Life In A Nutshell

Life had been super busy! I had been sort of neglecting the blog because I had been spending more time with my handwritten journal which I scribble in every night. So, that had sort of taken over my writing bug nightly. It was a wonderful way to slow down at the end of a hectic day, allowing me to collect my thoughts and think back to what the day looked like. Journal writing is an excellent way to detoxify my mind, and I had been indulging in this habit since age 11, so I am thankful for the sustained interest in it! That being said, I do miss blogging, so will try to inhabit this space more often! 

Here's a quick peek at our lives at this point of time! 

Big Bee is a mature 14-year-old teenager and Little Bee is now well into her tweens at 10 years old. How time flies! I am glad I really cherished every moment of their childhood with them when they were much younger, despite all the fatigue of looking after little children. Before I could blink my eyes (figuratively!), they are growing fast into little adults! I must thank God that He had nurtured my 2 girls in ways that are very much blessed. I did not have to deal with any major teenage angst from Big Bee, nor any major meltdowns with Little Bee as she inched deeper into her tweenhood. Of course, there were the inevitable outbursts of independence and frustrations, but those were nothing I could not handle, and those little storms blew over quickly.

Big Bee had a very smooth transition into secondary school life (she is now in secondary 2). She got into the school of her choice through the Direct Schools Admissions scheme (DSA) before the PSLE, but still did well for her PSLE to justify her entrance into her school (which was what she wanted to prove!). Her school is an integrated programme school, which means that she would not need to take the O-levels, which is really a blessing! I am never a fan of too many national examinations, so the more we can cut down on examinations, the better! She also did well enough to earn a very nice scholarship from her primary school, which recognised her achievements in academics and extra-curricular activities. She is also on an MOE scholarship in her secondary school, which helps us cut down on school fees significantly. Secondary school can be quite costly compared to primary school! Hence, she eased into secondary school with the gratitude and confidence that she was recognised for her efforts, and I am thankful for that.

Little Bee is her usual nonchalant and mischievous self. She is exploring the world through more mature lenses now, but her sense of wonder and child-likeness is still prevalent....and I am grateful that she had not become cynical yet. She had a bit of a rocky year in terms of academics. She was in a high-ability class last year, and I constantly had to deal with pesky teacher calls about how she could not catch up with the rest of her superpower peers. I constantly told the teacher that she should not be comparing peers in the classroom. Thankfully, she was put in a mixed-ability class this year. I secretly rejoiced because she is now doing much better in terms of "coping" in class, and I hope this helps a little with her self esteem, although she had always been a very confident girl, no matter what. I also realise how relevant streaming can be, especially for kids to be put with like-minded peers, and I appreciate the system for this. Calls from teachers had also ceased, so I am truly grateful! 

Every child has his or her different strengths and weaknesses. My 2 girls are testaments to that! Not everyone is suited for our harsh and rigid education system. However, we are living in Singapore, so instead of complaining and not being able to change the system, I think we as parents should be focusing on the strengths of our individual children and adjusting the system to fit them. For Little Bee, her strengths lie in creative and performing arts, so we had been doing a lot more for her in these areas. More to come in future blog posts!