From daddy’s desk – Education worries Pt. 1

Fatherhood brings with it many worries, and the one worry that tops them all is EDUCATION.

Before Brae came into my life, things were simpler. I work, I get paid, I spend it all on myself and wifey, with some in the savings kitty. Nowadays, it is no more “me-me-me” but “Brae-Brae-Brae”.

If I was downright broke, then I won’t have to worry at all because Brae would have to go to a government school, work his butt off to score good grades, pray that he gets the course he wants in a public university of his choice (and since he is Chinese and I am very pragmatic, he probably won’t), and be offered a scholarship at the same time.

It is my hope to give him more certainty as far as education is concerned. If he is a bright kid and does well in his studies, then it is only fair that he gets the proper education that he deserves. If I have to pay for it, then so be it. I’ll just have to work harder (smarter), and save more.

Everyone has their 2 cents say on the dismal state of our Malaysian education system, including myself. Racial quotas, teachers who can’t teach, discrimination in the whole system, topped off with a Malaysian Education Minister who sees it fit to brandish a keris at some high profile meeting for all Malaysians to see. Yes, I hate the entire Malaysian system of doing things.

Sorry, back to the point…..I believe we have the following options:

• Chinese school (partially or all the way)
• Government school
• Private school offering government syllabus
• International school

Funny thing is, most parents want their children to do things that the parents themselves did not get the opportunity to do, be it piano lessons, learning a foreign language, even the type of school they attend. We have Chinese-educated parents sending their children to Government schools because they do not want their kids to endure what they have gone through and to have a more balanced childhood. On the other side of the fence we have English-speaking parents who send their kids to Chinese schools to pick up the language.

A bit of background; I studied in an International school from Primary 1 till Secondary 5, was sent overseas for 5 years before returning with a piece of paper called a “degree”. My command of the Malay language is confined to ordering food at the mamak stall and knowing when someone is swearing at me! I had private Chinese tuition (which I dreaded immensely) so I can read and write basic Chinese and can understand Mandarin and Cantonese (my dialect) fairly well.

Wifey on the other hand studied in a Government school up till Secondary 5. Moved to the big city called KL to work and study part-time to obtain her diploma and degree. For that, I am very proud of her. (Aside, though her degree is in Computer Science, she still needs my help to migrate her blog!!! Sorry dear, give me a couple of weeks for the novelty to wear off). She speaks Mandarin, Cantonese and Hakka (her dialect) very well but cannot read as well as me. Her command of Malay is good but she is unable to translate what she understands in Malay to English. I still haven’t figured out whether her brain thinks in English, Chinese or Malay.

WE DISAGREE ON WHERE TO SEND BRAE. She wants Chinese, I am not too receptive to that idea. We definitely can’t afford an international school unless Brae is the only child.

to be continued…….

From daddy’s desk

A good day to all mummies (and dads),

Since my dearest other half is out of ideas on what to write, I have been recruited to help increase her blog size (with great reluctance on my part!). So do bear with me while I rant on and on about what goes on in my little head as I embark on this fascinating journey named “fatherhood”.

I don’t worry much about what to feed the baby, how to clean him, this and what not. I leave it to my very capable wife to worry about these things, with the occasional input from me. Thanks to all the blogging mummies for the advice given and experiences shared. Your input gives some sort of balance to wifey’s (I’ll figure out a better way to refer to my wife later) life as she figures out whether what she does is right or wrong.

Ah, my first post in my co-blog. Actually, must give credit to myself for migrating wifey’s blog over to WordPress. Thank you, thank you I wouldn’t want anyone of you to experience what I have gone through the past couple of weeks as wifey struggled with Blogger.

Brae’s contagious laugh

The above video was recorded during one of our midwife’s monthly visits. She was so thrilled to hear Brae laughing that she asked us to take a video of his ‘contagious’ laughter. Brae was laughing and giggling when the midwife gave him a stacking ring to play with. He thought she was playing with him and he just laughed…laughed…and laughed!

Protected: Brae’s new car seat

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7 months milestones

Weight : 9.5 kg

Height : 70 cm
Teeth : 2 lower teeth


Physical Development

• Still hasn’t crawled yet. When we try to put his toys further away to tempt him to crawl, he ends up struggling with his head down or rolls over to get them. *rolling eyes*
• He prefers to stand or sit.
• He can sit unsupported most of the time.
• He doesn’t like to lie down flat.

Language

• He babbles a lot.
• Usually says “wa..wa..wa…wa……”.

Food

• Eats 2 meals + 2 serves of fruit and a snack in a day (refer to Brae’s food) with 3 milk feeds.
• He is not a fussy eater. He will eat whatever food we give him.
• He is now starting to eat fruits without steaming.

Brae’s new development

• He has just started his new Kindermusik Village and Sign & Sing classes. We find that the Kindermusik class is quite useful for Brae and informative for first-time parents like ourselves. Brae is more sociable and friendly towards people now. He used to cry when people carry him, but not anymore. He always tries to give his winning smile when people play with him. As for Sign & Sing classes, we have learnt some signs to communicate with Brae. Brae has not started signing back yet. However, I find that when we sing a song together with the action of signs, Brae is more receptive to the song.
  
• When we say, “Braedyn, bao-bao?” or “Braedyn, you want daddy to carry you?”, he will get excited, extend both his hands and try to lift himself out of the car seat to be carried.
• He still doesn’t like to drink plain water. I have tried using the teats and soft spout, but to no avail. His intake of plain water per day is only 30 ml.
• It is easier now when we eat dinner outside because he can sit on his own in the highchair. No more taking turns eating while the other carries Brae. Brae has his own rattles to play with (strung to a lanyard) when we eat outside.
  
• He is sleeping through the night now after I give him a milk feed just before he sleeps.
• When he wakes up in the morning, he will turn and toss around the bed, babbling and playing on his own until I pick him up.
• He likes to blow air through his lips, mimicking my attempts to cool his food down.
• Whenever I carry him, he will use his left hand to stroke my hair. My hair is short and he never does that to daddy.
• He likes to scratch his head nowadays. He looks so cute when he scratches his head. I am trying to get a snapshot of that action but no success so far,