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Ethan’s Birthday - The Home Celebration

February 7, 2010 in Celebrations, Ethan, Food & Feeding, Hannah, Milestones | 5 comments

Ethan’s birthday culminated in a celebration amongst relatives.  We decided to have a buffet lunch at the E&O Hotel, and it goes without saying that Ethan was very much looking forward to this celebration.

See, he even willingly posed for a nice shot before we left for the hotel.

 

… and then, he started being his CHEEKY self again.

I think the part Ethan enjoyed most about the birthday lunch was the chocolate stuff: chocolate-covered marshmallows from the fondue station, chocolate ice cream, chocolate cake….

..and the part that Hannah enjoyed the most was the teething rusk she was chewing on.  She even fell asleep while holding it!

…and woke up for a moment to give it a few more chomps, then she was off to dreamland again….Even after she awoke, and her Ah Ma was carrying her, she was still holding the rusk.

Such “devotion” can only be admired. :)

So anyway, after our very filling lunch, we all adjourned back to our home to cut the birthday cake and to open the presents.  After three days of preparation, I was very pleased to unveil the birthday cake Ethan had requested for.   On the 1st day I made the cream cheese frosting and chilled it, on the 2nd day I baked the cake, and the night before Ethan’s birthday, I relived my childhood playing with *edible play-doh* a.k.a. fondant.

After he had cut his Thomas cake in school a few days back, I had asked him if he liked the cake, and his reply was, “Yes…” and then after that he said, “Where’s my Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cake, Mommy?”

I had told him the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cake was gonna be for his home celebration.  Haha.

err….you see that small DENT on the lower left of the cake?  That was caused by Mickey having the first taste of it; you can see his nose is a little bit blue… :P

I chose to make the nutritious and rich carrot cake with cream cheese frosting I had tried a few weeks back.

And his expression when he saw the cake was just priceless. :)

The birthday boy then continued opening all his presents, including the HUGE present from Daddy, Mommy and Hannah.  I had to enlist the help of one of my neighbors to help store it first lest Ethan sees it in our home and spoil the surprise.

He tore open the wrapper, and…..immediately got on it!

…and wouldn’t get down!  It was a tricycle in his favorite color: YELLOW.  He had wanted one since a few weeks before we left the US, so we figured it was high time we got him one now.

Look….all the pictures we took with him after that were of him on the trike.

Ain’t it weird that you can’t see the rest of  my body in the photo above?

…and one with both his grandmas…

Ethan definitely had a LOT of fun on his birthday.  He proudly announces he is FOUR years old now, and that he can play toys that are meant for “FOUR AND ABOVE”.

He even asked me for more presents to open… :)

Happy birthday, dearest Ethan Boy! :)

The Taste of Success

February 5, 2010 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Hannah | No comments

Being an SAHM poses a different set of obstacles to overcome every single day.  Obstacles that the corporate world could never ever train you for, no matter how many learning courses you attend.

Some days, I have had to battle with my (on-the-way-to-independence) toddler on why he has to finish his dinner.  Coaxing him and promising him something he would like *if only* he would finish just a few more spoonfuls.

Some days, I have to sadly throw away most of the porridge I cook for Hannah.  She would take just one mouthful and then subsequently close her eyes and turn away when offered the porridge.

But some days, I taste sweet triumph…just like today.

Ethan, who, for as long as we can remember, will only agree to taking “rice with soy sauce”, asked for rice with FISH and CARROTS today.  And he really ate them.  Hallelujah!

 

Hannah, finished her entire bowl of rice, oats and millet porridge cooked with chicken, red dates, pumpkin and broccoli…and even asked for SECONDS!

Ahhhh…sweet victory indeed. :)

Ethan’s Birthday - The Impromptu Celebration

February 4, 2010 in Celebrations, Ethan, Milestones | 1 comment

Two days before Ethan’s birthday, we ended up having dinner at Friday’s.  The birthday boy had requested for spaghetti…yes, he said “PLEASE…???” :)

 

While Ethan and Daddy went to the loo, I inquired on whether the folks at Friday’s could sing a birthday song for Ethan that night.  I knew he loves to blow out the candle, and he loves cake, so we agreed to have them sing for him.

After our dinner, a group of Friday servers came over and Ethan was asked to stand on the chair.  Of course, he willingly did it.

Ethan looked very overwhelmed but he was very happy when they started singing, not in the least bit perturbed by the loud voices.

And after blowing out the candle, he dug in to the slice of chocolate cake, finishing every single morsel.

It was the perfect end to a little family celebration.  And even though he wasn’t yet officially 4 years old then, Ethan proudly announced that he was! :)

My kids at play

February 3, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 1 comment

Sometimes he’s the really loving brother, just like that….

 

But sometimes all we hear around the house is, “No, Hannah NO!!!”  It’s like an anthem for him.

Mommy: Ethan, can Hannah go to school with you?
Ethan: No, too small…Next time when she’s bigger, she can go to school.

When Hannah holds his toys or plays with them, he’s rush over and say, “No Hannah!  It’s for 3 years old and above!”

SIGH….kids…

Ethan’s Birthday - School Celebration

February 3, 2010 in Celebrations, Ethan, Growing Up, Milestones | 3 comments

A few months before his birthday, I had already discussed with Ethan that he was gonna have a small celebration in school with his friends and another one at home.  And when asked what birthday cake he would like for his birthday celebration in school, he had replied that he wanted a Thomas the Train birthday cake.  And because his favorite number is 2, he also wanted the train with the number 2 to be on the cake, i.e. Rheneas.

I could not find a picture of Thomas with Rheneas, so I managed to coax him into agreeing to have a cake with Thomas, James and Percy on it.  And that’s how I ended up ordering this cake:

 

I thought the bakery did a great job and the cake looked fantastic…well, as long as Ethan likes it :)

The celebration in school began around 10:10a.m. (because I was a little bit late arriving with the cake), and Ethan was given the honor of placing the FOUR birthday candles on his cake.

Then we all sang the birthday song, in English and Mandarin, and Ethan promptly did a great job in blowing out all the four candles.

He also cut the cake three times! LOL

I had also prepared party packs for Ethan to give out to his friends.  In line with the Thomas and Friends theme, I had wanted to get Thomas party bags, but alas, I had been unsuccessful.  I also enlisted the help of friends and relatives (you know who you are, thank you very much!) to help me look for them in KL and Ipoh, but they were all sold out.

In the end, I decided to make simple party packs myself in the form of Thomas paper bags.

In addition to being in *theme* with the event, paper bags were also environmentally friendly as opposed to plastic. :)

I also *converted* some Winnie the Pooh yoyos into Thomas yoyos, as one of the party favors.

It caused me several late nights, but it was well worth it.  Ethan had fun and so did I! :)

Aftermath of the Spin

January 24, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up | 1 comment

 

Why did Ethan say, “Oh no, our house is falling down!”

Because in spite of the fact that we told him not to spin round and round, he did exactly that, and when he stopped his spinning act, he lost his balance a little and made that exclamation.

SIGH.  Kids…you just GOTTA love ‘em!

Little baby steps

January 24, 2010 in Hannah, Milestones | 8 comments

I knew the moment would come soon.

Any day now, I told myself.

And I was right… :)

Here’s Hannah, with her newfound confidence at 10 months old! Ta-daaaa…!!!!!!

 

And…why???

January 16, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up | 2 comments

 

Ethan: Daddy, can I watch Playhouse Disney, please? 
Daddy: Just a minute.  Daddy wants to watch TV first.
Ethan: Why you wanna watch TV Daddy?
Daddy: Because Daddy wants to watch sports.
Ethan: Which channel Daddy?  Channel 812?
Daddy: Yes Ethan.  Channel 812.  I’ll let you watch 613 in a minute, okay?
Ethan: Why Daddy?  Why you want to watch sports on channel 812, Daddy?
Daddy: Because Daddy likes to watch sports.
Ethan: And WHY Daddy?  Why you like to watch sports Daddy?
Daddy: Errr….because I was born that way.
Ethan: And WHY are you born that way Daddy?
Daddy: Errrr….go and ask your Ah Ma…
Ethan: Which Ah Ma, Daddy?  The Ipoh Ah Ma or the Taiping Ah Ma, Daddy?
Daddy: The Taiping Ah Ma.
Ethan: Okay….now can I watch 613 Daddy?

Sporting the Skirtie

January 15, 2010 in Celebrations, Growing Up, Hannah | 4 comments

 

I stumbled upon this custom-made fleece skirtie which I had gotten for Hannah when we were in the States.  It was too big for her then, but look at her now!

Good thing I still managed to squeeze her into it…she’ll outgrow it soon, I’m sure!

She looks like a little lady in it, doesn’t she?

Oh, by the way, Hannah has been shortlisted as one of the finalists for the Cutest Baby of the Planet 2009 contest!  More details to follow next week as I find out what we need to do. :)

Hannah at 10 months

January 14, 2010 in Hannah, Milestones | 4 comments


Scrap Credits
A New Beginning kit from Digital-Crea
Harvest Spice alphas  from Shabby Princess Designs

Weight

Did not measure but should be close to 10 kilos now.

Height/Length

Getting taller and taller!

Teeth

4 incisors (2 top and 2 bottom)

Motor Skills

  • Stands unsupported for longer periods of time, sometimes smiling and raising hands in jubilation, a la “Look Ma, no hands!” pose
  • Able to take one step and then sits down on butt :P
  • Can pull herself up from seated position to standing and then can very slowly, unsupported, lower herself down again.
  • Able to squat.
  • Unlike her brother, Hannah has the ticklish massage feeling; when I give her her body massage after her night bath, she will giggle uncontrollably.
  • Loves to roll around the bed with her brother.
  • Loves to roll around on the bed, suddenly sit up and then very quickly make herself fall backwards with a big PLOP!
  • Able to climb up stairs (shudder!).
  • Is always trying to *escape* from diaper changes.  I’m running out of toys for her to hold when she gets changed!
  • Can shape her fingers into numbers 1 (pointing position), 2, 4 and 5!

Communication and Social Skills

  • Can sometimes point to her nose when I ask her, “Where is your nose, Hannah?” 
  • Can respond to “Hands up” instructions when I am undressing her.
  • Stops whatever she is doing when we say, “No Hannah!”.  She will look at us, and then sometimes she will stop completely or continue doing it (as if to test us) :P
  • Voluntarily claps her hands when she hears some nice music.  Can respond to verbal instructions to clap her hands, in English and Mandarin.
  • Blabbering and raspberry-blowing continues.
  • Is able to imitate movements. e.g. when we point at something, she will also point at the same thing.
  • Hannah is very attached to us, especially to me.  She will cry out when I leave the room, and stop crying when I reassure her.
  • Is fascinated when anyone (Ethan, especially) recites numbers.

Food and Feeding

She’s on Mommy’s milk 100% and is having her solids for 2 meals a day now (if I can help it).  Thanks to the fabulous invention of the slow cooker, I am now able to cook her porridge before I head for bed, and have the porridge ready for her by lunch time the next day.  Hannah normally eats more during lunch time.

New foods she has been introduced to include:

  • Banana
  • Bayam (Heng chye) , of which she didn’t really like
  • Millet 
  • Brocolli
  • …and just a few days ago, CHICKEN!

She appears to love her chicken porridge a LOT!  And of course, she loves papaya too!

I don’t puree food anymore, not even the chicken.  I just steam it and mince it into tiny pieces and shreds and then freeze it into cubes.  And then I use them in her porridge.  Little Miss Bulat loves it! :)

Oh, and she drinks her water directly from a regular cup (the purple one with her name on it) - of course I have hold the cup for her!