And so, 9 months

Dearest Baby J,
Two weeks ago, while everyone was in an uproar about the US elections, you quietly turned 9 months. I keep saying this, but I'll say it again, I cannot believe how fast time has flown, and that you will no longer be a baby in 3 months time. How quickly you've grown, while we've been busy trying to take care of all of you. How beautifully you've grown, into a smiley little ray of sunshine in our home.

The past month has seen you becoming a whole lot more clingy. You only want Mama at certain times of the day, and you will scream and wail if anyone else carries you. You are also very attached to Papa and your brothers, and you enjoy just crawling around while your brothers play near you. Nothing makes you happier than to be on the floor, meddling with your brothers' trucks, and trying to press the pedals on the piano. You love sitting in when your brother practices his cello, and he likes playing "Twinkle Twinkle" for you to hear.

You've started babbling a whole lot more, and will demand for "mum mum" when you are hungry. And boy do you love your food! You enjoy your porridge, and you love tofu and pumpkin and baby biscuits (which your brothers are always trying to steal from you). You let out an occasional "Papa" (much to Papa's delight), but you certainly know your way to Mama's heart, because you are the first kid in the family to call "Mama" before "Papa". All your brothers did the "Papapapa" thing first, but you, it's always Mama.

You've been pulling up to stand, and are starting to cruise a little. You are one really wriggly worm, and diaper changes are a huge challenge because you are the fastest escapee of the family! You'd think we'd be so accustomed to these milestones since you are the fourth kid, but I think I'll never tire of seeing all of you grow and hit your milestones.

Speaking of milestones, your teeth were pretty slow in coming, and about one month ago you still only had four little teeth. Then all of a sudden, you started sprouting 5 teeth at one shot! You've been biting everyone, and chewing everything, and you're also at the clawing stage, so my arms bear the brunt of your little nails and teeth.

It's been  fun dressing you up in all those little dresses, and you've been blessed with so many pretty hand-me-downs that we've hardly had to buy any clothes for you. You are a bead addict, and love chewing on silicone bead necklaces. I've given up trying to put hairbands on you, since I've never figured out how to wear them properly so that you don't look like a lion, and you're always trying to pull them off.

Seeing you grow each day has been such a blessing. Please slow down, little girl, and we love you so!

Love,
Your Mama and Papa.

Thankful Tuesday: A question to ponder

Good morning! I know it's not Tuesday yet, but I figured it was time to share a blessing that has been on our minds for the past few months. To give you a clue, here's a Math question for you (it has to do with birthdays, but no, there are no Cheryl's in it, and it is a lot easier to solve):

Got the answer yet? 

It's the reason why I've been rather quiet on the blog and FB for the past two months, the reason why I've been finding it hard to find time to reply comments/messages/emails, the reason why I've not been doing much crafting or interesting projects with the kids. I think this round has been the hardest one of all, probably due to me being older, as well as the tiredness of having to care for three little boys. The nausea was a lot worse this round, and each day I was either feeling sick or hungry, or sick again. The exhaustion meant I was sleeping with the kids at nine plus, and yet I had difficulty crawling out of bed before the kids woke up. I walked around in a daze most days, and I had to ask hubby to buy dinner many times, as I just didn't feel up to cooking and could only summon enough energy to cook the toddler's meals. I had dizzy spells and headaches, and homeschool slowed to a crawl, as I only could manage to sit with the oldest as he read to me and practiced his math. The laundry piled up like crazy, and the boys even got used to heading to the dryer to rummage for clothes since I couldn't keep up with the folding.  

It was the toughest when the kids fell sick. All I could do was to focus on getting everyone alive through each day, never mind that the house was a terrible mess, or that my to-do list was getting longer and yet nothing was getting done.

But now, at almost 16 weeks, I must say things are looking up. The older two and I have caught the mycoplasma bug from Baby J, but my energy levels seem to be higher, so I'm back to cooking dinner (Junior J was starting to complain about why we kept eating the same things over and over again!). I'm still struggling with keeping on top of the chores and sorting out our exemption forms, but I'm so glad the nausea seems to be slowly going away. 

There is so much to be thankful for: The hubby who chipped in more during this period when I couldn't cope, and made honey lemon drinks for me everyday so that my dinner wouldn't end up in the toilet. The boys, who tried to help out at home with the chores and cleaning up. Our part-time cleaner, who quietly helped to tidy up the huge messes. My parents, who helped to babysit the kids on certain days, especially when I was sick and couldn't get out of bed. Our friends, who kept us in prayer, and helped in the little ways they could. 

And of course, we are so thankful for this little one, whom we'll be seeing in early Feb next year: 

Many have asked us if we hope for a girl. I guess a girl would be nice, but a little boy would be welcome too, since we believe all children are blessings from God. And no, we didn't have #4 because we were trying for a girl, we've always wanted four kids!

PS: One more thing to be thankful for: the policy changes announced yesterday during the National Day Rally. I'm so glad for the increased paternity leave!




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