Day 192

Simon has outgrown his puppy pal sleepmat (see him here on Day 46). He can’t sleep on top of it anymore since his feet hang off the edge so instead he hugs it to fall asleep like a stuffed animal.

Simon knows when he’s on camera and gives a big smile.

Whee!

Grandma Tam got Simon this little monster toy that “talks” when you squeeze it. Simon was having a conversation with him and seemed to get upset when the monster didn’t respond. He’d be babbling along then pause… and if Ron didn’t squeeze it to make more sounds, Simon would get cranky.

Simon also has this other little Winnie the Pooh to sleep with and his pillow from our friends in Singapore for comfort.

Poor Simon still has a runny nose so after he wakes up from a nap, his nose is usually all crusty with dried mucous.

Ron used the bulb syringe to help Simon clear out his nose and for some reason, Simon seemed to find it funny.

He hasn’t been sleeping very well the last few nights because of his cold, his teething, and after his recent round of vaccinations. The other night, he woke up crying and a bit warm (not really feverish), seemed very thirsty as he downed 4 oz (120ml) of milk in less than 10 minutes. After he drank his fill, he didn’t want to lie down in his crib by himself so I just held him for a while and patted his back until he fell asleep. I know the books say this can lead to bad habits and that he’ll always need to be held to fall asleep… but I felt so bad for him because he was uncomfortable and there wasn’t that much I could do about it other than comfort him. I hope since I only do this once in a while that he won’t get too used to it.

Last photo of the day, Simon seems annoyed in this picture, like “gosh, can you stop taking my picture already…”

When he’s a teenager and doesn’t need us anymore, I’m sure this is the expression that he’ll give us. I’m glad that is many years away!

Day 189

Simon usually wakes up early but then will go back to take another nap in the morning. After he wakes up, he is usually refreshed and very happy and smiley.

For some reason, I really like the expression in his eyes and lips in this photo. Either very joyful or very mischievous.

Simon is learning new ways of keeping himself standing without our assistance. If we are sitting on the ground with him, he can lean on on us or lean on our knees if he is standing between our legs with our knees up… or Ron tested his strength to stand against the playpen rails.

Simon is basically locking his knees and leaning his arms against the edge to keep himself up.

It will be interesting (and possibly dangerous) when he learns to pull himself up into this position.

For now he has to be propped up this way and can’t stand up by himself… whew!

Day 188

After a busy weekend, we took it slow today. Woke up late and took a walk to have some noodles for lunch. I carried Simon using the Ergo carrier and he fell asleep so I had to eat my noodles carefully so not to spill on his head. The good thing about the Ergo is that there is a hood so I could cover him from any potential drips as well. On the way home though he woke up so I decided to try carrying him in the back.

It is a bit weird feeling since I’m afraid he might fall out but he is actually pretty secure and it is easier to walk uphill with him on my back since I can lean forward more.

So we spent the rest of the day at home just relaxing. We let Simon practice standing and see if he could keep his balance. He can stand on his feet for 1-2 seconds before toppling over.

We think we might be letting him practice standing too much since he gets kind of cranky when on his tummy for too long. He just might stand up before he starts to crawl.