Well the past month has just rushed on by and I’ve not written anything. So, here is a long catch up of CJ’s latest pics.
We gave him his 4th haircut. It’s much harder to cut his hair now that he is mobile, active and aware (and I’m not b/feeding him anymore). We tried to distract him with a DVD and biscuits but ended up having to hold his arms down while he sat on my lap and Allan did a great job at cutting very quickly. After two attempts we managed to get his hair into some sort of style that does not resemble a bowl!
The next big thing this month was that we had a date night out in the city which included a delicious Japanese dinner, a magnificent violin concert by Midori, a luxurious night in the Sheraton on the Park and a filling buffet breaky – all without CJ! He stayed with Jen and Samuel (and C&S) and had a ball. No tears. No fuss. We’ll have to do this again some time soon.
He loves his cousins and Jenna is such a responsible ‘big sister’ even volunteering to have him sleep in her room (which included a stinky nappy all night – yucko!). I felt totally at ease leaving him for the night but that still didn’t mean I slept well. I was wondering whether he was ok and whether the Lims would get any sleep (so my sleep was rather patchy). I think it is really healthy for Allan and I to have some time out and talk and communicate as husband and wife every so often. And CJ is old enough to know we will return. All in all it was a great night.
By the way, at breakfast we were joined by the Everton Football team from the UK. Tim Cahill was there and it caused a bit of a hoo-ha in the room. But I wasn’t that bothered at all. I just enjoyed not having to serve breakfast to a 1y/o nor clean up afterwards.
Another highlight of this month was welcoming Noemi Snelling into the world. She was born early on the 4th of July with much speed and excitement for her parents. We visited her on the third day and felt so privileged to be part of this special celebration. We’re going to miss seeing her grow up – not to mention her wonderful parents!
Note – CJ brought along his camera too! He was spoilt rotten by Uncle Phil who read many books.
CJ was a little bit jealous of Denali as he saw Allan pick him up. Wonder how he will be when he becomes a Big Brother!
That’s right – CJ is going to have to get used to a new baby in the family coming up in Feb 2011. I’m 13 weeks pregnant and very relieved to have made it to this point. I’m still deciding whether to start another blog for this new pregnancy or just continue with Dotti. Praise God for this gift of a new life growing inside. I don’t take this pregnancy for granted at all.
Other things CJ has been up to as a 15 month old – he has taken a keen interest in tractors, cars, trains and bull-dozers. It’s very interesting to see him gravitate towards books with these things in them as well as be able to say the words ‘car, train, tractor’. Who said boys and girls are the same??? He also is now playing more with little toy cars and making sounds as he pushes them along the ground. A few days ago when visiting a girl cousin he managed to pick out the car amongst all her other girly toys.
I took the opportunity to get some cleaning done while CJ viewed the demolition of the neighbours’ house. He was intrigued!
I’ve also enrolled him into swimming classes. He was a little apprehensive on our first visit and cried a few tears but didn’t scream or make a huge fuss once we were moving around and singing. We’ve just had the third class and he’s already jumping off the side into my arms with much confidence and he is also happy to go underwater once or twice. The effort of getting changed and wet and in and out of the pool during winter is worth it if I know in a few years time he will learn to swim. This is a shot before his first lesson.
And here he is after the class – happy to be eating and dry!
When visiting another friends’ place I noticed he really liked sitting on the small couch so taking advantage of the Target Toy sale, I purchased this one. He immediately said “toot toot” when we approached the shelf in the shop so I knew he would like this Thomas one. Now we have three couch potatoes in the house!
Often we let him roam about in the morning before we get ourselves out of our own bed. It’s not unusual to come into the living room and find him sitting still on his couch waiting for the day to start. He has even taken to reading books and spending more time concentrating on the pictures. This amazes me because only a few months ago he was not at all capable of sitting still and perusing any type of literature. Now I find him looking at DVD covers and catalogues studying their contents. It’s all very funny to watch this development.
And so that is the 15 month of CJ Mao’s life. He continues to walk around non-stop and say more and more words and recognise and be able to point to objects. He sometimes joins in on a word or two of “Doe a Deer” from TSOM. He knows to put his hands together when we say grace (although he doesn’t always comply – but at least he remains quiet) and knows to get his devotion book at night after we’ve dressed him, before his milk. And he is very good at sitting in a high-chair when we go out for meals. He experienced his first babycino too which he devoured and he is no longer reacting to eggs or milk which is a huge relief. There is so much more of his personality coming through including the more frustrating aspects like stamping his feet when annoyed or using a high squeal when he doesn’t get his way. We are letting him walk out the front door to the gate and to the car now by himself. Most times when he is walking outside he wants both of us to hold his hands so he can do “yut, yee, sarm” (1, 2, 3 in Chinese) and swing him up high. I have seen him take an interest in other young children and babies and tends to reach out to try to touch their face which isn’t always greeted with enthusiasm.
All in all as the months go on, I am enjoying the emerging person who is my son. Motherhood does get me tired and make me feel like I’m doing the same thing over and over each day. But it comes with such great rewards that aren’t often appreciated on the daily basis. Each night when I lie CJ down in his cot and zip up his sleeping bag he looks up at me and smiles and is so happy and this just makes any day feel so much more fulfilling – no matter how frustrating or exhausting it’s been. I am reminded that this is my God-given role for now – to be CJ’s mum and nurture and influence him like no other person can. Thank God that He gives me the strength and energy and instructions on how to be the best mum for my son.
