Light Sticks Fun

Some call it light sticks and some glow sticks. Whatever you call it, it’s sure to guarantee lots of fun.

The boys were having so much fun drawing with it. Can you make out some of the letter we wrote with the sticks? The bad is, they got a little too stimulated for bed after. I read a tip on how to preserve the sticks and it worked! It’s very easy too, just put the sticks in the freezer and it will last you another 3 days.

Here's a video, you can't see much but their giggles tells you all.

Time, is what I can give them.

I like them to run in the park and tell me, “Mummy, I want to fly…”

I like them to give his brother a hug while watching ducks swimming the water

I like them to indulge in their pretend play, bringing their Teddy for a trip to supermarket to buy me washing powder and apple juice.

I like them to spend an afternoon just watching the water at the reservoir.

I like them to sneak up to the piano at my sister’s place and bang their fingers on the keyboard while singing the ABC song.

For all the things I like, I have to give them time. Time to do nothing and enjoy their childhood. And time for me to enjoy watching them grow.

Pink for Boys?

We were going to get a balancing bike for the boys and we showed them the catalogue for them to choose the colors. K chose Orange and Y shouted "I want Pink!" when he saw the catalogue. That seem to spell trouble as we asked him again and he was so sure of the Pink bike and kept repeating that he likes the Pink bike. 

I do not see any problem with him having a Pink bike, considering that I had made a documentary during school days about gender stereotyping and why Pink are for Girls and Blue are for Boys. I believed that there should not be any stereotyping for children colors and toys. I let them play with kitchen sets and all. However, I don't want him to be laughed at. And at 2.5 years old, he would not be able to understand how he should be confident of his choice even if he was being teased. I would expect the teaser to be adults more than children as it's adults that put meaning to these colors. If he is older, say 4 or 5 years old, I would explain to him that Pink is a nice color and it's nice that he likes the Pink bike but he has to be prepared to accept that there are some people who think Pink are for girls and boys should not have Pink.

My husband looked at me with some doubt. I guiltily asked Y again if he would like a Yellow or Blue or Red bike and he was still sure of the Pink bike. My husband then asked "So Mummy, do we get the Pink bike for Y?" I answered, "Yes, if he really likes it." I was all prepared to take the plunge to order a Pink bike for him when I believed he sensed that something is not right with his choice and he suddenly changed his mind and said "I want a Green bike." You can see us both heaved a sigh of relief. We continued to ask his many times if he is sure of the Green bike. He seemed sure and we had ordered a Green bike for him today.  

I feel bad, I didn't like that I influenced his choice for this. Will you try to dissuade your son from getting something Pink?

More Sand Play

What do you do on an afternoon when your twins are harassing you to bring them to the beach when it’s mission impossible for you?

Lay a disposable plastic sheet on the balcony floor, get 2 trays, pour a cup of sand into each tray, bring out their Bob the Builder construction toys and you can have some peace for the next 30 mins.

Sand and Water Play at Home

I loved the Sand and Water table by ELC but since we lived in a flat, that is out of the question. When I saw that they are selling the sand and water table accessories at 20% off, I couldn’t resist and got it home. Hmm… just playing with water don’t seem fun enough, so I thought I’ll make my own sand and water table alternative.

I hesitated to do this as I have no domestic maid to help me clean up now! But how can I deprive my kids of some sand and water fun? So, the very noble side of me went ahead and was scolding myself how silly I was when I spent an hour washing up and cleaning up the sand. But the boys had a really good time. I’m sure I swore I’ll never do this again while cleaning, I think I might take back my words now that I recalled how happy they were. Mummies have bad memory, that's why people have 2nd birth. But I need to think of better cleaning strategy before attempting again.

What You Need:
2 pails/container (1 for water and 1 for sand)
Masking tape to tape the toy to the pails/containers
Plastic sheet for the floor
Sand
Water

Top view. I didn't have too much sand and water but had to add more as they got frustrated as they got little.

Caged boys. I locked them in during the preparations and they were really excited to see what I was setting up. They dashed out when I opened the gate! 

K was so thrilled to see the water and sand flowing down, spinning the wheel.

Happily playing with my sand and water table alternative.

This is really fun but a word of caution. This is not for the faint heart! hah...

Balloon Painting

I got the bunny balloons with the intention of letting the boys use the ears as a brush but the boys just took the balloons and held them by the ears and started painting. Silly me! That’s easier, isn’t it? I’m glad my sons are smarter than me. This is real idiot proof and provided lots of fun and the artwork produced were not too bad! But they were destroyed by them at the end of the session. The artists were not too happy with their works. 
What You Need:
Bunny Balloons or any balloons.
Paper
Paint

You don’t need instructions for this! My boys intuitively stamped the balloons on the paper.