Two more months before Noah turns 2.5 years old, and less than a month to go, before he starts school. I guess it’s true that the days are long, but the years are short. I’ve been getting quite frustrated with him, and sometimes, I wish I had more time to myself. But then I look at him when he’s napping, or when he’s being sweet, and I wish time would slow down, so that I can have more time with him. Crazy talk, I know, especially since he’s with me 24/7!
Noah held a butterfly for the first time in Penang this month, when we visited the Penang Butterfly Farm. He was most amused by it, as you can see! I’ll blog more about our experience at the Penang Butterfly Farm soon.
Holding a butterfly
He also got to interact with cats for the first time that day at the Purrfect Cat Cafe, and absolutely loved it. He still talks about the cats and butterfly till this day, so I think both experiences really left a strong impression on him.
Hello, cat
Noah has been talking quite a bit for some time now, and says the funniest things. Most days, he goes around asking us, “What shall we do now?” when he is bored, “Mummy, what (are you) doing?” when he sees me busy with something, and “Mummy, where (are we) going?” when he sees us getting ready to go out, or when we are in the car. He loves going out, and whenever we tell him that we are going home, he protests, “I don’t want to go home!”
Happy to be going out
Fun at the Transformers Exhibition
At his first ever pool party
Pretending to be a cashier at The City
Learning how to be a fireman. Check out my post on the Fire Station Open House for more details if you’re keen.
This month, Noah attended his first ever drop-off class at Gymnademics, and had fun learning Chinese there. More on that in a separate post soon too!
Stuffing his face with the cake they made in Chinese class
He is more confident at the playgrounds now, and is willing to try climbing up the various structures, which he shied away from previously. I try to bring him to different playgrounds in our area daily, and sometimes, we go to three different ones on the same day.
Proud that he climbed up without any help from me
Climbing up
Trapeze!
He also tries to climb our gate whenever he can, but gets scared after going up two or three rungs. It’s quite funny how he clings on for dear life and shouts for me, when he’s so close to the ground.
Climbing up the gate
Calling for help
This was how high up he was
I taught him how to bring his stool to the sink to wash his own hands, and since then, he has been spending a lot of time washing his hands, and wasting a lot of water. He’s so pleased with himself though, and always proudly tells me, “I wash hands (by my)self.” He’s slowly trying to assert his own independence, and often asks to try doing something by himself now.
Washing his hands by himself
When we’re stuck at home due to poor weather, I have to find various ways to keep him busy. Sometimes, he asks to paint, and I got him to make some wrapping paper of his own. Recently, he has been asking to bake cakes and biscuits. He loves sieving the flour, and recently, I’ve been letting him beat the egg as well. I tried letting him mark the biscuits, but he didn’t do a very good job, and lost interest quite quickly.
With his homemade wrapping paper
He said he was making tiger biscuits
Sieving the flour
Beating the egg
Marking the biscuits
Noah has taken an interest in doing puzzles, and especially likes this big one that a friend passed to us after her son outgrew it. He’s not good at puzzles yet, but at least he is willing to try. He mimics me by “checking” the picture on the box when he can’t figure out where to place a piece, but most of the time, I have to guide him.
“Checking” the picture
Working on the puzzle
Once in a while, he will engage in pretend play, by using his new medical kit on us or his soft toys. He also loves pretending to cook and serving us food, but I haven’t been able to get photos of him doing that yet.
Doctor Noah
Noah has been testing his boundaries quite a bit recently, and as a result, he ends up in the time-out corner quite frequently. I even bought a timer from Daiso specially for him, and he usually has to stand there for 2.5 minutes. There are a lot of tears each time, and he would apologise, promise not to do it again, and hug me after, but more often than not, he will try his luck again another day. Consistency is key, and I keep having to remind him that certain behaviours will lead to him going to the corner. This is still a work-in-progress, but I’m persevering because I don’t want him to be a spoilt brat.
Standing in the corner
I find it tough to manage his behaviour when we are out in public, especially because he loves to run away from me, and I often have to grab him, and carry him away forcefully while he screams. I really hope this phase will pass quickly!
Happy 28th month, sweetheart! Please be a good boy, and listen to mummy and daddy, okay?
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