Fever Again?!

You, Daddy and Mommy had a rough night last night, Izzy...you came down with a fever again. Not sure why? You slept from 6pm the night before but woke up at around 1am. You couldn't fall back asleep till 3am. But your sleep after that was very fragmented with wakeups at 3:45am and again at 5am. You were up for the day at 7am and today you are restless and have lost your appetite. Poor baby. We really hope that you put on weight since your last doctor's visit because next week we will be going in for your other round of shots and also a weight check and Mommy doesn't want you to get any unnecessary tests due to a lack of weight gain.

I hope it's just teething or some viral infection and not another UTI. Get better soon. Mommy misses the cheeky Isabelle.

Love, Mom

Video taken a couple days before getting sick...
Your walking is getting better and better!

Happy 13 month birthday!

Happy 13 months, Izzy!

What have you been up to this month? LOTS! You are like a sponge and learn things so fast. You are really good at imitating sounds and have picked up the sound of the sirens that go by our apartment. When a fire truck or police car passes by with sirens blaring, you stop whatever you are doing and go "whooooooooooo" in a very high-pitched voice. It's hilarious! Your pronunciation of words is getting better too. You've learned to articulate the words "baby" and "cookie". It's so funny when you point to a baby and go "baby" because it seems like you think you are such a big girl now!

You are Zoë are becoming REALLY good friends. You've learned the word "pat" and pat her whenever she is close by. The other day after Zoë gave you kisses, you wanted to give her a kiss back so you stuck out your tongue and proceeded to try and lick her back! And then came up to Mommy and tried to lick me too! That's how a doggy kisses—not humans, silly! You've also learned how to high-five and when you want too, you do it with lots of enthusiasm!

You have self-weaned from your nursing sessions before naps and I think are also ready to stop nursing before bedtime...much to Mommy's disheartenment. I am going to miss you cuddling up to me and those starfish fingers roaming my face. I am especially going to miss the contented sigh and the all-out-stretch you always give me when you are nice and full. Another reminder that my baby is no longer a baby... And yet another reminder that you are no longer a baby is that you have started to self-feed with a fork! You are growing up too fast!

You are also very aware of your appearance. Every time when Ah Ma or Mommy puts a bow or hair clip in your hair, you take it off and check it out. And when it meets your approval, you "throw" it back onto your head expecting it to stay on. You also kiss yourself when you see your reflection in the mirror. You are so vain!

Love, Mom

So sweet and demure...

...and back to crazy Isabelle!

Bend it like Beckham!

Izzy,

Do we see a future for you as a soccer star? Hmmm...maybe not! But you were too cute. Well at least next time when we try snowboarding, we know you are a goofy because you were using your right leg to try and kick the ball the whole time!

Love, Mom

Milestone: First Steps!

Dear Izzy,

You made your first attempt to walk unassisted today! Well, you've been standing on your own, cruising and trying to walk for quite some time now. Some days Mommy has seen you take 2 steps from the sofa to the ottoman. You have been very cautious but with every practice, you build up your confidence. Today, is THE DAY. You were in the open and you took 4 steps into Mommy's arms!

You were on your knees, then you steadily got up to stand. I see the cheeky grin on your face and knew you were ready to try walking. With a little coaxing, you walked towards me and into my open arms! Oh, Mommy is so proud of you. Ah Ma was here to witness this milestone too! Maybe you were just trying to show off to Ah Ma that you're a big girl now!

Izzy, you are growing up so fast...you are officially no longer a baby.

Love, Mom

Brunch for 3!

Izzy,

You are getting so big now that Mommy and Daddy have to order you food off the kid's menu. Daddy was so tickled by this when we went to brunch. No longer do you share off our plates but you get your very own meal! Your first ordered meal at Morels French Bistro today was Grilled Cheese sandwich with Aged Chedder and Granny Smith apple slices. But it seems you are a fast food addict...you wanted french fries! But you did eat half of the sandwich and some apples.

At the restaurant, you also captivated the interest of a much older boy. Mommy always thought that older kids (older than 5) usually don't have that much interest in little babies but you caught his attention and he shared his french fries with you the whole time.

I see the makings of a heartbreaker already...but don't grow up too fast!

Love, Mom

Grilled aged chedder cheese sandwich with Granny Smith apple slices

Fast foodaholic

Izzy and her much older friend

Playdates and Playground

Izzy,

You really know how to have fun. And since you are now so interactive, Mommy has been taking you to the playground and also to more playdates. You enjoy playing with other kids, although a lot of times, it seems you are quite bossy! But you are good with sharing, taking turns and you are very gentle when playing with others. Mommy can tell that you also like playing with older kids. You keep up with them very well and are even able hold your own. Wait till you are able to walk and run, you'll probably be running circles around everyone!

And the other day when Mommy took you to the park and got over the fear of you getting dirty, it was the very first time you played on the sand! You were very curious about it and even tried eating sand but since it tasted yucky, you spat it out - thank God! But I guess that's how you learn. Mommy could see some tomboy traits because you really loved playing with the sand truck. After playing in the sand, we went to the slide castle and played in it...you slide down the slide belly down a few times and loved the adrenalin rush! You have also learned to climb down stairs feet first and Mommy was so proud that you remembered all the lessons we taught you at home!

We'll try to do playdates once a week and playgrounds more often, OK?

Love, Mom

Izzy hosted a playdate...

...and shared her toys so well!

At the Dress-up playdate, playing with older kids

She totally felt comfortable with them!

Playing in the sand for the first time!

Red Spots!

Poor baby...

Mommy feels so bad for you right now. We have figured out why you've been super cranky these few days. The MMR vaccine symptoms are finally showing up! You had a slight fever on Tuesday and some red spots started developing on your body. Yesterday, more spots appeared and today your whole front and back are covered in red spots! You must be sooo uncomfortable because you couldn't sleep well last night. You cried a few times and the cry was different. Mommy knew at once that something is bothering you.

We made a call to Dr. Scott and the nurse at the doctor's office said that it is normal for you to develop these spots and have a slight fever 7-10 days after your MMR vaccine. She said this will last till Sunday and taper off.

You usually don't have any reactions when you get shots but I guess the MMR vaccine is one of the big ones. Mommy is trying hard to keep you happy with lots of snuggles and hugs. Hope you feel better soon.

Love, Mom

Spots on Wednesday

Spots on Thursday

12.5 months

Dear Izzy,

You are still not liking cow's milk. Daddy thinks it's because the organic one we buy is a little on the bitter side. We are trying out another brand and hopefully you'll learn to like it because you really need the fats in milk to grow and develop your brain.

You understand us more and more now and these days, Mommy and Daddy have to be careful when we speak around you. The other day, Mommy was talking to Daddy and asked him where Lulu was and you immediately crawled to the bathroom and pointed to the newly washed Lulu hung up to dry. What a smart cookie! Every time when Mommy asks Zoë if she wants to go for a walk, you immediately crawl to me and pull up on my legs asking me to carry you because you want to go for a walk too. When Daddy asks you where the plane is, you point to the sky. And a lot of times, when you see something new, you point to it and say "wha'zis?"...it sounds VERY close to "what's this?" I think I even heard you say "Zoë" the other day too!

Mommy thinks you are going to like singing because you are always humming to yourself. When you play by yourself, we hear you hum. When you "read" your books, you hum. And sometimes when we go for walks in your stroller, you take in the scenery and sing. You were singing so loudly the other day, a pedestrian in front of us stopped, waited for Mommy and you to pass by him and came up beside Mommy and said, "She's going to be singer one day." It was hilarious!

For the last 4 days, you've been super cranky and grumpy. You haven't really been sleeping well either. Mommy and Daddy are not sure why. Maybe another tooth coming out? We think so. Mommy hopes this will blow over soon because we miss the cheeky and cheerful Izzy. Mommy gets so mentally drained when all you do all day is whine but I guess you can't really help it if you are feeling uncomfortable.

Get well soon, Izzy.

Love, Mom

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Dear Izzy,

It's Daddy's birthday today! You were supposed to share Daddy's birthday but because you had a mind of your own (and also maybe you don't like to share) you decided to come into the world early last year.

We went out with Godpa Dan for a small celebration dinner for Daddy's birthday. I think you had more fun than anyone else! You were so talkative and cheeky this evening, playing with Godpa Dan and the wait staff at the restaurant. You got to try duck confit, scrambled eggs with caviar and mussels in white wine sauce. Daddy is having a blast feeding you different stuff after Dr. Scott's OK. You really enjoyed the scrambled eggs and caviar! You are going to grow up with one hell of a palette. Your future boyfriends are going to have a hard time impressing you at restaurants, much to Daddy's delight!

Happy 34th birthday, Daddy! We know you've been very busy preparing for your competition in April so after it's over, we should have a big celebration!

Love, Mom

Cheeky face is at it again...

Izzy trying to blow Daddy's candle

1 year Baby Wellness Exam

Hey there skinny minnie,

We went in to see Dr. Scott for your 1 year baby wellness exam today and guess what? You've only put on about 1 lb since we last saw him! Ah Ma and Mommy had a bet that you would be 18 or 19 lbs respectively but we were both WRONG! You didn't even reach the 17 lbs mark! You weighed in at 16 lbs 10 oz. (1%), measured 29 inches in length (47%) and have a head circumference of 45.25 cm (56%).

Dr. Scott has OK-ed shellfish, honey and peanut butter. Actually he says you can basically eat anything at this point now. That's awesome! Daddy cannot wait to feed you a whole bunch of stuff. Mommy has tried to feed you whole milk for the last month but you always spit it out! Dr. Scott wants you to get at least 16-20 oz. of whole milk a day but it's gonna be tough! Mommy has even started incorporating milk in your food so you don't see it. We will try to feed you more yogurt and cheese too.

Usually at the 1 year checkup, babies get 2 vaccinations (MMR & Prevnar) and a TB test. But Mommy has been reading up a lot on vaccinations lately and since the MMR is such a controversial vaccine, we have decided to postpone getting the Prevnar until we are certain that you don't have any reactions to the MMR. So today, you got the MMR vaccine and you cried a little bit more than normal because it stings (as per the nurse). Mommy really hates it when you have to get shots!

Other than your weight, Dr. Scott said that you are on point developementally-wise. We go back in a month to get the Prevnar vaccine and also the TB test. Dr. Scott also wants to monitor your weight and make sure you gain more the next time he sees you.

You better start packing on the pounds!

Love, Mom

Daddy reading to Izzy in the waiting room

Mommy trying to calm Izzy down in the doctor's office