Jaden turns 4 : Part 1

In a blink of an eye, and it has been a year since we last had his birthday do at Marmalade cafe at BVII.

:: little one oblivious to what is going to take place later in the day ::

This year, due to his GFCF diet, it was a bit hard when it came down to planning food for the little one and we decided it is best to do it at our poolside, get a caterer to come in to prepare food for our guests while Jaden can have the luxury of eating home cooked food.

:: enjoying himself max in the pool ::

I decided on a pool party for him but plan failed as he was the only one in the pool but he enjoyed it tremendously until the water got too cold for him.

:: and the guests starts arriving one by one ::

Took him back up for a warm bath and a change of clothes before bringing him down to greet his guests.

:: 4 year olds ::

The little boy enjoyed his birthday party tremendously this year as he got to swim, and then played on the swing to his heart content, under the watchful eyes of his father while I was running around trying to be a good host to the invited guests.








We prepared Jaden's favourite fried beehoon, porkchop, beef burger patties and pork ribs. It is as if he also has his own mini-mini buffet line to choose from. We did not want him to feel left out, watching others eat a variety of food while he is just tied down to one.

As some might have known that every year, I try to give Jaden a special birthday cake and this year, it was really special. This cake has never been commisioned before and it was specially created by Hubby and me. Yes, you heard me right! I made a cake!!!! Actually I didn't lah but I came up with the concept after surfing the net for some ideas and Hubby took his time out to create the cake.

Can you guess what cake we created for him?

:: 100% Fruit Cake ::

Anyway, he was really happy when everybody gathered round and sang him the birthday song. Jaden had this huge grin, as if he knew that the song was dedicated to him. He, could not take his eyes off the cake too. Yay! Success!

:: one for the family ::

I prepared some party packs for my guests too. Each one gets a paperbag that is filled with mini raisin box, mini mentos, two jellies in a cup, mamee snack and a Cadbury ZIP chocolate. Since there was only two kids there below the age of 4, both of them get an additional Transformers Animated colouring book and a set of mini colour pencils. Yes, everything mini-sized! There were other children too but since they were rather big already, they get the adult party pack!

:: Jaden's 1/2 team of therapists ::

:: Hubby's friends ::

:: their birthdays are a day apart ::

:: me cousins (above pic & bottom except for Arthur who is in green and white stripe tee) ::

:: finally, his kai-yeh's clan & Gyn & Peisan ::

As usual, I ordered helium balloons so I can decorate the bare space with some colours. It was a hit with both the children and adults. Since my poolside has a playground, that space was not spared too by both children and adults. It was a good location for a birthday party do to keep people entertained! =) Self-entertainment works best at times like these.




I commisioned a bakery to bake me a cake, Le Marquis, just for my guests. A small one that costs me about RM200 plus delivery charges. Lets just say the cake melts in your mouth -mmm alas I could only serve most of my guests one bite size each so everybody gets to have a bite of that delicious cake.

Will I order again, maybe.. for myself to pig out but then again not anytime soon as today I got a comment from a few guests. They think I am pregnant. Guess, that is saying I HAVE A BIG FAT TUMMY.. the perpetual ring float I carry around, the baby pouch that I am eligible to sign up as a mother kangaroo. That really brought me down hard on the floor as you know, how body conscious I get about myself... self esteem? Just hit the negative mark immediately. :( I am still feeling very depress with my body right now and I don't think it will go away unless I do something about it.. damnit!

:: handmade birthday card from Sam Boy, sweet kan? ::
was told that the boy practiced for a week to write this card =)

In conclusion, it had been a wonderful birthday party for the baby boy -weather was good, thankfully as it has been raining quite often the past week.

:: pressies ::

Another bump on our journey ...

I have not been blogging much again, have I? Well.. as some might have read it off my fb status updates, Jaden is going through another bump in our journey towards recovery and this time, it concerns his eyes.

His situation currently? Below's excerpt from will help you understand his situation at the moment and he will be having his EUA (Examination Under Anesthesia) this Thursday, early in the morning. *sigh*

Strabismus, commonly called squint, is a condition in which the eyes are not looking in the same direction.It is the misalignment of the two eyes so that both the eyes are not looking in the same direction. This misalignment may be constant, being present throughout the day (constant squint), or it may appear sometimes and the rest of the time the eyes may be straight (intermittent squint).

It is a common condition among children. It may also occur in adults.

WHAT CAUSES SQUINT ?

1. Paralysis of one or more muscles responsible for eye movement (paralytic squint).

2.Sometimes a refractive error hypermetropia (long sightedness) not corrected by appropriate spectacle or non usage of spectacle may lead to inward deviation( convergent squint) of the eye ( accommodative squint).

3. Poor vision in an eye because of some other eye disease like cataract, uncorrected refractive error, corneal opacities, vitreous opacities, macular diseases, optic nerve disorders etc. may also cause the eye to deviate outwards (divergent squint). On one eye can be squinting (Unilateral squint) or both eyes can deviate alternately ( Alternate squint)

Therefore it is important in all the cases of squint, especially in children, to have a thorough eye checkup to rule out any other cause of loss of vision.

WHAT ARE THE PROBLEM WITH SQUINT ?

1. Normally the images from both eyes are superimposed in brain and we see only one image producing 3 Dimensional picture. In children brain would ignore the image coming from the deviated eye because of poor quality of image from deviated eye, and thus sees only one image. And in the process, he loses the depth perception. This suppression of the image from the deviating eye results in poor development of vision in this eye, which is known as amblyopia which can unilateral or bilateral.

2. In case of paralytic squint , where vision is fully developed, brain can not ignore the image from either eye, and therefore sees double vision (Diplopia). This can be very annoying and may interfere with work.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF SQUINT ?

In a child, the parents may notice the deviation of eyes.

Adults may notice double vision, or misalignment of the eyes.

EXAMINATION OF SQUINT PATIENT:

The eyes are checked thoroughly to see for any refractive error, any defect in visual pathways such as Lid ,cornea, lens, vitreous, retina, optic nerve that may be responsible for squint.

In younger children Examination under anesthesia (EUA) is undertaken.

Degree of squint, whether squint is unilateral or bilateral, whether paralytic or non paralytic, is ascertained.

Next the eyes are checked for presence of amblyopia. It is important to treat the amblyopia before treating squint.

TREATMENT OF SQUINT:

If there is any significant refractive error present, it is treated first. In some cases,a correction of refractive error is all that may be required to treat squint.

Treatment of Amblyopia (lazy eye)::

This is the most important aspect in squint treatment. Treatment of amblyopic eye is started as early as possible as best results are obtained if treated before the 10 years of age. Occlusion by various modes depending upon age is practiced and parents cooperation is of utmost importance in curing the disease.

Once amblyopia is corrected the squint is treated by surgery of either one or both the eyes. The surgery involves weakening or strengthening of the relevant muscles to restore the balance and to get a good coordination. In some cases with double vision, prisms may be added in the glasses to ease the symptoms.

Hauls

Each time Hubby goes off somewhere, he will try to find time and make sure he gets both me and Jaden something and well, he sure does not disappoint!

Earlier this year, Hubby went on a one week holiday trip to Taiwan and these are some of the things he got me. I have yet to take photos of what he got Jaden but Jaden sure got lots more than I did -shoes and all!

:: playsuit / dress / two pants / and a TAIWAN shirt (missing in picture) ::

Then, just last weekend, he was on a work trip in Bangkok and these are what he got back for us.

:: shirts and pants for J ::

:: 2 dresses for me ::

:: a paperback pants for me ::

not to mention the SNACKS he bought back..ooooh lala, fried pork skin and all..mmmm.. how la to maintain 45kg? gonna be hitting 55kg instead of 45kg.. there goes all my diet plan!

My mom, too, went over to Padang Besar with my aunties over the Raya weekend and she got more of these bermuda shorts for Jaden. *sigh* why I don't have ???? =p

:: 2 bermuda pants and a BenTen shirt for J ::

Hari Raya break

Malaysians have this tendency to go on a week hiatus when it comes to Raya and Chinese New Year breaks, or at least our hearts are always looking forward to a week long festive break despite cinapek companies will only allow the compulsory two days off and that too if it falls on a Fri/Sat -hailat I tell you. Then it will be just like any other weekend break.

Anyway I only allowed Jaden to take Thursday and Friday off throughout the Raya week long break. He still had classes on Monday and even arranged for his therapists to come over on Tuesday and Wednesday, as he is showing signs of improvement in learning -might as well let him go on. 3 days of learning out of 7 days is considered quite lenient on my side.

Brought him to swim quite a lot too and he absolutely loves it. Showing me his water tricks by diving into the pool, spreading his limbs out like a frog underwater without any floats or so. He has become bolder now in the pool and is putting all his diving observations from diving competition into use. *slaps head*

Hubby left for Bangkok early Friday morning for work and won't be back till later today in the afternoon, which meant that I had the weekend to myself at home alone with the boy. Luckily, I had cousins down and that brightened up my weekend. The two boys reached KL Friday and we went out for dinner at One Utama. Jaden was pretty alright with both my cousins, allowing them to hold his hands while we walk around One U after dinner.



Yesterday, his ABA supervisor organized a movie outing for her 'children' and their families to watch Cars 2 and *phew* I had it quite easy. Jaden actually was quite immersed 1/2 part of the movie before he evolved into a full fledge monkey when the movie nearly ended. There was this boy who would not sit in his seat and would rather come over to my row, and then decided that he prefers to sit with Jaden.

Of course, as usual, Jaden got mistaken as a girl again by others. Jaden actually allowed the boy to climb up to his seat and share the seat with him. After a while, the boy's mother asked us if we would like to exchange seats with them so Jaden could seat comfortably instead and then, that was when it all started.. with me moving him up back two rows from ours, he thought we could then move around freely in the cinema and that triggered the monkey in him but overall, it was a good experience and well, the crowd in the cinema was rather forgiving and understanding as we all somehow, are families with special needs children. Both Jaden's therapists were also there and they helped me, nearing the end to keep the boy entertained. After the movie, as requested by his father that I should get Jaden something, we went into Toys'R'Us and I got him more apparatus to add on to his swimming experience and 2 Dvds.

Must give myself a pat on my back for bringing Jaden out on my own without the stroller. *touch wood* He actually walked properly and held my hands without throwing any tantrums. He even last through the short Jusco visit for his baby wipe purchase.

I took the opportunity of the weekend to clean the house up a bit and is rather satisfied with what I have done. Not sure what Hubby will think about it but I think I did quite a good job.

Later, at night, both my cousins came again and we went out for dinner. Jaden sure had fun with them and was all over them when they came up to the house. It was good to see my cousins again after years of not being able to meet up with them.

Dad will be arriving in KL this evening too. Can't wait to see him... and of course, the dictator is returning from Bangkok today too.. there goes the peace and discipline I had trained over the weekend because once Hubby is back, Jaden thinks he automatically gets permit to do everything and anything he wants! *bangs head twice on the wall and on table!!!**

Mid Autumn love

I am one person that is actually proud to be a Chinese. I love all the festivals we have in our culture (except for the Hungry Ghost Month) but other than that, I think I love all the others as they always have awesome food to go with it.

There is no denying that I am a humongous fan of mooncakes -traditional /double egg-yolks / snowskins but yea, the moment I see them in their pretty molded skin, with the savouries inside, its like discovering treasures when I pop them into my mouth.




Hubby, since being with me, has discovered that I am such a big fan of mooncakes, I will 'mengamuk' if I don't get at least one to eat during the 8th month of Chinese calendar. So, being a smart one, he will always try to get me a box to let me slowly savour it. Jaden loves them too, when he was still not on the diet... he actually practically loves eating whatever both Hubby and I love. Truly our child.




What really touched me this year is what my dad did.




Passing over one big box of mooncakes for me through my cousins, he told them that I love mooncakes. Ten years since I left home and he still remembers my love for mooncakes. That was what that touches me most and with every bite I sink my teeth into the mooncakes he gave me, it makes me cry with happiness and gratitude.




It makes me miss both my parents so much who greatly understands me in and out, my preference for which food, what I like and not like... they could judge from my expressions, even if it is not plastered on my face what I am feeling and will always try to make me feel better. They are still continuously baby-ing me despite me heading to my 30s real soon...

I guess, what I learnt through our Chinese culture is that we should treasure our family most. There is nothing compared to family love and that no matter what, our parents will always love us despite who we are, what we are when others don't.

Of course, I appreciate the mooncakes that Hubby got for me too. It is these small little efforts and thoughts that really could etched a deep memory in me. Something that will make me remember a lifetime.

I hope that I will be able to instill these Chinese culture -family respect into Jaden as he grows up. I want him to be able to have a happy childhood memory about celebrating these Chinese festivals like me, because I believed that when you have happy celebrations like these with your family growing up, you will grow up being closer to your family and proud of being Chinese and part of its culture!

31 days

In exactly 31 days, Hubby and I will be holding a birthday party for Jaden and well, invites has already gone out to close family and friends and you know what is the best thing?

We have yet to source for caterers or how exactly we want to have it done. All I know is that it shall be done at home premises and that the kids can go play in the pool before everything starts / while the adults are eating..

and cake.. oh boy! this is really stressing me out because now that Jaden can't eat anything that has gluten, casein, and eggs in them.. lets just say the chances of finding a baker who can produce a cake to that rule is completely zero. I have an idea of what I think I would like his birthday cake to be this year but I am not sure if I can pull it off, knowing I turn everything I touch into disaster!

So well, till then.. I shall be all stressed out this month figuring all these.. and I pray the weather would be lovely on that day!

Uninspired

Its been about two months since I last post a blog. It is just that I am so uninspired to blog as I have nothing interesting to share other than rants about my relationship and that, too, I don't really want to hang my dirty laundry out in the open. Therefore, the hiatus in blog updates...

but I do really need to find time to sit down properly and blog about Jaden's experience with Liverpool vs. Malaysia back in July.. =) so just be patient and wait for that update and hope, I will get to blog almost daily or at least once every two days ..

I need to blog them out too since I tend to forget what goes on in life quite fast these days. Signs I am getting older (in my brains) and well, its that time of the year to start panicking and planning for Jaden's birthday party.

Gonna be quite a tough one as we are going GFCF and well, how to please both guests and boy during that day.