Return of the Jedi

Today's Mia's first Halloween. To satisfy the daddy's Star Wars dream, we are dressed in a family theme.

 Yoda's reaching for the light sabre.

 Master Yoda is not cooperating!

 Pricess Leia and Master Yoda

Smiley master

Swimming Again

Mom sent two more swimming floats our way. The baby tube Mia has been using since birth is now too small for her neck so we gave up swimming for some time. The new float goes around her waist instead of neck so she can't breathe better. The only down side is her shoulders and upper back are exposed since we kind of use the tub as both a swimming pool and a soaking tub for her. We swam for the first time in the new float yesterday. I poured warm water over her back so she did not get a chill. It took a minute to get the hang of it and start loving it. I was really pleased.

Crawling

Mia's now crawling. Very slowly and not smooth since she plunges down on the way to her destination. Today her favorite game was to destoy the tower we built in front of her using her color blocks. She crawled in front and reached out to pushed the blocks down. If we built it in another direction, she would come straight after it and push it down again. She could not get enough of it.

First Fish

Two days in a row, Mia had Salmon and seemed to like it. I think she's a meat eater just like her daddy. She does not like veggies or fruits as much

First Meat

Mia had her first chicken meal today with spinach puree. I cooked stir fry chicken for dinner and gave her four small chunks. I mashed it with a spoon and fed her with my finger. Because it was marinaded in soy sauce, she really enjoyed it. I hope this is the start of a well balanced diet for the years to come.

Aquarium

I havd Columbus Day off today so I took Mia to DC to meet up with Lu and friend. Three moms, one baby, two toddlers, we met up at the National Aquarium and then went to eat Sichuan food.

It was Mia's first time in DC and it was the first time I ever took baby out in a car on my own (not counting one doctor's visit). It was quite a production to get her ready and out the house. We were supposed to meet at 10:30 and we all got there from different directions at 11:30. With a baby, it's impossible to keep your schedule straight now. So many things are out of your control.

I pushed the stroller for a good twenty some minutes from my work to the Commerce Building where it housed the aquarium. It was tiny compared to the aquarium in Baltimore but just right to keep Mia's attention. She took a nap earlier in the car so she was awake the entire time and was very excited to see the fish, the allegator, the snakes, the sharks, and the rays... For a small aquarim, they offer a decent collection of sea life. We left the stroller at the gate (no checkin) and I carried her in the baby b'jorn. This way she could see what was going on. After seeing Mia so interested in everything when we were walking around in DC and inside the aquarium, I decided that it was about time to take her out more often now that she can appreciate things more.

Lunch was crazy. We got one table and another small table just to accommodate the stroller since I could not leave Mia outside the stroller. I fed her some noodles with tomato and egg broth. She ate some flavored restaurant food. I know it's bad but there is a first time for everything. :) This was her first noodle experience. We ate as fast as we could. I had to leave the table twice to change her and feed her. Now I am starting to see more and more into the hardship and sacrifice of motherhood. In the past I was always first stuffing my face so I don't get cranky. Now she has to come first. Since this is practically where I eat every other day at work. The owner and all the waiters and waitresses know me. They all came to see Mia and praised her for her large eyes. Typical for Chinese who favor large eyes. It was like introducing her to my extended family. I was proud that she did not make a fuss over lunch.

Home Made Baby Food

Julee stopped today to make baby food with me. I went to Whole Food yesterday and got a bunch of organic veggies and fruits. It took us a little over an hour to cook a dozen little jars of food. We made baby peas, pears, apples, squash, sweet potato and carrots. Mia tried a few of them and her favorite of the butternut squash.

Mia has very small appetite and generally does not like the store bought jar food. Hopefully she will eat more  of the fresh food.



Being first time mom, I am ambitious to do my best. Maybe I will be able to keep up with this for some time. Even if it's not every day.

8 months at Oktoberfest

Mia is 8 months today. She's now 18 lbs 9 ozs and quite a handful to handle. She just started propping herself up on her knees and knows how to rock back and forth. Crawling is any day now I think. We went out to lunch at Mon Ami Gabi. I fed her many small morsels of a french baguette. It's the first time she had bread. She seemed to love carbs!!! After lunch, we went to the Oktoberfest at the town center. It was a beautiful Fall day in the mid 80s. There were many food stalls and festivities. People dressed up and danced in what I guess was traditional German outfits for Oktoberfest.

We also waited in line for frozen yogurt. It was yummy. She's now ready to open for month and try my food every time I eat. I let her smell the food and explain what it was and told her she was not ready for it yet. She's experimented with many thing now.

Cold

Mia's been having a cold for a few days. She has runny nose, a cough and sneezes from time to time. The weather is bad lately. It's been cold and raining the whole weekend. We rescheduled her music together class so we will stay in tomorrow. I also got a cold, not sure if she gave it to me or I gave it to her. If she does not get better soon, we will need to take her in to see the doctor.