Friday 31 May 2013

Lil Dragon: Her Space/Class...kinda

   
Lil Dragon's space in the playroom. Oh, she hogs the living room too.
Tiger gets the other shelf and the study.
Fair and square. No fighting.

She has access to the lower two shelves only.

TOP
Lamaze spinning thing, a TOLO hammer thing & pegged puzzles
BOTTOM
Fisher Price Book, Vtech ball (both irritating as hell), 
Leapfrog Peek-a-shoe (I like) 
and a musical instrument box

They were all Tiger's except the Octopus Peek-a-shoe which Hubs bought for Dragon.
(He was like....Kesian, no new toy)
They all look new because he didn't play with them much. Toy snob.

Lil Dragon on the other hand  loves toys in all shape and sizes.
Her fav would probably be the musical instrument box.

Puzzles are a close second. Probably inherited some puzzle love from Tiger.

We play a game where I get to sit still. Yay!
 She loves picking them up and placing each piece into my hand.

Initially it was cute, until you realize toilet breaks are not allowed in this game.
"Mama go toilet, okay?" and as I get up.....
"Wahhhhhhh.....sob sob sob...."
Not fun when you REALLY need to pee or sleep.

I think she likes em because they are nice to bite as well

I'll name the pieces as she hands them over and then thank her politely.

There, vocab/fine motor/bonding/playtime/grace & courtesy in one compact lesson.

She always yells and screams from downstairs whenever Tiger and I are in the study.
Poor thing. I really want her to join us but she kinda steals the whole show.

How do you bring a cutie into a preschooler's class?


Monday 27 May 2013

Lil Tiger: 2 Years 11 Months


He is obsessed with:

Television
 My bad, for subscribing to Astro Cartoon package.

Loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

"My ears like Mickey Mouse"

Hehe, yes!

 

Math
He is loving beads and number plates

Pacifier:
Yuck, Enuf said.

Beating Lil Dragon. 
Both physically and emotionally.

Cleanliness

Purple shirts

My phone. 
To watch videos, starring himself.

Funny phrases, such as:
Exclaiming "Oh Dear!" over everything, like an English lady.
"Terbalik la" like a typical Malaysian.



What's in store:

I have confirmed his place for YAMAHA music class.
We are starting in July.

We will be starting Bao Bei Chinese classes in June (call it a Birthday gift!)

Tot School will be more Preschool now. 
I have a plan outlined but we will be following it lightly.






Friday 24 May 2013

Lil Dragon: 10 months Update

10 month old

Sweet girl is 10 months old. 
She is definitely more spirited than Tiger was at this age.
I foresee lots of attitude issues.

I really wish I have more waking hours with her.
When I am at work, I miss her so, so much.
Her toothy smile, cheeky grin...
When I get home, Tiger will make sure he has all of my attention.
Much to her dismay.
They get into swatting competitions just to see who gets to sit on my lap.
Luckily I have 2 legs.
Third child?
No, thank you ...

So, our special time is from eleven-ish onwards.
When she is feeding and I get to watch her fall asleep.
Breastfeeding Dragon is when I am most relaxed and peaceful.


Gross Motor
I feel breathless just watching her.
She is very self assured of her abilities.
She is very mobile, either crawling or pushing furnitures about.
She has started taking a few wobbly unaided steps
The most being 5 for now.
I think she overheard hubs commenting that she is slow compared to Tiger.
Very kiasu, this one.

Fine Motor
I give her pegged puzzle boards to practice her pincer grip.
I just lay out 4 sets in front of her.
She started by trying to dislodge the piece by scratching, then she flipped the set over.
After a few attempts, she has now mastered her pincer movements.
Her sheer determination is so delightful to watch.

Feeding
Still very much a boob addict.
Eats everything under the sun.
Toys, clothes, rubbish, paper...you name it.

Poop
Diaper changing is sooooo stressful.
OMG
She flips, turns, wriggle and does all kinds of tricks just to NOT change.
I tried washing and got poop all over myself.
So this is why people created pull up diapers
It was a true light bulb moment.

Loves
Food
OSO the bear
Dancing
Dumping toys out of boxes, repeatedly
Outdoors
'Eating' this Lego girl

Climbing this Mammut table
 

Language
She says Mama...whoopee
I love it when she calls me in the morning, when I am still all sleepyhead 
"Mama, mama...."
She flashes a toothy smile and I just melt.

Pet peeves
She absolutely hates it when Tiger and I go upstairs for class without her.
She would call out Eh! Eh! Eh! for hours (prob minutes but guilt prolongs time)
from the bottom of the stairs.
If we ignore her, she would bawl her eyes out.
 If the gate is unlocked, she would crawl up in no time.

So, now, Tiger and I will have to be sneaky and go upstairs very quietly.
No laughing loudly.
No slamming doors 

Can't wait for her to join us in a few months time.



Tuesday 21 May 2013

Outdoor Learning: Growing A Bean Plant

We have been working very hard at reclaiming our poor garden.
That means, me, on all fours, digging and pulling.
And Tiger, being a busybody, not helping at all.

Good news is, we are almost done.
Whoopee!
Killing weed is a crazy, crazy idea without using chemical.
Being an OCD has certain benefits, you know.
I Googled and some experts suggested using sugar.
Sugar!

My hands are smarting like mad and the nails are goners
but
my little helper is now dirt-friendly.
Definitely worth it just to watch him touch soil, sit on grass, basically just 
getting in touch with nature.

To supplement his latest interest, I used
Growing a Bean Plant from Sparklebox

I like the simple graphics and easy instructions


Getting acquainted with the prepared materials



Testing, testing



I told Tiger, We must follow some steps to plant a tree.

He replied, Like Oso? Three steps?

and started yelling on top of his lungs
 Twee little steps, that's all you need...twee little steps...
 Errr, something like that

Step 1: Fill the pot half-full with soil

I didn't have beans that are big enough.
So, I used some of Grandma's ermm, kuaci.

He watered a little too generously.
After a while, he asked, Where tree?
@.@
I considered my words carefully before replying,
Remember The Carrot Seed?
Nods head.
What did the boy do?
Water everyday.
And?
Weeding...
 Got it?
Nods head and smile
Did a jolly dance, clicking my heels in the air.
Gotta love the classics
 
See my almost weed-free grass?
I am so happy. *insert blissful look*

Ooooh, must remember to 'insert' a plant next week.
*wink wink*



Tuesday 14 May 2013

Happy Mother's Day 2013


I hope everyone felt appreciated last Sunday.
I know lots of SAHM wants time alone on the toilet and such.

But I want none of that.
Since I am at work during the weekdays, 
I just wish for more hours at home so that we can have more cuddle time.
I can very sweet like that, sometimes...occasionally.

So, on Mother's Day, we attended my nephew's one year old party.
He's so cute... 
After that we headed straight home to hide from the heat.
It is waaaay too hot in the Klang Valley now.
Heard on the news it was due to a cyclone over the Bay of Bengal

 EVERYONE fell asleep in living room.
Hubs took the entire couch.
Tiger slept in his usual spot.
Lil Dragon was on her mattress and I ermm, fell asleep while breastfeeding.
That meant the right boob was on display during nap time
Sigh, how dignified and classy, right?
Happy Mother's Day...woohoo...




I got these from Tiger on Saturday.
I shall pretend it as intended for Mother's Day.

But my secret wish is to have a magic wand.
So that I can wave away all of these....

And have more of this on Sunday nights.
Peaceful moments between the two.
The Tiger Vs Dragon drama is escalating.

Every moment, I am thankful to have these two munchkins
bugging me incessantly,
invading my privacy in every sense of the word,
making me doubt every morsel of food, 
worry about every little bout of infection,
questioning everything and anything
second guessing my intelligence.
blah blah blah....

 BUT seriously, sometimes, just sometimes:

 
I want to chuck Tiger into a bin just for 5 minutes of peace.

I wish Dragon would declare a Breast-Free Day, make that a Week.

On some Sunday nights, I am secretly pleased to be back at work on Mondays.

 I just want to lay down on the bed and watch Channel E for 
some bad TV.

Occasionally, I just want to ditch the kids for a pedi and hair wash minus mommy guilt.

In reality, 

I have always wanted a boy and a girl,
a boy first so that he will protect my baby girl.

So, God, if you are listening,  Thank you making my wish come true.

Every Mother's Day, I will be reminded of how truly blessed I am.


Thursday 9 May 2013

Life (and Art): Of Election, Ink and Us

The reason we have been MIA for the past few days was due to post election blues.

In case you didn't now, this is what happened
505 will be remembered as a dark day in Malaysian history.


Dear Tiger, all I am going to say to you is: 

"Anyone who says they are not interested in politics is like a drowning man who insists he is not interested in water."    Unknown (Gandhi re-quoted)

And personally, out of the thousands of political quotes, this resonated:

" I no longer have a future. Everything we do is for our children. 
It is difficult, definitely. But for our future generations, we have to"

Know I understand why hubs look up to him, Chief minister of Penang, Lim Guan Eng.

Because of people like him who fought for the people.
 Malaysians from all walks of life did this:

Oh, we must not forget to thank our Prime Minister who mentioned "Chinese Tsunami'
and called us ungrateful. He has brought Malaysians closer together than ever.


 This is not the indelible ink.
It is Crayola.
 

We use it for...




The Election Ink and Crayola have the same slogan

"Washability You Can Trust"

Friday 3 May 2013

Outdoor learning: Farm In The City {Part 1}

We visited Farm In the City after a friend posted some pictures on Facebook.

Truth be told, the visit was inspired by hubby's night out with his friends.

Hubs: I am going out with xxx
Me: (Insert sullen face and bad mood) Where?
Hubs: Just KL
Me: I want to go too. But I can't. I have to 'work' (breastfeed)
 Hubs: Of course you can come too (knowing damn well I could NOT)
(Insert choice of mental profanity) Then......inspiration striked!
Me: (insert evil look) Well, don't get too drunk or come home too late.
We are going to Farm In The City Tomorrow.
Hubs: I was going to ask you the same thing 
( Bah...as if )

So, off we go to Sri Kembangan on Sunday.
Entry is free for children less than 90 cm.
Tiger is 92 cm but I flashed a "pretty/flirtatious" smile and he got in for free.
Adult's RM 30 each with Malaysian ID.
My Indonesian maid was charged RM 30 too.
Go 1Malaysia!


We reached at about 1 PM, in time for the bird show.
The red parrot is Jordan.
Cheeky fellow kept disturbing the others.

 The show was great mostly due to Mr Zul's excellent showmanship.
Everyone was smiling despite the heat.
After the show, the kiasu mom, ahem, wanted an up close and personal experience.
For Tiger, not me. I hate birds. The beaks and the claws...geli!

See my veeery natural hand pose?
Trying my best to be nonchalant while guarding Tiger with the other hand.

 Mr Zul, patiently giving Tiger instructions in a very calm, adult manner.
I think he attended a RIE course...hehe.
As he spoke to Tiger, I could feel he was listening to every word and trusting him.
Let's just say that at that moment, I wanted to 'buy' Mr Zul :p
 

My mama bear instinct was in overdrive mode:
What is Tiger 'throws' the bird?
Worse, what if he shouts, frightens the bird and it bites back in fear?
Should I protect his huge ears? They do look yummy, no? 
I bite them all the time. 

Without realising it, I was gripping his elbow, hard.
Mr Zul was saying, "Ooookay, let go now...."
I looked at Tiger and said, "Uncle let go, okay?"
Mr Zul raised an eyebrow and said sarcastically, "Mama, YOU let go lar"
:p
Oopsie


Taada!
You can probably tell I was over the moon

The birds left some red marks on his hand.
He rubbed and rubbed but surprisingly did not whine.

We went to see the horses in the stables and he 
maintained at least 1 meter distance from them at all times.

 Since not many kids wanted to hold the birds, Mr Zul invited the hero again.
This time, on the shoulder.
I forced a smile for moral support. God knows I was cringing inside.
Brought Lil Dragon along for cheerleading.
 


 

After that he was so brave, he asked "Can I go inside the snake house?"
I was like, "Yeah, sure. Just let me get the keys. They are hungry anyways.
And they love to eat little boys"
Tiger's eyes went @@ and he replied, "I kick snake aaah"
Yeah, right.

To be continued...



Thursday 2 May 2013

Math: Impromptu Lessons

2 Years 10 Months
 (more or less. You start to lose track after 2 years old.
Either that or I am getting 'old')

I call our lessons impromptu because they are :)
We no longer go by theme or trays.

Sometimes, he is productive. Like reading 20 books at one go.
Mostly, he likes to force me to buy ice cream from him.
He can be very pushy, you know.

I am sharing some lessons we did for the past 2 weeks.
(When I am rajin to photograph lar)

He chose a box of colorful cubes.
I was like: 
Can you make a tower of 20? Or a bridge?
And he was like:
Do I look like a chimp?

Spidey boy decided to use these colourful papers for sorting.
We were using them as ice cream cone wrappers earlier.
If that's not impromptu, I don't know what is :)
Origami papers: Daiso     Cubes: kids.net

He sorted.
Must put nice nice!
Cannot senget senget (crooked), okay?

Obviously counting and not using his 'right brain'
Sigh...hear the toilet flushing? That's my money going down...

Since he was very rajin that day, he chose the FRACTIONS box as well.
In it, the fraction turtle/bug.

Also the circle fraction puzzle and the Enfagrow free gift. 
Relax, people
He just played with it as puzzles. 
We are not exactly doing fractions yet.

Set up a little Math Game with Valentine recyclables.
He completed one page of addition before he was bored.
I don't think he gets it but he does like to add/count money.
Especially when he charges for his ice cream :)

 Matched numbers to words
We use this white board for word families as well (Will share soon)
Btw, if you are looking at easels, why don't you consider a white board?
Like what I  told a reader, it is adjustable and will last till secondary school.
Totally worth your money.
I got mine at 50% discount from Becon Stationery
  
 Matched shapes.
As you can see, he went round and round until he got the right answer.
Trapezium, boy....

 Keeping up with the nerdy look I so love ^.^



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