Ibu Lita

This is a picture taken today at the Women's Fellowship. From Left to Right: Auntie Nancy with Koko Hans, Auntie Chia Chia, Ibu Lita (the one carrying me), Mom, Thania Jie Jie and Auntie Gien Nio, Auntie Meina and Elissa Jie Jie.

Ibu Lita and family are moving back to Jakarta this month to continue serving the Lord there.

Ibu Lita, you will be dearly missed over here in Singapore. Thank you for your kindness and loving attention that you have given to our family. Til we meet again in Jakarta and/or Singapore. God bless you!

54 Weeks Old

My diarrhea is cured now :-) My appetite slowly returns, although I still eat very little. Mom started giving me the normal dose of my usual milk too.

I also started to get a bit interested in walking. I actually did my first independent steps on my birthday (14th Nov 2007). Just to do that, I needed a huge encouragement as I am still not confident in walking or even standing up by myself. Opa and Oma wanted me to start walking very soon by encouraging me alot to walk when they were here. But Mom and Dad had a different approach, and they would rather let me go on my own pace. They would still guide me to walking and continue to encourage me, but they do not make it like an intensive drill for me.

On occasions, I would be able to stand up (without holding onto things) for 2-3 seconds. Sometimes, when I am not 'awared', I would have both of my hands busy holding a toy, but I was already standing on my two feet ;-)

Diarrhea

Mom brought me to see the doctor yesterday. Actually my diarrhea started to get better. On Wednesday, Mom went to the pharmacy and the pharmacist recommended 'Smecta' for me to take for my diarrhea. It kinda worked, although it tasted horrible! Mom had to mix it with my fruit juice.

My appetite decreased alot. I refused to eat and only wanted to drink my milk. Mom is very worried.

So today, the doctor saw me and prescribed me some medicines to take. She said in a couple of days, the diarrhea will improve alot. She asked Mom to stop giving me Smecta, and give me the medicine that she prescribed instead (the doctor said that her medicine tastes much better than Smecta).

The doctor also asked Mom to stop my usual milk for a few days, and give me a soy-based milk instead until the diarrhea stops. She also told Mom not to be upset when I refused to eat coz it is normal for me to behave like so as eating makes my tummy ache.

Mom is soooo sad whenever I am not well. She also knows how difficult it is to get me to take my medicine, because I dislike them. I hope I will get well soon and start to eat well again.

After the visit from the doctor, Mom went to buy Isomil, a lactose free and soy based formula milk to replace my usual milk. At night, she tried feeding me with this milk, and I refused to drink! I don't like it at all. She tried giving me the milk again this morning, and I didn't want to take a sip.

So today she called the doctor again, and the nurse who answered the phone said that Mom can give me my normal milk but it has to be diluted with water (normal water level, with half the prescribed milk measurement). What a relief! At least I can have my usual milk, although it is a little bit watery.

What an ordeal. Hope I will get better soon.

In the picture, it was me playing outside the doctor's office. Whenever I am there, I get excited with all the toys available :-)

53 Weeks Old

Some updates on my first week being a one year old:

- Mealtime is still challenging for Mom and I. I simply don't eat as much as I used to. Mom has tried many things including cooking a different dish for each mealtime, but it still did not work. She is exhausted and frustrated. But Mom says, she will let me eat whatever and at which amount I feel like eating. She believes that forcing me to eat will turn out to be bad for me in the future. Oh, I also need to be distracted each time I eat. Mom doesn't really like this, so she limits the amount of distractions (read: toys) during mealtime. She just used interactions, like talking, singing or giving me some of the food to self feed.

- I luurvvv my formula milk. I can now drink almost 700ml per day + breastfeed once a day. I seem to prefer my milk than my meal. Mom is wondering whether she should cut the amount of milk that I drink each day. Hmmm...

Mom has also introduced me to cow's milk (full cream) yesterday. She mixed 100 ml of cow's milk with formula to begin with and I seem to take it very well.

- I am still not interested in standing up or walking by myself. I can walk if I hold on to something or someone's hands.

- For the first time, I got diarrhea. Mom is not sure whether it is caused by the cow's milk that I drank yesterday. She will monitor and see my paediatrician if it got worse.

Birthday Party - The Facts

The Cake

Ice cream cake from Swensens

The Candle

Party With Us - Centrepoint

The Party Balloons n Decorations
Art Friend, Popular, Mini Toons

The Menu
For Adults:

Fresh Salad with Balsamic Vinegar Dressing

Pasta with Special Bolognese Sauce

Pasta with Bacon, Italian Sausage and Pesto Sauce

Garlic Bread

Pizza

For Kids:

Children Pasta with Homemade Tomato Pasta Sauce

Chicken Steamed Rice with Vegetables and Chicken Liver

all meals are cooked by Mom, except for the Pizza. Pizzas were ordered from Canadian Pizza.

And oh, recipes are available upon request ;)

The Decoration Staff

please contact my Mom for details and rates *he he he*

The Party

I, Mom and Dad would like to thank everyone for coming to my birthday party.

Thank you heaps for the birthday presents too!

Hope you enjoyed the party as much as I do :-)

Preparing for the Party

Day Out - 3 - Birthday Trip

Today I turn ONE YEAR OLD! Opa and Oma brought lots of presents from my family in Jakarta. (Thank you all!). Dad bought me a present too. Mom made me a special number one shaped birthday cake. It was her first attempt to make a birthday cake. She insisted to make this cake because she thinks that the first cake that I will have for my birthday should be from her own effort. It may not look as pretty as those in the cake shop, but there is one special ingredient that she put in, "Mom's Love" that is ;-)

And, as a final birthday present from Mom and Dad, they brought me to....take a CABLE CAR! So after a small celebration at our house, we headed to Harbourfront to take the cable car. Our route started from Harbourfront, then to Mt. Faber, and then to Sentosa. It was a very interesting view from the cable car!

We stopped at Sentosa to walk around. We went to the Merlion Walk to see the water fountain there and took some pictures.

We then took the cable car back to Harbourfront and had our dinner there before we headed home. Thanks Mom and Dad for making today very special for me :-)

Happy Birthday, Nathan

Dearest Nathan,

Happy Birthday, Son.
We are just very grateful to God that He has kept His watch over you day and night.

It seems only yesterday that we hold you for the first time, listen to your subtle cry, and watch you struggle as you learned to lift your head up when you were put on your tummy. Then we watch you learn and achieve all your first milestones - flipping over, sitting down, eating solid food, crawling, standing up, climbing and taking your first steps.
Now, we can no longer call you a baby as you have grown to be a boy and soon you will no longer be so dependent on us. But deep inside our heart, you are still our baby.
The past one year has been quite a journey for both of us as this is our first time as parents. There have been struggle and tears along the way, but they are nothing compared to the joy, love and laughter that you have brought into our lives.

Some people may comment about your flaws. However, we love you as who you really are because you are our son and God has made you very special in His eyes.

Nathan, we will always pray that you will be someone who is after God's heart, someone who humbles himself to follow God's teachings, serve Him and others.
Papa and Mama loves you very much and will always remember you in our prayers.

Love,
Papa & Mama

52 Weeks Old

Wow, in a matter of hours, I will be 1 year old!
My Opa and Oma are coming today to celebrate my birthday.

By the way, this is me doing one of my most favorite past time - playing (or more likely, making a big mess) with a box of business cards. This can occupies me for quite some time. I would just open the box lid, take 1 -2 cards out before throwing the entire contents out. Then I will examine the cards, fold them, squeeze them, and sometimes, nibble on them he he

At the end of it, Mom has to do a big job clearing the clutter that I have made.

Me in the Tummy

Hey, where is Nate in this picture?
Ha ha yeah I am inside my Mom's tummy.
This picture is taken exactly one year ago, just 3 days before I was born.
It is also Mom's favorite pregnancy photo.

Refreshing

Sometimes it's good to just let your hair down

and enjoy your childhood moments :-)

Day Out - 2

Today Dad took a half-day leave so that we can again spend some time together as a family. He went to the office in the morning, and then we met up at about 12.30 PM. Actually we planned to go to the Zoo today. But Mom and I were at the ICA building for some immigration matters and we finished quite late at almost 3 PM. So at the end, we decided to go elsewhere. And this time, we decided to go to Sentosa Island :-)

We arrived at Harbourfront station, then we went to the 3rd floor of VivoCity next to the Food Republic foodcourt. We bought the tickets to go to Sentosa Island by the new monorail train. We rode onthe monorail and then stopped at Beach Station. From there, we took the tram to go to Underwater World. We found out that the tickets to Underwater World includes the Dolphin show, which is located at the other end of the island. So after we bought the ticket, we took the bus to go to see the Dolphin show. There were a lot of tourists there watching the show too. It was practically a full house. The dolphins featured are pink dolphins. It's my first time seeing them.
After the show, we headed back to the Underwater World. We took the double-decker bus with the open top. And I got to sit at the top deck *yay!* I was very excited, I kept giggling during the whole bus trip.
We finally reached Underwater World, and I got to see lots of fish! From small ones to big ones like the sharks. We spent about 1 hour there before we headed back to Harbourfront to have our dinner and then went home.

Enjoy the photos :-)

Day Out - 1

Today is a public holiday in Singapore. So, Mom and Dad have made plans for the three of us to enjoy some family time together. We planned to go again to Jacob Ballas Children Garden at Singapore Botanical Garden, again! Well, this time, Dad went along. And so did a few of my buddies :-)

We reached there in the evening, around 4 PM, and started our journey at the sandpit. As today is a public holiday, the place was c-r-a-m-p-e-d with people, both adults and kids! Unbelievable! This is my first time stepping on a pile of sands! It felt a bit weird at firs, but I like it :-)

Then we went to the waterplay. Dad was with me while Mom took all the pictures.

Afterwards, we parted from the rests of our friends, while Dad, Mom and I continued our walk from Jacob Ballas to the Tanglin Gate. Along the way, we stopped to take pictures and visited other parks like the Evolution Garden and the Swan Lake. The weather was very nice as it was slightly windy and not humid.

After we reached the Tanglin Gate, it was almost 7 PM. We took a cab to go to Tampines and then headed back to home. It was a splendid day for the three of us. I wish we can do this more often.

How to Fall Asleep Instantly!

51 Weeks Old

Getting ready for my 1st birthday:

- I now have 7 teeth in total

- I drink 550-600ml of formula every day

- I still breastfeed once a day

- I nap 1-2 times a day, 1-3 hrs each time.

- Sad to say, my motoric development is a bit slow. I still can not stand up by myself without holding on something, let alone making my first independent steps. But I crawl very fast :-D. Well, I can actually stand independently, but I am still not confident in doing so.

- My favourite meal so far: pasta, fruit/juices and yoghurt

Nate, The Cabbie

Gone Fishing!

Thank you Auntie Nancy for the nice hat!
(Auntie Nancy, Uncle Widjaja, Koko Hans and Jeremy are here in Singapore for a holiday.
I finally get to meet Jeremy, who is only 1.5 month younger than I am.)

Dad's Birthday

To my most favourite guy in the world:

Happy Birthday, Dad!

*photo is courtesy of Auntie Astrid*

Trip to Singapore Botanical Garden

Today Mom and I went to Singapore Botanical Garden for the first time. We took the MRT to Somerset, and then took a bus from there. Just the two of us :)
We arrived at the Tanglin Gate at about 10:20 AM. But then, apparently we were supposed to meet the rest in another spot in the area (Cafe Les Amis), which took us another 15 mins by walking. Finally we met with the rests of the Moms and Kids at around 11.30 AM.
We first proceeded to have our small picnic where every Mom would bring some tidbits or snacks to enjoy together. Then, we headed to our main destination, Jacob Ballas Children Garden.
It was very hot and humid during our entire walk there. The cold water dispenser and especially the waterplay area are really the Godsend! I really enjoyed the waterplay very much, until I didn't notice the blisters on my foot and knee after crawling too much.
The weather started to get better and breezy during our waterplay. And just when we were finishing, it started to rain. We managed to get into a shaded place in time before the rain started to pour heavily, had our last snacks together before each one of us went home.
It sure was alot of fun there! I am sure going to visit there again soon.