Love Language of A Child; "I LOVE ....."

Children is easy to please. Listen to what they love to do...

I love when school is out, and Mama comes to pick me up.
I love to twirl around very fast so my skirt flies out in a big circle.

I love to watch Papa shave and to stick my finger in his shaving cream.
I love to put my feet on top of Papa's and dance around the room.

When I blow out my birthday candles, I love for Mama to relight them so I can blow them out again.
I love when I'm walking with Mama and a grownup she doesn't know says "Hello," to me, and Mama is very surprised and asks, "Who is that? How do you know him? Does he work at your school?"

I love to breathe on a cold window and trace a heart in the mist with my nose.
I love the first days of spring when Mama says, "It's so beautiful today; let's eat outside." And she puts a cover on the table in the garden and we eat radishes and strawberries.

I love the sound of raindrops on my red umbrella.
I love when we brush our teeth at the same time and have a spitting contest.

I love when I stay at my grandparents' house and get to write things like, "I slept very late today because we watched a horror movie last night and Grandma forgot to tell me to brush my teeth."
I love when Papa makes pancakes and pretends to flip them over my head.

I love to try on Mama's lipstick.
I love the smell of my soft, old bunny. He smells like apples, licorice, soap, roses, Mama's perfume, soup, rice, toast, wax, wet dog, and especially, my warm, cozy bed in the middle of the night.

When I cross at the crosswalk, I love to step on just the white lines.
I love Mama's old tee-shirt, because it smells just like her.

I love to plant seeds and watch them grow.
I love to walk around the house in Mama's high heels.

I love writing my name on the first page of a brand new notebook.
I love to feel the wind against my hand when our car is going very fast.

I love to write "for Mama," using a different colour pencil for each letter.
I love to tuck my hair behind my ears so everyone can see the earrings Aunt Zara gave me.

I love it when Mama puts my hair in two braids and I look like an Indian princess.
I love keeping a picture of my dog in my desk at school and looking at it sometimes.

I love it when Mama writes letters and I get to put on the stamps.
I love to count how many people are riding in my car on the subway.

I love putting all my barrettes in my hair at the same time; the one with the butterfly, the one with the ladybug, the one with the ruby and the three little ones, blue, yellow and green.

I love when I've been sick and I'm almost better and Mama says, "I think I'd better keep you at home one more day, just to be on the safe side."

My daughter always loves it whenever she gets to help me press down my coffee press.
She loves it when I paint her nails.

The Secret Remedies to do when you are down or bored

The First Remedy
Drink one glass of apple juice. You must drink it so carefully that you can almost taste the very apple tree that made the apples that made the juice.

The Second Remedy
Plant a seed in good earth. You must do something sneaky to keep the seed safe.

The Third Remedy
Take a walk as far as you can. You must see something that you have never noticed before.

The Fourth Remedy
Feed a wild thing. You must make a solemn promise that you will always do everything you can to protect it from hunger and harm.

The Fifth Remedy
Write a cheerful letter to some dear soul. You must put something unexpected in the envelope.
The Sixth Remedy
Read in peace and quiet from a favourite book. You must find one special part of the book that is so wonderful that you feel like reading it again and again.

The Seventh Remedy
Dream of doing great things. You must think of one small, great thing you can do tomorrow.

A Little Brave Handicapped Girl

On 4 July 2007, I brought my youngest daughter to the neighbourhood playground. When I was watching her play there, I noticed a maid pushing a pram towards the playground. In the pram sat a little girl about 3 years old, I immediately noticed that the girl has deformed legs. What amazed me was that this girl moved around the playarea very fast on her own. She climbed, slided without any help. I pointed her to my daughter and told her how lucky she is to have healthy body. Another thing that knocked me is that parent should not exert too much pressure on our children, we should give them more play and fun as much as they are able to. As it is , it is very difficult nowadays to find space for our children to run about....

No one helps Unconscious, Bleeding Cabby...

On 5 July 2007, I read a newspaper report that for more than 2 hours, a cabby laid face up on a dirty grass patch, blood oozing from his mouth and nose. He had suffered a fractured skull and died from his injuries 2 days later. The saddest part is that despite being spotted by at least 3 different people that morning, no one helped him or alerted the police. A security guard who spotted the cabby said he didn't alert anyone as he thought that the cabby was drunk and was sleeping. A teacher from a school in the area and her colleague, who checked on the cabby from a distance, thought the same.After reading, I was appalled about the incident. Being a security guard, one should have the alertness to react on anything unusual and not rely on his assumption. One would expect the same from a school teacher and a school personnel, they are supposed to teach our children the values about helping people who are in needs. I am very disappointed that many people nowadays are becoming more selfish and less helpful. If we, as adults or parents were to behave in this manner, what kind of children are we bringing up? Parents, please think about this seriously.I remember one day when I was leaving a national library, I saw a group of people gathering around a malay lady who seemed to have fainted. A few community club personnels nearby were looking on while another lady was holding up the unconscious lady on the floor.I hesitated for a while whether I should go forward to help, afterall there were already so many people at the scene. Nevertheless, I walked forward and asked whether I could help in any way. I offered to send the lady home as I had parked my car nearby. A staff from the club told me we couldn't possibily lift the heavy lady and that they had already called the ambulance. They thanked me for my kind offer. I left feeling good that I have done something right. I went home and told my children about what had happened and hopefully they will do the same next time.

How To Nurture A Child To Realise His Potential

Yesterday, I attended a talk by a full-time counsellor at my children's school. Among many things covered in the talk, I will personally do better on a couple of things as a mother.

* Establish a warm, conflict-free relationship with your child
* Never label and criticise your child
* Teach your child moral values, not just teach them to be smart
* Encourage creativity and initiative in everyday experiences
* Use postive language and encouragement to develop self-esteem and self-confidence