Category Archives: My Daughters

Bringing The Opera Home

Posted by Jewelle Tan on October 7, 2011 None comments

The Chinese Opera at the Temple in Bandar Seri Begawan has been over for nearly a month.

On the two shows that we attended, we sat very close to the stage and there my children remain fixated on every movements, dialogues and songs of the actors and actresses (despite not understanding one bit of Hokkien).

So it did not surprised me when soon after, they began to re-enact bits of the play at home.

There was that slow drawl and high-pitched voices of the female characters, the dance-like fighting movements of the warriors and the trademark “Tiinnnggggggg!”, which was some kind of an instrument to mark the end of a scene – all in their own dialogues which was either made-up Mandarin words or a mish-mash of actual Mandarin words strung together to form pretend sentences – not that I know the difference!

They enjoyed this opera so much that there are talks of recovering some old recordings of Chinese Opera that used to belong to their late great-grandmother…

I can already see myself slowly going mad from having to listen to this on the 15 mins to and 15 mins back drive from school – if they have their way.

Party

Posted by Jewelle Tan on October 3, 2011 None comments

Having young children, getting party invitations means only one thing.

Major getting-ready operations.

Of course, it’s mostly my job to get the kids ready – with a little assistance from my husband if he still happens to be within my eyesight.

But being the smart man that he is, he will disappear from the chaos that is involved in getting 3 high-spirited little fashionistas to dress – to the safety of the living room where he can exercise his most important role, asking if we are done, yet!

As if choosing their outfit and fixing their hair are snap-of-the-finger-and-it’s-done kind of thing.

Well, it might if my children are not the squirmy-no-such-thing-as-sitting-still or if they are not inflicted by the mood-changes-everything kind of fashion inspirations . At times, getting them ready are so taxing that I am ready to just flop down on the bed – before we even leave the house.

Did I mention that I needed time to get ready too?

Yes, big-time stressful operations.

Dancing Queen

Posted by Jewelle Tan on July 30, 2011 None comments

My 7 year old had danced, sang and played music as part of her schools activities more times than I could count with my 2 hands. My second child is going to be just as active and so will the youngest too I am sure, when she starts school.

Accommodating their practice sessions and performances are exhausting but I take it in stride because I want them to remember school as fun too. And at this point, performing in school means putting on striking costumes, fancy hairdo, make-up and they simply adored it all!

Of course it helps that they are talented – which I used to think came genetically from me (because it can’t be from their father).

Until the admittedly tricky (but one which I was so confident of getting the hang of) Magunatip dance stumped me recently.

While she, despite being her very first try, took to it easily.

I wanted to blame my uncooperative legs on that glass of wine I had at that time but it sounded lame against my husband’s explanation : my daughter is a dancing veteran and “How many times have YOU performed on stage?” – he asked me, pointedly.

Yes, I shall do just what he told me to do next time : leave quietly when she is dancing and let her take the spotlight.

Two-Legged Tyrants

Posted by Jewelle Tan on July 14, 2011 None comments

A typical morning which starts with child number two pronouncing, loudly, that she “Will NOT eat that! NO WAY!” when she saw what’s on her plate, 10 feet away from the dining table.

Tension was cooled somewhat when child number one jumped happily, proclaiming “THAT’S what I’m talking about!” when she saw what on her plate.

As for child number three, she just had to join in the like/dislike bandwagon so early in the morning with an enthusiastic “I LIKE anchovies!” – never mind that anchovies are nowhere in any of the breakfast menu.

When breakfast is all done, it was on to preparing their school snacks – another trip to the kitchen barely 1 hour since breakfast.

Now it was child number one’s turn to exclaim, “You know I HATE that!” when she saw what’s on the chopping board. And child number two’s turn to, seeing what finally filled her tea break container, sneak bites out that I had to rescue it from being eaten up before she even reaches school!

Such is the difference in their taste that breakfast and snack is always a hit and miss – depending on how indulgent I am feeling. On not so typical days, they will get what they like to eat even if it meant having to face the stove and more preparation that I care to do on normal days – not to mention having my hair scented with all kind of fumes and it was not even half way through the day.

These are days when I wish that I can fast-forward to the times when the only headache I get is deciding what to buy as their gift for college graduations and what to wear for their convocations

And start shaking my legs, waiting for them to indulge ME in my all my fussy demands.

Kids And Technology

Posted by Jewelle Tan on May 13, 2011 None comments

Have you notice how at ease kids are these days with technology?

My youngest daughter (read : 2 years old) got my handphone to play videos in mere SECONDS – while it took ME at least half a minute of several steps to get the same thing going.

Then there was that time when I caught her sliding her finger across the screen – something I did not know was possible – until I saw HER doing it!

My second one practically mastered and managed to have several records of herself in my laptop – in less than 2 days after it arrived. My eldest, on the other hand, told me that she wanted my old laptop for her birthday!

Handphones, computers and cameras – there is nothing kids these days (at least, my kids) cannot figure out within a few minutes.

I am pretty sure that at least one of them will pursue an information technology degree – which is a good thing too because there was an article that lists this degree as one of the best for the coming decade.

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