One Hectic Week!

You know you've been out too much when your 2yo starts asking you "where are you going, mommy?" each night as you put her to bed.

It's sounds like I am the worse mom and I leave my kids at the drop of a coin where in fact, I go out in the evenings only for two occasions. 1) To achieve my weekly groceries and 2) to attend a women's bible study.

This week has been an absolute shocker. We've had nearly all our days full with something to do and achieve. Alas, it is now Friday and I am sitting in front of the coolest wide screen monitor (link to a MacMini, mind you!) and trying out the "mighty mouse" and the Mac-cie-like keyboard that's heaven to touch!! I am now babysitting for a friend while she goes out for a well deserved birthday dinner with her hubby. It took the kids about 30mins to settle but I can somewhat hear the quiet gentle "breathing" of the sleeping ones...

Letitia's had a good week. A week of Ms Willey (See "what I learnt from Ms Willey") being away for a few days due to sickness (thus our Kindy routine was out of sync). A week of finally getting her bronze ribbon and a week of catching up with lots of homework. L also had a few tumbles and bruises (flight of 6 steps) at the school. She's also had a "leak" from not wanting to disturb Ms Willey doing her readers with other kids.

Letitia missed out on a few playground fun because she was happily gobbling up her pasta. We have successfully introduced warm food into her lunch repertoire for school allowing her to eat stuff that is near our "normal" food. Now with fewer messes and more success, she's actually prefering the pastas and rice lunches.

This week, I discovered (it finally "di-i-inged") that Letitia's primary love language is "words of encouragement". She loves words and talk as it makes her happy. She also likes it when people talk to her with interests. I had tested it out and found that I can easily change her persona around by "prepping her up" with uplifting words and positive encouragements. Even when teaching and disciplining her, as long as there is some "good words", we get less tears and drama. She's been swimming full laps on her own, rolling to breath as well as doing all the arms and legs together. There are moments when she's running out of energy to reach the end and when she finally does, her bottom lips and facial expression will indicate a breakdown coming. BUT, when I quickly comment on her hardwork and her achievements, the frown quickly turns to a smile! Phew! Its a huge realisation for me....making me aware of how to "pump" love into her little heart and mind.

After school today, we went to have a little play with Letitia's church friend. This little boy, a bit younger than L, misses playing with her. When we finally got together, I was quietly observing them while they slowly "warm" up to each other. I was sure I saw the little guy peck L on her cheek. She did a little bashful smile. All this happened while all four kids were watching playschool (my goodness! what is playschool teaching them!!) But, a short little play later, the usual "he was clumsy to me and he hurt me" arose...expressing the normal mars/venus differences even in 4-5yos. We all had a lovely time, it was nice to have one on one with another lovely lady (I have discovered a whole new world of amazing women in our Friday morning playgroup: will blogg about that next time!) from Playtime. We all even sugarred up with lovely cream cookies and rockmelon slices. Thanks, McKerrows and yes, you made it into our blog again.

Have a nice weekend, everyone!

Mathena can now colour-in, Yey!

I did the drawings but she did ALL the brown colouring in! I am HUGELY excited at her new and improved skill.

Am still trying to get her motivated with other images apart from the Wiggles :(

Been trying to train Mathena's table time at home when L's in Kindy. Have not done much due to time and schedule contraints but she's s..l..o..w..l..y getting there. Well done, M!

Aussie $2 coins (see below article)

What $2 means to a 5yo and a 2yo

Been wanting to blog this event but wasn't sure how to approached it.

We've had an interesting "moment" happened to us where we saw total strangers putting money where their mouth is....this of course is the story of the $2 coins.

We went out for dinner one Sunday night (2 weeks ago) at Sutherland. It is about 45mins from us and half way distance to Sydney. We went there to meet up with an old friend of mine from Kuching who's here in Sydney promoting Sarawak (Sarawak Tourism Board) at the Travel & Holiday Expo.

We generally had a late night and we juggled the girls over their meals. Mathena wasn't feeling her best (for whatever reason she had a fever that day) and Letitia was quite tired from the day. I had a lovely time catching up with my friend, who's name is also Letitia (I loved that name from meeting this later and thus gave No 1 the exact name).

By around 8.30pm, we all took leave and started heading out the door. To our shock, a couple and another gentleman came towards us and started grabbing Alex by his hand. "We just wanted to say that we had the most pleasant dinner and that your kids were extremely well behaved!!" The other gentleman started shoving $2 coins in Letitia and Mathena's hand. The two girls were quite stunned and pleasantly surprised at the same time. Mathena started dancing in circles saying, "Money, money!"

Both Alex and myself were besides ourselves and we honestly did not know how to respond. I managed a "they have good days and bad days, tonight is a good one, thank you!!". I honestly did not keep a close eye on their behaviour, I was too busy socialising. Letitia was good with her dinner and ate her favourite noodles. Mathena struggled with her food but was happy to sit through most of the evening. They both had their own entertainment and colouring/activities to keep them occupied.

So, we ended the evening by re-enforcing the importance of "obedience" and "being good" to Letitia. Of course, we told them to put the coins in their animal banks (zebra and giraffe) to save up for their own houses. Sigh! It is nice to be "encouraged" as parents even if it is just once a year.

"Mommy, do YOU know why it is dry today?"

Letitia asked me this question out of the blue today as we start our weekly travels to Kindy. I assumed in my "duhh!!" mind that she's curious of the weather (we've had days of rain) and is enjoying the nature outside her little square car window. To my surprised,...

"Mommy, it's because today is a special day. I get to go up in assembly to receive my bronze ribbon!!". "I asked GOD to stop the rain for today, that's why it's dry". Doh! I forgot all about it and had planned to bring the camera so her daddy gets to see that proud moment.

We've had a few trials leading up to this morning. You see, Letitia was told last Thursday that this ribbon thing will happen. Except it rain whole morning on Thursday as well as Friday. So FINALLY, today we arrive at school only to find that her teacher was sick!!! Can you imagine her "dissapointment"?? For the first time this morning, she refused to play with other kids (she's normally the first to zip off somewhere to socialise). I decided to put matters in my own hands to ask what can be done (if any) about it. I saw a Mr Romaniszyn and explained the situation. He assured me that he'll get back to me....and behold, Letitia's name was announced and she proudly skipped up to the stage to receive her award.

I am proud of her...as usual. I am even prouder of the school. Most people would put this situation down as "bad luck, get on with it!", I would! BUT, Mr R made the effort to make a little girl's day happier and positive. What he did not know was, he also reinforced some "GOD-thing" into Letitia's little faith.

Cedars Christian College encourage good behaviour by "catching" the the good acts (helpfulness, kindness, attentiveness, manners etc) and rewarding them with "positive cards". When they accumulate about 15, the kids get coloured ribbons. The ultimate is a GOLD ribbon and having one's name engraved on the "honour role" (by then that may be a total of 70 zillion positive cards, hehe!). As parents, we see how HARD it is to earn these cards. We assume our kids are angels but in school amongst other angels, one cannot be noticed. So, I strongly believe that Letitia has earned every thread on that ribbon. AND, I am beaming with pride.

This is my highlight to the start of the week....hope you share our joy!

How we know Mathena's not colour blind

This household is getting quite "wiggles" obsessive.

When asked, Mathena now quotes all her knowledge of colours according to the characters of Wiggles. Blue colour for Anthony, Yellow for Greg, Red for Murray, Purple for Jeff, Green for Dorothy the Dinasour, and Brown for Wags the Dog. We no use this as a "party" trick for her to tell people another view of the colours of the world.... eg. "Mathena, what is the colour of this Rose?", "Murray!!", Mathena replies.

Today while preparing to hop into the car and head off to drop Letitia to school, I was cleaning up the kitchen when I heard the two of them singing their hearts out, "Ski-der-merink, Ki-dink-ki-dink, Ski-der-merink, Ke-doo, I looove YOU!" They were both standing near the garage and thus had their voices amplified. They sounded great and they both even had a giggle in some parts.

I smiled.... what joy to hear my girls enjoying life and each other.

We've had a family friend (Uncle Col) over on Monday and it was excellent to catch up. We were thrilled to hear all the "latest" and have bid him farewell till the next time we meet, most probably in Brisbane. Thank you Uncle Col, for dropping in and spending time with us. Mathena took to "pop" real quick and was eager to show him all her toys. She even asked for him during dinner after he left. Our best love and regards to you, Uncle Col and the Brain family.

What I learnt from Ms Willey

I had a sneak peek into Letitia's day in Kindy today.









After some manipulation, Alex got to stay at home with Mathena today (Thursday) to work from home while I go to Letitia's class to help out Ms Willey. I have seen and learnt soooo many things after spending less than 2 hours in Ms Willey's Kindy Rafter room. This is Letitia after a successful "drop off" at the gate where she confidently walk into school from our car, to hang up her bag, take out her hat to sit and wait until the bell rings. She has about 20mins to run around, squabble with a friend or fall over before the assembly starts and they will be ushered into class by their teachers. She's done us proud.
This picture was taken on Letitia's 5th Birthday at school. This is the whole class of 23. All 10 boys and 13 girls. We asked Letitia to give her teacher a "thank you" parcel after she blows off her "No 5" candle. Ms Willey then gave out lollipops and packets of chocolates instead of cake. They kids are all caked out as they've had a few birthdays this pass month.






The left is the corner where the children will gather to "regroup" and refocus for the next activity. Ms Willey's special "comfy red chair" is only for special occasions (birthdays etc) and the kids cannot resist to steal a sit from it. Even Mathena had to plonk her bottom on it when we come to pick Letitia up after school. Mathena loves it when she gets a chance to cuddle Ms W and be called a "chook"!!





This is Ms Willey in action. Now back to this amazing, lovely, gentle and YOUNG lady...

We've just had a little time with her and I have not really had the chance to get to know Ms Willey. She's forever surrounded by kindy kids and of course, anxious parents. In the beginning of the term, I even overheard many kids "chucking a tantrum at home" because they did not get into Ms Willey's class. So, I am somewhat curious with her...



After today, I am absolutely thrilled that GOD had provided this school with such a lady. I even
picked up some "tricks" to apply at home:


1) Speak with gentle authority, clearly and firm

2) Get the children's attention

3) Use lots of routine and regular stuff

4) Apply gentleness and lots of patience


5) Love the kids, just love them (and boy, she DOES!!!)

6) Realise that each child is different and have
different background

Ms Willey is the red-cheeked lady in a sports cap getting the 23
of them ready for some outdoor activity. My salutes to Letitia's Kindy teacher.
I had a lovely time with the little ones and my heart opened up to a whole new world of teaching and training the hearts, souls and minds of a 5 year olds. Thank you, Vanessa, for your loveliness, your wisdom and your heart for the Kindy Kids! God Bless your work and ministry...and all the best for your upcoming wedding.

Life here!

Please excuse us for not updating more often. It seems that life with a school child has indeed taken more of our time than we could ever imagine. Just being on the road chaufeuring is enough to drain the energy out of me.

The latest, my mom is headed of to a tour of Israel on Saturday, Yep! The land of suicide bombers and granades and lots of explosion. It's been her inner most desire to see the land of Bible and have the place open itself up to her. She's excited and thrilled at the opportunity. She will be away from the 11th-24th inclusive. Do spare her a prayer for safety, security and smooth journey.

Alex is getting used to working in North Sydney. I now wake up before his 5.30am alarm sets off. I am now TRAINED to wake up that time too! He's company is apparently doing the stuff for "internet" access and online services for the mobile phones. They are on contract with Optus and Singtel and are VERY busy. The company is small and the opportunities to do a variety of stuff is there....exactly what Alex wanted in a job. He's exposed to multitasking at work and will soon be able to apply those skills at home (??)

Letitia is now finally settled into Kindy. I am very confident that she's dealing with the "idea" well and seems to be progressing positively. She comes home with stories of her day (and yes, there are lots of social drama), stuff she learnt (eg. the School Principle has a cane in his office!) and all the other juicy bits like the letter "p" and the number "5". Letitia realised that there's more than one princess at school and every little girl has her own set of opinions. Her social skills are being put to the test with learning to deal with friends "who wants to be a friend now but not 30mins later". All fun!

Miss 2yo Mathena is now safely at home in my hot little hands. I have longed for the day when I can spend some quality time with her. Being No2, she's always had to share my attention and is often shifted aside due to Letitia's urgent matters. Now I get to do fun stuff and really hang out with her doing "her" stuff with her. She is growing up too quickly and loosing all her babyness in a wink of an eye. With our carpooling, Mathena gets to ride the trip with the BIG kids. She now has a new love of her life aside from her daddy. She declared "I loooove Brendon!!" at the top of her lungs one day and refuses to walk if not holding on to his hand. Brendon is a big 6yo who's also in Kindy this year. He's happy to have her friendship. My girls are a little passionate with their feelings....I can see myself pulling my hair out even before they reach the teenage years.

Am feeling exhausted recently. a combination of the return muggy heat as well as the lack of sleep. Have tried at least once a week to retire to bed early but my body is just on "hyper" mode throughout the night. I now attend a weekly women's Bibles study during the week and this will keep me up till at least 11pm. Letitia will soon attend a "rookie's basketball" session on Sataurdays and I will get to have some time out. The girls miss him so much, they are usually glued to him during the weekend anyway. Am looking forward to some "down time".

Congratulations Jon & Lath

Welcome to our World, Liana Ang!
Just a special post, to celebrate the arrival of the daughter of our close friends.

Since the very early days of uni (90s). Jon's always been the BIG brother to me. He's in Brisbane with his lovely wife (now glowing mother), Lath and we miss the times together. Now he's a proud father of lovely Liana.

We give you all our best wishes, love and prayers. Well done, guys!

ChildBirth Number One

Today is Letitia's 5th Birthday. She does not actually turn 5 till 5.40pm in the afternoon. As my mom use to say, "she came out at dinner time as she was hungry". This article is all about those amazing 16 hours we spent trying to welcome Letitia into the world. (So, if you are not into birth stories, you may click "next blog" now!)

As I clearly recall, Letitia was 2 weeks late. I was brewing like a chook and nothing happened. Staying at home and lugging my weight around got very "not fun" after a while. The Dr (Bless her !) gave us an option to induce the labour. We did, we pop into the hospital (8pm) and had a ointment smeared onto the inside of me! and soon after that....woah, period pains (muscle soreness!!). These stuff is effective!

Reduced version, my waters broke at 3am the following dawn, we were off to the hospital by 4am (sleepy and tired as the soreness kept me awake). Found no room to lay sweet child and had to be put up in a "store room" at the hospital as it was a FULL night at the maternity ward. I took the lot, and the epidural nearly killed Alex. The mere sight of the procedure and the struggle to get the needle in was enough for any man to pass out. 13 plus hours later, I gave right up (I was too tired to push) and Letitia had to be assisted to enter the world. Well done on Dr Whelan's part!! A small frame lady (under 5 feet with the strength of Hercules) who stayed with me in hospital all through the night. We remember our dear antenatal instructor Nicola as well (she came on shift just at the last hour, yippee!). How personal is that??? It was an all-woman's event, except for Alex.

Letitia come into the world covered in white goo. Was scrubbed down and was feeling very tired! Her daddy gave her her first bath in the hospital and she was soon by my side. What exhilaration. I remember her sleepy eyes staring at me (she still loves her sleep) and how delicate she was. Her hair were wavy and fine already (she still has curly hair when wet) and I adored every bit of her (Sigh! This is where everyone has to make the "sigh" noise! in adoration!)

Letitia and I were upgraded to a VIP-Gold room. As all parents go through the hospital tour when selecting the ONE to give birth in, we were told of this ROOM that everyone has very little chance of staying in. Guess what? We got upgraded, courtesy of Letitia's non receeding Jaundice. We had the spa, the private showers, the dining room, and double bed and the spacious privacy. Meanwhile, little L spent more than 4 days in a "solarium" to sun away the yellowness. I cried at the mere sight of it every few minutes. In hindsight, it was a VERY common thing but it really hurt to see your precious one go through all that. I could not hold her in my arms all the time (as she needed as many hours in the ligh box as she could get) except when I was feeding. That was the hardest.

5 years later...here we are. She's a BIG sister to Mathena. Loving life and us (still) everyday. She's absorbing the world around her like a sponge with big heart and a big attitude. She's learning peer pressure and how to "settle" her differences with her friends. She's also learning NOT to push her piece of mind on others (am learning that still!). We love her to bits. Mathena thinks the world of her and cannot wait to do all the cool stuff L gets into. We praise God, again. For we KNOW if not for HIM, we have nothing (kids included!).