City Girl

Despite my strong belief that childhood should be spent on the outdoors, gettting dirty by digging holes in the garden, hunting leaves in the woods, jumpping in a puddle barefooted, playing with mud and sand and stones, walking on grass and balancing on log...... I found it quite impossible to create such a childhood in urban Singapore, to replicate my own childhood in China for my daughter. I have come to discover that Singapore has inevitably produced a city girl in my daughter.

When we were travelling around Bali for the past week, there were a few occasions we can't find a decent toilet with the standard toilet bowl. They are the squat-down type, and the floor is generally wet. My daughter, whenever we were going to pee and I opened the door of such a toilet, she would shake her head "No, I don't want to go pee pee. It's so smelly! No, I don't need to pee pee." And magically, she can hold her urine for another two hours, which never happens when we are in Singapore.

And when we brought her to the beach to play sand, she refused to sit on the sand, and everytime her hand touches the sand, she'd spend the next two minutes shaking and clapping to get rid of it. In order to get her to enjoy sand play, we two adults sat on the sand to get our hands and feet dirty and created all sorts of castles and minuatures. She just pretty much stood there as an observer.

Coming back to Singapore, I have determined to bring her outdoors more often. I believe nature is the best playground and also the best teacher. Staying in punggol gave us the advantage, we are closer to nature. So far, we brought her to the waterway every week, her favorite activity is to throw stones in the river. We brought her to the neighborhood park to hunt for caterpillars, snails and spiders. We brought her to punggol jetty to feed fishes and turtles, and to get her hands and feet dirty on the beach.

She is getting acquainted to her new friend quite well I'd say, though she still insists on sitting on a mat and refuses to walk near the water.

(PS: I was holding an umbrella because it started drizzling, not because of the beach sun. No, I am not a city girl.)

Milestone: Moving to a junior bed

Yesterday marked yet another important milestone for Kah Yen. At two and a half year old, she has transited from her baby cot to a junior bed.

The time is just right. I am 5 months pregnant now. We need the baby cot for the second baby eventually. But we can't move her just before the baby arrives, she will feel rejected or being displaced. In fact when we prepare her for the transition, we are very careful not to use the "We need the cot for your baby sibling" excuse but always say she is moving to a junior bed because she is a big girl now.

We felt she is also developmentally ready. She has always been falling asleep on her own in her baby cot. She never co-slept with us. The first one and a half year she shares a room with us but she sleeps on her own at 830pm. When we moved to our new house at the beginning of the year, she sleeps alone in her own room without a fuss. In fact she is very proud she has her own room. Just one week back we were in Bali for a whole week holiday,we stayed in a villa with two bedrooms, and she sleeps on a single bed in one of the rooms. She never got up and wandered around at night.

Another reason is always because she is starting to wake up at night to ask to go potty. We are not doing any nighttime potty training with her, she is still on diaper at night. But she seems to be able to hold her urine for hours at night and wake herself up when her bladder is full. It is becoming increasingly challenging for me at 5-month pregnant to carry her up and down the cot at night to bring her to potty. With a junior bed, we don't expect her to wake up and go to potty herself of course (when all the lights are off), but at least I don't need to carry her up and down.

So with all these in mind, we planned to purchase her junior bed last weekend. We try to make this whole transition a fanfare. Days before our shopping day, we have been telling her we are going to buy her a junior bed because she is now a big girl, and make it sound as excited as possible, and we can see her face light up. Then on the actual day, the first thing I did when I woke her in the morning is to remind her we are going IKEA today to buy her new bed. She is all like "Yeah! Let's go!".

While in IKEA, we let her try all the junior beds. Of course we have already in mind what model to buy, and we are not going to ask stupid questions like "Do you like this one or that one?" We will be the one making the final choice and purchase, we just want to get her all excited through the whole experience. At home, when Daddy is assembling her new bed, we also allow her to sit near by as a "little helper" with close supervision. She gets to pass some screws and nuts to Daddy.

When the new bed is finally ready, we make sure she is around to witness the moment of shifting the cot out and the new bed into her room. (We haven't bought the new sheet and blanket yet, otherwise we will let her help to make her new bedding too.) She is then invited to try her new bed. She happily jumped onto her new bed. We also asked her to select the soft toys she would like to sleep with her on her new bed, and she picked up them, lined them on bed and we had a "grand" photo taking ceremony.

The pictures speak more than a thousand words.

OF course we know fully well the transition is not just as simple as that. Now that she is in a bed, the new problem will be how to keep her in bed and out of trouble. Yesterday was the first night, we kept the same bedtime routine and settled her to bed. She came out once before falling asleep to go potty. After that, she was back to bed and soon asleep. She didn't wake up the whole night.

We will monitor for the next few days how it goes. If she refuses to stay in bed and starts wander around, we will have to establish some new rules with her. Though I really miss the convenience a confining baby cot brings when it comes to sleep, I look forward to going through this new phrase with her and seeing her grow to be a more independent and self-disciplined big girl.

Kah Yen Quotables

I have found talking with 2-3 year olds can be hilarious sometimes. Here are some of the things Kah Yen has said. I want to record them all down before I forget.

(1) Miss Teh Kah Yen

We are reading a book together. There is a picture of a happy little girl on the page.

Me: Look! It is a little girl. She looks so happy. How about you Kah Yen? Are you a happy girl?
KY: I am not a girl. I am Miss Teh Kah Yen.


(2) It's a sunny day

We stayed in a two-bedroom villa during our one week holiday in Bali last week. Kah Yen slept on her own on a single bed in a separate room. It is lower than a normal bed so she can get up and down easily herself. We kept both bedroom doors open so we can hear her when she woke up.

I was dreaming when I heard footsteps in our bedroom. I opened my eyes. It's Kah Yen and the clock shows 7am.

Me: Kah Yen, it's only 7am! You woke up so early?
KY: It's a sunny day.

There goes my dream of catching back my one year short of sleep during this one week holiday.


(3) Old Macdonald

Me: Kah Yen, quick! Wear your shoes, we are going to Macdonald's to eat Pancake!
KY: Old Macdonald had a farm?

Yes, and we are going to eat the chicken on his farm too. I was almost gonna say.


(4) Timothy

 Kah Yen had two best friends in school. Their names are Timothy and Isabel. So this is what happened when I was reading her the children's bible the other day.

Me: Today's bible verse is from 1 Timothy. It is a letter written to Timothy.
KY: How about Isabel?
Me: ... ...

Someone please tell me how to answer her!

Favorite

Kah Yen is gettting more and more expressive by the day. I am not talking about "I want to drink milk, now!" or "Can I play some more, please?" or "I don't want to go to sleep, I want to wake up!"... I am talking about this.

Last night when she came back home from school, she saw her Baby Pooh on our bed, left there by her in the morning. She climbed up to our bed, hugged Baby Pooh to her chest, and said "Hello Ah Pooh. This is my Ah Pooh. I love Ah Pooh. This is my favorite Ah Pooh." I stood there watching in amusement.

Well technically it is not correct. She only has one Ah Pooh. So it cannot be her favorite Ah Pooh. But hey! she is only two and a half year old and she is using the word "favorite", that means more to me than a grammatically correct sentence.

I love to see she is becoming more affectionate as she grows. Just on Labor day, we had a fun morning on the beach and I was expecting her to take a long nap in the afternoon but she didn't sleep. I was tired myself so I let her play in my room while I took a quick nap. She played on her own for a long time, while I dozed on and off half sleeping half feeling guilty of leaving her alone. In the midst of all this I felt her climbed up to my bed, snugged herself tightly beside me, and out of nowhere she just said "Mummy, I like you."

It made me smile but I was also nearly choked to death by the guilt.

I am totally not surprised if one day she comes to me and says "You are my favorite mummy". It sounds awkward I know, but you and me know what that means.

Coloring within the boundaries

Thanks to the childcare teachers for teaching Kah Yen to color within boundaries -  not really a milestone but it just goes to show that at this age she is constantly observing, learning and growing. And I love to capture those moments.

She colored the body and feet of this caterpillar all by herself. Look how proud she is of her work!

When Kah Yen meets Elmo

It is the first time Kah Yen watched a Sesame street video we borrowed from library. It is the first time Kah Yen meets Elmo on the big screen.

She absolutely loved Elmo's high pitch voice and silly songs and dances.

It was a pleasure to watch Elmo with Kah Yen. Or rather, it was a pleasure to watch Kah Yen watch Elmo.

Pussy Cat Pussy Cat, where have you been?

Back in our old neighborhood, Kah Yen had always looked at cats from a distance. Like any other children, she found cats and other small animals fascinating, but we never allowed her to go near the cats, let alone touch them. The reason being the cats in our old neighborhood generally do not look very clean, some of them are so big they look threating!

Now that we have moved to our new neighborhood. There isn't any cat to be found, except one small yellow cat. Because it is the only one, we see each other very often, or rather Kah Yen sees it very often. Because she sees it very often, she starts to like it. And because Daddy allowed her to touch it, they have now become the best of friends.

These are photos of Kah Yen and the cat taken at different days, usually on the way to school or on the way back home. It has become a routine everytime Kah Yen sees it, Daddy and her will stop for a while for her to play with it, even during the morning rush hours.

She runs to it when she sees it and says "Hi" from a distance.

She bends down at its side to "Sayang" (touch) it.

She tries to strike a conversation with it.

She is super happy everytime she meets it.

The best thing is, she seems to be able to communicate to the cat, according to her own words. When the cat says "Miao", she says the cat is saying hi to her. When the cat moves its front paw, she says the cat is saying byebye to her. When I asked her "Are you sure?" She gave me an absolute yes. Such is the beauty of children's imaginations!

Good Morning, Monday

For young children, every day is new day of fun, of playing, of discovery and of adventure. Monday blues? That is a totally alien term to them.

What a happy Kah Yen this morning! Just because she is wearing a new pair of shoes to school.

I was not there to share this moment but the photo from Daddy really lightened up my day.

We are back

We were back from our Chinese New Year trip to Malaysia last week. I was very tired since we came back. One whole day of travelling on the road, followed by days of tidying of our new house, and then adjusting to our new routine and schedule. And I was not feeling well, not exactly sick but feeling sick and tired all the time.

Enough grumbling.

On a positive note, we did enjoy our stay in Malaysia during the Chinese New Year, especially for Kah Yen, now that she is older, she enjoyed interacting with her grandparents, playing with her cousins and exploring new places together with us.



Dressing up for reunion dinner



"Playing" piano at cousin's place

Swing competition at Cameron Highlands

Feeding rabbits at Cameron Highlands

Potty Potty I'm Ready

One of my many resolutions last year was to potty train Kah Yen the moment she turns two, or at least before I send her to school.

I read a book on potty training and went through a checklist many times, I think she is more than ready. But the book says I need a block of 4-5 days at home to do nothing but potty training her, in order to achieve success, I struggled with taking leave for 4-5 days just for this purpose hence I procrastinated. It also requires a lot of consistency, which is something I am quite bad at.

So Kah Yen went to school with diaper. I was awfully guilty.

......

These are the basic signs of readiness I observed: She has regular bowel movement in the morning and is already trained to poo in the potty; her diaper can be dry for one or two hours at times; she has a strong desire for independence; she is interested when I use the toilet; she understands and follows most instructions; she knows the meaning of "Pee" and "Poo" and say them.

When I was at school with her on the first day, I was really delighted to hear from her English teacher that she can help to potty train Kah Yen. I was told most of the two-year-olds in the class are already potty trained. There is one boy who started training recently and the Chinese teacher brought her to the toilet regularly every 30 minutes. I was very impressed with the patience and dedication of the teacher.

So on the second day of school, I ditched the diaper and put Kah Yen on training pant. Talking about minimizing changes and transitions in young children's life, I think I went totally against the rule!

I don't know exactly how the teachers do it. I think they just try to bring her to the toilet at regular intervals till she grasps the idea that pee is only meant for the potty/toilet. I was expecting them to put her on diaper for afternoon naps so everyday I pack two spare diapers in her bag, but they are never touched. I am sure accidents do happen because twice she came back with a bag heavier than usual, and I found soaked pants in plastic bags. We didn't ask for a detail report everyday but the teacher told us on the first week that Kah Yen can go one to one-and-a-half hour without wetting her pants, which is very good progress according to the teacher.

We do the same at home too. We sit her on potty in the morning when she wakes up, and in the evening before dinner and then before bedtime. Last Saturday we brought her out in the afternoon and I totally forgot to bring her to the toilet till almost two hours later, and I was happy to find out her pant was still dry. Sunday morning I let her wear her training pant to Sunday school, when I picked her up two hours later, she was dry.

......

These are very good progress, but, until now it is still us or the teachers taking the lead, not her. Potty training cannot be accomplished without her taking the lead to tell us when she needs to use the potty. I think we still have a long way to go.

Last Friday, she came back home running to me in the kitchen screaming "I want to pee! I want to pee!" Thinking it's just her way of trying to get my attention after a day's school, I replied to her "Kah Yen, be patient, let Mummy finish cutting this vegetable first." Then she screamed again "I want to pee! I want to pee!" and looked completely restless. Daddy followed in and said she has been asking to pee since they were on the train.

Then it suddenly occured to me that, she was controlling her urine and now telling us she wanted to pee. She is taking the lead.

Bravo! I think we are almost there. Let's see how consistent she will be for the next few weeks, we might use one of those potty train charts or reward charts to reinforce, if necessary.

Almost grown up

Kah Yen is going to Sentosa island today, without Daddy and Mummy.

She is going there with our Nanny and her entire big family, including one grandparent, four parents, two Korkors and one Jiejie. The Korkors and Jiejie are the one play with Kah Yen every afternoon when they come back from school and also every day for the June and December holidays. Now they are all going back to school next week, Kah Yen is also going to preschool, so the two families decide to bring them all out to Sentosa, to have a ball of time before they go back to school and also part their ways.

To worry about Kah Yen is totally unnecessary, she is so close to her Korkors and Jiejie she would follow them whereever they go, and cry when they leave her behind. Both Korkor and Jiejie's parents also dot Kah Yen a lot, they buy her toys and pretty clothes very often. And their Popo is both patient and affectionate towards the kids. I have no issue with them bringing Kah Yen out.

But, being the first time mum, the compulsive mum anxiety still kicked in this morning. I woke up early to pack her bag, even though I know our Nanny will pack for her. I wrote down a list of things to bring and check on every one of them, as if she is going to her Primary 3 summer camp for the first time. She is just going out for one day!

Kah Yen on the other hand, had no anxiety of any sort at all. She woke up jolly as usual, and when Daddy reminded her she is going to Sentosa today, she is all smiling. To make sure she knows exactly what is going to happen for the day, I asked her a few questions.

"Where is Kah Yen going today?"

 "Sentosa!" (as if she really knows what Sentosa is)

"Where is Sentosa?"

"... ..." (silence)

"Sentosa is an island where you can have lots of fun. Now who is going with Kah Yen?"

"Popo, Korkor and Jiejie!"

"Are uncle and aunty going with you?"

"Yes!"

"Is Daddy going with you?"

"No!"

"Is Mummy going with you?"

"No!"

Alright. Passed. I think it is safe to say she knows what's going to happen. And the fact that Daddy and Mummy are not going with her seems to bother her little, to my relief.

I then gave her my usual hug and kiss and told her I am going to work.

"Mummy is going to work! Byebye Mummy, Byebye!" Never before she had said "Byebye" to me in such an enthusiastic tone. I think if she is more expressive, this is exactly what she will say:

"Byebye Mummy, quickly go to work! I am going to Sentosa to have some fun yeah. Bye!"

I think this girl has, almost grown up.

You and Me

We all know toddlers take some time to figure out how to use pronouns such as "you", "me", "I", "he" and "she". The book says they only master them between the age of two-and-a-half to three. The book is probably true, for Kah Yen is still very much confused by her pronouns.

Talking about "me", I thought she is good since I have taught her to sing "Jesus loves me this I know" and also "Good is so good to me" with a pat on the heart everytime it comes to the word "me", and she follows. But then the other day when I did a funny face to make her laugh and she wanted me to do it again, she kept saying "Mummy show you! Mummy show you!" Sigh...

She didn't quite get her "you" right either, though she can follow us saying "God bless you", I guess it is just a phrase to her. When she woke up from her nap and couldn't find her Daddy, she kecame to me and asked "Where is your Daddy? Where is your Daddy?" I had to hold on my laughing and resist answering her "My Daddy is in China. How about yours?" LOL.

I correct her by saying "You mean where is my Daddy?" and here is what happened after.

Kah Yen: "Where is my Daddy?"

Me: "Your Daddy is in the study room."

Kah Yen: "Where is my Mummy?"

Me: "Your Mummy is right here."

Kah Yen: "Where is my Kah Yen?"

Me: ...

...

Hold on. The good news is, she is learning to use her "I" correctly. Previously when she wants something, she either says "Kah Yen wants biscuit." or worse (and more often!) "Biscuit! Biscuit! Biscuit!" Look at what she says now:

Yesterday we were having lunch outside, I bought chicken rice for myself and minced meat congee for her, the moment I reached our table with the food. There she goes.

"I want porridge! I want rice! I want chicken! I want soup! I want I want I want!!!"

Opps, did I just say that it is a good news she has learnt to use her "I"? I apologize I have made a mistake.

Playthings

What is donkey doing with the cooking set?

And who are the boy and girl live on top of tree houses?

I took these two pictures after putting Kah Yen down for her nap. Usually I make her pack up her own toys after playing, but today I didn't because I want to look at what she has been playing.

She played with her cooking set when I was in the kitchen preparing our lunch. She cooked and talked to herself, and every five minutes she would run to the kitchen door and tell me what she was cooking. I don't know how the donkey ended up there, perhaps she was cooking lunch for donkey all this while.

After lunch while I was cleaning the plates, she played LEGO with Daddy, their favorite game these days. I heard them talking "This is for me, this is for you. That's Kah Yen, this is Daddy". Now I knew they have built mini-Daddy and mini-Kah Yen and together they lived on tree houses.

I know these are just simple things but having played with her and seen her play since a baby, I am truly amazed to see how her imagination and creativity evolved as she grows. Playtime has become more interactive, more engaging and more fun-filled. We may not go to many fun places and our house is not packed with toys, but we see her enjoy simple moments and simple things, and we celebrate with her. Everyday.

A Milestone, sort of

Well it is not really a milestone on the books but it is still part of the many growth and developments of a toddler that's worth celebrating.

Kah Yen learnt to wear her own shoes - the single strap type.

Well done girl! I guess what equally worth celebrating is the spirit of learning new things and learning to do things on her own, the spirit of two-year olds.

The prayer of a two-year old

I still remembered when my friend posted on Facebook the first prayer of her then two-year old daughter on Good Friday. And here it goes:

"Dear Jesus, in Jesus's name I pray, Amen!"

So cute! Isn't that the simplest and funniest prayer you have ever heard? Guess it is Good Friday so it is all about Jesus yah.

Kah Yen has not learnt to pray on her own yet. But we include her when saying grace before every meal and also we pray for her everynight at bedtime. So it is not surprising when I try to teach her how to pray she can repeat after me line by line, with her hands clasped, her eyes closed and her head bowed. Here is our prayer:

"Dear God,

I love you.

Thank you for loving me.

Please bless Popo,

Bless Korkor,

Bless Jiejie,

Bless Aunty,

Bless Daddy,

Bless Mummy!"

She followed me so far, then I came to a pause because my mind was thinking whether to continue with more names or to end here, afraid her attention might not last too long. And while I was thinking, Kah Yen shouted loudly:

"Bless Kah Yen, Amen!"

She just ended the prayer on her own. And I didn't even realize I forgot to include her name but she noticed and added it herself. 

How sweet to hear our children pray to God at a young age. How pleasant it is when from the lips of children and infants come forth praises.

I am a little builder

Two is a fantastic age. Just last week I was feeling all nostalgic that she has turned two and lost much of her baby-ness. Now I am all over it and I am totally enjoying her growing up every day.

It is amazing how fast they learn things at two. Everyday they discovery new things around them and pick up new words or rather sentences, and they don't just mimic your words and actions anymore, they internalize and create their own. They are twice more observant and imaginative than us adults. They never stop to surprise you.

Like talking. She is speaking more complete sentences now. She is able to strike a simple conversation with Daddy on the phone with a little guidance, such as "How are you Daddy?", "I am fine, how about you?" and "Byebye, see you tomorrow!" Just this morning, I went to the room where she was playing to tell her I am leaving for work. She said "Kah Yen don't go to work, Kah Yen go to Popo place." Well done girl but you made Mummy feel mighty guilt that you have learnt the reality of life so fast!

Then about toilet training, we haven't fully geared up to toilet train her yet (Can't find a block of time since I am working!). It is only in the morning when we have time we will let her sit at the potty to poo. Just 2-month back she still gave the confused look "Why do I need to sit on the potty when I don't feel like poo-ing now" and was reluctant to sit on the potty. Now she walks to the potty all by herself when I call and she can sit there for a good 5 minutes.

Then about playing. We bought her the Duplo Lego set on her birthday. We did not want to buy her earlier because she was just starting to engage in imaginative play with her building blocks, we don't want to flood her with too many toys too fast. When we first played with her last week, she was frustrated because she couldn't stack up the bricks properly, it requires stronger finger gripping and more precision as compare to Mega blocks they have at Sunday school. Then last weekend she just fiddled with them for a while and built something like this, when we asked her what it was. She said it was a train!

Daddy was very much encouraged and went on to show her how to build a tree (more like a tower to me though), she picked up quickly and soon she came to me showing her own tree.

And she went on to build three of them!

Look how happy she was when I asked her to take photos with her creations!

I am glad that we can be there to see her learn new things and celebrate with her each day.

Dora girl

I forgot since when, Kah Yen suddenly became a Dora girl.

She must have learnt about Dora from the big boys at our nanny's place, that's how she got to know Angry Bird too. (The boys have an iPad!) From that day, she will point and call Dora whenever she sees one. Interestingly, she calls "DoDoDora" instead of "Dora", and the way she calls it is so cute that everybody else at out house and our nanny's house now calls it "DoDoDora", exactly the same way everyone ended up calling Baby Pooh "Ah Pooh" one year ago.

So now she wears a Dora T-shirt, she carries a Dora school bag, she just received a Dora water bottle for her birthday, and she only reads Dora the Explorer flip-the-flap books while in the library.

The interesting part is, Mummy knows nothing about Dora. Well I know she is a children character that little girls like, but who is she, where does she come from and what she does, I have no idea. So the other day I asked the husband.

"Is Dora a Chinese?"

"No, you don't know? She is a Latino, of Spanish origin." He gave me that look as if I am from another planet.

"But how can she have straight and dark hair if she is a Latino? She looks exactly like a Chinese doll." I was not easily beaten by that look.

"Her hair is dark brown, and straight hair because they want to keep the illustration simple." He replied as if he is an expert.

"What does she do?"

"You mean you have never heard of Dora before?" He was amazed.

"Well, it is just a generation gap." I murmured and turned my eyes to something else. I mean generation gap between me and Kah Yen, not me and him.

The next morning I went to wikipedia to get myself acquainted with Dora. Dora is a little explorer, a curious girl. She is always positive. She doesn't hold grudge against anybody. She gives others chances. She values her family. She is fond of Boots the monkey. She enjoys sports. She is also skilled at playing a wooden flute.

I was totally bowled over by Dora. She is such a positive character for Kah Yen to follow as compared to others. Hello Kitty is over consumerised. Barbie lacks character. Disney Princesses are too fairy. Mickey mouse simply draws children in front of the TV for hours.

Dora TV series is too old to be found. Plus there are a whole bunch of Dora the Exlorer books for me to read to her. If she can't learn anything from Dora, at least she may grow to love reading books.

So I am just going to enjoy her being a Dora girl.

It takes only three to make a party

It is Kah Yen's 2nd birthday this weekend. We did not plan a big party. It is going to be just Daddy, Mummy and Kah Yen. But on Friday Daddy had the idea of having a mini celebration at our Nanny's place before we pick her back, since her family had managed to find out about her birthday and have already bought her various birthday gifts one week ago.

Our nanny's children are married and live on their own, only two grandsons and one granddaughter come to the house every afternoon after school. They are the Korkor and Jiejie who play with Kah Yen everyday.

We bought a mini cake, a slice of cake to be exact, since it is dinner time for the children.

Jiejie had after-school activity so only the two boys were at home with Kah Yen. When we reached, we saw the two boys sitting at the bench chair drawing on a piece of paper each, Kah Yen was also doodling beside them. My nanny had told them to make birthday cards for Kah Yen and that's what they were doing. How sweet!

When I opened the cake box, the boys shouted "Wow, so small!" Kids being kids, they say what they see, even if that embarrasses you. The size of the cake did nothing to change their party mood though, when the candle was lighted, they clapped and sang "Happy Birthday" song the loudest.
They didn't just sing, they screamed their lungs out.

They cut the cake into all sorts of shapes and laughed at their own creation.
They gave you their biggest smile in front of the camera.

They hugged and kissed Meimei like there is no tomorrow one minute, the next they ran right into her as if she is invisible.

They presented their birthday cards right onto your face.

They did an impromptu "Gangnam Style" dance and was toally pissed when I don't know what is 'Gangnam Style".

They forgot it is not their own birthday.

Before we reached husband told me to use my high pitch voice to create the party atmosphere, the minute we stepped in the house, we found I was totally redundant.

It takes only three children to make a party.

A big girl in the making

Last night I was not at home. Husband sent me a few photos after puttting Kah Yen to bed. Before I click open the small image icon on my "WhatsApp" window, I wonder who that girl was. It was different from my baby.

I opened the images and I saw a big girl in front of me.

First time her hair was tied, by our nanny. I am a little bit guilty I am not the first one tying her hair. I have a girly girl at hand yet it can't motivate the old lazy me to start like shopping and appreciate more girly stuff. Gotta change!

Then first time she was carrying a big girl bottle. My nanny's daughter bought this pink bottle for her - something every big girl will have, from the age of 2 till they go to primary school. I am ashamed to say that I still let Kah Yen use her Pigeon Mag Mug Step 3 straw cup. And it is blue. I can't find any other colors when I bought the cup.


On another note, she can't wait to go to school, 'coz she sends her two big Korkor to their school bus every day. Now she insists on carrying her school bag to our nanny's place everyday.

I hope she will be fully prepared when we finally send her to school next January, to save her some tears and me some heartache moments.

What is this?

About a month ago, Kah Yen suddenly started to use the phrase "What is this?" all the time when she saw new things or read new picture books. She must have picked up this from our reading sessions, during which I usually point at familiar things and ask her "What is this?" so that she can say their names.

It is a good thing. And we are more than happy to tell her things she doesn't know to help build up her vocabulary. Hence we always make a point to hear her and answer her question, even though sometimes I have to say "I don't know, let's ask Daddy later".

Then came the day when I knew the answer to her question but didn't quite know how to answer it.

Last night, after bathing her, I wrapped her with a dry towel and lay her on our bed, as I was wiping her body dry, she suddenly point at her private part and asked me "What is this?"

Not quite prepared for this, I answered with a moment of pause and hesitation "That's your backside."

I hope you are not laughing at me right now. The husband did when I told him the story after I came out of the room. He said "How can you bluff her that's her backside, when it is obviously not!" I thought it is alright to say that's her backside, since during diaper change or bath time, we may say "Let's wipe/wash your backside." but we always wipe/wash both the front and the back. Hence we can treat that as part of the backside too, or maybe part of the backside assembly at least.

Anyway, the point is, there is no need for her at this age to know exactly what is it called right? I am pretty sure I myself did not know until I was in secondary school.

Apparently, my 23-month old daughter doesn't think so, for after I answered her question, she pointed at her buttock and said "Backside is here."

This girl is too smart for her age!

"Okay...well... yes backside is there. And this is where Kah Yen pee pee."

"Where Kah Yen pee pee." She repeated then turned around to look at other things in the room. I guess she accepted this explanation for now but I am not sure if she was really convinced. And soon she will realize "Where Kah Yen pee pee" is not really a name, and why every other part of the body has a name and this one doesn't.

I never expected my daughter to ask me this question at this age, I thought we can just go about life without explicitly saying its name. I am sure by now you can see that I am quite a traditional person, who feels rather uncomfortable mentioning names of private parts.

This morning the first thing I did after turning on my computer was to type into Google "How to teach your kids about private parts?" Thank God for the internet.

As I browse through, I find that most parents are open about teaching their children private parts and most doctors advise us to do so (These are all westerns of course since the sites are in English). In summary, these are the points I gathered:

1. Teach them the proper names
2. Teach them the same way you teach any other parts of the body, so that they won't feel awkward, uncomfortable or ashamed of their private parts
3. Teach them to use the names appropriately
4. Emphasize that they are their private parts, they should keep them private and don't show to others. Nobody can see or touch them except Daddy, Mommy and Doctors, or the child's other caretakers

Okay looks like I will have to pull myself out of my comfort zone and be cool about this whole thing. I don't think at two-year old she can understand the meaning of private yet so I am just going to tell her the name, and then warn her not to say the word too much.

I have a reason. A few months ago when she started to notice her nipple, I taught her the word. Then the next moment when Daddy came in, she shouted excitedly "Nipple nipple, Kah Yen nipple, Daddy show nipple". I quickly moved out of the house before she asked to view mine.

Any parents here have different advise on this subject? I especially like to hear from you because most of us are Asian parents, our culture is still very different from the west.