Report Card Day!!

Yesterday I picked up Adriel from school. Adriel's class came out last, and I listened while other teachers reminded other parents to come to school the next day to pick up report cards. When it came to Adriel's turn, the teacher didn't mention anything.

So as I was wondering if I needed to go to school the next day or not, I checked his school newsletter, and sure enough, it was already announced that Saturday is report card day for the pre-schoolers... Frank just kept saying... report card??? For Adriel??? What are they going to SAY??? He's failing??? I felt like bonking him on the head, but Adriel was around... lucky him...

Adriel was again cranky this morning as he has been these past few days. His schedule has been completely been messed up by his mom and he's not happy. He was grouchy knowing I had to go away yet again after being home with him for a whole TWO WEEKS!!

But we managed, and I rode the motorbike to Adriel's school. I got the report card and golly-gee-whiz... it's no CARD. It's a whole-huge-wonky-BINDER!! I had a wee bit of trouble getting it home with me considering I had to manage the manual motorbike with BOTH my hands and no place to put the "report card." But I somehow got home safely.

There we looked though Adriel's report card and most of his handiwork. Okay, so it's not all flying colors, but we're happy enough. Like Frank said, he's in PRE-SCHOOL, so we're not expecting much. If he's not so good with his crayons right now and he's not so good about sitting in his chair all the time, well... I don't think it will dramatically alter his future career.

We're just happy he can burn off some of his energy with someone else for a couple hours, come home and take a loooong nap. It takes the burden off Laela for a bit, hahaha.

Trendy begging

They've existed since the time of our Lord. No wait. They have probably existed from the time of Adam. There have always been beggars, so I won't comment on their existence in particular. It's just the other day I was shocked because it seems there's no way to escape them now. But I won't be so harsh. Maybe it's the season.

This is the holy month of Ramadhan. It's when muslims fast during the day. And since the country where I live is predominantly muslim, you see the effects of the fasting month everywhere. For one, many small food shops close during the day. To respect those who are fasting of course. For those of us non-fasters, we have to scrounge around and do our best. Thankfully I've managed to take a packed lunch and avoid the lunch dilemma.

Another sign of the holy month of Ramadhan is the beggars. I'm a commuter. I travel the same route every single day, five days a week. I know my route so well I can tell which lane to take for every bend in the road. I know every pothole, I know where every police lurks waiting for prey and I know where I can get away with breaking the law (wink..wink...). I also know where there are usually beggars on the road. But for the past couple of weeks, there have been quadruple amount of beggars on the street. Where there usually aren't. Now there are.

Again... that's a seasonal thing. It happens every year. What I do find amusing is that this year, there is a new way to beg. Okay, I think I should explain that during this month the muslims are also required to give their alms to the poor. Erhhmmm.... I guess that's the reason those extra beggars show up.

Anyway... I was at the grocery yesterday with Adriel. We got some snacks to munch on the bench at the mall to wait for Frank to come. When I went to the cash register, the grocery lady (what am I supposed to call her anyway? Cashier?) offered us if we wanted to give to the poor? I declined politely. But I was thinking... "What the heck? Now they've got these cashiers to do the begging?" It's a pretty powerful way too, wouldn't you think? How would it seem to say no to helping the poor. "No thanks, I'm too snotty to help the poor." And if I was the cashier lady I would be thinking "Can't believe my employer is making me beg!!"

Gosh. The newest begging technique. Gotta love how they come up with these things.

Budding guitarist

We had a Revival Service at church this weekend, and we convinced Adriel to sit quietly through the service by telling to watch the guitarist play during the songs. I let him hop up on the church bench and he stood there shaking his hips, sticking out his arms and playing air guitar along with the guitarist.

His Oma is convinced that he will be a musician. I told her I doubt it. I don't want to get her hopes up too early. But every single day I pray that whatever he grows up to be, he will be a living testimony to God's greatness. And somehow, I believe God WILL answer my prayers.

Watching a Concert with the Gang

On Monday this week, the Jubilee Choir gang went to see the UPH Gala Concert. It was different than what I expected, but it was great nontheless. It had performing arts, a classical orchestra, traditional music and a choir as well. The theme was People Need the Lord. So it had a great message to it. A reminder that so many people are in the darkness and that they need the Lord. It doesn't stop there. We have a burden to bring this message to those people who need it.

Here's part of the gang:

Tujuhbelasan at Church

Yesterday we spent most of the day at church. Of course. It's a Sunday. What was different that this past Sunday was also the day of our nation's Independence Day. So we got up early to attend the special service at 7 a.m. Afterwards, there were games the kids played. Adriel was taken away by his grandparents. But he couldn't get away from us fast enough. He even asked to skip the children's service to stay with Grandpa during the sermon. So we let him since he was quiet for once.

Today is a holiday, so we spent the morning going shopping at the market and then I made some special chicken thing-a-ma-doodle. It's for Adriel's snack on Thursday.

Tonight the Grandparents are babysitting and Frank and I get to go out with several other couples in our choir to watch a concert at UPH.

Strength for today

I just needed to say a prayer to ask the Lord for strength today. To face the things that I must face. I know I cannot do this alone.

Debut

Adriel is slowly starting to come out of his shell. Last week I accompanied Adriel during the children's service. He was goofing off as usual, seemingly not paying any attention to the story. But... as it turns out, he was called up by the teacher to answer the question from the story. And... he got the answer! So he did give it a slither of his attention.

Then this week once again I accompanied him to the children's service. The teacher asked him to come up and sing a song. He went up and she asked him what he wanted to sing. He said, "Happy ya ya ya." Then with her help he actually sang:

Happy ya, ya, ya
Happy ye, ye, ye
Saya senang jadi anak Tuhan
Siang jadi kenangan
Malam jadi impian
Cintaku semakin mendalam...

Oh, how proud I was of him! He sang in a barely audible whisper, but it's a start... and so... Hello world, please welcome Adriel with his debut song... :-)

Silence is...

I had left my students to pick up my usb flash disk. I came back into the lab and my boys were drop-dead silent, all crowded around a computer and smiling.

I immediately asked them, "Hey, what are you boys doing? You are acting suspiciously silent." They immediately dispersed and asked me how I knew they were doing something suspicious. I didn't say it outloud, but every mother knows that when a kid is quiet, we should be suspicious.

It happened just the other day. We went to grab a few things from the local grocery store and got in line to pay for our purchase. It had been a tug-of-war with Adriel, saying no to jelly, no to cars, no to cereal (which he picked for the toy, not the cereal), no to gummy bears, and a yes to one nyam-nyam and a couple of small packets of cereal (which we told him he couldn't eat until the next morning.) Sometimes he really gets in the mood for shopping and holds the shopping basket and just starts throwing in stuff he wants. I keep having to fish them out.

So as we waited in line, we noticed Adriel wandering off to browse the candy section as usual. He came back bringing a stick of chewey candy which I told him to put back on the rack. I waited a minute, another minute, another minute... then started to get really, REALLY suspicious. Where is that son of mine? I walked over to find him on the floor, ripping open the packet of candy and trying to get one before I found him. When he saw me he threw it back on the rack. And looked guiltily at me. Aarrrgh...

I picked him up, brought him to his father and promised him some discipline at home. He cried and said sorry, and hugged me and pleaded.... but I stayed strong. I gave him the talk and gave him his consequences. I also had to get the candy and pay for it because I felt bad about ruining it. I HATE making unnecesary purchases.

Anyway, what I'm saying, if a kid is quiet, be VERY, VERY suspicious. They almost always are up to something...

In the making

I got the kit from Miss Mint that I wrote about earlier...



I'm still looking for some alphas to add on, so this is still in progress...

Singing a new song

I was resting in the bedroom when I heard Adriel and Laela talking. She was prompting him to sing "Satu dua, tiga empat..." But he was distracted only began with "Satu dua, tiga empat, lima enam, tujuh...."

So when he wandered in to my room I began to ask him to sing to me. And he did so. Beautifully... (after I messed it up he asked me to stop singing... ehem... hiks...)

Satu dua, tiga empat
Lima enam, tujuh delapan
Sapa rajin, ke sekolah
Cari ilmu, sampai dapat...

Sungguh senang... amat senang,
Bangun pagi-pagi, sungguh senang...

He learned this song at school. It was in the plan for him to learn and sing in school during the month of August, but only after a few days of attending school in August we can already hear him singing it...

Oh, he's been absent from school today and yesterday... home sick with the sniffles.