Precious moments of pure enjoyment

Looking at the recent photos I've taken of Zech, a sudden thought struck me. He's growing up too fast. Much too fast. There are times I want him to achieve his milestones as soon as possible. There are times I want him to be just a baby in my arms. A big baby now. Such is the dilemma of mothers I suppose.

Nevertheless, a child should never be defined by the number of achievements or milestones attained. They should be guided but free to explore their preferences and interests. An important lesson I learn on my motherhood journey. Implicit teaching while playing is my strategy now. If Zech has no interest in an activity, I let him move on. I no longer insist because I realise he will come back to that activity when it's time. His toddlerhood is, after all, a temporary phase. Years later, I want to look back and together with Zech, reminisce the good old times and not the struggles of trying to reach milestones and accomplish achievements.

So let's celebrate the precious moments of pure enjoyment! Zech's childhood at 17 months!

Finding joy in reading.

This is such a great toy! Cheap and good from Ikea. He has not grown tired of it since he first tried it  at 12 months.

Initial disinterest grows to focused effort in building a tower of 7 blocks. I've been teaching him to count each block as he builds. He's great at imitation though his pronunciation really needs to be improved. Well, it will, with time.

All kids love to go out. So does Zech! This pic just reminds me of myself. But I was worse cos I pressed the red button and the escalator stopped!

Playing with his pet dog. Yes, Cherry is now his dog.

Riding on his tricycle is a daily affair now. His inquisitiveness often prompts me to answer his pet question 'What's that?'. A small neighbourhood yet so many things to see and learn.

Eating his fav fruit, grapes! Our little secret recipe for keeping him quiet and cooperative during mealtimes outside.

Pure enjoyment is real bliss indeed!

A very ordinary week with an unwell toddler

Zech was down with HFMD the whole of last week. BUT even with his temperature at 39 degrees, he was still very active. I expected him to be listless and tired and I thought he would sleep more so I could do my stuff. It was just the opposite! He slept less. Probably because he was uncomfortable and partly because we had just changed his cot to a toddler bed. Nevertheless, Zech needed to be kept occupied.

Some activities he enjoyed most last week. He doesn't mind doing them over and over again. Sticking pipe cleaners into tiny holes, exploring red beans, playing with the colour and shape flashcards, painting with some homemade paint (finally some real painting!).

Recently, I started Zech on seatwork activities. On good days, he can stay on his chair for at least 20 min but on days when he's restless and uncooperative, each seatwork activity only lasts for less than a min.

I realised that some of the 'toys' he likes most are simply ordinary stuff in the house. Boxes, containers, jars etc. No need to invest in expensive toys! Some of the blogs that inspire me...

http://handsonaswegrow.com/2012/01/30-kids-activities-materials-for-promoting-fine-motor-skills.html

http://blog.melissaanddoug.com/

http://www.teachpreschool.org/

http://prekinders.com/fine-motor-skills/

And of course, http://pinterest.com offers lots and lots of interesting and creative ideas.

Bouncing with Dan

Zech's first playdate with Daniel at an indoor playground! Thanks to Zech's playmate, Daniel, we discovered a gem super near our house. It was my first time in an indoor playground too. It wasn't big but good enough with 4 levels of challenging obstacles. Though Zech couldn't do all, I'm very proud of what he could do!

At Bouncing Kids @ Kovan that day, there were just 2 kids and 2 mummies playing together. Cool!!! I'm going to sign up for the membership at Bouncing Kids, which offers very affordable rates!

Daniel, a very good role model for Zech. I'm bad at this! Not a good example at all.



It was a great and fun playdate for both mummies and kids.  I can't wait for the next one!

Celebrating life!

This is the second year Zech celebrated my birthday with me. Last year's celebration was't too memorable. I've forgotten most parts of it. This year's celebration was different.

All dressed up and ready to go!

Hosted on the patio @ Alexandra. The place was cosy. Food was good.

Beef scallopini

Honey bourbon ribs

I miss this. Date nights used to end with choc fondant.

Simply love this swing! Just what I want for my new flat!

Love this too!

 
We took a walk at Labrador Park after dinner at 7.30pm.

A real treat for Zech who was supposed to get ready for bed at that time! He had a blast brisk walking along the sea front. I think he's almost running now. I have to run to catch hold of him!

Books, books and more books!

Zech loves his favourite books! These days, he usually takes out the books he wants me to read to him. I can be reading the same book several times a day. Reading seems to be a major part of his routine now. Even when it's playtime, he wants to be read to. Here are some of his favourites. The animal theme is clearly evident in these books.

Toddle Waddle - A book about following the leader with the toddler taking the lead. The 'story' is not in prose but the author cleverly uses sounds (which toddlers love) to tell the story.

My Mother is Mine - A book about mothers in general. Very close to heart indeed!

尿尿 - Zech is very amused by how the pig wets his pants.

Brown Bear Brown Bear What do you see? - A true classic well-loved by many kids!

Penguins Penguins Everywhere

宝宝的妈妈在哪里？

Spot's Fun Week - Most toddlers love Spot I think.

What do you say? - A book that introduces animal sounds.

野生动物

Dogs and Puppies - Zech's first non-fiction book! He's a fan of dogs.

Easter week

The greatest blessing in life is to know Christ. Now with Zech, I have the responsibility to to equip him with this knowledge so that he can have a personal relationship with God later in life. Since it's Good Friday and Easter Sunday this week, I decided to do some Easter activities with him.

Gathered some items for the Easter basket since last week.

Initially. he was not very interested in the Easter basket. Then I put on the bunny puppet and introduced myself as the Easter bunny. He was so fascinated he kept smiling and staring at me. I quickly took the chance to share the Easter story with him, using the items in the basket. That worked so well! He was keen to try on the puppet himself.

After that, I showed him the stone, which represents Jesus' tomb. He took it and guess what he did?

He had a rolling good time throwing and picking it up!

I also tried painting with Zech. Got this craft idea from pinterest. He became bored after a while. But later on...

The action started! He succeeded in making a mess.

Tried to get Zech to paint on the bubble wrap the next day. He didn't want the brushes. Instead, he used his fingers. He wasn't in the least interested in painting on the bubble wrap. So in the end, I painted them myself. Not very pretty as some of the paint dried up fast.

These eggs are now displayed in the Easter basket. I think Zech is better off being an Easter bunny. He loves the puppet so much he can say 'bun' now.

Zech's day at home

Quite a few friends have asked me what I do with Zech every day. Other than reading and walking around in the living room and in my bedroom, these are some of the activities I got Zech to do.

Morning activity before taking his cereal. He loves taking out the farm animals.

Zech's newly packed treasure box. I change the items every two weeks.

The yellow egg shell seems to be the most popular item.

After a while, he moved on to the next item, a pink spring toy.

Leaves collected from my mum's garden. Zech inspired me while he was taking his daily walk.

Zech now enjoys asking 'what's that?'. He points and asks me so often that I almost could not come up with an answer fast enough sometimes. Here's a picture of Zech with his favourite papaya plant.