Chope Food for the Needy

What is Chope?
According to the Singlish definition in talkingcock.com, http://www.talkingcock.com/html/lexec.php, it means To reserve or hold something for somebody. Sometimes used in games to denote having attained a ‘safe' position.
"If we're not at the theatre by 8, can you chope some seats for us?"

Then I read this which my sister posted.
http://www.dailygood.org/story/439/miserable-and-magical-a-graduation-speech-for-paradoxical-times-nipun-mehta/ .... Hey, it made me tear up a little and as usual when I am moved, I write (or blog, in this instance).

There has been a movement going around in Facebook to chope food for the needy, that is, pay the hawker upfront for your own food plus another portion.  I have been chope-ing another bowl of noodles when I eat lunch at the hawker centre near my home... sometimes up to 3 bowls.  One day Mr Lim the hawker had time to talk to me as I was early for lunch (went at 11am)... there are 4 other people who have been paying forward for food too.  Mr Lim looks out for retirees above 70 years old, and tells them that their food has already been paid for.

Restores my faith in humanity, it does.

Birthdays!

2 weeks has flashed by with 2 birthdays!

The Husband’s birthday was on 19 Jul.  Celebrated with his parents during the day by watching Pacific Rim in JB.  Then out for dinner with the boys + my parents + my aunt at Chui Huay Lim Teochew Cuisine.  Celebrated again with a date on 22 Jul at Au Petit Salut.  The service is impeccable.

Medium Boy turned 5 on 24 Jul!  I had a private joke with myself that he is a 24/7 baby, and therefore did not sleep much.  He celebrated with a Mickey Mouse chocolate birthday cake in school.  The Husband brought him to watch Despicable Me 2 in the afternoon, headed to Jamie Oliver’s Italian at Vivocity for tea, and we went to Chin Lee (Teochew food again! :)) for dinner.

Need to loosen my belt and really start exercising earnestly after so many good meals.

Not a race

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-10250/11-things-i-wish-every-parent-knew.html

Point 3 speaks loudest to me today.  That we grow in cycles.

Chilling that Medium Boy is not reading yet... he is blending 3 letter words together, sometimes even 4 letters.  Think of the bamboo, Mama.... period of slow growth in the ground before growth spurts.

One for me, one for him

Medium Boy plonked himself down on my lap while I was reading the newspapers.

Patted my left boob.  Told me that milk comes from there, and if I drink milk, well that is where it comes out from.

[I am slightly bemused, which seems to me a mixture of bewilderment and amusement.]

He patted my right boob.  "You have 2, Mama" (gesturing around my chest area) he continued."One is for me, and one is for didi."

!!!

I have been divided and allocated out.  Now I know what it feels like to be a piece of meat..... Grin.
Very heartwarming that Medium Boy remembers latching though.  He stopped latching on me at 14 months, approximately the time that Small Boy was conceived.  The milk taste must have changed!

Labels

The best advice I ever received as a 20something establishing a foothold in my career is from my 4th aunt.  I had received a not-stellar performance appraisal in my first year... and was moping about it.  4th aunt told me that labels are like Post-Its, if you like them, keep them around longer to remind you... and if you do not like them, why, just throw them away!
I learnt this lesson only as an adult.

I am thinking about this lesson in the context of the Singapore education system.
9 year olds take a national exam to determine if they are "Gifted", and hence to be put into special classes where they spend LESS time on the curriculum (the assumption is that these very smart children already have it down pat) and more time exploring outside the curriculum.

"Gifted" and Not-"Gifted" is a label bestowed onto the child at NINE years old.  Resources are then allocated disproportionately more to the Gifted.  Teachers with advanced degrees and diplomas.  Smaller class sizes.  More spruced up school facilities....

Nine years old.  I only have 4 more years to protect Medium Boy's childhood.  Sigh.

New Skills

Work has consumed my life, so much that 80% of my waking hours is spent on work.  The only comfort is that a small portion of that 80% is still spent at home where I am physically with the boys.

This week,  Medium Boy has learnt how to blow up a balloon by himself, and blend sounds together to form words.    I am extraordinarily proud of his phonetic ability… so proud that wow, when he eventually learns to read, I might throw a party!  Heh.

Small Boy scores high on mimicry.  He went to the bowling alley once in May, and since then, has been imitating the bowler’s posture when playing with his toy bowling set.  Well, he thinks he is correctly imitating…. What he actually does is to raise his buttocks, then lift a leg up, and his head is down looking backwards at his other leg.  Obviously he cannot see in front… so I tried to correct him, but he was adamant in telling me that he can do it himself, thank you very much.  Yesterday, I caught him sneaking a peek in front before he let go of his toy bowling ball.  Haha.

The mimicry goes so far as he instructing me to put my thumb, third and fourth finger properly into his toy bowling ball, the “correct” finger position, when I bowl with him.  *grin  

Pssst.... I cannot keep a secret yet....

At nearly 5, Medium Boy is absolutely full of surprises.  He has no filters, no censorship, whatever he thinks... he says aloud.  I love this age!

Act 1, Scene 1
In the car.  On the way to school this morning.  Medium Boy announces he has a secret.  On my probing regarding what it was, he said smugly, tis a secret Mama, I am not telling you, teeheehee.

Act 1, Scene 2
The Husband and I chat about our upcoming day.  We are not delibrately ignoring Medium Boy.

Act 2, Scene 1
Medium Boy pipes up "When you go to sleep, I will tip toe quietly to the fridge, take away all the sweets and EAT all of them!"

Oh, his nefarious plan has been revealed!  Grin.
The Mama will take pre-emptive measures now to clear out the sweets.  He has been coughing on and off at night for the past 3 weeks. 

Energy is renewable, not Time

I recently received a HBR article titled “Manage Your Energy, not your Time”.  The authors opine that longer days at the office do not work because time is a limited resource, however personal energy is renewable. There are 4 dimensions of personal energy that the authors recommend we notice… physical, emotional , mental and spiritual.  The tips for rejuvenating physically are

• Enhance sleep by setting an earlier bedtime and reducing alcohol use…. I do not drink alcohol regularly so that’s a plus for me.  Bedtimes are determined by the boys… I am thinking seriously about putting them in their own room now.  But but but some part of me wants them close!  I spend many hours away from them in the day, night time togetherness is to make up for it…
• Reduce stress by engaging in cardiovascular activity at least 3 times a week and strength training at least once…. THREE times a week!?  If running after the boys counts, then I have cardio everyday.  Haha.  Not enough to get my heart rate up to 70% of maximum though.  Never mind strength training.  The heaviest things I haul around are my boys.  Oh and weekly grocery shopping.  I walk back from the supermarket.
• Eat small meals and light snacks every 3 hours…. YES, a tick for me in this area.
• Learn to notice signs of imminent energy flagging, including restlessness, yawning, hunger and difficulty concentrating…. Yep, I notice… Too often ignore these signs though.
• Take brief but regular breaks, away from the desk, at 90-to 120-minute intervals throughout the day.

Things are heating up at work with the business plan 2014 kicking off this week.  I turn to brewing this yummy confinement tea.  I use a Thermos Shuttle Chef 1.5L to prepare and drink one cup in the morning, sipping throughout the day.

To boost blood circulation – 3-4 pieces of bei qi (astralagus) and a handful of black beans.

Sweet tasting herbs – 12-15 red dates, a pinch of wolfberries, a bigger pinch of dried longan, 3-4 pieces of finger-sized dang shen (a type of ginseng, I think).

Enjoy!

First day of school

We touched down from Malaysia on Sunday at 11am, rushed to unpack, put the boys down to nap at 230pm [they gave into fatigue only at 345pm], woke them up at 645pm for a family dinner…. And today is the first day of school after a month.

Medium Boy got up bright and early by himself as his diaper had leaked.

Small Boy woke up grudgingly. 

The Husband walked them up to the school entrance at 7.53am.  Small Boy cries and clings to me when I send them up.  It is a far gentler start to the day when the Husband sends them up.

Back to work after a week long holiday.  Taking a deep breath and plunging straight in.  Sure feels like the first day of school for me too.

OH!  Today is the first day of the second half of the year.  I haven’t even got my 2013 work deliverables agreed with my boss yet.