Back on the court! Hooray! It’s been a while. Dai Bee has been practicing with his teammates off the court (every weekend at neighboring park). He has improved so much since last year when he just picked up the sport. His teammates are so patient and supportive of him. I’m so proud of him and his progress.
I’m very excited today as the boys return back to in person learning at their school, probably more so than the boys themselves. I know it’s not easy for teachers and staff, but it’s been a long while for kids to interact with their friends. Though it’s only half days and still on hybrid schedule, it’s good to change the scenery for a little bit. Th boys are biking to and from. I can’t wait to hear all about their day…
Today is a big day – Ah Lo’s commencement. Graduations are always bittersweet, and often makes me sad, especially during these historical times. With so much going on these days (protesting and pandemic), it’s hard to go through the day without feeling torn. Despite of all it all, we hope to take a little time to celebrate Ah Lo’s another milestone. He graduated today and gave a stellar speech to his classmates. He’s ready to move forward. High School, here he comes!
The week is going by slowly, but the days are zooming by…or is it the other way around? I find that I have to get up earlier each day to squeeze all my goals in. I’ve been reaching my daily 10k steps more so now than before, just to make sure I stay active. I also want to find the time to review what I learned (Spanish) in the half hour when I’m on the treadmill. Not to mention the 15-20 minutes of piano practice time.
This week – boys are getting the hang of their schedules now.
We survived the first week of shelter in place! This is all new to us, and many families as well. I had a schedule for Ah Lo for this week.
The schedule didn’t work as planned the 1st week since it took him an hour to do his classwork the first day. The rest of the week, it took him longer (2-3 hours). However, he does check the board to see what he needs to do for the day. We will see what happens next week.
This week –
1. Since all the outdoor activities are suspended and school is closed, it’s important the boys stay active and healthy. I make them exercise in the garage at least half hour every day. It’s great they are push each other do more every day.
2. Music is a form of relaxation. Whenever Dai Bee gets a chance (during school breaks), he will practice/play piano/violin.
3. Boys are doing conditioning and strengthening exercises.
4. Now we’re at home, we made sure Ah Lo practices piano diligently.
5. This is a first time we’re having online lessons from his piano teacher. I love the fact that we don’t have to drive back and forth and wait around every week for lessons. This is a plus.
6. The boys help prepare meals at least once a day.
7. Reading is a must!
8. As an elective, the boys are doing brush calligraphy for fun. Hope to make this is a weekly ritual.
With the Covid-19 virus rapidly spreading, everyday seems to be doomsday. News change by the minute. Events cancelled, stadium/concert halls closed. Yesterday our school district announced schools will be kept opened for various reasons (i.e. teenagers are in the low risk category, some families depend on public schools for meals, etc.). Less than 24 hours, the District, based on the advice from Public Health officials, changed its decision to close all public schools for 3 weeks. With this news, families are scrambling to find ways to accommodate this unprecedented schedule. Before this announcement, Ah Lo comes home telling us the students in all his classes have reduced drastically. Not everyone is lucky enough to have the option of working from home, and not everyone is lucky to have families around to help each other. With this, it puts everyone in an immense amount of vulnerability – panic buying! All the shelves of canned goods are empty in big supermarket stores with long lines. This outbreak has caused an anxiety for many people, economically and emotionally. Unfortunately, I don’t think this bug will go away anytime soon. I know there will be more to be done in order to control it. Just hope we do our part, wash our hands, sanitize highly touched areas, social distancing, and keep our hands away from our mouth and face.
After Ah Lo gave his speech at his elementary school commencement ceremony, so many people complimented on how well he did. So I started planting the seed 3 years ago to have him do it again. There were a lot of resistance in the beginning. I reflected back the time when I did it years ago, I still remembered the scene and the thrill. With some nudging and encouragement, I sensed his tone was softer. Even in the beginning of the year, there were some hesitation. Every now and then I slip it in our conversation.
Finally, he started writing and has been writing for a week now. Now he adds/edits his speech every chance he gets. Although sometimes I know he didn’t pick up the computer for his writing, I don’t push it too much. With this guy, I just have know when and how to with him. That’s the art of parenting I’m still learning…
Today Ah Lo and his cousin are going head to head (competing for their own school) for the first time. This is the game we’ve been waiting for since the first day of the season. Either my son or my nephew wins, it’s a win-win situation for me. LOL.
At the end, Ah Lo’s school didn’t make the cut. Because of this loss, the school will not have a seat at the playoff. It was pretty wild to watch him play this season. He has his ups and downs, but super proud of him for not giving up, for working hard, and for proving to himself and his coach that he deserves to be one of the starters.
Even though they didn’t take the trophy home, everyone goes home with a cookie!
A Friday ritual.
A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember – {this moment}
Now that Dai Bee is acting as Assistant Coach, he’s definitely paying more attention to the team and the games. This weekend, he had to miss the tournament because he has to take the PreACT and get ready for his school’s concert. He could only watch the videos I took. and gave some constructive feedback to Ah Lo.
All About the Kids 