Suzette's Parenting and Breastfeeding Blog

Okay, here is the update of Isabel’s schooling process…

Up to yesterday, she still cried and refused to enter the school. Yesterday morning, she cried all the way from waking up to the school entrance. Bringing her down from the car was the peak - she screamed!

But upon entering the gate, she walked to the teacher herself, passed her bag to the teacher and said, “Teacher, I no cry today.”

That was an improvement.

Then, today, the moment she left her bedroom, she sat on the floor and cried, “I don’t want to go to school…”

I left her alone, settled Ian. By the time I came back to her, while tying her hair, she said, “Mama, I want to go to school.” I mistaken her as “don’t want”, and answered, “We talk about this in the car…”

She quickly protested and repeated, “I WANT to go to school”

Oh…. she was waiting for me to praise her! My little girl. I gave her a big hug and compliment. She went to the school happily today!

I observed her for a while before leaving, and noticed that although she didn’t cry, she tend to be observer instead of blending into the other kids. She stood up whilst the rest sat. She looked at them while they were playing the toys. She sat there not doing anything while the rest did colouring. She teased other kids for crying. etc.

The teacher told me that she acted like a mother instead of a kid herself! Hahahaha!

Geez, don’t have camera for this period, really not fun. Monday was Isabel’s first day to school. Captured some photo with DH’s camera, but I cannot use them, coz not accessible to me.

Then, yesterday was my birthday, also no photo to post, coz camera is still with manufacturer under repair.

So, only updates in words. So boring, no mood, that’s why no updates in the last few days!

Okay, back to Isabel’s school. She has been pestering me many months to go to school. I didn’t want to enroll her earlier because the school discouraged (due to exam and concert practices). So, finally started her school this week, under the holiday classes.
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Monday morning, I whispered in her ears in bed, “Bel, come, you can go to school today!”

Immediately she jumped up and happily announced, “Yay, I go to school!”

When we reached her school, she was so excited. Greeted every people, went into her class, bid me farewell, played happily. I observed 30 min then went off.

2 hours later, I called the school to discuss Ian’s stuff, least expected to hear this… Isabel saw 2 newbies cried, and followed them cried too. She wanted Ian, and finally the teacher couldn’t settle her, put her with Ian. Immediately she was quiet and played happily.

MIL told me when she napped in the afternoon at home, she had nightmare. Kept crying and asked for ‘koko’ (brother) and ‘ahmah’ (grandma).
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Day 2 (Tuesday): She woke up and told me that she wouldn’t cry that day.

When we reached the school gate (not even inside the school), she happily hold her brother’s hand, turned around and bid me farewell. It was Ian who couldn’t go in by himself and insisted that I send him all the way in.

The moment I separated them, sent Ian to upstair and placed Isabel downstair with the teacher, she cried non-stop. She insisted that I stay on.

She cried and cried and cried… I finally had to leave. Just left.

Later on, I was told that the teacher couldn’t settle her again, and placed her with Ian. Then she was fine.
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Day 3 (today): In the morning, she straight away told me that she doesn’t want to go to the school any more.

I expected this. Ian has gone through this stage and he loooovvvveeesss the school very much now. So, I didn’t say anything, still sent her to the school despite her protests. Hey! I paid for 1 month’s fees, not cheap man!

I straight away put her with Ian. I asked Ian to hold her hand and bring her into his class. Later on, I peeped and found her laughing and playing with the toys.

See. She just wanna be with Ian.

Actually I don’t blame the teachers for not able to control her. Isabel is known for her chilli padi temper and screams. Remember the day (moment) she was born? Other babies cried and stopped. She? She screamed and screamed (not cried only) for 2 solid hours, until my gynae also shaked his head. Hahahaha! That is Isabel.
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As for my birthday yesterday? I took a day off. This is my annual ritual. Went to the mall, watched a lousy movie and shopped around, had some nice food. A way of pampering myself on my day.

BTW, I went to the cinema, nothing good to watch. So, I watched a movie that I already knew is lousy, and regreted so much. Should have used that 2 hours to just shop around. What movie did I watch? James Bond - Quantum of Solace. Well, I never liked Daniel Craigs, even from the last Bond movie. He looked so old and tired and 残. The whole movie only fights and fights and fights. The storyline is also weak and boring. Okay lah, have to admit the fighting scenes are very action packed and real. So, that’s all. Fights.

Hey, must mention one thing. DH gave me a very pleasant surprising birthday present. An IKEA lounger that I have been loving but never dare to buy! Yay, yay, yay!

Ian has been very good at jigsaw puzzles since he was just slightly over 1 year old. He impressed many friends of mine, coz I used to bring puzzles to wedding dinners to quiet him.

However, Isabel was not interested in puzzles all these while. But then, few weeks ago, she surprised me by completing a set of puzzles on her own! It was left in her toy box, never caught her attention until few weeks ago. Soon, she was bored because it was too simple.

So, like 2 years ago, I took out this same set of puzzle, which I introduced to Ian about the same age Isabel now.

She had difficulties at first, kept telling me that, “I cannot do”

But, slowly, I reallized that she is seriously lacking self confidence. If I walked away, she could complete the pieces by herself. But when I was around, she would look at me for every move, and kept checking with me, “Is this right?” and quickly declare, “I cannot do this”

I think she needs a lot of reassurance to gain her confidence.

Later, she found out that I have this Barbie puzzle, and I couldn’t hide this away from her any more! Her new toy now. She likes this better than the one above, maybe because this one is easier and she likes Barbie.

Talking about innocence…

One day after Isabel cried, I looked at her face’s tear stain, and teased her,
“Aiyoh, look at you, the tear dries up here, and you have wrinkle here already! See, I told you not to cry. Now you cried, you look old already loh!”

Immediately she responded, “(old) Like you ah?”

Ouch! I told her crying makes her look old, and she related ‘old’ to me!! Smart, but too smart! Sob, sob, sob! :p

On the other hand, Ian never want to relate me to ‘old’, not that he thinks I am young, but he is scared of losing me. Somehow he relates ‘old’ with ‘death’. Hmm… not sure where he got the concept!

One weekend, DH suddenly had the mood to make something fun for the kids. He took out a cardboard and transformed it into 2 masks: Ultraman for Ian and Doraemon for Isabel.

Ian so funny, he put the Ultraman mask onto his best friend Babun’s face:

And after seeing Ian did that, Isabel also followed and put her Doraemon mask onto her Julia’s face:

Hahahaha! My kids really had a great fun with their homemade masks. BTW, did you notice that Ian carefully placed the eye-holes on Babun’s face, so that his ‘best friend’ could ’see’ also?