He's got the whole world in His hands...

Enjoy!

colours and shapes...

Bryan burst out singing this song while he was putting his toys away this evening.

"There's red for the stop sign and green for the trees
And blue for the skies and seas
This is a song about colours, colours... we see them all around.
Red stand up, blue stand up, yellow stand up, everyone stand up.
This is a song about colours, colours..."

I'm impressed by what he caught on in school for this week. Yep, this week's theme is Colours and Shapes.

During our playdate with one of his good friends from his class today, it was so much fun observing the kids goofing around with an old game I used to play with my friends too.

It went like this:

Who took the cookies from the cookie jar.
Who me?
Yes, you!
Couldn't be!
Then who?
Ryan took the cookies from the cookie jar.
Who me?
Yes, you!
Couldn't be!
Then who?
Bryan took the cookies from the cookie jar.
Who me?
Yes, you!
Couldn't be!
Then who?
Mommy took the cookies from the cookie jar. (I had to play along when I heard my name.)
Who me?
Yes, you!
Couldn't be!
Then who?
Kristin took the cookies from the cookie jar.
Who me?
Yes, you!
Couldn't be!
Then who?

Again, I was pretty impressed by these two four-year-olds. They were listening to each other intently to continue the chant.

:(

I told Bryan today that Mommy was upset that he didn't behave himself in school today. So after drawing his teacher a card to apologise, he decided to perk Mommy up with this card.

"That's Mommy and me and a rose with lots of thorns," he explained his drawings. "And inside the card is a rainbow to make you happy again."

Yep, I'm holding onto your promise that you won't misbehave again in school. Just four weeks into school and I've heard enough complaints about you pushing boundaries and testing limits. Why don't I get "Oh, Bryan's such a sweetie today!" anymore?

child labour?

Haha... just a little something to keep them occupied, while Mommy relaxed over dinner preparation the other day.







As you can see, not much of relaxing there if you can hear the tone of Mommy getting all stressed up towards the end of the clip.

Here's one with Kristin enjoying herself:

learning styles inventory..

Style Scores

Visual 15
Social 13
Physical 10
Aural 15
Verbal 15
Solitary 11
Logical 11

Hee, couldn't resist doing this test, although I should be running out to grab some groceries now.

Try it out, friends, and find out what your learning styles are.

Hmmm.... never knew that I learn through listening too. Guess the years of training in Germany helped to shape that. During my first lecture I had the biggest cultural shock! My German professor came in and started rattling off and there was not a single transparency flashed!

Soon, I found myself taping down all his lectures for my first semester so that I could get by my first exam. Hee... as most Singaporeans would, I was among the top. :)

Seems pretty much a bit of everything for now. Maybe it's the work I do now: SAHM! A bit of everything?!!

Good to know. Perhaps I'll revisit the test when I join the workforce again. Thanks Lilian for the website.

joke of the week...

The kids and Daddy were having some fun in the living area after dinner, while Mommy was busy folding away clothes.

All of a sudden, Bryan went, "Daddy... *growl* This is an allosaurus. It eats vegetables!"
Daddy, "Huh? What's an allosaurus?" Obviously, dinosaurs and Daddy don't get along.

Then, Bryan assembled another dinosaur and explained to his Daddy, "Now this is a killosaurus. This one eats meat. Run, Daddy, run!"

By the way, allosaurus are any of various carnivorous dinosaurs of the genus Allosaurus of the late Jurassic and early Cretaceous Periods, and killosaurus is just a new term that my 4-year-old paleontologist-wannabe is cooking up.

sweet surrender...

Yep, I finally succumb to all those yummy posts that I've been reading much too often on blogs. So I decided to try my hand at baking today! Thanks to Bill Granger's recipe, things did turn out pretty well this evening.
A little hiccup though: The icing was much too runny for a novice like me to handle. No offense to Bill's recipe! In fact, I thought his recommended white chocolate + sour cream icing tastes delightfully delicious! I'm just disappointed to a tiny degree that I couldn't do art with my new icing kit.
Oops, I almost forgot to add that I had some "helpers" too - some were way too eager or much too helpful than the others. While I was frosting the cupcakes, I had to scream for Alan to remove both children and at one time, Bryan coz he was helping himself to all the M&M's instead of using them to decorate the cupcakes!

say cheese...

Due to overwhelming response to Baby No. 1, here's a collage capturing Baby No. 2 grinning from ear to ear!

results...

I couldn't wait for the night to come. So when Bryan came home, I decided to spring the test on him. Bearing in mind that it's his first assessment ever, I walked him through the task: Got him to read all the words in one column and went through the pictures with him to ensure that the pictures were perceived correctly. Then, I began to realise my mistake. I think he's got a little confused now with hat-hay, bat-bay...

I would say he did about 80% correctly on his own for today.

The next step is to start breaking down the words further to letters. Remember, I'm using the analytical method. So each word will get split even smaller each time. For a start, he has to copy the words by sticking letters.

test

A little learning assessment awaits Bryan tonight. If the mood for learning is right, he'll have to match the words to the pictures correctly.

I'm a little excited as to how he'll perform in the assessment.

Teaching word recognition to a young child sure involves alot of reviews. Hmmm, a recursive curriculum perhaps? I wonder how much he still remembers from the word families "-at" and "-ool".

This is the first time I'm doing assessment tasks with him. Previously, all the exercises were devised to help him search and recognise the correct word.

growing up...

Bryan's teacher requested for some photos so that she could add a personal touch to each child's cubbie in school. So while printing out some headshots, I decided I could play around with some collages and print out some for framing up.
And here's one of Bryan growing up and going places!

bits and pieces...

Just last week, I gave a Bryan a really fine black book. Hardcover, A4 size and with high quality papers, I think at least 100g per sheet. Actually it's all complimentary from SunTechnics, one of the companies that Daddy met up with.

Anyway, I thought to myself, "Wouldn't it be a brilliant idea to use it as a learning journal for Bryan?" So when I presented him the huge black book, he was pleasantly surprised, "Oh thanks, Mom! I really like my 'work'book." That's what I told him it was gonna be. "Ok, Mom. Let's do some work now!" He couldn't wait to start. Thus, for the initiation, I told him to pen down his own name on the cover! He was delighted!

Well, if you know me, I'm not a hardcore-homeschooling-mom who has a strict curriculum and tight schedule to stick to. No offence to mommies who homeschool though. I just pale in comparison when it comes to discipline. If I were bestowed a wee bit of your discipline, I would gladly be a hardcore homeschooling warrior too and very definitely, my children would benefit from the real homeschool. What I do is really quasi-homeschooling.

Back to our workbook: We've been quite hardworking, last Wednesday and Thurday and this Wednesday and Thursday again. Hmm, I didn't know I actually set a time for these sessions. Convenience does plan its schedule well in this case.

From our very few sessions, I'm beginning to appreciate handwritten work. Sometimes, I spotaneously chart out an hour of learning with words, other times I prefer to get him to read from the calendar and count the numbers, while he dictates how I should spell out the months. I think by getting him to watch me write, he practises writing in a way too, by observing each stroke that makes up a letter, which then combines with others to make up words. I think I've forgotten that copying is learning in itself. Thanks to our huge black book, I am rediscovering this traditional method. Also, I think I'm setting the tone for the days to come - hee, guess who's gonna be writing eventually - when he begins to write, copy and eventually learn to transcribe accurately... but certainly not in the very near future, judging from the speed at which I tread when it comes to homeschooling.

So here's our huge black book!

a reading review...

As usual, we were doing some review on what Bryan had learnt so far.
Basically the fat-cat-sat-on-the-mat-stuff and he surprised me today with another word family, the "-an" family!

He was reading off "can, ban, man, ran, pan, tan, fan" all by himself when he got too tired with the word search on "-at" family I presented him. It certainly does look like he's ready for new challenges.

We've also been working on recognising the months on a calendar.
This was what his teacher wrote last Friday:
During circle time today the children were observing the display of months and discussing which month was their birthday. Bryan told us that December is Jesus' birthday.

I'm really pleased that he remembers little personal details, especially this one! I pray that he'll have a personal relationship with our Lord one day, soon.

it's so cold...

that the fan has stopped working in my room, Mom!

Well, actually I pulled off the plug from the wall socket before I sent Bryan to bed for nap yesterday afternoon. I didn't want him to switch on his fan as soon as I left him on his own to finish his milk and then fall asleep.

Ok... it certainly didn't sound smart. But which do you prefer: He said it was too cold and the fan didn't work or the fan didn't work because there's no electricity? While the latter is definitely the correct and sane answer, I think I still prefer the innocence in his voice when he proudly proclaimed about the cold causing his fan to conk out!

He's only 4. And some day I'm gonna miss his naive way of looking at the world.

aaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrghhh...

It's happening again! The seasonal change... we've succumbed to the cold, yet again. Sigh! It started off with Kristin, then Bryan and now Mommy. Hope Daddy will be spared.
And soup is definitely on the menu for tonight's dinner. We've gotta be healthy soon because I so wanna go to Kassel this Friday! Yes, I'm finally gonna catch up with some old friends who I haven't seen for like almost 7 years! Yippee!

missing madeleine...

I've been following the recent twists of the missing Madeleine rather closely the past couple of days. Apparently, recent DNA findings in a car have led the Portuguese police to declare Madeleine's parents as formal suspects to the case. That's so mind-boggling!
You mean the same parents that have rallied so much international attention to search for their daughter Madeleine are now declared as suspects? Uh-huh, yeah, or so according to the detectives in Praia da Luz.

Good grief... may the truth come to light soon. And as a parent, I really can't imagine Gerry and Kate McCann harming their daughter, for whom they have so publicly been professing their love in the past 128 days through searching, hoping, praying, and awaiting her safe return.

because she said so...

Have you ever taken that dare trip down to the supermarket with your ever curious little ones who forever have ants in their pants?
While I was surfing around looking at other moms' blogs last week, I finally found strength to continue my mission as SAHM, even if it means I have to be alone out there once in a while, grocery shopping with my kids.

Meet Dawn Meehan, my inspiration to be a better mom.

After having read her ebay listing or rather an account of her recent trip to the supermarket - which by the way has earned her plenty of fame, job offers and most importantly thunderous applause from moms all over the world and thereby making her the spokewoman for all moms, grocery shopping suddenly becomes a less daunting task.

And the next time before I erupt with anger, when my children attempt to do art pieces out of their meals on the table , I should instead learn how to take a few deep breaths and think about just what Dawn might write on her blog today, and then smile! That will certainly make my day easier and less whiny.

2nd morning without the kids...

For a change, I decided to stay at home and do nothing. Alan dropped the kids off at school this morning. Yeah, he'll be gone for the next two days (full time, only be back late at night to sleep). So I've gotta be dropping off/picking up the kids anyway. Why not enjoy a morning of doing nothing now?

Ok... I'm not exactly a bum here... I need to do laundry, prepare lunch boxes for the kids for the next two days, go get some tights for Kristin and some new jackets for the kids. Ermm... wow! That's a lot for doing nothing on a lazy morning, huh?

I think I'd better get going...

back to the list..

Ok... I also organised the kids' toys after they went to bed. Only a wee bit. But yeah! That's actually 4 things off my list today. FOUR!

first day in pre-school...

While it's just back to school on the first day for Bryan this year, it really is Kristin's first day in school today. Attending school first time ever!

After a whole year of practice of going to school - Kristin comes with me to school every day when I drop Bryan off - and watching her brother attend school, Kristin walked into her classroom on her first day with much confidence and enthusiasm. Not a single tear, while the rest of her classmates were crying their eyes out! We had the shortest first day as parents. We really did just drop her off and that was it!

In the meantime, I went to my gym, had lunch with Alan and did some toiletries - well, not exactly groceries - shopping between 9 am and 2 pm! Hey, wasn't I good? Already three things off my list! Haha!

By the time I returned to pick the kids up, they refused to leave. Yeah... first day of school and not leaving it! After much coaxing and bribing (marshmallows if they went home with me), we finally left school only at 2.50 pm!

Kristin fell straight asleep in the car before I even hit the main road on our way home.

So how did she do today?
Her teacher said Kristin was excellent! She was a great teacher's helper. She helped to bring toys to the other kids who were crying, hoping that she could distract them. She sat down and listened to stories and punctutated the story-telling session with her occasional "Look!" Actually, I was surprised that she even spoke.

She had her snack and ate her lunch alright, made a new friend - Debbie, and did some colouring.

After dinner, she was pounding on me like a mad puppy while I was lounging on the couch, watching Daddy play Wii. She told me, "Come, Mom. Let's go! Let's go to school!" So need I say more on how much she loves school now?

the night before...

Tomorrow's gonna be a big day for the kids.

It's the first day of the school year for Bryan and it's the FIRST DAY of school for Kristin.

Yay! And finally, my day has come. Yap, mine! Finally, I can drop the kids off at school and have some time off from 9am to 2pm every day! At last, I can have a life! Previously, I was just a home-bound slave. Even though Bryan had been attending school here for a year already, I was still mostly stuck at home in the morning with Kristin.

So here are some things that I have in mind to accomplish, while the kids are in school every day:
1. Go to the gym, sauna, steambath and take good care of myself.
2. Do groceries, without kids on tow.
3. Sort the wardrobe: for the seasons, to give away, or to dump. Can you imagine I haven't been able to do this since we moved to Frankfurt in Nov 2005?
4. Sort the kids' toys. Messy!
5. Reorganise the store-room, basement storage. This one's gonna be tough work. Ok, basement? Am not too sure if I wanna be there on my own. I've seen rats scurrying around before.
6. Reorganise the contents in the kitchen cabinets. Throw out the expired stuff.
7. Sort the kids' books. Very Messy!
8. Start a family scrapbook. Got the materials, just need to have the time to do it.
9. Meet friends for brunch without the kids. Yippee!
10. Go get my eyebrows shaped! See, I can't possibly do this with the kids running around in Body Shop.
11. Make an appointment with the GP for flu jab and another appointment with an orthopedist to check my cracking left shoulder. Not due to old age, but due to prolonged carrying of baby/toddler in one arm, while I have to manhandle a mischievous preschooler who sometimes doesn't want to get into the car or do 1001 things with the other arm like cook, wash dishes, do laundry and fold clothes, carry grocery bags etc.
12. See Frankfurt, visit the Goethe's Haus, check out some museums. Can you believe it? I have been living in Frankfurt for almost 2 years and I hardly know this place. Yay, I can visit the book fair in October on my own!
13. Ask my husband out for a lunch date once in a while, hurrah!
14. Clean the toilets/bathrooms the way I like to. Somehow the Putzfrau doesn't get it quite right.
15. Errrmm, do nothing! Dolce niente! That is also good, isn't it?
16. Reorganise the digital photos. My photos are everywhere. My hard disk, Alan's portable hard disk, my portable hard disk and our common portable hard disk. Boy, if only one could actually see this virtual mess spilled over 4 hard disks...!
17. Blogging... hee, as if I haven't already spent lots of time here.
18. Buy myself a book and read. It's been a long time since I read for my own pleasure. The last time... ermm, before Bryan was born, oh my!
19. Go shopping/window-shopping! Haha... just doing my job: Alan earns, I spend!
20. Get a label machine. How can I not have one if I want to get organised?

Not exactly in any order of priority, just whatever that comes into my mind right now.
So... we'll see where the list gets me to in a couple of months' time.

our new friend...

Since last month, we've got an addition to our family.

It's Wii!

Not only is Bryan hooked on it, so are Daddy and Mommy. The only person feels left out most of the time is, unfortunately, Kristin. Being the youngest one, she's yet come to learn how to maneuver with the wii-mote. So far, the whole family has had so much fun doing Wii Sports together. Oh boy, Bryan's a natural when it comes to bowling. I get to play baseball for the 1st time. Ever! And finally, I have someone to play tennis with.

And whoever says that video games get in the way of learning? Try Big Brain Academy! It really is a bad idea to play Big Brain after the kids are in bed. We find that we are too alert to go to sleep at 2 o'clock in the morning!

terrible 2's?

I've been reading quite abit on how this is affecting alot of my mommy friends right now...
When did this exactly happen for Kristin???

I think it all started out when she mastered the magic word "No!". Now when was that??? I think it didn't take her long after her 1st birthday to say "no" since she's always getting a daily dose from her big brother.

Yikes... how long more???

yay, school, yay!

After a shower before bedtime, Kristin couldn't contain her excitement about school in front of her Daddy any longer. She kept cheering, "Yay, school, yay!" Yeah, after all, she's been practising going to school for the past year but never got to attend it every morning when we dropped Bryan off.

At the school's open house this morning, she was brimming with self-confidence when I left her in her new classroom with her teachers, as I had to accompany Bryan to his class to meet his new teachers. I really wished I could split myself into halves!

Kristin's been delirious whenever she gets to put on her backpack. Maybe she identifies herself with Dora in that way better? Or maybe she just can't wait to "wreak havoc" in school with her older brother. In the past, it was so easy to get her to get dressed after lunch. I just had to mention, "Quick, let's go! We've gotta go to school to pick Bryan up!" I could really see her eyes sparkle. Yeah, and nowadays, she'll drag me, "Quick, Mom. Let's go!"
"Where to, my dear?"
"Let's go!" She just wants to be out of the house... And school is about right for her.

I think I remember going through this stage with Bryan. And the first complete sentence my son mastered even before he turned 18 months was "I want to go!" said with utter urgency.

the fat cat sat on the mat, the finale...

This is Day 5 of "The Fat Cat sat on the Mat".

Bryan completed the whole reader with me, reading about 80% of it all by himself! The other 20% he insisted on parroting me.

Wow! I was impressed!

Ok, on some occasions, I think his memory served as a great aid to his reading as I've read the book to him before. But really, I've not read the book to him more than 5 times, I guess. So it wouldn't be right to say that he read it out of his memory. Also, I think Bryan's a natural when it comes to rhyming. So, when he got "room", he got "broom" too, not forgetting "wish", "dish", "fish". And because we talk so much nonsense day in day out, and he orders and commands his sister what she ought and ought not to do, "So get off the mat!" wasn't much of a challenge to him. When he got "get", he immediately completed it with "off".

Anyway, I'm definitely rejoicing over my a-little-less-than-a-week-of-"hard"-work... We are now one baby step closer to literacy! :D