I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Time really flies. Ezekiel is already 2 years and 9 months old. In another 3 month's time, he will be 3 years. In another few hours' time, the year would be past.

Now Ezekiel can tell people that he is 2 and a half years old instead of 2 years old. This Christmas, he is more aware of what Christmas is about. He has been attending Sunday School which taught him about Christmas and what people normally do during the Christmas festivities. Ezekiel knows that Christmas is Jesus' birthday and His mother is Mary and His father Joseph. He also knows that Jesus was borned in a manger. He knows that people normally top their Christmas trees with an angel or star to signify the Angel Gabriel telling the good news of Jesus' birth and the star as the sign to look for Jesus.

This year, Ezekiel is able to tell us that he liked the Christmas decorations along Orchard with the pink and blue "Light Balls" as he coined them. We brought him to Tanglin Mall to see the fake snow and alvanche, thinking that since he was quite scared of the noise produced by the snow machine last year, this year he would have outgrown the fear. True enough, he has overcame his fear but was scared of the big Ginger Breadman deco, and worst of all, he was not even impressed with the fake snow and alvanche, he looked so bored.. So much for our efforts..

Next, we brought him to Raffles Hotel for photo-taking on another occasion. He liked the decor on the exterior of the hotel. We even got to go into the main hotel lobby which is closed to the public and exclusively for hotel guest only, but thanks to Ezekiel, the hotel Manager allowed us to go in and take pictures of the Christmas tree. It was a grand and warm Christmas tree. Ezekiel liked it very much.

Ezekiel told me that he would like big presents for Christmas. We gave him a wooden train set which was big and he loved it so much that he wants to play with it everyday. Our financial advisor, Becky, also gave him 2 big presents, a drum set and a doctor set, of both which he loved. He received alot of presents from all our family and friends too, he is now so busy playing with his toys that he has neglected the books that we borrowed from the library for him to read.

This Christmas, Ezekiel also made his first appearance in our church's Christmas concert. Though he did not play a very active role on stage (he was something like an 'extra' to his Sunday School performance item as he refused to dance), his Sunday School teachers got to know him better during the rehearsals. They were all saying that he is more responsive now and is so intelligent, he can articulate very well.. Previously, Ezekiel was quite on low profile in the Sunday School but after the concert, he is quite popular with the teachers that they went up to him to say "Merry Christmas" to him. Surprisingly, Ezekiel asked to look for Pastor Yeowhwa and Pastor Wong Ling to say "Merry Christmas" to them, and this gesture delighted them. That was quite cute. He was also making friends with the waitresses and waitors at the restaurant that we had our Christmas luncheon. They were quite amused by him and one of them also told me that he is very bright.

We also went to Weixin's maternal aunt's place after Christmas. He didn't want to go initially because he would rather stay at home to play with his toys. But when Weixin drove past the swimming pool in his Aunt's condominium, Ezekiel almost immediately changed his mind about not liking the place he is visiting. He was also chatting alot at the gathering. He became sad when he realised he lost his aeroplane as we were leaving. All the relatives looked through the entire house for his little aeroplane but cannot find it. Ezekiel was disappointed at first, then he made one surprise request: he would like a replacement. We have never mentioned that when we lose something, we would look for replacement, so it's an unlikely request to come from a boy at such tender age... When we reached home and went through his stuff, we found his prized aeroplane. He was so happy the next morning to see it.

Ezekiel has a rather unusual love for eggs. That, we only realised recently. We always give him egg white only since he turned two, for fear of him developing allergies upon eating egg yoke. He developed a cold and cough just before Christmas and was barred from eating even egg white. He was so miserable! Every night, at the dinner table, he would demand for eggs, so much so that he would also asked his grandpa to remember his share of egg when he was preparing dinner. He woke up one day from his nap and dreamt he was eating eggs! But when he is denied his egg, he would cry. We even used eggs as a excuse to make him finish his dinner and take his medication so he could enjoy it when he fully recovers. Hee... hee...hee.. (so evil)

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I should not have done that.. I am sorry..

Last night, we went home after shopping and saw what Ezekiel did to the floor... There was a spot on the floor with a lot of pencil scribbles. I also heard earlier from my mum that Ezekiel had drawn on the floor and tried to conceal his 'misdeed' by covering it with the rubber mat. How she uncovered the 'secret' was because the rubber mat was not at its usual position in the living room, and she lifted the mat and saw what he did.

So in order to make him realise that we, as parents, will not always be there to clean up his mess whenever he does something wrong, we decided to make it an unforgetable lesson for him.

As it was his bedtime, he was tired. We told him to clean up the scribbles with an eraser. He tried to clean initially but realised it will take a long time and effort to finish cleaning as well as he realised we were serious in wanting him to clean up before he could sleep, he cried in protest and refused to clean every now and then. So the little naughty boy cried for a while and go back to cleaning, on and off throughout the cleaning process and kept calling him a poor thing. Nearing the end of his cleaning, we asked him if he would want to draw on the floor and on other surfaces again, he said that he would not do that anymore. I told him that if he does it again, I will definitely ask him to clean again, so if he disliked this act of cleaning up, then he should not do that anymore. At hearing this, he broke into tears and exclaimed that he would not do that again. Let's hope that he has learnt and will remember his lesson. When he called himself a poor thing, Weixin and I actually wanted to break into laughter!! But seeing the situation, we should remain solemn to ensure that Ezekiel will not treat the situation lightly. He hugged me and demanded for affection after that. Hmm.. he never fails to win affection...

The other night, we decided to show him our wedding montage but he broke into loud sobs in the midst of watching it for no apparent reason?? So we asked him why he cried and he cried even louder this time??!! We waited till he simmer down and asked him again. His response was silent, then as if in deep thoughts, he wanted to cry again! After some pacifying, he stopped crying and told us that the montage was played too loud for him. I wondered if that was the real reason behind the crying. I was reminded of how Ezekiel used to cry as a baby when we sang nursery rhymes like London Bridge, Home on the Range, Edelwiss etc. We were very puzzled then and still do. The only song that he would not cry at was Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, which he grew up to like very much. It was also the first nursery rhyme that he could sing on his own.

We asked him on whether he love me, he answered yes. I went on to ask him if he love his Papa, and all our direct family members, he said yes to all of them and told me one more person on his own, Weixin's 2nd Paternal Aunt who gave Ezekiel a set of bears which we placed in his bedroom now. He pointed to the bears and said he loves Ee Gu Por too. That was so sweet of him...

At Weixin's birthday, he was so excited and kept singing Happy Birthday song to him, that was so cute of him. But his love for chocolates and cakes was fully exhibited when he saw Weixin's birthday cake was a CHOCOLATE CAKE! Wow! Yummy! You should have seen how his eyes lit up! He kept asking for more servings...

Ezekiel is also quite a bossy boy now. He would always ask my dad "what soup will you be cooking tonight? in Teochew. He would also demand for an egg for himself. He loves banana and eggs now. He also adores chocolates but I refused to let him indulge in it as he is too young to have to much snacks. He would sometimes ask me to go and bath while Papa pats him to sleep when it gets very late. Those moments would really touch me. Ezekiel can also be a very thoughful boy. We really have to thank God for such a bright and lovable boy who has brought so much joy into our lives.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Ezekiel has learnt to pray for Mummy and Papa lately. In fact, he has already prayed twice for Mummy and once for Papa in Mandarin. He thanked God for Mummy and mumbled something else that I don't understand and ended his prayers with "in the name of Jesus. Amen. " before smiling at us again and complimented himself as "clever boy". I was very touched when he did this. My son prayed and thanked God for me at 2 and half years of age. This is his first attempt at praying himself without guidance from us and his first prayer is about his gratitude for his mummy... It really warmed my heart. He is also more caring now. There were times where it was already very late and I haven't bathe, after Weixin came out of his shower, Ezekiel would ask me to go bathing and asked Weixin to pat him to sleep instead. That was so sweet of him...

Ezekiel has always been very mindful of how he looks. He would check himself at the mirror as soon as he changes into clothes for outing. He doesn't allow us to take photos of him if he has just awoken. If the weather is hot and sunny, he would bring along his cap for outings. He has been saying that he wants to be tall like his maternal uncle, so he wants to achieve that by jumping up and down regularly. Whenever he can't reach the things that he wants, he would ask his uncle to help. He kept criticizing Mummy for having a tummy and even squeezed his own tummy to say that he is fat. I had to constantly assure him that he is NOT fat and that he is normal. He likes to pick his nose nowadays and to deter him from doing so, I had to take advantage of his vanity and tell him that he will not be handsome anymore if he keeps picking his nose and causing his nostrils to be enlarged by doing so. The same goes for rubbing his eyes. Hehehe, at least it worked so far.

There was this incident that really made us laugh. My paternal aunt has always with her a sling bag which she will bring whenever she goes out. She always wears a blouse with pants, it is quite unlikely to see her in skirts or dresses. She has also gone on the Perth trip with us earlier this year and Ezekiel had spent a lot of time with her on that trip. We also visit her on regular basis. On a particular day last week, my sister wore pants with a blouse with a sling bag across her shoulders, which we all think she looked very 'auntie'. Upon seeing her, Ezekiel immediately blurted out, "Ah-Ee (aunt) look like Lao Gou (Grand Aunt)!" We all had a good laugh when we saw how Ezekiel shared our sentiments!!

Ezekiel is getting more imaginative as he will try to make up a story on his own by telling us," One day....." and goes on and on with his story, even though most of the time, we couldn't quite make out what stories he was trying to tell. But I guessed this is good for him that he would try to organise his thoughts to tell or speak about an event, he just need more time to develop his ability to tell them logically. We, as parents, would need to have a little more patience with him and listen to his stories even though we cannot understand.

We have decided that we will not be sending Ezekiel to school until after his 3rd birthday. We would like to let him have a little more time to play, plus we do not wish to expose him to so much bacteria and germs in a school yet. As putting him in a school would also require additional funds, we guessed we have a little bit more time to save up. Meanwhile, we'll let him have as much fun as possible!!!

Haha! I am 2 and half years old now!

Ezekiel is 92cm tall and weighs 15kg now.

He has not been feeling well these 2 weeks. He is still coughing and having a bit of running nose. We brought him to the doctor's last week and he was able to tell the doctor (on his own) that he is sneezing and coughing. When the doctor asked him whether he has fever or is feeling hot, he shook his head in answer. On the 3rd visit to the doctor, he volunteered information on he was feeling pain in his mouth to the doctor. Upon examination by the doctor, he told Weixin that Ezekiel has an ulcer in his mouth.

He can recognise leaders of Singapore like Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and our President Nathan. He could even tell us in Teochew that Lee Hsien Loong is the son of Lee Kuan Yew! Hahahaha! He also able to recognise Obama and say his name whenever he sees him in the papers or on TV. He can even associate USA with Obama. When we told him that his Grand Aunt is flying back to USA, he quickly exclaimed that she is 'flying back to Obama'. We all had a great laugh!

He knows almost the TV advertisement jingles and will sing to the tune once he hears them. He loves Ponyo and will easily spot her when he see Ponyo DVD poster in the CD shop. He is creative and imaginative, he is also very good with his hands. He is capable of opening anything that he can get hold of. It will not take him too long to figure out how. He is also observant, he often spot eagles gliding in the sky around our place and quickly point them out to us. He loves to look at the moon and stars in the night and would always draw our attention to how full or small the moon is and the stars surrounding it.

30 Sep 09, he was pointing to my bloated tummy and asked me if there is a baby in there as he had spotted a bump. Hahahaha!

3 Oct 09 was Mid Autumn (Lantern) Festival, my dad (Ezekiel's Ah-gong) bought 2 lanterns for him. He showed Ezekiel one of the lanterns that has red and blue blinking lights. You should have seen his expression, he was terrified!! He kept asking us to put both lanterns away, said that he was fearful of the lanterns and that he didn't want them. That really broke my dad's heart but we managed to get Ezekiel to thank him. We brought the lanterns home anyway, in the hope of enticing him to play with the lanterns. When we reached home, I delibrately lit the lantern with the blinking lights in the dark living room to fascinate Ezekiel. Instead being impressed, he screamed in fear, asking us to keep the lantern. We had no choice but gave up on trying to attractin him to the lantern. I wondered where he got his phobia of lanterns from and to such extent? I remembered having a lot of fun with lanterns and candles during Mid Autumn Festivals myself...

We were reading a book about ducklings conquering their fears to learn to swim. Upon finish reading the story, we asked him if he wants to learn to swim, he answered with a flat no. So we asked him why and guess what? His reply was that he is not a duck!!! Whahahahaha!

He saw us eating red skin bananas. Ezekiel is a big banana fan but he was really put off and scared by the colour of the skin of the bananas that he ran away when we offer to share our bananas with him! After a few of days of attempts, he finally succumbed to the lure of the delicious bananas (we delibrately peeled and remove the entire skin while eating) and tried the red skin bananas. He actually loved it so much, he kept asking for it!

We are contemplating on whether to send Ezekiel to school next year. Guess the answer will be revealed when we bring him to tour the kindergarten tomorrow. May God lead us in our decision making.

Have you been waiting for me?

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your patience. It’s been a long time since the last update for Ezekiel. Time flies and he is already 2 years 5 months old! In another few days, he will be 2.5 years old!

Not only is he taller now, he is getting naughtier! He still likes to throw things to the floor when he is unhappy or when he cannot achieve certain tasks that he wants to. His temper is getting worse these days as he wants more attention and expects more from himself and others around him. He flies into a rage when he is sleepy and gets into brawls that last quite long. He hits papa and mummy when he is angry at times. There were 2 occasions that he slapped me and he got a slap from me in return each time he does that. It seems that he is at a stage when he is being confronted by his own emotions but cannot control them yet. I am very sad when he behaves in such a way and pray that God helps him to curb his temper and us as parents more love and wisdom in bringing this precious God-sent child up.

He speaks like an adult sometimes like reminding mummy not to stick her head out of the railing at shopping centres lest she falls out. Ezekiel can anticipate when we will compliment him as a “clever boy” or rebuke him as “naughty boy’” and say it on our behalf. There was a course that I had attended and the trainer was advocating the importance of “time horizon”. A good example of a person with “time horizon” would be Lee Kuan Yew who is able to plan and look 50 – 100 years down the road. The trainer said that the method he was sharing would only apply to 2 years old and below, because anyone older than that, would be able to defeat the system. We as curious parents, would definitely not miss the chance to test him. Hence, I bought Pocky, Ezekiel’s favourite snack, and told him that if he does not touch the 3 Pocky that I leave on the plate on the breakfast table within 30 minutes, he would get 6 Pocky after that given timeframe. In the test that the trainer had shared, he has given 2 hours as the timeframe but I reckon Ezekiel would definitely touch the Pocky the very second I turn my back on that plate of Pocky, that’s why I only gave him 30 minutes.

15 minutes into the test, Ezekiel asked me if he can eat the Pocky. I told him he can go ahead and eat it if he wants but he only gets 3 Pocky. I asked him whether he wants to eat 3 or 6 Pocky, he answered he wanted 6. Then he patiently waited for time to pass. When 30 minutes was up, Weixin reminded him that 30 minutes of waiting was over, and if Ezekiel wanted his 6 Pocky, he happily replied, “Yes!”. So he passed the test!!! I was so happy and surprised because he is the type who will definitely defy instructions. This also illustrate that he understood the concept of delayed gratification. Wow!

Ezekiel has also improved tremendously on his motor skills. He can play with his tool set and use his creativity to build structures and I think he has inherited Weixin’s engineering skills. He is quite good with the tools and building structures! He can also sing the entire ABC song without help from us and also recite the do re mi scale himself. He could recognize numbers up to 10 and also count. He could hold conversations with me for half an hour in full sentences, even pronouncing words of 5 syllabus. He often dances to music or songs he hears and he moves according to the tempo of the music, twisting his feet and his hips with a big grin on his face. It was actually quite enjoyable to watch him dance. He can jump up and down too. Last night, after he threw his tambourine to the floor and it broke, I chose to ignore him rather than flaring up like I usually do. In retaliation to response, he crushed a piece of pamphlet and threw it at me. He also threw the broken tambourine at me but missed (luckily, else I would have jumped on him for the pain I would have suffered!!). After a few more minutes of my ignoring him, he finally broke down and said, “Mummy doesn’t want Ezekiel! Mummy doesn’t love Ezekiel anymore!!” He repeated these words a few times and I hug him to assure him that I definitely love him but explained that I do not like the way he behaved and treated his belongings. He then calmed down and I made him promise that he would not repeat this kind of behaviour again. I knew that incidents like this is bound to repeat but I hope that with constant reminders and guidance, Ezekiel will grow out of the misbehaviour and learn to be a better person.

At bedtime, he could anticipate our prayers for him as we do the same prayer for him every night. Before falling asleep, Ezekiel told me that he think he is fat. Fat? That is the last word that I would expect him to describe himself! He went on to tell me that his arm is fat. I told him as a matter-of-factly that he is definitely NOT FAT and nobody is fat, lest he goes around and call anyone he thinks is fat, fat. My goodness, he is only 2 years old and he is worried about his image??!! On the hand, he surely is vain, because he often looks into the mirror when he is dressed for outing (as if checking if he is looking good?)… *Sigh* Kids nowadays…