate being waist deep in the cold water. Anything beyond that, she'll protest. We were looking forward to going into the heated pool but it was way too hot for Jayna. (How to find a suitable temperature, I ask you? Haiz...) So we became trigger happy instead...

Jayna with Mummy and Daddy

Jayna: It's my turn to be a fuzzy bunny!
(Pls refer to Joash's pic)

Joash has not been to the pool since he was 11 months old because I had been so ill during my entire pregnancy and we have not found the time to swim as a family since delivery. So today was a good chance to see if he had overcome his fear of the water. Looks like he is still timid when it comes to water. He only dared to venture into the most shallow part of the pool. At least he did enjoy himself playing with the water by kicking, splashing and throwing the ball around. So much so that it took a lot of coaxing to get him dressed.

Jayna: Nice boat ride...

Jayna: But it's REALLY too chilly for me!
Joash: Food, at last, to replenish my energies.

"Uno Stacko"?

*sings* We're all in this together...

First Swim

The first few minutes...After a while...

Jayna: Wow! What a nice view!

Finally! In this unpredictable weather, it had been near impossible to find the right time to Jayna go for a swim. Even today, just as I was walking to the MRT station, it started drizzling. Disappointed, I headed back, only to have the sun come out bright and shining half and hour later. Under my husband's encouragement, I went over to my friend's condo in a cab in case the weather takes a turn for the worse again.

Thank God that Jayna got to have her first dip in the pool. At first, she was a little scared by the new experience but she definitely fared better than Joash even though she's much younger than her brother when he first went for a swim. After ten minutes, she more or less warmed up and started kicking a little and enjoyed the view as she turned round and round due to the "water currents" caused by the jacuzzi effect. 20 min later saw us back at my friend's place and Jayna took a nap after some milk and I could have a decent chat with my friend while the sky began to pour. *Phew* It was indeed a nice afternoon.

Biker Dude

Hey, biker chick Godma!
How'd ya like your Godson to be a biker dude, too?
:P

First Pool Fiasco

Doesn't Jayna look simply adorable in her swim wear? I thought it is high time to let her have a go at the real pool since she loves water so much.

But alas! I spent $45 worth of cab fare to get to and fro a friend's condo for a swim only to have it rain the moment I stepped out of the cab. After the rain stopped, the water was so cold that Jayna cried the moment her legs went into the water. Not wanting to traumatize her, I gave up after a few attempts. Looks like we have to wait for a hot sunny day before we try that again. *sigh*

Thank God for nice fellowship with my two other friends there though time was rather tight... Or it would have been a completely wasted trip.

Jayna's Firsts

Jayna's first time sitting in a bumbo seat

One of her first mini push-ups
(Not as early as Joash but she has finally gotten there *wink*)

Laughing Matter

This scene happens quite often. Frankly, Joshua and I have absolutely no idea what they see in each other that is just so funny...

Typical Sunday Dinner

Our Sunday evenings are typically spent having dinner with my in-laws. Since my Father-in-law dislikes air-con places, we usually will go to coffee shops around the neighborhood to have Zi Char. Here are some pics of one such night.

Jayna and Mummy

Jayna and Grandma

Joash loves to roam about after dinner. He'll be very captivated by music and thus CD shops are his favorite. In this case, the shop was playing "Jingle Bells Rock". He caught onto the lyrics and started singing, or should I say, rapped "Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way..." instead, which is actually a different song entirely. Watch how he danced to the music too.

Part of Your World

I stumbled upon an instrumental version of the song "Part of Your World" from Little Mermaid while watching some youtube videos from Facebook. It sure brought back fond memories. That was one of my favorite songs during my teenage years. I even used that song to enter the school Talentime and it brought me all the way to the finals. However, back then, it wasn't easy to find minus ones for songs and thus I had to make do with another song that was not suitable for my voice texture and range. It wasn't surprising that I didn't win in the end.

So now that I chanced upon the minus one, I just couldn't resist reliving my 'dream' from my younger days. For this recording, I used the first and only take and thus there were some mistakes here and there. Also, there was only so much a laptop microphone can do to take down the voice. It simply can't capture the full quality. So my apologies that this was far from my best effort. Anyhow, just have a listen to humor me, yah? :P

Fun Times

Jayna: "Gor Gor's tummy is so comfy..."
Joash: "Let me teach you. This is your nose..."

Joash: "And this is your mouth!"

Joash: "Come, Gor Gor hug you."
Jayna: "mffhhhmmff...................."

Mei Mei wearing Gor Gor's hand-me-downs

Passport photo? Haha...

Jayna: "What on earth are you doing?!?" *shock*

Look how she's grown!

2 Weeks

6 Weeks

4 Months

In case you haven't realised, it's the same piece of clothing she's wearing in all three photos. I'm going to pack them away as it's becoming way too tight for her now.

Exercise Routine

No, it's not MY exercise routine, I'm afraid. There's no point for me to get back in shape till I'm sure I won't ever get pregnant again.

It's Jayna's exercise routine I'm talking about.

Maybe she sees the huge lump of fat around my waist and decides she doesn't wanna end up like Mama? LOL But one thing for sure, she is not as physically capable as her brother. Joash already could do mini push-ups and flip by her current age while she can hardly do neither. Looks like she needs all the exercise she can get. Though I'm not entirely unhappy that she's still immobile. Makes my life easier... At least for now. Hee hee...

Toy Grasping... Nope, not there yet.

Jayna: Hey, I got the toy in my hand!
Oops... I dropped it...

Mini Push-ups... Or trying to?

Jayna: I'm so gonna get the toy!

Jayna: But first, let me rest awhile... :P

Legs Training

Eye-hand Coordination

Sit-ups

Report Card

Last Saturday, we had a Parent-Teacher Meeting at Joash's school and received his first report card. We're definitely proud of him for improving so much within half a year! The grading system is like this: Improving (I), Average (Av), Good (G) and Very Good (VG). When he first joined in June, the teachers gave him (I) for nearly half of the items. However, now he has (G) or (VG) for most of them! Well done, Joash!

Only the area of toilet training was an issue but I'm more than willing to wait till he is ready on his own cos he is already growing up pretty fast in other areas. No harm baby-ing him for a little while longer in this regard. I'm happy enough that he could tell us he wants to go toilet and does it successfully about 20% of the time without our prompting. May the Lord help Joash to continue growing well in His time.

Tis the Season

Ten reasons why Christmas is my favorite time of the year:

10) It is the cool rainy season
9) I love the Christmas decorations and lights
8) Christmas carols are being played in shopping malls
7) Things are on sale
6) It's the season of giving (To give and receive presents)
5) It's a time to relax and reflect
4) An excuse to get together with people I love
3) It's my husband's holidays soon (which means more family time)
2) An opportunity to share the good news

And the number one reason is that...

Because Christ came, I've been shown the greatest love and have received the wonderful gift of salvation and the immense joy of life for eternity!

Thank you Jesus!

Holiday Lunch

Since last Friday was a public holiday, I thought it would be a nice gesture to invite my in-laws over for lunch. But alas! They had a terrible bed bugs infestation and had to do a thorough extermination that day so they couldn't come. By the time I received the news, I had already finished cooking. The food ended up being made into lunch bentos for the tired couple instead. Such a pity... A relaxed and private family home-cooked meal together might have been so wonderful. Another time then.