Kyra's Debut Dance Performance

Kyra & Rae recently performed a dance for their school's K2 graduation.

It was a hoot seeing them dance to "Nobody But You". Hilarious to the max haha!

The Star of the day :)

She was super confident in front of the large crowd and she did so well! Even her teachers praised her, saying she is fantastic. Good job princess!

Gibson & Kiki

Gibson & Kiki

Those are the names of these 2 lovely fighting fish.

We got them at the Pasir Ris Kids Kampong.

Kiki belongs to Kyra.Gibson belongs to Kyle. I have no idea where he got that name from lol.
These fighting fish are extremely easy to take care of. Feeding once a day and change the water once in 3 days.

Now Kyle is asking me for rabbits and hamsters already. Not now darling...lets wait a few years more okie?

Kyle's Progress: K1 End-Year

School is coming to a close...and thus loads of catching up with the teachers.

Kyle's school recently had their PTC and boy am I pleased with him.

He has improved so much since last semester. A for English and Math and B for Malay. See the improvement from last semester below.

His teacher, Mdm Haiza says that he is such an intelligent boy, but he can hardly keep still in class. Yup, sounds familiar. He is also a born leader, always reacting naturally when assigned in groups, but tend to monopolize everything. But he is smart, vocal and very active in class participations.

His Malay teacher, Mdm Rohaini is very pleased with his perseverance and committment to learn and says he is not afraid or shy to learn. She is very encouraging and says that if he keeps up with the good learning attitude, he will be even better. Ok teacher, will get Malay books for this holidays!

Next year he will be tranferred to a different centre, which is closer to my house. Will be the same centre as Kyra, so its better for my dad who will be sending them. Plus point, its just next to my in-laws house. Hehe!

OMG, He is K2 next year!! Stress man!!

My girl recently turned 4. Yup, that little makcik kenit is 4 years old. To be fair, she has grown taller, but still skinny and still refusing to eat well. Very choosy, especially when it comes to rice and vegetables. Give her pizza and spagetthi and she will swallow even the plate.

We had a small celebration at home with just the family. But prior to that, we took her and her Bibik who also turned a year older on the very same date, to Universal Studios.

Some pics of the cake-cutting ceremony

Lady Diana or Queen Elizabeth?

Anything pink will do for her. Thus the cake was very much well-received by this little kenit, even though her brother protested, saying that a character cake would be nicer.

We had a great time at Universal Studios. One day is not enough! I think we'll go again for Kyle's birthday hehe...cos by that time, got bonus already! Freaking expensive hokay..
I still think she is my baby, no matter how old she is.

Compliments

My son is terribly generous with compliments :)

He loves to dish out all the right words whenever he sees us wearing something nice or new. For example, if I was wearing a new dress, he would go, Wahhh mama, you look so beautiful with your new dress OR if I just had a haircut, he would go, Wahhhh mama, you look so pretty with your new hair :)

Same goes for any other family member, he would compliment his aunt on her bling-bling slippers or compliment his grandma on her new baju kurung. His daddy always gets the "handsome" compliment and Kyle looks up to him so much that he must wear whatever his daddy is wearing, be it a watch or a belt or long jeans :)

Even when sometimes I get insecure and ask him why does he love me, he would reply, cos Mama is so pretty and beautiful..and I like Mama...

Hmmm....I hope this is not a sign of him growing up to be shallow and not seeing what's underneath. But it definitely feels great to receive accolades from such a young person like that.

My daughter, though is not quite like that. She picks and chooses whether that person deserves to be complimented. She would reply "Not Nice" if it is not to her liking, which can be brutally honest. Not like her brother who is all good and sweet, even when we look like crap.

She would comment that I cannot wear a certain dress and I should choose another etc. Sigh...so small and oredi so critical! Haha...future fashion critic?

The Four Musketeers

Let me introduce to you the 4 musketeers.

Kyra, Rae, Kyle & Riz

The four of them combined, makes a lethal combination. When they get together, chaos and riots occur. With their screams and shouts while they play, they also get into lots of trouble and cause the whole to turn upside down and inside out. Haha I still remember once incident where these 4 carried everything in their play room into the living room,from the toys and kids's table to the framed pictures and pillows and comforters. They also get into trouble by throwing stuff down our 11th floor!

Kyle is the natural ring leader, but dun underestimate the younger ones. They can cause you to end up with migranes and sore throats just by shouting at them. Rae's constant screaming is enough to make us pull our hair, Kyra and Riz's stubborness is a total put-off.

They play well together as much as they fight well. Yes, they always have these constant little quarrels. But after 5 mins, they are best friends again.

Although I admit that I often wish they play apart due to the loud noise and mischieve they get into, I am also glad that they are growing up together and are close to one another. They indeed have fun with their endless games and make-believe situations they come up with.

And I love the fact that these four shout "Mama!" and run to me endearingly whenever I come home from work. The feeling is priceless :)

Eid 2010

Time certainly flies. It's the happy month of Syawal again and celebrations, delicious food, and visiting are upon us again. Somehow its always more fun being a kid during this time...you look forward to the free flow of gassy drinks and money :)

I am quite happy this year particularly because people I know within our big family have overcome their differences and have made peace with other. It is really gratifying and touching and I really give thanks to HIM, who is so great to have brought about this holy month just for us to do some reflection on our imperfect selfs and forgive each other for all our wrongdoings. Syukran :)

It's my 7th year celebrating as a wife and my 5th as a mother. I cannot ask for more. I do hope to become more patient and calm and not to stress out so much. Thanks to HIM again for my my family's well-being.

Here are some pictures of Eid 2010.

Here's wishing all my Muslim friends a happy Eid Mubarak!!

Awwww...

Kyra: I like you everyday Mama. Do you like me?

Me: Of course, I like you forever and ever.

Kyra: Wahhhh...thank you mama!

So innocent and pure :)

Games They Play

The games my kids play today are way more advanced than those during my time. We played simple games such as four stones, catching, hide and seek etc.

My kids, on the other hand play computer games, phone games, arcades! Very advanced, considering that they are only 5 plus and 3 plus years of age. Kyle, actually knows how to switch on the computer, locate the games website on My Favourites (www.y3games.com) and start navigating and controlling the games using the mouse and the keyboard. All this just by observing his parents. Its good that kids get exposed to the computer early these days as computer lessons are normal for those PI kids, and I would not want my kids to have a IT culture shock or something when they enter PI.

Even our handphones are not spared. Especially hubby's. The kids are always arguing on who gets to play the games on his handphone. Hmm...maybe I really should get an I-phone. The games application I heard is really good.

Other then all those high-tech games, of course the kids indulge in other form of playtime, such as play-pretend. I always get amused, seeing them play with their cousins, Rae and Ris. Kyra will pretend to be the mummy, and she will get all bossy, with her hands on her hips and Kyle will be the baby, pretending to cry and ask for milk. They have all sorts of role-playing, and they even have performances, when Kyle will be the emcee, and introduce each of them, who will come up to sing or dance. The four of them laugh, scream and even fight during all the games they come up with.

Their imagination are boundless, and anything around the house can be incorporated into their playtime. My bed has been transformed into a camping site, or a boat and even the tables have been transformed into dog houses. Don't ask me how they get their ideas, but I am always pleased that they are active in their imagination.

We normally bring them to arcades at JB, esp the one at Tebrau City, which is more for pre-schoolers. They have racing car rides, sand painting, huge playgrounds and bouncy castles and even miniature bowling. The kids love it whenever we go there.

The ones in Singapore are more for teenagers and adults and of course much more expensive.

Spare The Rod and Spoil The Child??

Disciplining your own child is tough. In fact, I hate it. But somebody has got to do it, right? So what am I driving at?

Well, you see, my son Kyle is at a stage where he is very outspoken and also very responsive to situations around him. Kids nowadays are so different from my time, where whenever my daddy scolds me, we tremble in fear and dare not protest or move an inch.

When I scold my son, he reacts by pouting and frowning and of course protesting. Quick to blame others, such as his sister for an act so obviously done by him. He will eventually break down and cry after I shout at him, but his reaction after calming down is worse. He says things like I don’t like mama, you always scold and beat me, you are not pretty, I don’t want you anymore, I only like ayah etc.

It breaks my heart to a million pieces hearing that, but still such things need to be set straight. Kyle can be very rough and pushy to the point of injuring the other kids…the signs of a bully. Thus I have to constantly remind him to stop until I lose my limit and I shout and out comes the rotan. The other adults, even my husband does not do anything and I feel that it is my duty as a mother to correct his behavior.

I hate it when other adults scold him. Just feeling like tearing their faces when they scold my child. Would they like it if I scold their babies? Thus the need for me to discipline my kid before others take the opportunity to do so.

But at the age of 5, he does not see my point of view and when I scold him, I turn into this big bad wolf whom he does not want to get near to. After he says all those stuff to me, I just kept quiet and hug his sister, who hugs me back and says that mama is her favourite. I tell her that I love her and start discussing on where should our next family holiday be and the fun things we could do while we are there.

Kyle, eavesdropping on our conversation while watching TV, starts to move nearer and nearer to me till he sits on my lap. I teased him, saying I thought you do not love me? He starts crying…and I start to cry. We hugged each other and I kissed him all over his face, wiping his tears away.

That’s the end of one ugly episode, and I believe there will be more as he grows older and nearer to the angst teenage years…sigh…

Strike a Pose!

My girl is at a stage where she say the darniest things and makes you laugh and smile, no matter how bad your day was.

A taste of Kyra's tongue:

"Are you kidding?"

"Oh my god!"

"This is awesome/fantastic!"

"Girl with girl, boy with boy!" (she says this when she does not want her brother to hang around me!)

"Why, mama, why?" (extremely cute to ignore)

"Betul, betul, betul!!" (phrase from Upin & Ipin show)

She loves anything pink and also loves singing to her favourite tunes and twirling like a ballerina. And she loves the camera!

Kyle's K1 First Semester: Post-Mortem

1st semester of school is over for Kyle. Just had the parent-teacher conference with his teachers. So far, one word, very encouraging, especially with his Malay class. He has shown a lot of improvement, and he now speaks more of the language. Although he still has trouble with talking Malay naturally, but he makes a conscious effort and it shows. He tries to connect the words together to form a proper sentence and even though it does not come out right many times, he is never discouraged and he tries again. He is even active in class discussions, contributing even though he is not fluent in this language.His malay teacher even said that his persistence is very encouraging and she is positive that he will improve much more if he keeps up with this.

He got a B for both English and Maths. Needs to read more English books to get him familiarised with words and start reading. Overall, his behaviour is much better although still very active and the teachers have to occupy him all the time, or else he gets restless and gets himself into trouble.

Sigh...if only I can afford to work part-time, I will definitely devote my time to teaching my kids properly.

Kyra Cycling Like A Pro

Remember how Kyra was just learning how to cycle in one of my recent blog entries? Well, she is a fast learner...just after that one lesson at east coast park, she is already cycling so fast in her 4-wheeler! She still does not want to use the brakes, though, preferring to use her feet to stop the bicycle. But she is very good at avoiding anything that is in her path.

Love and Marriage

My son is pretty observant. Nowadays I am so into Robert Downey Junior...gosh just typing his name makes me drool! So I am there in front of the computer watching Iron Man for the umpteen time, and Kyle walks in, looks at the computer, and asks me,"Mama, you like Tony? You want to marry him?"

Tony, is btw, the name of RDJ's character in the movie. After composing myself, I told him, no, I just like him as an actor. Bullocks of course, but how to explain fan obsession to a 5-year old?! Then he replied, so you still like Ayah, that's why you married him?

LOL! I shot back at him, you like Claire Lum, you want to marry her? Bullseye! He immediately smile shyly and so endearingly said, No lah.....

Haha kids nowadays, so young and already know the feeling of love...

Kyra Learns How to Cycle

Kyle learnt how to ride the four wheeler when he was about 3 years old.

So now its time for Kyra to learn as well. Not bad for her 1st day of practice. She was able to go forward on her own after a few tries. She stills needs practice though. I am already planning to buy a new bicycle for her, a pink one hehe.

At East Coast Beach

Here is short video of her 1st ever cycling of a four wheeler

Kyra in Iqra Class

Kyra is not even four years old, but since she is so keen to recite the Quran just like her brother, I also signed her up for the class.

It is quite amusing cos she has been learning for 2 weeks now, and she is still only at the first 4 characters of the Arabic alphabet. She would remember the 1st two, but after the religious teacher teach her the 3rd and 4th character, she would forget the 1st two that she had learnt earlier. Haha!

I told her that it is ok and that she does not have to learn now and that I will enrol her again when she is five, just like her brother. At this stage, she is far too young to focus. But she does not give up easily and still wishes to go for classes. Well, I am glad she is enjoying herself though.

Here is the little makcik with her headscarf :)

The Things She Say or Does

1. Kyra has got a habit of switching bedtime partners. Yes you heard me right. Not in the perverted sense, she is just 3, for godsakes! What I mean is that she likes to choose between me, her grandma and the maid as to who she would sleep with at night. After lazing about on my bed, she would suddenly say, I want Bibik. Then when I pretend to pout, she would say, Tonite I sleep with Bibik ok, tomorrow I sleep with Mama ok. I would then say, you don't love me. And the little one would convince me by saying, I like you what, tomorrow I sleep with you ok. And after sauntering off to her Bibik, she would repeat the same conversation with her Bibik, asking to sleep with her grandma. And yes, she does the same thing with grandma, closing the circle with me. Haha!

2. Whenever me and hubby are in our childish moods, we would start pinching or poking each other where it hurts. And if hubby is winning, I just have to call out my 2 bodyguards, and they would come running to my cries of help. Instantly, they would be in their "Kungfu Panda" mode and start hissing and roaring at their daddy. My girl would actually put on an angry face, and with her hands on her hips, she would say, Ayah, why you pinch Mama?! Then she would stroke my hand or leg where it hurts and sayang me, while giving her daddy a piercing look. Kyle would suddenly turn into a kungfu master and do all kinds of stunts! So hilarious!

3. Anything she does not like, she would use this phrase "cos its not my favourite". For example, when I am choosing clothes for her, she will refuse to wear certain ones, and when I ask why, she would answer "cos its not my favourite". She has a thing for spagetti straps tops, which she affectionately calls "shame shame" shirt. She is already eyeing those shoes which has heels, which I doubt there is a size for her till she hits 7 years of age. And yes, she loves walking about in my heels.

4. She hates tying up her hair!! When she was younger, I was waiting for her hair to grow out so that I can start using all those adorable clips and rubber bands. But now I am unable to lay my hands on those gorgeous curls at all! She only likes hairbands and prefers to hair to be free. Sigh....I am so deprived of Barbie dolls I think.

Isn't she gorgeous? Hubby keeps saying that he is worried that she would grow up and have lots of boyfriends.

But I think she is too smart for that :)

Girl Bonding at The Pool

This is what we gals do when Kyle is having his swimming lessons and hubby is doing his laps. Just hanging out.

Unlike her brother, she is still wary of the water and will cry if I bring her to the middle of the pool. She rather stay at the side, feeling safe and contented with just splashing around in the shallow waters.

It's fine by me and we play there together, often playing pretend where she is washing my hair and having coffee/tea using the swimming board as a table.

Hopefully over time, she will overcome her fear of the deep water and I can then enroll her into the swimming school next year.

So Far So Good!

Kyle so far is doing well in his new school :) His teacher says that he no longer bullies his other classmates and she even said that he is very intelligent and learns fast! Even his iqra classes are going smoothly...his ustazah always often praise him and he seems to know his arabic letters pretty well.

I was so overwhelmed with happiness the other day. You see, I always bring Kyra along whenever I send Kyle to his iqra class. And she always seems very interested whenever her brother is reciting in Arabic. The ustazah also noticed this and after Kyle's lesson, she ask Kyra whether she would want to try reciting as well. Kyra was so happy at the chance and she managed to recite the 1st page, with hardly any mistakes!

I was so surprised and pleased with her. My baby girl may be only 3, but she has got a lot of spunk!

I am so proud of them!

Astigmatism

Recently Kyle had his 5 year eye check-up at CCK Poly. He could not really make out a few letters so the doctor referred us to an eye specialist at KK, just to make sure all was ok. We could not be certain whether he really could not see the letters, or he was just being distracted and mischievious and not wanting to concentrate.

As it turns out, he has a mild case of astigmatism in his left eye and his right eye has a degree of 25. I am actually not quite surprise considering both his parents are quite "potek". Even hubby has astigmatism. But lucky for us and him, at the moment, doctor say no need for glasses yet.

To reduce myopia, doctor also told Kyle not to spend more than 40 mins in front of the computer, and not to watch televison while lying down. I remember starting to wear glasses in primary school and I guess my son is gonna follow the same trend soon.

Busy As A Bee

Kyle's weekly schedule is even more packed than mine!

KI Class, Mon to Fri 1pm-4.30pm

Iqra Class, Mon to Wed 8pm

Kids Alive Class at Al-Iman Mosque, Sat 11.45am - 3pm

Swimming Class Sat 4pm-5pm

Phew! And this is not counting his daily homework and tuition by me. Lucky Sunday is a free day!

One good thing about my boy is that he hardly complains or protests when it comes to going for classes. He enjoys attending lessons and hardly ever cries.

That's him in his K1 uniform.

And this is his KidsAlive uniform.
So far he is doing well in classes. In his iqra class, he is very diligent and his ustazah always praises him for reading the arabic letters well.

In his swimming class, he is no longer afraid of the deep waters and can swim to the middle of the pool alone using the swimming board :) His coach also says he learns fast and he always practises hard at each lesson.

I hope learning is a fun experience for him and that he will not get bored or worse, daunted by it. I will try to make homework and tuition as interesting as it gets just for my kids.

Kyle's Relationship with Ayah

As my son grows older, I find that his attachment to me lessens. He strives to be more independant and is drawn to his father very much. He like to emulate what my husband does and loves doing stuff with his father.

They do a lot of boy-stuff together, such as playing computer games, play soccer, kite-flying etc. They even like the same kind of songs. As such, their relationship grows and they have a deeper bond than when he was younger.

I must admit I was a little jealous, especially when we go to pick him up from school. He would smile widely when he sees me, but the next second, his eyes would dart all about looking for my hubby. And when he spots him, he would shout "Ayah!" and run to hug my hubby.

Whenever my hubby comes back late from work or a soccer game, Kyle would get anxious and keep saying,"Mama, where is Ayah? I miss Ayah, I want Ayah." Sigh, gone are the days where I am his everything, and where the presence of my hubby do not really mean much to him.

But on the other hand of course I am happy that they have grown closer. Father and son relationship is extremely important to a boy's well-being.

Hubby is very patient with him, whereas I am the more emotional and erratic one, blowing my top whenever Kyle does something wrong. There was one time, when I was scolding Kyle again, and he actually said,"You always beat everyday. Ayah never beat." That really opened up my mind, and from that day onwards, I hardly beat him unless really necessary. Decided that at his age, talking and negotiating works better.

But of course when it comes to sleeptime, eating time, and manja-sayang time, it is still me he wants. He still hugs and kisses me, and says that I am his best friend. And even though he and Kyra fight each night to see who sleeps with me, I smile happily amidst the noise, loving the attention :)

Kyra PTC Playgroup 2009

"Kyra is very intelligent but she is so emotional!"

That's what Kyra's form teacher told me and hubby during Kyra Parent-Teacher Conference for 2009 playgroup kids.

it seems that she is so drama-mama in class. She cries for every single thing. Even a poke by one of her classmates will lead to her wailing. Only after the teacher sayang her, then she will calm down.

Learning-wise, not a problem.She enjoys taking part in any activity and is always the closest one standing with the teacher. Very high confidence level. Love outdoor walks, dancing and singing.

Even the teachers noticed how vain she is. She will insist on choosing her own shoes when attending school. And unfortunately, she would choose her party shoes, glitter and all. And how is she going to take part in any running activity with those shoes, the teacher ask me.

Yes my 3 year old has a mind of her own when it comes to clothes. Only the right outfit, shoes and bag before going out. Pink preferably. If not, the wailing will start. I told the teacher about her being vain, and she seem to understand, and we both managed to convince that little princess only sandels/canvas shoes for school.

Well, now its 2010 and she is in nursery class. Time to really hit the alphabet books, honey!

Kyle at Swimming Class

Here are a couple of pictures of Kyle during his swimming lessons.

He enjoys it very much, and is no longer afraid of deep waters. He listens to instructions by the coach and seems so willing and eager to learn.

He and his classmates belong to the orange cap clan..hehe

He is now still learning the correct breathing techniques as well as how to keep afloat.