Thursday, May 27, 2010

The Summer Plan

Since she was a baby Gabby has been going with Mommy to drop and/or pick up Rebecca from her Dance or Gymnastics class. She watches her sister walking into the building from her seat. Sometimes Mommy takes her inside so that she can watch kids dancing or doing gymnastics. She knows she will do the same thing when she grows up.

Being three years old is big. One day when Gabby and Mommy dropped Rebecca at her Gymnastics class, Gabby told Mommy: “I have grown up. I want to do Gymnastics!” She was so determined that Mommy had to take her inside to take a look. She was very excited and trying to do gymnastics with the other kids. In order not to disturb the classes that were taking place, Mommy had to take her back to the car.

Another day when Gabby and Mommy dropped Rebecca at her Dance School (for the Spring performance rehearsal) Gabby wanted to go to dance along with Rebecca, but Mommy did not let her in this time. She was upset and kept telling Mommy she wanted to dance Ballet as well. When they got home, Mommy played for her the video “Bella Dancerella”. She also put on her the dancing shoes Rebecca used to wear. Gabby watched this video before, but this time she was totally attracted. When it was over, she wanted to play it again. She watched it a few times. The next day when they got home in the afternoon the first thing Gabby wanted to do was to put on the dancing shoes and watch "Bella Dancerella."

Mommy was moved by Gabby’s passion on Gymnastics and Dance. After discussing with Daddy, she signed up gymnastics classes for both Rebecca and Gabby for this summer. Their classes will meet at the same time. So they will do gymnastics at the same time. However, Rebecca has no dance class during the summer. So Gabby still needs to get older to go to dance with her sister. Mommy has signed up ice skating classes for them. Their ice skating classes will also meet at the same time. Gabby will go ice skating with her sister instead. Both Rebecca and Gabby are very excited about gymnastics and ice skating. They will go to the same school during the day time as well. Maybe Gabby doesn’t care what she does as long as she does it with her sister, and to do what her sister does is what she really cares.

The summer (in the school calendar) begins next week when Rebecca's school is over. Daddy and Mommy also plans to take Rebecca and Gabby to swim and camp. They will be busy this summer.

Monday, May 24, 2010

Rebecca's Show and Play

Last week Rebecca performed in a Talent Show and a Fairy Tale Play.

The Talent Show was on Thursday night. Rebecca played piano in the Talent Show. She played “Waltz in A Minor Chopin.” Daddy, Mommy and Gabby all went to the show to support her. To participate in the Talent Show, Rebecca had to pass the audition that was two weeks before the Talent Show. There were about 30 acts in the Talent Show, including singing, dancing, instruments and some other acts. Every act demonstrated a certain talent. One act was solving the Rubix Cube in less than 90 seconds. Solving the Rubix Cube is not easy, and to do it in less than 90 seconds is really hard. The person who did it does have a talent. The singing “Slippery Fish” was very funny. Rebecca and Gabby couldn’t stop singing that song at home in the following a couple of days. Rebecca made a new friend whose name was Michelle Yoo. She also played piano. All the participants in the Talent Show received a Star Award. They were shining stars. Just as the words on the stage said, Riggs Stars Shone Bright at Night!

The Fairy Tale Play was on Friday afternoon. Rebecca was a narrator in “Cinderella Visits the Shoe Store and Gets a Pair of Air Jordan,” and Gretel in “The Big Bad Wolf Goes to the Doctor to Find Out Why He Can’t Huff and Puff Anymore.” She made an apron by herself and wore it in “The Big Bad Wolf Goes to the Doctor to Find Out Why He Can’t Huff and Puff Anymore.” She was very excited about the play a few days before the play. She couldn’t fall asleep until late at night. Mommy went to watch the play by herself, which consisted of the following acts:

1. Once Upon A ....
2. The Really,Really,Really True Story Of The Three Little Pigs
3. The Big ____ Wolf And The Day He Forgot His Middle Name
4. Little Red Riding Hood And The Big Bad Wolf Have A Friendly Conversation
5. Cinderella Visits The Shoe Store And Gets A Pair Of Air Jordans
6. The Big Bad Wolf Goes To The Doctor To Find Out Why He Can't Huff And Puff Anymore
7. The Really,Really,Really True Story Of Cinderella
8. The Trial Of Goldilocks

Adopting the main characters in the well-known fairy tales, they changed the stories and retold them in a different way, which produced an effect of humor. In "Cinderella Visits the Shoe Store and Gets a Pair of Air Jordans," Cinderella bought a pair of air jordans for the ball. She then created her own brand and retired a rich woman at the end. In "The Really, Really, Really True story of Cinderella," Cinderella didn't go to the ball that night. She decided to stay home reading romance while eating pizza.

Rebecca was very cute in the play. She memorized all her words. The whole play - the performance, the fairy tale painting, the costumes, the props – showed the hard work and great creativity of both the teacher and the students. At the end of the play all the students stood on the stage for autographs. Mommy got a few from them.

The important thing about the show and play is to do your best and enjoy it. The life is similar to a show or a play somehow. There are many parts in the life: Mom, Dad, husband, wife, daughter, son, sister, student, and etc. Everyone has a part or multiple parts. There are many acts as well: going to school/work, cooking and cleaning, doing homework, playing piano, resting and relaxing, going to bed, just to name a few. The same important thing applies to the life as well - do your best and enjoy it.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Gabby's Child Talks (5)

A big wedding photo of Daddy and Mommy was hung in their bedroom. One day Mommy pointed to that wedding photo and asked Gabby who the man in the photo was.

“He is Daddy.” Gabby said.

“Who is that woman?” Mommy asked again. She was a little afraid of the answer Gabby would say.

“She is Mommy.”

Mommy was happy that Gabby didn’t say the answer she was afraid of.

“Mommy was a princess!” Gabby said.

“A princess?” Mommy was enraptured. In her eyes Rebecca and Gabby are princesses, but she never thinks she could be a princess.

Why not? Everyone was wonderfully made by God and loved by God. Everyone is a prince or princess in God’s eyes.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

One day at dinner time Gabby dipped her straw into the milk and then put the straw into Mommy’s mouth. She was feeding Mommy milk.

“I’m Mommy, you’re Baby!” Gabby said, after feeding Mommy a few times.

“Ok!” Mommy said cooperatively.

Gabby was happy to switch parts with Mommy. She fed Mommy a few more times.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

At bed time Mommy sometimes tells Gabby not to come to Daddy and Mommy when she wakes up.

If Gabby switches parts with Mommy, what would she say to Mommy?

She says: “Mommy, don’t come to Daddy and Gabby when you wake up. Okay?”

Friday, May 14, 2010

The Fun of Stitching

"I'll stitch a picture of a fennec fox for my animial research project." One day Rebecca told Mommy. She found a piece of white fabric and started to draw a picture of a fennec fox on it. After she was done Mommy helped her cut out the fabric and install it on an embroidery hoop. Then Rebecca started to stitch the picture using yellow and brown threads.

When Mommy was a little girl there were not many activities for her to do at her spare time. One activity she did was stitching shoe pads. The shoe pads were to be put inside the shoes to make the shoes more comfortable. They needed to be stitched to be more durable. This job was taken by girls and married women at Mommy’s village. They used color threads and stitched all kinds of patterns on the shoe pads. Every shoe pad was definitely a craft. Mommy doesn’t know if they still stitch show pads nowadays, but at that time it was very popular. On winter days when they were not busy in the fields, a few girls sat together stitching shoe pads or knitting sweaters. They talked and shared their secrets. It was a good way to spend time when there was no TV and internet. Mommy didn’t remember she ever finished any pair of shoe pads that were used by anybody. Probably she just did it for fun and didn’t make any usable products.

About one year ago Rebecca got interested in stitching, which made Mommy think of her childhood and shoe pads stitching. Mommy bought Rebecca some embroidery supplies. Her first product was a bible verse “Everything is possible with God.” Mommy put it in a photo frame which now is hung on the wall in the kitchen. Rebecca has finished the picture of a fennec fox. Now she is working on a little patch of a dolphin.

To the people who don’t like to stitch, it is kind of boring. However, to the people who like it, it is fun. At the time of completion when they look at the product they have made they feel proud of themselves. They also learn a lot of things from stitching. They learn how to use patterns and colors. Their fingers become more flexible. A lot of stitches make a product. They learn to be patient and hopeful, too. Their character somehow is trained.

"You could be a surgeon when you grow up because you are so good at stitches." Mommy likes to tease Rebecca. Mommy thinks a surgeon does the similar thing - cutting and stitching. The difference is a surgeon does that on human body instead of on fabric.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

The Solar System

Every once in a while Rebecca brings home a couple of lovely items, such as a stuffed animal, a craft, lip balms, just to name a few. She buys them at the church using the tickets she earned from the AWANA club, Sunday School and Chinese School. She has brought home a few stuffed animals, including squirrel, parrot, penguin, bear, dog, turtle, and tiger. The stuffed squirrel has a long puffy tail that stands upright. It is very cute! She shares everything she buys with Gabby. One day she bought two tubes of lip balms which were exactly what Mommy wanted to buy. She shared them with Mommy.

Last Sunday was Mother’s Day. It was also the last day of Chinese School. The Chinese School Store was open after the closing ceremony. Rebecca spent all her tickets and bought a few items. She bought a life ring buoy for Gabby, a craft package for making a solar system model, and a froggy mobile.

Gabby was very curious to open the craft package for making a solar system model. On the following day after coming home from school Mommy opened the package. They took ball molds and color powders. Gabby took the small mold, and Mommy took the big one. Snapping together two sides of the mold into a ball shape, Mommy and Gabby started to pour the powders into the holes at the top of the molds. They poured in layers of different colors until the powders reached the fill line. Then they added water to the molds and submerged the molds in water for a few minutes. After removed from the water, the molds were opened carefully. The balls were still wet. They let them dry for a few minutes. The balls were soft after dry. They could bounce.

Noticing what was happening, Rebecca stopped reading and joined Mommy and Gabby. She made a big ball. Gabby made another small ball. They made four balls altogether. They put the balls in a ziplog bag to keep them soft.

On the next day Daddy hung the balls on the ring, which was also provided in the package. A solar system model was done! The balls glowed in the dark like stars. Mommy hung the model above Rebecca’s bed. Making the solar system model was fun!

According to the Bible God created the solar system on the fourth day. Praise God for his marvelous creation!

[Genesis 1:1] In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

[Genesis 1: 14-19] And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.

[Revelation 22: 3- 5] No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

The Tough Girl

One day Rebecca was very excited when she got home from her gymnastic class. She ran to the kitchen and told Mommy she could roll over on the bar. Wow! This was a big progress!

“It is great!” Mommy was very happy to hear that.

Just a few days ago Rebecca told Mommy that she could not roll over on the bar. Mommy encouraged her to keep working on it. She asked Mommy to take her to Hancock playground where there were bars and she could practice rolling over. Mommy took her and Gabby there. That day she couldn’t roll over without Mommy’s help.

“I imagined I was doing a sit-up, and then I rolled over!” Rebecca explained how she did it.

Rebecca’s face was radiant with excitement. At that moment Mommy remembered how Rebecca learned to do monkey bars and splits. She kept on working on them until she could do them. Sometimes she got very upset and would throw a tantrum for not being able to do them, but she never gave up. This time she even didn’t show any tantrum. She had grown out of that emotion and learned to be perseverant in achieving her goal.

“She is a tough girl!” Mommy said to herself.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Mother's Day 2010

Over the past a few years Mommy has been receiving presents on Mother’s Day. Sometimes it was a little card. Sometimes it was a flower. Sometimes it was a craft. Sometimes it was a poem. Mommy was always happy when she received those presents.

This year Gabby made Mommy a card. Inside the card was Gabby's handprint along with the following poem:

Sometimes you get discouraged
Because I am so small
And always leave my fingerprints
On furniture and walls.

But every day I'm growing
I'll be grown some day
And all those tiny handprints
Will surely fade away.

So here's a little handprint
Just so you can recall
Exactly how my fingers looked
When I was very small.

The card and poem were so sweet! Rebecca wrote Mommy a book. It was the product of her animal research project. Mommy knew her class had been working on the project since they returned to school after the spring break. Mommy was very surprised to see the book. It looked so nice. At the first sight she thought it was borrowed from the library. It had hard covers on which there were beautiful illustrations drawn meticulously with non-smudge crayons. On the front cover the title “The Fennec Fox” was written in bold and all the letters were colored. The table of contents of the book was written as follows:

Chapter 1 - Introduction
Chapter 2 - Animal Description
Chapter 3 - Habitat
Chapter 4 - Animal's Diet
Chapter 5 - Enemies/Predators
Chapter 6 - Survival Status
Chapter 7 - Animal Babies (Reproduction)
Chapter 8 - Behavior
Chapter 9 - Adaptations
Chapter 10 - Interesting or Unusal Facts
Chapter 11 - About the Author

Each chapter had illustrations to go with the contents. At “About the Author” there was Rebecca's school photo. Rebecca told Mommy that to write this book she did research on the internet and note taking first, then drafting, editing, publishing, and illustrating. Wow! That was a lot of work! Rebecca put Mommy's picture at the back of the front cover. Below the picture she wrote the following:

I dedicate this book to my Mom because it's Mother's Day and I want to show that I love her.

It is nice to receive Mother’s Day presents, and being a mother itself is very nice, too. Mommy wished for Rebecca and Gabby. She loves them unconditionally. Every day they give Mommy a lot of joy and fun. They are the greatest presents to her.

[Psalm 127:3] Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him.

Monday, May 10, 2010

The Birthday Party 2010

It was the 8th day of May. A birthday party was held for Rebecca and Gabby. The details of the party are as follows.

About two month ago Mommy and Rebecca decided to have a birthday party. They chose the theme of the party to be “camping and water.” They had a play pool and a tent already, but they needed to rent or buy a water slide. They decided to buy one because they can use it later.

About one month before the party, Daddy and Mommy started to search a water slide on the internet. Finally they bought one from the on-line Wal-Mart. It was delivered to the local Wal-Mart. Daddy, Mommy, Rebecca and Gabby all went to pick it up.

About two weeks before the party the invitations were sent out. Rebecca designed the cover, and Mommy took care of the editing and printing.

One week before the party Auntie came to visit. She helped cleaning the house and the patio.

Three days before the party Daddy and Mommy bought party supplies: drinks, goody bags, table cloths, plates, cups, napkins, candles and ribbons. Auntie bought flowers.

One day before the party they started to decorate the house.

On the very day of the party in the morning they continued to decorate the house. Rebecca put ribbons on the rails. Auntie put ribbons above the dome structures. Daddy and Auntie set up the tent, play pool and water slide in the backyard. Rebecca went to her dance lesson at 10:30 am. Mommy dropped her at the dance school and then went for grocery shopping. After the dance lesson Mommy and Rebecca went to buy birthday cookies. They bought two - one for Rebecca and another one for Gabby. Daddy bought balloons. In the afternoon, Rebecca and Gabby’s friends came and the party started. It went from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

The kids played water first. They played water guns and the water slide. They screamed, laughed and talked loudly in the backyard. The loud noise could be heard hundreds of feet away. Daddy was spraying water, Auntie was taking pictures, and Mommy was cooking in the house. After they got tired and hungry by playing water, the kids came inside and ate the birthday cookies. After birthday cookies they went to play in the tent. After a little while, they were called to come inside to have dinner. Mommy cooked fried rice and beef stew. Daddy bought pizza. After dinner, they sat down on the couch to watch the movie “Narnia” until their parents came to pick them up.

Rebecca and Gabby’s friends who came to the party were the following: Chloe, Aly, Alexa, Dilanah, Julia, Amy, QiQi and KaiKai. Four of them (Chloe, Aly, Alexa and Dilanah) were Rebecca’s classmates, the others were Rebecca and Gabby’s friends at the church. After the invitation were sent out, the response was low at first. Mommy prayed for four kids from Rebecca’s class, and it turned out to be exactly four! Dilanah didn't respond. Mommy was amazed to see her at the front door with Chloe and Aly (Alexa came a little later). Because of her coming, the number was exactly what Mommy prayed for. Praise God!

It was a great party. Rebecca, Gabby and their friends all had fun. When the party was over, Daddy, Mommy, Auntie, Rebecca and Gabby were all tired. They were happy at the same time. Auntie left on the next day. The party couldn’t be so great without her. Daddy, Mommy, Rebecca and Gabby wish her the best.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

When Auntie Comes

She’ll be coming from Thailand when she comes.
She’ll be taking an airplane when she comes.
We will clean the house,
We will prepare her bedroom,
We will meet her at the airport when she comes.

She will bring a big baggage when she comes
She will bring lots of surprises when she comes.
She will bring toys,
She will bring clothes,
She will bring her love when she comes.

She will take pictures for us when she comes.
She will play with us when she comes.
We will play blind man bluff,
We will play hide and seek,
We will have a lot of fun when she comes.

She will help Mommy for her chores when she comes.
She will help Daddy for his routines when she comes.
She will weed the garden,
She will clean the house,
We will be all happy when she comes.

Monday, May 3, 2010

The Little Driver

Auntie’s baggage was broken. She needed to buy a new one. Last Sunday after lunch Mommy took Auntie and Gabby to the mall for baggage shopping while Daddy and Rebecca stayed at the church for Chinese School.

There were so many interesting things in the mall. Gabby wanted to do explorations on her own. When Mommy was thinking how to keep Gabby under control, they saw kids shopping carts in the lobby. Kids who sit in those carts can mimic driving. Gabby wanted to drive one of those carts. Mommy thought it was a good idea to put her in there so that she and Auntie wouldn’t need to track her in the mall. It would also make her happy during the shopping. So Mommy paid $5 and got a cart.

Gabby was very happy just as Mommy thought. While she was “driving” either Mommy or Auntie had to push the cart. The cart stopped when the person who pushed it stopped. As soon as it stopped the little driver would ask to move. The cart had to keep moving while she was “driving.”

During the whole time Gabby was “driving” the cart. The shopping was very relaxing due to the cart. Auntie and Mommy bought a baggage at Sears. After that they set out for home. When Mommy was thinking how to persuade Gabby to leave the cart in the mall she told Mommy she didn’t want to drive any more. How sweet! She gave up before Mommy said a single word. They returned the cart and got 50 cents reward.

The little driver Gabby now has 1 hour "driving" experience. She can "drive" kids shopping carts and any other similar carts. She also has related experience in riding tricylces and bicylces with two training wheels.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Sugar

Sugar is a little puppy. She came to Rebecca and Gabby's home one week before their birthdays. She is a brown bulldog. The fur around her eyes and below is very dark and looks almost black. Her eyes are dark brown or black. Between her eyes there is some white fur. Her belly is also white. She wears a pink spaghetti strap dress and white tennis shoes with pink sparkling stripes. She has two pink ponytail holders on her ears and a pink leather leash. She is as sweet as sugar. So Rebecca named her "Sugar."

Rebecca and Gabby loved Sugar at the first moment they saw her. They held her, took her for a walk, and pulled her leash and made her jump into the air. If pulled in the right way, Sugar could do a perfect tumbling in the air before landing on the ground. They also took pictures with her.

Sugar is a birthday gift from Auntie who bought her from "Build-A-Bear" in New York City. Her birth certificate says the following:

Date of birth: April 25, 2010
Name: (a few mysterious codes written by Gabby)
Height: 16 inches
Weight: 13 ounces
Fur Color: Red Brown
Eye Color: Brown
Belongs to: Gabby
Stuffed with love by Hanying

Thanks Auntie for Sugar! She is a great birthday gift.