One More Koh

You're invited!

2008-12-18T17:45:00.002+11:00

Pick up (aussie aka Ute) for Hire

2008-11-08T01:09:00.004+11:00

Are you in dire need of an expert removalist service?
One that will give you peace of mind?
A reassurance that your treasures will be moved without a scratch?

Look no further!

We have here - a reliable, trusty Nissan blue pickup (uh, model unknown)
and our 2 best movers who are ever ready to move your stuff!

Please call 1800 - giveIsaacfoodforwork or 1800 - Clari'sparentsretirementfund
for bookings!

Clarisse's 1st Swim

2008-09-08T12:22:00.004+10:00

Hey Mr Grump Gills
You know what you gotta do when life gets you down?

Just keep swimming..

Just keep swimming...

Just keep swimming swimming swimming......

What do we do we swim, swim, swim .....

OH HO HO How I love to swim!

When you WAAAAAANNTTT to swim you want to swim!

Hi from Sunny Spore!

2008-08-13T12:01:00.003+10:00

Hi to all the Auntys and Uncles in Melbourne!

Back in Singapore and Kenn managed to catch the national day parade
with Ben

This is me - stealing a ride on cousin Isaac's F430.
Cousin Isaac invading MY cot and looking pleased.

We're going to have lots of fun together!

But missing everyone in Melbourne...especially Nana, Uncle Rob, Grandpa and Aunty Ness :)

Clari the Destroyer of Music

2008-06-10T21:44:00.004+10:00

Where's Clari been all this while?

2008-06-01T21:34:00.003+10:00

(Clarisse: Who allowed you to see my blog!)

(C: FEED me something yummy and I might just give you a smile!)

It feels like a long while since the last blog post was done
So it's time for another one!

As compared to 200-plus photos that we took when Clari first came into the world
This month, it was painfully hard trying to choose from the very few photos which ones to print
One reason being that Clari does not sit still for long nowadays
No, she doesn't crawl yet (well, if you count crawling backwards, she does)
but if her arm is not moving, it's her feet
if she's not sitting up
she's reaching to the sides and flipping onto her tummy

So we have photos of a big Blur called Clari

Apart from that,
Clari has her 1st two teeth!

She has also commenced well into her food adventure
tasting and savouring everything from
pumpkin, sweet potato, apple
banana, peach, rice cereal
good ol' porridge
fish, spinach, carrot
and chicken!

We have not fed her hongkong style sesame paste dessert nor chocolate yet,
much to Wing's sorrow!

So she is almost 8 months old, time flies
And we still adore her heaps
She gives the best Clari-cuddles and the most painful Clari-pinches
She sits and plays by herself and is really good
And goes "Ah-da-da-da-da" much to Daddy's delight!

P.S.: Although the above pictures make her look like a boy,
we swear that Clari is still very much a girly girl.

Clari and her autumn-winter experiences

2008-04-21T10:30:00.004+10:00

Autumn has arrived and boy, it's cold sometimes!!

Clarisse's first autumn has been greeted by

the newfound ability to sit up!
And
numerous new facial expressions
by the chubby bubby

Clari looking 'pai kia' (and spot the TV addict remote control)

She has finally joined cousin Yeo in sitting on the potty
but looks abit constipated sometimes...

Sitting in the laundry basket is one of her favourite past times too...

Why must mummy take such photos of me....

Clari in her China-looking winter woollen beanie

Other than that, we (or mummy) has been having fun dressing up
in winter gear and cute girly coats and tights!!
Yayyyy.....

Clari's food adventure

2008-03-22T19:10:00.003+11:00

Yesterday marked a new beginning for Clarisse Koh
Currently fast approaching 6 months of age
She can no longer sustain herself purely on breastmilk
and must now venture out into the exciting scary world of solid food!!!!!!! (i.e. boring rice cereal)

....So Happy Together...

2008-03-03T15:40:00.006+11:00

So 1 week has passed since Clarimonster has touched down in Singapore

Weather has been great and cool
Her crazy parents have been taking her out everywhere
She has settled down into her new environment (with much coaxing)
She has met all her crazy relatives

But most of all.... She has had fun times with her couzzies Isaac and Joel!

howdy!

Now it's time to visit cute little Joel! David vs. Goliath

Clari arrives in the small apple: SG!

2008-02-26T12:01:00.005+11:00

It was late at night and some crazy parents woke me from my sleep

I was thrown into the car wondering what all the excitement was about

but little did I know of how big an adventure I had begun...

About 30min later I arrived at some big complex called A-I-R-P-O-R-T
where we checked in our luggages and mummy scolded the staff

and then we waited and waited and waited

we waited with the other 4 small people in the special family area =]

finally we started moving again and I found myself... in some time machine

I had my own little seatbelt on mummy's lap

and my own little sleeping area too!

but i didn't get to sleep too long on this time machine...

everytime the ride got bumpy mummy was forced to carry me
in fact, the ride was so bumpy at times that mummy couldn't change my nappy

... or maybe mummy and daddy were just too lazy and tired =]

luckily when we reached our destination, three hours earlier,

there was a nice friendly place to get my extremelyoverthetop

OVERSOAKED nappy to be changed... and that made me real glad!

finally... I got to see my cousin!

And now mummy says we must be patient and wait

to meet the other cousin

so that we can bully Isaac together! :)

clari and the tan's

2008-02-04T21:20:00.000+11:00

çlari has had another BIG week

with the arrival of her future nanny!

and clari had another big sundae =]

it all started with church

where she was kidnapped by the BFG

and fell asleep in the creche

and then she went out to yumcha

with uncle larry and aunty alicia

she managed to fall asleep again at the table

after this clari went to pick up

her future nanny aunty ness

to go and chill out at her grand aunt's hotel

she started posing on the bed

having a great time

before she started to flash

and flash and flash and flash...

we even caught her in the action

but at the end of the day

clari most most glad to come home

back to her routine

to bath

to feed

to sleep...

and also to feed throughout the night =]

What's Clari been up to lately?

2008-01-24T12:50:00.000+11:00

Hello World!

It's almost the end of Jan 2008 (we can't believe it)
and Clarisse is now 3 months 3 weeks old

Nothing much happening but....
Right now:

Good things
- amazing head control
- she can roll
- she can sort of semi flip onto her tummy
- she can grab things quite well
- she's starting to laugh and giggle (1st time was when she saw me coughing..tsk)
- she smiles and coos at everyone (provided she's in a happy mood)
- her hair is growing longer (heh heh heh!)
- she likes to ruffle and look at supermarket flyers (future shopper starting young)

Not so good things!

- she's a tv addict (she uses her amazing head control to turn towards tv)
- she's still waking up at night
- she's still waking up at night even MORE
- she's waking up at night at least 3 times
- SHE WOKE UP LAST 2 NIGHTS EVERY 2 HOURS

= frazzled grumpy grouchy mummy Koh blogging

For all those who are wondering whether it's normal for 3 month old babies to wake up that often, the answer is yes, it's normal. But there are alot of babies who also sleep through the night after they turn 3 months old. It's normal for baby to wake up at night now to feed ONCE, but CLARI is waking up to feed 3 times a night!!

no wonder she has all these fat rolls! i can't even see her neck.

So that's one of the reasons why this blog hasn't been updated for a while! Sorry!
And also, we were getting lazy taking pictures..haha

One plus point is that she's recently grown out of alot of her clothes
So we have taken out MORE new clothes to wear! Yay!

That's it for now... will update more soon!

Clari with friends Duckie and Z Ladybird

Clari trying to eat her friend Duckie

Clari eating both friends at one go (evil!)

The hottest xmas ever...

2007-12-28T12:04:00.000+11:00

Greetings from down under once again!

We are glad to say that Clari survived her 1st christmas without any major hiccups
i think deep inside her heart
she knew it was CHRISTMAS morning...
because she chose to wake up at 5am..

Mummy proceeded to open clari's presents (as she can't)
she's got more presents than all of us combined

We went to church bright eyed and bushy tailed

where she got grumpy at her parents yet again
then became 'miss smiley' when everyone came to see her

so dodgy! then everyone kept saying óh! she's such a gentle placid baby!'
...... dodgy baby!

we also went to Black Rock (near mornington) for our 1st family beach outing!
we were all excited and prepared Clari as well as we could

putting her sunhat on, covering her up and Daddy applying as much baby sunscreen as he could

Mummy, being paranoid that the beach would be cold...
brought a woollen jacket and woollen beanie for Clari
even though it was a 25 Deg sunny day.

The sea was so peaceful with the sound of waves

that Clari fell asleep almost immediately when we walked along the beach

Once we sat down on the sand
she woke up and became grumpy! so we had to walk and walk and walk.

Clari smelling the breeze.... seagull in the distance..

Clari falling asleep..seagull coming nearer...

Feeding Clari twisties...

down by the bay of black rock

a fine day making full use of her sunhat

the family again!!! with Clari asleep again, with the cool breeze and crashing waves...

mum's the world

2007-12-15T13:27:00.000+11:00

the gASTRO BOY eye view...

it's been a nice long weekend for me, able to spend more time with baby and wife, and more time with the toilet... with my gastro.

but the two days off work (plus today which i was meant to also work) has given me a deeper insight into the life reality of looking after a bub like Clari.

DAY 1

parent's group (aka: mother's club) is where every week, all the mothers get together, and complain to each other of all the issues they've had. vaccinations, sleeping too much, feeding, it was all feeling quite ok. until one mother stated how she had hand/wrist pain... and before you knew it, the whole mother's group (the 10 mothers with their giant bassinets) were all complaining and pointing to where they all had wrist pain. the room was crowded, the mothers very anecdotal, and the bubs... all different shapes and sizes. some sleeping, some feeding (the mums were popping their boobies out left right and centre), changing nappies - but all in all looking somewhat like their mums, and seeming to act just like their mothers too.

DAY 2

shopping will never be the same again, when you bring your baby around. the embarassment of your babies extremely loud cry like you were mistreating her, makes you dash to the noisiest part of the shopping centre. and everyone stopping to talk to you just because your baby is small and chubby. you can no longer take the escalator with pram, but must join in the other "prammers" who crowd up the slow (and far between) lifts, each one with their own bub, and talking to you because you have one too. but the best bit of the shopping was the place only parents go to... that's right, the Parents Room. you might visit the toilet, but only an avid parent would dare venture into that room. full of change tables, and couches, and most of all people. this parent's room was packed to the brim. at one stage i think there were about 10 prams in there, most of them queing up to use the 2 change tables, or to feed on one of the 3 sofas. there was one 4 yo girl asking me how many months old Clari was, and asking me how many kids I had... i think she took after her mother. and there was a lady who was very insistant on how i HAD to burp Clari, she made me put Clari over my shoulder, and then got very worried when i didn't support her head all the time, worst bit was she started instructing me all these things... in VIETNAMESE!!! i think she thought she was a super mum or something, but i think she forgot that parent knows their own baby best =]

anyway, it has been a fun experience, relaxing, resting, playing and seeing more of Clari... the good side and the bad; hehe. something to really treasure and look back upon in years to come.

The battle against SIDS

2007-12-03T13:38:00.000+11:00

If you're not sure what it stands for
SIDS is Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
which all nurses fiercely try and drill into your head

To prevent your precious bub experiencing SIDS
You're NOT supposed to have anything in the cot except

1) cot bedsheets (firmly tucked in),
2) a baby (appropriately dressed so he/she is not too hot or cold)
3) baby sleeping on her back
4) baby sleeping right at the foot of the cot

No doonas/quilts as baby may overheat
No pillows or bibs as baby may suffocate

No stuff toys as baby may choke if she eats her toy :c

So when we first brought Clari home from hospital

we made sure nothing was in the cot that could cause her harm

But over time,

with lack of storage space

and the realisation that Clari does not like sleeping on her back

we have unconsciously become the pin up family

for the 'How to give your baby SIDS' pamphlet (touchwood!)

Spot how many SIDS items there are in the picture below...

Yes... if Clari's nurse stumbled upon this blog, we would receive hell at our next checkup!

Oh well...
just to end off on a more pleasant note.... Clari recently took her 1st passport photos!!

The beginning of bigger and badder poos

2007-11-22T12:22:00.001+11:00

Hello! I'm Clari and i'm currently 6 weeks and 5 days old...
I usually like to think that I'm quite a happy girl... but....

but recently
i've grown bigger and my bowel movements are getting bigger and smellier!!

BUAY TAHAN

So i cry and sniffle and howl.... in hope of another human being
to save me from this disastrous disaster in my nether regions

Yay! Daddy - he just came home from work.
Just in time to clean my last MAJOR poo of the day

And so... another day will begin tomorrow and
I think I shall continue to poo and pee more.

Till then, goodbye!

Where's Grandma??

2007-11-16T14:56:00.000+11:00

So the other grandparent has left
flown far away and into the arms of her cousin Isaac
where he will be kept entertained for hours and hours and hours...

Our room is still full of Clarisse's presents (thank you to everyone!)
And I've started bringing her around the block for daily walks
just to get her more used to being in the stroller

Not much other stuff getting done
as my 'helper' mum has gone, so no more grandma to burp, entertain and sayang her!

Clari the Kaypoh surveying the surroundings

The pretty jelly which had a short life

And finally, the 3 generation photo!

I miss my mummy!

the good, the bad, and the Clari

2007-11-12T22:21:00.000+11:00

the newest fan of Clari...

he was only here for less than a week,

but in the short time span she was on the ball game...

realising how patient and gentle granpa Tan was with her,

she grew to know, and understand;

in granpa's safe hands she would feel so secure,

with granpa watching over her she would feel safe,

she would learn to commuicate to granpa Tan,

to watch, and learn, and smell,

and SMILE:

but finally it was time for granpa Tan to dash back home,

and Clari would once again be up to her same old tricks,

a little bigger, a little smarter, a little more developed,

and certainly much changed, yet knowing something had changed.

Clari doesn't like change...

especially when it's her newest fan leaving...

and so Clari is back to her old "i'm little miss grumpy" self
no granpa Tan anymore to burp her, or gently sleep her:

I guess she was granpa's newest fan too ...

everyone VS. Clarisse

2007-10-31T13:37:00.000+11:00

Training has begun for Clarisse Koh

Being the mum, i can't take it anymore!
She is getting heavier, i have De Quervain's tenosynovitis
As a result of being the new 'baby', everyone can't resist cuddling her (even I)

But this has resulted in her crying/yelling/wailing
everytime she gets put down in her cot or anywhere else
that does not resemble human arms

Little miss grumpy herself

anyway, we've started to let her cry for a while
when she's put down
and sometimes, it's heart wrenching
but you know that she's tricked you (once again)
when you finally succumb and pick her up
and she stops crying IMMEDIATELY
(dodgy!)

(Clari: Yay! You've picked me up! I win.. you deserve a kiss!)

third week with the sun

2007-10-28T18:26:00.000+11:00

this weekend is another hot dry one

and clari certainly feels the heat

i don't know how babies survive in sg

but mine can only live in cold climates

antartica must be her paradise...

it is also the first (half) week back at work

and coming home from work dead tired

makes looking after baby just harder...

for the mum that is... coz i just drop dead

but baby is now 3 wks and 1 day old...

she has now had FIVE outings out of the house

1) to see the midwife at the community centre

2) to lunch and shopping

3) to the supermarket

4) to church this morning

5) for a stroll around the block this afternoon

however clari slept through outings 2) and 3)

and only remembers waking up during the other outings

because she did some major major business

or when she gets hungry...

both of which times she is no where near

her bestest behaviour

but the heat seems the hardest on her (even though she refuses to drink water... i guess she knows its just not as good as her real food) - hopefully we get a few more cooler days before summer sets in and a bit more rain too or else clari's gonna have a grumpy time ahead =]

If you go down to the woods today, you're sure of a big surprise...

2007-10-26T15:12:00.000+10:00

How can one baby expel so much stuff in a day?
I still am amazed when she manages to puke out milk x5 times (at least) after being burped.
Also amazed at how I hear several farts going on when she is feeding.
Apparently, what goes in comes out immediately.

And guess who has to clean her poo???? ME......
now that Kenn has gone back to work. *sniff..

But when you look at her and she looks back with her eyes wide open
... and she gives you a big smile...
you know it's worth it.

That is... until Kenn comes home and
says that the paediatric physio at work said that when babies smile,
it may be that they have wind in their tummy.
Bugger.

So things are more or less under control
but Clarisse is unpredictable at times, as all babies are
but she is still one cherubic bub.

clari's first day out!!!

2007-10-22T17:21:00.001+10:00

baby koh has been home for a good 2/52

she' s now 2 weeks and 2 days old

here's some dress up baby pics...

just the day for her first outing out

TO MEET THE MIDWIFE!!!!!

it was such a cloudy and cold day

and baby koh has been restless lately

but most importantly everything's going well

baby putting on lots of weight

and crying like crazy...

actually the midwife has been really good

helping us newbie parents out

she understands the baby so well

it's really really amazing :)

... safely back home

Midwife coming

2007-10-15T11:35:00.000+10:00

Midwife coming to visit today and i hope clarisse has put on weight!!

one problem she has is that she falls asleep during her feeds - one real lazy baby

another issue is that she sleeps during the day and wakes up at night!

Other than that, her jaundice is improving .. haha we've been suntanning her for the past few days - 27 deg C today! Finally.

When baby Clarisse is awake - Ken and I play with her ....

Then she gets sleepy - but we still play with her...

HEHEHHEE... that's all for now .

8 days young!!!

2007-10-14T11:24:00.000+10:00

Baby ClariKoh!

here are some nicknames she already has:
Clari

Clarikoh

Clavicle

Tomato head

Tofu gia

Babyco

Monster

Little miss piggy

Bacon

hahaha

She continues to eat every 2-3 hours and pee-pee and poo-poo the same amount...

Jaundice seems to be going down slowly, there hasn't been much sun recently, but luckily today is turning out nice and bright, we strip and roast Clari with every sunlight opportunity, (this is to assist with the Jaundice) - and its also good for washing all those dirty nappies

She's still super sleepy during the day, and spoilt rotten by everyone, likes to be picked up and talked to, and hates to sleep alone in her ginormous cot...

anyway we will continue to love her lots!!!

Just born!

2007-10-14T11:09:00.000+10:00

"Baby" Koh - Day 6

2007-10-12T17:13:00.000+10:00

It's Day 6 of Baby Koh's new exciting life and we are glad to say - she's still alive. :)

As proud new parents, we've been running around doing EVERYTHING

for this already spoilt rotten princess - feeding her when she demands, carrying her, playing...

and cleaning poo and pee every 2 hours.

Ken experienced his first dirty shirt when he opened Baby Koh's nappy, and

she let out projectile poo and sprayed it onto his shirt!

Also, she has somewhat managed to pee on Uncle Rob's blanket yesterday, and burp and puke on the other blanket today.

But needless to say, everyone still loves her! :)

Looking back, it's been 1 week since I went into labour and I still can't believe this tiny little creature sleeping next to me and Ken, had been inside me for the past 9 months. it's just amazing.

She is technically still meant to be in Germaine's tummy for another 5 days, but she's 6 days old!

Just hoping that she won't grow up to fast.