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Playing Host

19 Aug

I went to the school today after lunch to attend the Cultural & Educational Exchange Program whereby M1’s school hosted some Japanese students for a week long visit. M1 gave a very confident, warm and welcoming speech. I would have stuttered and err-ed and umm-ed my way through.

We are playing host family to a bubbly 17-year old student who will stay with us for 3 days to learn more about the typical family in our country. Unlike playing host for a party and having friends over for dinner, this is a totally new thing.

But this experience brings back some good memories of when I was 15 then and went on an exchange program myself. I stayed with an Australian host family in Gloucester, Australia for two weeks. That was a fun time dinosaur years ago.

Nonetheless, I hope she will learn a thing or two in terms of food, language, culture and lifestyle while we should seize this opportunity to brush up on our hosting ability.

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Can You Wake Us Up?

19 Aug

Whenever there is a school holiday break and we don’t go away, the girls would tend to sleep in because it is, well, the school holidays. But sometimes it irks me because they would sleep in until it is almost lunchtime. I would have to remind them constantly not to practice such lazy habits. So they tell me, “Wake us up then, ok?” “Sure,” I said.

The next morning, I would open their room door with much fanfare and go, “Rise and shine! Wakey… Wakey, Rise and shine!” in the most boring and irritating monotonous drone, there would be groans and resentment towards this wake up call.

“C’mon girls, wakey! Wakey! It’s nine already and I am going to the office soon!”

“Mummy, you’re so noisy!” M1 accused. “Must you do the ‘Rise and Shine’ line?”

Well, excuse me….

But as the school holidays are over and it’s back to school today, thank goodness they managed to wake up this morning despite sleeping late last night out of their usual habit over the last two weeks or possibly, out of excitement they will be seeing their friends again.

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A New Addiction

16 Aug

Candy Crush has me addicted to it early this year when I downloaded the app out of curiosity. I don’t normally follow trending apps and fill up my iPad with top games that half the world is playing but I guess this one caught me. It could be worst in my addiction but thankfully I am not like some of my fellow Candy Crushers who would message me on the phone or Facebook to send them lives.

Since then, I have completed the Saga twice and ‘retired’ twice (read: stopped playing temporarily) from the game. The ‘retirement’ was simply due to the fact I could not progress beyond because the app on the iPad stopped at Level 350, hence the first retirement, then an update to Level 365 and the second retirement before the latest update to Level 395. Unlike the same game on Facebook where it goes on and on, the iPad app ends here for now.

Currently, I am stuck at Level 394 and contemplating yet another retirement but sensing a déjà vu, I am at a cross road here. Should I go on or not once I reach 395? M2 tried to play the game to understand my addiction but gave up; M1 just doesn’t even look at it.

In the middle of all this soul searching, I stumbled upon a new game and the girls call it my new addiction, Zookeeper Battle. I just completed my 500th battle yesterday. It’s pretty fun, mindless and quite destressing in its own way. So my full time candy crushing status may change… we shall see.

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Let It Breathe

15 Aug

I used to tell the girls that whenever they have an injury, cut or abrasion, they should not have a plaster covering it overnight suffocating the rejuvenating skin cells. “Let it breathe,” is what I normally advised. I think it’s just logical to allow the skin to breathe as the body is resting (sleeping) and therefore the injury should not be covered.

Recently, I had a horrible case of one gigantic acne just at the right side of my face, near the ear. For some unspoken reason, I needed a plaster and asked for a small round plaster from M2, who is currently obsessed with plasters and has the whole box next to her bedside.

“Let it breathe, mummy,” she told me, giving me back my dose of advice!

I guess what goes around, comes around!

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Carrots are Good, Part 1

13 Aug

I like carrots, not for its vegetable goodness but what it’s suppose to represent: rewards, as in the saying, dangle the carrots in front to get the results you want, you know.

M1 and M2 are both very carrot-, I mean, rewards-oriented. I think this is very good to spur them to dream big, study hard and do well in school. Little exams with good results will yield little rewards and big (main) exams yield a bigger windfall, it’s very clear cut.

Last year was a critical year for M1 to sit for her mid-high school exam, while M2 was to meet the target of staying in her current class. The big fat carrot: a trip to USA to visit the many places that they have only seen in magazines and travel documentaries: Disneyland, Universal Studios, Sedona, Sunset Crater, the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Hoover Dam, LA and San Francisco, just to name a few.

It was very inspiring to me to see them so motivated in their efforts to achieve what has been set out for them. There was icing on the cake as well! They get to buy whatever they fancy with their pocket money earned. Indeed a good deal for them, that is.

The big plan was set in motion early last year and the trip dubbed, “The Great Adventure Road Trip to USA”. However, in June, there were hiccups, dissatisfaction, anger, threats and tears as setbacks were encountered; targets were way off! Plans had to be restrategized to recuperate from the shock and disappointment. But the two young adventurers persevered again with their efforts and finally, determination and hard work paid off!

M1 did very well and M2 met her targets, in short. And so, in November last year, our big fat carrot was savored and brought many happy moments and memories for all. Looking back at those priceless moments, I would do it again without hesitation, that is, to plan another carrot-incentive trip to spur the girls on.

Well done!

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The four adventurers!

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Caught Coming Home!

12 Aug

It was one of those days when I got tired at the office with nothing doing and decided to go home early. And as I opened the front door at 4.30pm, they must have heard me because immediately, M2 called out, “Mummy! You’re not supposed to be home yet! Why are you home??!!!”

Gosh. It doesn’t matter what they were doing but am I not allowed home early? So I said, “Ok, pretend I am not home then. I will go to my room and nap till 7pm before coming out to greet you two again, ok?”

“OK!”

My own home, not allowed to be home. Eeesh.

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Some Goodness in Friends

9 Aug

Thursday kicked off a long four day weekend and I had a lunch appointment with a girlfriend who came back from Singapore. The hubby decided to chauffeur me to the mall, along with M1 and M2 in tow, so that they could go have lunch at the mall too on their own while I have my catch-up girl-talk luncheon. The plan was to also go to the bookstore to buy some books so that M1 has something else to keep her occupied during the holidays other than the many seasons of ‘Friends’ that she has been watching. She’s at Season 6 now. As for M2, it is an excuse from her revision regiment.

Two hours went by quickly and all things accomplished, we came home. Then routine kicked in: M1 in front of the computer watching more ‘Friends’, M2 at the dining table back at her revision, the hubby doing forty winks and me, well, crushing candies.

That night, M1 proudly showcased her book purchases again. “Oh my God! You bought Pride and Pre-Juice?” M2 asked incredulously.

“Pre-Juice? Duh! it’s Pride and —‘Prej-uh-dis’—… Prejudice,” M1 pronouncing the word clearly for the giggling M2. Well, it is a big word for M2. There were other titles too that M1 acquired, A Tale of Two Cities and Peter Pan, to add to her collection of other classics.

I was in their room then and it made me curious why would M1, at her age, has chosen such classics to read for I did not read these until I was much older and in college. I remember we had to read and dissect ‘The Great Gatsby’ (which M1 has also read) with in-depth character analysis, storyline analysis and a whole bunch of other analysis in the Literature class. So boring!

Well, she revealed that in ‘Friends’, they talked about some of these classics and she wanted to read them. I guess being addicted to ‘Friends’ is not so bad after all! Looking at the bigger picture, it’s a good headstart to tackling Literature classes when she is college-bound. And way much better than her, occasionally mimicking Janice spouting out the trademark “Oh.. Mah… Gawd!” or breaking out the neigh “Chandler BING-G-G-G!!!” to no one in particular.

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Your Daughter’s Mother

8 Aug

During her early years, M1 had interesting conversations with us. It was her way of expressing her knowledge of relationships. M2 was probably an incommunicado baby then.

A typical conversation would go along this line when I call home and she’d pick up the phone. “Can I speak to daddy?” I‘d ask.

“Ok” and I can hear the phone piece dropped to the floor and her yelling to her daddy, “Daddy! Your daughter’s mother wants to speak to you!”

Other times, it’s “My father’s wife is on the phone” or “My sister’s mother is calling you.” Roles change if it’s the hubby calling home asking for me.

Do note none of these were taught by us.

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Tough Being a Child

6 Aug

Nowadays I find it tough for my girls for being what they are, children. There is so much expected of them, especially when it comes to school and exams. So much pressure and so much at stake. Is this an Asian thing? I don’t recall, back in the dinosaur era, I was in this situation though.

I went by the school last Friday to meet the teachers and discuss M2’s progress in preparation for her upcoming big (UPSR) exam. Whilst there has been improvements in her capabilities, there is still room for improvement! My goodness. My parents never took to such concern over my welfare when I was in school. And look how I turned out; pretty darn fine I should say.

M1 is no less neglected by us or her teachers. She also has her fair share of Meet-the-Teacher/Parents sessions to discuss class progress. However, it is just the timing of the current school term that required us to meet with M2’s teachers for an update.

While I may enforce sitting at the dining table simply to have an optimum ambience for studying, I don’t sit next to them and breathe down their neck. I used to do it though— being a study police—but find it wasn’t the best approach for both parties; stressed us out instead. Anyway, they are still young and have many more years of schooling to do, they must learn to be independent and manage on their own. After all, we can’t be forever holding their hands, they will never learn.

How else can we help? For one, there’s always the moral support, in person and in spirit! Then there is the love and chocolate that I ply them. If anyone has any other ideas, do share with me. Suggestions are most welcomed!

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I Have Nothing to Do

5 Aug

The school holidays are here again and it gives me mixed feelings. When the children were younger, I used to relish these times as it would mean the family would go away for short holidays, especially to the beach or to visit the grandparents or even an exciting overseas trip.

But as they grow older, trips are lesser as school work becomes more of a priority especially when the year has one of them facing a big exam. Last year, it was M1 facing her PMR exam (Junior High School level) and this year it is M2’s turn, facing her UPSR exam (equivalent to Middle School exam).

So when trips are lesser, complains increase.

“I am bored,” M2 would sigh out loud and constantly announce her state of being during the school holidays whenever we stay put. So much so, I banned her from saying the irritating phrase.

Or more horrifying if the iPod was taken away from her and she’d go, “I have nothing to do…  (Moan…) What can I do? (Groan…)” Hello….. what happened to good old activities like riding a bike, playing with the dog, playing badminton in front of the house or playing with the children next door?

Groan….. even my mother would chastise her for making this statement.

But thankfully, this time, with her facing her big exam, she’d have her revisions to keep her busy. So while M2 continues with the diligent revision during the holidays, M1 is just vegetating, watching the whole series of Friends to pass her time and I can be sure that I will not hear that ‘I have nothing to do’ statement from both of them.

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