One of these things is not like the other

This photo pretty much sums up our child in a single snapshot. Oh she'll play with her friends-- dress-up, hide-and-seek, catch, etc.-- but when given a choice, Sophie would much rather be in a corner with a book, either by herself or being read to.

The other thing that makes me proud is the fact that unlike her mother, she has pretty good sitting posture :)

COVEmoments

One tradition of the Singapore early education system that I've never really understood is the kindergarten graduation ceremony. Oh, I get that it's a huge deal that the kids are leaving the (relatively) carefree stage of their childhood behind and moving up to formal schooling- it *is* significant and it should be celebrated.

What I don't understand is why it has to involve a whole song-and-dance program, multiple rehearsals, kids in elaborate costumes (that the parents have to pay for and which will ostensibly never get worn again), and thick make-up for all the children involved (girls and boys). Nobody I've spoken to enjoys it-- kids or parents, it's so much work for the poor teachers, and it costs so much more money than is necessary.

So it was with much relief when we found out that at Sophie's daycare, they have no such tradition. This weekend, the whole center celebrated the Kindergarten Two children graduating on to primary school and instead of the usual concert/pageant extravaganza, we all participated in a family games day instead. Even though Sophie's three years away from her own "graduation", she's come to know the children who are graduating this year and it was exciting for her to be celebrating with her friends (even though she only has the vaguest notion of what we were celebrating...)

The families didn't have to cough up a lot of money for the event-- a modest registration fee (which covered a goody bag and lunch) and an event t-shirt that we bought for Sophie which also didn't cost us too much and which I can totally see her wearing again. The whole thing was based on the theme of the Kindergarten Two curriculum this year-- Loving our Planet. Prior to this weekend, families were asked to contribute as much recyclable material as they could so that they could be used during the event's activities. Then we basically spent Saturday morning running around City Square Mall-- Singapore's first Eco Mall-- completing various tasks that involved the recyclable materials like building a tower and replicating the life-cycle of a caterpillar.

Making a giant photo frame from
recyclable materials

Sophie as the head of the "caterpillar"

Every child and parent (even some grandparents) was involved and even though I think many of the younger kids-- Sophie included-- got tired running up and down a mall after about an hour, I think the intentions behind the event were great. We were never bored, we didn't feel like what little money we spent was wasted, and there were so many learning opportunities for all involved, especially the K2s who experienced the culmination of their year's learning in such a wonderful and engaging way. We were really so so happy for them all as they walked up the stage to proudly get their kindergarten certificates at the end of the festivities.

Graduation ceremony

Like I said, it's going to be another three years before it's Sophie's turn. But if this year's event is anything to go by, we will only have a wonderful celebration to look forward to in 2015.

More photos here.

Hammy

Sophie's class at daycare has a pet hamster affectionately and imaginatively named Hammy. The kids take turn to care of it on weekends and this past weekend was Sophie's turn. It happened to be a long weekend so we got to spend an extra day with Hammy so that was nice :)

Being so gentle with Hammy

I have to admit that Jude and I were initially a little trepidatious that something might happen to Hammy while in our care. I can't even keep a cactus alive so you can imagine our anxiety at a real life scampering creature that has actual needs. But Sophie was a most committed caregiver and made sure Hammy got its seeds, fresh water, and change of shower sand every morning.

Taking her responsibility very seriously

She was very very gentle with it and would find every opportunity to run by its cage and give us an update of what Hammy's up to (which usually wasn't very much in the day- it's a more "run around his wheel at 12 in the morning kind of hamster...)- "Look Mama, his eyes are open!"; "Hammy is burrowing under the sawdust!"; "I think Hammy's stinky. He's giving himself a bath."; "Dada, Hammy's running in his gym!"

Laughing at Hammy's antics

There were also many quiet moments when Sophie was content to just sit and watch Hammy, whether it was doing anything or not. I wondered what was going through that little brain of hers as she contemplated this living creature so much smaller than she is.

Just watching...

She was sad to bring Hammy back to school today, but at least she'll still get to see it everyday. It was a wonderful experience for all of us, particularly for Sophie who did such a great job.

Such a good caregiver

Even though Hammy was by no means a demanding animal to care for, Sophie still learned about what it means to take care of a pet, that it's not all fun and cuddles and that it has needs that must be met first. We talked about how different Hammy is from us (he doesn't shower with water, doesn't drink from a cup, and only eats seeds), but also how alike many living creatures are (we both need water and food, and have the same desire to be clean).

Also, we now we know we can ostensibly own a pet and not run the risk of accidentally "misplacing" it... ;)

More pictures here.

Bye bye, Gretchen's House

Big goodbye hug from Harmony

It was a very strange jumble of emotions-- sadness, wistfulness, gratitude, and an odd sort of pride-- as we bade farewell to Gretchen's House this evening. It didn't feel like that long ago when we first visited GH to decide whether or not to send Sophie there, or her first day in the Baby Room 2.5 years ago. It's been her second home since then and she knows the place-- and the people-- pretty much inside out. Sophie knows all the teachers by name, almost all the children in her wing, their siblings, and often, even their parents too! We would choose to send Sophie to GH again if we had to things all over and I really can't think of a better place for Sophie to have spent such a significant part of her life.

Everyone there has taken such wonderful care of her, even if they weren't her primary care givers, and it is obvious that everyone knows her, as in really knows her-- not just her name, but her personality, likes (the Muppets, dinosaurs, sand, and the color purple) and dislikes (spiders, tornadoes, and "scary things"...) And that's where the pride thing comes in. At pick-up today, not only did all the teachers and principal come up to us to say their goodbyes, they were genuinely sad to see Sophie go. Everyone clamored to give her hugs and kisses (sometimes multiple times), some even teared up, and we were made to promise to send emails and photo updates of how Sophie does at her new school in Singapore. Everyone just stood there, morose at having to let her go. And strangely, that was the moment that made us feel that as her parents, we must be doing at least something right. That Sophie's a child people would miss, whose positive presence was something others were sad to see go.

I think a part of Sophie was sad to leave GH. She understood that it's her last day at school; which is why I think she took some time to hang out in the Baby Room, the place where it all started (see here)...

Remembering her time in the Baby Room way back when

But the other part of her also couldn't quite understand what the fuss was all about. Her teachers and I were probably more emotional about the whole thing than she was (I started crying the moment we walked out of GH- ask Jude). Sophie knows we're moving to Singapore, but she also told all her teachers and friends that they'll be moving with us. And that they'll be sleeping in her Singapore school ;) So maybe that's why the real sadness of separation didn't really sink in for her. She was more than happy to receive hugs and kisses from everyone and was free and generous with hers, but whether or not she truly comprehended the profundity of the goodbyes, well, that remains to be seen. Who knows if she might wake up one morning a month from now in our apartment in Singapore and start demanding to see her teachers and friends at GH preschool?...

More photos here.

Bye bye, Erin

Erin with Sophie on the first day of daycare, 19 Jan 2010

Erin with Sophie earlier this month, 5 June 2012

Erin and Sophie today, Erin's last day at Gretchen's House

Today is Sophie's teacher, Erin's last day at Gretchen's House. She's moving to Nebraska so we've actually been swapping notes about our moving woes... Erin's been Sophie's primary caregiver from the very first day Sophie started daycare and the two of them have developed quite the special bond. In fact, if Sophie had it her way, we would 1) stop in Nebraska on our way to Singapore, and 2) take Erin (and the rest of her preschool friends) with us home :) Next to Jude and I, Erin probably knows Sophie the best-- Sophie's likes and dislikes, Sophie's strengths and weaknesses, how she's like when she throws a tantrum, what to do when she gets a boo-boo, etc. And Erin is just such a lovely person to begin with- we really really like her; not just because she's Sophie's teacher, but as a person, she's so fabulous. That she is also an awesome teacher makes us count our blessings everyday. We never worry when Sophie's at daycare because we know she's in good hands and that Erin's around to care for her.

If you ask her, Sophie will tell you that Erin is moving to Nebraska and that she is sad that it's Erin's last day. But I'm not sure if she fully comprehends what that really means. But Jude and I do, and we're genuinely sad. We can only hope to be able to find a caregiver who will take care of Sophie as wonderfully as Erin has...

Today, as part of a project I'm working on for Sophie, I brought our copy of Dr. Suess's Oh, the Places You'll Go! for Erin to write in- just a little message so that Sophie can remember her by in the future.

What she wrote made me cry:

Sophie-
It puts a smile on my face to imagine all the places you'll go. Just think of the places you've been so far-- Chicago, California, Singapore, Ann Arbor... the Muppet Studio (in your imagination!). Just the past few years I've seen you go places. First you were a cute, wiggly baby with an active set of lungs. Then you were a fun, curious toddler. Now you're a smart, thoughtful, creative, hilarious, fun-loving PRESCHOOLER! Your future is wide-open and you're sure to go any place you set your mind to. Some "places" are still a mystery-- will you grow up to be a teacher? Or an actor? Or a firegirl?! Other places are already clear-- you're going to be a thinker. You're going to be a book lover. You're going to have a wonderful sense of humor. Caring for you and seeing you become who you are has been my honor and I can't wait to see you continue to grow, learn, and mature. There's a Sophie-shaped place in my heart that no one else will fill. I know you won't remember me but I hope to have made a positive impression in your life as you have in mine. I wish you all the best in all the places you go and I love you very much Sophie Yew. Much love,
Erin

Bye bye, Erin. We miss you already :(

Up!!

Sophie woke up at 6.30 this morning-- almost a full hour before she usually does; she barely touched the breakfast she specifically asked for (apple-cinnamon oatmeal); and she hardly said a word on our drive to school when she's usually hyper-chatty. Had we made any sudden movements around her, she probably would have spontaneously combust from all the excitement she was containing.

Today, Sophie starts preschool :)

Preschooool!!

Going to preschool has basically been all she's talked about for the past 6 months and we're glad she'll get to experience it, even if it's just for a month before we leave. It's basically been the motivating force behind getting her to potty-train and move out of her crib. And over the weekend, the only way we could get her to do anything-- eat her vegetables, pick up after herself, come home from the sandbox, etc.-- was to remind her about preschool on Monday.

It's not like things are going to be very different for Sophie in preschool- the preschool classroom keeps pretty much the same schedule and it's in the room just next to hers right now. Their use of time is probably a little more structured and there's likely to be a tad more learning that goes on, but in general, I don't think it'll be a huge transition for her. She'll have new teachers but again, they're all in the same wing so she knows who they are already (also, being the nosey girl that she is and having been at her daycare since she was 6 months old, she knows EVERYONE and they all know her...) But in spite of this all, as far as Sophie's concerned, preschool might as well be in a different country. Oh, and then of course, there's the fact that the preschoolers have their own playground that they don't have to share with the smaller kids. I remember seeing a boat structure in there but was sternly corrected by Sophie this morning- "It's a ship, Mama. It's not a boat. It's HUUUUUUGE!"

Because this is the first week of transitions, Sophie has the option of returning to her toddler classroom after lunch in case she gets anxious about the new surroundings. I told her toddler teachers not to hold their breath... :)

Random daycare daily report #31

Showing us the painting she made for us 

This morning, Sophie made you a beautiful work of art (although for now, it's hanging on our wall). She was making a sponge painting and saying, "I'm making this for my Mama and Dada." Wesley asked, "Why?" and Sophie replied, "Because they always love what I make." :)

Random daycare daily report #30

Our daughter, the firetruck groupie...

The firetruck visits daycare!

You were right, Sophie was pretty thrilled about the fire truck visit. The kids were a little nervous that the siren might sound, but Sophie wasn't going to let that slow her down. Before we left the room, she slapped on a set of headphones, just in case, and she was good to go. When the firefighter asked if anyone wanted to get in the truck, most of the kids said no and scooted away. But not Sophie. She said, "I do!" and let the firefighter pick her up and put her on the truck :)

Random daycare daily report #29

Sophie's Mothers' Day present to me from daycare

Sophie had a terrific day. This morning, she wanted me to rock her like a baby. It doesn't seem like that long ago that I *was* rocking her to sleep. Sophie loves for me to tell her stories about when she was in the baby room and I love that I've known her long enough that I can tell her those stories :) Have a wonderful Mothers' Day. You have one fantastic kid!

Random daycare daily report #28

Sophie is really excited for the month of June. She keeps telling me that Dada's birthday is in June, then she will go to Preschool. Sophie also informs me that on Dada's birthday, she will have to help him blow out the candles because there will be [arms thrown out wide] "sooooooooooo many!"

Jude's birthday in 2010

Toddler problem solving

The problem that Sophie and her friend, Conor, encountered at daycare today:
How to get onto the tire swing all by themselves? (because clearly, toddlers are fully independent creatures who require no assistance from anyone)

Solution:
1) Work together
2) Find crate to prop themselves up
3) Realize that said crate is too high to get up as well
4) Gather more crates and build a row of them to the slide so that the slide handle can be used as an assist up the crates



Honestly, when their teachers told us what Sophie and Conor had done, we could barely believe it; but when we saw the structure for ourselves and also how proud the two of them were of their accomplishment, that incredulity turned into a profound sense of pride :) According to the teachers, they worked really hard at it and it took them a while to put everything together all by themselves. Apart from being so very very proud of her ingenuity and thoughtfulness, we also appreciate that the teachers allowed them to explore their own solution without 1) stopping them from "making a mess" or 2) solving the problem for them.

Oh, and even better, Sophie managed to do it all without losing her balance or her hat! :)

Random daycare daily report #27

The Threadless t-shirt that Sophie wore to school today

At snack today, Sophie was trying to explain to all her friends about her shirt. She said, "The dinosaur is using the bus as a rollerskate and the people are all falling out." Payton said, "Oooo, that's scary." Sophie just looked at Payton and said, "It's not scary, Payton. It's funny." I think maybe Sophie was annoyed that her friends didn't "get" her shirt :) I get it, though, and I think it's hilarious!"

Random daycare daily report #26

Our little imp at daycare

For art today we made a collage of pictures of our favorite places. I thought I was prepared with the pictures of Singapore, the Hands-on-Museum, and California. But as we got started, Sophie looked up at me and said, "Where is the Muppet Studio?" How could I forget?! So I printed some pictures of the Muppet Studio and Sophie had a great time putting all her favorite places together in one place :)

Random daycare daily report #24

Walking hand in hand with her friends to Olson Park

Sophie had a blast at Olson Park today. We walked there and right as we were approaching the park, Sophie said, "Oh, I am so tired. We have walked so far!" Once she saw the park though, she regained her energy and had a great time!

Doing a Cirque du Soleil despite being "so tired"

Random daycare daily report #23

Pretending to cook at daycare

Sophie is my kind of chef. This morning, she was pretending to make everyone hotdogs. She brought me mine and I asked her what was on my hotdog. Without hesitation, she said, "Gummi bears and all sorts of things, ok?" :) I do love hotdogs and gummi bears. I'd just never considered them together!

Random daycare daily report #22

One of our favorite photos of Sophie during our trip

Sophie is still so proud of her trip to Singapore. Today, a parent was saying to Lucy, "Lucy, you're a big sister now?" and Sophie came running over and saying, "I went to Singapore!" Also, all of her friends take pretend trips to Singapore together. I even heard someone say they wanted to play "Singapore" today. What a sensation our little jet-setter has started! :)

Incidentally, yesterday, as we were picking Sophie up, one of her classmates' mom said to us, "Payton's been wanting to take a helicopter to Singapore. We've had to explain to her that we're probably not going to take a trip to Singapore any time soon..."

Random daycare daily report #21

Sophie with Erin on her first day of daycare almost two years ago

Sometimes, Sophie just melts my heart. I returned from my lunch break today and Sophie yelled, "Erin's back!" like she hadn't seen me in months :) Then Sophie came up to me and said, "We love you so much, Erin." What a great feeling! I must say, the feeling is mutual too :)

Random daycare daily report #20

I've never seen a child more excited about playing in the snow than Sophie was today. All morning long, she kept going over and trying to put her snow boots on. Then we were finally getting ready to put on snow clothes, we had a hard time convincing Sophie that her boots has to go on last. She was excited about those boots! :)

Incidentally, at drop-off this morning, Sophie basically burst into her classroom and shouted out loud, "ARE WE GOING SLEDDING??!!" I guess they sort of did :)

Random daily daycare report #19

1. Spreading the sauce, 2. Yay Erin!, 3. Erin flipping the pizza dough!, 4. Helping to slice peppers

Sophie was so excited to make pizza this morning. She spent a long time cutting up green peppers and mushrooms. Then she helped spread the sauce and sprinkle the toppings. She was very proud of her work and was excited to share her pizza creation with the other classes :)

What a difference a year makes...

Earlier last month, I posted something about how stoked Sophie was for Picture Day at school. Considering the catastrophic FAIL that was last year's class photo, we were just holding our breaths that this year's would turn out at least half decent so we can frame a couple up for the grandparents.

Fortunately, thanks to the excitement drummed up by her teachers and her heightened familiarity with cameras thrust into her face (thanks to the bigillion photos her parents take of her), this year's photo was a resounding success. Have you seen a child more happy and adorable? No. No, you haven't.



Oh, and about that picture from last year... See for yourself.