39.7 and Roseola!

Missy has never had fever more than 2 days. Her fever always subside after medicine. And this time, it lasted for 5 days, we felt so helpless. At least, we were comforted by the fact that she is still very active and cheeky, her usual self. Knowing that there is nothing much we could do, we continued to pray for speedy recovery, kept sponging her at night especially when the temperature spiked and giving her subs every 6 hours. Her temperature shot the highest at 39.7 degree celcius on the night 4. Of course we were worried but we also know that her body is fighting against whatever virus there is in that small frame of hers. We were so ready to rush to the A&E but somehow, her temperature went down slightly after a while. And her eyes seem to be swollen and we searched and googled with all the sypmtoms we saw. Rashes, swollen eyes and fever... we started to suspect it to be roseola and there is no antibiotic for it. No antibiotic for virus attack. So, there is no point to rush to any doctors or hospitals since she is drinking well, eating well but with high temperature. The only thing in my mind is to continue to keep her temperature down, her temperature down, down and down..

Thank God that her temperature went down on the next day, and by evening, her temperature was almost back to normal around 37-ish. Well, except for the rashes that seems to be popping up on her chest, she is OKAY. And the next day, hubby took her to see paed to confirm what she has caught on and also to ask what are the signs of a dengue attack. Fever and rashes are also signs of a dengue attack ;p All is well when paed confirmd that it is roseola. Google it for more info. Praise God indeed that it is nothing more serious. Phew! Missy, pray that you have a lifetime immunity against it *hugs*

Parenting skills, what is best?

There are so many parenting books available in book shops, which is the one then?
There are so many advises and opinions from kind souls around us, who should we listen to?

I don't know and don't have any answers to the above questions.We bought a book called The Parenting Book by Nicky and Silas Lee, preparing ourselves when Missy hits the Terrible Two's stage. It's helpful and informative I would say. But then, parenting is still very new to me and it will be as my child grows. Mama-hood is not something we all prepared to. There is no one book for a child. Every child is different and we can only gather as much information as we could to prepare ourselves. Only His Word, and through His grace we could bring up our children well. Truly need His wisdom!

My prayer is "May we train her in the way she should go, and when she is old she will not turn from it" (Proverbs 22:6)
Ok, actually, this is also another long overdue post, here's some of the pictures we took for Christmas 2011.

Our Christmas 'tree'

Love the way she mirrors us worshipping :)
p/s: That's not my hubby btw, A friend was carrying her
so that mommy can take a break

Thank God for His provision

Am thankful to know that I have a God who provides and cares to every of our needs. For one, we are thankful to the people He sent into our lives especially for my MiL's case. No doubt that it has been one which is full of ups and downs, but am thankful to know that He is in control. To date, my MiL has undergone 4ops in a span of 1 mth!! Long overdue post. She's in the ICU for 2 months now. We are praying for no further complications so that she can moved out finally from ICU to normal ward, and then discharge home. Yes, am never in good terms but to go through that many ops at such an old age.. No one, no one should have to go through what she went through. We are praying that she will get to enjoy her final golden years in better health, no longer bound by sickness (I mean those that can really rob off your joy and freedom). Imagine yourself being old and not able to play with your grandchildren, or unable to even attend daughter's wedding, or maybe could not even enjoy her favorite dishes once in a blue moon.. This really reminds me to really buck up with some exercises and healthy diet. Darn, why is it such a hardwork to remain healthy? Ooh, before I run out too far off the topic..I want to thank Him for the doctors, specialists, consultants, pharmacists and nurses who were with us throughout the whole journey giving the best advises they could. She is not in any private hospital and to be in touch with some of the best people are truly God's hands at work!

Missy's centre is confirmed closing down. (Closed down by now). The partnership didn't go well, in fact has turned ugly in certain ways. So, we have until end of this month to search for another centre for her. Worst scenario, will be nanny or babysitter. Am not so keen since I know the best nanny, just that she's in Ipoh :( I've experienced endless provision from Him and am sure that we will find one.. But, of course, being me, I am anxious too. And another change for Missy... Sigh, all I can be sure of is she'll survive. Though I am not cut to be a SAHM, but at times like this, I hope that this is an option. But with so many commitments, this is a wishful thinking. How nice it could be if I can work from home at times or take a break just to care for her? *lallallala* Oh yes, before I get too overwhelmed by the things that's happening around me, I want to announce His wonderful provision! Yes, Missy is going to be 'che-che' in Oct!! *smiling widely* Is Missy happy? Does she know what is really in mommy's tummy? I can't really answer those questions.. For sure, she has been super clingy and more, more manja before we even confirmed that I've conceived. Children truly have the purest thoughts and so sensitive.. No wonder they have special place in His heart. And if there is one word to describe my cheeky Missy, it will be koala bear...

When you read this post, Will you please keep us in prayer? For MiL's health to be better in no time, missy grows up well and hubby not to tired with the travelling visiting MiL in the hospital.

Hope there'll be another post soon. Adios!

HFMD!

Missy caught the disease 2 weeks ago! Gosh, and we didn't even recognize it. The daycare had a 2 confirmed cases for children with HFMD and 2 suspected ones. All parents were informed to monitor their own children and to quarantine if their children had the symptoms. Nothing happens to Missy over the weekends since the annoucement to us on Friday. A week passed and Missy had a high fever. We thought that it could be a normal fever or maybe viral infection and since it was pretty high with over 39 degree celcius at noon, we rushed back to pick her up and see a paed.

We were told that if it's HFMD, the blisters will show up overnight. It is too early to tell and viral infection is on the rise too. We gave her suppository to bring down her fever (39.4 when we reached the hosp). It is important to monitor them closely since fever normally spikes during midnight. We thought nothing much of it since her fever came down at night. I was also checking her feet and hands, her thighs etc for blisters. The paed even drew us how the blisters should look like. Similar to chicken pox (I have no idea how it looked like either since I have not had any at all) but smaller with water inside, usually on the feet, hands, thighs and mouth. That's why it's called hand, foot and mouth disease. Thigh may be depends on individual (not sure on this)... Anyway, we thought nothing of it at all when Missy is back to her normal self with no fever the next day. We didn't see any blisters like the one drew to us on Missy. She eats and drinks well too. Healthy, right? We were so, so wrong! We brought her back to the daycare the next day. The owner then called us and said that the red spots on Missy are signs of HFMD and there seems to be an ulcer in the mouth. What?! Those are not mozzie bites?! And the ulcer was the reason she's been poking her own throat? I rushed back over to pick her up and we sent her to the same paed again. Confirmed! Paed showed me the an ulcer in her throat too. Darn, how can we missed the signs? Who would have thought that the blisters will only show up AFTER the fever has subsided? Who would have thought that it may not be alot like chicken pox, one or two is enough? Well, just us I guess.


There's no antibiotic for viral infection, it's only for bacteria infection. It all depends on the immune systems of a person. Thank God that Missy had a mild one. There were no new blisters except the one we saw on her feet and hand. She still has not rejected any food or drink thus sparing her from the medicine that will soothe her throat. I was so ready to feed her ice-cream, yogurt, cold drinks, whatever in case the sore throat got worse. But she was still in her normal self. Cheeky and active as ever. Thank God truly.

So, here are some pictures of her blisters..

The largest blisters.. I thought it should be small ;p

A different view. Sorry, camera on the phone has lousy quality

Another red spot for the so-called blister. It was just a spot!

The only 2 blisters on her right hand. There's none on the left.

And what did I do to deal with this HFMD on Missy
(Disclaimer: Pls note that there is no scientific research and whatsoever to whatever I did. They are solely based on mother's instinct, gut feelings and other mother's advise) ;p
1. Lotsa fluids and coconut water
2. Porridge as per norm since she's eating well
3. TLC
and most importantly, lotsa prayers :) Thank God it's only a mild one. So, can only share that much.

Phew, tiring to care for an active tots for 3 days consecutively! I have to think of activites for her, her menu etc. I am definitely not cut to be a SAHM. Salute all SAHM!

Missy, 4 months to 2yo

Terrible two's? It's apparent in her even now! Gosh, she really tests our patience and at times, I am amazed that I can be so patient. Maybe only towards Missy. Bought a book by Nicky & Sila Lee, The Persnting Book. Truly need to learn from other Godly parents since I tried not to copy too much from my or hubby's upbringing. I was brought up in a typical traditional Chinese family, where hugs and assurance are lacking (no question about my parents' love for us).. But we want to know how to raise up Godly children through other families. Both hubby and I are 1st generation Christian, we do not want Missy to have 'borrowed' faith when she grows up later. We learnt best from other people's experiences right? Hmm.. How did I sway away so much from the topic? I don't know.. Oh well. At this age, she has shown so much developments. And finally, Missy calls me 'mommy'!! Wheee, the moment I have been waiting for. So sweet to my ears. But that is a different story when she is so clingy. At times, I feel we are like koala and tree, Missy the koala and I am the tree. Imagine koala hugging the tree. That's how I felt when she's in her mood. Ooh, and she can self-feed too. I asked the centre if they allow her to feed on her own and they do monitor. I was told that her first time was done well too by herself. Hehe, I am not ready to clean up after her. So there isn't much chances for her to eat on her own at home. It's only when she refused to eat her lunch and dinner (maybe my cooking is really yucky ;p) or when we eat out and I need to distract her so that we can eat in peace. I was told that her gross motor is developing weel though I feel I have not done enough for her to explore. With that, I can only thank God for watching over Missy. Her vocabulary has increased too besides 'mommy'. Moon, stars, peekaboo, door, guitar (heard it for the first time today!), car, house... Can recognize and count from one to ten (so, so proud of her)... And many others that my dory fish memory is failing me. Her first few mandarin words are 'wo bu yao' (I don't want).. Of all words/semtnces she learnt *roll eyes* Nonetheless, am thankful that Missy is growing well :)

Am truly grateful for His provision

In my earlier post, I mentiond how we finally settled Missy in a daycare after some search. And a month later, we got a notice that the principal is closing it down! GASP! Horror of all horrors. This can't be happening, but then, it's the best she could do at that moment. She tried to look for others to take over or supervise when she is not around, but since she doesn't want to let go to those who are profit-centred (though the fees are considerably high where we can engage a babysitter to take care more personally than 16 kids at a time, but we calculated that the profit margin is not that high either). She really does it for passion and love for the children and I am truly grateful that I found such a gem. Of course, to hear such a news from her - CLOSING DOWN! I almost cried. I think I did tear in a way. It has been such a long time since I cried, crying for His intervention. Sigh, we really need to have such dramatic change in our lives to bring us to our knees eh? Oh well, I prayed unceasingly, claiming His promises. He won't play a joke on something so close to my heart, Missy. He is in control right? No doubt it is a wake up call not just to me, but I believe to the principal too (another story), but am thankful that the conclusion after 2-3 weeks wait.. a partner came into the picture and the daycare will not be closed after all!! Though there is a change of management, but at least the system is still in place. I like how the children are being taught, food being prepared, hygiene, safety etc... Will see how it goes in the next few months. My next prayer is that the principal will recuperate well after her surgery so that she can be back full fledge in the centre.

Some of the developments Missy shown after attending the centre are:
1. Sit still during meal times (It was tough and a struggle to feed her before this. We almost got to chase her!)
2. Increased vocabulary ie house, box, face features such as eyebrow
3. Cheekier of course

1 Timothy 6:17 "Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment"

Thank God!

I think this blog will vanish into thin air soon if I don't log in and just pen up a few updates. Has been super,  duper busy for the past 3 weeks with CNY, MiL got hospitalized, sick big and small baby, searching for a babycenter. Sigh!

Thank God all is over now!

Feb 8, another significant day for lil' Missy. Her first day at the nursery or do you call it a baby center? Whatever it is called, we dumped dropped her there and went to work. We truly count our blessings when we finally realized that there are not many centres who take in 18mo. Most will take in 3yo onwards. When we thought that we had no choice but to end up with to the one and only we found... Ta-da! We found this one! In case you are wondering, babysitter is not my choice as I know the best babysitter in the world personally, so afraid that I will have too high expectation and do not like to many adjustment for lil' missy since I planned to start her off with nursery when she hits 2yo. We almost pleaded the teacher to accept our lil' missy. She just got a newbie baby, and wants him to familiarise first before another one. Lil' missy was at her usual self, nosey and active, walk around and has given the teacher the impression that she is not clingy and manageable. Thank God! Thoiugh I have to take EL on the 2nd day to care for my sick lil' missy. Those tummy flu, gosh, so strong and harmful. Lil' missy does not have much fats in her, not much left over her tiny body with diarrhea and vomit. Heart sank to see her in such stake. Hungry but would vomit all out :(

As of today, she has been there for a whole week! Well, of course she was clingy to certain teachers and helpers there. But both of us can sense that she is no longer our cheerful lil' missy. The moment when we get into the car, she would cling onto me so strongly instead of going towards her car seat. It is just a phase right? And at night, it is even harder to get her to sleep. She will hold onto me so tightly. Maybe she has lost some sense of security. Sorry lil' missy. This is a journey we both need to walk through together. And not to mention that hubby took over the house chores when lil' missy took hostage of me! All of us are adapting.. Thank God that we have Him to count on in all our circumstances. Praying that weeks ahead will be easier..

What is this?

That is Missy's first sentence at 16mo!!! Wheeeeeeeeeeee.. Happy that she is growing well. She will also take our hands and pull to whatever she couldn't do such as opening the cabinet for her. Mmm..somehow the sentence sounds so wrong as if our hands are detachable. Haha, no. Missy knows how to call for our help. She will guide us to whatever help she needs from us.

She has been asking us "watsdissssssss, wastsdis" and point to the object. We couldn't believe it at first but somehow figure that our Missy has really grown. She is learning to communicate and talk. But then, she still refuse to call me "mommy". Hmmph. Still, I love her to bits.

Muaksss, darling Missy.

Glad when she sleeps..

It is so hard to get her to sleep even at 16mo. Yes, Missy still can't settle herself to sleep on her own. We are at her side at all times we want her to sleep and when she awakes. She will cry if she doesn't see any of us next to her. Only once she occupied herself to ipad when she woke up but it only works once.

Poses for my missy's memory.. we are not exaggerating when we say that her legs could be on our face, her head butting our underarm, chest, head... wherever, turning 360 degree all over the four corners of the bed! Well Missy, we still love to cuddle you just as much as you do.

If we are at our position, her legs would be on hubby's chest
and head will be butting me

Or, rolled close to us.. The pillow is where I sleep

Human bolster. Nothing beats the warmth..

and heartbeat!

 

Can you see what she's hugging?

it's my leg!



Conked out hugging the pillow



My missy! Hugs

Was feeding her some snacks cos we missed her feeding time..

Only to noticed she is falling asleep!



Super HOT!

Have you heard of old wives' myth of bathing your newborn with stout to rid off the heatiness from the body? Lil' missy is born with slightly sensitive and dry skin. So, it is easy for her to have red patches on her especially on the hot weather. And now, with Chinese New Year around the corner, the weather is exceptionally hot! Why, oh why?

Pictures taken on my HOT missy!

Almost undress herself..

Can you see the pool of sweat next to her?
Yes, she sweats that much almost every night!

Upclose of her.. so that missy will know next time,
why mommy insists on short hair for her.. hehe

We bought half a watermelon to quench our thirst and to cool our body a little. For 2 adults, that's a lot! Not sure if this works, but I was told to use watermelon rind to bathe her. To me, it is like putting cucumber on our face like we did for facial. I thought, why not? Let's go natural! Just make sure to remove the flesh entirely or else, ants may be attracted to it! So, did it work? I don't know but lil' missy sure smells nice.

Not so clean watermelon rind for missy's 'spa'.

Read here for more old wives' tales. It's interesting. And no, I didn't bathe lil' missy with stout when she was an infant. Bitter gourd vine, yes. That I must say works.

My lil' hot chick!

Lil' missy is such a vain pot! She loves to see her own reflection in the mirrror especially when she is doing some action songs or got a new head band (which will only last for 5 secs on her head). But look at her below. Talk about 1st grooming session. Yes, she amazed us when she pulled the shaver to her face imitating her dad (who else?). We gotta remind ourselves to watch our actions and words in front of her.

Is it normal for infants and toddlers to sweat so much?? I would be shivering in cold and she would be sweating profusely. There are Most of the times I would be worried if she would catch a cold but with her sweating like this, I don't know.

Sweet word to the ears when she starts calling me Momma.

It is going to be a long, looooooooooooong wait before lil' Missy will eventually calls me MOMMY. Sigh, she has been babbling many words like daddey (daddy), eeeeta (ita, my maid's name), aelo (hello), bijubijubiju (err, no idea. Maybe she likes the way her lips and mouth works for her), aw aw (no idea too), woo woo (woof woof, the sound of dog's barking), arp daung (up down), ding dock (tick tock) and... So far, she has called me momma a total of 3 4 times! 3 4 times ONLY and those were out of desperation. And I am not even sure if she's calling me but her actions say she is!

Here are some milestones in her 14mo
1.11.2011 - her first word of momma :) She started calling daddy way before that!
11.11.2011 - her first few steps on her 2 feet.. not so confident but getting there
1.12.2011 - she finally walks without any aid.. though she looks like a skinny penguin, yea, she is walking alright! Way to go, darling!
20.11.2011 - What is so significant on this date? Lil' Missy got her first taste of being caned! Opinionated strong-willed..

And feeding her right now is a task! There were times she refused to let us feed her. She wants to eat on her own. But, but she doesn't really know how to hold the spoon corectly yet. Before the spoon enters her mouth, she would turn it upside down and all the food will drop onto the bowl/floor or even stain her clothes! I am so not ready for mess though I know it will do her good. Sigh..

And there are more developments, we taught her more action songs and she is able to act out the actions. Songs we enjoy singing together especially when there is no one at the back of the car with her. We are the jukebox.
Twinkle, twinkle lilttle star (the very 1st song we taught her and she still loves to sing this song to this very day)
If you are happy and you know it.. clap your hands, stomp your feet, shout hurray
Jesus loves me
Deep and wide (just the 1st stanza)
Deep down in my heart
I'm in the Lord's army
Itsy bitsy spider
The wheel of the bus
New friend found (to encourage walking)

There's more... Looks like I have missed out a few of her development progress. cos she is growing faster than I can find time to write it down ;p and now... ... ... *lallalla* eyes rolling

Artsy fartsy for lil' missy.. Craft session

The only event I remember for Oct. Booo, this is for not jotting down as soon as it happens. What to do? I  am dropped dead by the time I reach home have short term memory..Learnt how to go about introducing art crafts to lil' missy. What do I really need? Patience and a definitely mentally prepared for mess. I am just so not ready to clean up the mess. I think I am a clean freak!

Threw away her 'palm' print because it turned moldy. This will be a picture blog post of the FUN we had.

  

While waiting for our turn, she has started to entertain herself

The dough for her palm print

She doesn't like the mushy mushy touch on her palm

That's it. She's pulling away!!

Her palm print! Unfortunately, it turned moldy after few weeks.

Painting while waiting for the clay to dry.

She prefers to feel the paint..

than to use the string or brush to paint..

Hannah: Eeew, why is her hands full of paint?

Dip, dip, dip.. no way of stopping her

Must guide her hands to the right place before it ends in her mouth.. again!

The fine art vs err...

My cheeky lil' missy.. Love her to bits!

Even when she's a hard baby at times. Talk about multi-tasking at a young age.

Lil' missy's first experience in the pool

Swimming is the only exercise I enjoy. Jogging, badminton and whatever else will just make me feel dizzy, I feel. Lame excuse? I don't deny either. I have one unhealthy lifestyle.. Wait. Does doing house chores and chasing after lil' missy consider an exercise? I sweat too..

Anyways, I do not stay in a condo with easy access to swimming pool and neither am I keen to drive all the way to public swimming pool. No wonder I am ballooning to be a whale in no time if I don't watch out. Maybe vanity should be the drive to have a healthy lifestyle. I need to exercise! Drag my hubby along one of the mornings.. one of those days.

No, this post is not about me.. it is about lil' missy of course! First time mommies will surely want to record their child's, precious ones' many firsts. Also the very reason this blog exists. In September, I know, I know.. a late post. Without a maid now, whatever time and energy I have after lil' missy is spent on house chores. Back to swimming. Lil' missy had her first swim in the pool, INFINITY pool at 1yo! I only get to swim in an infinity pool at age thirties. She's truly one blessed girl. What more. She got another godmother too on the same day too. I've been waiting for this godmother!! Finally... One more person to continuously keeping lil' missy in prayer and loving her. Another great woman to be lil' missy's role model when she grows up. Ooh, and also when mommy (yours truly) needs to take a break.. .. ..

My swimsuit model, in her 1st birthday gift from us

Lil' missy enjoying herself

With her 2 kai-ma's. Look at the view! Awesome.

Annual Horsey Affair at Selangor Turf Club

I am truly glad that my friend told me about this event. No regret going despite the hot and humid weather. Not to mention the slight drizzle in the morning. Read here, here and here for more info on this annual event. Or just google it. Although it is held every year, but done at different places annually at the 3 turf clubs in Malaysia which are located in Penang, Ipoh and Selangor. Unless you don't mind to travel to those states to participate, it will be once in every 3 years in each state.

Glad and happy my niece had a great time. I hope. At least she gets to ride on a pony. All kids love to ride on one if they are not afraid of it right? Lil' missy gets to stroke on pony too.. real thing. And not showing picturs or flash cards saying horse!

Here are some pics..

Our first picture at the carnival

We get to pet the pony. So up-close!

And carriage ride too with their droppings along the way. Smells!!

My happy niece. Love her smiling like that.

Always cool look.. blur on the pony cos it moves. Real thing :)

Hehe, can see the tiredness on her face? Must have a shot with carriage!

She smiles for me :) Smile more sweetie niece!

The mascots welcoming us.. on our way out. Too bad lil' missy is afraid of them.

September.. A month of celebration!

I love September. Just 2 days after celebrated lil missy's birthday and anniversary, we are on the road to more celebrations. My, MY birthday! ME!!! Okay, a bit of self-indulgence.

I get to do something different this year as I celebrated with my niece too. Our first. My niece is growing too fast. I still remember vividly how I brought her out.. and being young and not knowing much about parenting, I brought her to shopping complexes and eat all the fast food and ice-creams and... unhealthy stuff that I won't give to lil' missy yet. And nothing much learnt throughout the time spent except that we get to hang out with one another. I wonder if she was bored. As she started schooling with crazy pile of homework to finish, our weekends together became rare. And silence for years until this fateful Saturday! Nothing fanciful but the timing is so, so good.

I bought a cooking class session at a discount. Thanks to those group discounts thingy. And since the classes available then did not seem to spark my culinary interest, I signed both of us up for the adult and children session for a sushi making class! We both don't have an oven at home, so baking will be out if we want to continue having funpracticing our newly learnt art. I have not make any sushi after the class though but the time spent is worth it.

My shy niece..

Relunctantly smile for me

My niece's masterpiece

And here's mine

Work in progress from top view

Front view

Trying out the sushi roll. It takes skills!

And she did it! YAY!

Our creation.. went down to our tummy an hour later. Healthy!

And what we did right after the cooking class? We rush off back home to meet my hubby and lil' missy. I missed them of course but the main reason was to go to the horse carnival at Selangor Turf Club. But that will be in another post. 


Ooh, in case you are interested to know about this cooking class thingy, check out this place. They have a different program every month. It's interesting though I personally feel it's a bit pricey. But very convenient and fun. No cleaning up after. No messy, messy kitchen and greasy floor. However, for my niece and me, it'll be at my kitchen next.

Finally, a post after a long hiatus.