Teething?

Emma has been chomping onto whatever she can lay her hands on: her teethers (thank God she likes them, but she'll still do the "pretend-to-bite-on-teether, but-actually-sucking-her-fingers" gimmick), her toys, the highchair tray, the bumboo seat, me, and the latest... Big Bird! I think she must be teething and her first tooth may pop out anytime soon (well, in the next 2 months or so I think).

Here's a video of her chomping down on Big Bird (I was trying my very best not to laugh out loud)... poor Big Bird. =P

Adorable moments

Since Roy'd assembled the IKEA highchair, I thought it would be nice to feed Emma from her highchair this morning instead of her rocker. This is to also let her get used to sitting on the highchair for meals. Well, I put her on the highchair and went about preparing her breakfast in the kitchen... look what I found when I went back to the living room? She's resting her head on the tray! She looked too adorable for me to resist a "Kodak" moment... and she was still at this pose even after I went hunting for a camera! hahaha... I think she's trying to reach for her legs - that has been her habit lately. =P

She's easily tickled nowadays too. She has been laughing at the slightest thing - she laughed when she first saw me with a shower cap; she'll laugh when we lift her off her feet into the air; she'll also laugh when I take her off her bed and put her on her tummy, even when just a minute ago, she was wailing - that's because she does not want to go to sleep yet. I was feeding her after her late morning nap & she did something naughty... so I gave her a look and said "hmm?" Check out her response. It really makes me wonder if I'm still able to pull a straight face & still discipline her the next time she does something naughty. But right now, she's just too adorable for me to "scold" her. I'll just enjoy these adorable moments as much as I can for now. =D

You just can't fool her

I tried introducing the Heinz diluted apple juice to Emma this morning, but she would rather drink water than the apple juice - gave her trademark "want-to-puke" face whenever she tasted apple juice. =P (the apple juice was in her sippy cup initially, but the volume remained unchanged, so I've got to spoon feed her instead. haha)

Oops, her protests are getting louder by the minute. She's wanting to nap... I'll just post the video for you to enjoy.

Snapshots from a typical day

Here're some pictures of a typical day in Emma Joy's life... (all taken today. heh =D)


We're thinking of going to the church camp & realised that Emma needs to have her passport done, so I decided to take a mugshot of her when she woke up. She was looking dazed and confused in this picture. hahaha


Complaining while waiting for mommy to finish washing up in the morning.

I tried putting her in her cot or playmat while I go about doing my chores, but she'll usually start to cry within a few minutes. To buy me more time, I'll just put her in her rocker and let her watch me instead. I'll play peek-a-boo with her while doing my chores until she starts complaining. =P


Emma, the acrobat, while eating her breakfast. She has learnt how to suck her toes! (horrors!)

Since her rice cereal debut, I've let her try Heinz's Organic Baby Vegetables (sweet potato, potato, sweet corn, & carrot) & Heinz's Pumpkin and Sweet Corn puree. The first time she tried the baby veg puree, she gave a want-to-puke face. I had to mix the puree into the rice cereal before she's willing to swallow it. She loves the pumpkin & sweet corn puree though. =)


Still doing her acrobatic stunts even after mommy took off her socks (which is sticky with puree and rice cereal... yucky yucks.)


Drinking water from the sippy cup. Emma's getting quite efficient with that.



Playing with her toys.


Playing with the Sesame Street playgym while sitting on the Bumboo.


Flipping and tummy time in her cot after a change of diapers.


Afternoon nap time after listening to mommy read a bible story in both English & Mandarin.
(she loves listening to stories & will get excited just seeing me holding the book)


Trying out eating dinner in the Ikea highchair.

... and bath time! (censored, so no pictures. ha!)

Innocent laughters

I love the holidays, cos I'll usually be freed up to do my own stuff when Roy's around to carry Emma. Right now, baby Emma's sleeping in Roy's arms, so I'm free to blog once again! =)

I love watching Emma laugh and smile. It's the innocence behind the laughters that just lifts your spirits and melts any heart. Despite me being so sleep deprived, watching her smile and laugh just makes my day... and I know this sleep-deprived-ness is just a phase and a small part of watching my darling little girl grow. Before I know it, I'll be sleep-deprived worrying about her coming home late from her dates (I shudder at that thought).

Anyway, here's a video clip of Roy playing with Emma. (pardon the grainy quality of all my videos. They're all taken with my phone camera). Enjoy laughing along with her. =D

"Who looks like who?" II

5 months ago, we did a poll to find out whether Emma looks like Ade or I when we were both babies. Many felt Emma looked like the baby-me then.

After watching her grow over these few months, I'm actually convinced that Emma takes a lot more after Ade (**WHEW** hahahaha!). I've always felt that Emma looked more like Ade since she was born. Her big almond-shaped eyes, her dainty mouth, and her ears are like replicates of Ade's. Hehehe. See for yourself and I'm sure u'll agree with me.

Today's the first day of Chinese Lunar New Year 08, and surprisingly, Emma didn't cry as much as we thought she would when we visited my mom, and relatives, and in-laws. We thank God that she allowed many of them to carry her, after she's warmed up to the environment and people of course. =)

Blessed CNY to everyone!

Trying out solids

Roy's Ergo-carrying Emma to buy breakfast now, so i'm free to post. heheh (I'm supposed to be resting from my lack of sleep from Emma's night feeding & my unexplainable tummy pain... maybe I ate something wrong... but I just can't get back to sleep. So I'll just blog a bit instead. =P)

Emma had her first taste of rice cereals since last Thursday and she loves it! I initially wanted to wait till she's after 6 months to introduce solids, but her PD mentioned it's okay to start now as she's able to hold her head rather well. I'm suspecting she prefers eating solids to drinking milk because of her slow weight gain on milk alone... and now, looking at her response to the rice cereal, my suspicions may just be right. Hopefully she'll catch up on the weight department by 2 years old. =P

Check out the video of her 1st taste of rice cereal. Now, she practically gobbles down every mouthful & will make a lot of noise if I'm a bit too slow. She has learned how to drink water from a spoon too! =D (I've got to let her drink from the spoon because she treats the bottle as a toy and would not drink from it, sigh...)

Arrgh!

I know it has been a while since I made an entry because I've been rather busy taking care of Emma. But I need to get this off my chest and rant a bit here (now that Emma's asleep). Well, I’m usually a fairly easy-going person who’s always quite open to other people’s comments and feedback; in fact, my best friends had been telling me that I do allow others to sometimes even “climb all over me". I’m usually fine with that and I'll just allow myself to be subjected to criticisms if I see a greater good out of those criticisms, even when they're not justifiable in reflecting who I am and what I do… however, this time round, I’m feeling quite mad.

I am really upset over other people’s insensitive comments that I’m too anxious over Emma. Come on, I’m her mother, and I’m just responding to her needs! At almost 6 months, I should be able to tell from her body language and cries whether she’s tired, hungry or just simply wants a cuddle, right? All babies communicate by crying and they cry because they’ve got a need to be met. By responding to her cries promptly, I’m NOT displaying anxiousness, but rather I am showing her that I am there for her and I will try to meet her needs. In fact, I’ll gladly let other people carry her whenever I can so that I can take a break myself. However, I’ll most probably take over when I think she really needs me. In fact, people have commented that Emma is very well behaved from the fact that she’s able to sit quietly in her rocker and stroller for extended periods of time. I agree with them wholeheartedly! But then, when they hear her cry (she does have a loud voice), they'll sing a different tune.

I am content with the fact that all babies are different. Some babies are angel babies who’re not fussy and can sleep through the night. Emma, though well behaved at times, has her moods, and she is still waking up quite often in the night (especially after her bout of illness). I am not complaining because I've learnt not to compare with other babies. My little girl is unique in her own ways. She is definitely not someone who'll flash an easy smile, and she hates big movements and loud noises. She is an observer and she’ll only warm up to selective people whom she’s comfortable with. I think most of us are like that too. We have selective people whom we’re comfortable with and we wouldn’t like strangers to step within our comfort zones. To illustrate, if we do not like to be disturbed when we’re tired or hungry, what makes you think my baby will be responsive to you when she's tired or hungry? The only response she'll give is to cry. I have a problem with people who I’d warned not to touch her cheeks, to go near her, or to "coo-chi-coo" her, but still do it anyway despite my warnings. I am not disallowing them to go near my baby; it is just that I am able to tell what her mood is at that point in time because I’ve spent far more time with her than them with her. If she’s not in the mood for it, don’t risk it if you do not want her to cry. If she’s not ready for you yet, she’s not ready for you. Period. Even I sometimes do not succeed in soliciting a response from her when she’s not in the mood for it. So, wouldn’t it then be really strange if she performs for strangers she meets infrequently instead?

Come to think of it, it took me quite a while to build a bond with Emma too. I remembered her wailing lots when I tried to carry her or bathe her in her 1st month, so Roy was tasked to bathe her ever since the confinement lady left. I only took over from him last month when Roy’s increased work responsibilities prevented him from coming home early… Now, she only wants me to bathe her. =P (she's one smart little girl)