Why No?

OMG. I hope Declan hasn't just stepped into the "Why" phase. I just got my very first Why question 5min ago.

He hasn't gone down for his nap and is just rolling on the bed, entertaining himself. After an hour, he requested to go down and play ball. When I told him no, he said...
"Why no?"

Please don't let it be the Why phase. I sorta went through it when my brother went through the same phase and it was the most tiring phase ever.

Hello Papa

Dy to asleep Declan: (kisses on cheek) Hello Declan
Groggy Declan: Hello Papa
Dy: Go back to sleep ok?
Groggy Declan: Ok... (and promptly falls back to sleep)

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Bao

Pointing to a Bao, I said, "Declan, this is called Bao..."

Why it happened? Cos he wanted to have some of my bao and when I told him to ask nicely, he went "Mama, May I have.... this one please?"

It really is the cutest thing on earth to hear him say "this one". Then again, I'm infatuated, so even the tiniest things sound cute to me.

Mama, May I....

During the recent US trip, I decided to make Declan ask for his things in a full sentence instead of his regular "Mama, XXX please!". So the question he asked most frequently was for his banana. As fans of Declan (haha) probably know, his favourite fruit is the banana, so everytime he wanted one (or sometimes even a bite), he would have to go "Mama, May I eat banana please?". Of course the whole sentence needed some prompting. He said it so often that it became his default question! So it was really funny seeing him go "Mama, May I eat banana please?" even though he wanted to eat bread.

And in all honesty, I think it's worked very well. He now goes "Mama, May I.... please?" when I tell him to ask nicely.

I was pleasantly surprised to hear him forming his own sentences, eg.
Dec: Mama, eat egg please!
Me: Declan, ask nicely please. Full sentence.
Dec: Mama, May I eat egg please?

You know... I should make a note on the sentences he forms actually... hmm...

Kids say the darnest things

"Declan don't want to squeeze!"
This was Declan's first complete sentence. I wanted him to poop into the toilet bowl and this boy actually insisted that he did not want to! This happened quite some time back already.

Then just now, he asked, "Mama, can I play iPhone please?
A perfect sentence in first person nonetheless!

Which only means one thing. With the RIGHT motivation, our kids can do wonders.

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Yet another western dish

Yesterday's dinner was:
• mashed potato (made from scratch!)
• minced meat + mixed vegetables + green beans + tomato paste


Declan did not like it and struggled to finish half. Maybe he was still full from milk. Ah, things I tell myself to make myself feel better.

On a bright note, he did finish everything I whipped up the past 2 days. Cook the cod in milk, turn the milk into a cheese sauce and then drizzle the sauce over previously cooked vegetables. Thanks Adora! It's a great recipe!


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A better looking tomato based pasta

Looks much better than the previous post BUT I think it was a tad dry.



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Garden Vegetables & Pasta in Tomato Sauce

Buoyed by my Creamy Pasta success, I decided it was time to move on to the next dish.

I very much wanted to try out Macaroni and Cheese, but it required a little more effort and preparation than I could manage. So I guess it will happen on a Saturday, maybe this Saturday.

Anyhow, it was time for Tomato-based pasta! And this was what gave me the idea.


Same ingredients as before - Chicken Breast, Mixed Vegetables, Green Beans, Pasta (Yes, all the vegetables were sliced and mashed. Getting vegetables into that tiny tummy is a covert operation nowadays.)
New Ingredient - Tomato Paste!
Fry everything together, add a little water and voilà, done!

I'm pleased to announce that Declan eats it with ease. Another 2 meals of Tomato Paste and I'll be satisfied to move on to the next dish. But with so much Tomato Paste left, I'll need to find other recipes that calls for it.

And this time, I remembered to take a picture. It tastes better than it looks. I'm just happy that Declan isn't a food critic.

Creamy Pasta is successful!

A day of the Creamy Pasta
First Impression - Declan did not even want to try! He shook his head and tried to avoid the spoon at all costs.
Second Impression - I had to show him the whole dish and cajole him to try it out.
Third Impression - He tasted it and was receptive to it, but he did not take to the Green Beans and Mixed Vegetables. Spit! Out they came!
And then poor Mom had to painstakingly remove the Vegetables piece by piece. Luckily, there weren't that many.

Today, I steamed the Green Beans and Mixed Vegetables before slicing and chopping them up and then mixed them into the dish. I was quite prepared for Declan to reject the dish wholesale and was relieved that he didn't mind them! In fact, he quite liked it and actually went Aaah to signify he wanted more!

I think it's time to move on to the next meal!

Kungfu Declan

Check out the Bruce Lee moves!

Creamy Vegetables, Chicken & Noodles

Faced with the prospect of having to cook porridge in the States, I decided immediately that it was time to be hardworking now and introduce Declan to western fare. So what's a clueless mother to do? Simple. Copy packaged baby food and make your own adjustments.

Today's attempt:


My own version:
Pasta shells + Mixed vegetables + Green beans + Chicken breast + Cheese sauce
I call it... "Cheesy Pasta with Hope" and then sincerely hope Declan laps it up although I'm pretty sure he'll turn his nose up at it.
Crap, forgot to take a picture while it was sitting pretty in the pan.

Noise

Last night, we were talking in low tones while lying beside Declan, waiting for him to sleep.

After 20 minutes or so, he sat up, whined and said something that sounded like "Noise".

Did he just attempt to tell us that we were noisy?!?


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To keep in shape

Upon seeing that bulging tummy, I decided it was time to implement an exercise regime ;p



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This looks nicer

After a few days, I realised this format looks nicer than the previous post!



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Many Bubbles!

He loves his Bubbles.
Strangely enough, this is the FIRST time I've given him such a bubbly bath to play with!
Now I'm wondering why I didn't do it much earlier...






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A sticky day at NUS

Sleepy but yet not willing to go back to sleep. Angry at his mom for forcing him to take a nap even though he still wanted to play and run around.

Hence, only Papa can pacify him.

I think the look says, "Don't get between me and my Papa."




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A new iPhone app

2 new functions actually - the uploading of media onto the blog via iPhone AND the new picture tweaking app.


So...... Is the photo nice?

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No more Stars!

Declan was pretty upset just now... "No more Stars" he said. Of course not my dear, it's daytime!

Declan and the 3 Bears

My son never fails to make me laugh. We were reading Goldilocks and the 3 bears. I went "Papa Bear... Mama Bear... And who?"

I certainly wasn't expecting him to answer "Baby Bear" but I definitely wasn't expecting him to say.... "Declan Bear!"