We want another....NOW!

Okay, our dear friends, Cathie and Steve Yasuda, just delivered a very beautiful baby girl on Tuesday night, Miss Elysse Kiyoko Yasuda! We were invited to the birth of their baby but decided that our friends were way too innocent at the time of the invitation and asked them to invite us WHEN they really need us (i.e. when they're actually in the delivery room and knows exactly what's going on). If they still wanted us to be there, Chhimi and Tab, would've made it....or at least Tab!

Anyways, so 12 hours later, we received the wonderful news that they have delivered a healthy and wonderful baby girl! SIGH! That evening, the three of us (including Erik) went to the hospital to visit the new family of 3! Chhimi reminisced that it was only about 1 year ago that we were in that situation...and every time the little baby bell ring (because of a new birth), it gave goose bumps to Chhimi. AWWWW...such a cutie!

Also holding little baby Elysse Kiyoko in our arms...Gosh! The feelings of holding Erik for the first time rushed back too! IT TOTALLY MADE us want to have another!!! SIGH!! We're such saps!

So for all those expecting parents out there or want-to-be expecting parents or waiting to adopt parents, the feeling of holding your precious baby is one of life's joyous moments!

Weapons of Mass Destruction – Found

You don’t even have to leave the country or state to find it. If you visit any of the day cares in your neighborhood – you will realize it’s more of a bug factory rather than a safe haven for your children. Well Erik is playing catch up now – after being gone for about 5 weeks and not being exposed to these vile bugs – he is basically catching all the left over super bugs. Over the weekend he had some kind of bug that got him very congested – which lead to him wheezing and trying to catch his breath – we were actually supposed to take him to an ER. To top it off he got some sort of diarrhea of sorts – and one that projects over vast distances at great speed – let’s say at one point his poop wasn’t in his diaper.

Are you a hyper parent?

Before you ask your self are you a hyper parent – what defines a hyper parent. Parents who are overly involved with their children's lives are defined as hyper parent. I think as first time parents both Tabitha and I have been pretty hands on and have similar goals of spending all of our time with our son as much as possible and making sure he has plenty of activities to stimulate his mind. (Our weekends have been pretty much booked up since October of last year) That being said – are we giving him enough time on his own to learn by himself to figure out things?

I would like to think that our “over zealous” hands on approach to everything related to our son stems from the fact that we want to meet all our child’s needs ant then some. I sometimes fear that I am not doing enough to stimulate his mind. But at the same time it does make sense to give my son his space to explore and learn things on his own. And Erik is very capable of voicing his mind/opinion when he wants to. So are you a hyper parent? Are we hyper parents?

missin home

Ok – it’s been a long time since I posted anything on this blog too long. But it was an amazing vacation/time off/bonding with the little guy moment that lasted about 5 weeks.

Here are some of thing I will most remember about this trip and what made it all worthwhile.

• Erik getting to meet his great grandparents – this has been my dream/goal – it’s not every day you get to meet your great grandparents. Erik had a great time – learning to walk in front of them – and basically spending quality time with them. Oh he did learn a lot of things with them and of course great grandpa taught him all the naughty things. The first day we reached Bhutan – and meeting my grandpa for the first time – Erik went straight into his arms and rested his head on my grandpa shoulder… that image was priceless.


• Taking Erik back to my old school – showing my son the where daddy pretty much spent 9 years of his life at. Maybe someday – he would like to go there and see if he likes it.


• Watching my son take his first steps – if I were back here in Sacramento – I would have probably missed this.


• Seeing Erik play and use some of my childhood items


• Being with family – spending Chinese New Years with my family after 14 long years priceless.

I don’t know what else to summarize about my trip – I think we all had a great time – it was awesome to see Erik enjoy himself. So without further ado – here are the pics from my trip – just plain old family pictures.

Bhutan Trip

...And We're Back Home In The States

Kolkata, West Bengal, India
After leaving wonderful family, we flew back to Kolkata, India for a couple of days to do some light shopping and dining out with Grandpa Tom and Grandma Katy. Erik watched his Hindi TV cartoons some more, which on this trip, our little boy has been very much engaged with the TV a lot more than what Mommy would allow back home. SIGH!

We visited Chinatown to pay respects to the appropriate temples. Prior to coming to the States back in the 90's, Daddy visited the Chinese temples to give his offerings and he wanted to do the same with Erik this time around. Erik is a very intuitive little fellow (at least we think so!), he knows exactly what to do to pay respect to the various Gods. He probably saw what we're doing and just mimicking but still, its pretty amazing that his little mind works so fast!

We also dined out with Grand Aunty Janet (Grandma Katy's cousin) and Erik's Uncle chai chai (yep, he has the same pet name as Erik!) and also Aunty Lauy Lauy at Mommy and Daddy's favorite Dosa restaurant! We went there 7 years ago when Mommy first visited and it was just the BEST dosa ever! Mmmmm...and still is!! Erik had fun meeting more relatives and kept teasing his little aunt (only 12 years old!) by sticking out his tongue and pointing at her, as if he wanted to play!

Singapore
After the couple of days, it was the start of our journey back home. As Daddy says, his home is wherever Mommy and Erik is now....so sweet! Our first layover was in Singapore so Mommy booked a 12-hour block at the Transit Hotel where all of us could take nice hot shower (Hey...all this time, we didn't get showers...we had to take MUG baths!...want more info, email Mommy directly). Erik still wanted to nap so we took an additional 3 hour nap before deciding to head out to town.


Daddy wanted to take Erik to the Singapore Underwater world since Erik loves looking at fishes! When Erik saw the fishes in the gigantic tank right in the middle of the entrance, his eyes grew big and he immediately signed fish! He was quite excited! There was also a "petting" tank where you can dip your hands in to feel the various fishes. Mommy just dipped Erik's little hands in there but refused to allow him to touch any fish! (You just never know!)


There was also a Stingray Feed and Feel tank! All the Stingrays would come near the glass and splash water all over asking for food. Erik's eyes were just fixated at those creatures! Of course, in the background, you could hear a lot of Japanese and Chinese tourists shrieking away when the Stingray splash water or when they feel the Stingray itself. I didn't allow Erik to do the touching at this point.




Then, we went through the Underworld Water tunnel not once ...not twice...but THREE times! Where Erik was able to see lots of different kinds of oceanic fishes including various sharks and Stingrays. He loved it...we took lots of pictures and videos :o) hahaha! Afterwards, as we got out of the aquarium, Daddy got the wacky idea of holding a live snake with Erik...UGH!


Outside there was a staff member with a live Python for tourist to hold and take pictures of. Daddy insisted on holding Erik and the Python for a "Kodak" moment! Mommy freaked out and was yelling at Daddy in Chinese for such a crazy thing...but relented! Erik didn't freak...which was either amazing or he just hadn't realized! Then once the snake was around Daddy...Daddy freaked!! How crazy is that?! I swear, I can hear Child Endangerment already...and us being bad bad parents with very bad judgement! Even though the staff was only 2 feet away, Mommy was definitely not happy. Right afterwards, Mommy wiped Erik everywhere with antibacterial wipes! Sigh! That was stressful!

Back @ Home
And now, we're back at home for almost a good solid 5 days! Erik is still having issues with the time difference. Mommy is back at work. Daddy is helping Erik adjust back into his day care. Reality sets in and....4 big suitcase worth of stuff to unpack and store away! WhooHoo! ;o)

Bye Bye Phuentsholing

We woke up bright and early on Thursday (March 8th) to say our our good-byes and to travel down to Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Erik woke up early all by himself, as if knowing that we are leaving. Our visit of 3 1/2 weeks seemed so short. At times, Mummy felt time was just standing still but as we said our farewells, time really flew by. Seven years ago, when Mummy first visited Bhutan, Daddy's home, it was a culture shock for Mummy being a newbie traveler and hadn't been out of the States and now seven years later, it was one of the most wonderful and beautiful places. Being constantly surrounded by family and just catching up on life itself was great!

Mummy and Daddy squeezed in some last minute play time with Erik and his Great Grandparents, who had just fell in love with Erik the moment they set eyes on him. Erik even had a little morning nap time with his Great Grandma I.Shen! Extra hugs and kisses were given freely and to all. (**remember, Asian cultures don't really do hugs nor kisses**) Even Erik's GrandUncle John (aka Granduncle "Ha Ha" because he always laughs in the kiddies' faces) and GrandAunty Sonam rushed out of their home before breakfast and still in PJs just to say good-bye. Grand Aunty Dinki had to rush down the night before from Thimphu (capitol of Bhutan, about 3 hours away from Phuentsholing) just to say a formal farewell! Grand Aunty Sally (Erik calls her "Beautiful Grand Aunty") rushed out the door before her morning tea to come to the main house. GrandUncle Mickey and GrandAunty Sau Fong (aka GrandAunty "Minnie") gave Erik lots of hugs and kisses too. SIGH! We absolutely HATE good-byes! Everybody is already asking when we will be coming back....at one point, Daddy and Mummy really contemplating on quiting our jobs in the States and move back just to join in on the family business instead.

Tears were rolling all over the place! In the very short 3 1/2 weeks, Phuentsholing was definitely home for us and everything was blissful where Erik was pretty much the main ruler of the "Ma" clan. Everybody adored him from his familiy relatives to all the workers in the family factory. Great Grandma I.Shen even walked down the stairs early morning just to say bye to us and to her favorite Great Grandson (well, she only has 1 right now ;o) hahaha). Great Grandpa M.W. Hing, who was a hunter in his days and conquered over rogue tigers, bears, and elephants, also shed tears as Mummy, Daddy, and Erik gave out their last little hugs and kisses!

We will definitely miss everything about Bhutan because that's where our very wonderful, supportive, and loving family is!

Bhutanese Dancing

Our little guy loves going into his Great Grandparents suite after his evening bath. There, he teases his Great Grandpa Hing by sticking out his tongue or just laughing in his face. He also loves cuddling with his Great Grandma I. Shen.

After our initial report of Erik walking his first steps, we also experienced our first heartbreaks of Erik falling :-(. He felled first when Mummy was on duty, basically Erik wanted to turn but his ankles locked up and Mummy wasn't fast enough to catch up...and thus PLOP! The side of his head fell onto the tile flooring WAH!!!
As if that wasn't bad enough, the same day, when Daddy was on duty, Erik fell backwards and hitting the back of his head on the same tile flooring! This time, while Erik cried and screamed, Mummy was also bawling away! Our poor baby!!!! WAH!

The next day, Erik seemed to take a bit a little more precaution and didn't want to attempt to walk. Perhaps he also felt our emotions and mood that we also were watching him like hawks and didn't want any more accidents, especially when head hits tile. SIGH!

However, last night, he overcame that initial fear. He went up to his Great Grandparents suite and the TV was blasting with Bhutanese song and music where dancers are dancing away. Our little Erik was overcome with "Happy Feet" and had to attempt walking and dancing at the same time. It was sooooo adorable! Whatever hand movements the dancers were doing, Erik would want to mimick them, including a little "Superman" move where both of his hands are held behind his back and he's leaning forward with his chest. Sure, it may be a balancing move while standing but at the same time, those dancers were doing the same thing!

Daddy and Mummy aren't really keen on Bhutanese music, seriously, its not our taste but for Erik, its' the best thing...kinda like MTV but without all the "drama". LOL!

Round and Round the Garden...

Our Erik is also known as a little "copycat" right now. He loves copying whoever he is playing with at the time. One of his all time favorite games right now is doing the following:

Round and Round the Garden
Like a Teddy Bear
One Step Two Step
Tickle the baby!
(or Tickle Boo Boo everywhere or Tickle You under there)

Erik knows how to initiate the play by pointing his little index finger and going round and round on his palm. OR he would go round and round on somebody's open palm, requesting to play. It's so adorable! Daddy used to say this when Mummy was still carrying Erik in the womb but at the same time, lots of Erik's grand aunties have been playing with him like this too. Just too adorable!

Erik also loves to stick out his tongue and make funny faces now. He teases his Great Grandpa Hing by doing a "fake" laugh and his Great Grandpa Hing teases Erik back by doing his own fake evil laugh. Hahahaha! Great Grandpa also loves teaching Erik different sounds and see if Erik can copy. Some of them Erik can but some he cannot and you can see Erik's little brows furrow together as if concentrating hard to figure it out.

We love having spending time with Erik's Great Grandparents. Even though Great Grandma claims that she's not in the best of health, she is always doing her best with Erik. Last night, she wanted to pick him up so bad so Mummy placed Erik (a solid 24 lbs now ~11kg) onto her lap and she just hugged him so lovingly and Erik just leans back to be closer. Sigh! We definitely will be missing this when we head back home to the States.

Milestone Update: Things Erik Can Do

Erik can now proudly say "I can stand tall, walk, jump, and dance!". Our little baby took his very first steps on March 2, 2007! He's 1 week shy of being 11 months and his little feet were itching to walk! Mummy and Daddy thinks that Erik could've walked 2 weeks prior but because of the constant dogs in the main family house in Bhutan, it wasn't very clean or safe for Erik to walk except upstairs in his Great Grandparents suite.

Standing
Erik could stand unassisted for a very long time by himself now. We "estimated" his timing to be about 15-30 seconds long, especially if somebody distracted him :o) hee hee.

Walking
Grandpa Tom and Grandma Katy insisted on taking his diapers off and letting Erik "run" wild. Their theory is that the diaper slows down his development in walking. Thus, it was pee pee everywhere! However, he took his first 2 steps in the main Phuentsholing house! Then it was pee pee all over Mummy (Ugh!) but it's okay...a change of pants later, Daddy, Mummy, and Erik walked over to Auntie Sally's house where its dog-free and super-duper clean.

There, Erik took his 4 steps! He was so excited! Auntie Sally was a great source of encouragement since she dangled a little "carrot" in front of Erik, basically anything shiny and it was the tissue box cover. Erik would concentrate so hard to reach the tissue box that he forgot he was walking unassisted. Once he pulled the tissue out, he'd remembered and PLOP! down he goes onto his butt!

Dancing & Jumping
On the same evening of all the above, our son went out of his way to show off. It was his usual evening routine to spend some time with Great Grandpa Hing and Great Grandma Shen in their suite. It was pretty late and Great Grandma was about to retire when she heard Erik come in and had to see him ;o).

There, we did a little "Punjabi" style rhythm - think Bride & Prejudice or any Bollywood films you may have seen, where we raised our arms and twists our hands left and right to a nice beat. Erik totally beamed on that one! His longest walk was 9 full steps...and he was really dancing! His little bottom was up and down to the beat and his little arms were in the air.

This totally made his Great Grandparents night! They absolutely loved watching him and to know that Erik took his "firsts" steps in their house just like their children and grandchildren and now...great grandchild!

As if dancing wasn't good enough, our little boy JUMPED! Seriously scared the daylights out of Mummy and Daddy. Erik was so excited and he thought he was holding onto something, he "jumped" with both of his little feet off the ground unassisted! Then PLOP, he landed on his little bottom. SIGH! ...Daddy and Mummy are excited to see our little Erik reach his physical milestones but are also worried about the plane ride back ;o). Would Erik want to walk up and down the aisle?! Eeek!

Downtown Phuentsholing

Erik along with Daddy and Mummy went outside of our comfy family compound today to the downtown district of Phuentsholing, Bhutan, thanks to Granduncle John (aka Granduncle Ha Ha) for being our tour guide and driver. Daddy said he has not even walked so much when he was growing up. Not that the distance was far, it was just that there was no reason to walk. He always had a family driver and there was always a purpose for the outskirts instead of "sightseeing".

We visited GrandAunty Dinki's import shop and saw Erik's Auntie AhYok and Uncle AhYen there and also Uncle Samdrup (Ahyok's fiance). We also stopped by Granduncle John's Indian sweet shop & cafe and bought some Rasmali for our main house of 12 people along with some 100 "pushka" shells for an appetizer dish called pan puri.

Erik was having a good time just observing everything and stopping into multiple stores. He's pretty used to it when we were back in the states. As for Mummy and Daddy,we just wanted a change of scenery. Maybe next time, we'll do a walk around the nearest golf course :o) hahaha

We also stopped at the only supermarket in Phuentsholing called Tashi. In there, they have all the variety of product that Bhutan produces. The last but not least was the "Pastry shop" where it was claimed to be the "best" one in town. :o) hee hee. There, we ordered a nice 2 tiered chocolate cake for Erik's Uncle Namdrul's birthday for March 3! :o) hee hee. Hope he likes it!