Sophie sells lemonade

And perfects the art of bargaining... Although I have to say, $3 from $15- we got a pretty good deal on our part :)

*sniff*

We leave Ann Arbor in a week and to say goodbye, I made this video to remember our 9 years here. It was wonderful going through hundreds of photos to put this together, but it was also bittersweet, reliving memories and thinking about how much we're going to miss everyone and everything we've held dear over the years.

Thanks, Ann Arbor- you've been great to us...


Goodbye, Michigan from serene koh on Vimeo.

Exhilaration

Part of me was a little afraid that a year later, Sophie wouldn't enjoy the carnival as much as she did when it rolled into town last year. I was worried that being a year old and more aware of her emotions and anxieties, that she might be a little more apprehensive of the different sensory experiences of the rides and the carnival itself.

I was wrong :)

[Click to watch a flying spin ride as experienced by an almost three-year-old]

Weekend

So I found myself-- last night-- torn between: 1) watching the Oscars (which ended up being a bit of a snooze fest- not the most exciting ceremony I've seen since I started watching almost 20 years ago now) and 2) baking a cake for Sophie for breakfast. Yes, that's the kind of mother I am, the kind who feeds her toddler dessert at 8.00 in the morning. Well, if your toddler had pooped in the potty the night before (to much fanfare, no less), you would be baking up a buffet of treats too :)

Chocolate cake for breakfast, as promised

Yup- so it would seem that it wasn't a fluke after all- Sophie had her first (almost) diaper-free weekend, and I'm happy to say that it went really well. We did everything we'd normally do-- went to the library, ran errands, sledded, did a Target run-- all without diapers and happily, there were no accidents. The whole constantly asking if she needed to potty thing took some getting used to but after a while, we learned to trust her to tell us when she needs to go. She still wears her diapers during nap and bedtime and we're still working on her going diaper-free at daycare, but it's nice to know she's on her way.

To add to an already exciting weekend, we also decided to introduce Sophie to the wonderful world of chopsticks. She's always curious when she watches us eat with them and since she was feeling so proud of herself for accomplishing so much this weekend, we thought to just throw something else into the mix. We had bought a pair of training chopsticks from Singapore and I have to say, these are rather well designed. There's a training bridge to help the child hold the chopsticks properly by using the thumb and eventually, when he/she is ready, you can then remove the support. I actually don't think either Jude or I hold chopsticks "properly"- my grandma used to tell me off when I was a kid. Hopefully, Sophie will have better chopstick manners, although looking at her first attempt, I'm not holding my breath (not in the near future anyway...)

[Watch how by the end, she settles on a more efficient means of delivering food into her mouth. Nothing-- eating implements included-- must get in between Sophie Yew and her food :)]

Sounds of laughter, shades of life

Sometimes, I look at Sophie and I think, I can't possibly love this child anymore than I do right now.

And then, the next moment I realize, I can.



We will laugh together like this until I'm an old, old woman.

恭喜恭喜 everybody!

Sophie wishes everyone a happy lunar new year from frosty Ann Arbor! She may not have any idea what she's missing, but her Mama and Dada sure are missing those pineapple tarts and kueh bangkits!

Sophie reads Madeline

In an old house in Paris, that was covered in vines
Lived twelve little girls in two straight lines
In two straight lines, they broke their bread,
And brushed their teeth (and went to bed)
...
And the smallest one was Madeline
She was not afraid of mice,
She loved winter, snow, and ice
To the tiger in the zoo,
Madeline just said, "Pooh-pooh!

The Flip!

It snowed today. Yup, first snowfall of the season. Brilliant.

And just in time for that, guess what skill Sophie learned at daycare today?



Our daughter is officially the coolest person in this house.

Herman the Worm

Having a sister who's 17 years younger than you (and therefore spending pretty much most of my late adolescence and early adulthood babysitting her), and teaching Sunday School for six years and preschool for a little more than two, I'd like to think that I have a fairly extensive repertoire of children's songs and rhymes.

Then, moments like this come along to prove otherwise:



Sophie randomly broke out into this song after dinner and I had NO clue what she was singing/saying. I was giggling so hard at her enthusiastic rendition (you don't hear me in the video because literally, this was the fourth time she was at it- I was still grinning from ear to ear though...) plus you have to admit, she looks so darn precious singing it (channeling Debbie Gibson/ Tiffany circa 1988 with that side pony-tail), so I had no choice but to look the song up online:

Herman the Worm

I'm sittin' on the fence post,
Chewin' my bubblegum (make chewing sound)
Playin' with my yo-yo (do-whap, do-whap)
When along came Herman the Worm
And he was this big
And I said "Herman, what happened?"

According to the various websites, there's more to the song, but it involves Herman eating all manner of things ranging from a ladybug to his own sister (??!!) so maybe Sophie's daycare-- which is the only place she could have learned this- stopped where they did to avoid the macabre aspects of Herman's genocidal tendencies...

How to get to Sesame Street

Cantaloupe love

Thirteen months ago, Sophie discovered how to use a fork and began her love affair with cantaloupe:



It has turned into an enduring love...



It's so lovely that even though she's grown so much in 13 months, so much of her still remains the same... Oh sweet, sweet child :)

Do you need some Vitamin D today?

Here you go...

 

 And, you're welcome :)

Things that make me ache for home

Missing out on moments like this.

A bowl of bak chor mee.

Long bus-rides around the island- going nowhere, seeing everything.

Durians.

Friends who knew me when I had braces, permed hair, and/or bangs...

My inexplicable enthusiasm for Cook-a-Curry Day this Sunday, even if we are participating from afar.

Parkway Parade.

This.

‎"The landscape you grow up in speaks to you in a way that nowhere else does." -Molly Parker

What happens in 23 months

Sophie turns 2 in a month.

For some perspective, here's the first video we ever took of her, barely a week after she was born:



And here, countless photos and videos later, is Sophie last week, dancing at Top of the Park:



How did that happen??

Have you ever wondered how a monster sings "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"?

Wonder no more...

"Oh elephaaaaant!"

Sophie's been singing a lot lately. A lot. And anywhere and everywhere- in the car, in the shopping cart, in the middle of dinner, brushing her teeth (yes...), as she's falling asleep, etc. Sometimes it's because I start singing and she sings along but lately, it's more her bursting into a spontaneous tune, and into songs I had no idea she knows.

Like this weekend- we had just driven by the fire station near our house (it doesn't matter where we're driving to or coming back from- we *have* to drive by the fire station each time) and were doing this thing where we pretend to look for different vehicles. I didn't want Jude to miss it and took out my phone thinking I'd just be capturing her playing the game. Then out of no where, Sophie's starts singing her version of "Three Elephants Went Out to Play". They probably sing it a lot in school but I had no clue. Which is why I was so tickled! I'm also floored by the fact that it comes with hand gestures and varying pitch :)



[It's a little soft at parts so here's a rough transcript]

Sophie: Car, where are you? Looking for you...
Me: Who's looking for you?
Sophie: Firetruck looking to you.
Me: Is Sophie looking...
Sophie: Oh elephaaaaant... here he comes, here he comes. Shhh... Listen.
Me: Listen. What?
Sophie: Here he comes!!
Me: Here he comes!!
Sophie: Three elephants went out to play. On a sunny day... Oh elephaaaaant... Here he comes.
Me: Here he comes.
Sophie: Shhh.... Excited. Listen.
Me: Excited. Five elephants went out to...
Sophie: Play. Shhh... Here he comes.
Me: Here he comes.
Sophie: [beautiful smile]

I hope this makes your day, because two days later, it's still making mine :)

Happy birthday, Dada!

It's hard that we're not celebrating your birthday with you but it helps to know that you'll be back tomorrow! We miss you and love you!

Richard Simmons would be proud

Why is it that our daughter can dutifully-- and happily-- follow the instructions of her favorite PBS characters, but when we ask her to do something-- like clean up her toys-- she pretends she doesn't understand us?

Surprise!

We are available for all your surprise party events at a reasonable hourly rate. Reliability and timing of the talent cannot be guaranteed. Payment in pretzel sticks expected at point of arrival, set-up, and departure. Please note: services are non-refundable.

Ride Sophie Ride

We don't take Sophie to the mall very often- for one, her Mama and Dada prefer online shopping in their PJs from the comfort of the couch, and two, there isn't anything at the mall that vaguely interests her. Until now...

So I had to bring my laptop in for servicing last weekend and brought Sophie along because Jude needed some time to grade. She was on her best behavior at the Apple Store and sat quietly waiting while I got my stuff done (Ok, so it helped that she was sitting in front of a ginormous iMac that was playing a Winnie-the-Pooh story...)As a treat, I decided to take her to the kiddie area where they have a large play space and several of those coin-operated rides. Sophie had never been on one before and had no idea how it works. So I put her in one of them just for fun, not intending on putting any money into it at all, and she was perfectly happy. But then a little boy came by with his mom who looked like she was more than ready to throw in 4 quarters just so she could have a minute of peace to herself and I didn't want to be that party-pooper lady who yanks her daughter off a ride the moment another child comes along. So I let Sophie stay on to see what would happen.



Let's just say for a whole hour after, all that came out from Sophie's mouth in various permutations was Mama put money, ring-o-round-a-rosie (the song that was playing), coins, Mama waving, round and round, Sophie driving, and Sophie choo choo.

Oh, and did I mention that she sat in it two more times after?...