A Place of Happiness & Sadness...

My Charlene...

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 09:10:00 +0000

Charlene is 20 months now. And she is completely toilet trained, including the nite. Mommy is very proud of her, but it's rather tiring. Sometimes, I gotta wake up 2 to 3 times a nite to bring her to the toilet. Sometimes, she will only go once. She will wake up and go "urine urine urine!" That will certainly wake me up. Or rather make me jump out of bed. hahaha... I dun wanna get wet with urine!

Charlene loves dancing and singing. She will sing in the car, sing while playing. She has superb pronunciation of words. She loves people to hug her and praise her. She simply loves the attention.

Charlene is going for Shichida method class every Sunday. Sometimes, it's mommy going for class with her. Sometimes it's daddy going for class with her, cos her class is at the same time as Aloysius. She will be with another teacher on Friday from next term. She missed two lessons at the beginning of this term due to the teacher's absence, and I believe that it does make a difference in her development. I gotta work on her interests in flashcards individually. And gotta buck up on her linking memory.

Charlene is good in sharing. She will give in to Bernice or Aloysius sometimes. She will ask "Where ge ge?", "Where Bernice?" when she cannot find them. She loves to play with Thomas and princess. She loves reading too. She will take out the big picture books that I bought for them and ask my helper to read.

Charlene is a very happy girl. She smiles and laughs easily. She will giggle when Bernice plays peek-a-boo with her. She's indeed my wonderful child.

My Bernice...

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 08:42:00 +0000

Bernice is 20 months now. She was toilet trained at 18 months, but now... back to diapers at nite. Diaper free during the day already. Occasionally, still urine in her shorts. But I am sure she will be off diapers completely very soon.

Mommy brings Bernice for Shichida method class every Thursday. She enjoyed going for class very much. She just changed teacher this term. She adapted to it pretty well though. Bernice is attentive in class most lessons and can complete all the activities given by the teacher. She's quite vocal and has a strong personality. She's speaking sentences already. For example, "Mommy can I have some milk please.", "I want mommy bao bao.", " I want raisins/ bread/ biscuits." She can recognise colors and shapes! And she's excellent in linking memory too. She will follow me when I teach her how to say in class.

Bernice likes singing very much. She can sing many songs now. She loves listening to songs of different languages. When we are in the car, she will sit quietly and listen to either Sawako story or songs.

She's an active gal too. Recently, she's having fun in pulling the toilet tissue in the toilet. She is "ransacking" the cupboards in the kitchen too. But she will put them back after taking them out.

Bernice loves to draw. I was surprised that she can hold the pencil and pens in the proper way. A few days ago, when I brought her with me for Aloysius' meet-the-parents session, the teacher gave her some toys to keep her occupied. But the toys can only keep her interest for a while. Then she started to teacher's pen to draw. So the teacher gave her a piece of paper, crayons and color pencils to draw. Drawing or writing kept her interest for quite some time. I will find more time with her to teach her how to draw horizontal, vertical, circles to start with.

Bernice loves her flashcards sessions very much too. Everytime when I ask "Do you want flashcards?" She will go "Yes." and off she goes to sit on the sofa for "flashcards position".

She's a wonderful and happy girl.

A few days ago, Charlene was playing and hurt herself. Charlene cried "pain, pain!" Guess what Bernice did... She ran to the bathroom, then came running out again towards Charlene, took her hand and stroke her hand while saying "bar bar bar". hahaha... She actually went to the bathroom to get my bar and came out applying for Charlene! It was so funny... She learnt fast indeed! hahaha...

That's all for now about Bernice... Let me write about Charlene next...

My Aloysius...

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 05:19:00 +0000

I am supposed to go to KL with the family this weekend. But I have lost my passport :( I gotta wait till Monday when the High commissioner is open to apply for a new passport. Hopefully it will not be too much trouble, cos I am going to Penang next weekend! Now, left me home alone by myself. So I got time to blog... hahaha... Not so bad too, ya? :p

I can only imagine the stay at Darby Park suites, the visit to KLCC, the visit up on the sky bridge, etc.

Ok la... I cannot be doing nothing rite? I better work hard on myself over this weekend then...

While replying my emails, I just thought of a very funny incident that I will share with you now. Be prepared to laugh your heads off, or find it disgusting... either way...

Two weeks ago, I brought all the kids for shopping at Robinsons. It was a members' nite hence it's very crowded. We queued up at the cashier for quite some time. The cashier was near a fitting room. Aloysius, Bernice and Charlene were playing near the fitting room. And Aloysius saw a salesgal with lots of pimples on her face. He went up to her and without hesitation with lots of excitement, and said "Lots of pimples, must use bar!" He repeated it a few times! My helper and I heard him. I did not know where to hide my face. hahaha... I did not teach him that lots of pimples need to use bar. Probably he learnt it from one of the functions that I brought him to. I will bring him to my business functions sometimes to give him some exposure. But very rarely now cos he cannot sit down quietly.

hmm... How to "teach" him to be able to sit quietly? Any suggestions?

I haven't got time to read up on that yet. He seems to be in another stage of development. His teachers feedback that he's very active in class. He will be walking around during class time and snack time. He learnt things very fast though. Although he's walking around, he's still listening to his teachers.

I started sending him for Kamome Japanese classes this term. Since it's half price cos he's attending the kindergarten, so might as well. However, I might have to withdraw him after he finishes this term. His teacher recommended that he's not suitable for the class cos he's disturbing due to his activeness. Plus the class is for 4 and above. hmm... The Japanese class teacher is cannot be strict to the students in order to make lessons fun and enjoyable. Ok... I dunno what to comment. Afterall he's still a kid. I cannot educate him when I do not even know what happened. And he gotta be educated that what he did was not appropriate. The week before the coordinator called me up, something happened in class. I heard from his Shichida method teacher that she heard lots of noise from the Jap class that lesson. Aloysius started the "chaos" that the teacher could not control, cos the other boys in class followed his shouting and jumping. There are 3 other boys in class too. 4 boys shouting and jumping with excitement in class! Probably the teacher was stressed out. We sat down over a discussion with his Shichida Method teacher and the Kamome program manager. The decision was to let him finish up the lessons for the term. On my side, I am repeatedly telling him to sit down quietly in class when teacher is teaching, and also listening to teacher's instructions. Hopefully by the end of the term, he is being accepted again. His Shichida Method teacher reckons that he do not know the expectations in the class, hence the "misbehaviour". Afterall, young children do not know what is "good" or "bad" until you tell them.

I just signed up music classes for Aloysius too. It's a foundation to musical instruments. And also I signed myself up for 4 trial classes of violin and 4 classes of guitar :) I will bring Aloysius into the violin and guitar classes. We will start the lessons next week. If he likes it, I will sign up for the next term. I was told that the 4 classes of violin is enough for us to know how to play "twinkle twinkle little stars"! It sounds cool. I am looking forward to that. These 3 classes are back to back on Saturday! Yeah! Something new and interesting...

Ok... I better go and get things done... I can go on and on forever... Later all...

Visit to the chicken farm.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:56:00 +0000

This is the third time that Aloysius visited a chicken farm. This time, when we visited the chicks were only 3 days' old. Aloysius enjoyed chasing after the chicks and catching them. He enjoyed catching some chicks to the water and food trying to feed them.

This is Bernice's second time at the chicken farm. She enjoyed chasing after the chicks and driving them to a corner. She's not ready to catch the chicks on her own yet though.

Charlene was very tired when we were at the chicken farm. She was waken up in the middle of her nap, so she wanted to be carried throughout. She managed to hold a chick though.

Aloysius was the only boy among 5 girls. hahaha... Look at his face! It looks like the girls are chasing after him.

Charlene and Bernice loves sitting inside the wooden tub. They played inside it for quite a while. Climbing in and out many times. They have very sweet smiles, haven't they?

Project work by child and parents.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:48:00 +0000

It's now the school holidays. On the last day of school, we were given the chance to do a project presentation with Aloysius. It was a last minute decision for us on the topic to present cos daddy and mummy had been busy. When the teachers asked me if we were going to present anything, I was a bit hesitant to say yes. hahaha... Well, it turned out excellent!

Daddy did a powerpoint presentation about "My family" with Aloysius. Mommy accompanied Aloysius to sing with the microphone. Aloysius chose the song himself. He chose "yue liang dai biao wo de xin". It was an enjoyable evening with presentations of other children and parents.

My ABC in Nov09.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:44:00 +0000

Busy with happy children!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:02:00 +0000

Hello bloggers!

Very long time since I wrote last. Hope all of you are doing very well like me :)

I have been very busy, but very happy with my happy children. I have been busy with my exponentially growing business. The teething problems in the beginning has been more or less sorted out. This is why I have not been blogging regularly. Don't worry, I have not forgotten about you...

Aloysius is very happy attending Shichida Kindergarten. His teachers like him a lot. Even the aunty who does all the cooking also likes him a lot. When I pick him up from school, his teachers and the aunty frequently tell me that they like him a lot. Of course, as his mother, I am very happy :) Aloysius will greet them in the morning too. He loves to go to school. I do not really know what he was taught exactly. I trust that he's well taught in school.

Bernice and Charlene are growing very well too. They are almost toilet trained now. They are 16 months old now. They will tell aunty when they want to urine or poo during the day time. Last week when we went out, when we were in the car, Charlene told aunty that she wanted to urine. Oops... She got no choice but to urine in the diaper. hmm... mommy here kinda dread the outing and night toilet training :p It will mean lots of waking up on my part to bring them to the toilet, plus the night feeds. Faintz...

Bernice and Charlene can also sing a few songs. They can sing "twinkle twinkle little star", "ke ren lai", "ABC", and one Japanese song. Sometimes, when they are well rested, they will wake up and sing on the bed. It's really very cute to hear them sing. Sometimes, Charlene will dance too. Sometimes when they listen to Sawako in foreign languages, they will try to imitate Sawako :) This morning, Charlene imitated her "san ee" when she was talking on the phone. She went "hello, ba ba ba ba ba..." hahaha...

Ok gotta go... Charlene wakes... later all...

Photos time!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 01:34:00 +0000

Aloysius' birthday party in school. Everyone has a party hat and a souvenir for the party.

Photo time with his dedicated teachers. These are most of his schoolmates in the morning session.

Bernice and Charlene sitting on a bench under a big tree, enjoying some natural sweet berries from the tree.

Aloysius enjoying running around in the padi field, and throwing stones into the "drain". It was a very hot day though.

Aloysius, Bernice and Charlene sitting on the table in a Thai restaurant before lunch was served. Everyone was so hungry after visiting the padi fields and the fisherman village.

Penang!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:50:00 +0000

We just came back from a trip to Penang for 4 days. It was Bernice and Charlene first trip on the flight. They were very good gals on the flight. Aloysius sat through the journey. They were all very excited about getting on the aeroplane when we reached the airport early in the morning.

Aloysius, Bernice and Charlene love it when we reached my aunt's place. There's a big space for them to run around, plus a big playground directly outside the house. The playground is easily 5 times the playground that we have downstairs. They went wild like being set free from a cage! They enjoyed themselves thoroughly everyday. There are a few brothers and sisters to play with them and look after them too :) That relieve me to chat with my cousins and talk about business in peace. kekeke... They ate sweet and juicy natural mangoes plucked from the tree just beside the house everyday. Yummy...

My cousins, nieces and nephews absolutely enjoyed playing with my ABC.

On the first day of our arrival, me and hubby went to Arthur's BIG house at Batu Ferringi. We went without the kids :) We went durian "hunting" around Batu Ferringi area. We were in a big group of about 28 people from Singapore. We achieved a certain level and were being invited to Arthur's house warming. I did not realise there's so much to know about durians! Do you know there are branded durians? Just like we have branded bags like LV, Gucci... What about the art of eating durians? wow... An eye opener for me, or rather a mouth opener. The D24 that we talk about in Singapore is no where near. The super branded ones need to be booked in advance some more! Geesh... never did I know there's so much about branded durians! We finished all the durians at the stall we went, and divert other cars that wanna stop. hahaha... Of course, Arthur foot the bill :p

When we reached his house, I was in awe. I finally get to see his 9 walls that cost RM100,000 each. You know what, even the durian seller knows that he stays there and his car plate number. His house is really a dream home which everyone will want to own. It's among the hustle and bustle of Batu Ferringi, just opposite Shangri La hotel, but still has the serenity when in the compound of his home. It's the largest house in Batu Ferringi. The house has full sea view. At one part of the house, there's nature with cooling breeze. He showed us the corner with the sunset during sunset. He's going to build a wooden pavillion at that corner. Imagine reading a book or just sitting there to relax during the beautiful golden sunset. I noticed a ship passing by during sunset, and it turned golden in colour. Very beautiful scene...

I love his waterfall too! It's real granite stones! His property sits on a hill with big granite stones! The waterfall cannot be copied, so it's the one and only one.

I was impressed with the crystals chandeliers, and the hand made bronze glass lamps around the compound of the property. Beautiful... and amazing...

Arthur gave us a small talk about living our dreams, and the opportunity to own a dream home like his. It really expanded our mind and horizon.

My dreams is more concrete now. Do you have a dream?

Gotta go...

Five, four, four, one, one.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Tue, 26 May 2009 01:56:00 +0000

You must be wondering what is the significance of five, four, four, one, one :) haha... 5 digits for you to choose to buy 4D and sure strike ;) hahaha...

Ok, let's come to the main point :)

I just attended SAB convention at Expo last Saturday. The convention benefited me and my group a lot. I am glad that I attended with a big group :) I am sure this convention will change the life of everyone who spent their time to attend the convention for the better. It was an inaugural convention in Singapore. During the convention, many had their mind expanded. hmm... You might be thinking what is it to expand our mind. If you want to grow to the next level, you need to expand your mind. Your mind is like your muscles. The more you allow it to be expanded, the more it will grow and the stronger it will get. In SAB, I have a coach who will expand my mind and my horizon every time I meet him.

During the convention, Arthur showed us his "house" that took years to "renovate". His house really looks like a castle with all the 9 hand arranged granite walls. Just the cost of one of his walls, we can buy a Mercedes! The house sits on a hill top at Batu Ferringgi with sea facing all around! The interior is very beautiful with hand picked crystals chandelier. I also noticed the leather sofa. Those sofa really look not cheap. I was in awe looking at the photos. I cannot wait to go to his house on 7 June 2009 for his house warming :) I am proud that I qualify to go to his house already. I want to bring 5-10 people from my group to go to his beautiful house in Penang. I shall see if I can bring Aloysius along too. I want to give him the exposure that I am having now. He also shared how happy his 4 children are now. I also want to give my children this kind of happiness. It's a different level, Arthur always says. It's a bit chim though, but slowly I am starting to see what he means by "a different level". In SAB, it seems like the top leaders are not interested in cars at all. Cars is just a means of travelling everywhere, can take many people to functions, and most importantly, can contain many cartons of the facial bars for the day. All are going for boats and yatchs! hahaha... Arthur's influence. It's a "different level" of achievement, I guess. In the last seminar, Arthur showed me a catalog for boats. They are very beautiful. I was like "wow"!

Ok, I better stop writing about Arthur's house, else I will be going on and on. Health time now.

Five, four, four, one, one:
At the convention, we had the honour of having Dr. Wong from Sydney to present to us about health and the microalgae that we have in all our products range. To see Dr. Wong in Sydney, you will need to book him 3 months in advance! When he was speaking, I was not really listening to him 100% :p I was preparing for my speech. I have been very busy to even sit down to prepare for my speech. I gonna speak to about 400 people! On top of that, I have a group of supporters and coachees! It's different from speaking at T. Harv Eker seminars! Because whatever I say up on stage now will matter and impact my people. I am a person who don't like to talk a lot. Worse if it's on stage! I have no choice in SAB. I gotta become a speaker else how to lead a big group of people? My coach always tells me. Ok, on the positive side. When my ABC can sit through for a few hours, I will bring them for conventions and seminars and presentations to give them the exposure that mommy and daddy also can lead the masses from the stage :)

Back to 5,4,4,1,1.
I managed to catch these numbers. It's a rule of our daily diet. It means 5 cups of vegetables, 4 cups of fruits, 4 colours, 1 cup of nuts, 1 cup of seafood. This is a healthy diet. 1 cup of seafood here refers to only seafood without shells, seafood with scales. What is it? It's none other than fish! He recommended fishes like tuna and salmon. hmm... looking at the recommendation, I am proud that my ABC are in line with this diet, but I gotta increase the fruits part. And introduce fish to Bernice and Charlene when they turn 18 months.
hmm... I will slowly introduce meat to Aloysius in view that he will need to eat for entertainment sometimes when he grows up. Last month, when we had satay at home, he wanted to have a stick too. So, I gave one to him. He only had a bite and threw it away. Maybe the taste is too strong for his liking. Oh yes, if you wanna bribe Aloysius with ice-cream, it will not work. hahaha... My brother bought an ice cream machine and made some ice-cream. My parents tried to get Aloysius to eat ice-cream, but he's not used to it and is not interested in it. Perhaps, a better option to bribe Aloysius is Chloreana and nMA :) Dr. Wong talked about the goodness and benefits of Chloreana, nMA and Fibrena too. I am glad that my ABC love Chloreana, nMA and Fibrena.

Another stream of numbers that I can remember from Dr. Wong's talk is one, two , three. hahaha... I am a number person, maybe that's why I am attracted to these numbers. This one, two, three is how many times you go to the toilet to move your bowels. If you do not go one, two, or three times a day, you are not very healthy.

Ok, I gotta stop here. Going out for appointment soon. Later all.

Leadership for Aloysius?

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 20 May 2009 02:21:00 +0000

Last week, Aloysius' teachers were very impressed with him. Teacher Huimin, Aloysius' Shichida kindy teacher, told me that she got teacher Jane, Aloysius' Shichida method teacher, to help to look after the class for a while. Aloysius was leading the class and could remember all the names of his classmates and introduced his classmates to teacher Jane.

Then, on Sunday, when I saw teacher Jane, she told me that Aloysius was like a monitor for the class. When teacher Jane stepped into the class, all the other children were surprised and stared at her. Then Aloysius went up to teacher Jane and said "Hello teacher Jane." Then Aloysius told the class "This is teacher Jane, say hello". hahaha... He must have been so cute. And all his classmates started to wave and said "hello teacher Jane". Then teacher Jane asked him if he could introduce his classmates to her. Aloysius then introduced all his classmates and names to teacher Jane.

Of course, as a mother, I was delighted to hear that :) I have been wanting him to become a leader :) I do believe in leadership. Leadership is nurtured, it's not born with. I am being forced to become a leader now. And I must do it well to show my kids :) I am very fortunate to be able to learn from 2 fantastic and successful leaders.

Ok gotta go... later all...

Photos time!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Sat, 02 May 2009 03:43:00 +0000

Happiness - Does it exist?

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 10:48:00 +0000

Recently, I have been listening to tapes by John Kehoe. In his view, happiness does not exist. It's in the inner world. We live in two worlds - inner world and outer world. Wah... Chim eh? I also find it chim. kekeke... I am sure there's lots to talk about when it comes to defining "happiness". My definition might not agree with your definition. My definition comes from my life experiences, and my life journey. My definition of happiness might change as I grow wiser too :)

Lately, I have been meeting many with broken marriages. Is it unhappiness that lead to divorces? Probably. hmm... I have a "perfect" family and a "perfect" husband and a "perfect" relationship. Friends around who know both me and my husband will look to us for a "happy" and "ideal" marriage and family. We are like their model for a "perfect" marriage and family life. In the beginning when I met divorcee, I thought "Is the universe telling me to watch out my own marriage? Will I end up like them?" I was a little bit shaken and lost. But not for long, luckily. After meeting a handful, I felt that the universe is sending me a message to strengthen my relationship with my husband further and be able to help others and be their role model. :) I will continue to be the role model for others and at a higher level.

Ok, let me go into something not so "chim" ya? I am excited to update about my ABC.

Aloysius is very happy in Shichida kindergarten. His weekly Shichida method class still goes on. He will continue till he's six years old. Why six? According to Professor Shichida Makoto, one's IQ can only be improved before six years old. Aloysius' daily flashcards session by me is reduced due to my time constraint. I rather reduce it than having too much stress for myself. He still loves his flashcards sessions with me. I will do them on and off when I am more relaxed and have some time. Another thing is that in the kindergarten, he will be shown 300 cards daily. That's a plus point in sending him to this kindergarten. It reduces my flashcards and teaching load a little :) It allows me more time for Bernice and Charlene.

A few days ago, I had a chat with Aloysius teachers at the kindergarten. The teachers came up to me to "complain" to me that Aloysius cannot sit still to eat his snack. hahaha... I told the teacher that for him to sit still to finish his food during meal times, he need to play with something or do some writing. We started to have a chat. By the way, my hubby took Aloysius for appointment first and he left seeing me with his teachers. His teachers told me that he has superb memory. I am also very delighted to hear that he's well liked by all the teachers. His chinese teacher was very impressed that she taught the class a new song, and Aloysius sang the song after she finished. His Shichida method teacher at the kindergarten commented that he has super memory. She taught the class something new and Aloysius knew what was taught to the class immediately, and led the class in the activities. His teachers also mentioned that he was singing Japanese songs in class. Apart from the English and Chinese songs, he has been trying to sing German songs at home too. German language is my favourite, so they get to listen to German songs often at home. His teacher also noticed that he loves red color, and will complete whatever he starts. For example, when he starts singing, he will finish the song first before he will listen to his teacher's instructions. I am glad that he will complete what he starts. This is one of the key to success in life. Aloysius will be a successful and great leader when he grows up :)

I will start swimming lessons for Aloysius soon. No need to go to Ang Peng Siong school at this stage though. Piano classes will start when he turns 4. I believe that his exposure to Shichida classes will nurture him to be able to pick things very fast. With my time contraints, I will concentrate on the Shichida way for now.

At one year old, Bernice is already running and has walked miles. She can recognise shapes - triangle, square and circle. Last week, at her Shichida method class, she surprised me further that she knows colors! In one of the activities, I told her to pick the red, pink and yellow flowers for me and she picked the correct ones for me! Bernice can say papa, mama, ye ye, por por, ge ge, bread, biscuit, that". She will imitate me when I teach her what are the names of the things. Very soon, she will be talking. Bernice loves to go out. She knows that before going out, she will have to wear her shoes. Sometimes, she will want to wear her shoes at home. She simply loves going out. She will want to follow when daddy goes to work. I will bring her down the lift and walk for a while. I do flashcards sessions for Bernice daily too. She prefers pictures and stories more at this stage. As for dots, I still got to figure out how to get her more interested. Probably the cards are too big and my flashing speed is not fast enough. She's a fast and eager learner. Perhaps my "tai jiao" did pay off. Sometimes, when listening to songs, she will go "ti ti ta ta" as if singing togather with the music.

Charlene has very cool personality. When she talks, her pronunciation is accurate. She knows how to say papa, mama, ye ye, por por, ge ge, that, I want. She will wave and say bye bye. Charlene knows what she wants, and will communicate to us persistently till she gets what she wants. She also knows how to bend for a kiss. She's my very sweet girl. Sometimes, she will want to sit in one of the strollers at home inside the house. hahaha... she enjoys wearing her shoes too. I also do flashcards with Charlene daily. She has excellent concentration. She has walked miles too. She loves to explore around the house and also not forgetting the things around the house. Charlene loves it when we says "it's shower time". It means time to play with and splash water! She prefers to shower in the bathroom in my room and will insist on that. Charlene will smile when we say "smile" when taking a photo for her.

I am enjoying their existence. Both the gals will play with each other everyday when Aloysius goes to school. They love hide and seek with each other too. It's lots of fun to see them playing with each other happily and giggling away. They will chase after each other too.

Aloysius is toilet trained, even at night :). He will wake up at night and open the door to walk to the toilet, and even remembers to flush the toilet. It caught me by surprise. I think the key is to keep him dry at night by bringing him to the toilet in the middle of the night. My hubby has been doing this for many months already. Bernice and Charlene is in the toilet training journey already. I am sure they will be toilet trained in no time. Bernice will say "uh oh" when she or Charlene urines on the floor.

Gotta go... later all... Will upload some photos next time :)

Down with Roseola.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 03:11:00 +0000

Charlene was down with Roseola last week. And this week, it's Bernice's turn to be down with Roseola. I brought Charlene to the PD last week though. Cos Charlene's fever went very high and came down very low again. hmm... The effects of the medication is still inside her :( The PD asked me if Charlene was cranky. She was fine. But the PD keep telling me that she will be cranky due to the itchiness and discomfort of the rashes. I did not find Charlene cranky. What I did was apply my bar on her. My bar has anti-bacteria, anti-inflammatory properties. Perhaps it did help in curbing the itchiness.

As expected, Bernice is having Roseola now. I did the same for her. Feed her nMA, Chloreana. And apply the bar on her on and off. The only place that I did not apply is the head. This morning, Bernice was trying to scratch her head and a little bit cranky. She's fine after her shower. I use the bar to shower all of them.

Aloysius, Bernice and Charlene indeed love nMA and Chloreana! Bernice and Charlene can recognise the packaging for them! When my mum was holding the big bottle of Chloreana, Bernice and Charlene rushed to her and asking for some. hahaha...

Despite giving them supplements on and off, they still fall sick. I guess I just gotta be more consistent in giving them nMA to build up their immunity now. I have been quite complacent about their immunity, hence forgot to feed them when I was busy. I don't think I will delegate the feeding of nMA to the maid. It's too good and expensive to waste even a little. There's once when she threw away my nMA by mistake.

It's really not easy to take care of three. Really need lots of time and patience. When I looked after one part of their development, I overlook another part of their development. This time I overlooked their immunity. Hopefully all of them will be well togather again. Sometimes, I told myself that I only have a pair of hands, a pair of eyes. hmm... Am I putting limitations on my abilities? :p Perhaps...

Today, I have decided to have some rest :) I need to rest a little to have a clearer mind for more great things to come by :) Aloysius went to school, Bernice and Charlene are having their nap. And me typing here. Good or good?

Well, my packed and useful morning is gone for today :) Every morning, I will dedicate time for my ABC to show them flashcards. This morning, I had a writing session with Aloysius instead. Both of us enjoyed it very much. I was surprised at how well he can draw and write now. I spoke to Aloysius's teacher yesterday. At the kindergarten, the kids will be shown 300 flashcards daily. The cards shown to them are arranged and given by the Shichida Method teacher. That lighten my teaching role a little :)

I am looking forward to the parents' class. Bernice and Charlene will be starting their Shichida Method classes in April 09 :)

Shichida kindergarten.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 16:19:00 +0000

It's marketed as a "mini university". hmm... perhaps.
I would say they are more settled than the first few weeks. The teachers know what to do now.
Aloysius still loves to attend school. He only has 5 other classmates. It is small, but is good for him. I hope this small group will last longer. hahaha... So take your time to search around ok? Don't join SK so soon :p The teachers in the nursery classes and K1 classes also know the kids in the Pre-N class. There's a close bonding between the kids and teachers. Aloysius now know how to remove and wear his shoes on his own. He feeds himself in school. I know these are nothing fantastic to talk about. He knows all his teachers. Some of his classmates were toilet trained by the teachers. They get to play with all the IQ genius, noddy fun book, etc from the Tensai shop everyday. I was thinking even if I buy all those games from Tensai, I might not have the time to play togather with Aloysius. I am glad that the playing and teaching of those IQ games were outsourced to his teachers :) kekeke... Oh yes, I had a taste of doing homework with him last weekend! It takes a lot of discipline for mommy here to get the homework done.
Two days ago, I asked his Shichida method teacher in the kindergarten about his progress. I was told to let him play more playdoh and expose him more to writing. This is something that I will start working on. I gotta strengthen his fingers. hmm... I remember from Glen Doman books, brachiation is good for writing too. Since mommy here haven't been very successful in brachiation, I gotta find some other ways. Any suggestion? His language is fine though.
Ok, I think I better stop here. I am not in the mood to write... No deep feelings to write about... :) I better go and prepare the flashcards for tomorrow. Good night...

Charlene is a toddler!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 16:12:00 +0000

At ten and a half months, Charlene finally got the courage to walk on her own. She has been walking for 2-3 steps for a while already, and today she walked many steps. She's now a toddler!

My mistake.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 15:36:00 +0000

I made a terrible mistake by giving Charlene a suppository for fever in desperation :( We spent part of our CNY in KKH. I had a few sleepless nights. The medication worked too well for her till her fever became hypothermia. It's really my fault for not checking out more about the medication and not thinking more before giving it to her. Her temperature went down to 34.5degC. Her cries were weak. She was sweating throughout the journey back, and her whole body was cold. She refused to drink water and was sleeping all the time. At that time, we were in Muar visiting relatives. We rushed back and went straight to KKH emergency, and ended up spending 3 days in the hospital. Luckily, there's no traffic jam at the causeway. It was not a pleasant experience for sure. It hurt me to see her being poked for blood test and intravenous drip. The houseman did not get the intravenous drip right the first time. Charlene cried weakly with tears, and I could not do anything to help her. Then her urine gotta be drawn for testing to see if it's UTI. Anyway, she was given anti-biotics for both lung and urine infection, even before the tests results were out. I find it not so logical having to stay in the hospital just to wait for the tests results, and the report will take a long 48 hours. She was uncomfortable with the drips on her foot. She kicked and rubbed her feet. The drip came off with lots of blood everywhere the bed :( Luckily, the intravenous anti-biotics could be switched to oral ones. That saved her another round of pain.

Mommy here gotta be able to withstand the stress from people around us in times when the kids are not well, and stay calm to be able to think properly.

From this incident, I can see that Aloysius and Bernice are understanding and can be quite independent without mommy. While I stayed in the hospital all the time with Charlene, Bernice and Aloysius were taken care of by my mum and maid. Both daddy and mommy spent a few nights in the hospital togather with Charlene. I am glad that they are very understanding children. They slept when tired and played when awake. Everyday, I will spend some time with Aloysius and Bernice, though it's short. But they were happy kids for the rest of the day.

Aloysius, Bernice and Charlene.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 16:49:00 +0000

I just cannot fall asleep now. Maybe it's due to the chinese tea I had during dinner with a friend from America. Or could be due to the excitement about how to bring my business to the next level after meeting Nicholas. I still remember my promise of giving him a Mercedes S class, just by dropping the key in his letter box as a gift of appreciation. I believe that I will achieve it in 2009 with the bars business.

I am doing this for my ABC too. As all parents do, I want to be able to give them the "best" in life. "Best" is perceived by us depending on our experiences and ability and levels we have achieved in life. What is "best" for your children for you? It might be different from my "best". I want to achieve wealth in the blood. I remember Nicholas telling me about giving our children the taste of luxury of life, then letting them decide whether they want the luxury and if they want, they will work for it. His philosophy is that without tasting luxury, one do not know what is luxury and do not even know it exists. It's different if one haven't tasted the luxury of life. I am not brought up in a very rich family. I have not tasted the luxury of life before. After knowing Nicholas, Arthur, and being with my cousins who are rich now, it broaden my horizon. I started to see a bigger picture of life. I have tasted chinese tea that cost more than $2,000 per pot. I am indeed very blessed that I have someone who has really made it in life to go to for advice.

Ok.. gotta go and settle Charlene. All 3 have been sick for a week.

Proud mommy!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:59:00 +0000

Ok. Now I have some time to write. Later I gonna read my Shichida's books to gain more insight and solutions for my current challenges.

It's past midnite now, a few hours ago was my birthday :) The day before, we had a small celebration at home. Aloysius helped to fix the candles on the candle sticks and poke them on the cake. The first 2 candles were poked in with too much strength. Aloysius learnt to control his strength subsequently :) He sang me a complete birthday song too :) And he helped me to blow the candles. His candles blowing skill has improved tremendously also. I enjoyed every moment of the celebration.

Bernice can walk at 9 months old! I am so proud that she can actually walk 8 steps tonite. A week ago, she started to make 1 tiny step. When we were in Bali, she started to fall in love with standing. I can see that Bernice is someone who will not be afraid to try anything. I hope this energy will stay with her for life. Never try never know. Just fricking do it!

Charlene is able to see through at least 100 flashcards in a session. She has very good concentration span. When she found something new, she will sit there and explore on her own too. She likes exploring with her fingers. She can even pinch (using her thumb and pointer) on something and put into her mouth.

Every morning, I will do flashcards sessions for my ABC. So, if there's any phone calls in the morning, I will probably not pick up, cos I am usually very busy. I have to finish the flashcards sessions by 10am daily, and start to get ready to send Aloysius to school. I do separate flashcards sessions for all of them since their attention span are different.

Aloysius simply loves going to school. He likes his teachers too. His journey going to school is very interesting everyday. He will walk to the MRT station with me. Along the way he will explore things and look at the vehicles passing by. For example, today he heard the siren of an ambulance and the siren of a fire engine, then he saw two ambulances, mini buses, small van, big van, etc. Mommy here sometimes is confused on the names of the vehicles. hahaha... Today he explored the leaves too. On Monday, he saw dog's poo on the pavement. There's so much to learn about his environment. I am very happy that I am there to teach him when his interests is there.

The feedback from the parents who stayed in the class was that Aloysius is very independent. When we reach school, he will run to his classroom. I will help him to put his bag in the cupboard, then say goodbye to him. He will wave goodbye to me and start to play with the things in the classroom. The teacher assistant will bring him to the toilet during class time. He had an "accident" on the second day of school. It's probably his English teacher did not know what he was talking about when he says "urine". Aloysius does not understand "shee shee" for urine. The teachers are getting to know the kids better. I think Aloysius is well liked by the teachers and staffs in the school. As long as Aloysius is happy in the school, I am happy :) One of the target for Shichida kindergarten for 3 years old is to be able to count 1 to 150. So far, Aloysius know 1 to 100 already. This will be a new challenge for him. The teachers will not be concentrating in phonics. I think they will be concentrating on words recognition. Aloysius already know his alphabets well, both capital and small letters, plus the sound of the letters. The most recent addition for his speed reading cards are keywords from the stories :) I am hoping that he will recognise more words. He can recognise the words of the categories of his flashcards already. I am not very sure if it's necessary to teach him spelling though I have already started a little. He has one classmate at Shichida Method who knows how to spell very well. This classmate's mum can mix up the letters of a word and she will be able to arrange the letters to form the word! It's really amazing! She's barely 3 years old.

I am still procrastinating on going to the library to borrow books about nature to read to him. Aloysius now knows that getting dark, sunny days, raining, lightning, thunder, etc. are all nature. And mommy cannot control nature. I would love to read about why it gets dark, why the sun comes out in the morning, why there's rain, why there's lightning and thunder, etc. to him. I still yet to find the time to go to the library to do some research.

Aloysius went to school.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 00:08:00 +0000

Yesterday was Aloysius’ first day in school. You must be wondering which school he is attending. Well, mommy here did not visit many schools before deciding. I only put him on waitlist at Nanyang kindergarten and his waitlist number is above 200. I think there’s not much hope there. Then new Shichida kindergarten was being planned. I did not have time to attend the Shichida Kindergarten opening talk by Mrs. Khoo, so I called Mrs Wong a few times in December to ask about how it is going to be like. After some survey and feedback, I narrowed down to either Mindchamps childcare or Shichida kindergarten. I visited these two. On 30 Dec 08, we visited Shichida Kindergarten at Tanjong Pagar. Then we visited both Mindchamps and Shichida Kindergarten at Toa Payoh on 31 Dec 08. hee… a bit last minute rite? I was quite particular of the food Aloysius will be given in class. I looked through the menu, and I will prefer the one at Shichida Kindergarten. I am not for too much meat, food with preservatives, and the highly processed food.

When we were visiting Shichida Kindergarten, we met Mrs. Khoo. I had a chat with her. I could feel her passion and confidence in the Shichida Kindergarten. I paid and left. I learnt quite a lot from her on parenting. She’s a mother of 4. Probably when I have more time, I will write about what I learnt from her. Just a little here. I asked about when to start music classes. She recommends age 4. I also asked her how to cope when all my 3 kids cry at the same time. Hahaha… Sometimes I really lose my cool. She said just say that they are making music together, and the music is beautiful. Another tip is concentrate nurturing the first child and the rest will follow. Hmm… I kinda agree to that yesterday.fv

Ok, back to Aloysius’ first day in school. He was very happy in school. We met the form teacher and I was given a feedback book. Aloysius has 6 other classmates, but only 4 turned up on the first day. I can see Aloysius being a vocal boy in class. He enjoyed the imaginary play room, brainatics room, art room. He also enjoyed his snack! It was mee sua soup, banana and honey lemon drink for Friday.

Ok, I gotta go… Just another brief note. Bernice and Charlene are about 9 months old. They are standing and pushing things to walk. Very soon they will be walking. They are very vocal indeed and dislike it when their things were being snatched away. They are my very happy girls. It’s a very different kind of happiness which I cannot describe having twins. It’s very fun to see them growing up together. In fact, it is more than fun, but I do not know how to describe. Aloysius can play with them sometimes. All 3 of them love to crawl around the house and chasing after one another.

Aloysius, Bernice and Charlene are my precious happy children :)

Trip to Bali.

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 08:41:00 +0000

It has been some time since I wrote. I have been very busy with life. After going through a few courses and coaching, I realized the time I spent online is a form of avoidance for me. I have successfully stop surfing the web daily. On top of that, I do not have much time for surfing the web. Sometimes, I do not even have time for emails.

We just came back from Bali. It was a magical and wonderful experience till I do not feel like coming home already. We went to Bali for my sister’s wedding. It was indeed a magical wedding comes true for her, according to her. Everything was put together nicely and smoothly by her wedding planner. Two nights before the wedding was a big surprise with a night stay in a villa at Bulgari resort. And not forgetting a sumptuous dinner at the restaurant inside the resort. I was pampered with a creatively decorated main course of foie gras and duck breast too, followed by a beautifully decorated dessert. My hubby and I reached the villa when the couple already in the villa. We managed to catch a short moment of a guitarist playing and singing as we entered into the villa. The bathroom is bigger than my room at home! And the bathtub was filled and decorated with sweet scented rose petals and orchids. Wow! It was very romantic indeed. Plus the beautiful scenery of the sea in front of the villa was awesome. Only my sis and her hubby stayed at the Bulgari villa, and the rest went back to B Villa for the night. We left the kids at B Villa when we went to Bulgari resort for dinner. This place is more for couples. My ABC only get to go there for a while when they are checking out the next day. Of course, we remembered to take a family photo.

After checking out from Bulgari resort, we checked into a villa at St. Regis together with my parents. It was about an hour drive away. The wedding ceremony was at St. Regis instead of Bulgari due to the capacity we wanted. We were expecting about 60 very close friends and close relatives at the wedding. The villa is bigger than the one at Bulgari. We were really pampered with the efficient butler service. ABC got to stay there for a night. 5 of us fit comfortably on the super king sized bed. Oh yes, we also tasted the delicious French ice cream at the Gourmet Deli. The villa was big enough with lots of space for Aloysius to run around, and Bernice and Charlene to creep around and explore the new surrounding. They had lots of fun there. Uncle Donald brought Aloysius to the beach to play with the sand and the sea water too. Mommy here did not even get the chance to go to the beach. I was busy with some of the preparation for the wedding the next day. Breakfast at St. Regis was extremely sumptuous. There are dishes like foie gras, sashimi, oyster… gulp… too much for me for breakfast.

The couples got a night’s stay at “Cloud Nine” villa, which is just beside the chapel. They checked into “Cloud Nine” early in the morning. We had all the play on the brothers before proceeding to B Villa for tea ceremony, where most of the relatives were already waiting. After the tea ceremony, we had a treat at Trattoria for lunch. Everything went smoothly.

At about 5pm, the wedding ceremony started in the chapel. The chapel is very nicely located by the beach with 4 sides of see through glass. The chapel is facing the sea, and surrounded with water. It was very beautifully decorated with fresh flowers, and fresh rose petals by the aisle. It was indeed a magical wedding ceremony. Towards the end of the wedding ceremony, the sun started to set. It was wonderful to experience to see the sun setting on the right side of the chapel, and the full moon rising from the left side of the chapel. Wow… It was like experiencing something that I had only read in fairytale.

After the wedding ceremony, there’s an half an hour fire dancing show. Aloysius enjoyed singing and playing with the drums before the start of the show. While the guests were enjoying the show, the tables and buffet line were being set up. The place was being re-decorated for the dinner. It was very beautiful and romantic to have fresh flowers and candles floating on the water.

Overall, the whole wedding was magical, unforgettable and beautiful, though it was the first time for St. Regis Bali to hold such a big wedding. The head chef from France was also there to oversee the buffet spread. The whole trip makes me wanna have a renewal of vow. Not only me, most of my relatives also want to "get married again"!

I think for this kind of feeling for all the guests in a wedding, an excellent wedding planner is needed. My sis dream wedding is created by "Sedan of Love".

Aloysius, Bernice and Charlene enjoyed their stay in Bali as much as we did. Home sweet home…

Celebrate!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 05:05:00 +0000

Just a quick post.

I have been very busy everyday. Hardly have time for the internet. My priority now is check my emails when I have the time to log in. Sometimes, I do not even have enough time for emails. I gotta locked myself in the room to do my things :)

I am a warrior, I do whatever it takes :)
Hee... I went for a warrior camp in October 08 :)

Aloysius is almost potty trained for bed time! For many many many nights, we gotta bring him to the toilet twice a nite to prevent bed wetting. Last nite, we were so tired. Aloysius woke up and said "potty potty potty". Drowsy mommy heard him but ignored him. Then he shouted "urine urine urine". I jumped up the bed! hahaha... Can you imagine the tired and happy and "kan cheong" me jumped up the bed to bring him to the toilet to urine!

Bernice and Charlene are crawling everywhere now. They are also holding to stand. They can let go of holding to anything to stand for a few seconds now. They are exactly 8 months old.

We will be off to Bali in a couple of weeks :) Gotta start packing their things and buying their clothes, shoes, accessories, for er-ee's wedding in Bali and the week after in Raffles hotel back in Singapore.

Ok gotta go... Gonna go out buy lunch for me and maid. And also flashcards sessions for Aloysius. Oh yes, I will be signing up Bernice and Charlene for The Shichida Method too. Aloysius will be going to school starting in Jan09. I am choosing between Nanyang Kindergarten, Mindchamps or Shichida kindergarten. Most likely is going to be Shichida kindergarten. The major downside is it's only 3 hours a day.

ZY passport photo. Which one?

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 05:02:00 +0000

some photos...

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:43:00 +0000

Celebration!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Sunflower) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 18:27:00 +0000

Before I go, Aloysius is toilet trained :) I am very happy of that. He's off diapers at night and during nap time too. There will be some misses on and off. We are still working towards 100% no misses :) But we came a long way already...

Ok gotta go... Gonna bring Aloysius to the potty now...