I'm the only One

Amazing.. Almost 1 already! 

Its been an exhausting and fun year. I learned to transport myself to near places by crawling, and faraway places by shouting until Mummy or Bibik or Daddy or Nani picks me up. I grew 6 teeth, starting from the 6th month and love to sharpen them on Mummy's bony behind. I learned that one important magic word that sets my world right again- Mamamamam (easy peasy lemon squeezy, like my sisters say it); and i now totally bar myself from less-than-nutritious formula milk and insist only on the original, the full cream BM.

What's that I hear?? One year olds normally have big bashes? Oh dear me, I hope not.. I take a long time to warm up to anyone but when you finally know me, you'll knowthat I'm quite the charmer! I find the ladies love my toothy grin.. Whaddya think??

Ps: biler daaa jambul nak tumbuh. Lol

Playdate

Breakfast for Champions, lunch for winners.. before we head out for a fun weekend activity:

Trying out The Rink at JCube because its only 20min by train from ours to Jurong East and I don't have to depend on Daddy who's working today:

Its nicer and cleaner, but more expensive than the Kallang LeisurePark one (well duh!): $16 for a kid with skates rental, $3.50 for me a spectator and $15 for the damn walrus/seal/sealion (i can't ever tell the diff).

Halfway through they decided they both want the penguin instead which is cheaper at $10 each. The Rink guys allowed me to downgrade of course, without refund. 

And what did they do with their penguins? Made it shave the ice so they can take home cold bits souvenirs. Now is a good time as any to educate them about the changing states of water you think??

Sihat & Kuat (Healthy & Strong)

Being skinny has many privileges. Apart from the obvious, it also allows one to run like the wind and float like a feather. Which is probably why the class with the highest population of skinnies have won the coveted title of Overall Champ and also a place in all p1 race category:

3rd place for hop-and-run race

Check out that funky Indo schoolgirl hairstyle, thanks to the Helper 0;0

Skinny kids with long legs/strong legs with their trophy for "Overall Champion"- hurrah to P1-F!

School hall, where Sports Day is held.

Now.. *rubbing hands* where is that Milo truck? I could use some icy chocolatey goodness..! :) "Minum Milo anda jadi sihat & kuat!"

Xx

Better late than never

Every child develops differently, we all know that. However the reality is that parents get very worried if their bubs don't grow teeth at 6 months, or dont start crawling at 9 months, or don't develop proper speech by 2. 

I waited for 4 whole years before Sofia started conversing properly. Waited, at the edge of my seat; gripping the armrest tightly while nodding encouragement to her through clenched teeth. That was how nervous I had been. I had even enquired through friends about autism tests available at NUS. Comments from relatives like "she's in her own world eh" or "aku bebual dengan dia, dia tak pandang pun muka aku" made me even more inclined to think she borders on autism, whose checklist is perpetually in my head:

1) no eye contact

2) does not value social interaction

3) etc etc..

For her I think the turning point was when she started going to MFS woodlands this year. Her teachers were young and jovial, there were always 4-5 teachers around and they were certainly 'better' at engaging small kids. 

First she started to want to make conversations and imteract with others by repeating words/phrases wholesale off the telly like "fantastic!" or "good job!" (thanks to Team Umizoomi and Bubble Guppies)  then over months graduated to holding proper 2-way conversations. Arissa had been critical in Sofie's speech development especially during playtime- they bounce off each other naturally, even when parts of Sofie's speech is incoherent and sounding like a youtube cut&paste (complete with American accent). 

Its a little late coming but she now asks the valuable Why questions. "Why is kakak naughty Mummy?", she asked sad faced after an episode at home where I became the big bad wolf shouting at the big girl to STOP WALKING AROUND THE HOUSE NAKED AND DRIPPING WET because others might slip and fall in the puddles she leaves behind or get sore eyes by the sight of her naked bum. And in the midst of all that shouting, I hear Sofia's little voice ask "Why is kakak naughty Mummy?". I stopped. I looked at her confused face seeking mine for an answer and I hugged her and said thank you for asking. 

My baby Sofie always has a way to calm us down- in the most unexpected, highly emotionally-intelligent method. 

               Always one of the boys.

                    Partners in crime.

                   With her Godma.

Food for Thought

Another milestone has been crossed this month as Aidan goes from incomprehensible blabbering to actually speaking. And by speaking, I dont mean random sounds; I actually mean he says a particular word in association with an object or an action. Often enough for us to know that there is some level of understanding.

The word? Mumma or Mama (claps hands)

And he says it like this "mamamamamamamamaam".

Wait.. it could also be 'Mammam' right.

Come to think of it, its always in the presence of either his porridge or me. In fact, Mama could also mean Mamam cos really, I am his sole milk source. Still. Argh.. He has been steadfastly rejecting his bottle since Eid. So to ensure he gets his daily calcium requirements, we dump formula milk in everything he eats- from breakfast everything to dinner porridge. 

And this boy can eat. Having had 2 small-eater girls before this, the range and frequency of his appetite is delightful to me (so Asian right- fat means healthy?!) 

So anyway it doesnt really matter if his first word is Mama or Mamam.. because I know both object and activity brings him great pleasure. ;)

PS: paid $6 for this 8second haircut. It was all he could bear before screaming. Hello mullet.