Yaya’s First Dentist Visit

So, now that Yaya is a big girl, it is time to ensure that she has good dental health! Yaya had her first dental checkup ever on 25 September! Wheeee! [[image:2012-yayadentist-07.jpg:Photo of George Washington’s dentures and a cool tooth-shaped mug:center:0]] According to the dental hygienist, George Washington’s teeth were set in lead (!!!!). Poor man probably died of lead poisoning. And can you imagine how heavy that must be in one’s jaw? Ouch. Yaya was very excited about the visit to the dentist. She had been asking to see the dentist for a while and voila! It was time. Yaya loved that they had a little waiting room (off the main waiting room area) for kids – with kid-sized armchairs and books. She wanted Adik to wait there with her. [[image:2012-yayadentist-01.jpg:At the kids section of the waiting room:center:0]] [[image:2012-yayadentist-02.jpg:Let’s read while we wait!:center:0]] And then Yaya’s name is called and […]

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50 Months

50 months! 50 months of Yaya! 🙂 This month’s activities included our first work-related trip (to Chicago), seeing Becky and Phil in Elkhart for Labor Day weekend, Yaya’s first ever haircut (given by me!) as well as the usual stuff that we do at home. [[image:2012-yaya50month-15.jpg:Teapot so we can play masak-masak:center:0]] * Mouse over the pictures for captions Alas, the girl remains a toastivore and cannot be tempted to even try anything new. She did consent to eat a few french fries so I guess that’s OK but even pizza has fallen out of favor this past month. She remains faithful to her toast, bananas, and milk. On the plus side, we can safely say that the girl does not eat any candy or junk food! We did also learn that Yaya has become a bread snob. She will eat her cinnamon raisin Thomas’s english muffins (lightly toasted with butter), […]

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Rafe’s 8 Month Birthday

Another whirlwind month filled with stuff to do, places to go, and people to see has passed.  And Adik is 8 months old! [[image:2012_0829_rafe16.jpg:Yes, yes I am:center:0]] * Mouse over the pictures for captions So Adik is still commando crawling and starting to crawl over low hurdles (e.g., 1 pillow, 1 outstretched leg) but still has trouble crawling over anything higher than that. He’s terribly funny when he learns to do something. He yells a wild war whoop when his attempts finally succeed, and then he goes around and repeats the thing, practising his little heart out. Adik is very determined, and it’s so funny to see him putting his game face on. We still have to keep him from being trampled by his sister, but he is starting to stand his ground against her. He keeps going after the things she’s playing with (after she’s grabbed it out of […]

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49 Months

And so, another month has passed. Time does not march on, it flies faster than a speeding bullet. Four years and a month old. The darling of our lives, la reina del punto azul, the director of our plays and part-time adorable tot, part-time berserker dictator. [[image:2012-yaya49month-02.jpg:Arrrr mateys!:center:0]] * Mouse over pictures for captions We had yet another eventful month. It does seem like we hibernate and do nothing much for 8 months out of the year and then we pack everything in in the warmer months. This month, we have driven to Florida (pics to come, someday) gone through Ramadan, and celebrated Eid. It’s been another fun and action packed time. However, even though Yaya is now four and despite her promise that she would start eating “grown up food” after she’s four, it has not yet come to pass. Alas, the toastivore can not yet be swayed. But […]

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The Renstroms appear onscreen

Salam Aidilfitri from Sitiawan

This year we spent Eid-ul-Fitr in Sitiawan. Here’s a photo of everyone during Eid morning. Then later that night, we had guests over the internet in the form of the Renstroms. Yaya and Adik also joined the fun. Adik wanted to crawl through the computer screen to join us, but Yaya held him back. EID MUBARAK!

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Salam Aidilfitri from Ohio

Eid Mubarak and Selamat Hari Raya, maaf zahir dan batin from us all! [[image:2012_eid_yayaadik03.jpg:Siblings’ first raya together:center:0]] [[image:2012_eid_yayaadik04.jpg:Hey, what happened to my feet?:center:0]] [[image:2012_eid_yayaadik02.jpg:Singing Raya songs or asking for duit raya?:center:0]] [[image:2012_eid_yayaadik05.jpg:Love Kak Yaya:center:0]] [[image:2012_eid_yayaadik01.jpg:Eid Mubarak y’alls!:center:0]] Missing all the family and friends in Malaysia. Also the ketupat and rendang. 😉

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Transforming into a Tiger: An Additional Birthday Story

A short addendum on becoming and being a tiger on one’s fourth birthday. [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-09.jpg:Happy Tiger!:center:0]] You know what to do for captions, right? You begin with face paint and instructions to do what the face painter tells you to do (remember that listening isn’t exactly Yaya’s strong suit right now): [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-01.jpg:White goes on first:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-02.jpg:Then a layer of orange:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-03.jpg:Some yellow for depth:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-04.jpg:Painting in white above the lips:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-05.jpg:Blackening the muzzle:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-06.jpg:Finally the stripes:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-07.jpg:Transformed Tiger admires herself in the mirror:center:0]] Tigers like to be at the zoo with other tigers. [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-10.jpg:Tiger with white siberian tiger in the background:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-11.jpg:Tiger communing with her own kind:center:0]] [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-12.jpg:Tired Tiger goes home:center:0]] And most of all, Tigers love their fathers! [[image:2012-yaya4thtiger-08.jpg:Happy Tiger and her Papa:center:0]]

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Rafe’s 7 Month Birthday

And so the boy is 7 months old (and a bit, but thank god for backdated entries, right?) 😉 [[image:2012_0729_rafe07.jpg:Flanked by his sister’s cats Purrsley and Duchess:center:0]] *Mouse over pictures for captions Unbelievably, another month has flown by and Adik is growing and developing so quickly. Last month’s rolling and lunging has quickly become a fast-moving commando crawl. The child is mobile! He’s happy to just roam around the house. We do have to make sure he doesn’t get trampled by Yaya (who of course is oblivious of the fact that she could actually hurt her brother if she steps on him), and it doesn’t help that he always wants to follow her around and try to do what she’s doing. But it’s awfully fun to watch his little personality appear and see the things that catch his attention (and then gets taken away from him by Yaya) and the […]

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48 Months (a.k.a. Fourth Birthday)

The big day arrived! Yaya is four years old, officially! Unbelievable! [[image:2012-yaya48month-02.jpg:Princess Fairy Yaya waves her wand:center:0]] It feels like Yaya cannot possibly already be four. Didn’t we just bring her home from the hospital last month? I guess time flies when you’re having fun. 🙂 * Mouse over the pictures for captions So her birthday came along a week after her birthday party. We had another busy month. It does seem to be that Vin and I sort of hibernate during the winter months, not doing too much if we could help it, but come the summer we seem to explode with activity! This past month we went to Bloomington, IN to visit the IU Campus and for Vin to attend a DVD launch party, and then a weekend trip to Vin’s hometown of La Porte, IN for a class party, and then to hang out with Becky in […]

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The one with the be-earlied pre-Ramadhan party

So since July 22nd fell on the 3rd day of Ramadan, we decided to move up her party to the week before, on Sunday July 15th. We invited our friends and neighbors to what has become our annual cookout / birthday party. We did not have any overnight guests this year as Mandy was busy studying for the Bar exams (go Mandy!). We decided to keep  everything indoors, other than Vin grilling burgers and hot dogs outside. Also, this is the first year that Vin did not have baseball in the morning – it’s a little hard to play baseball with two kids right now! 🙂 And so, the party was on! Happy birthday, Yaya! [[image:2012-yaya4thparty-03.jpg:Graeter’s Ice Cream Cake:center:0]] * Mouse over the pictures for captions We cleaned the house and I made the pasta salads the day before leaving only minimal cooking to be done on my part that […]

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The Amazing Adventures of Yaya, Adik and Auntie Jo – Part 2

So, here is the second part of Jo’s visit. The second half of her trip was just as fun and action-packed. But first we come home and relax a little after the excitement of Indiana. [[image:2012-jovisit-23.jpg:Yaya, Auntie Jo and Adik (and Purrsley)  play “trains”:center:0]] * Mouse over the pictures for more captions [[image:2012-jovisit-22.jpg:Both kids got milk!:center:0]] [[image:2012-jovisit-38.jpg:The Amazing Flying Adik!!:center:0]] We drove up to Canada during the second weekend of Jo’s visit. It was both Victoria Day weekend and Auntie Vera’s birthday that Monday! There was another family reunion, this time in London, ONT. The last reunion in Canada took place almost five years ago! This will be the first time the Canadian family gets to meet Yaya and Adik in person! Also the first time Yaya and Adik go to Michigan and Ontario. While Yaya has already been to Malaysia and has crossed international borders, this would be Adik’s […]

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Rafe’s 6 Month Birthday

It is Adik’s half birthday! Yaya says, “But he’s still zero!!” While he’s not one yet, he’s already 1/2 year old, but apparently we haven’t taught Yaya fractions. 🙂 [[image:2012_0629_rafe16.jpg:Bubblicious drooly boy:center:0]] Can you believe six months have gone by, because I certainly can’t! There is going to be a lot of pictures in this entry – so I warn you in advance! * Mouse over pictures for captions Adik is developing rapidly. He rolls like a champion and is starting to try lunging forward when on his tummy. He’s trying to crawl! He loves when we chase Yaya around the house and giggles and squeaks when he catches her. He is also now playing “ooo-chak” (peekaboo) himself. He holds a cloth over his face and whips it off and loves when we laugh with him. He loves anything with buttons (tv remote, letter computer, etc.), empty plastic water bottles, […]

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47 Months

One more month till the big birthday!! Can you believe it? We certainly cannot! [[image:2012-yaya47month-04.jpg:Princess Yaya is almost 4:center:0]] We had another activity filled month – the 5 days Zarin was here were quite busy (more on that later). I know, I still owe entries on Jo’s visit, but I’ll get there! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Yes, there will be a separate entry for the kids’ time with Uncle Zarin (I promise there will be! Just maybe not right away!) so I won’t talk too much about it right now. But suffice it to say, a theme park was involved and everybody except Adik went on rides. 😉 Food status: still no change. Still counting down to her 4th birthday as she still claims that she will be eating real food when she’s 4. I hope she doesn’t back too far away from it. I would be […]

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Happy Father’s Day!

Happy Father’s Day!! We tried to make it a good one for Vin, his first Father’s Day as the father of multiple children. First off let’s start with home-made cards: [[image:2012-fathersday07.jpg:Hearts from Yaya, People from Adik:center:0]] Mama helped by manning the sharp scissors to cut the string paper dolls out. Yaya wrote and decorated her own card (the hearts design) and was kind enough to write and decorate a card on behalf of her baby brother (the people design). She’s getting good at writing PAPA, no? On the backs Yaya wrote who the card was from: [[image:2012-fathersday05.jpg:YAYA:center:0]] [[image:2012-fathersday06.jpg:ADIK:center:0]] I think we may need to practise writing the “K” in Adik a bit more ;-). Now the food. Vin chose pancakes and hash browns for his Father’s Day brunch: [[image:2012-fathersday02.jpg:Blueberry pancakes for Vin:center:0]] [[image:2012-fathersday01.jpg:Chocolate chip pancakes for me:center:0]] [[image:2012-fathersday03.jpg:Hash browns err.. browning in the pan:center:0]] [[image:2012-fathersday04.jpg:Syrupy pancakes:center:0]] And a few presents: […]

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Rafe’s 5 Month Birthday

Adik is five months old! Almost to the half-year mark! Where does the time go? [[image:2012_0529_rafe02.jpg:Good morning smiley boy!:center:0]] * Mouse over the pictures for captions So May was an action-packed month, as we mentioned in Yaya’s last entry. We did some traveling while the kids’ Auntie Jo was here. In this past month Adik went on a couple of road trips, crossed the state line for the first time, and even crossed an international border for the first time! Adik has now been to Indiana and Canada. He took the road trip OK although he hated being alone in the back seat and howled till we were all heartbroken when that happened. But he loved visiting with people, especially when he never got put down and was passed around from person to person. As long as he was full and not sleepy, he was happy to be held and […]

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The Amazing Adventures of Yaya, Adik and Auntie Jo – Part 1

We had a nice treat when the kids’ Auntie Jo visited all the way from Leeds! Yaya had lots of time to play with Jo, and Jo had lots of time to cuddle Adik. And still spend some time with Vin and me ;-). The last time Jo visited was at Yaya’s 2nd birthday, and this time with not as hot weather in May, it was just as much fun. [[image:2012-jovisit-02.jpg:Jo with Yaya and Adik:center:0]] * Mouse over pictures for captions We hung out at home for the first few days, chilling and letting the kids get to know their Aunt. Yaya took to her right away and showed her her room, and included Jo in all the games, and gave Jo her own roles to play in the play-acting games. [[image:2012-jovisit-01.jpg:This shirt that Auntie Jo gave Yaya has an “attached tutu”!!:center:0]] [[image:2012-jovisit-03.jpg:Let’s all make Adik laugh!:center:0]] [[image:2012-jovisit-04.jpg:Auntie Jo gives […]

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