My 13 Months Old Darling...

In just a blink of an eye my calm and docile newborn has been replaced by an adorable little jumping, climbing, tantrum throwing toddler who just turned 13 months old yesterday.

I find managing Ryan is a challenge nowadays. He’s a bit more “spirited” and very demanding after he’s been moved from the infant class to the toddler class in kindy. From my observation the kids are given more freedom to roam around and play with their peers under strict observation, of course.

Mr. Ryan who’s used to the attention from his previous caretaker is not doing so well with the transition. He tries to make up for the lack of attention in kindy by trying to get extra attention at home. I think he misses his grandparents too. I know it sounds absurd since he sees my parents every day, but he only spend about 3 hours with atuk and nenek daily, in comparison to all waking seconds before.

These changes may seem minor to an adults but for a 13 months old baby it’s a huge transition so we try to be more understanding. At the same time Lan and I can’t let the bad behavior slide. We try to be consistent with our decisions/actions. Firm but at the same time sympathetic.

Ryan is responding well to our “training”. I would’t really call it “disciplining” because I don’t think you can “discipline” a child below 2 years old like you do a 4 or 5 years old. The trick is “consistency”, we’ve established a loose timetable for Ryan to follow.
5.30-6.30pm: Playtime (which consist of banging on the organ, drawing, playing trucks etc)
6.30 pm: dinner + clean up and change to PJ’s
7.00pm: Video time while mummy and daddy take turns to pray,
8.00 pm: Read Iqra’ with Nenek
8.30 pm: Balik rumah and play in his room until
9.15 pm: sleep time in his own cot :)

Trust me it is not easy. Imagine coming back after a long day at work and you just want to relax but you can’t. There’s housework to do, errands to tackle, a new house to deal with and a baby who vying for your attention. It is extra hard when you don’t have a “bibik” or maid to help with the chores. But we all make do with what we have.

I admit there are times when I do lose my temper and I’ve been known to raise my voice more than once but I can safely say that 85% of the time the “training” works. Less fussing and screaming. We’ve only tried this method for a month so it is still work in progress but Lan and I agree on one thing…

Ryan is worth all the trouble… hehe