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Here are some of the latest photos of Daryl.

How does 1-year old Daryl look like? To us, he has the same look as his infancy. Can’t really tell he is 1 year old because he’s still so bald.

He has grown a bit taller and his face has got a bit sharper. Lost some of his chubbiness.

In terms of development, he can’t stand or walk yet. He can pull himself up on furniture and climb up to our sofa.

He has two teeth at the top and the bottom. Right now he is always trying out his new teeth by clicking them together and biting all sorts of things (including mommy).

He can’t say many words yet. Still nen nen (milk), mum mum (food), ta ta (bye), da da (daddy hehe) and AAAAHHHH (angry). Sometimes he calls ma ma (mommy) but that is very rare.

Daryl loves to smile, and he smiles so easily. Even when we try to be strict with him, he smiles back to charm us and we forget his naughtiness.

I can understand why he smiles. I’m the same. We use smiles to diffuse tense situations and conflicts.

We’re really happy that he and Rachel are getting along. They can play together and entertain each other. As usual Rachel will snatch away anything he is playing with and he will not protest.

At this stage, he has become more interactive with everyone around him. It used to be, as a baby he would be occupied with his small world. Now he’s opening up to actually see his environment.

He’s exploring every corner of our condo. He’s trying out all our furniture, doors, and even opening all the drawers to see what’s inside.

Things are changing so fast. Things are happening so quickly.

Part of me wants it all to pass quickly. Part of me wants it to slow down so I can rest.

Baby Caleb will be born in 2 months. Honestly I confess I do not spend as much time talking to Poey Chin’s belly as in the first two kids. I wonder if he will know my voice next time.

I know he’ll definitely know Rachel and Daryl’s voice.

Baby Caleb is really active especially in the evenings. He will be kicking and turning in the womb when he hears Daryl and Rachel playing.

It’s been one month since I publicly declared I was becoming a vegetarian.

How has it been going so far? Confession time.

Failures

There are times I’ve accidentally consumed some meat. Sometimes it’s the meat in less obvious places. Like hidden in a spring roll, or minced meat in a bowl of noodles.

It is much easier to choose vegetarian meal options when I eat alone.

It is more difficult when I eat at home, or when going out with others . Mostly because I don’t want to impose on others or make it inconvenient for everyone.

Also, sometimes when eating out there aren’t any vegetarian choices. So I can only do the next best thing, order something without meat even though the broth or sauces may have been cooked with meat.

I have also found it impossible to avoid ikan bilis and sambal belacan (made from shrimp).

Successes

Despite my failures, I’ve drastically reduced my meat consumption. I eliminated meat from 90% of my meals.

My family have accepted the fact that I want to become a vegetarian. Colleagues are starting to notice I always order food without any meat.

I haven’t had any cravings for a steak or lamb chops yet, though I have this strange craving for seafood.

I would say my biggest success this month is just learning more about the vegetarian diet, finding more resources and exploring new restaurants.

Lessons

I’ve learned that I won’t die from hunger or malnutrition. I won’t get sick or grow weak.

I’m still learning to adjust my diet.

I’ve doubled my rice intake. Usually I take a serving of rice (about the size of my fist, or 1 cup) but now I take a double portion.

This may seem ‘fattening’ because thats almost 800 calories on rice alone. But I discovered that rice is a source of protein, iron, magnesium, zinc, selenium and other minerals I used to get from meat.

I don’t know if I’m over-compensating for protein or putting too much focus on it, but I try to take generous helpings of fruit, tofu, bean sprouts, bean-vegetables and soya milk.

I still take eggs and cheese.

Next Target

My focus will still be learning. Maybe I’ll start tracking my food intake for a month to see if I’m meeting the recommended dietary requirements, then adjust from there.

Maybe I can adjust the portions if I’m taking too much, or find alternatives.

I’ve been heavily dependent on Indian vegetarian food. I can’t really find any Chinese vegetarian restaurants I like. So I’d like to explore and find more options that are tasty and not pricy.

It hasn’t been too difficult to avoid eating meat. I’d say on a scale of 1 to 10, the difficulty is a 2. It can be inconvenient at times, be definitely not hard to do once I can find the right source of food.

It would be easier if the rest of my family joined me, but that’s not my choice to make.

Photo By: Fleur Suijten

Two weeks ago we celebrated Rachel’s third birthday. We invited our immediate families over for a simple home-cooked dinner. It was a week day so it started quite late.

While the adults ate, the kids mostly played and went wild.

Poey Chin got some party masks and party blowers for the kids. Here’s Ethan kor kor with a cow mask.

Rachel joining in the action. She copies everything he does.

Lucas ti ti playing with a balloon. He’s a few months younger than Rachel, but she is always bullying him.

They went over to Daryl’s crib for a while.

Poor Daryl couldn’t join in the fun.

He spent most of the evening with ma ma and yeh yeh.

Time for cake and desserts. This was a Tigger and Pooh themed fondant cake. It was our first time trying this type of cake. It looked nice but doesn’t taste as good as icing.

Trying to get a family photo.

Rachel was supposed to blow the candle but she was too shy. Funny how she pretends to blow candles every night when we sing her bedtime songs, but she doesn’t want to do it now.

She just clung close to me.

The cake after the candle had been removed. The balloons on the cake were the first to go. On the side is a mixed fruit agar-agar I made.

We asked Rachel to cut the birthday cake. I love how she looks when she concentrates.

I cut up the rest of the cake. The filling was a vanilla-orange cake.

Rachel having her slice of cake.

A very big bite from a very big slice.

Even more cake.

Sugar high.

By that time, Daryl was so tired because it was past his bedtime.

Presents time!

Rachel got this set of pots and pans from Uncle Eric and Aunty Lydia.

She got a pretty dress from my in-laws Eric and Wai Cheng.

She got a Barbie car from Aunty Judy, and my cousins (she should call them Aunty Janelle, Aunty Jasmyne and Uncle Jarron). She tried to sit on top of the car, so we quickly stuffed her monkey inside so she would get the idea that it’s not for her to sit on.

She also received some ang pau money, which will go into her savings account for her college education.

It was a nice dinner. Thanks everyone for coming, thanks for the presents and thanks Eric for taking photos!

Today Daryl boy is one year old.

It’s been a year of ups and downs for me.

My most vivid memory of Daryl at that time was watching World Cup matches in the middle of the night, as we had to feed him every two hours.

As an infant, he had such a good temperament. He charmed us with his cute looks and smiles.

Daryl has remained patient, co-operative and undemanding all this while. He has such a special place in my heart because of this.

He has never complained when Rachel demands our attention. He has never protested when his sister wants one of his toys.

Rachel, on the other hand, was going through her terrible twos. I tell you she drives me insane. Thankfully she is getting better now. Or maybe I am getting better in adjusting my expectations.

As he turns one, we are waiting for him to start walking, waiting for his teeth to develop so he can eat solid food, waiting for him to talk.

I hope he and Rachel can play with each other so we can have some space for baby Caleb.

I feel sorry that we’re having baby Caleb so soon. I foresee him getting the least attention for a while (middle child syndrome?). Baby Caleb will need a lot of attention, and Rachel will continue to ask for our attention.

Poor gentle Daryl will be left out, but Poey Chin and myself have made it a point to give him equal attention, plus we always reassure him that we love him too.

Since he is too young to make a birthday wish, I will wish on his behalf.

I wish he will be stronger, not falling sick so often. I wish he will continue with his sharing and understanding.

I wish my beloved son to be safe from harm.

It’s been one hectic week, and I haven’t downloaded photos from my camera to my computer, so I’ll leave the birthday posts for later.

Last night Poey Chin and I had a very difficult conversation. I guess every parent will ask this question.

Do we stop here? Are three kids enough?

Not Enough

We did discuss about waiting 5 more years to have another baby.

By then, we should be doing better financially. The first three kids would be older so it would free up some time to focus on another baby.

We did take into consideration that we were still quite young (Poey Chin is 30).

Yes Enough!

Obviously there are serious concerns to having more kids.

First is my worry that Poey Chin’s body can’t take another pregnancy.

Second is the tremendous financial requirements.

Third, we can hardly handle two kids and can’t even begin to imagine life with a third baby.

Then there is the thought of going through the diapers, crying, and milk bottles phase all over again.

So We Decided

Our decision at this moment, is to stop at three kids.

After baby Caleb, it will be time to move on to the next stage of our life.

In a few years Rachel will begin schooling, so we will need to make sure she has a good start to her education.

Poey Chin and myself always feel sad that we never got to “enjoy” the carefree life of a married couple. We had Rachel near our first wedding anniversary so we never had the chance to travel, and enjoy life.

What If We Get Lonely?

The question came up, what if we got lonely when the kids have grown up?

The solution: get a Shih Tzu. And then wait for grand kids.

Photo By: bartozzi