Cassandra's Life Blog

Cassie's school had the annual concert yesterday evening. This is the first concert for her and for me and i was so anxious. I was worried if she will get hungry, stage freight, forgot her steps and etc and etc. Her concert start at 7 .30 pm and we need to be there by 6.45 pm max. She needed to get ready with her dancing dress, hairdo and makeup before arriving at the concert all.



Getting her hairdo is not a problem because i've been doing this every day. However, getting her make up done is another thing. I know my make up kits will not be sufficient because she needs to be on stage and anything less dramatic will make her look washed out. Everything i have in my make-up box says 'earth tone', 'casual' and 'transparent make up'. So, i went and get a more dramatic colored eye-shadows (purple, blue and even green) and found my most shining-"red-most" lipstick. However, it's still not enough ! Tips : get the 'red-chilli' colored lipsticks and 'blue-green' shimmering eye-shadow to stand-out if your kid(s) is going to be on stage.



Before the concert started, there was some background music and the microphones pre-setup on the stage. Cassie saw the microphone on the stage and she told me that she wanted to go up the stage and sing !While the other girl arrived sobbing and refused to go on stage, Cassie's courage to want and stand on the stage and sing makes me realised that she is one little 'dare-angel'.


The surprised that i blogged about last week is that Cassie is getting her award for being placed 2nd in her class !! Her teacher praised her for her flawless work in her maths area, saying that she doesn't even need instruction to complete her maths work. She can count, write, draw, fill-in-the-blanks without any problem. Considering she just started school on July 1, I am very happy for my gal. What an accomplishment in 3 months time !

(* crazy frog dance *)

After the award ceremony, it's SHOWTIME ! Cassie's dance is simple and compose of very easy steps. When she was dancing at home, she will smile and really enjoyed it. When she was performing on stage though, she look 'business-like'. It's like she's following instruction instead of really dancing because she cannot get her free-flow style going on. Their dance is funny and cute at the same time. And we were buzy snapping photos and videos away.



After her dance, she ran out from the backstage happily. She has the pat-on-the-back from her dad and a big hug from me. We leave the concert soon after her dance because it's near her bed time. But not before we all went for ice-cream and chocolate milk for dessert to celebrate !! Fantastic performance Cassie :)

"Birthday present, birthday cake, birthday party we can't wait !" (Playhouse disney's b'day song) and that's exactly the feeling from Cassie when she get to know that she'll be having a party at school. She was so excited that she can't sleep ! :)

Actually, when i talked to the teacher, i told her that Cassie's b'day is coming and i'm thinking about having a celebration at school. I didn't tell Cassie anything yet during that time because it's not yet confirm. Cassie was listening to my conversation with the teacher and she told her grandma that i'm having a party for her before i even mentioned it to her. h'mm, i wonder what else she has picked up from my various conversations ....

Little did i know, the teacher went away and assume i'm having a big party for ALL the kids in the school. Oh dear, oh my and there i was in the weekend baking and baking and baking .... cupcakes, birthday cakes, candies, cereal cookies .... It was a lot of hours in baking.

We all took a break from work and went to Cassie's school that morning. She was so happy to see us ! we have all the kids gathered around and she told her friend very proudly that 'my mom made this.' (my big GRIN !) I got her a crown and all her friend sang the b'day song with her.

Cassie helped packed the party favors and she distribute to her friends in the party. After that, it's feast time and i can see all the kids sink their teeth into the cupcakes ! yum.

She had so much fun that day and even tried to hug the computer when she saw the photos of the party. I know you're happy babe, Happy Birthday dearest !

It's coming to the end of the school year and almost all schools are preparing for the year-end concert. Cassie started school on July 1st and i wasn't even sure if she will be participating in the school's concert. Not until a couple of weeks ago the teacher informed me that there will be a rehearsal. Up until that time, i was still puzzled and asked if Cassie needs to join. "Of course she is participating !" and that's the answer i've got.

A friend of my mom got Cassie this pink wonder tutu for Cassie last year. Last year when she saw the dress, she didn't seems to care at it at all.

Last Sunday morning, she saw the dress hanging in her closet and asked very very nicely "mom, can i wear this dress please, please please".

Once she has the tutu on, she start her dancing and swirling again the whole morning. I guess this year, the dress carries some meaning and it attached some imagination and play with it which makes it fun.

btw, i think the name 'tutu' sounded very conflicting with the dress :). But, what's in a name anyways rite ?!

Cassie has moved on from playing with her toys to playing inside her imagination world. Anything can be her toys nowadays, she can stage a whole drama with a piece of paper. Now, she's a bit over with the 'princess' thing and more toward 'SUPER HEROs'.

During the weekend, when we were travelling in the car, Cassandra told me that she's a supergirl and i'm a supergirl (too) and her dad is 'superman'. Then she told me that i have 'fire' power, she has the 'leaf' power and her dad got the 'storm' power. I know where those power from. I have the 'fire' power, because i'm the one cooking most of the time, i'm near the fire (or perhaps when i'm angry with her she can feel the smokes hehe), she has the 'leaf' power because i got her a 'leaf' shaped necklass the other day. And her dad's 'whirl-pool' type storm power is from the game Cassie shared with her dad. Her dad will pick her up and swing in circle (like carousel).

keke, so there you go, the 'history' of our super powers. That day, we just played along, imagine the big trucks are 'bad guys' and we're there to stop them by using our super-power. We shielded, ducked, hide, screamed, make funny faces, shouted ready-set-go and set off with our super powers. She laughed so loud and had so much fun.

Sometimes, we really do not need expensive toys to have fun. The best things in life are really free afterall.

It's definitely worth it to visit again, but wait till Feb 09 :)

All islanders out there, you know what i mean here, don't cha ?! When you're near the beach or ocean, you tend to let loose and just want your hair to fly with the ocean's breeze. Forget the tingling sensation the sand makes your feet feel, the glueyness on your skin from the air and the piercing ray from the hot sun to your eyes. Forget those, they doesn't matter. Instead you just want to hear the sounds of the waves, smell the scent of the ocean and feel the heat of the sun on your face. I love the beach, i think it's in my dna :)

The month of Sept is full of birthday for us. My dad's, my brother and mine b'day all falls in Sept. Most of the time, we just have 1 big celebration. This year we actually wanna plan for some sun and sand in the Rasa Sayang. Unfortunately the weather was pretty bad for the last few weeks. We actually drove 1/2 way to Batu-Feringghi only to find out there's a 'landslide' near that area. So, we took the u-turn and jump into the E&O instead. (See Cassie dancing to the beat in this video)

Because of all the delay, we quickly ran down the car into the restaurant and totally forgot about my camera ! When thd jazz band came along, only then i remembered i left the camera in the car *darn*

It was a fun evening after all. Dad had fun singing with the band, cassie had fun dancing to the beat. Even with the pouring rain outside, the whole place is full of warmth and excitement :) We'll definitely do it again. Happy birthday Grandpa !

Moment # 1
It was rainy most of the evening last week and Cassie snuggle happily in her favorite blanket.

I teased Cassie and said : "Cass, borrow your blanket to daddy ok ?"
Of couse she came back with the answer "No, this is my blanket"
I tried again and said : "You have a nice blanket here but daddy don't have blanket .. borrow ok ?"
Here's Cassie replied : "Mom, you have blanket rite ?! "

*hmpt*

Moment # 2
It was school holiday yesterday and cassie was pretty relax when she knew she doesn't have to go to school. Later in the afternoon, she picked up her bag-pack and her water bottle just like how she does every morning ready for school.

I asked Cassie : "Cassie, what r u doing ? r u going to school ?"
Cassie replied said : "Yes, good morning teacher ! "

*kekeke, she misses her school after all ...

Cassie loves to read and she is now insisting on reading some of her books on her own. Her favourite last month was the 'billy goat gruff' and this month she's moving on the 'the gingerbread man'. The pre-school's books has a lot of repetition and i think that's good for her because she is able to pick up the phases very well.

// "Stop, little gingerbread man" said the old women " i want to eat you for my tea" //

When i read for her, i usually add in some expression and sound effects :) that's why you see her emphasize the word 'STOP' in the video :)

I was preparing Cassie for bath and waiting for the water to fill the tub. While waiting, i then prepared the mob to clean the floor. Cassie saw what i was planning to do and insist that she wanted to clean the floor. That's why you see her in her 'untidy' attire in the video :)

While Cassie participating in the house chores, she didn't forget to entertain herself while she's doing the work :) turn up your volume to hear her sing :)

It's a great reminder : work hard, play hard. most importantly have fun and enjoy :)

It was a bright sunday morning and we were browsing through the 11 Olympic channels and stopped at the Rhythmic Gymnastics event. Just 2 minutes into the event, Cassie has a request.

舒蔚 : "我要大家拍手, 我要美丽跳舞衣!"
Cassie : "I want everyone to clap and i want the beautiful dancing dress ! ".

Yes dear, it's every girl's dream to wear beautiful dress and have the crowd admiration ! I can understand what you want and why you want it ;)

And off she goes, doing her dancing and gymnastics routine :) She followed all the moves that she saw from the TV, including the way they walked to the floor and their facial expression when they sat down waiting for their score after the routine.

Aside from being the gymnast, she has the swimmer event last week. I do not know how good a athletic she is, but what i know for sure dear, you are always the winner to me and here's a gold medal for being the best in the "daughter sports" event :)

Cass loved the red color ones because she thinks it's the cinderella slipper. I told her the slippers are too big for her and she was actually quite disappointed. However, she did get those shoes for me and asked me to try them on. Right after i tried it on, she will tell me the shoes are too big for me too :) OK Cass, we'll hunt for one that both of us can wear, deal ? :)

Needless to say, she got some serious lecture hours from me that day. Can't help but wondering where she got all these ideas. I guess kids will always be kids anyhow.

This is Cass's 2nd week in school. Overall i think she's doing quite well, she has some friends in her own class and also some friend whom are 5 & 6 yrs old. They will shout her name and tell her to the door when we were there to pick her up after school.

There's a slight change to her schedule and she sleep a little bit late now. Other than that, she seems to grow a little bit more. Just the other day, she was doing some drawing and then she saw my walked by. She stopped me and said, 'mommy, let me show you, let me show you'. Then she start drawing away with mumbling description. I think she's imitating her teacher. Oh, speaking of teacher, she can't seems to pronounce the 'T' and thus she refer her as 'Peach-er' :)

more cass's photos here : http://www.flickr.com/photos/z_vue

looking forward for a bright future ? you betcha ! :)

After that, she will then glue those shapes that she cut out and paste them on the paper one by one. Check out her final 'masterpiece' :) she cut and glue those piece on her own.
Feeling happy about herself, she requested me to take her photo with her craft.
I asked her what are those, she told me they are shapes and colors and then she gave me a look as if like 'what ?! don't you know ?!' hehehe

I asked the teacher how's cassandra and she said Cass didn't even shed a tear and she's a very independant girl. Good job Cass.

She came back and immediately asked for milk and told me she wanted to sleep. :) i insist she take her bath first and she finished up her lunch in double portion !! *must be really hungry ...

Here's what Cass has to say about her day at school :
[about reading] "yes, 有 reading, shu-weih 不会,有学"
[about singing] "有, dancing 一起"
[about eating] "吃 cookies, chocolate 的不好吃, 要 cooking different one, shu-weih 要 cook strawberry 的, 等一下."
[about friend] "没有, 舒蔚"
[about her uniform] "要买new one, 明天穿"
[about going to toilet] "有wee-wee, 要开门"

So i guess she did some reading but there are a lot that she didn't know, then there are dancing session that she joined in without failed, the cookie that i gave her is not good, she's asking me to make her strawberry one for tomorrow, no new friend yet, understand that she will still have to wear the same uniform tomorrow and if she needs to go toilet, someone (teacher perhaps) need to open the door for her :)

i checked her bag and found her exercise book. She proudly showed me she wrote her name (ar .. i bet the teacher hold her hand one) and keep flipping the pages as if she anticipates the learning and can't wait to have more !