Our very first parenthood seminar.

I dragged the Hubby and signed up early for a parenthood 'Preschool Seminar' organised by Young Parents magazine, held at the Singapore Marriot Hotel. It was very timely as it falls exactly on the day Qayla turns 18 months, and I, being a typical kiasu Singaporean parent, is anxious to enrol Qayla in a preschool in the nearest time possible.

The first speaker was the founder-director of a Preschool for Multiple Intelligences, Dr Khoo Kim Choo.

She touched on the very raw aspects of choosing the right preschool for our toddlers. I never realised there were so many factors which we have to consider. For eg there are about 4 types of curriculum that preschools now offer, and that is,

-Play-based

-Academic

-Montessori

-Multiple intelligences

We were explained on how each of these curriculum works, and then choosing which one suits our child's learning ability best. Hubby and I agreed that in Singapore, it is very important for a child to have multiple intelligences as multi-tasking is indeed an asset.

The next two speakers were my favourite in the seminar, which is Helen Marjan and Anita Wilks, who heads Lorna Whiston Study Centres, and they spoke about a topic which is close to my heart - 'Raise a Reader'. Coz I just love reading you know?

We were given a text to read, below.

Well, obviously Hubby and I could pronounce word by word of it, but, we didn't understand a thing! This exercise proves to us that, while we want our child to learn the phonics of a word, reading actually comprises of actually UNDERSTANDING what is being read. Many parents rush to get their child to know the phonics of words, that they tend to neglect in letting the child understand the words firsthand. While flashcards will only provide much help later on, introducing them to a child at a very young age isn't much help, and certainly, telling the child that reading is 'boring'.


We were then given much details on how we could motivate our child to be a reader, the ways to go about it, and the dos and don'ts while at it. I was getting really excited at this point to just rush off to the bookstore, get some books and start reading to Qayla!

While Hubby's more excited for the teabreak.



The next speaker spoke about the Montessori method that is applied by her school, the San Lorenzo Montessori. This Montessori method was devised by Maria Montessori in the 1800s, which 'revolves around training the child's physical senses and motor skills, through the use of specially designed materials and the prepared environment.' They believe that a child develops at their own pace, and much patience is needed in educating them.


So all in all, this seminar was a great start for the both of us to gain a little knowledge from the experts. It has definitely shed some light on some nagging questions Hubby and I had in making our decisions on what kind of school Qayla is best-suited to.

And yeap, we managed to grab some interesting and suitable books for Qayla when we went to the Fables book expo after the seminar itself!

Oh, these are handpicked and approved by the lil lady herself. ;)

In the womb.

A random conversation with someone I look up to spurred me to write this entry.

This entry might come too late, but I feel its never too late to share experiences which might help others in future.

Approximately two years ago, I conceived my very first baby. My husband and I have been trying for a baby for a year prior, so the news of my being pregnant was happily accepted by the both of us.

The moment I saw the positive sign on the pregnancy test kit, I told myself, 'This is it. Motherhood begins now.' Many first time mothers think that motherhood only begins after the delivery of the baby, but I feel motherhood begins the moment there is a life developing in your womb. The moment we know we are responsible for the well-being of a life is when we have to start giving selflessly. Like many other first-time moms, I was quite overwhelmed with anxiety and became quite thirsty for knowledge, reading up book after book, magazine after magazine on pregnancy and motherhood. The more I read up, the more I learn that good baby development in the womb is very important as it will have implications which might affect the baby for the rest of his/her life. I tried to eat as well as I can, dunking in lots of milk and eating as much vegetables (I'm not a fan) as I can as I know these are good for the baby. I took on my mother's advise to walk as much as I can and not let the pregnancy be an excuse to laze around on the couch all day long.

Along with all these, I also kept my emotions in check. I always made sure I feel happy and surround myself with positive people. Although I do get upset at times due to raging hormones, I always tell myself never to wallow in it for too long. It doesn't help that my husband wasn't too responsive of my cravings, coz he believed I musn't be pampered to much, so I went all out on my own to satisfy my own cravings eg dragging my bestest colleagues all the way to Adam Road to get nasi lemak after night shift. And sure, living in fast-paced Singapore doesn't spare us of stress, thus we must find ways to curb our problems fast and not let it affect us too much. I see for myself cases where expecting moms worry endlessly too much, that their baby is adversely affected.

So in short, a good pregnancy doesn't only mean eating the best foods, but also keeping our emotions and stress levels low. We must put aside our negative emotions for the well-being of the life in our womb.

Needless to say, I gave birth to a small yet perfectly healthy baby at exactly 38 weeks of my gestation. Her birth was a smooth and progressive ten hours, with her jaundice levels so low, there wasn't any worry about it at all. As she reaches her one and a half year mark, she has proven to everyone that she's one bubbly little girl who's always smiling, even to strangers!

Just look at her cheeky smile in this family shot. ;)

And, here's wishing a happy 18 months to my one and only Qayla Arissa. Ayah and Ibu loves you too much.

Qayla dances.