Kindy Show Follow Up and Saturday Walk With Dad

Craig's Dad forgot to include pictures of two items "made" by Craig in class. The first was this lovely cardboard cutout flowerpot.

The second was a magnificent piece of artwork that is meant to look like Craig's Mum! Can you see the resemblance?


It was labelled very tastefully as well.


On Saturday Craig awoke with the worst hayfever attack he's had in his life. His eyes were constantly watering and his nose wouldn't stop dripping. He was marginally better when taken outside in the "fresh" Taipei air.

While at the park with the big concrete slide, a little girl about nine or ten years old started to play with Craig. She was very motherly and helped him climb up from the short side to the higher side, the way he likes to.


The little lady was also very amused by Craig wanting to slide backwards down the slippery slide. Craig amused himself a bit too. It was good to see him smiling on what was mostly a miserable day.

Craig's Kindergarten Puts On A Show

On Tuesday, Craig's kindergarten put on a wonderful little show for the parents of all the children in Craig's class. The schedule that was handed out to the parents before the show began looked pretty imposing to Craig's Dad. And, judging by looks on the face of the parents, hopes were high.

When Craig's Dad walked in there was still half an hour until the show began but the kids were already in their places, sitting (reasonably) quietly. You could tell they excited.

The show started with a song that most of the kids could sing and dance along with.


And continued with more group performances.











The kids were all called up one by one to introduce themselves. Craig was left till last. The teacher allowed the bravest ones up first and Craig is as shy as they come.


Then there was more singing and dancing.


One thing that impressed Craig's Dad greatly was how good the kids were when they weren't directly involved in the action. They all sat very quietly when it was someone else's turn to do something.

On just a few occasions, like the one below involving the little girl in the white jeans, one of the Taiwanese teachers would step in and distract those that were becoming unruly.

Another bit of work for the Taiwanese teachers was that, even when his name was called out, Craig would not move a muscle and would need to be directed to where he was supposed to go. He was good once he was in position but needed a lot of encouragement to get started.

The kids also played a game with flash cards that showed they are developing some ability to recognise words.





Craig's Dad's camera had some trouble before the last song which was a shame because the kids seemed to like it quite a lot.


All in all, the show was very well done. The kids seemed to enjoy it and the parents all took plenty of videos and photos to keep as souvenirs. It was a very happy occasion.

After the show there was plenty of time for the parents and kids to get together and have a chat. Craig looked very, very tired and he was very unhappy when his Dad had to leave.

Kindergarten Report Card

Craig received his first-ever report card last week! It is unbelievable how early these things start for kids these days. Seriously weird.

However, the good news is that Craig has been making progress in his English class. His teacher, a very nice woman called Amy, seems very well-organized whenever Craig's parents have seen her teaching. The only minor negative thing that gets mentioned here and in the little Parent-Teacher Communication Book is that Craig is quite shy sometimes.

The other major event in Craig's life is that he now has his own room. Craig has been very happy about this development. On the first night that Craig's Mum and Dad had moved their bed out of the room, Craig was too happy to stand still long enough for a good picture to be taken.


One good thing about having his own room is that Craig has his tent (once again, thanks to Uncle Dean and Aunty Suprana) in his room. Craig was very quick to pile all of his toys inside the tent and then close himself inside with them.


And, here is a short video of Craig coming home last Thursday night after dinner. It was raining outside so Craig was still wearing his raincoat. When he arrived downstairs Craig's Second-Cousin Ke-jhen was riding his bicycle around in circles in the tiny garage at his place. Craig jumped on for a quick ride before going upstairs.

Monday Morning at the Park

Monday was a holiday because of Tomb Sweeping Festival but Craig's Dad had to work in the afternoon.

So, Craig and Craig's Dad spent an hour or so at the park nearest home where the drunks and other odd people play. Thankfully, most of them stay away from the children and the jungle gym.

Although other kids came and went while Craig was there he spent virtually all of his time playing by himself.

Blue slides are still Craig's favourite places to play.

He was mostly happy to just hang around on the slide by himself until it was time to head back home for lunch.

Sunday Walkabout

Overcast, cool but mostly dry weather plus no relatives downstairs to play with on Sunday made it almost essential that Craig be taken outdoors. He went to the 4th floor playground at a local department store but, as usual, Craig preferred to stand around looking at a nearby fountain.

Once he started to play on the jungle gym he had a good time.

The mum on the left of this picture is looking a bit concerned because, a few seconds earlier, Craig was hugging her little boy very affectionately.

After being warned that hugging strangers is not the done thing Craig decided that playing on the slide would be safer. He has recently taken to sliding down slippery slides in any manner other than facing forward sitting on his bum .... that would be too boring.

Lying around on the slide was only briefly possible because more kids were arriving all the time.

When he climbed back into the little capsule thingy there was barely room to move. Taipei can be like that, especially on weekends.

Wet Saturday and Craig's Cousins

It was raining outside last Saturday but luckily Craig was able to go downstairs to the second floor flat at lunchtime to play with some relatives.

While the kids were playing in the middle room, Craig's Aunty Jessie (aka Yu-fang) began feeding Craig as well as her two girls.

Craig seemed to like that and ate more than the other two put together.

There was a good little group of kids that spent most of their time playing together happily.


The only minor scuffle was between Craig and his much larger though not older cousin over a basket that had wooden blocks in it. They were fighting for the right to bang the basket on the floor and make noise with with it.

After a stop had been put to the noise-making some great fun was had piling kids on top of each other in various places.

The game was heaps of fun for all involved but Craig's Dad thought it was pretty funny when Craig's Uncle Guapo tried to play and take photos at the same time. He's a very ambitious man.

At one stage Craig's Uncle Guapo tried to escape to another room to take a nap but the kids were having way too much fun to allow that to happen.

The kids really enjoyed this game and since it was raining outdoors there wasn't much else for them to do. It was about as much fun as they could possibily have had on a rainy Saturday.