My 4 year old tells me a bedtime story

We have been having bedtime reading and story telling for a while now. Although not everyday, we still make it a point to have it at least 4-5 times a week.

Tonight, Ryan insisted that he tells us a story. He was holding up a piece of paper which he says is his story. The story goes like this.

One day, there was a bad witch. And this bad witch turned Mickey Mouse into a bad monster. Mickey then turned his friends - Goofy, Donald, Minnie and Pluto - into bottles and squashed them.

And then, came a good witch who came to rescue Mickey and turned him back into a good mouse. And then the good witch went to step on the bad witch and then she smacked her and then he cut her.

And all Mickey's friends became perfect again and they live happily ever after, ever and ever.

I think his version was longer with a few more details added on. But I am very impressed that he was able to tell this story with the logical flow and appropriate words.

I don't think I was able to do this when I was 4 years old. Isn't it amazing? Kids today are so very different from our time. Did you have a bedtime story when you were young? Did you tell one?

52 years of independence

Tonight I came back from my parents' house with the kids so that I can catch the Merdeka's fireworks at midnight.

But you know what? I was bitterly disappointed.

I am not sure if it is because of the virus or it is because of the puasa month. But whatever it is, this is the last Merdeka we shall be spending in our current place. I am not sure if we will be seeing any in our new place.

I had kept Ryan up so that he can see it too. Sigh, no such luck and so, he went to bed after seeing some small fireworks up for display at Genting.

And I am not disappointed for not seeing the display, I am just disappointed because Ryan did not get to see it. Arghh.

Lunch time talk

Today I had lunch with a group of ex-colleagues at KLCC. It has been quite a while since I last saw them. PP is married, HL is back in Malaysia after an overseas stint and GY has just got herself a job near my office. We were all from the same unit in my previous company.

The conversation started rather easily with courteous "how-are-you, I-am-fine-thank-you". As we ordered and progressed during lunch, the conversation took a turn I had never imagined. The topic was on DOGS!!

HL and I were very stunned at how the conversation took a change as PP and GY continued on and on about how they take care of their dogs. The one thing which made me laugh quite a lot is that both their dogs live in an apartment, in the toilet. Key difference is that PP's dog not only get the fan, air purifier, the dog also gets a radio playing all day long! GY's dog does not have the radio but has the grand things a dog should have.

And then there was the question about toilet training the dogs and led them to look at me asking how I toiler trained my son. Er, probably not the best person to know. Then PP said she is looking for a trainer to toilet train her dog so that it will eat, sleep and s*** at a certain time. After laughing, we asked if she does her business at a set time too ... she said "Yes ah!" *Doink*

Not only that, PP is also reading books on how to handle tantrums, tempers and stubbornness, much like how I would be reading on Ryan. The funny thing is that these dogs training books are still behind time. They believe that if your dog shows stubbornness, you should be more stubborn so that he does not over power you. Hmm ... the kids' books have since revolutionised from then.

GY's dog on the other hand does not have loneliness issues since her mum will be visiting often during the day. But she is adamant about having the dog toilet trained and her thinking is that "...yes, when the dog is 5 months old, have to train before it gets out of hand!" Hmmm .... my boy is 4 years old and still wearing his diapers at night. What does that say about me??

And then there is the issue of bathing them. GY says that she bathes her dog herself. Being the hair ball it is, after bathing would mean it has gone out of shape! PP's dog on the other hand is sent to the salon - RM20 each time, which is more expensive than my car's bath!

By the time lunch ended, we were laughing non-stop. At one point, they were talking about getting dog's sanitary pads .... and disposable diapers. I am very amused at how things have changed over the years since we have knows each other.

I had kids, someone has gone to Singapore to work and gained a whole lot of experience, someone else swore by the train and now drives to work, someone else has matured into the motherly kind to have dogs and all to care and love for.

And oh ya, the dogs took such a centre stage that nobody was paying much attention to my little girl's photos!!

And before I forget, PP said to ask if anybody out there knows of dog trainers who can help train her dog to eat, sleep and s*** at a certain time. Leave a comment if you do ok?

You think my boy is a kaki ampu?

This happened yesterday morning as we were rushing (again!) out the door.

Me: Hullo, please go drink your milk.
(I was cooking Ryan's lunch for him to bring to daycare, a little stressed out since we were late)
Ryan: Wow mum, are you cooking for me?
Me: Yes, I am dear
Ryan: Mum, you are such a good cook-er.

And then as we were trying to get everyone out with their clothes and shoes on ...

Me: Now, if you do not wear your shoes, I am going to leave you behind here.
(Ryan was still busy playing with his sister)
Ryan: My two princess, you are my big princess, she is my small princess. My 2 princess!

And then some days back as I was preparing for work, I came out looking all frizzy haired and my son says this to me "Wow mum, you look so pretty today!"

Doink or not?

Good things come despite the heart ache

Some weeks ago, my little Ryan encountered a very unpleasant situation at the baby sitter's. You can read it here. Although at that time I was very sad, I am actually glad that it happened. I'll tell you why.

2 days after that episode, the baby sitter's husband (who was obviously still annoyed with me for pointing out that he cannot smack my son) came up to me and said that he will give me till the end of the month to find another sitter since he has already gotten another baby to look after. Imagine my anger at him doing this to me. Long story short, I later found out that it was all him and my sitter was quite embarrassed about it.

Anyway, that outburst from him triggered a chain of events which ultimately worked out better for Ryan.

Firstly, we have gotten Ryan to be in day care at the school. He gets to enjoy himself with his friends and have fun activities all afternoon. One good thing is that he has no TV. And instead of sleeping for 2 hours during the day, he only naps for 45 minutes, which is a good thing since he does not need much persuasion at night to sleep.

Secondly, it made me realise what a wonderful school and its teachers Ryan has. They were very supportive of me and the principal was really a dear. Because of this, Megan will start there earlier, which means my little girl will be well taken care of.

And then there is this Auntie M who was introduced by a dear friend of mine. She ferries Ryan from the school to the sitter's daily. Apparently, she is quite a dear lady from what I hear from Ryan.

And Megan gets the sitter's undivided care since she does not need to run after Ryan so much. I am sure temper flares are not as much at the baby sitter's too since it is just the baby and no pre-schooler who has a mind of his own!

Looking back, I am kind of glad Ryan got smacked and I caught it. Else, these good things will not be happening so soon. What is more, we will also be getting a maid when we shift to the new place. Again, this would not have been if the baby sitter's husband did not get all wacky on me.

My babies are sick

This nasty habit of falling sick has to really stop.

2 weeks ago, Ryan came down with a cough and flu. Thankfully there was no fever and so that nasty virus was ruled out. However, his cough came with vomit as he was trying to take out the phlegm that was compounding itself in his throat.

Ryan missed 2 days of school. By the third day, he was looking forward to school. Good.

And because my kids are so affectionate, Ryan was still kissing and kissing Megan when he was sick despite us telling him not to. So guess what? Megan fell sick too!

My poor baby girl started with the flu and then progressed to cough. We tried to pry Ryan away from Megan, but guess what? It is too tough!!! In the end, I left them be. I did not want to hurt Ryan's feelings and made him feel like he was responsible for his sister's illness. I prayed that my milk would be able to make her feel better.

However, a week on the medication and yet, her flu and cough is not gone yet. Ryan, meanwhile, has been getting better by the day. Arggh.

My poor baby Megan has been coughing her lungs out and have been having mucus running really badly but thankfully, she does not fuss much else mummy will be in a panic zone!

I hope with the new round of medication, Megan will recover faster. Ryan is ok now but has the occasional sneeze. Sigh, I really cannot stand my babies getting sick. I am ready to be the one who is sick on their behalf and spare them of all these discomfort.

Here's hoping that tomorrow will be a good recovery day!

I am determined to spread the word on breastfeeding!

Today's The Star carried an article about mummies who could not breast feed and how society has viewed them and the agony of it all.

As I was reading this article, I felt a sense of regret for mummies who want to breast feed but could not for whatever reasons. Over the years, most of the mummies I know who could not feed successfully was because they were not properly informed, or they lacked support.

And in these instances, they could have been avoided if only someone was there to offer support and guidance. Some mummies tell me they are convinced that they do not have milk because their breasts are small, their mothers could not do it too, their kids reject them, the nipples are sore, they are too tired, the baby is not full, the baby is always waking up to feed, their babies are nursing too long etc.

I always feel sad when I hear this. I really wish there was a way to reach these mothers to share with them the experience and the knowledge. I think that for mummies who tried and failed, you should always remember that you are great mothers anyhow.

I feel blessed that I am able to give my babies the best and I intend to help spread the word on this God sent nutrition to as many mothers as I can. One of the ways I know which can help prepare us in advance is to attend talks on breastfeeding. I attended one sometime back which was conducted by Gina. You can read about it here. Although I consider myself an experienced breast feeding mum, I still learnt a thing or two from this course. It is really worth it, please check it out. I think the next one is running early next month, sign up now!

What does a mouse eat?

Ryan asked me the above this morning when we were getting to school. In my mind, I was thinking about the ugly, smelly rodents and so I said "The mouse eats rubbish."

Ryan said this to me ... "No, the mouse's food is cheese. They eat rat cheese. You know why the cheese has holes? So that the mouse can get inside to eat it."

Wow, now, why didn't I think about it??

Megan is 7 months old

Yesterday, Megan turned 7 months.

And accordingly, these are the things she would be able to do now:

1) Sit unaided. Megan is doing more of this now than before. She is able to balance herself so that even if she falls, she actually just slides sideways rather than full on backwards. However, she cannot sit for long, most about 5 minutes or less.

2) Use her hands to reach, grasp, bang, shake and poke. Yup, already doing this since last month. Boy, can she make those noise!

3) Busy practicing her ablility to handle objects. She does not show any preference to her hands, uses both quite easily. Able to hold on to things very well. Can also pull at hair very strongly! Ouch!

4) She also has developed another insight into the nature of objects. When she drops a toy from her walker, she will follow the object and look down to see where it is. She will also be able to verbalise herself and make known that she has dropped something and would like us to help pick it up.

5) Another sign of increased understanding is her ability to go back to an activity after being briefly interrupted. This is a sure thing since she is constantly interrupted by Ryan.

6) Peek-a-boo is a top favorite at this age; another indication that Megan is learning that objects which disappear from sight are not necessarily gone forever.

So there, isn't it quick? Megan is 7 months already. And she is looking more and more like a pretty little girl now.

What should I do now?

I am very upset now and I am at a lost.

Just now I went to pick Ryan and Megan and found Ryan sobbing. He told me that the nanny's hubby smacked him. When probed, he showed me his thigh and true enough, he had a hand print on his thigh!

OMG! I nearly fainted. I gave birth to this little guy and I have never done this to him. I was half thinking if I should scream and lash out, but then I thought, I still needed them tomorrow for my kids. I chose instead to firmly ask why and what has caused all this to happen.

Apparently Ryan was mad about not being able to drink his Vitagen and he had started to throw things around and he nearly hit Megan will one of his flying objects. I am not denying that Ryan has a temper nor am I denying that he needs some discipline, but to be smacked so hard? I think not.

His daddy and I discussed about it and thought that perhaps it is better to send Ryan to the day care in the school and have the nanny's husband come pick him at 6pm so that the time spent at nanny's is minimal. But I also thought about how little time Megan and Ryan would have.

I am really at a lost now. I am afraid that this may repeat and then, I would really lose my cool with the nanny's husband. I am thinking if I should get a maid, but then the horror stories are too much to bear.

What should I do? What should I do? Any ideas?

I am deaf

Some days ago, I was scolding Ryan for something and I must have been nagging or something because he was obviously not listening to me.

After I asked if he has heard anything I said, he said this to me ... "No mum, I am deaf!"

My mum would have said I spoilt him too much to allow him to say this to me. But I think he is super cute!

Feeling emotional

I just finished nursing Megan and as I held her in my arms walking her back to the bed, I was suddenly flooded with a wave of emotions.

I desperately wanted to hold on to her and not let her go, I wanted to hold her close so that I do not have to deal with the fact that she is growing up fast. I whispered into her ears "You will be the best girl ever when you grow up. I want you to know that I will love you and protect you for years and years to come. And I hope to be able to shield you from all the pain and hurt and disappointment you may face. I love you so much my darling."

And then I felt that I was crying. I wonder why I suddenly was so overwhelmed. I am usually not like this at all. I guess, being a mother has really changed me, and I am loving it.

Sleep well my babies.