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Chores & Kids

Despite what you may think – kids needs to know she plays a very important role in her family and does great things for her perception of herself – when she helps with the chores. As for us, we started Chloe really young with her chores – we feel that it’s never too early to get her to pick up her own toys and pack up the study room before going to bed or bathing. We feel that when we hand responsibilities over to her – bit by bit, as she grows into them, she becomes independent, confident and kind. Whether she is at home, at a playdate’s house or even her grammie’s she never leaves without packing up her toys – and throwing her garbage away. Having said all the above, I wanna tell you, she has her moments too – where she would questioned why she needs to do this or that – so as parents – we calmly tell her that our home policy is – she can do anything with her toys – but when she is done with it – it’s her responsibility to clean them up.

Of course, cleaning up her own toys isn’t the only thing that Chloe does – we give her a little bit here and there and for example – when i am cooking – I asked her to help get my oyster sauce or ketchup or noodles or rice – you know stuff – little stuff that she can handle. So cleaning is not the ultimate chore – chores need to be fun too! And don’t forget to thank your kid when they’ve helped out – no matter how small they are.

Some parents might think – it’s way faster if our kids is outta our way – but slow down a minute parents – because doing chores together is a way for bonding – whether it is for the father and kid or mother and kid. Trust me – i’ve put PB and Chloe to task – and they work together so well and the bonding was priceless. Parents have to remember – chores for your kids is not only he/she cleaning up right – it’s about the act of doing it – it’s about teaching responsibilities. You try it ! and let me know.

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Discipling My 6 Yrs Old

Discipline NOW! is my strategy! As good as I wanna think Chloe is – she can be a brat at times. In fact – she can be pretty sassy – and tell you stuff like ” Oh no! you don’t !” when we threatened to take away something from her if she was misbehaving. At other times, she can be so rough – she can caused us a joint pain if we ain’t careful – because she is all over us and wants to be piggy backed or carried.

We take the coach approach with Chloe with what and how she can help us or her friends reach their goals. When something happened – whether in school or in a playgroup – we listen first and empathize – we do not interrupt her and after she have had enough of whining about it – we ask her “what could she do differently the next time?” – our goal is to help her learn from mistakes she made this time so she can do better the next time. But of course, it’s easier said than done – because she never wants to be wrong – so we have to use our words carefully.

But discipline is never easy, so whenever Chloe makes a mistake, we try to give her a second chance and explain what she has done wrong and remind her of the behavior we’d like to see. And of course, as parents – you have to give credit when credit is due – so don’t forget to pat her on her shoulder now – when she does it right. Cause and effect – is what we teach Chloe. Instead of revoking tv time in the night because she is late for school – we move our tv time earlier – that way it’s a win-win situation and the best consequences are the ones whereby Chloe learns something from it.

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I’m 45 !

So I turned 45 today ! a good friend from home asked me so how do I feel at 45? I had joked that I will be needing some age spot removal really soon – hahah!! and I sat back tonite and thought a little about what i did 20 yrs ago – and what were the difference. Well, 20 yrs ago – i just started out working in the hotel industry – i just came back from a very challenging 6 months 10 days experience at boot camp for my new job. I was recruited to become Management Trainee. Little did i know that less than 2 yrs – i would be in the position to head a department. It was exhilarating – i was working a good 16 hrs a day – and less than 6 months later – i was transferred to the global division and headed out with a Task Force to build hotels – around the Asia Pacific Region.

Yes, ! i traveled lots – met lots of friends and went to lots of parties – went to a lot of site inspections and had lots of hotel connections or insiders discount. But 20 yrs later – all those hotel friends – are still in the hotel – some are still the Chef Concierge and some have branched out to become Executive Chefs for other establishment. But what I’m trying to say is – while I’ve moved out of the hotel industry – worked for a foreign firm in Spain and lost all contacts with these people – because I could never put in the kind of dedication of 16 hrs a day work away from home.

I don’t party anymore – i don’t travel anymore – I still work a lot but very close the my daughter and my spouse but I have no regrets. If I had to turn the clock back – would I have done it differently? No – my daughter is priceless – had i not given up my life back home – i would never have had her. As i grow older and celebrate my quiet birthday every year – each year becomes more meaningful because of my family here and my online friends. I can boldly say that my online friends have more “heart” than those that i’ve gone thru’ thick and thins with when I was in the hotel industry. Just like this gift sent on my birthday – arrived all the way from the States but coming from my daughter’s Kai Mah – it’s not only the gift.. it’s the thought behind the gift – that I truly appreciate and am touched. You all know who you are .. and you all make my life and me a better person. Thank you for making my 45th birthday a great one!

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What Makes A Great Dad

We came home from work today – and chloe announced that PB is a good dad. So i asked her why – she thought PB is a good dad – in which she replied – that PB had gotten her paper aeroplane from behind the tv. So I said to her – “oh – so that’s why he is a good day? you mean if he didn’t get you the paper aeroplane – he isn’t a good dad?” She replied – “nooo.. ! he buys us food – make money for us, cook, bathe me and read to me” In which PB replied – “she is a smart girl” hahaha!! And yes, he would buy the kid a spirometer if she needed one “touch wood”

But yes ! what makes a good dad? during our father’s and forefather’s time, one could never imagine a dad doing so many things for their kid – moreso, Chloe is a gal. Time has changed and more and more dad plays a more important role in their kid’s life and do a lot more. I read on my friend’s blog the other day how she felt she was a unfit mother. We all know that Dads will never feel like that because they never beat themselves up over anything like we moms do. We are constantly worrying – constantly at our kid’s beck and call – but time has changed and it’s up to us women to ask for help. Do not be shy – do not beat yourself up if you need help. Do not beat yourself up if you are tired – or stress or need to scream – you are only human. Men who refuses to morally support the wife are just being stuck in the dark ages – and are just asking for more domestic trouble and emotional breakdown. Women are such sensitive creatures and may i add “mad”and “unreasonable” at times. A little help – a little hug- a little encouragement will definitely go a long way. But women!! make sure you ask for help – women who don’t wanna open their golden mouth or feel inadequate because you need help – are just asking to be sent to Woodbridge aka mental hospital.

In any relationship – it’s an uphill task – it’s important that both party spend time talking – it’s important that men try and understand their wives and wives try and tell the husbands nicely what they actually want done today or this week – he ain’t no mind-reader – we all know that men don’t like to play games. So the moral of my story is – no one is an unfit parents – we all have to work hard to be good parents – we all love our kids and wives (if you don’t then stop reading). So a medium – a balance is important. Your say now.

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Terrible 6

So we were invited to our neighbor’s kid birthday like a few weeks ago at the bowling alley and here we thought – ahhhh.. it was gonna be a breeze. Afterall, the bowling alley is a familiar place and the lil’ brat is great with the neighbor’s kids too – and our dear friend works there – so what could go wrong right..?? Well, it was a Black Friday scene once again ! Yes ! the brat had a meltdown – and here we thought, we had it good – while the rest of the world – saw the terrible twos or threes in their kids – we didn’t see any. But is there such a thing as the terrible 6?

Like i said.. we had it easy for the longest time ever – no tantrums in the public nor any misbehaving. But she didnt’ wanna wait her turn to bowl – also because she didn’t know any of the kids there – but that’s no excuse right? So what do you do .. in order not to disrupt the birthday party? I don’t know about other parents – but i got our friend to open another lane for the lil’ brat .. so she could roll the bowling ball till her heart’s content.

But she certainly wasn’t let off easy when she got home – because as soon as she got home – we sat her down to explain to her that her behavior was bad and whey she had to share with others – so the story goes on. We also told her that we won’t be doing the same the next time she goes for another party at the bowling alley and if she fussed the way she did – she was going straight home and no more birthday parties. She said she understood – so we’ll see. So anyone has the terrible 6s ?? The Joy of Parenthood!! YAY!

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Picky Eaters

So I was asked are picky eaters born or brought up to be one? We were invited to a birthday party today – and as usual – as m uch as the kid loves to go to parties – she refuses to eat anything at the party. Usually the parents would have fruits, pizza and pop for the party – even during chloe’s own birthday party – we had pizzas, chicken wings, fruits, chips but as usual – she won’t eat them.

The expert said that picky eaters are raised that way because of their parents but I can tell you that’s not true – in our household. We’ve encouraged and asked her to try everything and even bribe her to try new food – but nope – no way even if her life depended on it. So when I read on Parents Today while looking at some term life insurance quotes that picky eaters were made to be one – I cannot but shake my head – if only they knew how we’ve tried all ways to get Chloe to try all sorts of food. *sigh* – so for those parents like myself – don’t feel bad when you read the same article – i know it .. and you know it.

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Chick Flick & Women

I came to a conclusion last nite about why women love their chick flicks – haha! now, now – i know what you are thinking – women just loves it – no reason/s – but there ISsssss..! it’s all because of our men! hahha!! i know what the men are gonna say – blame it on the men again ! hahahah!!! but it’s true – the reason why we women love the chick flick is because we are not getting enough romantic encounters from our own men – so we look into other ppl’s life – even though they are only a show – and may not be true – it’s ok to dream about it eh. Likewise – why some ppl would wear casually and others insist on branded clothings and handbags but some are comfy with urban clothes because they are just those who are pretty confident – it is what you want that you don’t have so you watch or wear them. Food for thought eh.

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A Kid Who Is Nervous About School

So March break is over and school started on Monday – unfortunately, Chloe didn’t go back to school because she had a fever on Sunday and we kept her in on Monday and Tuesday as well – just so she doesn’t pass anything to her school friends. How you wished all parents are like that eh..?? yes, we are thankful we work for ourselves that way we can always schedule our time and take care of Chloe whenever we can. But having said that we are so busy – we don’t even have time for zit remedies and sometimes a shower – why? because the kid is full of nerves going to her new school.

Seriously, we do not know why she is nervous about her new school – which actually isn’t new because she started out in this school in French immersion. Anyhow – what do you do with a nervous kid ? We have to stay calm and tell her that if she still doesn’t feel well – when she arrives at school grounds we will take her home. But as soon as she got to school, she didn’t complain no more about a painful tummy. I am keeping my fingers cross here – i know chloe is a very sensitive kid – and i feel she does remember what happened during her first year in this school. I keep telling myself .. 3 more months.. 3 more months.

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Teach Them The Value Of Money

I don’t know if you know this – PB just exchanged his aeroplan miles for a 52″ plasma tv. I would never have agreed to pay cash for it – and he knows better. So when he told me he was gonna use his aeroplan miles for it – i didn’t say a word but thank God that he was sensible enough not to overspend. For if it was up to me – i would never have bought anything fancy – a tv is a tv to me – just like buying the best vitamins for men – pretty straight forward.

Anyhow – PB had been searching for a tv stand for this new plasma tv – of course! and he was trying to convince me that he was trying to get one at a reasonable price. After months of searching – he finally bought one from Skytec at a pretty reasonable price and he had put it up himself the other day. Chloe came home from her grandparents and as soon as she saw the new tv stand asked her dad how much it was..?? and if it was orange tag.. muahahahhaha!!!! you see we taught the kid that we never buy anything that wasn’t discounted. I didn’t mind telling our kid that i was a pretty el cheapo person – but moreso – we wanna teach the kid the value of money and that money doesn’t grow on trees – even though her Uncle Richard would beg to differ since he put money on a tree in a huge card for the kid one Christmas.. hahahah!! So teach them young and teach them well – else trouble lies ahead.

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Things You Should Know Before Migrating

Canada is a great place to be if you are migrating – moreso, if you are a someone who has money and coming to Canada to start your own business. The government is very generous with their money – and medical is free here once you become a permanent resident. There are many things you can get here that I can get from home too like diet pill for women but before you migrate – just make sure you know where you are migrating to. Why? because i missed the convenience of having a food court a few feet away from home and of course food from home that I can’t even get unless I wanna drive 8 hrs to and fro to the city.

The winters are harsh in Canada and the summer is short – and if you are thinking that you can be lazy in Canada, well, think about it because jobs are hard to come by – as they give first priority to the people in Canada first. But knowing Asians I know it isn’t hard to get a job if we want to – it’s our accent that makes it somewhat harder – for although we think we speak perfectly ok – they still can’t get what you are saying at times. As for me – even though i’ve worked for foreign bosses all my life – some people still finds it hard to understand my kinda english. What else do i missed..?? the weather, the food, the shopping malls, the high tech buildings and of course the short vacation I can take – for once you own your own business – you are obligated to work all the time.