My Kids are Smarter than I am!

It's amazing how a child of 4 to 5 years can out-wit a Mother of Four!

Ying Chun was diligently doing her Bahasa homework and showing me the answers to her Penjodoh Bilangan [i.e. compound nouns in bahasa]. I was well-impressed with how much she has improved and absorbed in the last four months since joining the new kindie. Without any guidance from me, she managed to answer all the questions correctly. Praising her efforts, i said "Wow, so clever, ah?!"
Her immediate response: "Of course, lah! All go inside my brain oledi wat!"

I was left speechless....


Even Swee Rong's Mandarin has improved tremendously, both the oral and the written. She can recognise between 30-50 characters without any difficulty.
Being the well-known "banana" that i am, i am too embarrassed to say much more...other than i will never go short of interpreters!

~ Jottings from the Heart
by a contented, albeit exhausted mother-of-four, who is placing all her little blessings in her growing Treasure Box.

UPDATED: "M-U-M-M-Y! Y-I-N-G C-H-U-N is calling you!"

Ever since Ying Chun started at her new kindergarten, she seems to have progressed very rapidly. Her word recognition and her spelling has improved tremendously, be it in English, Bahasa and Mandarin. In showing off her spelling ability, she has now taken great pleasure in calling her mummy,
"M-U-M-M-Y"!
And if M-U-M-M-Y does not promptly answer to the Empress, the next phrase one will hear is:
"M - U - M - M - Y.
Y-I-N-G C-H-U-N is calling you!"

It has also become the Empress' perpetual habit to call for M-U-M-M-Y when Mummy is engaged in deep conversation with Daddy.



This "infection" has now reached Swee Rong who also thinks it is cool to call her mummy:
"M - U - M - M - Y.
S-W-E-E R-O-N-G is calling you."
And if heaven forbid, i should not hear those letters after numerous repeats [and it is possible for me not to register the various sounds due to the commotion in our little zoo], within the blink of an eye, Swee Rong would be off brooding in a quiet corner.



~ Jottings from the heart
by a contented, albeit flustered, mother-of-four, who is placing all her little blessings in her growing Treasure Box.


UPDATES as at 21 April 2010:

Ying Chun is well known to be able to stay awake through her tiredness! Added to the fact that she is a light sleeper, she takes the longest to sleep. Many a time when Mr T or myself gave in to her masterful demands to accompany her in bed for "just 5 minutes, Mummy/Daddy", the situation would end up with Ying Chun quietly watching her Mummy or Daddy fall asleep faster than one could count to ten! She would be dare waiting to swat any insect that should dare to fly into her parents' wide-opened mouths!!

Last Sunday night, Ying Chun decided to test my patience...and my sense of humour!

My dumb question: "So darling, how many times do you want Mummy to scold you before you sleep? Just tell me now so that i can scold you that many times now for you to sleep NOW!!"

Flashing her cheeky smile, Ying Chun's smart answer was:
"I want Mummy to scold me Z-E-R-O times!
Okay? Z-E-R-O!!"

Result: A Speechless Mum!

She redeemed herself by melting my heart the next day when she blurted out:
"I want all my family to be H-A-P-P-Y. I don't anyone to be S-A-D.
I love all my family except for bad people."

To which Swee Rong added:
"Er Jie (2nd sister), you love monsters, ah?....
Mummy...I love all my family except for bad people and monsters!!"


There was yet another SPELLING game this eveninng with the Little Wizard.
After a long day at work, Swee Rong decided it was timely to challenge my tired-brain-and-exhausted-body into playing the Spelling Game.
Whilst at GrandDad's house, in the company of GrandDad, baby and myself, Swee Rong started rambling away...

"M-U-M, T-I-O S-W-E-E R-O-N-G loves M-U-M, D-A-D, JIE, Y-I-N-G C-H-U-N and baby."

My response: "What about Y-E-H Y-E-H? You don't love Y-E-H?"
This left the Little Wizard speechless (a rarity - as she always had an answer to everything).
All she could manage was "Huh?"

When I told her that Y-E-H Y-E-H was referring to the person that was cuddling her at that time [i.e. GrandDad], the Little Wizard's immediate response was
"Of course, I love Yeh-Yeh".
The Little Wizard has learnt to spell a new word.

My blessings just get better each time.....

Thank you, WHO?

These days, the Little Chatterbox is on the roll.
She is always on the look out for opportunities to pose the following question:
Thank you, WHO?
Thank you, Monster, ah?

She has include "Sorry-WHO?"..."Sorry, Monster, ah?".

She is eqully wonderful at remembering nick-names that we bestow on her older sisters.
She loves winding up the Whining Queen. Ever since their favourite Uncle Yong Wah labelled the Whining Queen a Fire Engine in his house during one of her whining bouts, that moniker has since remained.
So now, if there is a fight between the Chatterbox and the Whining Queen, it'll be "you-leh, Fire Engine....eee-orr, eee-orr..".

TOTAL MAYHEM.

And should her Ta Jie dare to call her Crying Queen (which she is, though it is more to seek attention), without any further hesitation, she would be retaliating with a "you-leh-Sour-Queen"!

When i innocently posed the question to her one day "What about me?", she immediately responded with a "you-are-Scolding Queen, lah!".

I surrender to the quick and witty responses of a four year old.



~ Jottings from the heart
by a contented, albeit flustered, mother-of-four, who is placing all her little blessings in her growing Treasure Box.