Well well, first post from me as a mother of 2.

It's been 3 very long, tiring weeks for all of us at home. Getting to know Josiah and trying to understand his needs, changing our schedules to fit him, and ensuring Faith does not feel too much of a change in her life has been quite a challenge for everyone, but we are all coping fine...

As can be seen from the pics, Faith sure loves her little brother a lot! She is very much protective of him, and everytime he cries, she either asks us to attend to him or runs over to him with his bolster or to rock him, in hopes that her attempts will soothe him! =) How sweet she is! I really can't ask for more. =)

Of course, she is trying to adapt to this major change in her life. And she does have her moments. She is definitely more defiant towards us now, and there are times when she is very frustrated by Josiah's cries. I'm just thankful that she vents her frustrations on us, the adults, and not her little brother. =) She has also chosen to act more like a baby when it comes to certain things. For instance, she now wants to be changed on the changing table she once used... she also wants to sit on the rocker that was once hers... these days, she cries when she wants her milk, maybe through observing that 'didi' gets his milk through his cries... but, I guess these are all her ways of coming to terms with this huge change in her life.

Ever since 'didi' arrived, Faith has been more ambitious in her attempts to speak. Many a time, Robin or myself have caught a few monosyllabic words from Faith. But, these are few and far between. She chooses not to repeat them, probably because she is not confident enough yet.... so, I have caught words like fish, hair, hand emerging, but they are rarely repeated these days... her current words are: wouwou (dog), duck, star, yes, no, mama (mummy and grandma), papa, gong (grandpa), waawaawaa (to imitate didi's crying)

Seeing as she can't speak yet, she is using lots of actions to tell us what she means, or what she wants. Honestly, I am happy with her progress, because she truly understands a lot. She just chooses not to speak yet. And well, she will speak, at her own pace, and I don't see the need to rush her as yet. After all, all things will happen in their own time. =)

So, moving on to the brand new arrival.

Josiah Mishael Ho Kai Wei is his name. So all bets were indeed correct. Baby #2 did turn out to be a boy as everyone predicted. Everyone is asking about his name, so here is the explanation to it.

Josiah - God has healed

Mishael - Belongs to God.

(I was just telling my mum that my choice of name may or may not cause him to become a priest in future!! =p)

Height - 53 cm

Weight - 3.59kg

Head circumference - 35cm.

He definitely is longer and heavier than his sister. But if you ask me, he looks very much skinnier. I guess he has heavy bones like Robin.... but he is very very long and lanky, which isn't a bad thing for a boy! He'd better not get my short genes! =)

It's not been easy trying to adjust and adapt to his needs and wants. Much as I choose not to compare the two of them as they are very much different, yet, it's inevitable, especially when it comes to feeding and sleeping patterns.

Faith was and still is quite a big eater. She has a full and heavy meal, and it can last her 3-5 hours in between. In fact, these days, she lives off 3 milk feeds, 2 solid feeds, and snacks in between.

Josiah, on the other hand is a small eater and he eats very frequently. He feeds every 2-3 hours, and each time, he drinks less than 60ml. Due to the frequent feeds, I've chosen to supplement his feeds with formula, as in the early days, he was driving me crazy with his constant cries for milk. And as all mothers who use formula milk know, the milk powder must be discarded within 4 weeks of opening. As such, since we opened the tin on one of the nights where I was awfully stressed, we resorted to using formula every time we are busy with Faith, or if I am tired. It really does help coz it gives me a much-needed break at times.

Like his sister, he is also a screamer, but he cries much more often, and his cries are awfully loud. I think they both inherited my voice! =p He is also more insecure, but I attribute it to the fact that he is left on his own more often, as sometimes our hands are really tied up with Faith and the chores. He really likes to be carried, and does not like lying flat on the bed at all.

Due to Faith being incessantly noisy, he is also very much used to a noisy environment. As such, sometimes, he has trouble sleeping at night! He sleeps much much more than his sister, which I'm awfully thankful for, as I feel very very guilty for neglecting him when he is awake as I have to tend to his sister, so that she doesn't get too jealous, especially since we are carrying him quite a fair bit due to his insecurities.

Sigh. There are days where I feel absolutely guilty about having to neglect both of them.... but as Robin told me..... they both just have to give and take... after all, there's only so much attention we can spare them.

Right now, we both definitely have our hands full... and we have decided to stop at 2... maybe our minds may change (though this is unlikely for me!!), as after all, I refuse to have to go through pregnancy, labour and confinement once again...... these sleepless nights are definitely enough, and not something we'd wanna go through again...... =)

8 more days till the boy turns 1 month.... with each day that passes, it will get easier, I know. Yet, it also means new challenges that lie ahead... how they attune themselves to one another and what kind of relationship they'll share is a constant question in my mind.... but i guess all that is in God's hands!!