Lake Tahoe Visit

The last time I was up here at Incline Village, I was with my Singapore Grandpa and Grandma. I miss you, and can't wait to see you guys again!
Grandpa, you will feel better in no time. Maybe, on your next visit, we can all go up to Lake Tahoe and you can chase me around the beach and teach me how to play golf.
Love Alex.

Go Lakers!

Can I have a cold one?

It was a hot summer day and I am ultra lounging in my chair watching my Lakers play the Rockets in game 7. They played well and finally closed out the Houston team. Now I get to enjoy more playoff basketball with my dad. Bring on the Nuggets!

Show me.....

Congrats Mom & Turtle Wurtle

Congratulations to my mom for a prize in the second annual Poop Super-Crafty Halloween Costume Contest (as run by a parent's blog on SFGate) http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/parenting/detail?blogid=29&entry_id=32281
Yay! I loved the costume and so did the readers on the Poop :-)

Best Crafty Costume That's Clever but Not So Overly Polished That It Makes the Rest of Us Feel Bad For Our Lack of Martha Stewart-ness.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/parenting/detail?blogid=29&entry_id=32489#readmore

Hi everyone! Sorry that it has been so long since I wrote to you. I have been really busy the past couple of weeks and did not have a computer, so I could not send any updates. I am sure my mom told you all about our trip. It was really fun. We spent alot of time on some big airplanes, but I liked them alot. The ladies on the plane were really nice to me. I practiced mixing with my headphones on and played on the floor, since we had alot of space. I liked to try to get people's attention, by looking at them and smiling. That really works...you should try it!

I loved Japan! The pebbles on the grounds of the Imperial Palace are awesome fun to play with. The trains there are cool too, just kind of crowded sometimes. Our room at the Dai-Ichi was so cool---there was a huge bed for me to play on, and a cool cart that I could wheel around. Hong Kong was fun too. I had all kinds of places to crawl around and explore. I have been practicing my standing skills and now I can stand up all by myself....no need to hold onto anything. And, guess what? I took my first step at the Hong Kong airport yesterday morning. I love to clap now, and pointing is a good way to show people things which are interesting to me.

While we were gone, three new top teeth came in too. Believe me, I have been busy! I met my Tai-Mah, which is my Daddy's grandma, and I also met Uncle Ming and Auntie Fiona, as well as some aunties, uncles and cousins from Australia and Malaysia. Now I am just really tuckered out! Might take me a few days to recover. In the meantime, I think I'll take a nap and just hang out with my Sis-Sis. Talk to you soon!

Love,
Alex

Foodie in Training

*Mom is in the kitchen.....I have captured the baguette.

*Hmmm.....nice carmelized golden brown color, sounds hollow when tapped....La Farine sure knows how to make a good baguette!

*Mom...may I please have this baguette...and maybe some camboloza to go with it?

Swingin' at the Park

Mom and I met my friend Eva and her mom Anna at the park in Montclair this week, and I went in a big boy swing for the first time. When my mom and I used to go to the park, I just went on the big swing with my mom, but this time, I went in the swing by myself! It was pretty fun and my mom just kept pushing me and gradually I started getting really sleepy....like really sleepy! It was weird, because when I was a baby I didn't really like swings, but I sure felt like taking a nap after a bit of time on this swing. My mom took me out once I fell asleep, because really that wasn't a very comfortable place to sleep for long. All in all, it was a fun day at the park. Some swinging, a nap...what else could a guy ask for, right?

Thanks Uncle Ming and Auntie Fiona!

I just wanted to write a quick note to say thanks to Uncle Ming and Auntie Fiona for the nice stroller which they sent to me this week. As you can see, my mom and I have already taken it out for a spin at the park earlier this week. It is sporty Uncle Ming, just like your Skyline! I can't wait to meet both of you in December. Your wedding will be a fun time, for sure. Thanks again for the new ride.

Love,
Alex

My Cool New Space!

Hi everyone!! I just wanted to post a picture of my cool new space. What do you think? I really, really like it. My parents have given me half of the dining room as my very own space. Just wait....in a few more months, the whole place will be mine...well, really it already is, just don't tell Mom and Dad! My sister is a little bit upset because my new play space happens to be right in front of her favorite window to look out. She told me that she will let me have the window for now though. She's pretty cool!

They tell me that once they put the fence up, it will be completed. Yeah right, and then I will need to find a way to get the fence down, because what fun is a fence?

I can totally sit up on my own now and I am trying to figure out if I really want to crawl or not. I can get on my hands and knees and rock and then sometimes I just decide to go on my haunches instead, like those sprinters did in the Olympics....maybe I can just learn how to run.

Do you see that little buggy in the picture? My Grandma and Grandpa Chng brought that for me when they came to visit. I like it, and will have even more fun with it once I can sit on it by myself. It has a gear-shifter, a bell, a little trunk to put some of my little toys in, and a whirly thing on it---pretty cool!

My First "Solid" Food

Hi everyone! I am happy to be home from our vacation and was really excited to see both my Daddy and my big sister! Yesterday was Daddy's birthday and our first full day back together, so it was fun. Daddy smoked some tri-tip and chicken in the smoker and we made some Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream and Mango Frozen Yogurt.

We went to the Farmer's Market yesterday morning and bought some peaches, nectarines and pluots, which my Mommy and Daddy said were de-li-cious! I was able to check that out for myself this morning, because my Mommy pureed some of the peaches and fed them to me. That was the first time that I have had solid foods, and I liked it!! Those peaches were sure de-li-cious.

The first picture shows my first bite, and then I took things into my own hands literally...I know how to hold a spoon, mom! As you can see, I liked the idea of eating "solid" food and also liked playing in the leftovers. Someday, I will be able to just pick up that whole piece of fruit and eat it just like that, but until then, this eating solids with a spoon thing is pretty cool! I can't wait to see what I get to eat tomorrow. I'll keep you posted!

Love,
Alex

Oakland Zoo

Hi

This weekend my mom and dad took me to the zoo! It was really really cool. There all kinds of fuzzy and feathery friends. I saw lions and bats and snakes. Most interesting were the giraffes, they look like horses with super long necks who love to eat leaves!

There were all kinds of little people at the zoo, I think that kids and babies outnumbered the grown-ups. So I also got to hang out with my peeps in addition to visiting my animal friends.

Hope you had a great weekend too.

Alex

Zonked Out....

Hey everyone! Just wanted to write and say hello and let you know that I am getting bigger every day. My Daddy installed a new big boy seat for me in the car and it is sure comfortable! My mom took this picture of me this afternoon....I couldn't help but fall asleep in that super comfy seat. And, as you can see, I have figured out how to hold onto multiple toys at once, just use your toes!! Hope you are all doing well.

Love, Alex

My Daddy's First Father's Day!

Hi everyone! Hopefully you all had a great weekend, like I did. Yesterday we celebrated Father's Day with my awesome Dad! I made his day really special by giving him lots of hugs, giggles and smiles. We went to the park and I was so happy to face forward in my Baby Bjorn....you can see so many more things at the park if you aren't facing inward! I loved it! My Dad is like my own personal robot now.

As you can see from the pictures above, I am growing alot! When I was a week old, I was about the same size as my Bunny Bear, but now I am huge compared to him. I love to eat, bat at my toys, put everything in my mouth to suck on it, and lately I have decided that I love to scratch things. I'm not sure if it is the sound made by scratching, or the texture of things which I like more, but I certainly like to scratch all kinds of fabric, my crib rails and the wall too!

Well, I think it is time for me to take a nap. Talk to you later.

Love,

Alex

Hello Everyone!

Hi to everyone from me, Alex! How are you all? I hope that you are having as much fun as I have been. Today I had quite a fun day. We all went to the park this morning and took a little hike around, which was pretty cool. It was really sunny and nice outside today.

This afternoon, I helped my daddy and mommy in the garden, as you can see. I sat in my swing and supervised, since I can't really walk around yet. I cannot wait until I can actually get my hands in the dirt though...it looked really fun. We planted pumpkins so that I will have my very own pumpkin to carve on my first Halloween. Now we have lots of stuff in our garden: cucumbers, lettuce, parsley, oregano, mint, basil, cilantro, sage and some hot peppers. It is fun to hang out in the front yard with my sister. We like to stay cool in the nice shade out there. We have a really nice hydrangea in front of our house and my mommy took me over to it so I could really check it out. It was super interesting!

Anyway, I just wanted to check in and let you know how things are going here. Please write sometime when you get a chance, or call us on Skype, so we can see each other.

Love,
Alex

Busy Thursday

Hi all!

Mom and I went to our Thursday group today and then we went out to lunch at Fenton's Creamery. Mom says that they have really good ice cream there, I can't wait to try it someday. My new friend Miles was there as well. Mom tells me that she and dad went to the same childbirth classes as Miles' mom and dad. We were kind of wiped out from the busy day, so we didn't talk much, but we sure enjoyed sleeping, as you can see in the photos!

I was really happy this afternoon and had fun talking and laughing with mom while lying on the big person bed. I love that!!

Gotta run!

Alex

2 weeks!

Hi all!
I am about to turn 2 weeks old tonight. Wow, it has been a pretty fast 14 days. I have kept my mom and dad on quite a schedule as I have my dad's metabolism or something, I get hungry every 2 or so hours! I really like hanging out with my grandma Elaine and my big sister Xena. I love it when she licks my feet.
I love to wiggle around when I am awake and am looking around as much as I can. There is sooo much to see around me. I also love modern jazz and Sarah Mclachlan, Sting not so much. But my favorite is the kitchen hood vent fan, the louder the better.
I check back in later,
Love
Alex.

My First Monday

Hey, who said Mondays are so bad! Hopefully if yours was, these will cheer you up. Just some snapshots from Monday morning.....Cute and cuddly in daddy's arms, sleeping with my bear (we look like twins, huh?), kisses from my sister, and taking a cruise in the car to see the doctor. Have a good day!

I'm 4 Days Old!

Hi everyone! It's Alex here, just wanted to let you know that everything is going well here in Oaktown. I'm at home with my mom and dad and big sister now and things are pretty good. I'm having mommy type this for me, since I'm a little short to reach the keyboard. Mommy tells me that as of this minute, I am four days old. Wow!

I've been doing alot in the past four days. I eat, and I sleep, I try to be as cute as possible and of course, I practice using my nice strong lungs. I have found that I really like being bounced on the bouncy ball that Scott and Tina gave to mommy and daddy. I seem to remember mommy bouncing on it before I came out too. It is a really cool place to hang out, and daddy says that it will make his tummy really tough. See, I'm just in it to help out my parents---I'm such a good kid.

It has been really nice outside here. Originally I wasn't going to come out and visit everyone until next week, but I decided that since it is so warm outside, this would be the perfect time to come out. Mommy was power-walking earlier this week and she really seemed like she wanted to see me, so I said, the forecast looks good---I'm going to go this week.

Well, I just wanted to say hi to everyone and let you know that I'm enjoying being here. I cannot wait to meet everyone, it just may take me a few weeks to get ready. Talk to you later.

Love, Alex