You'll never walk alone

Every achievement in life is worth celebrating and getting all excited over. As we grow older, we tend to take these achievements for granted as we set ourselves higher standards & celebrate less and less.. Or actually come to think of it, maybe we just achieve less as we grow older. Haha.

Anyway, mommy got really excited over a BIG achievement from our little Wayne Wayne!

On this day, the 16 of June, Wayne Wayne took his first few baby steps unassisted!!

Whoa!!!! Mommy was at work when I received an sms from grandma and dayi saying that Wayne walked a few steps by himself! Apparently, grandpa was back from work and Wayne Wayne as usual wanted grandpa to carry him and.. he walked 3 steps towards grandpa!!!! Wow!! Mommy felt so excited and happy and couldn’t wait to knock off work and rush home!!!

He's still really wobbly and can only do 2 to 3 steps at most. But that’s a start! He is really lazy too, have to 'force' him to walk by dangling something in front of him to grab. Fei yiyi even managed a couple of videos of him walking - one step, two step, then down on his butt! So cute!!!! Oooohh cant wait for him to really be walking around!!! Hooray to Wayne Wayne!!

And as daddy would say, in full Liverpool spirit, "You'll never walk alone". Mommy & daddy would always be by your side to hold your little hand and walk with you in your life journey. We will always be there for you should you fall and need that little help from someone to pull you back up on your feet again. We love you darling. Happy walking!

Mommy is going to get you many more new pairs of shoes, handsome little boy!!!

I am.. Zeng Ziheng!

At work today, mommy was doodling and realized I kept writing Wayne Chan HK, Wayne Chan HK .. Hehe, I guess subconsciously mommy was writing out the names of the 2 boys dearest to me.

Anyway.. Got me thinking bout Wayne's chinese name.. Wayne Chan Zee Herng or Zeng Ziheng. We hardly call Wayne by his Chinese name that it now sounds so unfamiliar and foreign. Although it is his name. And, guess what, mommy doesn’t even know how to write his name in chinese characters!! That’s so sad and embarrassing!! My own son's name! So shameful! Haha. And worse still, mommy didn’t even know what the Zi in his name meant. (But after I found out what Zi means, I now know why no one ever explained what that means.. Cos it’s a tree??? Huh. Well, ok. It’s a name, so if it sounds good, that’s good enough =p)

So anyway mommy has been learning and trying to memorize the strokes of Wayne's name.. Diligently!
曾 梓 恒

Mommy also got Daddy to explain what his name means:
梓 - is a type of tall tree

恒 - determination

So whats exactly in all these Chinese characters that we Chinese believe in and see a need to have it matched with the date and time of birth of the child. Does it really shape the character of the child? Or does it determine the destiny of the child? Hmm.. I don't know. I'm not a believer. How can a name decide how your life turns out to be. 10 strokes + 2pm + dd mm yyyy + add some water/ fire/ wood/ what else = good life ? Hmm, sorry, I'm too logical for that. Well, what I do know, never name your child 'mei li' or something like that, cos chances are she wont turn out so.

So if there even is some truth to these Chinese belief, then what does Wayne's chinese name mean for him? Well, I'm not sure what 'Zi' means, but 'heng' - if Wayne grows up to be a determined person in life, mommy would be quite happy. Determined in the good way of course. Determined to succeed in life. Determined to excel. Determined to fight for what he believes in. The good kind of determination. Now, his determination comes in the form of - "I want my toy" and he wont give up till you give in to him. Determination in the wrong form. And ohhhh, I know what Zi means for him now.. It means he will grow up to be tall! A tall person. Just like what Zi means in chinese - a tall tree. Ooohh… finally I found meaning in his name. Revelation!

I think next time when Wayne goes to school and learns Chinese, mommy will learn together with him. Right from nursery, kindergarten, primary 1,2,3… and so on. Daddy can teach us both together. =)

Bye Bye Baby Bjorn!

While the Baby Bjorn has served us so well the past half a year or more, its now time to officially ditch the carrier. Cos our little boy has just decided for himself that he has outgrown the carrier and no longer wants to be 'trapped' in it. While Wayne probably felt really close to mommy and all comfortable in the carrier when he was younger, I guess he is a big boy now and would rather be free to move around.

The carrier had really been mommy's best friend for many many months. Wayne would fall asleep within minutes of being in the carrier during his morning and afternoon naps. When mommy used to do the housework, Wayne would be in it while mommy vacuums and mop the floor. Even when cooking simple stuff, Wayne Wayne would at times also be in the carrier! And the carrier was the best thing in the world when mommy went on solo shopping trips with Wayne! It was so easy to bring Wayne out alone with the carrier - tuck Wayne in the carrier, sling Wayne's baby bag over my shoulder and yippee, mommy still had 2 hands free to go shopping!!!

Now, Wayne at 9+kg and 75cm long, he is getting a little too big and heavy for the carrier. Each time I ask him if mommy can carry him in the carrier, he'd shake his head or wave his hands to say 'dont want dont want'. So I guess its now time to give the carrier a good wash and keep it in the cupboards, and bring it out again when we have our next child. Which is probably a very rational decision, cos with Wayne's weight now, any longer in the carrier would most likely result in chronic shoulder and back aches for mommy.

A crabby affair

How else to celebrate da-yi's birthday other than by having crabs, crabs and lotsa crabs - da-yi's number 1 all time favourite!!! So last Sunday, we checked out Irvin's, this restaurant at River Valley, famous for its salted egg crabs! Da-yi really loves crab and all kinds of seafood. We had the salted egg crabs as well as the black pepper. The food was quite good!

And, after dinner, we proceeded down the road for yoghurt desserts! Wayne Wayne had a taste of adult yoghurt too! Well, not supposed to cos these yoghurt has all kinds of preservatives and sugar and coloring added , but just a little won't harm! So far Wayne Wayne has only tasted yoghurt for babies!

dayi, mommy, sanyi, wayne and feiyi!!

As for present, we got da-yi vouchers from Aldo and Steve Madden, cos da-yi's number 2 all time favourite are shoes!!!

Almost there..

Over the last 2 weeks, Wayne has been learning to stand by himself unassisted & learning how to walk. Mommy wonders when my precious little boy will be taking his first steps? Practise hard baby! Mommy is looking forward to seeing you walk, I'm sure you will look really cute with your chubby backside going right left right left as you take your first baby steps!

Just a few days back, Wayne discovered how he could walk around the house by using this black stool in grandma's home. He used that as a walker and happily pushed it all around the house, walking here and there. Looks like mommy did not have to get Wayne a walker! But given how timid our little boy is, I think it would take him a while before he would dare to let his hands off whatever he is holding and walk by himself! You are almost there little Wayne!!!

Happy Birthday Da-yi!

Wayne only knows one birthday song..... so here goes!

Happy birthday to you,
You were born in the zoo,
With the monkeys and the elephants,
And you smell like one too!

*Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap**Clap*

Happy birthday Da Yi!

Wayne's birthday present to you - life time free toe massage for da-yi on your birthday each year!!

Teeth no 9,10, 11 and 12

At 13 months, Wayne's teeth number 9,10, 11 and 12 has appeared! These are the molars!!

So this is how Wayne's teeth looks like now. Initially mommy thought it was really strange that the molars were out before the canines. But after a bit of research online, mommy found out this is the normal order of appearance. After the molars, then it'd be the canines at about 16 to 20 months. It must have been really uncomfortable for Wayne given that the molars are much bigger!! But strong little Wayne was fine!

With these chewing teeth out, mommy thinks its time for some chicken drumstick Wayne!!!

Wayne's diet updates

At 13 months, we've introduced a few new food to Wayne.. kiwi, yoghurt and cheese!! He seems to be liking it pretty much. And, instead of puffs and biscuits to keep him quiet when we are outside, we've been letting Wayne snack on healthier food like steamed carrots and bread. *proud* Mommy is going to try steamed celery next! That sounds really healthy & nutritous.

Mommy recalls how Wayne didnt like to drink plain water when we first introduced it to him at 6 months old. He'd only drink water when he was eating cereal and even then, it was just a few sips. Now, he is drinking much much more and mommy is glad!

Plain water and vegetables.. these are the 2 items mommy thinks its really important to get our babies to consume from young, lest they grow up not liking them. Then, it'd be really really hard to force them. Start young & hopefully they'd grow up loving water & vege!!

Wayne's one year old must do list

As Wayne turned a year old, it's time for a few much needed changes!!!! Here goes:

1) Wayne needs to be potty trained

This is really harder than mommy thought! As grandma said, we are a little too late, cos now Wayne knows how to get up and protest! Should have started when he was 7 to 8 months? Perhaps it would be easier. Anyway, the first time I got him to "mmhhh mmhhh' in the potty, he wailed! The second time, he wailed too. He actually seemed afraid of the potty!! Looks like mommy has to try much harder and persevere!!!

But just a few days back, grandma taught Wayne to poo poo right into the toilet bowl and guess what - it worked!!! Yay!! Well, so far it has been 3 times that Wayne has poo-ed into the toilet bowl so that's a start! Maybe he can even skip the potty stage and go straight to the toilet bowl! Save us some cleaning.. hehe.

Difficulty rating : 7/10

2) Wayne needs to sleep in his cot and not on mommy & daddy's bed

I can't really remember at which point in time Wayne started sleeping with us on our bed. I think it was around the time we shifted to our current place. Initially it was just the ocassional nights, but that got more and more frequent and before we knew it, Wayne refused to sleep in his cot anymore. Big big mistake.... and mommy & daddy has to pay the price now. Cos training him to sleep in his cot is a nightmare I tell you. Unless we are prepared to let him cry for at least 2 hours, I doubt he'd fall asleep. So we are trying to go slow, let him fall asleep on our bed as usual, and when he falls asleep, quietly transfer him to his cot. This works, not too much of an issue. Problem is he wakes up in the middle of the night, looking out for us, and not being able to see us, he'd cry.. and because mommy & daddy would be half way in lala land already, we'd give in and transfer him back to our bed. Just so we can continue our sleep & not wake up a zombie the next day, having to go to work. Again, looks like mommy has to try much harder...

Difficulty rating : 10/10

3) Wayne needs to use the toddler car seat

No complains here, we changed Wayne's infant car seat to the toddler seat and he loves it. Facing the front now, he gets to see daddy drive and that makes him happy!!

Difficulty rating : 0/10

4) Wayne needs to discard his pacifier

Its been more than a week that we've ditched his pacifier on and off and so far so good.. He still manages to fall asleep, so hopefully this is goodbye to the pacifier. Well, not that he was very attached to it in the past. It was only at bedtime he'd use the pacifier and even then, at times he'd fall asleep without it. So now, most times, he is off the pacifier and only when he's being really difficult and refusing to sleep, we'd give him the pacifier. But we need to stop that too. No more pacifier after one year of age.

Difficulty rating : 2/10

5) Wayne needs to hold his own milk bottle *this is embarassing*
Wayne is 13 months old and he doesn't even hold his own milk bottle! *Shame shame*. Our little boy is just really lazy when it comes to this. We always see much younger babies lying in their stroller and they'd be holding their milk bottle all by themselves drinking their milk while their mommies shop.. I bet they are barely 6 months old.. but our little Wayne.. just 2 mouthfuls and he'd let go of his bottle & REFUSE to hold it again! Mommy must persevere and continue to 'train' him!!

Difficulty rating : 5/10

Yeps, so thats it... for now. =) Hopefully it wont be too long before you hear an update from me that Wayne has successfully been potty trained and is sleeping all by himself in his cot!!

Forever begins tonight..

Forever begins tonight... That's the title of mommy's wedding blog and also mommy and daddy's wedding march in song when we got married back in 2008. Daddy also sang this song for mommy on our wedding day.

And tonight, we got to hear this song sang live by Patrizio Buanne!!! Mommy had surprised daddy with Patrizio's concert tickets and the concert turned out fabulous!! Mommy & daddy enjoyed the concert so much!!! Patrizio was just awesome. His songs were fantastic.. and he.. simply amazing. He's not really that good looking but he was just really charming, suave and oohh.. really sexy!

And when he sang Forever Begins Tonight, mommy's heart just melted. Made me fall in love with HK (not Patrizio =p) all over.

We made a pact to take the time

To get to know each other deep inside

No rushing in to cross the line

It may be a little old fashioned but it feels so right

Been holding back for so long

What feels so right can't be wrong

Baby you can read it in my eyes

Let's write the story of our lives tonight

Don't be afraid, turn down the light

Baby move in closer

It's gonna be alright

This is the moment we'll remember all our lives

Forever begins tonight

I know you fear those butterflies

But let me tell you a secret, so am I

But it's OK

Baby it's alright

Just follow our hearts now

What we feel inside

Yeah

And I know we will be one

When we see the morning sun

Don't be afraid

More fun.. at Gymboree with little Chloe!

Round 2 of fun this Wednesday!

After spending the afternoon with Yuwen, Yyn and her 2 beautiful kids, mommy & wayne rushed over to Tanglin Mall for even more fun with Aunty Shimin and cute little Chloe! It was play gym time at Gymboree! Time to stretch those bodies and have some exercise! Wayne was a little tired and grouchy when we first arrived (I think he was tired out from playing earlier on), kept wanting to stick to mommy. But after some encouragement from mommy, little Wayne was all ready to play again! Balls, slides, rubber rings, bouncers, rollers - there were so many items to play with!!

Little Chloe looked so cute, walking around.. when will it be Wayne Wayne's turn to walk?

Here are some photos of little Wayne and Chloe!

And, after the one hour of playtime, it was time for mommy & Aunty Shimin to catch up over an evening light snack! Thanks Aunty Shimin & little Chloe for the wonderful time!

Wayne's first crush

Hello Ruhan kor kor and Zenyi jie jie!!!

This is the first time Wayne Wayne is meeting his little friends, plus their mommy, Aunty Yyn. Aunty Yyn is mommy's very good friend since a long time back. But mommy hardly gets to see Aunty Yyn cos she lives in Perth! So when Aunty Yyn called to say she is back for a holiday, mommy was so excited!!!!

We gathered at Aunty Yuwen's house and we adults, had such a good time chit chatting, just like old days when we used to sleep over at one of our homes and chit chat all night long. And eat supper and breakfast together too! How mommy misses those days. After not seeing each other for so long, once we girls got together it still felt like old days, as though we've never been apart at all! Mommy truly treasures my friendship with these 2 aunties!

And the nicest part is seeing our little children play together.. it seems like we have really grown up! From the days we were studying together as teenagers, to seeing each other get married and now have kids. =D And now seeing our little ones playing together. Big brother Ruhan and smaller one Zenyi and smallest little Wayne and smallest smallest little baby still in Aunty Yuwen's tummy! Mommy hopes they will have more chances to play together in future!

Ruhan & Zenyi are really super adorable.. really good looking kids. I'm sure the girls will go gaga over handsome little Ruhan when he grows up. And as for little Zenyi, I think Aunty Yyn & Uncle Gordon will be having a busy time fending off all the guys lining up to speak to Zenyi when she grows older.. I mean who can resist such an adorable little girl like this:


Including out little Wayne! Who totally went head over heels in love with her... and couldnt stop hugging her that afternoon. =D

Zenyi: Hi Wayne, here's your water bottle...

Wayne : He could only stare and salivate at the sight of herWayne: Hi Aunty YYn, I really like your daughter..

Wayne: Really really like her..
Wayne : Omg.. my first kiss.. I'm totally smitten..
Wayne: I promise to take good care of you..
Wayne: Protect you wherever you go...

Wayne: From all the chi ko peks too... ooohh... your butt is really perky Zenyi!

Zenyi : Mom, look at Wayne! He's grabbing my legs yet again!

Zenyi: And hugging me AGAIN too!

Wayne: But but but.. i reallu like you Zenyi!!!

Zenyi: Mom, HELPPPPPPPP!!!! *cries*

Aunty Yyn: Oki oki, enough.. Wayne, you have to wait till you are older, k? Shake hands and be friends again.

Its actually the first time I've seen Wayne so captivated by another kid.. He has always like other babies and children.. but whoa this time, he was aggressive!! Hahaha, mommy, Aunty Yyn and Aunty Yuwen were laughing away as we watched how Wayne just kept trying to hug sweet little Zenyi!!! But who can blame him, Zenyi was just the sweetest girl mommy has seen!!!

Boys will always be boys

To give you an idea how active little Wayne is ..

He spends his day crawling round the whole house, climbing on everything he can. While he used to sit in his car, now he just enjoys climbing all round it. He would step on the tyre and dangle, smiling happily.. until he loses his footing and fall on the floor. The bed is another favourite spot, climbing up and down our bed like an expert.

And just today, we caught him almost being able to climb out of his playpen by himself! He'd hold the top of the playpen, step on the netting on the sides of the playpen and push himself upwards.

So for mommy & daddy, this means constant watching & chasing after him. Which is phew really tiring. Thing is, he hasnt even started to walk by himself!!! I think that's when the REAL challenge is... Uh oh.. daren't even think about it!

I wonder if girls are just as active too?? Or is this just a boy thing? Rough. Active. Sweaty. Our little Wayne. =)

Sunday mornings at East Coast

Every Sunday morning, daddy goes to East Coast to play soccer with his friends. Instead of sleeping in this Sunday morning, mommy brought Wayne to East Coast as well!! After dropping daddy off at the nearby field, mommy & wayne went for morning breakfast at Burger King to fill mommy's hungry tummy! As it was drizzling, mommy next brought Wayne to Polliwogs for some fun exercise. Wayne absolutely enjoyed himself crawling all over the place chasing after mommy! He is so full of energy, mommy can hardly keep up with him!!!

So every Sunday will be mommy & Wayne's time together! Mommy will bring you for walks along the beach, look at the many roller bladers, cyclists, little dogs, ships, as well as watch the cable skiers in action. That sounds like lots of fun to mommy!!!