Father's Discovery

Hokkien Mee - worth the wait

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 09:53:00 -0700

Just as everyone was hungry again for something interesting to entice the gastric juices, we came to our favourite Hokkien Mee corner called '86' in Cantonese. On a Friday night, we expected to wait at least 15 minutes for the thick black noodles cooked in soya sauce and lard. Ben was getting a bit bored and started fidgeting a bit while Clarissa was insisting that it was bed time.
As soon as the large plate for two came, we saw each kid refill their small bowls at least twice. Now, who was it who didn't want some?

Bloody nose bleed incident

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 15:14:00 -0700

Just as we were returning home from supper last night, Clarissa and I were having a few laughs with her younger sister. Christa in the back row seats of the car.
Suddenly Clarissa's head darted diagonally backwards while Christa too was busy chuckling. Her head struck Christa's nose and lips. Soon afterward laughter turned into cries in pain and blood flowed from her left nares and mouth.
Now it really looked like a scene from a WWF fight gone awry. Mommy thought Clarissa did it on purpose but luckily I was a witness to the incident. Since when did girls play rough? Or did they do that all the time when we weren't watching?
I quickily applied pressure to the bleeding nose and split lip for a few minutes and stopped the bleed. She was lucky to get away with nothing which required suturing at the clinic. Thank God!

Who broke my favourite coffee jug?

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 03:54:00 -0800

The obvious answer was Benedict broke the Starbucks coffee jug that I bought for Mommy from Manila. He actually brought it in for shower and dropped it on the tiled floor while refilling it. I was upset enough to think of spanking him.

Upon asking him why he did it, he said he didn't know. I asked him whether he wanted to go upstairs to take the other mug so that he could break that too. He quickly ran upstairs halfway but came down and said, "Nobody is following me upstairs". In our minds we thought that he took me seriously for my words. I quickly sent Christa to the rescue so that he brought it down without destroying it first. The photos speak for themselves.

The Green Hornet in 3D

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Mon, 7 Feb 2011 19:03:00 -0800

Just as the sunset,there were 5 green hornets seated in the GSC Tropicana City Mall after we all donned the 3D glasses. Clarissa was slightly dizzy with the 3D glasses. I was fine as the movie wasn't as long as Avatar. Christa wanted to sleep after a while but kept peeping at the screen despite being tired because the movie was great. Benedict gave me some exercise as he wanted to 'take a leak' midway. As it turned out, the movie was a success. And Jay Chou was remembered as Kato by my girls. Maybe after this Benedict might ask me for the comics too! Aren't we glad that the heros did not jump from building to building like the other superheros.

No more baby cot for Caprice?

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Mon, 24 May 2010 08:42:00 -0700

Every time after feeding, Caprice refuses to be placed in her baby cot. Just the action of letting her go closer to her bed initiates protest in the form of wailing. Now that she has learnt how to use 'emotional extortion' against us, we have no choice but to play with her until she gets too tired. It's only then that she doesn't complain anymore.

Wonder what she would be doing to us when she gets older?

Look, Daddy!,... Rabbits!

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Mon, 5 Apr 2010 23:19:00 -0700

Here's what happened when I brought Christa to the LG level of Tropicana City Mall. "Look, Daddy! Rabbits!", she screamed in delight. Not at all surprised at her excitement and having difficulty wriggling out of her clutches, I had to relent and we did stop to catch a glimpse of two.

I was glad that the rabbits looked pretty healthy and did not smell. We spent another few minutes looking at the creatures feeding and soon left for home. She told the whole world about the 'many' rabbits she saw and what the other children missed. I made her day!

Here's how we do the back extension

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Mon, 5 Apr 2010 23:11:00 -0700

Little Caprice is 5 months and starting to show signs of excitement whenever she sees things moving around her. Now, if you do not help her up, she's not going to just taking it lying down. She's starting to crawl and lift her back up like the 'PT' in the fitness gyms. Mom, here's how we do the back extension!

Caution: Kid Crossing

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Mon, 8 Feb 2010 16:29:00 -0800

I had a nasty jolt this morning when Mommy's alarm rang out. Benedict was awakened and hurried across the Queen-sized bed to get the mobile phone. Little did he know that he stomped on my groin causing me to cringe and wonder what in the world happened.

Now, maybe it's not such a great idea having the kids to sleep with you if they happen to be excited by alarms and phone calls?

All the kids have grown!

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Thu, 4 Feb 2010 17:12:00 -0800

Just as it has reached the final days of my part-time job, I realised that I've been away for too long (5 months). I did not take much notice how much time had been 'lost' while I was busy attending to the needs of the basketball team.

Every late night resulted in weariness, lack of interest and a push for more time (if that was ever possible). It was a pity that the children could not make it for the matches as it seemed almost impossible for mommy to handle.

It took me by surprise when I found out that Benedict was as 'long' as my bolster and baby Caprice was a nice bubbly baby taking up the space of both my arms. Mommy, how all the kids have grown!

The Vampire strikes twice...

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Sat, 9 Jan 2010 04:14:00 -0800

You never know when the 'vampire' would strike when you are playing with him. Both Clarissa and I found out last night that he would leave his dental markings irrespective of how you try to fend him off. Benedict, you should grow out of you desire to bite people! Here are two photos to show you the evidence.

Malaysia's next F1 Driver - Exclusive Photos

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 01:19:00 -0800

Just as I have thought that Benedict would take over the family business, looks like he is more interested to be the next F1 driver. "Hold it there! You look more like you're doing the Dakar Rally". Have fun with the photos taken from One Utama.

Time out with the girls....

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 22:27:00 -0800

I promised Clarissa and Christa that they would go window shopping while Mommy, Benedict and Caprice stayed at home. Here are some of the photos we took. Just amazed at the number of photos they wanted taken while we were waiting for our movie! They always insisted on going to a 'cold' place so that they could wear long sleeves too!

The 4th child cometh....

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:56:00 -0800

I woke up this morning knowing that I have several important things to do. Granny came by to pick up the children (Clarissa and Christa) to kindergarden early as I prepared to see Mommy at the hospital. I received a message that the doctor was going to rupture her membranes before 8 am. By the time I arrived, she was starting to feel the cramping pain within her abdomen coming every few minutes. I noticed that she was cringing as the uterus contracted wishing that the whole 'ordeal' would be over sooner the better.

I was reminded of the three previous episodes where she told me she felt like taking the epidural injection but did not manage to do so on time. This time she said she wanted to get on with the pain relief remedy. As I was seated besides her and doing whatever I could do to make her feel better (including the Glucose water, stroking her hair and lightly massaging her shoulder), I kept myself entertained by watching Jackie Chan Adventure cartoon followed by CNN Channel.

The staff nurse was pleasant enough to ask us whether Mommy needed anything else. Several nurses came in periodically to check on the her to ensure that her progress went on smoothly. The vaginal examinations were occassionally painful as their fingers swept and stretched the cervix when it was thinner.

Just slightly after 11 am, the Obstetrician was called in to rescue Mommy as the 'bearing-down' sensation and excruciating pain had become so unbearable. She wasn't going to stop pushing as she felt like defecating. She was carefully guided to push as the specialist observed the head protruding out of the perineum and finally slipping out completely within the next 20 seconds. The sight of blood and liquor did not trouble me as I have gotten used it during my internship days. Again she pushed harder as the baby's shoulder appeared followed by the trunk and the rest of the body. True enough, the baby is a girl! She was slightly blue as she had an umbulical cord around her neck and had passed a little bit of black coloured discharge (meconium). We heard a small whimper and within a few breathes, it changed into a light cry. I started reassuring her and she went on to sleep.

I thought this baby looks so much like Christa! She is different from Benedict who had his eyes wide open during birth. The baby kept her eyes closed for a few minutes. After the nurse cleared her airway with the suction device, she seemed quite comfortable in the incubator. She had her Hepatitis B and Vitamin K injection in her thighs making her uncomfortable for a minute.

Mommy was thanking the specialist profusely for the safe and problem-free birth of our 4th child. She definitely looked much better this time around and had enough energy to chat with me about the whole experience despite the Pethidine injection. All I could say was, the 3 important words which we do not say often enough even though we are very much in love with each other. It makes the difference to say it again a thousand times.

I stood admiring both daughter and mother as I passed the baby to Mommy for her first breastfeeding. Our 4th child cometh.....!!!

The 4th coming .....

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 23:55:00 -0800

It's been decided. Mommy will be getting herself admitted on the 19th November 2009 to prepare for "the 4th coming"! We do not know whether she would beat the Obstetrician to it as every delivery has been unique. Now, where is that book for baby names?

Showers in the alley

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 23:31:00 -0800

I had a pleasant return trip from Bangkok in an Airbus A320 flight last Tuesday. It was a surprise how I was again seated with the same team member when we came from Kuala Lumpur. After our lunch, we had in-flight entertainment by a little girl seated just in front. She was singing all the nursery rhymes while we were wondering how come not much has changed from our kiddy days.

Just as soon as the cabin crew swept by to collect the trays, there was a shower of clear liquid rushing in different directions. Just as I have suspected the girl's little brother was having his diapers changed. His mother was frantically trying to clean up the seats and the hair of adjacent passengers. Reminded me of Benedict when he was the same age. Funny, nobody thought about using a disinfectant?

The Celcom poser

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 04:38:00 -0700

Yesterday, I thought Grandma was kidding when she mentioned to me that she couldn't reach Grandpa while shopping at Midvalley Megamall. She was frantically searching for him as she had finished buying groceries from Carrefour and wanted to go home. At lunch time I tried calling Mom but she was not reacheable. I tried calling Grandma again and that couldn't work as well. I tried calling the customer service number of the telco network, Celcom and the 1-300 numbers and those didn't work as well. My clients called my office line to inform me that they have been trying to call me all morning and they couldn't get through. I missed the call Clarissa usually calls me in the evening.

I started wondering why I got the whole family to subscribe under one plan and one network. I don't take the lame excuse they gave on the the Star. You mean only this festive season everyone started using their cellular phones?

Looking forward to the Perodua 7 Seater

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 21:13:00 -0700

Mom and I have some difficulty getting Clarissa (6 yrs), Christa (4 yrs) and Benedict (2 yrs) into the car with our Domestic helper. It's more obvious when we have placed the toddler seat and 2 child booster seats. Come mid-November 2009, we will have another addition with the arrival of our new baby. This would mean we would have to get a 7-seater or travel in two cars.

I heard word from an friend that the Perodua MPV (currently called by its Perodua D46T codename) based on the Toyota Passo Sette will be launched in late October 2009. Maybe this would be a car we would look at!

Reasoning with children - possible or impossible?

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:37:00 -0700

I tried this new approach with Clarissa and Christa last night. We had a short discussion after dinner after which I had a 2 minute 'sharing'. Usually it would be quite difficult to get the elder girl (Clarissa) to get out of bed in the morning. She would also refuse to finish her milk as she 'hated' the taste of it after being exposed to 'adult' foods. After telling her the reasons why we wanted her to comply, she seemed to understand. Christa nodded her head in agreement just to rub salt into the wound.

It seemed to have worked as Clarissa was the first to get out of bed and the first to put on her shoes and head to the car. As usual, Christa would take the front seats and we had to move Clarissa back. She didn't throw up a fuss. Was it the reasoning which worked or the movie we had last night?

Malayan Tiger swimming for the kids!

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Fri, 5 Jun 2009 16:41:00 -0700

There are days that you just feel lucky. We felt just that last weekend when the Malayan Tiger decided to take a dip into the pool as we were watching him. He was trying to attract our attention! Soon after he was satisfied with the cooling-off session that he came out totally drenched. Aren't you glad you behaved in the zoo, children?

Touching the ceiling!

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Fri, 29 May 2009 23:08:00 -0700

I was busy preparing for a lecture when Christa decided that I was to accompany her for her usual toilet visit. "I want to pooh-pooh!", she said. I just dropped her at the toilet entrance and left her on her own. As usual, she would insist that I was to stand there until she finished her business.

I took some time to stretch and accidentally touched the low ceiling. Upon seeing that, she got off the toilet bowl and wanted to touch the ceiling too. "But you only passed urine. Finish the job and I will let you touch the ceiling", I said. It was a good deal I suppose. She quickly got back to 'work' and within seconds, she emptied her bowel.

As a form of reward, she was carried up 5 times to touch the ceiling. That left her smiling with glee. "I touched the ceiling!"

Standard Chartered KL Marathon Treadmill Challenge

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Sun, 24 May 2009 04:20:00 -0700

Clarissa, Christa and I had a 5-minute brisk walk this morning at 1U to make it into the Malaysia Book of Records. It was part of a promotional activity for the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009. I walked in my leather shoes doing 7.0km/h, whereas Clarissa and Christa did 3.5km/h and 1.8km/h respectively. The girls did the walk as they did not want to be left out in a fun activity.

Zoo Negara: Malayan Tiger - what a beauty

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Wed, 20 May 2009 02:35:00 -0700

Malayan Tiger

Zoo Negara: Flamingo fear

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Wed, 20 May 2009 02:09:00 -0700

"I don't want to take a photo", said Clarissa. "The Flamingo will peck me!", she exclaimed as she saw a Flamingo or two coming closer with their wings outstretched. I couldn't get a clear shot but Mommy and Christa were looking photogenic and I shot the photo anyway.

I've got my cheap Nokia phone!

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Mon, 18 May 2009 03:36:00 -0700

Now, don't be jealous, because I've got a cheap Nokia phone! It may not be great but it surely works and I can drop it and press all the buttons without a worry. I can even listen to the different ringing tones if Mommy lets me. Mommy, the photo says it all. You've got another satisfied customer, Nokia!

Zoo Negara: The Elephant and mischievous Christa

draston@gmail.com (Aston) — Sun, 17 May 2009 22:04:00 -0700

Christa insited that Mr Elephant at Zoo Negara bit her with his proboscis (trunk) when she fed bananas to him. She was adamant that the tip of the trunk nipped her thumb and the secretions contaminated her finger. All I saw was this (see photos) and I must admit she fed him half a banana which made closer contact possible. Did he or did he not bite her? The verdict is out, "Not guilty!". Christa, do you wish to appeal?