Medicine*Music*Chocolate*Life

Sneezy sniffy grumpy Bean

Bean's at the tail end of an upper respiratory tract infection.

These bugs are annoying enough to an adult, so to kiddies they are trebly annoying! A blocked nose in a chubby little girl is a BAD THING. She can't sleep in the air con because her nose stuffs up, but can't sleep without it because she gets all hot and sticky.

Solution? We are now a household that owns an air humidifier in the shape of a little piggy that snorts vapour. Add a little bit of peppermint oil to scent the fumes, and we're ready to rock.

So Bean sleeps in my arms with the air con on, Piggy at mid-blast, and is now getting over her infection :)

Cocoa-Bean

My little Bean had her first (and second, and third) taste of chocolate nougatine cake today :)

We went to lunch with Hubby' mum and sister, to a nice little Oz joint tucked away in the middle of a row of shops in a housing estate - Jules, it is called.

Yum food, cheery company.

Bean and I had gone to the Bro's house this morning to see little Suki, Diana, and Mom and Dad who had driven down (again!) for this. Because Bean had laughed her way through an hour with her Ah Gong (my Dad - "Ah Gong" is the term for maternal grandfather in cantonese) in the playground, she was NOT about to sleep between us getting home and going out to lunch.

Therefore, a slightly noddy little girl and her mummy went to lunch with her Ma Ma (paternal grandmother) and Ah Goh (paternal aunt in hokkien). Luckily the lunch venue was well-stocked with a kiddy corner of books, toys, and board games.

On the way back to the car, we spotted a sign that read "3 cakes - $10" which was eye-catching because it sounded ludicrously well-priced. Us ladies (sweet teeth, every single one!) wandered into the shop, and ended up buying 6 cakes in all.

Hubby's sister (we'll call her Marge henceforth) had just had a job promotion, and she wanted to buy something for her staff. Hubby's mum wanted something for the home. I wanted the choc royaltine (as above) for Hubby.....and a little for Bean.

Bean had been good all the way into the shop, but when the baker proffered a free bite of choc royaltine (it's really nougatine with a prettier name), she automatically swivelled to him and opened her little mouth "aah" - all ready for cake! After a few thoughtful munches, little Bean turned her dimpled smile on the baker again with a loud baby-voiced "More!". He was so tickled that he gave her a few more bites subsequently.

So.....sustained on a mini chocolate high, little Bean and I dropped off the folks at home then came back to nap. She's now run down her little battery and is sleeping the restful peaceful sleep of babies......little chest going up and down :)

Beanneries

Woo. It's been a busy-bee month for my little Bean. Fourteen months now, and raring to go everywhere.

She points to where she wants to go, tells us things like "pwis" (please), "nannnnn" (nanny), "mimeee" (mummy), "bobok" (Indonesian slang for sleep), "more" (and follows it by opening her mouth wide - for food!), "hepp" (help me), "mak" (milk), "yum yum" (delicious!).....and reading from her word-books.

A wide variety of words from Robert Titzer's series, including "cat', "car", "bike", "up", etc.

Just this week she has finally worked up the gumption to let go of everyone, grab something, and toddle her way around. In the house, out at the playground, etc.

Weighing in at more than 13kg and um, taller and wrigglier than I can catch, she's easily bigger than any diminuitive 2-year-old. Wearing 2-3 year old clothing as well.

Hubby's really enjoying his time with her now, now that she's solid enough to wrestle into a pillow, likes piggyback rides, and generally cackles with mirth when he roughhouses with her.

.....her first pre-molar appeared 2 weeks ago......

My Darling Bean

Just had to write.

I love my little daughter. More than anyone I've ever loved. To the extent that I'm not sure if I'll love another child as much as I love her. It's fascinating just how much paradigm shift one can have. All that stuff people say about someone being the centre of their universe.

Well, I finally get it.

Finally, a picture of Bean's 1st birthday cake!

We loved the originality of using jelly-based shapes. It's a far east mixture, not the Jell-O stuff from the States. Something that we call "kuih" in Malay. With pandan leaves, and a wonderful coconut milk addition.

One-Year-Old Bean

My darling little Bean has turned One! As of last night, 2345H, she has reached toddlerhood. As if she knows this, bang on time, she started demonstrating toddler-like inclinations. Wanting to do things herself (walk, eat, read), and getting frustrated when she isn't allowed to ape what we do (plug things into sockets, use knives, drink from tall glass).

Just this morning, she got really annoyed that I didn't allow her into the wet bathroom and she did a big squeal and plonked herself down on the floor. Just sat there til she was satisfied that I knew she was annoyed. It's cute, but does signal the beginnings of independence (always a good thing!).

Hubby was oncall last night, so he missed this little display of growing up this morning.

I am seriously considering putting Bean into a kiddie-league school. Not because she's willful, but because she's absorbing so much like a little super-sponge. There's nothing more that Annie can contribute to her curiosity, and neither Hubby nor I are around daytime to teach more.

We'll see......

Perhaps today, I'll cut Bean some brand new bangs - she's had her fuzzy baby hairdo since we shaved her bald at 3 months.

Planning for a Beanie Birthday Party!

Time flies. Bean will be one year old soon!

Hubby and I are pulling together the bits we need for her birthday party. It's not going to be bouncy castles or clowns (she's ONE, for goodness' sakes!). We're going to have a 'do at home (read: low-fi, low-$), with an inflatable pool filled with plastic balls (the orange-sized multi-coloured ones that kids love to dive into), a part of the floor laid with spongey alphabet floor-tiles, bubble blowers scented with chocolate/strawberry/banana, Disney music in the background, and a very unusual birthday cake.

Yup, no chocolate or cheese or excessive sugars for my little Bean or her little friends. I don't think any parents present will appreciate having a bunch of toddlers high on glucose tearing around the floor. Instead, we'll have it made specially, from a very unusual company! (pictures will follow)

The folks are mightily excited, with good reason!

Tomorrow I'm taking the day off. Gonna potter round to prep the rest of the items we need. Bean, Hubby and I sat down yesterday and made some goodie-bags. Yup, Bean helped make goodie-bags :) Wait til you see what I mean!

Wobbling Bean has Bite

My little Bean, who's really not that little anymore, is progressing from being held around her tubby trunk while walking. She now grasps my index fingers in her chubby palms and lets it rip, toddling at breakenck speed around the living room. I suspect it's more because she's rushing to catch up to the weight of her head going forward rather than actually being able to run.

Last Saturday I met up with Samantha and her two bubbly daughters at the Jacob Ballas Children's Garden. It's a great place! Mega-sandpit with accessories, a fountain garden that spurts, stops, and dances gentle water jets around the children, a tree-house area, bamboo musical instruments, a hedged maze and loads more.

Of course, Bean was there for the water! She was in her pink and blue baby scuba suit, scuttling back and forth among the fountains. I was prepared to get wet and gosh, did I ever. But there's no stopping a baby who's just learnt that although one can't catch water in hand, it feels great splashed every which way.

I love to hear the peals of Bean's baby cackle. She does it so well. A loud ka-ka-ka-ka-ka with her nose scrunched up and her rudimentary canines bared. Annie went with us, and took some photos of Bean.

Alongside this, Bean's got a bad new habit. When she gets over-excited playing catching, she bites!

How does a baby play catching when she can't run independently? Simple. She clings to her mum, who runs on her behalf while her dad does the catching. Since Bean clings to me face to face, she actually faces backwards when I'm running, and gets a great view of her dad trying to grab her hands.

Whoever said babies made you fat didn't figure on the weight-lifting cardio-training component of motherhood.....

Baba-ing Bean: Teething pains

Little Bean worried me a great deal over the past few days. She was running a fever in excess of 40C despite paracetamol and ibuprofen. Had to sponge her over. And poor little thing didn't sleep well at all.

The culprits are 3 brand new teeth, freshly-erupted from her gummy uppers. She's still a bit tetchy today, but at least the fever has gone away.

Hubby is back from his conference. While he was abroad, he picked up many many many adorable outfits for our little princess. Now she's really got some stuff to work through! Aside from that, he brought back some chocs. For me, a Kate Spade bag and Cole Haan wallet.

I'm glad he's home safe, but part of me will miss having the car and Bean to myself. Have been doing some pretty ad hoc stuff while he was gone - taking Bean out whenever I can, etc.

The other Beanie thing to note: she's learning to curl her tongue and lips in far more shapes now. She's also refusing to crawl, although she can do that really quickly. Now she yanks on our legs until we hold her up by the arms/armpits, so that she can stomp-walk her way, little bum swaying for balance, around the house.

At this rate, I really wonder which she'll achieve first? Speech or gait?

By the way, I'm still nursing. Not much now, but in light of the pandemic flu scare, I'm keeping her on as many antibodies as I can muster.....

Bean's got my shopping gene, much to Hubby's dismay

Woo. Serious shopping bug right now. Trying NOT to succumb.

Had already gone out to Paragon with Bean yesterday to get her some new clothes, as she is fast outgrowing them. In fact. pretty dresses we were gifted with - initially thought to be perfect for her 1st birthday - now had to be used.....quickly and repeatedly.

I had her in a babysling for the most part of yesterday's trip out, and she completely charmed all and sundry. Got some Toothiepegs for her, from organic brand Bellamy's. She chomped her way thru' 2 of those in quick succession.

Now 8 months old, Bean did the choosing of her preferred attire. She cruised the isles at Mothercare, still firmly tucked in the sling. When we got to the wall of multi-pack clothes, I stopped and asked "OK, sweetie-pie. What would you like to wear?" She surveyed for a couple of minutes while I browsed, then leaned forward, indicating firmly with one chubby sticky hand to the tune of "goo....bababababah!!". She picked out a multi-pack of 7 onesies, and another pack of three sleepsuits - incidentally, exactly what I had on my shopping list. Perfect.

We paid up and walked on further to look at toys. The shop lady was absolutely won over, and showed Bean a few age-appropriate items. Once again, she stopped to look at the items intently, then indicated her preference.

Then a little hiatus to the ladies' loo to wash her crumb-ey tee-shirt and messy hands after she devoured the 2nd Toothiepeg. Since the tap was motion-sensor activated, all I had to do was lean her down to the sink. She proffered her little hands under the tap and rinsed them. I heard a collective "awe" go up in the background of women waiting for the loo stalls.

The tap thing was from home for sure. Since last month, when she suddenly became hyper-aware of her surroundings (and hence now ready to be taught), I had sat her down by the sink of our bathroom every night. As part of the bedtime routine, she and I would rinse our toothbrushes, then brush our teeth - two, for her - together, then wash off. Of course, she did so without toothpaste, copying me diligently.

She had learnt that when she stuck her hands under the tap, water would come out (I would turn on the tap) so it wasn't difficult to progress from just keeping her hands there to actually rinsing them herself.

It rained quite heavily at that juncture, and we were rescued by Hubby. Little Bean had had such an exciting day that she fell almost instantly asleep when we got home.