Sherrie amazes us

Wow what a weekend we've just had with darling Sherrie. She simply amazes us when we spend time together with her. V took a day off, plus public hol, so we had 4 days whole with us. Here are some things that must be penned down before we forget.

1. When she refused to finish her cereal, V decided that maybe if she saw one of us being fed, she would then eat up her food. So I took another spoon and put a little of her food onto the spoon and fed V with it. She saw what happened and then took 2 spoons of her porridge. After that she didn't eat it again, so we repeated the process. Soon, after 2/3 spoons, she made a 'uh' sound and looked at V as if to say, 'Your turn now!'. When he promptly took his turn, she happily ate up the porridge. In this way, she finished her food. We couldn't believe that it happened - not the imitating part, but the fact that if V didn't do it, she would deliberately look at him and get him to eat.

2. After having porridge, we decided to play with her. We took a foam letter 'C' and hid it in our hands. V threw it to me and i clasped in in my hands. Although she couldn't see the letter, she knew it was with me because she stared at my clasped hands. She also learnt to clasp her hands the same way after a few throws. When we tried to trick her i.e. pretending to throw but leaving the letter in the hand, she was not fooled and continued to stare at the letter in whosoever's hand it was in. She was only tricked when V threw and i clasped my hand, as if i had caught it. Of course, that would take a sophisticated baby to know but it was enough to amaze us. She knew we were trying to trick her and at times would laugh because it was so funny. :) Super cute baby.

3.We've been putting her in the playpen because she wants to climb things and stand up. We normally play peekaboo with her and one time, she actually tried to play it with us. She would bend her knee slightly and then jump up, just like V does. And then when she jumps up she would giggle cos she thinks it's very funny. Oh yes, she can also spend alot of independent time in the playpen without making a fuss. What a lovely gal she is!

4. She has also perfected her pincer grasp and now we let her take the biscuits from our hands. When she has successfully put the biscuit into her mouth without dropping it, she will tap the table and wave her hands, smiling. It's as if she is celebrating her success. Along with that, we will also clap and say 'Well done' and 'clever girl'. Now she is so confident of that, she tries to look away and pick it up.. not a good idea but it really helps to praise a baby when they're trying to master a skill.

Other than these amazing developments, she has begun to cruise around the playpen and in Koko's house she will make her way to the sofas and try to stand and climb up. Mama was so amused and she felt good when she could stand up. She even tried to let go of the playpen rail a couple of times, but of course she fell down. She didn't cry, just sat up and continued again.

Eating wise, she has started on fish porridge and today i made chicken porridge. She enjoyed the fish porridge, so I hope she will like today's chicken porridge. She will soon be able to eat pasta and cheese. So excited about introducing new foods to her - so far she likes to eat and seems hungry whenever she looks at what i'm eating (pineapple tart!).

She has also begun to give V kisses! V is so happy and says the 4 days has done the trick. I think she is just starting to warm up. I love her kisses - so soft and sometimes so spontaneous, yet sometimes so soft and slow motion... haha

Almost 9 months!

My baby will be 9 months very soon! That means I have not been working for 9 months as well. haha... it has been blissful at home, not having to worry about papers and emails etc that usually bug me at work.

Sherrie is literally growing day by day. Now she confidently pulls herself to a standing position and has begun experimenting lifting her hands one by one off the handrails of the playpen and cot. Every morning she greets us by standing up in her cot and giving us a brilliant smile. What a sweet baby! And she is now trying to lift both hands off the rail - a sign that she would soon be able to stand on her own.

I also now allow her to crawl around the house and she seems to be very clear where she wants to go - either the kitchen or the front door. She is telling me she wants to see the rabbit and she wants to go out! Babies really are so clever.. though they cannot talk, they have their ways and means to express what they want.

Her babbling almost sounds like some words now.. there is the distinct baba and mama and sometimes she calls me mama but it is not deliberate i.e. it just happens to be mama at the right time. Half the time I am baba. :) Anyway i think looking at how things are going, she is going to be able to get it right soon! I am so excited for her to deliberately call me mama for the first time. It will melt my heart!

We brought her to gymboree the past 2 weeks for trial classes. The first time it was the Play and Learn - where they do climbing on ramps and slides and various obstacles. They also sing songs and do physical activities together with us. I was very tired out after the whole thing but it was fun and I could tell she loved it! They opened up a big parachute and lowered them onto the babies and then lifted it up again.. she loved that very much too. The 2nd time we brought her for music class, but there were so many babies and I felt the lesson wasn't as well coordinated as the physical class.. she didn't interact much and wasn't herself i.e. active. Maybe she was sleepy but i think more likely it was way too noisy and simply too many people (babies + adults) for her to have the space to relax. I don't think we'll repeat the music classes anymore!

Her sleeping pattern is slightly more regular now. She sleeps between 7.30 to 8.30 at night and then wakes for a last feed at 12 midnight and then all through to 6/7am. It's quite a nice routine for us because it doesn't disrupt our sleep that much. And she's up early but goes back for a nap around 8 to 9am, allowing me to do so as well. Oh yes, she has begun to start sleeping on me! Either on my shoulder, my lap or my tummy. Dunno if she is being manja or what, but it's such a nice time for both of us for skin closeness and bonding. I love it! :)

Foodwise, she has started fish porridge! I had been feeling guilty that i haven't offered fish to her simply because it is more troublesome and i don't know where to get fish. But i found a fishmonger in TPY and hopefully we will make more trips to Chinatown next time to buy fish (much cheaper there). She likes the porridge, which i mix with carrots, sweet potato and a bit of bovril for flavour. Thank goodness she is now less fussy and now takes, melon, pear, banana, avocado. She still doesn't like apples and mango. I will try again! :)

Standing up!

My baby can pull herself to a standing position already! Though she did it a few days ago, I was only confident of leaving her to support herself just 2 days ago. She pulled herself up on the cot and stood there for a good half an hour and when I tried to pull her hands off the railing, I found her holding on to it very tightly. She could even walk left and right holding the railing (slowly, of course). I took a picture to capture it in case I couldn't find time to blog. So now because she can stand and feels confident, she does so even when on the floor. First she will put her two hands on my stomach, then onto her knees and finally on her feet. She can't stand right up but she will be in a push up sort of position first. All the while she is smiling away! This evening, I noticed her pulling herself up and then slowly letting go of one arm and back to a sitting position. This is fantastic, because I was wondering how she was going to sit down after standing for so long. It's amazing to see that babies learn these things or are drawn almost magnetically to practice these essential skills.

Yesterday, we put her with Koko for 2 hours while we went to visit Pop in hospital. She was very well behaved and Koko can't wait to babysit. I am so proud of her because she can take so well to them. Even though we were not around, she didn't display separation anxiety. I was afraid she would fret cos she couldnt' see us.

In terms of speech, she has been saying alot of 'oohs' and 'ahs' and 'booos'. Today she uttered 'ba ba' very often and sometimes ' ma ma'. I don't think she means mama and papa just yet; it's obvious she is trying a new sound. I reinforced her use of it by using 'baba' to mean daddy and 'mama' to mean me. She seemed quite happy and continued to use it for a while. Oh yes, she can now wave when we say 'byebye'. I think this is the result of my in-laws saying byebye and waving whenever they see her. Babies learn association very fast.

Food wise, she has begun to eat a greater variety of cereals and fruits. I am also starting to offer her green vegs (well soon anyway). So far, though she doesn't eat pumpkin, carrots, pears, apples when they are served to her on their own, she seems to take them when mixed with her cereal. I guess this will have to do for now because at least doing that she will get a variety of tastes and vitamins. The apples and pears can be so soft that I do not even need to steam them!

According to the wholesomebabyfood website, I can feed her pasta and cheese already. They even have menus I can download and follow for breakfast, lunch and dinner, so that a wholesome meal is provided each time. They have recipes that sound so interesting i.e. addition of spices and yoghurt etc.. Scrumptious! I must start doing some of those... oh yes, time to start on fish porridge and chicken soup! I'm going to be so busy!

She attended her first mass today and was very well behaved. She was also very sociable, smiling and waving at people. She also kept bending her body to look at the people behind me, so much so that they were quite distracted... other than that, she was adorable.. I sang songs to her quietly in her ear and teased her, causing her to laugh. So cute! But 1 hour is really too long for a baby to sit still and not engage in activity.. at the end of the mass, she was getting restless so I stood up to carry her. I totally understand why she felt so...

Took her swimming last week and though the water was cold, she adapted very quickly to it and soon was enjoying herself! She can pivot when we call her (thanks to being in leapfrog I think) and also paddle her feet towards us. Of course we support her by putting our hands under her feet so that she has something to paddle off on. The good thing about the float is that I can also hold onto it and push her around and then also let go of it for her to have some independence. I think she likes swimming alot! If I had a pool, she'd go swimming everyday.

Oh did i mention that she likes to sleep on her front? Also she has been sleeping and waking earlier these days. Like sleeping at about 8+ and waking up at about 6.30-7am. On the one hand it's tiring, but on the other, it's good cos it gives V and I more time.. and besides I can go to sleep with her during the day. Helps me recharge. Speaking of zz, I want to go zz now....

Oh yes, she is kissing me quite spontaneously these days. Sometimes when I ask for it, sometimes she just shyly kisses and turns away.. she is doing it well now, with the correct 'muak' sound after she finishes it! :) So happy each time that we do a kissing dance!!