悠悠1岁—2岁的故事

青草

摄影 视频截图 撰文/ 青草 张玲                                英文翻译 方千

　　我经常在想着要做一件事，它在我心里沉淀了很久，而这件事的精髓，却是在脑海中灵光闪现的那一瞬间，那才是我要表达对这件事儿所描述的闪光点，往往我还没有来及捕捉到它，它就从我的脑海中消失了。

大多数时间，这种丢失在我脑海里是永久性的，是再也找不回来的，它既是一种躲藏在成人头脑中的思想，又是隐匿在婴幼儿灵魂里的懵懂和神秘。

有一天，我突然悟道，婴幼儿的语言和思维，真的要比我们成人的语言和思维表现得更加先觉和超越，这便是我迟迟不为悠悠动笔写日记的原因所顾。

我记得，曾经读过中国古代哲学思想的经典书籍，有关婴幼儿的描述：“婴幼儿，大多在三岁以前是开天眼的，他们能够看到我们成人所不能见到的物质，听到我们成人所不能听到的声音。随着他们逐渐长大，天眼也随之关闭。”

这一点，我已经从和小外孙的对话中敏察到了。尽管我们是成人，年长婴幼儿几十岁，但总体表现——经常是啰啰嗦嗦地说上一大堆的废话，而婴幼儿则用一句话，或只用他们的行为就能点醒“老师傅”。

　　在婴幼儿面前，我经常犯傻的还远不止这些。比如：你或对他憨憨傻笑；你或对他怒不可遏；你或对他蒙言骗语，而他看我们则是老大不小的愚钝。

尽管人们将这一点分析的如此透彻，我还是要为小外孙写上一些文字。

我给婴幼儿写笔记，总感到不知道从什么地方下手。之前，我在给悠悠哥哥写的时候就曾这样想过：每一个一两岁的幼儿，都会在这一时期，有着自己独特的思想和故事，只是我们这些做长辈的没有去认真勤奋地捕捉到它，让这些婴幼儿时期的有趣故事一闪而过，成为永久被埋没的人类宝藏，而且是永久性地丢失。

现阶段对婴幼儿的记录更多的是被视频影像所代替，而更深层次的婴幼儿发生在内心世界故事则被遗忘掉。这是作为长辈，在孩子幼年时期的一种普遍现象，他基于成人的思想认知局限和精神懒惰，因而给婴幼儿留下永久的遗憾，这种遗憾往往是婴幼儿与长辈均不知晓的。

　　我从书柜里拿出一本书《尔擎1岁—2岁的故事》，拿出这本两三年前编印的图文小册子，就是想给尔擎弟弟悠悠也写一本这样的册子，不然等悠悠长大了该埋怨我这个姥爷了，即使孩子不当面和我说，也会在心里怪我：“为什么姥爷不给我写，只给哥哥写，一看就是个偏心的姥爷。”

其实，给悠悠记录一下他的生活，这本是我喜欢做的事，也是我力所能及的，只是因为我和悠悠在一起的日子实在是太少了，不像他哥哥尔擎从出生到他两岁，我和他在一起的时间很长。仅在新冠疫情期间就有七八个月，这还不算他爸爸妈妈多次带他来天津探亲。

而悠悠从出生到两岁，我实际与他接触总共也不足一个月，在这么短的时间里，基本上没有与他有什么交流的机会，我只是与他爸爸妈妈通视频中，了解一些悠悠的成长过程。尽管如此，我还是要为小外孙悠悠写点什么，给他记录一下我对他的所见所闻，以供他长大了可以阅读，了解自己幼儿时的一点情况。

在这个世界上，我想应该没有人会特意为悠悠小时候给他留下一些文字记录，或一生也不会有人为悠悠写个关于他小时候的册子，除非他长大后出了名，有人会为他著书论说，这当然都是大人们所期待的。

　　这本小册子还是按照尔擎那本模式进行记录，即采用图片加文字记述的形式。不管他们以后读不读它，我还是希望有一天哥俩一人拿一本我给他们写的书拍一个合影给我发过来，这对于我们和孩子来讲，都是一件很有纪念意义的事情，这也是我们做长辈的唯一能为他们做的一件包括亲情和文化传承的事情了。

有一点，给悠悠写和给尔擎写有所不同，那就是给尔擎写的内容，都是我所亲身经历过的事儿，而给悠悠写的大部分是我听说和未能亲身经历只看照片和视频的内容。当然，写悠悠一定也离不开他的哥哥尔擎，因为哥俩朝夕相处都在一起。

当我们第一次听说女儿又怀孕时，大家的心情是喜出望外，那时期盼他们再生个女孩儿。随着婴儿月份的增加，孩子的信息也随之而来：“可能还是个男孩儿。”

作为我来说，男孩女孩我都喜欢，反正都是当老爷。最兴奋的要数尔擎了，他上幼儿园和老师讲：“我有妹妹了。”没过多久，他又给老师更正说：“我有弟弟了，不是妹妹，是弟弟。”

尔擎的性格我很喜欢，他喜欢显露自己，总是自信满满信心十足的样子，从他很小的时候，就愿意告诉外人自己的各类汽车玩具便知道他的性格了。而悠悠的性格非常内向，他不善言表，内心却很有数。他不像尔擎小时候那样好动，总是见他稳稳当当在那儿玩耍。

　　在女儿怀悠悠的整个过程中，大家还是为她担心的，担心孕妇的身体；担心婴儿的发育；担心能不能顺利生产。

为了有所准备，姥姥提前一个月就到了新加坡，准备去伺候月子，照顾孕妇，抚养婴儿。

姥姥是2022年9月7日飞往新加坡的，结果悠悠在2022年9月8日竟然提前近一个月出生了。新生儿早产了近一个月，体重只有4.7斤。这个受累的姥姥到新加坡一天也没有歇息，就投入到紧张的护理婴儿之中。

悠悠出生后，我也只能在视频中观看悠悠的生长情况。刚刚抱出来的婴儿，一脸褶皱，通红的小脸，双目紧闭，眉头紧锁，我看到的第一眼是姥姥抱着他的照片，随后就是哥哥尔擎抱着他的照片。婴儿的模样都是一个样，因为皮肤没有舒展开，都是红红的、丑丑的模样。

那时，我们不知道这个婴儿的脾气性格是什么样的，只要他健康就好，我看到哥哥尔擎小心翼翼的抱着弟弟，从今以后尔擎就有了一个可爱的弟弟了，在后来的日子里他很会照顾自己的弟弟。尔擎比悠悠整整大了五岁。

记得尔擎出生的那天，我们都在新加坡，从产房抱出来时，也是这样红红的小脸、鼓鼓的嘴巴。尔擎出生的二十多天后我就离开新加坡返回了天津。

悠悠出生时我没有在他身边，只是偶尔通过发来的视频或照片才能看到他可爱逗人的小模样。

　　悠悠从产院出来抱回到家里，辛苦的就是姥姥了，为了尽量多喂悠悠奶粉，姥姥用像眼药水瓶那么大的小容器给悠悠一点一滴地挤着喂奶。姥姥为了让悠悠尽快的成长，尽可能地将他抱在怀里，让悠悠多睡觉，据说婴儿睡觉可以长身体。从出院到一岁半悠悠始终没有离开姥姥的怀抱，一直快到一岁半时，才交给了阿爷和奶奶照顾，同时还雇了一个缅甸籍小保姆帅宜。

这些都是后话了，我们只说眼前，只讲我听说和我见到的事情吧。我和悠悠第一次见面，还是在他六个月大的时候（2023年3月份来海南和天津），这也是悠悠妈的巧妙安排，因为尔擎就是在六个月大时来的天津。

这次回国，一是为了让我这个姥爷和太姥姥、太姥爷看看这个可爱的小外孙；二是回天津去儿童写真照相馆，给悠悠拍一组婴幼儿的照片。这不照相馆还存有哥哥第一次缴纳的拍摄费用，正好让悠悠六个月时用上。在同一家照相馆，拍摄一组同样婴幼儿的写真纪念照。

我这个当老爷的第一次见到小老二格外开心高兴。你看悠悠的皮肤白白的，清秀的脸庞，明亮的眼睛，笑起来张着一张大嘴，非常可爱的样子。

　　记得那天，悠悠在客厅沙发上睡觉，醒后，他睁着两只闪亮的眼睛，不停地望着我，他的眼里既有一种陌生感，又有一种亲情感。睡醒的他看上去好像很开心，嘴里还发出“咿咿呀呀”的声音，就像在和我打招呼。我高兴地和他说起话来，他似乎也要想与我对话，不停地涌动他的小身子，像我示意着那种骨肉亲情。

他在这个陌生的环境里，第一次看到了我这个陌生的老爷。我很快就将小家伙的表情摄录下来，留作永久的纪念，后来我将这段录像与他哥哥这样大时的录像合并成一段视频。

在这段视频里，明显地看出哥俩的性格完全不同——哥哥活泼，浑身有力气，在那里不停地扭动身体，似乎要起来和我互动；再看弟弟则是文文气气、白白净净的望着我，看他眼神总像是在考虑着什么——你就是我的姥爷？

总之，这两个胖小子好好玩儿啊，看到这段视频会让你开心无比。

下面三张图片是哥哥6个月

　　六个月的悠悠，让我记得他的第二件事，就是在那次全家大聚餐时，我们全家的七个晚辈孩子拍照合影，好不容易给一家大小都摆好了位置，悠悠却坐在最边上歪着身子睡着了，大家看了照片都笑了起来，这可是悠悠与家人长辈，以及哥哥姐姐们拍的第一张全家福合影哦。

等悠悠第二次来天津时，他已经是八个月大小了（2023年6月来天津）。那时，他还不会走路，只是在家里大客厅里满地爬。

悠悠总想站起来，有时他扶着沙发貌似可以站着；有时哥哥在书房弹琴他扶着钢琴角或哥哥的腿就要起身。

无论我们去逛商场，还是外出办事去，都得抱着他。从朋友那借来一辆儿童推车，虽不算好用，也只能就和着了。现在想来，这都是去年刚刚发生的事情了。

在那段日子里，悠悠的很多细节，我却没有作啥记录，说起有记忆的，也只有两件事。

一是悠悠在客厅里爬行，我总想给他做一个小视频，但没有很低的三脚架（他太矮了，需要低角度拍摄），但他爬行的速度特别快，所以当时我也只能是手持拍摄，这样就会使得镜头不稳定，画面总是有些晃动。

　　悠悠爬起来的样子很可爱，两只小胖手“啪嗒啪嗒”地拍在木地板上，很有节奏感，而两条小腿跪在地板上随身体拖着走。每当他遇到沙发或小凳子或低矮物品，他就会扶着它想站起来，这时你一定要走到他的跟前，防止摔倒磕碰到他。

这天，悠悠爬到客厅一角摆放扫地机的地方，他看到扫地机是一个小圆台，就用手按了上去，没想到扫地机“说话”了：“准备清扫。”听到扫地机发出声音，悠悠调转身子向我在的方向爬过来，脸上表现出好紧张，我看出他内心有些害怕。

此时，哥哥尔擎听到扫地机的声音，也走过来，哥哥开始按起扫地机来。悠悠看哥哥去按机器，又朝着哥哥那边爬去。

我故意逗悠悠，问他：“你害怕不害怕呀？快到老爷这来吧，到老爷这来。”

悠悠似乎听懂了我的话，他预感要发生什么似地，赶紧像我这边爬，边爬边咧开大嘴哭了起来，一下扑到了我的腿上。

我安慰悠悠：“怎么啦，你又害怕了，扫地机它还有没动，你害怕什么呀？”

听我这样一说，悠悠不哭了，安静地趴在我的腿上，看着哥哥摆弄扫地机。

幸好我把这段视频录了下来，等他长大了可以对着文字看哥俩玩儿扫地机的录像视频了。

　　二是，我搂着悠悠睡午觉。之前姥姥总说：“悠悠白天不会睡长觉，睡二十分左右准会醒来，醒了就要找人抱。”

带过婴儿的人都知道，不爱睡大觉的婴儿不好带。我想这应该是在新加坡的时候吧，那时悠悠由姥姥带，他好像懂得，白天家里只有他和姥姥两个人，悠悠一刻也不能离开姥姥。所以，他即使睡着了，心里也不会太踏实，所以他白天睡觉时总会醒来找人抱着。

悠悠这次来天津。有一天，他们让我带悠悠睡个午觉，没想到他很给我面子。我在次卧室的床上哄他睡，真没有太费事，他很快就睡着了。

大约一个小时后，悠悠妈妈轻轻开门进来，她只是扒了一下头，看看悠悠睡着就退了回去；又过了一小时，姥姥也来扒头看看，悠悠还在睡着；再过了一些时间，他们两人一起扒头，悠悠仍在睡着。

悠悠在我怀里睡得好香，中途他醒来一次，见我还在他身边搂着他，他又睡着了，就这样悠悠在我怀里睡了将近三个小时。

如果我不记录在这里，悠悠大概率永远也不会知道他曾在我怀里睡了三个小时的事情吧，遗憾的是我当时没有给悠悠拍个照片。等他下次再来（2024年11月份）我想还会搂着他睡个午觉，那时一定给他拍张照片证实一下他在我怀里很能睡吧。

　　这次悠悠来天津，最让我感到好笑的是悠悠和我闹着要“去街街”的事儿（广东读音“改改”）。

那天妈妈和姥姥去超市买水果，让我看着两个孩子，尔擎很好带儿，他一门心思的玩他的玩具，开始悠悠也跟着玩，突然他哭了起来，闹着要去“改改”，我怎么哄也不行，不得已我将悠悠抱着下楼，他以为可以去“改改”了，结果我给他抱到楼下车库里，我本想让悠悠在这里玩一会，没想到他一下地就去拉买菜的小车。

悠悠两手抓着小车两个把杆儿，竟然一下就举了起来，嘴里喊着：“去改改，去改改。”他边喊边哭着。

我看悠悠执拗的样子，就将他领到床边，给他找出玩具，楼下没有太多玩具。

我将“小老虎”钥匙链给他，我将十几个钥匙链都拿了出来铺满床上，吸引悠悠注意力，还将两只很重的木雕大象也拿下来给他玩儿。当然，我要注意大象可不能掉下来砸到他的脚上。

开始时，他真的被这些玩具转移了注意力，开心地玩了起来。他将小老虎一个一个地挂在抽屉的把手上，一个都不能少。但没过多久，他好像突然想起他下楼的目地是要去“改改”找姥姥和妈妈，看来他应该是困了。

悠悠一下又哭了起来，嘴里喊着：“去改改，去改改。”不得已我就将悠悠抱到院子里转去，正转着，妈妈和姥姥她们回来了，我将悠悠的表现告诉了她们。

我之前始终认为悠悠是困了，他要睡觉，所以他才哭闹，后来姥姥分析道：“悠悠一看我们没在家想找我们，他要找妈妈、找姥姥，只是不会表述，他只能嚷着去“改改”了，在他认为去了“改改”，就能找到我们了。”

姥姥这样一说，我才恍然大悟，她分析的是对的，还是姥姥懂我们悠悠的小心思呀。

　　悠悠拍写真。悠悠和尔擎去的是同一家照相馆“美丽宝贝”，所拍摄场景和拍摄的姿势也都是一样的。

进照相馆拍照是我们这些学习摄影的人不太情愿的事，不是人家拍摄的不好，只是我们的拍摄风格不同，我对照相馆拍的总觉是千篇一律，姿势呆板，表情也不是最佳，最主要的还是要花费较高费用，觉得有些不值得。

但孩子爸妈就喜欢这样拍，在同样的环境下，在同样的场景里，甚至连服装道具都是一模一样，这样的好处就是看两个不同的娃娃，在同一时间段、同一年龄拍出来的结果有啥不同。

记得当时为尔擎拍照时，我的摄影朋友曾对我说：“你本身是搞摄影的，悠悠还用去照相馆拍吗？”

我告诉朋友：“人家爸爸妈妈看不上咱这风格和技术，就得要去照相馆拍。”

这天，我们一家人带着悠悠去拍照，给悠悠拍照可不是一件容易的事，所有的东西都要准备齐，奶粉、热水、尿不湿、小玩具和悠悠睡觉时的小被子等。

到了照相馆看悠悠困不困、尿不尿，一切都准备就绪，还得要姥姥妈妈在一旁哄着悠悠笑起来。拍摄中还要睡一觉，需要喂一次奶，对于我们这些爱好拍摄的人来说，看着给悠悠拍照真得很累。

　　一天，我们看悠悠睡醒了，心情也很不错，我和姥姥就给悠悠穿上婴儿红兜兜在沙发上坐好，我给悠悠拍了一组。

家人和亲属们看到说：“悠悠真可爱，拍得很像杨柳青年画。”我心想，这才是我们摄影爱好者追求的拍摄风格和拍摄乐趣呢，很真实地记录下悠悠这一天的精神状态。

这次来天津，悠悠一家人要拍一个全家福，她们也是选择了照相馆。我们带着两个宝宝一起去了照相馆，拍照的工作人员说：“悠悠太小，闪光灯会刺激到他的眼睛，同时也没有他这么小的服装，所以一家四口只能拍三人的合影了。”

从内心来讲，我是不接受的，好端端一个四口家庭，非要给人家拆散开，从技术角度上讲，你可以给这一家四口拍摄一张不用闪光灯，使用高感光度，这样照片质量也不会有多差，最起码拍一张全家福吧，也体现你这家照相馆人性化服务，其余三人合照，你随便怎么拍都行。

他们一家三口在拍照时，把悠悠给我带，先是让他在沙发上睡觉，醒来我就抱着他，还给他喂奶，悠悠眼巴巴地看着爸爸妈妈哥哥他们出出进进地化妆和拍照。

等这次拍摄完，发来电子版，我找朋友把悠悠P图上去，而P上去的这张图还是我为悠悠拍摄的一张照片呢，你看悠悠笑的多开心，就好像找到了自己的家，这才是一家人的合影照。

　　悠悠过生日。在家庭群里看到悠悠过两岁生日的视频和照片，看得我是好开心。你看他笑盈盈的样子，悠悠这是看到自己眼前的生日蛋糕了。

悠悠拍着小手，看着点着蜡烛的蛋糕，蜡烛插着一个2字，表示他从今天起，已经是两岁的孩子了。蛋糕上有他最喜欢熊猫头像，熊猫头上还戴着顶尖尖的、顶着小红球的一顶帽子。

在视频里，只听到哥哥在旁边说：“（蜡烛上的火苗被）吹没了，被电风扇吹没了。”刚刚还在开心大笑的悠悠，转眼见到蜡烛灭了，变得一脸严肃，那小表情的即刻转换，真是好好玩呀！我把它截图放在这里。

　　懂事的悠悠。妈妈带着哥哥尔擎上课，悠悠在教室外面等哥哥，这天看出悠悠心里很高兴，估计是他见到新鲜的环境了，他想在这宽阔教室外走廊跑动一下，妈妈告诉哥哥在教室里学习，不要影响哥哥。悠悠立即懂得，他跑到教室门口用手在嘴唇比划“嘘--”，示意大家要安静，不要影响里面学习的哥哥。

　　哥哥发烧了。这天悠悠妈妈发来一张照片。早上哥哥没有去上学，他是发烧了。每天早起的哥哥今天却不能陪着弟弟玩耍了。看得出哥哥昏昏沉沉地躺在床上。当得知哥哥发烧时，弟弟坐在哥哥身边抱着他头，悠悠是想让哥哥快点好起来。

　　每当我看着电视架和沙发上放着悠悠穿过的小袜子和小衣服时，我就会想起已经返回新加坡的两个宝宝的模样，特别是那悠悠的小样子。

两个宝宝返回新加坡已经一周了，我仍然没有下笔记录两个宝宝这些日子来天津诸多有趣的事儿。

原计划我设想在两个宝宝来天津后的这些日子，每天我都会记录一下他们当天发生的事情，但整天忙忙碌碌，实在是没有记录的时间。我们每天都要陪着他们这去那逛的，晚上回来我还要哄着尔擎在次卧室睡觉，往往是他还没睡着，我就累得讲不了故事，而快要入睡。每到这时尔擎就会推推快睡着的我，我再清醒过来继续给他讲故事。

悠悠是跟姥姥睡，他是让姥姥抱着睡着后，再放到主卧室的床上。

　　每天早晨我和尔擎还没有起床，姥姥就会抱着已经醒了的悠悠来到我们房间，这时的悠悠心情很好，一看就是睡足了觉。

见悠悠来找我们了，我们就马上起床，每天早上我会带着尔擎出去锻炼一下身体，走一大圈，还带尔擎学飞无人机。

临出门前，我俩一定要背着悠悠，怕他要跟着我们出去，因为外面天气太冷，我们不敢带他出门，只好让他留在家里和姥姥在一起，姥姥要喂他喝奶吃早餐。等我和尔擎晨练回来，我们再陪悠悠玩一会儿，一般情况下，哥哥开始写数学作业。

他们在天津的这十天，基本就是这样度过的，忙忙碌碌跑东串西逛商场吃饭和购物，忙得大家不亦乐乎。

在这样的情景下，我想等孩子们返回新加坡之后，静下心来再为悠悠作记录。现在悠悠们已经走了将近一周，我仍然没有动笔写，我真不知道从那开始记录悠悠了。他那乖巧听话、白白嫩嫩的样子总是在我内心浮现出来。

　　这次来天津，悠悠由开始对我还有些生疏，到后来他会主动找我抱他，这是一个婴儿对我认知的情绪转变，以至于到机场送他时，他看我们进入不了安检口，就大声地哭了起来，要姥姥抱、哪怕是让我抱，他已经不愿意离开我们了。

机场负责安检的工作人员，走到我们面前说：“你们进来吧，抱抱哪个闹情绪的小婴儿。”这样我们才在安检门口抱着悠悠等待着他哥哥和爸爸妈妈做安检。

人在婴儿时期，这一切都不会记得，长大以后也不会有人对他说起，因为大多数遇到的细节事情都会忘记。

安检过后，悠悠妈妈哄着他说：“坐大飞机去，大飞机就要起飞了。”连哄带抱地从姥姥怀里接过悠悠。

我想悠悠那时是不知道这一切怎么会这样发生，当飞机降落新加坡樟宜机场后，他们一家人下了飞机，悠悠嘴里还在不停地念叨着：“姥姥、姥姥。”在他幼小的心里，以为还会像到天津机场，我们会去机场接他和他的哥哥呢。

哥哥弟弟两人在返回新加坡的飞机✈️上

　　这两次悠悠来天津，只有十天时间（2024年11月15日至11月24日）。我和悠悠这次是与他见第三次面。

每次来天津，他们都是这样短暂的时间，最长也不过二十天。有时是因爸爸妈妈的假期所定，有时局限在哥哥的上学和放假的期限。

这次与悠悠相见，变得深刻了些，因为悠悠已经是两岁多的孩子了，准确讲两岁两个月，他已经完全可以走路和用简单的语言表达自己的意愿了。

悠悠这孩子话不多，但他心里却有数，想要干什事，他都能表达出来。他和哥哥尔擎的关系很好，一般情况下，他都会顺着哥哥，只有在哥哥给他弄急了，他才会发起小脾气，发小脾气的时候还要看着妈妈，以便求得大人对他的支持和庇护。你看，悠悠多好玩呀

　　与悠悠在一起，看他开心的时候很多，他总是咧着大嘴微笑；有时候大人们都在忙着自己事，哥哥也在玩着玩具时，可爱的悠悠就会跑这跑那地自己玩起来。当我们大家突然想到他时，大人们才从书房、阳台上或窗帘里面将他找出来，看到大人都在找他，他开心地不得了，好像有意在和我们捉迷藏呢。

悠悠可以在一个地方自己安静地玩上好久，当你突然想起他，心里一惊感觉道：“悠悠呢？他在哪？”他则会开心地对你笑一笑，像是在说：“我在这里呢。”

在返新加坡的当天晚上，爸爸妈妈姥姥都在忙着收拾行李，大家早早地给两个宝宝洗完了澡，并让他们看动画片来消磨他们时间，今天要早早地睡觉，因为转天早上六点钟就要出发返回新加坡了。

　　尔擎在沙发上斜躺着看电视里中国动画片，悠悠在他小餐桌上看ipad里的外国动漫片。看两个小家伙都在安静地看动漫，姥姥叫我过去，去给悠悠拍照片。

我走过去，采用的是一机两拍，将他俩一起囊括进我的镜头里。

此时的悠悠已经困了，但他还是被动漫片里故事情景所吸引，他不时地还向我指着自己看的内容，好像在给我讲剧情。

我看到此时的悠悠那困困的样子，还有意干挺着。呵呵，好可爱呀！他那圆嘟嘟的小脸，白白净净的肌肤，穿着连体睡衣，有时好像眼睛困得都已闭上了，仍然还在为我指着动漫片里的内容做讲解呢。

我给哥俩看动漫片的情景拍摄下来，并发了朋友圈，好多朋友都为之点赞了，就连悠悠的爸爸也点了赞。

按说一段视频，如果故事内容没有太大变化，时长占用一分多钟，就会让人产生视觉疲劳，而我偏偏用了一分半钟来展播两个小家伙看动漫片的状态，这是因为我看出在这一分半钟里，悠悠的心里和情绪变化是细微的，太有意思了。

仔细观察，他内心是有变化的，而那种懵懵懂懂、憨态欲睡的表情实在是太好笑了。

我不知道在他幼小的脑海里想的是什么？从那有趣的动漫片里，他不知汲取多少新鲜事物，以及他通过动漫片对这个世界的认知。

这里我节选两段网友的评论：

“视频里小角色，拍摄得非常可爱，让人忍不住想再看一遍。”

“故事都能引起孩子的兴趣，简直是无法停止观看。”

“视频配乐很优美，动画片带给孩子们愉悦的视听享受。”

　　在悠悠在天津的这段日子里，因为没有纪实记录发生的事情，我只能通过当时录制的一些视频，作为版本解读给读者，当然这里也包括之前的视频和照片了。

解读视频一《早起的悠悠》：早晨，悠悠像往常一样七点多钟起床，他穿着印有小动物的连体白绒睡衣和小厚袜儿，一头上毛茸茸的长发还没有来及梳理，就自由自在地满屋子转悠起来。

他先是来到我和他哥哥的屋里看看，又自己走到了前阳台，我怕他出状况，跟随着他。

悠悠一屁股坐在阳台的地毯上，正准备玩哥哥在这里摆放的小飞机。见我跟着他，还用手机拍照他，便马上爬起来。他开始透过阳台窗户向外张望，那白白的小脸、长长的脖颈，还微微向前探起身子。他顺着茶几和椅背儿观看路上的行人和驶过的车辆。

我连声问他：“悠悠，哎哎（昨晚睡觉）想姥爷了吗？想姥爷了吗？你，嗯？”

他歪着头望了我一眼，表情很大气，还带些不好意思。

“汽车哦。”悠悠侧着身子，向前凑近窗户告诉我外面的情况，还用小手摸着自己的睡衣领子。

“汽车哦。对，那边有汽车，外面有汽车，知道吗？”我随声附和向他说道。

“大汽车。”悠悠用他稚嫩的声音又重复了一遍。

“哦，外面有这么多的大汽车。到姥爷这儿来，姥爷给你讲，别冻着宝宝，阳台上很凉的，知道吗？”

听到我说阳台上很凉，悠悠立刻转身，扭搭扭搭地返回了客厅。他用手拉上门帘，以表现自己是个听话的孩子。好可爱的悠悠，他懂得我对他的关心，并用自己的行动告诉了我。

　　解读视频二《悠悠学说话》：悠悠学习说话比起他哥哥要晚一些。

据说婴儿学习说话有早有晚，悠悠就属于晚的。这是他两岁一个月时的录像，这还是为了能看动漫片引导他数数。

他数数的样子很可爱，声音稚嫩、表情夸张，张着大大嘴，手舞足蹈，一说一点头，还晃悠身子，一个字一个字地说出来：“二三、看ipad、ipad四、五……七八九十。”

看悠悠的表情，他应该也很着急，就等妈妈给他放动漫片了，不跟着念数，又过不去这一关，他急不可耐地喊叫起来：“看ipad，看ipad。”

妈妈告诉他读完了数字才能看，无奈之下悠悠连着就把“五六七八九十”说出了口。

家人们不间断地从一岁多开始教悠悠说话。在新加坡那样的环境里，英语和华文一起学。在悠悠一岁半时，我第一次听到他叫我“姥爷。”同时他也会叫“姥姥”了，像喊“爸爸、妈妈和阿姨”叫的还要早些，最有意思的是叫他的哥哥，竟喊成“嘎嘎”，一直到现在他叫哥哥还是喊“嘎嘎、嘎嘎”。

都说贵人开口晚，且不说那些民间说法了，只要悠悠能够健康发育，家人们就高兴。

别看悠悠说话晚，在他心里什么都能听明白，让他做什么事，他都会照你说的去做。

记得他一岁多时来天津，总喜欢跑到电视机跟前看动漫片，我见他离电视机太近，就告诉他：“悠悠，去茶几后面看电视，否则会把你眼睛弄疼了。”

悠悠能听懂我的话，他马上就绕到茶几后面去看了。他的懂事，让我很开心，我立刻说给家人们听。

这是一个婴儿最初语言表达能力的情景，婴儿说话能力发展过程，我看可分为两阶段，开始时他心里懂，即藏匿于心，说不出来，逐渐才开口说出，前者悠悠占得多一些吧，他虽然说不出来，但他全都懂。

　　悠悠上学了。新加坡孩子上幼儿园统称为上学。悠悠上学这天是2025年1月20日，这是他上学的第一天，悠悠两岁三个月大。

比起他哥哥尔擎，他应该算幸运的，首先是妈妈这天请了假，专门送他去幼儿园，并在那里陪伴他。在悠悠幼小的心里，这可能就是上学的模式吧——由妈妈送他并坐在他身边陪他玩玩具、陪他吃饭、陪他吃水果等。

后来我们看到的照片，这天小朋友吃的水果是吃橘子，悠悠坐在小板凳上，桌子上放着一个小盘子，盘子里有两片橘子。悠悠另一面还坐着一个小朋友，应该也是新来适应的孩子。

一直到春节后，悠悠都是上半天幼儿园，到2月10日（星期一）以后，他就开始上整天了。这个变化，他自己是不知道到的，这会让妈妈为他担心，因为刚刚适应了上半天，就要改成上全天，大人担心他心里上恐惧，担心他在幼儿园中午餐吃不好，午觉也睡不实，这会影响悠悠上幼儿园的情绪。

刚上幼儿园那几天，孩子们都会哭的，悠悠也不例外。

第一天，因为由妈妈陪伴，还好他没有哭，回来问他：“悠悠你喜欢上幼儿园吗？”

他说：“喜欢。”

妈妈问他：“为什么喜欢？”

悠悠回答：“幼儿园有桔子。”

之后，由爸爸送悠悠上幼儿园，悠悠哭了。

下午接回家，妈妈又问他：“去幼儿园你哭了吗？”

悠悠说：“哭了。”

妈妈问：“你为什么哭？”

悠悠回答：“爸爸上班去了。”

悠悠满以为妈妈送他会陪着他，爸爸送他也应该在幼儿园陪伴他。

　　在之后的日子里，不管谁送悠悠去幼儿园，他都会背着他的小书包自己走进幼儿园教室里，开始时是哭的，后来是就好多了，他在走进幼儿园教室门时只是眼里含着眼泪，不哭出声了。

可怜的孩子们都会有这样一个过程，总体来讲悠悠的适应性还是比较快的。

悠悠是1月20日入园，中间放假休息了几天，他再去幼儿园时，情绪上还得重新适应，但总体是好的，他基本适应去幼儿园了。

每次，当妈妈送到他幼儿园进屋进行身体检查时，他都会让妈妈坐在他身边多陪他一会儿。他会说：“妈妈坐，妈妈坐。”

爸爸送他时，就没有那么娇气，爸爸总会传来好消息：“悠悠今天上幼儿园没有哭。”

想起四年前，我们送尔擎去幼儿园，尔擎哭得很厉害，在他去的那第一家幼儿园，始终是哭着进去，然后在教室里站在那里再哭上一会儿，我都是躲在窗户外面偷偷地看着他，看尔擎不哭了我才离开幼儿园。

尔擎那时要比悠悠小，他才一岁半。在很久很久的时间里，尔擎去幼儿园都是心情不愉快的。

尔擎上幼儿园第一天，妈妈因为看不得孩子哭，就没去送，到了悠悠第一天去幼儿园妈妈要去陪伴。妈妈说：“再不陪着孩子去幼儿园，等他长大了，以后就没得陪了。”

　　春节悠悠和哥哥一起买礼物。今天，听悠悠妈妈说，2025年过节前，一家人去逛商场，给尔擎和悠悠每人40元钱，让他俩自己挑选喜欢玩具礼物，悠悠选择了他喜欢的玩具，花费爸爸妈妈给他的20元，哥哥尔擎则挑选了一架喜欢已久的高台汽车行驶赛道，这个玩具要花费60元。呵呵！应该是两人都很开心地抱着自己挑选玩具回家的。

这种让孩子们自己挑选玩具的方式很好，他们有自己挑选的自由度，有自己的支配权，当然弟弟悠悠还小，他不懂的价值支配，而哥哥在这次挑选中多得弟弟余额，弟弟也不会与他计较的。呵呵，还真有意思。

这天晚上，我们与尔擎视频，悠悠已经睡着了，无法给我们展示他购买的玩具。而尔擎也已经困得没有了精神，但他仍然滔滔不绝地给我讲他买的这个玩具车。车子怎么发射的更快？怎么不能跑翻车的状态？等等。

我们也不知道，悠悠是不是抱着他心爱的玩具睡的。

Stories of Yoyo from 1 to 2 Years Old

I often find myself thinking about doing something that has settled in my mind for a long time. The essence of this task, however, comes to me in a moment of sudden inspiration, and that is the point where I want to express the brilliance of what I’m thinking about. But before I can capture it, it slips away from my mind.

Most of the time, this loss in my mind is permanent and irretrievable. It’s both a thought hidden in the adult mind and a sense of ignorance and mystery concealed in the soul of a baby or toddler.

One day, I suddenly realized that a baby’s language and thinking are often more perceptive and transcendent than those of adults. This insight is exactly why I have delayed writing about Youyou's childhood in a journal.

I remember reading about ancient Chinese philosophical thoughts regarding infants: “Babies, up until the age of three, are said to have the ‘heavenly eye,’ meaning they can see things that adults cannot, and hear sounds that adults are unaware of. As they grow older, this ‘heavenly eye’ closes.”

I have noticed this in my conversations with my younger grandson. Although we are adults, many times, we find ourselves rambling on and on, while a toddler can often point out the essence of something in just one sentence, or with a simple action, awakening a “wise old man.”

In front of babies and toddlers, I often find myself doing silly things. For example: you might smile foolishly at them, or you might get angry with them, or you might use lies to deceive them, while they look at us with an expression that says, "You're the foolish one here."

Even though people analyze this phenomenon thoroughly, I still feel the need to write down something for my younger grandson.

Writing about a toddler always leaves me unsure of where to begin. When I wrote about my elder grandson Erqing, I thought about this: every toddler, around the age of two, has their own unique thoughts and stories during this period, but as elders, we often fail to capture these moments. These interesting stories from the early childhood of a baby fade away like fleeting treasures of humanity, lost forever.

This is a common phenomenon for adults with children, rooted in our limited understanding and intellectual laziness. We fail to document these precious moments, leaving behind permanent regrets—regrets that neither the children nor the adults are aware of.

At present, records of young children’s lives are mostly replaced by video recordings, while deeper, more profound stories of their inner world are forgotten. This is another form of regret created by the limitations and laziness of adults in documenting a child’s early years, a regret that is neither known nor acknowledged by the child or the adult.

I took a book out of my bookshelf titled Erqing’s Stories from 1 to 2 Years Old, a small booklet with pictures and text that was compiled two or three years ago. I wanted to write a similar one for Youyou. Otherwise, when Youyou grows up, he might resent me, his grandfather, thinking: “Why did Grandpa write about my brother, but not me? It’s obvious that Grandpa is biased!”

In fact, writing down something about Youyou’s life is something I love to do and can certainly manage. However, the time I have spent with Youyou is so limited. Unlike with his brother Erqing, whom I spent a lot of time with from birth to age two, especially during the seven to eight months of the COVID-19 pandemic when I was with him, I only spent less than a month with Youyou before he turned two. In this short time, I had little chance to communicate with him directly and mainly learned about his growth through video calls with his parents. Despite this, I still want to write something for my little grandson, so that when he grows up, he can read about my observations and experiences.

I doubt anyone else will take the time to leave written records of Youyou’s early years, or ever write a book about him, unless he becomes famous and someone writes about him. This is what adults generally hope for.

This booklet will be written in a similar format to Erqing’s, with pictures and text. Whether they read it or not in the future, I still hope that one day, both brothers will each take one of these booklets and send me a photo of themselves holding it. That would be a meaningful keepsake for both us and the kids. After all, this is one of the few things we as elders can do to provide them with both familial love and cultural heritage.

One difference between writing for Youyou and writing for Erqing is that the stories for Erqing are based on my own personal experiences, while most of the stories for Youyou are things I’ve heard about and haven’t personally witnessed, aside from looking at photos or videos. Of course, writing about Youyou inevitably includes his older brother Erqing because they spent so much time together.

When we first heard that my daughter was pregnant again, we were overjoyed. At first, we hoped it would be a girl. As the pregnancy progressed, we learned that it was likely to be another boy.

For me, I’m happy either way—boy or girl, it doesn’t matter. What excited me the most was Erqing. When he started kindergarten, he told his teacher, “I have a sister now.” Not long after, he corrected himself: “I have a brother, not a sister, a brother.”

I really like Erqing’s personality. He likes to show off and is always confident. Even as a child, he was eager to tell others about his various toy cars, which says a lot about his character. In contrast, Youyou is much quieter and more reserved. He doesn’t express himself much, but he’s very observant. Unlike Erqing, who was always energetic, Youyou is calm and collected while playing.

During the whole pregnancy, we were a little worried—worried about my daughter’s health, worried about the baby’s development, and wondering if the delivery would go smoothly.

To prepare, maternal grandmother arrived in Singapore a month ahead of time to take care of the baby and help with the postnatal care. She arrived on September 7, 2022, and Youyou was born on September 8, 2022—almost a month earlier than expected, weighing only 4.9 pounds. Maternal grandmother, exhausted from traveling, immediately began helping with baby care.

After Youyou’s birth, I could only watch his growth via video calls. When he was first born, his face was wrinkled, his skin red, and his eyes were tightly shut. The first photo I saw was of my mother-in-law holding him, followed by a photo of Erqing holding him. Newborns all look the same, with their skin still stretched out, their faces flushed and wrinkled.

At that time, we didn’t know what Youyou’s temperament would be like, but we just hoped for his health. I saw Erqing carefully holding his little brother. From that moment, Erqing had a little brother to care for.

I remember when Erqing was born, we were all in Singapore. When he was taken out of the delivery room, his face was also red, with a puffed-up mouth. About 20 days later, I returned to Tianjin, leaving my daughter, son-in-law, and Erqing behind. When Youyou was born, I wasn’t there. I only saw him through the videos and photos sent by my daughter.

When Youyou came home after leaving the hospital, the most hardworking person was maternal grandmother. To make sure Youyou received enough milk, she used an eyedropper-sized container to feed him drop by drop. She would also hold Youyou close to her chest as much as possible to let him sleep, because it’s said that babies grow while they sleep. From the moment he left the hospital until he was about a year and a half, maternal grandmother never left his side. Only when Youyou was almost one and a half years old did grandmother and grandfather take over, and they hired a small Burmese nanny named Shuaie.

This part of the story is for another time. Let's just focus on the things I’ve heard and seen for now.

The first time I met Youyou was when he was six months old (in March 2023, when he came to Hainan and Tianjin). This was a carefully arranged trip because Erqing had also come to Tianjin at the same age.

The reason for their visit was twofold: one was for me and great-grandmother and great-grandfather to meet the adorable little grandson, and the other was to have a professional photoshoot at a children’s photo studio. The studio still had the fee from Erqing’s first shoot, so it was perfect for Youyou to have his own baby photos taken at the same studio.

When I first saw Youyou, I was especially happy. His skin was fair, his face was delicate, his eyes were bright, and his big smile made him incredibly cute.

I remember that day, Youyou was sleeping on the sofa in the living room. When he woke up, he stared at me with his bright eyes. His eyes reflected both unfamiliarity and affection. He seemed happy when he woke up and made little cooing sounds, as if greeting me. I happily talked to him, and he seemed to want to respond. He moved his little body toward me as if expressing the bond of flesh and blood.

In that unfamiliar environment, it was the first time he saw his unfamiliar grandfather I quickly captured the expression of this little guy on camera to keep as a permanent memory. Later, I combined this footage with a video of his older brother at the same age to create one video. In the video, you can clearly see the stark differences in their personalities – the older brother is lively, full of energy, constantly moving his body as if he’s trying to get up and interact with me. In contrast, the younger brother is quiet, fair-skinned, and staring at me as if he’s pondering something – "So, you are my grandfather?" In any case, these two chubby little boys are so much fun to watch. Every time I see this video, it makes me incredibly happy.

When Youyou was six months old, the second thing that comes to mind is when our family had a big gathering. The seven younger generations of children took a group photo. After we finally arranged everyone’s position, Youyou ended up sitting at the edge of the photo, leaning sideways and falling asleep. Everyone was very happy with the picture because it was his first family photo with us, along with his older siblings.

When Youyou visited Tianjin for the second time, he was already eight months old (June 2023). At that time, he still couldn't walk, and could only crawl around the living room. He always wanted to stand up. Sometimes, he would hold onto the sofa and appear as though he could stand; other times, when his brother was playing the piano in the study, he would hold onto the piano corner or his brother’s legs to try to get up. Whether we were shopping or running errands, we had to carry him. We borrowed a child’s stroller from a friend. Though it wasn’t the best, it did the job. Looking back, all this happened just last year.

There are so many small details about Youyou, but I didn’t keep much of a record. The only memories I have are two things. One was when Youyou was crawling around in the living room. I wanted to make a little video of him, but I didn’t have a low tripod (because he was so small and I needed a low-angle shot). His crawling speed was very fast, so I had no choice but to film handheld, which made the video shaky.

Youyou looked adorable while crawling. His little chubby hands would slap the wooden floor with a rhythmic sound, and his little legs would drag his body along the ground. Whenever he encountered the sofa, a small stool, or any low object, he would hold onto it, trying to stand up. At that moment, you had to rush over to prevent him from falling.

When they were taking the photos, Yoyo was handed to me. First, he was laid on the sofa to sleep. When she woke up, I held her and fed his. Yoyo looked at her parents, brother, and others coming in and out for makeup and photos.

After the shoot, when the digital version came in, I asked a friend to Photoshop Yoyo into the picture, and the photo I used to put Yoyo in was one I had taken of his. Look at how happy Yoyo is in that photo; it's as if he's found his home.

Yoyo's Birthday

I saw a video and photos of Yoyo celebrating his second birthday in the family chat, and it made me so happy. Look at how cheerful he is! He is looking at his birthday cake. Yoyo clapped his little hands as he stared at the cake with candles. The candles formed the number "2," signifying that he was already two years old from that day onward. The cake had a panda face, and the panda wore a small pointed hat with a red pom-pom on top. In the video, we can hear his brother saying, "The flame on the candle was blown out, the fan blew it out." Yoyo, who had been smiling happily just moments ago, turned serious when he saw the candle go out. The sudden change in her expression was so funny!

A Thoughtful Yoyo

One day, Mom took her brother Erqing to class, and Yoyo waited outside the classroom. That day, I could tell Yoyo was in a good mood, probably because he was excited by the new environment. He wanted to run around the spacious classroom corridor. Mom told him not to disturb his brother inside the classroom. Yoyo immediately understood and ran to the classroom door, placing his finger on his lips to signal for silence, so as not to disturb his brother who was studying.

Brother Caught a Fever

One day, Yoyo’s mom sent a photo. In the morning, Erqing didn’t go to school because he had a fever. Normally, Erqing wakes up early to play with his brother, but today he was lying on the bed, feeling sluggish. When Yoyo heard that his brother was sick, he sat next to him and gently hugged his brother’s head, as if trying to make him feel better.

Thinking of Yoyo

Whenever I see the small socks and clothes Yoyo wore placed on the TV stand or sofa, I think of the little Yoyos who have returned to Singapore, especially the way Yoyo looked.

It’s been nearly a week since the Yoyos returned to Singapore, and I still haven't written about the interesting things that happened while they were in Tianjin.

Originally, I had planned to record something about the events of each day they spent in Tianjin, but I simply didn’t have the time. Every day, we had to accompany them to different places, shopping malls, and restaurants, and when we returned, I had to coax Erqing to sleep in the second bedroom. Many times, he would still be awake and I was too tired to tell him stories. As soon as I was about to fall asleep, Erqing would nudge me, and I would wake up to continue telling him a story.

Yoyo slept with Grandma. She would hold him to sleep and then place him on the main bedroom bed.

Every morning, before Erqing and I woke up, Grandma would bring Yoyo, who had already woken up, into our room. Yoyo would be in a good mood, clearly well-rested. When Yoyo came to find us, we would immediately get up. Every morning, I would take Erqing outside for some exercise, walking a large loop, and I would even take him to learn how to fly a drone.

Before we left, we had to hide from Yoyo so he wouldn't follow us outside. The weather was too cold to take him out, so he had to stay inside with Grandma while she fed him milk and breakfast. When Erqing and I returned from our morning exercise, we would play with Yoyo for a while. Normally, Erqing would start doing his math homework.

One day, Youyou crawled to the corner of the living room, where we kept the vacuum cleaner. He saw the vacuum cleaner, which was a small round device, and pressed it with his hand. Unexpectedly, the vacuum cleaner "spoke" and said, “Preparing to clean.” Hearing this, Youyou turned around and crawled toward me, his face showing seriousness. I could tell he was nervous.

At that moment, his older brother, Erqing, heard the vacuum cleaner’s voice and came over. He started pressing the vacuum cleaner too. Youyou saw his brother pressing the machine and crawled over to him. I teased Youyou and asked, “Are you scared? Come to Grandpa, come to Grandpa.” Youyou seemed to understand me, as if he sensed something was about to happen, and quickly crawled toward me. As he crawled, he began to cry and opened his mouth wide. He crawled right into my lap. I comforted him, saying, “What’s wrong? It hasn’t even started moving yet. Why are you scared?” After hearing this, Youyou stopped crying and lay quietly in my lap, watching his brother play with the vacuum cleaner.

I was lucky to record this video, and when he grows up, he will be able to watch this video and see how he and his brother interacted with the vacuum cleaner.

The second memory is when I held Youyou while he napped. Before, his grandmother would always say, “Youyou doesn’t sleep for long during the day, he will wake up after about twenty minutes, and when he wakes up, he wants someone to hold him.”

Anyone who has taken care of babies knows that babies who don’t sleep long during the day are hard to manage. I think this must have been when we were in Singapore, and at that time, Youyou was being taken care of by his grandmother. He seemed to understand that during the day, it was just him and his grandmother at home, so he couldn’t be away from her even for a moment. Even when he was asleep, he never slept too deeply and would often wake up during naps.

When Youyou came to Tianjin this time, one day, they asked me to put Youyou down for a nap. To my surprise, he was very cooperative. I laid him down on the bed in the spare bedroom, and it didn’t take much effort. He quickly fell asleep. About an hour later, Youyou’s mom gently opened the door and peeked in to check on him. An hour later, his grandmother also came and peeked in. Youyou was still asleep. After some time, both of them came together to check, and Youyou was still asleep.

Youyou slept soundly in my arms. He woke up once in the middle, saw that I was still holding him, and fell asleep again. He slept for almost three hours in my arms.

If I hadn’t written this down here, Youyou would probably never know that he once slept in my arms for three hours. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a photo of him at that time. When he visits again (in November 2024), I’ll make sure to take a photo of him sleeping in my arms.

The funniest thing during Youyou's visit to Tianjin was when he kept demanding to “go to the street” (in Cantonese, "GAIGAI"). One day, while his mom and grandmother went to the supermarket to buy fruit, they asked me to watch the two kids. Erqing was easy to take care of; he was happily playing with his toys. At first, Youyou joined him, but suddenly, he started crying, insisting he wanted to “GAIGAI.” No matter how I tried to comfort him, he wouldn’t stop crying. In the end, I had to carry him downstairs. He thought we were going to the street, but instead, I took him to the garage. I thought he might play there for a while, but as soon as I set him down, he grabbed the grocery cart and lifted it up, shouting, “GAIGAI!” He cried and screamed.

Seeing how persistent he was, I decided to take him to the bed and give him some toys. There weren’t many toys downstairs, but I laid out ten or so small tiger keychains and placed two heavy wooden elephant figurines on the bed for him. At first, it worked, and Youyou was distracted, happily playing. However, after a while, he seemed to remember why he had come downstairs – he wanted to find his mom and grandmother. He must have been tired.

He cried again, shouting, “GAIGAI!” I had no choice but to take him to the yard for a walk. Just then, his mom and grandmother returned. I told them about Youyou’s behavior.

I had always thought that Youyou was just tired and wanted to sleep, but his grandmother analyzed the situation and said, “Youyou saw that we weren’t home, so he wanted to find us. He couldn’t express it, so he kept shouting ‘GAIGAI.’ In his mind, going to the street would lead him to us.”

When his grandmother explained it, I suddenly understood. She was right – she truly understood Youyou’s feelings.

Yoyo Takes Photos

Yoyo took a photo shoot. He and Erqing went to the same photo studio—"Beautiful Baby"—so the shooting scenes and poses were the same. For people like us, who study photography, going to a photo studio is something we are not too fond of. It's not that the studio doesn't take good photos, but our shooting styles are different. I always feel that studio photos are too standardized, with stiff poses and not the best expressions. The most important thing is that they come at a relatively high cost, which feels a bit unnecessary.

But the parents of children love this kind of photography. In the same environment, with the same scenes, and even the same costumes and props, the advantage is that you can compare how two different children look at the same age, in the same time .

I remember when I was taking Erqing's photos, my photographer friend said to me, "You're a photographer yourself, so why do you still need to go to a studio to take pictures of Yoyo?"

I told my friend, "The parents don't like our style and skills, so they insist on going to the studio."

One day, our family took Yoyo to the photo studio. Taking photos of Yoyo isn't an easy task. We had to prepare everything: milk powder, hot water, diapers, small toys, and Yoyo's blanket for sleeping. When we arrived at the studio, we had to check if Yoyo was sleepy or needed a diaper change. Everything had to be ready, and Grandma had to coax Yoyo to smile. During the shoot, Yoyo needed a nap and a milk break. For people who love photography like us, watching Yoyo's photo session was really exhausting.

One day, when we saw Yoyo wake up from her nap, she was in a good mood. Grandma and I put her in a baby sling on the sofa, and I took a set of photos. When family members and relatives saw the photos, they said, "Yoyo is so cute, she really looks like the paintings of young girls from the Yangliu Qinghua style." This was the kind of style and photography fun we, as photography enthusiasts, were after—capturing Yoyo's mood on that particular day.

When we came to Tianjin, Yoyo’s family wanted to take a family portrait. They also chose a photo studio. We went there with both Yoyos. The staff at the studio said, "Yoyo is too small, and the flash will hurt her eyes. Also, we don't have clothes for such a small baby, so we can only take a three-person family portrait."

Honestly, I couldn't accept this. A perfectly good family should not be split up like this. From a technical point of view, they could have taken a family portrait without using the flash, using a higher ISO to ensure the photo quality wouldn't be too bad. At the very least, they could have taken one family photo, which would also demonstrate the studio's considerate service. The rest of the three-person photo could be taken however they liked.

This is how the ten days in Tianjin passed—busy running around, shopping, eating, and shopping again, with everyone having a lot of fun.

In such a busy environment, I thought I would write down some memories after the children returned to Singapore. But now, a week has passed since Yoyo left, and I still haven't written anything. I really don’t know where to start recording. His obedient, soft, and chubby face keeps appearing in my mind.

This time in Tianjin, Yoyo became closer to me. At first, he was a bit shy, but later he would actively come to me to be held. This was a clear emotional shift for a baby. When we were at the airport to send him off, he cried loudly when he saw that we couldn’t enter the security check area, wanting Grandma or me to hold him. He didn’t want to leave us.

The staff at the security check saw us and said, "Come on in, let's hold the baby who's throwing a tantrum." That’s when we finally entered the security checkpoint, holding Yoyo while waiting for his parents and brother to go through security.

Babies won’t remember this when they grow up, and no one will tell them about these little details because most of the things they experience at this age will be forgotten.

After the security check, Yoyo’s mom tried to comfort him, saying, "We’re going to take a big airplane; the plane is about to take off." She held Yoyo and took him from Grandma’s arms. I think Yoyo didn’t understand what was happening, but when the plane landed in Singapore’s Changi Airport, Yoyo kept saying, "Grandma, Grandma," because he thought he would be greeted by us at the airport, just like when we arrived in Tianjin.

During this visit to Tianjin, the two Yoyos stayed for just ten days (from November 15th to November 24th, 2024). This was the third time I met Yoyo. Each time they visit Tianjin, it’s always a short stay, usually no more than twenty days. Sometimes it’s based on their parents’ holidays, and sometimes it’s constrained by Erqing’s school schedule.

This time, our reunion was deeper because Yoyo is now over two years old—exactly two years and two months. He can now walk and express his wishes in simple language.

Yoyo is a cute and intelligent child who, although not very talkative, is able to express his feelings and needs in various ways. He has a good relationship with his older brother, Erqing, and usually follows his brother’s lead. However, he will throw a small tantrum if something upsets him, and when he does, he often looks to his mother for support and reassurance.

From daily life, it’s clear that Yoyo enjoys being independent. When the adults are busy, he finds ways to entertain himself. If we suddenly remember him, he gives us a proud smile, as if playing a game of hide-and-seek. He can happily play by himself in one spot for a long time. When the adults finally notice and call for him, he happily smiles, as though saying, "I’m right here."

On the night before returning to Singapore, Dad, Mom, and Grandma were busy packing their luggage. They gave both Yoyo and his brother a bath early and let them watch cartoons to pass the time. The plan was to get them to bed early because they needed to leave at 6 AM the next day.

Erqing was lounging on the sofa, watching a Chinese cartoon on TV, while Yoyo was sitting at his little table watching a foreign animation on his iPad. Seeing both of them quietly enjoying their cartoons, Grandma called me over to take some photos of Yoyo.

I went over and used a wide-angle shot to capture both of them in the . By then, Yoyo was already a little tired, but he was still captivated by the story in the cartoon. From time to time, he would point at the screen, as if explaining the plot to me. I couldn't help but smile at the sight of his sleepy yet determined . His round little face, fair skin, and one-piece pajama were just too cute. Sometimes, his eyes seemed almost closed from tiredness, but he would still keep pointing at the cartoon, as if he was giving me a detailed explanation of what was happening.

I took a photo of the scene where the two brothers were watching cartoons and posted it on my social media. Many friends liked the post, and even Yoyo's dad gave it a thumbs-up.

Normally, a video of more than a minute with little change in the story might make viewers feel a bit fatigued, but I made it one and a half minutes long, showcasing the two kids watching cartoons. I did this because, in that one and a half minutes, I noticed the subtle emotional changes in Yoyo, which were especially interesting. When you watch carefully, you can see that his inner world was shifting, and his drowsy, somewhat confused expression was just too funny.

I can't help but wonder what was going through his young mind. How much new knowledge was he absorbing from the funny cartoons, and how was he using them to understand the world around him?

Here are two comments from online viewers:

"The little characters in the video are so cute, it makes you want to watch it again."

"The story catches Yoyo's attention so well, I couldn't stop watching."

"The background music is lovely, providing a delightful audiovisual experience for the kids."

During the time Yoyo was in Tianjin, there were no documentary-style records of daily life, so I can only interpret and share those moments with readers through the videos I recorded at the time, including previous ones and photos.

Interpretation of Video 1: "The Early Riser Yoyo":

In the morning, Yoyo, as usual, woke up around 7 AM. He was wearing a white fleece onesie with little animal prints and thick socks. His fluffy, uncombed hair added to his cuteness as he wandered around the house freely.

He came into the room where his brother and I were, took a quick look, then walked to the front balcony by himself. Worried that he might get into some trouble, I followed him. Yoyo plopped down on the carpet of the balcony, ready to play with the little airplane his brother had left there. When he saw me following him and taking photos with my phone, he immediately got up.

He started peering through the balcony window, his little pale face, long neck, and slight forward lean as he looked outside. He was watching the pedestrians and vehicles passing by, peering over the coffee table and chair backs.

I repeatedly asked him, "Yoyo, hey hey (Did you miss Grandpa last night? Did you miss Grandpa?), hmm?" He tilted his head and gave me a look, his expression calm, but with a hint of bashfulness.

“Cars!” Yoyo said, turning his body slightly and leaning toward the window to point out what he saw, even reaching up to touch his onesie collar with his little hand.

“Cars, yes. There are cars over there, you see? Outside, there are cars,” I echoed back to him.

“Big cars,” Yoyo repeated in his soft, childlike voice.

“Oh, there are so many big cars outside. Come to Grandpa’s, Grandpa will tell you all about it. Don't freeze, Yoyo! It’s cold on the balcony, okay?”

When Yoyo heard me say it was cold, he immediately turned around and waddled back into the living room, pulling the curtains behind him to show he was listening to me.

Such a cute Yoyo! He understood my concern for him and responded with his actions, showing he was a good boy.

Interpretation of Video 2: "Yoyo Learning to Speak":

Yoyo learned to speak later than his older brother. It is said that babies start speaking at different ages, and Yoyo falls into the "later" category. This video was recorded when he was just over two years old, and it shows him learning to count, which was prompted by wanting to watch cartoons. His counting was very cute—his voice was still very soft and immature, his expressions exaggerated, with his big mouth moving as he spoke, his little body swaying with every word: "Two, three, watch iPad, iPad, four, five... seven, eight, nine, ten."

Looking at Yoyo’s expression, he was clearly in a hurry. He was waiting for his mom to play the cartoons, and since he couldn't get through the counting numbers fast enough, he became impatient and shouted, "Watch iPad, watch iPad!"

His mom told him that he needed to finish counting before he could watch. In frustration, Yoyo quickly said, "Five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten."

Since he was about one and a half years old, the family had been teaching him to speak consistently. Growing up in a bilingual environment like Singapore, he learned both English and Mandarin simultaneously. I remember when Yoyo first called me "Grandpa" at one and a half, and also started saying "Grandma" around the same time. He even began calling "Dad," "Mom," and "Auntie" earlier. The funniest part is how he called his brother "Gaga" instead of "Gege," and he still calls him "Gaga" to this day.

There’s an old saying that some children speak later than others, but no matter the folklore, as long as Yoyo is developing healthily, our family is happy.

Even though Yoyo spoke later, he could understand everything. If you told him to do something, he would follow your instructions. I remember when he was just over a year old and visited Tianjin. He loved running up to the TV to watch cartoons, but I noticed he was sitting too close to the screen, so I told him, "Yoyo, go behind the coffee table to watch TV, or you’ll hurt your eyes."

Yoyo understood what I said. He immediately moved behind the coffee table to watch the TV. His response made me very happy, and I immediately shared it with the family.

This scene captures the early stages of a baby’s language development. I believe there are two phases in a child’s journey to learning language: first, they understand everything in their heart, but can’t express it; and later, they begin to speak out. Yoyo was in the first stage for much longer—he couldn’t say it yet, but he understood everything.

　　经过几天的整理，悠悠的书文图册算是完成了，这本书里的文字和图片内容虽然不算太多，但寄于我们的情感一点都会不少，那可是浓浓情意满满的爱。

我总是认为，就亲情与血缘关系来说，有时候真的不在于文字图片的多少，只要我们见到小外孙悠悠，或即使见不到他时，只要一想起他，脑海里就天生自带一个字，那就是——“亲”。

眼前的这本图文书册，也仅仅是一个“爱”的载体，在某种意义上讲，这种亲情的“爱”，已经和书里的图文没有太多的关系了。

我之所以尽快完成这本书的编辑，就是想在姥姥去新加坡前把它带过去，让姥姥亲手交给小外孙悠悠，借以表达我们这些做长辈的对晚辈的情感与呵护。

有点遗憾的是，没能给悠悠在书里增添一幅小老虎的中国画，这是因为姥爷身边没有会画老虎的画师，等遇到合适的画师，我一定会给你补上一张老虎图。同时，有机会我们再相处一起时，姥爷还会为你记录更多你小时候的有趣故事，姥爷可是一个说到做到的姥爷。

祝我们的小悠悠健康快乐地成长！你和哥哥要常来天津玩儿，这里也是你们的家哦。呵呵！

今天是2025年2月10日，也是悠悠上幼儿园开始上满全天的日子，大家心里都惦记着悠悠，他应该不会理解大人的心思——为悠悠担心。

姥爷 青草 姥姥 张玲

2025年2月10日 于天津

辅助摄影 张玲 阿峰 方千

版面设计 青草