gosh it’s been a while since I last wrote a non-review related post. So hard to be able to gather my thoughts and write.
But what better than now to write something eh? Especially when we are 2.5 hours away into the new year.
‘Mummy, you know so long I never go out with you alone?’ the eldest one told me this morning when we went out to the nearby mall with Sarah in tow.
‘do you like coming out alone with me?’ I asked. He nodded. ‘Haha..you gotta share the attention with your brother and sister leh..’ I teased him. He then snuggled closer to me and held onto my hand.
I missed it too, I thought to myself. Oliver and I had all the world to ourselves for 2 years before the arrival of Quentin. We also had all the time in the world to explore, go on adventures and go on playdates. The experiences that Oliver had..was nothing Quentin and Sarah would ever get.
In a blink of an eye, it is almost 6 years since we had Oliver. I felt for him when he said it. Has it been almost 6 years? In another 6 months, Daddy Ting and I will be thrust into another phase of parenthood as we prepare ourselves and Oliver for primary school. Could we ever be ready? Each of the kids are so different.
In a blink of an eye, the middle child is struggling to be taken noticed and prove that he can be independent.
‘I want to do the buckle! You must teach me! I want to learn!! Why you don’t let me learn!?’ Quentin cried as we moved out of the carpark. We had been in a hurry. Obviously kiddo is not gonna listen about how we were in a hurry and we couldn’t wait for him to figure out how to fit the buckles to his car seat in together and lock it in.
He has grown up too. His latest antics of whining hasn’t gone unnoticed unfortunately. And it is always the negative behaviour that gets picked up. Then the guilt kicks in when he explains why he did what he had to do, cos..it all made sense then. We need to learn how to pause before we react.
But he is the joker in his own way. He hams it up and it cracks Daddy Ting and I up so much.
We are splitting the boys up next year at school. Quentin in the morning, Oliver in the afternoon. For practical reasons and for Quentin. To be able to spend more one on one time with the kids. Give us another chance, alright? I’ll try and do better with you.
Sarah. She has her own language now. At 14mo, she was self-feeding. And she can successfully feed herself throughout an entire meal. She picks things up very easily, especially movements and actions. She signs a lot more and she still doesn’t really say words. Emotionally..she is so affectionate to both Daddy Ting and I. Argh. So damn sweet. She is a little charmer.
BUT. Insufficient sleep throws her to the other spectrum of what she is mostly. OMFG. She goes from sweet to tantrum in 3 secs. Like throws herself on the floor, and cries. Tries flopping around. Seriously. Where did she even pick it up from??
Two weeks ago, she finally weaned off the boob. I CAN HAS MY BOOBS BACK! It was bittersweet. After breasting for 6 years, I’m ready to say bye and move on. With the decision to not have anymore kids (sans accidents hor), I think we can move on in life. Not that we weren’t moving on, but move on from the baby stage of life. I cleared my wardrobe last weekend and packed all my maternity and nursing clothes away. I packed away Sarah’s 1st year worth of clothes, keeping the ones that were of sentimental value.
Moving on with such changes. How to not get emotional watching the kids grow up leh? Just this afternoon, I added shelves to the boys’ tables cos I figured they should get used to tidying up their table in a different manner as compared to just stacking everything up.
They were stoked. It made them feel a little more grown up. It was just a simple modification of adding a $2 Daiso shelf, and giving them a book/paper folder made out of cereal boxes. Recycling FTW! The boys are familiar with my recycling methods and being environmentally friendly.
The bond between the three. Quentin and Sarah are definitely closer. But Sarah has this quiet adoration for Oliver. She wouldn’t let him hold her hand but she knows he is something. The boys definitely play really well with each other now and Quentin knows how to retaliate if Oliver gives him grief. The physical fighting has started, though half the time it ends up in giggles. Hahaha. I don’t know how that is going to work out between the 3 of them but I’m heartened. There are bad moments, but it has been mostly the good.
2017 has been mostly a year of bad medical news. Deaths, falls, admission to hospital, early warnings of deteriorating health if we are not watchful. Sometimes we take life for granted. Says me, as I munch on the last Famous Amos double chocolate cookie. Hahaha. WTH right.
In 2018, I resolve to try and live more healthily and make an impact in the kids life, the people around me and on the environment.
It’s time to get a grip on life by the horns and live life even more fully.