My maid's been on home leave for the past 3 weeks. My parents have kindly stayed over the past 3 weeks, helping out in housework and cooking, but it's still not easy and I find that I've been more snappish with the boys, leading Christian to ask me "Mama, why are you angry?" everytime I scream at P, or lose patience with C over his non-compliance / childish tantrums..
Read another mummy's blog yesterday, on her 35th birthday reflections. She commented that she must be more wise when dealing with her children's 'wrongs' and remember that she, herself, is still far from the standard God asks of her as well. Was struck by that thought and resolved to be kinder to my young child...
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He surprised me when I reached home yesterday.
I was still taking my shoes off when he asked:
"Mama, you want to change? Is this for work? Is this a homedress?" "I leave the water for you!"
(Ran to the bathtub and checked the water level.. tried to lean into the bathtub and plug it so he can run water for me.. =7 )
I told him it's ok, i'll do it later and he sped to get a purple towel from the pile of laundry (he knows that's my favourite colour and gives me everything that is purple), pushed it to me and said "You can bathe now, mama! I give you a towel.."
Later, when I was folding his clothes, I asked him to return his clothes to the drawers.
Am so proud that, at the age of 2 yrs 9 months, my son has finally shown some utility *grin* and can help around the house instead of being dependent on us.
He managed to put all the clothes back in the correct places, and was so eager to help he raced back to me for more each time he was done. :)
Lastly, he surprised me during bedtime, when he suddenly asked, out of nowhere "Mama, can I put cream for you?" "I help you put cream ok? Come," he says.
I was surprised and acceded. He rubbed my belly with such enthusiasm I had to tell him to be gentle cos his little sister was in there. Not very flattering to hear him say "Your tummy is so big, i need to put a LOooot of cream" but I was certainly v.touched with the sincerity and effort he put into his little task. He happily smothered me with Vit E oil and rubbed his oily hands on my legs, elbows, shoulders, having fun naming the body parts in the process.
I thanked him and told him I was so happy. He smiled and said "I make you happy...".
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On a completely unrelated point, P came home just before bedtime and showed C his new watch.
P: Christian, do you want to see my watch? Mama bought it for me..
C (Ignores P and immediately looks at me wide-eyed): Where's my watch?
Me: You've got to wait till you learn to read the time ok?
*begins nagging abt how he must pay attention when he's being taught to read the clock hands*
C (Sidles over to my side, looks up woefully and asks): Do you like me? Do you love me, Mama?
Oh, such drama...
28 June 2011
16 June 2011
Maria Montessori
I'm immensely interested in Montessori as a form of pedagogy. Forgot how I first came across this, but have read quite a bit of the philosophy and method.
P thinks the method is not suited to C, and that he'll learn very little if left to his own devices. We do agree that theory is useless, if not implemented well. Anyway, even though we've shelved the idea of putting C in a Montessori school for now, I've still been reading materials and books on the Montessori method so that I may implement some of the principles at home. (Just discovered the joys of being able to read e-books on my new iphone. Yay! For a time-strapped mother, this is one of the greatest perks of the iphone!)
Just thought to share the following passages, which impressed me with their clarity of thought. Maria Montessori had some truly enlightened thoughts, which are advanced and relevant in the present day. (The following excerpts are taken from "Dr. Montessori's Own Handbook", which was written in the 1910s.)
_____________________________________________________
On Discipline
"The first idea that the child must acquire, in order to be actively disciplined, is that of the difference between good and evil; and the task of the educator lies in seeing that the child does not confound good with immobility, and evil with activity, as often happens in the case of the old-time discipline.
And all this because our aim is to discipline for activity, for work, for good; not for immobility, not for passivity, not for obedience."
_______________________________________________________
On Independence
"No one can be free unless he is independent: therefore, the first, active manifestations of the child's individual liberty must be so guided that through this activity he may arrive at independence.
That we have not yet thoroughly assimilated the highest concept of the term independence, is due to the fact that the social form in which we live is still servile. In an age of civilisation where servants exist, the concept of that form of life which is independence cannot take root or develop freely.
Our servants are not our dependents, rather it is we who are dependent upon them.
We often believe ourselves to be independent simply because no one commands us, and because we command others; but the nobleman who needs to call a servant to his aid is really a dependent through his own inferiority.
P thinks the method is not suited to C, and that he'll learn very little if left to his own devices. We do agree that theory is useless, if not implemented well. Anyway, even though we've shelved the idea of putting C in a Montessori school for now, I've still been reading materials and books on the Montessori method so that I may implement some of the principles at home. (Just discovered the joys of being able to read e-books on my new iphone. Yay! For a time-strapped mother, this is one of the greatest perks of the iphone!)
Just thought to share the following passages, which impressed me with their clarity of thought. Maria Montessori had some truly enlightened thoughts, which are advanced and relevant in the present day. (The following excerpts are taken from "Dr. Montessori's Own Handbook", which was written in the 1910s.)
_____________________________________________________
On Discipline
"The first idea that the child must acquire, in order to be actively disciplined, is that of the difference between good and evil; and the task of the educator lies in seeing that the child does not confound good with immobility, and evil with activity, as often happens in the case of the old-time discipline.
And all this because our aim is to discipline for activity, for work, for good; not for immobility, not for passivity, not for obedience."
_______________________________________________________
On Independence
"No one can be free unless he is independent: therefore, the first, active manifestations of the child's individual liberty must be so guided that through this activity he may arrive at independence.
That we have not yet thoroughly assimilated the highest concept of the term independence, is due to the fact that the social form in which we live is still servile. In an age of civilisation where servants exist, the concept of that form of life which is independence cannot take root or develop freely.
Our servants are not our dependents, rather it is we who are dependent upon them.
We often believe ourselves to be independent simply because no one commands us, and because we command others; but the nobleman who needs to call a servant to his aid is really a dependent through his own inferiority.
14 June 2011
Turn, baby, turn
I'm afraid she's very comfortably lying sideways in my womb..
At 34 weeks and 4 days, she still has not turned head down, and is in breech position. Tseng says that if she does not turn by my next visit (23rd June), he'll try and turn her manually.
Heard from Alia that it's a very painful process, and I've also read that it may trigger the labour process.
Let's hope she'll turn soon!
At 34 weeks and 4 days, she still has not turned head down, and is in breech position. Tseng says that if she does not turn by my next visit (23rd June), he'll try and turn her manually.
Heard from Alia that it's a very painful process, and I've also read that it may trigger the labour process.
Let's hope she'll turn soon!
Imagination
Christian skipped school the whole of last week cos he was having a cold and we didn't want to risk him catching the HFMD wave currently going through his school.
Think he has been bored, but on the bright side, it has forced him to push the limits of his imagination and creativity.
Trains
C and his grandfather would pretend to be driving his Thomas train up and down a train track made of jenga bricks. (C, who usually proclaims himself to be the train driver and the rest of us his motley crew of 'train master', 'passenger' and 'train assistant', cleverly states that he's the train master and my dad the train driver in these instances, so he doesn't have to crawl up and down the tracks, but instead gets to do a "PPpppppfffft!!", mimicking the whistle of the train master.)
He's currently so train-crazy that he sees train tracks everywhere. Seams on the sofa cover. The grouting between the floor tiles. Colourful rectangular blocks lined up straight. All these can be transformed into 'train tracks' in an instant.
The other day when we were driving through the CTE tunnel, he looked up, saw the two parallel rows of fluorescent lights on the ceiling and proclaimed that those were train tracks.
Elevators
He's also taken to emptying the Ikea pull-cart which stores colourful blocks, holding it by the string at the end and dragging it vertically up and down, whilst saying it's a lift.
When I was putting him to bed half an hr ago, he put both feet against the cot rails and slid his feet up and down (they were socked, so were easy to slide), imagining his gonggong, popo, mama and daddy entering and exiting his 'feet-lift' and him transporting us up and down.
It's so wonderful, to be able to peek into the rich and colourful world of one so small and innocent. :)
Think he has been bored, but on the bright side, it has forced him to push the limits of his imagination and creativity.
Trains
C and his grandfather would pretend to be driving his Thomas train up and down a train track made of jenga bricks. (C, who usually proclaims himself to be the train driver and the rest of us his motley crew of 'train master', 'passenger' and 'train assistant', cleverly states that he's the train master and my dad the train driver in these instances, so he doesn't have to crawl up and down the tracks, but instead gets to do a "PPpppppfffft!!", mimicking the whistle of the train master.)
He's currently so train-crazy that he sees train tracks everywhere. Seams on the sofa cover. The grouting between the floor tiles. Colourful rectangular blocks lined up straight. All these can be transformed into 'train tracks' in an instant.
The other day when we were driving through the CTE tunnel, he looked up, saw the two parallel rows of fluorescent lights on the ceiling and proclaimed that those were train tracks.
Elevators
He's also taken to emptying the Ikea pull-cart which stores colourful blocks, holding it by the string at the end and dragging it vertically up and down, whilst saying it's a lift.
When I was putting him to bed half an hr ago, he put both feet against the cot rails and slid his feet up and down (they were socked, so were easy to slide), imagining his gonggong, popo, mama and daddy entering and exiting his 'feet-lift' and him transporting us up and down.
It's so wonderful, to be able to peek into the rich and colourful world of one so small and innocent. :)
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