Little movements

Katelyn has found her hands recently. She would sit in her bouncer and just look at them while she opens up and closes her hands. She would also suck her lower lips. We figure that she must be teething but that seems too early since Ryan did not have the first tooth until 10 months old! So, I try to stop her from doing that. Her hair is kinda cute because it is a little bit curly in the ends and some parts also has faded brownish color. We might have to groom it a little since the weather is warming up. She also tries to sit up these days. Perhaps I should try to roll her as exercise. Her skin tone has lightened up a bit but it is still on the tanner side. Oh well, she got at least one thing from me.

Nephew likens the Uncle

There is this phase in chinese that the nephew resembles the uncle a great deal. I am slowly finding that 'painful' truth right now. Ryan is slowly turning out to be like my brother! It really is a scary thought. Perhaps it is because he was raised as the only child thus far so it fosters his self-centered-ness; or it is simply how he was created. But either way, I have been chosen to deal with it. He has trouble playing with friends who are just as wanting to take charge as he is. I sometime purposely want him to play with them so that he can face those conflicts and learn how to deal with them now. I realize spanking must be done wisely meaning it is only effective when he is already submitted to the discipline. Otherwise, I am only exacerbating his rebellion. At other times, I find that calmly discussing the situation with him is more productive. He needs to learn how his actions affect others and makes a choice accordingly. Meanwhile, I try to empathize with his frustration but let him know that it is still wrong. Lastly, I guide him to turn these things over to God in prayer. I can feel that this is gonna be a LONG process in which his pride and self-centered-ness must be broken repeatedly. But it must be done now or he is going to turn out like his wonderful uncle.

Ryan is also not afraid to act up in Sunday school class. I don't know if it is because he thinks because I teach there, it is then okay for him to do so? Or I just have not talked to him enough about behaving. He is also callous in that he dares to decide about something then inform me about it. The classic example would be inviting his friend to our place for playdate without my expressed consent. That boy really needs some fixing for sure.

Such is the joy of teaching a 5 yr old sinner.

Pneumonia

It started off as a simple cold for Ryan. Then the dad and Katelyn also had running nose. But fever soon developed for Ryan and it lasted longer than 3 days. When it hit 5 days, I knew better to take him in even though the fever was low grade. Especially we just learned that his friend Mark has pneumonia just a week prior. Sure enough, the xray came back positive for a mild case. So, we started him on antibiotics and it took care of it right away. For as long as I remember, this must be just the third time he has to take antibiotics. Being able to keep him at home definitely was a good thing.

On a side note, his two doctors visit pretty much spent the whole deductible for the year. The new insurance from Cisco has gone down in quality. Don't get me wrong cause I am grateful to have insurance and however bad I think Cisco has become; I am sure they are still better that many other companies. I guess I should just be thankful that Katelyn was born last year and she saved us 10% of all hospital cost (~$2000). Hope the kids stay healthy!

4 months

Katelyn just had her 4 month check up and she is right on average with weight and height. This little one is definitely growing day by day. It doesn't seem like she is a big eater but she sure has grown. She is also very social these days. She will give you a big smile (yeah she has a bigger mouth haha) when you smile at her. I noticed lately she would smile at just looking around the house or it seems like she notices she is at home. I really can't complain since she is definitely an easy baby. After our trip to LA, she can sleep in the car seat more securely. She did so well on the trip as well except on the way back home when we ran into her sleep time. I can't wait to see her crawl and talk and all. I guess I forget how fun the first few years can be!

Sin

It was about 10 am in the morning when Charles got a call from school and it was the principle. Nothing can be good. So, he informed us that Ryan had just gotten a red light for lying about reading class work. He told us that he went through the scriptures and prayed with him over the incident. Just weeks before that I had mentioned to the teacher about Ryan's propensity to lie when it is convenient and I am sure she made a point to challenge him on that day. I am thankful that this incident took place in a god-loving environment. Sigh, if and when we move to public school...God help us.

When he got home, I let his dad do all the talking. No spanking. Just need to write out bible verses and memorize them. I realize he does not submit to physical pain and it seems to exacerbate his rebellion more. Not that I won't spank him any more but just need to be very selective. I am more aware of how he is made these days. He definitely is prideful which to me is the most important area that I need to work with him. His pride must be broken early and in a lovely way. He is also very self-centered and 'lazy' - meaning he will think of the shortest route to get something done. One can view it to be smart or lazy. (these traits remind me so much of my brother!) Most of all, I need to specifically pray with him about these areas of sins on a regularly basis. God shall give me wisdom on how to train him.

Real Life CSI

Last month one afternoon, I was about to sit down and do some homework with Ryan; all of a sudden, I saw a black SUV pull up quickly by the sidewalk and several bullet vested cops got out and positioned themselves around the vehicle. From all the crime drama I watched, it was not hard to recognize I was potentially nearby a crime scene. Once I saw them drawing guns at what seemed like the neighbor on the left side, I knew we had to get out of the living room. So, we hid in our bedroom. Then the cop finally gave the guy a last chance to come out without firing any bullets. Thank God he did!!!

I must say this latest incident gave me a renew sense of urgency that we really need to MOVE as soon as possible.