Horrible feeling!

It's horrible, really horrible feeling. I see their eyes recovering and I wish my eyes could turn from red to green with jealousy.

It's getting no where to recovery. And I'm tired from the uncomfortable feeling that I feel with my left eye. And on Thursday morning, I noticed my right eye is a little pink. (This will spread to both eyes). I am sick and tired of the constant tearing, the sticky discharge.

On Wednesday, I went back to the doctor that prescribed KZ antibiotics after I brought Athena for her follow up. Doc gave me antibiotics, which I had to make sure is stronger than Amoxycillin, and a different eye drop from my first doc and KZ. I pray for a speedy recovery, this is really so inconvenient. And I still had to drive around, it's really irritating to have the sun glare, and I keep tearing. I drive with one hand sometimes, then I get fed up and stuck a tissue paper on the sides - looking so ridiculous. Sometimes, my left eye can involuntarily close. Scary! Cham leh.. like numb liao.

Will I go blind?

By today, I couldn't take it. Went back to see him again. This time round, my right eye is red too! Shucks! Given Terramycin. His advice is to go to see him again on Tuesday, and then if it doesn't get well, he'll refer me to the eye specialist. Can I wait that long? For 2 days, I wonder if I'll go blind. Then I cannot see my children growing up, and them getting married. I know it sounds corny to you, but the idea of "it's your eyes and the window of the world", the thought of the window being closed forever just scares me. And what makes it worst is that, anyone with conjunctivitis often wake up with they eyelashes stuck - sticky discharge. I often have to go to the toilet one-eye-jack and use the cotton pad to slowly clean my eyes, finally opening my eyes and "oh yes, I'm still not blind" relief thought.
I told hubby maybe I should go down on my own on Monday. He scolded me "because you always rub your eyes that's why never get well", I didn't! I merely cleaned off the tearing. Siao eh! As if I'm so mad to go and rub my eyes when it's already so painful. KZ say I always use the same tissue, I told her I do change the sides and throw away. She said no I use the same side (siao eh... like I so stupid to use the bacteria infected parts to clean back. And if I'm so siao, I wouldn't even bother about sanitizing my hands that often and spraying whatever things I've touched with the Dettol spray), one piece of tissue she wipe 3 times and then throw. Wah piang eh.... I know this is not the time to save money, but I can use more than that. 4 corners + 4 middle portion of each sides + the middle = easily 9 times and throw.

Tuesday, sounds great too! Coz' the children won't have anything on after school. Was thinking, where could he refer me to? Eye Centre in SGH? Far.. but I still have KZ to help me pick up the children and worry if she'll get lost trying to take bus for the first time from Aricia school to Athena school. But I thought, since I get the contact for East Shore, might be a little faster. Don't have to wait until the cows come home in SNEC. But Tuesday?? Abit too long right? Or maybe Monday I go down on my own. Then supposedly if I can't get back home in time, ask her to bring Aricia to Ros class .. or skip again? Ehh........

Headache. Headache. Not from thinking of what to do, I think my heart tells me to go on Monday -Eastshore. Don't want to prolong too long, I need to get my eyes well soon. I mean real soon. But headache from the restricted widescreen (2.39:1) vision I've been having and trying to tilt my head upwards like a proud sombong person. Slept alot these days, can't do much, which partially explains why I can be so tired from going through Athena's work. Tonight's exception, I'm bored from closing my eyes too much and getting them stuck. So I'm blogging with the lappie screen light dimmed. Heavy eyes! Feel like closing my eyes and sleep, do nothing and be a fat pig.
Ear pain, ear pain. Damn! I feel like an old woman stuck with health problems. So inconvenient.

I remember I had conjunctivitis once when I was flying, that was due to contact lens. For that, I was given 2 days MC. Now that I'm no longer wearing contact lens.. more than 1 week??

Time to close my eyes and sleep. I want to get well soon!

Homeschool - III / IV / V

Wednesday

Think can close down my school, you've got a lazy teacher today.

Athena is given another 4 days of MC, that makes her absent from school for one week. *gasp*. I said I would rebel, I did. PD laughed at me, staffs said I'm over-reacting and "now that the naughty one is in school - house shouldn't be that noisy."

Wednesdays are Math day. She's doing Measurements - way way ahead of her peers. No problem today, so she's basically in my room while I do some printing. I only work my mouth today (in the first 2 hours).. hee! Talk about being a dedicated teacher, bullshit!

Emailed her FT to inform her, as well as asking her if there's any homework I can collect from the school next morning. Will do that after I drop Aricia off in school. Ehh... I am a little worried about her lagging behind her classmates. Very stupid right? She's well ahead of her peers, but still being a kiasu mother. The only thing I'm worried about is her subtraction. Friends say children always have problems with subtraction, I don't fully agree with them. Come on! I've been drilling this into her brain since last year with the Cuisenaire rods, until I want to bring out the 'rod' (pun intended) on her. She can read the sentence and though she can't really explain in her own words, she says she comprehends them. So what's the problem?
Needless to say, I went through all the silly mistakes she made in her books. Can you believe that she's concurrently doing 3 Maths assessment books, I've got another one on sentence sums for her; and... that's not it - another card sentence game set. Maths - more practice and practice.

Did her music. Didn't go for lesson.

I did a short home session with Aricia today. Dare not do the two LMs - coz' afraid of long contact with her.

********************************************

Thursday

Mad rush for me in the morning. I collected her work from the office in the morning, went back home to let her do her work.
I was told that on Wednesday, the moment I left the house, Athena gleefully sat herself down infront of TV. Timed and then took out the books to do when she knows I'm coming back. Smart or not? Say she dunno how to tell time, I think she's lying. Or maybe she goes by instinct. So this morning, I assigned her to do some pages of her Maths which she has missed out.

Came back to see her sitting on the coffee table doing her work. Good girl! Told her what she needed to do, and she took the work to do. She didn't ask me any questions, which is good news - goes to show she knows her work. But when I checked her work, I had to ask her to erase off some work coz' it's untidy. I marked her "missed out pages" and also checked on her Math workbook which is given back to her. Went through what she did in class - not much left coz' it's been torn off. But saw two sums which she did wrongly and told her off for her carelessness. Goash! Am I too hard on her? Afterall I did tell her I would want her to excel in class, be one of the Top 3 students.

I had to leave the house at 11.55am to pick Aricia up. Athena stayed home coz' didn't want her to end up playing with a helper and end up folding papers every week.
(speaking of which, I wrote of Athena missing out 2 weeks of her chinese work on Thursdays while waiting for me right? She was playing with a helper - the one who helped me accompany her when Athena was still eating & I had to rush in for class - of course I don't blame the helper for playing with her coz' she wouldn't know that she's given work to do. And that girl, being playful/being a child would choose to play over her work. So, for weeks I get presents after we finish class. I come out to the waiting area to see tons of folded paper boxes using magazine papers. Then when we had to go off, Aricia wants to be carried. And for obvious reason I can't & won't help Athena carry her stupid boxes. You'll hear her complaining "mummy, walk slowly. I cannot.........ah.......mummy my things drop. Mummy.... I cannot carry my book." Last time she'd do her work, until she pretended and lied to me that she dunno how to do her work for 2 weeks. What can I say? Aricia's class already over, we're rushing off to her class.)

It's odd, I didn't have to stalk in carpark to wait for Athena coz' she's not in school but I still did lor......I could have taken the time to go jalan-jalan in PP or Toa Payoh but I think Aricia needs her nap more than my bo-liao walking around to spend time. Resist! resist! I'm already itching to go out, to paint the streets red. Since the start of this year, I haven't had the luxury of being a tai-tai. sob sob.

After her class, went back home. Since I didn't let her go for Berries today, I arranged for make up lesson on Sunday or maybe MC (if eyes still pinkish). I had a little of leisurely time chatting with J who intends to switch her son, J, from Chiltern House to this. I gasped at the school fees! I don't have the money siah! Is there a need to send children to such expensive preschools? And then you hear stories of long waiting list etc... What's your view on this?

Back home, I didn't hear her fumble for the remote control (pretend to turn off TV) but I don't mind as long as she finishes her work. Not bad! She only didn't understand "write a addition sentence / a number sentence / a subtraction sentence." Explained to her and then she wrote her own lor-soh 'story' sentence.

Aricia's home session? No.........I was tired. Strange right? Afterall I didn't do much work with Athena what!

I'm so tempted, so tempted not to send Aricia in to school the next day. It's so stupid to go all the way to Katong to send just one child for school. And hers is only a few hours of school.

*******************************************

Friday

Sent Aricia to school, cannot miss lah! No excuse since she was telling me "temorow (tomorrow) go kool (school), see flend (friend) flend, see chicher (teacher), cannot cry...."
On way home, went to get some bread and small groceries. Just as I was about to reach home, at the carpark, mom called to ask me to go back Tampines to collect something. Duh! Stupid me, go all the way to Tampines.

By the time I got back home was already 10am. Athena was doing her work at the coffee table again (no remote control near in sight - heehee!). Guess what work? Maths! I asked her to do her English, she ended up doing Maths. Normally Fridays I don't assign any subject day for her coz' by the time she gets back home will be late.

What Homeschool? Mummy surrendered!! Buay tahan. Gave her a treat, I didn't want to make her think going out gai-gai is a must when she's on MC but I myself couldn't resist staying at home, though technically I always have things to do. I rebel too, coz' I've been staying at home almost 2 weeks straight! Is that a record? So promised her to bring her out after we pick Aricia from school.
She asked to go Big Splash (to FnR) but I declined, saying with her eyes, they'd not allow her to go in either. We either go PP or CP or TM - for 2 to 3 hrs, come back and I'd continue her work with her.
The children had their lunch at Sakae Sushi at CS, with Athena and myself wearing sunglasses the whole time. (ridiculous!) And we were using my hand sanitizer so often during that short trip out. After which they wanted to go ToysRUs. I didn't want to waste time, so dropped the both of them inside while I go over to Popular to do my much needed shopping. They played a while more then we left the place.

Back home, the children had their shower. Marked her Maths (again), went through the mistakes. Goash! I think I'm going to hide those books first! She's doing way ahead of her peers - that's the 3rd or 4th term's work. But she tells me she loves Maths leh. How?

English - she asked me what does 'herding' means. I taught her how to use the dictionary I bought for her. She got the hang of it quite fast, and then she asked me what does 'cattle' means? Let her find it, and she asks me another word. Will take very long for her to finish the whole cycle. She has to write the words that she don't understand in a book that I gave her. I call it her Vocabulary Booster Book.
I remember my sister made me flip the dictionary and read the meaning of words etc.. She also gave me a book Oliver Twist when I was 11. You think she was being nice to me? It's unabridged edition. Gasp! And I didn't read past Chapter 2 (my sis will kill me if she knows this. She will know, she reads my blog. Confession), I kept the book in pristine condition (obviously) and will pass it down as a heirloom to Athena. Muahhahaha.

Practised piano, guided Aricia with her Logico before she start fighting with me. Didn't do home session, I'm just not up to it - after I had exhausted my energy on Athena's work.

Rrrring. The school bell rang. What school? Ha! So now I really worry if she's lagging behind her classmates since I didn't really spend that much time teaching her things from her school textbook, which I had intended to.

Bentos

Very simple packed snacks for her recess. All these were prepared by KZ, I still can't get up very early to prepare for them. Hee! Lazy mummy.

16th Feb
18th Feb - Oh! This is done by me the night before using the extras Mcs pancakes. I instructed KZ to help me heat up in the morning. It's アンパンマン craze week. Remember?
18th - Lunch @ home

19th - Lunch

Must do something for the children already.

Sprucing up on hygiene

We had to step up on hygiene - now that Aricia is recovered, we have to make sure she don't get it again. Weird attitudes we have, when we're ok and the kids get it we don't step up on hygiene that strictly. But when we get it; we step up on it. Should have done so earlier to prevent everyone from suffering.

KZ's more busy now. She washes our towels everyday by using the method I taught her - boiling it with soap and colour bleach + she adds a little Dettol in it. Potent combination but what the heck! She changes the children bedsheets every day; changes my pillow case every day. On top of that, using the Dettol spray to spray on the pillows and the whole bed (not like I roll all over the bed). We spray quite alot of things apart from her usual cleaning up the house. We spray whenever we touch anything even though we've washed our hands. The doorknobs, the toys. Ai yah..........so easy jusy spray and spray.

We let her dry her hands by using the tissue paper instead of the hand towels. Coz' we wash very often... and then dry our hands with them. Though technically our hands should be clean but......better to play safe.

Spray so much that our new bottle is almost finished. Had to rush out to buy more, I could only grab the last 2 on the shelf. We still have 1 1/2 big bottles of Dettol. 1 1/2 bottle of Dettol handwash, don't think we'll finish that much- must be insane.
Reminds me of the SARS period, where I disinfect all the time.

Hubby is not aware of the extreme we're doing - of course he's at work. (but wait till he sees the utilities bill lor!) Then when he comes back and touch the children, I tell him to wash his hands - he shrugs it off! He's always like that, even when it was the SARS period. I told him to wash his hands and change his clothes before touching Athena, he won't listen. He thinks I'm crazy, probably so with me cooped up at home and imagination runs wild.
Now that he's having a little sore throat, I tell him to be more cautious with the children. Dowan to pass to children, and then I suffer again.

Aricia will be back in school tomorrow. As for che-che, she should be going back to school. But I may have to see how it goes, coz' if it took Aricia 1 week to get better, I was thinking her 2 days MC is not enough. And that girl was already complaining,"not fair! Mei-mei can have 1 week off." Wah.............she thinks skipping school is a luxury? She has alot of catching up to do. She thinks she's still in LCCC where she can skip school anytime?
Hope everyone recovers faster. It's so bloody uncomfortable. And then I am so conscious of people looking at me, I wear sunglasses - they give me one kind of funny look. This evening, the people in the kiosk looked at me. Must be thinking I'm crazy, wearing sunglasses.

Red Eyed Monster : Athena (Schooling from home)

School session starts at 7.50am. She gets her own free time till the lazy pig mummy aka teacher is up from bed.

Home school starts at 9.05am

1. Continuation of going through all the past-year papers. Finally finished all the papers & will start filing them in later.

2. Did Uncountable Nouns on the whiteboard yesterday. So today's a quick revision on Pronouns and Prepositions on the board. (something's wrong with my whiteboard, can't seem to use the wiper to wipe clean. Need the spray)

3. She copies what I wrote on the whiteboard into her notebook.

4. While doing so, teacher brings Aricia to sit infront of lappie and let her watch some Japanese songs videos online. (half the time, she keeps tilting sideways and tell me to scratch her backside. Eeeks!) then let her play an online alphabet game. She associates the banging any keys to getting the answer, which is not in this case (all her other games has this 'hit any key' concept) and it's annoying me. When she finally sees that I'm doing a left-click, she clicks every time. Sigh...........

RECESS TIME / SHOWER TIME

NAP TIME FOR ARICIA / CONTINUATION OF EXCESSIVE WORK FOR ATHENA

5. She did her Grammar book on Uncountable Nouns, Prepositions, Pronouns, while I surf the net for children websites. I've bookmarked far too much, was suppose to do housekeeping - end up adding up more bookmarks. Duh!

6. Aricia woke up, Athena started complaining and wants to go into the MOE chinese website. She played the games in the website while I did Aricia's home session + her homework.

7. Music revision. Aricia mess up the house.

8. *Rrrring* - full day school ends

Wait! Not yet!

DINNER

9. Go through chinese dictation & spelling with her.

Aricia

I thought my girl is going to be the total opposite from her che-che, afterall she did seem so boisterous. She is more outspoken

Turned out she's almost the same - the same naughty girl that shows her true self at home. And the 'quiet and obedient girl' in school. As what Teacher Felin told me today on the phone "she's very quiet in class." My first reaction was "Huh? Quiet??" "But once in a while she'll start talking and then her voice is very sharp." That one I do agree, she's got very sharp squeaky voice. I know there's always the opposite behaviour children possess. But her's is really a big change - she's a sum-seng gia at home; yakking and yakking at home.

Talking about this lil' girl. She is very head-strong - don't want means don't want. No matter what we do with her potty-training, stripping her, running her into the toilet with her screaming, her crossing her legs to hold her urine (hilarious incident) etc... But she is a dear. She sayangs her sister, she can be very obedient (except the potty training) and keep her toys when you tell her to. Master Tan says this girl is very filial - love her parents. Hmm..........

Reggio Emilia Approach

At a certain school in Singapore, it's the first to use this Reggio Emilia Approach. I guess everyone who went "huh? Reggio what??" are keeping their eyes open to see how the approach works, the Principal - on the other hand, I feel, is stressing the children up. Or maybe the parents. I don't know it all depends on how you look at it.

F, who's son is in P1 this year, tells me everything about the school. And although I'm the nutcrack, pushing my children all the time, I think it's too much of staying back in school for P1 students in this school. Perhaps it's the Principal's idea so as to push up the PSLE grades 6 years later? Hmm... I may be right or I may be wrong.

More about the Reggio Emilia Approach : is an educational philosophy focused on preschool and primary education. It was started by the parents of the villages around Reggio Emilia in Italy after World War II to eliminate fascism. The destruction from the war, parents believed, necessitated a new, quick approach to teaching their children. They felt that it is in the early years of development that children are forming who they are as an individual. This led to creation of a program based on the principles of respect, responsibility, and community through exploration and discovery in a supportive and enriching environment.

The city of Reggio Emilia in Italy is recognized worldwide for its innovative approach to education. Its signature educational philosophy has become known as the Reggio Emilia Approach which many American preschool programs have adopted. The Reggio Emilia philosophy is based upon the following set of principles:

• Children must have some control over the direction of their learning;
• children must be able to learn through experiences of touching, moving, listening, seeing, and hearing;
• children have a relationship with other children and with material items in the world that children must be allowed to explore;
• and children must have endless ways and opportunities to express themselves.

The Reggio Emilia approach to teaching young children puts the natural development of children as well as the close relationships that they share with their environment at the center of its philosophy. Early childhood programs that have successfully adapted to this educational philosophy share that they are attracted to Reggio because of the way it views and respects the child. They believe that the central reason that a child must have control over his or her day-to-day activity is that learning must make sense from the child's point of view. To make it meaningful, it also must be of interest to the child. That is one way they have control over their learning.

Parents are a vital component to the Reggio Emilia philosophy. Parents are viewed as partners, collaborators and advocates for their children. Teachers respect parents as each child's first teacher and involve parents in every aspect of the curriculum. It is not uncommon to see parents volunteering within Reggio Emilia classrooms throughout the school. This philosophy does not end when the child leaves the classroom. Most parents who choose to send their children to a Reggio Emilia program incorporate many of the principles within their parenting and home life. Even with this bridge between school and home, many people wonder what happens to Reggio children when they make the transition from this style of education to a non Reggio Emilia school. The answer is that there is some adjustment that must take place. In most school environments, intellectual curiosity is rewarded, so students continue to reap the benefits of Reggio after they've left the program.

Contents [hide] 1 Community support and parental involvement 2 Teachers as learners 3 The role of the environment 4 Long-term projects as vehicles for learning 5 The hundred languages of children 6 Conclusion 7 See also 8 References 9 Further reading 10 External links

Community support and parental involvement

Reggio Emilia's tradition of community support for families with young children expands on a view, more strongly held in Emilia Romagna and Tuscany, of children as the collective responsibility of the local community. In Reggio Emilia, the infant/toddler and pre-primary program is a vital part of the community, as reflected in the high level of financial support. Community involvement is also apparent in citizen membership in La Consulta, a school committee that exerts significant influence over local government policy.

The parents' role mirrors the community's, at both the schoolwide and the classroom level. Parents are expected to take part in discussions about school policy, child development concerns, and curriculum planning and evaluation. Because a majority of parents--including mothers--are employed, meetings are held in the evenings so that all who wish to participate can do so.

Teachers as learners

Teachers' long-term commitment to enhancing their understanding of children is at the crux of the Reggio Emilia approach. Their resistance to the American use of the term model to describe their program reflects the continuing evolution of their ideas and practices. They compensate for the meager preservice training of Italian early childhood teachers by providing extensive staff development opportunities, with goals determined by the teachers themselves. Teacher autonomy is evident in the absence of teacher manuals, curriculum guides, or achievement tests. The lack of externally imposed mandates is joined by the imperative that teachers become skilled observers of children in order to inform their curriculum planning and implementation.

Teachers routinely divide responsibilities in the class so that one can systematically observe, take notes, and record conversations between children. These observations are shared with other teachers and a specialized teacher called the atelierista who uses a space in the school called an atelier -or studio- to use art as an integrated way for children's symbolic expression. Parents are also involved in curriculum planning and evaluation. Teachers of several schools often work and learn together under the leadership of the pedagogista as they explore ways of expanding on children's spontaneous activities..

The role of the environment

The organization of the physical environment is crucial to Reggio Emilia's early childhood program, and is often referred to as the child's "third teacher." Major aims in the planning of new spaces and the remodeling of old ones include the integration of each classroom with the rest of the school, and the school with the surrounding community. The preschools are generally filled with indoor plants and vines, and awash with natural light. Classrooms open to a center piazza, kitchens are open to view, and access to the surrounding community is assured through wall-size windows, courtyards, and doors to the outside in each classroom. Entries capture the attention of both children and adults through the use of mirrors (on the walls, floors, and ceilings), photographs, and children's work accompanied by transcriptions of their discussions. These same features characterize classroom interiors, where displays of project work are interspersed with arrays of found objects and classroom materials. In each case, the environment informs and engages the viewer.

Other supportive elements of the environment include ample space for supplies, frequently rearranged to draw attention to their aesthetic features. In each classroom there are studio spaces in the form of a large, centrally located atelier and a smaller mini-atelier, and clearly designated spaces for large- and small-group activities. Throughout the school, there is an effort to create opportunities for children to interact. Thus, the single dress-up area is in the center piazza; classrooms are connected with telephones, passageways or windows; and lunchrooms and bathrooms are designed to encourage community. Groups of children will stay with one particular teacher for a five year period, creating consistency and an environment where there are no added pressures from having to form new relationships.

Long-term projects as vehicles for learning

The curriculum is characterized by many features advocated by contemporary research on young children, including real-life problem-solving among peers, with numerous opportunities for creative thinking and exploration. Teachers often work on projects with small groups of children, while the rest of the class engages in a wide variety of self-selected activities typical of preschool classrooms.

The projects that teachers and children engage in are distinct in a number of ways from those that characterize American teachers' conceptions of unit or thematic studies. The topic of investigation may derive directly from teacher observations of children's spontaneous play and exploration. Project topics are also selected on the basis of an academic curiosity or social concern on the part of teachers or parents, or serendipitous events that direct the attention of the children and teachers. Reggio teachers place a high value on their ability to improvise and respond to children's predisposition to enjoy the unexpected. Regardless of their origins, successful projects are those that generate a sufficient amount of interest and uncertainty to provoke children's creative thinking and problem-solving and are open to different avenues of exploration. Because curriculum decisions are based on developmental and sociocultural concerns, small groups of children of varying abilities and interests, including those with special needs, work together on projects.

Projects begin with teachers observing and questioning children about the topic of interest. Based on children's responses, teachers introduce materials, questions, and opportunities that provoke children to further explore the topic. While some of these teacher provocations are anticipated, projects often move in unanticipated directions as a result of problems children identify. Thus, curriculum planning and implementation revolve around open-ended and often long-term projects that are based on the reciprocal nature of teacher-directed and child-initiated activity. All of the topics of interest are given by the children.

The hundred languages of children

As children proceed in an investigation, generating and testing their hypotheses, they are encouraged to depict their understanding through one of many symbolic languages, including drawing, sculpture, dramatic play, and writing. They work together toward the resolution of problems that arise. Teachers facilitate and then observe debates regarding the extent to which a child's drawing or other form of representation lives up to the expressed intent. Revision of drawings (and ideas) is encouraged, and teachers allow children to repeat activities and modify each other's work in the collective aim of better understanding the topic. Teachers foster children's involvement in the processes of exploration and evaluation, acknowledging the importance of their evolving products as vehicles for exchange.

Conclusion

Reggio Emilia's approach to early education reflects a theoretical kinship with John Dewey, Jean Piaget, Vygotsky and Jerome Bruner, among others. Much of what occurs in the class reflects a constructivist approach to early education. Reggio Emilia's approach does challenge some conceptions of teacher competence and developmentally appropriate practice. For example, teachers in Reggio Emilia assert the importance of being confused as a contributor to learning; thus a major teaching strategy is purposely to allow mistakes to happen, or to begin a project with no clear sense of where it might end. Another characteristic that is counter to the beliefs of many Western educators is the importance of the child's ability to negotiate in the peer group.

One of the most challenging aspects of the Reggio Emilia approach is the solicitation of multiple points of view regarding children's needs, interests, and abilities, and the concurrent faith in parents, teachers, and children to contribute in meaningful ways to the determination of school experiences. Teachers trust themselves to respond appropriately to children's ideas and interests, they trust children to be interested in things worth knowing about, and they trust parents to be informed and productive members of a cooperative educational team. The result is an atmosphere of community and collaboration that is developmentally appropriate for adults and children alike.

The Red Eyed Monsters - I

Call it suay, or call it the close bond we share. The small girl's conjunctivitis is so powerful >>

Funny thing is that both children were infected in their right eye. KZ's and mine - left eye. It looks as if KZ and myself just had a face to face.

This morning, Athena's eyes were redder - a surprise to me coz' she seemed alright the day before. Perhaps it was the banana that triggers it? Read this article. So, it's no school for her and get another medication. Dr Teo says it's going to be antibiotics this course (like mei-mei) but coz' I bought my certificate and not 100% certified.
At the PDs, KZ brought the children in first while I went to withdraw $. The reaction from the staffs. "Huh, you also got it?" coz' they saw her and mei-mei (carrying her), didn't know it was for Athena. Then they saw Athena and next question was "so the mummy how?" I came into the clinic looking like a 星妈. They said they kindda expected it.. one of them said she saw me rubbing our cheeks together that day and thought to herself that I'll get it. Wah! Cannot show affection meh?

Athena was given 2 days MC. Any days more, I'll rebel. She was happy thinking that she can go gai-gai.........I don't let my children off so easily. I'm happy too! Coz' it means I can give her more work to do, teach her and mebbe start screaming at her. Okay, you might ask why I rebel then right? Coz' she's always taunting and challenging me, I'll be nagging at her every minute. I'll get my blood pressure up and ..........OMG! I haven't thought what's going to happen to me during the school holidays when she's with me 24/7/24/60/60. Before she kills me; I kill myself. Hee!

Aricia - checked with PD if need to see again, if necessary then I'll take her card out. Said no need. So now, we have to ensure 400% hygiene practice - so that we don't pass the 'ball' around and the whole cycle continues.

KZ and myself saw the GPs too. Hope everyone gets well soon.

Back home :
Chinese - try to continue where she stopped last on Friday. It's 'un' and ün'. She's done this in Berries, so it's a quick lesson on that. She has alot of backtracking to do on her Hanyu Pinyin assessment book. Playful girl lor... for the past 2 weeks refuse to do while waiting for mei-mei and me.

Went through the mistakes she did for the past-year papers.

English? Wanted to reinforce the words that is going to be taught for the new book in class this week. Too tired myself, I want to blog. I want to surf the net, do some mindless things . I shall do it tomorrow.......

Later, she'll have to revise her spelling, chinese dictation, music. Tomorrow's another day - English & Maths. Sigh.........I feel so tired when I think about it.

@#$%

Shucks! Yours truly woke up with a red eye on Saturday.

And if that's not bad enough, KZ also got it in the evening.

Hubby? Well and fine.

Mumblings - My week

PV and updates on Aricia
I am a PV in Athena's school. There were many choices of things which any parent can offer to help. I was tempted to help out in the mornings in the English Learning Support Programme (to help reluctant or less able lower primary pupils to read). But hor......... you think you'd trust me? (ha! I can't believe this mummy who's been corrected is teaching her daughter English at home?!?!) Then, I decided I can't coz' where the heck would Aricia go to then? Drop her in too early is not good for her, that means I spend even lesser time with her.
In the end, I signed up for adhoc volunteering. Occasionally they'd send in emails informing us they need help etc... infact there was something on this Monday (16th). Somehow I wanted to sign up and then I hesitated. Was it a hunch that something is going to happen? True enough, my lil' one woke up with a red eye.
She seemed to be getting better yesterday. But then suddenly she started crying and refused to open her eyes. Frightened me! I assumed it was her hair or eyelashes that poked into her eyes. But she did seem normal to me after that so I thought nothing of it but to observe further.

This morning, decided to bring her to PD for follow up. And ........then was told it spread to the other eye. Argh!! This time she's given gentamicin and oral antibiotics. Actually I've noticed now, the PD don't easily give out antibiotics as she used to.
Have to be more observant, if she don't get well by Monday then I'll have to go down to an eye specialist. I told her I have my own, on second thoughts I asked her about the specialist she's recommending. He's in East Shore. Oh thank God! Mine is in Mt E (too far.. and horrible traffic jams will kill me) and East Shore will definitely be closer for me from che-che's school. Curious, I went into the website and read his credentials - 25 years of experience. Guess, should be a good choice. But I hope I don't need his services.

Will have to check on che-che later on. See if che-che spy on naked boys.

Teacher Aides
When che-che's FT gave us a note on the above subject, I was so tempted to sign up for it. I feel there's a need to work alongside with the teachers to help my child. So, did I sign up in eventually? No, not yet. I'm afraid it will take up too much of my time , and I'll be fighting for more time. But it's still ringing in my head, I will sign up when I'm ready.... maybe by then she'll graduate already. Heehee!

アンパンマン
I am so tempted to shop for more DVDs for the children, they keep asking me for more. I'm lost for choice, really too many. Worst is every click brings you to something even more interesting. Argh!!!! I so heart アンパンマン, maybe finding myself looking more like him. Heehee! Round and cute.
Ahhhhh...........Check this out! I want to fly to Japan now.

Hee! I think I'm アンパンマン crazy. I think my children would love it if I could bake something like this: - (I doubt my capability though!)

Found this on youtube - Anpanman song :

I am so inspired to play the theme song, that I went to buy the scorebook online.

Then......today Mr Postman came with a parcel, I thought it was an earlier parcel of stuffs from Amazon. Gotta give the Japanese credit, they were so efficient - I received it today. (ordered on 18th night) Now wondering if my other parcel is lost - again?

See! Such a big box hor............? As if I bought the whole chest of treasure

Crazy right? They need such a big box for this

Yay! I'm happy!!! Going to start playing. Shucks! I hate it with all the A(flat), B(flat), D(flat), E(flat) songs
Yesterday, I optimised my time when she nap. I decided to do a checklist for these books. I have Usually I'd leave che-che to do these alone, which I can't monitor on her progression.

And I had to do all these. Tired!

Che-che
Ah doh! Picked che-che up from school and noticed her right eye. Mei-mei also started off with her right eye. I asked if she did touch mei-mei the day before and then rubbed her own eyes blah blah. She said "no, I didn't.. but mei-mei keep wanting to come close to me. She keep touching me, yesterday she keep beating me." Huh?

Happy Birthday!

Baked this cake on 18th while Aricia was sleeping. Manual whisking for cake while I set the buttercream whisked on the stand mixer. I finished my baking very fast.
Decorated it on same day and celebrated the next day - 19th

It's the craze........the whole week we're all crazy over him.

Che-che insisted that I must also write her name on it.

It's Nutella!!

I was so happy when the children asked for 3 helpings. And lil' one had been rejecting cakes recently suddenly ate so much of my baking - so happy I want to DANCE ALL NIGHT

Now, wondering if I should bake for che-che next week.

* will post more photos in their blogs.

My week

Half of the week is gone and I haven't achieved much (for myself) this week. A standstill coz' have to care for that lil' girl.

Somehow I'm happy with this arrangement, with her around in the morning I was able to do her home sessions. Then concentrate on che-che when she comes home. Otherwise it'll be a mad rush for me; and then I get so naggy and grumpy.

Tuesday was a break for me, I had to send hubby's car for servicing. Didn't bring her along, so I had some time to myself. Tempted to paint Orchard Rd red but I had other important thing to so.

This week too, I can't seem to do much with che-che in the afternoons. She seems to be dozing off while doing her work. And on Wednesday, I dozed off too!

Alright, time to finish this entry. Will wait for tomorrow to do my other postings. It's already close to 2am and I have to get up at 5.30am. Bye!

Cookies yum yums

Baked cookies on Sunday. Packed some for her friends in school.

Photos :







For her friends

FYI : they only did the mixing, I did all the hard work. Athena did 2 plates and I sent her to bed after that. At close to 2am, I finished everything. Tiring! Small oven + can only put one tier at a time.

The Mom's Song

A friend sent this to me. Very interesting

Aricia

Aricia is given one week MC coz' she has conjunctivitis. I really don't understand ... when I brought her to a GP on Friday, he did mention something about her having runny nose before and it's connected. I had no idea what he meant. He prescribed normal saline to her and said it's non-contagious.

Days passed and her eyes didn't recover. This morning brought her to PD for a second opinion, and Dr Lee confirmed it's conjunctivitis and no school for one week. That will mean 'happy hours' for me either positively or negatively. I will get to spend more precious time with her, on the other hand I'll get so drained up.
No Ros's today as well, ehh.......sms-ed for homework pages and will do that and continue with my daily home sessions with her. I'm going to add on the TumbleTots songs for her this week - a few songs with bean bags and lummi sticks, she'll probably have some fun. A few days ago, I changed the way in presenting 大きなたいこ with the tambourine. She managed to beat according to the rhythm even when I didn't tell her to. *yay*
As for her class on Thursday, I'm going to see how. If she's okay, then I'll bring her. If not, I might want to bring her out gai-gai to top up our Japanese groceries in Meidiya. I'm dying to get out of the house and be a tai-tai.

アンパンマン
Daily she's been asking me for アンパンマン - Anpan man. I'm going to bake one cake for her this week - to celebrate her turning 29 months. Wow! Going to be 2 and a half soon, and she's still so small. Somehow I am beginning to worry although sometimes I pretend not to worry about her size.

Cute!
Things that make us laugh at this girl. These photos were taken the week after the CNY break, she suddenly developed fever and stayed home.

KZ asked her to smile, normally she would oblige, but that day she felt grumpy - refused and pouted her lips. The unexpected thing happened next, she turned to look at Alex (lion) and saw his grinning teeth and covered his mouth.
The next shot, she decided to smile. Thus she let go of her hand. It's amazing how she can think beyond that. BTW, these are all her chummy friends - her bear bear, paaaa-po (hippo). Friends who endured her cruelty. I don't understand why she loves lion so much, she took che-che's lion ( a BD present from brother) and claimed its hers. Of course che-che don't really fight with her coz' she has her own smelly bear to hug. She's seen dragging Alex by the tail, tickling her own nose with it, WWF with it, talking to it.

One of her favorite pretend-play toy would be the cleaning aids. She'd take the broom and pan and try to sweep our house, keeping herself busy (sooner or later KZ might lose her job).

This is what we saw today.............. she imitated how KZ put the cleaning aids.


Good things must share
Just a few days ago, she declined to sit down during my home session. I asked her to bring lion & sit dow together on the highchair; she refused & put lion on highchair. She didn't just throw it there, positioned it nicely and said "raion,读书读书 and she made sure he paid attention to me. Kept looking at me, then it. Finally after some time she decided to sit down. Cuddled lion; stroked lion. A thought came into her mind, she turned lion to face me and said 读书 读书. Haha!

Should I say I'm amazed (or I should be expecting this result from her)? She could read the colour words, did Ros's Colours homework all by herself. I'm so proud of her..... my efforts paid off! Still not like other children who can read a book at 2. Hmm... maybe I should just try and see if she can read. She might surprise me.........??

Receptive vs non-receptive
She's very receptive to stimulus. The 2 non-receptive things that she simply refuse to do are :
1) pacifier
2) potty train

1) We did try to wean her off and only give to her during her bedtime. But lately, I have no choice but to give it to her to keep her quiet. Let me share with you my daily highly drama life.
In the mornings when I bring the 2 of them to school, Aricia asks for pacifier which I refuse. Slowly, she kicks the HK tray table which is directly behind me and throws tantrum behind. Shaking her head left and right vv; cries loudly. I get irritated and then I decided to throw her the pacifier.
Then in the afternoons, I fetch her - she asks for her food. And the most frustrating thing is when we pack bread; she asks for bun and vv. She kicks and retaliates with the slightest delay. After eating, she automatically asks for pacifier. I refused and she kicks up hell behind. So to keep myself cool and clear-headed (coz' it's a real distraction to have someone throwing up fits behind) I give pacifier to her. It might take longer time to wean her off, hopefully the time when she understands. But then, she understands what?! So I guess it's time to do my cruel act - put chilli on her pacifiers.

2) Potty train - We started this quite some time back. She simply refuse to sit on the toilet seat, potty - also refuse but difficult for us to hold her down. But when she's been forced to sit on the toilet seat; she refuses to pee/poo. Cries loudly for her chummy pals to help her - real hilarious! So.. you'd kindda expect to know that she only manages a drip of urine, a small blob of poo inside and she cries ...?? like as if we abused her.
Then we tried another method - she goes naked. Still refuse, once she crossed her legs trying to control her urine - we quickly brought her to the toilet seat and she refused to pee. After some time we have no choice but to wear her diapers for her, it immediately felt so warm. ??? Very tough huh? Any volunteer to help me train her??