CNY - Happy Niu Year 2009

Bye bye Mr Rat, welcome Mr Ox. Here's sophie wishing everyone Gong Xi Gong Xi :)

How fast another year goes by - last year, I remembered having to refrain from eating all the salmon in the yee sang cos I was carrying baby bean. This year, I can only complain that there's just not enough salmon in the yee sang :D

We started off the CNY celebrations in Penang - everyone was really excited to finally meet bean..and we were happy bean got to meet all her daddy's relatives especially her Ah Chor (Jin's grand ma who's 93 this year). Ah Chor's memory is still very good and she kept asking when Sophie would be visiting.

Sophie and Ah Chor - getting to know you....

With 4th grand uncle and auntie - yes yes, gimme the angpows already

With 1st and 3rd grand auntie - "ke poh" look

In KL - we did the usual rounds.

Lo Hei @ Ku Cha's house

Sophie and her Yee Poh having a fun moment

Shaun's all ready to imitate Ian's actions

Newest addition : Baby Katelin Hastie

Shopping at The Curve

With aunty mun and aunty angie

Getting to know Kylie ger , Lin's niece

Yearly new year gathering with good friends - this year, we doubled the baby population thanks to chien wei and soo ching's twins :) Check out how super chubs Chloe is - and she's 3 months younger than Soph!

We had quite a feast and SC made a yummilicious Banofee Pie - must be gezillion cals but worth every fat cell ;)

Managed to squeeze in a quick hello with LB and we met Isabel - she is such a smiley baby :)

It's nice to be back and catch up with everyone again..until the next year, May the year of the OX bring happiness abundance and good health to all :)

Baby bean and her daddy waiting in the airport for flight from Penang to KL (she looks so grown up here..sigh...)

Sophie with her ah ma and ah kong

With Ah Kong and Ah Ma in front of Ah Chor's lovely home in Penang

I have to admit that Jin's parents (esp his mom) really dotes on Sophie..they helped to babysit her for 3 days last week and although there were some initial stranger anxiety issues, soph warmed up quickly and knew she had them at her back and call :P

Her "Ah Ma" loves carrying her..so much so that I have to lay down strict ground rules that she can only be carried if she eeks and wants to sleep..alamak, cos I knew it would be me who will kena after the grandparents leave :P

Jin's dad tries to play with Sophie but somehow, I think he forgets she's a baby..he always insists that she plays according to his way and that truly frustrates Sophie and she ends up in tears..I call it a subtle form of "bullying"..hmmph!

Ah Kong insisting Sophie plays his wayyy

Having a rest after walking Jacob Ballas children's garden at BG

I am weak :p

We are in KL this week for CNY and my mom's doggie sitting crazy Bubbles the shih tzu. It's a rainy night and I am home alone with the sleeping bean - jin's gone bk to spore for work and mom's out hving CNY dinner at aunty grace's place (wished I was invited :p )

Anyway, I decided to watch some episodes of House Season 5 and while waiting for it to load, I happily munched on some CNY cookies - excellent walnut ones from Jin's Ah Yee @ ipoh. Then suddenly Bubbles appears in front of me and stares intently - doggy language : erm, pls share!

I ignore..she continues to stare..I say : No. She : Woof. I say: Go away, She : grr..woof

At the point, I am thinking - whoa, I am having a conversation with a dog?

This NO , Woof thing went on for several more seconds..in the end, I went.."oh OK..just one then.."

Then I realised, I give in so easily :p..and sophie knows this - she knows if she eeks eeks, I will say no, I am not carrying you..and she eeks eeks louder, and I pick her up..

suckerrr :P

Jin and Sophie having a playful moment - crazy Bubbles likes Sophie

Our 6th months old baby bean

Yay! Sophie's officially half a year old. Her recent milestones :

- being able to pass her pacifier from from hand to the other and promptly stuffing it into her mouth

- pushing away our hands when she does not want them near her face (happens mostly when she's upset)

She's still learning to sit ..she loves sitting but needs to be supported. And somehow now, I feel that she is quite sticky to me..ie, always looking around the room for me and she smiles when she sees me ..my little sweetie bean :)

Food wise, she's been getting her brown rice cereal which she likes. Peas on the other hand, she hates..she does that "yuck" look on her face - very cute :D

We are in US now with Lynda and family - sophie has not been sleeping well and she has been crying a lot..we think it might be the cold weather and the fact that I felt a little tooth sprouting from the bottom gum .,,poor baby..she also caught a nasty cold and a fever developed..I felt quite helpless watching her suffer..we were kept up in the nights trying to pacify a wailing baby who only fell asleep being carried upright, exhausted from the crying and being unwell.

Her cold is slowly going...I just hope that she's 100% for the rest of the trip..my arms are aching from carrying her..she must be at least 8 over kgs now!

Our winter bean - pictured above.