Exploring Our Children’s Potentials

Here’s one of Anya’s drawings, before she went and painted it on canvas.

And you know what?

For some weird reason, after seeing this drawing, I had the urge to paint on canvas – just something. Anything!

It’s a very similar urge that I had some time back, when I suddenly felt all itchy to paint. I went for it and painted a ‘family tree’ on canvas in the wee hours!

Strange.

But anyway.

I did it again this time! Yay.

Less than 8 hours after Anya drew the girl above =)

(Mad decision, I know, because I am no painter, it’s past midnight, I didn’t get much sleep the nights before, AND I still have tonnes of other work to do – which usually I gradually clear when the kids are all in bed!)

Aaaanyway.

I went on to browse the internet for ideas on what to paint, AND I loved the works of Rachelle Levingston on etsy.com!

And I thought I’d give the sheep and the lamb painting a go =)

(I chose the sheep-lamb painting to remind me how we too are like sheep, easily lost and can’t find our way home, unless the Great Shepherd comes to find us)

And.

Here it is!

I know. The body is not quite proportional. The legs are not natural-looking =)

But, this officially is my third painting on a canvas *YAY*

My first painting on canvas was a ‘Wedding Tree’

My second was a ‘Family Tree’

Happy that I followed that mad urge to paint that night! =)

Therapeutic, and fulfilling.

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Btw, if you’ve been itching to create something too, perhaps it’s time to … GO FOR IT?

Have a great week, everyone!

Two days ago, I read a text message from a friend.

And I felt a surge of sadness.

I joined hundreds and thousands, perhaps millions others, who are saddened by the news of Robin Williams’ death.

While he loved making people laugh, he himself battled with sadness, addiction, pressure and depression.

I watched many of his works. I’d greatly miss him.

Sigh.

No amount of laughter, talents, achievements, popularity, money, power, beauty can ever make us feel ‘whole’Humans are humans.

No amount of laughter, talents, achievements, popularity, money, power, beauty can ever make us feel ‘whole’.

Well, unless we know the Creator, and His purpose for our life?

…

What do we feel when we are all alone – when we’re away from the acknowledgements, and away from the ‘image and identity’ that we’ve perhaps built over the years.

Who are we when no one is around?

I am a person of faith, and I truly believe we are never alone.

God is always present.

God knows what’s within our deepest mind.

God knows us more than we know ourselves.

Perhaps the past is more like a closet full of skeletons that we dare not openMany a time we cling on to our past.

Perhaps, it’s dark.

Perhaps the past is more like a closet full of skeletons that we dare not open.

When we have NO idea WHO we could cling on to, it is no wonder if the future seemed bleak.

No wonder if there seemed to be no light at the end of the long, dark tunnel one called ‘life’.

Who are we when we’re all alone?

What is in our mind? What is inside our heart?

…

I am a creature who can also go through the lows in life, like everyone else.

But. May I share something?

If you feel like you’re on the low point in your life, please cling on to Christ.

Look to Him. Even in your desperate moments.

“I am the Way, and he Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me“, HE said.

Life IS complete when we are in Christ, who is the Creator, who is LIFE Himself, who has in fact given HIS Life for us, even before we knew nor believe in Him.

Cling on to Him.

Since we moved to Jakarta, I must say the walls at our home are pretty much … empty.

We’ve been wanting to display photo frames and some of our paintings on the walls, but we just somehow never got around to doing it.

Until today!

*YAY*

So happy to finally see COLOURS on our walls.

And, here’s Anya with her freshly-painted artwork, ready to go on our wall too!

*excited!*

(Oh btw, out of all her drawings and sketches, the one in her hands is one of my favourites! =)

…

Btw, do you display your family’s artworks on the walls of your home?

How do you arrange them?

Here’s the reality if you live in Jakarta: we don’t usually spend much time in the outdoors!

*boo*

And that’s because:

1. Public transportation system here is still not convenient, so most people still drive their cars or ride their motorbikes (Hence, the city’s scary daily traffic jams)

2. There’s hardly any ‘greens’ or ‘well-maintained parks’ around. So when we’re outside our homes / offices, we can’t really stay too long in the outdoors because we’d most probably be inhaling .. hmmm, pollution.

3. Even pedestrian walkways are hard to find.

But.

Lo and behold.

Here’s one GREEN SPOT we checked out last weekend!

It basically says ‘City Park (Jogging Park II) at Kelapa Gading!

It was officially opened in January 2014, by the Vice Governor of Jakarta!

*There you see. How can we not appreciate these recently elected Governor and Vice Governor! I mean, they actually do WORK! Good works!*

Anya and Vai went rollerblading in the park.

There’s a dedicated pathway for them, and for other ‘joggers’.

Considering how this space is located right in the middle of a busy area, I thought the park is considerably small.

(I mean, it’s nothing like ‘Singapore Botanic Garden’. Smaller than Jacob Ballas Children Garden too, I’d say)

BUT.

I sooo appreciate parks like this!

Jakarta definitely needs more of such city parks!

Well maintained (and I hope it continually will be well maintained!)

Nice fluffy-thick-looking grass.

And when we were there, it was late afternoon, around 5pm.

Just nice.

Oh, btw, even the public toilets are clean!

Brie went down the slides – again and again and again – at the playground =)

And she played some ball.

Daddy stayed around near her, while I walked around with the two rollerblading kids.

And enjoy shooting around =)

Okay. That’s me trying out the exercise equipments – lifting my body weight up and down using just my arm muscles.

Mmm. I got carried away (not a surprise!), and didn’t stop going up and down, and up and down.

And, I ended up having sore upper torso and arms the very next day.

Good one, Leonny.

Anyway.

Finally, a nice place to spend together as a family IN THE OUTDOORS!

Looking forward to seeing more well-maintained parks around the city!

Just one of those moments I’d like to treasure for years to come.

Our 3-year-old Brie, the littlest in the family, who can still curl herself up and comfortably fit into our laundry basket.

…

Don’t grow up too fast, lil Brie.

All parents of more than one child would want their kids to get along. To care for one another.

I mean, no normal parent would enjoy dealing with sibling arguments, petty jealousies and rude behaviours between their children.

Sometime back, I shared some thoughts on this. It was on : FIVE things to AVOID if we’re to encourage better sibling relationships.

Click HERE to have a read.

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“So, after doing your part in teaching and encouraging positive sibling relationships, do YOUR kids still bicker and argue and complain about each other?”, you may ask.

Well, OF COURSE! =)

They may be cute and adorable, but they are no angels.

Just like me and the rest of the world, they are in essence people with sinful hearts and selfish wants.

And when they exist together, conflicts surely take place.

Being a Mom of three, I must say, I have a pretty good share of tough parenting days.

I’ve had days when I feel like knocking my head to the wallI’ve had days when I am just SO dead tired of dealing with tantrums. Days when I feel like giving up and sending the kids to someone else to look after because I feel I’ve failed as a parent. Days when I feel like knocking my head to the wall, because I feel the bickering, arguing, whining and complaining that come from these three little people simply was too much to handle.

(Yes I know, the photos in this post show smiley kiddos. Well, our kids do play with each other, giggle and take care of one another. But realistically, such moments do NOT happen 24 hours a day. We are after all REAL people, btw =)

Well, anyway. You know what?

When tough parenting times take place, I try hard to remind myself these few things:

1. However bad things get, they shall pass.

2. They’ll grow up fast! And I probably will miss all this later.

I can pray for them, I can teach them values, but I cannot change the hearts of my kids. Only God can.3. I cannot expect zero bickering and arguments from the kids. It’s part of them growing up and learning to live with one another.

4. Conflicts are good. Conflicts are good. Conflicts are good. Well, because they allow these kiddos to learn more about compromise, giving, self-control, forgiveness, and even conflict resolution.

5.  Pray for the kids. But remember, I can pray for them, I can teach them values, but I cannot change the hearts of my kids. Only God can.

6. God entrusts me with these children, so I too must learn and practice what it means by patience, perseverance and self-control.

7. Lastly, go and eat / drink something I like =)

In my case, it can be either chocolate, sweetened hot tea, bubble milk tea with pearl, or when it’s really tough, Magnum Ice Cream – Almond or Classic.

Yes, sugar gives me that energy boost and charges my battery.

…

Ah. May God help us all everyday.

Because being a parent is just not easy.

Here in Indonesia, it is very common to have one full-week of ‘Hari Raya holiday’!

The schools are closed. Most shops are too.

So.

One of the things that we did as a family this week was … FISHING! =)

*YAY*

We went fishing with some twenty other friends and kids to this place near Tangerang.

It’s called ‘Bakoel Desa’, at Desa Muara, Kecamatan Teluk Naga.

Ermmm. Just refer to the ticket below, heh.

We had to drive along a rather ‘small’ pathway for quite some time, and paid twice to ‘enter the fishing area’.

It was Rp5000 and Rp10,000 per car.

We got there at about 9.30am, and it was a warm, sunny day.

*sunblock lotion and sunglasses are recommended*

And. See the picture above?

That’s where you could sit around and chat while the others go fishing.

And, that’s where you’d have your lunch too (if you choose to have your catch cooked, grilled, or made into soup)

TIPS:

– They don’t sell drinks for some reasons. So, remember to bring your own supply of drinks!

– Free use of their fishing rods. Baits are provided for free too.

– They have ‘caddies’ available (usually young school boys) who can help hook up the baits, etc. Don’t forget to give them some tips in the end.

– They have ‘salt water’ fishing areas where you could catch groupers, pomfrets and red snappers!

– Charges are according to the fishes you catch. They’d weigh the fishes in the end, and you could choose to bring them home or have them cooked for you.

– They don’t sell vegetables btw, but you’re welcome to bring your own (eg. Water Spinach) and they’ll cook the veggies =)

– Before bringing home the fishes, they can help and clean them up first!

– Bring along extra rattan mats, so everyone can sit comfortably on the floor, under the sheltered area.

– They do have toilets, and they’re relatively clean (like, 5.5 out of 10?).

…

Anyway.

All in all, our group caught TWENTY ONE fishes, haha.

We ate some and brought some home too.

Here are some happy shots of us and our catches!

Oh btw, to keep the fishes alive, they’re placed in the green net after they’re caught. And the net is lowered into the water.

Here’s a shot of Brie and Uncle Kane who ‘helped her’ catch the fish =)

And here’s the happy hubby with his catch!

(He brought home a red snapper, and cooked some yummy fish soup for our dinner! =)

Yep. A nice day out with friends!

And that day being ‘Hari Raya week’, the traffic home was relatively clear!

Awesome! =)

“What shall I be when I grow up?”

…

A woman after God’s own heart,
who will strive to do what’s right
with all her God-given talents,
and be a blessing to others,
is our prayer for you, lil Brie.

…

Quick updates on Brie:

> She is fully toilet trained, and could wake up in the middle of the night to go to the toilet on her own, and go straight to bed

> She can fall asleep, accompanied by her sister or brother. In the car, on her bed, or while we’re out and about, on her pram.

> She can speak quite clearly by now. Speaks Indonesian most of the time with everyone (complete with phrases like ‘gimana dong?’ =)

To help her learn English, I speak with her in English, especially in the morning, when both her older siblings are at school. I encourage her to reply in English too, and it’s been quite okay.

> She likes all girly things and all things pink. She likes to dress up, and do role plays.

> She likes to scribble and draw.

> She likes to sing and dance. She’d naturally move to the beat when she hears music.

> She is 14 kg