Flashback from 4th month till 11th Month

I felt so guilty for not keeping my words to blog Zac's growth regularly! The last post was back when he was 3 months old! What a useless mommy I am :P

So much happened during the past 8 months. I tried to remember as much milestones as I can, but I am sure I will miss out some :(

Seeing those little tricks from Zac really amazes me. On the very day when Zac turned 4 months old, we brought him for his 2nd haircut (the 1st haircut was during the 1st month). Due to the ugly patches on his head due to the shedding, I had no choice but to bring him for a shave. I brought him there reluctantly. Guess what? Apparently Zac could carry very well with his botak look. He did not fuss throughout the whole session. Everyone commented that Zac looked really good in his new hairstyle (what hairstyle? No hair at all!)

 Zac also attended his first wedding during the same month. It was my maternal cousin's wedding at Mariott.

My dad bought him a walker. His feet could hardly touch the floor when we put him in the walker. My innovative Mom actually placed thick telephone directories under his feet so that he could rest his both feet on them. He spent his days chewing on chewy toys. We were wondering if he was teething soon!

Zac could sit by himself during his 6th month. By then, he was able to "walk on his own" with his walker. He love to chase us when he is in the walker. Not to mention, all of us had bruises and cuts from his walker!

We brought him to Marriot High Tea one Sunday. He had fun with the high chair while grandma fed him porridge. Oh, did I miss out? He started his first solid food when he was 4 and half months. It was funny to see his reaction when he had his first spoon of puree. But he loves it! We then proceeded with cereal once a day for him.

Soon, when he was close to 6 mths (after I stopped breastfeeding him), he started porridge since. He started with pork to flavour the porridge and promoted to eating mince pork as he grew older. He has lots of vegies as well. He loves scallop flavoured porridge (just like his mommy).

Zac started to be vocal and imitate us. He will blabber and make noise. He is very sticky to grandma, coz she is his primary caregiver since I started working. He will always go to the kitchen to explore. His favourite kitchen toy was the basket. We will put the basket on his head and it does look like his hat.

He loved his ah yee's giraffe. And so ah yee bought another one just for him. That is his first stuff animal. He will put the giraffe in his mouth and "arum" it. That leaves lots of saliva on his giraffe. Now when we ask him "Where is giraffe?" He will point at it or run to his room in his walker to get the giraffe and "arum" it straightaway. It is really funny to see that reaction!

I gave him the teddy that I bought for him from Hokkaido back in 2008 and introduced that as bearbear. He loves the bearbear too. He will "arum" the bearbear. Maybe that is the way to show his love to his stuff animals. The teddy has a tiny pillow sewn on it. That is Zac's favourite too! He will bite the pillow till it is soaked with his saliva and then threw it away. My mom had to soak it with hot water and then hang it out to dry for few days. It was amazing to see how soaking wet that little pillow was! I love it! haha!!

Zac celebrated his first CNY. He had lots of ang pao from everyone. There were so many photos taken during those CNY celebrations. Let the photos speak the thousand words...

We brought Zac to Ion. He seems to enjoy this shopping trip. Check out those photos taken in Ion.

During March 2010 this year, we celebrated my mom's birthday at Oscar, in Conrad. Zac was 8 months old then. I love the baseball jersey I got from him. We gave him a baguette and he put it in his mouth! It was a funny scene!

Let me fast forward some of the milestones...
- he started crawling when he was 6 months
- he learnt to wave byebye, flying kisses, did the twinkle twinkle little stars action, ...
- he had his first tooth when he was close to 9 months old
- he had his first fever when he was 10 months old. It was quite tiring for me coz  Zac Daddy was not in Singapore. Lucky po po is there to take care of him as well. I had to camp po po place for 3 nights to take care of him.
- he always say "po", "air-pur" (apple), "mum mum", "da da da", "hug hug"... and others that I could not figure it out.
-  Now he has 3 teeth, two from the bottom, and 1 on top.
- he is able to stand on his own.
- he started taking small steps on his own!

There were so much more to write.. but my thoughts are not organised. I think I will stop here and continue each time I have inspiration to pen down again!

Flashback of Zaczac - 3rd Month

Second came and passed quickly.. It was time to move back to our Seng Kang home. I started going back to Seng Kang lovenest weekly to clean up the house and prepare for Zaczac's homecoming. As I was packing, I realised that there were not enough storage space to accomodate Zaczac's clothes and toys. It was quite frustrating as I packed. I decided to talk to my hubby about renovating the house instead.

We have always played with the idea of renovating our lovenest. Back in five years ago, when we bought this place, we did minimal renovation due to tight budget. But now that Zaczac is here, we need more storage and it was time to rewire all the electrical wires in the house. Our laminated wood in the walk-in wardrobe showed signs of wear and tear. Thoughts were also given that we will not be buying another house for the next few years because we are comfortable with where we are now. And also, since Zaczac has not officially moved back, we should consider renovating the lovenest.

There were more pros than cons to have the renovation. And so the renovation project started. I shall not elaborate about the house renovation in this blog :) Here is a picture of Zaczac back at his Sengkang home before the renovation.

In this month, Zaczac went to many places, after confined in the house for about 2 months? Here are some of the places he went..

Zaczac went for his first 5in1 jab on the 19 October 2009. We were expecting him to wail after his Hep B saga. But to our surprise, he was ok with the jab. Probably he was distracted by the toys lying in front of him. His PD said he was a good boy! I'm glad :)

Zaczac met his another great-grandfather, i.e. my maternal grandfather. My grandfather hardly smiles, but the moment he saw Zaczac, he smiled! Zaczac cooed at his great-grandfather and he complimented that Zaczac is a smart boy. *grin* This is a picture taken at the great-grandparents' place.

On one fine Monday in late September, both my mom and I brought Zaczac to Northpoint for a walk. We do not have a stroller then, so I put him in the Babyjorn sling. He was quite comfortable in there and was sleeping throughout our shopping at Northpoint. Here's a picture of him falling asleep before I ate my lunch.

Zaczac visited his great-uncle's family at Harbourview Tower. Everyone just love to get his attention, especially his great-aunty. Just some pictures of hubby and I feeding him milk.



Zaczac's first shopping trip at Orchard Road was to Paragon. We brought him there to test drive his stroller. It was a fun experience because Zaczac was so happy during the test drive. Some pictures to show you his happy experiences!

Hubby and I checked out the various nursing room in Orchard area. We have been to the nursing rooms in Paragon (5th Level), Ion, Takashimaya shopping centre and Isetan. In the suburb area, we been to IMM, AMK hub and Northpoint. They are a must especially we bring Zaczac out.

Zaczac's grandparents were away to Beijing for a week. And I had to take care of him by myself. It was not as bad as I thought. Hubby worked from home on one of the days to help me out. The time spent with Zaczac was so priceless. It was not as bad as I thought it was. I was coping well! :) After staying at home for a week, hubby brought us to AMK hub for dinner. We thought we should try having dinner at AMK hub's foodcourt. It was so crowded, and we waited for a good table for 20 minutes. Zaczac entertained us while we waited. Good boy!

Zaczac's motor skill is always improving. He loves to do his 'crawl'.  Everyone will entertain him by supporting him on his chest so that he can move.

What else? I have to recall as I go along.. till then... :)

Flashback of Zaczac - 2nd month

One month has passed, everything went well. Hubby and I were still staying at my parents' place because it was the lunar 7th month, also known as Hungry Ghost festival. Being superstitious, I was not keen to bring Zaczac out of the house, so decided to stay for one more month, moreover, I had extra pairs of hands when in need.

My mum worked permanent night shift, so she could only help me during the day and I took care of Zaczac throughout the night. Zaczac slowly adjusted his bioclock and woke up less during the night, except for his feeds. He can be really impatient when comes to feed, he will demand for milk immediately and poor hubby had to make Zac's milk in his fastest speed.

Zaczac went for his second Hep B injection on 14 August 2009. He was alright throughout the whole checkup until he was given the jab. He wailed. PD warned that it was going to be painful. Being an emotional mummy, my tears just rolled down my cheeks after seeing my son wailed so hard. PD quickly carried him up and cuddled him. He stopped crying straight away. Here's a pic of his battered scar! 

Shortly after his first month, my mom suggested that Zaczac should shave his hair (poor boy!). Hubby and I protested that Zaczac shall not go bald! He has such nice hair and it is a pity to see him go bald! To compromise, Zaczac trimmed the back of his hair for the usual chinese ritual. He had his eyebrows shaved as well, so that it will grow thicker, according to my mom. Well, I gave in because there were not much brow hair then. Guess what? Zaczac did not fuss through out the process, he was sleeping! *haha*

I could remember clearly Zaczac suffered slight colic for few days in his early 2nd month. He did not wail as described in those reference books, but he showed signs of discomfort every night. He would cry and we suspected he had lots of wind in his tummy. We would find ways to help him get rid of those nasty winds (by applying Ru-yi oil and burp him all the time). It was upsetting to see my dear bub going through that phase. I tried swaddling him and cradle him to sleep. My friends gave me some good advices to follow as well. I called Zaczac's PD and asked for her opinion. She said he would probably need some wind drops which can be bought in any pharmacy. Hubby bought it that very day and gave the drops to Zaczac. He did feel slightly better. Since then, we always put 0.5ml of Rid Wind in his milk before he goes to sleep. PD also prescribed him with Probiotics.

Another incident which I remembered clearly was Zaczac's naval. After the umbilical cord has fallen off, the naval never seems to dry off, there were some white sticky stuff in the naval. We tried cleaning with cord spirit, it didn't work. Being an anxious mummy, I called Zaczac's PD again. She suggested that I bring him down for consultation. PD prescribed that it was Granumola and needed Silver Nitrate to treat it. I was told it is not painful, just black stain around the naval and it will go away after a few weeks. However, after 1 week, Zaczac situation did not improve, and so I called PD again. She suggested another treatment was required. Indeed, the granoluma dried off after the second treatment. The naval now looks perfect!

Sometime during the second month, Zaczac had problem pooping regularly. That worried me. I did some research online and even post it in Facebook to ask for advices. Some suggested I change his milk formula and some advised I should massage his tummy and exercise his legs in bicycle movement to encourage bowel movements. I tried all ways, there was still no sign of Zaczac's poop. After 4 days, he pooped! It was a great family affair because everyone in the family will ask if Zaczac has pooped yet. So the moment Zaczac pooped, everyone was so happy for him. I was relieved!

I thought it was an one-off. I was wrong, he has decided that he should only poop after four days or more. It can be really worrying, but PD and GP told me that it is normal and I should not worry unless he is passing out hard stools (which he did not). I was told by PD that babies who are on breastmilk may encounter such problem, as long as it is not hard stool, that is ok! After awhile, I got used to his poo patterns. But Zaczac is a good boy, he will give prior warning that he will be pooping soon. How? He will show signs of "nnnnggggg" on his face the day before he poops! *ROFL*

I am trying to recall what other happenings during the 2nd month... ahhh... since he slept in the proning position all the time, that attributes to his strong neck muscle. He was able to lift up his head with minimal support required. He also like to 'crawl' even though he is still too young for it. We will always give him a push to help him moved forward when he tried to crawl. It is really funny to see him 'crawl' at times!

We stopped putting on mittens for him after 5th week. This was because the naughty boy always put the mittens in his mouth! Notti Notti!

I must say 2nd month was still a steep learning curve for a new mummy like me! 

Below are some pictures of Zaczac taken during the 2nd month:

Flashback of Zaczac - 1st Month

The delivery room was filled with Zaczac's cries and voices of my hubby who was busy calling family members to inform Zaczac's arrival. I was still trying to recover from the delivery process. I felt tired but yet I couldn't stop myself from looking at my bub.

After the nurse took bub away from me, she placed him in the incubator with UV lights to warm him up. She was also cleaning him up and gave him the first injection of his life, first dosage of Hepatitis B. I can still remember clearly that bub's eyes were already opened and looking around. He was so curious even though he could hardly see clearly. Here's the first few pics of my bub...

Both hubby and I have been waiting for this day to come, and here is our dearest bub. He looked so charming and sweet, doesn't he?

Once the nurse was done with Zaczac, I have requested to carry zaczac and let him start his first mission, i.e. learn to latch. To my surprise, Zaczac could find his way to my nipple and he latched on easily. Both hubby and I praised him! He is a fast learner, isn't he? The first few drops of the colostrum is very important for babies, that was why I insisted breastfeeding from day one.

The feeling of carrying Zaczac in my arms was so warm and sweet. He is here at last, I keep telling myself. I could see him at last, after a long wait!

The nurse took Zaczac away from me for thorough wash up, while the other nurse washed me. I felt too tired to move. After wheeling me back to my room, both hubby and I dozed off right away until Zaczac was pushed into my room fresh and clean. He was swaddled up and looked really cute. He was given BCG on the second day. The mark is still visible on his butt today.

I was in Gleneagles Hospital for 3 days 2 nights. Zaczac slept with me every night and that was the start of motherhood and sleepless nights. The nurse suggested that Zaczac could sleep in the nursery and pushed him over when he needed his feeds, but I wouldn't bear to separate from him, after all, he was in my womb for 9 months! I just wanted to bond with him as soon as possible.

After I was discharged from the hospital, both hubby and I moved to my parents' place for my confinement. I hate confinement, but I had to follow, thank goodness my mum allowed me to shower and wash my hair!

Hubby and I started our official parenthood and sleepless nights on that day. All I could remember my daily chores were breastfeed, express milk, wash bottles, change diapers, ... till today. There were a couple of time when my nipples were so sore from Zaczac's impatient latch. It bled. I had engorgement and it was very painful. I couldn't sleep and felt so stressful. Hubby encouraged me all the time and even took the effort to search for a lactation consultant to guide me through. I remembered having cabbage treatment, it felt really good. I was also glad that my friends were very encouraging, giving me all the advises and tips to guide me along. I told myself I will feed Zaczac breastmilk for at least 6 months!

Zaczac was on full breastmilk for 3 weeks, until my supply couldn't cope with his demand. That gave me alot of stress and that caused my supply to go down further. I was reluctant to supplement him with formula. In the end, I gave in and supplement him with enfalac. Somehow after supplementing him with formula, I was not as stressful as before and milk supply slowly increased. I only fed Zaczac formula at night, and full breastmilk during the day.

My mum bathed Zaczac every day, he was too fragile for me to handle him. I enjoyed seeing him bathe, he just love kicking in the water!

Zaczac gets startled easily. So to make him sleep better, we have decided to prone him, that is sleeping on his stomach. I was reluctant in the first place after reading from many guide books, but Zac seems to like sleeping in that position. We just had to be careful and observed him when he slept.

I remembered rocking him to sleep every night. After he was born, his bioclock was in chaos. He slept in the day and awake during the night. Hubby and I had to take turn to rock him to sleep. He would wail and wanted to be cuddled at all times. It was too early to train him, but somehow he adjusted his bioclock himself as the weeks went by. *phew*

Three weeks went by, it was time to register Zaczac's birth certificate. Before that, we had to give him a chinese name. That was a saga for his chinese name, which I shall not elaborate. As hubby is a hainanese, it is a tradition for the sons to follow a fixed middle name from the ancestor book. We were not very keen as the middle name was "氣". How the h**l are we going to name our son with such weird middle name!? But my father-in-law (FIL) insisted :| FIL came out with some names for us, I like NONE of them and decided we should let the fengshui master decides for us. And so through a friend's contact, we engaged a taiwanese fengshui master. He gave us a few options (睿，榮...) based on the number of strokes. We were quite happy with the name 睿 (pronounced as rui), it means smart, intelligent. I was quite surprised that the older generation had no clue about this word, while the new generation are naming their children with this word. After the saga, we insisted on this character, and Zaczac's official chinese name is 符氣睿.

I was counting down to the end of my confinement, and before I know it, its Zaczac's one month celebration! We celebrated his baby shower (full month) at Orchid Country Club on 9 August 2009. It was a lunch reception for 80 guests. Here's a picture of Zaczac with his great-grandfather (tai-gong). I love this picture, we have the oldest in the family cuddling the youngest in the family... how amazing! Read on for the progress in the second month...