Grandparents from Manila, July 2007

The most recent memorable event for all of us has been the visit of Little Nio's grandparents, my father and mother, from Manila. They arrived very early in the morning of July 18, but it wasn't until later in the day that they were able to meet up because we all had to catch a bit of sleep.



Here they are holding their grandson for the very first time. That day was also a very special day because it was also the birthday of my wife, Kanittha. We booked them a very nice room at a tiny hotel, called "My House Hotel", located right around the corner from our apartment. We would have let them stay with us, but our apartment is too tiny for guests.



Once you hand a baby over to your folks, don't think that you'll be able to get them back any time soon. Here's Little Nio fast asleep with his grandfather, Lolo Jun. My father has earned the nickname of "Super Carry" around his grandchildren as he rarely puts them down and will be seen carrying them for hours on end.



Our son looks extremely comfortable craddled in the arms of his grandmother, Lola Nene. It was quite surprising that she was able to grab him away from my father.



And here's Little Nio back again with Lolo Jun, managing a quick taste of a few fingers while getting all sniffed and snuggled.

Later that evening, we were all able to have dinner together for my wife's birthday at an Italian restaurant, named Arancini, very close to the hotel where my parents were staying. Unfortunately I wasn't able to take photographs of the evening, but my wife made sure to keep the memories in her heart. Aside from my wife and I, and my parents, we also invited our good friend, Tata Montilla, and my colleague from the office Khun Jae and her husband, Khun Sak.

The next day Tata agreed to accompany us to the Plant Market at Chatuchak. The famous weekend market is still alive and well, but during the week, specifically on Wednesdays and Thursdays it transforms into a veritable jungle. Anything and everything, either directly or even vaguely associated with gardens and plant growing can be found there. Here we all are taking the BTS Sky Train over to the Mor Chit Train Station.



While my father and Tata were out shopping for plants, my mom and my wife, Kanittha, were busy having their pictures taken inside an air conditioned coffee shop. Obviously lured by the promise of cool air and good coffee, I decided to pass on the plants and take a photo of the two "Mrs. Navarros".



From the Plant Market, we went off to Greyhound restaurant on the ground floor of La Villa, where we were able to catch an excellent lunch.





My parents joined up with our friends, Kenny and Jum, who hosted lunch for us. And of course, my wife, Kanittha, simply had to get into the middle of the photograph. Otherwise it would not have worked out as nicely.



Despite all the running around and shopping that needed to get done the few days my parents came to visit with us, the bulk of their time was spent with Little Nio.



Here's Little Nio getting a bit of mushy food, literally being spoon fed by his Lolo Jun. Now striking a thoughtful pose with his Lola Nene.



We absolutely enjoyed having Little Nio's grandparents over to visit. The only thing to complain about was that it was too short a visit and we miss them already. We are already looking forward to our visit to Manila this coming December 2007.

Power Nap, July 2007

Here we are back again at KiDO, with Little Nio clutching at a pink ball. His mom has gotten him under careful supervision.



Sometimes while we're at KiDO with Little Nio, he does tend to be a handful himself. My wife has got some unique techniques on keeping him under control. I suspect that she may have learned some of these from watching wrestling on the television.



Little Nio is almost strong enough to sit upright, but it takes a bit of effort to keep himself balanced. He is strong enough to pull himself upright and support his weight on his own legs. We try not to let him do this yet because he might not be old enough for it and might even hurt himself. But, he insists.





Well after all that effort, he does get tired. Sometimes he tires himself out so quickly that he simply passes out in the middle of a session for a power nap.

Visiting the Office, July 2007

Here we are visiting with the staff at the office. Khun Ome and Khun A look on while Khun Jae carries little Nio.



Here's Khun Jae carrying Little Nio...



And here he's being carried by Khun Ome...



Now being carried by Khun Pui, with Khun Boy looking on...



Finally, after all the carrying by other folks, Little Nio decides that it's time to take a milk break with his daddy.

More of Nio at KiDO, July 2007

After the first few visits at Little Nio's playschool, KiDO, we decided to give him his own play space at home. Colorful interlocking rubber floor tiles and a few friendly stuffed toys makes for some simple fun space.



Here we are back again at KiDO, Little Nio with his mom.



Every week at KiDO they have a new feature toy with a special skill. One session they had a large octagon with a bean bag on one side. Little Nio was propped up on one side and then we all rocked the bag back and forth. This was a very good test for his balance, and he didn't get freaked out by the experience.



Another regular feature they have is the parachute time, where all the kids get to spend a little exercise time under a big colorful parachute. I suppose it teaches the kids spatial perception and color perception at the same time.



Either before the play session begins or shortly after, we all grab a bit of lunch to eat. Sometimes we end up at a Japanese restaurant named, "Kobune", and other times we go have lunch at "Banana Beach". Here we are at the dining table just before food arrives at "Banana Beach".



After a long day of play, Little Nio mugs one of his cute faces with a thoughtful twisted lip.



Then back at home with another great outfit that resembles a baseball uniform, "Baby League".

Little Nio Goes to KiDO, July 2007

We've gotten our son a full membership at a playcenter, called "KiDO"!



Located on the 6th floor of Central World Plaza, KiDO is an indoor playground that has some intelligently structured play time periods for children with their parents. Great facilities, well trained staff and an opportunity for Little Nio to interact with other children.

The facility is open to toddlers from three months old, up to children six years old. They have different types of classes open to the older children, but for "Freshmen" (pre-crawlers) like Little Nio, they have the Play Gym activities.

Here's our son, attempting to crawl with some brightly colored plastic balls as some incentive. The child friendly environment really helps put all our worries at ease.



Here's Little Nio with his mom, ready to try on something new. He's got this scheming little smile on his face. My wife, Kannitha, is ready to have a good time here as well.



It's not a very large class at all. Only three toddlers in this one, with Little Nio being the youngest in the group. A little girl named "Jaya", who is nine months old, and another boy named "Dan", who is six months old, round out the class.



Here he is getting a nice massage from his mommy.



A bit of running around time with mom. Lots of different activities with lots of singing and playing. Very tiring for the parents as well, specially if you're out of shape like I am.



Little Nio is completely amazed and bewildered by all the bubbles. We absolutely must get one of these bubble thingies for him to play with.





We are definitely looking forward to his next activity day.

First Foods at Four Months, June 2007

Little Nio is now four months old. One of the things that we've introduced him to is his first taste of "solid" foods. Technically, mush is neither liquid nor solid, squished bananas are exactly that — mush.

Here's a quick comic series made from some photographs we took to capture that first taste for Little Nio.







The whole adventure of that first taste was incredible and these photos documenting this moment are simply priceless. Just in case you're wondering about his cute outfit here, we call this one his "blue ninja" outfit... and only because of the little booties attached to the trousers.





If we had enough capital to start up a small business, making practical baby costumes and outfits would be an incredibly fun venture. Themes like ancient Egyptian pharoahs and Japanese ninjas would be as much fun to explore as swashbuckling pirate outfits.

Here is Little Nio with his mom and Khun Yuwadee, a colleague and friend from my office. I had to come to work on the weekend and visit a few job sites, so we decided to make a field trip of it. Our son doesn't seem too interested in the prospect of working on a Saturday.



Another series of expressions, with our son hamming it up for the camera yet again.











While all these great photographs capture our son at his finest and best, he does have his moments when he can be quite miserable. Here he is being completely miserable in this lime green outfit.



And here he is, all quieted down with his mom. Doesn't take too much to make him happy. Actually if my wife was carrying me around all day, I'd be pretty happy too.



Another really cool outfit we found for Little Nio is this orange striped one with the white distressed printing of something on the chest. For some strange reason, the colors remind me of a reggae sort of theme, so we've started calling this his "rasta" outfit.









And finally here he is about to take a nap with his mommy.



We'll be posting more very soon as Little Nio is about to embark on yet another new adventure.