Quote of the Day

" At the sunset of our days on earth, at the moment of our death, we will be evaluaed according to whether or not we resemble the Child who is about to be born in the lowly cave in Bethlehem, since He is the criterion by which God measures humanity. "

Pope Benedict XVI
Advent 2007

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Stokke Xplory

Our Stokke is here!!!

And though it has a funny look, it sure is fun to use.









Read more about the details here

Our package finally arrived from the US after some fiasco with delivery over in the US. We liked the fact that it has an adjustable height allowing a young child to have a ride height that is above the level of an adults knees. This is after observing our niece having to endure the view of the table bottom during family dinners.

In addition, it has rave reviews from celebrity users. See their reviews

So if you see a red stokke pram. honk and wave

First Trip to the Zoo

We had to go out for some fresh air and sunshine. It was also an opportunity to test out our new pram which came over the weekend. And so we thought the area outside the zoo and night safari would have been a nice place to walk.

So Elijah has already been to the zoo and the tender age of 12 days :). And in anticipation of future trips to the zoo, we excitedly got ourselves signed up as Friends of the Zoo. This will allow us unlimited access to the zoo itself and other discounts e.g carpark, F&B ... The cost of it was SGD 150 but with a 10% discount with the ikea friends card. Since an adult admission to the zoo is about 16 bucks, 5 trips to the zoo for fran, myself and rlijah would more than make up for the membership to the zoo.

This will require a little re-think about the way we plan zoo trips. No more of those entire day, see the whole zoo type of trips. Rather, we should plan short, a couple of hours type trips to see specific exhibits or shows.

This was really quite a fun day.

(will follow with photos)

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Did You Know?

Did you know that...


Shit from a one week old baby can: Fly through the air, more than 30cm, in stream and really soil you... if you are not careful.

That is exactly what happened during yesterday's diaper change and it had to happen past midnight. Not exactly a bargain just before going to bed.

One really had to see the humour in the situation and it still brings a smile to my face even when I think about it now.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

his nails are SHARP!

Do not let anyone tell you that a baby's nails are not sharp. Apart from inflicting little scratches on their faces, these claws can actually cause quite a little bit of pain.

But I guess I deserved it for tricking the little one with my non-existent breast... Ouch, when he reached out and dug in with his claws. :0

The Many Faces of Elijah

Its amazing how many faces one baby can have. Its his 6th day of life and the little one already has a myriad of expressions on his little face.

It really is amazing and how wondrous a miracle life can be. We can already see subtle differences in his behaviour, expressions and development from day to day.

Enjoy his little faces..

Friday, February 15, 2008

Baby Elijah is here

Things have really been hectic and surreal since Monday, but the good news is...

ELIJAH is HERE!

The little one was born on 12 Feb 08 past midnight, weighing in at 3455 gms. Fran had to undergo a C section after a prolonged period of labour but thank God that both mummy and baby are safe and healthy.

I will be following up with photos here...so hold on tight

Update:
Follow the link here for photos!

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Elijah Michael Tan

We have settled on a name, after mulling about it for a long time. The name is important and it gives meaning to what we hope for him as he grows up in our family, under our guidance.

So if you think Elijah is quite uncommon and why this name? Elijah was a prophet of God, set in the old Testament. Characteristically; bold, direct and obedient to God, he went about challenging the authority of the kind and the worship of false gods.

The painting below highlights some of the scenes from the story of Elijah including the call of fire from the sky to light the offering on the altar, the raising of the dead son of the widow of Zarephath, and his rising to heaven in a fiery chariot.



St. Michael, Mont St Michel
Photo by Adrian. f4, 1/10 ISO 1600

And then Michael? Michael is going to be his baptism name. We were very taken with the image of Michael the archangel during our pilgrimage to Mont St Michel. Michael, one of the archangel means "who is like God" is also traditionally depicted as a warrior with a foot over a defeated serpent. We hope these bring meaning to how we hope to bring up our little boy... an obedient servant of God and a defender of the faith.

Sunday, February 03, 2008

Last Weekend as 2

It just struck me as we entered the weekend, that this is the last weekend that Fran and I were to spend as a couple.

Wait...let me correct that statement. It is the last weekend that Fran and I were to spend together as a 2 member family. Baby Elijah is due on the 8th and if all goes well, the next weekend will see 3 members in our family.

Well, I say this not because it is a problem and I made the correction of the first statement, as Fran and I can and will continue to make time to spend together as a couple despite the arrival of the child.

However, the permanent change lies with the fact that when I refer to our family... there will be an additional member. :)