Robot Class

Valerie's favourite 'Kau Foo' (uncle) aka my brother has been asking me when can he bring Valerie to robot class. When I first heard of it I was a bit skeptical. Valerie is a girl, will she enjoy going to robot class? And what do you learn there anyway? Myself, for instance, would not find much joy in assembling wires and small parts  :P Nevertheless, I let 'Kau Foo' bring her to a trial class.

Below are the photos he sent back to me. Looks like Valerie could really follow the lessons and really enjoyed herself. My brother told me at first she was shown a car model on the computer screen and what are the parts needed. Then she has to go gather the components and assemble following what's shown on the computer.

As a beginner, the teacher will choose an easy model for the kid to assemble. As you advance, you can design your own model. After that, all the kids will showcase their model and do a race to see who is faster. So it does need a bit of intelligence on how to design and make your model go faster.

Teacher guiding her which components to take

After a few times, she is able to identify herself which components to gather

Little engineer at work

More components gathering

Final product - Robotic Car

I have the misconception that she could actually take the robot car home. Nope, you can't. According to my brother, the electronic board behind the model costs a lot, so no way will let us take home. Valerie won 2nd place for her model and her name has a sticker on the board. There are only 2 girls name there, somehow I'm not surprised. You can find out more about this Robot Class from this website http://www.creativerobotics.com.my/home.htm

One thing that's funny though, after she came back from the class, she suddenly asked us for her toy screwdriver and started dissembling and assembling her helicopter. One of her last year Christmas pressie. So it's Handy Manny in the making :D

Sports Day

Valerie's first Sports Day ever!! We're told to be at the field by 7.00am. Gosh.. we have never woken up this early before. But we're glad we reached there on time.

Then the teacher brought Valerie to the Kids Tent to sit, where... for the first time... we finally saw her best friend... a boy, remember? Yup, we saw him, as described, exactly same small size and height. Seated together and playing together.

When it's finally Valerie's group to run the telematch, the teacher lead the 3 groups out. The Reds, Blues and Yellows. And guess who is her partner, yeap, the boy... Hahaha.. I guessed both Ivan and myself were just thrilled to see her best friend.

Before the telematch started, the rest of the kids were lined up and getting ready. Then, we saw Valerie and the boy, both busy looking down and stepping on the sands. They were really in their own world. Ivan was starting to worry if she would actually run and know what to do!

When the whistle is blown, we saw all the cute little kids running, and running their best. And then we saw Valerie and her best friend holding hands running. Ivan was impressed that his little girl could run pretty fast. :) Alas, the match ended and her group won 2nd place.

Valerie was very happy with her Silver medal, she kept wearing it and showing it to anyone who came to visit us the next few days. That night, we asked her, 'Who is that friend you run with?' For the first time, she answered 'Timothy!'. There we got it.. her best friend's name.

Parents Teachers Meeting

Valerie's school had a PTM for the first time. We're scheduled to meet the teacher at a specific time. Not knowing what to expect, we brought the entire family there. Our maid, Ann carried the baby to the play room together with Valerie, while we met the teacher in the classroom.

Overall, Valerie is observed to be a very quiet girl. Very different from what we expected because she is always so noisy and loud at home ever since she started school. And her best friend... I asked if it's a girl by the name of Caryn, cause Valerie always say her friend's name is Caryn. Suprisingly, teacher said no. Her best friend is actually a small boy, about the same size and height with her. Okieeee....

Then comment from the teacher is Valerie is still speaking in baby language and has baby sound. She's not sure if kids at her age is still supposed to have baby sound. Her pronunciation is not very clear, so we need to practice speaking to her in proper sentences.. No more treating her like a baby and talking to her like a baby. I have to remind myself, she is a kid now... not a baby anymore. And we can also practice reading together with her, instead of just mommy or daddy reading to her.  

Other than that, we've also talked about her eating and drinking in class. Because, she seems to be the smallest in class. Sighh... Valerie is such a picky eater. Teacher said she usually takes two bites and then put back her food in the container, packed into the bag and then play around. Doesn't really eat much. And drinks, teacher has been enforcing her to drink at least half a bottle. 

I then remembered a bunny cake Valerie insisted to buy few days ago. At the mention of 'bunny cake', the teacher suddenly said 'Oh.. that bunny cake... You know what, she just opened the container and showed all her friends her bunny cake... Then take the ears and lick it until recess time is almost over'... Aiyooo... so she didn't eat the cake at all in class... 

At the end of the session, we're given a pack of arts and crafts that Valerie has been working on the entire semester. I'm quite impressed with the work as they looked very interesting. So we need to focus on her pronunciation next... 

A Sad Story...

Recently I've heard of a true story which happened to my friend's sister's colleague. This colleague went on a holiday trip to China with her family - hubby and 2 sons (1 baby and 1 kid). At a shopping mall, the kid wanted to go toilet, so the parents waited outside the toilet while he went in.

After a long time, he never came out of the toilet. So the daddy went in one round to look for him but couldn't find him. Then the mom went in to look but couldn't find him either. Exasperated, a stranger approached them and offered help to carry the baby so that both of them could go into the toilet to look for the son.

When they came out, the stranger with their baby is no longer there. And they never found their son either. They used up all their savings to extend their stay in China while looking for their two sons but to no avail. The mother couldn't believe how she could have made the same mistake twice in the same day and lost both her sons.

This is a very sad and shocking story. I do not what to elaborate further what happened to the parents but could only pray that they will find their kids someday and hope their kids are ok. How did the kid went missing in the toilet? Theory has it that the kid was put unconscious while being alone in the toilet, changed his clothes, worn a cap and carried out unnoticed. And if it's a girl, they will probably shave her hair off and wear a cap and carried out like a boy.

I have to say, this story always brought tears to my eyes everytime I think about it. As I held my baby in my arms, I remind myself how fragile and innocent our kids are. They need our protection and we need to be very mindful at all times where they are. It could just take a split second to lose your child while you are engrossed in something.

When I told this story to my sister and sister in law, it affected them very much as well that they couldn't sleep well. I guess being a mother, we all could understand how much pain it is to lose a child, let alone two in one day.

So, parents out there, please be extra careful with your kids wherever you are, especially in a mall. It only take seconds to lose sight of your kid. And no matter how old your kids are, they are never too old to be accompanied by an adult to the toilet, even if they think this is totally uncool.

Jaudice Baby

Vivienne was diagnosed with jaundice after one week. Despite asking the confinement lady to sun her in the morning, she's still pretty yellow. Dr. Koe recommended that we try the home phototherapy instead of sending her to the hospital. This way we would not disrupt her breastfeeding schedule.

I couldn't make up my mind as I thought it will be difficult to contain the baby in a box, let alone blindfold her. But Dr Koe insisted this was more cost effective and breastfeeding friendly. So we opted for it. The package is about RM350 for 3D2N. And the company came to setup the phototherapy for us at home.

Initially, the baby was still new to this and allowed us to wear the blindfold. When first put into the box, she cried a little but after patting a while, she went to sleep. I read that jaundice baby tend to sleep a lot. And Vivienne slept a lot in the phototherapy box, even up to 3-4 hours, still didn't wake up for feed. We had to take her out, woke her up to breastfeed, fearing she might dehydrate. But still she refused to wake up.

The first night went well with the confinement lady keeping guard of her. She started having black / dark green poo which was a good sign that the bilirubin was breaking down. On the 2nd day, she's smart already. The minute you try to blindfold her, she cries. Then she used her hand to push the blindfold away. Max we could put her in was only about 2 hours.

By the 3rd day, we gave up already. We couldn't bear to hear the baby cry in the box. So we gave ourselves excuse that she's better already, could let her escape :P

When we brought her to Dr Koe for checkup again, I was quiet and kept my fingers crossed. Dr said she still a bit yellow but could see she was a lot better. So we just left it at that. She said once the yellow has come down, it would not go up again. So no need to worry.

The yellowish skin took about 2 months to go off. Throughout the period, I was still worried because I remembered Valerie's jaundice was gone after staying one night at the hospital. Sometimes I wondered if it was better to just let Vivienne stay overnight at the hospital. Anyway, home phototheraphy was an eye opening experience. It's really a cheaper option, provided you could bear to hear your baby cry. The same probably would happen even she stayed at the hospital, just that we wont be able to see it though.

Arrival of Mei Mei...

Ok... this is a really overdue post. My 2nd baby has arrived and since then, the entire family schedule has turned topsy turvy. Anyway, not too late to start posting on my 2nd bundle of joy....

Baby Vivienne Chen Wei Yein is born on 27th Feb 2012, weighed at 3.1kg. Slightly heavier and longer than Valerie. I have opted for elective C-sec this time. No more trying to go natural first, if cannot then only c-sec. I find this really a waste of time and energy.. not to mention more $$$...

Same as previous time, I chose partial conscious so that I could hear my baby being born. When Vivienne is born, she cried very loudly and non-stop. I guess she sounded like how babies should cry when they are born. Unlike Valerie, only cry two times and then went to sleep. This is a first sign of how different both my babies are.

Hours later, she was wheeled in to be breastfed. As I latched her on, she sucked very very hard and I have to say it's very painful. I asked the nurses a few times, and they said she latched on correctly, just that she has a very strong suck and I'm feeling the pain.

Later on, I've also discovered she cannot suck any milk out from the Avent bottle. And then latch on to me wrongly. This baby has problem with nipple confusion, something that her big sister didn't have. Valerie knew how to breastfeed and drink from bottle from day 1. So I had to spend the first 3 weeks to breastfeed her fulltime before introducing the bottle. And yes, I've suffered through the pain of her sucking only on my nipple till the skin chaffed off... Luckily I went to Dr Koe for help and she showed me how to get the correct latch. Funny I have to relearn all this with the 2nd baby...

Vivienne is also very impatient when changing clothes. After taking a bath, she will not give you that few minutes to put lotion on and wear clothes. She will just cry and cry until you pick her up. Again, different from Valerie. Valerie would give you the time in the world to pat her dry, put lotion and do anything you want. With Vivienne, you have to be fast... and super fast....

Another thing is Vivienne accepts pacifier. Although a bit relunctant, this is nanny's requirement to taking care of her.  Last time, despite training Valerie, she refuse to suck the dummy :) So nanny has no choice but to give up. But with Vivienne, she takes on the pacifier naturally and sucks happily. But I have to say, babies who suck pacifier seem to be better napper and thus she is gaining weight faster than her elder sister. So, I'll just let it be, only worry about weaning her from the dummy a year later.

All in all, just when you think you have learned everything to be a mommy, a new baby sets you back off to square one, relearning everything again. Simply because, "Every baby is different". Now I know how true this phrase is.

Parent Deaf - First Sign of Toddler delinquency

Do kids get naughtier or so to say 'more opinionated' after going to school? She seems to be showing tantrums more these days. Or maybe I should say her 'terrible twos' came a year later. What's more annoying is she has learned the art of 'parent deaf'. She only responds after I called her like 10 times?

When I say 'No' to something, she will do it. When I say 'Do something', she will not do it. So my latest strategy is simply to reverse the psychology. If I want her to come, I simply tell her 'Don't come to mommy, ok... Don't disturb mommy.' Immediately she will grin and then as expected, come running to mommy.

If I say 'Come here, Valerie... come to mommy', she will pretend not to hear it and walk further away. Sigh.. annoying isn't it?

Having a Maid = Less Time with Valerie?

Our maid, Ann has arrived 2 weeks ago. So far everything has gone pretty well and Valerie warmed up to 'kakak' almost immediately. Oh well, she normally warmed up to anyone easily. Something that Ivan said he needs to worry about when she gets older :P

With the 2nd baby due in few weeks time, I delegated some 'Valerie tasks' to Ann like bathing and feeding on weekends, getting her ready for school and for bed. Since we still prefer our current nanny to take care of her, so that's basically all Ann is required to do. The best part is I'm finally able to attend church service together with Ivan while Ann brings her to Sunday School. It has been almost 3 years since I last sat quietly with Ivan in a service. Such bliss !

Although we're starting to enjoy a little more free time to ourselves, I can't help but to feel a bit guilty for spending less time with Valerie. Being a hands-on mom for the last 3 years, I feel it's the little things we do with our child that makes our relationship special. I actually miss the times we spent in the bathroom, teaching her how to blow bubbles or fill the teacup with 'real' water while trying to shampoo her and cleaning her up. And we had such fun that sometimes Ivan wonder what we're doing inside.

And although I can finally sit in the service and despite how I complained about having to bring Valerie to Sunday School whole of last year, I kind of miss being there with her. Now I'm not able to see how she behaves in the class or know what she is learning. I still remember how she was adamant to pull 2 chairs and put side by side so that she could sit on one while mommy sat on the other one next to year. Now I'm just like the rest of the parents, queuing up to pick up their kids after service.

Another thing is with Kakak at the car backseat with her now, I no longer get to hug her or sit and sing with her. I can hear a lot of movements and noise coming from behind with Kakak having no control of her. Sometimes, she does demand that mommy to sit behind with her. Secretly, I do wish I'm the one sitting at the back, playing games with her and hugging her.

I don't know, feel kind of strange. I feel like taking back all those 'Valerie tasks' but then I guess I need to let go. After all things will change again when baby no. 2 arrives. I just need to hug her more and tell her I love her whenever I can. I feel that's the best I can do for now.

2nd Day at School

Valerie's 2nd day at school went like a breeze. Today after bringing her to class, she sat comfortably and started playing the toys on the table. She even tried to interact with the other kids around. After a while she turned and saw us still standing in the classroom. She stood up and pointed us to the door.

Aiseh... she didn't even want us around. Feeling both rejected yet relieved, we told her we'd go out for a while and come back. She nodded and continued playing. Ivan and myself went for breakfast, after that we went back to see how Valerie was doing.

As expected she didn't look for us at all but smiled when we're back. She was doing crafts, sticking stars and cirles on a hand-made party hat. She was clearly enjoying herself.

So I guessed we don't need to be around from tomorrow onwards. The transition was smoother than I imagined....

Valerie First Day of School

Today was Valerie's first day of school. The thing we worried most was the 3 of us not being able to wake up on time despite our efforts of trying to sleep earlier the last 2 weeks. No matter how we tried, we have only achieved getting Valerie to sleep by 11pm (although we lights out at 10-10.30pm), and earliest she wakes up is 8am.

But fortunately for today, we managed to get her up by 7.30am and we reached Superfun at 8.30am (on the dot). We realised there were many latecomers (aiseh.. we didn't need to rush... ) But Ivan gave me the look, saying at least we're here on time and Valerie get to mingle around.

Valerie got into the 'Pink' Classroom under Teacher Chua. When we reached there, the class was divided into 3 coloured tables with 8 children each. On the tables there were many colourful toys. Since Valerie is always so playful, it was easy to get her to sit down and play. After a while, she walked back to where we were standing and held daddy's hand. Alamak.... I was worried that we have a long way to go.

After a few seconds, one of the assistant teacher came over n coaxed her back to her seat. Then she got her to play with other kids around. Once there she got herself a 'friend', she didn't look back anymore. There were some kids who cried loudly and refused to be consoled throughout the lessons. Surprisingly I find more boys were crying than girls. Does that mean girls are more brave? Haha...

Next, the teachers cleared off the toys and moved on to singing with actions. Valerie has always enjoyed singing and since she knew most of the nursery songs, she joined in and followed the actions. After that, they learned to queue up to go washroom. I didn't follow her to the washroom but later at home, she showed me the proper way to rub and wash her hands.

On and off when I felt she needed help to adjust her chair (cos her chair keep moving away from the table), I would go over and pushed it... and guess what? She turned around and say 'Mommy, zhou... (leave)' and then pushed me away. I was stunned. My daughter not only didn't look for me in class, she actually didn't want me to go near her? That seemed too good to be true.

Anyway that's about the first day, we're keeping fingers crossed for Day 2.