FAMILY JOURNAL

2002-04-16T21:58:00.000-04:00

Tuesday, April 16, 2002.
New Things.

French class is one new thing, and Caroline's daycare is another. Only three students including me in the afternoon class. There are more students in the morning class. My tongue was twisting.....This was the only "progress" I've got so far. However I did find the interactive learning software very useful & helpful for general comprehesion of French.

As for Caroline, she was the only kid in the daycare now. The daycare room is big and its facility is good. Most important of all, there are many toys. It was probably because the weather was hot and she didn't take a nap in the morning; she had a long, sound nap while I was in the class.

2002-04-15T22:44:00.000-04:00

Monday, April 15, 2002.
Warm-up.......

I went to the group earlier today, so Caroline was able to get a space in the daycare. From 10:40 to 1:00, I took a peek at her twice. I saw her happily sit in the saucer. The nanny told me she was very good. Besides the lunch (grapes, pear & yogurt) I prepared for her, she also ate some biscuits, given by the nanny. I guess she just couldn't stand watching other kids eating.

I was very pleased that she could stay with the nanny and other kids for such a long time. She is always sociable outside the home, which is good. But, at home she is not very easy. Well, it's fairly understandable......just me and her. I'm the only person to keep her not get bored. Maybe it's a good reason to consider a second baby, ha!

Tomorrow I'm going to the French class, and Caroline will stay in the daycare while I'm in the class. Hope today's warm-up is helpful!

Little mermaid!

2002-04-14T22:14:00.000-04:00

Sunday, April 14, 2002.
We're Back!

We have been absent from our family journal for a long time. Reason: I was making desperate efforts to meet the deadline of my book!! Now it was finally done, and WE ARE BACK!

I'm always thinking that I should make some money even though I'm a stay-home mom. So I took one case after one. This time, I think, seriously, I should stop translating for a while and start doing something interesting and having more fun with Caroline.

I'll edit a photo album journal to make up my absence: we took a lot pictures when we were in Taiwan.

Here are some updated information about Caroline. She weighed 8050g on the day she turned 9 months old. She started to crawl right before we were coming back to Canada. She can crawl very well now, both self-styled and standard crawling. She learned to sit from crawling position soon after we were back to Canada. Some important milestones, eh?

2002-02-04T21:02:00.000-05:00

Monday, February 4, 2002.
Leaving Soon.

Since I all packed yesterday, I still went to the group this morning. Today we made all kind of tofu dishes, such as tofu scrambled eggs with cheese, miso tofu soup, tofu dip, even tofu shake! Most of them didn't think tofu was tasty.

I also weighed Caroline today. She is 7170g now. As for her sleeping problem, the nurse suggested not giving her formula for a week and see if it is the cause.

2002-02-03T22:09:00.000-05:00

Sunday, February 3, 2002.
Seven Months Old!

Caroline turned seven months old today. We sang a birthday song for her. Her crawling skill is getting better and better each day. Most of time she crawls on all her body (tommy, butt, hands, legs......), but she is getting close to crawling on hands and knees.

Caroline still wakes up every hour or so at night. I'm quite upset about that. We consulted the doctor, and he thought teething might be bothering her. He prescribed some oral jel (Xylocaine viscous) for relieving her gum discomfort. He also suggested some Baby Advil at night. I've tried that for two nights, but the situation hasn't improved.

I have another thought. Maybe the new formula (Similac) I am giving her is not the right one for her. I'll stop for a couple of days and see how it makes the situation change.

2002-01-30T00:46:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, January 29, 2002.
Never Happened........

Caroline fell asleep at 8:30pm, and woke up 30 minutes later. I tried to cuddle her to sleep, but she held my hands and wouldn't let go until she fell asleep. She woke up very soon again, and wouldn't let me go.......We kept doing this several times. So, I decided to let her cry for a while. Minutes later when I went to see her, I found she pulled down the bumper pad peeking out. It was funny, but she had to go to sleep. I cuddled her and left again. When she saw me leaving, she started crying.

Anyway, she didn't want me out of her sight, and she didn't go to sleep either. She was so persistent, and so was I. I didn't want her to leave the crib and the room, so I just stayed with her. I guess she was not sleepless, but she really really wanted me to stay with her. She did fall asleep several time, but woke up when she found me gone.

When did she finally fall asleep? Almost 12 o'clock! It never happened.

2002-01-30T00:31:00.000-05:00

Monday, January 28, 2002.
Car Seat Safety.

A lady from the Children Hospital came to talk about "car seat safety" today. It is important to use a car seat correctly. For example, children under one year old and 20lbs should be in a rear-faced car seat; the clip should be placed on baby's chest, not tommy.....In Canada, the fire department will inspect the car seat for free.

I'm thinking I should prepare a car seat for Caroline while we're in Taiwan. However, bringing back the car seat she is using right now might be a problem. Maybe I'll ask my parents to borrow one for Caroline.

2002-01-30T00:20:00.000-05:00

Sunday, January 27, 2002.
Bye Bye Jennifer & Jessie

Jennifer and Jessie are going back to Taiwan tomorrow. This time they are perfectly healthy. Hope they have really great time with their family.

2002-01-25T23:02:00.000-05:00

Friday, January 25, 2002.
Teeth Picture.

I was trying to take a picture in which Caroline's new teeth could be seen. I gave up after several shots because I couldn't get her mouth open. After uploading those pictures to the computer, I realized that I didn't have to do it on purpose because her teeth could be seen clearly in several pictures. Here it is......

Today the Carlington Community and Health Service started a nine-week parenting program: You Can Make The Differences. Even though I can only make it for four sessions, I'll definitely go because I can get many inspired ideas about parenting. In addition to an hour and half discussion, there will be another hour and half for playing with kids. They will videotape us when we're playing with our kids. Every kid will get a toy every week. We'll have lunch together after the session ends.

2002-01-25T22:50:00.000-05:00

Thursday, January 24, 2002.
Sleep Fighter.

Caroline really fought sleep lately. I needed to watch her becuase she just kept rolling over and over. She was crying so long, like an hour, before falling asleep. It was a bit better tonight, only 30 minutes. I think she is big enough to realize she needs to fall asleep by herself.

2002-01-22T10:09:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, January 22, 2002.
Stomach Flu, Too.

Pin-I got stomach flu, too. Last night he threw up twice and had fever. He didn't go to work today.

2002-01-22T10:01:00.000-05:00

Monday, January, 21, 2002.
Bread Day.

We made bread today. Banana bread, pita bread and a white loaf. Banana bread was easy, but others took time.

We got presents from the group. They had some spare stuff animals from other programs, so each baby in our group got one: Caroline got a penguin. Kim also gave me and Carol a very useful bag with the program logo on it because we're the regular members.

2002-01-22T09:59:00.000-05:00

Sunday, January, 20, 2002.
Fall Accident.

Jennifer and Jessie were supposed to leave for Taiwan this morning, but they both got sick (stomach flu) last night. Their trip was postponed.

It was not the only bad thing happening. Caroline slept with us last night, and she fell to the floor. She was crying so hard and my heart was broken. She had a lump on the forehead. I felt so bad about myself. I kept thinking of this accident all day. So terrified! Thank God there was no severe injury, otherwise, I wouldn't forgive myself. Pin-I said I shouldn't be confident in no accident but no harm done when there was any accident. We've got to seriously prevent this kind of accident happening again.

2002-01-18T22:02:00.000-05:00

Friday, January 18, 2002.
First Tooth.

The right lower incisor tooth was found this morning. Maybe teething was bothering her. Caroline was quite fussy this evening, crying for a long time before falling asleep. She seemed to need a lot of comfort.

Bought her some stuff today, including two pairs of shoes, 49 cents each in Value Village. Just washed them, and they'll dry out soon. Caroline can try them on tomorrow.

2002-01-17T22:16:00.000-05:00

Thursday, January 17, 2002.
Practice Makes Perfect.

Here are two examples.

1. Several days ago when Caroline pulled out her soother, she was not able to put it back into her mouth. After some practice, she can put it back accurately. Well, the soother's become one of her toys now.

2. We bought her a jumper several months ago. The seat is kind of loose. So Caroline couldn't get balance and sit right. The jumper was just spinning. I thought it was not a good jumper and she was probably too small to play. I let her try again this afternoon. In the beginning, she wasn't jumping but spinning, but she was happy. So I didn't get her out. After a while, she was able to balance herself and jump very well. Wow!

As for applying the passport, it really sucked! She can have ROC passport, but she will need an entry permission with new photos everytime she goes back to Taiwan. And she can only stay 3 months with the permission. The only way to avoid the trouble is to apply the passport in Taiwan. However, without a birth certified copy (with parents' information on it), she couldn't get her citizenship and passport. Unfortunatly, we applied the birth certificate, not birth certified copy when she was born, and it'll take months to get that copy. Under such circumstances, I got her the mutil-entry visa. She can stay in Taiwan for 6 months with the visa.

2002-01-17T21:52:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, January 16, 2002.
Name.

Ho, Tsai-Hsuan is Caroline's Chinese name. After so many months, we're all glad it's final! I hope it's not too late to apply ROC passport for her before we leave for Taiwan on Feb. 5th.

Oh! Caroline was sleeping from 10-5:30 last night, 7.5 hours straight. It was great. Hope it was a good start of her new sleeping pattern.

Now Caroline can sit and play in the playpen for a long time as long as she doesn't fall down. See.......

2002-01-16T01:07:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, January 15, 2002.
A Bad Night.

Sometimes Caroline wakes up at night and doesn't want to go back to sleep. Last night was a tough night...........

She woke up at 3:30am; just kept crying when I put her down. I tried to talk to her, cuddle her, nurse her..... she didn't want to go back to sleep at all. It was really hard for me to stay sober. I could let her cry to sleep before, but not now, because she would roll over and start to call "mama." She wouldn't fall asleep in that position.

One hour later I gave up. I let her sit up and play a toy. And I laid myself down beside her to get some rest. She was playing alone, quietly, in the dark! After a while, I nursed her and she fell asleep.

What a nightmare!

2002-01-14T22:22:00.000-05:00

Monday, January 14, 2002.
Babbling.

We talked about babies' First Word today in the nutrition group. It is a preschool speech and language program to provide information about children's language development and help children with speech problem.

Caroline was extremely quiet this morning. However, she became totally different this afternoon when we were in another mom and baby group. She was babbling constantly. Loud and excitedly. I never saw her like this before. Everyone in the group was surprised because Caroline used to be the quietest kid there.

2002-01-12T22:10:00.000-05:00

Saturday, January 12, 2002.
Busy Daddy.

Daddy is busy programming today. We didn't go out until a short visit to McDonald's at dinner time. But Caroline had a good time with mommy.

2002-01-12T22:09:00.000-05:00

Friday, January 11, 2002.
Play Time.

Since Caroline is sitting better and better, she enjoys playing more and more. This morning we were in the play group, and she was able to sit with other older babies and play some toys. She is no longer a watcher. The world's become much more fun to her.

2002-01-11T14:30:00.000-05:00

Thursday, January 10, 2002.
Soother and Sleep .

Surprisingly, Caroline is willing to take soother now. It made me laugh when seeing her satisfied smile with the soother. The reason I gave her soother again was because she woke up at 3:00am and didn't want to go back to sleep. I thought she might be able to play alone with a soother in her mouth and fell asleep soon. It didn't work as well as I thought. She got quite excited about this new thing.

However, the soother worked pretty well this afteroon when she was fussy and sleepy. Instead of nursing her, I gave her soother and she fell asleep very soon.

2002-01-10T15:33:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, January 9, 2002.
Carrot Paste.

Caroline has finished two pea jar so far. Today I let her try something new - carrot paste. I mixed it with cereal and she took it well. Again, I'll separate carrot paste and cereal tomorrow and see how she likes it.

2002-01-10T15:32:00.002-05:00

Tuesday, January 8, 2002.
Six-Month Check-up.

6600g and 66cm.

2002-01-10T15:32:00.001-05:00

Monday, January 7, 2002.
Chicken Soup.

We were making chicken soup in the nutrition group today. It was really easy and nutritious. Pin-I will have another kind of frozen food when I'm gone.

2002-01-10T15:32:00.000-05:00

Saturday, January 5, 2002.
Pea Girl

Caroline loves pea paste a lot. (Actually, she never refused any new foods I gave her so far.) Remember I tried to feed her cereal and pea paste separately? If she eats pea first, she doesn't like to take cereal later. So, I've got to try different ways: cereal first and pea later, one spoon of pea and one spoon of cereal, or mix them together. Anyway, I'm glad she likes it. I just hope she can gain a few more pounds and grow a few more inches. After finishing another pea jar, I'll give her carrot paste. Let's see how she likes it.

We went to visit Steve and Asa this afternoon. Their little house is cozy with beautiful river view.

2002-01-10T15:31:00.000-05:00

Friday, January 4, 2002.
Pizza & Movie

We brought pizzas and a movie to Sean's place tonight. Though the movie was not good, we had fun. Liang-Liang was very interested in Caroline's bottle and she helped me to feed her. Xiao-Yun gave Caroline a cookie, and she ate it all. Wow! Maybe I can give her a piece of cookie while we're having our dinner. Then she has her own little "meal" that she can handle by herself.

2002-01-04T18:24:00.000-05:00

Thursday, January 3, 2002.
6 Months Old.

Caroline turned 6 months old today. It's been an amazing 6 months for three of us.

Since she can sit with some support. We let her try high chair at dinner time. She looked happy.

She made more different sound lately, such as: da, pa, ma, mn-ah, wa...... I found she made different sound at different situations. For example, when she is upset, she says, "mn-ah....." When I am not paying attention to her, she always says "ma...." to call me. When she is happy and talking to herself, she often says, " da da da....., pa pa pa....., wa wa wa...." I love her beautiful voice.

2002-01-02T23:48:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, January 2, 2002.
Veggie Paste

I started to feed her some veggie paste (pea) today. I mixed it with some cereal (2 tsp of pea + 4 tsp of cereal). She seemed to like it. I'll add one more teaspoon of pea paste tomorrow. Also, I'll try to feed her pea paste and cereal seperately, and see how she likes it.

She could sit better now. She were sitting, playing the music toy for more than 30 minutes while we were waiting daddy for dinner. Of course, she fell to the sides sometimes.

2002-01-02T15:46:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, January 1, 2002.
New Year!

It is nice to get together with family on holidays, especially kids can play together. However, Jessie and Caroline still don't know each other. See, they were quite busy by themselves.

2002-01-02T15:36:00.000-05:00

Monday, December 31, 2001.
Cousins!

Pin-Han, Jennifer, and Jessie came. We had hot pot with Andy and Julie. They took some pictures of Jessie and Caroline. I love this one. Were they adorable?

2002-01-02T15:30:00.000-05:00

Saturday, December 29, 2001.
Bathe Together.

It was the first time that I took a bath with Caroline together in the tub.

2002-01-02T15:26:00.000-05:00

Friday, December 28, 2001.
Daddy's Hobby!

Daddy loves to take Caroline's photos when she is crying! What kind of hobby is that? "She is cute even when she is crying." said daddy.

2001-12-28T21:49:00.000-05:00

Thursday, December 27, 2001.
Bad Sleep.

Caroline didn't sleep well last night. She woke up again and again, like every hour. I think it was my fault because I let her sit alone while we were driving back to Ottawa. She must have got frighten when she didn't see me at the moment she woke up. I feel so bad!

Therefore, I slept with her to comfort her. I hope she'll have a good sleep again tonight.

2001-12-28T21:42:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, December 26, 2001.
Boxing Day Shopping.

There was a heavy snow, but we still went boxing day shopping with Jennifer and Jessie. I bought some clothes for Caroline. It was probably the first time I bought her new clothes. (Mom sent some clothes over, I bought some clothes in garage sales, and Jennifer lent us Jessie's clothes.)

2001-12-28T21:34:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, December 25, 2001
Turkey Festival.

We went to Kingston in the afternoon because Linda Huang invited us to the dinner. The main course was a 16lb-turkey. I love holiday turkeys! The first time I had turkey was at Dr. Chi's home. I was very impressed with the way they ate the turkey. I always wanted to make a turkey at a holiday, but haven't got a chance yet.

Linda said Caroline looked totally different. The last time she saw her was four months ago. Yeah, Caroline has grown up a lot.

2001-12-24T23:49:00.000-05:00

Monday, December 24, 2001.
Christmas Eve.

It was Christmas Eve, but we didn't have any special meal or plans because we've already had three very hearty meals in the past three days. We decided to eat light and get some rest today.

Sean called after dinner. He and his family wanted to visit us. He helped Pin-I to resolve some computer problems. Liang-Liang and I read some books. We showed them our photos. It was fun to have them here.

2001-12-24T23:43:00.000-05:00

Sunday, December 23, 2001.
Bad Weather.

We had freezing rain today. We still went out. The traffic was slow and the vision was bad.

We went to Costco and Chapters to buy some Christmas gifts. We bought a cloth book and a board book for Caroline. We also bought gifts for Andy and Julie because we were going to have dinner at their home tonight.

My nipple healed, and I didn't have to express my breastmilk anymore. Since Caroline was willing to take bottle, I started to give her some formula again. She took it very well, and looked very content. Beside breastmilk, right now she has cereal twice a day and some water after cereal. I'll give her formula once a day in the evening and start to add some veggie paste in her daily diet from next week.

2001-12-24T23:36:00.000-05:00

Saturday, December 22, 2001.
Holidays .

Pin-I started his holiday today. He won't have to go back to work until Jan. 3. We've got a lot of things to do. We'll go to Kingston to visit some friends. I have a book to translate and Pin-I want to setup his computer system. As for Caroline, she needs to grow up more, both physically and mentally :)

2001-12-24T23:31:00.000-05:00

Friday, December 21, 2001.
Dinner at Sean's

Pin-Han, Jennifer and Jessie came. Sean invited us to have dinner at his place. Caroline didn't go to bed until 11:30. She wasn't fussy. She might start to enjoy playing and being around by people.

I went to pick up our photo in Sears. Looks nice!

2001-12-20T22:06:00.000-05:00

Thursday, December 20, 2001.
Neck X'ray.

We found Caroline couldn't keep her neck straight since she was about three months old. We've consulted the family doctor, Dr. Lim, but she couldn't find any lumps which may cause this problem. Dr. Lim consulted the specialist, and the specialist suggested a neck X'ray to make sure everything fine. In fact, Caroline's neck has become much better because we've been trying to correct it by drawing her attention to turn her head to the other side as often as possible. Anyway, I took her to Children's Hospital this morning to take a X'ray. I'll discuss the result with Dr. Lim at next appointment.

2001-12-18T21:14:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, December 18, 2001.
Christmas Party.

The play group threw a Christmas party. Santa came. There were so many kids today; some were new faces. Santa took pictures with kids and brought them presents. I was afraid Caroline would cry when Santa held her, but she didn't. She was more interested in Santa's ring than Santa!! In "baby zone," we took a picture with other moms and babies.

This morning I found a blister with blood inside on my nipple. It hurt. I called the "telehealth," a new service of Canada health system. The RN told me to express breastmilk from that breast, and not to breastfeed until it heals. I put the breastmilk into the bottle and fed Caroline; she took it! I was surprised! Actually, I just bought her a cup yesterday and she used the cup to drink some water this morning. She took it, but didn't use it very well. Now I've got to help her get used to bottle and cup. She can take more food soon.

2001-12-17T23:14:00.000-05:00

Monday, December 17, 2001
Festival.

Today we had a party in the nutrition group. Everyone brought a dish or two. We had a very hearty meal. Carrol is from Haiti; the chicken and rice she made was the best dish I had today. Jane made a homemade apple pie; the tip was putting a good bit of maple syrup. I learned how to make/bake squashes from Kim; it was easy and tasteful.

While we were preparing food, I let the babysitter look after Caroline. It was amazing that Caroline was being good with the sitter over an hour in the other room. I went to peek through the door at times; Caroline was playing with the sitter or playing alone in the saucer. Maybe it was because I was not around. I think it is a good idea to have someone baby-sitting Caroline once in a while, especially when I go to the group providing babysitters.

We also made a gingerbread house. I brought home a gingerbread house kit. I told Pin-I that he can make the gingerbread house with Pin-Han while Jennifer and I are looking after the kids. He said Jennifer and I are going to make the house while he and his brother are looking after the kids. It'll be fun either way.

2001-12-17T23:12:00.000-05:00

Sunday, December 16, 2001.
Christmas Hampers!

This morning a lady from the community brought us a "Christmas Hamper;" there were presents for everyone in the family. Caroline got a Christmas bear, a knitted blanket and a pair of knitted gloves. Daddy and mommy got a beautiful pen and some gift certificates of Loblaws.

Later James and his family came to visit us. They brought Caroline a teddy bear. And we gave the Christmas bear to his son in return for their gift. We had lunch together and they went to the Parliament Hill afterwards.

After home, daddy and Caroline played for a while before we all took a nap together. Caroline was kicking daddy. Daddy said her kick was strong.

2001-12-15T23:37:00.000-05:00

Saturday, December 15, 2001.
Christmas Crowd.

Pin-I went to his office this morning. After lunch,we went to Rideau Center. Compared to other malls in Ottawa, Rideau Center is big and beautiful.There were so many people. We felt like being in a big city like Toronto. We bought a book in Chapters and two little bibs for Caroline in Eaton. We also tasted a very delicious cinnamon roll in a shop. Caroline looked very happy while we were walking around in the mall. It was a pleasant afternoon.

2001-12-14T21:32:00.000-05:00

Friday, December 14, 2001.
Snowing...........

It started snowing late this afternoon. After Pin-I got home, we went shopping in Costco. When we were ready to go home, the snow was all over our car. It was beautiful. But I know it'll get muddy and messy soon. A white Christmas is not too far away!

2001-12-14T21:27:00.000-05:00

Thursday, December 13, 2001.
So Tired.

I felt so exhausted after sending Caroling to her crib. I was lying on the couch, and didn't want to move a finger. It was like burning out myself after a whold day work. Indeed, being a mom is a 24-hour full-time job. Sometimes I just wish someone could help me out, and I could take a time out.

2001-12-12T21:32:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, December 12, 2001.
Yummy Toes!

Caroline has played her feet for days, and she finally figured out that with her two hands, she could put her toes into her mouth.

She woke up at 3:30am last night. When I feeding her, she was choked. She threw up and became awake. I brought her to our bed and tried to nurse her to sleep. She was very curious about daddy's snoring; she kept turning her head to see what was happening. It took a while for her to fall asleep. When I sent her to her crib, it was around 5:30am.

I couldn't figure out why the font on my web page changed........ So I started a new blog. Too bad, some comments were gone.

2001-12-12T13:06:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, December 11, 2001.
Wigs!

Oh! Caroline only woke up once last night. She slept from 9:00pm to 4:30am. After feeding, she slept till 7:30am and woke up happily :) Good girl!

2001-12-12T13:05:00.001-05:00

Monday, December 10, 2001.
Crying Caroline.....

Daddy said it will still be the good memory for her.

2001-12-12T13:05:00.000-05:00

Saturday, December 8, 2001.
Movie Night.

We went to Du Barry to have brunch with Sean's family. They invited us to watch "Pearl Harbor" in the evening. We almost went to see that movie in the theater before Caroline was born. We should have gone..... It's hard to go to movies now.

2001-12-12T13:04:00.001-05:00

Friday, December 7, 2001.
Fun Time With Kids.

2001-12-12T13:04:00.000-05:00

Thursday, December 6, 2001.
Weird Weather.

The temperature was double digits today. Weird weather in December......Since such the warm weather was rare in this season, we souldn't waste it, right? Caroline and I went for a stroll this afternoon after a long nap. She was wearing a new hat which grandma chose for her.

2001-12-12T13:03:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, December 5, 2001.
What A Sleeper!

Last night I "heard" Caroline waking up soon after I went to bed, but she didn't cry. I waited for a while and sneaked into her room. I found she wasn't really awake. She was swaying her head, rubbing her face and twitching the blanket. The blanket was kind of over her face once. I didn't dare to move a bit and wake her up.....just watching her. She fell asleep in minutes.

Sometimes she was still awake after I nursed her at night. If she was playing in the crib, she usually kicked off the blanket. Even though she wasn't crying, I had to get up to check her blanket several times until she fell asleep. When she didn't cry much or at all at her bedtime, occasionally I found the blanket was kicked off some hours after she went to bed. However, she never kicked off the blanket when she was sleeping, which was a good sign that she only kicked off the blanket when she was awake or half awake :)

Caroline learned a new trick lately. She likes to play her feet. See.......

2001-12-12T13:02:00.001-05:00

Tuesday, December 4, 2001.
A Big Sister.

We went to Sean's place around noon today. I brought some food to Hsiao-Yun. She looked better than she did last Saturday, but she still needed a lot of rest. Liang-Liang seemed to like Caroline. She kissed and hugged her, like a big sister. Very cute! I'll probably come to their place again if I have the car tomorrow.

2001-12-12T13:02:00.000-05:00

Monday, December 3, 2001.
Weight.

Caroline turned five months old today. The first thing I did when I arrived the nutrition group was to weigh her. She was 6300g. Compared to 300g gained in her third month, She gained almost 1000g in the past month.

2001-12-12T13:01:00.001-05:00

Sunday, December 2, 2001.
Hard to take a nap.

Caroline was so sleepy earlier this afternoon, but she just cried and cried whenever I put her down. I knew she was sleepy. When I picked her up and cuddled her, she fell asleep. But she cried again after I put her down. I also tried to nurse her to sleep, but still........ Finally, I lay beside her and nursed her; with discontinuous crying, she fell asleep. Ha! It's never easy to get her take a nap

2001-12-12T13:01:00.000-05:00

Saturday, December 1, 2001.
Hanging Out With Daddy.

Daddy took Caroline with him to shop for a hard drive while I was cooking at home. Well, this was the first time that they went out together without me; I've never been able to cook without being interrupted since Caroline was born. It is a good idea that daddy and Caroline hang out without me once in a while.

2001-12-12T13:00:00.000-05:00

Thursday, November 29, 2001.
RESP.

We're about to buy RESP for Caroline's future education fund. Just need to do some study. There were two agents from different companies coming to introduce their RESP plans for us. We'll make a finally dicision soon. Hopefully have everything done by the end of next week.

The weather was horrible today. Freezing rain made the traffic slow and roads messy. We went to the library to return books which were due today. I had to walk very carefully and slowly while I was holding Caroline. She seemed to be unhappy in her new snowsuit because she was kind of stuck in the car seat. I have to mention that the snowsuit was a good deal bought from ebay.

2001-12-12T12:59:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, November 28, 2001.
First Word.

Caroline kept saying "Ma Ma Ma....." these two days. When she woke up in the morning, she was playing and talking in her crib. I heard the sound "Ma Ma Ma..." When she was tired of playing in her saucer, she was looking at me and making the sound "Ma Ma Ma...." When I fed her cereal, she was making a similiar sound "Mem Mem Mem....." Maybe she didn't know what these words meant, but she started to relate these words to something.

2001-12-12T12:58:00.000-05:00

Monday, Novebmer 26, 2001.
Nutrition Group.

Today we talked about baby's mind, baby's crying and what damages could be casued by shaking a baby. Also, we talked a bit about teething. I got an interesting point from the vedio: hiding books for children to look for is a great game to play with them because that makes them think books are treasure. The purpose to reading to a baby is to help them relate words to things and actions. Well, I read a book to Caroline after home. It was about a mouse eating his lunch, including different fruits and vegetables in bold colors. For example, shiny red apple, sour purple grapes, tasty orange carrot, sweet yellow corn, tender green peas.......

2001-12-12T12:57:00.000-05:00

Sunday, November 25, 2001.
Nap.

Why is Caroline able to fall asleep by herself at night, but not during the day? When she is sleepy, she cries madly if I put her on the crib. However, if I nurse her, she'll fall sleep quickly. Some nurses told me that if I'm ok with this way, there is nothing wrong by doing this. But......I don't think it's a good idea because I want to stop breastfeeding her when she is 8 months old. Maybe I'm worried too much. Should I work on this "problem?"

2001-12-12T12:45:00.000-05:00

Saturday, November 24, 2001.
Diaper Rash.

Caroline has diaper rash again. It's probably because she poop a lot lately; once a day, even twice a day. I should wash her butt frequently. I always blame myself when she has diaper rash. She must feel uncomfortable......

I stopped to give her formula since she had the problem of constipation. She seems ok now, but I think I'll give her formula later when she is able to use a cup; maybe next month.

Oh! We found a best "dollar store" in the city. Actually, it is the same one as the one in Kingston. Daddy bought a picture frame in the store, and Caroline's picture will be on his desk next week

2001-12-12T12:44:00.000-05:00

Friday, November 23, 2001.
Strolling.

It was not cold, windy, but very fine and sunny this afternoon. Caroline and I went for a walk after lunch. She fell asleep in her stroller very soon. I felt so comfortable about walking in such a wonderful weather. I decided to go on the further side of Navaho Drive. The neighborhood was quiet. I wonder how beautiful it would be in summer. It was a pity that Pin-I didn't join us.

Her sleep time was back to "normal" last night. She woke up at 12:30 in a prone position. Funny! Actually she woke up quite freqently last night.

2001-12-12T12:39:00.000-05:00

Thursday, November 21, 2001.
Easy Cooking.

Caroline likes me to keep company with her; hold her, watch her, talk to her, play with her..... It's really hard for me to cook when Pin-I is not around. I usually split up my cooking time into two parts. I prepare all ingredients before Pin-I arrives home, and then I cook after he gets home. First part is not easy if Caroline is not in a good mood for playing alone. Sometimes I let her cry for a while, but sometimes I have to leave the kitchen. Therefore, figuring out some easy cooking styles is so important that Caroling doesn't cry for long and Pin-I has dinner soon after home.

I found a way to cook chicken was easy and delicious: use chicken thigh without bone, put some steak spice and maple syrup on it, send it into oven right away. Besides, stew is a good idea too. I can start to cook whenever I have time during the day, and just warm it up before eating.

It was the second night that Caroline was slept from 9:00pm to 4:30am. Will she keep doing this? Let's see!

2001-12-12T12:37:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, November 20, 2001.
Fever.

Caroline had a fever last night; 38.5 degree. She probably got the cold virus from me. However, she looked fine today, and daddy took some pictures of her this morning. Pin-I said I looked "ugly," so he didn't take picture of me. He was soooo bad! I was very sleepy and exhausted after awake for hours to look after Caroline. The doctor said her body was fighting the virus last night and the fever was normal as long as it was not severe. The doctor gave me some Advil Pediatric Drops. The way I used to relieve her fever was not recommanded by the doctor. I made an "ice bag" around Caroline's head. After seeing the doctor, we went to pick up her passport. Well, it's my turn to renew my passport. Afterwards, we're both ready to go back to Taiwan.

2001-12-12T12:35:00.000-05:00

Monday, November 19, 2001.
Surprise!

This morning I left Caroline alone on the bed and went to the washroom. When I came back to her, I found her in a prone position; she raised herself up on her hands. After she saw me, she rolled from belly to back. I was soooooo surprise! I was thinking how she did this; it must be an "accident." I walked away to get ready to go out. When I walked into her room later, she was in a prone position again. Oh, my God! Another "accident." No way! She can roll over all by herself. I was so excited. I called her daddy in his office right away. Yes! She can roll over though still fails sometimes. Daddy is very excited, too.

I didn't feed her when she woke up at 12:00 last night. She was crying for more than an hour. Well, not crying madly, just on and off. She woke up at 4:30 and again at 7:30.

2001-12-12T12:34:00.000-05:00

Sunday, November 18, 2001.
Sleepy Baby.

Caroline was very fussy tonight. She took a short nap at 7:00pm. I bathed her at 8:00pm. She started crying when she was still in the bath tub. It was unusual......She fell asleep very soon after I nursed her. It was 8:30pm when she was sent to her crib.

I read a book about baby sleep problem in a bookstore. It is definately a sleep problem for a baby older than 3m if she wakes up frequently at night. Caroline was able to sleep up to five hours at night before, but now she wakes up every three hours, very on time. I really want her to give up feeding during night. I think I'll try the solution suggested in the book.....gradully reduce the feeding frequency during the night.

We went to Sears to book our family portrait: December 9. We are also thinking to have Caroling take a photo with Santa, but it may be just fun for daddy and mommy, not for her at this age.

2001-12-12T12:33:00.000-05:00

Saturday, November 17, 2001.
Got Better.

I felt much better after sleeping all afternoon. I was quite ill yesterday. A bad headache made me sleepless.

This morning I was waken by the sound of Caroline's pooping. (I was sleeping in her room.) I rushed out of the bed to change her diaper to avoid "a big disaster" becuase I knew she pooped a lot. When I opened her diaper, she was still pooping.....the stool was not as watery as usual, but more like pastry. Wow, I never saw that before. It was messy. I was making "nen nen" sound and trying to teach her push the stool out, but she just mimicked the sound without pushing. I guess Caroline did suffer constipation these days. So, suger water did help relieve the constipation.

2001-12-12T12:32:00.000-05:00

Thursday, November 15, 2001.
Finally......

Caroline saw the NP this afternoon. She suggested me to give Caroline some suger water which would help her bowl movement. I tried it after home, and it worked! She weighed 5900g today.

I got sick.....sore throat. I got up to drink water and gargle with salt water last night. Fortunately Caroline took a long nap with me this afternoon so that I could get some rest. I felt better now. I'm going to go to bed early tonight.

Tickle! Tickle!

2001-12-12T12:29:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, November 14, 2001.
Feed On Schedule.

Last night Caroline woke up three times before 2:30am. Though I don't expect her to sleep all through the night, I don't want her to wake up so frequently. When she woke up at 2:30am, I didn't feed her, because I just fed her one hour ago. I tried to cuddle her, let her cry, talk to her........, finally she fell asleep after 30 minutes. She woke up again at around 5:30am and again at 8:00am. It was not too bad. After I nursed her, I put her back to her crib instead of sleeping beside her. I should keep doing so no matter how tired I am.

Today I started to try feeding Caroline on schedule, like every three hours. Between every feeding, I needed to handle her cry for a while because she was used to using my breasts as her soother. She should learn to settle herself without my breasts.

She still had no poo-poo today. Got to see the doctor tomorrow. Oh! Today she found a new friend, her reflection in the mirror. When she saw the little thing in the mirror smiling at her, she got so excited. Again, when she saw that little thing get excited, she went crazy. So funny!

2001-12-12T12:28:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, November 13, 2001.
Poo-Poo.

Caroline hasn't had poo-poo for four days. Nurse said babies at this age may poo only once a week, but daddy and mommy are still worried. Just wait another two days. If she still doesn't have any poo-poo, she's got to see the doctor. Is it because of the solid food?

2001-12-12T12:27:00.000-05:00

Sunday, November 11, 2001.
A Sweet Baby.

Caroline was so sweet today. She hardly cried and had a long nap. She could play in her saucer for a longer time if I was sitting beside her and watching her.

I did't feel that frustrated in feeding her formula and cereal because she didn't cry for faster feeding today. But she still made some sound to urge me to feed her faster. Are babies all like this?

Pin-I went to his office this morning. Hard worker!

2001-12-12T12:26:00.000-05:00

Saturday, November 10, 2001.
New Exercise Bike.

Pin-I bought me an exercise bike today. Since I still have 10lbs to lose but I'm breastfeeding, I need to lose weight by exercising, not on diet. Winter has come; doing some exercise at home would be a good idea. Both Pin-I and I should exercise regularly, either swimming or biking.

2001-12-12T12:25:00.000-05:00

Friday, November 9, 2001.
Visitors.

Pin-Han, Jennifer and Jessie came visit us today. We had dinner in Du Barry, a Chinese Buffet restaurant. We went there because Pin-I and I like its Saturday brunch. However, the supper was not as good as we thought.

After home, Jennifer showed me how to create a blog. I'll start putting my journal on my website.

2001-12-12T12:24:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, November 8, 2001.
Dance Competition.

Since Pin-I started to go to work with his colleague, I have been able to have the car to drive around. Caroline and I went to the library this afternoon. I borrowed several picture books and CDs for her. Borrowing one CD for one week costs 50 cents.

After home, I played the CDs and danced in front of her. She was so excited, jumping, squealing and waving her hands in her saucer. I showed Pin-I her excitement after he got home. Pin-I also danced in front of her, but she just kind of stared at her daddy without any excitement. Then mommy tired again, and she acted hyperactively again. Daddy got so jealous!! Then daddy teased mommy about dancing and losing weight at the same time. Anyway, daddy was the loser in this dance competition.

2001-12-12T12:21:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, November 7, 2001.
Passport.

I went to the Passport Office in downtown this morning to submit Caroline's passport application. Jennifer and I will bring our babies back to Taiwan for the Chinese New Year. Since Caroline is a Canadian citizen but I'm not yet, she has to have her own passport. I need to settle this matter as soon as possible. Everything went well expect mommy and daddy's landing papers were needed to be faxed to the Office. Caroline will have her passport on November 19.

2001-12-12T12:17:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, November 6, 2001.
Great Progress.

Today I found Caroline made great progress. First of all, she can laugh out loud. She has been squealed and smiled since long time ago, but I never heard her laugh out loud. I was so excited. Suddenly, she can make more sounds. Second, she can put out her tongue. I don't know how/where she learned this trick. Mom said it was not good and I should stop her doing this. Anyway, she was so cute when she put out her tongue and laugh.

After playing in her saucer for days, she also made great progress on reaching and grabbing things. Now she looks like a big baby.

However, there is one thing that I am worried about her. Her neck is not very straight. I thought it was because her back and neck was not hard and strong enough, but her back and neck seems very strong now. I'd better have a doctor to check her neck ASAP.

Pin-I and I went swimming this evening. We brought Caroline with us. She stayed dry; daddy and mommy took turns. Maybe Caroline can get in the pool.

2001-12-12T12:16:00.000-05:00

Monday, November 5, 2001.
Discussion Group & Nutrition Program.

I went to two groups today. The first one is a discussion group for parents, and the other is a nutrition program for pregnant women and moms with babies.

In the discussion group, today's topic was "sexuality." We talked about how to respond children's curiosity and behaviors related to sexuality. We found that many parents thought they were open-minded about talking with their children, but when they faced the real situation, they made judgments and had hard time talking to their children. I like this group. There were only several people; people knew each other's name. Everyone had a chance to talk.

As for the nutrition program, it is new and hasn't been on track yet. Only two people came in today. However, here I can consult with nurses and other moms about baby problems. Besides, participants can bring home vegetables, fruit and milk vouchers.

2001-12-12T12:10:00.000-05:00

Sunday, November, 2001.
Formula.

I let her try some formula. The funny thing was.... when I used a bottle to feed her, she was so mad, but when I used spoon to feed her, she took it very well. Jennifer suggested me to feed her with a spoon till she can use a cup if she doesn't take a bottle. I gave her about 1oz after each breastfeeding, and 2oz before she went to bed. She seemed to be content because she was in her saucer playing quite long after a nap and a feeding. I hope she'll sleep longer tonight.

Pin-I was working on programming almost all day. He needs to exercise. He is thinking to go swimming twice a week. Honestly speaking, I don't feel like going, but I think I need to be more active, otherwise, Pin-I and I will end up staying at home.

2001-12-12T11:57:00.000-05:00

Saturday, November 3, 2001.
First Solid Food.

Caroline was four months old now. I started to give her baby cereal today. Just a spoonful of rice cereal twice. She took it very well. She kind of liked it.

She cried a lot recently. Mom reminded me that she might not get enough breastmilk. I think it's time to give her some formula. I don't like to worry her weight. I have to make sure she is not hungry.

We bought a used Evenflo supersaucer for Caroline today.

2001-12-12T11:45:00.000-05:00

Friday, November 2, 2001.

Work Done.

Finally, I had my translation work done. I felt so relaxed. From now on, I should spend more energy and time on Pin-I and Caroline. I'll help Pin-I with "his language problem" and prepare better meal for him. I'll work on Caroline's feeding and help her to take a good nap in the afternoon and sleep longer at night. I'll also want to make some change of myself. I'll have a haircut and start regular exercise to lose some weight. Tomorrow we'll clean our apartment, go grocery shopping, and start to be a real full-time mom.

This afternoon Caroline and I went to Belair Community Place. I met a child development specialist. I asked her how to help Caroline use her hands. She suggested me to hang some objects to attract her and help her to reach and touch things. Today Mary gave me a box of baby cereal (Heinz's step 1:Rice Cereal) and a milk voucher. There was a "Creative Play" session (10:00-11:00) this morning. I missed it. I'll try to make it next Friday.

2001-12-12T11:42:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, October 31, 2001.
Halloween.

Our apartment management gave out candy in the lobby this evening. We went downstairs and got some candy. She was grabbing a candy quite well. Caroline can grab things now, but not very well. She gets frustrated when she cannot put things into her mouth. We should buy some toys to let her practice grabbing.

By the way, it was snowing today. The first snow this winter.

2001-12-12T11:40:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, October 30, 2001.
Second Immunization Shot.

Caroline had her second immunization shot this morning. She had a regular checkup first. Everything looked fine. (I'm still concerned about her neck even though Dr. Lim said she couldn't find anything physically wrong on her neck. Her neck is not very straight when she is in a sitting and standing position.) She was 60 cm and 5600g.

2001-12-12T11:38:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, July 3, 2001.
Birth Story.

Mom had been here since June 15, but I still hadn't had any sign of labor. My feet were so swollen. In the last month of my pregnancy, my weight increased like 20 lbs. I gained about 30lbs before that. My doctor, Ross, didn't concern himself about my situation. He told me the weight gain was just the increased fluid in my body and would be gone soon after the baby was born. Mom encouraged me to walk more in order to have a smooth labor; however, my heavy body really tired me.

July 1st was the second Canada Day after I came to Canada. We went to Parliament Hill in Ottawa last year, and I was going to have a baby this year. I kind of hoped I could give birth to my baby on Canada day, but I hadn't had any sign of labor until that night. I started with bleeding that night. The next morning I started having contraction irregularly. The contraction became more intensive in the afternoon, but it was still not intensive and regular enough to go to the hospital. At around 4:30pm, I decided to go to the KGH (Kingston General Hospital) because I had contraction about every five minutes. However, when a nurse checked my cervix, I hadn't dilated yet. I could stay at hospital or go home. I chose to go home. I kept walking while I was waiting for the doctor to re-check my cervix before I left. In about 30 minutes, the doctor came and my cervix dilated 4cm already. Therefore, I had to stay at the hospital.

The contraction became much more intensive. Pin-I and Diana (my doula) helped me breathe to relieve pain. However, I was getting tired of dealing with pain. I wanted some pain relief so I could get some rest. The nurse gave me some Demerol and Gravol, and then I fell asleep. I woke up in two hours, at around 9:30. My cervix dilated 7cm now. The pain was getting more intense. Breathing technique and nitrous oxide didn't help too much. I did't want any medicine because I knew I was making good progress. At 12:30 I was 9cm and my water had not broken. A doctor artificially ruptured my membrane. At 1am I was 10cm and ready to push. Pin-I and Diana asked for a mirror so I could see the progress of the baby. After a few more contractions, the baby's heartbeat started to drop. The doctor was getting worried and suggested a episiotomy. I agreed and then kept pushing. The head was finally all the way out, The shoulders came out next¡K¡K.My baby was born, with a beautiful head of hair. It was 1:43am. She was 3315g (7lbs 5oz) weight and 51cm height.

My mom came in. I saw her hold the baby. She was all smiles. Pin-I was talking to his parents over the phone. After a while, the nurse gave me the baby. I offered her my breast, and she was sucking so well. She was tiny, but strong. I was so proud of myself.