On some bad days, the term “I am a good mom” is not by any stretch of my own imagination. I’d feel incompetent and unfit to be a mom. On some good days, “I am a good mom” does not really measure my own worth. On these good days, the girls would think that their mummy is out of this world. 🙂
Saturdays are usually busy days for me. My day would start at 4:45am to do some chores and then to wake Alycia up to prepare her for school. Alycia attends full day school on Saturdays.
Then, I send Sherilyn off to the tuition center by 9am, have a quick breakfast with Cass, do some quick shopping for groceries and rush back home before 11am. Cass has tuition from a private Mandarin tutor at 11am.
At 1pm, it’s time for me to fetch Sherilyn back from the tuition center.
Back home, I sit with Cass and guide her when she practices her piano. Yesterday, I spent my afternoon revising BM with Sherilyn and Cass. Today is another blood-vomiting and hair-pulling session for me!
By 2:30pm, Alycia is back from school. After her lunch and shower, she does her homework. Since she does not have any tuition, I guide her in whatever subjects that I can whenever she asks me to. Thankfully, most of her subjects are in English. Though she attends a private Chinese school, subjects like Math, Physics, Chemistry and Biology are taught in English (Cambridge syllabus). English subject is Cambridge syllabus too.
Math for Junior Middle One is super duper tough. I don’t recall doing anything like what Alycia’s doing now when I was in Form 1, 30 years ago. The Math book is Cambridge syllabus but edited by the school’s board of Mathematicians.
Below are the questions for Alycia’s Math homework yesterday. They were considered the ‘easiest’ I have seen thus far. On a few occasions in the past, I wasn’t able to help her solve the sums and had to Whatsapp my younger brother (UK educated electrical engineer) or friends for help.
I felt a sense of achievement when I could solve the two questions that she tossed to me yesterday. Since I did not have the time to help her at home, I snapped a picture of the page and brought it along with me to work on the sums when I waited for Cass to finish her piano class at Yamaha. Once I was done, I snapped a picture of the answer sheet and messaged it back to Alycia on Facebook so that she could complete her homework 😀
My old brain ain’t rusty after all. Though I don’t remember much about the Math and Add Math formulas that I learned 30 years ago, I applied common sense to solve those questions. What I learned decades ago was pretty different from what my girls are learning now in a Chinese school. I was a product of a Kebangsaan school (Methodist Girls School).
Today (Sunday) is another long and hard day for me. My day started at 4:45am. Alycia has a jogathon to start off at 6:30am.
I prepared a slice of toasted wheat bread and a glass of Manuka honey to help fuel her 10km run.
Life as a mom is really tough. But I am not complaining. The man will always remind me of our struggles and battle with infertility 16 years ago. His reminders have never failed to wake me up and remind me to appreciate our 3 princesses, however tough it is to raise them – mentally, physically and financially. Because that was what we earnestly prayed and asked for from God 16 years ago. 🙂
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