Posts from — March 2011

The past weeks were really busy. The kids had activities one after another… both in school and out of school. One of the big ones was a public speaking competition on which both my kids participated. The youngest one got the top place in her level while the eldest got the second place for middle school (Years 5 and 6). It was quite rewarding when it was all finished and definitely worth more than a gold bullion in our hearts. But after the school competition, RD still had to compete in yet another inter-school competition.

We had a chance to go camping with some friends the past weekend. However, due to weather and a bit of a fever, we had to do a raincheck. Hopefully we could still plan one before winter begins. Actually, the camping spot is just a short drive of maybe 5-10 mins from where we live. And so a magellan gps may be more important to navigate the site rather than having a normal road/traffic GPS. There is still some chance to schedule a camp in the coming weeks. However, Sydney weather has been a mixed bag lately, signalling that the warm summer months are really gone.

Early this week, our youngest daughter brought out her old laptop toy which she had for some years now. We gave it to her as a gift when she was a toddler. But really, it is something she didn’t use a lot as she got bumped up to real laptops. Perhaps every parent of young kids nowadays agree that this is quite common. Perhaps the only thing keeping them from really exploring the web is the ability to type confidently. Thanks to browser favorites, they are able to navigate to places. At the same time, we also get to control the sites they go to. Of course when kids go older, they can type in anything including more useful ones like http://www.howtogetridofwhiteheads.org. The ‘favorites’ trick will no longer be useful and it is now up to more sophisticated parental control tools.

Our youngest daughter has developed keen interest for dinosaurs. It probably started when they touched on the topic in school. After that she wanted a book on it and the rest is history. She is now on to collect more books on these. Recently, she started her collection of dinosaur figures or toys. I found a toy/model which is scaled to indicate how bit they are compared to a typical human. Basing on that, even the tallest or biggest person aided by hgh will look minute when taken side by side with these massive creatures. Oh well, those models are really expensive so we are settling for the ‘toy’ priced ones. In any case, our daughter is having a blast.

There is a Better Way
by RDVA
for Rotary Ryde District Primary School Public Speaking Competition

I just know it. There is a better way. I may only be 11 years old but I am quite sure that there is . History will tell us that people have always been looking for and have found a better way.

Thousands of years ago, when people learned how to use fire and first tasted cooked food, I am sure they have thought that there is a better way.

When Thomas Edison developed the electric light bulb, it was probably not done in complete darkness. There was already some light but the inventor must be thinking that there is a better way.

Henry Ford has great contributions to how cars came about. But did you know that he used to walk more than 6 kilometres every Sunday to go to church? Who knows if that could have inspired him to work on cars! Whatever his motivations were, I’m sure he thought that there is a better way.

In the 1830’s Samuel Morse developed the telegraph as a way to communicate across great distances by wire. He must have thought of a better way. But another person by the name of Alexander Graham Bell again thought that there is a better way as he developed the telephone.

From the radio to the television, from the typewriter to the computer, from the telephone to the iPhone… we can all agree that many great people think there is a better way. And just when we thought that we have the best, it won’t be long and there will be yet something better.

There are more interesting stories about people who believed on something better and came up with great things. We should remember that they used to be ordinary people just like you and me. It all starts with them believing that there is a better way.

Each day, there are more and more people who, in their own way, have taken steps to make things better. It does not have to be as ground breaking as the examples I have given. It can be simple things at work, at school, or anywhere. It can start from anyone at any age. Yes, even kids like us can also start thinking and believing that there is a better way.

As Thomas Edison said, “There is always a better way”… “There is a way to do it better… find it”.

The kids just finished their public speaking competition in school. And I am pretty proud that they finished quite well. The speech topics are quite interesting. One topic is a rather popular one and circles around what children want to be or what their purpose is. Some might give straightforward answers as wanting to be a doctor or having an online it degree. It should be interesting how these thoughts change as time goes by. But I guess what’s more important is not just whether they ended up with that online it degree, but how they worked out to achieve what was on their hearts and mind.

What Did You See On Your Way To School?
by CNVA
1 Jasmine/2011

You’ll never guess what I saw on my way to school this morning. It all started when I woke up, I rolled off my bed and in the mirror I saw a small sleepy dinosaur. Yes, a dinosaur in pyjamas! It yawned as I yawned and it streched its arms just when I did. It was a cute but grumpy looking dinosaur. She was trying to tell me to go back to bed and sleep.

I would like to stay with her but I really need to prepare for school. So, after taking a shower and dressing up I went back to the mirror to see if the dinosaur is still hanging around.

But this time I saw a small princess. She look fresh in a blue dress same as my school uniform. She had her hair done up nice and tidy just as any teacher in Northcross would want girls to have.

Then it was time to have breakfast and soon we were on our way to school. But I still remember the dinosaur and the princess. If I went back to bed to follow the dinosaur, I wouldn’t have seen the princess in blue.

So what did you see on your way to school this morning?

I Am Really Getting Too Old For That
By RDVA
6 Snapdragon/2011

When was the last time you gave your parents a hug? Many children think that they are really too old for this. But are we ever too old to give a hug to our parents?

We often see in movies or television shows how kids, who are not even in teens, feel embarrassed when their parents try to land a kiss on their cheek on dropping them off to school…saying…I am too old for that.

It is funny how we shout ‘that’s cute’ when we see young toddlers say ‘I love you’ to their parents…but sometimes we find ourselves uneasy to do the same after we reach a certain age…saying…I am really getting old for that.

We all had a picture in our minds of a kid in pyjamas kissing their dad and mum just before going to sleep. But that picture becomes hardly a reality at a certain time as kids starts to say…I am really getting too old for that.

And how about being there to say I’m sorry when we stuff things up. When we break mum’s favourite china tea set or dad’s new lawn mower…or maybe when we say something that hurt their feelings. Instead of doing this, kids plays tough with a thinking that…I am really getting too old for that.

Who can forget the magic word…’please’…or ‘thank you’ that we learned at an early age. We used to even make a cute face as we say ‘pretty please!’ as we try to convince our parents. But at some point, kids just want to get things that they want without this kind words as they say, ‘I am really getting too old for that.’

I could go on and on but buy now, I hope that most of us are reminded that we are never too old for these things. Age or time should not be a barrier for us to be a kid to our parents. I can be 30, 40, 50, or even 100 years old and still, I’ll be grateful kid to my parents. I’ll say ’sorry’ when I hurt, I’ll say ‘please’ when I ask, I’ll be happy to take and give a kiss…and when I ger home today, I’ll be giving my dad and mum a hug.

And that is because…I am really never too old for this.

While growing up in the Philippines, rubber shoes have always been called ‘rubber shoes’. They may have been known or been made popular through different names such as Nike Air Max, but in the end, they’re still rubber shoes. But it seems to be that these types of shoes are called by different names, some indicative of some subcategories of this footwear. Trainers, joggers, runners, boots, sneakers and so on. Despite this varied nomenclature, I still taught my kids that this footwear is called ‘rubber shoes’.

In the past couple of years, I have been working more seriously in my kitchen more than ever. Inspired by my family, I have started to experiment on a few things and have (I think) taken on some successful dishes. And in the process, I realized that creating some good food can only be achieved with the right cooking tools. Yes everybody can beat an egg using a fork, but some food creations would really require much more than what a willing hand and heart can do.

A few weeks from now and it will be Mother’s Day. It is being celebrated in Australia at the same day in the US unlike Father’s day (which is celebrated at a later date in the year in Oz). It should be interesting to find out what sort of gifts are being prepared for her versus the special gifts for him. I did read not too long ago about differences in ’spending limits’ between the two special days. But I could not recall the actual outcome of that survey or study. And perhaps I would not take the time to see whether the gifts for men are more special than gifts for women. What’s important is what we are celebrating… being a mother… being a mother… being parents.