Monday, June 11, 2007 ;
1:25 PM
These some of the lovely toddlers and infants I teach in the Cradle Roll now, on Wednesdays. I am teaching the Summer Quarter.
It's very challenging cos at this age, they still want their mummies but their mummies are at their own classes. So I have to be very energetic, use great change in voice intonation, basically act like a clown (read: madwoman), singing and so on to catch their attention. There are a lot of visual aids and props (like back home in Spore) that I can use with the songs, so it's still quite manageable.
But I realise the amount of energy I have to use in that short 50min is greater than the amount I have to use in a 1.5hr lecture to 380 18 yr olds in hc! haha. Cos I end up being so exhausted at the end of the lesson.
I guess it's cos I don't want them to start crying. Once one starts, the others will follow. I don't want to have a class full of crying babies. :-)
ds2 has just been promoted to the "2s and 3s" class. They go by "age as of June 1", so since he is 2, he will move up.
Some pics of kids fooling ard and riding horsey on each other. Yes, even ds1 tries to get on ds2!
With my parents here, they also join in the fun. Haha, I got my mom to do the horsey, so I get a break. Usually I have to do horsey till I feel my back is going to break then the kids will stop.
5 June
Tues
We had an outing to a Mall. We took the bus cos dh was at work.
De ja vu? Yup, I had a previous post, written in winter, abt how we walked to the bus stop and waited so long till we were all freezing and had to turn back.
Well, this time, we did it!
It was blazing hot (no shelter) and we also waited for like 30min despite checking the schedule (bus was late). But we managed, cos this time there's my parents...
Bus was clean and air conditioned. But very crampy. I am not very tall but my legs were pressed against the back of the seat in front, and ds2 was very restless.
Dh said there's space for the stroller on the bus, so I brought it, but then, he didn't say there was space for only one. And when we got on board, that area was already occupied, and so, I had to hold ds2 while helping my dad ensure that the folded-up stroller didn't slip. We ended up having to hold on to it throughout the journey, and everytime the bus moved, the stroller will tend to tip. Troublesome.
I could still manage in future cos I have a sling, but then, this next thing will put me off taking the bus also. Besides the long waiting time exposed to harsh elements of weather, the normally 15min journey by car took us 45min on the bus. So it was an hour plus to reach the mall which is so nearby on the map.
But really good thing we took this trip, cos the next day my dad's feet started to feel sore. And then by Friday his feet were swollen and he realised he had a gout attack.
Probably the dinner on this fateful Tuesday was the last straw.
Well ok, after we reached the mall, we had a great time scouring the place for maternity wear for my sis (her bday's coming and I bought some for her as a present). My mom and I managed to find some cheap but nice clothes at the Teen and Juniors section too. Kids clothes are much cheaper than the ladies' but yet the designs are pretty similar. They have very trendy clothes for kids too, and they are in our sizes, so why not?
My dad also had a great time in the men's section cos he had a full bag when we met up again ltr.
After that, we met up with dh who arrived from school and my dad was in such high spirits he decided to treat us all to Sizzler's for dinner. He had a delicious rack of ribs.
Before this, my dad was also in a terrific good mood, cos he studied in Texas when he was a youth, and this trip brought back a lot of happy memories for him. He and mom spent some time at LA before coming to us too. My mom said they ate very good food throughout.
I think all these added up to present an overly rich diet for him, that he was not usually accustomed to. Thus, he had a serious gout attack. First, his left foot then after taking medication which we bought, it got better but then his right foot started. So he was bedridden and in pain the rest of the hol.
Everyone felt very bad for him... Cos we were all looking forward to this, especially himself. He was supposed to preach the Sunday sermon too, but had dh present the outline for him on Sunday evening.
8 June
We were all invited to Ron and Mary Jo's house for a BBQ, but parents can't go due to dad's painful feet, so just our family went.
It was a great gathering. Most of them were the elders and deacons of the church. Guess it was more for my dad to interact with them, but just too bad.
Ron has grandkids and so his place had a lot of toys that entertained both boys a lot. Thus we were able to just relax and chat and have fun too. They brought out the train, set up a swing and so on. Really enjoyable!
Above left: the wasp trap that worked so well in their hse. Dh bought one for our hse too, cos there are many wasps flying ard, but ours hasn't worked so efficiently yet. I was surprised to see so many wasps caught in theirs. :-)
Above right: all the food MJ prepared. That boysenberry cobbler was made with her own boysenberries. Yum, and very healthy, lots of fruit.
Their BBQ was beef patties with hamburger buns. It's usually like that over here, different from ours.
They have a lovely garden full of fruit trees and "crop" plants. Zucchini, corn, pumpkin, tomatoes, peppers, berries, cherries (see above left) and just some of the plants they have growing there.
Above right: one of the deacons teaching both ds to play "horseshoes". A traditional summer game here, I heard. ds1 was quite taken by the game and kept practising his throwing after that.
9 June
Sat
Had a picnic lunch in the front lawn cos the weather was nice. Sunny but breezy. Noticed the bird's nest in the bush right at our front door and the 4 little birds in there.
Above left: kids and dh decided to climb the tree we were under. I would've gone up too, but there wasn't enough space left (ds2 was occupying the lowest branch).
Above right: our humble spread, with my mom.
Below: ds1 helping my mom make "mee hoon kueh" by rolling out the dough. Yummy.
And just a pic from the Thanksgiving Point Gardens that the church ladies brought my mom out to view.
rainbows every day, do not worry for the morrow
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