Pictures from our Trip to New York

Rubbing Shoulders with the Rich and Famous.

Day 1 of our visit – we took Erik to FAO Schwarz. As we moseyed around the toddler area – Erik and I walked up to this woman who was too well dressed in my opinion to be shopping for kids clothes. (Daddy is not much a dresser especially hauling 28lbs of baby + a backpack). Then I noticed an entire area closed up for this shopper – so I went towards this area to check on the price tag of the clothes there just to see what was so special when a big bulky muscular guard stopped me in my tracks and asked me what I was doing – then it dawned on me that woman was no other than Mira Sorvino who had the area blocked off to feed her daughter and son. (Mira Sorvino had just spent the Day releasing Barbie as The Island Princess at Central Park Zoo and had come to FAO to grab a bite to eat and buy some things I guess) **NOTE: Daddy was (A) to chicken to whoop out my camera to take a picture or (B) I just didn't want to take a Paparazzi picture of her and her kids. I think I would like to stick to option B. Erik - also enjoyed the prefomers at FAO - where these two girls were making music - dancing on this really expensive Piano.

TimeSquare Baby!

The Ma Family hit TimeSquare and where did we go? We went to the most famous place of all....Toys R' Us! LOL! It was a gigantic 4 or 5 story toy shop, with personal assistance shoppers if you need them (as in plan on spending mucho dineros people!). However, this is the first retail shop I've been in that they actually take a "tourist" photo of you! CRAZY!

Erik loved it though! It was a toy store...what kid doesn't love toy stores?! He was amazed at all the Dora stuff they had. He was in awed of all the Diego stuff as well. However, the thing that caught his eyes, was the gigantic ferris wheel inside the store! We kid you not...it was inside the store! Only at TimeSquare! We bought our tickets and rode in a car with SpongeBob mounted on and Erik loved it. He got to see all the "little" people from below and also Geoffrey the giraffe as well.

Afterwards, we walked around the store, floor by floor. Erik was a bit apprehensive at the dinosaur roaring but when Daddy roared back, Erik was more confident and let out a roar as well. Hee Hee So adorable! We found some cool stuffed toys for Erik but he really was not interested until we got to the story books and puppets sections! Our boy loves puppets now...for some reason! He found an alligator/crocodile puppet and it was just what he was looking for. For the rest of the store walk, he refused to let it go LOL! So of course, we bought it! SIGH!

A Taste of City Life

As Daddy posted, the 3 of us were off to an adventure in NYC to visit Uncle Penjo, Grandma Katy and Grandpa Tom, as well as Great Grandma Cho Lien, Grand Aunty Ruth (Katy's sister), and also Aunty Kathleen (Daddy's little cousin). Our little guy adjusted quite well and was the king of Uncle Jo's apartment! Erik would get pampered every morning by Grandma Katy with lots of TV like Barney, Dora, and anything that would distract our little guy from tearing the place down. Then he would be fed some delicous breakfast...all by Grandma! LOL!

As for Mummy, the conference days were grueling. The 1-hour each way riding on the subway to Brooklyn was not fun. The 11-hours away from my little Boo Boo was not fun. By the time Mummy gets home, she'd be tired already and the little guy would be a bit grumpy since the day was winding down. However, we ditched the schedule aside and just went wild. Family would go out for a late dinner (eh, by 7:30pm, that's late for us!) and Erik would love it but then he'd be so zonked out he'd either sleep in Mummy's arms during dinner or he'd sleep on the way home in Uncle Jo's car.

However, Erik really enjoyed the extra 1:1 time he got wiht his Daddy! ...by the 2nd day, Erik was actually calling Daddy "Mummy!". Which was quite disturbing for Mummy but guess Erik can't help it, Daddy is the doting one and just wants to see Erik smile and be happy every day. They would hit the subways together. Go enjoy themselves at the park where our little Erik learned to "monkey around" with the bars. Go walking in Manhattan and being tourists. Daddy and Erik got lots of time together and each day they grew closer together. Lots of hugs were exchanged between the boys!

Then, finally, conference was over and Mummy had a few days to spare and we went crazy! Plus Daddy was a little relieved to have the extra assistance LOL! and we were a family of 3 again! WhooHoo!

Enjoying the Big Apple with my “Buddy”

What can I say – this last week has been an awesome bonding time between my son and I. While mummy was out on training for four days – we spent a lot of quality time together exploring the sights and sounds that New York had to offer us. Each morning I would strap Erik on the Kelty backpack and head out into the city. Best part about this whole adventure is I think I lost about five to seven pounds.

Erik loved the subway – he would say “choo-choo” each time a train rolled into the station – the first couple of days Erik did a look of looking around the different faces he saw in the train and flirted with all the pretty ladies. But as the week rolled around he did most of his sleeping on the train – the rocking motion, the constant noise “white noise” was the perfect place for my son to catch up on some sleep.

We also visited a few parks – some of our favorites were the local park in Elmhurst, Mary O’Conner Playground in Manhattan and the Heckscher Playground in Central Park. I think Erik loved the playground in Central Park the best and the park in Elmhurst. He picked up something new while playing in the park at Elmhurst which is hanging on the monkey-bar he can hang up there all by himself for about 4-5 seconds. (That’s ‘Cuz Daddy counted) Another fun thing he loved to do while at the park was chasing the pigeons. After playing the parks – it was off to the local Chinese bakery to get some “red-bean” bun that Erik loves and jam filled sponge cake. He would nibble on the buns as we rode the subway back to Uncle Jo’s crib – usually leaving bun crumbs all over Daddy’s head.

Just enjoying the Big Apple with my son – was a blast and I really miss him. (I am back in the office after a long week with my “Boo-Boo.”) I am sure Mommy has a lot to write about – our adventures in NY.

Back To School Night

Last night was Erik's school's Open House. Mummy and Daddy didn't know what to expect but still showed up to show support for the staff and for Erik, of course! Mummy and Daddy waited outside with Erik in the playground area while the teachers got the classroom ready and set-up.

Erik ate an early dinner al fresco in the fall evening breeze. It really was such a beautiful evening! Afterwards, he played with his little buddy, Gabriel, in their outdoor playground. Daddy arrived a little early to spend some 1:1 time with Erik outside the playground but darling son was too distracted LOL!

Then, it was Open House, Open Classroom! Parents walked in and were greeted by Erik's 4 teachers. We were given out handouts on what the class does on a daily basis. Then the teachers asked for the children to sit down and do Circle Time, one of their morning routines to showcase for the parents.

Most of the parents sat in one big circle around the classroom floor and their children were sitting on their laps instead; however, our little Erik, as if not shy of anything, sat down in the first row with all four of his teachers instead. Then the teachers sang and gestured their "Good Morning" song, and our little Erik followed the hand gestures and everything! Needless to say, Daddy and Mummy was just so floored by the "performance" of our little guy! With everybody looking at him (even though his back was facing the crowd). Erik sat through another song called "Ram Sam Sam" and again did all the gestures along with his 4 teachers and another song before the teachers stopped to explain the rest of the evening to the parents!

It was just the cutest thing to watch and darn it....we wished we had our video camera! It was just amazing to see Erik doing it. He does hand gestures at home with "itsy bitsy spider" but didn't realize there's also other songs he likes to do gestures with! Mummy must learn more!

Rest of the evening, the classroom was divided into 4 stations. One was the reading station with Ms. Alexis. One was the snacks and more information station with Miss Ashley. One was for the art/painting with Miss Christy. The last was crafts/sensory with Miss Tara. First station we hit was reading and Erik and his little friend, Ella were the ones participating. Our little Erik participated on the reading and would say the words in the stories, didn't know our darling son can say "round and round" as if in the story!

We were also able to talk to the teachers in a much relaxed setting instead of the daily rush and see what activities Erik liked and what he preferred. Our little guy has a preference in brushes for art! Who knew?! At home, he kept grabbing Daddy's camera brush (for cleaning) and now we know why! We found out our little guy loves to do coloring and drawings since there was a lovely floor "paper mural" there for the kids to do. We also found out that there's sensory crafts for the toddlers!

It was just a lovely (but long) evening. Daddy and Mummy even got to see what the next classroom looked like and meet the teachers and Daddy has already put dibs on one of the classrooms LOL!

Emotional Roller Coaster

For the past couple of weeks, Mummy has tried something new, she stopped pumping breastmilk during the day. Erik was refusing the thawed breastmilk in the sippy cup for some time but was not refusing the cow's milk we send to school. So now we send Erik off with whole milk instead, which resulted, no need for breastmilk during the day.

Didn't realize that this would affect me so much. Before, I would be complaining to my friends and family that Erik just wants to nurse whenever he sees me. At the same time, the stop pumping made me realize that Erik is growing and growing so fast! The nursing times were our scheduled downtime together, whether Mummy wanted to slow down or stop whatever she was doing or not. It was our time as Mummy & Son to reconnect with each other during the hectic day.

Is that silly to think like that? To know that our scheduled times together is numbered? Don't get me wrong, Erik still nurses at 17 months when he sees me and throughout the night. It's just less often and when I'm at work and he's at school, he doesn't. The fact in stopping pumping is just another milestone that maybe Mummy wasn't ready to hit yet.

Back To School (Again)

The fall semester has begun! Mummy is now back to school two times a week until December 20th! After this, Mummy will only have 4 more classes to go! WhooHoo! Wish us the best of luck, folks, we need it!

Daddy is just being such a trooper and being the best support system! Mummy would pick Erik up early on class nights and then do a drop off transition with Daddy on campus. Daddy would then either take Erik out to eat or do something but it is their 1:1 time for the evening! Erik enjoys this extra 1:1 attention thus far but by the end of the night (around 9pm), Erik wants Mummy...and hopefully Mummy will be back home by then! SIGH!

Darling Erik, know that Mummy misses you a lot and can't wait to get home to cuddle with you!

Grandparents Day

This past Sunday in the U.S. was Grandparents Day. Erik sent a lovely bunch of roses to Grandpa Tom and Grandma Katy who are currently in New York. Erik also sent a lovely bunch of roses to his Great Grandma Cho Lien in Long Island. They were quite surprised and enjoyed the flowery gift, especially when it comes to their favorite grandson (Erik is the only one for now ...thus he's the favorite LOL).

For Mummy's side, since Grandma Wai had to work on Sunday, we celebrated Grandparents Day by going out to dinner on Friday night instead, after Erik's swimming lessons. They haven't seen Erik for about 3-4 weeks already and was just absolutely amazed at his growth and his personality!

Grandma Wai was teasing Erik and Erik teased back, it was really cute to watch. After dinner Grandpa Tik decided to take Erik to go see the fish pond...and was horrified when our darling toddler decided to go, fishing! HAHAHA! Grandpa quickly redirected Erik back to the restaurant and picked him up said, he stuck his hands into the fish pond to catch fishes!

All in all, Erik really enjoyed the dinner meal with his grandparents. He knows exactly who they are and greets Grandpa Tik (Gong Gong) and Grandma Wai (Pho Pho) properly in Chinese. He even gave his grandparents kisses when we left.

Hog Wild At The Local Fair

This past long weekend, Daddy and Mummy took Erik to the State Fair. This is not Erik's first time, last year, same time frame, we took the entire family including Grandma Katy, Grandpa Tom, and Uncle Penjo to the State Fair and Erik was only 4 or 5 months old! Hee Hee!

However at almost 17 months old (2 more days), Erik thoroughly enjoyed the Petting Zoo exhibit! He thought it was the best thing ever! At first Erik didn't know what to do with all the animals, they were so huge! He had only seen them in books but not in real life, like "Baa Baa Black Sheep"...there really is such a thing as black sheeps :o) hee hee.

Erik didnt' want to touch it but just to observe all the chaos in the petting zoo. He was approached by a Llama and Daddy's shorts were being munched on by a passing kid (as in baby goat). Very cute! There were chickens flapping around, ducks going for a "bath", and even a little wallaby in a napsack! All very very nice!

Mummy pondered that if we never had Erik, she would've never stepped inside that Petting Zoo nor would she had touched any of the animals! LOL! Thanks to Erik, Mummy got to experience the petting zoo as well. Hahahaha!

Erik also rode his FIRST carnival ride, all by himself, with no Mummy or Daddy! He was the pilot while his two buddies, Austin and Jeremy were the passengers! We coudln't believe it! Erik is such a big boy now. SIGH! Where did our little baby go?! SNIFF! SNIFF!

He also got to enjoy some very cool music concert of a "local" band, don't remember the name though, Mummy thinks its called "FreePlay". Our little Erik was bobbing his head up and down to the beat of the music and swaying his body back and forth. At one time, he even mimicked the guitarist (NOT KIDDING) and played an air guitar for us! It was just very cute to witness and to see that Erik really does enjoy music a LOT!

Well, until next year, we may be back to the local fair but Erik will probably want to do a lot more rides or he may just want to see how the baby wallaby has grown!

Erik's First Amusement Park!

Over the U.S. long weekend of Labor Day, Mummy and Daddy took Erik to his first big-time amusement park! Mummy has been organizing this for more than a few weeks already with a few of our baby group friends to do this "one-last Hoorah!" before the official end of Summer of 2007.

Daddy was super-duper excited about the amusement park, not because of the rides, but because of the up close and personal animals that he can show Erik. Also to show Erik different types of animals such as dolphins, whales, walrus, which he has never seen but has read about in many of his books and on our bedroom wall every night (san walrus).

We got up bright and early and was ready to go at 7:15 (well, Mummy did at least!) and got the entire family mobile ready. Of course, we really didn't hit the road until around 8 and got to the park about 30 minutes before they opened up. Erik got to "jam" with the warner-brothers characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Sylvester the Cat, Tweety Bird, ...and even Wonder Woman! Whoa!

The three of us went to the ACME Foam Factory first to play with some foam balls, Erik loved it there. He also got to play in Bugs Bunny outdoor house area. Afterwards, it was to Thomas Town where we met up with most of the baby group friends including Gabriel, Jason, Jeremy, and Will (no sign of Austin or Miss Jules yet). We did our quick hello's ...and sat on a round of Thomas Train together. Then it was off to a Daddy & Erik "Harold the Helicopter" ride. Great for Erik and Daddy, not so great for the hydraulics, their helicopter only went "half-way" up. LOL! Daddy boasts "Eh, I think it can't support my weight...Hahahahah!"

From there, it was a rush of scheduled events of MUST-DOs from Daddy. We visited the Walrus area. Threw some snacky frozen fishes for the Sea Lions at their cove. A bit disappointing, we thought we could actually touch the Sea Lion but it was just throwing frozen fishes from above...BLAH! At least Erik got to see the sea lions though! YAY!

Then, it was off for a quick pitstop at the Butterfly Garden for an up close encounter! Beautiful butterflies soaring above us. Some even landed right next to the benches so Erik got a real good look at it! Absolutely wonderful! This was one of the exhibits that Daddy really liked, recalling from our younger days of visiting LOL! Hahahah!

We headed off to feed the Giraffes! WhooHoo! This is the ALL-TIME event that Daddy was really looking forward to. He wanted to show Erik how big and cute the giraffes are! We stood in line, got Erik's hands stamped, and then grabbed a carrot! At first Erik was quite afraid. From afar, the giraffes look cute but up close, they are sooooo big, compared to our little guy! So its just natural for Erik to feel a bit intimidated. Daddy petted the baby giraffe's nose after feeding him the carrot and after a few rounds of feeding, Erik wasn't as afraid anymore and even offered a carrot to the giraffe! So cute! Hee Hee!

From there, we enjoyed the park at a much more relaxed pace. Erik saw the killer whale show but wasn't really interested since it was a bit slower and it was near his naptime. Thus he opted to for a quick power nap instead. He slept for 45 minutes and popped right back up to enjoy lunch with Daddy and Mummy and off to play in their splash park and play structure! WhooHoo! Daddy even won him a stuffed SHARK, which Erik absolutely ADORED and played with throughout the day! Then it was off to the Dolphin Luau party show, where Erik boogied and clapped as the dance music was blaring and seeing the dolphins jump high in the sky and splash the audience! He really enjoyed that one a lot since it was faster paced compared to the Killer Whale show.

Afterwards, it was back to the Walrus exhibit and a game of run around and tag with his buddy Jeremy! We don't get to hang out with Jeremy on a 1:1 basis too often so it was a very nice treat for the boys to play together! It was so cute seeing Erik enjoying himself so much with his buddy, chasing after him, cornering him to tickle Jeremy! HAHAHAH! Erik even got very sad and upset when Jeremy's parents decided to put Jeremy in his stroller. Erik signed "MORE" to all of us and pointed to his buddy. So it was another round of tag!

The day hasn't ended yet but our energy level was quite low but Mummy decided to try and win something for Erik as well. Can't be outshine by Daddy, right? ;o) hahahaha. So Mummy took Erik while Daddy was "baby-sitting" Erik's buddy, to a plastic ball throwing game. In order to win, the ball must land on a solid color cup, you'd get 10 tries. Well, Daddy at first said NO, don't play that...you can't win but Mommy was stubborn and wanted to try.

Well, it turned out...Mummy got THREE out of 10 balls in the solid color cups...thus was able to win a BIG toy for our darling Erik! Daddy chose a gigantic orange NEMO fish for Erik. Eek! Mummy would've opted for 3 smaller prizes but guess its okay too. A win is a win. YAY!

Erik had a super-duper day and we enjoyed every moment with our son. He brings so much joy and happiness into our lives that sometimes we really have to stop and wonder, what did we do to be blessed with such a darling child. We're like reliving our own childhood so its just awesome! Of course, when Erik cries and whines, we also stop and wonder...What did we do to DESERVE THIS...somebody help us now?!?! ;o) LOL