Movie Nights

We have movie nights at our house every Friday. The kids love it. They will bring down their pillows to "book" the very first class seats in the house. Usually we will have a half way intermission too where we will make a hot drink and have a snack. We will prepare the snacks, then carry on with the movie while munching our snacks.

Sometimes the children are so engrossed in the movie, I have to remind them to eat! Movie nights are fun. I really enjoy them. I get to sit back and relax too. I don't have to entertain the kids with all sorts of ideas for play, physical activities and crafting. However, I have to entertain 101 questions though, usually from the girl. The boy is happy enough to sit quietly and watch.

I've been thinking of buying the Tangled dvd as I missed it. My dad was in the hospital at the time. So my husband did the easiest thing to do while he was watching the kids. He took them to the movie theatre to watch a show. I am sure the kids won't mind watching the movie again. They love to watch movies again and again enjoying every part of the show many times over. :)

From Hello Kitty to Power Puff

My girl's birthday is coming soon so we brought her to the bakery to choose a cake for herself. She looked through all the books and then she pointed to the Power Puff Girls and said "I think I want this one".

Daddy was trying to get her to choose a Kunfu Panda image for her cake. He said so in a rather loud voice at the shop "Choose Kungfu Panda! Kungfu Panda is nice!" and she said "Shhhh daddy, not so loud!"

I showed her some Hello Kitty pictures which she used to like. "I had this one before" she said as she pointed to a Hello Kitty sitting in a car.

She just turned 9 but we are celebrating her birthday later because she is having exams and can't enjoy herself fully so we decided to postpone the celebration. She has even drawn up a birthday itenary in anticipation of the big day. :)

My girl is growing up fast. (I think daddy wants her to remain his baby. Don't worry daddy, she will always be your baby). The girl at the cake shop says she can't fit in all the Power Puff Girls on our 1kg cake. So eventually (after a great deal of leg shuffling and hard thinking!) the girl chose the Pink Power Puff girl aptly named "Blossom" Yup! She is blossoming into a little lady now. One that must make her own choices (Mummy suggested the other Power Puff Girl with the golden pony tails at first) although after we got out of the shop, she  kept on asking "Mummy, how ar, I like the other Power Puff Girl too. They're both nice."

"Well, if they're both nice, then it doesn't matter which one you choose does it?" She smiled and seemed satisfied with that reply. Happy 9th birthday sweetheart. Time flies. It seems like just yesterday, you were a baby.

Are girls smarter than boys?

I have to coach my girl and my boy for their school tests. It made me wonder. Are girls really smarter than boys? ;) Or just more hardworking and diligent.

It is hard for me to tell because my boy and girl have different personalities that may make it appear as though one is smarter than the other. My girl is the intellectual, inquisitive type. She does not like to play with dolls and such. When I gave her a doll to play with, even when she was younger, she would ask "what does this do? It doesn't do anything." then she would toss it aside. Pity mummy here who thought that finally, with a daughter she could play with all those Barbie dolls and their pretty little clothes and accessories that she never had. Too bad. Barbie did not move my girl. She prefers books, writing stories and making cards. She is one who thinks that writing an essay is "play".

As for the boy, well, he is naturally playful, a little joker who can make anyone laugh, he can make up stories on the go (by that I don't mean fibs but real stories like those you read from a book). It is funny to listen to him. If he can get away with something, he would. He is a sore loser and must win in any game. He is very physical and loves to jump on people and hug them. He can do his work very quickly but it is often messy.

The girl is a joy to teach. She has an excellent, almost photographic memory. She remembers her lessons easily. She is hardworking and diligent. She is in the good class which has a majority of girls in it. Last year, the top 7 students in the std were all girls. Are girls smarter?

As for the boy, he is good in Math and can do mental calculations easily. Unfortunately he is not very good in his languages especially Chinese which can make him misinterpret an entire section of work and get zero because he misunderstood or did not understand the question. He is careless in his work often mixing up his capital letters and small letters. He can't copy a passage without making mistakes. Quite often, he will copy LiKe ThIS or Li keTh is. Mixing up his letters or leaving a gap in between words at the inappropriate places or putting them close together at the wrong places. "Laut" becomes "luat" etc. He is carefree and happy go lucky. Are boys less smart or just lazy?

I guess boys develop slower that is all but they will catch up with us girls, eventually. ;)

Little Boy with a Big Heart

Yesterday the boy called out to me "Mummy, come quick. Cheh cheh (sister)'s leg is very pain."

The girl had kicked her toe against the door frame.

When I arrived at the "scene", I saw that the boy had wrapped his sister's leg with a good morning towel. He had his arm around her and he was asking her "Are you all right?"

Later on she said that it was painful when her foot touched the floor, he said "wait, wait" then he quickly got two cushions and put them on her chair. Then he asked her to sit on those so that she would be higher up and her legs would dangle above the floor.

When she wanted to speak to me, he pushed her about on the roller chair to come to see me.

When she wanted to go to the toilet, she hopped on one foot while he held the other.

When she came out of the toilet, he took out his bath towel and laid it on the floor for her to step gently on.

Then he put some water on her foot and said "Mummy, I know what to do already."

When she wanted to take her specs from her school bag, he went to get it for her.

That is my boy. Affectionate, has a soft spot for people in pain, whether its physical pain or when someone looks unhappy, he would comfort them. He loves me, his sister, his dad (I think in this order. Hehe.) and he is able to show his love unreservedly. Now wouldn't it be just wonderful if he could grow into a man who can express his love so well?

Living Skills

I am very ashamed to admit that I am not teaching my kids enough living skills. You see, the demands on their time do not allow for it. How terrible that must sound but that is the truth.

They are both attending Chinese School. On certain days, their days starts at 6am to start preparing for school and end at 8.30pm when they go to bed. In between there may be school hours from 7.45am to 3.30pm or 4pm. After 4pm there is more homework to be completed before dinner and bedtime.

She reads this...........

For growing up children, my priority for them is sleep. I must make sure that they get enough sleep. That is my number one priority. Next, I have no choice but to make sure that they complete their homework. Then of course, we must factor in some physical exercises and playtime too.

What does that leave us? No time for any living skills. I am ashamed to say that they have never washed their own pair of school shoes, nor paint the shoe whitening liquid over their school shoes, not even once! Each time I think about it, which is often, I say I must make the time to let them do this as well as to help me wash vegetables, cook rice, do the laundry, help around the house with simple chores but we never find the time. As it is, we can hardly even find enough time for them to get the proper rest and sleep that they need especially my girl who is taking antiseisure medicine. The importance of sleep to lower the seizure treshold cannot be taken lightly.

and this........

My girl now enjoys both English and Chinese story books. She is quite good in Malay too. A child of 9 who is not only bilingual but trilingual. It certainly takes a lot of effort but at what price...............

but she can't wash this :(

Having said this, it is not really my choice for my children to be trilingual but I feel that the education system here gives me no other choice. Apart from the mad workload, my children's school is really very good. It has very good facilities, the teachers are hardworking and dedicated etc. However, I do wish that we have a better balance in living and educational skills.

The picture in my mind

This is the my current picture in my mind of us. My boy is about this size now, the girl a little taller but yes, this is how I see us, my two lovelies, my babies.

You will always be my babies. You are both too heavy for me to lift and cradle in my arms now. So in my mind's eye, I see me stooping down and giving you both a loving cuddle like this.

9 & 7. I can't believe it. I started this blog when you were both under 3. I described myself as a mother to two under three then. The picture in my mind was different then. My life was very different then too. I didn't even have time to go to the toilet for a proper bath! Now, I can even read a magazine. :)

I wonder how it will be like another few years down the road. If I am still blogging, I will post a picture to freeze this memory in time.

Impatience

Impatience runs in the family, it would seem.

This morning the boy spoke impatiently to me. "You must not speak that way to mummy, understand? It is very rude." I told him. "You are beginning to be rude like your cheh cheh." muttering under breath. Yeah. yeah. One shouldn't make verbal comparisons like that in front of your kids, I know, I know. Because if you do, you will get this....

"I learnt it from you, mummy." said cheh cheh innocently.

Hmmm.... come to think of it, the man often speaks impatiently to me. I must have learnt it from him then.....