Keira's Raya Playdates

When you're expecting and currently at the end of your third trimester, it's not easy to set up playdates these days with friends and their kids. 

Best way to go around that difficulty it is to link it up with other festive occasions, like Hari Raya, for example. Which is exactly what we did today... For this year's Raya Aidilfitri celebration, we had two-in-one playdates set up so that the adults can catch up while the kiddos played.

Bella and her parents arrived first, so they kicked off the playdate. Bella and Keira are about eight months apart, but they have been playing together since she was a few months old ever since their first playdate. Hence, they already share an instant bond and enjoy each other's company, as you can see from the video and photos below.

 

Kieran, Kaira and their parents arrived a little later to continue the playdate with Keira. They too share instant bonds with Keira since they meet regularly and are familiar with each other.

 

Keira Learns To Match Shapes

Keira never fails to amaze us day by day with her learning development.

No one officially taught her about shapes, and yet, she knows how to match the shapes through learning from her educational toys and probably time spent doing online learning on mommy's tab. 

I guess she figured she has had enough practice on her own with the shapes and, earlier this week, decided that she was ready to reveal to us her new self-taught skill. 

Isn't our two-year-old toddler just awesome!?!

Balls! Balls! Balls!

Our little Keira loves playing with balls!!! Big and small. Clutch them. Roll them. Throw them. Bounce them. Catch them. Kick them. Whatever it is; she can do it all! 

She even knows how to dribble the ball - and the right technique too!!! Although, she could do with a little more practice on her catching.

She has not turned 2 years old, and she yet seriously kicks a ball better than boys her age or older. She has such strong legs and technique. Must be inherited from her daddy and influenced by the football matches she tunes in to with daddy.

From the age of 6 months, when she hears the word "Goal!" or watches a football match on TV, her leg immediately strikes out a kick or two. Cognitive conditioning at it's best! 

Even till today... Don't believe me? Need proof? Watch this video...

Not to mention, at her toddling age, she is already a pro in dribbling!!! And why shouldn't she? She already gets plenty of of practice daily as kicking and dribbling is her favorite playtime activity :)

Looks like my little girl can be a striker!... I foresee after-school "soccer mommy" duties in the near future for me! Yippee!!! :)

Although, I also make sure she learns during playtime and use the balls as bait (since the interest is there).

Here are some of the "learning with balls" activities we enforce on our little toddler during playtime:

• Use different colored balls to reinforce the colors when you throw/kick it.
• The understanding of size and texture. eg. big, medium, small, biggest, smallest or hard, soft, smooth, rough etc.
• Counting with every bounce, throw or kick.
• Understanding the concept of words like in, on, through, up, down, next to, in front, behind, top, bottom while doing different activities with other items including baskets, cups, hoops etc.

What about you? What are some of the fun ways you teach your child to learn with balls?

Keira Scribbles

The past two months, all Keira wants to do is grab a pen or pencil that's laying around and scribble!!! Yes - scribble, scribble, scribble...

Although, I'm thankful that she does not draw on walls or the flooring or any other surface. She looks for paper and draws on paper - any paper she can find, whether it's a plain white paper or a namecard or a newspaper. 

Such a thoughtful little darling ain't she for not scribbling on the walls or floor! :) Nevertheless, my concern is still the fact that at her age, holding a pen and pencil would be much too dangerous so both Kevin and i are extra careful these days on where we leave our pens and pencils at home.

I did the next best thing... Went to the store the other day to buy toddler-friendly giant crayons and a drawing block so that my little girl may experiment with colors and expand her creativity. She LOVES it as the crayon is much easier for her to grasp in her hand and swirl around to scribble. And she holds not one, but multiple crayons at a time as well.

She takes the drawing block and crayons on the bed or on the floor (practically anywhere and everywhere!) with her, and while watching her favorite shows she scribbles to her heart's content until she tires out... Oooh, I can't wait to get her started on painting soon! :)

Playtime With Her Reflection

It does not matter where we are and what time it is... even at the shopping mall doing last minute shopping... the moment our little munchkin, Keira Eliza Lee, spots a mirror (and I mean, any mirror of any size), it's time of fun for her and her reflection!!!

Reflections of Keira!

Keira has always been fascinated with her own reflection, but today, it's slightly different...  She sees more than one, and she has four times the fun!!!!

 

 

Bella's 2nd Birthday

Keira was invited to her good friend, Bella's 2nd birthday party held at their home earlier today. 

Yes, at 1 year plus, she already has her little friends and receives party invitations :)

There were many other kids at the party too of course, but she zoomed in on the "white-looking" boy that was much older than her (apparently later on, I found out that the boy is the nephew of our 8th time ladies squash world champion.

 

Not shy at all anak dara Kevin Lee ni. Sebiji taste mak dia! She definitely knows what she wants - and just she wants to play with boys! Haha, Kevin Lee - daddy, oh, daddy, I'm sure you'll be watching her very, very closely now, won'cha?

To Jumperoo Or Not To Jumperoo?

I have heard many friends (who became mothers before me) and also expert physical therapists say over and over again that jumperoos (similarly, walkers and other baby items), are unsafe and not good for babies development. They apparently place too much weight on babies legs, the crotch-support seats isn't good for the hips... blah, blah, blah, blah, blah...  there's always some reason why something is not good, isn't there? Still, the fact remains that such items are still legally sold and there are parents who swear by them.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinions and Kevin and I are not one to be swayed by other people's opinions. We never have, and we never will. We listen to what people have to say and their opinions, then do our research and form our own opinions and decide wisely on what is or is not good for our child. What anyone else thinks about our decision is utterly irrelevant.

On that note - Keira got a new toy (thanks to the aunties and uncles at Khazhanah who contributed money to buy the specific Fisher Price Rainforest Jumperoo we had our eye on but could not find in Penang, among other gifts), and she ABSOLUTELY LOVES IT! 

We love it too because it clearly makes her very, very happy. Doesn't she look happy in her first ever jumperoo experience? Jump, Keira, jump! A happy baby makes for happy parents! :)

We are not irresponsible parents - we do not use such toys as opportunities to leave our baby on the all day long, and neither do we start her on it too early on it (best to start babies on it when they are is more stable - we started Keira on it at 6 months old) or leave her on it for too long. 

Either Kevin, my mom or myself will keep a watchful eye every second she is on it and keep her company while she plays and enjoys her jumperoo time (usually not longer than 20 mins per playtime). 

 

We never leave her alone on it, cos we don't see it as a product of convenience. It's a purchase of fun and excitement for our baby to enjoy and we want her know that we also want to be involved in the process as we clap, cheer and sing along to her jumps and laughter.

In case you too decide that you want to purchase a jumperoo for your little one (and you should consider it!), here are some tips to ensure you maximize your baby's safety while using it:

• Place it on a flat leveled surface; do not place it near staircases, pools or other hazardous areas.
• Keep the floor clear of share or pointy objects that your baby can jump on.
• Do not attach additional toys with strings to the product as they are possible strangulation hazard.
• Take note of the weights and height limit of the product and make sure to stop using the product once your baby reaches/exceeds the weight and height limit.
• Do not leave your baby with the product unsupervised.
• Stop using the jumperoo once baby starts learns to stand and walk.

Yes, the tips and safety concerns listed above do come down to plain common sense, but sometimes people need to be reminded of them... don't you agree?

Keira and Bella's Express Playdate

Yu Li and I have been talking about setting up playdates for months since we had our little girls. We both live on the same island, but why is it so hard to fix a day/time for it?

Finally, last week, we decided we really need to make it happen! 

Kevin and I were already headed out to Ferringhi area this weekend anyways with Keira, so earlier today, on the way to Ferringhi, we made a pit stop at Yu Li's home so that our little girls can have a quick first playdate.

Keira is just 6 months old, and Bella (Yu Li's little girl) is slightly a little older than her. Hence, there's not much moving around expected of the two since both are still learning to sit properly and walk, and Keira has not really mastered sitting up on her own yet. 

So, into the playpen you both go as the mommies catch up and watch the two babies form a connection.

Bella took the lead as they played "doctor and patient", so it seemed :) Keira was contented to just lie there on the pillow as a patient and have her pulse, ears and other body parts examined by the doc.