Off to New Jersey with the Grandparents

So we finished our stint in NYC for the summer, and now we are back in Philadelphia for another year till Z finishes his MBA. Made a last 2 day dash to New Jersey for some family fun with the grandparents.

In the morning, we packed the baby and all into the car and off we went. Our first destination was Cape May, which is almost the most southern tip of New Jersey.

Lunch was spent at the Washington Street Mall 

There after, we headed to the lighthouse at Cape May. Since Shane was fussing a little, we didn't get much chance to hang around there. So it was pretty much a touch and go.

We took a 1 hour drive along the coast up to Atlantic City where we spent the night at Caesars. It was a really nice hotel and there was a sweet deal at $100 (all taxes inclusive).

As usual, Shane really likes checking out his beds…

We didn't really have a plan for the day, so we just walked along the boardwalk, and down the pier shops. Plopped down at Mortons for some really nice steak and desserts (they do a really mean chocolate soufflé).

We took a nice evening stroll and then called it a day. There isn't really much to do at Atlantic City with the exception of gambling and shopping at the outlet mall. Anyhow this was meant to be a relaxing 2 days trip after our hectic move back from NYC.

Back to Crib

Yesterday night, we tried having Shane back in his crib. But to get him to stay in there, we had to remove the front bit of the crib and then stuff pillows between the gap between the crib and the bed. We also had to use a small rope to tie the crib to the bed.

Putting him to sleep was a bit of a challenge as all he wanted to do was stand up using the rails (even though he was extremely tired). So after many attempts of pulling him and lying him flat, I managed to get him to sleep. Guess how long that took? 1 whole hour. Ended up going to bed at 1030pm. 

Photo Album Part 2 - Shane 5-8 months

My summer project is done!
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Long Island, NY

We realized we hadn't done very much regional sightseeing of New York in our 10 weeks here. So on our last weekend, off we went (with the grandparents who barely arrived) to Long Island.

Yes Long Island is kinda long. So we didn't manage to make it all the way to the end with a cranky baby on board. Nevertheless we did manage a couple of places (at a very slow pace). All activities we did basically depended on whether the baby was tired, happy, cranky or just fussy.

First stop was Sagamore Hill - the home of Theodore Roosevelt. 

Well since I'm not American and have never studies American history, it was a very interesting experience for me just visiting the museum and readings about all that he's done and achieved. Sadly, his home was closed for restoration, so it was fenced off.

Then we went to Oyster Bay cove for a really good lunch at Canterburys grill. Seafood galore!

We really wanted to go to one of those pick-your-own farms but most were located at the other end of Long Island. Baby Shane was really cranky then so we had no choice but to head to an organic farm (not a PYO yet as it's still off season). Got some really juicy Japanese plums and white peach and a bag if yellow cherry tomatoes which tasted so so good.

And on the way back, we stopped by point lookout for a lookout. A nice roam in the park and some fresh air for Shane.

Along the way back to Manhattan, we stopped by Brooklyn for some Asian food. It's been a while since we had SEAsian food. Rendang Island serves a really mean Sambal Stingray... Soo good.

Baby learns new things

Over the past week since my mum and dad arrived from Singapore, Shane has learnt to do quite a few things all at once.

Just 2 days ago (22 Aug - which makes him 8 Months & 22 days old), Shane started to crawl with his hands. Previously, he would just rock at once spot and crawl on his tummy.

Yesterday (23 Aug), Shane stood up by himself unassisted (which he already previously did)…. but this time around, he stood by himself for quite a long while without falling back down on his bum. Whoo hoo!!

And today, he has learnt to clap his hands! Last time his two hands would miss each other when he tries to clap...

That was quite a lot of new things in the last few days. I think he progresses a lot more when the grandparents are here. These days, SHane has gotten 10 times more active than he was about a month ago. I know his active nature will only start to get worse… and soon, i will have to start chasing him around.

Tired… but really fun times!

First Clap on his own

Today (@ 8months 24 days) I caught baby clapping on his own. Whoo hoo!!

Phthalates

Today while shopping online, I came across the Prop65 warning (for Californian residents only) for something that I was about to purchase... Out of curiosity, I decided to click on it because I wonder what made Californians so special that there is a special warning out there for them.

Prop 65 – important information for California residents

To our California customers, in accordance with Proposition 65, we issue the following warning: "This product contains chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer, or birth defects or other reproductive harm."

Gasp! Yes I have seen this label warning in the past while shopping at Ace Hardware in Dubai. Now... If I am going to buy toys, I am definitely going to scrutinize the material. So here's some of the information I read from the site kidscompanion.com that has a pretty good layman explanation of phthalates and what it does to you...

What are phthalate?

They are used to make PVC which enables flexibility in plastic products (ie. bend without breaking)

How do phthalate a enter the body? 
Phthalates generally enter the body via inhalation or absorption. While the phthalates in most PVC does not constitute a health risk, phthalates can leach out of soft vinyl when the products are sucked or chewed, migrating into the body through the saliva and creating a health risk.  When items containing phthalates are subjected to heat, like microwave ovens or from the sun, or as these items get older it accelerates their escape from the plastics.

Phthalates are also lipophilic, or attracted to fats. Fat present in blood can actually draw them out of IV bags, for example, and carry them into the body. 

Common phthalates, which may come in handy for checking labels:

• DBP (dibutyl phthalate)

• DNOP (di-n-octyl phthalate)

• DiNP (diisononyl phthalate)

• DEP (diethyl phthalate)

• BBzP (benzyl butyl phthalate)

• DEHP (di 2-ethylhexl phthalate)

• DiDP (diisodecyl phthalate)

• DnHP (di-n-hexyl phthalate)

• DMP (dimethyl phthalate)

• DnOP (di-n-octylphthalate)

• Bisphenol A (BPA) is another plasticizer.

*Most of these materials are from kidscompanion.com

The effects of overexposure to phthalates are mostly on wikipedia... so I'm not going to write them all out here. This is the link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phthalate
Another good link is : http://www.babycenter.com/0_phthalates-what-you-need-to-know_3647067.bc

So.... first things... I went to check a few of the ingredients of items we have in the house that may have phthalates.
Thankfully, I buy my shampoo products from Wholefoods... so phew to that. But a few of the baby products which we have (but haven't used yet) have phthalates. So we know where these will land up!

DBP in Johnson's baby lotion - thankfully, this was a sample pack. We didn't use this more because it had Red33 Colouring in it.

So, today's task was to go around the house to checked most of Shane's toys... For some of these, I threw some packaging away... but the toys that mostly have plastic in them, if I can't find anywhere that says phthalate free (like his walker), I will definitely keep my eye on them and make sure he doesn't chew on them. Fisher Price toys doesn't really indicate if the toys are phthalate free, and I read on several blogs that Fisher Price refuses to release information when asked. My conclusion - they aren't.

I guess we can't be living in a world that is 100% phthalate free. But where possible, and if I can help it and find suitable alternatives, I would at least give it a try to avoid.

Album for Shane's first 4 months

Shane by Janice | Make Your Own Book

Tooth #6 is out

This morning, another tooth popped out again... A grand total of 6 teeth now!!