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December 31, 2007

Last Milestones of 2007

It's altogether fitting that for my last blog of this year I give a report on two activities that I just recently accomplished: (1) purposefully grasping objects and (2) rolling over without assistance. I've only done the latter once, and it was while I wasn't a happy girl, but when Mommy saw me roll from my back to my stomach, she yelled out to Daddy, and he spilled tea on himself rushing in to see if I could repeat it. As far as grasping objects, I have fun with my aquarium mobile and grabbing the large center ball consistently. OK, that's it for now, no doubt there are many more milestones to cross next year. Happy New Year, and see you in 2008!


“Yes, I am the master of my hands. Now, touch the ball and move it around!”

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December 30, 2007

Family's Out Sick

Of course, we should expect that occasionally nothing ever goes as planned. Despite best-laid plans, my three cousins all got sick with some upper respiratory symptoms, along with their dad. Mommy also got quite ill, with several days of fever to 102 F, hacking cough to the point of vomiting, and shaking chills. When Daddy examined her, she had reddened, inflamed tonsils with pus present, which prompted a diagnosis of bacterial pharyngitis, likely Strep Group A. This required a course of antibiotics. Of course, everyone is concerned about me and no one gets near me without washing their hands. Even Mommy wears a mask when she breastfeeds. I know this isn't fun, getting sick stresses everyone, but it is a part of life. To add insult to injury, our refrigerator broke down and won't be repaired until after the new year. Fortunately, not all is lost: Aunt Lisa's family was able to enjoy SeaWorld, and we hope they will be able to feel well enough to handle Disney.


Cousin Ryan, possibly our next doctor in the family? We could use his services now!

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December 25, 2007

A DH Christmas Celebration

“DH,” in case you're wondering, stands for DeWitt-Hsu. Uncle Steve's folks, Ken and Joan, came by to enjoy Christmas with us. They live in a 5th wheel, meaning they permanently travel around the country, staying in their trailer at various campgrounds. That sounds like a real fun adventure! Currently they stay at a camp in Groveland, about 40 minutes east of here. Joan cooked a wonderful Christmas dinner for us and of course, we all enjoyed opening our gifts. I must say, my first Christmas was quite remarkable, which I will be sure to appreciate more as I get older. Merry Christmas, everyone!




Top: Held by Nai-nai, I'm listening to the conversations of the DH families right before we open our gifts. L to R, Nai-nai, me, Ryan, Uncle Ken, Jason, Aunt Joan, Shawn, and Uncle Steve. Bottom: Aunt Lisa helps with boys' gifts while Nai-nai helps with opening mine.
 

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December 24, 2007

Yikes! My Cousins are Here!

Today I met my cousins, Shawn, Jason, and Ryan, for the very first time. You can read about them, aged 6, 4, and 2 respectively by clicking the About tab above. They are, well, just what you'd expect for boys those ages. It took them two days to drive here from Maryland and they were ready to release pent up energy. And soon after arriving that they wanted to touch and hold me. Just be careful, please!  Despite all the running around and noisiness, it was fun to meet my cousins, my Aunt Lisa & Uncle Steve, and see Nai-nai again. Later that evening we had a Christmas eve dinner her with Yi-Por, Uncle Ed, Great-uncle Philip, and Aunt Aileen! All that excitement probably explained why I did not sleep too well that evening!




Top: Uh, hi Ryan, and Shawn! So glad to...be held by you both! Bottom: Ryan enjoys holding me, but Nai-nai wasn't about to let him carry me by himself despite his pleas.

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December 22, 2007

Christmas is Almost Here

My first Christmas is just around the corner and hectic it is. We're getting ready for Aunt Lisa's family and Nai-nai to arrive from Maryland on Christmas Eve, so there's a lot of house cleaning to do, last-minute gift shopping, and cooking to do. In addition, Mommy & Daddy are just getting over their upper respiratory infection that they attributed to me as the source (oops, sorry about that). Despite all the hubbub, we're able to visit Yi-por's home for a nice laksa (type of nooodle soup popular in Malaysia and Singapore) dinner and to be entertained. I'm finding out that it's much more fun to laugh and smile than to cry, which is why I wanted you to see this picture.


Yi-por and Daddy are making silly faces and noises at me. I think that's funny! Photo courtesy of Yi-por.

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December 15, 2007

I Think I'm Sleeping . . . Through the Night!

Yes, it's true. For the most part I am now sleeping through the night. I'm not talking 10 hours straight, of course, but Daddy, and especially Mommy, are happy with 5-6 hours. I usually get tired about 8pm, go to sleep, and feed again at midnight. Then it's pretty quiet until between 5 and 6am and I start getting restless and hungry.

The photo below reveals a bit about my sleeping habits. It's a bit blurry because this is actually a time-exposed photo taken at midnight, with only the bathroom night light to provide some light for the camera. First, I'm now sleeping in a larger Graco mobile bassinet - I'm almost 12 pounds and 24 inches now and outgrew my first bassinet.  Second, notice my arms. I LOVE sleeping with my arms upstretched over my body. Daddy does that a lot, too. Wonder if it's genetic? Third, no hands visible! It's a bad habit, but I scratch my face a lot, especially when I get tired, without realizing how damaging it can be to my face. It's occasionally so bad that I start bleeding, hence Momm'ys generous use of mittens and built-in long-sleeve hand protectors for me. So, the good news is that I can sleep several hours uninterrupted. Now, if I can only sleep without damaging my skin!


Taken just past midnight, I'm in dreamland. Read the text to learn more about this photo and my sleeping habits. Taken with Nikon D40, 24mm, F/4, 3 sec, at ISO1600.

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December 12, 2007

My Day with Santa

Baldwin Park is just a great place to live. This past weekend, our community held a Christmas festival, complete with Santa, food, and even a parade! Not wanting to miss out on all the fun, we joined in the festivities with a few friends. My highlight was meeting Santa himself. He didn't ask me what I wanted for Christmas, but that's OK. I have pretty much everything I want for this year: a loving family, plenty of milk, clean diapers, and lots of attention! However, my wish list will probably grow as the years progress.







From top: Enjoying a private audience with Santa himself; with Toy Soldier and Frosty the Snowman; Santa on the City of Orlando fire truck in the grand finale of our neighborhood parade. Hmmm, I wonder where his reindeer are?

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December 11, 2007

Holiday Photo Outtakes

Getting the right shot can be enormously difficult with me - at least that's what my folks think.  They had us pose for what seemed a hundred shots, and yet wanted to show you only the best shot.

I don't agree. My feeling is just be yourself. Adults are just so superficial. You have to smile even though you don't feel like it. I say, act how you feel, go with what moves you. And, every photo is the best shot!



Above: "Outtakes" as defined by my folks, and left, what they call a "best shot." I say all of these are best shots!