Yesterday Logan pulled himself up to a standing position for the first time. He was 7 month and 2 days old! Logan got up on to his feet pretty quickly, but he didn't stop there; he took a step forward to reach for the remote control. (what baby doesn't love remote control!!!) As soon as he can touch his prize, he grabbed it with both hand! Poor Logan forgot that he needed his hands to support himself while standing. Then he turned around in sheer delight -- probably looking for someone to show it off to, "did anyone see what I got!?!" -- but CRASH! I watched this video over and over and it made me laugh so hard every time I got to this point.
-Yang
Monday, July 19, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Summer is fun!
We are totally settling back into our normal life now and enjoying the summer time! Since the weather is nice and hot, there are lots of activities that we can take Logan to participate in: picnic, BBQ, out for a walk, visiting farmer's market, visiting OEYC, going to the playground and swimming pool.There is a new OEYC satellite location opened up at Yonge and Sheppard this month. Even though it's very small and only operates on Fridays, it's still a huge plus in terms of convenience. We checked it out on it's opening day, literally 5 minutes walk from our condo. There is a huge population living in the area, so it's about time to have an OEYC for the kids in the neighborhood.
Logan grew to love the swing this month! He was a little scared the first time he got in a baby swing, but he overcame the fear when he tried it the second time. Now as long as the weather is good, I always take Logan to the playground once a day. He will laugh when he gets a push, which is really cute!
Another sport that Logan enjoys in the summer is swimming. I love that we have a swimming pool in the building, with a sun roof -- so the whole pool gets warmed up so nicely! Especially on the really hot days that we can't go out anywhere else, I love going down to the swimming pool with Logan. The tricky part is taking him by myself -- because Logan can't really stay still by himself, it really is a challenge to organize all the swim gears and dress myself while taking care of him. I recently found this awesome "learn to swim ring" for Logan from Canadian Tire for only $4.99. Logan learned to balance himself inside the floating ring within a few minutes. At the beginning he puts his head in the water to play, but he quickly figured out he shouldn't do that and held up his neck instead. It will be nice to have Logan swim with other babies around as well, but so far I am a little reluctant to go to a public swimming pool for a few reasons -- our pool in the building is really convenient, has higher water temperature and is chlorine free -- one of the improvement our condo board made last year -- the pool is kept clean by a salt water system, which is healthier and more economical.
-Yang
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Home again
We have been back from the trip for 2 weeks now. The trip was awesome, I didn't want to come back. There were just so many family to help and play with Logan back home, which made Logan so happy all the time. Here in Toronto we are alone again, and hubby is not the best at taking care of me and baby most of the time. Luckily we have the beautiful summer here, otherwise I would be more stressed out.Logan is a lucky baby. He had been to many places before turning 6 month, including: Beijing Olympic Stadium Bird's Nest, Summer Palace, Tokyo Disneyland, Asakusa temple, Tokyo ueno zoo, and many more places. Here is a picture of Logan enjoying the hot spring in Japan.
Logan is now 6 months old, weighs 18.5 lb, measures 72 cm long. Logan's head circumference is 42 cm. The head is still on the small side, following the curve around 25%; but the height is off the chart, Dr. says it's at 100%.
We started Logan on solid food at 5 and half month. Now he is having one solid meal a day at lunch time. Logan had tried brown rice cereal, avocado, bananas, butternut squash, and peas. So far he liked most of the foods. Sometimes it takes a few days to try and adapt to a new flavor, but he always enjoys it at the end. I am a big believer of freshly made baby food from scratch, so now there is one more task for me to make Logan's lunch everyday. It's a new challenge to fit in the lunch and still be able to get out during the day. Hopefully I will work out some new routine soon and start to take Logan out to enjoy the summer!
-Yang
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Ready to see my family
So this is Rajib. I've been stuck in Toronto for the past three weeks while Yang and Logan are enjoying themselves in China. Yang says she's more relaxed now as there are lots of family members happy to look after Logan; Yang doesn't have to entertain him every second of the day. That's great - she deserves some rest.
I'll be off to the airport to join them in just a few hours. There's no blogger (or facebook or picasaweb) access while in China, so we'll have the cone of silence on us for awhile. Which is fine since we'll be missing the Lost finale, the 24 finale, and the Survivor season finale while we're gone; I wouldn't want to accidentally hear something about them anyway.
Apparently, I've missed some big milestones of Logan's in the past three weeks. He is now regularly flipping over from back to front everyday. And he just recently discovered his feet and has been putting those in his mouth. I've heard he has grown so much that Yang has asked for even bigger baby clothes to come with my luggage to join them. I'm happy that Yang's family is getting to see these milestones first hand, but I kind of feel like I'm missing out!
I'll see them in just a few hours, though, hopefully in time to celebrate Logan's 5th month-aversary this Sunday, May 16th. I can't wait to see you guys!!
-rajib
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Four month report
Logan continued to grow near the 90th percentile. At 4 month, he measured 26 inches, weighed 16.3 pounds. His head circumference is 40 cm.Logan had many firsts in the 4th month of his life. Besides turning over for the first time, Logan also had his first swim in a pool, got his first passport, first time meeting another Logan, first pee in the toilet, first subway ride, and many more ...
When Logan was 3 month old, his favorite thing to do was looking at himself in the mirror. Now at 4 month, he still loves the mirror, but his new favorite is to sit up or even stand up while his hands being held. Logan is growing stronger and stronger by the day.
Tomorrow we are going on a trip to China and Japan. This is going to be the first big trip with baby, and I am flying with Logan alone on a 13 hour flight. I hope Logan will enjoy the adventure!
-Yang
Monday, April 12, 2010
Infant potty training - the start
I think this is one of the less discussed baby topic in North America. Most people around me potty train their babies around 2-3 year old. Had I been raised in North America and wanting to stick to what the majority do, would I have ever considered infant potty training my baby? I don't know the answer to that.
However, I think I have taken it for granted that infants are being potty trained back home in China, at least in the old days. I remember when I was a kid, I saw other parents holding their little babies over a pot while blowing whistles, then the baby would pee in the pot. (Sure it sounds like magic if you tell this kind of story to Canadian moms; but it's very common practice in other parts of the world!) So the image was always in the back of my mind, but I never gave it any thought whether I should follow the same practice with my baby.
Then one day a seed was planted in my head. I was in my late pregnancy. Hubby and I were at his cousin's son's 2 year birthday party. The cousin has a Russian wife and Russian nanny, so they followed traditional Russian method to potty train their son since a few months old. Way before the baby turned two, he already wore his underwear instead of diapers, and the parents would only give him a diaper when they are out just in case. They were telling the stories in such pride and I was interested in hearing about it more than anything else. Then the cousin said to me, "I am sure there are such similar methods being practiced in Chinese culture as well." That's very true. And I believe in every old culture, there are practices and wisdom that should not be forgotten, as a result of new inventions (i.e. disposable diaper :)). That's when I thought I would want to start early to potty train my baby.
I had this idea, but I didn't really know how and when to do it. A few times I was on the phone with my family in China, I asked the questions to grandma. She had 4 children, so I trusted her experiences. But she can't remember much details, except for the stuff I already know. I can't blame her, that was over 80 years ago. Until one day, I heard a truly amazing story, when mom found the old diary she kept since my birth where she recorded my month-to-month developments and milestones: In January 1980, that's when I was about 2 month old, my potty training started, which is just a few times a day holding me over a pot to pee, and everyday at 8pm to poop (mom did not have enough breast milk for me, so I was on other foods, thus my poop was more regular and solid than breastfed babies, otherwise it would be very hard to have a poop schedule in my opinion); In May 1980, when I was about 6 month old, as recorded in the diary, I was able to go for a whole day without wetting my diaper some days! I was surprised and super excited about this new finding. As I don't feel that I am having any low self-esteem or other psychological issues due to early potty training, myself is the living proof that this method indeed works!
When Logan was 2 month, I seriously considered potty training him. First I did a lot of mental work, just to work it out in my head how exactly should I execute. With me still struggling between caring for him and keeping my sanity, it seemed like an impossible task to do at that time. Finally I decided to try it when Logan was 2.5 month old, and let me tell you it was a disaster! I undressed him on the change table in the living room, ran to the bathroom with him naked in my arms praying that he won't pee halfway; then held him over the toilet, blowing whistles like crazy. Logan didn't have a strong enough back and neck control back then, so he was squirming very uncomfortably in my hands, penis pointing to the sky! Then I had to worry about not dropping him into the toilet, and worry that if he really peed, both of us would have had a shower. Still I didn't catch a single drop of pee. After that, I decided we weren't ready for potty training yet; maybe we would try again later.
A quick Google showed me that in the western world, this practice is actually called "Elimination Communication". Between birth and 6 month, there is a window of opportunity babies can be introduced to potty!
After Logan turned 3 month, his neck and back control started to get stronger. With some help, he could sit up for a few moments at a time. That was an encouraging sign that maybe we could try to use the potty again. At 3.8 month, we officially started Logan's potty training! It's surprisingly easy with his increasing physical strength; and since he is more aware, he seems to understand what I want him to do when I bring him to the toilet. Logan quickly got a hang of it! It has been only 1 week since, and we have already seen amazing results. Logan does almost all of the poops in the toilet now, usually in the early morning immediately after waking up or the first feeding. Logan also knows that he should pee in the toilet; as long as he has pee, he will let go. During the daytime, I can catch as least half of his pee. The biggest benefit is that Logan never has to sit in the poopy diaper any more, which means no more diaper rash; and the number of diapers used is reduced a lot as well! Good job Logan, you are such a smart baby, we are so proud of you!
I am really glad that we started potty training this early. I am very optimistic about it, and hopeful that by the time Logan is mobile, he will already have the habit to go outside his diapers. I am also amazed at the same time! I don't believe that only the 2 or 3 year old can learn to use potty; babies are much smarter than we think! Give them a chance, their instinct will tell them it's much more comfortable when they don't pee and poo in their pants. :)
-Yang
However, I think I have taken it for granted that infants are being potty trained back home in China, at least in the old days. I remember when I was a kid, I saw other parents holding their little babies over a pot while blowing whistles, then the baby would pee in the pot. (Sure it sounds like magic if you tell this kind of story to Canadian moms; but it's very common practice in other parts of the world!) So the image was always in the back of my mind, but I never gave it any thought whether I should follow the same practice with my baby.
Then one day a seed was planted in my head. I was in my late pregnancy. Hubby and I were at his cousin's son's 2 year birthday party. The cousin has a Russian wife and Russian nanny, so they followed traditional Russian method to potty train their son since a few months old. Way before the baby turned two, he already wore his underwear instead of diapers, and the parents would only give him a diaper when they are out just in case. They were telling the stories in such pride and I was interested in hearing about it more than anything else. Then the cousin said to me, "I am sure there are such similar methods being practiced in Chinese culture as well." That's very true. And I believe in every old culture, there are practices and wisdom that should not be forgotten, as a result of new inventions (i.e. disposable diaper :)). That's when I thought I would want to start early to potty train my baby.
I had this idea, but I didn't really know how and when to do it. A few times I was on the phone with my family in China, I asked the questions to grandma. She had 4 children, so I trusted her experiences. But she can't remember much details, except for the stuff I already know. I can't blame her, that was over 80 years ago. Until one day, I heard a truly amazing story, when mom found the old diary she kept since my birth where she recorded my month-to-month developments and milestones: In January 1980, that's when I was about 2 month old, my potty training started, which is just a few times a day holding me over a pot to pee, and everyday at 8pm to poop (mom did not have enough breast milk for me, so I was on other foods, thus my poop was more regular and solid than breastfed babies, otherwise it would be very hard to have a poop schedule in my opinion); In May 1980, when I was about 6 month old, as recorded in the diary, I was able to go for a whole day without wetting my diaper some days! I was surprised and super excited about this new finding. As I don't feel that I am having any low self-esteem or other psychological issues due to early potty training, myself is the living proof that this method indeed works!
When Logan was 2 month, I seriously considered potty training him. First I did a lot of mental work, just to work it out in my head how exactly should I execute. With me still struggling between caring for him and keeping my sanity, it seemed like an impossible task to do at that time. Finally I decided to try it when Logan was 2.5 month old, and let me tell you it was a disaster! I undressed him on the change table in the living room, ran to the bathroom with him naked in my arms praying that he won't pee halfway; then held him over the toilet, blowing whistles like crazy. Logan didn't have a strong enough back and neck control back then, so he was squirming very uncomfortably in my hands, penis pointing to the sky! Then I had to worry about not dropping him into the toilet, and worry that if he really peed, both of us would have had a shower. Still I didn't catch a single drop of pee. After that, I decided we weren't ready for potty training yet; maybe we would try again later.
A quick Google showed me that in the western world, this practice is actually called "Elimination Communication". Between birth and 6 month, there is a window of opportunity babies can be introduced to potty!
After Logan turned 3 month, his neck and back control started to get stronger. With some help, he could sit up for a few moments at a time. That was an encouraging sign that maybe we could try to use the potty again. At 3.8 month, we officially started Logan's potty training! It's surprisingly easy with his increasing physical strength; and since he is more aware, he seems to understand what I want him to do when I bring him to the toilet. Logan quickly got a hang of it! It has been only 1 week since, and we have already seen amazing results. Logan does almost all of the poops in the toilet now, usually in the early morning immediately after waking up or the first feeding. Logan also knows that he should pee in the toilet; as long as he has pee, he will let go. During the daytime, I can catch as least half of his pee. The biggest benefit is that Logan never has to sit in the poopy diaper any more, which means no more diaper rash; and the number of diapers used is reduced a lot as well! Good job Logan, you are such a smart baby, we are so proud of you!
I am really glad that we started potty training this early. I am very optimistic about it, and hopeful that by the time Logan is mobile, he will already have the habit to go outside his diapers. I am also amazed at the same time! I don't believe that only the 2 or 3 year old can learn to use potty; babies are much smarter than we think! Give them a chance, their instinct will tell them it's much more comfortable when they don't pee and poo in their pants. :)
-Yang
Friday, April 2, 2010
Logan's first time rolling over
It happened on Wednesday, March 31, around 11:45am. Logan was exactly 15 weeks old, or 105 days.
Logan has been getting some tummy time regularly to strengthen his muscles necessary for rolling over. As usual, I placed him on his stomach in front of the mirror on Wednesday morning, while I was getting ready to go to the library. Logan was pushing up really strong. I remember thinking, "Keep practicing like this, he is going to roll himself over within the next week!"
After the library "Baby Story Time" program, I put Logan on his tummy again to play with other babies. It was so cute! I grabbed the camera to take a picture. Oh no, it ran out of battery just when I was about to snap a shot. So I was fiddling with the camera for about 3, 4 seconds. When I looked up toward Logan again, he was on his back already! I shouted out, "Oh my god, he flipped over for the first time! Ohhhh, I didn't even see it!"
So this was the story of Logan's first time rolling over from tummy to back. Since then, we have not yet been able to reproduce the action. But as Logan's getting stronger, he will be able to turn himself more freely. I can't wait to witness Logan's new rollover skill myself!
Here is a picture taken a few minutes before Logan flipped over in the North York Central Library.
(Baby in blue name Nick, 8 days older than Logan.)
-Yang
Logan has been getting some tummy time regularly to strengthen his muscles necessary for rolling over. As usual, I placed him on his stomach in front of the mirror on Wednesday morning, while I was getting ready to go to the library. Logan was pushing up really strong. I remember thinking, "Keep practicing like this, he is going to roll himself over within the next week!"
After the library "Baby Story Time" program, I put Logan on his tummy again to play with other babies. It was so cute! I grabbed the camera to take a picture. Oh no, it ran out of battery just when I was about to snap a shot. So I was fiddling with the camera for about 3, 4 seconds. When I looked up toward Logan again, he was on his back already! I shouted out, "Oh my god, he flipped over for the first time! Ohhhh, I didn't even see it!"
So this was the story of Logan's first time rolling over from tummy to back. Since then, we have not yet been able to reproduce the action. But as Logan's getting stronger, he will be able to turn himself more freely. I can't wait to witness Logan's new rollover skill myself!
Here is a picture taken a few minutes before Logan flipped over in the North York Central Library.
(Baby in blue name Nick, 8 days older than Logan.)
-Yang
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