Just as I wrote about engaging my two year old Little Missy, I came across this - How To Amuse Toddlers at Instructables.
This guy has wonderfully compiled a list complete with pictures and some instructions. I’ve done most of the activities with my kids and can vouch that they DO amuse toddlers. Having said that I still found the list very handy. So if you have to entertain little ones, go check it out.
Since the turn of the year, Little Missy dropped her late morning nap. This means that I have an active toddler for the whole morning! It has its fun side, she’s my little companion (shadow?), accompanying me while I grocery shop, run errands and even go on fun downtown trips (after Hubby-jr goes to school). When we’re not out, we enjoy slow mornings at home.
I’m cherishing these precious bonding moments with her as next year she’ll be attending playgroup sessions for 1½ hours in the mornings. (Sniff, my baby is growing up.)
The flipside is that she can sometimes (more than sometimes?) demand more attention than I can spare. It can be pretty annoying, not to mention a test of my patience especially when I’m trying to get the house chores done. She’ll keep yelling, “Mommy, come. MOMMY! COME! COME!!! MOMMY!!!” Yes, 2-year olds can be very persistent and often suffer temporary memory loss of the terms, No or Wait. “Later” to them means, a second later!
So I was so glad to stumble upon this “trick”. She now “helps” me wash dishes after lunch almost everyday. She’s happy just playing with water, soap water. Occasionally she “washes” a cup or bowl (plastic or melamine ones). Ya, well it is more of over-washing them in soap water…
It is brilliant. She’s happy and I hope she eventually does help me with real washing (one can hope right?). I get the dishes done and best of all, we have our bonding time over the sink!
Yes, this is how I do it. A dining chair, a sponge brush, a plastic bowl and some soap water (I usually give her more, she’s almost done in this picture). And oh yes, she usually needs a change of clothes after this. Next I’m getting her an apron!
My kids LOVED their stay at my parents’ house. Just a backyard, some plants, a small water pool and lots (LOTS!) of water made them very, VERY happy. (I too was VERY happy. Happy, self-occupied kids, what more could a mother ask for?!)
Well, this is what they did almost every morning (and sometimes evenings too).
Watering poh-poh (grandma)’s plants.
Playing in this small water pool.
Incredibly they didn’t seem to get tired of this tiny pool. In fact they couldn’t get enough of it!
NO, this wasn’t ALL they (we) did during our 10-day stay. There were other stuff too. But that’ll be in another post. I’m still catching up on our laundry!
P/S: Yes, dearest, DEAREST hubby had our computer resurrected! God bless him. Did I mention how much I love that man? 
- 1 Thomas & Friends Cake
- 2 Large Oishi Pizzas (and 12 yum-delicious chicken wings)
- 2 Close Friends (who’ve known each other since 4 months old) and their little siblings (that totals 5 children guests)
- 2 Mommy’s “motherhood” friends
That was what I whipped up in two days for my son, Hubby-jr, to celebrate his birthday. And that was all it took to make him a very happy boy.
My son is turning five tomorrow.
I was mulling for sometime in May as to what I should do for his birthday. Organising a birthday party on a weekend was one of the ideas I had. BUT when the holidays started (almost 2 weeks ago) I ditched the idea. You see, I was just plain too exhausted. It’s my first time winging a holiday with 2 kids without my parents (yup, they usually visit during the school hols). We (hubby and I) then decided to just bring him for a movie on his special day.
B-ut… then… just two days ago my friend asked if we’d be celebrating Hubby-jr’s birthday and that led me to ask my son what he wanted to do for his birthday. Would he prefer his friends coming over or going out to watch a movie? Without hesitation and with much excitement he chose the former. So I called his two “babyhood” friends’ mothers that evening. Next day I brought him to choose his cake. This morning I called for pizzas. And that was that, we had a mini birthday celebration.
It was great seeing him brimming with excitement in anticipation of his friends coming over for his birthday the last two days. To think he was once afraid of parties. He has really grown.
“Thank you mommy for preparing for my friends to come” he said after I spent some time in the morning getting the house and things in order.
“I really enjoyed my birthday (party) today,” smiling as he told his daddy over dinner.
And that was all it took for this mommy-fied woman to think and feel - it is all worth it. Being mommy-fied isn’t so bad after all.
I never knew how precious this particular commodity is until I became mommyfied.
And I’m feeling so stripped of it now that it is the school holidays!!!
Help! I need space. S-P-A-C-E.
Oh yeah, I get “some”, here and there, but that’s NOT ENOUGH!
My dear speech delayed son has improved enough to want to chat incessantly. Yes I am thankful (thank you Lord) BUT… I need MY SPACE.
To curb cabin fever I’ve to schedule sporadic outings. Traveling and eating out with two young kids can be fun but unavoidably there are “those” times where it’s just nerve wrecking.
On quieter non-outing days… yes, my two kids can and do play with each other so I don’t have to play with them… but after 15 minutes or so, one of them will come looking (or shouting) for me. They need mommy’s help or something or just my attention.
Little Missy naps for 2-3 hours (God bless her!) BUT almost 5 year old Hubby-jr may or may not. Thankfully I’ve trained him to stay in his room for an hour (if he can’t nap, he can read his books).
BUT people, that’s all I’m getting - ONE hour. Out of 11 hours (yes, hubby’s away daily for that many hours).
Can you now understand my dire need for space? Yes, S-P-A-C-E!!!
Just when will the d*mn holidays be over?!!
“I can do this. I can stay sane. I’ve survived a week already. Late next week we’ll be off to visit my parents in Malaysia. Hang in there mommyfied. It’s only a few days more…deep breaths. Take deep breaths. I can do this… I can…”
“It’s mine!”
That’s what I’ve been hearing a lot lately from both my kids. Yup, the usual siblings’ squabble.
It’s amazing isn’t it, how a (once upon a time, not too long ago, sorely neglected) toy’s appeal increases exponentially the very second one child picks it up and decides to play with it. Before you know it, the other child wants to play with it too. Yah, and just as suddenly, the toy that they were playing with earlier is no longer “current”.
The grass is just always greener on the other side.
Anyhoo, the tussle over toys isn’t new at all. It started way back. What’s new though is that now my son (almost 5, speech delay) can declare, “it’s mine!” (It used to be just, “No, Mei-Mei, No!”) And my two year old Little Missy can counter that with, “no, it’s mine!” (Hurray! Her speech development’s “normal”).
Of course the “it’s mine” goes back and forth, back and forth, back and forth…
Add this, “Mei-mei (sister), you play with this (another toy).”
And this “No!!” Scream!
Then back to, “it’s mine” banter.
It is quite a racket. It can and does drive me nuts. Yet at the same time…
It is so good to hear those two words come out of my son’s mouth (and my daughter’s).
It. Is. Good.
And that is in US Dollars!
Don’t fret working moms, your motherly duties are worth US$68,405. Yeah, that’s in addition to your actual job income. Cool eh? Now if ONLY it really translated into REAL money…
Read all about it here. (I found the article by way of Rocks In My Dryer)
HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!
…papaya EVER AGAIN.
Little Missy loves the fruit and has been chomping up a lot of it the last two days.
Well, what goes in MUST come out.
The smell… (Oh. My. W…! THE smell!) The fragrance-before and the foul-after seems to have some distinguished semblance…
Even the colour of her “you-know-what” was “distinguished”.
…I leave the rest to your imagination.
Now every time I look at the fruit (the REAL fruit)… I can do nothing but ”imagine”.
I CAN NEVER EAT PAPAYA EVER AGAIN.
‘Nuff said.
P/S: You can blame hubby for this unappetizing post. I was sharing my thoughts on this with him when he cut me short with this exclamation… “Too much information!!! If you need to talk about it, don’t tell me, just put it in your blog!”
It’s almost a year since I stumbled into the blogosphere and I’ve gathered some really interesting/useful tips. Here’s a few very neat “how to”s I’ve yet to share with you.
How to:
So far I’ve only tried putting ketchup when I scalded my hand. Yes! It worked. Pretty amazing huh?
For other tips I’ve shared on my blog click on Parenting Tips category found on the left bar.
On a particularly cranky day of mine, after I went through an “overreacting, shouting and later apologising to my son” episode, I had this conversation with Hubby-jr just before his bedtime.
“Is mommy fun?”
Hubby-jr looks at me quizically and answers cautiously, “Yes…”
“Are you sure? Do you have fun with mommy?”
His eyes wonders around his room and spots some of the stuff he plays with me, “Yes!”
Was there a hesitation? Not quite satisfied with the answer and desperate for affirmation, I had to “verify” that my son knew what he was saying. (Ya, I know, I’m pathetic!)
So I asked, “Is mommy fun when mommy is angry?”
“No…o” Hubby-jr says grimly shaking his head.
“But mommy is fun when mommy’s not angry?” I probe AGAIN.
“YES!”
Phew! Just checking, just checking. I really don’t want to be a tyranical, “fear-the-very-ground-I-walk-on” mother. A fun…no, make that very fun, yet “the-one-who-must-be-obeyed” mother suits me just fine. *wink*
