Mum-Mum’s The Word is inspired by Caleb’s first word when he was 6 months old. No, he wasn’t calling me twice. Neither was he hungry. He was babbling in protest to having his diaper changed in the wee hours of the morning. That was when I suddenly heard the word “Mum-Mum”. And he said it twice.
Since words have a special place for me as an author, I will naturally go beyond motherhood statements (pun intended) to babble about books and writings.
About the Illustration
This illustration is inspired by the ultrasound scan of Caleb when he was in my tummy in the 3rd month of my pregnancy. As Ben & I were watching the screen in my gynae’s office, Caleb reached out and grabbed his toes. That image stuck in my memory so vividly that I commissioned this illustration as a wedding anniversary present for Ben, a few months before Caleb was born.
All the characters surrounding the crib come from the four picture books which I wrote. There’s Prince Bear (the purple bear) and Pauper Bear (the brown bear with mismatched eyes) from “Prince Bear & Pauper Bear”. The rocking horse is from “The Tale of Rusty Horse”. Just Teddy (the white teddy bear) peers over along with the pandas, penguins and polar bear from the book “Just Teddy”. Bunny and his friends Grizzly, Dinosaur and Kangeroo are from “Bunny Finds The Right Stuff”.
The strange-looking octopus does not belong in any of the books. He is actually based on a large stuff toy that has been with me for the last 19 years and counting.
And when Caleb turned one, I decided to update the artwork for his 1st birthday party. So once again, all my characters come together to celebrate with Caleb, my little energizer bunny!
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