family day

an’s school organized a family day last fri, 26 may. he’s in the small class where they introduce mandarin to the kids before they start their formal mandarin schooling years. it was also report card day. he was assessed in mandarin, english, bm, maths & moral. tsk tsk tsk! can’t believe they start so young!

so the program for that day was…
1. friendly parent-child art competition between classes
2. assessment papers & report card given back to parents
3. lil gifts presented to all students
4. speech by the school principal
5. light refreshments
6. prize presentation for winners

like always, we made a fire truck for the parent-child activity. there were 4 categories to choose from & i chose to construct something out of recycled items. i brought a shoe box, 4 yellow buttons for the lights, blue paper for the windscreen & we cut out the rest from recycled paper – tyres & a ladder. we painted the box red & the tyres black. it was fun! i was back in school doing all the things i missed! we got our hands dirty & an had a streak of black paint on his thigh but it was all worth it!

i met his friends too. so cute! they wanted me to take their pictures & then look at it on the camera afterwards. one lil fellow waved at me while he was queuing up for food. cheeky but cute!

i became a kid again! what bliss!

world cup fever

we brought lil han to the barber recently & had his hair shortened to half a cm. ah kong wasn’t in favour of the haircut as he prefers han’s fine, baby hair. by cutting his hair this short helps thicken his new grown hair in the traditional sense. i believe it to be so as he has more hair growing now. we did the same to big bro an when he was lil but he was never fond of having a haircut til he was 3. he’d put up a massive fuss & we’d all be stressed out at the end of it. on the contrary, lil bro han doesn’t mind at all :o)

i reckon han looks sporty & rugged, like a mini soccer player, all ready for the heat & excitement of the coming world cup!

spelling bee

an has mastered his alphabets & numbers 1-10 about 2 months back. i’m sure lots of kids are more advanced at the age of 4 but i’m just so proud of his achievement. he can also spell the numbers 1-10 & some of his fav words like fire truck, lorry, car, bus, van, boat, etc. he can’t read as yet but can dictate his fav books by heart. if i happened to skip a passage, he’ll say, “mommy, you forgot to read this part.”

i buy books based on his interest & i’ve noticed that he’s keener to spell & understand the words in those books. he glows when he recognises certain words or when he’s “reading” the story to me.

he knows his colours & shapes as well. one day he was reciting all the shapes to me & then it came to “rhombus.” i asked him what’s “rhombus”. he used both his thumbs & forefingers to form a diamond shape & said, “it’s a diamond shape.”

kids pick up fast these days!

helpful an

ah kong was doing a bit of work in his lil garden the other day & an wanted to assist him. an was then given a pair of gardening scissors to help cut the weeds. he trimmed them with intense concentration & of great importance. bottomline was he enjoyed himself thoroughly.

fantastic four

10 may 2006 @ 9.45am, big bro an turned F O U R. how time flies! i remembered being pushed into the delivery room after 6 hours of tedious contractions & 5cm more to go before he can pop, then having to wait in pain for another 2 awful hours before he really popped. phew!

he’s the lil man in my life, not forgetting my other “littler” man! he taught me a lot of things before han came along, & so i’m grateful to him for the challenges we overcame together.

an taught me…
PATIENCE
to listen more & speak less
to loosen up
to have a bigger heart
to be a better mommy

on the fun side, an taught me…
to wrestle
the names of cars, trucks, big machines, etc, on the road & work site
the names of insects
to be a more creative & imaginative mommy

2 days before his birthday, he wasn’t well (consistent fever & tummy ache). doc said it was just “wind” & gave him a bottle of syrup to take. but on his birthday he was still hot all over & tummy wasn’t too great. referred to a cousin doc, she suspected it to be viral fever, told me to monitor him & if fever & pain persist, to come see her.

we ordered pizzas & also a scrummy choc fudge cake from coffee bean, his fav foods. he was indeed hungry given that he hadn’t been eating well. he took in a slice of pizza but it didn’t stay in his tummy very long. poor an! despite not being in the best of health, he smiled generously for the camera, blew his candles & cut the cake! bravo my child!

time out

i need to get away from work for a bit. it becomes demanding during the festive months. great for a career in a&p, but not too great for the boys. some days big bro an tells me flatly not to go to work especially on public hols when he’s off from school. he wants me to play with him or read to him. sigh!

anyway, the 2 brothers slept next to each other last night, resembling 2 peas in a pod (but of course one much bigger than the other but nonetheless stuck together like siamese twins). SO CUTE! i was tempted to take a pic of them but didn’t want to switch on the lights & in the process wake them up. i normally stay in the middle so that an won’t accidentally kick lil bro han as he “wiggles” a lot in his sleep. but last night he insisted on sleeping close to han & lil bro didn’t mind at all. so i left them in that manner & both fell asleep till dawn. surprisingly an didn’t budge from that position the whole time.

i’m taking leave this weekend to be with my truckers again. if only i’m patient enough to teach (tried & tested but still no passion). figured i don’t have the blood for teaching like my parents (too bad)! skipped a generation i suppose! teaching, i think would be a great profession for most mommies. i remember we’d all go on trips during the school hols cos both dad & mom are having hols as well. what fun it was then!

weekend with my truckers

i took the weekend off to be with the boys & a truck load full of fun it was! it'd be nice to work for 5 solid days & have the weekend totally FREE for the kids. for all mommies/mommies-to-be out there who only have 5 working days in a week, call it a BLESSING!

hope y’all had a good weekend!

distress mommy!

i’ve started sending han to the babysitter every morning. normally he’d be with me on the passenger seat while hubs or ah kong (if hubs is away) drives us, first stop to the babysitter then me to work. bottom line is i’d be driving on a regular basis in future, becoming more of everyone’s chauffeur. nah, it’s not that bad :o)

okie dokie, so the problem is that every time i place han in his car seat, he’ll start bawling. thank goodness the drive to the babysitter’s place isn’t out-of-the-way but his crying totally breaks my heart to pieces. both his arms are stretched out, his face all teary & wet, head covered with perspiration + hair stuck to the scalp, his pitiful eyes looking at me, only waiting for me to unbuckle him & take him out from there. no, i’m not exaggerating here.

when we reach the babysitter’s, i’d carry him out & give him a good cuddle + lotsa butterfly kisses. he’d be sobbing still. sigh! i feel so wicked! then my drive to work is miserable cos i don’t like seeing him cry like that & guilt starts kicking in!

i’ve tried…
giving him his fav toys
lil books with baby pictures
singing him his fav nursery rhymes
talking to him in my most cheerful voice

when i run out of ideas…i toss...
a tissue packet from my handbag for him to play with
my hp cover
my office drawer keys (they’re a small set of keys though not recommended but i’m desperate)
plastic cd covers
any paper

is there any easier way to do this?

GOD bless!

play-doh weekend

i took the weekend off to be with the boys & we discovered that play-doh is a fun & educational activity enjoyed by both young & old, more so for big bro an. not recommended for lil bro han yet. ah ma, being an experienced (though retired) teacher that she is suggested play-doh for an. she thought he was at the right age to truly appreciate it. so we went out & got ourselves 4 colourful tubs of play-doh. i love their bright & striking colours! definitely a plus for kids!

i don’t think anyone needs to buy a complete play-doh kit if you’ve basic kitchenware at home like rounded plastic knives (kids-friendly type), biscuit cutters that you hardly use or even old jelly trays. anything can be a mould as long as it’s not sharp & won’t poke into the kid’s eyes. make sure the trays aren’t too deep or else you'll have a tough time taking the moulded dough out. i actually bought fancy plastic biscuit cutters in the shapes of a ship, aeroplane, car, etc - the shapes you know they’ll like most.

an's 1st play-doh creation

playing with an brought me back to my childhood days. me playing with plasterscene, making nothing into something. it was good for imaginary “masak-masak” where you can make your food come alive. haha!

photography

loving it! got into photography from the work that i do. i’m required to take pics all the time for a&p purposes. the company provides us with a digital camera, so my exploration began & interest blossomed. what’s cool about it is that digital photography goes well with all sorts of imaging software. my all time favourite is adobe photoshop, then coreldraw! the day did come for me to own my very 1st digital camera. woo hoo! i carry it everywhere i go now & try to find interesting subjects or elements to capture.


anyway, i finally found a super helpful book entitled “the digital photography handbook” by doug harman. purchased it from popular bookstore for a reasonable RM26.36 (after a 20% disc for members). it’s simple, comprehensive & wonderful for beginners like myself. i’m absorbing it like a sponge.

if you’ve got helpful photography tips, PLEASE share it with me ^_^

MMR vaccination

MMR is a combi of measles, mumps & rubella vaccines to be given to either a 9-month-old baby or a 1-year-old tot & no in between. i forgot to ask our paed why is that so. anyone to clue me in on the missing puzzle? i believe big bro an was given this jap when he turned 1 but that was ages ago.

anyway, han had his shot on 19 march & dr told us to expect fever after a week’s time for the vaccine to take effect. however the fever came 3 days later & han’s body temperature was hot, hot, hot for a week! yes, a week!

han was fussing a lot. he’d no appetite for anything except breast milk. i wish i’d lots to give him. poor child! he’s also teething & isn’t keen to drink from his bottle. we've to spoon feed him water & formula milk - patience required!

he weighed 8.5kg on 19 march. i’m 100% sure he has lost some of that. i’m glad there was no sight nor smell of fever on him last night. in fact he slept soundly & so did we.

ah well, as long as he’s building antibodies within his system, never mind the hassle :o)

what big bro an watches

bob the builder
favourite character: naughty spud the scarecrow

mr bean
when watching mr bean, he’ll be asking 101 questions as to what mr bean is up to even when he knows the answer & has watched it a zillion times!

if ah ma or myself is sitting with him while he watches mr bean & we’re busy reading or doing some other things, he’ll plainly turn our heads in the direction of the tv & says, “watch this! watch this!” it can be distracting at times but cute that he wants to share his funny mr bean moments with whoever next to him.

madagascar
he has been into madagascar since the movie was out. grandma bought him 3 madagascar tees in blue, orange & yellow. he wants to wear it morning, noon & night!

madeleine
i’m pleasantly surprised that an actually watches madeleine with seriousness & concentration on his face.

pocoyo
his latest fascination is with pocoyo. i think pocoyo is delightful! i like pocoyo myself & would buy a pocoyo tee if there was any for sale!

little einsteins
an has been mentioning little einsteins to me. i must watch it.

babyhood to a tot!

graduation day finally came for han on 17 march! he’s no longer a baby! oh yeah!

when it was time to give han his pressies, we’d lil’ gifts wrapped for big bro an as well. always include the 1st born in everything - that’s what i’ve learnt after having han.

we celebrated our birthdays at kampung nelayan’s puteri & had a scrumptious dinner on board in one of puteri’s room lili. it was really cosy!

granpa was giving han his 1st taste of the sweeter things in life that evening. he kept starring at grandpa in hope of getting more cake stuffed into his mouth. kids’ food can be bland or blah! he must have had quite an experience with the super-duper yummy chocolate moist birthday cake & decided that chocolate is definitely a good thing. haha! i for one has a sweet tooth & love chocolate to bits!

pssst! i secretly shared my cornetto ice-cream with han once & we’d a blast! he ate most of the top part & left the cone to me. naughty mommy!

our party guests

grandpa & grandma

aunty jess, aunty lisa & uncle wee
(uncle nico couldn’t make it from brunei & missed out on a lot of yummy goodies! may be next time!)

uncle jeremy, ah ma, ah kong & ah ku* (*uncle in hokkien)

story time

i love children’s books. i can be in the children section of a bookstore forever. i love the simplicity of the stories created for young intelligent minds & the beautiful illustrations that come with it.

i bought 2 books for an the other day. both books are clearly transportation/occupation & construction site/machinery related. books that can interest him for a good long time.

the 1st book has this special window in every page. it’s a see-through piece, somewhat like an ohp transparency with realistic images of a work site – dump truck, cement mixer, crane, fork lift, etc. it was a rather costly small book but the creativity of the author & illustrator is brilliant.

the 2nd book teaches a child to ponder on the given situation & discover the best solution with the aid of a wheel. it’s not too hard for youngsters cos coloured clues are offered to match the solutions from the wheel.

an was glued to both books instantly. the end.

magical han

1 more week to my 1st birthday!

i'm a big boy!
i’m standing tall & walking proudly.
sometimes i try to run like my big bro
but he’s still too fast for me.
i’ll catch up to him very soon.
i still stumble but i can get up
on my own now & without help.
yeah! i’m excited to be 1,
the BIG number 1!

stay at home mom vs working mom

i was a sahm for 2 years & this is what i can share with you…

sahm pros:

1. every second is spent with your "angel/s"
2. you really get to see them grow in inches!
3. you bring them everywhere with you
4. you play, play & play all day long
5. you tend to take more precious pictures
6. you learn to look at things through their eyes which you’ve neglected for years
7. you learn to let go, trusting that GOD provides
8. you learn to live life to the fullest!

sahm cons:

1. less time for me, myself & i
2. some days can be difficult & exhausting

yup, there were days when i needed time for JUST ME. striking a balance is super important. everyone needs time to recuperate, be pampered. i’m all for that! i never regretted being a sahm.

working mom pros:

1. you get your space for 9 hours indefinitely (including lunch breaks)
2. you feel good contributing to financial commitments
3. you get a kick when you perform well at work, self-satisfaction i.e.

working mom cons:

1. you miss out on their growing years cos they do grow fast
2. you miss their “first” everything in life (well, almost!)
3. you miss them & are constantly thinking about their well-being
4. if & when you go out shopping during lunch breaks, you tend to head straight to the children’s dept
5. you tend to look at their pictures on your h/p
6. you tend to call home to "hear" how they are
7. it’s especially hard to leave them when they’re unwell (i can’t do it)
8. you think about being a sahm again (i know i do even when i love what i’m doing right now)

WWF in da house!

i pray for good health

poor han was just recovering from his cold & this week he’s having hand-foot-mouth disease aka coxsackievirus a16. i took 2 days off work to be with him, am contemplating on taking some more days.

these pictures aren’t pretty! han’s having lil’ red dots on his heels, some have turned into sores. the biggest sore is on one of his knees which makes it harder for him to crawl. the "pro" to not crawling is that he’s making huge efforts to walk cos it hurts his knee too much. thank goodness it didn’t spread to his hands & mouth. doctor confirmed it by thoroughly checking the insides of his mouth. if not, he can have ulcers & a sore throat, not to mention fever!
there’s nothing to take nor cream to apply for HFMD. horrible virus! it’ll go away in a week’s time or so. we’ll just have to wait for the sores to dry. it looks more like an active volcano about to erupt. sigh!

han has lost weight. poor poor baby! i honestly hope he gets well soon. no more cold, no more sores.

he’s still smiling despite all that & being his playful self. it really broke my heart to see him cry when i left for work this morning. sigh!

learn more about HFMD:
national center for infectious diseases
dr greene