Skyler’s Growing Independence

Most Dearest Sweetest Little Girl,

You are becoming so independent!

You have started brushing your own teeth. Of course, you still need our help in holding the toothbrush most of the time but you are learning how to hold the brush and making the brushing motion whenever we brush you teeth, Little One. We are so proud of you.

You have also started to use all sorts of things to comb your own hair. This is always so cute to Papa and Mama. Sometimes you will take your comb out of our hands and try to comb your own hair. It’s always so funny because sometimes you’ll use the wrong side of the comb to go through your hair and of course nothing actually happens. :D But it’s always so touching to see you imitate our actions – you melt our hearts, Little One.

It’s also so cute to see you try to put on your own socks. You still haven’t gotten the hang of it but again, it’s always so heart-warming to see you try. You’ve actually figured out how to remove the socks though. :D

All these, coupled with your ability to walk on your own now, make us so proud of you and your progress. While we want to see you grow and develop, we still want you to be our Little Baby Girl, Darling. Don’t grow up too fast, okay?

We love you!

Mama and Papa

Skyler Says ‘Nana!’

Dearest Year-Old Baby Girl,

Today, Mama heard you say “nana” very clearly, Little One. That is your word for “banana” which is one of the fruits we are feeding you with. Your vocabulary seems to be improving, Darling. It’s so cool!

We love you, Little One!

Mama and Papa

The Pitter-Patter of Little Feet =D

Most Dearest Sweet Little Girl,

You have started to walk without any assistance from us, Little One! Wow!

You can so totally walk on your own now. The only problem is that you are still a wee bit unstable and Papa and Mama are constantly worried that you will fall over at any time. However, the only thing that comforts us is that all toddlers go through this and your body is supposedly prepared for falling down. Weird, yes, I know, but supposed to be true.

It’s always a joy for us to see you walking around. Sometimes, you would walk around in supermarkets on your own and we get so totally amused seeing the small girl that you are walking in the big wide aisles of the supermarket. :D

We love you, Little One!

Mama and Papa

Smell the Roses, Little One…

Most Dearest Sweet Little Girl,

Today was one of those days that reminded Mama of why I gave up work to take care of you. We had such a great time together today!

In the morning, we played with the toy rabbit that Aunty Janet gave you for your first birthday. You were so amused by the sounds it made and you danced to the music it played.

After lunch, we went for a little nature walk downstairs. We kept a constant lookout for birds and approached them quietly for a closer look whenever we saw any. We also went around looking for golden crispy crunchy leaves to stomp on. Later, we saw a neighbour walking her two dogs and had a little chat with her. You were so curious about the two doggies!

As we were having such a great time, Mama decided to extend our walk to Admiralty Place. When we had crossed the road, we took time to scrutinise the Ixora flowers that line the path to Admiralty Place. You loved touching the little red flowers!

A number of stores at Admiralty Place were selling Chinese New Year decorations. We chose two – a family of pigs and a pair of pigs – for your two grandmas, since the coming Lunar New Year is the year of the pig. I’m sure they’ll love it!

When we returned home, you had some milk and were SO amused by Mama’s failed attempts to twirl the little towel we use to clean your mouth. =D

What a wonderful day we had, Little Skyler! Mama hopes you will always take time to smell the roses and breathe in the wonderment of God’s creation!

Always your doting parents,

Mama and Papa

Paragon Fun!

Dearest Darling Baby Girl,

We brought you down to Paragon Metro today to exchange a toy that Aunty Candy had bought for you as it was not working well. We got you a Noah’s Ark play set as Papa thought that it was quite cute as it had lions, zebras and other animals.

After having exchanged the toy, we brought you to the recently opened children’s section to take a look. There we came across an Elephant Slide that we allowed you to slide down on. You were so amused by it, Little One! :D

We also came bumped into a very funny Uncle. He was with his two girls. He was sharing with Mama how it was so difficult to bring up two children and how easy it was with only one. He sounded so like it was such a chore that Mama and Papa couldn’t help feeling sorry for him. But he looked like he was totally having fun with them there that we were not sure how serious he was. :D

This was also where you started tickling Mama’s ear and getting so amused by it. You kept on doing it over and over and laughing while you did it! You were so cute, Little One.

We love you, Sweetheart!

Mama and Papa

Shelter from the Storm

Dearest Little Girl,

Today, we had yet another birthday celebration for you. This wraps up your 1st birthday celebrations. :) The reason this celebration was so delayed was because Aunty Candy was away on holiday and had only just returned to Singapore.

We had arranged to meet Aunty Janet and Aunty Candy at Raffles City at 2pm today, but it had been raining continuously from about 2 days before. Mama had warned Aunty Janet that if the torrential rain did not let up, we may have to take a rain check. It had been raining kitty cats and doggie dogs for a while now, and some areas in Singapore are even flooded. Mama didn’t want you to catch a chill in the storm.

So the whole morning, Mama and Aunty Janet monitored the weather. Sadly, the rain continued relentlessly all of today! But we were all looking forward to meeting each other, so Mama got you all dressed up and ready to go, then we waited for an opportuned moment, when the rain slowed down a little, and dashed out of the house. The winds were quite strong and it was still pouring quite heavily, but with your stroller rain cover, you remained quite dry. Mama, on the hand, was all wet by the time we crossed the road to get to the MRT station!

Still, we made it to Raffles City, to your birthday celebration with Aunty Janet and Aunty Candy. We had tea at a nice little place in the basement of Raffles City. It’s a new healthy food café with lush cushy chairs that face a fountain with playful jets of water dancing about.

You had such a good time watching the fountain and, of course, you enjoyed playing with the new rabbit and Cookie Monster toys that Aunty Janet and Aunty Candy gave you.

Before dinner, Auntie Janet had to go for a Sunday School teachers meeting, so we all parted ways. Papa then picked us up and we went to Borders for a walk.

Marks and Spencer at Wheelock Place was having a sale and Papa and Mama bought so many new books and toys for you at a discount. You had a great time walking around the store too! :)

When we returned home in the evening, it was still storming. As we made our way back to our block from the carpark, rain was beating into the void deck because of the strong wind. Papa hugged you so tightly as he carried you back home. Snug in Papa’s strong arms, you got home all warm and dry.

Seeing Papa protect you in the storm reminded Mama of one of our first dates. On Christmas Eve, 24th Christmas 1992, Papa and Mama were sharing a tub of Haagen Daz “Cookies and Cream” ice-cream when it started to pour. The storm didn’t end but Papa had to go for Midnight Eucharist with Grandma, so Papa and Mama had to make our way to the bus-stop in the storm. It was raining SO heavily, yet Papa held the umbrella so carefully over Mama that Mama was quite dry all the way… until we got to the road. That was when a car drove by and splashed Papa and Mama with a huge spray of water! We were drenched after that, but we laughed and laughed because of the irony of the situation – Papa had kept Mama dry all the way and we got soaked through just before we made it to the bus-stop.

Seeing Papa protect you in the storm also made Mama feel all warm and fuzzy inside because Mama knows that Papa will always love and protect you, just like he will always love and protect Mama.

Papa and Mama love you, Little One!

Playdate with Kor-Kor Zachary

Dearest Baby Skyler,

This year, Mama decided to try to bring you for more playdates with other children your age. However, it’s quite hard to find other children your age who also have mamas who stay at home with them so we can arrange playdates together. Thankfully, there is Auntie Doo Guat and Kor-Kor Zachary, who is about 5 months older than you are. So today, we arranged to go over to Kor-Kor Zachary’s house for a playdate.

However, it had been raining continuously the past few days and it was still raining today. Mama had had to postpone your playdate with Kor-Kor Zachary a few times already because of the rain, so Mama was reluctant to take yet another rain check today. In the end, Papa offered to come back and drive us to Aunty Doo Guat’s house before heading back to work. Mama didn’t want to trouble Papa, so Mama brought you out on her own.

This is probably our first outing in the rain without a car! It wasn’t too bad. We’ve got a sheltered walkway till the road, and it’s sheltered all the way from across the road to the MRT station. Essentially, Mama only had to keep you dry when we were crossing the road. Mama put the rain cover over your stroller and carried an umbrella too to keep you dry. It was difficult to push the stroller while up and down curbs when carrying an umbrella, but it was well worth the effort as you were totally dry by the time we made it across the road.

However, Papa was still worried about us, so he picked us up from his school and drove us to Aunty Doo Guat’s house before going back to school to work.

At Aunty Doo Guat’s house, Kor-Kor Zacky and you both took some time to warm up to each other, but when Aunty Doo Guat took the toys out, you both just started playing happily. You were SO excited and happy to see SO many new toys!

We’ll have more playdates with Kor-Kor Zacky in the future, Little One, since you enjoyed yourself so much.

Papa and Mama love you!

Two More Teeth!

Dearest Baby Skyler,

Today, Mama spotted your two upper front teeth peeking through your gums. How wonderful, Little One! Now you have more teeth with which to eat all your favourite food, like bread, biscuits and fruit.

Speaking of fruit, Papa and Mama got you some cherries the other day that you loved SO much. You kept asking for them, and every time we took them out of the fridge, you clapped your hands in joy!

You’re SO precious, Little One! Papa and Mama love you!

Papa & Mama

Swim, Rubber Duckie, Swim!

Dearest Baby Skyler,

One of the things you love doing these days is putting your toys into containers and then taking them out again. Today, you even started doing it with your favourite bath-time toy, your rubber duckie. Before Papa or Mama can pour a scoop of water onto you at bath-time, you’ll quickly dunk your rubber duckie into the scoop of water and be totally fascinated by how it floats! :)

You’re such a funny little girl, Sweet Darling! We love you! Mmmmuack!!!

Papa & Mama

Take Care, Uncle Milton! (and Hello, Tiger Toothbrush Holder!)

Dear Baby Skyler,

Since you had your first teeth last year, Papa and Mama have been cleaning your two teeth with a piece of washcloth. Lately, we decided it was time for you to progress to a toothbrush, so we got you a nice little toothbrush with pictures of little animals all over it. However, you refused to use the toothbrush.

Today, after church, Mama saw a pushcart in Raffles City selling all sorts of cute knick-knacks. Among the ware, Mama spotted a series of cute toothbrush holders in bright animal shapes. We thought we’d get one for you to motivate you to use your toothbrush, so we picked a bright orange tiger toothbrush holder for you.

Later this evening, we met up with Grandma and Uncle Milton’s family for a “best wishes” dinner for Uncle Milton. Uncle Milton will be working overseas for the next 3 years and he will be leaving on Tuesday to get to know the country he will be working in. His whole family will join him there in March, so we will definitely miss all of them. Don’t worry though. We're sure they'll visit us whenever they can! :)

When we got home from dinner, we suctioned the tiger toothbrush holder to the bathroom mirror. When you saw it there at bath-time, you were so excited you let us brush your teeth! Well done, Baby Skyler!

Papa and Mama love getting you all sorts of cute stuff because we love you SO much!

Papa & Mama

Just Mama and Skyler Again…

Dearest Baby Skyler,

Today is the start of the new academic year, so Papa’s off to work again. That means it’s back to just Mama and you again. We’re a little lonely without Papa’s company, but it’s not so bad. There’s lots for us to do and explore before we see Papa again in the evening!

There’s the alphabet, for example. Mama’s been trying to teach you the letters of the alphabet, but because of your short attention span and selective memory, there’re some letters of the alphabet you can recognise and others you simply don’t seem to care much about. One of the letters you’re quite fond of is “A”, since “A” is for “Apple” and you love looking for apples in supermarts. Here are some pictures of you enjoying an apple in the comforts of home.

“F” is another favourite, since you have two toy clown fishes from the “Finding Nemo” film and you do enjoy watching fishes swim.

Aside from the alphabet, there’s also “Blue’s Clues”, your favourite television programme! You love watching the show and doing all the actions along with the song:

"Then you find another pawprint, that’s the second clue. You put it in your notebook

’cos they’re whose clues? Blue’s clues!”

It’s such a joy to see you do the actions to the Blue’s Clues song! :)

Papa and Mama love you SO much, Baby Skyler! You’re our pride and our joy!

Papa & Mama

It’s a New Year! Mmmuack!!!

Dearest Year-Old Baby Girl,

HAPPY 2007!!!

Last year, we brought you home from the hospital in the storm on New Year’s Eve. At the stroke of midnight, when the world bid farewell to 2005 and welcomed 2006, Mama was feeding you and Papa was running around getting all sorts of things done. In short, we were still fumbling about and desperately finding our way about as brand new parents.

What a relief it is this year to be able to actually celebrate the New Year with you properly!

We got up this morning to you kissing Hippo (from Godma) and Kitty-Kat (from Kow-Fu), your little stuffed animals who now sleep at the foot of your bed. Since you started giving loud “muack” kisses and flying kisses a while ago, you haven’t stopped. It’s quite funny, actually. You seem to be on a mission to kiss every stuffed toy you see, and once you’ve kissed one, you’ll put it aside and kiss the next one.

Of course, you also kiss your books and even your own image in the mirror. Occasionally, Papa and Mama even got a wet “muack” from you! That’s always SO sweet, Baby Girl!

Anyway, once we had lunch, we decided to meet Kow-Fu and Kow-Moh for a short while at Suntec City.

We met for tea at the Cedele sandwich shop there, and everyone took turns to bring you to look at the little fishes in a nearby aquarium. After tea, we watched the koi in the indoor koi pond for a while, then you saw a bright red tractor kiddy ride and wanted to go play in it. Kow-Fu chipped in some coins so that you could ride in it and that, Baby Skyler, was your very first kiddy ride! What a thrill it was for you! :)

Keep learning and exploring, Little One!

Papa and Mama love you! :)