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Inside Out At The Cinema

September 23, 2015 in Emma, Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Milestones, Parenting | No comments

Last Saturday, our initial plans of going swimming were dashed when the unhealthy haze still loomed in the air.  So we made a spur of the moment decision and decided to see if we could get tickets to watch a movie instead!

Oh yes.  It had been ages since we had watched a movie in the cinema, and it would be Emma’s very first time! After all, we would be going for Hannah’s school concert in a dark hall soon, so I decided to treat this movie outing as a trial run.

The only movie available and suitable was Inside Out.  Ethan had already learnt that the movie was all about “voices and things in our head”.

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Emma was all excited when we walked together to the cinema.  Of course she had no inkling on what to expect.

This was taken right before the show started.  Apologies for the grainy picture because lighting was bad and errrr….. it was almost time to put away our phones anyway…

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We had the usual popcorn and water for snacks and Ethan offered to share his seat with Emma.  The show was, on the whole, very entertaining and the cinema was nearly a full house.

Get this: Emma SAT THROUGH the entire movie without getting out from her seat!  No crying, no whining and not even once asked for milk!

I am truly, simply amazed!!

After the show, we asked if she had enjoyed the movie and she gives us her usual, wide-eyed, knowing nod.  She said, “I watched the BIG TV!”

Emma’s First Time at “School”

September 18, 2015 in Emma, Growing Up, Milestones, Parenting | No comments

A couple of weeks ago, Pete and I were discussing if we should let Emma start school (Playgroup) next year.  We were not sure if she would be ready yet though, but if she did start school, I would at least have a few hours to spend alone with Hannah next year, since she would be homeschooled.  It was a debatable topic because if she started, it would mean travelling to school every morning too.

Anyway, we decided to let Emma go for a trial parent-toddler class, just like Ethan and Hannah did at her age.  Last Saturday I took her for the 9:00a.m. class.  Woke her up at 8:30a.m. and got her dressed and cleaned up.  However, our little missy fell asleep on the way there!

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Good thing she woke up without a fuss when we arrived.  She is very familiar with the school playground because I often take her there when I pick Hannah up from school.

Parent-toddler class is just an avenue for the child to explore various activities while interacting with the parent and hopefully thereafter, kids their age.

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Emma certainly looked like she enjoyed her parent-toddler class session.  When we came home, I sang the action songs she was introduced to during circle time and she could even remember the actions, and did them happily, despite only hearing them for the first time that morning!

We will be bringing her to another session tomorrow.  I’m sure she’s looking forward to it! ♥

 

Emma’s First Visit to the Dentist

August 27, 2015 in Emma, Growing Up, Milestones, Parenting | No comments

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We brought Emma for her first visit to the dentist recently.  In the past, my kids began seeing the dentist at least once a year when they turn 2.  So it was the same for little Emma.  We make it a family affair where everyone gets their teeth checked.  It’s a good practice and it’s something I would recommend for all families.

Here she is browsing the reading material in the waiting area…

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I had told her about it so she would be prepared, and she watched as Hannah and Ethan took their turns sitting in the chair.

When it was Emma’s turn, she was very confident and ready to go.  The chair was HUGE compared to her, and the dentist gently coaxed her to open her mouth so he could look at her teeth.

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I was actually surprised when the dentist told us that all her incisors and canines were there!  I had thought Emma was missing an incisor all this while!  She now has 18 teeth with 2 more molars to come soon.

Good job, Emma! 🙂

Amen!

July 6, 2015 in Christianity, Emma, Growing Up, Parenting | No comments

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Emma sprang another pleasant surprise on us all last week when she suddenly said, “Amen!” at the end of our bedtime prayer.  We were so surprised and just to make doubly sure, I suggested we say another prayer, after which she clearly said, “Amen!” again. 🙂

Ah, life’s little surprises are most definitely sweet!

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We had a Hard Rockin’ Weekend!

June 16, 2015 in Celebrations, Emma, Ethan, Hannah, Parenting, Vacation | 1 comment

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We are Stage Pass Members of the Hard Rock Hotel, and although our primary reason for becoming members was to utilize the pool, we are also given a complimentary night’s stay in the hotel, as one of the benefits of membership.  Our deadline for redemption is in July, so we finally decided to “move” to the hotel for a night last weekend, before the benefit expires.

We only told the kids about it the day before we were to check in, and boy, were they excited!  I was worried they would not be able to sleep that night!

Ethan still had school activities until 4:00p.m., so when we checked in, it was already 5:00p.m.!

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Dinner Shots

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We spent our morning at the pool after a scrumptious buffet breakfast (which included chocolate milk for the kids!!).

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It was a fun and enjoyable holiday away from home, although a short one and not really that far from home… LOL!  Ethan left a little thank you souvenir for the housekeeping staff too!

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I still have a back rub to redeem as part of the membership benefits though…need to make an appointment soon!

Battling Bronchitis

May 19, 2015 in Emma, Growing Up, Parenting | No comments

About 2 weeks ago, Emma suddenly developed a fever.  She registered a temperature of 38.2ºC despite being her usual self the whole day.  To be fair, she had a sore throat and slight cough a few days earlier, but she had looked on the way to recovery, so the fever actually took me by surprise.

Anyway, she was very listless because of the fever and I had to quickly give her a suppository to bring the fever down.  She fell asleep but woke up at 3:00a.m. and when I changed her, I noticed her breathing was slightly wheezy.  I promptly took her downstairs because she was fussing a lot probably due to breathlessness, and I gave her small sips of Izumio hydrogen water.  After about half a pack, she fell asleep, and almost instantly all wheezing gone.

The next morning, I decided to take her in to see the doctor.  He confirmed that her lungs were quite congested and she would have to undergo some nebuliser sessions.  She had one done right away, and after that the doctor said her lungs sounded better. Had her lungs still sounded congested, he would have to order an x-ray immediately, in case it’s pneumonia.

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I strongly believe that Izumio had helped Emma healed somewhat and prevented her from getting pneumonia.  What she had was bronchitis, and resulted in shortness of breath, wheezing and some cough.  She had to go on a course of oral antibiotics unfortunately, and nebuliser sessions twice a day for about 3 days (morning and night).  The doctor told us that her fever would go up and down during the next few days while she recovered and we were to bring her in again if the fever still persisted after 3 days.  The doctor also said her appetite might be affected if she was still short of breath.

The fever never went up again. And she ate like a champion. (Must have been the Izumio again) 🙂

Emma continued to heal and get better, and while the first few days of feeding medicine was stressful, I finally found out that all it took to feed her medicine was that she wanted was to sit up on the chair and fed straight with the syringe….just like a big girl.  So no need to hold her or cradle her….well, so much for all the stress and worrying!

She is now completely healed, praise God…and her cough and phlegm were gone within 5 days, which is remarkably fast, judging from past experience.

We’ve Been Busy…

May 12, 2015 in Emma, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | No comments

Oh yes, we have….when our kids have activities, it follows that the whole family will participate along too…so here’s a brief run-through of what we have been up to.

Easter Celebration

During the Easter weekend’s catechism class, Hannah and her classmates in preschool participated in the meaningful “washing of feet” ritual.

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Family Day

We like to spend our weekends lazing around, enjoying family time together. But a few Sundays ago, our family time was a different kind of family time, when we attended Hannah’s school’s Family Day event at Times Square Penang. It was our very first time at Times Square.. LOL There were fun activities like Treasure Hunt, Minute to Win It, arts and crafts and a few stations for toddlers too.

Needless to say, it was a fun-filled Sunday afternoon full of running and bouncing for the kids.

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Ukulele Performance Evening

The following week’s Saturday saw us attending an informal performance of Ethan on the ukulele together with a few others. He sang and played two songs: Somewhere Over The Rainbow and Rhythm of the Rain. We are ever so proud of him…now I’m wondering if I will be allowed to sing with him on the uke next time… haha…

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Ethan’s Sports Day

Since Ethan’s Sports Day fell on a Monday morning, Emma and I were the only ones attending it. The kids moved from station to station throughout the day and participated in various events, like the obstacle course, sprints, relays, ball dribble and team sports like Captain’s Ball and Tug-of-War. Ethan proudly showed off his silver medal for the ball dribble event and a gold medal for Captain’s Ball. Well done Ethan!

(I think he’s trying to bulk up on some muscles now, cos I told him he has good potential as a sprinter. He ran quite fast but was outrun by the bigger boys)

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Beautiful Friendships

Last but not least, here’s a rare gem of a photo of Emma with perhaps her first friend ever, Izayah.  This was taken during one of Ethan’s and Hannah’s soccer coaching sessions.

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We’re looking forward to an exciting rest of the year, with more and more interesting activities coming up such as Ethan’s school concert (in which he landed the role as one of the main pirate characters!), Hannah’s school sports day (which includes a fund raising event), a short vacation for the kids (hopefully), and of course, Hannah’s school concert at the end of the year.

Watch this space!!

Modified Schedule for the Week

April 23, 2015 in Emma, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | No comments

Those of you who follow me on my personal blog Giddy Tigers and also on Facebook, would be aware of the fact that we were in a fender bender about 3.5 weeks ago.  Unfortunately, due to delays and finger-pointing, the car is still under repair and will only be ready this Saturday.  That’s the date that was given to me, and I really hope there will be no surprises.

Anyway, during the days following the accident, we have been making do with just one car, travelling half the island almost every day, with some days Daddy working from home.  However, this week, we could not afford the flexibility because Daddy has a full week of seminars and has visitors coming in, plus he has to travel to Kulim some days, so for this week our schedule is modified with one that does not involve Mommy with a car.

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In the mornings, Ethan will either be dropped off at school by Daddy or I will walk him to school.  It’s a good thing that his school is just about 5-10 minutes’ walk away, and so that’s a bonus.  In the afternoons, I will walk to school to pick him up, bringing along his sisters, complete with hats! 😛  It’s an excellent exercise session, but my only complaint would be the hot afternoon sun.

As for Hannah, since her school is not within walking distance, I arranged for the school van transportation to ferry her to and from school this week.  So far this arrangement is working out well, and Hannah looks forward to her van rides every day.  I see her off at the door and meet her when she gets off the van.

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Emma, on the other hand, will enjoy more home time, since she doesn’t need to be packed into and out of the car, like I usually do during our regular school runs.

Next week, our old schedule will be reinstated.

A Happier, Cheekier Emma Thanks to Safe and Natural Healing

April 13, 2015 in Emma, Growing Up, Parenting | 2 comments

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Those of you who know us personally and also, those of you who have been faithfully reading my blog posts (thank you!!) would know for a fact that we have been battling with Emma’s severe eczema for months on end.  She could have been suffering from eczema from as early as 2 months’ old, but we can’t pinpoint when it first started because she had a bad case of cradle cap too, as an infant.

After months of battling, I think I can confidently say that she is definitely well on her way to recovery.  Her skin is definitely more moisturised and more supple, and she is putting on weight gradually now.  It has not been an easy journey, but it has been worth the effort, and I am so grateful that I took the leap of faith when I started her on consuming these natural supplements: Izumio water and Super Lutein capsules.

She started consuming these supplements about 4 months ago, and as of now, I can say she is about 90% healed, with a few rough and dry patches on her legs.

The supplements have certainly given her LIFE back…and if my hubby did not point out the difference in pictures, I would not believe it either.

This was Emma’s picture at 1 year old…despite being a happy baby, we could not help but notice that she seems a little sadder than her siblings.  She was on the serious side and hardly smiled and giggled.

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Fast forward to present day at 2 years old, and you can see that she is one happy, cheerful toddler.  She giggles voluntarily and flashes that adorable dimple of hers for all to see.  Her eyes also seem to be full of life and her face is a picture of overall happiness and contentment.

Emma at 2 Years Old

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Can you see the distinct difference?

The natural healing process has certainly expelled all those months of toxins accumulated in her, and now we have a healthy, smiley and cheeky baby!….ooops toddler!  Imagine all the pain and suffering she must have gone through…I’m so thankful and relieved that she is free from all that now. ♥

Emma will even make special requests to eat her Super Lutein capsules and Izumio drinking water.  She will ask for it when she sees me eating my dose and also if she sees her siblings drinking the Izumio.  Perhaps she really DOES know what is best for her and what makes her feel good.

N.B. I’m not sharing the pictures of her skin before and after for privacy reasons, but if anyone is interested in these supplements for safe and natural healing of eczema and skin problems, please feel free to email me and I will share them with you.

Little Notes and Cards

April 3, 2015 in Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | No comments

Hannah loves making notes and cards for me.  She loves drawing and designing and decorating them.  She gave me this a few weeks ago but she didn’t want me to post it on the blog then because she was too shy.

However, I’ve managed to convince her and here I want to share this really cute card she gave me.

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By the way, both Ethan and Hannah aren’t afraid of lizards, unlike me. 🙂

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