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I was actually quite excited with the fact that Ryan is growing up and becoming more travel-friendly. I thought we can then make better use of his passport and bring him to see new places. But with the influenza A H1N1 now being a pandemic, it’s pretty much hampered my hopes of going for holidays with Ryan. I simply dare not go anywhere for the rest of the year. You just don’t know who’s on board the plane and whether the country you are in is truly safe.
I don’t even dare to go for local destinations, in case those places are also frequented by tourists. So it looks like a quiet year with no where to go. At least until this whole flu threat has died down. I wonder when it will start to be well curbed from spreading though. I heard on the news yesterday that the first vaccination will only be available by middle of next year. That’s still a year away and it’s pretty far off, don’t you think?
It’s too bad that here in Malaysia we’re not into recreational vehicles (RV) like caravans. Otherwise it might be doable to do some kind of simple vacations in them. I think those are quite good to have around because you have most of the comforts of “home” in there and you don’t need to spend too much money paying for accommodation wherever you end up as your holiday destination for the family. Some of these caravans are really nice and cosy, like the one pictured below.
Why doesn’t anyone introduce these vehicles here, huh? If they do come to our shores, I feel that the demand for them would be quite incredible. Not only will the sellers make money selling them, even banks that offer rv finance will be happy! I will be one of the first to convince my friends that these are great family assets to have! 
Anyway, since we’re far away from having any caravan and H1N1 vaccination in sight, I think I shall start putting away my thoughts for holidays and start focusing and looking forward to something else. Haven’t a clue what it is just yet…
Ryan has his fair share of falls and cuts every now and then for being clumsy or running too fast and banging into furniture. So he’s got some bruises and scratches to show for them. But I’ve never really seen him bleed. At the most, he comes home with some scratches on the skin from his little mishaps.
But today I saw him bleed with my very own eyes for the first time, and it made me feel so sorry for him. This morning he had to go for a blood test and the nurse pricked his little finger. I saw the blood drip from his finger and when the nurse was trying to collect the blood into a test tube, he refused and cried because he thought he was going to be pricked again.
It made me ache to see him in agony over that blood test. He didn’t cry when he was pricked, only after. It took a few minutes for the nurse to get enough blood sample from his bleeding finger and half the time he was crying and begging to be brought out of the room. Although he very much wanted to escape from that room, he was sitting very still on my lap and didn’t physically struggle. He just cried and asked to be taken out of there repeatedly until we managed to calm and persuade him that he wasn’t going to be hurt anymore.
It was indeed a very painful experience for me to see him go through that blood test. It was made even more torturing because he was behaving so well through it all, not even fussing a bit. My poor little boy. I hope he will forget about this experience quickly although I doubt that he will. He tends to remember things pretty well. It’s going to be a huge challenge to visit a doctor the next time, even when it’s for a well-visit.
It’s been a tiring day for me. You know, having a worrisome heart takes a toll on you in every way. I’m going to need a nap right now so that I can better care for Ryan later in the day.
by Penny on June 30, 2009
Although Ryan is coming to 2 years old very soon, he’s still waking up in the middle of the night for milk feeds. He does it at least once, sometimes twice a night. So 2 nights ago when he stirred and mumbled for milk, I thought I’d try to get him to stop his midnight feeds by telling him that I’ll get his milk in the morning.
After some persuasion, he agreed but he insisted on water. He drank up till the last drop of the full bottle of water I gave him and went back to sleep. But not without talking funny to me before he dozed off. He would say the oddest of things in the wee hours of the morning and even asks to see his Bob The Builder toy, or grandma or some uncle.
It’s actually quite amusing to be half asleep and listening to him ramble on like that. Fortunately he doesn’t go on for long and after a minute or two of funny talk he will doze off to sleep again. And then I too doze back to sleep, but with a smile on my face.
by Penny on June 29, 2009
Is the name BabyCenter or the logo above a familiar one to you?
When I was just a couple of weeks pregnant with Ryan, a friend recommended me to this great resource at BabyCenter from the UK. I visited, immediately subscribed to it and it’s been a journey I’ve enjoyed ever since. When I was expecting, every week BabyCenter would send me an update of what I can expect during that week’s pregnancy. It described the growth of the little foetus in me and also what I can expect to be experiencing.
The website itself has a lot of useful articles in all matters related to pregnancy. It does not stop there. Now, with Ryan coming to almost 2 years of age, I’m still getting newsletters from BabyCenter to tell me of toddler’s developments and tips on various parenting issues. Other than all the interesting and informative articles, you can also share your experiences with other mothers and learn from each other.
I’ve been dependent on these little updates and I find them a welcoming break for me whenever I receive the updates via email. Especially during a boring afternoon of work, seeing that BabyCenter email in my inbox perks me up.
It wasn’t until recently that I realised we now have this BabyCenter in Malaysia! I have no idea when it came to our shores but am equally happy that they are here. The content is adapted to be closer to home and our culture.
Continue reading →
by Penny on June 29, 2009
I’ve not exercised for years. I’m a plain lazy butt when it comes to doing any workouts at all. But you know, having Ryan has made me a natural exerciser from the moment he learnt how to crawl. There was no stopping from that moment on and now that he’s walking and running so steadily on his feet, I feel like my ‘exercises’ have been pushed up a few hundred notches in intensity!
Just this weekend alone he provided us with lots of exercises in chasing after him, both at home and outdoors. The little guy is really hyper and we can’t seem to agree more with parents who pre-warned us that the Enfa formula tends to make kids really active.
But you know what, I don’t regret it one bit. Whatever it is that’s making him so active, I would rather it this way and will not have it any other way even if I’m given a chance to start over and do things differently.
So even when I feel like I’m perpetually running on treadmills, I will happily do so. It’s just that at the end of the day, I need some good massages to ease some of those sore and achy lazy muscles…
by Penny on June 26, 2009
It’s always been a problem bringing Ryan for a haircut. He would protest and create such a scene that we ended up walking out of the hair salon in embarrassment. So the babysitter helps us out by bringing him instead. He still creates quite a bit of a scene and fusses about during the haircut, but at least he’s able to get his hair trimmed.
He used to have quite long hair that falls nicely around his head, giving him a pretty girlish look. Then it got so long and so thick that everyone around him felt hot on his behalf! So when the babysitter brought him to the salon, they had it cut quite short and since then he sported a crew cut.
Recently even his crew cut looked quite messy since it got long and thick again so off he went for another haircut. We actually didn’t know he was brought in for a haircut until we went to pick him up that night.
I got such a shock to see that he was almost bald! Like a little Shaolin monk!! I gasped but did not want to show him as I think he didn’t like his own haircut too. He’s a pretty vain boy who likes looking into the mirror and smiling sheepishly at himself. That night, when his daddy brought him in front of the mirror, he didn’t want to look into it. When we asked him if he thought his haircut was a handsome one, he said “No good”.
But everyday and whenever I can, I will reassure him that he looks just as handsome. He is anyway, in my eyes. Even if he ends up with not a strand of hair on his head, he will remain the most handsome person in the world to me.
It’s now a blessing that his hair grows out quite fast. So we’ll wait until it has grown some, then try to get him to the salon to get a quick fix as some parts have been unevenly shaved. But I think that will be an uphill task, one that is going to be more difficult than all the haircut experiences combined because I think he now hates getting a haircut more than ever!
Do you have a toddler who refuses haircuts? If so, how do you ease him or her into doing it? We’re going to need a lot of help! So any advise will be truly appreciated.
