H F M D

Yup, both my boys got it. Bryant had a mild fever last Monday, followed by Joshua on Tuesday. I thought it was just the usual Upper Respiratory Tract Infection. Actually I brought Bryant to see the paed on Monday. I was told that his throat was red, but as it was still very early, no ulcer had surfaced yet. I only suspected HFMD after checking Joshua's throat on Thursday night after he complained of sore throat the whole day. I saw ulcers in his throat and upon checking his body, found some spots on his inner thighs. The next day, he had a red spot on his wrist. 

As for Bryant, I only managed to check him on Friday morning. No chance of checking his throat so I focused on his body and limbs. Found a blister on his big toe. So off we went to the paed who confirmed that both boys have HFMD and are to be quarantined till Tuesday. I felt really guilty as Josh had been going to school. He only had a mild fever on Tuesday afternoon and was all good after that. Thus, I packed him off to school on Wednesday. Being responsible, I informed the school and apologised for not suspecting anything earlier. Thank God there were no further cases of HFMD in school.....or else I'd feel even worse. 

Blister on the big toe. 

Unfortunately for me, my dear hubby was down with a high fever, body aches and sore throat on Friday and Saturday. And my maid had similar symptoms to my hubby on Saturday. Did they contract HFMD from the boys? I have no idea. They had no blisters on their bodies. My maid saw a doctor who said it was tonsilities though........ But seems such a coincidence that all of them are down with different viruses at the same time. Thank God I was spared. 

Generally my boys coped very well. Perhaps it was because theirs was a mild strain. Their only discomfort was being quarantined. It was easier for Josh than for Bryant. At least he could entertain himself with toys and tv. On the other hand, Bryant kept wanting to go out. He kept bringing his shoes to the door and cried when we carried him away. So I had to rack my brains and think of ways to entertain him. For eg, playing under the covers. That kept them happy and occupied for quite a long time. Hehe.

And some artwork on the face......hehe.

Both boys were all good by the end of their quarantined period. Blisters dried up. I even checked Joshua's throat again and was relieved to see no more ulcer. =)

We were all grinning from ear to ear when the boys finally stepped out of the house.........Freedom, yay!!!

B talks

He is such a cute chatterbox. In this picture, he took Joshua's pants and tried to aim his legs into the pants opening. I had a good laugh looking at his attempts. I then decided to let him wear it, just for laughs.

At 14 months, these are the words that B can say.

Mama
Dada
Koko
Back (meaning put back)
Ba-bai (meaning goodbye)
Arg (meaning hug)
Top (meaning stop)
No no
Pop pop (meaning he wants to play the Balloons Popping app on ipad)
Baba (meaning bubbles)

Besides all these words, he babbles a lot throughout the day. Cuteness to the max. And I am treasuring every moment of it.

Disciplining Bryant

B can be really naughty at times...........For example:

1) Hitting / punching his brother (no prize for guessing where he learnt that from);

2) Crying and stomping his feet on the ground when his demands are not met; and

3) Attempting to climb out of the high chair most of the time (very dangerous, now we need to request for high chairs with safety belts whenever we dine outside).

So, I had to discipline him. Sometimes, I beat his little hand, and sometimes I put him in the naughty corner. He seems to understand the naughty corner concept, maybe from observing his brother. He would stand there most of the time. Rarely would he escape.

Parenting is not easy. I feel it is easier to discipline and punish when they are older, as they have the ability to understand and question you. At this tender toddler age, I sometimes wonder if Bryant knows what he is being punished for.

Bryant's antics

Our cute toddler never fails to make us laugh everyday. He discovers and learns new things very quickly. Children at this age really absorb things at lightning speed. It is really awesome but scary at the same time as we as adults have to be careful in our actions and words. 

I was feeding B halfway when there was a notification on my phone. Thinking it was a phone call, he put one hand to his ear and started babbling away.

Monkey see monkey do. J loves the PSY Gangnam song and would always sing and dance when the song is played. B also knows how to do the Gangnam hand action. 

Oh oh.......where is the dish cover????

Introducing him to Mickey in preparation for our Hong Kong holiday. 

'Mmuuuuuuuacks!'

Lol.....I laughed when I saw this. Sometimes when I am carrying B, I just use my big toe to turn on the switch as I do not want to hurt my back. My little cheeky decided that he also wants to do the same.

Our Music Studio

After a two month hiatus of not attending any classes, we signed Bryant up for music classes in January. I have been wanting to sign him up much earlier but the timing of the classes have always clashed with his lunch and nap time. However, now that he is older, he is a bit more flexible so I quickly booked him in for a lunch time class.

Our Music Studio, which was previously known as Kindermusik is located at Tanglin Mall.

Here are some snapshots of Bryant during the class. It is a parent accompanied 45 minute class.

Playing with the metallophone. 

Tap tap tap........

Beat the drum, rum pum pum.........

Colorful parachute.

Just like his older brother, Bryant enjoys the class a lot. He would attempt to sing most of the time. And he also doesn't sit still on our laps. He prefers to wander around and observe other kiddos.