Daryl's little sister, Dana, was born on 20.10.2010. Mommy and she have both came home and are doing alright. Thanks very much for your care and best wishes.
P.S. Visits are definitely welcome!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
Joke of the Day
"What toys did you have when you were a kid, Daddy?" Daryl asked the other day.
"Well, cars, erh, cars, and ..." I answered him rather casually 'cos I was reading the paper.
"Traffic jam!" added Daryl.
...
"Well, cars, erh, cars, and ..." I answered him rather casually 'cos I was reading the paper.
"Traffic jam!" added Daryl.
...
Wednesday, July 07, 2010
Swimming Issue
We all know that Daryl is a boy. But sometimes what he does makes me wonder if he's actually a girl.
We have signed him up for some swimming lessons on Saturday mornings. I went to the pool with him for the very first lesson and asked him if he's ready, and he said he was. His coach is a tall young man with wide shoulders, who sometimes talks loudly but is very patient with kids. Daryl was the only kid under that coach in the first lesson. And so for the entire 60 minutes, he almost had to swim non-stop, making him dreadfully exhausted.
Then on the following Wednesday, Daryl asked, "Why do I have to swim on Saturday?" He looked worried and I asked him why. "I don't like the coach because he yelled at me," he said. "I don't like swimming," he added, with tears running down his cheeks. "I don't like the coach. Can I have another one?" he finally admitted.
Frankly, I was a little pissed when I heard that, as I expect my boy not to be scared by someone who speaks loudly, which the coach actually doesn't. But I also know that I can't expect too much from a four-year-old. So Mommy and I had to assure him that everything would be fine, and he seemed to understand.
Yet when he started crying the following Saturday morning, without prompting, when he knew that he had to go to the swimming pool, I knew I had no choice but to carry him all the way to the pool, which was thankfully not far away. And being experienced with kids, the coach jumped out of the water, came over and brought Daryl into the pool, from which point Daryl stopped crying.
And amazingly, I could see Daryl asking lots of questions to his coach while swimming. All in all, I could see that he was having a good time at the pool. I asked him if he loves swimming after the lesson had ended, and he gave me an emphatic YES.
But even more amazingly, Daryl started crying again the following Wednesday. We had to assure him that everything would be fine, and on Saturday carry him to the pool and hand him over to the coach, again.
And this vicious cycle continues.
Perhaps I should start yelling at him more, just to make sure that he is used to dealing with loud and noisy people ...
We have signed him up for some swimming lessons on Saturday mornings. I went to the pool with him for the very first lesson and asked him if he's ready, and he said he was. His coach is a tall young man with wide shoulders, who sometimes talks loudly but is very patient with kids. Daryl was the only kid under that coach in the first lesson. And so for the entire 60 minutes, he almost had to swim non-stop, making him dreadfully exhausted.
Then on the following Wednesday, Daryl asked, "Why do I have to swim on Saturday?" He looked worried and I asked him why. "I don't like the coach because he yelled at me," he said. "I don't like swimming," he added, with tears running down his cheeks. "I don't like the coach. Can I have another one?" he finally admitted.
Frankly, I was a little pissed when I heard that, as I expect my boy not to be scared by someone who speaks loudly, which the coach actually doesn't. But I also know that I can't expect too much from a four-year-old. So Mommy and I had to assure him that everything would be fine, and he seemed to understand.
Yet when he started crying the following Saturday morning, without prompting, when he knew that he had to go to the swimming pool, I knew I had no choice but to carry him all the way to the pool, which was thankfully not far away. And being experienced with kids, the coach jumped out of the water, came over and brought Daryl into the pool, from which point Daryl stopped crying.
And amazingly, I could see Daryl asking lots of questions to his coach while swimming. All in all, I could see that he was having a good time at the pool. I asked him if he loves swimming after the lesson had ended, and he gave me an emphatic YES.
But even more amazingly, Daryl started crying again the following Wednesday. We had to assure him that everything would be fine, and on Saturday carry him to the pool and hand him over to the coach, again.
And this vicious cycle continues.
Perhaps I should start yelling at him more, just to make sure that he is used to dealing with loud and noisy people ...
Thursday, May 06, 2010
Sticky Stuff
Last time I did it, Daryl was so small that he had no idea what it was.
Now at the age of almost four, I think it's time for him to try some adult stuff.
Some expensive, addictive and sticky stuff.
A sticker album, that is.
I know I am going to get a World Cup sticker album this year, since Daryl was born during the PREVIOUS World Cup. And most importantly, I am still a kid at heart.
So I got the album and a box of 100 packs of stickers after work the other day, which made Daryl extremely excited.
No, I didn't let him put the stickers onto the pages 'cos I'm sure he's going to make it messy. So I just opened the packs and asked him to read out the numbers.
And he's having a heck of a time.
Looks like I'll have to get an extra album for him next time around.
Now at the age of almost four, I think it's time for him to try some adult stuff.
Some expensive, addictive and sticky stuff.
A sticker album, that is.I know I am going to get a World Cup sticker album this year, since Daryl was born during the PREVIOUS World Cup. And most importantly, I am still a kid at heart.
So I got the album and a box of 100 packs of stickers after work the other day, which made Daryl extremely excited.
No, I didn't let him put the stickers onto the pages 'cos I'm sure he's going to make it messy. So I just opened the packs and asked him to read out the numbers.And he's having a heck of a time.
Looks like I'll have to get an extra album for him next time around.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
Mommy's Genes
Last night, Daryl went to his first art class.
And I was lucky enough to have the time to pick him up.
And he didn't disappoint.
Due to some misunderstanding between the art school and us, Daryl's first art class was delayed by a day. When I got to the school some 5 minutes before the scheduled ending time, I could see him sitting on a stool, swinging his stocky legs back and forth, and casually putting some strokes with a big paintbrush in his right hand.
I had no idea what he was painting or drawing. But it was a very lovely scene for me.
Like other parents, I asked the teacher how he did when the class finally ended some 20 minutes later. She told me that Daryl did really well, had pretty good control of the paintbrush (i.e., he managed to get rid of the excess water by gently patting it at the side of the paint dish), responded to instructions really well and enjoyed having kids around him.
And most importantly, his first "Official" drawing simply rocked.
I simply couldn't believe what I saw. I kept asking the teacher and Daryl whether he did it all by himself. They both said yes, and the teacher told me the only thing she did was to make a drawing of a tiger, and asked all the kids to draw a similar one.
Stunning.
Perhaps he's really talented in painting and drawing. Perhaps his painting or drawing will someday sell for millions of dollars. But I don't really care. All I care is Daryl being happy and enjoying what he does.
In fact, he loves it so much that he told me after the class that he only wants to go to the art class, but not his kindergarten anymore.
And I was lucky enough to have the time to pick him up.
And he didn't disappoint.
Due to some misunderstanding between the art school and us, Daryl's first art class was delayed by a day. When I got to the school some 5 minutes before the scheduled ending time, I could see him sitting on a stool, swinging his stocky legs back and forth, and casually putting some strokes with a big paintbrush in his right hand.
I had no idea what he was painting or drawing. But it was a very lovely scene for me.
Like other parents, I asked the teacher how he did when the class finally ended some 20 minutes later. She told me that Daryl did really well, had pretty good control of the paintbrush (i.e., he managed to get rid of the excess water by gently patting it at the side of the paint dish), responded to instructions really well and enjoyed having kids around him.
And most importantly, his first "Official" drawing simply rocked.
I simply couldn't believe what I saw. I kept asking the teacher and Daryl whether he did it all by himself. They both said yes, and the teacher told me the only thing she did was to make a drawing of a tiger, and asked all the kids to draw a similar one.Stunning.
Perhaps he's really talented in painting and drawing. Perhaps his painting or drawing will someday sell for millions of dollars. But I don't really care. All I care is Daryl being happy and enjoying what he does.
In fact, he loves it so much that he told me after the class that he only wants to go to the art class, but not his kindergarten anymore.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Stand-up Comedian
When Daryl is not crying or asking us to buy him toys, he can be a pretty funny kid.
Example 1:
We stayed at a number of hotels during our trip in Japan. One of them is a traditional one with hot springs and tatami. When we got into the room for the very first time, Daryl immediately asked, "Where is the bed? And where is the chair?" When we told him it was a traditional Japanese hotel room, he thought for a moment and then quipped,
"Why do THOSE Japanese sleep on the floor?"
Example 2:
We visited the Tokyo Disneyland during our trip. One night after returning home, we were watching a travel programme about the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany on the Travel Channel. Suddenly, Daryl said that it looked like something and, when we asked him what it looked like, he said it looked like the Disneyland.
While we were wondering about what he had just said, the TV host, Samantha Brown, asked just seconds later, "Don't you find it familiar?" And right on cue, it faded to footage of the Disneyland and, yes, she also confirmed that the Disneyland castle is, indeed, a replica of the Neuschwanstein Castle.
We had no idea that the script was written by him.
Example 3:
While in Japan, we told him that the Japanese eat their noodles pretty noisily if they really like them. While dining out in Hong Kong one day, when I gave him a bowl of noodles and told him that it was a bowl of Japanese cold noodles, he asked,
"Can I make noise?"
...
Looks like I can quit my day job and send him to the local comedy clubs. I can finally start planning about my long overdue retirement now.
Example 1:
We stayed at a number of hotels during our trip in Japan. One of them is a traditional one with hot springs and tatami. When we got into the room for the very first time, Daryl immediately asked, "Where is the bed? And where is the chair?" When we told him it was a traditional Japanese hotel room, he thought for a moment and then quipped,
"Why do THOSE Japanese sleep on the floor?"
Example 2:
We visited the Tokyo Disneyland during our trip. One night after returning home, we were watching a travel programme about the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany on the Travel Channel. Suddenly, Daryl said that it looked like something and, when we asked him what it looked like, he said it looked like the Disneyland.
While we were wondering about what he had just said, the TV host, Samantha Brown, asked just seconds later, "Don't you find it familiar?" And right on cue, it faded to footage of the Disneyland and, yes, she also confirmed that the Disneyland castle is, indeed, a replica of the Neuschwanstein Castle.
We had no idea that the script was written by him.
Example 3:
While in Japan, we told him that the Japanese eat their noodles pretty noisily if they really like them. While dining out in Hong Kong one day, when I gave him a bowl of noodles and told him that it was a bowl of Japanese cold noodles, he asked,
"Can I make noise?"
...
Looks like I can quit my day job and send him to the local comedy clubs. I can finally start planning about my long overdue retirement now.
Sunday, January 03, 2010
More to Follow
Good day folks,
As many of you may know, we had a trip (or a crazy shopping spree) to Tokyo in late December. For those who have added me as a friend on Facebook, you can check out the pictures on my profile.
I've been pretty lazy lately, and haven't uploaded any new pics here. But once I have got rid of my lazy bugs, there will be plenty of new pics coming. So don't think that this blog has been abandoned like many others, as we are still going very strong!
Cheers,
Max
As many of you may know, we had a trip (or a crazy shopping spree) to Tokyo in late December. For those who have added me as a friend on Facebook, you can check out the pictures on my profile.
I've been pretty lazy lately, and haven't uploaded any new pics here. But once I have got rid of my lazy bugs, there will be plenty of new pics coming. So don't think that this blog has been abandoned like many others, as we are still going very strong!
Cheers,
Max
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Daryl & Dana
