Talking in bed

Aaron, whether he was well or sick, has the habit of talking to himself, his stuffed toys and his bumper before falling alseep. He did that in hospital too, amusing the nurses, and aunties and uncles who visited him.

The Nebulizing continues ....

Monday morning, Aaron woke up sounding worse than the previous 2 days. At the clinic, Dr Chia commented that he didn't need to use the stethoscope to hear Aaron's wheezing. He had to be nebulized again. In addition, he advised us to get a machine and nebulize Aaron 4 times a day.

Actually, on Sunday, we had 3 friends who offered to lend us the machine. We borrowed the one from the Chuas, since they were nearest us. Aunty Lydia offered to drop the machine off at our place. Not only that, she went to her PD and bought a new mask for us too! What an angel of a friend! So blessed to have friends who care so much for us!

Nebulizer ... again

Aaron was fine whole of yesterday. But early this morning, he started wheezing again, and had a blocked nose. We brought him back to the clinic. In any case, Dr Chia had instructed us to bring Aaron back for a review this morning. His right lung was clear, but left lung was congested. Had to be nebulized again.

At this point, his diagnosis is 'bronchiolitis' - infection of the respiratory tract, and could possibly take up to 5 days to clear up. Sure hope Aaron takes a shorter time, and will not need to be nebulized again tomorrow!

This was the calm before the storm. He was ok for the first 2 min, and after that, he wailed for the next 15 min, through the treatment.

Nebulizer

Aaron was down with a cough since yesterday. It was a bit chesty, but he wasn't coughing excessively, so Mummy didn't bring him to the doctor immediately. But last night, he started wheezing. So we brought him to the clinic this morning, and he had to be nebulized! Poor boy, cried for the entire 10 min of the treatment. Thank God his lungs cleared immediately. But Dr Chia warned that the wheezing might come back, and if it does, Aaron should be sent to the hospital. That sure called for a prayer! Daddy doesn't want to send Aaron to the hospital, and Mummy sure doesn't want to see poor little Aaron crying through the treatment again!

It's 11pm now, and Aaron is sound asleep. He'd played very happily for a long while with Daddy and Mummy before falling asleep. We pray that his lungs are cleared once and for all and he'll not need to be nebulized again!

Nadine's first movie at the cinema

Nadine was so excited about going to the cinema to watch Happy Feet 2 that she talked about it the whole day on Thursday. So even though Mummy had a massive headache in the afternoon, she didn't want to cancel the movie date and disappoint Nadine.

Daddy gave Nadine the full movie experience - with pop corn and soft drink. She really enjoyed it, and was following the story. A bit too talkative though. But Mummy had to step out twice to throw up, because of the headache. Second time round, Nadine cried and wanted to find Mummy. Daddy had to bring her out of the theatre. And we decided to go home.

Mummy was really sorry that Nadine couldn't finish the movie, but Nadine didn't seem bothered by it. Daddy promised her that we'll bring her to watch Puss in Boots, and that the next time, we'll enjoy the movie better!

Aaron - 4 months old

Weight: 6.5 kg

Height: 62 cm

Aaron is a very independent baby. He's perfectly ok with being left alone in his cot. Most times, he'll play on his own, talk to the stuffed toys and pictures on the bumper, and then fall asleep when he's tired. Hopefully, he'll continue to be this independent as he grows up!

More Painting

Impressed by Nadine's artwork, Daddy bought her more paint. But instead of the magic paint that only works on special paper, he bought her washable paint.

Last week, while Mummy was out, Daddy entertained Nadine with painting. According to Daddy, Nadine was initially painting on a piece of paper. But after a while, she decided to pour a whole bottle of paint on the floor to paint. First she used the brush, then she used her hand, and finally she used her feet as well! Using her feet to paint is something she picked up from Hi Five. Daddy said Nadine really enjoyed herself, and he allowed her to play in the messy paint.

Daddy took these photos in the heat of the excitement, and forgot to put it to the right setting. Thus the yellow tinge, and blurriness.

When Mummy got home, Daddy was mopping the floor painstakingly!

Nadine - 34 months old

Weight: 13 kg

Height: 90 cm

Nadine has always loved to draw. 2 weeks ago, Mummy finally took out the "magic paint" that Godma bought her last Christmas. The paint is like an opaque gel that will only show its colours when painted on a special paper. Which also means it will not cause a riot to the floor, walls, clothes and everywhere that Nadine may touch, with her "paintful" hands. What a wonderful invention!

Nadine and Mummy had a great time painting. Nadine painted for about 45 min. Great for training her concentration. And after that day, she kept asking to paint.

This photo was taken last week. She painted happily and patiently for a while .....

and then decided that she'd try and hold the brush with her toes! No idea where she learnt that from!

Kota Tinggi

Daddy and Mummy brought Nadine to the Youth Leaders Retreat at Kota Tinggi Rainforest Resort over the weekend .... sort of as a make-up for Paris.

Can't compare the 2 places, definitely. They're worlds apart. But Daddy and Mummy figured that Nadine would definitely enjoy Kota Tinggi way way more than Paris, coz there was a swimming pool, lots of space for her to run, many Gor-Gors and Cheh-Chehs who would dote on her, and most importantly, the company of Uncle Mel, Auntie Wendy, and Ethan.

So, even though Daddy and Mummy had both caught a stomach flu bug on Friday night, we still went ahead with the trip, because we did not want to disappoint Nadine. Thank God it was just a micro-mini bug. More annoying than anything else.

Nadine enjoyed herself thoroughly, swimming in the very cold pool, playing with the Gor-Gors and Cheh-Chehs, and terrorizing Ethan.

Below photo: wearing life-jacket before embarking on the firefly cruise. These 2 tiny tods look so cute in the oversized life-jacket!

And this was the only photo Mummy had taken during the whole 2 day 1 nite retreat .... coz of the flu bug.

Paris!

Daddy and Mummy were planning for a short get-away to Bali over the Deepavali holiday, but had to cancel it coz Daddy was assigned a work trip to Paris! We decided to go there a week before his meetings to tour the city. Initially, we wanted to bring both Nadine and Aaron, but decided that it'll be really tough for Mummy to manage both kids alone on the way back, while Daddy stays for his week-long meetings. So we had to make the heartbreaking decision of leaving Nadine behind. We decided that Paris is not a fun place for a toddler, and since Mummy is still breastfeeding Aaron, it's easier to bring Aaron.

Nadine was sent to Gong-Gong and Po-Po's place. We figured that she loved it the last 2 times when she stayed over, so she should be ok. We didn't realise that she's a lot more grown-up now, and has preferences. Apparently she kept asking to "go home". And according to Bibi, she wasn't her usual bubbly self. Ah well, this will be the first and last time that Nadine will miss a holiday with us! Unless Daddy and Mummy do a trip without any kids!

Anyway, Paris was a really beautiful city. Mummy had been there many many years ago, as a poor student. The experience this time round is totally different.

We caught the Eiffel Tower at sunset, just before it was lit up. It was magnificent!

One good thing about bringing a baby around is that we didn't have to queue! Not at the Louvre, nor at the shops!

It was amazing to see throngs of people trying to take a photo of Mona Lisa when there are so many other beautiful paintings at the Louvre!

Arc de Triomphe

Finally, on the day that we went to Chateau de Versailles, the sun was shining brightly, and the winds were taking a break, so Daddy could carry Aaron front-facing, to let him see some sights.

We bought this nice, colourful hat from Marche Bastille. It's made in Ecuador! So exotic!

Sacre-Coeur. We actually climbed all the way up! Bravo, Daddy!

Harpist busker at the stairs leading up to Sacre-Coeur. And behind him (framed by his harp's strings), was a Chinese couple taking wedding photos! So funny to have a swarm of curious, unrelated people in your wedding photos rite?!

There are so many buskers in Paris - on the streets, in the trains, etc. But this pianist we saw outside Galeries Lafayette was just awesome, for 2 reasons: 1 - he trucks his piano around to busk; 2 - he is a very very good pianist! Check out his playing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuHbbLETpWw

When we brought Nadine for her first trip to Perth when she was 9-months-old, the most inconvenient thing was bathing her. Most of the hotels we stayed at did not have a baby bath tub, nor a detachable shower head. So most times, Mummy showered with Nadine, and Daddy had to be on standby to take Nadine out of the shower to dress her. This time round, Mummy's much smarter. Went to Paris well-prepared with an inflatable bath tub!

Aaron was asleep most of the time. The only inconvenient thing about bringing him along is that we needed to go sit down at some cafe or restaurant every few hours to feed him. Other than that, he just quietly followed us around the whole day long. No complains. Sometimes he'll keep awake and just take in the sights.

And usually by the time we get back to the hotel, he'll be zonked out for a while. But after his bath, he'll be his happy bubbly self again, rewarding us with coos and chuckles. The previous entry of him chuckling was taken in Paris.