26th Nov Ryann loves clapping!

At mum's place, Ryann was playing with his stacking toys when i started teaching him colors using the stacking toy. He managed to stack all 5 together but he wasn't pretty sure about the colors. He manged to stack them due to memory i guess. After each successful try, we will clap his hands to praise him and he will join us clapping happily. The last try, by the time he finished with the 4th piece he already started clapping thinking he had finished.

Today I tried to introduce the Goldilocks and the 3 bears gigantic book. Initially, he sat down on my lap and listen attentively. Maybe because the story do not have lots of action and he was hungry for milk, he only manage to sat through for 70% of the book. That is still a good start. I continue reading the book even though he wasn't really listening.

Then I took out the color book. Few days ago, I was showing him the color 'Orange'. I pointed to him the orange truck, the orange carrot and the orange pumpkin. I repeated a few times and I started asking him which one is the orange truck? Instead of him pointing himself, he took my hand to point at the orange truck! This cheeky boy. Today when i tried to ask him which one is orange truck, he ignore me already.

Last i took out the numbers book. I have taught him 'balls' previously. Thus, I show the 'page' to him one more time, closed the book and i asked him to show me where are the balls. He manage to flip to the right page and started clapping. lolx. Reason being: Whenever he got the right answer, i will clap and encourage him for doing a good job. After doing a couple of times, I taught him umbrella. But he wasn't really interested in umbrella. He flipped to the page of 'cats' instead. After teaching him about cats, he manage to flip to the right page when asked. Same thing, he flipped to that page and started clapping. So cute.

I realized a few points.
1) We shouldn't force our baby to learn something when he show no interest at all.
2) Ryann must be praised for doing a good job or being a good boy this will encourage him to learn more.
3) Patience and repetitive exposure is important.

I hope i can have the patience and time to expose him with more things.

p/s: It is getting harder to make Ryann sleep. He will always walk out of the room to find us outside. Haiz..
Recently, Ryann cries during sleep. Think must be teething. His 2 front teeth are not out yet but the ones at the side came out first. Have to monitor this abnormal growth.

25th Nov Sesame Street Live Show

Today we brought Ryann to Marina Square to watch Sesame Street Live Show. Was so excited about it. I didn't know that there would be meet and greet session and we are so lucky to be the first 40 who will get to take photo with Elmo and pals.

Beginning of the show during the games session, Ryann wasn't paying much attention. Until Elmo came out, his eyes were stuck to the stage. I couldn't take any photo because irritating hubby didn't want to come in and sit with us. Thus i couldn't handle Ryann alone. =( But i manage to take some pics of Sesame Street characters thou.

At times, Ryann will be dancing to the music. He was clapping away though out the show. I am glad i brought him there.

During the Meet and Greet session, Ryann was so amazed that Elmo is just right beside him and he kept looking at him.

Happen to walk past this sesame street ride and Ryann was so happy on it. We didn't put coin of cos.

Today damage $100 plus. Must really control my spending, need to pay Ryann's school fees already.

Brought 3 ties and a tie clip for Hubby to encourage him to work hard in his new company. Yes! He finally can get out of that stupid company.

Brought 3 books (One of it is sesame street) and 2 Sesame Street- Memory cards and Floor puzzle.

I believe Ryann is also very happy till he couldn't sleep. 10.45 pm, hubby and I were watching CSI on TV at the living room and suddenly we saw Ryann walking towards us. He crawl out of his bed and walk towards us in the dark. I must remember to close the walk in wardrobe door to prevent his from going to the toilet.

24th Nov Ryann playing with mega blocks

Been awhile since i blog, it just show how little time i spent with Ryann recently.

Yesterday went to grand uncle's 70th birthday dinner. Ryann behaved himself except for throwing the FM container on to the floor and spill all the powder on the ground. There goes his milk. I didnt bring along EBM cos it is pretty troublesome. I didn't expect the dinner to end at 10.30pm. And Ryann was alert and awake till he had his milk at 11am and slept immediately after that. Recently, his bedtime is getting later. He is able to stay awake for a longer duration without fussy.

This video is taken when Ryann is playing with the mega block. He always like to put the mega block container and put over his head. So funny. He does that pretty often thou. So cute.

20th Nov Granny in hospital again

Today was suppose to be at HQ cos it is our monthly birthday celebration but i couldn't go cos I receive a call at 11am from Sis in law that grand ma cannot make it already.We quickly rush down to NUH. Waited for almost 2 hours and finally the A&E doctor came to talk to us. He said that there is water in her lungs. Her kidneys are not functioning thus it is causing a lot of stress in the heart. We need to make decision whether we want to save her all the way which will mean she needs to go for kidney dialysis. If not they will try their best to administer CPR but it will mean the heart will still fail again because the same problem will come back. Currently we need to see if she is responding well to the medicine to drain the water out. After which , they will monitor again. Her kidneys are left with 10% of its functionality. But dialysis is definitely out of the question as her heart is unable to take it as adviced by the doctor. It seems that we are left with no choice. These 2 days are the danger period. As long as she is peeing and passing motion well, she would most likely be able to survive. Lets pray hard.

Grand pa and grand ma were match made but their love for each other is very strong. I still remember on our ROM, Grand pa were wiping Grandma's sweat. When Grand Pa is in hospital, Grand Ma will cry and hold his hands tight and vice versa. They have been together for more then 60 years. This morning, I can see sadness in Grand pa's eyes. It hurt us a lot. Though i only join this family for 3.5 years, i really feel for both of them. The love and passion they have for each other every after so many years. I don't see this kind of love in our generation anymore. To think we choose our partners ourselves yet our love is not as strong as theirs.

I really pray hard that granny is able to make it this time round.

Some updates about Ryann.
He is so sticky to me today. Refuse to let anyone carry accept for me. Not even Daddy lor. Phew.. my bones are breaking but i am still happy. I cant even go toilet because he will start crying when i pass him to hubby. The sight of me will make him get all excited. So cute and I am so happy.

19th Nov Ryann only like the Gingerbread man book

Today we went home early so that we can spent a bit of time reading the new gigantic book. When i gave Ryann a choice of the gingerbread man or the little red riding hood, he will always choose the gingerbread man still. And when we gave him the new book instead, he started crying. BTH.



Then he started flipping like he really know how to read the book. When i said one of the phrase in the story book:"Let me out! Let me out!" He will knock on the book like gingerbread man knocking on the oven door. That was exactly what i did when ever i read to him.



Then i said something like:"Stop gingerbread man stop" He will show me the stop hand signal like what i always do whenever i read to him. I am so glad he is absorbing all those things i did. Hopefully he will accept the new books soon and learn more stuff.

18th Nov Popular Book Fest Damage

Today I went to Popular bookfest at Suntec. Damage is $130.

Brought quite a number of books to add in Ryann's little library. When i show him those books i brought for him, he don't even want to take a look at it. He went on to play with his toys. Bth. Hopefully he will not be those beh tak Cek (Don't want to study) kind.

Quite a number of good buys. In fact i still procrastinating if i want to go there again.

Ryann is so cute today. When i arrive at mum's place, he was still having his porridge. He took a real long time to eat because he need to chew. With only 2 teeth, that didn't help him much. He was also pretty much distracted by Rhys as well, I guess he can't wait to go down to play with Rhys and Xian Qin. I have to sing songs to him to entertain him. When i taught him 'no more', instead of doing the hand signal, he looked into his bowl to see if there is still porridge inside. So cute. So this i conclude that he knows what does 'no more' means.

He love walking to the rooms on his own and play peek a boo with us. He will laugh so loudly when we happen to 'catch' him. He also recently learn to press the button of the sound book.

Ryann and Rhys were playing together and i caught what Ryann was doing on video. I also don't know why he does that. Keep hitting his own head. So cute. Kids are just happy with simple pleasures. The video file size too big, will upload in facebook soon. This is the picture of them.

While playing with the grand piano, Ryann started dancing. But when he saw me taking out my camera, he stopped. This little guy is camera shy like his daddy. Today i heard him call Ah Ma again. But this time round is calling my mum. Loud and clear but only once. Hopefully, everyday i will receive some little surprise from him.

17th Nov Ryann is coughing again

Due to the weather change, Ryann caught the virus. This time round block nose and cough. More or less pretty similar from before.

Whenever Ryann is not well, he will always find me for comfort only. Thus i will often get disturb nights. Some time i will just knock out and hubby will take over.Poor Ryann have dark eye ring liao.

Brought him to Doc Tan again. Went there at 9.30am but Doc Tan not there yet. She went to the hospital. Thus the queue was pretty long. We waited for more then a hour.

Doc Tan said Ryann's situation is more or less the same as before but not as serious as the first time he was on neb. She further explained to me that it is very likely to be related to genetics reasons because both hubby and I had allergies. And Hubby had similar problems as Ryann - Cough and flu very often. Since young we know that Ryann is suffering from atopic allergies.

Allergens, or allergy-causing substances, can be airborne substances (e.g., pollens, dust, smoke), infectious agents (bacteria, fungi, parasites), foods (eg. strawberries, chocolate, eggs), contactants (poison ivy, chemicals, dyes), or physical agents (light, heat, cold). Allergens can affect the respiratory system.

The only way we can try to prevent it from happening is to take good care of Ryann's diet and the staying environment. Make sure it is free from dust and smoke. Watch his food etc.

I was still joking with her about reporting to her clinic every month. I was telling her that i breast feed Ryann for so long yet he still fall sick every month. Really wonder if my breast milk are effective or not. Doc Tan said maybe if i don't breast feed, Ryann might be sick every 2 weeks. =P That make me really tempted to continue breast feeding. But i already cut my pumping session and supply already. Don't think i would be able to regain the supply back again.

Share with her my opinions about Ryann's immunity and on whether is it necessary for him to take supplements or vitamins at this age. Doc Tan's opinion is some what similar to mine. That is as long as Ryann have good sleep, balance diet, nutrition values all taken care of, is eating well and developing well, there is no need for supplements. Unless Ryann is a fussy eater and reject some of the important food in the food pyramid then they is a need for multivitamins.

Currently what is lacking in Ryann's diet is just fruits. Ryann don't really like fruits. Partially also because he only have 2 teeth thus we need to mash them up. I will try to continue to reinforce fruits in his diet if not might need to intro Vit C already.

I also asked her about Ryann's teething issues. Ryann only have 2 teeth. The upper ones have yet to surface but however i can see some white lines on top not on the front tooth but the side instead. Doc Tan said it is a little unusual but still too early to tell. So ask me to monitor. Was thinking of asking Hui Xian (Sister in law) since she is a dentist.

I guess for this coming Christmas, like what corrine sing:"All i want for christmas is my 2 front teeth"

p/s: He lost weight - 10.6kg =(

16th Nov My parenting style and believes

Today we went to compass point to collect my loots from spree. At the same time i got to go to metro to help sis buy her crocs shoe as i have 20% voucher for my birthday month. Unfortunately, there isn't a size for her. Just as i turn around, i couldn't find Ryann. He was walking around the mall with hubby just now. No signs of Ryann along the walkway. As i was looking for them, i spotted both of them on the escalator! Ryann took the escalator for his first time standing and not being carried. Hubby said Ryann was not scared at all and was walking towards the escalator on his own. We went a number of places to look for Ryann's shoe too but we couldn't find any that was suitable.



By the time we reached home, it was already long pass his nap time and he was hungry and sleepy. Fed him milk first then let him sleep. He didn't sleep well with his blocked nose. Just 2 hours. Cook mee sua for him but he only had half. No appetite. Could be due to his sore throat too.



We left the house early to causeway point in search for his shoe. Brought Hubby a pair of Doc Martens and help sis with her crocs. We still couldn't find any shoe for Ryann.



Went to Grand Ma house for Buffet dinner. Fed Ryann with porridge and he finished them all. Must be hungry. Hubby's cousin was there with her 11 months old son too. Her baby is so adorable with big eyes, look really like daddy. Then that uncle commented again that her baby not even 1 year old already eat all anything already, yours 14 months already still cannot eat, so ke lian. That really pissed me off man. I told him straight at his face in front of all the elders that i stand firmly on my believes. No outside food - oily, high in sugar, high in sodium or seasoned food for Ryann until 18 months. Then he still go on saying Ryann so poor thing. Which pulled my trigger and i started telling him off by saying Ryann didn't cry or complain that he is not being fed well and since he never eat before, how would he know about all those adult food?

I seriously hate it when he every time mention about letting Ryann eat outside food. Don't he understand the fact that outside food is full of oil, salt and high in sugar content that is UNHEALTHY for the child. Don't he understand that Ryann have an allergic back ground which can be easily triggered by food? Don't he understand that RYANN'S DOC SAY NO OUTSIDE FOOD UNTIL 18 MONTHS! I am seriously pissed off. 1 more time he going to step on my 'tail', i am going to give him a piece of my mind.

My believes are back up by medical advices and nutritional facts. I didn't study nutrition for nothing. The earlier you intro oily, sugary or salty food to a baby, the possibility of your child's diet to be filled with those food would be much higher. This can easily lead to childhood obesity and hyper activeness. To encourage our little one to appreciate and accept natural flavours, i do not add seasoning while preparing their food or drinks.

Adults' taste buds and children's taste bud are certainly different. What we may taste like tasteless may be tasty for a child already. As we tried seasoned food before, our taste bud will be used to the food taste be it salty or sweet or spicy, thus we should never compare our taste with theirs. Just for example, I don't take spicy food as i am allergic to a certain type of spice. My mum said it is not spicy at all. But to me it is already very spicy because my taste palate is not used to such stimulation. For my mum, she is already used to eating spices, thus it seems nothing to her.

I do not mean that their parenting style are wrong, but i do expect a little respect that i do have my own parenting style to handle my own child. And he should not say Ryann is so poor thing in front of him as it may cause adverse effects on a child's psychological aspects.

Regardless of what kind of parenting style different people adapts, i believe no parents would want to cause any harm to their child. Thus we should respect each others believes and no expecting people to change to suit your believes. I hope one day he get my message across.
STOP ASKING ME TO FEED RYANN WITH OUTSIDE FOOD AND SAY RYANN IS SO KE LIAN IN FRONT OF HIM!

15th Nov Depression

Today was a busy day for me. My schedule are filled with clients' appointment. This afternoon, I met up with Rela who was also a depression patient. She was still procrastinating whether to sign up with Amore or some other clubs. She was previously member of Slender Shapes which closed down early last month due to financial issues. This was the 2nd time i spoke to her.

During our 2 hour long conversation, I can feel her stress and anxiety. She suffered from low self esteem and she is desperately looking into losing weight. She mentioned that her husband is a very fit person but did not agree for her to go to a fitness centre for exercise. Due to his objection, Rela have to use her own money to pay for the course fees which she definitely have problems paying for.

What hit me hard was during the conversation, at times she can get teary or even angry with herself. She said things like: "i cant even see my legs because i am so fat" "My mind cannot accept a 'NO' answer to food. All the problem lies with my head but i just cant control it." I can feel her anxiety and fear with her words. She did not get much support from her husband. She knows what was the root of the problem but she just cant control herself. This could be one reason for her to hate herself.

I have seen so many cases of depression and i believe the numbers are rising. Most of these depression start from home or work. Broken families, stress, lack of concern and understanding are mostly root of the problems. A friend of mine cut her wrist so many times till you cant see her actual skin right from her wrist to her intersection of her arm near her elbow.

Due to the stress and our busy schedule, have we all forgotten to love? Have we all forgotten to show care and concern to our loved ones. Is it really hard to ask your loved ones "How was your day today?" Have we forgotten our wedding vows? Have we forgotten how to accept people as who he/she is? Have we forgotten to forgive too?

Life is short. Dwell in the joy and happiness. Problems and setbacks encountered in life are not there to stay or to pull you down. It all happens to make you a stronger man/woman.

I have been an avid reader of Shin's cancer blog, Late Molly Lee's blog and Fleur's cancer blog. What they taught me was the 'never give up spirit'. one of them wrote that since she only have very little time left and she only had 2 choices. One is to cry and get upset over everything, start asking God Why me? and waste away all the remaining time with nothing changed, still having cancer. Two is to brace up and spent all the remaining time fruitfully and give all her love to her loved ones and enjoy all her quality time. Of cos she choose the 2nd option.

In life, we must always stay positive. Easier said then done, but for the sake of our loved ones, family, our kids, we must all be wonder woman.

14th Nov Books for Ryann

Brought another 2 books from the MPH book fair for Ryann but he didn't really like them. Will try again some other time.

Today tried to read him some other books instead of the Ginger bread man story. First i took the sesame street series board book and read him a good night rhyme. I read aloud for the first time, he got interested with what i was reading and came to me. Thus i read the rhyme for the 2nd time. 1 thing about Ryann is he like to hold the book himself but before i could even finish reading that page, he would have flipped the pages already. He love flipping the pages.

After reading the rhyme for the 2nd time, I have decided to put the book back and when i said no more and took the book away from him, he started crying. Not the big cry kind but more like those 'sai nai' kind of crying. So funny. I took another book to distract him. It was the <123>. As i read along the pages, Ryann started snatching the book away from me and flipping the pages again. I will tell him that I have yet to finish reading that page so we cant turn the pages yet but i doubt he understands as he was still flipping away.