Which school to choose

School No 1 (School in which we got placed)

• Famed Chinese School
• Brand New
• Many Facilities (almost like private school I'd say)
• Horrible Traffic
• Far from home

School No 2

• Moderate Chinese School (Not so famous but established)
• Facilities ok too
• Near home

School No 3

• Kebangsaan School (Established as well)
• Facilities not as good as School No.2 but not bad at all
• Moderately near home
• Impressed by what the head has done for the school
• Its one of the few schools which conducts a 5 period Chinese class ie 30 minutes each day. There is an in-house Chinese teacher for this purpose, lessons are incorporated into the daily time table with school tests conducted each year

Which school would you choose? We have ruled out School 1 which we have been placed by the Ministry so we will need to make an appeal. We can't decide whether to appeal to School 2 or School 3.

BTW, when appealing, if we state transportation as a reason, we're not sure whether we would be successful in the appeal. Its crazy anyway, they should have considered that in the first place and placed us in the school nearest to our home instead of one that is far.

We've met up with both heads of schools 2 and 3. Was impressed by what the head of the kebangsaan school has done for the school, his visions and missions but am worried that if the head leaves, the school will slide. In this case the captain of the ship really is very important. The ship may sink with a bad captain.

I have visited another kebangsaan school near my house before and that one gave me a scare. The facilities were poor, during recess there was not enought seats for the pupils and some of them ran and sat on the canteen floor after buying their food etc. Now if I had to choose between a Chinese school and that lepak looking kebangsaan school, it'll be easier to make a decision.

However, this other kebangsaan school that I visited which is a bit further from my home is not bad at all. It is clean and well kept and it leaves me with a good impression and feeling overall. So the choice is harder now.

Oh, btw, does anyone know whether remove class is still compulsory for Chinese and Tamil school students or has remove class been abolished?

Where to stay and what to do in Genting Highlands?

We're thinking of taking the kids to Genting Highlands for the first time later on this year. They're 4 and 6 and we haven't taken them there before. In fact, we haven't been there ourselves in ages so we're quite lost now.

I have a few questions for those who have been there with young children.

• Where's the best place to stay. Must be affordable cos we have to bring our new maid along. We'd probably need a big family type room or two adjoining rooms. Don't know what is the best arrangement that would be the most economical as well. Some people tell me that First World Hotel is best because it is closest to the theme parks.
• What sort of activities is suitable for kids age 4 and 6. There are so many kiddy rides etc so we don't want to waste time wondering around or miss out something interesting for them. Just want to zoom in on the best. Hehe.
• For young kids, is the indoor theme park more suitable compared to the outdoor theme park? What can we do at both?
• Apart from the rides, are the shows or the snow place or whatever you call it recommended?
• What is the best time to go? We're thinking of just one night. Is it very packed during weekends? Would we have to queue up like mad just to get ticket to rides?
• How to purchase tickets to the rides? Is it different tickets for different rides or one covering all? Do we have to expect long queues that tire the children? (See, told you I was really blur about this. ;))
• Is there anything else I haven't thought of?

I hope that those who have been there can answer my questions or share their experience. If you have already written about it on your blog, could you please share your links? Thank you very much. :)

Keputusan Permohonan Penempatan Kanak-Kanak Ke Tahun Satu Sesi Persekolahan Tahun 2009 Di Sekolah Rendah

Parents whose children are entering Primary School for the first time next year may have received the letter from The Ministry informing them of the school that their child have been placed. I received mine today.

When I registered around last year ie when my girl was 5 years old, I selected 3 school choices. Well, I got none of them. Instead she's been placed at a different school (not among our 3 choices) that is further away from our home. Sigh. I don't even know where it is or how it looks like since it wasn't among my choice in the first place and I do not wish for her to be in that school for various private reasons. (I visited more than half a dozen schools before making my decision).

Parents have one month from 25th July to 25th August 2008 to confirm the school of their choice or make an appeal.

Since I'm still ding dong ding dong between Chinese and National Schools, I now have just one more month to make my decision.

If your child is entering Standard One next year, did you get a school of your choice?

Mummy I don't want to eat fish

Last night at dinner my boy said this.. (I cooked steamed fish for dinner by the way)

"Mummy, I don't want to eat the fish. I want to see the fish swimming. I don't want to see it like this on the plate. Mummy, please don't eat the bones. I want to see the whole fish! Mummy, I want the fish swimming! Can you give me a fish so I can see it swimming and put it on my bed on my blanket? Can I have a whale?"

When I told him that a whale was too big, he then said...

"Can I have the whale on a big plate then.... but I want to see it swimming."

His sister added...

"You will need a big bowl then because fish needs water. Mummy, can we have a fish to put in a bowl in the middle of our bed between us?"

And what did mummy MG say?

"Can we all stop talking about fish so we can finish our dinner? Here eat this pork instead."

Fortunately they didn't start the conversation about the pig being killed and I manage to finish the rest of my meal feeling a bit guilty about the dead fish on my plate. KIDS!

Another food related tale:

After lunch my boy said, "Mummy, when I eat, all the food go down my body to my feet and then it will push and push and make me grow taller." (probably in response to our always telling him to eat up his food so that he will grow tall and strong). Looks like another science lesson is in order. Lol.

Unconditional Love

The kids give me unconditional love and it is the best thing in the world. They do not hold back their love. They like to be close to me. They like to hug and kiss me and they like me to cuddle and kiss them.

When I am mad at them, they get very upset and even when I am in the midst of my anger, they wish to rush up to me to be held. When they are mad at me, they may fold their arms and turn away from me in anger (when they don't get their way) but it usually lasts for just a little while before they rush back to hold my hands and smile at me. Its even faster if I smile at them first.

When I am not well, they will come and sayang me and look at me with concern on their little faces. If my back hurts, they will try to give me a back massage and if I cut my hand they will come and touch it gently.

They listen to me and likewise they want me to be interested in them and listen to them all the time. :)

Give love away and you shall receive it too in manifold. How true it is with children. How good it is to give and receive unconditional love. :)