Inspiration this month: I hope to let Vee learn from life’s experiences, beyond what books can teach.
Here goes Vee’s progress…
Learning & Communication
- Vee had his first overseas vacation to Perth, and we stayed in a working farm for 1 night. The trip certainly broadened his exposure to geography, nature and animals. Since returning, he has been blabbering about roo-roos (kangaroos), chook-chooks (chickens), trains and buses. Before having Vee, I used to think that bringing young children overseas is a waste of money since they won’t remember the trip years down the road. Now, I think it’s a great opportunity to bring his home learning to life — reading about a kangaroo is entirely different from feeding a REAL kangaroo. And Perth is a fantastic destination for children. Our trip was mostly about nature, hardly any shopping.
- With 2 trips during the past month, we had no Shichida Method‘s classes for 4 weeks! I almost didn’t make any new flashcards and now he gets super-distracted during flashcard sessions at home. In contrast, he was a PERFECT student during class last week. He really missed his sinsei (teacher), lessons and friends. This reinforces my belief that weekly classes are important in getting our learning momentum going.
- He still loves linking memory and we’re at our 4th set, practising with 6 cards each time. (Each set typically consists of 72 cards.) If it’s a familiar picture, he usually gets the position correct.
- While waiting for our return flight at Perth airport, Vee was captivated by this board book, Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell
*. I bought it with our remaining small change. Before this book, Vee has NEVER seen the picture of a camel and I’ve not taught him the word. On our second reading, he actually said “mer-mer” when I paused at the camel’s picture! This little boy is full of surprises…
Motor
- Occasionally, he stands in an inverted “V”, with his head on the floor and attempts to roll over. Gosh… I always try to pull him back in case he makes “forward rolls” a favourite past-time.
- Throughout the week, we’d do a mixture of drawing and water play. Yesterday, instead of water, I gave him some uncooked pastas and red beans to practise his scooping and pouring.
- I’m 90% sure he’s right-handed, as he prefers using his right hand for activities such as threading.
Behaviour & Social Skills
- During Perth, he suddenly started shouting “Ahh!!!” whenever his request isn’t granted. This certainly gets on my nerves. Sometimes, he can go “Ah! Ah! Ahhh!!!!!” Occasionally, he’d even try to hit us! It’s his way of expressing discontentment, which seems absolutely RUDE. To counter this, I tell him to “calm down”, “Shh!”, “be gentle” or say “Please” instead. Lots of patience is needed in dealing with toddlers.
Diet & Feeding
- I tried rubbing a little tofu (soya beancurd) onto his arm and there was no redness. Soon, I’d feed him some and pray that his soy allergy is gone. Egg white is another food he needs to try again too. Eczema, please go away!
Potty Training
- Using prefolds or fitted cloth diapers without any stay-dry layer helps him feel wet in the day. Yet, he can ignore the wetness at times and I need to make him change after every pee.
Sleep
- Technically, he’s sleeping through the night without waking up for milk. However, during the night, he’d always squeeze over to sleep over my chest and disrupt my beauty sleep. Grr… I must find a way to glue his head onto his pillow!
And it’s unbelievable this boy is TWENTY months old and turning TWO in 4 months!
P.S. View more developmental milestones (from 8 months old onwards).
P.P.S. Our latest homeschooling updates are posted at MummysHomeschool.com HERE,
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I agree with the gluing part !LOL congrats, he’s growing up so well 🙂
Happy 20th Month to Vee!
MieVee, you mean we can actually check if baby is allergic to a certain kind of food by rubbing it on their skin?
Vee’s paediatrician taught this to us. If he’s allergenic to the food, the rubbed skin area would probably show rashes after a very short while.
Many months ago, the big rash that broke out around his mouth appeared within seconds of him tasting tofu.
I’m paranoid of getting rashes break around his mouth / face, so we do the skin-rubbing test for “suspicious” new food.
If that clears, then we’d try feeding him a little of the new food.
Yup, congrats to Vee! I agree to the part about taking children overseas, even when they are really young. It’s also a good “break” for the parents, so that there’s a little change in their life besides the kid(s) and work. Think it keeps the romance alive!
Thank you for your comment, The Savvy Mummy. You’re right about parents getting a well-deserved break and keeping the romance alive.
I’ve been reading your blog and looking forward to good news of your baby arriving! 🙂
Hi mievee n a big hello to vee.
Your short description of water play caught my attention. Sounds like alot of fun! How is water play done?
Hihi Jaycee, big hello to you and baby K too! 🙂
Water play is very fun indeed. Feel free to read more at Water Play Tips for Babies and Toddlers (Splish, Splash, Splosh!).
We just bought a water and sand play table from ELC (Mothercare, Bangsar), suitable for 18 months old onwards who can stand and walk around the table to play. For young babies, the bath tub would do fine. Just make sure all safety precautions are taken care of. Have fun! 🙂
hi.. i am really impressed with how you train your on how to fall asleep on his own.. congrates to u!!
Thank you, chow_ai. Ha… we went through very difficult months. I’m glad he finally learnt how to sleep on his own and through the night at 18 months old.