One month has passed since I wrote about Edison’s update at 22 months. Woohoo, time flies! So, what’s new this month?
In terms of physical development, Little Edison is becoming more confident on his feet now. He can bend over from his waist to pick up an object on the floor. He is jumping everywhere around the house. He is determined to walk up and down the stairs without any help from us.
He is an active learner. He loves ‘reading’ his ABC board book and he can recognize more than 95% of the pictures in the book. Although he can’t read out yet, but he is able to point at the correct picture every time I read to him. He loves playing with blocks and he can build a tower with five blocks or more.
In terms of fine motor skills, we give him plenty of finger-training games like beach toy set and play-doh. He can scoop up sand; pour them out and squeeze play-doh to make objects that I hardly recognize. He likes to scribble using his crayons and markers.
He is still drinking milk from his milk bottle. Most parenting articles suggest that the transition from milk bottle to cup should take place at one year old. I feel that it’s still quite early. Let’s tackle this challenging task next month. Tsk tsk!
Apart from milk, he is drinking water and juices from his cup using a straw. He is still not confident in drinking directly from the cup. Every time when we offer him a cup, he will run to the kitchen to search for the straw.
Little Edison has also grown a little adventurous to try out new food. During dinner time, he will sit with me and try out all the dishes that my MIL cooks. Few days ago, he was eating our hot and spicy hokkien mee, until his cheeks turned red. We had to stop him as we were concerned that the spicy food may upset his gentle stomach.
In between mealtime, he takes a few healthy snacks too. He loves orange juice, Yakult and packet Milo. I’m absolutely delighted to see positive improvement in his eating habits and diet. Well done, my boy. Keep it up!
Little Edison + Me + someone else’s daughter (?) at Kids’ Kingdom Marina Square.
Possibly Related Posts:
Last night, something unusual happened. Little Edison was crying profusely in his sleep at about 1am. We jumped out of our bed to check on him. He was sweaty and panic but his eyes were still closed and he was still sound asleep. Was he having a nightmare or night terror? We were unsure what could it be.
We tried to wake him up. But no matter what we did, he still didn’t wake up. I carried him and held him tightly; I can feel that his body was slightly shaking. I knew that he was scared. I consoled him and comforted him for about 15 minutes before he stopped crying. Then, he went right back to his sleep as though nothing happened.
This morning, he wakes up happily and he’s as good as gold. His eyes are slightly puffy due to the crying last night. I look at him seriously and ask him if he had a nightmare last night. Much to my surprise, he nods his head. He holds my hand, walks to the cabinet and pulls out his photo album. He points to himself and then to the picture when he was at birth. Is he trying to tell me that he dreamt of his past life before birth?
I check on What To Expect website for some information on night terrors. Generally, it is caused by erratic sleep schedule, change of routine (starting school etc), stress, or anxiety about something in our child’s waking life. I ruled out erratic sleep schedule because he does have a sleep routine. I also can’t imagine the stress and anxiety that a 22-month might have.
What To Expect website advises us that we should NOT attempt to wake them up or hold them when they are having night terrors. But sorry, this is exactly what I did last night! According to the article, these actions will make them more agitated and disoriented. A terror can last up to 30 minutes, so it’s best to just wait it out and most kids will settle back to sleep easily.
Click HERE to read the whole article about Dealing with Toddler Night Terrors.
Possibly Related Posts:
- School Update
- Late Night Musings of a Mother
- First Class Excursion
- Real Mom’s Secret (Part 3)
- Real Mom’s Secret (Part 2)
Look at what he did to my helper!
When he is in a good mood, Kakak (my helper) is always his best playmate. He shares his favorite snacks and drinks with her. But if he is in a bad mood, he pinches her and even attempt to bite her. He is gentle most of the time, but he can be very fierce too (especially when he is irritated).
Everyday, he never fails to amuse us with his new tricks and actions. He certainly makes my helper’s life interesting and frustrating!
Possibly Related Posts:
A few readers e-mailed me and asked me for comments on The Shichida Method. I apologize for not responding to you earlier as I’ve planned to post it in my blog to share with everyone. After evaluating this program for a year, I do have a lot of comments to share.
This term, July – Sept 09, marks Little Edison’s first anniversary in The Shichida Method. However, I don’t have any amazing incident to share in terms of his extraordinary achievements as compared to other kids. I don’t expect him to turn genius within a year. Neither am I expecting any fantastic results from him.
From the start of the program, I have a set of realistic expectations. I hope that Little Edison can master the linguistic and mathematical concepts by the age of three. I also hope that he can develop excellent memory, good attention span and positive attitude towards learning.
Our first term was tough. I was struggling hard to digest what it is all about. Little Edison had very little interest in flashcards and the activities introduced in the class. Most of time, he was crawling around the classroom, climbing up the table and even sleeping! I was too ambitious then, I wanted to teach him everything. When he showed little interest to learn, I was feeling exasperated and lost.
Somewhere during the second term, it finally hit me. I realized that I should stop putting pressure on ourselves. I changed my mindset. It wasn’t easy, but I had to. I let him learn on his own pace, enjoy our Saturday lessons and continue to do home practice faithfully as often as we can. Both of us felt more relaxed.
From the third term onwards, his attention span and interest towards flashcards increased dramatically. He participated in the class activities with ease. He enjoyed music play, flashcards, finger training, memory games and most of the activities in the class. He has developed into a confident and happy kid.
Now, he understands concepts and things very well. He is enthusiastic about learning. Every night, he wants me to practice flashcards with him. We have about half an hour of home practice – we practice picture cards, dot cards, memory games, music play and I also read some nursery books to him. He enjoys attending the Shichida classes and home practices.
Apart from learning, The Shichida Method has also influenced the way I raise Little Edison. Prior joining the program, I have very little knowledge about the right brain ability. Then I realized that the first 3 years of life are critical when the child is fast absorbing information and eager to learn. We should provide massive inputs to stimulate their five senses regularly.
The program has not only enriched my son, but also myself in becoming a good parent. The Shichida Method emphasizes on unconditional love as the key to open a child’s heart and mind. I realized the importance of touch, a firm hug, a gentle pat and encouraging words to draw out my child’s potential. I learnt the right approach and motivated to enjoy parenthood to the fullest.
Other parents may see me as a competitive or kiasu mother who enrolled my son to school at a tender age of 10 months old. Some may even think that it’s a waste of money. But all these didn’t bother me. I have faith in Little Edison. The genius in him will sprout one day. I will help him to find his strengths and dreams, and continue to provide him with the best education.
Possibly Related Posts:
ONE YEAR AGO, he has only four milk teeth.
ONE YEAR LATER…
At 22 months, he has all his 20 primary teeth in his mouth. He can eat chocolates, nuts, bread, cakes and anything he likes.
Possibly Related Posts:
Recent Comments …