No more baby cot for Caprice?

Every time after feeding, Caprice refuses to be placed in her baby cot. Just the action of letting her go closer to her bed initiates protest in the form of wailing. Now that she has learnt how to use 'emotional extortion' against us, we have no choice but to play with her until she gets too tired. It's only then that she doesn't complain anymore.

Wonder what she would be doing to us when she gets older?

Here's how we do the back extension

Little Caprice is 5 months and starting to show signs of excitement whenever she sees things moving around her. Now, if you do not help her up, she's not going to just taking it lying down. She's starting to crawl and lift her back up like the 'PT' in the fitness gyms. Mom, here's how we do the back extension!

Caution: Kid Crossing

I had a nasty jolt this morning when Mommy's alarm rang out. Benedict was awakened and hurried across the Queen-sized bed to get the mobile phone. Little did he know that he stomped on my groin causing me to cringe and wonder what in the world happened.

Now, maybe it's not such a great idea having the kids to sleep with you if they happen to be excited by alarms and phone calls?

Reasoning with children - possible or impossible?

I tried this new approach with Clarissa and Christa last night. We had a short discussion after dinner after which I had a 2 minute 'sharing'. Usually it would be quite difficult to get the elder girl (Clarissa) to get out of bed in the morning. She would also refuse to finish her milk as she 'hated' the taste of it after being exposed to 'adult' foods. After telling her the reasons why we wanted her to comply, she seemed to understand. Christa nodded her head in agreement just to rub salt into the wound.

It seemed to have worked as Clarissa was the first to get out of bed and the first to put on her shoes and head to the car. As usual, Christa would take the front seats and we had to move Clarissa back. She didn't throw up a fuss. Was it the reasoning which worked or the movie we had last night?

Touching the ceiling!

I was busy preparing for a lecture when Christa decided that I was to accompany her for her usual toilet visit. "I want to pooh-pooh!", she said. I just dropped her at the toilet entrance and left her on her own. As usual, she would insist that I was to stand there until she finished her business.

I took some time to stretch and accidentally touched the low ceiling. Upon seeing that, she got off the toilet bowl and wanted to touch the ceiling too. "But you only passed urine. Finish the job and I will let you touch the ceiling", I said. It was a good deal I suppose. She quickly got back to 'work' and within seconds, she emptied her bowel.

As a form of reward, she was carried up 5 times to touch the ceiling. That left her smiling with glee. "I touched the ceiling!"

I've got my cheap Nokia phone!

Now, don't be jealous, because I've got a cheap Nokia phone! It may not be great but it surely works and I can drop it and press all the buttons without a worry. I can even listen to the different ringing tones if Mommy lets me. Mommy, the photo says it all. You've got another satisfied customer, Nokia!

Mommy is lying on my bed!

Everyone managed to get up although it was a quiet holiday morning when peace was disrupted by a squalling sound followed by a thud on the ground. I found Christa twisting and turning on the parquet while fidgetting with her hands. I was checking out my e-mail and couldn't figure out why she was so upset. "Christa, come over to daddy!", I said.

She came over still sulking with tears in her eyes and sat next to me. I just caressed her hair and pulled her head towards my left shoulder. "Feel better?", I asked. She nodded and wanted a little more. Just wondered whether the neighbours cat felt the same way when it purred away while rubbing against my pants. "Mommy is lying on my bed!", she protested. I found out that Mommy was attending to little Benedict while lying on Christa's bed. Now, where did she get the temperament? From me?

You wouldn't play the game with me!

I found myself at home surround by all three children yesterday evening and my attention was focused on playing with little Benedict. I placed my palms over both my eyes and asked him, "Ben, where are you? I can't see you?". Usually he would drop everything and come scurrying towards me to move my hands away. He would then give me a big smile coupled with a chuckle.

Little did I notice (what was I wondering at that point of time?), Christa (3+ yrs) had been trying to get my attention and was pushing her way through to pull my hands too. She did that several times and didn't get any response from me.

After a few repeats of the 'game', I looked up and Christa started giving a heart-felt cry. I broke her heart and was partial. She didn't need anymore proof that I 'loved' her sibling more than her. I thought, "What did I do? Why didn't I notice her earlier? Was I such a bummer?".

It did take more than a little hug to soothen the stinging hurt. It was then that I had a heart-to-heart talk to let her know that she was also greatly loved, just as God would love His children. Finally, I had to let her sleep with me although Clarissa (5+ yrs) usually shares that part of the bed with us. Now, was I hoodwinked by the tears or just responding as it should be? At least, she knows everyone gets the same amount of 'TLC' at home. Mommy too!

Little Ben is catching up

Just as we were getting worried (since Grandma reminds us that Ben was a bit slow at speaking and responding) that Benedict was having difficulty vocalising and responding to us, we found that he actually knows what we are telling him to do. He gets up fairly quickly to drop his diapers into the basket when Mommy says, "Ben, throw". This morning he set his feeding bottle on the table when I told him to do so.

Ever since we've been spending a little more time with the children they've been good! And behaving like angels! Now, let's see whether we could get him to speak some English rather than Indonesian!

Benedict is doing Squats!

I'd figure that this is something which gets every father excited. Baby Benedict has started standing on his own at 9+ months. To top it up, he has started doing squats to catch our attention. It must have been his frequent exercises in the baby cot which strengthened his feet and sense of balance. Although we were afraid that he would topple over, he seemed to know where to place his balance just right.

Benedict's trampoline

Mommy brought Benedict into the bedroom asking me to take a look at Benedict while she sorts out the things the children needed for school tomorrow. Little did I know that Benedict had converted the baby-cot to a 'trampoline'.

Just need to make sure he doesn't fall over while enjoying himself. I wonder what he'd be like once he doesn't need to hold the sides of the baby-cot anymore?

Clarissa had her ears pierced!

I came back a few days ago to find Clarissa grining widely and I almost immediately noticed something shining on her earlobes. Mommy had her ears pierced and now she has a temporary gold ear stud in each lobe.

Hmmm ... . Should I protest? Should I keep quiet? Well,... I thought I would just praise her for being brave about the whole episode. "It's not painful," she said. I was only concerned that they used a sterile procedure and she doesn't react to the metal (allergy).

"Mommy, ... as long as you'd keep Benedict's ears free from any metal piercing it would be fine with me", I said quietly. I don't think I could stop the girls from having beauty accessories as they have started to dabble with make-up.

Benedict's Crawling to dangerous places

Now that Benedict's able to sit on his own and crawl quite comfortably, we can't let him out of our sight. Clarissa has been promoted to 'warden' to ensure that he doesn't start to pull the wires of my aquarium. Christa has been given the task to ensure that the colour pencil broken ends do not litter the floor after she finishes her colouring. He has started to pick things up from the floor and everything he grapples with goes into his mouth. It's true that Grandma said that we need someone to follow him as long as he is crawling on the floor. Help!

Awakening

Benedict seems to have his biological clock set off an alarm for feeding at 6.00am every morning. It has become almost second nature to me to just pop into his room to check out whether he is hungry, wet or stuck in an uncomfortable position. At least, I am quite happy that he doesn't empty his bowels first thing in the morning like Christa.

After changing his diapers, he doesn't seem to want to sleep anymore even after his first feed. He goes along making sounds trying to communicate with Mommy and I (if we managed to sleep well the night before) and looks like he has no problems at all in life. It's a really good cheer for the morning for all of us (even the girls, Clarissa and Christa started to wake up earlier to have a small chat with him!).

Photo: Benedict sitting quietly waiting for Mommy to send him to the baby-sitter

Roll over and chest up!

Benedict's 4 months old today and we're excited that he has started to roll on his side 10 days ago and even roll over a few days after. He is also holding his head steadily while pushing his chest off the ground. I can't really remember when his sisters did their 'stunt' but I guess every infant grows at slightly different rates.

Interesting links:
Infant Development: Birth - 3 months old
Infant Development:4-6 months old

Benedict cries to communicate and being nipple dependent

I have started the routine if the baby cries. Find out:-

1. Did he have his feed? Was it adequate? I check with Mommy and if she is extremely tired or sore, we get the expressed milk.
2. Did we forget to burp him gently? He seems to burp on his own when he is seated up or his head is placed gently on my shoulder while seated in my arms.
3. Did he wet his pants or defecate? He gets cleaned or washed, dried, powdered and dressed up. Seem to adjust well without any fuss.
4. Did he get adequate sleep? He gets annoyed if he doesn't get his sleep (up to 16 hours/day).
5. Did I forget to give him a cosy napkin or blanket wrap?
6. Did he get a little rock or pat to soothe his feelings? I carry the fella around the house and pat his bottom lightly. He doesn't fuss as I don't 'smell' like Mommy.
7. Is he having an upset or bloated stomach or constipated? There are some medication available from the doctor.
8. Talk to him - Nothing beats a little confidence and tender loving care.


It's been a week since we've noted that little Benedict (3 weeks old) has taken a liking for the nipple. He seems to breastfeed and then continue to tug onto the nipple while dozing off. If he's taken off the nipple he gets moody and cries until he gets the nipple. I don't think we would start the pacifier yet. When he goes to the baby-sitter, she would probably use it quite a lot. Nothing beats Mommy's tender loving care.

Find out more at these links:-
What to do when your newborn cries
How much milk to feed
Pacifier use shorten breastfeeding duration

*Further studies are required before a recommendation could be made about use of pacifiers in newborns.

I want Mommy to send me to school!

It's one of those days when Mommy and I exchanged our 'duty' to send Clarissa to Montessori. So, it's my turn now.

"I want Mommy to send me to school! I don't want daddy!", said Clarissa. I suppose she wasn't too happy that I accompanied Christa for the past 3 nights during bedtime to keep her 'secure' as she was unwell. I also get up everytime she coughs to make sure that her blankets cover her adequately. (She tends to kick everything she touches in her sleep!)

"Hmmm! You can sleep with daddy tonight, ok?", I said. "Uhh? Ok! Daddy, send me tomorrow!", said Clarissa with a twinkle in her eye.

Once both of them get over the common cold they would be more cheerful. I hope.

Oooo! She communicates with us now!

I am getting excited as little Christa (2 yrs) has started communicating with us rather than giving us the regular "Yes!" or "No!" answers. We get less squealing or screaming nowadays. And she seems much happier now that she understands that we are not part of a conspiracy to take away her happiness or steal her favourite toy or boltster.

She has finally opened up to us! Let's see whether she becomes as talkative as her sister, Clarissa (4 yrs). Hmmm! Now that she starts to defend herself with words, Clarissa will not have her scream at her but instead she would have to deal with her words. Is that going to be good new or not?

Anyway, it's good to know that all the DHA, AA and Taurine in the milk is doing some good to her. Hmmm... it's probably the time we spend talking to her. It's probably the story time!

You know they are growing up when...

Christa (22 months) woke me up this morning asking for her morning dose of milk. I quickly went to the kitchen and came back with her bottle. She took it and climbed onto our bed. After finishing the milk, she passed the bottle back to me (clean it up, daddy!).

She went back to sleep but I was wide awake. So I started on my e-mails. An hour later she came back telling me she wanted to 'pee' and insisted that she used the toilet seat and not the potty. Before I knew it, she took off the ScoobeDry diapers and tugged onto me. After taking her off the toilet seat, she refused to be assisted to wear her pants (she is already potty trained) and want to wear them herself.

We went to grandparents place and had brunch there. She took her fork and fed herself noodles without dropping any pieces. She wanted to eat her own orange slices but grandma did not allow that as she would swallow it whole. She stared back in protest but relented as she wanted to be in grandma's good books.

Talk to daddy, don't cry!

I am the lucky one as most of the trauma takes place around mummy's dress (literally). By the time I get home in the evening, both Clarissa and Christa will be busy tugging at mummy to get her attention. I could imagine the feeling of hang-over from baby-sitting the two girls the previous night and having a second trimester pregnancy at the same time. "Daddy!!!", yelled Clarissa while running to the door.

"Dah-deeeeee!!!", squelled Christa trying to get past her elder sister. Clarissa would not move and inch and that annoyed her little sister. Christa quickly put her hand out and grabbed at Clarissa's face. 'First-blood', with 2 scratch-marks on the forehead adjacent to the left orbit. In retaliation, she packed a full powered punch onto her sister's back causing Christa to fall. Mummy and daddy had one each to console but it was not after reprimanding them.

Clarissa refused to stop crying and went on for a minute. Then I told her, "Do you want to talk to daddy?", I asked. "Yes", was her answer. "If you do, then stop crying". She realised that she had to tell me about being 'clawed' by her little sister and stopped crying. I would then go over to the couch and have Clarissa seat next to me to tell me about all that happened.