Another activity that Calvin loves before going to bed at night is to watch his favourite dvd, Cars — a Pixar animated film. He is only allowed to watch 15-20 minutes of it and he is quite happy with it because by which time, his latest favourite dance music/song will come on. He likes one of the theme song in the animated film — “Life is a highway” by Rascal Flatts. I think he likes the tune and the beat, so whenever the music starts, he starts dancing! It is quite entertaining to watch Calvin dance, I have to say. Here are some photos I took of him while he was dancing away. I know the photos probably won’t do him justice, but at least you can see that he is having a ball. 🙂

The song lasts for about 4 minutes and he can dance (more like jumping and running around) for the whole duration. By the end of the song, he is totally exhausted, but he is happy. Then he will stop the film on the player, return the dvd to its cover and turn off the TV. As you can tell, we have been through this many many times. 🙂

This is another common scene at our home before the boys’ bedtime. Calvin would sit on Robin’s lap and they will play his favourite xbox game (car racing). Athan, our dear little boy, wants so much to be part of the action, but he is really too young for xbox games! Anyhow, he seems happy to stand next to the gang and watch the action on screen. 🙂

Just so you know … Robin only plays the xbox game with Calvin when he has been obedient. It is a special treat and it is something both of them do together. Bonding. At his age, Calvin knows he has to *work* for his reward, and he really can be cooperative and obedient if he wants to. By the way, I should add that the xbox does not belong to us. It is on loan (indefinitely) from our good friends.

He is 3 and a half years old now and he absolutely loves cars. This includes the Pixar animation “Cars” which he can watch endlessly on dvd, toy cars, trucks, cranes, fire engine, ambulance, and of course the real thing. He has A LOT of toy cars at home and he loves to play with them on the floor. He will put them side by side, forming a long *snake* as he often puts it or he will sort the colours or size, and then he will make a pretend race track and push the cars, a few at a time as if they were having a race. There’s sound effect too! Sometimes I even have to join in the game. Athan wants to join in the game very much but because he can’t play at Calvin’s level, he often creates *chaos* for which Calvin will reply with loud protest. Sigh. I wish these 2 will be able to play well one day.

Calvin received a little backpack with the picture of “Lightning McQueen” from the Pixar animation “Cars” printed at the front one day. It was from my sister in Singapore. He was so thrilled and wanted the backpack on him immediately. But before that, he put all his favourite toy cars in the bag and for almost the whole day, he carried the backpack with him everywhere he went. He even refused to take if off at meal times! Then one night, he told me he wanted to wear pajamas with “Lightning McQueen” on it. Unfortunately, I had to say no because we did not have that. He was disappointed, but a set of “Thomas The Tank Engine” pjs seemed to appease him quickly.

He is still asking endless of why-s and how-s, and I am still trying my best to answer him. These days he will not budge until he hears an answer that satisfies him. We had a thunderstorm one night, and the next morning he asked me about the rain and thunder and lightning to which I replied God made them all. And then. He asked me “where God make the rain”? He pressed me for an answer and he was not satisfied with “in the sky”, and then I realised he wanted to see God make the rain in action! At that moment, I really did not know how to explain to him. In fact, up till today I have not found an answer for him — although he seems to have forgotten about his questions. Perhaps I should go read up on my science again ….

He is doing great at pre-kindy and day care. Thank God. He loves going to school because of the bikes! Yup, he really likes to ride on the bike with the other boys in his class. He has made a friend, Will who is also a big fan of cars. I have spoken to Will’s mum and you know what? My son is not the only one who is so crazy about cars! Calvin is also doing well at day care. He likes the big cars and trucks they have there. I often find him pushing his favourite yellow truck with the other boys when they are playing outside. It is good to see him playing well with other children.

From time to time, he enjoys a little craft session with me. He seems to be more interested in painting now as compared with before although I have to say that he can only sit still for about 10 – 15 minutes. So I have to make sure the craft is interesting for him and it is something he can manage. I notice that he uses his left hand to paint and right hand to stamp. Quite honestly, I am not too sure if he is right-handed or left-handed. I was pretty sure he is going to be right-handed at one stage, but now that I see him paint, cut, and eat with his left hand, I am not too sure. Having said that, I should add that Calvin does use his right hand for those tasks, although less often. And, he uses his right hand to write. Confusing. Oh well, we just have to wait and see.

My little boy is definitely growing up fast. Some days I feel that I am not spending enough time with him because of my work. He does act up from time to time and he can be very challenging to deal with. He presses my button all the time and he tests his boundary with me all the time. Some days I am so tempted to just give in to him to avoid confrontation, but I know this will not do him any good. I do discipline him when I have to, but I am aware that it is important for him to know that I love him too. Parenting is really hard work, but it is rewarding.