Alike yet different

Every individual is unique.

As siblings, Janelle & Jayven do share similar personalities but we also notice that they have different characteristics which make them unique.

Alike
1. They are smiley & sunny
2. They love to dance to music
3. They cannot sit in a stationary stroller for more than 5minutes. Either move that stroller or we have to carry them out
4. They have good motor skills even before they turns one
5. No head accessories please! Anything that we placed on their heads, they will pull it away
6. They love gai gai! Be it just a stroll at the neighborhood or shopping at the mall, they are always excited

Difference
1. Janelle's cries are soft & mellow whereas Jayven's cries are loud & forceful
2. Janelle were scared of kiddy rides then but Jayven enjoys kiddy rides
3. Janelle liked to koala on me when she was sleepy, Jayven will roll all over the bed before he finally dozes off
4. Janelle can fall asleep in noisy surroundings, Jayven need complete silence else he will get distracted
5. Jayven put anything everything into his mouth & drool alot. We never have to be worried about what Janelle was holding onto as she will not put them into her mouth
6. Janelle is more careful & watch her steps when she was crawling / cruising around the house. Jayven is more daring / reckless as he is totally oblivious to the potential dangers when he moves from one place to another. He will just climb over whatever 'obstacles' to get where / what he wants

No matter how alike or different they are, the 2 Js are unique individual and have their own merits & weaknesses. That's what makes them so special!

Good health matters most

Jayven gave us a terrible scare on last Sat late night. He woke up for his feed but he was screaming unusually loud & body was shaking uncontrollably. My hubs & I tried to wake him up but he was in semi conscious state. Fever came not long after & spiked up to 39 degree within 15 mins. It was an extremely frightening scene & we rushed him to KKH.

It was confirmed to be febrile seizure & he had to be admitted for observation for the next 24 hours. No recurrence of seizure & no fever. Really wonder why it happened to my boy. Doctor advised that there is a 30% chance that it may happen again since there is a first time. I pray hard that Jayven will fall into the 70% population instead.

Early this January, Janelle was also hospitalized for 5 days in TMC for high fever & her fever lasted almost 3 weeks. Hospital stays with the kids are extremely tiring & taxing. Not to mention having to deal with their crankiness & mood swings when they are confined in the hospital premises. All the poor kids who have to go through such agony at a tender young age. It's really not easy for the kids too.

Being a parent, it is always worrying when our kids fall ill & require medical attention esp for high fever (and seizure!) I really hope that after the recent incidents, everything will be well & my babies will be blessed with good health!

Poor Janelle with high fever in TMC 

Jayven under observation in KKH

Spaghetti!

It started on a weekend when my hubs do not feel like eating out or order in. So I suggested to cook spaghetti since it has been a long while since I last prepared the dish (to be exact, I have not prepared spaghetti ever since Janelle arrived). Janelle tried the dish for the first time & loved it.

Recently, she requested for spaghetti for lunch and I was most happy to oblige her. She remembered having the dish and is asking for it again. I asked her if she like the spaghetti prepared by me and she said yes. Imagine my happiness! :)

Time to check out new recipes & cook more often!

Home alone with 2 kids

Janelle has bronchitis & fever so she cannot attend school for the week. And my mum has to undergo treatment for her eyes this week. So I am home alone with my 2 kids. 

The moment that I dread most will be getting both of them to nap. Since I am alone with the 2 monkeys, it is not possible to place one of them in another room while I get the other one to nap. As expected, both of them ended playing with each other though it is time for their nap. I ended up 'battling' with them for an hour before they finally KO.

Siblings! It's really a joy to watch them at play & fooling around. They never fail to amuse my hubs & I.

My beautiful kids! At play before bedtime

Jiejie's the dearest

My boy adores his jiejie.

He has always been attracted to jiejie's voice as a newborn. He will react & listen to her whenever she speaks & he will smile even when asleep (afterall he has been hearing the familiar voice for 8 months before they met). As he grew older, he loved to watch jiejie sing & dance. And he never failed to bounce along with excitement. And now they simply love to play & fool around with each other. It is a joy to watch them at play.

Jiejie pretending to be the doc when didi was unwell

Fooling around 

We are aware that Janelle is his 'idol'. But who would have guessed that "jiejie" is the first word that he said! In his excitement during play, he called "jiejiejiejiejie" as he tried to reach out to her. Awwww! That was sooooo sweet! We tried to get him to say papa & mama many times but he will just smile or ignore us. I hope that they will grow up & share a strong sibling bond just like my sis & me!

Now, next in line... I shall teach him to call mama :)

Only child vs two children

Janelle was an only child for 2.5 years before Jayven joined our happy family. I can still remember how attached I am to my firstborn and the intense love that I have for her the moment I set my eyes on her. As she grow older, my love for her grow deeper too. I wouldn't have thought of a sibling for her as I love her dearly that I wonder how it is ever possible to spilt the love.

Even during my second pregnancy, my jealous firstborn demanded more attention from me & wanted me to carry her most of the times (even when I was heavily pregnant) & I couldn't even bear to say no to her. I thought to myself then. Will I be able to shower the same love for my secondborn? What if I am not able to divide the love equally?

I believed that there are many only child mummies who felt the same way as I initially did. How will it be possible for us to spilt the love for another child?

Guess i have underestimated maternal affection. When my secondborn arrive prematurely at 34 weeks, he was such a tiny baby weighing at 2.15kg. I was worried that I might not be able to cope with 2 childrens esp with one preemie who required special attention. But the first time I held him in my arms, I know I love him & I can love him like my firstborn. The love that I have for My firstborn was not divided. Instead the love that I have for my children intensify & grow much deeper.

Being an only child back then, Janelle had all our undivided attention & time. With the addition of her brother, it is indeed a challenge to provide them with the much needed attention for each individual (even more so for FTWM). Caring for 2 kids do require more time & attention but the joy that we get in return is doubled or even tripled.

I am very glad that I am able to spend more time with my kids. Now I am able to get daily updates on her school & what she has learnt via the teachers and through her non stop chattering. Jayven has been able to move around the whole house under proper supervision. It has been a fulfilling week! And not forgetting that my hubs have been very supportive. I love my family!

First step

Jayven has been able to stand on his own for at least a minute just before he turns 11 months. Today he is 11months & 11days old. While he was standing unsupported (totally distracted with my bangle that he is holding onto), I just opened my arms & said "come to mummy" & he did just that! It was his first independent step. Guess I will be running after him soon :)

lil mr terror & lil ms independent

I couldn't catch a wink at all last night. Jayven was fussing so much that my hubs & I were kept awake the entire night. I really hope he can recover from runny nose & cough soon so that he can sleep much better.

During the day, he behaved like a lil terror. Messed with the remote controllers on the coffee table, threw them on the floor, cruised to the window, attempted to throw his teether out, placed him on the walker & he will push himself out of it. Guess it is due to discomfort from his illness.

Wonder why he is always so fascinated with remote controllers

Barney! Clapping & dancing along with the songs

Finally! Sound asleep after all the fussing. Having stuffy nose.

On the other hand, Janelle is lil Ms Independent today. She will insisted that she can do everything by herself.

She volunteered to open the mailbox on our way back

She knows how to get home

Having more time with the kids, I am able to prep them for bedtime earlier and both snoozed off to dreamland by 9pm. This was never possible when I was working as by the time we gotten home, have dinner & prep them for bed, it will be 10pm. It's a good change & I look forward to many more. 

Second half of the day

First day as SAHM. I cleared my kitchen cabinet & fridge, discarded all the expired food (obviously the food/snack have been forgotten) & kept them clean & neat.

After fetching my gal from school, we went out to get travel necessities for my mum for her Japan trip (a well-deserved break from looking after my 2 kids when I was still a FTWM).

Surprisingly my 2 kids went to bed by 10pm (which is earlier than their recent bedtime) and I thought I can have some me-time. But my gal vomited in her sleep not long after she fell asleep. My poor gal was tramautised & cried so badly that she woke her brother. Lucky my dad managed to coax the lil boy back to sleep while my hubs get busy washing the bedsheet & I had to shower her from head to toes as she was covered with vomit. 

Finally my 2 babies are sleeping soundly once again. Hope they will have a good night sleep (& hope the lil boy will wean off night feed very soon). 

Good night my loves!

First day as SAHM

Today marks a new journey for me as I decided to be a full-time mummy to my 2 wonderful kids. It is indeed a tough decision as this mean that there will be less household income and we have to live a much simpler life (no more impulse purchases or dining out at restaurants as often as we would like to). With my gal turning 4yo and my boy turning 1yo, we felt that we need to give them much attention and love especially at this fast growing stage.

The morning has started off busy as I have to prep my gal and send her to school, went to market for breakfast and grocery shopping with my parents and my boy, showered my boy when we returned from market, fed him milk before he took his nap. Busier than my usual working day mornings but definitely much fulfilling and happier :)

My gal & I before she set off for school

Time for milk

Breakfast time

His favourite activity - Bath time!

Best of all, I tried to explain to my gal that mummy has left her job and will spend more time with including fetching her from school from today onwards and she replied "I love you mummy!" Awww... my heart totally melted. A good start to my life as SAHM!