Monkey Sparkles

No Pain, No Gain!

2014-10-31T12:16:00.000+08:00

Rejection is not something Matty is familiar with. But he certainly got a taste of it on his first Flag Selling day two weeks ago.

He started off full of energy, when he managed to sell flags to the first few people we met on the street in Tsim Sha Tsui. He thought it was an easy job. But soon afterwards he realised it was not easy at all. Many people rushed off as fast as they could when Matty approached them. Some shook their heads at him. Some said they had no change. But a few did go up to Matty themselves even though they've already got their flag.

It was after standing in the street for three and a half hours, that Matty gave up. He said he was simply too tired and hungry to continue, and so we returned our super heavy money bags.

And yes he enjoyed it. But for the next few days he kept asking me why some people pretended they couldn't see him. I thought of making up an excuse for them. But I decided to tell Matty the truth... that not everyone is nice in the real world.

Talking Deep

2014-09-18T09:48:00.000+08:00

It was on a dark, dark cloudy night, right after Typhoon Kalmaegi left Hong Kong that I was having what I thought was a relaxing conversation with Matty before sleep.

I asked him about his friends at his new primary school, when he all of a sudden ask me what the world's biggest predator was. I assumed he was just talking about his favorite dinosaurs, and so the conversation went something like this:

ME: "Maybe T-Rex, or some kind of raptor?"

MATTY: "No."

ME: "A lion??"

MATTY: "No."

ME: "I don't know."

MATTY: "Humans are the biggest predators"

ME: "Why?"

MATTY: "Because they can build bombs and destroy everything."

I was surprised. Actually, I was thinking OMG! I didn't expect my bedtime chit-chat with my 6-year-old would be so deep. I exited my sleepy mode and asked him if he discussed it at school or read about. Matty said no. He told me he had thought of it himself. I'm not entirely convinced...but no matter how he came up with it, it's nice to know he's really growing up.

Birthday Luck

2014-09-13T21:30:00.000+08:00

I'm one of those people that never really win anything in the lottery or lucky draws. The most I've ever won in Mark Six was $20, and that was a couple of years ago. But because it was Sebastian's 3-year-old birthday, we decided to give it another try.

And did we win? YES!!! Although it was just $320, and not the 1.5 billion dollar jackpot that everyone was dreaming about.

So I guess that's what people call "birthday luck".

Sebastian Turns Three!

2014-09-13T11:53:00.000+08:00

Sebastian's first ever birthday party with his new kindergarten friends, and his favorite dinosaurs, and mango birthday cake!

The Little Big Bully

2014-09-03T10:42:00.000+08:00

It seems normal, or more understandable for the big brother to bully the little one. But in the Wong family, it's Matty, the older one, that usually gets bullied by Sebastian, the little one.

Sebastian is a pretty fast thinker. If he hits you or drops something on your foot, he would almost immediately say "sorry". So fast that you may not always have enough time to shout at him, but instead you would be forced to use your calm voice to tell him to "becareful next time" or "please don't do that again".

Occasionally, Matty would hit Sebastian, and a few days ago he somehow made his little brother bump his head. Matty didn't say anything. But Sebastian was obviously not going to let it go:

SEBASTIAN: "You say sorry to me."

MATTY: "Sorry."

SEBASTIAN: "Louder, I can't hear you."

MATTY: "Sorry."

SEBASTIAN: "Louder, I can't hear you."

MATTY: "SORRY"

SEBASTIAN: "That's better."

I'm not sure where Sebastian got that side of him from. I do have an idea, but I better not share it here.

Bye-Bye Baby Tooth

2014-09-01T22:00:00.000+08:00

It was after dinner, when I heard Matty scream. I rushed out from my room to see what had happened. I was expecting to find Matty in a fight with Sebastian. But to my surprise Matty's tooth, that been wobbling for weeks, finally fell out. Wow, my little boy is growing up fast!

I quickly notified the Tooth Fairy (wink) so she can visit Matty at night. In the morning, Matty's tooth was no longer there. Instead there was a tin with two five dollars inside. I seem to remember only getting two or five dollars for each of my teeth when I was a kid. I guess even Tooth Fairies know about inflation.

A Brand New Start

2014-09-01T09:25:00.000+08:00

Wow! Time really flies. I still remember carrying my babies in my arms, but now they're both big boys! Matty is now in primary school, and Sebastian is in Kindergarten!

Yes that was a sweet moment

2012-12-04T11:04:00.001+08:00

One For You, One For Me

2012-12-04T09:34:00.001+08:00

Sticky Business

2012-11-19T18:04:00.000+08:00

I never really played with play dough that much when I was a kid. Don't know why. I just never did. But I do remember my mum telling me that if I get it stuck in my hair, I will have to cut my hair! Maybe that's why I was never too keen.

So when Matty developed his love for play dough (when he was a toddler), I reminded him many, many times not to put it in his hair. So, what did he do the other day? Yep, he put play dough in his hair! He said it was a crown! Sigh. Boys just never listen!!

And how could I resist not teaching him a lesson. I scared him, and told him we might have to cut his hair off. I also quickly googled "Play dough in hair. Help!"

I resorted to the least complicated solution. I combed out what I could, then used a hot towel to melt and wipe off what's left in his hair. And after most of it was off I gave his hair a nice wash.

And just as we were done 婆婆 called, and we told her what had happened. Matty asked 婆婆 what she would do in this situation, and she said "If it's just a little part of your hair, you can just cut it off." Matty was expressionless.

After he hung up. Matty looked at me with his puppy eyes and said "I love you".

I asked him if he would put play dough in his hair again, and he said no. And just to make sure I asked him if he would put it on Sebastian's hair... Matty just gave me a naughty smile. Sigh.

The Diaper-less Probation

2012-10-25T08:38:00.000+08:00

I don't know when boys are suppose to stop using diapers a night. Matty's cousin stopped a long time ago, but some of his friends still use it. I guess it's different for each kid, and it depends on when they're ready.

It was last week when Matty was finally ready I guess. He woke up with a dry diaper in the morning, and was really happy. Matty quickly said he didn't need to wear it to sleep anymore. But I told him he can stop using it at night if he can have a dry diaper in the morning for 7 days in a row.

He sucessfully did it for 6 days .... but on the seventh day his diaper was wet again. I thought it was because I made him drink extra water for his cough the night before.

So what happened on the eighth day? Matty had wet diaper again! It was the same on the nineth, and tenth days. And up to today he's still been having wet diapers every morning! I really wonder what happened.

Sebastian and the Collagen Thirsty Auntie

2012-09-20T04:37:00.001+08:00

Yay, she finally made it...auntie Alison met Sebastian for the first time! I know I don't usually write posts when someone comes to visit, but I think this is a real achievement for Auntie Ali. She actually managed to get up early in the morning to come all the way to Kowloon from Central (hehe) to visit Sebastian. It took a little warming up, but from the looks of it, Sebastian gave auntie Ali an a-okay. And just like when she met Matty for the first time, the collagen thirsty ~~monster~~ auntie pinched Sebastian's cheeks NON-STOP! Ahhhhhhh my poor baby!

Hopefully, auntie Ali will have a baby of her own soon... so I can get pinch her baby back.

Happy Birthday Sebastian!

2012-09-13T22:18:00.001+08:00

I don't believe it. Its been 12 months already. Sebastian is turning one today, but it feels like it was yesterday when the doctor showed him to me in the operation theatre. I still remember his cry after his first breath of air. It was quieter than Matty's first cry, and we were all tricked into thinking he would be a gentle boy.

I still remember his little pink toes and his furry back. I remember tickling his foot when he fell asleep during feeding. I remember the coo-ing sound he used to make in the morning. I remember his soft cheek touching mine. And I remember how long he used to take to finish his milk... so long that we were all afraid to feed him.

Now he's giving us more hints as to what kind of little man he's going to be: rambunctious, playful, cheeky, but also a little bossy, and even surprisingly shy at times. Like a Pooh with a side of Tigger and a dash of Piglet too. Happy Birthday Pooh Bear Baby!

Matty Power

2012-09-09T08:01:00.004+08:00

How do you teach children about politics? Our approach was always that, for the time being, you don't. They're forced to learn too much too soon already, and there's no point in going through the motions if they don't understand the issues. So Matty's never been to any protests before... until the powers that be decided it's a good idea to teach six year-olds about the magnificence of the Communist Party.

So we tried to explain to Matty in the simplest way what the whole hubbub about National Education was all about. But where do you start with a four year old who has no idea what a government is? much less what a nation is, really? So my hubby took the liberty to use a more familiar metaphor:

DADA: "Many people are unhappy because CY
Leung wants teachers to teach children
only good things about China.

MATTY: *blank look*

DADA: "What would you do if the teacher only tells you the good things about drinking orange
juice? that it has a lot of vitamin C, and it's good for you, but doesn't tell you any of the
bad things, like if you drink too much it might make you cough? Is that good?"

MATTY: "No."

DADA: "So if you really want to understand something you need to know both the good things
and the bad things... Just like if you want to learn about China. If you only know the
good things it can even harm you."

MATTY: "I want to go to the protest!!"

He did seem to understand some of the principles behind it, and he had a lot of fun anyway, seeing something he's never seen before and being in the middle of something he's never experienced before. There'll be a lot of time for him to grow and develop his own ideas. But we don't think he'll ever forget his first protest -- especially since the moment was immortalized by an AFP photographer, and the picture was published on an NBC blog and in a local newspaper as well... I guess his chances of becoming a top official may be over.

Sebastian's Focus

2012-07-12T10:18:00.000+08:00

So it's true... all babies are different. Matty used to bring a plastic spoon with him everywhere when he was around Sebastian's age. If it went missing he would go crazy looking for it. He was so attached to it for a while, we actually went out to buy another one that was exactly the same, and hid it in our drawer as a backup.

Sebastian isn't attached to anything in that way just yet. But he now likes to play with cars. Yep, nothing special really for a boy baby I guess. But instead of playing with the safe plastic ones I got him, he likes to play with this small blue and white metal car that Matty has at the bottom of his toy box.

I admit I don't know much about cars, and I'm not particularly interested in them. But just out of curiousity I took a look at what car he was so attached to. And what did I find? It was a FORD FOCUS!!!!! Okay, I better stop here...I don't want to offend any owners of this car. It's not about the car really...it's just that I never liked Ford. Okay, Okay, I stop now.

Splish! Splash! Splish!

2012-05-08T16:27:00.000+08:00

Sebastian loves water! Unlike Matty, he doesn't mind getting it on his face during bath time. Usually, he would be happy with just kicking water, but the other day he decided to splash with his hands. He got water all over his face, and in his eyes, but nothing seemed to stop him. He was just having fun!

The bathroom floor was all wet, and everyone who watched him got wet too. Matty was of course was very exited.

ME:             "See, 細佬 (your brother) has water all over his face and he't not crying. You don't need
                      to cry when you get water in your eyes."

MATTY:      "I also not scared now."

ME:              "Good boy!"

MATTY:       "See I'm standing on the wet floor."

Okay... um.... I guess that's an improvement (he he).

To prove that his fear of water was really gone, Matty went the bathroom later to splash water on his face. "See, I really not scared!"

But that didn't last long. Matty cried a little again that evening when Dada got water on his face during bathtime.

Oh well, I guess real change takes time.

Birth Of The Nose Warrior

2012-05-04T11:58:00.000+08:00

I just hate seeing Matty rub his thumb and index fingers in circles when he's sitting next to me. My goose bumps just pop up. And whats worse is when I see him chewing something when theres no food in front of him.

AHHHHHHHHHHH GROSS !!! YES, I'm talking about boogers!!

I think Matty's favorite activities now are writting Chinese characters...and picking his nose.

The other night during dinner with auntie Candy and uncle Toku, Matty all of a sudden wrote 鼻士 to show everyone! We all immediately knew it was suppose to be booger (鼻屎). Yes, he managed to combine two things that he loves on his favourite board. Fascinating!

Now, we call him "nose warrior" (鼻士) whenever we see him pick his nose.

No Ordinary Sunday

2012-04-08T23:07:00.001+08:00

Matty woke up at 7:52 this morning, a little early for a Sunday. He caught me taking a peep at what he was doing. I quickly closed my eyes again, but it was too late. Matty knew I was also awake.

MATTY: "Mama!"

ME: "Yes?"

MATTY: "Did you miss me?"

ME: "Yes"

MATTY: "I also missed you too"

While he was still rolling around in bed. He suddenly hugged me and said "我大個我會照顧你!" (I will take care of you when I grow up).

Okay, Okay, I know it's probably not going to happen. But it's still the sweetest thing that anyone has said to me in the morning. All memory of Matty's screaming, yelling and crying were temporarily erased from my mind. What wonderful feeling!

My hubby, quickly asked Matty who will take care of him. Matty said ..."細佬!"

Gummy Babbles

2012-04-05T10:11:00.000+08:00

I always thought babies learn to call their Dada or Mama first, but in Gummy Bear's case... it's Matty first!

He's been calling Matty "Ah-Goo" for the past few months. "Ah-Goo", as in 呵哥 (big brother) in Chinese. I thought it was just a coincidence when I heard it two months ago, but Gummy Bear still calls Matty that, and smiles when he sees him some times.

Gummy Bear has also started babbling "Bow-wow-wow"after Matty learned this nursery rhyme at school that he always repeats at home. I never thought Matty would have such an impact on his little brother so soon.

And according to my helper, Gummy Bear has started calling her "Pat Pat", short for Suparmi.

She said she likes him calling her, bust just wasn't too keen on the words "Pat Pat", as it means

a female private part in Indonesian.

Oh well, can't expect too much. Gummy Bear is just a baby afterall.

If You Fail, Try, Try, Try, Again

2012-03-22T18:52:00.001+08:00

The other day I attempted to make layered jelly for Matty's friend's birthday party. I adapted the recipe from this blog I accidentally discovered. I knew it would take time, but I still wanted to try because I was a little tired of making the usual, normal jelly. I decided to do a trial first with only two layers, and it failed! The Jelly layers didn't stick together properly, but it stilled tasted YUMMY according to Matty and my hubby.

While gobbling up my failed jelly, my hubby told me to just do the normal one, because a layered one is too much hassle and takes too much time. And that was what made me determined to make it work (thanks to my hubby!). Not only was I annoyed with my hubby's lack of faith in me, I also didn't want Matty to learn to give up so easily. To be honest I didn't really want to go through the whole process again...sigh... but I just had to prove my point.

ME: "Matty my jelly failed. The layers didn't stick together properly. Lets try one more time."

MATTY: "Okay"

ME: "If something fails the first time, you don't give up okay? You try again."

MATTY: "Okay."

ME: "Do you want to just use two colours this time?"

MATTY: "Noooooo. I want many, many colours."

MANY COLOURS! Sigh... I couldn't even manage two colours...could I really do many colours? Luckily, it worked the second time. I was definitely not prepared to do it again if it failed. But of course I never told Matty.

Six Months Already!

2012-03-14T11:53:00.000+08:00

Gummy Bear has just turned six months! I didn't do anything special for him, because I was just SOOOOOOOOO busy rushing around the WHOLE day. But Matty was especially good. He ate his food and didn't complain about his Putonghua lesson (Or maybe my expectations for Matty is just falling).

Anyway, he was really excited when I told him Sebastian was 6 months old. Matty quickly tried to measure Sebastian when he took his daily stroll on his favourite orange mat. Matty said he was two times Sebastian's height, But later corrected himself, after he realised Sebastian was actually even taller!

So did Matty give Sebastian a present? No, not really, the only thing Matty gave Sebastian was his cough. Poor Sebastian has been coughing for the past few days. Hope he gets well soon.

Gummy Bear

2012-03-09T12:59:00.000+08:00

Time REALLY flies when you have two kids. Sebastian, is almost 6 months old now, but I still haven't figured out if Matty and Sebastian look alike. My hubby thinks they look the same, but I seem to think Sebastian looks more masculine, while Matty looks more cute. Sometimes when Sebastian puts on his serious face we all end up calling him "old man". But recently I've been calling him "Gummy Bear".

Yes, I call him Gummy Bear, because unlike Matty at the same age, Sebastian still has no teeth. But he likes to show his gums to everyone all the time.

Some people have told me that it usually takes longer for milk teeth to cut through in the second child, and its usually a more painful process.... meaning more sleepless nights. Fingers crossed, I hope they are wrong.

SEBASTIAN'S UPDATE

Weight: approx 18 lbs

Head circumference: 46.5 cm

Length: 62.5 cm

Get off Facebook, Dada!

2012-02-22T20:47:00.000+08:00

Yes, my hubby is a Facebook addict! He checks his Facebook the first thing in the morning, on his way to the office, in the office, on his phone, straight after dinner and sometimes during his meals. And if he doesn't answer his phone (that is 99% of the time) I'd know exactly where to find him....Facebook chat!

Its got to a point where it's REALLY irritating, (or in my hubby's words "undingable")! Sometimes when I see him play with Matty in front of the computer with a Facebook screen open in one corner, I'd feel like throwing his computer out of the window! But I guess that would be too expensive.

So, to show him how I feel, in a more economical way, I got him a little present instead.... a lovely shirt for baby Sebastian... my little gummy bear.

Scary Movie

2012-02-10T15:07:00.001+08:00

What to do when your kid has a nightmare? Thats something I never really thought about. Whenever my hubby gets a nightmare and starts making grunting noises in his sleep, I just wake him up and he'd be okay (although I do remember not waking him up once after he pissed me off.... he he he). Anyway, I just assumed I could do the same for Matty. But no, I was wrong.

Matty watched Wizard of Oz with 婆婆 last week. 婆婆 said I was scared of the witch in the movie when I was little, but she decided to show him the movie anyway. (Grandparents don't really care about the consequences of their actions. Okay, I think my phone is ringing now). I told Matty to stop watching it when he was holding on to 婆婆's arm real tight during the movie, but he insisted on finishing the movie. After it ended he told 婆婆 he didn't like it and gave the DVD back to her.

He was okay the first night. but a few nights later he woke up and told me he was not going outside. I just said okay. But he kept his eyes opened and said "she's coming". I knew immediately he was talking about the witch in the movie. I told him it was only a movie and that it was not real. And after a long time he fell asleep again.

Matty called 婆婆 the next day and said she gave him nightmares. While they were on the phone he also told her he had two problems, but when she asked what they were, he said it was a secret.

The next day I asked Matty about his problems, and with a shakey voice, he told me that he was scared, and he didn't want to sleep. He then burst out crying:

MATTY: "He will eat me!"

ME: "Who? The witch? Or monster?"

MATTY: "Monster."

ME: "It's only a dream. there are no monstes here."

Matty was still worried after I told him Mama and Dada would protect him. It was only after I told him that if the monster did come it would eat Dada first because he was soooooo meaty, that he stopped crying and started nodding his head.

I hope he'll get a good nights sleep soon.

In a Festive Mood

2012-01-20T06:30:00.000+08:00

We've been so busy since baby Sebastian was born, I was going to give up making waterchestnut cake this year. But when I saw my hubby's hush puppy eyes I somehow managed to squeeze some time out to make one. I guess it does add to the festive mood.

And Matty has been doing his part too. He's been busy writing these paper scrolls for Chinese new year, with the help of 姑姑(his aunt). The most popular one is 身體健康 (meaning good health), which he's going to give to his grandparents. He also wrote one especially for Dada...wishing that he'll get promoted at work in the year of the Dragon. Matty's favourite scroll for himself is 快高長大 (meaning he'll grow very tall very quickly).

Somehow, I think Matty's Chinese is already better than mine.... and he's not even four yet. Sigh...