The Bub in the Belly: Normal programming will resume shortly

We are back from our holiday – it was a wonderful trip! Every day was a new experience and everyone had a great time!

Before our trip to New York, we also made a short trip back to KL to see the family, plus we've been doing lots of crafting and home learning activities. So we've got lots to tell you!

I’m afraid, though, that I will be tackling the task very slowly. Since we got back last Monday morning, we’ve been keeping very different hours from before and I haven’t figured out where to fit the blogging in yet. On Monday, we touched down at 7.30 am and, right after we got home, Richard and I went to work and Ryan went to his nanny’s place. After work, we came home early and fell straight into bed, without dinner, which was around 7 pm! We woke up the next morning at 5 am, bright eyed and bushy tailed. While it was still dark, we drove out in search of breakfast. We came home buzzing with energy, got some housework done and went off to work feeling like we’d already made an achievement for the day.

It’s been the same the past few days. Every evening we go to bed before around 8 or 9 pm, without dinner, and every morning we wake up, naturally, ahead of the sun. Then there’s a drive out for breakfast followed by some pottering about in the house and walking the dog, before we start our work day. It’s wonderful, really. It feels good.

The problem is that this routine doesn’t leave much time for blogging. Or for anything else really. By the time we get home from work in the evening, our eyes are already shutting and we’re yawning away. We haven’t been doing any home learning activities either. In fact, Ryan hasn’t stepped into his playroom since we got back, despite having lots of new toys from New York.

I expect that we will shift our clock to more sociable hours soon. In the meantime though, I want to thoroughly enjoy this new routine for as long as it lasts. So, please don’t leave, do hang around, normal programming will resume shortly.

Till then, I leave you with this update – Ryan has been signed up with a modelling agency!

We have had a few friends bugging us to do it, ever since he was an infant, but we never gave it much thought until, one day, we were in Parkway Parade when we walked past a roadshow for children. There was a booth set up for children to have a photo taken on the spot by Impact Models, which is a fairly established agency. It was free of charge if you spent $50 at the mall, so we thought, why not. As it turned out, the shoot was for slightly older children, so we didn't qualify. Anyway, having taken the step to go up to the booth, we asked them what they could offer Ryan and they said that we could take up a one-year contract with them, which includes three photoshoots (4 months apart) and a year of promoting him as a model. The price was quite reasonable, so we thought, what the heck, at least we'll get some professional photos for a year!

He had his first agency shoot the day before we left for KL which was Thursday, 21 April 2011. The day before that, I brought him for a hair cut at his usual salon. I usually hold him in my lap but the stylist said that he should have no problem sitting on his own, so we put him on a plank on the chair and he was perfectly happy. I was not mentally prepared at all for that! I definitely was not ready to give up holding him and have OUR time in the chair! I was traumatised by the whole thing! As for Ryan, well, he didn’t break a sweat.

For the agency shoot, I was told to bring a selection of clothes which the agency would use to style the shoot. I was given a long list of no-nos - no brands showing, no cartoons, no white tops, etc. Not easy! Anyway, after some running around, I managed to put together a small selection. I was very pleased when, after auditing my collection, the photographer complimented that, “Mummy has very good taste”! Well, I have to thank Zara Kids for that!

Getting dolled up for the shoot!

Unfortunately, despite my wardrobe prowess, I was a flop when it came to eliciting a response from Ryan for the camera. Under the bright lights and in the unfamiliar surroundings, Ryan needed some time to warm up and I wasn’t very effective in assisting. Luckily, Richard popped by (he wasn’t supposed to be there actually) and he took over. He hopped around behind the photographer, danced about, played peek-a-boo and loads more. What matters is that he managed to get chuckles and smiles out of our little guy. The photographer furiously snapped away unnoticed by Ryan and, within one minute, the photographer said he had got The Shot. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. I was going, “Huh? That’s it?”

The Shot went up on the agency’s website that weekend and within just a few days, Ryan got a call for an audition for a magazine! I was amazed that it was so fast! Unfortunately (and this really kills me), we were in New York at the time so we had to give it a miss. I was SOOO disappointed but, oh well, fingers crossed that there will be a next time! (Richard keeps teasing me that we might have missed the COVER!! Aarrgh.)

Anyway, here’s The Shot, what do you think?

You can also see it on the agency website - click here and look for Ryan Soo. We also got a few other shots on a CD-Rom as well. Here are a couple to share with you.