Puteri’s Musings 2

We were at Joann craft and fabric store a few weekends ago when Duncan found a pirates themed fabric for children. He held the bolt in his hand and begged me to get some for him so that I could make a quilt for him out of it.

I told him I had just bought him a Superman fleece blanket and some Carz themed fabric which I was going to use to make him a quilt.

Duncan is very much into the pirates theme stuff, but he has not actually watched any of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. They are too frightening for him, but he did enjoy the Pirates of the Caribbeans ride at Disneyland.

Imagine Duncan’s delight when he saw a couple of men dressed as characters of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies in front of the Kodak Theater on Hollywood Boulevard! Having his picture taken with them really made his day.

Duncan couldn’t pass this statue in front of a store in Disneyland without having a picture of him standing in front of the statue taken as well!

My good friend, Kathy, is expecting her first grandchild in April. She is extremely excited about the prospect of being a grandparent.

She even has a nursery done up at her home. She and her husband, had the room painted rather beautifully in green and blue. It had a scene of rolling hills, plants, clouds, buzzing bees, and even a donkey. I was impressed by the amount of work they had put into the nursery. It makes me ashamed that I did not do anything for my kids’ room!

Anyway, Kathy wanted some bumper pads for the crib and a valance made for the window in the nursery. We went shopping at Joann’s one day and I ended up bringing the stuff she had bought home. I had agreed to sew the bumper pads and valance for her.

Yesterday, I took the bumper pads and valance to her home because I had completed them. The window looks a lot nicer with a valance at the top. And the bumper completes the look of the crib.

The baby shower will be in February and I have been invited. That means, I need to bring gifts for the shower. I have a baby quilt that I will be making for the baby, and of course I need to look at Christina’s (Kathy’s daughter) baby registry at Target. I feel I need to at least bring along an item that Christina wants for her baby!

Christina and her husband do not know the sex of their baby. They want to be surprised! Good for them! I wish them both much joy with the arrival of this new baby.

Early last week, I was stopped by the police.

I had come to a junction and instead of coming to a complete stop right where it clearly said STOP, I merely slowed down and seeing that there was no traffic coming from my left, I proceeded to turn to the right.

Unfortunately for me, a police officer in a police car saw what I had done. He was coming from the opposite direction and I had only looked to my left and therefore had not seen him! Do you think I would not have come to a complete stop had I seen a police car approaching?! Haha, of course I would have!

Anyway, I had already started moving and it was too late to back track! He looked at me and I looked at him as our cars passed each other. All I could say to myself was ‘Uh oh’. I looked at my rear view mirror, and I saw him making a U-turn, and of course he started following me.

I waited for him to turn on the lights on the roof of his car, but he did not. He seemed content to follow me. It wasn’t until we had reached the residential area that he turned on his flashing lights.

Of course I had to pull over. My heart was already beating very fast because that was the first time I’d been stopped by the police since coming to the US!

“Good morning.”

“Good morning, officer.”

“Do you have a good excuse for not coming to a complete stop at Sargent? I’m not inclined to give you a ticket.”

I merely shook my head, and sort of mumbled, “No.”

“No good excuse? I’m not inclined to give you a ticket”, he told me again.
“No. I should have come to a complete stop,” I said, sheepishly. “No good excuse.”

“May I see your driver’s license, if you have one?”

“Sure, officer.”

I fumbled for my wallet in my bag, and because I was so flustered I couldn’t find my license. Somehow when I looked at my license in my wallet, I thought of it as just my ID! Haha. Took me several seconds before I realized that my license was right there looking at me!

After I had handed my license over the police officer, he walked back to his car. I suppose he was checking the info of my vehicle too.

When he got back to me, “Have you received the new registration sticker for your car? It has been renewed but your new sticker is not on your plate.”

“Err, oh, my registration expired at the end of last month!” I had totally forgotten about that! Good thing, the registration had been renewed and the officer was able to tell from the information he pulled from his computer in his car.

“Please put the sticker on if you already have received it,” as he handed me my license.

“Thanks officer, you have a good morning.”

The entrance to my children’s school was just a few feet away from where I had stopped. I was surprised that throughout the whole incident they had kept quiet, except for when the police officer went back to his car to check on the info regarding me and the car I was driving. Duncan asked me why we had stopped.

That evening when I went to pick the kids back from school, I made sure to come to a complete stop, right at the place where I had broken the traffic law!  :wink:

Kathy has been reminding me that I should start giving my kids chores. My kids are only 4 years old, and I don’t remember doing chores at that age, nor do I remember my sisters-in-law giving their kids chores at that age.

Perhaps we are from a totally different culture, I mean Kathy and myself. Kathy was raised on a farm and from an early age had many responsibilities. She had her own daughters do chores as young as three.

I had a typically Asian upbringing and was raised with 4 other siblings and most of what I had to do was watch over my younger siblings which I hated doing!

I have, however, started making the kids pick up the toys strewn on the floor, take their clothes to the bathroom and leave them in the laundry basket. Everything else I prefer to do them myself, because it is more efficient that way! There is one area that I need to work on: My tone of voice. I nag.

Anyway, an article I found at DrSpock.com is quite enlightening.

Preschooler see, preschooler do
While you’ll start to see your child imitate you as you go about your daily chores when she’s a toddler, this impulse comes to full flower in preschoolers. Sweeping the floor is great sport, sponging off a counter inspires earnest enthusiasm, and planting a flower is pure bliss to these eager helpers. Encourage this healthy imitative behavior by letting your child work alongside you when you can; you can even buy child-size (and child-safe) tools to make it more fun (and a little easier) for her to perform her chores.

In addition to growing more competent at the chores they began as toddlers, such as feeding a pet, dressing themselves, and picking up their toys and clothes, preschoolers might be able to:

* Set the table

* Clear their own plates

* Help with some simple food-preparation chores

* Get their own snacks from small containers

* Help weed the garden

* Fold towels

* Wash plastic dishes and cups

* Dust and use a handheld vacuum

* Clean up many of their own their own spills and messes

Doug and I had a very pleasant day at the mall yesterday. But some time during the night I complained to him that he had not bought me any flowers!

Early yesterday morning, he and the kids came into the room to wish me Happy Birthday and presented me with birthday cards. But there were no flowers.

So today on his way home from work, he stopped by at Costco to pick up some flowers for me. I expected at least two dozen roses, but he chose this beautiful bouquet instead. I think the flowers look very cheery especially on a cold day like today!

Thanks for the flowers, Sweetie!

My kids are recognizing letters and numbers a lot better these days especially with Kathy’s help. Kathy comes in four times a week for an hour to give Denice and Duncan more help with their reading and writing. Denice can write her name really well. Duncan still has trouble with the tails on his ‘n’s and ‘a’s. They always end up on the wrong side!

Some books I’d bought for them recently are those Start To Read books by School Zone publishing company. I have bought The Fox on the Box, Jog Frog Jog, and Beep, Beep! Kathy has gone through those books several times with the kids and I have been reminded to get more of those kinds of books! Ok, I will hop over to Amazon.com right after this!

My kids are only four but since they are already in Pre-K and will enter Kindergarten next fall, I thought they could do with a little more help. They have progressed so much more since before Kathy came to further help them with their reading skills.

I can’t claim they have learned to read yet, but they are heading in the right direction.

My in-laws are arriving tomorrow for the Thanksgiving holidays. I was surprised when I heard that they were coming a few days earlier. Previously they arrived on Thanksgiving day itself.

I’m not complaining because now I can’t put off the house cleaning anymore! The kitchen floor needs to be mopped. Bathrooms need to be cleaned. Patios need to be swept and washed. Groceries for the Thanksgiving meal need to be bought. The guest bedroom needs to be tidied.

The untidiness and the mess around the house are just embarrassing! That is why family and guests coming to stay are good incentives to get things tidied up and cleaned.

I wished my parents were here for the Thanksgiving holidays. This is a very special American tradition and I wished they were here to participate in this tradition. I have been thinking a lot about my parents lately. My father is not in the best of health, but I think that it is still possible for him to take this long trip to visit us. Maybe one of these days I will be able to persuade him to change his mind about coming.

It would be wonderful to have my parents spend at least one traditional American holiday with us.

Ok, better start with the house cleaning now!