[Through the Eyes of A Child] Can I get the roses without the thorns?

Teachable moments came everywhere, anywhere...

I wished I seized it.

But no... I've missed it.

However... it was indeed still an enlightenment, for me.

We were choosing flowers, and my daughter was desperate. She wanted to choose the roses, but was pricked by the thorns. Hence the question, "Can I get the roses without the thorns?"

I did explain to her that roses and thorns come as a package. It's so beautiful until it needs the thorns to protect it. That's it. I didn't go deep.

Instead, it left me pondering.

Life recently was not so well... Problem at work... stress at home in catching up with all the lessons.
So this is sort of a nice reminder... when we expect rosy moments, we should also embrace the thorny ones. Since roses and thorns are a package deal.

[Through the eyes of a child] If you put your mind into it, you can do anything you want

Recently, my six-year-old daughter told me while being coaxed to practice more, "I know... if you put your mind into it, you can do anything... "

Startled by this sudden surge of wisdom, I was quick to reply back, wide eyed and all... "Where did you learn that?"

And guess... her answer both surprised and soothed me at the same time.

"From the TV"

Well well well...

I remembered struggling to decide when she was a newborn whether we can let her watch TV. That's after extensive research that mostly uncover the evil side of the magic box.

Finally, I myself was lured into the temptation of adorable characters (anyway... hubby and I watched Hi-5 during our exam study in university... happily commenting all through about the comical aspect of the bunch. I wonder whether it's karma that bring our firstborn into loving the Nathan-Kathleen-Kellie-Charli-Tim combo so much in the first 18 months of her life).

So for us, TV is OK, as long as it comes from DVD/VCD. I am still a scared of all the commercials presented.

But slowly the kids found their way to Okto, a children channel in Singapore. Thankfully that happened after they are fully assured that no, they cannot behave like ones in commercials. And equally no, being on TV does not mean the toys or food can materialize at home. Whining or not.

So there... after the journey, glad to hear that children, too, get little nuggets of life wisdom from TV. :)

[It Works] Letterland

Long time ago, I was a little skeptical about Letterland. I thought of it as just another one of hyped-up-commercially-exploited creation.

However, we've been converted now.

[+]
1. Catchy tunes. My 3 years old son has been humming the tunes for a few months now.
2. Fun fun fun stories. Even my daughter cannot stop reading the book.
3. Bright beautiful colorful characters, both in illustration and in their story roles.
4. Well developed method of phonics introduction, making it easier for children to remember. 5. We did zoo-phonics with our first one, and we're impressed by the more wholesome approach. From single sound introduction, to digraphs, to more as we've yet to explore.
6. Letterland has almost everything we can think of. Games, workbook, storybook, flashcards,... To make learning continuous and fun.
7. They are available everywhere, not exclusive from the school.

[-]
1. Limited range of product in Singapore.
2. They don't provide free online games as other brands do nowadays.
3. Some stuffs are literally breathtakingly expensive.

Another one is minus for me, plus for my son. He can't stop doing the workbook. So one book was finished up pretty quickly. :)

Daddy's Wisdom : Function of Stools in the Women's Shoe Section

On Sunday, we went shopping at Orchard area.

My daughter and I were looking at shoes in the women's area (she's my personal shopper).

Then, I saw both Daddy and son slouching on the stool near the wall. Both wearing the same bored, blank, expression (the kind of 'switched-off' peacefully face). The resemblance in the look was uncanny.

Of course, I burst out laughing.

Then, dear hubby proudly explained, 'I have explained to him. This is what boys do when girls look at shoes'.

Thank you very much. :)