(2007/12) Dec 2007 MTB

fanny,
a pair of twins at my son's infant care contracted hfmd at their condo swimming pool (apparently so). Coz their parents said the few days back they went swimming, the then 2-3days later they kena hfmd.
 


i guess most mummies here are planning for trial classes for their babies. is there anyone who ever tot of alternative parenting, no flashcards no trial classes. I was just reading thru another thread on this. It dawns to me there are parents who believe not putting their kids thru trial classes and flashcards (but there is always a doubt in them whether the kids would lose out when starts going to school). seriously, i have doubts myself but i have not tot of sending my boy to any speech/drama/math/language classes. Should I start thinking what to do about it NOW ? (he's just 4.5 months for Pete's sake, heheee). ANother reason why I am probably not woken up by the reality yet, is that i am bringing up my boy in Singapore, while i grew up in a small town in m'sia. During my era, the only "in" thing was to attend piano/violin classes. Until sec3 only then i started attending tuitions.

any comments?
 
jeelomeelo,

for me... i'm not starting this things yet... as i'm more concern abt her motor, social, emotional, thinking, and self help skill etc. I feel that the things around us are more important. They should get to know first. Even we can add maths, language in our daily life.
 
jeelo, i'm not into all these classes too. i think at most i'll let her attend gymboree or swimming sessions to build her up physically. to me, what a baby needs most now are emotional and physical well-being. so lots of hugs, love, reassurance and kisses for sumana. we also try to inculcate values and bring her to the buddhist temple once a week cos both hb and i feel that religion is impt when bringing up a little person.

other than tat, no classes for now. i think all these can come later... or probably not at all even... s'pore kids r too stressed up. i look at the ones in my jc and i know. by the time they reach tat level, they treat learning as something mandatory, forced and essential to get a gd job. walking around like jaded dead logs in school.

i'm not against these classes but i think it is not a must to attend. if u can make learning fun thru all these classes, then why not? but always check your own intention when sending baby there. is it becos u want him to have fun or is it due to the kiasu mentality? ;p just my 2 cents worth. i think i feel a lot for this cos i'm a teacher and i see how students are desensitised to learning by the time they reach 17 or 18.
 
jeelo the best lesson and clas u can give ur bb is "love lesson" learning how to love his family and ppl ard is the best. Lesson and class can wait. Maybe some learn A-Z at before 2, some learn at 3+ but still they learn it. Lawyers and scientist doesn't attend class during babies days too but they still success in life. The real succes in life is know how to live your life to the fullest. not by the cert after studying tons of books.
 
jeelo, the reason why i nv let my bb attend class and never intend to is cause i don't wan him to remember his childhood is full of flash cards. but i wan him to enjoy his childhood like a CHILD. with a child thinking. one day he will grow up.. When you bring up a child with love n hugs, u need not worry that he won't discplinie himself when comes to studying.

I know a girl who still speak bb language at 5 yrs old. but since pri 1 she is top in sch ..
 
does that mean sending bb to classes will get lesser love and hugs from parents? to me it is only a place to let my son "socialise" with a group of same age babies. malcolm is a only baby in my and hb's family. his nieces and nephews is either pri or sec already... i dun wan him feel so "lonely".. i guess every parents has their own set of upbringing for their child. there is no right or wrong. diff people diff view...
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For my nbr1, I was working, so neber do flash cards or any methods to "groom" her. She started her 1st class (Kindermusik: go there to play n make lots of noise, rather than learn) only when she was going 2yr old. We want her to grow up n enjoy childhood.

My elder gal's enrichment classes hor, not that I purposely go find out n sign her up, its mostly bcos my friends sign their kids up n they often reservce a place for my gal n tell me to bring my gal there :p

Now that she is K2, other parents r stressing ME out by asking how come my gal neber attend this n that. They asked I not worried that she will lag behind in pri sch meh or if she can't get into top sch.

As for my bb, I haven't start anything wz her. Everyday, just baby talk n sing to her. I believe in natural learning, ie bring her out to see things outside so that she can "discover" n learn along the way.

When I was reading the thread where some of you talked abt flash cards, "chop" place in kindi, classes, etc... frankly, it stresses me out but I'm really slow to do something abt it lor.

What a terrible mummy I am *sigh*

We agree wz Mel, love lesson more impt. More imptly, they grow up to be "kuai kuai", don't do naughty things (smoke, take drugs, commit crime, etc)... Like what tub mentioned too, inculcate good moral values also impt. No point having a kid who is exceptionally fantastic academically but going out there commiting crimes (just an example).
 
alien,

Ya, there's no right or wrong in sending bb to class. And definitely doesn't mean lesser love frm parents lah. I agree that sometimes we send them to classes more for socialising. That is what I did for my elder gal cos she was our only child then, first grandchild in my hb's family, while my sis' kids are already in pri/sec sch.
 
Crystalz,

My elder gal started to travel on plane since she was a few mths old baby. She was an easy baby, din make things difficult on the plane for us at all. Now, my 2nd one, we may bring her for her 1st plane trip this May/Jun
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so i guess the intention is important lor... if it's to socialise and have fun, by all means. actually it's good cos baby will know how to interact. but sadly, a lot of parents send their kiddos to such enrichment classes hoping that they would be one up against their cohort. that, to me, is quite sad cos it's a never ending story.
 
fanny, tks for asking re swimming cos I m intending to bring Chloe for a swim too. Is goon another Jap diaper?

alient, tks for answering!

jeelo,
I m not sure if we should just follow suit. Competition in Sg is too harsh on our little ones. Though I have my doubts n feel inadequate at times as a mum, I tink I will still continue my singing/playing with Chloe, bringing her out to the nature to observe n learn. There are always endless courses (such as the latest 'in' shicida mtd).. just do what u n bb enjoy n feel most comfort in! *just my 2cents worth of thot* My hb also reminds me - we used to grow up w/o courses, still grow up well nw.. hehe
 
Just back from gp, my boy had cough virus (we all think he got it from a patient beside him when he was warded at KK), gp say the cough going to last for a week at least, haiz...


RE bb attending school

tub, i agreed with u, the main reason i letting my boy attending gymboree is to socialise as gymboree more of a fun and play school compared to SM,
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. There is no right or wrong whether u shld send ur bb to attend these kind of classes/schools or nt, it's all up to individual. I simply don't like the idea of KS sending my boy to attend school at such young age. If it is for socialising, i don't mind.

Alien, we know ur intentions of sending mal to SM but some pple just don get it, so just ignore those pple if u know wat i mean, ya?
 
alien
yup, linda is rite.
we as parents, always have our kids best interest in mind whenever we do anything for them. diff parents have diff sets of values n diff style of parentning. just remember u r only accountable to urselves n ur kids.
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Bottomline: parenting is tough. No matter what u do, there'll always be 2 sch of thots. Some say u r right, some say u r wrong.
 
So far these 2 are the hottest dates for the gathering:

C. 24th May
1. bbtree
2. Cocoangel
3. Elaine
4. tub
5. baby12
6. slimz
7. petrina
8. alien
9. ankh
10.Witty
11. Valerie
12. Jeelomeelo
13. missylan
14. Linda


Venue: Function Room - Savannah (Near CGH) - prob change to East Point Green (which is near to Savannah too, once the date finalised, i get my colli to book for me)

Time: 2pm onwards

Re: catering
I think elaine mentioned 2 caterers right?
 
bb go schooling XD

I started mine in Grow Up Gifted when he was 13th month old. As he is the first and only child in both sides of our families, I do not want him to grow up anti-social or shy. Think first day at school, he gave the question mark expression. He saw many toddlers and sticked to me like superglue. To me, such schools are for learning and socializing. Learn is the sense that was play and learning... singing songs... even having other toddlers snatching their toys are part of learning. I managed to teach him not to snatch at the age of 1½ yrs old. He will willingly give up the toy to his junior classmates. Senior ones, aaa, think he will resist a bit BECAUSE he is skinny. XD

This is something, we are able to explode at home. At home, die lah... everyone is giving and the only child will be keep on taking and taking.
 
alien/botanist,
Wa, luckily I logged in to read, almost bring my monkey down for a dip. He is a SAHS(stay at home son) kenna HFMD confirm give ppl laughed till tummy burst. heibi is smart looking leh, usually they said smart ones are skinny ones. No offence! aiyoh, Dawn... whqat happen to him? Why all of a sudden balloon till like that? Got stretchmarks? You use inflator is it? Hahahaha... Ok, later I try my inflator!
 
wow... alien... if yours is heibi... mine must be some micro-organism. hahaha... dunno if she is 7 kg or not... sigh... my "ga-na chi". :p
 
ref : on schooling

there is no right or wrong whether to send your baby to school, really its up to individual. for myself, i like to send mine to gym or yoga classes cos he can exercise and at the same time, socialise and have fun! when he is older, maybe send him to those speech and drama class hehe...

well i knw of a taiwan gf who's parents are both doctors, she told me that she and her younger sis and bro never attended any schools/classes until pri 1, their parents did not home school them either cos both very busy with work. Her parents just want them to enjoy their childhood.. and they all turn out well!! My fren went to top girl school then went UK to further her degree and master. Her sis is top policewomen in whole of Taiwan and bro also became policemen, both went UK to study as well
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I'm staying in Kembangan. Baby Clara was born early Dec 07. Yeah it'll be great for us to meet up and socialise. Both for us and the babies :)
Here's a kodak moment of her.
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just back from SM preview.. ha alot of babies were there! i have found mal a gf there! keke.. we will be starting the class in July. i am back to school again! woohoo

linda
we know what we are doing as we are not no-kia liao. if you know wat i mean ya? haha..

missylan
you praised my son smart looking leh, why should i get offended? kekeke.. think me another medium sized heibi thats why..

tub
i think my bm doesnt contain too much of fats despite he drinks quite alot. smaller than heibi is silver fish, ha
 
linda
i think our sons very look alike. slim n long. same age somemore! my towkay was disappointed today cos he thot can meet jovan gorgor..
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Reg school:

i guess there are 2 diff school of thoughts here. some believe that babies/kids should b schooled as early as they can as their absorption rate is high (some claim this is a pure marketing gimmick), while others believe in lettg e kids know what childhood is about. there is no wrong or right in either.

like wat most mommies say, do what u tink is right for ur child. ask urself - are u sending ur baby/kid to school so that he can hv a solid foundation or are u in a rat race which u aren't aware of?

it's true. our kids will need to study for at least 2 decades. we won't want them to b jaded by e time they are 5.

let's not miss the most important thing here. we as parents should FIRST nurture their interest in learning as once e interest is there, it will nvr die out. do not let others take tis job awa fr u as YOU are ur child's 1st teacher n role model.

in my case, i wld nvr hv sent my #1 to a PN class if not for e arrival of #2. my inital plan was to send him to school after he turns 3. personally, i felt that independence, interactivity will b picked up naturally along e way. wat do babies/kids know abt making frens or hvg a 'social life' anyway? i also like e idea of non structured learning. i find myself enjoyg explaining to my son things like why that tree trunk is long n skinny, or why we need to think for others, why we need to save energy, why we need an excavator to dig sand, why ppl need to wear helmets at construction sites etc..basically things he sees when he's out. all these has triggered his learng way more n has expanded his learning way out of e constraints of a classrm.

do wat u think is best for ur child n wat u're most comfortable with. dun forget, nowadays, we not only need ppl wif IQ..we need them wif EQ as well.

since this post is quite long, it's worth more than 2c.

my 50c worth! =)
 
steffie, my neh neh pok ok liao. :p saw gynae ystd and he advised to let bb latch after 2 days of anti-biotics so dun hv to give my bm to my mum to wash face liao. at first ss really headed south manz but now slowly picking up.
 
tub,

good to know. haaaa, ur mom really used ah? i offered mine to my mom n she made a face i'll nvr forget. basket. machiam i offered her horse manure like tat.
 
missylan,

my son went on milk strike for past 3 days already, i had to work and my HB try to bottle feed him.. but he refuse to drink. In the end, only drink 100-150ml from 8am all the way until 8pm!! Tmr I weigh him.. maybe lighter liao. HAHAHA


Regarding flashcards etc..

Well my stand is simple, I dont believe in stressing my child out however I do believe in building on your child's natural curiousity and learning desire. Whether it means using flashcards, reading books or sending them to enrichment classes.. different parents use different methods but all for the same objective.
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The most important is to make these new learning experiences fun for your baby. The first 6 years of their life is the time they learn & grow the most so we should definitely maximise it.
 
well mummies,
when i first came here for a-levels (staying in hostel away from home for the 1st time), i was very very stressed up. you know la m'sia education system is pretty lax, unlike what you have here in sg. i ended up dropping one of the 4 subjects coz i couldn't cope. in uni, i retook my 2nd yr physics 3times and passed it before i graduated from my course. hahaaa that's why i'm just wondering what is it like bringing up a kid in singapore.

i guess parents who send their kids to nanny or have stay at home kids, are more likely to be going the classes, coz the parents mainly want their kids to socialise in those classes. i'm not saying ALL , but there is a tendency to do so. i guess i'm just ignorant of all the sort of courses for kids nowadays. simi shicida method, i dunno la. i'm surrounded with colleagues talking about all these courses bla bla day in day out. sometimes it's just confusing thinking whether i would have made the right choice, if i would miss out anything if i dun send my kid to any classes.. of course, shower him with hugs, kisses la.. anyway, hubby is not keen sending him to classes either.
 
jeelo

same here. My hubby is not keen to send cayenne to class too. The daddy wants her gal to have a childhood, spending quality time togather instead rushing to different kind of classes.
 
Wow! Took me some time to catch up with the whole week's posts.

Tub
If you really feel the calling to be a sahm, go for it because if you miss the boat (i.e. baby's grown up already), you'll only live to regret. If it doesn't work out after a few months, you can alway rejoin the work force. Maybe taking NPL is a good idea for a start.

Classes
I'm also not doing anything for my boy - no flash cards, no reading story books, no intention to send him for classes ... I don't even buy him toys! My hb is very pro 'old school'. He'd rather our kid roughs it out playing catching or marbles like what we used to do. Unfortunately, kids these days only knows Gameboy and PS3 ... and everyone already knows what the teacher is going to teach on the first day of school.

It's truly a dilemma in today's context because if everyone else's kids are that far ahead, your kid will be to stupidest one in class. Chee-cher is not going to wait for one slow coach cos she has to cater to the other 39 kids in class. But as steffietan said, this is an endless chase.

Our poor kids have to contend with the cruelties of this harsh society.
 
Hi mummies,

Sorry to intrude.
I have 2 brand new packs of Huggies Ultra diapers (size L) going at $10 per pack.

Interested parties please PM me.
 
fanny
having to go for lessons doesnt mean the kid wont have a childhood, or parents wont spend quality time with them.

for our case, my no 1 has weekly SM n piano lessons. when he told us he wants to learn swimming, we told him to choose bet sm n swimming, cos we dun want to load him too.

actually SM is abt teaching ur kids thru love n bonding. alot of pple has misconception on this. flashcards is only a tiny part of it. weekly lessons actually educate the parents how to teach ur kids in a more creative n less boring way.
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Ivay, no lah. I'm not the type ... the 3months ML was enough. I love my boy but I cannot be a SAHM ... no calling for me.

Btw, Marissa is now staying at home and helping Ivan with his business.
 
really ah? marissa is staying at home? the last i saw her she was with SMRT corpcomms. i may go back to pr/corp comms. see if MOE HQ wants me. ;p
 
tat is... if my grand plan of being a SAHM doesn't work out ... if my big boss aka hubby doesn't agree.
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She left the corporate world for about 2 years already. I met her recently cos planning for an event and need their company's services. Good luck with your negotiation with 'boss'
 
alien,
No lah, not saying that my skinny boy is smart. I got 1 skinny and 1 ah fat... don't want other mummies to feel that I am saying that fat fat infant isn't clever. X P
Must explain, I scared misunderstandng... =P

Dawn,
Alamak... 8am-8pm drinking a total of 150ml only?!? That is bad, but ok lah, there is storage of fats! Or each feed 100-150ml?

Re: bb goes schooling
Think due to such society, many parents became kiasu without knowing. Sending them to classes from Mon-Sat... think very poor thing for the child, no childhood. The childhood memories will be all in tuition centre. UNLESS the child wants it... I know of children requesting tuition for their poorer subjects.
 
missylan

whole day only 150ml!! Really milk strike lor... luckily i really not working anymore so he wont have to go on milk strike already. My hb so traumatised, he asked me to wean him by 6 months.. haha. Will try to get my son to use magic cup directly since he rejected the bottle completely now. Then, even if I'm away for half a day or so, my son can still drink milk from the cup.

but u r rite... my son got lots of fats. Anyway PD say its ok for him to miss a few meals. HAHA
 

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