A Perfect Day

It was an absolutely perfect day this Sunday.

I woke up fresh from a good night's sleep (the wonders of sleeping early) and started preparing shephard's pie for today's lunch and a chicken stew for dinner. With a fresh & clear mind, I was totally focused and done in 45 minutes (yes! I finished cooking the filling of the pie, mashed the potatoes, arranged them nicely in the cup so that's its ready to bake and finished all the marination/preparation for the chicken stew). Isabelle wakes at 745am, just perfect timing as I was wrapping up and washing up the dishes.

Isabelle finishes her breakfast fast, and we headed down to the park. The Big M was staring at me, and I succumbed to temptation for a McD Breakfast with a cup of coffee (another booster for the day). We then headed down to the river to feed the fishes. Isabelle had a wild time, it had rained the night before, so with slightly higher water levels, the fishes could swim closer to the rocks which made feeding the fishes even more up close & personal, and even thrilling at some point, especially when the bigger fishes took a big dip for the bread we threw in and created a big splash. Isabelle was squealing away! When we were finished, she was so happy, she started clapping her hands, gave me a kiss & a hug, and started chanting "mummy, mummy, mummy". It totally made my day! Such a simple activity, but it brought so much joy to my little one.

We then headed back home, cos I had registered Isabelle for a free trial of the Mum & Tot Chinese class nearby. Isabelle had lots of fun there, but i'm not too sure if this is the right time for her to go for a Chinese enrichment class. Most of the toddlers there do not go to school, so an enrichment is definitely beneficial. However, Isabelle is exposed to Mandarin classes everyday already, and though she does not speak Mandarin unless prompted, I thought she did rather well in that she could repeat all the words though not entirely in the correct intonation. The only plus point of the class is there is more exposure in terms of the vocabulary and activities, and indirectly a way for me to learn Mandarin too!

Lunch was a breeze...Isabelle must have been very hungry or the shephard's pie I made must have been super delicious, she finished her lunch quickly without much coaxing & fussing about what she likes or dislikes. That made waking up at 7am on a SUnday morning totally worthwhile, that I think I may just do that again next weekend if stamina allows!

After Isabelle's nap, we headed to church for the Children's Adoration. Isabelle was very hyper today and could not sit still. But what surprised me time & again, is at the most critical time of the adoration, she would kneel and bow in adoration. She also understood clearly that Jesus was with us in the room, and when the priest brought the eucharist back to the church, Isabelle actually said "bye bye Jesus", before quickly pointing to her heart & mine, and said Jesus. I am impressed at how much Isabelle can comprehend Jesus's presence in our lives at such a young age.

We spent the rest of the evening at the bookshop before heading home, where we had 45 minutes of colouring & drawing together before dinner. The picky eater decided tonight she only wanted to eat plain rice & carrots (more about our picky eater in another post). I had to persuade & force her to have some potatoes & asparagus. More strict warnings later at night as she protested and refused her milk. The good part is she actually is afraid of me when I give that stern face (well, at least for now)and would be very obedient thereafter.

We ended the night with some bedtime stories as usual, and I rewarded her with some Barney time before going to sleep. It was a perfect & fulfilling day, we had loads of fun today, and time seemed to just pass by so quickly and peacefully. I'm so grateful for weekends to spend quality time with Isabelle especially since weekdays are just filled with rushing madness!