Bible Verse of the Day

Our little Emma took part in her first ever Sports Day a few weeks ago.  It was such a meaningful event for me because I know she had come a long, long way from the time when she had to be all wrapped up in her onesies to prevent her from scratching herself due to her eczema; and now she has improved so much that she can be dressed in regular clothes and even participate in sports day events!

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Emma was part of the group of the school’s youngest children: the Playgroup classes; and of course, it was super adorable to watch them go through their events.  Some looked a little blur and some had stage fright, but Emma performed wonderfully….she told me exactly what she had to do and that she had to end her turn with a “high-five” on her friend.

Emma and her classmates had to emulate what the Letterland character Firefighter Fred would do: climb up a “wall”, scramble up a “ladder”, and then “put out a fire” with a water hose.

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We really enjoyed the event and don’t you think the kids look exceptionally cute in the firefighter headgear? 🙂

After the event, she received her first-ever medal!  Whee!!!

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This time, for Sports Day, I also had backup photographers helping me out 🙂

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Note: We respect your privacy, so if you see a picture of your child in this post and would prefer for me to blot out his/her face, please email me at joyce.cheah (at) gmail.com and I will do the needful.  Thank you.

Take a look at these 2 pictures: one of Hannah, aged 3 (taken back in the year 2012) and the other of Emma, also aged 3 (taken just last week).

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Both were dressed in the same dress. #hellohandmedowns

We have always thought and assumed Emma resembles Ethan more, but these pictures might just change our minds!  What do you think?

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About 2 weeks back, my little Emma went on her first school trip with her school friends to a local pet store.  She had been excitedly waiting for the day and was so looking forward to riding on the bus with all her friends.

The trip went well, and yes, it’s not easy for the teachers taking care of the kids at that age, but all in all, a very memorable experience for the kids.

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Here’s a video I captured recently of Emma “reading” Brown Bear, Brown Bear.  I use quotes for the word “reading” because we all know that the pictures in this much loved Eric Carle book guides the child all through.

Still…a very good try for my little sweetheart.  And just for the record, this was the book that Emma “gave” to Hannah when Emma was born. 🙂

Pssst… look out for the part where she reads the page with the “Black Sheep”.  Simply precious!!

Sunday May 8 2016 was an important and special day for us as a family, and even more so for Ethan.  It was the day he participated in the Sacrament of Holy Communion for the very first time.

Words cannot express my pride for my little boy and the entire celebration touched my heart and soul so very deeply.

The special day also coincided with Mother’s Day this year, so it was a happy celebration all around.  Ethan was also selected to give a short speech on behalf of all the first holy communicants, at the end of the celebration.  Unfortunately I couldn’t get a clear video of his speech because Emma kept wanting to snatch my phone!

Here are some photos commemorating the event…

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Image Source

So it has been about a month now that Emma started playschool.  We had hesitated starting her off in January because I was not convinced then that she would be okay on her own, what with her skin sensitivities and her itch that could come and go at any time.  Plus…she’s still my little baby!!

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However as she approached her third birthday, she had shown signs that she was ready for school.  She was a very active child, and she was eager to learn and explore.  In addition, her skin was under control and she could finally now wear normal toddler clothes.  So we decided to start her off in playschool in April.

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The first week or so was an orientation week where I could be with her in the class.  I was pleasantly surprised that she happily and willingly sat in circle time on her own and ate at snack time on her own from the get go.  She was a little bit shy at first but she did not put up a fuss.

She happily played with toys when she had the chance to do so, and even had the opportunity to do some finger painting on the first day itself!

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On the third day of school, I told Emma that I would be sitting outside her classroom to wait for her and she was okay with it.  From the 5th day onwards, I would walk her to class in the morning and help her settle down, then I would say goodbye with a hug and kiss and she was fine.

Now she greets me with a cheerful happy smile and wave when I pick her up, which is one of my highlights of the day. 🙂

The only problem is that she would want to play in the school playground after school every day, and it is SO hard to pry her from the playground!  She is also very gungho, and although initially I was very scared and concerned that she would not be able to maneuver the playground equipment on her own, she is proving me wrong.

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So yes, I am definitely happy that she is in a loving, wonderful environment for school, and she is learning lots in terms of socialising and being herself.  She also recently started singing and saying some stuff in Chinese, without my prompting her!

Exciting and glorious days ahead! ♥

 

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At ten years old, my little big man had his first stayover church camp last weekend.  Yes, I was freaked out at the idea at first and yes, “worried and concerned” was an understatement when I first learnt it was going to be a stayover camp.

Ethan was super excited about it though; “It’s compulsory, Mommy…”

Well, actually he was a bit disappointed when I told him it was not going to be a “sleep in the tent” kind of camp, but rather in dormitories.  But it was going to be an exciting adventure for sure!

Yes, it was part of the journey Ethan was embarking on this year, as he heads towards celebrating his first holy communion in May.  Big milestone!

But yeah, I was worried.

Anyway, the day of the camp came. And Daddy complained that I had packed too many things for a one night stay.

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We dropped him off at church and a big bus took all the first holy communicants to the church in Balik Pulau for the camp proper.

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We decided to attend the evening mass at the church so that we could catch a glimpse of our boy and also to check out the living condition at camp.

No air-conditioning in the rooms and the boys all slept on single mattresses in a room with only the fan on.  He looked….HAPPY.  And that was all I needed to know.

Fast forward to the following day and we had a short meeting with the camp facilitators at church before the bus brought the kids back to church.

Ethan said he was chatting with his friends till 4 a.m. the night before!  When asked if he would go for camp again, he answered yes without hesitation.

My boy is growing up.  Most definitely.

I’m eternally grateful that Jesus is guiding the way.

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Scrap Credits
Just Being Mom QP Freebie from Kimb’s Designs

Weight

10.5-10.7 kilos

Height/Length

Not measured.

Teeth

Full set of 20 milk teeth now. 🙂

Developmental Milestones

  • Emma is finally, FINALLY jumping!  …. as in both feet are lifted off the ground when she jumps 🙂
  • Very determined to get what she wants and go where she wants.
  • Has a great sense of humor and laughs a lot, either to herself or with her siblings.
  • Loves singing and dancing.  Her current favorites are: the theme songs from Tayo the Little Bus, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, ABCs, the Crocodile Song (a.k.a. Row Row Row your Boat), and Mr Sun (where she also does the actions)

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Food and Feeding

Emma is eating well, and on top of that she is ever willing to feed herself.  “I wanna feed myself” or “Let me feed myself” are her favorite phrases at mealtime, in addition to “I want more more noodles”…..

She love fruits which is always a good thing. 🙂  And she can finish 1 bowl of rice by herself!

I’m attempting to wean her from the breast now that I notice she is drinking less breast milk.  I’m using my tried-and-tested bitter gourd juice method, and it is progressing well, so we shall see.

Toilet Training

I’ve started with the Potty Training Sticker Reward Chart for Emma.  I told her that for every time she peepees in the potty, she will get 1 sticker and for every poopoo in the potty, she will get 2 stickers.  She has so far gotten 1 sticker, and we keep reminding her that she will get to choose a toy when she hits 20.

I’m not really pushing it though, just want her to be ready so potty training will be a breeze.

UPDATE

Emma will start school soon, so that’s a major milestone for her.  She enjoys reading the “Barney and Baby Bop goes to School” book with me, so hopefully the experience will be a wonderful one, filled with many cherished memories ahead.

Little Emma has been adoring Snoopy ever since a popular mall in Penang decked the whole mall in Snoopy and Peanuts paraphernalia several months back.  She even asked Ah Mah in Ipoh for the little Snoopy figurine to bring back to Penang!

So it doesn’t take a genius to figure out what cake I had to make for Emma’s birthday this year.  We kept this a family affair and given that I know Emma doesn’t really like eating cake (she only likes to look at it), I chose to just order the edible sheet with a Snoopy and Charlie Brown design, which I just placed on top of the cake!

Emma had been asking for her “Snoopy Cake” well over a week before her actual birthday, so she was really eager as punch to cut the cake.

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To add to her joy, I ordered a handmade amigurumi Snoopy from a dear friend.  The happiness on Emma’s face when she opened her present was simply priceless.

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(I also had an adorable Dutch Rabbit handmade for Hannah for her birthday; she named her Rosie, by the way.)

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All in all, a very cozy family celebration of Emma’s birthday.  She has really grown into a pretty, adorable, sweet three-year old.  She calls herself a “small girl” now (not a “small baby”!)

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♥ Happy Birthday Emma! ♥

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