Ultra-woman

Yesterday, on her evening walk, I decked her out in an Ultraman singlet suit we brought back from Singapore. I have been sorting her clothes out into 'those for home' and 'those for outings', but figured out by the time we got round to wearing all in the latter group, she would have vastly outgrown them, so have started taking some out for her to wear on her walks around the neighbourhood.

I'd though the singlet would be too big, but it fitted her rather snugly (and was quite hard to remove around her head), and she looked so cute that at least three groups of strangers remarked she looked so cute (and fat, haha).
The nanny had been teaching her to open/close her hands (like as if scratching at something) and she actually did it on her own for the first time yesterday, and the nanny was so proud that she demonstrated her new 'skill' for strangers to see. Nanny thinks Rosabelle is going to be left-handed as she scratches with her left hand, and also takes the spoon using this hand. Well, we're not going to force her into right-handedness if that's the case, though my sister told me that looking at the swirl of her hair growth, it looks like she's a classic right-hander. Hmmm.... let's see which is correct.

On our way back in the lift, I usually push her stroller to face the lift mirror, and this pregnant lady and her mum came in and said 'Oh, this baby's so cute! So fat! So cute!', and they went like this for a few seconds until I asked them 'Erm, which floor are you on?', and they were so embarrassed for forgetting to press the lift button. Quite hilarious...

Rosabelle has also been learning to look up at things if you ask her things like 'where's the light/switch/flask/fridge/Daddy/Mummy?' etc, and will also follow your finger to look at things if you point at stuff. She also demonstrated her yin/yang stance of pivoting 360 degrees on her playmat to reach at things, and her Daddy was so impressed.

However, her strength in her arms is something good but worrying at the same time, as she has been trying to reach the sofa arm rests to try to stand, and even pulling at the top of her Fisher Price chair to get up (hope the filmsy plastic will not break one of these days!). She is also reaching her fingers out to the side of her cot to grab at it, so we need to lift the bar higher some day. However, she has also been practising her spoon drop – grabbing at the spare spoon during meal times, or her teether, and watching as the items land on the floor when she releases them. I’m sure the nanny has a flat tummy now from doing the multiple sitting tummy crunches when helping her to pick up the items every time. So cheeky!

She also likes to say 'Ah?' these days, especially if looking for something that has fallen out of sight (or that we've purposely hid away so she cannot place into her mouth). The intensity, frequency, and volume of this 'Ah?' will increase correspondingly as she loses her patience, or if she wants the object badly. Such cute baby noises as she wonders aloud why things are disappearing, heh...

Wayne's grandparents will be proud of their great-granddaughter's developments as we are bringing her to Zhengzhou in July/August to see them before they head back to their hometown in Xinjiang. We will also take the opportunity to deal with the local government in the delisting of her Chinese citizenship (ALOT of paperwork, hassle, and red tape, where they are also ridiculously requiring her resume - yes, an 8-month-old's CV!!!). Anyway, I told Wayne the viability of the trip will depend on the nanny as I need someone to help cook properly for her, and luckily she agreed to go along (though we have to pay for airfare and accommodation, of course).