You are now 16 months! How fast time flies. Mummy's angel is turning into quite the social butterfly. It's a good thing by the way. You fear almost no one. Any stranger with a warm, smiley and friendly face is a friend in no time. You are ever curious and active. Since learning to walk it seems like you never want to stop. You are the longest lasting battery mummy knows. You are pleasant and jolly. Always the happy baby...oops...toddler. You're still my baby. Mummy has a feeling you will make either a good lawyer or a talk show host. The house is always alive with your chatter. You talk A LOT. ALL the time. It's amazing listening to you. You seemed to have developed your very own language. Mummy and daddy try very hard to understand you but I guess we are not so advanced and can't quite reach your level.

Colorful and blinking lights amaze you. Last night we were driving around after dinner, trying to get you to fall asleep. (Since Paris your night time sleeping patterns have changed. You now sleep at 11pm.) You were already half way to lala land but as we drove around some new housing estates, your half-open eyes spotted some Raya deco - colorful blinking lights. Instantly you spring off mummy's chest. Eyes wide and bright, excitement in your voice and movements, hands stretched out wanting to grab the lights. You grab the door handle and tug on it. " We can't go down sweetheart, the family is asleep and we need to go home and rest as well. Say bye-bye to the lights." Reluctantly you wave your hand bye-bye. You fall back asleep in another 15 minutes, it is 11pm.

It seems we have a cheeky little angel in our hands. Your latest favorite thing to do is pick up the remote and slam it on the floor until the battery cover snaps off and the batteries fall out. And as usual you grab a battery and put it in your mouth. All remotes now must be located on higher grounds.

It takes you under a minute to climb a flight of stairs on all fours. You sometimes hold the railing and walk up but this takes longer and you don't have the patience. No such thing as both feet on one landing. You take your strides like a big person.

Kak Mon taught you to main mata some time ago. Nowadays you do it all the time (and to everyone) just for the fun of it. It isn't the normal main mata neither. Your version is more 'lingering'. You leave those lids closed for just a second longer. It looks like you are flirting or you could pass off as being sleepy too. Those heavy eyelids. It's adorable. Some foreign lady on our flight back to Malaysia from Paris after seeing those batting eyelids commented, "You must keep any eye on this one when she grows older." Haha.

You have 4 incisors. They don't seem like they are full size yet though. Your right upper incisor is quite big but the left one is much smaller. It did come out later but has not really grown much since. You may not have many teeth but boy are they doing their job. Those are some pretty sharp pearly whites you have there boo boo. Its fun for you when mummy screams out in pain as you sink your teeth in my fingers.

The last time we weighed you you were 9.7 kg. Somehow you seem a lot heavier. We'll need to weigh you again to confirm. Your appetite has not changed. You are not a big eater just like mummy when she was younger. Your portions are small, tiny. Carrots and peas are your favorite. Surprisingly! Fruits are top on your list too. Banana being the yummiest and cempedak a close second. Papaya and oranges too. Oh and recently grapes. You are not a fan of cold and fizzy drinks. However, you do get excited when you see a cold drink being served not so much for the drink itself but the ICE. Oh the look of triumph you give me when you manage to convince (your not too hard to convince) mummy to give you a piece to suck on! Chupa chups is another weakness for you. Pasta/Macaroni and cheese is still one of your all time favorite meals. And quacker oats for breakfast. You enjoy snacking on biscuits occassionally and a slice of bread too now and then. Your milk intake is about 15-20 oz a day depending on how much solids you take.

Your yet-to-be-declared new swim suit

Always the cutie. Always.

Such a classic Elil look

Check out that bum-bum. Check out that pose! Posture looking familiar....

Gosh Elil. Mummy loves you so much. And misses you tons. You are such a gift, a miracle. I can never thank God enough for giving you to me (and daddy). Blessed are we to have you in our lives.

xxx

mummy

Pony Tails

You would not stay still for the camera. Your first double pony tail. Still a long way to go....slowly but surely baby boo.

Yesterday at the playground...

You and your stick

All prepped for the playground. Hat. Check. Bling bling. Check. Barney bag. Check. Comfy sandals. Check. One funky baby! Check.

Did mummy over do it?

Mummy got back from work yesterday and immediately had the thought to bring you to the playground. I havent done this in a while. It was still nice and sunny outside so mummy brought your cap along. The playground up the hill is rundown and meant for older kids really. The slide is way too steep and high for you, the swings are not baby friendly and they have one of those bouncy things which is over-sized. The ground is barren around the play area. Lots of pebbles and hard soil. A bunch of older boys were playing football in the adjacent field. A few 3-4 year olds were swinging.

You are friendly one. Always approaching little toddlers and older kids. Wanting to make friends. Reaching out your hands, inching closer for a hug. You love being around people your size (or closer to your size). As much as you want to be friends with other children, somehow they don't ever seem to feel the same way. Even older kids shy away when you approach. Kesian my angel. So yesterday, kids came and went. It would truly trouble and sadden you when a kid would leave. Always you will reach your hand out and call them back, "tatatata...tatatata" you would scream out. But they would continue to walk away. Mummy thinks you are so used to spending so much time with little children and babies while staying with Shan and Ron for the last 7 months. You probably miss the hullaballoo.

Better start to the day

This morning mummy left for work feeling lighter than usual. Why? Well because Baby Boo Boo decided to awake from her slumber at 6.25 am. And watching those eyes adjust to seeing mummy and being able to kiss those cheeks, lips, face, bum bum, the list goes on.... is just priceless. Giving you that tight squeeze in the morning truly makes my day. Thank you for making my day sweetheart!

xxx

mummy

You love these things....

There's no way avoiding these little machines. They are up every alley in nearly every mall. You go totally nuts when you see/hear one. Mummy's on it with you every time. It was a little embarassing at first, having adults look at me moving around on this animal but mummy got used to it soon enough! As much as I try, mummy can never figure out what animals they are.

Knocked-Out!

Your routine always goes out-of-whack during the weekends. What more when its a long one! It took you forever to 'go out' for your morning naps. And you refused to sleep in the afternoons. So at night, you are knocked-out by 7-8 pm. Last night we were watching Corwin's Quest on Animal Planet. Boy do you love animals, ALL animals, anything with a face! Last night's feature was on crocodiles mainly, kangaroos,monkeys and snakes too. Since learning how to walk, you can't seem to stop. You walk around in circles, back and forth, up and down. You look like a little drunkard sometimes. It took you probably a half hour to wind down last night. When mummy saw you were wobbling a little more than usual, I picked you up and sat you right next to me. As usual when you are tired, you would dig your face in anything soft and cuddly, a pillow or a stuffed toy, sometimes the lamb skin downstairs. You would lie still for several seconds in one spot then suddenly sit up in a half asleep state and find another soft spot. Yesterday, you found the perfect place to rest facing the TV on mummy's lap. In unders 60 seconds you were out. Like a log you fell asleep on me. I love that feeling. I know exactly when you knock-out. Somehow your body becomes limp and you are rested.

When you are tired and sleepy you want one of two things, your nennen or your cucu. You can't sleep without the latter. And even when you are already asleep and your 'best friend' falls lout of your mouth, your hands will move about frantically looking for it. When you finally find it, you grab it and stuff it in your mouth. Sometimes you grab it by the pacifier end and put the handle in your mouth. It's so entertaining to watch you get it the right way in. All this is done with you eyes closed and while you are still asleep. Hillarous! Mummy laughs silently every time. When I see Mr. Cucu out of your mouth and you are still soundly asleep then I know you are truly out for the night.

She Walks

It was the last day in July, our flight to KK was the very next day. You had been walking with assistance from mummy for a couple of weeks. I knew you had it in you if you would only try. You seemed to want to do it on your own but always pulled back by fear. On this day you had an audience. Mummy, Aunty Otta, Uncle Allen, Kak Mon and Kak Mimin. So many cheers from every corner. The excitement, the claps and encouragement, the smiling and eager faces; all these forces combined with your strong little legs and you walked! Around 4 steps at first. Then as you saw how proud we were of your accomplishment, you refused to stop. Your next try you made it 8 steps! Woooooo! My angel walks, it's official, she's a walking toddler! I could not kiss you enough. Could not hug you hard enough. A mummy beaming with pride as she watches her little baby grow right in front of her. Ahhhh...that milestone that is such a huge step, the biggest difference between baby and toddler. How fast time flies from when we brought you home from the hospital. It's now been a month and guess what? You are eager to run! Practically flying now! Watch out world here comes Elil!

The walking video to come....

xxx

mummy

Random Elil Pix

My juling friend makan sandwich

Your expanding vocabulary and responsiveness....

You are a copy cat. Everything mummy says, you repeat. Shan has got two new pets, Pegasus and Star she named them. They are chickens, the small type. Ayam Semarak my colleague tells me. When we ask you, "Where's Pegasus & Star?", you point outside and say "asus tarr". Daddy is now "dedi" and you still don't say mummy. Somehow, the 'mee' just doesnt roll out so easily. Mummy's anxious now. *sigh* When its about time and you hear a car approaching outside, you go "dedi dedi dedi" whether its daddy or mummy. You let out a sharp, "Yeeeeeeee! Yeeeeeee!" when you are 'geram'. This is usually when mummy doesnt give you what you want.

You know where your eyes, nose and belly-button are. Mummy calls belly-button 'tootchi', you laugh whenever I say this word. It is a funny word come to think of it. I think its a Sabahan thing, or it could be a Wong thing. You like flowers and when mummy mentions flowers, you point at any flower you see be it a real one, plastic, embroided on your blouse or a print, in a picture frame, you name it. You are very clear on YES and NO. You nod your head for a yes and shake it left and right for a firm no. And when Kakak Mon tries to force feed you, you give her a tight slap on the cheek or a sharp pinch on the hand. This is hilarious. Serves Kakak Mon right, no more forcing!

Another thing, you have mastered the art of fake laughing. Anytime mummy and daddy laugh in your presence, you come up with your own little joke to laugh about. And then this little hilarious action makes us laugh even harder which is such a treat for you. You are so amused and entertained by this you let out an even more exaggerated laugh. This goes on and on until either baby or mummy and daddy cannot keep up.

You love books. We try to make it a habit to read to you before bed time, but this doesn't always happen. What amuses you is the flipping pages action, the colorful pictures, and the sounds mummy makes when imitating the animals. Haha! You ocassionally read on your own. Mummy doesnt disturb and watches silently. You flip the pages, sometimes the book is upside down, other times you flip back and forth between pages and you even read the back leaf. As you try to get a better grip and flip the pages of the book, you read the story aloud. Of course this is only deep mumbling and sometimes you manage to add in a tune or two. Ah such an amazing experience to watch you read!

For a while you enjoyed playing 'Round & Round The Garden' on yourself. You would point at your palm and move your finger across trying to imitate Shannon who taught you this in the first place. When mummy saw this for the first time, I thought you were pretending to write. Wah, my baby's a genius! You enjoy the first part, 'round and round the garden, like a teddy bear' but get a little stiff (smile still plastered on your face) when it gets to the last part, " a 1 step, a 2 step....a tickly under there!".

A while ago mummy wrote about your roaring like a lion. You have not forgotten this. Something new you learned during our trip to KK, roaring like a lion or tiger at the sight of:

a) A Tiger Beer trademark - mostly on kedai kopi advertising and sometimes on mummy's/daddy's beer can.

b) Maybank trademark - on any Maybank bank
So everytime you roar, we look around everywhere for either a real lion/tiger (haha) or a Tiger Beer advertisement or a Maybank.

When we say, "kai kai' or "vroom vroom" you know this means were going for a ride. Your excited face will take over and you will be kicking your legs away. Sometimes you respond by saying "broom broom".

And finally, you can walk! But this deserves a post all on its own. So watch this space.

xxx
mummy