Josiah at 5 weeks old

Josiah is in some ways so similar to Janine it is simply amazing! Not only did he look like Janine when he was fresh out of the womb, he is also similar in terms of being a pukey baby (oops!) and crying at little things. One difference though - he has grown to be a much easier to settle baby now. Praise God for that! He used to cry at night due to wind in his tummy (we think), but after 2 or 3 nights home from hospital, he has settled in really well and sleeps most of the time. 

As we will not have the luxury of having so many pairs of hands round the house to carry Josiah all the time, I decided to sleep-train him a little bit. Basically I try not to pick him up the moment he cries, and amazingly he has been responding really well! He is settling himself to sleep really well by being put on his tummy to sleep. In fact, for the past 2 nights, I decided to put him on his tummy to bed (since he has a really strong neck) and he has slept through 4hr and 5hr periods without a feed! Previously, he used to wake up every 2-3 hourly at night for feeds. I am really glad he's sleeping longer stretches at night!

I must say though, our $60 investment in a Philips portable CD player for our room is a worthwhile investment! Josiah responds very well to music and sleeps well when there's music on. I'm so glad we bought the CD player :) 

At 3 weeks old, Josiah could recognize me! I was so happy to realise that! When he's crying while others are carrying him, all I have to do is to carry him and he'll quieten immediately :) Also, there was once I left him on the bed and he was crying. And I went over to him and talked to him, and immediately he quietened down. I did not even have to touch or carry him and he quietened at the sound of my voice! Yay!

One thing though, we have barely managed to take any pictures of Josiah smiling. I know that our 2 girls smiled much earlier than Josiah. But still, Josiah's as cute as ever! 

It's our third child, but to me, Josiah is still as adorable and endearing as our first. I guess every child is just so precious and the maternal instincts just somehow kick in when you see how cute they are!! I love newborns because they're so dependent on us, and just so adorable! 

Confinement Fun!

Since this is my very last confinement period, I decided to make the best out of it and not complain about what I'm supposed to do (or what I'm not supposed to do)! 3 weeks into my confinement period, and I must admit that I am kind of enjoying it! Well who wouldn't? - Considering the fact that:

1) I don't have to do any housework or cooking (which is a luxury here in Sydney where we have gotten used to doing everything on our own without any help).

2) I get to eat delicious confinement food like vinegar pig trotters, red rice wine mee sua, XO chicken soup, etc etc. YUMMY!

3) I get to enjoy our delightful little Josiah and my 2 girls without being bogged down by household chores.

4) The weather is absolutely beautiful because it's now spring season and unlike Singapore, I don't perspire as much here. I think that makes a whole load of difference because you feel happier when there's nicer weather!

The other day, Lina came over to our house for a visit and gave Josiah 3 new pieces of clothing - 2 bodysuits and 1 long-sleeved shirt. Janelle and Janine each took 1 bodysuit and disappeared very quietly into the living room. When we found them, Janelle had already dressed her Winnie the Pooh bear in the bodysuit and Janine was in the process of dressing her Pooh bear with the other bodysuit! It was hilarious! And the 2 girls were so proud of their 'achievements' and proceeded to push their 'babies' round the house in the toy-pram and trolley! 

Josiah has arrived!

Introducing the latest addition to our family - Josiah Lee Yi De. He was born at almost full-term (39 weeks and 5 days old) and is the biggest of my 3 babies!

Vital Statistics

Birth Date: 09/09/10, 10:40am

Weight: 3.72kg

Length: 51cm

Head Circumference: 35cm

Praise God for a smooth pregnancy and delivery here in Sydney! And the best part is, everything is free of charge - we did not have to pay a single cent (other than for the additional ultrasound scans that we requested for) even though I went for an elective caesarean. It was truly a joy to see Josiah coming out of the womb rosy and chubby. The midwife said he has "thunder thighs" for a newborn! He has a really loud and hearty cry and sends our hearts melting with his cute little expressions and antics. We may be biased, but we think he's the most beautiful baby boy ever! 

As for me, I am feeling the effects of having a 3rd caesarean in less than 5 years (4 years 8 months to be exact). The recovery seems to be taking longer this time round and more painful. Thankfully our parents are all around to help out with the cooking, household chores and handling the kids, if not I can't imagine how we would survive!

Janelle and Janine have been absolutely adoring sisters to their little baby brother. Janelle loves to carry di-di and cuddle him, and she always coos "he's so cute!!". Janine loves to kiss and touch di-di, though we are a bit wary because she tends to forget how strong she is in comparison to a little newborn! We thank God for our family and for this new bundle of joy 

"For you created my inmost being; 

       you knit me together in my mother's womb.

 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; 

       your works are wonderful, 

       I know that full well."

- Psalm 139:13-14 -

The Long and the Short of It

http://www.ethankong.blogspot.com/

Flower Girls

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the very first time, Janelle and Janine were flower girls at a friend's wedding today! We felt so privileged to be part of this wedding procession and for our girls to be asked to be flower girls. The night before the wedding, we prayed really hard that our girls would really walk down the aisle, knowing how young children can get frightened on the actual wedding day when they see the crowd. Thank God (and thanks to gummy-sweet lollies) our girls did a fabulous job and made their way down the aisle. Doesn't matter that they forgot to throw the flower petals as they walked down - they were still applauded for their excellent performance!

I felt so proud of my 2 beautiful girls today, and call me biased, but I think they looked most gorgeous in their matching new dresses and shoes that I bought for them! I really loved their dresses and even if they didn't manage to walk down the aisle, at least they looked good enough in their outfits. Haha :)

We were so blessed to have the girls' childcare teachers (left to right: Maria, her daughter Meena, and Jasmyn) come and give their support too! The teachers wanted to come just to watch our girls walk down the aisle because they played a very important role in helping to prepare and train our girls to be flower girls! While at childcare, they did countless 'rehearsals', especially with Janine. And today, when our girls actually walked down the aisle, childcare teacher Maria was moved to tears and as she was wiping the tears off her face, she asked me "How can you not cry??" because she herself was so moved and proud of our girls! Well, I was feeling more of relief at that point in time because we didn't know whether our girls would eventually walk down the aisle when the big church doors open on them! So I was feeling more of "phew!!" rather than "oh, so touching!!". Later on though, when the worship began, an overwhelming sense of pride as a mother of 2 beautiful flower girls swept in!

The first worship song sung at the wedding was "Light of the World" which incidentally was also one of the worship songs we chose to sing at our own wedding. It felt like just not too long ago that we were at our own wedding singing that song, and to think that now - 6 years later - we are at another wedding singing that same song, the difference being that it is not us, but our 2 daughters, who are part of the wedding procession! Strange as it may sound, this experience gave me a little glimpse into how it would be like in future when it is my own daughter's turn to be the bride. I think it will just be simply too emotionally overwhelming!

Praise and thank God for this honour and privilege to be part of a wedding held here in Sydney. We have been to countless weddings in Singapore, but to be attending our second wedding here in Sydney - with our girls as first-time flower girls - is indeed such a privilege! We wish Douglass and Lina (the bridal couple) God's richest blessings upon their marriage!

The worldview of a 4-year-old...

Incident #1

We were traveling home in the car late one night and when we thought the girls were already falling sleep, when Janelle excitedly exclaimed, "Hey! The moon is following us home!!". Both Royston and myself smiled to each other, amused at how a child sees things differently from adults.

 

Janelle then went on to say, "How come the moon is following us home? But the moon can't sleep in our house. It can only fly in the sky, like a bird."

 

 

Incident #2

I was going to a friend's baby shower one day (baby shower is a celebration that takes place before the arrival of a baby where the mother-to-be and baby are showered with gifts and blessings), and was just informing Janelle that "mummy is going to attend a baby shower". She looked at me with big curious eyes and asked "Are you going to put the baby in the water???"

Janelle is 4!

Janelle turns 4 today! Can't believe my little baby has grown up to be a big 4-year-old now! It does sound ridiculous but it just felt like moments ago that she was being cradled in my arms as a little baby, and now she's turned 4.

 

We had a little outdoor BBQ party for her on Saturday and she absolutely loved it! Plus, the cake was simply beautiful - made by her best school friend's mother who's a genius at making cakes. And she had a pretty fairy dress bought by Louise as a birthday present, which she proudly wore for her fairy princess party.

 

We thank God for this little girl who has grown up to be a very sensible and charming girl. She absolutely dotes on her little sister Janine and when told that daddy was going to take her out today for something special just to celebrate her birthday, she asked how come Janine wasn't coming along! And she added that she would like Janine to come too because "Janine is so silly and funny" (quoted by Janelle). Still, I shall leave Royston to spend some special one-to-one moments with Janelle since it's her birthday.

 

Janelle is now 4, able to write, loves drawing, and has a tendency to be extremely organized, systematic and meticulous. I wonder who she inherited this trait from? We are thankful for her being just the way she is - uniquely and wonderfully made!

 

Happy 4th Birthday Janelle :)