POW!

Perhaps it wasn’t a good idea to bring Little Mochi out to see the fireworks afterall.  He got so scared of all the noise.  We ended up keeping him in the car and driving around the neighborhood so that he can see the fireworks.  Being in the car drains out the noise a lot.  He was happy to see that.  But when we brought him outside, all the pows and booms startled him!

After we put him to sleep, he woke up a few hours later crying very hard.  He must have had a nightmare.  I came up to him and he immediately hugged me.  He would only sleep on my shoulder or sleep very close to me.

I assume next year would be too early still to take him out?

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Mason’s 2nd Birthday

First and foremost:  Happy Independence Day!

I can’t believe Little Mochi’s 2 today.   I woke up this morning, took a long look at the boy, and thought back on the past 730 days of his life.  Where have they gone?  Look at him now.  He’s so grown up.  I looked at some of his pictures that we took over the past two years and couldn’t believe how innocent he was last year.  He’s now a little rascal!  Those “terrible two’s” are kicking in.

I honestly don’t know where or who he learned this from, but he is so defiant when it comes to putting on clothes, especially after his bath.  He will not let us clothe him or diaper him after a bath.  He won’t even let us put on lotion anymore!  He runs around naked, jumps on the mattress, and laughs.  But that’s not the worse part.  He’ll look at us, give us a devilish look, and runs around laughing.  Last week, he pee’d on our carpet.  As if that didn’t teach him a lesson to let us put on his diaper!  Earlier this week, as he was jumping up and down and running around, he POOPED on our carpet!  And then guess what?  He looks at it, looks at us, and laughs as if it was some game!

My husband and I were so upset.  But at the same time thought it was cute.  Not the pooping part of course.  The “looking at us and then running around laughing” part.  I couldn’t help but sneak in a smile when Little Mochi wasn’t looking.

My question for you today is:  How do you get your child to put on his/her clothes and diapers without having to fight with them? Obviously, I don’t want any more poop stains on my carpet…

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Potty Training Time?

When is the best time to start potty training?  Little Mochi is 19 months now.  Should we start potty training him now?  I just bought some pull up diapers but haven’t really used them yet.  I guess I’m not sure how to start. 

Last week, I put him on the potty toilet for about 5 minutes, until he got restless and wanted to run around again.  My dad said to have him sit on the potty toilet for a few minutes every morning after he wakes up until he can finally pee without his diaper.  Has anyone tried that yet?

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Happy First Birthday, Little Mochi!

Little Mochi had his first birthday two weeks ago!  We had a big party last Saturday (July 6) – the turn out was good and the guests seemed to have enjoyed themselves. 

For those of you looking for birthday party ideas for your kid’s first birthday – themes, food, decorations, etc – here is what we did for Little Mochi.

Time of the party:

First of all, the time of the party seem to be the most important.  You have to schedule the party around his nap time.  Little Mochi usually naps around noon time and then again around 4 or 5 pm.  So I scheduled the party from 1 pm – 5 pm.  You don’t want him looking cranky in his pictures or camcorder because he’s tired.

Theme of the party:

We picked a Hawaiian theme.  We wanted something fun, laid back, and comfortable for our guests.  We could have done a western theme but I didn’t think having him wear a Western outfit would have been comfortable for him, especially in July when the weather is hot.  Having Little Mochi wear a Hawaiian shirt is not only comfortable for him, but is also easy to put on and take off.

Attire and decorations:

Most of our guests came in their Hawaiian shirts and grass skirts.  We had Hawaiian music playing in the background.  The music was nice because the tunes are relaxing and laid back. We purchased a box of 50 plastic lei’s for $10 from Party City and had one of my cousins lei’d the guests as they arrived.  Although they were just cheap plastic lei’s, it surprised the guests.  And besides, it help create the “Hawaiian” atmosphere.

We also purchased a big blow up coconut tree that holds the drinks at the bottom.  We just filled the bottom with ice and put the drinks on top.  It also makes a nice decoration and adds to the whole Hawaiian theme.

We also purchased some plastic Hibiscus and taped them all over the room.  That didn’t do much since our clubhouse (where we had the party) was so big and I had only 50 flowers. 

The only thing that I didn’t do was get a tiki bar because I decided not to serve any alcohol (too many kids – bad influence).

Food and Drinks:

We almost catered from L&L’s Hawaiian BBQ but decided to serve ribs instead.  The ribs were purchased from Costco.  To make it easier on the guests, we cut up the ribs before we served them so you can grab one, two or three ribs instead of grabbing the entire rack of ribs.  Also, that way, it won’t be the only thing the guests eat (those ribs get expensive!).

My mom made Pineapple, Bacon and Ham fried rice.  I think I would have asked her to use Spam instead of the Bacon and Ham since everyone seems to associate Spam with Hawaii, but Spam gets expensive.  Who would have noticed the difference anyway?

I also had lasgna.  That went quick.  At first, I thought I should have made another plate of lasgna, but towards the end of the party, there was still a lot of left over food.

There was a lot of desserts.  My mother in law made a Chinese green bean dessert.  My mom made carrot cake.  We didn’t buy a birthday cake (thought the carrot cake was enough).  And I had fruit for the guests. 

We also had chips and salsa and egg rolls as snacks.

As for drinks, I made sure we had Hawaiian Fruit Punch!  Lots of it.  Root beer is always a favorite in our family.  As I mentioned before, I didn’t serve any alcohol because there was going to be a lot of young kids at the party.  I didn’t think it was appropriate.

Presents:

Little Mochi got a lot of presents.  We opened them after the guests left because I didn’t want the kids to feel bad.  I didn’t wrap “gifts” (party favors) for them so thought it was best to just open the presents later instead.

Party Favors:

I bought bubble blowers for the kids to keep them busy.  It’s also inexpensive.   But for the adults, I purchased a small box of Hawaiian cookies and a small bag of chocolate covered coffee beans for them to take home.

What I regret:

I didn’t take enough pictures or videos.

We didn’t play any games.  I really wanted to do the limbo, but the day passed by so quickly that I didn’t realize how late it was.  Everyone was either too tired or already running around.

I couldn’t get Little Mochi to take his nap any earlier than 12:30 so I didn’t make it to the clubhouse until nearly 2 pm!

I didn’t bring my cell phone with me so one friend got lost and couldn’t get a hold of me.  It took her 2 hours to finally find us.  And my cousinn tried to call to get directions, but couldn’t get a hold of me.  They ended up not showing up.  Their baby is only 2 weeks older than Little Mochi so it would have been great to see them interact.

What I’m thankful for:

My mom for helping me make the food and carrot cake.

My mother in law for bringing the dessert.

My husband and two brothers for entertaining the guests at the poker table.  Especially my husband since he made them happy since he lost all his money to them!!!!  :-)

My sister for helping out before the party because I was recovering from food poisioning (I almost had to cancel the party because I almost rushed myself to ER early, really early that morning).

All my cousins that stayed behind to help clean up.

My father in law for taking the 5 video clips that I otherwise would not have taken because I barely took any pictures to begin with.

And most importantly, all the guests for showing up in their Hawaiian gear!

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Little Mochi Update at 10 months

He’s cruisin’!  Yup, my Little Mochi started cruising last week.  He is able to pull himself up and walk along furniture now.  I didn’t realize how strong they can be, being able to pull themselves up and all.  I feel that it won’t be long until he can take his first step!  Now he just won’t sit!

Also, he’s very good at pointing to where he wants you to take him.  Every time I carry him, he’ll point in one direction.  If you take him there, he’ll clap. 

Babbles way too much now.  But it’s so adorable.  However, this Little Mochi of mine sure has a temper!  Perhaps every baby does this.  But he kicks, screams, and cries if we set him down when he doesn’t want to be set down.  Or try to give him milk when he doesn’t want his milk.  Arg.

Speaking of milk, Little Mochi doesn’t seem to want it anymore.  Loves his juice and water out of his sippy cup though!  But during the day, he pushes the milk bottle away.  But if I give him the sippy cup, he’ll glady take it.  Why do babies do that?  Why do they stop wanting their milk?  Little Mochi still wakes up once during the night for a feeding – that’s the only time he’ll take the bottle.  Hm…

 

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Enfamil, Come Back!

It wasn’t too long ago when those large 32 ounce Costco sized Enfamil cans fed Little Mochi for a month. Now, it’s lasting only 2 weeks. I thought he was supposed to drink less? Then why does it seem like those cans are emptying out quicker? Despite the fact that Little Mochi drinks 8 ounces at once, he certainly drinks less frequently per day.

Can anyone tell me why it seems like we are going through more formula powder now?

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Where is Little Mochi?

In the last month or two, I’ve noticed that Little Mochi turns 90 degrees in his crib in the middle of the night.  When I wake up in the middle of the night to check up on him, I’d see him lying there vertically, with his hands and legs spread out.  How comfortable he looks.

Except lately, he’s grown a few inches taller and has adapted to every corner of the crib.  I’d find him crunched in the upper left corner one night, then in the bottom right corner the next.  Strange isn’t it?  How do they even get in those positions in the first place?  It’s like as if someone literally picked them up from where I laid him to sleep and then stuffed him in a corner of the crib.

Of course, he has learned to kick off his blanket now as well.
I  pick him up carefully so that I do not wake him up, and put him in his place.  I then put two blankets on him – crazy me but I’m paranoid about him catching a cold.  Finally, I peck him on his cheeks and bid him goodnight (as if he can hear me in his sleep!).

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Will My Baby Roll Over?

This is a follow up to my other Baby Roll Over post.

Little Mochi is a little over 6 months now. And guess what? He still hasn’t rolled over! The pediatrician (yes, the pediatrician with the two thumbs down receptionist) said if he hasn’t learned by now, he’s not going to. I guess Little Mochi has skipped the roll over phase.

At first, I was concerned that he will roll over later. Then all his other milestones will develope later as well. I guess that is not the case as his back is strong enough to support him. He is now able to sit up by himself. Well, with a little assistance from his boppy pillow.

I’m glad to know that Little Mochi is developing quite well. He babbles all day and smiles at the sight of his mom and dad. His legs are getting stronger. That was one of the good things about not having Little Mochi roll over. I never had to worry about him rolling over and falling to the ground when I layed him down to go the bathroom or grab his clothes or milk. I knew he wouldn’t he go on his side! Maybe he’ll skip the crawling phase too! Wouldn’t that be great! I won’t have to run after him.

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Baby’s First Christmas

We took our Little Mochi to South Coast Plaza mall yesterday (Sunday, Nov 25, 2007) to take some festive looking pictures by the big Christmas tree.  We had him wear a little Santa outfit.  Thought it would make a cute Christmas card for this year.  What we thought would be a 1 hour photo shoot ended up being a 3 hour field trip around the mall.

He wasn’t in the mood to smile or laugh when we first started to take pictures so we thought it would be a good idea to “wake” him up by strolling around the mall a little.  We ended up on the other side where they set up Santa’s house.  I never thought I would do this, but we ended up letting Little Mochi take a picture with Santa. 

Photo was very expensive.  We paid $20 for one 5 x 7 shot and a CD.  Of course, we had Mason wearing his little Santa outfit.  Very cute.  Of course, he got a few “ahh’s” and “ohh’s” and “wooo” so cute! 

It was nice.  My mom came with us.  Everyone was having fun and was very happy.  We took a lot of pictures so we’ll have quite a few shots to choose from when selecting a nice photo for our Christmas card this year.

Oh, and by the way, here is the picture of our Little Mochi with Santa.  Isn’t it just absolutely adorable??

Baby's First Christmas

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4 Month Immunization Shots

Yesterday, Little Mochi had his four month check up and got his immunization shots.  Just like his first set of shots, there were three of them.  Two on his right, one on his left.  Plus an oral to prevent vomitting. 

Last time, the areas where the shots were given got a little swollen and he had a fever.  So this time, we went somewhat prepared.  We brought ice packs to ice him to help with the swelling.  I actually forgot to bring the Infant’s Tylenol but it worked out.  We gave him some after we got home.  He didn’t come down with a fever this time.  Or perhaps he did, but we didn’t know because we gave him Tylenol before he could get fussy.  We thought it could help with any after pains of the shots. 

So, at the doctor’s office, my husband insisted that I hold down his legs since he held them down last time.  I couldn’t do it.  I couldn’t even look at the nurse sticking that big needle into his chubby legs! My heart just almost broke in half when he screamed and cried the second the needle broke into skin.  So how do you expect me to hold down his legs??!!   :-(

But so far, he is doing good.  Not as fussy as last time.  Seems like he’s doing better than last time.  I wonder how he will react two months from now when he gets his 3rd set of shots!

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