His first outstation trip

My sister, Yvonne recently got herself baptized in a catholic church, the St. Francis Xavier Church. Prior to her baptism, she had to attend a pre-baptismal retreat in Melaka, a 3 days 2 nights stay in retreat.

Naturally, by being her sponsor, I was looking forward to going to the retreat with her. The night before the retreat, I was trying to get Ethan to sleep in our bedroom. He didn’t want me to put him to bed and was struggling for almost a good one hour. And finally, mommy instinct told me that I had to call my maid up to the room to put him to bed. Sure enough, when the maid turned up and took him in her arms, he quieted down.

I was perturbed.

I couldn’t really fall asleep that night thinking if I’d to leave Ethan at home the whole day with the maid, he’s so not going to want me anymore.

Biting my lips hard, I told hubby that we will have to cart Ethan to Melaka and the maid was not going to sleep with my little boy. My other sister, Angeline was compassionate enough to understand what I was going through. So, she braved her horrible cough and cold in an hour car journey enroute to Melaka.

It was good seeing my son after one night of not seeing him. This was one time which I thought that motherhood thing has actually seeped into me. Nice!

Since it was a pretty last minute decision, we decided to book a room in the Majestic Hotel, Melaka, though the YTL Platinum Plus. (I must say that this club this the only one community which takes special care of it’s member. To top that, I have gotten invitations to watch a couple Malaysian musicals/stage plays but never could make it.)

Hubby was really excited about the whole idea of getting away, near or far. As for him, the induced thought of the Melaka Chicken Rice Balls drove his will for the one hour drive. However, I had to sneak out of the retreat sessions to check if things were fine with Ethan. I felt really bad about it, but lil sister was really cool about it, assuring me that she understands and told me to make sure the little boy was alright.

It was a great weekend for the family. Not to mention that it’s even better with Ethan behaving himself and enjoying himself in the hotel.

Check out the Majestic Hotel room and you will know why. By the way, that night when we all slept in the hotel, my little champion fell asleep in my arms. I was so overjoyed.

That's Ethan's yiyi preparing for his bath in an open concept bathroom in the hotel room!

This hotel used to be a mansion, dating back to the 1920s. The YTL decided to erect a new building in next to this mansion with it’s facade remains at the heart of the hotel mirroring the original architecture.

I remember reading an article on how the restoration team had to work on the hotel’s renovation by ensuring that the original porcelain flooring remains untouched. I seriously wonder how can that happen.

I must say that the hotel’s design integrates the old with new making it an experience. Lay man term, it feels like staying in a 6 star modern kampong.

Hubby swore that he is definately going back again. My verdict? A MUST! Frankly, the YTL Hotel Properties have never failed us. They might not be the biggest and most grandeured facade hotel, but I just love their so very intimate and unpretentious service, and their very personalised touch. If you are looking for a quiet hideaway with easy access to local food, this is the place to be!

ethan loves the guitar

Ethan absolutely loves music and he is really fascinated with daddy's guitar. When Ethan kicks a fuss, daddy will try to distract him by either strumming a lullaby or just plucking tunes. Lil E will sit down and watch daddy attentively, as if he was in a concert.

When lil E gets excited, he will move closer to daddy and try to pluck or strum the guitar strings. (Yes, he is getting pretty restless)

Speaking about that, grandpa came home with a flyer for Kindermusik one day. And we thought for a while, Ethan doesn't need to attend Kindermusik, really. He will attend music lessons with daddy! That will save us some money considering infants can only probably do listening and clapping at this stage. We will enrol him eventually; when his motor skills are more developed and he has better control of his hands coordination.

he doesn't like avocados

We've tried it many times.

He loves carrots.

He doesn't like avocado and carrots.

He loves pumpkins.

He doesn't like avocado and pumpkins.

He loves spinach.

He doesn't like avocado and spinach.

He loves bok choys.

He doesn't like avocado and bok choys.

Any suggestion on how he'd like avocados?

An act to a word?

I came across an article on some really weird situations where an act eventually became a word.

Pinkwashers (n) Certain companies who specifically use support for breast cancer research to promote products or services.

Carborexic (n) A person who is obsessed with minimizing his or her use of carbon.

Precycling (v) Purchasing products based on how recyclable they are.

Ghost call (n) A silent phone call received from a person who inadvertently has dialed or selected the number on their mobile phone (also known as ``purse-dialing.'')

Micro-boredom (n) What we used to call downtime is now increasingly filled by fiddling with mobiles or BlackBerrys. Those who market these devices, or the services they use, see it as an opportunity to sell us something.

Baby goggles (n) A phenomenon where the parents of an ugly baby think their baby is adorable and no one else does.

Fauxmosexual (n) A person who pretends to be gay, particularly as a way of garnering attention; a person who mistakenly believes he or she is gay.

Kitchenheimer's (n) When you're in the kitchen going around in circles because you can't remember what you were doing there.

SOURCE: Cramer-Krasselt's ``Urban Dictionary''

I find these words really amusing… and I really like the term Kitchenheimer's, maybe because that’s the word I have been looking for, for a long long time and yes, I do get Kitchenheimer's all the time. Do you?

Separation Anxiety

I just found out why Ethan was crying profusely yesterday night when hubby and I were attending a wedding dinner, while grandma and Ethan's yiyi babysat him in one of the restaurants in the Hotel.

When we first left Ethan to the both of them, he was find indeed. Apparently, after we have left him about about 30 minutes, be began his whole crying saga and both grandma and yiyi couldn't understand why he was behaving that way.

And only much later (in fact now) that I found out that he is at this stage (around 7-8 months) where he becomes aware when we are not around. Technically, this is because children at this age haven't yet grasped the concept of object permanence -that you exist even when you're not with them.

Apparently this anxiety can last well past his first birthday. Sigh, will let you know if he is one of the "bad case".

Anyways, I found out that there are some ways of dealing with separation anxiety. Looks like mummy and daddy will need to pay special attention to these pointers:

1. Keep things familiar
If possible, have your child stay in his own home with someone he knows well -- grandparents, a caregiver. If he has to be away from home, don't separate him from his siblings, and make sure he has his favorite blankie. Routine is especially important for younger babies. A 4-month-old is too young to comprehend why Mom isn't with him, the most you can do is keep his daily routine the same.

2. Tell baby what to expect
Children really need to learn to trust you, so forecasting and then doing what you say you're going to do is very important. For kids under 3, a heads-up one or two days before you go is plenty. And don't skip an explanation because you think your child is too young to understand. Your tone of voice and your attitude send a message to your kids before they understand all the words.

3. Build anticipation
Whether he'll be going to the zoo with grandpa or baking cookies with grandma, emphasize how much fun your child will have while you're gone. It's also good to acknowledge his anxiety. You could say, "I know you're going to have a really good time with Grandma -- but it's okay if you miss me. You can tell Grandma you miss Mommy, and I bet Grandma will give you a really big hug."

4. Rehearse
Before your first kid-free trip, try some short practice runs. You want to help children gradually learn to tolerate separations. Try going out without your child a few nights a week. If that sounds unrealistic, an occasional overnight visit at Grandma's or a few afternoons with a babysitter can also help prepare your child for longer separations.

5. Always say good-bye
A baby can better adapt to separation if he sees Mommy and Daddy before they go. If he is sleeping or distracted when his parents leave, he may wake up, notice that you're not there, and start crying.

6. Leave a reminder of you
Leave something of yours behind with your baby. She could watch a video that you're in, look at a large picture of you, or sleep in one of your unwashed T-shirts.

7. Have a countdown until you return
Sometime after his second birthday, the child's sense of time improves. He may enjoy crossing out days on a calendar while you're gone, or marking them with stickers. Another idea is to give your child a box or bag of small gifts when you leave town. Then each day you're away, he gets to take out one gift.

8. Stay in touch
Consider sending postcards to the toddler before you leave so they'll arrive early in your absence. E-cards can also be written ahead of time and programmed to arrive when you choose. And of course, for children of all ages, phone calls are very reassuring. If your child starts to cry during your call, it's time to say good-bye -- and perhaps have the caregiver take him outside for a change of scenery.

9. Prepare for changes when you return
Many kids -- eager for your attention -- will act a little funny when you arrive home. Often you'll see a bit of regression/ It might be thumb sucking when they haven't done that for a while, or they may slip up in their potty training. But just like your child's fear of your leaving, this too shall pass.

Oh my, looks like we really need to prep him way in advance because our little boy is showing some signs that he is not happy when mummy and daddy are not around.

Ethan's first artwork

Ethan helped daddy make a father's day card for grandpa of course with some help from mummy. This was taken during Father's Day (21st June 2009). We used non-toxic children's paint and made sure that Ethan had his tiny hands wash twice after our little project!