Proud new father Christopher Lee spent Sunday learning how to hold firstborn son Zed and change his diapers, under the eyes of wife Fann Wong.
In a telephone interview with Life! on Sunday, he laughs and dismisses questions over whether he found the task of changing diapers smelly or messy.
"It's so easy. It's from my son so it smells good," the 42-year-old says, in between greeting dozens of well-wishers, friends and relatives who came to meet the newborn at Mount Elizabeth Novena hospital. At least 20 people, including MediaCorp artist Mark Lee, visited in the space of just two hours.
"I keep smelling the baby's hands," adds the new father. "The smell is very sweet and good."
Zed's birth was announced on National Day and he spent his first day of life mostly sleeping in spite of all the eyes trained on him.
Fann, 43, is recovering her strength from a 10-hour-long labour that culminated in Zed being born on Saturday by Caesarean section, on doctor's advice.
Lee says this first day as a father has been "busy and interesting" and among the highlights was holding baby Zed for the first time. "It's a very good feeling. My arm is very big and I need to learn how to hold the baby. I'm trying to learn every step with my wife."
The former MediaCorp film and TV stars, who made headlines with their long romance before marrying in 2009, have also been the focus of media scrutiny since Wong announced her pregnancy in February via photo-sharing app Instagram.
Her baby bump stole the limelight at the annual Star Awards in April and in June, she told local media that she was fully focused on impending maternity and had declined four drama projects for this reason, including historical epic The Empress Of China, starring Fan Bingbing.
In July, a pregnant Fann made headlines again with a photo-shoot for weight-management brand Marie France Bodyline, which showed her clothed only in two strategically placed blue veils. "Embrace your shape," was the tag-line for the photo, which received over 14,000 likes on Instagram.
Though the couple opted not to know the gender of the baby, Lee had the name "Zed" in mind from the start, if they had a son. "I quite like the sound. My wife says she likes it too and we would like our son's name to be one syllable."
The baby's Chinese name has not been decided yet, and this will be done in the next two weeks, after Fann is discharged from the hospital.
Lee hopes Zed will like the baby room he designed. Painted green and white, it also boasts large wall stickers of a hot-air balloon, tree and forest animals. "I wanted to give my child a green, natural environment, that kind of feeling," he says.
As for who the baby looks like, he says: "Me, of course.
On second thought, he adds: "His skin is like his mother's but the hair, the nose and the mouth, especially the lips, look like my side of the family."
Insiders say the proud papa has also styled the baby's hair into a pointy shape echoing his own hairdo.
