18 months old!

Wow.. time flies and I am already one and a half years old. Mummy has been very amused and impressed by my antics lately.

I have a few more words added to my list of spoken words: star (with high pitch), fish (ish), doctor, no, butterfly (but), circle, mall..

I am able to name more items now.

I can recognize Singapore flag and will say, "star", or "oh neh, neh, neh" with the action! In case you do not know, I am trying to sing one of the Youth Olympic songs. Even the stars and moon on the police crest do not escape my eyes and I will go "neh, neh, neh" also.

I am addicted to kissing. I will kiss any cute plush toys, characters in my books, daddy and mummy affectionately on their lips! Mummy says I am so passionate that I will even close my eyes while kissing!

I can even reenact what had happened to me. Last night, mummy was taking her shower when daddy had to go to the toilet urgently. They heard me cry suddenly and rushed out almost immediately but I had since stopped. When mummy asked me what had happened to me, I walked to where my toy was, leaned against it, sat on the floor, pointed to the floor and touched my head. Mummy could not believe it and ask me again and I did the same. Mummy was so impressed by me for being able to communicate and recount what had happened.

I enjoy dancing with HI-5 and any catchy songs. Mummy likes to see me waving the scarfs, to imitate the flapping of the butterfly's wings as we sing along in GUG!

I have a bigger appetite too. I will also want to try what daddy and mummy are eating even when I have just finished my meal. My feeding schedule currently:

8 am : 260ml milk
10 am : cereal + cheese/egg/fruits
1 pm : porridge
4.30 pm : 260ml milk + fruits/snacks
7 pm : porridge
10.30 pm : 280ml milk

Mummy is very proud of my achievement and thank God keeping me safe, healthy and happy! She is so addicted to me!

Events from January to June

No time for lengthy post of words. Mummy hereby uploaded tons of pictures which effectively tell the stories.

Chinese New Year




My 1st Birthday







Po Po's Birthday





Mothers' Day Celebration

A is for Active

Time flies and I am already 8 and a half months old. I am getting more and more active. I am so energetic that mummy wonders where I get my energy from. I am definitely not a small eater, neither am I a big eater. I have been consuming 4 feeds of milk and 2 feeds of solid-food since 5 months old. The portion of porridge/cereal has also increased significantly. However, I seem not to be putting on weight as fast as before due to the increase in physical activities. I will spend my waking hours playing, reading, observing, learning, jumping, crawling, dancing by shaking my body and the list goes on...Let me show you some evidence of me busy in action.

Jumping like an expert in my jumperoo..Mummy finds me so hilarious..Hear my screams of excitement


Turning and flipping


Laughing and playing


Crawling and smiling to the camera

Happy Birthday to Daddy

October is a very important month for us as two significant occasions fall in this month - Daddy and mummy's dating anniversary and daddy's birthday! We had a simple but heartwarming celebration with me celebrating with them for the first time.

Although we have been to T3 umpteen times, this was the first time we went during the day. Daddy and mummy wouldn't want me to miss the chance of seeing the aeroplanes.

Daddy and I


I love to show my affection by touching mummy's face and pulling it nearer for me to kiss.



At Crowne Plaza Hotel



Sky roof


Azur, the place daddy and mummy had their dinner buffet and I had my home-cooked fish & spinach porridge

My feeding schedule at 6 months

Time files and I am already more than half a year old. After I started on solid food on my 5th month, my feeding schedule and amount for consumption has changed. Here is my typical schedule when it comes to eat, chew, burp..

Elijah's Feeding Schedule for 6th month
5.30 a.m. 220ml of milk
9.00a.m. small piece of biscuits + water
10.30 a.m. 220ml of milk
1.30 p.m. 1/2 to 3/4 bowl of cereal + puree* + 50ml milk
4.30 p.m. 150ml of milk
7.30 p.m. 1/2 to 3/4 bowl of cereal + puree* + 50ml milk
11.30 p.m. 220ml of milk

*apple, pear, pumpkin, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, spinach and fish purees are what I normally have. Sometimes, I will have banana and carrot.

Of course, this is just a guideline and I will tend to consume more or less depending on my mood and appetite.

Here a picture of mummy and me when we waited for our turn at Dr Ong's clinic for my final 6 in 1 jab. I weigh 7.7kg and measure 67.5cm long at 6 months 2 days old.

My first taste of semi-solid food

Mummy started to introduce me to semi-solid food when I turned 5 months 1 day old on 18 July 2009.

Mummy has been preparing for this day since a month ago by reading up and buying all the necessary bowls, spoons, storage cubes, hand-held blender, Healthy Times brown rice cereal etc.

She found these two books really come in handy. They contain easy to prepare recipes for purees and porridge from 4 months and up. "Top 100 Baby Purees" by Annabel Karmel and a local published book, "First Food" by Anna Jacob & other co-authors.

To date, I have eaten brown rice cereal, apples, pears, bananas, carrots, pumpkin, spinach and sweet potatoes. They are all so yummy! Mummy and po po both agree that I like semi-solid food more than milk.

Here's me having my very first taste of semi-solid food on 18 July 2009.




See my love-hate relationship with the apple from my facial expression. Mummmy thinks I look extremely cute here.



Mummy will steam the ingredients and then make them into purees. She will then transfer them to small storage cube to have them frozen.

Feeding stress

Mummy brought me for my vaccination and 3 months assessment on 19 May 2009. She has been looking forward to this day as she needs to get some assurance from my paediatrician regarding my feeding habits and growth. She is very concerned about me drinking lesser than when I was one month old. I used to drink about 120ml of breast milk/formula 7 to 8 times a day. But right now, I am only consuming 150ml 5 times a day. I also do not really like to drink milk and will cry and refuse to suckle. Mummy will need to spend about an hour to feed me most of the time.

Dr Ong said it is normal for 3 months old babies to drink lesser than before and reassured mummy that different babies have different feeding habits. He said some babies need to be half asleep or suckle on the pacifier on and off while feeding. It is still considered normal and should not be a cause of concern. Mummy was so relieved to hear that and tears were welling up in her eyes as she recalled the stress and worries she experiences everyday when she feeds me.

In fact, he mentioned babies' weight gain will slow down at this stage and should double their birth weight when they reached 4 months. I have already doubled and Dr Ong told mummy not to feel stressed or compare my weight with other babies who were born heavier. Mummy hopes that this is just a passing phase and I will soon be drinking well.

I weighed 6kg at 3 months 2 days old.

Wind, wind, go away

wind, wind, go away
don't ever come back to Elijah again

wind, wind, go away
don't ever come back to Elijah again

This is what mummy will sing to me when I cry between feeds or during feeding.
It is really a challenging task looking after me as I will fuss and cry, lately accompany with screams, everyday since I was about 5 to 6 weeks old. Mummy has tried many ways to get rid of my wind. Ru Yi oil, rid wind baby drops, Gripe water, burping me in different positions etc..

Colic has disrupted my feeding so much that I will cry after every few suckles and I am drinking lesser. Daddy and mummy feel very heart aching seeing me suffer. Mummy says colic is a vicious cycle and the more I cry, the more air I will take in.

On 17/4/2009, Mummy brought me to a paediatrician even though my condition has improved slightly. She was told to continue giving me rid wind 3 times daily and Gripe water once a day. The paediatrician merely prescribed a bottle of probiotic drops for me to boost the good bacteria and strengthen my gut. He assured mummy not to be too concerned over me drinking much lesser as my weight gain was satisfactory, 1 kg gained since I last weighed 3 weeks ago.



I was prescribed the last product shown in the picture

Information taken from: http://www.biogaia.com/Page/Standard/147/What-is-Lactobacillus-reuteri.aspx

What is Lactobacillus reuteri?
Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) is one of the most well researched probiotics with respect to health effects and safety. The bacteria strains used in BioGaia Probiotic products were originally sampled from human body sites.

L. reuteri has a natural health-promoting role and it is scientifically proven to help protect us from the actions of harmful bacteria in the stomach, the gut and the mouth. L. reuteri also strengthens our immunity.

BioGaia Probiotic products deliver live friendly Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri). The products are intended for the support of gut, immune and oral health.

Frozen EBM

Mummy has read about how some babies rejected frozen EBM (expressed breast milk) as it tastes different from the fresh ones due to the fishy smell. She decided to thaw a pack of frozen EBM for me to try before it expires and guess what was my reaction? I cried and refused to drink after a few suckle. Daddy opened and smelled the content and agreed there was a fishy smell. Daddy told mummy to pour away and not to let me drink. Seeing it into the basin was indeed a waste. Therefore, mummy used it to wash her hands. It was indeed very moisturising.

How do you think mummy is going to do to those remaining packs of frozen EBM.. she is going to mix them with the chilled ones without daddy's knowledge. But I still prefer it fresh..