Learning About Easter

It is Good Friday today. A day when we pause to consider the sacrifice made by Christ on the cross, even as we look forward with joy celebrating the triumph of His resurrection on Eater Sunday. Most of all, it is a time to be thankful, for the unmerited favour we received through God's abundant grace in the process.

I've not done as much as I would have liked to really get into the season. My days have been full, really full, mostly in a good way. But I think it's never too late to spend some time reading the word of God and being thankful. For this purpose, I've found the BSF guide to teaching your child about Easter really helpful. Aside from some practical tips on how to get kids to share in this meaningful occasion, I've found the table at the end, which sets out passages and talking points for a bible study with your children really helpful for guiding our discussion.

Here are some other links that you might find useful as we meditate and celebrate this season:

• An easy yet pretty Easter egg decorating activity from Scissors Paper Stone.

• A resurrection eggs printable, also from Scissors Paper Stone.

• Making wax-resist Easter eggs (and links to other Eater related activities) on Owls Well.

• A simple Easter craft making Suncatcher eggs that we did at an Easter party last year

• Some good books for kids to learn about Easter recommended on Princess Dana Diaries

• A series of wonderful and thought-provoking posts on Easter and on being a Christian by A Pancake Princess

Have a blessed end to the week, one and all.

Our Advent with PlayMo

We've moved right along in December and Christmas is fast approaching! 

I wanted to share a bit about what we're doing for Advent as I've been having fun with this year's Advent calendar (of sorts). Truth be told, I've not been very consistent about it. I'm embarrassed to admit that despite my good intentions, I've been doing the opposite and getting caught up with the things I said I wanted to avoid. Not good at all. It's only in the past week that I've taken some time to re-align myself and I hope be able to see out the rest of the year in good form.

We started Advent a little late as we were away on a cruise during the early part of December. But while we were away, the husband helped me put together a box, out of Lego, naturally.

This was to be our Advent "calendar". How it works is very simple: Every day, I would hide the box and the kids would do a treasure hunt to find it. And what would they find inside? 

A piece of our nativity scene. In this case, it's the angel Gabriel. I selected pieces to represent different parts of the Christmas story. I had this grand plan to build a nativity out of Lego, only to remember that we had purchased a Playmobil nativity after Christmas last year. (Yes, it was on discount!) So rather than re-invent the wheel, we're using the Playmobil set.

So we started with the angel Gabriel who appeared to Mary to tell her of the blessing she was about to receive, to bear a son conceived of the Holy Spirit. The next day the kids were given Mary and we read of her song of praise to the Lord. Following that, they got Joseph and we read the portion of scripture where Joseph was troubled and the angel visits. And so on.

I used the following suggested readings from a BSF handout guide, expanding and using other passages to supplement these as appropriate:

Suggested reading of the Christmas story

• A Saviour King is Promised -- Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7; Jeremiah 23:5; Micah 5:2-5a
• The Angel Visits Mary -- Luke 1:26-38
• The Angel Visits Joseph -- Matthew 1:18-25
• The Trip to Bethlehem and Stable Lodging -- Luke 2:1-7
• The Christ Child is Born --  Luke 2:6-7
• The Angels Visit the Shepherds -- Luke 2:8-14
• The Shepherds Visit the Manger -- Luke 2: 15-18
• The Wise Men Travel to Jerusalem -- Matthew 2:1-8
• The Wise Men Worship the Christ Child -- Matthew 2:9-12
• The Trip to Egypt -- Matthew 2:13-15

Some of the truths to share with the children from these readings

• Christmas is the day we celebrate the Lord Jesus' birthday
• Long ago, God promised to send a Saviour King
• God promised that the Saviour King would be born in Bethlehem
• God always keeps His promises
• Christmas is the time God kept His promise to send a Saviour
• Mary was the Lord Jesus' mother, but His Father was the Almighty God in heaven
• God shows people how to find the Lord Jesus
• God always knows what is best for His people

Like I said, I have not been very consistent, but the kids have done a good job reminding me about their "Playmo box" as they called it, and asking me to get it ready for them to hunt down. Our nativity has thus filled out nicely.

There are still a few pieces to go but we're nearly there. As for my kids, I think they've learnt something along the way too. They've enjoyed messing around with the pieces, for sure!

Looking forward to Christmas!

Teaching Thy Children as Thou Sittest, Walkest, Liest Down, Risest Up

My dear Noey, my beautiful son,

You stand on the cusp of turning 4 years of age, your birthday being just over a month away. You have grown up a lot since we moved into the second half of the year. You've matured and grown, and you're a little boy now. No longer a baby or a toddler but a proper boy in your own right. I know you can't wait to finally be FOUR, just like the rest of your classmates. It probably can't come soon enough.

Your Mummy here though can't quite believe that you're almost four already. It would mean that I've been at this parenting gig for four years too, and I can't quite believe that either, because I'm still learning new things every day.

Like today.

Today we brought J, your classmate home with us today, because his parents weren't able to pick him up and asked me to help out. I don't mind picking him up and babysitting him, even giving him lunch before his parents pick him up. If I do hesitate, it's because of you. Because I know that you actually aren't that fond of him. Somehow when you play together, you always end up getting hurt. He is bigger and stronger, and you, well, tend to be at the receiving end whenever things go wrong.

It happened again on this occasion. I wasn't watching you boys at that point so I don't know exactly what happened, but from what I could gather, you boys were playing with your die-cast cars and you used yours to crash into the one in J's hand. (I really don't know why you must always play this way with crashing and banging!) I am guessing he retaliated by hitting you on the forehead with his car, because the next thing I knew, you were in tears. You were in tears and I could see that it hurt, and my heart ached for you. While I didn't think J should have hit you in the head, I did think that you were also at fault for starting the aggressive play in the first place, and I told you so.

You were mad, you were. And being mad, you said all kinds of angry things, describing unkind things you wanted to do to him. I told you that you shouldn't, that it wasn't the right way to react, that he was a guest, that he had apologised. You weren't happy. "But why?" you asked me. And your question reminded me of what was important. I was telling you how to react, and superficially why you should be doing so. But at that point, I pulled you on my lap, and told you - "Because God tells us to forgive." And I spent some time explaining to you how Jesus loved and Jesus forgave even despite the suffering he went through, till death on the cross. We also spent a short time praying that God would help you forgive.

And you understood. You nodded solemnly and hopped off my lap to go and play. There were no more tears, no more nasty words. You left J to his devices and you sat down nearby to play quietly on your own for a while. I was SO PROUD of you, and so incredibly grateful to God for helping you through the difficult moment.

I must also say that while I was proud of you, but I wasn't proud of myself. God gave me the inspiration at that point to get through to you, but I instantly felt guilty for not doing more on other previous occasions, or seizing more opportunities to teach you God's word and His ways. Forgive your Mama. I'm only human, and often I get sucked in by the day to day and neglect the more important type of teaching and training that I should be doing. But I'm not going to forget now - I promise you and Meips that. I guess that's why I'm writing this down here. To remind me of my purpose at this time when I am enjoying this tremendous opportunity to spend time growing up with you both.

I love you so much. Don't you ever forget that.

Love,
Your Mama

New Life in Him

It is Good Friday today.

We asked Noey what we remember on Good Friday was and he was very prompt with his answer:

"Jesus died on the cross for our sins."

I hope that in the years to come, he will know this in his heart and not merely on his lips.

For this day, I love the beautiful passage in Isaiah 53. It is particularly apt. The wonderful prophecy of the Messiah made real in the person of Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 53

 ¹ Who has believed our message
   and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
² He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
   and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
   nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
³ He was despised and rejected by mankind,
   a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
   he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

 ⁴ Surely he took up our pain
   and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
   stricken by him, and afflicted.
⁵ But he was pierced for our transgressions,
   he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
   and by his wounds we are healed.
⁶ We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
   each of us has turned to our own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
   the iniquity of us all.

 ⁷ He was oppressed and afflicted,
   yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
   and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
   so he did not open his mouth.
⁸ By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
   Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
   for the transgression of my people he was punished.
⁹ He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
   and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
   nor was any deceit in his mouth.

 ¹⁰ Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
   and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
   and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.
¹¹ After he has suffered,
   he will see the light of life and be satisfied;
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
   and he will bear their iniquities.
¹² Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,
   and he will divide the spoils with the strong,
because he poured out his life unto death,
   and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
   and made intercession for the transgressors.

Jesus indeed died on the cross for our sins, that we might have new life in Him.

Easter awaits!

(Yes, that's me, and that's the egg for new life!)

We're Doing BSF!

One of my resolutions for the year was to improve my spiritual walk with God. This is something that has been put on the back burner for far too long, and I can feel myself suffering for it. This was something I had to do, for me.

It took a while for me to get my act together and it was shortly after Chinese New Year when I dropped a note to the BSF contact in my area to ask how I could join the class. I had heard of BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) classes from several sources, chiefly Sophie's Mum who has been attending for a number of years now. That weekly commitment to meet for bible study seemed like what I needed. And praise God for his timing -- the day I contacted the class administrator, she replied to tell me that I needed to attend an introductory class before I could register, and the good news that they were having an introductory class that coming Monday. I learnt that they conduct this only 3 times a year so if I had dragged my feet, I would have missed it. It certainly looked like God's hand was leading me forward. I was even more delighted to find out that the timing of the class would fit exactly into that time slot after I drop Noey off at school and before I pick him up.

At the introductory class, I realised that you would have to wait for them to place you in a group before you could formally join the classes, and that this could take several weeks to several months, depending on if a suitable vacancy came up. I was a bit disappointed, especially since I wanted to start right away to make full use of my time. But I told myself that God had his timing. And somehow I had a feeling I would not have to wait too long.

I was right -- about 3 weeks later, I got a call from my new group leader welcoming me to the group. Better yet, Nomi also got a spot in the popular pre-school programme.

That was 2 weeks ago.

Nomi and I are still adjusting, but I can already see that this would be tremendously good for me -- to be forced, as it were, into a regular study of the word.

Homework time!

It's huge for Nomi too because she attends class on her own, for 2 hours.

I did panic for a bit that first week when I turned up with her and handed her over to the lovely ladies in the Babies' Class. She was distracted and being her usual curious and friendly self, went in without any fuss. Mummy here, on the other hand, started stressing about how these were folks who didn't know her or her routine at all, and started scribbling furiously on the parents' instructions sheet while praying for the best. Apparently she did pretty well. During the first week, she was reportedly happy until the mid-way mark when she got tired and probably realised that Mummy was nowhere to be found!  She was in tears when I picked her up at the end, which was heartbreaking. The next week, she started crying at the hand-over, but I was told that she settled quite quickly after that and was happy and listened to the story well. There were no tears this time when I came to get her. I think this girl is a real trooper. Still, I'm continuing to pray for her adjustment.

Big girl back from attending class all by herself

So baby and I have a new weekly date with God!

Others who know about BSF have commented that it is a big commitment, but for me, I'm just taking it a bit at a time. Providentally, one of the passages which came up as a reference in the first bible study that I completed was Jeremiah 29:13 -- "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." This is my comfort and encouragement.

Brother and Sister Bear

I see this picture of Noey and Nomi together and I wish it reflected the reality of a loving and close relationship between the two.

The truth, however, is far from it. Noey is -- currently -- quite possibly the worst brother EVER. Everyday I find myself having to tell him at least 20 times or more:

"Don't hurt Mei-mei!"
"Don't push her!"
"Don't snatch things from her!"
"Noey, you are not allowed to shout and smack Mei-mei. Only Mummy can do that if she's naughty."
"Be gentle with her."
"Share, Noey. Just let her hold it for a while."

It is tedious and tiring and the message does not seem to be sinking in. I've tried showing him how to share by giving Nomi some other toy instead if she's holding what he wants. I've tried "do unto others what you  want done unto yourself" lectures and demonstrations. I've tried giving them separate sets of toys and drawing a clear divide between the two. I've tried to show him how to play with Nomi, gently. Nothing works.

And dear Nomi -- she's always holding out stuff to her Gor-gor. She loves to play "give" and pretend-feed. I point out how she is sharing her things with him and he just takes them away from her.

In desperation the other day when he was whining and crying and kicking up a fuss about something or other, I grabbed him unto my lap and started praying with him and for him. It calmed him down some that day. And it opened my heart and mind to the fact that I really should be praying more that God would build the relationship between my children.

Noey is bright but has a low EQ. He does, however, know his own heart.

One night sometime recently, DD was asking Noey if he loved us, Papa and Mama.

"Yes!" he replied.

"A bit, medium or alot?" asked DD.

"Medium," he said honestly.

"So who do you love a lot?" asked DD.

Noey thought about it for a short while and said, "Myself."

And it is very true.

(DD went on to tell him that he had to love himself at a medium level, and that he could love everyone else at a medium level, but he had to love Jesus a lot.)

I remind myself to keep praying for them. Not just their physical well-being but their spiritual one as well.

And since I planned and started on this post, there's been a small breakthrough as well. Today DD and I watched as the two kids had fun chasing each other and running around the house squealing. "Come, Mei-mei," said Noey, and we watched him give instructions to Nomi. I remarked to DD that it was the first time I'd seen him actually willingly playing with Nomi in a way that did not involve squishing her somehow. He is still too rough and likes to go too near, but it's an improvement. And I'll keep on praying.

Lego Learning

In this household, we love our Lego. Or, more accurately, the husband and the kids love their Lego, and I... love not accidentally stepping on any. Because, you know, OUCH.

But sometimes, having a lot of Lego can come in quite handy.

Here are two bible stories that we were able to bring to life with our Lego blocks and have a lot of fun learning too:

1. Joshua & the Walls of Jericho

This story is fairly straight-forward: God commanded the Israelites to march around the walled city of Jericho once a day for 6 days, with the priests blowing their horns. Then after marching around the city 7 times on the 7th day, Joshua commanded the people to SHOUT... and the walls came tumbling down.

It should be pretty obvious what we did!

Building the wall was surprisingly difficult, no thanks to Noey's requirements -- "I want to put some flowers to make it look nice" and "I want a window!". I also wanted to make it tall so that the falling down would, well, be more impressive. When we finally got it to stand, we pranced around it, I tooted a horn made from a rolled up piece of paper, and we shouted! And then we toppled the wall down. I admit, I had fun too.

And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout; for the LORD hath given you the city. So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets: and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city."
~ Joshua 6:15, 20

2. Feeding the Five Thousand

It was DD's idea to use his many many (many) Lego figurines to illustrate this parable. We had previously read this parable -- where Jesus took just the lunch of 5 loaves and 2 fish of one little boy and fed the multitude -- to Noey before but it was hard for him to grasp the concept of five thousand people.

We don't have five thousand lego figurines. At least, I sincerely hope not! But we have enough DD took out enough from his stash to make the point. He even managed to rustle up 2 lego fish!

And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full. And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.

~ Matthew 14:19-21

So yes, Lego are learning toys, in more ways than probably intended.

(And no, my dear husband, that does NOT mean that you ought to buy more!)

On Board the Logos Hope

On Boxing Day last year, we took a trip down to Vivocity for lunch and also to check out the Logos Hope.

I had always been intrigued by the vision and mission of the Logos and the Doulos. Growing up as a Christian youth, the idea of doing mission work and carrying out evangelism from port to port with a floating bookshop on deck was undoubtedly appealing. It was never a realistic thing for me to do given my propensity to seasickness, but that never stopped me from dreaming!

I had missed the Doulos' last few visits to Singapore. So when I heard that the Logos Hope was in town, I decided to bring the family down for a visit. On top of supporting a worthwhile cause, I thought boarding a ship would be fun for the kids.

Noey was (unsurprisingly) quite fascinated. Being on a ship that also had a bookshop! What a treat! I noted that the short welcome video at the start did not mention the ship's Christian mission, but it was clear from the selection of books and music. We spent some time browsing through the selection and both Noey and I managed to pick up some books. I also bought some Christmas CDs for, err, next year. I would have liked to take more time to browse but it was getting crowded and I was starting to get a headache, the latter which I put down to the motion of the boat. Not that there was any perceivable motion on the boat though, if you were wondering. Just enough motion for my seasick self to notice! We grabbed the books, walked through the visual display then called it a day. Not before taking some photos though.

I still wonder what it would be like to travel to different exotic places on board to tell and share about Jesus. Maybe it's something Noey and Nomi can think about doing in future.

[This is a bit of an outdated post, but I came across the photos while downloading them from my phone and thought it was worth a note.]

"How's It Going?"

It's been a little over a week since I officially left my job.

Everyone I meet keeps asking me how it's going. I tell them it's too early to tell, but in all honesty, it's been... FRIGHTFUL.

Haha. I guess the good thing is that I more or less expected it to be tough so it's not as if I was caught by surprise. The truth is that this is a difficult period, which is why I am needed at home. DD has been and will continue to be heavily involved in a matter for the next week and the half, so for the most part, I feel like I've been single parenting most of the past week. Noey's also still, well, being the difficult and developing 3-year old that he is. Yesterday for example, he managed to make a huge mess in the toilet washing his hands and playing with water, and crowned it off by dunking 2 whole unused full rolls of toilet paper into a sink full of water when I walked away to tend to Naomi for a bit. He later also defied my instructions not to run out of the bathroom after his bath and made wet puddles all over the hall. On top of everything, there was a lot of crying, which drives me absolutely bananas.

It didn't help that yesterday I also went to attend an event that reminded me a lot of my old life. (By this I mean the life I had at my first job, pre-marriage, pre-babies.) I sat in the presence of clever people and felt intellectually challenged for the first time in a while. Back at home, sitting at the dining table fighting a losing battle trying to get Noey to stay in his seat and finish his dinner, I did, for a moment wonder what I was doing, getting stuck in this drudgery.

Who are you calling naughty? Us?

The feeling was compounded this morning when I had to send Noey to school early for a concert rehearsal. Upon arriving at his school -- late -- I realised that I didn't dress him in his usual Wednesday PE kit and I had completely forgotten to take his school bag and water bottle along. I then had to double back to send DD to work, then return to his school to hand him his bag and bottle. In the meantime, I kept having to leave Naomi with my helper and she (Naomi, not my helper) was really NOT HAPPY about the fact that Mummy kept walking away. The guilt just piled up every time she howled when I handed her over.

I know it'll be a while before we find our groove.

And despite the hiccups, during those moments when we are able to play and have fun together and everything is at peace, I relish the opportunity to be home with my babies.

Then again, ask me again in 2 weeks how's it's going, won't you? I might be singing a different tune!

"Get me out of here!"

Naomi reading Mummy's mind.

Incidentally, they are 8 months and 3 years 1 month respectively today. 

Back To The Rat Race

I took my first steps to going back to work last Wednesday, and again today when I was called back to cover some Board meetings. Easing myself in, in a sense, before I officially start next Friday.

I was in denial for most of the week before I forced myself to get all my things sorted the night before, and packed that instantly recognisable Medela PIS backpack. On a sidenote, I'm embarrassed that it's taken me having my 2nd child to realise you can pull the pump out of the bag. I'm on the look out for a nicer (and more chic) bag for pumping equipment, but for now, this will do.

It felt funny, putting on my work clothes and squeezing my feet back into my heels. Once I got to the office however, it was not difficult getting back in the groove. It felt like slipping back into a familiar routine. And yet, this second time round, my heart was still at home. I missed my babies -- Noey's chatter and Mimi's gummy smiles. Maybe it was because I didn't find my maternity leave as isolating an experience as I did the first time that the adult interaction or me-time in the office didn't make up for the time away. Possibly it is because my office isn't quite the place it was a couple of years ago.

Whatever the reason, it was a relief to come home to an excited Noey and a happy Naomi. They did really well on my first full day away. Mimi in particular was in good spirits the whole day, downing her bottles and bestowing smiles on all and sundry. Noey actually went down for his nap fairly easily, leading my brother to comment that it's just me who is ineffective at getting him to nap. Hah. I felt like I was the only one having the separation anxiety!

I guess it's a good thing I still only work part-time!

Why U No Sleep??

I think that if I ever had to go it alone on my own as a SAHM without my helper, none of my kids would nap.

We are at that phase (at least, I hope it is a phase!) where Noey would choose not to nap if it was up to him, and Naomi just doesn't want to be put down. She would snap awake as soon as she touches the rocker/bed/swing. It's terribly annoying.

I had one of those days last week when Noey didn't nap at all. I wouldn't be as grieved about it if I could claim back the 1.5 hours I spent in the room trying to put him to sleep. That and the stress I went through of hearing Naomi scream her head off outside the whole time.

It has always been difficult to get Noey to sleep and to get him to stay asleep thereafter. He still needs me to lie down next to him while he strokes my elbow, my leg, clambers all over me, and generally squishes himself against me as much as possible. It drives me absolutely insane. Especially when it carries on for more than an hour. I know I should have "trained" him out of it. Believe me, we tried. But between his persistence and my desperation for him to just sleep already, we haven't made much progress. We've carried on with what works and at least that gets him to nap for 1.5 to 2 hours a day everyday, and to sleep at a decent time at night.

Until now.

Noey's saving grace has always been his schedule. At least I could count on him going to sleep at certain times. Could, being operative these days. The problem now is that his school hours have screwed up his schedule somewhat. I've been very happy with his transition to school thus far, except for this nap problem. School knocks off at 2.30pm, and at this point, he is tired. Unfortunately, the car ride is too short for him to fall asleep. And once he gets home, he's re-energized and I have to drag him to sleep, kicking and screaming.

Naomi also complicates matters by not having a fixed afternoon nap or feed schedule, and generally not being too good a napper altogether. (Her night-time sleep is awesome though, so I really shouldn't complain.) It's just that the need to squeeze in her feeds and put her to sleep is very difficult when I also have to be the one to put Noey to sleep.

So far, I've tried:

1) Putting him to sleep immediately once we get home. I get him to wash his face and hands, change his clothes and it's off to bed. Problem: There is a lot of protesting and he takes ages to fall asleep. Also because he takes a while to fall asleep anyway, it is too late to give him a snack when he wakes up as it is too close to dinner time.

2) Letting him have a snack before packing him off to sleep. Problem: He's not the fastest eater, and sometimes, he's so happy playing with his toys in the meantime, it's still some work dragging him off to sleep. And if I miss the magic window and try to put him to sleep too late, he doesn't sleep at all.

3) Taking a long drive in the hope that he'll fall asleep before we get home. Problem: He refuses to take that last pee in school so I have to bring him home or somewhere else to pee first. It also still has to be a pretty long drive!

4) Bringing him out somewhere for tea and run some errands before heading back, and thereby letting him fall asleep in the car. This is what I've taken to doing most recently, and it is proving to be the most effective, fun and productive for everyone. The one thing I do feel guilty about is having to leave Naomi at home with someone for the period we're out. Bringing her too is more than a bit tricky, especially if they both fall asleep.

In all cases, I need someone else to hold Naomi for a while. I've tried putting them both to sleep at the same time, something I've only been successful at maybe 2-3 times this entire month. Noey gets too excited when Naomi is around and would keep trying to paw her, talk to her, squeeze himself next to her such that neither would get to sleep. Or Naomi would simply not be interested in sleeping and start making so much noise to be carried that Noey wouldn't sleep either.

Argh.

Them taking turns to nap results in me having no time to do anything, including take a nap myself, so I've been crashing out pretty early every night. Thank God my helper is back and order has been restored in the house! Noey's schedule and Naomi's too are now a work in progress. Two kids is certainly at least twice the work. Luckily for them (and for me) it's also double the cuteness.

Now, let's just shut those big eyes, shall we?

Do we really have to sleep?

Survival Mode

Who left and put Mom in charge??

Things have been a little crazy around here.

Slightly over a week ago, my helper left for a month of home leave, leaving me at home with 2 little kids on my hands. Add to that the fact that my parents were away on a holiday for the past week, and DD is going through a busy period in the office, I have been more than a little stretched.

However, God has been gracious -- I haven't been completely alone. My parents' helper has been coming over for most of the day over the past week to help with the chores, my Aunt, my siblings and my MIL have popped by on different days to be an extra pair of hands, and I've been ordering tingkat food for dinner to cut down on the cooking.

The challenge comes from the fact that both kids have been super clingy to me, especially Naomi. She sees all the unfamiliar faces around her and bursts into tears until she's returned into my arms. She's better in the morning, allowing almost everyone to carry her, then her mood steadily declines during the course of the day and by evening she's screaming unless I'm carrying her. Thankfully she goes to sleep by 7.30pm. Noey's been his usual super-glue self, so between having to be the one to prepare Noey's food, and feed, bathe, clean, entertain, carry both kids, put them both to sleep, and also help keep the house in some semblance of order, I've not had much time to do much else!

Except when they both graciously decide to nap at the same time. Like now.

It's been an interesting experience so far. I've always wondered how I'd do as a full-time SAHM with no helper and now I know. My conclusion:

(1) The house will only be clean when DD has some time to do the cleaning, which is not very often.
(2) We'll just have to get used to toys being EVERYWHERE.
(3) Everyone will need more clothes/sheets/towels because I'll never be able to turnaround laundry fast enough.
(4) Ordering tingkat food is a lifesaver.
(5) While I am no housekeeper, I can manage the kids just fine by myself.

On that last point, I guess I'm glad I've always done most things for both kids myself. At least these past weeks haven't been too much of a shock to me or them! I was quite pleased the other day when I was left with both kids all by myself in the evening that I managed to feed Noey and breastfeed Naomi (at one point breastfeeding Naomi while feeding Noey), bathe both kids, AND feed and bathe myself, before settling Naomi for bed. I thought the real accomplishment was the fact that I could somehow eat and bathe myself! It took a bit of juggling, but I knew I could it and I was determined to, because I'm stubborn like that.

Still, I'm looking forward to my helper coming back. Trying to be supermummy is tiring. Hah.

Only by Grace

There are days when I feel waxing lyrical about my kids.

Today, not so much.

With my babies on Mother's Day, frazzled smile intact.

Today was one of those days where Noey decided to object to almost everything I wanted him to do, to challenge my authority. And even though he did not want listen nor obey any instruction I gave him, it was still only Mummy he wanted for most of the day, except for those blessed hours when his Ah Kong came to visit and Papa came home to bring him out to run off the excess energy. Nomi napped badly the whole day, which resulted in her being rather clingy to me and wanting to nurse frequently. Noey also didn't nap well, and was a teary grumpus for most of the afternoon. In addition to all that, I managed to slip when I scrambled out of bed to answer the phone in the afternoon (rushing so that the ringing would not wake Noey up from his nap) and did something to my pelvis. So now it hurts and I'm walking like I'm pregnant again. What joy.

It is tough, being a Mummy to 2. Tougher than being a Mummy to 1, because there's only that much of me that can go around. There is very little time for me to just be me, to find the time for myself. Except in the middle of the night, like now!

I guess I just wanted to take this time out to sit down and remind myself that while I choose to remember the happy moments most of the time, some days really aren't so great. I know this will pass. I may even look back on these days with fondness in future (though right now, I'm not feeling it, man). It is only with the grace of God that I carry on, knowing that the burden will not be too heavy for me to bear. Aren't we blessed that His grace, love and mercies never come to an end?

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases
His mercies never come to an end
They are new every morning, new every morning
Great is Thy faithfulness, oh Lord
Great is Thy faithfulness

Ouch!

It figures that just after I post about my oversupply issues, I would come down with a breast infection.

I was too gung-ho (read: silly) about trying not to hold out and not pump too much in a bid to reduce supply and ended up with plugged ducts instead. On Wednesday night, I felt increasingly unwell while putting Noey to sleep. A quick check with the thermometer confirmed my fears -- I was running a fever of 38.1°C. On top of that, I was feeling aching and my there was a lump in my right boob that was extremely tender to touch. Argh.

I did my best to trying to clear it, and went to sleep ok, but the fever came back in the morning. Thankfully my Dad had popped over yesterday to visit so I was able to get him to bring me to the doctor to get this seen to.

Here is where God providentially provided. I went to a clinic in Paragon which I had been to once purely because it was on my company's panel of doctors. It is turned out however, the doctor who saw me has a particular interest in treating breastfeeding mums with plugged ducts and mastitis issues. As such, she was able to give me some helpful tips and treat me accordingly, and I was assured that she knew what she was doing.

So it's not quite mastitis yet, thankfully. I was given instructions to take the painkillers and squeeze the daylights out of the lump. She also gave me the number of a lactation consultant in case I failed to, or rather, wasn't brave or good enough to squeeze the lump out as required.

I think I'm more afraid of the lactation consultant doing the job so I dutifully pressed out the lump as much as I could. Thankfully I have a fairly high pain threshold! It seems softer now but I'm supposed to continue doing this for a while. At least the fever has not returned. Fingers crossed that this will be resolved before it progresses into something worse!

Lesson learnt: Just pump if necessary! Plugged ducts are no fun at all.

Oh no, are you going to make me drink even more milk Mama?

Milkmaid

I took a peek in my scary freezer today and decided to count the number of bags of expressed breastmilk (EBM) I have in storage.

Naomi is 1 month old today. She is fully breastfed, mostly directly, though I give her a bottle of EBM almost everyday, fresh from the day's pumping sessions. I pump only because I can't take the pain of engorgement, and I've tried to be careful not to empty my breasts so as to stimulate even more production.

And still, the number of 3/4Oz (90-120ml) bags of EBM I have in the freezer is... 72. Yes, seriously. I really am a cow.

I know many mums who struggle with producing enough milk to meet their baby's needs so I know I am very blessed in this respect. I am grateful that I was able to fully breastfeed Noey for a full 17 months, and I hope to be able to do so for at least a year with Naomi.

Still, having an abundance of milk is not an easy thing to live with. I try to stave off pumping when I can in the hopes that supply would regulate itself, but engorgement is really painful. I sometimes wake up in the middle of the night just to pump because I cannot take it anymore. I also absolutely hate the fact that I leak milk all the time, so I have to bathe and change frequently to get rid of the icky sticky feeling. But the most trying thing is that the oversupply I think contributes to a more forceful let-down, such that poor Naomi often chokes and splutters when the milk starts flowing. I feel so guilty when she does that. Unfortunately that also means that she will pull off, resulting in both of us getting drenched by all that milk dripping everywhere.

It also doesn't help that I seem to have the most over-eager let-down reflex. The baby cries, I get a let-down. I prod the boob to check engorgement, I get a let-down. I clean myself before a feeding, I get a let-down. I think "oh dear, please please please don't let-down now", I get a let-down.

Sigh.

I've been trying to help Naomi manage flow by leaning back while nursing and it seems to help. I just realised that Kellymom on Forceful Let-Down and Oversupply also recommends doing this, together with a couple of other tips which I will try as well.

In the meantime, I've just got to try to manage this so that supply will meet demand. I've been doing some reading and this article on La Leche League seems to suggest that I've been pumping too much. It's all supposed to even out by 12 weeks. I certainly hope I'll be able to sort this out before then so that breastfeeding can carry on its merry way -- and I won't have to buy another fridge!

(Thankfully one of my colleagues will be taking over a good proportion of the frozen EBM. She's going back to work after maternity and struggling with low supply. She's thrilled to have it and I'm so glad I can do a good deed, the milk won't go to waste, and I can reclaim some of the freezer space back!)

On Being a Mother, Chinese or Not

So much has been said and discussed about Amy Chua's article on her "Chinese" way of parenting since it has been published. I've had friends vehemently opposed to what was written, and those who have voiced support for such an approach. I personally think that what was written has probably been sensationalised to publicize her upcoming book so I took it with a pinch of salt.

I had many thoughts when I first read the article and it has led me to reflect deeply on how I was brought up, the value my parents put on academics and the methods they used. If the article described Chinese parenting, then you can say that my parents were clearly of the Chinese parenting school of thought, though they were never that extreme. I had written a long post looking back on how I was brought up on these because writing always helps me clarify my thoughts. In the end however, I have decided not to publish it. Yes, my parents were strict, they were sometimes harsh, and there were times when they were (I felt) overbearing and over-controlling. But I know they meant well and out of respect for them, I spare you, and them, the details.

The challenge DD and I have ahead of us is the question of how we want to parent Noey and our Mei-mei to come. I want them to live a rich, fulfilling and meaningful life, putting to good use all the talents that God has blessed them with, in service of God, wherever they might find themselves. I don't want them to be happy. Happiness is, indeed fleeting, and may in many instances be self-serving. What I want for them is to be content and holy, which to me includes being good stewards of what God gives them -- their time, their abilities, their relationships.

To me, this is where academics come in. Because they would be spending a lot of time just being students, being a good steward to me would mean them taking ownership of their studies and performing to the best of their abilities. The question which I need to answer is how I can instill a sense of responsibility and encourage them to be self-motivated in this regard.

Not everyone is naturally self-motivated. I myself fall woefully short. Despite showing plenty of early promise, I remained an underachiever in the academic field for all of my school-going years. I just never found the motivation to study and could always be found panicking and cramming at the last minute. As a result, I have always had disappointing results during major examinations. My grades were decent, but I know I have never lived up to my potential.

It is by God's grace that my working life has been smooth and I have thus far managed to find favour with my bosses, who value me and appreciate my work. I believe however that this is also because my parents managed to instill in me quite an unshakable belief in my abilities. (Hah!) I like to be good at my job; I don't like to be mediocre. Funny how I could never apply that to my studies huh!

I haven't decided yet what approach I would take with Noey when he starts formal schooling, of course. But while trawling the Kiasu Parents Forum for pre-school information, I came across this very interesting and insightful post by a Mum. The discussion had spun off the Amy Cheng article and this Mum was sharing what she did with her kids and well, I was very impressed. When asked by another forumer, she later said she has a Ph.D in Human Motivation so that's probably how she knew what to do what she did. I have reproduced her whole post below but you can also find the link to the original post here.

********

By Chenonceau:

I am not weighing in on the debate Pro-Drilling or Against-Drilling. Because, I do both depending on the situation. I rather suspect that most Mommies here do too. We all do a bit of both I think. I am also not telling other mommies/daddies what best they should do because I am not in their situation.

I went and dug out The Daughter's report book. Here is my story.

The Daughter scored 79 for English, 88 for Math in P1. She placed in the bottom 25% of her YEAR. However, in P1 she scored 99% for Chinese because Grandma plied her with assessment books. Little Boy's grades followed the same pattern.

English, Math and Science were my subjects to coach. Chinese was Grandma's. We took very different approaches. I looked past the grades in P1 & P2 for both my kids. In P1 & P2 my objectives were (1) they get used to school, (2) they adapt well socially, (3) they learn basic self-management skills, (4) the kinda keep up, (5) they like learning (6) they understand the value of diligence and discipline, and (7) they take full ownership of their studies.

These were all specific qualitative aims I had in mind. Not quantifiable but I wanted to focus on laying this foundation so that I would have a strong foundation of work ethic and self-management skills to build on in Upper Primary.

P1 & P2: Foundational Study Skills
I expected my kids to pack their bags, take notes, keep track of homework etc... That's tough you know for the little ones. So many times, they forgot their books. My son lost his exam schedule and I didn't help him get another. For 3 weeks, he went to school with his transparent exam pencil box because we didn't know when exactly his exams where and which day was what exam.

How to get good grades like that?

Nonetheless, whilst they were thus struggling, I was always warm and supportive ... and I gave a lot of loving advice. Next time, you need to remember this and that and the other. I had high expectations (about specific behaviors, not grades) but I tried not to help. I didn't gloat or say "Hah! You deserved it!" That's very mean and discouraging. Every boo boo was an opportunity to talk about how my child could manage himself better.

I gave very little drills at this stage. If they remembered to do their homework, I was happy. My kids "failed" at this stage but neither really failed as in score below 50. I did not allow that to happen. Their lowest grades were still 70+. I reckoned that that was what I could live with... believing that catch up was imminently possible from a 70s range.

P3 & P4: Transiting From Skills Focus to Grades Focus
By P3, they pretty much got the hang of the skills required to keep one's head afloat in school. They took notes, their bags were neat and they owned their study process completely because whilst I was encouraging and free with my advice, I tried not to help too much. So, about P3, I began to set grade goals (90+ for every subject).

At first, neither kid believed they were capable (since neither had ever scored in that range before except for Chinese), but I told them that I knew they could do it.

I began to PROPOSE drills, and because both are close to me, they do bend to my wishes even when gently proposed. Mostly I gave them past year exams from other schools. I planned the schedule and checked in every weekend to see if everything was done, and done well. At this stage, I was still refining study skills. I wanted to see careful work, good handwriting... I was less fussy about grades than I was about general work quality. I threw absolute hissy fits when work was shoddy and careless, but looked past genuine errors and absolute scores.

By end-P4, they were hitting the 90s in English, Math and Science. Strangely though, their Chinese grades dropped to the 80s. I kept telling Grandma that the way she taught the children Chinese made them feel like they didn't own the process. When they did well in Chinese, Grandma felt proud that she was a good teacher and hardworking too and conscientious. But my kids felt dispossessed of their glory. Their Chinese marks belonged to Grandma. Also, as you move into P4, the syllabus changes. Whether Chinese, English, Science or Math, the kids nowadays are no longer tested what is in the textbook.

By P3 & P4, kids are tested OUTSIDE of what is stated in the textbook. Grandma was still drilling textbook material. To score in the 90s for Science, Little Boy had to do independent internet Science research! We constructed Powerpoint slides, put him in a Professor's geeky glasses and made him present his findings. To score in the 90s for English, we were reading tons of storybooks and practising how to create metaphors, analogies and alliterative effects (e.g., Pretty Puddle of Pungent Poo). We read poetry. Basically, there was no way to drill our way to success because there was no way to predict what would be tested. Anything could be tested, and so I took a blunderbuss approach - LEARN EVERYTHING INTERESTING and HAVE FUN. Look at what teacher taught, ask questions of yourself and look for the answers on your own. Never mind if not in syllabus. You learn more and you won't die, and you'll have fun.

"The grades will come" I promised them. Back then, it was me putting on a brave front and being a brave mother so that my children would have the strength to carry on and keep trying. I couldn't tell them I didn't believe in them. In this way, I concur with Amy Chua... the best thing you can do for your child is to believe in him.

Meanwhile, Grandma went on drilling from the textbook. And whatever I said to her, she wouldn't budge from her time-tested method. She had been a Chinese Teacher in the past and had tutored even Mrs Carmee Lim's daughters (ex-Principal of RGS). She thought she knew best but her methods were outdated and designed for a syllabus and an approach that was past.

P5 & P6: ABSOLUTE Grade Focus
In P5 and P6, I became Tiger Mother. The Daughter came home one day in P6 and waved a Science paper scored 98% in my face. I said "It was an easy exam. The PSLE won't be this easy." The Daughter has never forgotten that scathing comment.

I reckoned that by P5 & P6, my kids had amassed enough resilience and process skills to take some knocks and I did knock them about, though never as hard as what Amy Chua seems to have done.

Starting P5, there was a consistent practice schedule which intensified as we moved into the 2nd quarter of P6. I devised the schedule collaboratively with my kids and I was sensitive to their mental and physical states. I had no qualms about deleting work if I thought it was too much. I wanted to manage my kids energy levels. Must always have time to recharge even if grades suffered meantime. The rule in the house is to NEVER TOUCH BOOKS 3 days before and exam paper. And I made sure I allocated whole days or whole weeks of NO BOOKS so that they could play to their hearts' content.

There was a constant process of watching and adjusting. There was a lot of trust and dialogue. I worked them hard but I made sure that I was there to encourage and listen to their problems. But they still owned their study process. I proposed a work schedule and they decided if they could manage. More often than not, they would ADD in stuff and tell me "Mommy, I can try." They knew that the PSLE was an important exam.

I also built in a natural reward into the work schedule. If they somehow did their work fast and well, they had that extra time to play. I never gave more work when they finished theirs earlier than I had expected. And whenever I could, and they had finished earlier than expected, I would take time off work to play with them. Go somewhere they wanna go... do something they like... together.

Results
The Daughter placed consistently in the top 3 places from P5 to Sec 2. In Sec 3, she was handpicked for an accelerated program where the others were smarter and just as driven as she. To keep up, she really pushed herself. End Sec 3, she was in hospital with pneumonia, a result of 2 months of flu and insufficient rest. She was so motivated that it had become a problem. I went to school and got an exemption for one month of homework... plus I locked up her laptop. She vegetated at home that month.

Little Boy is now in P5. He looks at the work schedule that we worked out and if I decide to delete an item, he will say "Leave it in Mom. I will try."

Unfortunately, The Daughter's Chinese marks at 'O' levels went down to the 50s. She hated Chinese and rebelled completely against Grandma's micro-managing ways. Little Boy's Chinese dropped to 79 for the first time in end-P4. So, I've taken over Chinese from Grandma too... and I'm doing it my way now. Read a lot, have a lotta fun, and to hell with textbook. I will be introducing exam practices later in the year however. Learn and have fun first. Drill later.

Both drill and no-drill are important to me.

My Objective
I don't need my kids to be the best in class... but I want them to be the best they can be. If what they can be is 80+, then fine... and seriously, The Daughter's class now is full of people who are so smart she and I feel stupid. That's fine. We're not as smart. And we don't need to be.

She got where she was not because she was smart, but because she was motivated. Motivation can get a child farther than a parent's best wishes and most beautiful dreams. The Daughter is no longer at the top of her class anymore, but that is fine because I know she has reached her potential and maybe even a little beyond. The same with Little Boy. I know he can manage 90+ in every subject if he wants to. Even Chinese.

The trick is to make them want to. And the first step is to turn the ownership of the study process over to them... and make them own it. This should be done early enough (I think). I have just sacked Grandma and turned the ownership of Chinese over to Little Boy. He used to roll his eyes when Grandma complained he was slow. Today, in the car, he said "Mom, I have a problem. I am slow in my compo. Others have done 1.5 pages, I've only done 1."

He now owns his problem and I play the familar supportive role "Oh never mind... you keep on reading those books and one day, the grades will come. I promise" and I look at him with a confident smile. This way, he will keep on trying... and he will end up where he ends up in Chinese. And I will still be happy even if it isn't 90+.

Not the Only Approach
I consciously took an approach where I focused first on Foundational Study Skills to the detriment of grades. It worked for me. I am sure there are other parents who focused on both at the same time quite successfully. I am sharing my story because it isn't a usual approach, but it worked for me.

Tell me what you think!

There is None Righteous, No Not One

There are times when I look at my precious child, the one who is just too cute and whose smiles and chuckles light up my life, and think: my beautiful baby, how could you be so...

NAUGHTY??

I had one of those moments yesterday, when during his usual JG Chinese class, Noey bit another little girl on her cheek. There were visible teeth marks on her cheek and it was red and looked a bit bruised. Ouch. At that time, Noey was packing the toy cars back into the toy basket after he was told to put the toys away and the other little girl came up to try to take a car out of the basket. He tried to pull her hand away but she didn't let go. I was making my way over to them when suddenly he leaned forward and bit her in a bid to make her let go.

I was horrified, scolded him firmly, smacked him, made him apologise (which he did), but spent the rest of the class feeling rather like a pariah. I was the mother with the terrible child. The mother who didn't control her son and let him go hurt other children. The mother whose child everyone wanted to keep their children away from because he might attack them too.

I probably exaggerated it a bit in my mind but I don't think I was too far off the truth. After all, wouldn't I feel the same way if I had been a bystander or worse, the victim's Mum?

I felt guilty too, that I had not gotten there faster to break it up before anything happened.

But it's a fact isn't it? That children aren't naturally good. For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. None are innocent or righteous, including your precious child.

Today was a reminder or this, and also a reminder of my responsibility as a parent to teach, instruct, correct, and ultimately lead Noey (and in future his little sister as well) to know and do what is right. To flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart. That is my duty. That is my calling.

(This is also one of the reasons I'm not keen to send him to school just yet, when I will not be there to catch and correct him on the spot. I think it is primarily our responsibility as parents, not the teachers', to sort out these fundamental behavioural issues at this age. But this is a post for another time.)

The Burden of Expectations

Sometimes I look at my little son (and think about my other little one on the way) and wonder: what will our relationship be like when they grow older? When Mummy is no longer the centre of their universe? When they have their own lives to lead, their friends and later on, their own families? What do I want it to be like?

I have a funny relationship with my mother. I think you can call it a love-hate relationship. I think it stems from the fact that she and I are really alike in temperament (much as I would like to deny it), but with some really fundamental differences in certain values. My mum yesterday said that I'm ang mo pai -- I care only about my own immediate family and not my extended family. It hurt, cos I do think I care about my parents and my siblings quite a bit, though yes, I guess I do put my own family first in some respects, but mainly because I feel more responsible for them -- DD, Noey and Baby #2.

I think one of my failings is that I apply the same standard to myself as I do to my folks. I really don't mind if you forget my birthday or not get me a present. I might be very slightly disappointed, but I certainly wouldn't hold it against you. I don't need coddling. I like being independent. I find my own way and I don't expect my parents to bail me out. I am casual with what I say cos I think hey, it's family after all, and if I'm not free to speak my mind with them then who would I be free to do so with? I don't expect much from you, so I don't expect you to want much from me.

Unfortunately, my mum really really expects more from me and and would not mind if I expected more in return. To her, I'm inconsiderate. As a result, every once in a while I get these talks where different instances of my failings are pointed out and I get asked to change. The thing is, I'm not sure how much I can really change. It doesn't help that my dear husband is even more independent-minded than I am, and my dear sister, who is the thoughtful one in the family, is soon to be married to a guy who is even more thoughtful and 自动 than she is. Arrrrgh. Watch me die a slow and painful death after the wedding...

But one thing's for sure -- I will have to TRY HARDER to match up to expectations. I have to. Honestly my instinct and my preferred course of action is just to take on everything on my own and not rely on my family for anything, just so as that I can free myself from all expectations. I dream of flying off and forging another life in another country (with DD and Noey of course). I'm sure I can manage weekly calls, sending cards/presents, hosting the occasional visit. But it wouldn't be right to cut myself off like that either, and I know it. So it's back to trying harder, with God's grace.

But anyway.

There is lots to ponder in this as well, from the perspective of being a mother myself -- questions of what kind of person I want Noey to be when he grows up, and also, what my expectations of him will be when we are both adults. I pray that as we both grow, we will find our way. I don't want to be a burden -- I know I want him to walk free, and I pray I will be strong enough to let him do that.

The Bow in the Cloud

Did you see the huge rainbow in the sky this evening?

We only noticed it in the rear view mirror of the car as we drove home in the evening. Sadly for me, I was driving and so was unable to get more than a glimpse of it through the mirror. But DD tells me that it was virtually a whole arc and possibly the biggest rainbow he had ever seen.

Noey was allowed special dispensation to get out of his car seat to have a look at the rainbow -- the first he has ever laid eyes on. And after exclaiming "Rainbow!", the first thing he immediately said was "God put the rainbow in the sky."

(The result of many many readings of Noah's Ark, no doubt. Can you blame us?? He followed this up with the not-so-grammatically-correct "God made the rainbow put inside the sky." Haha. "God made the..." is one of his favourite startings to a sentence, you see.)

Indeed, as we admire the beauty of the rainbow in the sky, may it bring to mind even more the One who has put it in the sky, and the covenant which God made with Noah all living things that he would never again flood the earth to destroy it.

That must surely lift your spirits more than the mere beauty of the rainbow ever could!

Walking the Walk, Talking the Talk

I would like to think the Bible story reading, praying with Noey and speaking to Noey about God has shown some fruit and manifested itself in his speech.

Noey's first grammatically correct self-constructed sentence - with the insertion of the article "the" - was: "God made the fish". Seeing as he had just woken up, it must have been some fish he was dreaming about!

He followed that up immediately after hearing our enthusiastic praise with the not quite so directly factually accurate "God made the fan." And shortly after that, he said, "Thank you Lord Jesus." I don't know what triggered it off but it was a very God-centred morning.

That was about a month ago.

Last Sunday, he sprouted his first Chinese sentence. As we bent our heads to say grace, he suddenly said:

"感谢耶稣赐我健康。阿门!"

(Got him to repeat it for the camera!)

Everyone was suitably astounded. He didn't come up with that himself of course. I recognised it as the second sentence of prayer my Auntie prays with him before meals on the days she's with him.

The bible instructs that "ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth." ~ Deuteronomy 11:19-21

I'm not saying that we fulfill the biblical directions well at all -- there is much more we can do, both by teaching with words and teaching by example. There is certainly more to living the Christian walk than just saying the right words! It is, however, our goal and I'm glad to see that Noey has absorbed some of it. For the record, he can also fill in the blanks on the ten commandments and say most of the key words in the Lord's Prayer, in the correct order. I'm happier that he knows these things than if he were able to identify his alphabets (which he can't, by the way, except for A, O and X.)

Noey also doesn't understand yet what he knows how to say, but I hope that in time, he will.

******

"Noey reading NaiNai bible," he said.

And then he cracked the bible open and said, "Only son. Jesus."

Mama here is very proud of him.