Mummy or Daddy?

The daddy is not at all convinced. Think it is because both choo and littlejerard closed their eyes. Will change a photo another day.

Children's Day

Today is Children's Day so littlejerard's decided to get more attention from mum and dad by crying louder and harder.

Singaporean children celebrate Children's Day every 1 October. On this day, the Children's Day Song, Semoga Bahagia by Zubir Said is sung. This song tells of the values the children should have and encourages them to go for their dreams to provide value to the world. At the same time, it wishes them success and happiness.

Semoga Bahagia
Sama-sama maju ke hadapan
Pandai cari pelajaran
Jaga diri dalam kesihatan
Serta sopan-santun dengan kawan-kawan
Dengan hati bersih serta suci
Sama-sama hormat dan berbudi
Jaga tingkah pemuda-pemudi
Adat dan budaya junjung tinggi
Capailah lekas cita-cita pemudi-pemuda
Supaya kita ada harga di mata dunia
Kalau kita lengah serta lupa
Hidup kita sia-sia
Jiwa besar sihat serta segar
Rajin dengan sabar tentu bahagia
Lemah lembut perangai pemudi
Cergas tangkas wataknya pemuda
Suka rela selalu berbakti
Sikap yang pembela dan berjasa
Capailah nama yang mulia pemudi-pemuda
Rajinlah supaya berjaya semoga bahagia

English translation
May You Achieve Happiness
Together we progress
Clever at seeking knowledge
Take care of your health
And be courteous to your friends
With a clean and pure heart
We respect and do good to each other
Watch your behaviour, oh youths
Respect and honour your customs and traditions
Quickly reach your goals/dreams, oh youths
So that we'll have our worth, in this world
If we are lazy and forgetful
Our lives are worthless
A big heart and a fresh mind
Hardworking and patience defintely brings success/happiness
Soft-spoken is the lady
Energetic and tenacious is the man
Charitable, always contributing
Having a righteous spirit and doing good
Attain a respectable position, oh youths
Be hardworking so that you will succeed, may you achieve happiness

littlejerard's pictures

choo and I are still deciding whether he looks more like the dad or the mum. Oh well, I think it'll be more obvious when he's slightly older. Now, we'll just take more photos.

Of pots and babies

I just can't resist sharing about some of the memorabilia as well as some interesting pictures from the pregnancy. Some pictures will REALLY bring back nostalgic memories (even for our parents)

Flask for red date tea

If there is a prize for resourcefulness and upholding the ancestral values and tradition, I think my aunt mum would win hands down. She called me to tell me that she got me a flask for the hot drinks for choo. When I saw the prehistorical made in China Chng Kiang brand big rose flask, I nearly foamed at my mouth. I mean there is at least one shop that still sells this? I thought they already banned such thermos from the medieval times? Having said so much, this definitely-non stainless steel vial is still the source of life for choo since she wasn't allowed to consume plain water of any kind or temperature.



















"Urn" for the Pig Trotters in Vinegar

I've NEVER liked this dish and would actually come home late whenever my mum cooks this in the past. Well, this time it seems that I have no choice but to stay at home when the dish is cooked. The earthen(or clay) pot for this dish is quite humongous also. The Philips juicer pales in comparison in terms of size. tan mum has to T-loan this pot from a neighbour in her 70s who swears by this pot. The pig trotters apparently have to be braised in it for quite a long while before you can eat it. Choo doesn't like it but have to finish the up the entire bowl of post-natal goodness everytime it was served at the table. bw likes it quite a lot and has been invited to savour the dish together with choo.














Sterilizing pots

Initially, based on the list of things to buy, we needed to get a steamer for littlejerard's bottles. But to me, to spend about 200 bucks on a steamer is ridiculous and that started our quest to source for a more practical germ eliminator machine. I've always remembered that our old tenant used this metal pot that has a flat lid. You know the kind used for Muthu curry. So we managed to get 1 without realizing that it was made of 100% Aluminium. Bad Choice. After just one use, part of the inside of the pot actually oxidized and turned dull in colour. We were not sure if there was any Al contamination for littlejerard's bottles and teats. But thank God we realized this early, else littlejerard might be drinking Al-laced milk. The thought just freaked us out.













Eventually, decided to use our Vision doh-re-mi-fa pots for sterilizing which we found was so much more hygienic and convenient to use. tan mum's belief is that every family should own either a set of Vision or Corningware. Fortunately, these pots played their roles well this time.













choo's food will be featured in the next post while you'll see littlejerard playing with water.

Resort at TMC

We opted for a 3 night "resort stay" at TMC before going back to west coast dr. Night 1 kind of passed quickly without any hiccups with littlejerard still staying with the other kids in the nursery. There, you will see some of the babies undergoing phototheraphy. My mum used to tell me how sad and how she would cry when I had to stay in KK when I was a baby due to jaundice. Nowadays, with the vast education, we know that jaundice is something very common and there is nothing to worry about. Littlejerard was mildly yellow after doing total breastfeeding for 3 days but we continued to breastfeed him under the advise of the doctor.

According to choo's friend Joyce, there are a few kinds of babies. One kind is called the sleepy baby. It's really not hard to understand why.

There is the other kind of baby called the crying baby. Littlejerard takes on this role sometimes and first, he would do the build up by sulking then squeezing his face into a small bundle until it's red before bursting into his wails. Hunger pangs? Wet diapers? Or just lonely? We are still trying to learn more about him.

Sometimes I wonder... which kind are you littlejerard?

He enjoys sleeping with mummy too.


















And while littlejerard was in Thomson, here are some friends who visited on Day 1(Pictures compliments from jx)









































More posts from home coming up.

The Beginning

Hi! This is a blog set up for our son Jerard Tan Yong Jin (littlejerard).

Egged on by JustXimplyMe, moshi ng and others, we decided to use our whatever zero skills we have at Photoshop and what nots to create this. All for the sake of fun and memories of how littlejerard would grow up in the days to come.

The Beginning

It was some time in Dec 2006 when choo and I went for a short trip in Bangkok and with the relaxed setting away from work, the rest was history.

On 5 Sep, as choo was going for lunch at Alexandra Village, she decided to climb the overhead bridge which we suspect was the reason for her water bag burst. Initially, she was adamant to follow through with her swimming plans. In the end, swimming was cancelled and she decided to stay at home to wait and see. The very next day, choo started to have labour pains and was sent to Thomson Medical Centre for an emergency c-section. This was as she was about to be pushed into the delivery suites.

And so, while I was waiting impatiently outside the gowning room for my turn to join choo, I started to snap some pictures.

Soon after, I was led into the gowning room to wear the oversized gown and shower cap. In fact, I actually forgot to sanitize my hands and only realized much later after the operation when I was putting my clothes back on that there was a sink right at the entrance of the gowning room.

After gowning, I was led into the theatre to witness the birth. Though armed with my camera and words of encouragement for my wife, I admit I was a little dumbfounded when I saw our gynae cutting and snipping away before yanking littlejerard out with little success. With barely much eye contact, he allied with the anaestatist, one from each direction to wring out the little fellow. After much tugging, littlejerard managed to emerge from his mother's womb unscathed. I thought they must have elongated another 2cm out of him in the process.

After his lung functions started kicking in, due to the long time stuck, littlejerard inevitably took in some of his poo poo and had to be pumped out through tubes inserted into his nose(ouch!) and his mouth. I was too flabbergasted to remember to take photos.

After some minor drying up, littlejerard was presented to his mother for the 1st time. Here you see the proud mother holding littlejerard gingerly while the doctor was simultaneously stitching her up.

After which, I was led to the weighing section where littlejerard was to be weighed and measured. 2.77kg and 49cm. A little small but I guess he'll get bigger later.

Shortly, I was whisked to Room 609 (same day) to check our the mother while littlejerard was greeted by many other babies in the nursery.

And this marked the very beginning of littlejerard's adventure on Planet Earth. WELCOME LITTLE GUY!