Dear babydoll

As i am typing this, you are cruising along the television console and say 'bababababba'. Oh, you are my little delight!

At 9 months, you are exploring. Crawling at every corner of the house, cruising along any and every set of furniture in the house. Eating, biting, munching & god-forbid swallowing, every paper, string, dust, toy, card- just about anything your puny hands can get hold of.

Before you were this mobile, big brother would readily say 'I love!' when we asked him if he loves you. But from the moment you crawled & destroyed his lego and train station creation, he's answer has become 'i DON'T love!'. :I well, who can blame him?

We are in the midst of the Chinese New year period and your crazy mother fed you Mandarin oranges! You LOVE the oranges and would immediately perk up on seeing anyone with oranges! I have the right to believe the first word you've respond to is 'ORANGE!'.

You seem to have a huge appetite when i feed you jar food but would never fail to gag & refuse when i feed you my homemade food?! Daddy says that shows alot about my cooking. :I

We love to hear you coo. You would let out a high pitch 'AAAAAH!' whenever you discover new corners in the house or new toys. You are still doing the 'bababababa' and 'mamamamama' and 'gagagagaga' thing. How cute.

Like your brother, you are a happy kid. You are generous with your smiles to anyone and everyone. I love how you make strangers so delighted when you flash your toothy grin at them.

Although i tell everyone you tend to be more difficult i.e cry more. BUt to be fair, you were not given the full attention i gave to big brother. You have to fight for my attention. So is it a wonder that you cry louder and longer? We didn't have the second car when big brother was at your age, so i carried him whenever we took the transport. But now that i have to ferry big brother to school, i've no choice but to leave you wailing your lungs out in the car- back and forth.

But still, you are a happy little girl by nature. Like your brother, i can generally leave you on the floor to explore on your own. You don't quite need me to accompany or entertain you. But still, i have to keep a watchful eye because you tend to put the smallest of things in your mouth - something i never had that with big brother. You scared the wits out of me when i discovered a small piece of lego in your mouth!

Baby girl, you are such a sweet delight. Such a blessing, such a joy. I am glad you've joined in this family. I wouldn't have it any other way.

8 months

Babydoll is now 8 months old. She is impossibly mobile and squirmy. She can't quite stay at one place for long. Looks like i've got one active kid in the house.

At this moment, she is crawling but unlike her brother, it isn't her forte. She'd rather be carried by me particularly. Her separation anxiety is quite severe, i can't quite leave her alone for longer than 5 minutes. But i don't mind because i know when she's my age, she would be out there in her own world.

She has also started to cruise. She loves to pull herself up to stand and cruise. She is also babbling. Oddly, she babbles 'mamammamamamamama' whenever she is in distress or 'bababbababababa' when daddy is in the driver seat and she's trying to reach out for him from the back. And whenever she sees her beloved big brother she babbles 'ge ge ge ge'. But i don't think she is speaking in particular.

She dislikes her toys but loves anything paper, string, plastic and oh legos. I've sworn to myself that i'll never get her another toy- at least not now.

She still hates the car seat and cries bloody murder whenever we're in the car. So mama has to endure her wails ringing endlessly while driving. Quite a feat, if you ask me.

I love my babydoll, she is such a cutie. I love how she responds to me with a toothy grin. She smiles easily and love that about her (but cries equally easily too!). The world is a much better place with her. OK i am bias!

oh and she absolutely hates eating. At 8 months, i have NOT started her on regular solid because she gets quite nasty and cries. She is also spitting out her food...hmm another sonshine in the making.