Junya turns 7 months today!

(Also read  first month , second month , third month , fourth month , fifth month and sixth month here.)

 

 

Whoa so many things happened in the past month, it is really the most happening month in his entire life (which is 7 months lol)! There were many firsts for him, and it was also the month full of new milestones! Physically and emotionally he has also changed a lot…

So let’s see what happened in the past month!

For Baby

1. First flight

Everything went unexpectedly well! Junya flew 4 times in total: long flights to and fro KL-Tokyo, and short flights  to and fro Tokyo-Nagasaki. He was pretty happy the whole time!

 

2. First Winter

While it is natural for babies to adapt to the changing seasons in most countries, it isn’t for babies born and raised in Malaysia. He went from a scorching 35°C  and zero winter apparel in his wardrobe, to wearing 3 layers and touching snow for the first time.

I was very worried since he can’t tell me if he’s too cold or too hot. And his parents seem to have very different views on temperature. I’m alright with just tights and a knit top while the danna shivers under 3 layers of heattech, so we weren’t sure what is the norm to dress him up.

Luckily the weather didn’t seem to bother him much (and super thankful he didn’t catch a cold either), although in the first week we did need to apply lots of moisturizer on him due to the dry weather. Never thought baby’s skin can get so dry too! >.<

 

3. First Onsen Experience

He looooves it. We booked a private onsen so we could all go in with him (babies are ok in public bath too). He was so happy!

 

4. Met Jiji for the first time

Junya’s Jiji (Grandfather) finally gets to see his second grandchild! The danna’s brother has a boy and that was the only grandchild he had for 10 years. Anyway, Jiji has 3 boys. And two of those boys have one boy each. The whole family is full of boys. Even the neighbors got only boys. It’s really no surprise if Junya ends up with only brothers in the future T___T.

 

5. New Fav Sleeping Position

He now likes to sleep on his tummy! Put him on his back and he would roll onto his tummy again XD

And… now he would wake up to find his mama. If he does he’d give a wide grin like this and bury his head in the mattress and zonk out again. If he doesn’t, he cries. -_-

He still does the human clock (see 6th month) thing, but in Japan the beds are SO SMALL both of us had to sleep like Chinese zombies HAHAHA. Plus when he sleeps on his tummy he doesn’t move much.

But i would have to sleep like lol. Literally “lol“, throwing my hands above the pillow because there’s zero space for my hands to put by the sides without crushing my baby T__T. And now i have permanent sore arms T__T.

 

6. First date

With his love of destiny Anna ♡

 

7. 😛

The notti face come out liao!!!! Most of the time on picture he’s like 😛 😛 😛 😛

 

8. Starting Solid

A few friends recommended BLW (Baby-Led Weaning) method for starting solid, it didn’t go as well as i’d like it to be T__T. I just could not stand the whole mess on his face, body, the chair, the table, the floor, not to mention 90% of the food end up on the floor and then into Champon’s tummy T__T.

So we are back to spoons. Even spoons are a mess! He’d stick his tiny hand into his mouth full of pureed mash and then wipe it on his face (and sometimes on mine) T______T.

I started his solids in Japan, so far he’s tried assorted baby foods in a jar, ranging from mixed vegetable, pumpkin, potato, spinach, carrot all in puree or porridge form. He hasn’t spat out any so far!

Japanese ichigo.

He’s also gnawed on adult food (without really eating it). He loves strawberry because the shape is a bit like nipple LOLOL.

 

9. Using a straw

He can now drink from a straw!! I was very puzzled how baby learns to suck from a straw as the straw-sucking motion is completely different from suckling a nipple.

But!! I just let him try a few times on his own and he just figured it out himself!!!emp2emp2emp2

I think the trick was to try with boxed juice (in Japan, they sell mini boxed juice and mugi tea for babies), since the straw is short and easier to draw the liquid out. You can also slightly squeeze the box and let the juice flows into his mouth, so he knows it is for drinking 😀

Babies really really amaze me! And once they learn how to do it the first time it is really like an achievement unlocked, they will do it again and again and again!

 

10. Crawling

The biggest achievement this month is… moving forward!

Right before we left for Japan, he was interested in reaching for things but all he could do was to kick his legs in random directions (like a flipped tortoise) and then cry out of frustration lolol.

And one day he figured how to wiggle his way forward using his knees. I think it was because he was wearing full body suit on a smooth surface and that makes it easier for him to slide forward! (In KL he is always pantless lolol and he plays on a soft fabric playmat.)

Reaching for allllll the things!

 

11. No weight gain

Before we left, he was about 6.8KG. 3 weeks later and with bulky clothes on, he was only 7KG. All the girls around his age (and even those younger than him) are all heavier than him now XD. He is eating and pooping okay though.

 

For Mama

1. Be with baby 24/7 for 3 weeks, minus 2 hours.

Back home there’s my mom, and we also finally got a helper to take care of Junya when i am away for work. So this is the first time i’m with him twenty four seven for three whole weeks.

Everywhere. To shopping, to lunches, dinners, drives, meetings, walks… In trains, car, malls, restaurants, toilets…

Except for the two hours i went to Shibuya for a meeting while papa looks after him – which he cried nonstop for 2 whole hours apparently T__T.

He has started to know faces by now and sometimes he really just wants mama, mama and mama. Papa has no say whatsoever here lol. Ok la i was secretly a bit happy and smug about the exclusive bond i have with my son, but it also makes being away from him impossible now.

 

2. Failing to wean

Because, during the three weeks, he wanted nothing but boobs. (Plus some fancy food in a jar.)

I was prepared to wean him in Japan because i thought it would be much easier and also because we have done it for 6 months (yay!). Turned out it was the complete opposite. I prepared bottles, formula and flasks for hot water and stuff, ended up we needed none of those.

He just won’t take a bottle.

At first i thought he didn’t like the taste of Meiji formula, so we switched to another brand. Still no. He cries the moment we stuff a bottle in his mouth.

So ended up, maybe it is a blessing in disguise, i had to continue to nurse him for 3 whole weeks. What i thought to be an obstacle to fuss-free traveling, turned out to be a life-saving convenience.

What the danna calls “Aruki Oppai” (Boobs On The Move) lolol.

(“What time is Junya’s feeding?” “Now. he’s on Aruki Oppai.“)

Basically all i needed was a nursing cape, nothing else. I carried him in the baby carrier, throw the cape over (which just looks like a scarf since winter wear are all so bulky anyway, it’s hard to tell what is what anymore lol), and nursed him while shopping, while eating, while in the train, while in a meeting. Whenever he fusses/ is sleepy/hungry, nurse.

That was my life-saver throughout the whole travel. No wailing baby in public places (you know how embarrassing it could be especially in such a place like Japan where everyone is expected to be ridiculously well-behaved), we even managed to sneak him into some places that are not usually very baby friendly (like an extremely narrow and noisy Ramen shop). Not to mention the freedom of not having to carry milk bottles, formula, bottle warmer; searching for hot water, (and cold water to mix?), worrying about water safety, cleaning the bottles in public places for next feeding, etc etc etc.

I never thought i’d say this but breastfeeding is really the best for traveling!! Although Japan does have quite awesome facilities for bottle-feeding. Will blog about that in a separate entry!

 

3. Really enjoying it

Back home in KL, i have to admit guiltily that sometimes i do feel worn-out by having to take care of a baby. When the cries come during , it’s not all that fun after all (everybody will throw the baby back to you and it’s your responsibility alone).

But the entire 3 weeks, i have never once felt that way, even though it was waaaay more tiring to do all the baby-carrying and walking. Maybe i was on a holiday mood (back home it was work-mood and housewife-mood), so the baby is happy that the mama is happy that the baby is happy that the mama is happy… it’s all a very happy cycle.

I think i like this feeling and i hope it continues… Everyone tells me that this is the “golden age”. And it’s true, he is so much fun now and as geli and cheesy as it sounds it’s quite hard to not feel happy with him around.

 

For Family

1. First Xmas & New Year Together

We spend a Merry Christmas having a home party eating half-price dinner from department food stores. May we have many many many more to comes. Even 18 years later… (No, Junya. Come home for dinner. Girl friend can wait.)

 

 

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