What drives a child to excel?
Ceteris paribus, what makes a child from household A want to do well in life while a child from a very similar household B remains lackadaisical in his/her studies?
How much of it is innate and how much of it is environment?
Sigh. Like TheHusband and I agreed upon, if we know the exact formula, all of us would be winners in parenting. Wouldn't that be nice?
----
We want our children to do well in school. Why? Perhaps we think that doing well in school means a more secure future. That is not wrong, is that? In most cases, such an association is true. There are, of course, situations in which those who did not do well in school went on to achieve greatness later in life. But, these cases are not as common and not the rule.
What us parents want is for our children to do their best in school. Do their best. That means, put in 100% of effort. Or 90%. Not 10% effort and expect parents to supply the answers all the time. If, after putting in close to 100% effort, the results are not sterling, it is okay. It is really okay.
What is not okay is if the darling child stares at the comprehension passage and expects all the information to float into the head. Merely staring is not enough, my dear child. No matter how dreary the topic is, the passage has to be read and dissected. An absence of careful reading = No efffort = Angry Parents.
Some would argue - what is the point of knowing why Mr. Chen in that comprehension brandished a knife in the wee hours of the morning or finding the height of the triangle or whatever the value of x is. You'll never need that in real life, anyway.
Now, my child, I'll tell you why you need to do such things in life. Because, you can't always do things that you like. When you go to work, you have to do things that you may not enjoy. But you do them anyway. If you don't, your bosses will not be pleased with you and you may not have a job the following month.
Working hard in school forces you to work your brains. It forces you to do things you may not particularly enjoy much. When you taste the small successes in Mathematics, it makes you feel good about yourself. You will realise that even though you don't like it much, you can do it and can be pretty good at it if you put in your 100%.
At your young age, I am your benevolent dictator. I WILL tell you what to do. The assumption is, at the cusp of adolescence, you may not know what is good for you. I will show you the path. I may force you on the path, if I have to. I do this for your own good. So that you will have more options in future. So that, you will have a secure future long after I've left this world. Ultimately, it is to ensure that you can be a good Muslim who fully uses all the faculties Allah has given you.
Saturday, February 18, 2017
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
F's Stories
The Middle Child loves writing and drawing. Her stories have very angmoh names though. Here's an excerpt from one of her stories.
-F, 7 years 11 months
Monday, January 30, 2017
Before January Ends...
Let's have some updates.
1. The Girls
Masya Allah. Sometimes, they surprise me.
During last year's Prize Giving Day, Farah got quite a few prizes - First in Class, First in Maths & English. Masya Allah. What a good achievement. And I am pleased that she is still somewhat clueless about how well she has done. Huda also was given the Best in Conduct prize. When Huda realised how much prize money Farah received from the school, she planned to work harder in P5 to get whatever that Farah got. Insya Allah. I'm grateful to the school for giving them all this money because us parents have never given and probably will never give them any monetary rewards for doing well in school.
And then, there's the Edusave Award. Huda has been getting the certificate every year for being among the top 25% in school. Unfortunately, we don't qualify for the bursary. It's ooookay. There are others who need it more than we do.
So, we were pleasantly surprised this year when we found out that those who didn't qualify for the bursary were given an $80 book voucher. Yipppeee! But when the letters came, Farah qualified for the book voucher but Huda was asked to attend another ceremony. Hmmm. I felt a bit sorry for Huda at that time.
We went for Huda's ceremony. Fwaaah. It turned out that Huda was given the Edusave Character Award which comes with a cheque worth $350! Masya Allah!
Children these days are so, so blessed! The government pumps in so much money into their education.
But of course, sometimes they really, really, really cause me much pain. The Tiger Mom makes her appearance not because I have docile children who willingly take out their books and do their much needed revision on their own free will. And there are still soooooooooo many areas we have to work on with each child. I hope by the time I die, my child will be ready to live their lives.
2. The Boy
I must write more about the boy. I've lost much of my interest in blogging as compared to my Multiply days - actually, not really. I blog quite a bit in my head but I no longer have that much time to sit down in front of the computer and spend 2 hours banging on the keyboard.
The Boy is now almost 2.5 years old. Come 8 Feb, he'll be 2 years and 6 months old.
i. We are in the process of weaning him off breastmilk.
The beginning was a nightmare. He's been having milk on demand and that means, he's been getting it whenever he wants. 1am, 2am, 2.30am. Whenever.
After gentle coaxing did not work, and he suddenly decided to reject the bottle completely (he'd been having bottled milk once or twice a day), and I was getting frequent headaches because of my prolonged lack of sleep, I thought, I'd take out the big guns.
Asam. Tamarind paste. Which I smeared liberally on the nipples.
One morning 2 weeks ago, he asked for milk. Susu badan, he called it (because we are way too polite to call it t*t*k).
I told him that he no longer could have it because there was asam on the milk. He didn't believe it. He had barely put his mouth on it when he recoiled in terror (okay, maybe too drama). I told him that the asam would only disappear twice a day - before his nap time and before he sleeps.
Since then, it's been quite smooth sailing. He has been asking for the bottle a lot these days. But at night, he still wakes up for breastmilk although he knows that he cannot have it. So, he just screams and thrashes about. Twice a night. I still have to go into his room and lie down beside him until he falls asleep again. As I am also a kind neighbour, I have to close the windows so that the neighbours don't call the police.
ii. And yes, this reminds me. The boy now has his own room. In our previous place, he used to be a squatter in my room, sleeping on a mattress on the floor. With his own room, each time he cries, I take a longer time to respond. I really fear that our neighbours will hate us (they may already hate us by now).
iii. He has started attending playgroup! The original idea was to get him to attend the childcare that the sisters used to attend. But TheHusband felt that he was a bit too young. The sisters' birthdays are in February and March, so when they joined the childcare in January of the year they turned 3, they were almost 3 years old. But this boy was just 2 years 5 months in January.
When the sisters went back to school in January, he was bored and listless. I had to play with him and read soooo many books together. I asked my sis-in-law if she had any programmes for bored little ones and was I in luck! So, he's now in school on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11am to 1pm. These days are also known as my freedom days. Haha!
Unfortunately, in the first 2 weeks or so, he didn't take well to school. Having been used to being under my armpit (that's a literal translation of a Malay idiom), he cried so much. I have great respect and sympathy for his teachers. These days, he's still not too pleased about going to school, but the level of resistance is much reduced.
iv. He is talking a lot. A lot a lot a lot!
He can express himself in Malay pretty well now. I choose to keep it this way, expose him to mostly Malay for now.
There are some episodes which I have to write about here lest I forget.
Bontot - Bontot means buttocks in Malay. We teach the name of his body parts, bontot being one of them. Unfortunately, this good child loved the sound of bontot so much, he started saying it all the time. I stopped him and suddenly, he realised that bontot is a good way to express his anger.
When he fought with his sister, he would suddenly shout out, "BONTOT!" We stopped him many times and scolded him a number of times. When he got angry, we could see the 'B' forming on his lips and a stare stopped the rest of the word from coming out. A couple of times, he shouted "BON-!" And stopped. He knew he was not supposed to say that word when he was angry. I scolded him, "Ihsan tak boleh cakap bontot, kan?" (Ihsan cannot say the word bontot, right?")
That wasn't the end though.
"BON-TOL!" He responded. "Ihsan nak cakap BONTOL lah!" (BON-TOL! I wanted to say BON-TOL lah!) It doesnt matter that the word 'bontol' doesn't exist at all.
Anak Yang Soleh - A mother's word is a do'a (supplication). I try to call my children good names. (Still trying. When Tiger Mom is out, that trying part can be well, trying.)
I call the boy anak yang solih (pious child) quite often. I didn't realise how often this was until one day I called him anak yang baik (good child). His response was: Ini bukan anak yang baik lah. Ini anak yang solih. (This is not a good child. This is a pious child.)
Whatever rocks your boat, boy.
Nangis "(Cry) - The sisters were always very eager to know what he did in school. One of the first questions they asked him when they returned home from school was what Ihsan did in school. He often said, "Nangis."
While walking to his school, I asked him where we were going. You know, the usual silly mother talk. You ask your kids questions whose answer you already know.
Me: Ihsan nak pergi mana ni? (Where are you going?)
I: Nangis.
Me: Tak! Ihsan nak pergi sekolah! (No! You are going to school!) Ihsan nak pergi mana? (Where are you going?)
I: Sekolah, lepas tu, nangis. (School, and then cry)
Cannot win sometimes.
---
Will stop here. As always, I never start and finish writing in one sitting. This entry took 3 sittings to reeach this point so if there is no coherence it is because (a) I wrote it in three sittings; and (b) I'm hardly ever coherent anyway,
But of course, sometimes they really, really, really cause me much pain. The Tiger Mom makes her appearance not because I have docile children who willingly take out their books and do their much needed revision on their own free will. And there are still soooooooooo many areas we have to work on with each child. I hope by the time I die, my child will be ready to live their lives.
2. The Boy
I must write more about the boy. I've lost much of my interest in blogging as compared to my Multiply days - actually, not really. I blog quite a bit in my head but I no longer have that much time to sit down in front of the computer and spend 2 hours banging on the keyboard.
The Boy is now almost 2.5 years old. Come 8 Feb, he'll be 2 years and 6 months old.
i. We are in the process of weaning him off breastmilk.
The beginning was a nightmare. He's been having milk on demand and that means, he's been getting it whenever he wants. 1am, 2am, 2.30am. Whenever.
After gentle coaxing did not work, and he suddenly decided to reject the bottle completely (he'd been having bottled milk once or twice a day), and I was getting frequent headaches because of my prolonged lack of sleep, I thought, I'd take out the big guns.
Asam. Tamarind paste. Which I smeared liberally on the nipples.
One morning 2 weeks ago, he asked for milk. Susu badan, he called it (because we are way too polite to call it t*t*k).
I told him that he no longer could have it because there was asam on the milk. He didn't believe it. He had barely put his mouth on it when he recoiled in terror (okay, maybe too drama). I told him that the asam would only disappear twice a day - before his nap time and before he sleeps.
Since then, it's been quite smooth sailing. He has been asking for the bottle a lot these days. But at night, he still wakes up for breastmilk although he knows that he cannot have it. So, he just screams and thrashes about. Twice a night. I still have to go into his room and lie down beside him until he falls asleep again. As I am also a kind neighbour, I have to close the windows so that the neighbours don't call the police.
ii. And yes, this reminds me. The boy now has his own room. In our previous place, he used to be a squatter in my room, sleeping on a mattress on the floor. With his own room, each time he cries, I take a longer time to respond. I really fear that our neighbours will hate us (they may already hate us by now).
iii. He has started attending playgroup! The original idea was to get him to attend the childcare that the sisters used to attend. But TheHusband felt that he was a bit too young. The sisters' birthdays are in February and March, so when they joined the childcare in January of the year they turned 3, they were almost 3 years old. But this boy was just 2 years 5 months in January.
When the sisters went back to school in January, he was bored and listless. I had to play with him and read soooo many books together. I asked my sis-in-law if she had any programmes for bored little ones and was I in luck! So, he's now in school on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11am to 1pm. These days are also known as my freedom days. Haha!
Unfortunately, in the first 2 weeks or so, he didn't take well to school. Having been used to being under my armpit (that's a literal translation of a Malay idiom), he cried so much. I have great respect and sympathy for his teachers. These days, he's still not too pleased about going to school, but the level of resistance is much reduced.
iv. He is talking a lot. A lot a lot a lot!
He can express himself in Malay pretty well now. I choose to keep it this way, expose him to mostly Malay for now.
There are some episodes which I have to write about here lest I forget.
Bontot - Bontot means buttocks in Malay. We teach the name of his body parts, bontot being one of them. Unfortunately, this good child loved the sound of bontot so much, he started saying it all the time. I stopped him and suddenly, he realised that bontot is a good way to express his anger.
When he fought with his sister, he would suddenly shout out, "BONTOT!" We stopped him many times and scolded him a number of times. When he got angry, we could see the 'B' forming on his lips and a stare stopped the rest of the word from coming out. A couple of times, he shouted "BON-!" And stopped. He knew he was not supposed to say that word when he was angry. I scolded him, "Ihsan tak boleh cakap bontot, kan?" (Ihsan cannot say the word bontot, right?")
That wasn't the end though.
"BON-TOL!" He responded. "Ihsan nak cakap BONTOL lah!" (BON-TOL! I wanted to say BON-TOL lah!) It doesnt matter that the word 'bontol' doesn't exist at all.
Anak Yang Soleh - A mother's word is a do'a (supplication). I try to call my children good names. (Still trying. When Tiger Mom is out, that trying part can be well, trying.)
I call the boy anak yang solih (pious child) quite often. I didn't realise how often this was until one day I called him anak yang baik (good child). His response was: Ini bukan anak yang baik lah. Ini anak yang solih. (This is not a good child. This is a pious child.)
Whatever rocks your boat, boy.
Nangis "(Cry) - The sisters were always very eager to know what he did in school. One of the first questions they asked him when they returned home from school was what Ihsan did in school. He often said, "Nangis."
While walking to his school, I asked him where we were going. You know, the usual silly mother talk. You ask your kids questions whose answer you already know.
Me: Ihsan nak pergi mana ni? (Where are you going?)
I: Nangis.
Me: Tak! Ihsan nak pergi sekolah! (No! You are going to school!) Ihsan nak pergi mana? (Where are you going?)
I: Sekolah, lepas tu, nangis. (School, and then cry)
Cannot win sometimes.
---
Will stop here. As always, I never start and finish writing in one sitting. This entry took 3 sittings to reeach this point so if there is no coherence it is because (a) I wrote it in three sittings; and (b) I'm hardly ever coherent anyway,
Sunday, December 11, 2016
3 weeks after moving...
...we are still very, very busy with the post-moving activities (which comprises unpacking, cleaning, unpacking, sorting out, disposal of stuff, setting up of furniture etc etc etc)
But here are things which I want to talk about which may or may not turn into lengthy blog posts of their own. ('May not' is a more likely outcome.)
1. LED there be light!
24 watts LED light as the lights in L-boxes are really an overkill. We were afraid that our bookworm kids will go blind if they read in such a dimly-lit environment so we went all out with the lighting. Our contractor told us that 12 watts or so is enough but nooooo, we had to go craaaaazy with the lights. 10 24-watt + 3 18-watt lights in the living room. 4 24-watt lights in the tiny study area. So now our house is extra extra bright if we turn all the lights on at the same time.
The bedrooms use Fanco fans with 4-light light kits. 2 lights are enough actually. 3 will be okay. 4 lights? Once again, only happens in our household. (We most probably contribute to the enhanced light pollution in Woodlands. Oops.)
2. Taobao
We taobao-ed Ihsan's bed and the dining table + dining chairs. A lot of small stuff too. All thanks to ezbuy.sg. Big items like beds and dining tables are really a case of hit and miss. It was almost a hit for the bed and quite a miss for the dining table. Things are really cheap on Taobao, though. But, I'm not buying anymore big items from Taobao. TheHusband, however, still believes in Taobao. We shall see.
(I should write reviews of all the Taobao stuff I bought. But, should. Should is the operative word here.)
3. ?
Eh. What else ah? I thought I had quite a bit to say earlier. Will add on to this list when I have more time and know what was it that I've forgotten. :p
But here are things which I want to talk about which may or may not turn into lengthy blog posts of their own. ('May not' is a more likely outcome.)
1. LED there be light!
24 watts LED light as the lights in L-boxes are really an overkill. We were afraid that our bookworm kids will go blind if they read in such a dimly-lit environment so we went all out with the lighting. Our contractor told us that 12 watts or so is enough but nooooo, we had to go craaaaazy with the lights. 10 24-watt + 3 18-watt lights in the living room. 4 24-watt lights in the tiny study area. So now our house is extra extra bright if we turn all the lights on at the same time.
The bedrooms use Fanco fans with 4-light light kits. 2 lights are enough actually. 3 will be okay. 4 lights? Once again, only happens in our household. (We most probably contribute to the enhanced light pollution in Woodlands. Oops.)
2. Taobao
We taobao-ed Ihsan's bed and the dining table + dining chairs. A lot of small stuff too. All thanks to ezbuy.sg. Big items like beds and dining tables are really a case of hit and miss. It was almost a hit for the bed and quite a miss for the dining table. Things are really cheap on Taobao, though. But, I'm not buying anymore big items from Taobao. TheHusband, however, still believes in Taobao. We shall see.
(I should write reviews of all the Taobao stuff I bought. But, should. Should is the operative word here.)
3. ?
Eh. What else ah? I thought I had quite a bit to say earlier. Will add on to this list when I have more time and know what was it that I've forgotten. :p
Sunday, November 27, 2016
And we moved!
We did it! We moved! We really moved and started staying at our new place.
That meant we did a lot of packing. A LOT! And we have also been doing A LOT of unpacking. A LOT!
The new place is at a very, very convenient location for non-car-owners like us.
But of course, I miss our old quiet environment. Even though we (kind of) move just across the road, it really feels like we have moved from a kampong to a city. When people talk about the bright lights of the city, they are not kidding. The sound and noise pollution here is quite apparent.
We haven't got our blinds and curtains yet. Hopefully, once those things are up, we will be able to block off as much of the noise and light when we need to.
The end, for now. Still much to do around the flat!
Friday, November 18, 2016
November Updates
Very quick one because I am so tired. But if I don't do this, the next update will most probably be next March or something.
1. We moved!
Well. At least our barang2 moved. We moved to my parents' house because our new flat is not quite ready yet. This is our second night at Mak and Abah's. Hopefully tomorrow night, we can spend it at the new place.
2. I will miss the neighbours and the sounds of nature. Sigh. Those are the 2 things I will really really miss.
But the thought of renovating the house using our savings is very painful. For this new place, reno funds came from proceeds from the sale of the house.
3. The Girls made me feel proud.
They were both awarded prizes in the recent PGD. H got Best in Conduct while F won three prize - First in Class, First in English Language and First in Mathematics. You just can't help but wonder what happened to her Malay because the school gives prizes to the top 3 students in each subject. So, that's an area to improve on.
This is something I wrote recently in response to my friend's fb post - that each child has a different Best. Some children do well academically with seemingly little effort but for some children, academic achievements may require a lot of hard work. Then there are kids who put in a lot of hard work and their results are okay. Not outstanding, but okay.
I have 2 school-going kids with 2 different Bests. My very enlightened principal, Mr M. S., - the best I've had thus far - once reminded parents on the day of the PSLE results that whatever the results are, you still love your kids. Because you love them unconditionally - a love without any conditions.
Sometimes we forget, don't we.
Whatever results my children bring home, I will not get too angry. Because (a), the results are a reflection of their hard work; and (b), they should have ideally done their Best.
And their best is not always 100%.
So, girls (and Ihsan too if you happen to read this), work hard. Never rest on your laurels because the tortoise can easily overtake the hare. Hard work is painful and often not that enjoyable. But the result is sweet.
Whatever it is, I love all 3 of you very much.
1. We moved!
Well. At least our barang2 moved. We moved to my parents' house because our new flat is not quite ready yet. This is our second night at Mak and Abah's. Hopefully tomorrow night, we can spend it at the new place.
2. I will miss the neighbours and the sounds of nature. Sigh. Those are the 2 things I will really really miss.
But the thought of renovating the house using our savings is very painful. For this new place, reno funds came from proceeds from the sale of the house.
3. The Girls made me feel proud.
They were both awarded prizes in the recent PGD. H got Best in Conduct while F won three prize - First in Class, First in English Language and First in Mathematics. You just can't help but wonder what happened to her Malay because the school gives prizes to the top 3 students in each subject. So, that's an area to improve on.
This is something I wrote recently in response to my friend's fb post - that each child has a different Best. Some children do well academically with seemingly little effort but for some children, academic achievements may require a lot of hard work. Then there are kids who put in a lot of hard work and their results are okay. Not outstanding, but okay.
I have 2 school-going kids with 2 different Bests. My very enlightened principal, Mr M. S., - the best I've had thus far - once reminded parents on the day of the PSLE results that whatever the results are, you still love your kids. Because you love them unconditionally - a love without any conditions.
Sometimes we forget, don't we.
Whatever results my children bring home, I will not get too angry. Because (a), the results are a reflection of their hard work; and (b), they should have ideally done their Best.
And their best is not always 100%.
So, girls (and Ihsan too if you happen to read this), work hard. Never rest on your laurels because the tortoise can easily overtake the hare. Hard work is painful and often not that enjoyable. But the result is sweet.
Whatever it is, I love all 3 of you very much.
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
The Period
And this is about my period.
Immediately after implanon, my period was spotty for about 4 months.
Then, there was none. The absence of period was much welcome.
As someone who's trying to be a better Muslim, I could perform a lot of extra ibadah. And the absence of any interruptions meant that it was easy to be consistent in all these extras.
Then a year or so later, my period came back. When it came back, it came back with a vengeance. 20-day long periods (only 15 are counted), spotting here and there. Then a very brief dry spell before it starts again. Argh!
Sometimes the heart yearns to read the Quran but it is not quite possible to do so.
It is a bit of a challenge to have that istiqomah in your ibadah when the interruptions are so frequent. But as with all challenges in life, Allah knows best. As a woman and a wife and a mother, Allah has made it easy for us to enter jannah.
Immediately after implanon, my period was spotty for about 4 months.
Then, there was none. The absence of period was much welcome.
As someone who's trying to be a better Muslim, I could perform a lot of extra ibadah. And the absence of any interruptions meant that it was easy to be consistent in all these extras.
Then a year or so later, my period came back. When it came back, it came back with a vengeance. 20-day long periods (only 15 are counted), spotting here and there. Then a very brief dry spell before it starts again. Argh!
Sometimes the heart yearns to read the Quran but it is not quite possible to do so.
It is a bit of a challenge to have that istiqomah in your ibadah when the interruptions are so frequent. But as with all challenges in life, Allah knows best. As a woman and a wife and a mother, Allah has made it easy for us to enter jannah.
Monday, October 03, 2016
Packing Time
In slightly less than 7 weeks, we should be making our way to our new place. (If I happen to die within the next 7 weeks, this sentence will take on a whole new meaning.)
Our boxes will come sometime next week, courtesy of the sister-in-law. (I owe her $30 for 30 boxes. Very good deal!)
We have some boxes here and I am supposed to start packing.
But.
I wish it is as simple as dumping things into boxes. But noooooooo. That's not the case. I have so many things that I don't need. Maternity clothes - I'm waiting patiently for the younger sister to get pregnant. Then off that whole box goes. My clothes - I keep on wearing the same 4 or 5 tops. But my wardrobe is full! I need to get rid of stuff. Lots of stuff. Thank God for the Internet. It's now a lot easier to give things away. And we havent even started on Bedroom 3 which has long become a Big Storeroom. Oh gawd!
What a headache!
Our boxes will come sometime next week, courtesy of the sister-in-law. (I owe her $30 for 30 boxes. Very good deal!)
We have some boxes here and I am supposed to start packing.
But.
I wish it is as simple as dumping things into boxes. But noooooooo. That's not the case. I have so many things that I don't need. Maternity clothes - I'm waiting patiently for the younger sister to get pregnant. Then off that whole box goes. My clothes - I keep on wearing the same 4 or 5 tops. But my wardrobe is full! I need to get rid of stuff. Lots of stuff. Thank God for the Internet. It's now a lot easier to give things away. And we havent even started on Bedroom 3 which has long become a Big Storeroom. Oh gawd!
What a headache!
Saturday, September 24, 2016
Tales of An Addict
It is now 3.30am.
At 11.30pm, we went to Alazhar where I had naan and, despite TheHusband's raised eyebrow, teh tarik.
By 1.30am, I felt sleepy. Good good, maybe the teh was had too late in the night for it to take its effect.
I lay down. I closed my eyes. Suddenly, my mind became so awake. At the back of my eyelids, various movies were playing. A dolphin morphed into a frog and started jumping from cliff to cliff. The sun melted away and became a pool of molten hot lava.
I'm not getting any sleep at this rate.
I opened my eyes, closed them, tossed, turned.
Nope. No sleep.
Will this put me off tea? Of course not.
3.36am. Still no sleep.
TheHusband, whom I adore, is sleeping like a baby. The Baby has only woken up once. Both girls, whom I smother with kisses when they are asleep, are deep in dreamland. And I am up, in this caffeine-induced state, wondering if it's a good idea to start preparing breakfast now.
3.40am. Maybe I'll just soften the butter first. And maybe, I should avoid caffeine after 2pm like I told myself many moons ago.
At 11.30pm, we went to Alazhar where I had naan and, despite TheHusband's raised eyebrow, teh tarik.
By 1.30am, I felt sleepy. Good good, maybe the teh was had too late in the night for it to take its effect.
I lay down. I closed my eyes. Suddenly, my mind became so awake. At the back of my eyelids, various movies were playing. A dolphin morphed into a frog and started jumping from cliff to cliff. The sun melted away and became a pool of molten hot lava.
I'm not getting any sleep at this rate.
I opened my eyes, closed them, tossed, turned.
Nope. No sleep.
Will this put me off tea? Of course not.
3.36am. Still no sleep.
TheHusband, whom I adore, is sleeping like a baby. The Baby has only woken up once. Both girls, whom I smother with kisses when they are asleep, are deep in dreamland. And I am up, in this caffeine-induced state, wondering if it's a good idea to start preparing breakfast now.
3.40am. Maybe I'll just soften the butter first. And maybe, I should avoid caffeine after 2pm like I told myself many moons ago.
Tuesday, September 06, 2016
An Update About the Littlest Kid
Ihsan
He turned 2 in early August. Masya Allah. Sometimes I take Allah's mercy and kindness for granted because this little bundle of unlimited joy almost didn't happen. One after another medical emergency he overcame and, masya Allah, here he is.
Of course, here's a report card of his general progress. Area for improvement is clearly his eating habits. It's still woefully miserable. Last week he seems to be eating lots of pasta. So I gave him pasta with varied creamy sauce each day. But that was short lived. However, he often comes down with something after a good eating episode. Yesterday he developed a symptom-less fever which broke this morning, only to leave some kind of mild diarrhoea behind. That diarrhoea is not unwelcome; it'll help to flush out all the leftover virus in his body.
In terms of speech, there's no worries at all. With his 2 sisters talking (and quarreling) non-stop, he knows how to form short sentences and express himself although it many come out jumbled at times. Just now, he was trying to tell his youngest uncle (whom he calls Babum although youngest uncle is known as Pak Ucu to everyone else; dunno where Babum comes from) to eat together with him. It's supposed to be: Pakusu, mari makan sama-sama dengan Ihsan. It was a jumbled up sentence that came out: Babum! Makan! Cican! Camacama!
(Note: He calls himself Cican. Cican Bin Ooman.)
He can count from 1 to 10 in Malay. But this is purely by rote. He has not understood the concept of numbers yet.
He is somewhat obsessed with Elmo. Thanks to aunties and uncles who bribe him with videos of Elmo whenever they want him to go to them.
He still does not look too steady on his feet. Sometimes he stumbles and falls. His running is hilarious too. He can go up and down steps while holding on to the railing for support. However, sometimes he is a bit delusional of his capabilities and wants to forgo the railings. He cannot jump and hop yet although he's always pretending to jump.
Oh, and, while the 1+ year old toddler was an anarchist, this one is a bit OCD (not in a clinical way). In the past, all he wanted to do was to pull all books off the shelves. All books. It was a nightmare and room doors had to be closed because of his love for unbearable mess. But now, when he takes books from the shelves, it's only because he wants to 'read' those books. When cupboard doors are open, he wants the doors to be closed again. Likewise for fridge doors. Or floor rugs which are folded in the corner. Or prayer mats not laid out properly. It's much nicer not always having to clean up after a huge mess.
But sometimes, things do get messy. He has 3 toy boxes (the size of shoe boxes) and 1 lego box. If he wants one toy that he knows is inside one of those boxes, he will open and tip over the entire box. Getting him to put away that glorious pile of toys in the middle of the living room takes about one hour of convincing, cajoling, threatening and more threatening. The actual clean up takes no more than 5 but it is not right to always do the tidying up for him, right?
He's copying lots of good stuff and so I am constantly reminding myself and the older girls to always display our best. A few days ago, I was carrying him in one hand and manoeuvring the stroller with the other. (another story this love-hate relationship with his stroller). I almost bumped into a lady (who was thankfully unaware) and I said "Oops!" Ihsan immediately said, "Sowwie Aunty!"
Of course, Aunty couldn't hear it but I was impressed, both with his assessment of the situation and his tone of apology. And I pointed this out to the girls who were with me, "Did you hear the way adik said 'sorry'? That's the way it should be said. Blah blah blah..." Then the girls fussed over him. And he explained (in that breathless, laborious way that kids take to pull words out of their mouths), "Sebab. Mak. Ajar. Cican. Sowwie. Aunty." (Because - mak - teach - Ihsan - (to say) - Sorry - Aunty.)
Precious.
Medical issues: 3 appointments lined up in the next 2 months at KK for 3 different things. All will be well, insya Allah.
(The 2 older girls will get their airtime in the next post. Now, I have an appointment with a mountain of laundry.)
He turned 2 in early August. Masya Allah. Sometimes I take Allah's mercy and kindness for granted because this little bundle of unlimited joy almost didn't happen. One after another medical emergency he overcame and, masya Allah, here he is.
Of course, here's a report card of his general progress. Area for improvement is clearly his eating habits. It's still woefully miserable. Last week he seems to be eating lots of pasta. So I gave him pasta with varied creamy sauce each day. But that was short lived. However, he often comes down with something after a good eating episode. Yesterday he developed a symptom-less fever which broke this morning, only to leave some kind of mild diarrhoea behind. That diarrhoea is not unwelcome; it'll help to flush out all the leftover virus in his body.
In terms of speech, there's no worries at all. With his 2 sisters talking (and quarreling) non-stop, he knows how to form short sentences and express himself although it many come out jumbled at times. Just now, he was trying to tell his youngest uncle (whom he calls Babum although youngest uncle is known as Pak Ucu to everyone else; dunno where Babum comes from) to eat together with him. It's supposed to be: Pakusu, mari makan sama-sama dengan Ihsan. It was a jumbled up sentence that came out: Babum! Makan! Cican! Camacama!
(Note: He calls himself Cican. Cican Bin Ooman.)
He can count from 1 to 10 in Malay. But this is purely by rote. He has not understood the concept of numbers yet.
He is somewhat obsessed with Elmo. Thanks to aunties and uncles who bribe him with videos of Elmo whenever they want him to go to them.
He still does not look too steady on his feet. Sometimes he stumbles and falls. His running is hilarious too. He can go up and down steps while holding on to the railing for support. However, sometimes he is a bit delusional of his capabilities and wants to forgo the railings. He cannot jump and hop yet although he's always pretending to jump.
Oh, and, while the 1+ year old toddler was an anarchist, this one is a bit OCD (not in a clinical way). In the past, all he wanted to do was to pull all books off the shelves. All books. It was a nightmare and room doors had to be closed because of his love for unbearable mess. But now, when he takes books from the shelves, it's only because he wants to 'read' those books. When cupboard doors are open, he wants the doors to be closed again. Likewise for fridge doors. Or floor rugs which are folded in the corner. Or prayer mats not laid out properly. It's much nicer not always having to clean up after a huge mess.
But sometimes, things do get messy. He has 3 toy boxes (the size of shoe boxes) and 1 lego box. If he wants one toy that he knows is inside one of those boxes, he will open and tip over the entire box. Getting him to put away that glorious pile of toys in the middle of the living room takes about one hour of convincing, cajoling, threatening and more threatening. The actual clean up takes no more than 5 but it is not right to always do the tidying up for him, right?
He's copying lots of good stuff and so I am constantly reminding myself and the older girls to always display our best. A few days ago, I was carrying him in one hand and manoeuvring the stroller with the other. (another story this love-hate relationship with his stroller). I almost bumped into a lady (who was thankfully unaware) and I said "Oops!" Ihsan immediately said, "Sowwie Aunty!"
Of course, Aunty couldn't hear it but I was impressed, both with his assessment of the situation and his tone of apology. And I pointed this out to the girls who were with me, "Did you hear the way adik said 'sorry'? That's the way it should be said. Blah blah blah..." Then the girls fussed over him. And he explained (in that breathless, laborious way that kids take to pull words out of their mouths), "Sebab. Mak. Ajar. Cican. Sowwie. Aunty." (Because - mak - teach - Ihsan - (to say) - Sorry - Aunty.)
Precious.
Medical issues: 3 appointments lined up in the next 2 months at KK for 3 different things. All will be well, insya Allah.
(The 2 older girls will get their airtime in the next post. Now, I have an appointment with a mountain of laundry.)
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