16 months and 1 week

This week is marked by Gideon's unsuccessful bowel movements. It was reminiscent of when he was 4 months old and we waited a record of 9 days for it. Gideon was not happy this week. He would wake up in the middle of the night. He would not like to eat because eating would start the uncomfortable feelings. All we could do was distract him and hope that the fibrous food would do the trick. On Saturday morning, Gideon was finally relieved. Thank goodness. I don't think I could have gone another day or two with grumpy Gideon.

Last weekend, we took Gideon to see Asian Santa at the Wing Luke Museum in the International District. We thought it would be fun for Gideon, but we also knew that it would be close to his naptime when they would meet. Stranger and a sleepy child, not a good combination. Gideon met Santa while standing in line and he touched his finger and gave a high-five. Once I placed Gideon on Santa's lap, it was all over.



Gideon went to Isabel's fourth birthday party. It was the gala of the year, yummy food, and cute bunnies to play with. Yup, there were 20 bunnies for the guests to feed, pet and say, "They are so cute." Gideon liked them in the beginning but became overwhelmed so he played with a nearby car. Gideon was chosen to dance with the birthday girl. Enjoy!





Weekly photos. Thanks Auntie Kym and Uncle Yosh! Gideon still prefers the Banana song over the hip hop song. We sing when he opens the card since the battery is out.

16 months!

Our little one is now sixteen months old. I cannot believe how fast the time has gone by. I guess being a teacher, the hours go by slowly but the days zip by. Gideon is happy to be at daycare and so happy to see us when we pick him up. We are so blessed with a happy baby. Well, I don't think we can call him a baby anymore. He is more of a toddler now, in ability and in ego.

Gideon knows how to switch hands when he is holding something. When I change him, he is sometimes holding a snack cup or a toy. I would take one arm out of the shirt and I would say, "switch, Gideon." Gideon would switch the toy or snack trap into the other hand. Recently, Gideon has been refusing to switch. I know he understands my words because I try to do the same routine so that he can see a pattern. So, now I have to help Gideon switch hands. He complies when I have to switch it for him. He is already trying to exert himself.

Gideon's favorite book that he wants to read is Bear in Underwear. It is a bear who finds a backpack of underwear in the forest and he wants to find the right pair of underwear. I don't know why Gideon loves it but he does. Thank you Auntie Megan for the book. There are also other ones in the series: Bear in long underwear and Bear in pink underwear. Hmm... may have to check out from the library.

I forgot to post in the last post a shout out to Auntie Kimmie for watching Gideon on a Monday evening. Garrett and I wanted to see the sneak preview of the movie, Hugo. She graciously came and played with Gideon. She also was amazed by the night time routine that we have created for Gideon. She said she followed it and he went down without a fuss.

Weekly photo in his awesome jacket that I found in Gideon's closet. Thank you Auntie Ginger!

15 months and 3 weeks

Gideon has been talking so much more lately. He is walking around and finding new toys to play with. Currently, he is copying us when we eat, using a spoon or making a funny "eating" sounds. Last night, he was opening the trashcan and dropping toys inside. Then he would sign for us to take them out and he would do the same thing. He thought it was hilarious.

Taking his weekly picture today was difficult. He just wanted to get down and play. Garrett and I need to find a new way to take his photo. Thank you Auntie Ginger for the awesome Transformers shirt!





Here is a cute video of Gideon with his cup. (I got this cup at an Oktoberfest beer tasting.)

15 months and 2 weeks

We had a busy week since Gideon was sick and not feeling well. He has been getting his molars and his canine teeth. He had a runny nose, a cough and a sad face. We just helped him feel better by holding him and singing songs. He had bags under his eyes and a little rash too. These pictures were taken before his cold.

Our skype date with Grandpa and Grandma Wong was cut short because Gideon would not stop crying. He rarely cries for no reason but we believe he was just not feeling well. After 15 minutes of crying, we were able to go back onto skype to see Grandma and Grandpa Wong. Gideon also gave a wonderful visual for them too. He decided to poop on camera. =)

15 months and 1 week

I am getting confused with counting by the weeks, so I am now onto months and weeks. We had a busy weekend even though it was a three day weekend for Garrett and me. We spent Friday as a family day so we just played, ate and had fun with Gideon. On Saturday, I was single-mom for the day. Garrett flew down to California for Unk's service. Garrett represented the seasons of chan. Gideon and I went to a play area at a mall. We went to the library to pick up new books. We watched college football too!

This past week, I learned why Gideon greets people in a high squeal and a shoulder shrug to the left. When I dropped him off at daycare, the young girls would greet Gideon in the high squeal and Gideon would respond back. It made me laugh. Gideon also learned how to play peek-a-boo with his hands. He would close his eyes and cover his eyes with one hand. Then I tried to teach him to blow a kiss with his hand close to his mouth instead of his eye. We are working on it. Sometime he blows a kiss and other times he just looks at me funny.

Garrett taught Gideon something new too. He noticed that Gideon likes to squat close to the pumpkin that we did not carve for Halloween. Hmm.. I think Garrett should explain this story. Just think squatting and video games.

Gideon was better at his weekly photo op this week. I can't believe how big he is getting. I just bought him new shoes, size 6!

15 months old

Hello family and friends,

Gideon is now 15 months old. I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. Garrett and I were looking at pictures taken a year ago. Wow, Gideon has changed. At his 15 month appointment, we found that his head and length are around the 35th percentile. His weight has increased to the 67th percentile. He is 25 lbs. and 11.5 oz.

He gained five pounds in three months. He loves his food. Currently, his favorite foods are figs, hummus and crackers. He loves fresh and dried figs. I think he likes that they are sweet. I love them because of their dietary fiber. Yes, when he eats figs, he is more regular. Gideon loves to lick off the hummus from the cracker and ask for more.

Gideon is learning how to use a spoon to eat his yogurt and applesauce. These food items cannot stain and I'm ok with the mess, so far. He tries to pick up the applesauce with his fingers. Then he realizes that he can't get anything and so he uses the spoon. I think he still prefers his fingers.

Thank you to the Leung/Pierce cousins for his weekly outfit!







Gideon's Halloween costume. He was Tony the Tiger and Garrett was the cereal box. We used the ball pit as Gideon's bowl of cereal. They're grrreat!

Week 64 (almost 15 months old!)

It has been a busy week. Garrett and I had student-led conferences this week. Many families needed an early morning or late afternoon time slot. Thank you to Grandma Chan for watching Gideon on Thursday. We really appreciated it.

This week marked the first week without Auntie Ginger in Seattle. We printed a few pictures that we thought she would like on her work space.





Gideon received a package from Auntie Jaime. She was visiting friends in the Southwest, L.A. and of course Arizona. She wanted to make sure that Gideon had gear for tonight's Huskies game. =)





Because Gideon loves to walk, weekly pictures seem to be a two-person job. I had to distract Gideon and take the picture all at the same time. I think these are the lamest photos except for the awesome shirt with "headphones." Sorry, Gideon. I will do better next week. It's your fifteenth month birthday next week!





Have a great Halloween! Pictures of Gideon's outfit will be coming soon.

Gideon Discovers Gravity

Gideon was putting crayons up on the couch just to watch them fall back in the bin and amke noise. It was really fun seeing his brain work.



-Garrett.

Week 63

Ok, I know that this is a late post, but it's been crazy this past week. Meetings, preparing for student led conferences and life in general. We have been trying to stay on top of the daily chores and blog posting isn't on the top of the list. Also, Gideon didn't want to take a weekly picture this week. You will see the non-photos at the end.

Gideon was fussy last week and we found out why. He was not getting a cold but his molars were coming in. They broke through the gum and now slowly coming out. I totally understand why he was cranky and why he kept waking up in the night. We thought he was cold. He is back to his usual sleeping self. Woohoo for 630pm to 530am sleep!

We went to a pot luck on Sunday evening to welcome back our friend, Doug, who has been living the high life in Wyoming. I haven't seen him in five years and of course, he has not seen Gideon in person. Thank you, Jim and Yae, for hosting. We loved the beautiful and fun play area. Gideon loved going down the slide and exploring all the toys. I think Noa did not like having a boy his size walking around his territory. Gideon would play with a toy and Noa would want to take it away from Gideon. He had no idea what was happening. He would move on to another toy. Gideon loved watching the adults play "Just Dance" on the Wii. Gideon would "talk" and "dance around" the adults. He stayed up way past his bedtime. He was so wired on the car ride home. I wish we caught it on video. Until next time.

So here are the poor weekly photos. I don't think Gideon was ready.

Week 62

Our baby has now become a full-grown toddler. He has not crawled once this week. He is only walking and without asking for help. He wants to do it on his own. Does that sound like one of his parents? =) Also, Gideon is learning about the feelings of frustration. When something doesn't go right, he goes into a "hulk"-like rage. Hmm... Garrett and I will have to read up on how to support his emotional growth. More on that in a future post.

Gideon has mastered the high squeak greeting. When he sees someone that he recognizes, he squeals. I think this is a little bit of me and a little bit of cousin Norah. It is quite adorable. We haven't caught it on video just yet, but his shoulders go up in a shrug and his face scrunches up.

Last Saturday, we went to Aaron's first birthday at MyGym. It was an indoor play area with everything a kid would want to play with: trampoline, swings, ball pit, slide, balance beam, and climbing areas. Gideon was overwhelmed because there were many children and I woke up him from his afternoon nap. He did well considering all the stimulation and noise.

Watching Aaron take a ball



Crazy kids group photo try



I just zoomed in on the boys with their boys.



Weekly pictures! (Thank you to Auntie Ginger for the monsters shirt!)

Week 61

This week's post is on time since we don't have company visiting from out-of-town. It was an amazing weekend and week. Ryan, Alison and Norah came to hang out at the Chan household. Many fun food outings, Monopoly Deal and Saboteur 2.

We took them to the Swinery on Saturday for some yummy pork belly, pulled pork and ham sandwiches. Gideon and Norah liked the BBQ pulled pork.





We went to the Seattle Mobile Chowdown on Sunday. We had yummy treats. I think Alison has more pictures of that day. We also made a second stop to Bakery Nouveau. Love the twice baked almond and chocolate croissants!

A picture of Auntie Ginger and Norah.



Weekly pictures!!!

Week 60

Okay, this is a late post, but we have family visiting this past weekend. Alison, Ryan and Norah made a Seattle appearance to hang out and visit friends. Gideon loved playing with Norah. He also learned some noise-making skills. He is a strong, silent type. He just kept staring at her while they would eat or play. He has the furrowed-brow look down. We will post more about the fun weekend but until then, here are two not-so-good pictures of Gideon. He has become more squirrely and mobile lately.

Videos!

There has been a backlog of videos on our camera. Uploading videos takes longer than uploading pictures. When I was procrastinating from work stuff, I uploaded these videos.

The first video is Gideon playing with his birthday card that plays music. Thanks Kym and Yosh. We can sing all the words to the song. =) The inspiration for the video comes from the movie, Easy A.





It's not the best video of him walking, but it's the first video that we caught Gideon walking. I am sure it will be the first of many videos. He's trying his best to walk but he just wants to show off his strong arm skills too. Enjoy!

Week 59

This is the week that Gideon started to walk a couple of steps. He has been standing on his own and cruising along the couches, but he is now ready to move forward in open areas. We are so proud. Our praise and applause seem to catch him off guard that he falls down.

Gideon is also talking a lot and repeating what we say. He is still an early bird and he loves to eat. He prefers to feed himself and only eats food that he likes. He can drop cheerios and puffs when he wants "real" food. He comes over to us when we have our dinner plates/bowl in our hands. He believes that anything we are eating is better than what's on his plate even if it's the same thing.

Thanks to Auntie Ginger for his weekly outfit. She bought it when he was a wee little one. I just found it and I think it's already too small. Enjoy!

Father-son moment

I caught this on video. It was close to Gideon's nap time and I was getting his milk ready. Garrett didn't notice that I was recording this cute moment. Enjoy!

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star from Gar on Vimeo.

Week 58

This past week marked the first full week of school for Garrett and me. I was exhausted by the end of the week. I am trying to get back into the working routine. Plus I feel like I am always thinking about what to make for dinner and for lunches the following week.

Gideon is so happy when we pick him up. He is still taking two naps and sleeping for 11 hours in the night. We are so grateful for Gideon. He makes us happy too. The little time that we see him from after school to his 630pm bedtime is precious and priceless.

We believe that Gideon is getting more teeth. He's drooling more. He is more cranky than usual. He is also having bad diaper rash lately. These were signs before he got his first teeth, so maybe the molars might be coming.

The weekly pictures tell a story. He is holding his wrench again. I also velcro-ed the rattle to his wrist. It helps me know where he is finding trouble. Enjoy!