bao turns two
Bao turned two yesterday! I can still remember the day she was born, roaring the minute she was brought into the world and screaming so loudly and for so long that everyone in the delivery suite commented on it. Some things haven't really changed, but when she's not screaming and throwing tantrums she is sweet, mischievous, and very, very cute.
J and I didn't quite know what sort of celebration to have for her, since all she knows (and cares) about birthdays right now is the cake and the candles. We thought about the other stuff that she likes, which is typical toddler stuff: ice-cream, balloons, toys, kiddie-rides, and animals, particularly sheep. Actually on the day before her birthday (Sunday), we had gone to an Autumn expo for the day and she had plenty of fun with lots of animals there, including horses and sheep, so I guess that's one thing ticked off the list. Since her birthday was on a Monday, her brother was in school so there were limitations on how far we could travel with her or what we could do. The weather was also cold and rainy, so in the end we took her to the mall.
It turned out to be a good move, because Balexert has just started with the whole Christmas thing and as we came up the ramp from the carpark I could see Bao's eyes widen because there was an enormous tree in the atrium, an enormous (and rather creepy-looking) bear, and best of all, a carousel. She got a ride on it, of course - first on one of the wooden horses, and then in a car.
She loved it so much she didn't want to get off, but I managed to convince her to come along with me because we were going to the shoe shop, and in here in Switzerland, shopping for shoes basically mean two things to kids: balloons and cartoons. She got a big red balloon and I bought her a pair of sturdy fleeced-lined leather shoes to see her through the winter. She has light-up Hello Kitty sneakers that we bought in Singapore but they are made of a kind of breathable fabric, which is fab in Singapore's hot weather but not waterproof at all in this season.
Not too impressed with giant bear.
Shopping done, Bao had a go on some kiddie rides and enjoyed not having to scuffle with her brother for seats and steering wheels for once. We also went to the toy shop for a look-around but I didn't buy anything. J and I had already bought her gifts earlier anyway. Eventually, after a few more kiddie rides, we went home for her nap and the day went on as usual.
The afternoon was a bit chaotic because although I had made her cake the day before, I hadn't frosted or decorated it so I had to work on that while the kids were climbing the walls with excitement. At the same time I was trying to bake a separate cake for playgroup, cook dinner, and tackle The Bun's spelling and assorted missives and questions. When J came home we decided to open the gifts before the cake because we figured that if the gifts were opened right before bedtime there would be no chance of settling the kids down for bed.
Bao received three gifts: a wooden birthday cake playset with candles and the works; a toy cleaning set with a vacuum cleaner, mop, broom, etc; and a Duplo boat set that can be played with in the bath. I think all our gifts were right on the mark because she absolutely loved them, and the moment she woke up today she headed straight for the toys and wouldn't change her clothes or come for breakfast. I have a hilarious video of Bao vacuuming the floor with her new toy and looking extremely serious about it. She adores the cake set and keeps singing the birthday song to herself, blowing out the candles, and serving slices of cake for everyone. I guess one might say the toys are very gender-stereotypical but the key thing is that she loves them and plays with them. I knew she would like the vacuum cleaner because she loves it when I'm vacuuming and will follow me around attempting to hold the hose or 'helpfully' pressing the power switch.
I served up one of Bao's favourite foods for dinner - sausages - and the kids finished everything quickly because they knew what was coming next. It was very cute to watch Bao dancing along to the birthday song and then blowing out the candles on her own. What a difference a year makes. Apart from cake, we also had ice-cream and I think Bao enjoyed that more than the cake.
Sheep-topped cake for sheep-obsessed toddler.
Today we had another cake at playgroup, this time with pink and white frosting. I have totally zero frosting skills but I'm happy to say the children cared not one whit about that and devoured the cake. Success! As I've said before, I'm not a very good baker at all so offering my cakes for public consumption is a bit of a leap of faith. Glad that turned out well. Nobody ever brings in a store-bought cake over here so I've eaten many delicious cakes baked by other mothers. It gives me motivation to practice more.
Anyway, Bao was very excited about celebrating her birthday at playgroup and kept stopping her play to come over and ask me, 'birthday cake?' even though I told her she had to wait till snack time. She literally danced up and down when she finally spotted me putting the candles on and getting the cake ready to present to her. Everyone sang the birthday song, and Bao blew her candles out with practised ease.
So that was how Bao turned two. I'm going to write a milestone post soon, and it's going to be tough to write because there's just so much to describe. No matter how much I write, there's no way it will properly capture what she is like. As trying as this age is, it is also one of the most magical, because you get to see how this little person with so much personality grow so much.
You are much loved, little firecracker!
J and I didn't quite know what sort of celebration to have for her, since all she knows (and cares) about birthdays right now is the cake and the candles. We thought about the other stuff that she likes, which is typical toddler stuff: ice-cream, balloons, toys, kiddie-rides, and animals, particularly sheep. Actually on the day before her birthday (Sunday), we had gone to an Autumn expo for the day and she had plenty of fun with lots of animals there, including horses and sheep, so I guess that's one thing ticked off the list. Since her birthday was on a Monday, her brother was in school so there were limitations on how far we could travel with her or what we could do. The weather was also cold and rainy, so in the end we took her to the mall.
It turned out to be a good move, because Balexert has just started with the whole Christmas thing and as we came up the ramp from the carpark I could see Bao's eyes widen because there was an enormous tree in the atrium, an enormous (and rather creepy-looking) bear, and best of all, a carousel. She got a ride on it, of course - first on one of the wooden horses, and then in a car.
She loved it so much she didn't want to get off, but I managed to convince her to come along with me because we were going to the shoe shop, and in here in Switzerland, shopping for shoes basically mean two things to kids: balloons and cartoons. She got a big red balloon and I bought her a pair of sturdy fleeced-lined leather shoes to see her through the winter. She has light-up Hello Kitty sneakers that we bought in Singapore but they are made of a kind of breathable fabric, which is fab in Singapore's hot weather but not waterproof at all in this season.
Not too impressed with giant bear.
Shopping done, Bao had a go on some kiddie rides and enjoyed not having to scuffle with her brother for seats and steering wheels for once. We also went to the toy shop for a look-around but I didn't buy anything. J and I had already bought her gifts earlier anyway. Eventually, after a few more kiddie rides, we went home for her nap and the day went on as usual.
The afternoon was a bit chaotic because although I had made her cake the day before, I hadn't frosted or decorated it so I had to work on that while the kids were climbing the walls with excitement. At the same time I was trying to bake a separate cake for playgroup, cook dinner, and tackle The Bun's spelling and assorted missives and questions. When J came home we decided to open the gifts before the cake because we figured that if the gifts were opened right before bedtime there would be no chance of settling the kids down for bed.
Bao received three gifts: a wooden birthday cake playset with candles and the works; a toy cleaning set with a vacuum cleaner, mop, broom, etc; and a Duplo boat set that can be played with in the bath. I think all our gifts were right on the mark because she absolutely loved them, and the moment she woke up today she headed straight for the toys and wouldn't change her clothes or come for breakfast. I have a hilarious video of Bao vacuuming the floor with her new toy and looking extremely serious about it. She adores the cake set and keeps singing the birthday song to herself, blowing out the candles, and serving slices of cake for everyone. I guess one might say the toys are very gender-stereotypical but the key thing is that she loves them and plays with them. I knew she would like the vacuum cleaner because she loves it when I'm vacuuming and will follow me around attempting to hold the hose or 'helpfully' pressing the power switch.
I served up one of Bao's favourite foods for dinner - sausages - and the kids finished everything quickly because they knew what was coming next. It was very cute to watch Bao dancing along to the birthday song and then blowing out the candles on her own. What a difference a year makes. Apart from cake, we also had ice-cream and I think Bao enjoyed that more than the cake.
Sheep-topped cake for sheep-obsessed toddler.
Today we had another cake at playgroup, this time with pink and white frosting. I have totally zero frosting skills but I'm happy to say the children cared not one whit about that and devoured the cake. Success! As I've said before, I'm not a very good baker at all so offering my cakes for public consumption is a bit of a leap of faith. Glad that turned out well. Nobody ever brings in a store-bought cake over here so I've eaten many delicious cakes baked by other mothers. It gives me motivation to practice more.
Anyway, Bao was very excited about celebrating her birthday at playgroup and kept stopping her play to come over and ask me, 'birthday cake?' even though I told her she had to wait till snack time. She literally danced up and down when she finally spotted me putting the candles on and getting the cake ready to present to her. Everyone sang the birthday song, and Bao blew her candles out with practised ease.
So that was how Bao turned two. I'm going to write a milestone post soon, and it's going to be tough to write because there's just so much to describe. No matter how much I write, there's no way it will properly capture what she is like. As trying as this age is, it is also one of the most magical, because you get to see how this little person with so much personality grow so much.
You are much loved, little firecracker!