Christmas holidays didn't play out the way it should have been this year. Spirits were riding high and there was so much anticipation leading up to Christmas. The kids were gearing up to the day and counting down to it. But all that took a nose-dived and crashed the early hours of Christmas eve when Matty started to vomit almost non-stop due to gastric flu. Once at half-past two on his bed, the second time on our bed at three in the morning and two more times on the sofa. By then we were on our toes the minute Matty starts coughing and did manage to rush him to the toilet in time for the fifth and the sixth time he puked. He was weak from all the chucking and we had gone wobbly from all the changing and washing.
We whipped him straight to the doctor as soon as the morning broke knowing very well that chances of him getting a hospitalisation order was high. Christmas dinner, the long weekend and opening of the presents had to be shelved. I was disappointed only because I know Matty was and Elaina was pretty much ignored with everyone buzzing around and shuttling between home and hospital for the next 2 days.
By the time he was discharged on boxing day, Matty was still in denial of the situation. He had insisted that it was Christmas Day the day he got home. We chose not to argue with him because it would have been an open invitation for trouble.
Though he has now recovered and back to a normal diet, Matty has lost a fair bit of weight... now looking like a malnourished kid with a big head, bony torso and limbs, and an extremely flat butt. Hopefully it won't take him too long to pile those weight back on with his constant requests for milk, cookies and all things fattening.
Wednesday, 30 December 2009
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
Bye Bye Diaper
One week ago I was still griping about how futile our efforts had been in trying to toilet train Elaina, one week later we marveled at how well she is doing.
Since last Friday Elaina managed to put on her undies for extended period of time during the day and managed to stay dry except for a few occasions (usually after she wakes up in the morning it is tough to drag her to the loo on time before she decides to let go) when her diaper will be wet. It is a remarkable improvement to see that not only has she not protest about being put on a potty, she always get off it with some output and from time to time she will indicate that she needs the loo, all in merely 3 days. Now, I just need to master the courage to take her off diaper completely during the day time even when out.
There was a slight embarrassment though when we were out shopping over the weekend. She actually clapped and cheered for me when she heard my pee trickling down the bowl and even called me a clever girl... just like how we praise her each time she gets it right.
The day when I can finally save on my diaper spending is finally here!
Since last Friday Elaina managed to put on her undies for extended period of time during the day and managed to stay dry except for a few occasions (usually after she wakes up in the morning it is tough to drag her to the loo on time before she decides to let go) when her diaper will be wet. It is a remarkable improvement to see that not only has she not protest about being put on a potty, she always get off it with some output and from time to time she will indicate that she needs the loo, all in merely 3 days. Now, I just need to master the courage to take her off diaper completely during the day time even when out.
There was a slight embarrassment though when we were out shopping over the weekend. She actually clapped and cheered for me when she heard my pee trickling down the bowl and even called me a clever girl... just like how we praise her each time she gets it right.
The day when I can finally save on my diaper spending is finally here!
Thursday, 3 December 2009
Wedding of the Year
The wedding we (or rather I) were preparing and looking forward to finally happened over last weekend. The kids had fun... mainly because of the short stay over at the hotel . The room we had was even affectionately referred to as "the special room" by Matty.
Except for a few negligible hiccups here and there, including Matty failing to take his afternoon nap and puked a little (thanks goodness while he was still in his tees and shorts and not in his tux) it was a rather uneventful event in a good way.
At least I am glad that Matty survived the whole night wearing his 4-piece suit (jacket, shirt, vest and long pants and even a bow tie) without any fuss and Elaina didn't cry during the march-in with the newly-weds. Although she got distracted by the dry ice so much so that she forgot she was suppose to walk towards the stage. The entourage had to move off without her and as a result she ended up right behind. She did eventually got her act together but by the time everybody got to the destination she was still happily toddling along, throwing the petals and barely halfway along the ballroom. I am less apologetic that Elaina failed to deliver the desired result, instead I felt bad towards the couple that my girl stole the limelight from them.
Except for a few negligible hiccups here and there, including Matty failing to take his afternoon nap and puked a little (thanks goodness while he was still in his tees and shorts and not in his tux) it was a rather uneventful event in a good way.
At least I am glad that Matty survived the whole night wearing his 4-piece suit (jacket, shirt, vest and long pants and even a bow tie) without any fuss and Elaina didn't cry during the march-in with the newly-weds. Although she got distracted by the dry ice so much so that she forgot she was suppose to walk towards the stage. The entourage had to move off without her and as a result she ended up right behind. She did eventually got her act together but by the time everybody got to the destination she was still happily toddling along, throwing the petals and barely halfway along the ballroom. I am less apologetic that Elaina failed to deliver the desired result, instead I felt bad towards the couple that my girl stole the limelight from them.
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Where has all the time gone to?
It is very distressing to know that the year is coming to an end but is still a long list of items to be ticked off from the to-do list. From cleaning the wardrobe, arranging get together lunch dates, catching the 2012 movie, putting up the Christmas tree, getting the Christmas presents, new pair of heels, organising board meetings, getting year-end accrual numbers to holding a farewell party for my retiring boss. What a way to close the year!
The even more distressing part is that I missed Matty's year-end concert due to my team meeting which I cannot wriggle out from and Elaina's performance got cancelled because there were too many cases of HFMD popping out at school and mostly dominated by children from the afternoon classes. Both kids must be disappointed (or so I think).even though for different reasons.
On one hand I dread the coming of December because it only meant that I have less time to work around, on the other hand Christmas will surely make the kids excited and I know that they are looking forward to it with their constant chatters of digging out the Christmas tree and what they are hoping to get as Christmas present. And while typing this I was reminded that I need to order the ham for Christmas... see my to-do is growing longer by the minute!
The even more distressing part is that I missed Matty's year-end concert due to my team meeting which I cannot wriggle out from and Elaina's performance got cancelled because there were too many cases of HFMD popping out at school and mostly dominated by children from the afternoon classes. Both kids must be disappointed (or so I think).even though for different reasons.
On one hand I dread the coming of December because it only meant that I have less time to work around, on the other hand Christmas will surely make the kids excited and I know that they are looking forward to it with their constant chatters of digging out the Christmas tree and what they are hoping to get as Christmas present. And while typing this I was reminded that I need to order the ham for Christmas... see my to-do is growing longer by the minute!
Monday, 9 November 2009
Where is the Rice and Where Are Your Eyes?
Yesterday for lunch I decided to skip the rice and noodles, and serve potatoes instead (I always try and cover the 3 food groups when it comes to meal-planning) because I wanted to clear the potatoes I bought 2 weeks ago. Upon seeing the food that was served-up, the first question to me from Elaina (the little rice-tub) was "Where is the rice?". Hmmm...
This morning Daddy has to rush to work and so I took over the chauffering job. While making the way to Matty's school, he asked "Why he cannot see my eyes" while staring at the rear-view mirror. I am short... so short that the rear-view mirror is above my eye level ok my boy? -.-""
This morning Daddy has to rush to work and so I took over the chauffering job. While making the way to Matty's school, he asked "Why he cannot see my eyes" while staring at the rear-view mirror. I am short... so short that the rear-view mirror is above my eye level ok my boy? -.-""
Wednesday, 4 November 2009
The Inherited Cough
Matty has been coughing intermittently for at least 2 months and in between that he has had at least 2 to 3 visits (lost the exact count!) to the doctors' and had been taking leftover cough syrup on and off. The cough didn't sound that serious but it is very irritating that his throat just doesn't seem to clear up after so long. We have been blaming it on the bad air quality that we see (yes... "see" because it is so hazy) the last 2 months.
Finally decided that he needed a specialist to help us get to the root of the problem, and off we went to a respiratory specialist yesterday. After a Q&A session that lasted a couple of minutes on the family medical history and his own medical condition, the doctor confirmed that this is a hereditary condition. I cannot remember the term the doctor used, but Matty's sensitivity can result in sinus, bronchitis (asthma if left untreated) and eczema. So the poor boy is now on a treatment course that will take up to 3 months to help him recover and hopefully keep the next relapse as far away as possible.
Because it is genetic and no way to cure it we just need to deal with the situation as it comes along. After having to manage his eczema for 2 years now, I know that it will get better over time only because we have learnt to pick it up early enough to prevent a full blown problem. It sort of becomes a part and parcel of our lives. For now, I will take consolation that 94% of the children will grow out of it by the time they hit 16 and in the meantime pray that he falls within that percentage.
Finally decided that he needed a specialist to help us get to the root of the problem, and off we went to a respiratory specialist yesterday. After a Q&A session that lasted a couple of minutes on the family medical history and his own medical condition, the doctor confirmed that this is a hereditary condition. I cannot remember the term the doctor used, but Matty's sensitivity can result in sinus, bronchitis (asthma if left untreated) and eczema. So the poor boy is now on a treatment course that will take up to 3 months to help him recover and hopefully keep the next relapse as far away as possible.
Because it is genetic and no way to cure it we just need to deal with the situation as it comes along. After having to manage his eczema for 2 years now, I know that it will get better over time only because we have learnt to pick it up early enough to prevent a full blown problem. It sort of becomes a part and parcel of our lives. For now, I will take consolation that 94% of the children will grow out of it by the time they hit 16 and in the meantime pray that he falls within that percentage.
Thursday, 29 October 2009
Only the Best
As parents, it is only natural that we strive to do our best for our babies (yes, babies because they never grow up in our eyes). Not sure if it is because of that innate sense of responsibility, I have been changing my blog templates for probably a gazillion times. None seems to be good enough.
I finally found this Christmasy template and has even a counter to count down to Christmas. Had to fudge with the html codes a little to get the counter working because I found out that the setting was for Christmas 2 years ago.
Until after Christmas is over, I probably will stop giving giving this place another facelift. Too many face jobs can lead to a botch job (Ok... bad joke... God bless MJ's soul =p).
I finally found this Christmasy template and has even a counter to count down to Christmas. Had to fudge with the html codes a little to get the counter working because I found out that the setting was for Christmas 2 years ago.
Until after Christmas is over, I probably will stop giving giving this place another facelift. Too many face jobs can lead to a botch job (Ok... bad joke... God bless MJ's soul =p).
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
New Kid on the Block
Elaina started playgroup at Matty's school on Monday and my girl has done me proud. Not only did she not shed a tear, she has been enjoying school so much she comes back smiling and is always looking forward to another day there.
My heart will surely break to see any of my kid cry because he or she got "abandon". Thank goodness both Matty and Elaina didn't make me go through that stage.
My heart will surely break to see any of my kid cry because he or she got "abandon". Thank goodness both Matty and Elaina didn't make me go through that stage.
Saturday, 24 October 2009
How Sweet
I suffered a skin-crack on the underside of my left thumb last week due to excessive washing and wore a band-aid around it for a couple of days.
Earlier this week while in a car ride, Elaina suddenly turned to me and asked "Is your boo-boo better?". I couldn't catch what she was referring to at that moment and she went on to say "show me your hand"... grabbing my left hand. Seeing that the skin had healed she exclaimed that "Oh, its better now. No more boo-boo".
That was heart-warming and it is the existence of such moments that make one remember the worthiness of parenthood.
Earlier this week while in a car ride, Elaina suddenly turned to me and asked "Is your boo-boo better?". I couldn't catch what she was referring to at that moment and she went on to say "show me your hand"... grabbing my left hand. Seeing that the skin had healed she exclaimed that "Oh, its better now. No more boo-boo".
That was heart-warming and it is the existence of such moments that make one remember the worthiness of parenthood.
Thursday, 8 October 2009
Independence
When you are old, you wished you were young. When you are little, you wished you were bigger. The latter is the stage that Elaina is in right now.
These days she will scream her head off if she is "deprived" of doing something that she wants to do. Like climbing into the car seat herself and buckling up, removing her own clothes, switching off the TV, making her own milk, choosing her own clothes and the list just goes on.
On one hand, we should be happy that she is gaining independence and wants to take on some responsibilities but on the other hand that learning process is slowing everyone down on a busy morning when we are dashing out of the house for school and work. Patience will wear really thin from time to time. Her consistent tantrums became a convenient excuse to justify that lack of patience. Honestly, I feel so bad towards her when that happens and wished that I can be more tolerant.
One thing I can never work out is why she can be so enthusiastic about doing all the "grown-up" tasks but somehow she just refused to be toilet trained. That's what I call a true liberation (suitable for her age)!
These days she will scream her head off if she is "deprived" of doing something that she wants to do. Like climbing into the car seat herself and buckling up, removing her own clothes, switching off the TV, making her own milk, choosing her own clothes and the list just goes on.
On one hand, we should be happy that she is gaining independence and wants to take on some responsibilities but on the other hand that learning process is slowing everyone down on a busy morning when we are dashing out of the house for school and work. Patience will wear really thin from time to time. Her consistent tantrums became a convenient excuse to justify that lack of patience. Honestly, I feel so bad towards her when that happens and wished that I can be more tolerant.
One thing I can never work out is why she can be so enthusiastic about doing all the "grown-up" tasks but somehow she just refused to be toilet trained. That's what I call a true liberation (suitable for her age)!
Wednesday, 7 October 2009
Witty Solutions
Matty has recently picked up the skills of retorting. Not in a negative way but he leaves me speechless.
Last week he told us that he doesn't want to wear his watch ever again the reason being that each time we tighten the strap, it leaves him feeling some pain. When I asked him how is he going to tell the time if he is staying off ever wearing a watch, he replied in a matter-of-fact manner that he can always look at someone else's watch.
Took the kids to the zoo last Sunday again and decided that we should probably take up membership since the kids are enjoying zoo so much. They were going gaga over the new membership card and I had to remind them that if they drop the card we will never be able to enter the zoo again. Matty promptly offered me a solution - we can always buy another card. Good one my boy, but it ain't going to happen since your mother doesn't print money for a living!
Last week he told us that he doesn't want to wear his watch ever again the reason being that each time we tighten the strap, it leaves him feeling some pain. When I asked him how is he going to tell the time if he is staying off ever wearing a watch, he replied in a matter-of-fact manner that he can always look at someone else's watch.
Took the kids to the zoo last Sunday again and decided that we should probably take up membership since the kids are enjoying zoo so much. They were going gaga over the new membership card and I had to remind them that if they drop the card we will never be able to enter the zoo again. Matty promptly offered me a solution - we can always buy another card. Good one my boy, but it ain't going to happen since your mother doesn't print money for a living!
Fun Can Lead to Fear
We attempted to get Matty into proper swimming early last month but it hasn't been working out very well.
The first lesson was a breeze but by the second one he wasn't too co-operative and by the third lesson he simply refused to get into the water. We found out the reason to the opposition - he choked on some water while learning to "blow bubbles" underwater. We figured that it must have happened during the second lesson. For now we have pretty much shelved the plan until he is a little older, although we still try our luck once in a while by persuading him to give it another shot. Not getting lucky though.
We also found out from this episode that Matty has a very skewed idea of what swimming is actually all about. He kept insisting that there was no swimming done during the classes. We eventually worked out that because he has been doing nothing but water-play at the pools since he was 6 months old, to him swimming consists of splashing water and waddling around the pool. After much explanation, we managed to clarify this misunderstanding. So now he calls it "fun-swimming" instead.
I am starting to worry if he will have the same repulsion when he starts formal school. At the moment, school has lots of fun factor to it. Oh dear.... he will be shocked to learn the truth.
The first lesson was a breeze but by the second one he wasn't too co-operative and by the third lesson he simply refused to get into the water. We found out the reason to the opposition - he choked on some water while learning to "blow bubbles" underwater. We figured that it must have happened during the second lesson. For now we have pretty much shelved the plan until he is a little older, although we still try our luck once in a while by persuading him to give it another shot. Not getting lucky though.
We also found out from this episode that Matty has a very skewed idea of what swimming is actually all about. He kept insisting that there was no swimming done during the classes. We eventually worked out that because he has been doing nothing but water-play at the pools since he was 6 months old, to him swimming consists of splashing water and waddling around the pool. After much explanation, we managed to clarify this misunderstanding. So now he calls it "fun-swimming" instead.
I am starting to worry if he will have the same repulsion when he starts formal school. At the moment, school has lots of fun factor to it. Oh dear.... he will be shocked to learn the truth.
Friday, 2 October 2009
Die Already
Die already lah.... how to make Matty stop using the phrase "die already"?
He kept using this phrase last night whenever he saw someone on TV made a blopper or had an accident.
I did a self-check and I know that it wasn't me.... not one of those phrase that I had actually used before. When I asked him where he picked that up from, he wasn't able to tell me. All he could say was "ya... because he die already".
Elaina being the mimicker of her older brother these days, started repeating it shortly after.
This time really die already!
He kept using this phrase last night whenever he saw someone on TV made a blopper or had an accident.
I did a self-check and I know that it wasn't me.... not one of those phrase that I had actually used before. When I asked him where he picked that up from, he wasn't able to tell me. All he could say was "ya... because he die already".
Elaina being the mimicker of her older brother these days, started repeating it shortly after.
This time really die already!
Tuesday, 22 September 2009
In Conversation With
It is a well-known fact amongst the family members that Matty can be quite a chatterbox. Even his English teacher flagged this to us once (not in a bad way) that he can talk non-stop if he wants to. The redeeming part of this whole chattering business that I can take consolation in is that he refrains from making too much noise infront of strangers. I cannot handle people who act over-familiar with me, let alone my children doing likewise to others.
Now with Elaina having absolute control over her language skill, the only time I get some peace and quiet is when both have gone to bed. I can just about imagine having the same discussion with her teacher in the future on how she can yak on and on.
But I have to agree that it used to be worse in the past with both of them going off in different directions and on different topics. All we got were noises in the end. Somewhere, somehow, they grew out of that stage when Elaina started to better understanding of what others are saying. Just noticed few weeks back how both were capable of keeping a conversation going with a couple of exchanges bouncing back and forth between themselves.
The most classic conversation they had recently is perhaps how Matty tried to correct Elaina's pronunciation of "octopus", which always came out as "oct-por-por". Just one of those moments you wish it was captured on video for a good laugh years down the road.
Now with Elaina having absolute control over her language skill, the only time I get some peace and quiet is when both have gone to bed. I can just about imagine having the same discussion with her teacher in the future on how she can yak on and on.
But I have to agree that it used to be worse in the past with both of them going off in different directions and on different topics. All we got were noises in the end. Somewhere, somehow, they grew out of that stage when Elaina started to better understanding of what others are saying. Just noticed few weeks back how both were capable of keeping a conversation going with a couple of exchanges bouncing back and forth between themselves.
The most classic conversation they had recently is perhaps how Matty tried to correct Elaina's pronunciation of "octopus", which always came out as "oct-por-por". Just one of those moments you wish it was captured on video for a good laugh years down the road.
Friday, 18 September 2009
Back and With a New Look
The user interface for blogger is finally back to normal! Apparently only Singnet users were affected.
Whatever the issue was, I am happy that I don't need to move my blogs to another service provider... especially this one after having it for years. There are emotional reasons for not wanting to move (too much history to it) and practical reasons as well (too many posts and I am lazy!).
The good thing that came out of this was that I decided to do something about the templates I have been using. There was nothing wrong with the previous one, I still love it but on the other hand I was truly awed by the templates Wordpress have to offer while I was searching for another online journal provider to switch to. It is about time to freshen up the look of the blogs after so long.
The work is not complete though, I need to lay my hands on some proper photo editor to change the banner and put in our own photos. That will have to wait at least a few weeks now with the maid away on home leave and I doubt that I can find any personal time even in the evening.
Whatever the issue was, I am happy that I don't need to move my blogs to another service provider... especially this one after having it for years. There are emotional reasons for not wanting to move (too much history to it) and practical reasons as well (too many posts and I am lazy!).
The good thing that came out of this was that I decided to do something about the templates I have been using. There was nothing wrong with the previous one, I still love it but on the other hand I was truly awed by the templates Wordpress have to offer while I was searching for another online journal provider to switch to. It is about time to freshen up the look of the blogs after so long.
The work is not complete though, I need to lay my hands on some proper photo editor to change the banner and put in our own photos. That will have to wait at least a few weeks now with the maid away on home leave and I doubt that I can find any personal time even in the evening.
Friday, 7 August 2009
All About Growing Up
We finally got down to some serious toilet training of Elaina. Our efforts have been futile though. Not only did she not improve, she has even unlearnt the skill of telling us she needs to poop. Not quite sure if our attempts at trying to get her to sit on the toilet bowl is turning her off big time that she decided to stay away from it completely. Initially, Elaina threw tantrums and refused to get on the potty. Recently, she relented and was fine with getting on but in less than a minute she will attempt to get off but disappointingly without any output. From time to time she may even want to stand and pee like her big brother.
The cute underwear are not doing its magic like how it did to Matty. Explaining to Elaina that she is now a big girl backfired on us big time, because she will turn around and tell us (in her own words) "I don't want big girl... I want be baby". In a situation like this, I started to appreciate the male ego that Matty has in him. Being recognised as a big boy was a big deal to him and it was easy carrot for us to dangle in front of him whenever we needed him to do certain things. There must be some psychological barrier within that we need to help Elaina overcome rather than the lack of control due to her age simply because there had been days when she woke up with a dry diaper. By far, being toilet-trained is the hardest milestone to hit, unlike crawling, standing, walking that will happen naturally even without us parents doing too much.
On the other hand, Matty is not giving any chances where growing up into a big man is concerned. Just yesterday morning he told Daddy that he cannot hear a thing whilst Daddy was telling him to get out of bed and get ready for school. I bet that he is starting to acquire the "non-listening" skill that all men seemed to have!
The cute underwear are not doing its magic like how it did to Matty. Explaining to Elaina that she is now a big girl backfired on us big time, because she will turn around and tell us (in her own words) "I don't want big girl... I want be baby". In a situation like this, I started to appreciate the male ego that Matty has in him. Being recognised as a big boy was a big deal to him and it was easy carrot for us to dangle in front of him whenever we needed him to do certain things. There must be some psychological barrier within that we need to help Elaina overcome rather than the lack of control due to her age simply because there had been days when she woke up with a dry diaper. By far, being toilet-trained is the hardest milestone to hit, unlike crawling, standing, walking that will happen naturally even without us parents doing too much.
On the other hand, Matty is not giving any chances where growing up into a big man is concerned. Just yesterday morning he told Daddy that he cannot hear a thing whilst Daddy was telling him to get out of bed and get ready for school. I bet that he is starting to acquire the "non-listening" skill that all men seemed to have!
Tuesday, 28 July 2009
Wedding Bells Are Ringing
Since the day my brother told me that he needed Elaina and Matty to be his flower-girl and page-boy at his upcoming wedding, I have been happily going around doing my research for a decent dress for Elaina the last 2 days. Thank goodness boys have hardly any other selections to consider.
I am toying with the idea of actually buying online and having it shipped here. Firstly, there is a wider range of dresses from the US that we can choose from. Secondly, including the shipping charges, it will still work out cheaper by half of what I will need to pay if I buy a similar quality one from here. Lastly, those that we can get off the rack and still affordable are usually way too poofy and of a less comfortable material. I will still have a few weeks to ponder over this issue, and hopefully there will be more dresses on discount by then since I was told that the Americans don't usually hold weddings when the weather gets too cold. So if they need to hold weddings before the Autumn ends, the peak buying season for them is probably around this time.
My biggest fear for now is still whether Elaina can hold up her behaviour while walking down the isle with the wedding couple. Couple of fearful thoughts have popped up so far. She might cry when she is faced with so many strangers, she will throw a tantrum when she finishes throwing the flower petals (assuming that is what the couple have planned), she and Matty may start a fight there and then over some unsettled issues, or she might decide to pop her thumb into her mouth and suck all the way walking into the ballroom. The guests are likely to find it amusing but I am not too sure if the couple will. I don't want to start the relationship on a wrong footing for sure.
I am toying with the idea of actually buying online and having it shipped here. Firstly, there is a wider range of dresses from the US that we can choose from. Secondly, including the shipping charges, it will still work out cheaper by half of what I will need to pay if I buy a similar quality one from here. Lastly, those that we can get off the rack and still affordable are usually way too poofy and of a less comfortable material. I will still have a few weeks to ponder over this issue, and hopefully there will be more dresses on discount by then since I was told that the Americans don't usually hold weddings when the weather gets too cold. So if they need to hold weddings before the Autumn ends, the peak buying season for them is probably around this time.
My biggest fear for now is still whether Elaina can hold up her behaviour while walking down the isle with the wedding couple. Couple of fearful thoughts have popped up so far. She might cry when she is faced with so many strangers, she will throw a tantrum when she finishes throwing the flower petals (assuming that is what the couple have planned), she and Matty may start a fight there and then over some unsettled issues, or she might decide to pop her thumb into her mouth and suck all the way walking into the ballroom. The guests are likely to find it amusing but I am not too sure if the couple will. I don't want to start the relationship on a wrong footing for sure.
Thursday, 2 July 2009
Baby is 4
Matty gets frustrated these days whenever I call him "baby". Usually he will try and correct me by reminding me that he is not a baby but a big boy. It is so tough to get rid of a nickname that I have been using on him for so long, but I think I should try and change now that he is 4 years old.
Like last year, Matty had a grand total of 3 cakes for his birthday - 1 for this classmates, 1 from my parents and another cake with the paternal grandparents. Since last weekend, we have been overloaded with cakes and I still have 2 boxes sitting in the fridge right now. Soon you will see cakes coming out from my ears.
As usual, presents from immediate family members will come pouring in not just for the birthday boy but for the little one as well. It was a good thing that I had bought a Hello Kitty mug for Elaina using my 10 dollars Sanrio voucher just the day before (because I wasn't sure if she will feel left out.) She actually asked for her present this morning. Thank goodness I was well prepared. It's not that she was being demanding or anything, but she thought that it was her birthday and this was despite our many attempts explaining to her that it was actually Matty's birthday.
Had a couple of hiccups while trying to get the cake to Matty's school this morning. The traffic was extremely heavy around Marine Parade and Fort Road area. Cars will changing route from ECP to Nicoll Highway. We didn't manage to work out what was the cause of the jam along ECP that lasted for 3 hours since 8 in the morning. Because of the diverted traffic, it took us close to 30 minutes to get from Parkway to Matty's school. I was panicking like hell in the car thinking of all the kids waiting for the cake to arrive.
Matty has been talking about his birthday for the last 2 months and he was clearly looking forward to this day. The cake cutting and birthday song singing remained as the highlights for this year yet again and will probably stay that way for a while. Kids are usually contented with little little things like these, adults are the ones who make them deviate from it. I will put off having a big birthday bash as long as I deem appropriate.
The one thing special that I did for Matty this year was that I had sent his photo in for the Playhouse Disney Birthday Book. He always had this look of envy whenever the segment comes on and has even learned to sing the whole jingle by heart. I thought it will be a fantastic surprise for him and he will be very pleased to see his own photo on air for the whole month.
Happy Birthday to my Big Boy!
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
The Patchwork Post
The days are floating past really fast and the fact that there hasn't been any entry here is not a very good sign. It is an indication that I have been living my life mindlessly with not much opportunity to take stock of what's happening.
This post made up of little snippets is a very lame attempt to redeem myself a little of the guilt from not jotting down Matty and Elaina's growth in the past couple of weeks.
Matty started to attend clay lesson early this month. Not trying to make him more artistic but since it is only a 2-minute walk from Mah Mah's house, it is a good place to park him for an hour or so every Friday afternoon. Keeps him occupied and gives other at home a break.
We will be talking to Matty's teacher later this week on his progress. From the report, he seemed to have taken a keen interest in arts and music but gross motor skills are still very much lagging behind his peers. I blame it on his lazy parents for not introducing enough outdoor activities to him! But one thing for sure is that his language skills are definitely improving. He is more wiling to converse in Mandarin lately. Plus, he still entertains us from time to time with his quirky reply.
Elaina continues to do "better" in being a terrible-two stager - a diva is in the making and I am not exactly excited about it quite frankly. She dishes out her tantrum like nobody's business and to think we thought that Matty was a tough nut. At least if we have the patience, we are still able to talk Matty out of certain demands. Absolutely no chance with Elaina. If she wants it, she needs to have it. Distraction, persuasion, negotiation and even threats are of no use. We have used the stick, the carrot and even both together... still it leaves us helpless most of the time. Not only is Elaina a diva, she is a drama-mama. She knows when to work up her tears to gain a few sympathy points. But there are times when the tears are as genuine as gold. Tears will start welling up when she sees someone feeling sad or if she hears a melancholic song. What an emo-queen!
This post made up of little snippets is a very lame attempt to redeem myself a little of the guilt from not jotting down Matty and Elaina's growth in the past couple of weeks.
Matty started to attend clay lesson early this month. Not trying to make him more artistic but since it is only a 2-minute walk from Mah Mah's house, it is a good place to park him for an hour or so every Friday afternoon. Keeps him occupied and gives other at home a break.
We will be talking to Matty's teacher later this week on his progress. From the report, he seemed to have taken a keen interest in arts and music but gross motor skills are still very much lagging behind his peers. I blame it on his lazy parents for not introducing enough outdoor activities to him! But one thing for sure is that his language skills are definitely improving. He is more wiling to converse in Mandarin lately. Plus, he still entertains us from time to time with his quirky reply.
Elaina continues to do "better" in being a terrible-two stager - a diva is in the making and I am not exactly excited about it quite frankly. She dishes out her tantrum like nobody's business and to think we thought that Matty was a tough nut. At least if we have the patience, we are still able to talk Matty out of certain demands. Absolutely no chance with Elaina. If she wants it, she needs to have it. Distraction, persuasion, negotiation and even threats are of no use. We have used the stick, the carrot and even both together... still it leaves us helpless most of the time. Not only is Elaina a diva, she is a drama-mama. She knows when to work up her tears to gain a few sympathy points. But there are times when the tears are as genuine as gold. Tears will start welling up when she sees someone feeling sad or if she hears a melancholic song. What an emo-queen!
Thursday, 9 April 2009
Failing to Fail
This is an extremely overdue post and I have been wanting to put this down in writing since a few weeks ago because it is one topic that I hope Matty and Elaina will learn in due course. This will serve as a reminder to me in years to come.
The interest in this rather morbid subject sparked firstly because of a handful of young elitists committing suicide in a short span of 2 weeks just recently and over issues which truly in my view are not serious enough that one need to end his life for. Secondly, a friend of mine was telling me how her 8 year old son (who is above average in terms of his academic result) was taking it very badly about not doing well in one of his subject and had this huge worry that he won't be able to maintain the third position in his class this year again.
It sounds a little odd to say this, but I think one of the important lessons to be learnt amongst the many others is about failure. A child can be equipped with the highest IQ and EQ, attend reputable schools with the best schooling system, enrolled in enrichment classes from phonics to arts to music but once he or she lacks the life-skill of keeping afloat when caught in a less palatable situation (which almost always will happen in life just a matter of when!), he or she may react in an extremely negative manner.
Like all parents, I hope that my children will do well in school and generally in life but I want them to also know how best to deal with hiccups that will come along the way, how to pick themselves up and move on, be creative when it comes to formulating ways in getting themselves out of a rut and not resort to taking their own lives (touch wood!). What best way other than learning from experience?
They should have sufficient successes in their early life to help build their confidence but every now and then it ought to be dotted with little little failures to make them understand that life can never run as smoothly as they want it to be and things don't always turned out as planned or hoped for. Better to have failures come in tiny packages than in one big blow later in life.
There should be occasions when they emerge the winner to appreciate that they have the potential to be the best and hard work pays off, but there should also be times when they don't in order for them to understand that they cannot be the best in everything and there is someone out there who will beat them to it... and that it is ok as long as they know they have tried.
They need to know that they are right in what they do so as to boost their morale and lift their spirits but they cannot be right all the time and when things go wrong, they should not go around pointing fingers and pining the entire fault on others. Look within oneself and decide how to deal with ugly situations.
Failing to fail is extremely detrimental in a child's growth. So.. no, I don't want my children to live a charmed life and cruise along. They need to trip and fall so that they can learn to avoid the bigger pot-holes when they walk further down the road.
The interest in this rather morbid subject sparked firstly because of a handful of young elitists committing suicide in a short span of 2 weeks just recently and over issues which truly in my view are not serious enough that one need to end his life for. Secondly, a friend of mine was telling me how her 8 year old son (who is above average in terms of his academic result) was taking it very badly about not doing well in one of his subject and had this huge worry that he won't be able to maintain the third position in his class this year again.
It sounds a little odd to say this, but I think one of the important lessons to be learnt amongst the many others is about failure. A child can be equipped with the highest IQ and EQ, attend reputable schools with the best schooling system, enrolled in enrichment classes from phonics to arts to music but once he or she lacks the life-skill of keeping afloat when caught in a less palatable situation (which almost always will happen in life just a matter of when!), he or she may react in an extremely negative manner.
Like all parents, I hope that my children will do well in school and generally in life but I want them to also know how best to deal with hiccups that will come along the way, how to pick themselves up and move on, be creative when it comes to formulating ways in getting themselves out of a rut and not resort to taking their own lives (touch wood!). What best way other than learning from experience?
They should have sufficient successes in their early life to help build their confidence but every now and then it ought to be dotted with little little failures to make them understand that life can never run as smoothly as they want it to be and things don't always turned out as planned or hoped for. Better to have failures come in tiny packages than in one big blow later in life.
There should be occasions when they emerge the winner to appreciate that they have the potential to be the best and hard work pays off, but there should also be times when they don't in order for them to understand that they cannot be the best in everything and there is someone out there who will beat them to it... and that it is ok as long as they know they have tried.
They need to know that they are right in what they do so as to boost their morale and lift their spirits but they cannot be right all the time and when things go wrong, they should not go around pointing fingers and pining the entire fault on others. Look within oneself and decide how to deal with ugly situations.
Failing to fail is extremely detrimental in a child's growth. So.. no, I don't want my children to live a charmed life and cruise along. They need to trip and fall so that they can learn to avoid the bigger pot-holes when they walk further down the road.
