Baby Matthew (3 - 4.5 months)

Time flies real fast...I've been back to work for a month already and Matthew is growing up fast. He getting really active and cute too. Things he has been able to do since 3 months to 4.5 months now include:

• laughing when you make silly sounds or go close to his face and tickle him
• grab objects and eat them
• he is always observing things happening around him and want to touch the toys that Kendrick is playing too
• With lots of tummy time practice, he was able to hold his head steady from around 3.5mths onwards
• He has learnt to flip himself from back to tummy and back at around 4.5mths. In fact, he is so into this new skill that he constantly wants to flip once you put him on the bed or playmat
• He's still into sucking his fingers, in particular his thumb. I'm still trying hard to stop him and we're still not giving into letting him eat the pacifier. But I really really hope that he can just stop that thumb sucking behaviour!!
• He can recognise us his parents, his brother Kendrick and some of the main caregivers like my Mom (for now), the maid
• He's starting to make more noises as if trying to talk when he's looking at things or interested in something
• He seems to be on the road to teething at around 4.5mths! I thought I can see a very vague whitish thing that is in his gums right now. He drools quite a bit too and likes to bite things
  

It's really quite fun to see Matthew growing up and hitting his milestones. It's even more fun to see my 2 boys lie down beside each other and play with each other. I'm just really glad that Kendrick seems to love his brother a lot at this stage :)

As for Kendrick, he's really smart now. Yes, he's still into words and numbers, but he has slowly picked up a bit more Mandarin through the songs they learn in school and the words that they learn to write. He's able to read most of his story books at home at 3.5yrs old and can really say things that make a lot of sense, as if he's a little adult! He's even learnt to write his chinese name recently. Really proud of him :) After a series of music classes, we've decided to let him try a bit of art class too (Since he's really quite under-exposed and not good at art). He's also started to learn a little bit of music from his aunt and I must say that he is able to play some very very simple tunes with one hand.

Well, till the next update again then :)

Baby Matthew - First 16 weeks

Every baby is different and there is no fixed way of how to handle each and everyone of them. But generally speaking, the first 6-8 weeks of a baby's life is really tough and you just have to get through it to know that there's sunshine after the rain!

Matthew was quite a challenge to handle indeed. Things were still fine when I was in the hospital. I could breastfeed him exclusively even though it was a bit difficult at times and also tiring. Just before we discharged, I was also happy that his jaundice level was at acceptable level so we could all go home. Back home was when things started to get really cranky!! Perhaps the baby was in a new environment and could not get used to it yet. Matthew was crying quite a lot and it was really difficult to put him down on any bed to sleep. This was even true at nights! He got startled very easily and preferred to be carried to sleep. My Mom and Mother-in-law helped me with confinement this time round but it was my Mom that stayed over with me and helped me through the night. The initial bit we really had to carry him to sleep :( It really took quite a while, I think almost 2 - 3 weeks before there was significant improvement and Matthew could sleep better at nights.

Anyway, after the first few days back at home, we had to go for a doctor checkup and it was determined that Matthew had jaundice and required photo-therapy. We chose to rent the machine and do it at home this time (for Kendrick we left him in the hospital). It was tough to go through it (we had to make sure he slept in it for at least 25 hours, and we had to turn him front and back). But at least I could see him, breastfeed him and take care of him. After that was over, the remaining weeks had its ups and downs. Breastfeeding was especially tiring as he took around 1 hour to nurse both sides, not to mention the high frequency of drinking too. I started giving 1 formula feed at night to give myself a slight break before slowly moving up to 2 feeds as he grew bigger. In between, I also went down to the lactation consultant twice to see if there was any problem with my feeding. Around 6 weeks, Matthew was especially fussy at the breast, crying a lot from the fast letdown or not fast enough flow etc. It was really tough...I almost wanted to give up! Frustration and lack of sleep made it really bad.

Thankfully, I have my family members around to help take care of me and also my elder boy. Talking about Kendrick, he has been really sweet towards his younger brother. He always want to hug and kiss him and he would always sing "Matthew, I love you". I was really glad for that. Yes, Kendrick had his fair share of throwing tantrums and wanting more attention, but generally it has all been manageable and he is very close to his Dad during this period. Still, he would love me a lot and want me to do certain things for him.

Well, as Matthew continued growing, I would say things slowly improved and it got more fun to play with him. He learned to smile quite a lot early on during the 2nd or 3rd week already...and nearing the 4th week, my Mom even taught him to say 'ah goo' which he cooed softly in response at times. Soon enough, Matthew was already 2 months old and he's learned to suck and lick his hands, make lots of noises, kick a lot and is still very much an alert baby. In fact, I got worried as to why he did not sleep much in the day. I thought all babies needed lots of sleep but my boy seemed to have a mind of his own. Thank God he slept at night though, waking around once or twice for feeds. It was the day time that we had to give him a lot of attention. I'm also glad I have a helper this time round. I can't imagine coping without her! I guess in a way, Kendrick was much easier to look after since I did so all by myself back then!

2 weeks ago, we decided to let Matthew try sleeping in the spring cradle (Thanks to my colleague who passed it to me as she didn't want it anymore). Matthew took to it quite well and slept a lot more than he usually did before that. Although he would usually wake after half and hour, it was easier to make him sleep back longer, or else we would take him out for a break then later put him back into the spring cradle to sleep. I don't know if that really worked for him, or that he was growing bigger now so he has began to form some patterns which are more predictable for us to manage. Nevertheless, whatever it takes to give him enough rest to grow....

Meanwhile, I certainly enjoy the bits and pieces of time I have with him, playing with him, making him laugh which has happened already in the last 2 weeks. Matthew is also learning to grab things and is very talkative now, always making lots of noises and baby sounds whenever we talk to him. His voice also got louder recently as he began to almost shout at times! He also showed signs of wanting to flip over as he is able to turn quite well to one side. We also give him some tummy time practice and his head and neck are quite strong already seeing that he can lift himself up to look quite well. But like Kendrick, he still doesn't really like being on his tummy at this point.

Well, despite the ups and downs of the initial phase of having a baby, I'm glad I came this far with Matthew...I'm really so thankful to God for my 2 boys, whom I'll always love and cherish! As I write this blog, I'll be going back to work next week. That would bring an end to my maternity leave. It's never enough! Haha...I'll miss my boys a lot when I'm at work ~~~

Baby Matthew - Birth story

This is a very much delayed blog entry but I thought I'd better get down to writing something before I return to work and everything gets even more busy!!

Well, my second son, Matthew entered our world on 14 March 2011!! I still recall that Monday morning, when I woke up at 7am and went to the toilet, I saw blood in my urine. I guessed as much that was an indication of delivery already. My hubby had already gone to work and only my elder boy and helper were still at home. I called my gynae who advised checking my self into hospital already. So I proceeded to call my hubby to inform him and I also called my in laws. By 8am, my father in law came over to wait with me for my hubby to return home so that I can go to the hospital while he fetched my older boy to their house. This time round, I actually did not feel any strong contraction pain, so I was quite thankful for that!! By 9.30am, I was already in Mt. Alvernia hospital and proceeded to their delivery ward to be checked and observed by the nurses and mid-wife.

I requested for epidural and waited for the anesthetist to come. This time round, my epidural took quite long to be completed. Somehow, the guy had trouble poking through my spine in a lying down and curled up position. In the end, I had to try sitting up and bending over holding some pillow. You could not imagine how worried and scared I was feeling, wondering if anything might happen to me. Well, thankfully it worked this time and the pain relief kicked in. Then came another scare....the nurses put me on some sort of drip that supposedly speeds up the contractions or make them more efficient so to speak. The first time they administered that, my baby's heartbeat dropped suddenly! They immediately stopped it and even got me breathing through an oxygen mask so as to give the baby more air or something. They tried to calm me down but I could not help worrying after that. Luckily, all was fine and baby's heart rate went back to normal. Eventually, the drip managed to work and the mid-wife continued to check on my dilation. By 1329 hours, I delivered Matthew after some pushing and the vacuum help. So there was our little boy, weighing at 3.125kg and 52cm tall :)

I held him for a while before the nurses wheeled him off for checks and clean up etc. This time, I also stayed in a single bed room instead of double bedder. Really wanted to have more privacy. I guess it helped as it got really noisy when Kendrick and my other family members came to visit me in the evening. Well, that's the birth part. When it came to discharge day, I was also worried about my baby's jaundice level. Luckily, it was passed and I was able to bring him home on the same day of discharge. From then, starts a really 'challenging' but fulfilling time looking after Matthew. I'll update that in the next blog :)

Still counting down

Just went to the gynae over the weekend and my baby is still not engaged yet. Guess it's still a waiting game for now! I put on a little bit more weight but based on estimation, this little one is probably not as big as Kendrick was. Maybe just a little over 3kg perhaps? Nevertheless, what's more important is that he is still healthy. In a way, now I'm asking little Matthew to give me at least another week before he decides to make his appearance! The reason being, big brother Kendrick is not well again :(

Sigh, my poor little Kendrick darling fell sick again on Friday. Luckily I happened to be on leave so I could take care of him somewhat. He started to have mild fever that morning and was on fever medicine the whole day. His cough also worsened. Strangely, he was fine that day. But on Saturday, things took a turn. His fever suddenly shot up from the afternoon to more than 38.5 degrees. We continued to feed him fever medicine and his other cough mixtures prescribed by the doctor. It really felt so sad to see him so weak again :( This really make me wonder whether I should consider sending him to TCM after he is well to get him stronger??

On Sunday, Kendrick also threw up twice. I guess mainly due to the phlegm that was stuck in his throat causing him to cough a lot. Plus the sickness probably took a toll on his tummy and appetite. With him like that, how do I feel ready to go off to the hospital to deliver? So that's why I can only pray that God will quickly heal Kendrick and perhaps Matthew could wait a bit more? I do see very subtle signs of labour impending...like more frequent bowel movement, slightly more white discharge...perhaps more nesting instincts...haha..oh well, if it happens it happens. Just have to trust in family and God! For now, Mommy and Daddy really pray that Kendrick will get well soon. No doubt he's still quite cheerful and active and so full of hunger to learn, but we really want him to be strong again, not have any more cough and fever!! Get well my son!

Feb'11 updates

It's February now and I'm closing in on the birth of my second son...it's the home stretch now! During my last check up at around 35 weeks, baby seems fine and weighs in about 2.8kg. Doc said that he's fairly comparable to Kendrick at around the same time during my last pregnancy. This little boy has also been very active, always kicking and pushing my tummy, even when I sleep at night. However, the unfortunate thing is that Mommy has fallen sick just recently. I somehow caught this virus and it started with a sore throat, followed by rather bad cough and phlegm. Much as I really wanted to avoid taking medicine, I had not much choice but to take some as it was an infection. I really hope that this will not have any serious impact on baby. I only hope to get well soon!! Haiz...but I'm thankful that I did not have any major sickness until this point in time. I'll be seeing my gynae again at the end of February and thereafter, it'll be a weekly countdown! Honestly, I am still nervous despite this being the second time round. And I'm pretty sure I'll miss Kendrick terribly when I'm in the hospital. Hope he will cope well without me around...In my mind are also thoughts about how things will play out once the baby is born. Will Kendrick want a lot of my attention? Will he whine and cry and misbehave? Or will he surprise me and become really independent? Haha..I guess I'll know soon enough.

As for Kendrick's development, I would say he's getting a lot more interesting again. He enjoys school quite a bit now and has friends that he is able to name. Mostly girls though :) At one point, he kept telling us about all the 'girl friends' that he knows - e.g. Constance, Ezanne, Yasmine, Tasha, etc. I guess one reason is that his class has more gals than boys. But it's so cute to see him talk about them and act so shy and smile so happily! He will also say he like this person that person. He also started becoming more friendly to our immediate neighbour who has a little girl 1 year younger than Kendrick. He likes to stop by their house just as we make our way home, so that he can just stand there and say hi and make small little conversations. We really have to drag him home at times...My funny little boy!

Kendrick's also into asking "Why" a lot now. Like every single thing that we do or make him do, he will question you with a "Why". It's as if he's a really big boy now, knowing his rights and wants to demand why we do certain things to him or expect him to do certain things. Gosh, at times it does get a little exasperating just to answer him. But yet we know that it's a really good time to continue to teach and nurture him. Only hope that we will be able to instill the right values to him somehow...

Photo updates: Kendrick in school on CNY Eve with his friends

CNY Day 1

CNY Day 2

Kendrick with his little cousin, Krel

CNY Day 3

A visit to the River Hongbao and here's Kendrick with his Chinese zodiac sign

Celebrating Daddy's birthday at home with his family

Celebrating Daddy's birthday at Ben & Jerry's!

Dec'10 andJan'11 updates

Time flies, we are now in year 2011 already! In just 2 more months, we should be expecting to see our second little boy come into this world! As for how's he's doing so far, I would say quite good. He's developing fine and my visit to the gynae today indicates that he's now close to 2kg and his head is in a downward position. That would mean a good chance for normal delivery. Other than that, I would say this baby is very active...I can really feel him move at many different times of the day. As he grows bigger, some of his moves can be quite painful too. Gosh. I guess it's the Mommy that suffers...sometimes I do feel the aches and discomfort but what to do, just have to bear with it for a while more. I'm both nervous and excited to be honest. Although I know roughly what to expect, but it's still a feeling of uncertainty and the fact that one has to be in confinement soon :| Anyways, I guess I'll just deal with it as it comes.

As for Kendrick, it's back to school in January after a 2 week break in December. His emotional behaviour improved since the last time I mentioned. He cried a little when he went back to school initially, but has slowly gotten used to the workgroup class that he's in. Interestingly, he has made some new friends, particularly gals! He actually told us the names of 2 of his friends - Constance and Yasmin. A check with his principal confirmed that was indeed true...he did play with them in class. Haha. Hopefully he will slowly continue to open up more and grow more independent this year. He just turned 3 recently and again, I can't believe how time flies growing up with him. Really love him soo much :) He can really say such funny things at times, and even knows how to show concern if you hit something for example. Kendrick also writes a lot better now and is aware of many words. However, he still needs improvement in his colouring which he just simply does not show any interest in!! Guess he's really not the artistic kind?! He has learnt to draw a little bit too but still his interest lies in words and numbers. Well, for the year ahead, I can only wish that he'll will learn to be a good big brother and be more independent. Till the next update!

Christmas at Orchard 2010

Visited Snow City for the first time, thanks to Dear's company family day. Kendrick loved the snow!

Kendrick and his Christmas presents for 2010

Swimming at Sengkang swimming pool

New Year's Eve Countdown 2010 at Swissotel The Stamford. It was such a lovely fireworks night!

Birthday lunch at Swensen's and Kendrick is so happy to have his birthday ice-cream :)

It's a Toy Story cake for his 3rd birthday dinner

Updates for Nov'10

Since my last post, I'm about 25 weeks pregnant now. So far the little one inside of me has been rather active, I can feel his kicks and movements at various times of the day. The detailed scans and gynae visits have all shown that he is growing fine too, so just have top hope for the best. As for me, I guess I do get a bit more uncomfortable if I sit for too long. Somehow the tummy just feels a bit more tight and perhaps expanding, causing a slight feeling of 'being squashed'. Haha. I guess I can't eat too full now too for each meal, otherwise I can get pukey and feel very indigested.

We have also decided on a name for our second son...and he shall be called Matthew Tan :) As for the Chinese name, I think we'll take a while more to decide.

With regards to Kendrick, he's been a great to be around with, until the recent 2 weeks when he has somehow changed in his behaviour. Before I go into that, I thought I'd just update on his developments so far - He's able to pee and poo in the toilet bowl/potty for the day time already. But as for feeding himself, he's still rather lazy and not that good at it! He's also very into words and numbers. He not only remembers the spelling of lots of words, he can also write them out. His favourite activity now is to write all the words he has seen or encountered, like 'frog, log house, piano, radio, apple, pear, etc etc. The list just goes on. I'm quite amazed that he can remember the spelling of quite a lot of words actually. However, he does not seem to show much interest in drawing pictures. I'm still trying to teach him to imagine in that area and learn to draw some pictures. But he tend to lapse back into words and numbers instead... He's also such a fun to talk to, especially since he can say the most interesting sentences which you didn't expect him to say. Probably all picked up from what we say as adults.

However, his emotional behaviour changed a little in the recent 2 weeks, especially after we came back from a 5 day Hong Kong trip. He started crying again every day when he went to school. But after a while when he is in the class, he'll be ok. He also started crying at night when we want to leave my parents in law home. He insisted on staying with his grandparents and would continue to cry and throw a tantrum all the way home. When we scold him nowadays, he seems to cry more easily too, at the slightest bit. Gosh! I'm trying my best to be patient with him but there are times when it can be quite frustrating!! Anyway, I'm really praying that all these needy and attachment behaviour would gradually ease out. I can't tell if it's another case of separation anxiety happening all over again, or that he's growing bigger and suddenly became very aware of his emotions and feel the notion of 'love'. He will keep telling us that it's because he loves us or miss us. Much as it is very sweet and lovely, but his over-clingy and refusing to listen at times behaviour is a bit too much to bear. Some of my friends say it's some sort of reaction to me having my second child. Perhaps it is, perhaps it's not. It's not an easy time for us to deal with Kendrick, but I hope that like every other phase he has gone through, this will ease out soon!!