Mad Monday

I have spent 3.5 hours doing school run today. 1 hour to The Big School, 1 hour from The Big School to my appointment, 1 hour from my appointment back to The Big School and finally, bless, 30 minutes from The Big School to home.

After the long hours spent, my entire system was expecting a beach holiday at the end of the destination! Kudos to all supir, drivers, MamaBus, MamaVan operators. You have no idea how much I admire your stamina and tenacity in handling this many trips, for years and years!!

Those little cotton white gloves? I want a pair of those, please. Coupled with my oversized sunnies, I am sure I will look my part soon. I have my weekday collection of smart casuals and traditional wear that can take me both to work and errands. Yes, I just need those little cotton white gloves to add that touch of finesse to my "uniform". 

What do you wear for your school runs, my lovelies? Please do share!

Milestones: Bean Goes to Playschool

In sha Allah, Bean goes to Playschool this March instead of May 2015.

He is so ready, in our humble opinion. He is beginning to show signs of Playschool readiness lately (the first criterion is being able to walk well, then other criteria like feeding self food and drinks, able to signal for toilet etc) so we hope he will find Playschool as fun as his sister did. 

We have secured a spot for him in a safe, clean, happy and trustworthy Montessori close to home where The Little Girl had been. We especially love the close proximity of Playschool to home!

Playschool is filled with indoor and outdoor play, dance and music, art, speech and drama, water play, soccer, Kindermusik and more! Boredom for Bean? Not a chance.

New adjustments to weekday timelines for everyone is in order again and we are so glad we are phasing this process in staggered stages for each child. 

The Other Half looks forward to having his mornings dedicated to work and nothing but work as I look forward to some peace and quiet to complete my daily tasks without losing my sanity. 

Well, there goes another of my 2.55 but really, I am NOT complaining at all. *grin*

May this journey be one that will bring every single one of us happiness, growth and even more joy when we reunite after a few hours being apart on a weekday, Amin!

Balance

True that The Big School claims to be academic but as I delightfully discovered this week, the little learners have been given a very balanced time-table.

Evidence: Fridays mornings are fun. They start the day with games on the big field, go to the music studio for some jamming fun, put out some colour pencils for Art then have brunch before conducting some clever science experiments, learn moral studies or Agama Islam (my Muslim child and her other Muslim friends) before early dismissal at noon.

The highlight of their week is on Wednesday when an hour is set aside for swimming. Oh, my duckling loves the pool!! She watched videos of swim matches and is in awe of how the "big kids can swim so fast!". Her self-thought-out goal this year is to swim without arm floats. Way to go, girl!

My lightbulb moment was this: why haven't I thought of asking for a copy of the time-table of each different school when I was doing the ground work? Seeing is believing, after all.

We took the book list and felt confident the Playschool we enrolled The Little Girl at back then could prepare her for life and learning at The Big School. In fact, they do so well some of the other parents we know of are delaying entry to other established big school to Year One instead of Reception to save substantial fees!

If you are researching for a suitable learning institution for your little precious ones, please look beyond the fees and syllabus. Look to see if you are surrounded by happy faces with cheerful banter from existing learners. If you find light in their eyes and smile on their faces, you cannot be far from finding a suitable school. 

The Other Half and I witnessed these qualities in the students already enrolled going about their school day back in 2012 and we concluded that the right school had found us. They were orderly, polite, radiant from joy within and enthusiastic, amongst other positive qualities. 

We did not overhear anyone using foul language, hang out aimlessly and we still haven't. Doing so would score them demerit points, which is a real deterrent. Trouble makers who do not repent can and will be expelled. The disciplinary process is clearly spelled out from inception so that everyone is on the same page.

Good luck, my lovelies! May the right school finds you too. 

Faith Friday

Have you read your Surah al-Khaf [18:1-110] today?

 I am trying my best to discipline myself to do this every Friday, and read to compare different translations so that I can better understand this Surah. 

What better use of time and place than at the dining hall of The Big School while I wait for early dismissal.

May Allah swt grant me clearer understanding of His message, Amin!

Weekend Worksheets

The honeymoon period is over and we are now blessed with weekend homework which we get every Thursday to be completed over the weekend and handed in every Monday.

The Big School issued "balanced" homework and The Little Girl was so eager to complete them all this evening so that she can "play the whole weekend", masyaAllah! The apple has not dropped far from its tree. The Other Half used to do his homework ahead of class while I used to complete mine on the day they were issued.

I sincerely pray her love for having fun when learning and completing school worksheets and homework will last a lifetime, Amin!

More worksheets and spelling words avalanche to be expected, as we had been cautioned prior to registration. Now, excuse me while I research fun spelling methods. Indeed, Mummy's Tuition Centre is now fully operational. 

In all fairness, the workload is manageable so far. Some pages take 5 minutes to complete while other more complex ones take slightly longer. We spent about 20 minutes 1-1 tonight and managed to strike off quite a few from the checklist.

In sha Allah, we get to play the whole weekend. 

One golden rule: Parent must try not to lose patience or focus during homework time. I find that that The Little Girl is eager after she is showered, changed, fed well with good snack of fruits, rested after a short play session with her Lego blocks and given enough attention. Physiological and emotional needs taken care of first make sense. Less distractions later. 

Praying for my level of patience to be increased by Allah swt. We will be on this journey until 2025!

Snippets: Strength

The Little Girl was offered a cool snack of strawberries and blueberries during the car ride home from The Big School.

She asked me, "Why do we need to fruits, Mummy?". Instead of diving head in to the "we need all nutrients in order to be healthy" and expose myself to another 1001 questions during changing of lanes and not missing our exit, I replied, "To make you sweet on the outside and strong from the inside."

Can you guess her witty comeback line?

"Mummy, I am strong inside out!"

Then she went on to praise how delicious the fruits were and ate everything up. Bless!

SubhanAllah what a cute girl. In sha Allah, yes, you are strong inside out. May Allah swt also shower you with some sweetness, Amin!

Easy Peasy Recipe: Slow Cooker Beef Stew

The slow cooker in my storage is making a comeback to the dry kitchen to ease my worry of insufficient time for making a simple dinner stew.

Why didn't I think of this last week? Lightbulb moment for 3 seconds last night as I was about to sleep. Alhamdulillah with the resolution to cook this today, I slept soundly.

Here's to healthy dinners without the madding rush! In Sha Allah, dinner preparation time can be reduced tonight as I only have the broccoli to parboil, and steamed rice to prepare. Now, I must not forget to press the switch on.

Bon appetit!