Mama Mia Kitchen

On 23 May 2012, we had lunch at Mama Mia Kitchen located on Lorong Selamat.

We tried their pork trotters in black vinegar (too kar chor) with rice, nasi lemak with chicken rendang, and five-spice fermented beancurd fried chicken wings.


[Too kar chor: RM10.90 with rice]


[Nasi lemak with chicken rendang: RM7.90]


[Five-spice fermented beancurd fried checken wings: RM10.00]

Food was delicious and portions were reasonably generous. Being fussy about my too kar chor, I was not disappointed :o).

Justin at 34 Months

Justin turned 34 months today (25 May 2012).

Here are his updates:

• He finally understood the concept of potty training. One weekend, we decided to let him go diaperless and gave instructions to blah, balh, blah. He has managed to tell us when he needed to do his business, on weekends and in the daytime at least. Hooray!
  
• He likes to sing the Thomas song to Jianna.
  
• He's getting more expressive and can converse quite well with Mummy, Daddy and Julian.
  

Despite some success in getting him to relieve himself in the potty/toilet, accidents were not unexpected. There was one weekend morning, when Mummy and Daddy were engrossed having breakfast. Justin was doodling on a piece of paper when he came to proclaim:
Justin: Mummy... Daddy... it's soooo big!
Mummy & Daddy (blindly answers): Oh, yes... so big! *assuming he drew something big, e.g. airplane, etc.*
Mmmy & Daddy: *but wait... what's so big?!... he's without his diaper... S @ # T!... goes to living room*
We found a nice firm piece of excreta on the carpet. Luckily it was firm and could be cleaned up easily with minimal mess *wipes forehead*.

Like many kids, the boys like to point things out when they travel in the car. Sometimes, Justin's retort can be thought provoking...
Julian: Do you see Komtar?
Daddy: Yes, that's Komtar.
Julian: My eyes are very sharp!
Daddy: Yes, your eyes are very sharp.
Justin: My eyes are smooth!
Daddy & Mummy: ?!?!


[Justin keeping a "smooth" eye on Jianna]


[Justin the overgrown baby]


[Justin on Ah Kong's deck chair]


[Justin on Daddy's shoulders doing a circus act... in case both can't keep their day-jobs...]


[Justin doing some serious potty training, finally!]


[There you are!!]


[X marks the spot!]


[Justin]

Bedtime Routine

Before Jianna came along, come bedtime, Justin is Mummy's charge while Daddy handles Julian. Now that we have Jianna, this is our current bedtime routine, especially during the weekdays:

• 8.50pm: The boys change into their pyjamas. Jianna would have been changed earlier.
  
• 9.05pm: The boys drink milk.
  
• 9.25pm: Go to bed! Boys would be herded to brush their teeth. Then, all five of us would go into the boys' room. Jianna is usually still awake.
  
• 9.35pm: Night prayer. Boys told to sleep. Jianna usually wants a feed. Justin waits for Jianna to finish while tossing pillows off the bed. Daddy is with Julian, often needing to scratch a few attention-seeking itchy spots and to hold Julian's "insecure" leg. When Jianna finishes, Mummy tucks Justin in to bed while Daddy takes over charge of Jianna and cradles her. Jianna falls asleep in Daddy's arms and Daddy continues reassuring Julian's leg.
  
• 10.15pm: Julian normally dozes off first.
  
• 10.30pm: Justin dozes off. Daddy deposits a sleeping Jianna on the masterbed. Mummy & Daddy can now breathe...
  

Recently, Justin objected to Mummy feeding Jianna at bedtime. The following conversation ensued:
Mummy: Mummy has to feed Jianna because Daddy cannot feed Jianna.
Justin: Is too small.
Mummy: What's too small?
Justin: Daddy's breast.
Mummmy & Daddy: ?!?!

Our 8th Anniversary

1 May 2012 was our 8th wedding anniversary. There was no celebration because the boys, especially Julian, were at the tail-end of their HFMD. We were stressed-out managing the isolation and handling Justin's terrible tantrums. It was the peak of pure madness.

We gave the Unity Candle lighting and anniversary prayer tradition a miss this time. Not deliberately, but at that time it was difficult even to think it was our anniversary!

Update
We did eventually get down to lighting our Unity Candle and saying an anniversary prayer together albeit 2 months late. Well, better late than never.


[Lighting of our Unity Candle 2012]

Jianna at 1 Month

Jianna was one month old on 30 April 2012. She had her first month clinic visit on 2 May 2012. She weighed 4.7kg and her length was 56cm. She is fully breastfed. She was given her second dose of hepatitis B jab. Expectedly, she cried when the jab was administered but quietened down soon after :-)

The initial plan was to celebrate her full moon on 28 April - the feast day of her patron saint, St Gianna Molla. But her full moon celebration had to be put off because the boys were still recovering from HFMD. Besides, she was kept away from her brothers from 25 April to prevent her from catching their germs. She finally got to come out of isolation on 1 May 2012.


[Jianna on Mummy's shoulder]


[All this sleeping is giving me a pain in the neck!]


[One-eyed Jianna]


[Neh...]


[Jianna]

Of Bums and Fake Dogs

I was tucking Julian into bed one night and he went on his hands and knees on the bed. This short conversation ensued...
Julian: Daddy, please touch my bum-bum...
Daddy: Why?!
Julian: Because I have a bum-bum.
Daddy: ?!?!

A few days ago, the boys were playing in the apartment playground when the regular roti man came by. A lady customer went up to buy bread carrying a small pet poodle. Here's what Julian had to exclaim...
Julian: Look! A REAL DOG!!
Mummy & Daddy: ?!?! *LOL*

Julian at 59 Months

Julian turned 59 months (4 years 11 months) on 28 April 2012.

Here are his updates:

• He wants daddy to accompany him to sleep at night. When he wakes up in the middle of the night, he will come to our room and call Daddy, sometimes in tears. When asked why, he would either say he cannot be alone or that he misses Daddy.
  
• He is still at the stage where he is asking a lot of questions.
  
• He shows interest in Jianna, constantly wanting to know if she's awake or asleep. He likes to 'read' to her, and 'show/tell' her things ("Jianna, you see a (an aeroplane) landing coming?", etc.).
  

[Julian enjoying his favourite biscuit, Oreo]


[Julian giving a cheeky grin]


[I love my sister]

Justin at 33 Months

Justin turned 33 months on 25 April 2012. On 7 May 2012 he weighed 13.05kg. Not much weight gain, but that's not surprising - no thanks to HFMD!

Here are his updates:

• He can engage in simple conversation quite well now although his articulation still needs to improve.
  
• He seems to be playing more with aeroplanes now and not so much with his trains anymore.
  
• He is affectionate towards Jianna and keen to be the big brother - taking things for her, wanting to help lift her from the bouncinette, 'show' her things ("Jianna, see... an Airbus!", etc.) etc.
  
• He would mimic how we talk to Jianna :-)
  
• He loves Oreo. He would 'peel out' the cream and eat that first.
  

[Check out these balloons...]


[Tricycle Thrill :-)]


[Don't fret, Jianna. I'll read you a story...]

Julian and Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease

On 25 April 2012 we noticed spots on Julian's hands and legs! Oh, no! We didn't need a doctor's confirmation to know Julian is now down with HFMD as well!

Thankfully, his symptoms were not as severe as Justin's. He didn't have fever on the onset and had just a few ulcers in the mouth. He could eat and drink quite normally. Periodically, he did complain of pain in the mouth. For Julian there were more lesions on the palms and feet compared to Justin.


[Small blisters on Julian's palm]

It took about a week for the 'spots' to clear completely.

School reopened on 30 April 2012, but the boys only went back to school on 3 May 2012. With that we moved back to some 'normalcy' in our lives...

Justin Recovers from HFMD

Justin caught hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) on 20 April 2012 (a Friday).

Days 2, 3, and 4 were the worst as he hardly drank or ate anything. When coaxed, he drank some water and "cold Milo". He was interested in taking some solids but end up wailing because of the painful ulcers in his mouth. He did not sleep well either and threw terrible tantrums.

By Day 5 (24 April 2012, Tuesday) afternoon, he felt better and took some food. Day 6 (25 April 2012, Wednesday) saw him almost his usual self. When we picked him up at the baby sitter's, he was even chasing Julian around.

He was practically free from any HFMD symptoms by Day 8 (27 April 2012, Friday).

Justin and Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease

During the fourth week of our "flu fest", and as the boys were recovering, the boys' kindergarten informed all parents on 17 April 2012 regarding cases of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) amongst the children. The centre would be closed for the rest of the week.

On 20 April 2012, the day Justin last saw the doctor for his cough, he had fever and had one or two small white dots on the inside of his left cheek. We asked for the doctor's opinion but it was difficult to confirm HFMD due to the lack of tell-tale signs on his hands and feet. Moreover, he was active and still eating reasonably well. One other thing he fussed over was a small oval mosquito bite-looking patch on his right elbow.

On the morning of 21 April 2012, we suspected something was not right when Justin complained of pain in the mouth after taking a few sips of his morning milk. Later that morning, we saw ulcers on his tongue. In the afternoon, the doctor confirmed HFMD. She saw spots on the back of his mouth, the mosquito bite-looking patch on this elbow had a cluster of small blisters, and his knees and left elbow had small red pimple-looking dots. So far, his palms and feet did not have any blisters. Treatment was symptomatic: mouth spray/cream for the mouth ulcers, antibiotic cream for the blisters, and fever medication.

He has since been feeling irritable and clingy, frequently wanting to drink water, and has difficulty eating or drinking anything else despite using the mouth spray.

We are now thinking of ways to prevent the kids from getting too close to one another. We hope and pray for a speedy end to our month of madness.


[Blisters on Justin's elbow]

Flu Fest

25 March 2012 saw the beginning of a season of sickness for us. The boys started coughing and were prescribed the usual cough medication. Coughing during the day was one thing but coughing during the night was really miserable because they coughed so hard that they vomit.

By 31 March 2012, there was no improvement and they were prescribed antibiotics. Their condition improved after about 5 days.

On 8 April 2012, Justin developed fever. Then on 12 April 2012, when Julian developed fever, they were both put on the second course of antibiotics.

When things couldn't seem to get any worse, Justin developed rashes all over his body. So, on the next day (13 April 2012), a visit to the peadiatician confirmed that he had a case of urticaria, but the cuase of it remains a mystery becuase it wasn't caused by the antibiotic. Fortunately, it lasted only 2 days after increasing his dosage of anti-histamine and applying some steroid cream.

During the fourth week, after their antibiotics ran out, they seemed to be coughing much less but the cough lingered on. Since Justin was more prone to coughing, we took him for yet another visit to the doctor on 20 April 2012. Since he was having fever, and had already had two courses of antibiotics, he was "reluctantly" put on a third course of antibiotics in view that the weekend was approaching,

While all these happened to the boys in the last four weeks, Angie and I were also nursing our own cough starting from around the second week. Jianna seemed to be unaffected, probably benefitting from antibodies from breast milk.

We were hoping the "flu fest" would end soon, but the situation just became worse.

Jianna's Jaundice

On 4 April 2012, the nurse who visited us at home recommended that we take Jianna for a blood test because she looked a little yellowish. The results indicated that her jaundice was back. Another blood test the next day showed exactly the same serum bilirubin level *sigh*. Will be back at the clinic again for another blood test on Monday.

The jaundice aside, Jianna is fine and so is Mummy Angie.

The boys are paying more attention to Jianna now, sometimes wanting to lend a hand when we carry her for a diaper change. Since we change her on the bed, their attention can often be chaotic. Between the two boys, Justin seems more affectionate towards the girl than Julian.


[Jianna (Photo taken by Grandma)]


[Jianna smiling in her sleep]


[Jianna's Angry Bird-look]


[Jianna: Mummy, when I'm done drinking, I'll show you my mitt like this...]


[Jianna: Daddy, when I need you to drive slowly, I'll show you my mitt like this...]

Jianna Comes Home

Jianna was discharged on Monday (2 April 2012) after her jaundice subsided.


[Jianna and Mummy Angie leaving the hospital nursery]


[Jianna arrives home]

She was generally well-received by the boys, if not enthusiastically. Both showed interest when she made her presence felt, i.e. when crying for milk.


[Jianna, Julian, and Justin]


[Julian: Jianna, don't cry...]


[Justin: Jianna, how loud and how long can you cry?]

We prepared presents for Jianna to "present" to the boys. They were thrilled and spent the rest of the night playing with their new toys.


[Jianna: Julian kor-kor, here's a toy airplane, a Salty train (from Thomas & Friends) and a book on airplanes for you]


[Jianna: Justin kor-kor, here's a toy airplane, a Thomas train, and a Mavis train for you]

So far, she has generally been a good sleeper and suckler. We hope to settle into a routine soon.

Jianna Making Demands

Jianna needed phototherapy on 31 March 2012 (2 days old) for jaundice. Otherwise, she's doing fine. Breastfeeding well.

Mummy Angie is also doing fine, in fact better than when we just had Justin.

Jianna is already going through the motions of making demands...


[Jianna resting]


[Is that a smile or grimace?]


[Oh, oh...]


[O-nga!!! O-nga!!!]

Jianna's Arrival

We are happy to announce the birth of our third child - Jianna, on 30 March 2012. At birth, Jianna weighed 3.62kg or 8lb. She is 52cm in length with a head circumference of 34cm. She was delivered spontaneously at 40 weeks 3 days (3 days past due date).

Baby Jianna and Mummy Angie are fine. Jianna is the third grandchild for Angie's parents, and the fifth for my parents (3 boys and 2 girls).


[Jianna]

Our Spot for Plane Spotting

We have been regulars at the public car park of the Second Cargo Complex in Batu Maung for plane spotting. It's one of our weekly or biweekly weekend activities with the boys. Good way to while away an hour :o).

When an aircraft approaches for landing, the boys like to guess the name of the airline. When an aircraft rolls down the runway, Julian likes to narrate what's going on, complete with sound effects.

Here are a few regular aircrafts at the Penang International Airport:


[Malaysia Airlines]


[Air Asia with reverse thrust deployed]


[Firefly]


[Silk Air]


[Wings Airways]

Julian at 58 Months

Julian turned 58 months (4 years 10 months) on 28 March 2012.

Here are his updates:

• He converses with Justin, and they also argue, now that Justin can talk.
  
• He would correct Justin when the latter says something wrongly, or when he doesn't see whatever that Justin says he (Justin) saw.
  
• He would periodically ask us to 'speak about Chinese/Bahasa', meaning he wants us to say whatever we were saying in Chinese/Malay.
  
• He likes to read the bus numbers in Chinese and then wants us to say 'tuay' ('correct'in chinese) :-)
  
• He sometimes tells us what he did during the day, especially when it is something out of his routine. This is progress to us, since he seldom divulged any info previously.
  
• His teacher told us he reads with proper intonation and esxpression :-)
  
• His attention span is improving. Apparently he can now sit with the other children during their school assembly. Previously he would be at the back and doesn't sit still.
  
• He loves dancing. Current favourite: YMCA and Choco Latte (dances he learnt for his school concert in the past 2 years). He would turn on the music on the computer and start dancing to the tunes.
  

[Strumming the guitar]


[Getting a different point of view]

Justin at 32 Months

Justin turned 32 months on 25 March 2012.

Here are his updates:

• His speech continues to improve and he can respond appropriately in simple conversation. A lot of what he says is learnt from big bro Julian.
  
• He enjoys singing and dancing. He would do the YMCA and Choco Latte dances together with Julian.
  
• He and Julian converse with each other, and also argue, now that he can talk.
  
• He would sometimes 'share' stories with us, e.g. "so-and-so cry" (in school), "friend do me", etc.
  
• At the end of the boys' daily computer session, he would want to watch a few Thomas clips. When we say 'this is the last one', or 'after this song we shut down', or the like, it doesn't seem to click with him. He'll always insist on watching more. So, very often the session ends with him in tears...
  
• He is often particular about cleanliness. He would complain "dirty already" whenever the cleanliness level doesn't meet his standards! Once, he refused to eat the fishballs in the seaweed soup because he said it was 'dirty' (pointing to the black seaweed)!
  
• He has started the habit of putting his finger in his mouth, sometimes nibbling his fingernails :-( See the picture below for his response when we ask him to take his hand out of this mouth!
  

[Justin: I touching only...]


[Playing the guitar... guqin style]


[Cool boy]