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Monday, July 13, 2009

The simple things in life

The nanny told me in China, there is a tradition of the father's sister giving a child his/her first pair of shoes. Strictly speaking, my ex-colleague Regina bought Rosabelle her first pair of rabbit-eared shoes (which she did not even get the chance to wear as it was hot in Singapore, and she has since outgrown it, yikes!), and my mum also bought her two pairs of over-sized Crocs (must remember to take out for her to wear before she, again, outgrows them!).

My mum does not think it's good for children to wear shoes before they start walking (more of a superstition than anything), and I also am not really keen on the idea of wrapping her feet up at a time when they are growing, but I guess we need to get her accustomed to the concept/habit of wearing shoes at times so that she will not be running around bare-footed in future!


Since Wayne does not have any sisters, the nanny sweetly got her a pair of shoes two weeks back. She had observed Rosabelle being intrigued by children wearing squeaky shoes, and had been wanting to give her a pair (I strongly believe only those with children of their own can ever stand the sound of children's squeaky shoes - I used to hate the sound, but now think of how adorable my child looks in them - haha!). However, the pair of fake pink Nikes was too big for Rosabelle, and she only got to change them into a smaller, albeit only left in a shade of blue, pair for our girl last weekend.

When she first put the new pair on Rosabelle, she did not like it, as she isn't used to wearing shoes, and did not take well to the squeaking even though the nanny bounced her on the floor (on her feet, not her butt, I mean). So we had no choice but to remove them, and are slowly warming her up to the concept of wearing shoes - pointing out other children wearing shoes, putting them on for her for short periods in the house...

The fake Nikes (complete with embroidered fake swooshes) cost the nanny a mere RMB20 (about SGD4), but it's still an expenditure for somebody who isn't earning much. It's really sweet of her, and I hope/know Rosabelle will appreciate the love and thought that comes with her first pair of walking shoes.
Another simple yet cheap thing that has gotten Rosabelle entranced is this wind-up bug toy that another mummy in the yard gave her today. The latter's one-year-old daughter wasn't very interested in this simple toy that needed winding up and would then run around in circles and even flip on its back, but Rosabelle just couldn't take her eyes off it. It only cost the mummy RMB1.50 (SGD0.30!!), and I'd been wanting to get something simple like that, but guess I've been looking in the wrong places (i.e. toy marts, high-end places), when they are sold at more run-down places, and of course, online.
This wind-up bug thankfully kept her from feeling sleepy/nodding off during lunch-time just now, and Rosabelle also had her first taste of pork this afternoon, cooked with potato/brinjal/carrot/onion/tomato/spinach. Luckily she only had a poo at night, which wasn't as runny at the day before (but still not solid stools), so guess she's recovering well.
The nanny and I have narrowed down the cause of her runny stools to perhaps Vanessa's casserole that I fed Rosabelle on Saturday - as she did not like it much (poor Vanessa had wasted her efforts, but it was really sweet of her to do an extra portion for me as she knows I don't/can't cook - haha!), we warmed up the remaining portion for our dinner last night and the nanny and I both ended up having minor upset tummies! Hmmm...seems like our girl knows what's good for her (and rejected the bad food), and was then taking cereal for the past few days to purge her own system maybe? Thankfully it's all clearing up, phew!

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