9 lbs. 15 0z. | 22 1/8 inches

Dear Austin,

In the past week, so much has happened.  Well who am I kidding, a lot happens every week with you!    You celebrated your one month where we cut off a lot of your hair.  We went to the doctor where they diagnosed you with baby acne, cradle cap, and dry skin on your face… BUT we took comfort in knowing that it will all eventually go away and we were able to scrub off the cradle cap with some good ole shampoo and a wash cloth.  I hope it didn’t make your head too itchy~!  Aunt Julia and Uncle Tim paid you a visit too… where again, you slept through most of it, good boy!  Unfortunately, Daddy was sick this week so he couldn’t hold, feed, or play with you.  I could tell some of your cries were cries of missing your Daddy. 

You’ve made great strides in your development, like being able to turn your head 180 degrees and follow objects with your eyes.  Your favorite object being Mr. Panda.  You can hold your head up during tummy time for 90 degrees for a few seconds, yay!  You’ve really started to work on your “coos” too which makes Ah Ma think you are going to be very outgoing when you grow up.

Love,
Mommy

Last Saturday, Austin turned 1 month old!  For the Chinese, reaching your 1 month birthday (man yue) is quite the big deal.  But seriously, not only is it a celebration for him… but we survived the first month of parenting!  I’ve got to say, raising a newborn is a real test of patience, arm muscles, mental, physical, and emotional boundaries.  Our little man is so worth it though!
We had some family come to visit Austin for the first time and join us in a feast to celebrate.

Red-dyed eggs are made to symbolize happiness and the renewal of life.

And many babies get their heads shaved so that their new hair will grow in thicker.  However, we were too chicken as parents to shave his head, so instead, we trimmed his mullet and cleaned up his long hairs.  The hairs will actually be brought back to Taiwan to be made into two different calligraphy brushes.  One bigger brush will have his birth information and Daddy’s name on it and a smaller brush will have his birth information and my name on it.  These two brushes will be made of marble and are a keepsake for Austin to be given to him on his wedding day.  How cool is that!?  Aren’t traditions so fun?

Look at my cutie sporting all sorts of handmade goodness.  Aviator hat c/o The Sunshine Stitch, Mr. Mustache Booties from Pleasantly Plump Knits, and handmade blanket from my coworker Lopa (thanks girl)!

Austin is saying “Look at me, I’m a big boy now!”

I can’t get enough of his little feet.  Bare feet.  Feet with booties.  Whatever it is, it’s one of my fave body parts on him!

And here he is with his friend Mickey!  They are about the same size… for now!

I’m so excited to finally share with you the Newborn Session that Sengerson Photography did for Austin!  People always say that the best time to shoot a newborn session is between 7-10 day old, so I was ecstatic that the timing worked out and we were able to capture these photos when he was 10 days old.  Even better, Austin’s umbilical cord stump and plastibel from circumcision fell off RIGHT before the session so that’s one less thing that we had to worry about.  I have to say, right after a feeding is absolutely the best time to take these photos, babies are sleepy, happy, and totally maneuverable!    Although it also means that they are prone to pee and poo everywhere as well, and Austin was no exception.  Anyhow, I’ll let the pictures do the talking…

I just can’t stop looking at these pictures on a daily basis.  I love my little man, isn’t he adorable?!  <3  Thanks again Seng!!

Just wanted to drop in and wish everyone a Happy Lunar New Year!  Our little family of three celebrated by venturing out to a friend’s house for a celebratory FEAST!  I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

We seriously had like 4 courses, ate for hours and stuffed ourselves silly.

Yay!  Family photo! 

Uncle Sam starting his lessons already.  Lessons on what?  Not sure…

Austin received two red envelopes – lucky guy!

Ladies posing.

Baby Austin meets Baby Wesley for the first time!  And 1 year old Audrey is super confused on which one is actually her brother haha!

These two are sure to be buddies.    What we learned from the outing… Austin can sleep through all sorts of noises, positions and different people holding him~!

P.S. The winner of my two year blogiversary giveaway for a February Feature Sponsor spot on my blog is Alison of aPearantly sew!  Congrats girl!  Please send me an email at sandyalamode(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize! 

Hope you all have a prosperous and healthy Year of the Dragon!

Well hello there! Nice to meet you! My name is Yvonne and I blog over at simplyvonne.  I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to be a guest host for Sandy today. I have been a fan of Sandy’s blog for quite some time now and it’s an honor to be here sharing with you few tips on photography. I am not an expect on photography nor am I a professional photographer but I found these tips actually works for me. I have always enjoy photography but never got into it until my baby girl was born last year. It actually took me a whole year to finally play around with the manual mode! I am still really new at photography and still learning as I go.

{ Read Your Manual } Before you start photographing your baby, the first thing you should do is read your manual. I get it that reading your manual is completely boring but you don’t have to read it from cover to cover. At least 10 pages

{ Light It Up } When shooting indoor, I usually position Kaylee by the window. I don’t have any fancy flash equipment so I love using natural light. When I do shoot Kaylee outside, I normally shoot really early morning or later afternoon around sunset so your photos would have harsh lighting.

{ Getting the Details }

Babies are tiny for a very short period of time. I like to focus on their feet, toes, hands, eyes and even accessories. Don’t be afraid to get close and focus on the little details. Shallow depth of fields creates a mood of tenderness and intimacy.

{ To Their Level }

Sometimes the best shot is the one where you are laying down on your tummy to take it Don’t be afraid to get down and dirty. Try kneeling or lying beside your baby and shoot from there.

{ Work Around Your Baby’s Schedule }

The key to have a happy and smiling baby in photos is to work around their schedule. Ohh yes…there were numerous time I was so ready to take photos but if she’s into it, just have to wait another day. Kaylee is usually smiling for the camera once she got her nap in and tummy is all full!

{ Edit, Edit, Edit }

Let’s be honest, my photos are not cool before editing them. I edit all my photos in photoshop. I normally brighten up the eyes and using various actions on my photos. I love using Totally Rad Actions You can download some free actions at Pioneer Woman. She has great tips on photography as well!

When I first started, my photos were really dark and I was shooting in auto mode for a year. My interest in photography grew because I want to be able to take nice quality photos for our baby girl. Practice is the key and don’t give up. Don’t expect to capture that perfect shot the first time, try different angles and different positions. Impromptu shots sometimes creates the best picture.

Like I mentioned, I am not a professional photographer and there’s so much to learn, I simply enjoy taking photos of our baby girl and I think she’ll enjoy looking at these 18 years from now. Thank you so much for having me Sandy, I cant wait to see photos of baby boy a la mode!

Head over to my blog, baby girl and I would love to meet you! See more photos of baby K here

-Yvonne