Creepy...

...but not in a weird way. T is showing signs of crawling. He'll lift his butt real high, creep backwards and sideways and round in circles except forward. He is also beginning to 'hump' when he's on all fours. Can't believe tt my little one is turning six months in 2 days!

My little monkey

He gets very crazy in the afternoons before his naptime.

I'm not dead....

....just really really really spent. I haven't had a live-in nanny for close to 2 months now, so it's been non-stop night shifts, early morning wakes and on top of that i'm still expressing once at 3am.


For the sake of sanity (and our marriage) we've decided to convert back to a full-time-live-in nanny. Finding good help is not an easy process. I've interviewed close to 15 nannies in the last 1 week. I've been through 1 who quit on me after 3 hours (am i that bad?), and I finally found one today who is acceptable, SO FAR.


Despite my complaints and the so called "hardship" we've been going through, i'm grateful for quite a number of things.

1. I've gained more confidence in caring for T. The last nanny commented that I wasn't able to care for T on my own because whenever she went on leave something would happen to T (like he'll get a rash, or a red butt). I felt very angry that she dared to spew such nonsense, I knew she was trying to hurt me because our relationship had turned sour towards the end. But at the back of my mind, i knew I had relied on her so much that i never had the confidence to take a stand and do things my way.
2. Our mother-child bond is definitely stronger today than it was 2 months ago. I love our bedtime routine so much. I read him the same Thomas and Friends storybook every night, say a prayer, look into his eyes and hold his tiny hands before putting him to sleep on his tummy. He can now sleep without patting or holding or rocking, he just needs to hear my voice and know that i am there.
3. Routine routine routine. I am a believer of routine. T has never been more alert, happy and well-rested. On the contrary, me following T's routine strictly has allowed me more flexibility with my own time because i am not a slave to his unpredictability. I know when he sleeps and wakes so i plan my activities around it. I'm lucky that i discovered T needed a routine quite early so training him was quite easy.
4. Family time. It's so easy to become lazy when the nanny is around. Just leave T at home while we go out and spend "adult" time. But without the nanny, we're forced to bring T wherever we go, and it's so surprisingly enjoyable! I do feel like we're spending quality time as a family and it brings us so much joy and satisfaction when we see how happy T is.

All in all, I'm just really grateful for the way things are.

Sophie

Nom nom nom...

Think inside the box

Fun and safe. Just throw in some balls.

Daily outfit

Isn't he cute... My little doll.

5.5 months

4th to 5th month is supposedly the most exciting period for a baby. There's an overall increase in alertness and a greater awareness of their own bodily functions. Whilst there is tremendous progression during the day, sleeptime suffers from an equal regression- a baby who normally sleeps through the night will now tend to get up in the wee hours to "practice" his newly acquired skills. You must think "wow, how cute is that!". In reality, not so cute. I've been waking up to roll T back into position, i was on the verge of duct taping him to his bed so i could have a bit more sleep.

Having said all that, we're very proud of T's recent developments. Even the part-time Ayi said that he "grew-up" after not seeing him over the weekend!

He recognises mommy and daddy! Today he reached out to me for the first time. Mountain Man and I have been taking turns to reach out to him so he's been ding-donging between us the whole day. hehe.

Who needs stacking blocks when cheap paper cups can achieve the same! T had fun squishing and chewing and destroying the paper cup pyramids i built.

He managed to find a cable taped behind the poster.

" I solemnly swear I am up to no good"

He also started his first taste of real food!! I let him try chewing on some steamed carrot sticks the other day, but it was rather uneventful because the sticks were very slippery so they fell on the floor in a matter of minutes. He couldn't bite off anything because i didn't dare to make the sticks too soft in case he chokes!

The steamed brocoli "trees" were abit more interesting. He happily gnawed on the branches and leaves in this video.

"look ma! I made a dent!"

He obviously didn't have enough so he moved on to his bib after that. hehe.

Can't wait for the actual 6th month mark. I am so ready to start him on solids!