Merry Christmas!

A Weekend with Daddy Home

No words necessary to describe this weekend full of fun with daddy!

Videos of Issey Singing and Dancing

The First Song:

The more we get together, together, together
the more we get together, the happier we'll be
‘cause your friends are my friends and my friends are your friends
The more we get together the happier we'll be

The Second Song:

Oh Mister Sun, Sun,
Mister Golden Sun,
Please shine down on me

Oh Mister Sun, Sun,
Mister Golden Sun,
Hiding behind a tree...

Another Day at Preschool

Dressed to impress! Since Daddy has been away for so long, Isabella is beginning to copy Mommy in many ways. She loves to wear pretty dresses even in freezing temperatures. She calls them princess dresses...

Isabella is starting to pick out what she wants to wear (well, within reason depending on the weather). I usually send her to school in layers of polar fleece from MEC.

It has been sunny and COLD (well, freezing) in Vancouver. We had to buy snow pants and snow jacket for Issey to wear while at school.

Another Day @ the Park

Yes she is wearing the same jacket, same bike, similar black fleece pants, same sunny day, around the same time of the day, same swing set...

But the pics and video are from today! I swear!

Isabella is beginning to miss Daddy terribly. I am so glad he will be home in one week!

Daddy and Isabella - Long Distance Conversation

FOUR weeks ago, Mommy and Isabella dropped Daddy off at the Vancouver Airport to catch a flight to Colombia. It was quite exciting for Isabella and we explained to her that Daddy has to take the airplane to go to work. Here is an excerpt taken from a blog at Isabella's Preschool:

WHO IS MOMMY ACTIVITY:
by Miss Jannel

At circle, one of the children just randomly exclaimed, “MOMMY, DADDY!” so I decided to ask them about their mommies and daddies and what they thought they were doing while we were at school singing songs and having dance parties. Needless to say, they had some interesting and humourous answers.

Miss Jannel- Who is mommy?

No response.

Miss Jannel- Who has a mommy?

Ka- I do! (first and only to answer)

Miss Jannel- Isabella, do you have a mommy?

Isabella- My mommy home, my daddy working… he on airplane

Ed- I have a mommy

Miss Jannel- Who is your mommy?

Ed- um Jo (gives mom’s first name)

Miss Jannel- What does your mommy do?

Ed- my mommy works at the church

Miss Jannel- What does she do at the church

Ed- She talks

The conversation ended here and then two days later…

Lo- Mommy and daddy home

Ka- Daddy is at work

Ed- They’re driving in traffic, my mommy is at church and my daddy is at home, probably cleaning

Ry- My mommy and daddy are at home playing on the couch

The children pay close attention to the ones they love most and we can see this displayed in the considerable knowledge they have of where their parents are during the day.

MDA Children's Christmas Party 2009

Isabella attended the MDA Children's Christmas party with Auntie Lisa and Baby Megan this year. Daddy is still away in Columbia.

Both Issey and Megan were dressed in bright red to celebrate the Christmas season.

We saw lots of children at the party including Luke, Ian, Alec, Jayden and Princeton! We all had a lovely time.

We were so tired and left before Santa arrived. :-(

Another Sick Day Full of Fun

Are sick days supposed to be fun? Issey is feeling much better and we decided to visit Grandma, Grandpa and Megan for the day. Since it was a beautiful sunny day, we went to the park for some fresh air. Issey was all smiles with Megan. We played on the swings, slides and even in the sand! I am sure Issey will be well enough for the Children's Christmas party as well as school on Monday.

The Day After the Sick Day

The day after a sick day is always tough... Issey did not want to go to school today. She asked to stay home again and she wanted to go play in the park. Issey was in tears when Mommy dropped her off at school.

So the BIG lesson I have learned is NOT to make sick days so much fun!

This is How We Spend Sick Days

We survived yet another week without Daddy in town! Last night Issey had a high fever and a few asthma attacks... so Mommy and Issey did not sleep very well.

Issey seemed fine in the morning. She asked to stay home with Mommy in the morning. As we had such a rough night, Mommy quickly obliged. And this is how we spent our sick day:

1. Went to the park since it was such a beautiful sunny day
2. Went to Metrotown to shop and play
3. Visited Grandma, Grandpa and Megan

Grandpa Trinidad

Grandpa Trinidad is visiting family in Vancouver for two weeks in November and Isabella is really enjoying his company.

Flu Shot

Isabella visited the doctor's office for her H1N1 flu vaccination today. She was so brave and took the shot like a big girl.

Before the vaccination, we had Dim Sum with Grandpa Trinidad and bought lots of goodies from the Chinese bakery. We had so much fun spending time with Grandpa Trinidad!

Soccer Mom Mini Van

We are so excited to announce that we are expecting our second baby in January 2010. Isabella will have a little brother to play with in the new year.

In preparation for the arrival of our new addition, we've decided to buy a bigger vehicle. Yes, a mini van!!! We got a great deal on a 2005 Honda Odyssey. It is equipped with eight seats, lots of cup holders, an in-floor lockable lazy susan, lots of compartments, dvd, 6 CD changer, and much much more. It is harder to drive, but it makes our journey to our destinations much more pleasant.

Isabella loves to watch movies from the ceiling mounted DVD player. The vehicle is low enough so she can climb into the van by herself.

Today was our first day dropping Isabella off at school in the van.

Happy Halloween!

Our little princess attended the Halloween festivities as herself... a princess. She wore a pink princess gown courtesy of her Auntie Lisa.

Isabella collected lots of candy and knows how to say "Trick or Treat" as well as "Happy Halloween". After about half an hour of trick or treating, Isabella returned home to give out candies to all the little ghosts and superheros.



On Sunday, Isabella attended Jayden's 3rd birthday party. She had so much fun! She had yummy cake, jello, cheetos, and lots of juice!


Jayden and Isabella are exactly 5 months apart. They've known each other since Issey was only 3 months old.

Growing

It has been a while since I have had a chance to update Isabella's Blog. Isabella is growing up so fast.

Today, she is about 30 months old. We visited her pediatrician for a follow-up on her respiratory sensitivity and an overall checkup.

Isabella measures about 62.5% for her height and weight (30 lbs / 92.5 cm). Her head measures in the 90th percentile. This is based on the growth charts for Caucasian female toddler. In other words, she is growing at a good rate.










As for the respiratory sensitivity, we were prescribed to get a nebulizer machine which converts liquid medication into midst particles for inhalation. The medication is for toddlers with asthma. We tried it out last night and have seen a slight improvement with her breathing.

Full Comprehensive Sentences

Since returning from Europe, Isabella has learned to speak in FULL comprehensive sentences. She can express, "no mommy, I don't like it" or "no mommy, I don't want it". She has even learned to say "no thank you" rather than a simple "no".

Every night, she will shout from our upstairs bedroom, "Daddy, I want milk please". She will repeat until Daddy acknowledges her. Sometimes after repeating so many times she just screams, "Daddy milk please".

Isabella is a very polite toddler and she expects you to reciprocate. She will continue saying "Thank you Daddy" and look you straight in the eye until you respond with "you are welcome".

After school conversations with Isabella have become more interesting. When asked, she will tell you exactly what happened at school from circle time to snack time to lunch time to nap time to afternoon activity time. I must admit I only understand 90% of her rants and raves about her day at school. But I enjoy listening to her verbal and body expressions.

Isabella is more affectionate as she shares spontaneous hugs and kisses throughout the day. Her hugs are so warm as she wraps her little arms around my neck or waist. Her kisses are wet and full of affection.

My little girl is growing up so fast!

European Tour

HOT, HOT, HOT!!!

Every time I pick Issey up from school, her hair is wet from sweating under the cap under the sun. It has been so HOT in Vancouver. The car external temp read 38 degree Celsius yesterday afternoon! Today, Mommy sent Issey to school in a little colourful summer dress from Trinidad. She looked so cute in it.

We even packed a swimsuit to school as they have a tiny pool in the back yard for the children to cool off from the summer sun.

Not a Typical Toddler

So some of the teachers at school inquired about Isabella's background and ethnicity as they were curious since she did not look like a typical Chinese toddler. They were not surprise to learn that Isabella is a mixture of multiple ethnicities. She is Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish and Trinidadian. I guess that explains the curly light brown hair?!?!? This makes our little princess even more unique and special! She is also taller than all the oriental toddlers in her class.

Eventful Weekend

Wow, this weekend was a busy two days. We went to Playland for the MDA summer event and had a great time. Isabella went on several rides including the train, cars and horse rides. We even went to the playhouse TWICE... one with Daddy and another time with Uncle Paul.

Isabella even ate a hamburger and had cotton candy for the first time! She enjoys going on rides with her big cousins Luke and Ian. Daddy won a few toys for Issey playing balloons and darts. He popped every balloon... a perfect score!

The next morning, we all headed out for brunch at Grandma's house. We had Issey's favorite... home cooked Pho! Yummy. We headed to the Caribbean Days around noon and spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying the music, food, and sun!

Isabella danced with Daddy and had some roti skin and chicken curry for lunch. Unfortunately, she did not play in the bouncy castle because the (rude) employees did not believe that she is potty trained even though she only had big girl panties on. Well, I promised her we could play in the bouncy castle we have at home :-)

Preschool

Today Daddy dropped Issey off at Preschool and she did not cry. We are so happy to see that Issey is starting to enjoy school. Daddy said he had to leave to go to work but will be back to pick Issey up in the afternoon. Issey's response was, "Yeah Daddy". Daddy asked for a kiss and Issey's response was, "No Daddy. No kiss, see you". Daddy realized that his little princess is growing up and does not like to be kissed or to give kisses in public anymore.

The head directress at the school sent us a progress report of Isabella for July 15, 2009.

Another Day at Preschool

Today, Isabella did not want to go to school. She said, "No school, I want Om home and BaBa home". In other words, I don't want to go to school and I want to stay with Grandpa/Grandma.

On the ride to school, Issey constantly looked out the window to see if she recognized the area around Grandma/Grandpa's home. When she did not see the house she was terribly sad. We promised that she would get to see her Grandparents and Megan on Saturday morning as we are all heading out for Dim Sum. Finally, after several conversations about school and dim Sum, she agreed to go to school.

Fourth Day of Preschool

Today Daddy dropped Isabella off at school again for day 4. Isabella cried when Daddy left to go to work.

Isabella wet her pants because the teachers did not help her with the potty in time. I am so sad to hear that. I hope the teachers will be more attentive with the potty situation in the future. When Mark picked Issey up from school, he found her playing alone outside in the playhouse. She had dirt and sand all over her face and hair. Poor little baby was so tired from the day.

Third Day of Preschool

Daddy took Isabella to school today so Mommy can work.

Issey was at school from 9:00am to 3:00pm. She played, learned, had lunch and a nap. Wow, Mommy is so proud of her little girl for being so brave at school!

Second Day of Preschool

Since Isabella was sick last week, today will be her second day at Preschool.

Mommy took Isabella to school today and stayed for 45 minutes. Mommy was able to leave the school for an hour. But when I returned, I heard Isabella crying for Mommy. My heart broke into a million pieces. I think Daddy will have to take Issey to school because it is too hard for Mommy to see Issey cry.

Overall, Issey did pretty well. She even stayed to have lunch with the other toddlers. She made a new friend in the older class. Her name is Mia. She seems really nice and enjoys playing with Issey.

Tonight, Daddy is taking Issey to the Killarney Pool for some Daddy-Isssey time.

I hope day 3 will be even better.

Caribbean Festival in Maple Ridge

Yesterday, we took the new bridge, Golden Eye Bridge, to the Caribbean Festival in Maple Ridge. It was a long ride from Vancouver, but Isabella did very well in her car seat. I don't think I can take the long car ride EVERYDAY... I don't know how people can commute for hours each day to get to work.

Anyway, back to the Caribbean Festival. Lots of things to see, music to hear and good food to each. Isabella and Mommy had the Jerk Chicken while Daddy enjoyed the Goat Curry.

Allergic to Preschool?

Some of Daddy`s co-workers think Issey is `allergic` to preschool!

After Visiting the Hospital

After visiting the Children's Emergency Hospital on Tuesday morning, the doctors informed us that Isabella had gastroenteritis and severe dehydration due to the vomitting and diarrhea. Mommy took the rest of the week off to care for Issey. Daddy made sure we had everything we needed before heading into work in the afternoon. We took lots of baths to cool her down. Some of the baths were for the diarrhea accidents. I was glad to see she still enjoyed taking baths.

Today is the sixth day and Issey still has diarrhea. Poor little baby was too sick to eat or play. However, she is feeling a little better today so we took her out for her favorite food... Dim Sum. She had a couple of bites.

After Dim Sum, we took her to Metrotown to do a little shopping. We visited a Dinosaur Exhibit inside the shopping mall. Issey can actually say Dinosaur!

Issey has such a lovely smile... I think she is starting to look just like Daddy! She has started saying te phrase `yeah boy` just the way Daddy says it.

We got her a "get well soon" Minnie Mouse at the Disney Store. After being out all morning, Issey fell asleep with Minnie Mouse on Mommy`s bed. Both Minnie Mouse is Issey are asleep on their belly.

Sick Little Baby

Vomit at 8:00pm
Diarrhea 5 times between 9:00pm to 9:20pm
Vomit at 11:00pm
Diarrhea at 12:00am
Vomit at 1:00am
Vomit at 3:00am

Fever of 100.7 F at 9:00am after a dose of tylenol
Fever of 100.8 F at 9:30am

Alright, Daddy is coming home from work to take us to the hospital.

Official First Day of School

Today, July 6th, is Isabella's official first day of classes. We are starting with gradual entry so the plan is as follows:

Day 1 - Isabella and Mommy stays until lunch time
Day 2 - Isabella and Mommy stays until after lunch time
Day 3 - Isabella and Mommy stays until nap time, but Mommy will leave for a few hours in between
Day 4 - Isabella goes to school the whole day and Mommy stays until lunch time.
Day 5 - Isabella goes to school like a big girl

Well, Day 1 was not too bad. Miss Tayna said Isabella is doing well for the first day as she was willing to play independently without Mommy. Isabella would look for Mommy every 1/2 hour or change of activity... but resumed with her activity once she was sure Mommy was in the vicinity. Isabella brought her baby cabbage patch doll to school for comfort. All the other girls (and boys) wanted to play with the baby doll but Isabella did not want to share her doll with others.

Isabella did not enjoy snack time as they were serving green apple slices with milk. So you can imagine she was hungry by noon time. She enjoyed circle time, plaing with paint (but did not like getting paint on her hands or clothes). She spent a lot of her time on the indoor swing.

Daddy pick us up at noon and took Isabella out for lunch. Isabella is spending the rest of the afternoon together at home.

Potty Training, Gardening and Gymnastics

Isabella has been using the potty for number ONE business for many months now (since she was 18 months), but asks for a diaper when she needs to make a bowel movement. This weekend, with the encouragement and enthusiasm of her Father, Isabella pooped in the potty both Saturday and Sunday. We are so proud of you Isabella. No more dirty diapers for Mommy to clean?!?!

As of late, Daddy and Issey have picked up the love for gardening. Daddy is so proud of the vegetables and flowers in our garden. Issey helps water the plants every day.

I guess Issey prefers to use the BIG watering pot. But she does not like getting wet or dirty!
She is too adorable in her gardening outfit.

This weekend was her last day at gymnastics. Issey was learned so much from taking these classes.

Here are some videos of Issey crawling across the floor She is the toddler in a red t-shirt and black velour pants. She is the only 2 year old in the toddler (3-4 years old) class. So I think she is doing very well!

Issey galloping across the floor:

Issey balancing on two beams:

First Day at Preschool (Orientation)

Today, Daddy took Issey to her first day at Alderwood House School. We all got up around 8:00AM and started to get ready for the day. Issey picked out a pair of black faded skinny jeans and a white t-shirt. All three of us were so excited for Isabella's first day. We had some milk and a hard boiled egg for breakfast. We left the house around 8:30AM and Issey arrived to school at 9:00AM.

Then at 10:45AM, I got the call from Mark informing me that Isabella was done with school. "Done with school", I replied with a tone of concern. Well, it turns out that the Princess wanted to leave after snack time. She refused to eat the apple but enjoyed the crackers.

Alright, the first day did not go great... so we'll try again on July 06. Perhaps Mommy will take Issey to school then.

Issey, Mommy understands how hard it is to start something new like school, but I am confident that you will enjoy it after you make some friends and find a comfortable routine. Soon you'll ask Mommy and Daddy to take you to school everyday (7 days a week?!?!?). I look forward to witnessing all your scholastic endeavors and friendships you will make.

Revisit the Doctor

We took Isabella to see Dr. Tiah to get the results from her blood work. Although there is cause for celebrations, we also received some bad news...

Isabella is not anemic and all her white/red blood counts were normal! YEAH!

The bad news... Isabella is iron deficient. Being iron deficient for a long time may result in becoming anemic. This means she is not consuming enough iron-rich foods such as red meat and spinach. So we will have to supplement her diet with Iron drops until we are able to introduce iron-rich foods to Isabella.

We have to give her Ferrous Sulphate 20mg elemental iron bi-daily (1.3ml) for THREE months. These are drops consumed orally and may stain teeth so it is recommended that we brush her teeth after consuming the drops. It is also recommended that we give her orange juice immediately after the iron as OJ helps with the iron absorption.

Isabella is now 12.8 kg (or 28.21916955968lbs) which is 0.4 kgs heavier than the Doctor's previous visit.

Gymnastics and Father's Day

This is the 3rd Father's Day we have shared together as a family. This is the first year Issey was able to help Mommy pick out a Father's Day card for Daddy. She pick the musical card with a song that sang "Born to be wi-i-ild..". We gave the card to Daddy on Sunday morning after Daddy got up from his late night on the Mel Productions Boat Cruise the night before.

On Saturday, we went to gymnastics class as usual. She has mastered the roll. This is a great achievement considering Issey is only 26 months but performing at a 3 to 4 years physical level. She has a good grasp on the parallel bars and able to excel in the running category.






After class, we headed to Grandpa's house for a seafood feast in celebration of Father's Day. We had two types of crabs, lobster and salad. It was a lot of food! We celebrated with three Dads, Thanh, Ivan and Mark.

Sunday was Father's day for Mark. We joined my parents and sister for early morning Dim Sum at Dai Tung and then headed to Corpus Christi for Sunday morning mass. After church, we all fell asleep on Mommy's bed for a few hours. When we all decided to get up, it was Daddy's choice for dinner so Mark wanted to visit a New Westminster bar which was hosting a Trinidadian Father's Day event. We got plenty jerk chicken, rice, bake and much more. We even got a box of food for Monday's lunch.

Mommy or Daddy?

Like father like daughter? Yes, Isabella definitely got her rhythm from Daddy (that is a good thing). She loves to sing and dance.





But she got her fashion sense from mommy (and that is a good thing)!

The Vanity

Today, Isabella is TWO years, TWO months, TWO weeks and TWO days old! I guess it is yet another milestone and celebrations are in order. Mommy will be taking Issey out the whole day to various venues and shopping malls. It will be Mommy and Issey day.

Last evening, Auntie Lisa bought Issey a Disney Princess Vanity that has a big mirror, drawers and a stool seat (all pink of course). Issey loves the set and spent many hours playing with it. She knew how to use the comb, brush, nail polish and perfume that came with the set. She even put nail polish on Mommy and the cabbage patch kid doll. She adores imaginative play time.

Life Labs

We have been procrastinating on the blood test for Isabella for two weeks now. Finally, Mark decided it was time. We left work early and took Isabella to the Life Lab yesterday afternoon. We wanted to test for various blood disorders.

I could not take Isabella into the room as my heart breaks any time I hear her cry. Plus, I knew I was not strong enough to hold her down myself. So Daddy rolled up his sleeves and took Issey in for the blood test.

I heard her yell for Mommy and her breathless cries of pain... but I could not do anything until it was over. As soon as it was over, I ran into the room to embrace and ensure her everything was going to be alright.

When Daddy joined us, he said that it was one of the hardest things he has had to do. Plus, it was an awful day to put her in a long sleeve shirt!

Now we just have to wait for the results. We have an appointment with the pediatrician early next week.

Parent-Teacher Meeting

We registered for Issey to commence preschool at Alderwood House School (http://www.alderwoodhouse.com/) in July 2009. So today we have a parent-teacher meeting (our first parent-teacher meeting ever!). I drafted a "Fact Sheet" about Isabella and plan to explain these points to the teacher:

Language:
Isabella is multilingual. She speaks and understands English, Vietnamese, a little French and a little Chinese. She uses the languages interchangeably, so you may have to ask her to repeat in "ENGLISH". Please note that she has a slight Trinidadian accent when speaking English. So "tree" may mean "three".

Potty Training:
Isabella started potty training at 16 months. She is 90% potty trained with the exception of making bowel movements over the potty.

a. Bowel Movements
- She will ask for a diaper and hide in a corner when she needs to make a bowel movement
- When she is done, (sometimes) she will ask for a change or "change diaper"
- When changing her diaper, please allow her to pick which diaper to put on (i.e., the one with Elmo or Zoe or Big Bird on the front panel of the diaper). This process may take up to three minutes. We appreciate your patience.

b. Urinating
- She will tell you that she needs to use the potty by telling you "poo". "Poo" means "pee"
- Once she says "poo", you will have about 20 seconds to attend to her before an accident
- She requires assistance with pulling off and putting on her underpants
- Isabella does not know how to flush the toilet
- She requires a gentle reminder to wash her hands after using the potty
- On the rare occasion, she will have an accident in bed (usually if we are not around to immediately respond to her "poo" request

Food and Nutrition:
Isabella is an extremely picky eater. We would like to introduce more variety to her diet.
a. Milk
- Isabella consumes about 24oz of milk per day
- She consumes milk from a baby bottle for comfort but will drink from a sippy cup or glass
- She usually has milk before nap time or bed time
b. Snacks
- Isabella loves crackers (i.e., gold fish crackers)
- She likes water and apple juice
- She does not like fruit or vegetables
c. Meal time
- Isabella likes plain pasta, fried chicken, french fries, plain rice and hard boiled eggs

Nap time:
Isabella requires a blanket (she will ask for "blankey") and a bottle of milk before settling down for a nap. We have always had to carry her until she is half asleep before putting her down on the bed.

Playtime:
Isabella enjoys dancing, singing, drawing and imaginative play with cars/trains/dolls. Please do not be alarmed if she breaks out in a dance or song. She is just expressing her individuality.

Random Words:
Isabella shouts "SpongeBob Square Pant" really loud sometimes... Usually, no one understands what she is saying.

She will ask you "what is" or "who is" when she is unfamiliar with something or someone. Please try to answer her questions.

Loud Noise:
She is sensitive to unexpected loud noise or unfamiliar loud sounds. You may need to calm her down by explaining to her where and why noise.

Hyper-activity:
Isabella has a hard time breathing when she is performing an intense physical activity. You may need to remind her to slow down and breath. Your neglect to remind her to slow down may result in vomit EVERYWHERE. We are currently working with her pediatrician with this issue.

Weekend Fun in the Sun

As usual, Isabella and Daddy went to Richmond for Gymnastics class Saturday morning. Isabella always enjoy gymnastics class as she gets to see her two cousins Luke and Ian who recently joined. Ian and Isabella are in the same class. Luke is an an older class. As usual, we went out for Dim Sum after class and ordered the usual dishes. We spent the rest of Saturday relaxing at home.

We knew Sunday would be eventful as we planned to head to Surrey to Uncle Terry and Auntie Orencia's for a fun filled afternoon with friends and family.

On Sunday, we all got up on time for 10:00AM mass at Corpus Christi. After church, we visited a nearby park for some play time. Isabella made lots of friends at the park and had a blast. We knew Isabella needed a long nap before heading to Surrey at 4:30PM so we drove around our area hoping Princess would fall asleep. After about 20 minutes of driving, we gave up and went home. Isabella managed to fall asleep around 2:00PM and did now wake up until we arrived in Surrey at 5:00PM.

We had so much fun in Surrey. Isabella played with her three cousins, Ivan and little Gracie. Issey is truly a Princess as she did not want to touch the grass with her bare feet and insisted that we put shoes on her or carry her... she preferred the latter of course. :-)