Kaelyn at 3 years 11 months 25 days

After such a long hiatus, a few things prompted me to write again - changes / developments happening in the kids, as well as a slew of unlucky / unfortunate events that hit me this week..

First will be about the kids - starting with Kaelyn.

Kaelyn's 5 days shy of her 4th birthday. She has been growing and changing so much that sometimes I am really surprised by what I see and hear from her.

1) She can write!
She can write all the alphabets both capital and small letters.
She can spell and write her own name, as well as 'Mama'.



2) She can read Mandarin books!
Her school taught them to read a series of Chinese books about a brother and sister and their family. I thought it was quite difficult for a 4 year old. There are words like 'read books', 'eat rice', parts of the bodies, family relations etc. But she managed to read all those words (or rather memorised them)! Amazed at what they learn in childcare!

3) She can draw (rather well)!
I am surprised by her creativity in drawing. She is a left hander - so it makes her a more creative person perhaps? I dont know where she learnt how to draw from, but I definitely did not have this ability when I was 4!




A caterpillar in ballet costume


4) She tells me about her dreams
She is at this age where she could articulate what she dreams about at night. It is always surrounding me and David, or other family members and the helper.

5) She still likes to pose for photos
Dont know where she learnt these poses from. Dont think I need to say more about what I think of them...









6) She still loves to dance
We bought X-box Kinect with the Michael Jackson dance DVD, and she loves to play that with us. She can follow the moves 40 - 50% of the time!

This is the monkey dancing in Harvey Norman





7) She is able to articulate her thoughts and sometimes talks like an adult
My helper of 4 years is leaving us and we were prepping her up for a long time, as she has grown very attached to her. She knows that by her birthday, Aunty Venus will not be with us anymore. And one day, she was telling me that she doesnt want her birthday to come 'because Aunty Venus will be going home'. So poor thing, to be linking her birthday to an unhappy event for her...

Another time I was telling her that she used to have a dimple on one of her cheeks but it seems to have disappeared. She replied 'its because I drink a lot of water.'

Very recently, she was reminded by our helper leaving, and we had this conversation in the car.
Me: Kaelyn, Mama is going to fetch a new aunty to our house today ok?
Kaelyn: No, I want Aunty Venus.
Me: But Aunty Venus has to go back to Philippines to see her family and her baby. Her baby misses her you know?
Kaelyn (after thinking for a while): Ok, Aunty Venus can go back to Philippines. She can bring her baby back her to our house. See, I think of one idea already!
Me: Haha... You are very smart, thought of such a great idea (I was really amused). You go back and tell Aunty Venus about this idea ok?
Kaelyn: I already told you about my idea already, I dont want to say again.
Me: ?!?!