Go!

It's Emma's first day at daycare.  

I wasn't sure if  we were going to get both James and Emma fed and out of the house on time* even with waking and starting the process earlier.  

*  8:10 AM.  It's sometimes a literal drag just for James. 

But, Emma seemed excited?  OK, we did have to chase her a little to get her dressed, but then: 

One look at me as I waved goodbye,  

And she's pointing the way, "Go!"  

Does she know what's going on?  No.  Not likely.  

Paul says at the daycare she was just curious, looking around when he left... and that was that.  

As (some have) predicted, she's probably handling it better than me;  I'm the one that needs/needed a "transition day".  

No more excuses.  I might be a bit worried ("I hope she's OK.") and sad ("My baby's growing up."), but I must also tackle the to-do list.  GO! 

At least he's consistent?

Yesterday morning: 

Me: "Oh, no your finger is bleeding.  Have you been biting your nails again?"

James: "No, Emma came in at night and bit me."

This morning: 

Me: "Oh, no you're wet."  

James: "No, Emma came in at night and pee on me." 

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Tall tales, Emma-blaming, and lying are supposedly, for his age, "a sign of intelligence", but it's so tiring and frustrating.  I'm reading the articles* and trying not to get too worked up.  Paul's take got me to laugh (until I wanted to cry again): "At least he's consistent."

* How to Discipline when your Child Tells Tall-Tales, Fibs and Lies and 8 Seemingly Innocent Child Behavioral Problems Parents Shouldn’t Ignore

Now sleep in it! (Part: I've lost count)

Finally!  Step "I've forgotten now": James's toddler bed turns back into a crib for Emma. 

So glad the instructions are in that envelope stapled to the bed rungs, else they'd definitely been lost by now.  

Paul keeps Emma away for as long as he could, and then she's in the room with me... and tries to help.  We definitely have to keep an eye on her -- just like her brother, it won't be long before she starts taking things apart to figure them out.  

Tooth-hurty AM

I've removed egg and sesame from our diets, but Emma's still waking up once or twice a night crying / screaming.  Tooth number 4 (front top right) must be a doozy.

But when I crack open her mouth to check: Woah!  Numbers 5 and 6 have broken through and there are nubs for 7 and 8 (all on top)!  So many at once and some really ahead of schedule!  I guess I should have suspected something more between all the drool and the biting (BFing is not fun right now).

It feels like a trick: From afar or looking down, she's my baby; Up close and looking up, "Wha?  Who's Chompers?"

To Blue Orchid and Back!

We took our first bus trip!

Olivia and TipTip's birthday celebration was in the perfect location: Just one bus away.  So, we packed the stroller and set off to Blue Orchid.

What a hot day.  We arrived to find the air conditioning wasn't working.  I felt a hot sweaty mess, but James had the option on stripping down to his onsie.

Monica and TipTip seemed to have a good time bouncing James around.  But Wendy, Lorena, and Olivia kept their distance.

Wendy: He's not looking at me, I'm not going to play with him.

Ugh, eating was so awkward.  I originally planned on just ordering plain white rice and something separate from the menu, but people wanted to be nice and said, "Oh, just make sure they don't use MSG in any of the dishes..." It likely made everyone's meal less nice.  And, I ended up sticking just to white rice and some chicken that didn't touch the soy sauce (since I just wasn't sure).  And no cake :(

Wendy said I didn't look very cheerful.  I told her I was just so tired.  It was hard to follow the conversation around the table. Even out of my arms, my focus was drawn to James.

The other part, of course, is that leaving the house is a bit a headache even with Paul there to help.  I'm appreciating ramps a lot more and have to think twice about where the stroller can go.  And, it turns out, not all washrooms have a fold down change table!  Thankfully there was a enough counter space near the sink, and James was good enough (this time) not to roll.

Things learned:  Need to pack 2 outfits at least.  (Yep, he messed up both.) 

These beautiful cakes are from T&T.  They say the taro (on the right) was better than the chestnut.

















And wow, downtown sure looks different.

Roll Over, Peter!

The key to get someone to do something: Make them uncomfortable.

And so, the little one has rolled over!  Paul put him on his tummy and he disliked it enough to flip back onto his back.  He even surprised himself.

For our photoshoot though, he was fairly happy and malleable.  I'm excited for Paul's photos.

My photo concept: Bunny's ears and a light blue jacket -- James as "Peter Rabbit"!  It didn't quite turn out, but at least we tried.

Adventure: An Outdoor Jaunt

Don't tell anyone: I left the house with James on my own! A historic event!

All wrapped up in the K'Tan carrier, James probably didn't even noticed how beautiful the weather is - but I did.  Spring must surely be here.  I exam the front yard: The tulips looked even better up close, and 2 out of 3 haksap / honeyberry bushes have come back for sure (the other, maybe).

My newborn foal legs - all unbalanced again with James in my front took us to  Mandolin Books & Coffee without incident.  We picked up a birthday gift, and turned back -- bumping into Paul!  A nice surprise.  We held hands on the short walk -- and it triggered a image/memory in my head (something I'd imagined being a parent would be like, before James came).

Anyway, I was exhilarated.  (Which probably means I do have a problem...)

James seemed pretty happy too.

Whale, Mail

James got his first piece of mail!  I guess those forms we filled out at the hospital (registering his birth) have finally run through processing.  He's definitely in the system.

Got him into one of Grandma's outfits (the one with the whales).  So cute!  But, my mom was right, the design isn't practical -- the buttons down the side look great, but are difficult for quick checks and changes...

First Smile?

When the phones and their charges align...

and the woodpecker feeds...

... the baby will smile.

Full Month / Full Moon! James's 滿月

Celina: "Don't gender colours!"
Jack: "What?  Pink is for girls.  Salmon is o.k. for guys."

Except, of course, it's a big Chinese event so pink, red, orange are for everybody!

Angela, Patrick, and Jack came up from Calgary, so with Theresa, Carl, Celina, Kevin, and my parents it was a(n over-)full house!

Egg-cellent party favours (w/ sour soothers and gummy bears)

So much cleaning up this past week, did it pay off?  Well, some of my boxes ended back in the baby room... And I had a good hard time trying to not let the criticism get to me...  But in the end, even if it was a bit of a strange setup,  I think we did o.k.

James protested his bath, but slept soundly through the rest of things.

I bossed people around to move tables and grab chairs and it felt rather good.  They didn't want me to lift things either... yep, that's still probably a good idea.

The meal included traditional items (barbeque pork, chicken, bean noodles/threads), vegetables (for the vitamins), and brown rice.

Oh, the brown rice my Mom worried and stressed about days before.  Guess what?  Kevin and Celina ate it (even asked if they could make some at home). Patrick and Jack ate it.  Everyone ate food and eventually were not hungry!  Granted Dad did have a bit of trouble with it and his teeth.  And, Mom, trying to stay positive for the day conceded it was good at least for slowing down eating :)

(Above: James's new hat is "gansta!")

We'd opted out of some of the other traditions (e.g. first hair cut, and Paul had requested no incense in the house -- my parents burnt offerings outside instead), but there was one that seemed relatively harmless... well, except for the sex / gender bias.

Celina: I'm not going to do it if it's just because I'm the only girl!

So instead, Kevin carried James in the baby sling (for all of 1 minute, for photos).  But this ritual* supposedly means the two of them will be "buddies" for the years to come.  I carried Celina and Kevin -- and that's what Theresa and Mom credits for us being so buddy-buddy :P  

* It doesn't seem quite as well known (and likely practiced?) as the red eggs, hair cutting, naming, coming out to public, and offerings to ancestors  (per Baby Centre Malaysia's "Baby Traditions: Chinese full moon celebration" or Wai Yee Hong's "Chinese baby customs & full moon party").  I like the metaphor though.

There was also a dinner out at a restaurant tonight, but the guest of honour (James and therefore I too) was not allowed to go (my dad is convinced it's a bad idea to take him to such public places)... that's o.k. we managed more than fine.  I was happy to have a relatively quiet house after all the noise (and family).

I ate an orange and after a month of not being allowed to**, it was great.  Not the best texture (out of season?  rather dry), but a lovely taste, not too sweet with a hint of sour, just how I like it.

**Oranges are cooling foods (Ping Ming Health's handy list "Warming and cooling characteristics of common foods")