100-Day Project #3 - Never Lose Heart (Tenacity)

No.2 had been wanting to get on the school team for Floorball. Being a very very petite gal, we did try to taper her hope (and expectations) by reasoning out that it may not be very easy as there will be (very) many bigger sized girls who will be vying for that few spots. She was not daunted and told me that she will still want to try.

After many gruelling training sessions, a training camp and tryout sessions, she came home one day quite disheartened. The list for the school team came out and she was not on it :( We left her alone to sort it out on her own and told her that its ok, there is always next year. She was rather upset for that evening, keeping to herself and not wanting to talk.

A few days later, she told me that there is an extra training session and that she wants to go. Curious as normally such extra sessions were reserved for the school team, I ask why is there a need for her to go? She told me "There is one more slot left for school team and I want to try." It was stated such a matter-of-factly that I was floored for a few seconds.

Tenacity : the quality of being tenacious, or of holding fast; persistence

I know that with an outstanding older sister who is an all-rounder in sports, academic and leadership, she feels the pressure to measure up even when we told her that all of them are different. She wants to try, even when there is only ONE slot. To her, that one slot is hope, notwithstanding that it is only ONE! Her tenacity amazed me. She is usually quite laid back and do not really put in 100% effort for almost all things. Studies comes naturally to her so that was pretty effortless as well. I am so grateful for this ONE slot. It showed me how determined she can be. Hopefully it will also show her that sometimes the journey is more rewarding than reaching the destination itself.

100-Day Project #2 - I Can

My no.3 had always been a go-getter. However, being the youngest and having 2 much older sisters meant that he has always been left out of most things because of his age. The 2 sisters had to play with him at his level which is not very easy at times. Though I must say that they do try, sometimes after some nagging from me of course!

At his current age, he is game to try anything and everything! His granny was peeling hard boiled eggs one day and he asked to peel too. The granny gave him one and a bowl, instructing him to put all the shells in the bowl. In the granny's mind, she had already "written off" that poor egg as seriously you don't really expect it back in one piece after a "peeling session" by a 4-year-old.

He promptly sat down and began peeling, in all seriousness. In a very short while, he promptly showed all of us a big fat shiny egg, in ONE piece and without a single chip off the egg white! Needlessly to say, we were all amazed! Upon seeing our reaction, his parting shot "See, I said I can. U all don't want to listen,"

We all stand corrected, my dear little one! Yes! Indeed YOU CAN!!!

Can: to be able to; have the ability, power, or skill to

100-Day Project #1 - Adaptability

#1 Adaptability

My no.1 recently had to overcome a challenge, a physical challenge and one that even I cringed at the mere thought of it :( I will not share it in detail here as I know that she would prefer to keep it private.

At first she was very distraught about it. She cried bitterly and for that moment, I was really at a loss for what to say and do. Being Mommy for more than 10 years, it still did not prepare me for this moment. It wasn't something that was easy to accept nor get use to. It is not something that is over in a while. It will be a VERY LONG while. I know I had (need) to get her out from that black hole and I was very grateful to have a light bulb go off shortly.

Putting it into perspective, she quickly thought through and accepted it. With her dark cloud lifted, she was back to her chirpy and cheeky self. Though she still had reservations, it was not that dark deep kind. Rather, she took it off in a totally new direction and could even come up with advantages of having it!

The D-Day came when she had to face that physical challenge for real. She took it bravely. I was pretty worried and kept checking with her if she was ok. After the 3rd time asking, she told me "Mommy, don't worry ok? I will probably forget about it 10mins later!"

Adaptability - able to adjust oneself readily to different conditions

She taught me that. No matter how tough or difficult the situation, she had taught me again and again that adaptability saves the day (and your sanity too!). Adapting to the new condition also meant a new perspective which then makes everything else much easier.

Embarking On "100-Day Project"

Inspired by tons of 100 day projects online and on Instagram, I was super tempted to start on something! Yet, at the very back (and honest) portion of my mind, I know that I will be hard pressed to actually MAKE something continuously for 100 days! Heck, sometimes just trying to do a week's worth of memory keeping is hard enough! 100 days? Who am I trying to kid?!

So....in a (rare) brilliant moment, I turned to writing. I think (hope) that I should be able to do a 100 day's worth, staying through to the project. But what can I write continuously on for 100 days? My days are spent circling around my kids' schedules, and trying to fit everything in for all that they want to do. Many a times, my daily photos are taken in an instant, when something happens and "snap" I go :)

Cutting a long pondering short, I then decide to do.....

"100-Day Project of Things My Kids Taught Me"

That, should do it! I really hope and it will serve as a great look back too!

So, next post will be the start of this momentous 100 days project! Wish me lotsa of luck!

*fingers crossed* 

*to know more about the 100 days project and its creator, go here :)

Our Christmas Tradition - The King's Cake

 Photo from Creative Commons

 

 

Christmas had always been a magical time for me. I love prepping gifts, seeing Santa (Yes, I still do!), telling stories, tracking Santa on my iPhone app and chasing my kids to bed! Being a non-Christian family, I have never celebrated Christmas in the traditional way. I don't go Christmas mass and I do not have a Christmas tree. I do exchange gifts, visit Orchard Road for the lights and eat Christmas dinner!

 

 

We moved out on our own when my firstborn was 2. Hubby then started a Christmas tradition just for our family :) When he first wanted to buy the  King's Cake or the Galette des Rios, I went along for curiosity's sake. It was a pie (rather) made with buttery puff pastry filled with sweet almond frangipane. Not too sweet, it was a great after dinner dessert as it wasn't too filling. What made it unique is that there is a toy hidden somewhere in the cake! And whoever who found that toy will be "king" for the day! Most importantly is not to accidentally reveal where the toy is when cutting it! Luckily hubby always has the honors for this :P
 

 

Photo from Creative Commons

 

 

A more detailed story of the history of the cake can be found here.

 

 

We bought our cake from Bakerzin. And we bought from there yearly thereafter, creating our own form of Christmas tradition! The kids love to eat and try to get the toy. Whoever gets the toy is "king" or "queen" for the day! Comes complete with a crown, the cake was a success!

 

 

 

 

 

Photos above from Bakerzin's website

 

 

So what does being "king" entails? Well, the other siblings will have to listen to him or her for the day. Parents? Well, we have immunity otherwise I will have a riot on hand! To make the agony short for the kiddos who did not get the toy, we usually have this cake as a dessert after an early dinner, making the "King's hours only a few hours long :)

 

As Christmas rolled around last year, we went to make our yearly purchase at Bakerzin. Imagine our shock when we couldn't find the cake on their Christmas menu! Undeterred, we even asked the manager for confirmation but to our horror, they are not making it! Desperate, we took to the internet in the hope of finding another bakery but there was none! Imagine the kiddos' reactions when we had to tell them that there wouldn't be this cake this year! That was definitely a lesson learnt!

 

Come around to Christmas now. Hubby is not taking any chances and we checked out Bakerzin again and were so pleasantly surprised when they have the cake back! We immediately placed our order and we are definitely relieved and grateful to have the cake back on their menu!

 

It may just be something small but being a sucker for Christmas and its magic, I am so grateful that hubby started (and maintained) this tradition for so many years! It is a simple tradition but it is OUR family tradition!

 

To celebrate Christmas, Bakerzin had generously offered all HSBC, DBS & POSB credit card holders a 15% discount if you place an order online! The discount will be shown upon checkout. Bakerzin will only be taking online orders till Thursday, 22 Dec 2016, 2pm. There is still time to place orders for their Christmas goodies!

 

So visit their website at https://www.bakerzin.com/eshops/ to get your cake or Christmas treats!

 

Do you have any Christmas family traditions? Share them in the comments and maybe we can adopt more traditions!

 

Have a blessed Christmas!

Musings of a PSLE Mommy

With the release of PSLE results last week, the wait was finally over! Many months of preparation, hard work and perseverance all for the finality of this piece of paper and what is written on it. It sounded so final and so conclusive yet behind this piece of papers lies all the sweat and fear that probably started way back!

 

 

My firstborn had always been a below average student. Her dyslexic meant that she had to work doubly hard especially when it comes to her languages. I can well imagine how "easy" it is to read, digest and remember all those floating alphabets and words! Math is yet another subject that isn't easy. Sometimes I just wonder how is it relevant to solve questions as such?! Nevertheless, being in mainstream education means that she either has to keep up or get left behind.

 

 

When she first failed her Maths in P4 midyear exams, she was completely devastated! It was her first failure and it shook her badly. She worked even harder for her final exams and though she passed, it was a bare pass. She was not happy. Come P5, the Maths was even harder and she more determined to do well. She wanted to find out what was her problem, why isn't she understanding the questions. She did more revision, this time from P3 onwards. She worked at all topics, re-visiting her weaker topics over and over again. She did assessment after assessment to strengthen her understanding. She redo topical tests again and again. All these was done with help from her tuition teacher and her own determination. Against all, she thrived. She finished P5 topping her class in Maths and Science. Am I proud of her? Yes!

Proud of her determination and hard work.

Proud of her mental strength.

Proud of her tenacity to continue.

If it was me, I may not have the perseverance to continue. I really take my hat off to her, many times over, for revising her P3, P4 and then P5 Maths. It was more than an uphill task, but she did it. Her weekends were spent poring over questions, self-marking, memorizing formulas and more. She did all these while keeping up with her P5 work. It was nothing short of amazing to me.

Come P6, she was even more determined, more self directed, more focused. She wanted to do well, not for us but for herself. She wants to get into her preferred field of study after 'O' levels. She knows it will not be easy but she did not let that stop her. U may not believe me but I did not plan her revision. She did all that by her own. She listed topics that she had difficulties in, was weaker in. Planned her revision schedule, for all 4 subjects. Systematically tick them off as she goes through them. Scheduled more time to re-visit weaker topics again as the time neared PSLE. She self banned herself from her mobile, not wanting any distraction. She updates me on her revision, letting me know that she is on top of things.

She also cried when the stress gets to her. Bawled for not knowing if all these will translate into good results. Confided her fears and expectations. Teared when she just can't seem to get it. Stoned when it gets too overwhelming.

 

 

When PSLE comes around, she was very fearful on the first 2 days. Being language papers, she was most fearful of these and if she could do well enough to get a decent grade. I accompanied her to school all 4 days. I told her, on all 4 days, that it is NOT the end of the world, nothing is. There will ALWAYS be a way out. And no matter what is the result, she had put in her best work and that is all that matters.

Fast forward to the "D-Day". As we sat there nervously waiting for the results to be given out, I was praying for her hard work to be rewarded, for her not to be disappointed. I was mentally preparing to console and to cry along with her if it did not turn out well. I was more nervous getting her results than my own many years ago!!!

 

When she took the result slip and dare not look at it, instead waited for me to reach her side. As she took a deep breath and fearfully peered at her results, instantly giving a yelp of joy, my tears dropped. I did not even look at the results. I hugged her, thankful that her hard work did not go to null and that she was not disappointed!

Was her results fantastic? Yes to us but probably less than stellar to alot of parents. Are we too easily contended? Maybe but no matter the results, we were already very proud of how hard she had worked. Proud of her determination and tenacity. Proud of her resilience and strength.

To us, the numbers in her score did not represent her. Instead it was the journey to this day that had defined her. She had gone beyond our expectations in many aspects.

She was disadvantaged with a learning disability. Yet she is now a avid reader with an appetite for many genres of books.

She was devastated by her fail in Maths. Yet she overcame that through sheer determination and hard work.

She was never an attention seeker. Yet she was selected as a student leader in school and showed us her leadership ability. She even represented her school in sports, making it to school team as a first team player.

With all these, she still have time to play with her younger brother, help her younger sister with schoolwork. Was she always willing? Nah, she is still a teenager and being at that age brings with it all the angst and what-not. She has her moods and her opinions and as with all parents of teenagers, I am learning how to handle this as best as I could yet still give her the freedom that she could have.

 

With all that being said of PSLE and its scores, I am thankful that I was truly happy for her, right from the bottom of my heart. Perhaps she could do even better? Maybe. Yet that does not take away any ounce of how proud we are, of her determination, her hard work, her tenacity and resilience! An old schoolmate asked me point blank "Aren't you too easily contended? Her scores aren't good!" My answer? "Yes, in the whole scheme of things she is nowhere near what the current society has deemed 'good'. Yet she has exceeded all our expectations, exceeded her own expectations and all was done through her own hard work and sacrifice. This alone makes us proud and we are not shy to shout it out!"

 

She had taught me how good being hardworking feels, how satisfying when you know that u have given your best and how humbling when you finally get your results.

 

She had taught me that the journey is INDEED more important than the destination.

 

She had taught me that no matter how high the odds were stacked against u, with determination and grit, you CAN remove them one by one, piece by piece.

 

Thank you my dear, for teaching me through your experiences and your actions. I have never been more humbled than when I look at her and how much she had grown and matured :) GRATEFUL.

Our Interactions with a certain Paper Monkey

The kids first encounter with the Paper Monkey Theatre was when they had a performance at SAFRA Jurrong. You may ask what am I doing there since I practically live on the other side of the island! Well, ask the Daddy! After he chanced upon the advertisement of the Paper Monkey performing at SAFRA Jurong, he was determined to bring the kids to see them. 24hourly Dad? But of course!

Hubby is a strong believer in the arts influencing the kids. He always wanted them to see the more vintage and weathered kind of arts, to let them know that it is not something that drops from the sky but it is there because of someone else's hard work and undying passion. With my kids being involved in theatre from quite a young age, they were suitably interested :P though it was quite the first experience for my No.3 as it turns out!

The short performance was to drive home how trees and animals are affected by deforestation using a simple fairy tale story with colourful and interesting looking puppets. The main character, a young girl, was presented as a shy person but with a strong desire to protect the forest and its critters. I had always been amazed at how alive the puppets become in the skilful hands of the puppet master!

Nearing the end of the show, "trees" were needed and the 2 older sisters "sabo" my No.3 and poor boy had to stand there waving tree branches but we could all see how excited he was! He was very taken by the main character as well and kept wanting to touch it!

After the show, we noticed that there were many other small and intricate looking puppets on display. It was very different seeing them up close apart from being on stage as one could really see how intricate the coloring was and how the expressions on the puppets were drawn to present its character!

One of the puppet master was also demonstrating a cute little dog that was unbelievably life-like! My No.2 was fascinated and asked to try handling it. Poor Mommy here had her heart in her mouth all the while as she pranced around with the little doggy! Thank goodness it was returned to them in one complete piece!

The kids enjoyed the play and completely no regrets driving all the way when we see the awe and the happy faces of the kiddos! It definitely isn't everyday that we get a chance to let them see these rare puppets up close and even try their hands at it!

So, when the Paper Monkey Theatre puts up a show - the Magic Lantern in collaboration with Esplanade to celebrate the Mooncake Festival, no prizes to guess who went!

I was initially worried that my No.3 will not sit through the whole 45mins. Thank goodness he did, most of the time apart from traversing from his seat to mine twice, asking for milk (yes!). Well, I can say he was *quite* behaved! At very least, no screaming and no tantrums. To which, I am most grateful!

This story is about filial piety and what caught my attention was a song about the greatness of Mother at the end of the show. It cleverly weaved in the modern day situation, asking us to go home and have meal with her...very touching!

To hear the song, click here!

All in all, I was again impressed with the extreme care and hard work that goes into making and preserving these puppets. They aren't exactly light to hold (kid you not! I tried once and the head was really H.E.A.V.Y!) Imagine swinging the puppet on one arm, saying its script with sword fighting scenes here and there as well! It was more than a job well done! It was a passionate display of how determined the puppet masters were, to continue to preserve this art form!

Show your support by liking and following their Facebook Page at

https://www.facebook.com/PaperMonkeyTheatre

or visit their website for more information at

http://www.papermonkey.com.sg/

A disclaimer - This is NOT a sponsored post. It was a post borne out of respect for the passion and the hard work of these puppet masters! I sure hope that my grandchildren will still get to see this art form!