Video: Looking Over the Couch

We got our new videocamera this week and were excited to start shooting all kinds of funny videos of little T - in the bath, on the playmat, drooling over mommy's shoulder, etc. Here is one of our favorites clips so far... We're realizing that T is such a curious little boy...sometimes all he wants to do is just stare at the world around him.

Tristin's first date

These days, it seems most women around me are pregnant or giving birth. A, a friend who hails from Singapore (where C and I used to live) is one of them and just about a month ago, gave birth to a little baby girl (H). Given that she lived closeby and H is only a few weeks younger than Tristin, we decided to get together and do a little playdate for the little ones (or more for some adult entertainment).

What started off as an innocent playdate turned out to be a real date between the two little babies. Or so we'd like to dramatize through the pictures we took. To be quite honest, both hardly noticed each other, let alone cared (hhmmm, or did they?) but the pictures tell a different story (you can be the judge of what *really* happened).

I also managed to take a short videoclip of H and T together and although both pretended like they weren't interested each other, watch how T holds H hands not once, not twice but three times. Only 7 weeks old and Tristin is already quite the ladies' man!

T, take that!

What? No, you take that! *punch*

I can't believe you hit a girl. You take that! *punch*

Ouch, H, that huuurt! *slap*

That's it, T. No more nice babe. I'm going to beat you up!

Okay, okay, H. I was just kidding. Sorry about that. Give me another chance.

No. Get away from me. I can't believe you hit me.

Ack! H, I'm really sooo sorry. Please don't look away!

Ugh, H. I'm sooo sorry!! I didn't mean to. I feel soo bad!!

Video -- H and T holding hands

Happy turkey weekend!

C and I love thanksgiving weekend. Not only for the copious amounts of food you get to indulge in, or the opportunity to be thankful for all your loved ones but also because it marks the official beginning of the festive, holiday season. Holiday shopping. Christmas tree hunting and decorating. Holiday/Christmas card writing. The list goes on.

This thanksgiving was particularly special for so many reasons. First and foremost, we had the chance to celebrate with our little pumpkin and for that, we were endlessly grateful. Second, it was the first thanksgiving (in a very looong time) that we had the chance to celebrate this holiday in the US. Third, C and I had never cooked a turkey so this year, we had the chance to DIY (do it yourself) and all the wonderful sides that come with it. Lastly, after a crazy year of pregnancy, moving from Asia, changing jobs, etc., we were grateful to finally feel settled (or the most settled we've ever felt since we got married).

For Baby T, thanksgiving was a bit hectic. In our attempt to take advantage of the long weekend, we planned quite a few outside activities. Black Friday translated into the traditional shopping routine --and for this year, we chose Hillsdale Shopping Center. Efforts to relax on Saturday led us to Half Moon Bay for some lunch and sightseeing. Sunday brought us a visit to Target and a pho lunch at one of our favorite Vietnamese dives. Needless to say, T spent a significant amount of time tied to his carseat and exhausted, once home.

Oh, and in celebration of the upcoming holiday season, we used a good chunk of Saturday putting up and decorating our x-mas tree and getting some Christmas props for T (e.g., bib, santa hat). One thing I have noticed about C and I -- we usually love Christmas but I think having T in our life has made us even more excited about these celebrations. The chance to introduce him to Santa, start wonderful x-mas traditions, see/experience this holiday season through the eyes of our little dumpling -- what a treat!

Baby T sporting his x-mas bib and santa hat


Looking at mommy -- "why do you dress me like this?"

Drinking milk

Mommy fixing my hat

Quietly hanging out with grandma at the restaurant in Half Moon Bay

Do you wanna fight?

Participating in the lunch conversation

Half Moon Bay

Half Moon Bay II

Six, six, six (week 6)

These days, C. and I have started to notice some new developments in baby T. Whereas before, he was never able to hold a stare. These days, his favorite thing to do when drinking milk or playing is to stare intently at you. It's adorable. His brown bear eyes open up and he gazes at you as though you are the only person in the world that matters (and that's probably true since you are the one feeding him the milk).

He's also become a pro at flipping his head back and forth and does so a number of times during his naps. Just when you think you've laid him down facing one side, a few minutes later (and as though he doesn't want to be told on what side to rest on), he flips. And then he flips again. And again. He's also up and alert more frequently which means that mommy spends quite a bit of time playing with T. Playtime entails mommy putting him on his tummy until he cries and then putting him on his back so he can stare at the little items that dangle from his playmat. Playtime also entails mommy forcing T. to wear different funky clothes and make different poses so she can take cute pics of him (poor soul. you can blame it on the blog). And just in case you're thinking, gee, why is playtime only physical, mommy does try to read to baby T. We have one book given to us by Auntie E. (Goodnight Moon) which we've read over and over again (Shame on mommy -- she's been meaning to buy more books for T. but has not gotten around to it). A few more times and I could probably recite the book by heart.

Also, with playtime becoming a daily routine, I've come to realize that it is critical that I make sure he's up more during the day. Otherwise, when night falls, sleep for baby T. falls to the wayside and yours truly pays the price (it happened a few days ago and it wasn't fun).

Enjoy the photos!

"Hi again. I'm back on grandma's back"

"huh? what?"

"In my pooh hat"

" Staring intently at grandma in my swaddle"

Passed out after a feeding

Stretching during playtime (like my funky pajama dress? ha ha)

"Dear God, please take care of Ellie, my stuffed elephant"

Bath time!

This will be a short "photo" entry since we haven't taken many pictures of T. taking his bath but thought the task merited a separate entry. A separate entry, I say, because in my naive entre into parenthood, I have come to realize not only how important baby bathtime is but also how much of a task it is when handling an infant. Not sure if its C and my incompetence but bathtime at our household for baby T. includes at least 2 adults (and only so because we can't fit a third person in the bathroom) and takes about 45 minutes for a few reasons.

First, there are about four hundred layers of fat that Tristin now proudly sports which means that C. needs to manuever his way into the depths of T's folds which, I can attest, is not an easy task. It's amazing how much can get stuck in those inner fat folds and how much you can tell about a baby by what lies in those crevices. You know what he's eaten (milk in T's case), what he's worn, etc. It's like the hidden "fingerprint" -- an alternative way to truly identify your baby. I digress but I find it kind of cute that C. can't stand the sight of milk remnants in T's fat folds. It truly bothers him when he's feeding T. so much so that whenever he or someone else lifts one of the chin folds and C. catches sight of the fine white lining, he lets out a big "ughhhh!" (or "acccckkk!!). It has gotten to the point where it has become a mild obsession and he refuses to lift any of his chins until its bath time.

Second, because we need to cradle him and rotate him through different positions to ensure he is warm, the routine requires much delicate handling. Which means much time and effort is meticulously made on C and my part. While I'm holding him, C is washing his head/hair. While C is cleaning his fat folds, I'm holding him and splashing water to make sure he stays warm. You get the picture.

What surprises me over the many times we've bathed him is how little baby T. cries when he's bathing. Even after C. mistakenly splashes soap and water into his eyes, baby T. is calm. The entire time of being pushed and pulled, he quietly sits in his little bathtub, cradled in mommy's hands and observes daddy and mommy sweat. My conclusion is that it must resemble being in mommy's tummy and the liquid must bring good old memories of life in the womb -- the days of pure amniotic fluid bliss.

"Mommy I'm shy! Please don't take a picture of me naked!!"

Five weeks forever

"They grow so fast"

I don't know how many times C. and I have heard countless parents make this statement over and over again each time they take a peek at T. And although it has only been a little over five weeks since Tristin came into our lives, the statement strongly resonates with us. We're now done with month 1 and we can't help but think how quickly the time has flown and how much he has changed and grown (in the literal sense also!). It is amazing how in our own lives, 5 months could pass and in those 5 months, the only thing that could differ is C's haircut. Now, with baby T., 5 months, let alone 5 weeks, can mean the difference between so much -- people recognition and focus on objects, a series of smiles, more active alert time, a few layers of fat on every inch of his body, a significant reduction in sleep, an undescribable source of happiness, etc.

Needless to say, C. and I both wish we could freeze time and keep baby T. the way he is today. Stall the development so he doesn't need to grow up into a big boy. Make him stay five weeks forever!

Week 5 and now, week 6 have been good with baby T. We've started to take him out and play with him more often now that he's alert and awake for a few hours during the day. For the most part, he's been a really easy baby -- fussy only for diaper changes, hunger and gas in the tummy. Otherwise, he puts himself to sleep and is pretty good about doing so without the help from mommy, daddy or grandma. When he's awake and alert, he likes to quietly explore the world around him.

From baby T's perspective on what week 5 and 6 has been like--

• I like to sleep on my right cheek but my mommy, grandma and daddy keep wanting to put me on my left cheek (something about making sure my head is formed properly). Of course, I pay no attention to them as the minute they put me on my left cheek, I switch over (they are such pains!)


• I am eating 5-6 ounces per feeding. Mom likes to call me "chubs" but she doesn't know that a big boy needs a big feeding!


• I have so many rolls on my neck and triple, quadruple chins...I think for daddy, it is starting to get hard to clean me given that he has to lift multiple layers before he can get to the dried milk stains nestled in between the fat rolls


• I'm a pretty good pooper and farter. Oh, and an awesome pee-er. My favorite thing to do is pee on mommy and daddy when they are changing me (my revenge for changing my diaper when I don't want it!!). Sometimes, when they misbehave, I'll poop on them too!


• I usually sleep in two hour stretches (3 hours from feeding to feeding). Once in a while, I'll sleep for a 3-hour stretch and that really excites mom. Too bad I don't it too often (don't want to spoil her too much!)


• When I'm awake, I like to stare off into space. I like hanging out on my swing and looking out into the world, ponder about life..


• I love to stretch. I do it all the time (literally). When I eat. When I look around. Before I wake up. Right after I wake up. You get the point.
  

Hanging out on grandma's shoulder -- burp time



"I don't know why they keep putting me up here"

"Why does she keep pointing that device at me? Who is she?"

"Like my double, triple, I mean, quadruple chin?"

Baby T. inside of mommy

Getting a kiss from daddy

"Oops. You caught us!!"

Pictures of my hands and toes in mommy's tummy

"Me doing my big macho yawn *yaaawwwwnn*"

Getting ready for another car ride

"Me and my mohawk"

"Not sure why mommy keeps taking pictures of my hands *yawn*"

Happy b-day Mateo!

One of the nicest things about moving back to the US and settling in the Bay area is re-connecting with old friends. Paty Ugarte is probably one of the oldest friends I have on this side of the US (or perhaps the oldest friendship I have still current in my life). Paty and I went to middle school in Venezuela together and we were good friends from 6th grade until about 9th grade, when she moved to Mexico (and then shortly thereafter, I moved to NYC).

Since then, we've been sporadically in touch -- meeting up in Paris for coffee, then in Singapore for drinks and now, in this new phase in our lives, at Mateo's (her adorable son) 2nd year birthday party. It's been great to re-connect recently as her supportive emails and advice during the first few weeks of my post partum period have been very helpful. Needless to say, C., baby T. and I were excited to see Paty, Nico & Mateo and help celebrate Mateo's big 2!

For the birthday party, C., baby T. and I drove to a quaint park in Berkeley and spent about 2 hours hanging out with other mommies, daddies and cute little kids. For most of the day, Tristin was hanging from his baby bjorn observing daddy's chest and once in a while piercing sideways to catch some of the activities. It was the longest period of time we had taken Tristin out. We had also never taken Tristin out to a park before so for both C. and I, the new adventure was quite exciting.

It was also our first time interacting (as parents to baby T) in a social setting. It's funny to enter a whole new parallel world of parenthood. Socializing with other mommies and daddies is so different and much easier than socializing in a regular non-mommy/daddy setting. The common denominator of having kids instantly makes conversations so much smoother. Immediately you have an initial set of questions that form a foundation for a longer, more meaningful interaction, e.g., "how old is he?", "how was your delivery?" (if its a younger baby), "is he potty trained yet?" (if he or she is older), etc.

For Tristin, the day was fun but exhausting. I think infants aren't able to take in too much stimulation -- likely two hours is more than they can handle and on that day, he had a bit more than the max. By the time we got home, not only did he pass out but that night, he also slept for a four hour stretch -- the longest ever! Hmmm...not a bad idea to take him out more often!

C. and Tristin meeting Paty and Mateo for the first time


Paty and the birthday boy, Mateo

Paty's little sister and her husband (had to take a picture of her given that the last time I saw her she was a cute little girl and now, look how much she's grown!!)

One of Mateo's friends -- had to take a picture of her given how cool she looked (apparently it took a very long time for her to choose her outfit for today's big birthday event)!

C. feeding baby T at the park

Hanging together

Looking at daddy

Mateo showing his 2-year old strength

Climbing a chair

Facing daddy

Holding daddy's hand

Looking at daddy

Mateo's very cool birthday cake

Blowing out the candles (and singing happy birthday in 3 different languages!)

Mateo's friends helping Mateo celebrate his birthday

"*Sigh*, I can't believe mommy and daddy are making me go home now!! I wish the party would last forever!"