ParentWonder

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Abel Cheng's Archives

Are we listening to our kids?

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“I don’t want to go to library.”

That was the reply I received when I asked my daughter about our plan to a local library.

I was shocked to hear the answer as J was totally enjoying herself in the last trip.

As a natural response, after getting such an unexpected reply from her, I was planning to give her a list of 101 reasons why libraries were good and she should change her mind.

Fortunately, I didn’t. Instead, I probed further.

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Finding Time: 14 Tips for Busy Parents

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Time is a rare commodity for today’s parents.

Most parents leave the house early in the morning and only come home with a tired body late at night – leaving no time for kids. Ironically, kids want nothing but time from parents. Time to play and time to connect.

Is it too much to ask for for a kid?

Are you one of the parents who find no time for kids? Then you should stop and ask yourself this question:

What am I busy for? Am I having the priorities right?

Okay, let's do something about it. Listen to what this mother has to say about making time for kids. If a mother of 9 children can have spare time for her kids, I think you can do the same too. Of course, much easily.

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The One Activity Your Children Can Do with Grandparents

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When my children paid a visit to their grandparents last weekend, we didn't do much as it was a short trip. The kids had only 2 days, 1 night to spend.

To best make use of the trip, I tried to get the kids to bond and hopefully form a closer relationship with my parents and siblings, whom they only meet once every few months.

Of course, playing with kids was one of the ways. But there’s one problem. It took a while for the kids to “warm-up” and accept my parents as playmates. Furthermore, my folks can't match the grandchildren’s enthusiasm.

Fortunately, I found a better idea: watching home made videos.

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Child Growth and Development: What My 20-month Old Can Do

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To add to my list of skills of a 19-month, here is an update on what my 20 months old son, K, can do:

  • Sweet sound of “Mommy” – Just last Friday, he managed to call “Mommy” and “Daddy” correctly. All this while, he used to call us “Mama” and “Papa.” Only one-syllable words he could master then.
  • “Read this book for me” – Before last night, K was not interested in sitting down quietly and “read” a book. Let alone flipping through page by page. For some reason (Maybe the interest spills over after he sees us reading together with his elder sister almost every night. He wants to be part of it), he asked me to “go through” a book with him last night. What he can do now is to recognize some pictures and say the words out. Such as “dog”, “car”, “shoes”, and so on.
  • Simple communication – K can tell us something without saying the words. He will use sign language to communicate what he wants and doesn’t want. Such as “Mommy gave me this bread.” – while he’s pointing at the bread.
  • Getting violent – If someone blocks his way or stops him from getting a toy he aims at getting, he’d hit or bite! Not sure where he learns from but definitely it’s not from me.

That’s it. A pretty short list, right? But it’s already quite a lot to achieve within a month…for a toddler.

The Debate: Public vs. Private vs. Home School

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Somehow this article caught my attention. Because it’s a question I need to find answer to…

“Shall I send my daughter to a public school or private school or home school?”

There’s a debate in great length going on at The Washington Post’s On Parenting column. Stacey Garfinkle posed the question to the floor.

It’s an interesting topic indeed. Some replies that I find worth mentioning are:

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