Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Tasty Little Toes
Saya discovered the taste of her toe today! Lately, she loves to hold onto her feet with her tiny hands.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
First words already?
Saya has become quite a babbler. I never noticed how much she babbles until about two days ago when she babbled "mum, mum, mum" and "ba, ba, ba" (Ba meaning "father" in Vietnamese) everytime she wanted something. I'm beginning to think that she has associated "mum" with me, in other words, food! Shame on me, I don't even know when she started to babble. I know it's just her babbling, but when does the "mum" and "ba" become a first word then? When she learns to associate the word with an object? Oh wells...
On another note, Saya seems to be more interested in solids. She constantly stares at us when we eat (sometimes her eyes even follow my spoon as it moves from the plate to my mouth) and puckers her lips like she wants some too. I think it's really cute. I bought her a sippy cup and filled it with water so that she can experiment with something else other than my breasts! She loves the sippy cup. She won't drink milk from it, but she adores playing with it and drinking water from it. (Of course, I give her very little water for fear of water intoxication). I think Saya is ready for solids (evident the other day when she beamed with joy after my sister sister gave Saya a taste of Ben's food), but I'm debating on whether I should start this early. I'm looking into trying the baby-led-weaning method, but don't know how much easier it is compared to mainstream solid feeding. I'll look into the topic a little more.
By the way, Saya turns 5 months in eight more days. She still doesn't know how to turn over yet. In fact, she doesn't seem interested in turning over at all. I encourage her by putting toys and bright colored objects to the side and giving her a little nudge to turn over, but she just rolls on her back and hold her feet with her two hands. The other day, during a family bbq, one of my very good friends, Mylan, (after having watched Saya) excitingly mentioned to me that Saya knew how to roll over. I thought, darn it, I wasn't there to record it! But then I learned that Saya only knew how to roll on her back from her tummy, which she learned in the early days of being able to hold her head up during tummy time. So it wasn't anything surprising like the way Mylan portrayed it to be. But now that I think about it, am I not paying as much attention as I should be? I guess this whole parenting thing has made me more absent minded. (Hence, why I need to keep a journal to remind myself of those more sane-minded days.)
On another note, Saya seems to be more interested in solids. She constantly stares at us when we eat (sometimes her eyes even follow my spoon as it moves from the plate to my mouth) and puckers her lips like she wants some too. I think it's really cute. I bought her a sippy cup and filled it with water so that she can experiment with something else other than my breasts! She loves the sippy cup. She won't drink milk from it, but she adores playing with it and drinking water from it. (Of course, I give her very little water for fear of water intoxication). I think Saya is ready for solids (evident the other day when she beamed with joy after my sister sister gave Saya a taste of Ben's food), but I'm debating on whether I should start this early. I'm looking into trying the baby-led-weaning method, but don't know how much easier it is compared to mainstream solid feeding. I'll look into the topic a little more.
By the way, Saya turns 5 months in eight more days. She still doesn't know how to turn over yet. In fact, she doesn't seem interested in turning over at all. I encourage her by putting toys and bright colored objects to the side and giving her a little nudge to turn over, but she just rolls on her back and hold her feet with her two hands. The other day, during a family bbq, one of my very good friends, Mylan, (after having watched Saya) excitingly mentioned to me that Saya knew how to roll over. I thought, darn it, I wasn't there to record it! But then I learned that Saya only knew how to roll on her back from her tummy, which she learned in the early days of being able to hold her head up during tummy time. So it wasn't anything surprising like the way Mylan portrayed it to be. But now that I think about it, am I not paying as much attention as I should be? I guess this whole parenting thing has made me more absent minded. (Hence, why I need to keep a journal to remind myself of those more sane-minded days.)
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Why I started this blog.
When my daughter, Saya, was born a little less than five months ago, I told myself that I would keep a journal detailing all the milestones she goes through. How optimistic I was at that time because ever since Saya has been born, I have found very little time to do anything at all. It's the hardest blow that a new parent can get. It doesn't quite hit you yet until you realize how sleep deprived or exhausted you are from tending to the baby 24 hours a day. But slowly, you learn to make time. You readjust your priorities (including your work, your meals, and sadly, sometimes your hygiene) and pretty soon, you have assimilated the baby into your life. Who am I talking to anyways? I'm just darn glad I actually make time to talk about her now (even though I haven't yet.
I brought Saya to the Taste of Chicago two weeks ago. She refuses to take the bottle and I refuse to be cooped up in my apartment, so I bring her everywhere with me. Man, when they tell you that breastfeeding increases bonding between mother and baby, they weren't kidding! Sure, a mother can bond with her baby in many ways: reading to the baby, singing to the baby, bathing and diapering the baby, rocking the baby. But when you breastfeed your baby, it's more obligatory BINDING (especially when your baby refuses the bottle, and most babies do!). I can't spend more than three hours away from Saya. When I'm away, she will cry and fuss before she takes the bottle. And when she takes the bottle, she will drink only enough to stave off hunger until I come home to feed her.
I know it sounds daunting. (I have a knack for making things sound terrible for myself). But really, breastfeeding is one of the best parenting decisions I've made so far. Aside from the copious health benefits that breastfeeding provides for Saya and me, it's helped me understand the significance of mothering, which I thought I understood when I was pregnant. I love my daughter to death. I miss her when I'm away from her. I even miss her when I get an scarce 3-4 hours to myself during her naps. I bring her everywhere with me. With that, she learns what my world is like as well.
I brought Saya to the Taste of Chicago two weeks ago. She refuses to take the bottle and I refuse to be cooped up in my apartment, so I bring her everywhere with me. Man, when they tell you that breastfeeding increases bonding between mother and baby, they weren't kidding! Sure, a mother can bond with her baby in many ways: reading to the baby, singing to the baby, bathing and diapering the baby, rocking the baby. But when you breastfeed your baby, it's more obligatory BINDING (especially when your baby refuses the bottle, and most babies do!). I can't spend more than three hours away from Saya. When I'm away, she will cry and fuss before she takes the bottle. And when she takes the bottle, she will drink only enough to stave off hunger until I come home to feed her.
I know it sounds daunting. (I have a knack for making things sound terrible for myself). But really, breastfeeding is one of the best parenting decisions I've made so far. Aside from the copious health benefits that breastfeeding provides for Saya and me, it's helped me understand the significance of mothering, which I thought I understood when I was pregnant. I love my daughter to death. I miss her when I'm away from her. I even miss her when I get an scarce 3-4 hours to myself during her naps. I bring her everywhere with me. With that, she learns what my world is like as well.
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