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.