7

I am seven years old today.

Height: 132cm 

Weight: +- 28kg

Physically, I look like a 9-year-old and mentally, I sometimes talk like a 30-year-old hahaha... "Mummy, don't eat so much **** it will make you fat!" "Daddy, do you love your job or do you work just for the money?" "Next time when I grow up, I dont want to marry a China man... I want to go back to Malaysia to find a husband". These are just some of my funny but mature conversations at age 6+.

This year, I will be celebrating my birthday at home away from home and this is something new, different and special for me as well as for daddy and mummy. 

Daddy and mummy's love letter for me this year is a rather "cincai" and impromptu one because mummy did not prepare it in advance like what she usually did in the previous years...

To our Beloved Darling Girl,

Thank you for giving us 7 years of pride and joy. It seems like every year, we thank you for the same thing because you are indeed a joy to have and to raise! In fact every day, we feel thankful and blessed to have you as our precious daughter. Daddy and mummy wish you a lifetime of happiness, good health and success (in your studies for now). May you continue to be the good girl that you already are... obedient, cheerful, funny, witty, adorable and loving! We LOVE you "all the numbers"!!!

Hugs n kisses,

Daddy & Mummy

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, sweetheart! 

S.I.X... 6!

I am 6 years old today. Here's something about me at the age of 72 months...

Height: 125cm
Weight: 23kg
Likes: Playing Lego, playing iPad games, eating sushi, pizza, cycling, swimming, playing the piano, going to Ikea
Dislikes: Being scolded by mummy, durian, homework
Positive traits in me: Sweet-natured, no temper & tantrums, quite obedient, cheerful, humourous, easy-going, easy to feed, easy to handle, easy to please :)
My weaknesses: Mischievous (sometimes), stubborn, very slow in getting things done, extremely timid and very clumsy!

Here are some of my photos from birth until now, compiled monthly (and re-posted here every year on this very same day haha!). Watch me grow...

My 1st year... 0-12 months

My 2nd year... 13-24 months

My 3rd year ... 25-36 months

My 4th year... 37-48 months

My 5th year... 49-60 months

My 6th year... 61-72 months 

And finally, here's the Birthday Princess on the eve of her 6th birthday (just before bedtime)

Just like all the previous years on my birthday, I get a love letter from daddy and mummy...

To Our One and Only Darling Daughter,

Time flies and today is our 6th anniversary of being parents. We want to thank you for coming into our lives... filling our days with tremendous joy and contentment. We love watching you grow and mature, we enjoy nurturing and pampering you, we adore your antics and silliness... the list is endless! Raising you is fun, fulfilling and rewarding, especially when we see you blossoming into a fine young girl. Do continue to be good, obedient and lovable. Wishing you good health and happiness always!

You're our precious, you're our sweetheart, you're our beloved, WE LOVE YOU! Happy 6th birthday, dear!

Loving you forever,
Daddy & Mummy

"Reaching New Heights"

When mummy last measured my height last month, I stood at 115cm. Yesterday, when daddy measured my height again, I was 117cm! To make sure his measurement was accurate, he marked the wall and re-measured it with a measuring tape. Now, it's either mummy made a mistake or I just grew 2cm within a month!

Why the sudden hype about my height? Well, it all started when daddy and mummy saw me switching on the lights at home WITHOUT standing on a chair! (Mummy is not sure about other homes but the switches in our home are fixed at 160cm (5ft 2in) from the ground)

I am finally tall enough to reach all the switches in the house :)

This is yet another milestone achieved, a sure sign that I am growing well physically. For this, I have daddy and mummy's tall genes (1.88m and 1.75m respectively) to thank for ^-^

Physical development at 5 years 1 month: 117cm - able to reach switches by tiptoe-ing 

I Like Homework

I am probably one of the very few lucky kids who do not know how to enjoy the "privilege" of attending a homework-free kindergarten. Since I do not bring home any homework from school, I constantly ask mummy for homework because I LIKE doing it.

Quite often, I will complain "I'm bored, mummy... can you please give me homework?" Well, although I do have a big pile of workbooks, I sometimes "crave" for something different... like the ones that mummy "writes" for me.

Workbooks on my table...

More workbooks under my table...

Last week, when I asked for homework again, mummy wrote a few sums (addition) for me to which I completed within minutes and said "It's so easy. Give me something harder!" Very "action", eh?

Mummy then taught me addition with "carry-over to tens" (not taught in school yet). She cincai explained to me just ONCE and wrote some sums for me to solve. To her surprise, not only did I manage to grasp the concept, I completed all these sums in just under 10 minutes (albeit with a few careless mistakes here and there)...

Sometimes, mummy would give me ejaan too (this is also not given in school). The ejaan that she gives me are very impromptu and I am required to spell and write on the spot. No word list is given in advance. I've mastered my sukukata quite well in school so this is no problem for me too (except for the /ng/ and /ny/ sound which I've yet to learn)

My very first ejaan ;)

When it comes to my Mandarin lessons, mummy is happy to note that I am very self-motivated. Every now and then I will take out my vocabulary book, play the accompanying CD and recite the words happily without being told to do so. I am able to recognize the 200-odd characters in my 2 books now. Mummy recorded this video not because of my reading but because of the way I "sat"...

Amusing but at the same time also made her *shake head*

My Chinese writing... I write better in Chinese (compared to my alphabets). This is about the only homework that I have, given by my Mandarin teacher, Zhang Lao Shi

I like homework... that's what this "Homework Princess" said

Note: This is a brief record of my academic progress at 5 years old

F.I.V.E... 5!

I am five years old today. At age 5, I am:

... 115cm tall and weigh approximately 21kg.

... very shy, timid and quiet with strangers but loud and chatty at home.

... generally a very happy, easy going and cheerful girl.

... funny and witty!

I have matured by leaps and bounds, being very much more understanding, compassionate and sensible.

Here's a mini flashback of my birthday and the following celebrations I had...

Fresh from the "oven" on my real Birth Day on 13th Aug 2006... all puffed-up like a little sumo, tipping the scales at 4.39kg/9lb 11oz !

My first birthday (a simple family celebration at home)

Cake time at Secret Recipe on my 2nd birthday (we spent the day window-shopping in Pavilion and KLCC)

I celebrated my 3rd birthday in Genting Highlands (I got a free entrance to the Outdoor Themepark)

Cupcakes for my 3rd birthday at home

Mummy got me these cute Sesame Street cuppies for my 4th birthday (celebrated in kindy). After school, we went for a 2D1N stay in the Grand Millenium Hotel in KL

5 years old today... besar panjang already! ;) (Pic taken last month by Koo-koo)

As with every year, I get a "love letter" from daddy and mummy on my birthday...

To Our Beloved Darling Daughter,

Words cannot describe the overwhelming love we have for you. The past 5 years have been the sweetest years of our lives together. It is so rewarding watching you grow and mature into a fine young girl. Caring for you has always been easy, nurturing you has always been gratifying and disciplining you has never been difficult. We thank you for being such a good, obedient and wonderful child. Oh, the joys of raising you!

We are truly, truly blessed to have you as our precious daughter! Our ultimate wish for you is to see you SAFE and in GOOD HEALTH always. Of course, we want you to have every ounce of love and happiness in the world too :)

We love you MORE each passing day! We love you million, billion, trillion and all the big numbers (echoing your words heh heh)!!

With All Our Love,

Daddy and Mummy

Reading and Progress Report

Since the beginning of this year (at 4 years 3 months), mummy noticed that I could read independently. When given any children's books at random, I can read most of the words in it. I also have the ability to guess unfamiliar words by applying my knowledge in phonics.

Besides reading simple English-based story books, I can read Chinese too. Recently, I brought home all my school books together with my progress report. Among the books, mummy saw a small Chinese textbook and asked me to read to her. Mummy was quite surprised and impressed that I could read and recognize so many Chinese characters, page after page!

This is what I read (just in case my pronunciation isn't clear enough in the video)...

Just look at the number of repetitions (dates)... no wonder I could read haha!

Mummy has been doing a mini-spring cleaning at home too. She reorganized the bookshelf and threw out many of her own books to make way for mine. Over the years, daddy and mummy have bought hundreds of books for me! Here are some of them (not including those in the living room and my bedroom)...

Neatly sorted and arranged... all within my reach and easier for me to pick and read on my own :)

The young avid reader

Mummy also attended a Parents-Teachers Conference to discuss my progress in school. Although timid and quiet at most times, I have a bit of leadership quality too (esp in the absence of an adult/teacher). According to my class teacher Miss S, who made an observation and discovered that when she is not in sight (she observed from afar), she saw me instructing my peers to perform simple tasks like drink water, put things away, call for group forming etc.

Academically, I'm doing quite well. Miss S commented that I have very high retention power and can remember things very well after being taught just once. However, I tend to be careless when doing my workbooks. I sometimes have slight language confusion between English and BM too (phonics and sukukata).

Teacher's comment: Ruoyi is a very intelligent child and she is above the rest in class. She works fast but sometimes careless when doing her workbooks as a lot of mistakes shows. Although she has shown much improvement when socializing with her friends but sometimes is still reluctant to speak up when she has been called upon several times. All in all, she is a very helpful girl. Keep it up, Ruoyi!

Little Miss Big Size

Recently there was a Sustagen roadshow in Tesco. Daddy brought me there to play some games. I also had my height and weight measured. Based on this growth chart for kids between 2-10 years old...

... I am over-sized!

My figures are both out of range. (See the two small marked dots)

The ideal height for my age is 94-108cm. I am 113cm.

The ideal weight for my age is 13-20kg. I weigh 21kg.

I'm a kanak-kanak sihat membesar (a healthy, growing kid) ^-^

50 Months Old

I am 50 months old today. Here are some random facts about me...

1. At 110cm, I have outgrown this EnfaMama height chart. Time to switch to a taller height chart!

My first height measurement taken on this chart was in Dec 2007. At 16 months old, I was 81cm tall.

2. Like most kids, I am crazy over stickers.

One of the victims of my obsession... my wardrobe door

3. I love to eat Scott's Emulsion - the white, original one and I always insist on licking the spoon clean.

Yum-yum... it's spoon-licking good!

4. I hate soft, mushy and pungent fruits like mango and durian (but bananas and papayas are acceptable to me).

5. I am afraid of the Big Bad Wolf, no thanks to its villainous appearances in The 3 Little Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids etc. Besides the Big Bad Wolf, I am actually quite fearless, fearing basically nothing!

6. My best friend is an old man... my dear Gung-gung. I told mummy "Do you know that my best friend is Gung-gung?"

Sticking to Gung-gung like a leech!

7. I am a Little Miss Messy, much to mummy's chagrin (because she is a neat freak).

The perpetual clutter on my desk.

8. My favourite hypermarket is Giant and the reason is obvious... they have FREE kiddy rides! Everytime mummy goes grocery shopping, it has got to be at Giant.

Giant Kota Damansara... my weekly "hang-out" place because it has the nicest and most decent-looking FREE kiddy-rides in town

9. The clothing that I'm wearing now are a few sizes up... for 8-9 year olds. I can even fit into some adult tees, like this Little Miss Sunshine t-shirt. I spotted it in one of the stalls in a mall and kept pestering mummy for it. It is a must-have because I love Little Miss Sunshine and yellow is my favourite colour!

Wearing an adult tee as a mini-dress

10. I am a very cheerful and easy-going child. I am quite obedient, co-operative and helpful at home. Unreasonable temper-tantrums are rare and almost non-existent.

Daddy and mummy are truly blessed to have a good child like you. We hope you will always stay this way. Muacksss!

I Am 4!

I am FOUR YEARS OLD today. Here is a collection of my faces from birth until now (again!). Watch me grow...

My first year... 0-12 months

My second year... 13-24 months

My third year... 25-36 months

My fourth year... 37-48 months

And of course, like every year, I get a love letter from daddy and mummy:

To Our Dearest and Beloved Darling Daughter Ruoyi,

Today is a very special day which marks the 4th anniversary of us being parents! Thank you for giving us this remarkable experience of being your daddy and mummy. Your presence complete our lives and enrich it so beautifully that every single day, we give thanks for being blessed with such a wonderful little girl like you.

There is nothing else more important to us than to see you in the pinkest of health, happy, loved, well taken care of and well-nurtured. May you continue to grow up strong and healthy, smart, bubbly and loveable! Be a good girl always. Have a very blessed 4th birthday, love!

Daddy and Mummy love you too much for words!

Love, hugs, kisses and squeezes,

Daddy & Mummy

More stories on my early existence...

The Discovery Of My Conception

The Story Of Mummy's Pregnancy

The Story Of My Birth

46 Months Old

I am 3 years and 10 months old today. In exactly 2 more months, I am going to be 4! Here are some updates about myself:

- Height: 108cm

- Weight: 19kg

- Can write most of the numbers and letters

- Can draw objects with more defined shapes and outlines

- Can perform simple mental calculation of addition and subtraction (within 10)

- The most significant achievement so far has got to be my independence from diapers! I am now COMPLETELY DIAPER-FREE following the successful last leg of potty training. Since 2 months ago, I have been going to bed (overnight) without diapers and there have been only 2 "accidents" so far. Not only that, I've also ditched the potty and the baby toilet-seat a very, very long time ago! Yay!

Just take a look at how many packs of diapers (and RM) I've used since I was a newborn...

This is probably 80% of the total collection where the rest were either used for gift redemption or discarded by mistake (forgot to cut out and keep)

Next to go will be my milk bottle. I'm currently still very attached and "addicted" to my milk bottle.

Drinking from a glass or cup is so..... not shiok! ( me at 3 years 10 months)

42 Months Old

I am exactly 3.5 years old today!

Height: 105cm

Weight: +- 18kg

Look at the size of my shoes!

My shoe in comparison to mummy's size 7 foot. Scary, huh?

Wearing a size 7-9 blouse and a size 7 (age 7) pants

Besides growing physically well, everything else about me remains the same...

40 Months Old

I am 3 years 4 months old (40 months) today.

Height: 103cm

Weight: +- 18kg

Signs that tell daddy and mummy that I have "grown up" quite a bit...

- Developed a new habit of talking back. E.g. When mummy tells me not to do something, I'll say "...but you (or daddy) do it too!"

- Very good is cooking up cock and bull stories, esp when explaining something that I've done wrongly.

- Can sing (accurately) to most of the theme songs of my favourite cartoons but sometimes I also like to distort and change the lyrics and then laugh at my own "jokes".

- Do not take afternoon naps anymore (unless I've had a "workout" at the playground or after walking too much on our shopping excursions)

- Can keep myself occupied for a longer period of time (1-2 hours) without doing anything naughty

- Able to join dots to write/draw alphabets, numbers, pictures & patterns

- Can take food that are mildly spicy

- When dining out, daddy and mummy need to order a separate portion for me. I can no longer share with mummy because it isn't enough anymore (but of course, I can't finish 1 whole plate/bowl either, and the leftovers go to daddy).

- I don't use the baby potty anymore. I now "sit on the throne" just like an adult for both my small and big business (without using the baby toilet seat too). I can do almost everything on my own. Mummy only helps with the washing.

Really "tai kor lui jor" (big girl already)...

36 Months Old

I am three years old today.

- Height: 100cm Weight: Apprx 17kg

Here's a brief description about my overall personality and behaviour:

- Since I was born, I seldom gave daddy and mummy any problem and I was a very easy baby to care for.

- I am still a very easy child now – easy to handle, easy to entertain, easy to feed, easy to teach, easy to adapt to new things/environment and also easy to “maintain” hehe.

- I rarely fuss over stuff and I’m almost tantrum-free. I don’t even have a temper! Sometimes I’ll show my anger and displeasure by simply keeping quiet or crying silently.

-I guess the most difficult part about me is my mischief. Blame it on my itchy fingers that love breaking things, getting things stuck somewhere and vandalising things in the house.

- Mischief aside, I’m actually a very well-behaved and obedient child.

- I am quite independent. Whenever mummy is busy, I will play on my own or read my books or do my colouring or watch tv quietly without bugging her.

- I am very shy and reserved in front of strangers or when I see someone whom I've not met for a long time.

35 Months Old

I am 35 months old today. In just another month, I will be turning 3!

- Height: 99cm Weight: Apprx 16kg

- I can read words, phrases and simple sentences

- I know the directions home and can lead the way from the FAS field onwards (about 1km from home). Sometimes I'll say turn here (pointing to the road), sometimes I'll say turn left or turn right, and go through the tunnel.

- I can distinguish gender differences and associate things accordingly. E.g. When mummy puts on a boyish T-shirt for me, I'll tell her "This is for boys".

34 Months Old

Sometimes, looking at my height, stature and character, it's hard for one to believe that I am not yet 3. At only 2 years 10 months, I don't think I fit into the toddler category anymore.

- Height: 99cm Weight: Apprx 16kg
- I understand reasoning very well. Sometimes when I've done something wrong, I can even self-correct before mummy says anything
- I am also good at detecting other people's (esp daddy and mummy's) mistakes and will correct them and sometimes laugh too
- Still very shy with strangers (esp men). I will try to avoid eye-contact with them as much as I can, no matter how much daddy and mummy coax me to "call" them.