Growth Spurt??

Hello Princess!

You should be taking your afternoon nap anytime now.... it's already 2:07pm. Have a good rest and good dinner and see you in the evening! Mommy just can't wait to logoff and pack and go. 2 hours and 30 mins more to go.

Wondering if you're experiencing growth spurt now. You woke up at 1am crying... and for the past 2 nights. Same time. I gave you a nice pat on your shoulder or butt and then you fell back asleep, but when I removed my hands from your crib, you started crying again. I put back my hands inside your crib, gave you a nice pat and then you closed your eyes and fell back asleep. But as soon as I took out my hands from your crib, somehow in your dreamland, you felt it and then you started crying.

In the end, I woke up, touched your forehead, well.. your temperature was normal. Phewww.. or could it be your tummy? Gassy bloated tummy? So, mommy rubbed some yu yi oil on your tummy, changed your diaper and then put you back to sleep. But you just didn't want to sleep... you started crying every time I took out my hands from your crib.

Finally, mommy got up, went to the pantry and made you some milk! You drank so fast... so, you were actually hungry! I wonder how long this will go on, because every time you get up for milk at this wee hour, mommy gets hungry as well! Ooopsss! You make me hungry! Haha! And last night, I ended up cooking a pack of tomyam noodles. =/

I've been thinking, are you experiencing growth spurt now? Hopefully it won't take long before you are back to your schedule, sleep-through-the-night. Love you!! =)

 

 I just can't take my eyes off you everyday! You're such a pretty!

Our Shining Star....

Dear Ashlynn,

It's been a while since I've penned down your achievements and write about the funny things that you've done at this age. I know I write them weekly and I've slacked in this. At this moment, I have a lot of things to write about you. At this stage in our life. At this moment.

The now.....

You are now 12 months 12 days. How time flies. You were a small baby on the first day you greeted the world. You couldn't tell us how you feel at days and you left me and dad with a big question mark every time you cried. Wondering what was not right. Wondering if you feel comfortable. And when we saw you regurgitated milk quite often, we panic. We almost drove you to the hospital. If one day we didn't see a poo, we started to worry. And when you were infected with some flu bugs and felt so uncomfortable, I cried when you cried. All these have passed, you are now a big girl.

We love to call you names, you have few names in our dictionary. Cutie pie, sweetie pie, baby A, baby girl, little Coro, pretty girl ...... and our favorite nickname is cutie pie. Because you are too cute. So cute! We love to kiss your sweet baby cheeks, your soft cheeks. And mommy loves to smell your hair. Even though if you sweat terribly that day, I still love to smell your hair.

I didn't want to mention this, but I think it's cute, because this mommy loves to bite! You always like to put your little fingers into mommy's mouth and expect mommy to bite that little fingers. You call this a game and you find it pretty interesting. Your fingers will reach out to mommy's hair and pull them, or sometimes your fingers will reach out to mommy's face and you grab my nose. I didn't scold you for that, because I know you are curious what is that bulging thing on my face.

You are a good girl. The babysitter says you are good. You listen to what she says. When it is a NO, you listen. You won't do things to upset us. At home, you are the same. When we say NO, you pause for a moment to digest the word. And then you move away. We are so proud of you!

I can never forget your cute voice calling me Amma. Or when I have some food in my hands and you would like to have some, you grab my hands and call me Ma. I love to hear your baby coos and your baby voice. So cute.

I can't ever stop thinking about you. Everyday in office, I think of you. I miss you! What you are doing. Have you eaten your lunch. And when I see your cute little shoes in daddy's car, I miss you. If only I can be with you 24 hours a day, I will be complete.

Do you know that you have made our lives complete? Having you around with us is so much of fun. We are beyond blessed! We love you more than words can say. You are our world. And you are our everything. We love you so much! Every day with you is so much of fun! Is a new adventure! Is a new journey of life! And we've learn to be better parents each day! We have learn so much from you. How to be a better parents. Every day with you is a challenge to make it better than the last.

We will always pray for you. That you are safe. That you grow up to be a girl that loves Him and your family. That you will be a girl of character, a woman after God's own heart and a girl that lives in His abundant blessings!

Ashlynn, I could kiss you for all day. And hug you forever. You are our baby girl forever. I want to be the best mom that I can be for you, though sometimes I might lost my senses, but I want to let you know that I love you so much. I may not be the perfect storybook mom.... I may struggle to be one at times.... but I would like to let you know ....

I Love You!

I will live every day SHOWING you that these words are real.... it's not a statement, but it's truly from the bottom of our hearts... Daddy and Mommy love Ashlynn! I almost teared when I type this, because you never know how much you mean to us...... we love you too much! Our soul. Our everything. Our daughter. Our princess!

Restoran Makko @ Malacca

Makko Restaurant is easier to go compare to Amy Nyonya Restaurant. There are few signboards from Jonker street leading to this restaurant. Price is also almost the same, and the food is good as well. I love nyonya food!

 Little girl was so ready for dinner, warmed up with a piece of crackers on her hands.

 Sambal Tumis Sotong

 Tauhu Minced Chicken

 Ayam rendang

A bowl of cendol for the hubby.

Overall, the food here is good. Not as over rated as the food in jonker street. Looks like food in nyonya restaurant is more appetizing than food in jonker street nowadays. So, forget about jonker street, the over happening place in Malacca, the only thing you can consider in JS is the night market. But, having Ashlynn around with us, night market is a no-no place for babies, over crowded. =/

Restoran Nyonya Amy @ Malacca

One unforgettable memory about dining in Nyonya Amy was that we circled Malacca city for almost 30mins just to get to this restaurant. I almost gave up the plan to dine here but Mr hubby was so persistent, he said "Let's give a last try, if we still lost our way, we go to Makko Restaurant." God has been good to him, he managed to find this restaurant after calling the restaurant owner twice (and the owner eventually hung up the phone call after he found us super irritating I guess? Haha), turning around Malacca city for mins and then with his google map on the phone screen! The food better be good after these much of hassles. =/

 

Baby girl was so ready for food ordering! Where's the boss?! Hehe.

A bucket of rice!

 Ayam Pong Teh

 

 Nyonya tauhu with spicy sour sauce

 Highly recommended by the restaurant, Pie Tee!

Asam fish!

The food is all ok, better than jonker street. At least we get to taste some authentic nyonya food, the real nyonya food. And this restaurant actually came out in the newspaper before! So, if you happen to drive through the town of Malacca, hop on to this restaurant. Beware, you might get lost like me, or perhaps you could do better than me. =D The price not that expensive, we paid about RM40+ for these three dishes. Can you get this price in KL? Definitely no! 

I miss Malacca!

Nadeje @ Malacca

I always love crepe cake and I'm a loyal customer at Food Foundry. The crepe cake there is superb! And we happened to go for a short holiday in Malacca and the crepe cake in Nadeje should not be missed! They have a variety of crepe cakes there and these are the three that we chose. Awesome! Heaven!

 Strawberry chocolate

Red of strawberry, Black of Chocolate crepe and White of fresh cream, this is a lovely design mille crepe.

 Nadeje Mille Crepe. Home made custard cream with Tahitian Vanilla Beans mix with Fresh Cream. It would melt smoothly in your mouth… But the rich taste and aroma definitely stay there.

 

Gula Melaka Crepe 

Among the three crepes above, my favorite crepe cake would be strawberry chocolate and the original mille crepe. Superb! Blogging about all these, I'm drooling away, craving for a crepe cake now! 

Can't wait to go Malacca again!

Nadeje Mahkota Parade

G-23B, EG 4 & EG 5, Ground Floor, Mahkota Parade, 75000 Melaka.
Tel No : 06-2843469.

Operation Hours:
Daily : 10:00am - 10:00pm

Splash and Splash...... fun!

When Ashlynn was born, she doesn't like water. Or I could say she doesn't like the fact that you take out her clothes and she will scream! Screamed and cried so loud throughout the bathing time and as a first time mom, I get panic easily and most of the time, Ashlynn just have a quick speedy bath. Because I couldn't bear the loud cry. As she grew older, she loves water! She loves bath time! And she cries when we take her out from her bath tub! This is when the real bath kicks in ..... so, we decided to get her a baby float and off we went to the swimming pool for a splashy time! =D

Being to a totally new place, such a big bath tub, she just not used to the environment and she clings to us like a koala.

10 mins passed and she was still clinging like a baby koala....

 She observed the entire pool and see how much we enjoyed swimming and splash and in the end, she was happy to be in her baby float.

 We brought her for tour, tour around the pool and her legs kicked non-stop. Such a cutie! She finally love the pool!!

 Self tour and self play and she enjoyed it much! Her hands touches the water and then she hit the water so hard so that it splashes to her face and then she looked at us with amazement and then she chuckles!

First time to the pool and we only let her play for 30mins. Afraid that she might catch some cold... but overall, she did really well.

Baby, we will bring you to Hard Rock hotel baby pool one day! =D

First Birthday Party!

Up till today, I still can't believe that one year passed that fast! It was just like yesterday Ashlynn was born and today, she is One! We were busy preparing her first birthday party, I was so excited with the preparations (even though it was tiring as we managed everything on our own, most of the things we DIY). Her first birthday bash was held at City Harvest Church KL, the cafeteria. If you wish to host your child's birthday party there, hook up to the church's website .

Balloons all pumped and ready to go on walls.... but most of the balloons burst before we even have the chance to hang it.

Final preparations before the arrival of guests....

DIY birthday banner, thanks to Anders Ruff Design. Very beautiful! You can print them for free HERE!

 

DIY cute bunnies party pack.. Inside contains lots of sugars and the kids gonna get hyped up with the sugar contents. Hehe. 

And you can print these cute bunnies from HERE! You can find a lot of cute printable in Pinterest and search for "Printable Birthday Party"

Instead of making guestbook, I made guestpaper? Hehe.... 3 princess theme sheets for our guests to drop sweet sweet comments for our lovely Princess.

 

 The 9 months in the womb journal including the first years journey of our Princess! I love looking at this book from time to time and I miss those days.... time passed so fast and sometimes I was too busy that I didn't slowly digest the sweet moments of three. I need to learn to slow down. Savoring moments. Taking in an extra snuggle or cuddle with my daughter.

 

Oh boy! My favorite birthday cake! Love these cakes so much that if possible, I didn't want to cut these cakes at all, especially the pretty princess doll cake! Thanks to Aunty Christie, she spent 12 hours in the kitchen making fondants, baking the cakes and slowly craft them into a beautiful princess with her castle. Thank you so much!

I ordered them from HERE! This is her facebook page and you can message her for more details. 

Note, her chocolate moist cake is the best, so you wouldn't want to miss it! And most important is, she bakes the nicest and cheapest cake in town! I'm sure you cannot get a price like this in KL! Or I should say my daughter is blessed! =D

 And the sweet cupcakes baked by my ex-colleague, Ieta. She's gorgeous and she bakes pretty cupcakes! 

You can order them from HERE! SMS/CALL her directly or view her blog and you can see a lot a lot of pretty and cute cupcakes. Love her cupcakes much!

 A birthday prayer dedicated to our Princess by Loren. Thank you!

My cute SIL with the clown nose. Haha!

Happily rocking on this horse, thank you Grandma!

 When cousin meets cousin, or baby meets baby, this is usually what they do.... Baby Valentina is so cute! And she's not scared of strangers, I can carry her anywhere.... hehe.

How do you describe MELTS? She's one clever girl filled with "surprised" gestures that will melt your heart instantly!

The party ended with unpacking unwrapping gifts... so many of them and I feel so happy to open on behalf of the princess! *looks like I'm more excited than her*. Haha!

Thank you everyone for coming! You guys made her birthday party a special memorable one!

Thank you for the lovely gifts! Her wardrobe is going to explode anytime now!

Thank you for leaving her some sweet encouraging words, she will definitely treasure it when she grows up!

Thank you Hubby for planning this together with me!

Thank you GOD for the amazing one year and better days are ahead of us! As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord! 

Lastly, BIG BIG THANK YOU EVERYONE!

She's ONE!

My daughter is officially ONE and how time flies. I still remember the day I was having bad contractions, we rushed to the hospital from Dorsett Subang and I was already 5cm dilated, the day I knew how much pain is labor pain and the day I knew what is 1,2,3 push. I still remember I kept pestering the midwife to vacuum out my baby because I was in so much pain and when I think back today, I feel so silly. Baby was still deep inside and how can vacuum works? Lol....

Oh well, thank God for a smooth delivery, our princess was born on 12:13pm after 15 mins of push. We welcomed our princess with a big smile and we proudly declared that We Are Parents! The feeling was so great when our princess made her grand entrance, our heart was filled with thankfullness. So thankful with this blessing!

And now, she's ONE! Our princess is ONE! Her first birthday! Talking back about the day she was born until today, we've been through many hurdles. The day she was admitted to hospital due to jaundice, and then due to excessive phlegm, cough and blocked nose and then HFMD. It hurts our heart much when we see our daughter in pain, lost her appetite, crying in pain and yet she couldn't tell us her feelings, all she could do was cry........ And I finally joined her crying in pain, seeing her feeling so uncomfortable. Anyway, it was all over now. She's one healthy daughter, whenever she catches a cold/cough, it goes away after 2 days. It never go longer than that and we are beyond thankful.

She's active, lively, healthy, strong, smart, intelligent... and she's a great dancer. She dances to music! Follow her papa's steps I guess? Hehe.... She's learning how to walk now, and she loves it when we hold her hands for a walk. She calls me Amma, just like how she calls her babysitter. Melts.....

Overall, we had a great one year. Life is so different having a baby in our midst, life is no longer two , but three.. and soon, four, and then five. I love my family! Everyday, when I look at my baby, I feel that my heart is going to explode, too much of love and thankfulness. It's like you blow a balloon and it expanded and expanded and once it contained too much air, it burst.

10 great things about my ONE year old daughter:

1) She CALLS me Amma! Melts...........
2) Everyday, she wakes up with a SMILE!
3) She loves Mr Barney, the purple dinosaur... apparently, she learnt a lot from Mr Barney. Her favourite songs: Grandpa's farm, Muffin Man, Barney theme song
4) She loves us to carry her ....
5) She likes bread!
6) She knows how to manja by coming near you, hug you and then lay her head on your shoulder. Awww... this girl is going to be one real Princess!
7) She loves to lay her head on her daddy's belly... and then disturbed the belly hole. Haha. Cute!
8) She knows what it means by "Ashlynn, pick up the toy" or "Ashlynn, give Mama".. she did really well. My smart girl! =D
9) She knows how to claps, do peekaboo, wave bye bye, kiss kiss, sayang, hi 5 ....
10) She likes to drink milk more than eating her porridge. And she crawls very fast to us whenever we have food on our hands. So much of cuteness!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PRINCESS!
You're our little princess, forever! *muacks*