Back To School

Just into the 2nd week of school, didi had to skip class due to health reason. Sigh... He was the stronger one during the school holidays. Apart from having mild running nose, he was overall quite healthy. On the other hand, jie jie got sick (with fever) twice in December. But last Thursday, his eyes were swollen when I picked him up from kindy. Brought him to see the paediatrician in the evening as his condition got worse. Doctor suspected that he was bitten by some insect and was having some kind of allergy reaction. So I let him skip school the next day to rest at home as he was also having running nose and cough. Then red patches/dots (non-bulging) started to appear on his ears, hands and neck, then body and legs. But the funny thing is, the patches/dots will appear, then disappear a few hours later. And reappear again. The cycle kept repeating. It was like that throughout the weekend. When the swelling around the eyes subsided a bit, it was replaced with big red circles. He looked like he was punched in the eyes.

~ look terrible hor? picture taken on Thursday, 5:21pm ~

Then yesterday evening, he developed fever after we came back from lunch. Luckily it subsided after a dose of paracetamol. That's why I let him attend school today. The red patches/dots are gone. I'm praying hard the kids will recover fully for CNY. Yup, jie jie's also having a flu. :-( With all the "nice" food and travelling, it's going to be tough if they're not in tip-top condition.

As for the back-to-school routine, didi adjusted to it very well. He didn't have any problems waking up in the mornings. Anyway, he rarely had such problems previously. On the first day of school, I brought him to the gate, waved him goodbye and he walked in himself. This is his 3rd year in that kindy and I would expect him to be independent. When I picked him up, his teacher said he was well-behaved. She was worried at first as his cousin brother (who was his companion there last year) has graduated from kindy.

As for jie jie, I find that her honeymoon years are over. Now that she's in Std 3, there are more homework, but I'm sure nothing compared to those from Chinese schools. I was so surprised when she got her timetable on the first day of school. I remember they took about 2 weeks to give out the timetable when she was in Std 1.

She's been selected to be a prefect. I think they are on probation now before they officially become one next year. She'll still wear the same uniform but will be given a badge and tie. Some of her duties are to "take care" of the students in the classroom during the teacher's absence and before school starts, when they line up to go to their respective classes. She'll have an earlier break coz she has duties when the others are having their break. That means she'll have less time to finish up her work in school and I hope she won't miss any lessons.

CNY is just around the corner. Here's wishing you a prosperous, healthy and happy Chinese New Year! Gong Xi Fa Cai and happy holidays! If you're travelling during the festive season, have a safe journey!

Boring Weekend

Didi was sick (red throat with fever) since Thursday and he's skipped school for 2 days. Then the next day, my throat started feeling "tight". As we have 2 unwell people at home, our food were mainly soupy and a bit bland. So guai-guai stayed home to "recuperate" over the weekend -- no jalan-jalan (shopping) and no makan-makan (feasting). Moreover, the chauffeur's away on business trip. :D

I suppose didi's almost fully recovered. His fever subsided on Friday and he doesn't complain of sore throat during mealtime (except when eating fruits, which I find really weird coz he likes fruits). I'm also feeling much better already.

I brought XY to her school to collect her report card on Saturday morning. She was so shy in front of her teachers -- hiding behind me and just giggle giggle when teacher asked her questions. o.O Haiyo... I really beh tahan when she "acts" timid in front of people she's familiar with. If with strangers, I can understand lah. *shake head*

Her class teacher, who's also her Math teacher commented that she :
* is quiet in class (that's shocking news to me! hahaha).
* is focused during lessons.
* will try to finish up her homework in class.

Her English teacher said "she's good" BUT she "tends to rush through her work", thus making spelling mistakes. She also stresses the need for checking her work before passing them up.

I'm so relieved the teachers didn't have any complaints about her. I'm very happy with her results and behaviour in school. Hopefully she'll keep it up and do just as excellent in the year-end exam. Deep down, I'm very proud of her but I try not to show it too much. Coz I know she'll become big-headed if we praised her too much. Well, there's always room for improvement, right? hehehe But of course, we'll reward her accordingly. She wanted a bicycle so we're planning to get it for her (as a birthday gift as well). I bet if she has another request, PaPa will comply if it's not unreasonable. Have to start planning for her birthday which is in 2 weeks' time. Nothing much to plan actually, just got to decide on the cake and menu for dinner. We usually just have a simple celebration at home with BIL and family.

Hello Everybody!

Long time no see! Wow... this is the longest break I've taken in the cyber world. Whoosh! 3 months just flew by. Better clear the cobwebs and get back in action before I lose all my blogger friends. hehehe As it is, some have already given me warnings. o.O But seriously, it's really heartwarming to know that there are friends out there (you know who you are) who care and wonder how you're doing when you've been "missing" for some time. Thank you so much for your warm thoughts, girls!

Hmmm, where do I start? Ok, here are some random updates :
* Mother's Day 2011 -- we went back to PaPa's hometown on Saturday to attend his grandma's 80th birthday celebration. We only spent a night there. Didn't even celebrate Mother's Day for MIL as we left after lunch. No celebration for me either. No mood anyway coz CE was sick. I got a card each from the kids.


* CE had his first exam last week. But he has 2 more papers to go because he was sick. Had high fever due to throat infection/gastroenteritis -- diarrhea and stomach cramps.
* Due to his prolonged cough, doctor suggested that CE take Alvesco Inhaler (started on 24 Mac). It's not sprayed directly into the mouth, but used with the AeroChamber. His condition improved after 1 month of usage. He still coughs every now and then, but for a much shorter period compared to last time.
* 19 Mac -- went to the dentist to extract XY's lower right lateral incisor.
* XY started piano lessons in March.
* CE started Mandarin classes in April -- once a week after school hours in his kindy.
* Brought the kids for a haircut in April. Finally snipped off XY's over-the-shoulder-length hair to chin level.
* I went back to Penang for Cheng Beng, alone. It was a good 3D/2N trip away from the kids. :D But too bad I had diarrhea so didn't get to enjoy all the hawker food that I've been craving for. Never mind, will be bringing the kids back again end of May, during the school holidays. Then it's payback time. muahahaha
* Have been watching a lot of tv series -- Hong Kong and Singapore dramas.
* Started eating oats for breakfast (not everyday though) and exercising on the trampoline 2 to 3 times a week to control my cholesterol level. Really hope to keep this up.
* Will be busy preparing XY for her mid-year exam, which will start on 23 May.

First Week Of School

Day 1
PaPa played chauffeur, fetching didi to school in the morning and jie jie, in the afternoon. So I got to goyang kaki (relax) at home till my "shift" in the evening (to fetch jie jie back). :-)

He didn't accompany didi, the little boy walked to his classroom by himself. He's just like jie jie when she was in kindy, quite independent. At home, he told me they played dough and games in school.

As for jie jie, PaPa accompanied her to the classroom as he needed to settle the school fees with the teacher. Jie jie cried in the classroom because she didn't manage to get a seat at the front. She was sitting behind and was afraid she can't see the white board. The manja girl needed to be pacified by PaPa before she stopped crying. *shake head*

She received the time-table. I didn't expect that coz last year (in Standard 1), she only got the time-table in the 2nd week. Looks like they are not THAT slack actually. hehehe

Day 2
Jie jie forgot to bring back her Science pack (I prepared individual plastic bags for her to put her books according to subject). Her text book and note book were inside the pack. She claimed she left it under her desk.

Day 3
Couldn't find the books. So when I picked her up from school, I spoke to her class teacher and she said she'll help me look for it the next day.

Jie jie wore her rain coat for the first time. It was raining very heavily. I bought it last November and since then, she's been waiting for the chance to wear it.

Didi wet his pants in the school toilet. He didn't position "it" properly, so ter-sprayed on his pants too.

Day 4
Jie jie found her Science pack. *phew*

After sending jie jie to school, we (didi, Kakak and I) went to Tesco. Had lunch at The Chicken Rice Shop. We shopped till it was time to pick jie jie up = spent 4 hours in Tesco. I've never shopped so long there. You must be wondering if I bought the whole Tesco huh? :p Actually we spent quite some time at the clothes department coz Kakak was looking for some t-shirts.

Day 5
Didi started having runny nose in the morning and woke up with a fever after his nap. :-( First week of school already fallen sick. Haih... Up till now (Day 6, night), he's taken 3 doses of paracetamol. Highest temperature recorded was 38.2ºC. Hope his fever will not come back later.

Jie jie forgot to bring back her water tumbler. Aiyo... so forgetful like an old lady.

Life's Back To Normal

Hello everybody... I'm back! I've been away for almost a month and I'm really happy to know that I've been missed. *big grin* Now that Kakak's back from her Raya break (just got back yesterday midnight), my life is back to normal. No more housework. Yay! No more eating salty catered food. Yay! More time for myself and the kids. Yay! More time for blogging and blog-hopping. Yay! There are 900+ unread posts in my Google Reader. *pengsan* I'll visit you real soon ya... slowly, but surely. :-)

Before I continue, I must say a special thank you to hubby who's been really helpful during Kakak's absence. I'm so lucky to have such a "domesticated" hubby who has no issues with doing house chores. And very good at it too. ;-) Also a big thank you to my ever helpful and thoughtful SIL, who took care of most of our meals. It really saved me a lot of work and brain cells (thinking of what to cook). hehehe

As mentioned in my previous post, I was back in Penang for the 1-week school/Raya holidays. Didi complained of mouth pain on Wed (8/9) and doctor confirmed it was HFMD. He must have been infected before the trip. This round it was more serious, with rashes on his hands and legs (previous infection was in January, a mild one). Luckily he didn't have any fever, just mouth sore for 5 days. Good thing his appetite wasn't affected although he was in pain when eating. The mouth drop given wasn't really working. Jie jie's mouth pain came 2 days after him, on the day we got back home. She had fever that evening, but it went away after 1 dose of paracetamol. *phew* She also had rashes on her hands and legs and her mouth sore lasted almost 6 days. She relied mainly on ice and cold drinks during meal times. I'm so glad it's all over now. Please please please spare them from mouth ulcers in the future. It's such a torture!

Jie jie's school holiday was extended for another 2 weeks because the classrooms were used for the UPSR examination. I brought her to the dentist last Wednesday as her lower left lateral incisor was loose and painful (when she eats) and it bled sometimes. Her 2 upper central incisors are loose too but they're not causing any pain and there're no signs of new teeth coming out. So the doctor said they can wait. He extracted the lower left lateral incisor (using only the numbing gel) and filled up a hole in her upper left second molar. This is the 2nd time she got her tooth extracted by the dentist and she behaved really well. She did as instructed. All she requested was that I hold her hand while the dentist was attending to her. She even sat still on the chair behind the dentist when I got my teeth checked. Previous trip she was all over the place trying to see what he was doing and checking out the equipments. o.O

When I was making payment, she asked me a question. I had a hard time understanding what she said as she was biting on a gauze. After repeating many many times, I finally got it. "What's my reward?" A lollipop, which she "claimed" 3 days later. She was quite sad that her forgetful mommy didn't take back her tooth (how to get coins from the tooth fairy?). I forgot to tell the dentist I wanted to keep it. When we went back to the clinic about 30 minutes later (after packing lunch), they said they've thrown it away already. I told her not to be sad, as she already knew the tooth fairy is actually her parents. hahaha After thinking about it, I decided to put a coin under her pillow yesterday night, just to make her happy. Then she got confused with who's the REAL tooth fairy again. :-D Luckily I have her first two extracted baby teeth. Note to self : Must not be so forgetful next time.

Blog Break

I have been missing in action from the blogsphere for quite awhile already. Doubt anyone missed me. huhuhu Anyway, I'd better write something (will keep this short) before you all think that I've disappeared into thin air or I've gotten preggie (sorry Olive, your prediction didn't come true this time). hahaha I close shop already loh (for now). :-D

Here are the reasons for MIA :

#1 Was down with flu 2 weeks ago, with fever for 5 days (38+ºC to 39+ºC on the first 2 days). Went for blood test and nose swab -- got the Influenza B virus. Luckily PIL were around -- FIL helped to send the kids to and fro school. And that leads to the next reason.

#2 PIL were here to help take care of my 4+ month old niece. She was advised to be 'quarantined' as my nephew got the chicken pox (from kindy). So they stayed and took care of baby at my place. Unfortunately, SIL discovered spots on her the day PIL left (after taking care of her for 10 days and CH's spots have dried up). Poor baby, whole body and face covered with spots and I heard she's coughing and developed fever 2 days ago.

#3 Kakak has gone back to her kampung for Raya. I've been maidless since 29/8. She'll be away for 4 weeks. It takes awhile to adjust to life without that extra help at home. But so far so good. We've been "catering" food for lunch and dinner from SIL so it really saves me a lot of work from preparation, to cooking, to cleaning up. I'm so thankful for her help. I don't even have to think about the menu and the kids love her (or her maid's) cooking. From next week onwards, we'll cater dinner from outside for 2 weeks, till Kakak comes back.

#4 I'm now back in my hometown for the school break. First time bringing the kids back myself (by flight) without hubby. Luckily they didn't give me much problems -- minimal toilet visits and they held my hand ALMOST all the time. :-D

All these reasons = limited online activity. So I'm officially declaring a blog break till end of Sept. Have a good holiday and Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri!

One-week Break

Huh? School holiday's not here yet. Well, it's CE who's having a "break". He's been skipping school this whole week. He was suspected of having HFMD. It started on Saturday morning. He woke up with a fever of 38+ºC. Brought him to see the paediatrician. He's got ear infection (left ear) and slight red throat. Doctor prescribed antibiotics, ear drop and flu medicine (Peace syrup -- anti-histamine and decongestant). His fever was very high (most of the time above 38ºC) on Sat and Sun. And came back very fast too, I had to give him paracetamol every 4 hours. Luckily the fever subsided on Sun night.

Brought him to see the doctor again on Mon afternoon because since Sun, he complained of pain when he eats and drinks. Doctor said there are some ulcers in his throat and some dots on the sides, near the throat. They look like HFMD but he can't be sure. Asked me to monitor him for the next 2 days. Apart from his throat ulcers, there are no rashes on his hands and legs. I checked with the kindy, there are no reported cases of HFMD. So, I'm not sure if it's really HFMD. But to be on the safe side, I kept him at home for the whole week. The pain in his mouth is finally gone today. Before this, I relied on the throat drop (pain killer) to make his meal times more pleasant.

I'm so glad he's almost fully recovered now. And he can go back to school next week. At least I can have some peace of mind in the mornings. When both the kids are together, they play rough, laugh loudly and quarrel too. Sometimes I pity them as they don't get to spend much time together on weekdays. Can only play together after jie jie's back from school and weekends. But sometimes I think, it's good also -- good for my sanity. hahaha

School Holidays June '10

School started yesterday after a two-week break. Didi had no problems waking up in the morning as before. He seemed happy to be back in school. But jie jie was a little manja. She complained she didn't feel very well and said she didn't want to attend school. Well, she's actually coughing a little and having a little runny nose but is overall fine and not having any fever. So too bad, no valid excuse for extending her holidays. hahaha

I've been away from the blogsphere for almost a month now. Have been busy with visits from our family during the holidays and rushing for the submission of income tax. Phew... finally it's done, and so near to the deadline. :p And we've been nursing a very stubborn cough (we = the whole family *sigh*). Still not completely healed yet. Yup, even didi, who's been coughing for more than a month already. And when he seems to be getting better, his condition worsens the next day. Then better again. *scratch head*

PaPa recently bought a HD MediaBox (multimedia player). So I downloaded some movies for the kids to watch on tv. We watched Alice In Wonderland, How To Train Your Dragon and Shrek (all the 4 movies).

Tuesday, 8th June ~ The kids went for a Happy Camp (half day) organised by CE's kindy. It's open to siblings aged 4 to 8 so we decided to let XY join them. They attended a session of Kid's Yoga before visiting High 5 Bread Town in Shah Alam. I was at the recreation club where they had the yoga class but said bye-bye to them when their bus left for Shah Alam. They had fun stretching and running around in yoga class. And I guess the Bread Town wasn't too interesting for them. All they remembered was the magic door where they had to say "High 5" to make it open. :-)

~ doing yoga ~

Thursday, 10th June ~ Po Po (my mum) and WQ kor kor (my 11-year-old nephew) came visiting from Penang. They stayed till Sunday. The kids played Wii games from morning till night. :-| I brought them to the amusement centre in Jaya Jusco on Friday (at least that kept them away from the tv for awhile). They had no problems finishing up RM30 worth of tokens (mainly used by XY and WQ coz CE can still be cheated -- let him play without putting any tokens hehehe. He especially love steering wheels).

Tuesday, 15th June ~ PIL were here for 2 nights in conjunction with Duan Wu Jie (Dumpling Festival) and school holidays. They bought dumplings from Johor and we've been eating dumplings for breakfast/lunch the last few days. And I've still got some in the fridge.

Sunday, 20th June ~ Father's Day. We didn't have any celebration for PaPa. Gave him a day off. So he's off duty from fetching us around (for food or shopping hahaha). In the morning, I guided the kids to make a craft for PaPa. The template was given by CE's kindy and I made a copy for XY. They coloured the hearts and circles and wrote the words themselves (I had to spell for didi). I did the cutting, gluing and stapling for them.

~ artists at work ~

~ dragonflies for PaPa ~

3-in-1 Post

#1 His First Progress Report

Last Saturday, I went to CE's kindy for Parent-Teacher's Day. Discussed with his class teacher (Ms. S) on his progress in school.

This is her feedback :
* Good with numbers, alphabets and phonics.
* Can follow the lessons and do the work given.
* His writing is a bit weak. Needs more practice.
* Quite soft-spoken when answering questions in class.
* His attention span is very short during Chinese lessons. After a short while, he'll walk around or chat with his friends. :-| But he's not really like that in other lessons. O-oh, does this mean he's not interested in learning Chinese?

Overall, the teachers have no issues with him. And to my question if he's a samseng in school, Ms. S answered "No". *phew* :D

#2 Didi's Cough

Didi is still coughing. He didn't attend kindy this whole week. He developed fever on Monday morning and today is already the forth day. But his fever is stretching longer and getting milder. Hopefully that dosage of paracetamol taken this afternoon would be his last (for this round of sickness). Have brought him to see his paediatrician twice (Mon and Wed). Doctor suspected lung infection and prescribed antibiotics (Zinnat). He's using the nebuliser twice a day as his cough is quite chesty. He doesn't know how to spit out the phlegm. Although it breaks my heart to see him cough till he vomits, I guess it's a good way to get rid of the phlegm.

Ever since he took Singulair in early 2009, he's not had serious cough till now. I guess when you've not had it for long, it'll hit you hard once you get sick. *sigh* And just for the record, his weight dropped 0.45 kg in 1 week's time. I know it's normal, and he'll gain them back in no time, but still a teeny weeny bit "sam thong" (heartache) loh. :D Good thing is, he's still active as ever and behaving like normal, while taking up to 6 types of medicine in a day.

~ using the nebuliser (loan from SIL) ~

#3 Busy Week Ahead

XY's having her first exam starting Monday. The two assessments she had previously (for 4 subjects only) weren't calculated in the overall results, but this one is. So it's "important". And this time, all the subjects will be tested, 8 altogether, including Chinese. *Mummy sweating already* We'll be doing intensive revision from now till end of next week. So blogging and blog-hopping will have to take a backseat. Will sssslowwwly catch up with you all ya. And please, wish US luck! :-)

Lastly, have a great long weekend, everyone!

Rumour In School

Thank you so much for your well wishes. Jie jie has fully recovered already. But the inevitable happened. Didi was infected as well. He's recovering now and like jie jie, he has throat ulcers and blisters in the mouth, but no rashes on his hands and legs. I'm so so so thankful their infection was a mild one, without any problems in eating and drinking. *phew* At the same time, his left eardrum was a bit red (possibly ear infection) so the doctor prescribed antibiotics. With antibiotics and ear drops, he didn't suffer any ear pain.

Jie jie was back to school on Wednesday. I called up the clinic to check on Monday. Although her throat doesn't really hurt anymore, the doctor advised that she should stay home for another 2 more days.

Yesterday on the way home, she told me her classmates are talking about hantu (ghost) in the toilet. So she's afraid to go to the toilet. *sigh* The description of the hantu :
。has 3 hands, 2 legs and 1 eye [sounds more like a monster, no?]
。wears white shirt and pants
。vomits milk (coz everything has to be white wor) [I can't help but LOL :D]

Our explanations and suggestion :
。Hantu doesn't come out in the day time. Coz it'll melt. [Hard to explain vapourise to her]
。Maybe her friend is just being naughty, trying to scare everyone.
。Believe us, her parents, instead of her naughty classmate.
。Get a friend to accompany her to the toilet, if she's really scared.

Our explanations didn't help much. She said it's in her mind already and she can't stop thinking about it, although she wanted so much to believe us.

So when I sent her to school today, I brought her to the toilet and showed her there's nothing to be afraid of. Hoping she'd be able to overcome the fear. It's just not possible to avoid the toilet for so many hours.

When I fetched her back just now, she gave me good news. She said she's not afraid anymore. She went to the toilet a few times and there's no hantu there. What a relief!

Her Teacher Called Me

... because she cried in school
... for one hour plus
... and teacher doesn't know what's wrong with her.

Wednesday, 3+ in the afternoon
Her teacher (Puan A) asked me to pick XY up as she's crying non-stop. I asked if she's sick or something, Puan A said she's fine. I tried talking to XY on the phone but I cannot understand what she's saying as she was sobbing uncontrollably. So I rushed to school to pick her up.

When I saw her, she was sitting alone in the canteen (it was recess time). Once she saw me, she started crying again. She told me a girl knocked her head and "she didn't even say sorry". And that made her upset. Aiyo... she's so sensitive and emotional. But I think what actually triggered her outburst was FEVER. She wasn't feeling well. I was surprised the teacher didn't realise it coz when I touched her body, it was very hot. But her hands were icy cold. I took her temperature when we reached home, it was 40C. :-| No wonder she cried like a baby... my poor baby.

Brought her to see the paediatrician at night. Doctor said got ulcers in the throat. Suspecting HFMD coz CH (her cousin brother) was infected the week before. Her fever was on the high side and it came back rather fast after medication (3-4 hours). Luckily it subsided on Thursday night. So far, she doesn't have rashes on her hands or feet. Just sore throat which is getting better now. She's rather happy with the privilege of taking cold stuff (milk, vitagen, yogurt -- which is very rare) and ice-cream. I think she should be well enough to attend school on Monday. She missed her first Sports Day in primary school yesterday.

I'm feeling rather "stressed" because I'm worried for didi. Am trying very hard to keep him away from jie jie but they'll eventually end up playing together, in close contact. It's just so frustrating when the kids are getting sick one after another (thankfully not at the same time). I know this is common when they start schooling. It takes time to build up their immune system, especially in didi's case. Sigh... it's part of growing up, I know. They'll get stronger after each attack. I'm also fed up my recent posts are about the kids being sick. But no choice coz I want to jot down their health records as future reference.

New Routine

I've been rather busy since school started. The kids are not the only ones adjusting to their new schools, Mommy also need to adjust to the new routine. Now I've to go in and out of the house more times in a day. Luckily PaPa is sending CE to school in the morning. I just need to fetch him back from kindy (take turns with SIL) at noon, fetch jie jie to school and pick her up in the evening. Kakak and didi will follow me when I fetch jie jie. I don't feel very comfortable leaving them home alone as I'll be gone for at least half an hour. But I left them at home today coz didi has just recovered and the weather was very hot. Better not let him walk under the hot sun.

Although the traffic is much heavier and chaotic compared to the kindy area, it's still manageable. It's just a matter of getting used to. Most of the time, I can find a parking lot (50 sen per hour), which my skill can handle. :D Parking is not an issue coz there's an open-air car park a bit further away. I just need to pay more (RM3 per entry). The walk from the car park to her school is about 5 minutes.

Jie jie ~ She was fine the first few days of school. Towards the end of the week, she was teary-eyed when I left her there. Why? Because she wants Mommy. I guess she's just being manja. She didn't mix with the other girls and just stick to her buddy from kindy. Maybe she needs a little more time to open up and make new friends. However, I'm happy to see improvements over the week. She's not teary-eyed anymore when I leave her there and she told me her new friend offered her some snacks during recess time. :-)

On Tuesday, she came back with some "souvenirs". Someone accidentally pushed her and she fell into the small (dry) drain near her classroom. She got some scratches on her knee and hand. Luckily it's nothing serious. She was really brave as she said she didn't cry at all (surprisingly, coz she can be a cry baby at times hehehe).

~ minor scratches ~

Didi ~ He's been away from school since Monday. Started coughing badly last Saturday. Got fever from Monday till Wednesday. Started antibiotics (for chest infection) on Monday but as his fever kept coming back, I brought him to see the paediatrician again yesterday evening. Good thing his chest is clear. He was fine with doctor checking his chest and ears. But he refused to open his mouth. I had to hold him tight and doctor pried his mouth open. *sigh* As his cough was very chesty, doctor ordered the use of the nebuliser and he fussed big time. He didn't like the mist in his nose. Anyway, he survived the whole session, with breaks in between, to talk or cry or "smell" me. hahaha My lousy boy.

His fever has subsided today but he won't be going to school tomorrow. Might as well let him have a good rest at home, wouldn't want to risk an infection again while his immune system is still low. That means he's skipped school for the whole of week 2. I see history repeating itself as jie jie also skipped school a lot when she first started kindy. Hopefully the broken momentum wouldn't affect him much and he'll settle down just fine.

First Two Days Of SchoolS

Morning Session
The day started well as I didn't have any problems waking CE up. I told him it's time to go to school. He didn't get up immediately, but at least he didn't make any fuss. He's usually alright when awoken from his sweet slumber as the magic words were "Let's go kai kai." I hope "school" would continue to be a magic word as well. hehehe

All of us (PaPa, Mommy and jie jie) accompanied him to kindy. The kids lined up at the school compound for assembly while the Principal gave a short speech and introduced their class teachers and the new teachers. The boy was so bored (or didn't know what was happening), he looked here and there, squatted down when everyone was standing, stared at a "friend" (no, not a girl hehehe) standing next to him. They were then brought to their classrooms. He doesn't get the idea of lining up. Doesn't like to stand in line, waiting for others. He'll somehow "stray" away. :D

After awhile, it was snack time. He sat at the bench together with the other students. He was given kuih and a cup of soya bean (that's what he told me). I waited near the canteen and suddenly he appeared in front of me, telling me he wanted to pee. After that, he didn't want to go back to the canteen. Instead he found some toys nearby and sat there playing. When snack time's over, he refused to line up. Luckily he was ok when his teacher held his hand and led him up to the classroom.

The kids were given some toys (building blocks) to play. He was hogging all the blue colours. I pity the girl next to him. He gave her only 1 yellow piece. hahaha Seeing that he was playing happily, I went to join PaPa at the nearby coffee shop for breakfast. Of course I got his permission first. hehehe Anyway, he was left there for only 1 hour. I guess he didn't cause any problems coz the teacher didn't say anything when PaPa fetched him after school.

~ the hogger :D ~

He skipped school today because he's sick. :-( Actually he started having runny nose yesterday morning. Then fever in the afternoon. Luckily his fever didn't come back today. Hopefully after resting at home for a day, he's fit enough to attend school tomorrow. Jie jie is also having runny nose. But since she doesn't have fever, she doesn't get to skip school.

Afternoon Session

~ pose for pictures before leaving home ~

Sent XY to school in the afternoon. The traffic was chaotic, as expected. I didn't even bother to go to the main door. Even around the side door, traffic was crazy and can't find any parking nearby. I brought XY to her classroom first while PaPa went to look for parking. Passed the booklets and forms (which was taken/bought during orientation day) to the class teacher. There was so MANY things to fill up.

She was sitting next to her friend from kindy but the teacher rearranged their seats today so she's no longer sitting next to her "old" friend. PaPa went to check on her during recess time. She's getting RM2 pocket money per day. And she's learning how to use money. She doesn't really understand the concept of change so she doesn't know how much she should get back if she's paid more than what the item costs. Angeline shared with us how to teach pre-schoolers about money. Her self-created lessons are very helpful. I wanted to go through the lessons with XY during the holidays but we are only halfway through Lesson 2. Firstly, I didn't have enough coins. hahaha And secondly, I didn't have enough patience. :p She seems to like the "big" school because she gets to buy food during recess time and bring snacks to eat. Wait till the real lessons begin and the homework starts piling. *nyek nyek nyek*

Dead Tired

Hello everybody! We're back from our 1-week holiday in Hong Kong. Apart from the fun and souvenir (very minimal) we brought back, we also came back with their virus. *sigh* Yup, all FOUR of us are sick -- with mild cough and/or runny nose. Didi had fever in Disneyland. Luckily it lasted only for one day. *phew* We all need lots of rest to recuperate.

So I'll still be MIA for awhile. Moreover, need some time to sort out the pics we took (almost 800 of them). I'll be visiting you soon (but at a slower pace yeah). Till then, you have a great weekend and Happy School Holidays!

Virus Attack

Caution : Long boring post ahead. Recorded for future reference. :-)

XY has been skipping school since Monday. She's having fever, red throat and a bit of runny nose. It started on Friday afternoon (temperature was below 38ºC). After that, her temperature has been going up and down but always below 37.5ºC (which meant no fever). Then suddenly on Sunday morning, it was 38+ºC. PaPa brought her to see the paediatrician. They were there for almost 2 hours because there were so many patients. When doctor checked her temperature, it was 39ºC. He said her throat's very red and prescribed antibiotics in hope for a speedy recovery. At critical times like this, better not risk a secondary infection.

Throughout Sunday and Monday, her temperature was below 38ºC. Then on Monday night, it started to rise. Gave her paracetamol before bedtime. At 7+ the next morning (Tuesday), the thermometer showed 39.2ºC. Administered a suppository and brought her to the clinic again. Doctor said her throat has improved a little (less red). It doesn't look like dengue fever or A (H1N1). He asked us to monitor her for the next 24 hours to see if a blood test is necessary.

While having lunch, she told me she's very cold. And I knew her temperature must be rising very fast. When I gave her paracetamol, it was 38.7ºC. One hour later, it was not subsiding (39.6ºC) so I inserted the suppository. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Hope I didn't overdose her. I also sponged her with a wet towel. It took some time to coax a tired and sleepy sick child out of bed into the bathroom. But luckily she's quite cooperative, at times.

To have a peace of mind, PaPa brought her to a nearby hospital for a blood test in the evening. She was only tested for dengue fever and it's negative (phew!). The doctor prescribed Fluhalt, the anti-viral medicine coz her result indicated a viral infection.

This round, her fever is the 'fast and furious' type i.e. come back and reach very high in a short time. Paracetamol takes a long time to take effect so I've been inserting suppository as her temperature was above 39ºC. Within 24 hours since yesterday morning, she's had 4 insertions (the last one at 6am today). Hopefully that'll be the last one.

At 2:30pm (8 hours after the last suppository), her temperature started to go up. Although it was only 37.4ºC, I gave her paracetamol to prevent it from going too high. Looks like there's improvement as her fever takes a longer time to come back. Hopefully her fever has subsided for good.

Overall, she's still active and playful. She feels tired and sleepy when the fever's very high, after taking her medicines, and also when I asked her to do her homework. :-) The virus seems to be very strong as she usually recovers quite quickly when infected. We're very worried that didi may catch it. But it's really tough to separate the kids. They're like magnets. No matter how many times we remind them to stay away from each other, they'll end up playing together again. I've asked her to wear a mask at home. But she doesn't put it on all the time. Well, I know it's rather uncomfortable, so I let her be. Just have to remind (and shout at) them whenever the 2 magnets are stuck together.

~ one of her 'good girl' moments ~

Wet & Cold

Last weekend, we were back in my hometown, Penang. This is our second trip home this year, since Chinese New Year. It was a very short trip, 2 nights stay (Fri - Sun), so I didn't inform any of my friends about my trip. Just want to laze around at home and spend more time with my family.

It rained heavily and almost non-stop from Friday night till Sunday morning. The weather was very cold at night. We're wrapped up in our blankets from neck to toe during bedtime, with the fan switched on to the lowest speed. With such weather, we had most meals at home. Rather inconvenient to bring the kids out. I got to eat many of my favourite hawker food (packed home by my personal delivery boy - my dear brother hehehe).

The only time we went out was for lunch on Sunday with my family. We had dim sum and noodles at Lorong Abu Siti. The noodles was good but not the dim sum. Hubby and I prefer the dim sum at Anson Road. Since we didn't go out much, how did the kids occupy themselves being confined at home? They played with card games, toys, torch lights and most of the time, they fought over my 10 year-old nephew's PSP. Even didi who doesn't know how to play, demanded for his turn as he wanted to press the buttons. :-|

~ a rare moment - waiting patiently for his turn ~

Oh ya, I also ate some durians (finally!). Yummy! But came back to KL with sore throat and runny nose. :-( Not sure if it's because of the durian. Anyway, I only ate about 7-8 pieces in total. The sore throat lasted for just one day. I'm now feeling much better, just have thick phlegms to clear and a blocked nose. And I really hate blocked nose coz it's really difficult to sleep at night. sigh...

Scratch Here Scratch There

I wrote about CE's itchy red patch on his stomach area last week. It has become worse since then. As there was no improvement after applying the Foban-H cream that his paediatrician prescribed, we brought him back for check-up again on Monday. The doctor said it doesn't look like normal rashes so he asked us to consult a skin specialist.

Went to see the specialist on Wednesday. Doctor said it's viral infection. This could last for weeks, even months. He prescribed another cream. It's a combination of 2 medicine - Crotamiton and Ge****yein (can't decipher the nurse's writing :-|). Really pity the little boy as it's very itchy. Luckily there's no other discomfort. But he's been a good boy as he stays very still for me to apply the cream all over his body after his bath and he willingly take the oral medicine for itchiness (Antamin).

A few days have passed and new rashes are still appearing. But the rashes around the abdomen area have turned brownish, which is what the doctor expected. I really hope it wouldn't last for months. I really don't know how he got them, the doctor can't give an explanation either.

Very Suay

I brought CE to consult his paediatrician this morning. He has some rashes on his neck, chest and abdomen after a one-day fever on Monday. His runny nose is just clearing up and I thought might as well check to see everything's alright with his ear and throat. Luckily no further infection. Also, there's a red itchy patch on his body that didn't go away after a week (I applied Hydrocort). It has dried up a bit but it seemed to have enlarged. Doctor prescribed Foban-H, a cream that contains antibiotic.

~ red patch on his right side (stomach area) ~

The suay thing that happened was I got summoned for parking without paying. Why I said suay? Because I was prepared to pay. I knew I didn't have any coins in my wallet so before I left the house, I 'stole' 50 sen (20+20+10) from the kids' musical coin box. But when I put in the coins, it didn't accept my 10 sen coin. Then I realised it's a SGD10¢. As CE and Kakak were waiting at the paed's clinic (I dropped them in front of the clinic earlier), I didn't bother to go change the coins. Moreover, I only have RM50 notes. I was secretly hoping that I won't get summoned (it's quite common around that area). I was gone for about half an hour (max 40 minutes). When I got to the car, there was a piece of paper stuck to my wiper. *sigh sigh sigh* So instead of paying 50 sen, now I've to pay RM30. Thanks to that SGD10¢. *arrrgh!!*

The Long Weekend

Thank you very much for all your get-well wishes and caring gestures. Unfortunately, the virus seemed to be very strong this time around. XY is fully recovered already but I'm not. But it's just the end part. I guess it takes a little more time for the "elderly". hahaha

Didi's condition worsened after my previous update. His throat infection spread to his ear (again!). He was really in pain this time as the doctor said his right eardrum was very red. Luckily it was under control after medication (painkiller, antibiotic and ear drops). Then he complained of pain and itch on his left ear on Tuesday morning. I just put the ear drop for him (for 2 days) and he's okay now. So I can also announce victory for him. Yay!

Okay, enough of this boring health issues. Here's a short update on our activities last weekend.

Friday
Went to IOI Mall after our bak kut teh brunch. The kids had a great time at Jusco's playland. After considering for months, we finally bought the Nintendo Wii. And also the Wii Fit a few days later (Tuesday).

That night, after the kids slept, PaPa and I played tennis (the Wii game lah :D) till about 3am. It was a really good workout as our t-shirts were wet (partly from exercise and partly from the hot weather). We swung our arms as if we're playing real tennis. Also moved our body (stretched a bit) to reach the ball. My arms and shoulders ached till now. And that proved how unfit I am. As we're so sticky, we had to shower before sleeping. What a night.

Saturday
Just stayed home.

Sunday
Went to KLCC. PaPa went to take a look at the Home Decoration Exhibition (Homedec 09) while I brought the kids to Petrosains. XY was quite fascinated with some of the experiments but I didn't have much opportunity to explain to her. I had to take care of the excited didi who kept touching this and that. There are games for the kids (and adults) to play and you really need to spend at least 2-3 hours there. I didn't go for the Helicopter Simulator coz I didn't want to waste time waiting for our turn. I'd think that should be fun.

Our tickets included DinoTrek, the dinosaur exhibition. It was quite interesting to see the different types of dinosaurs in 3D. They can move too! There're computerised panels where you can play games (dino puzzles) and read more information about dinosaurs. We took some pictures with their interactive camera and they'll be e-mailed to us (need to type in the e-mail address). But I haven't received them yet. Maybe it doesn't really work.

Pictures taken in DinoTrek :

~ Apatosaurus (I think) ~

~ Spinosaurus vs. Tyrannosaurus Rex ~

~ Maiasaurus ~

Health Updates

The whole family is sick. The only survivor is PaPa. This round, everyone's sick at the same time, Kakak too. XY and I are wrapping "wantons". Me more frequently than her. I sneezed so hard till my head and face ache. *sniffle sniffle* Actually, XY's been having runny nose for almost 2 weeks already. It started with a mild one, stopped, then returned.

Didi had fever for 4 days (no more fever today *phew*). Now he's having runny nose and cough. He was having slight redthroat and diarrhea (luckily no vomitting) when I brought him to see his paediatrician on Friday. I think he's no longer having diarrhea but stomach still gassy. I'm not giving him milk just yet but have included vegetables and more meat in his meals. The poor guy was only eating watery porridge with few slices of fish or chicken for the past 2 days. Although the kids are not well, I'm very glad they're still as active as ever.

Ok, now rewind back to last Wednesday.
*imagine the sound of tape rewinding*
I went for my first dose of the cervical cancer vaccine (Cervarix). I signed up for the BP Diagnostic Centre's promotional offer of 3 jabs for RM500. They've extended their promotion till end of this month.

One of the most common side effects is pain at the injected area. The doctor said some complain of pain for a few days, some for a week. :-| I experienced intense pain (very sore but nothing that can kill you lah :D) for 3 days. It was painful to lift up my arm. I can't lie sideways while sleeping as it's painful when my arm's being pressed down. After the 4th day (till now), it's still a bit sore, especially when I press on the injected area. Other than that, everything's normal.

Wishing everyone a germ-free week ahead! *cough cough*