Cheers to 2013

Happy New Year and welcome 2013!

That's when I say thanks but no thanks to all that 2012 has given and taken away from me.

I don't want to elaborate further because I don't want to repeat the stories. Brings back cruel memories I want to lock up in the dungeon of my cold, bitter heart.

The only thing I want to do for 2013 is to put everything behind me and move on. 

Perhaps the single piece of good news that sprouted towards the last quarter was that Xian miraculously overcame her insecurities and academic woes, and managed to clear all examination papers in the final semester. Those results weren't excellent by normal standards, but when your kid's averaging 30+ for most subjects and she scores 60s and 70s for the finals, that's definitely a major accomplishment on her part so won't you be proud of her efforts? I definitely am. 

Of course she didn't pull it off on her own. I was on a verge of a nervous breaking down myself when she drastically lost about 4kg in a matter of weeks and also lost large amounts hair. It was the usual case of me battling others' expectations of my daughter. I'd to put my foot down but simultaneously tried to dodge the bullets that were relentlessly fired at my direction. To me, it's simple. I rather have my daughter healthy, happy and alive. Academic success is but a small fraction of what life is really about. So if I have to face the music and be executed for my actions, so be it. In the end, my victory was won by the sidelines, and the smile on Xian's face when she got her results was priceless.

And one of the crucial factors that pushed Xian's confidence level up was my insistence that she joined the Table Tennis practice sessions during the week-long September break. She handed me a consent form and I encouraged her to attend the sessions. It was during this period that Xian's coach identified her potential and this inspired her to take the sport more seriously. Her confidence was given a much needed boost - she finally found something she could called "her own" and there wasn't anyone else whom she could be compared to!

During the December hols, Xian was asked to attend many more sessions and even trained with the Secondary Table Tennis school team for a week. Her coach spoke to me and lamented that Xian's "discovered" too late - most of the school team members started in Primary 2 or 3 - but if she's willing to train hard, she can make it. He even specially selected a Table Tennis bat for her (the cheapo $20 ones I got for her weren't competition standard enough) that cost me $110. 

So for 2013, this could spell a big break for Xian. Whether she makes it to the school team or even gets a chance to represent her school in any competition isn't that important. What's more crucial is that she plays up on her strengths, embraces them and accepts her flaws. She's turning 11 and moving into her tweens, and that's going to be another headache for me.

As for Wen, 2012 also signalled new challenges for her. She formally embarked on her Primary school education and it was hilarious to witness how blasé she is about school life. Little Miss Scatterbrain is supremely cool and nonchalant, leaving school books and homework under her desk, losing her belongings and stationery without losing her cool! I received calls from her teachers about her lacklustre  academic performance - she doesn't try hard enough and is contented to just get by. While she's managed to scrape through Primary One with passable results (Xian performed better), I'm a little concerned that if she doesn't adopt a more positive attitude, she's going to land herself in hot soup with her teachers. And I may need to make frequent trips to meet them.

But the one thing that perks Wen up immediately? Her weekly Monday night art class. There's a glow on her face when she goes for her art lessons. And if I'm not home by 7pm to send her for class, she'll start calling me frantically even though her class is at 7.30pm. She aims to be the first for lesson but she's always the last to leave since she enjoys lingering around. Well, that's my second born for you. She's takes her Art lessons seriously and that's when she can truly indulge herself.

My youngest, but certainly not the least, probably enjoyed 2012 the most. She's a gregarious 4-year-old and enjoys being the baby bully in the family. She's quite the natural leader and often commands her sisters with barking orders. The hub and I always joke about how Wei's a little woman trapped in a girl's body. She argues with strong logic and rebuts everything you say. Most of Wei's teachers (except her Chinese teacher) have good comments about her behaviour and cheerful disposition. But oh, she's a handful, make NO mistake about that. When she sets her heart on something, there's little you can do to change her mind. And she's only turning FIVE in 2013.

So that's my little report card on my three Leonglets. They drive me crazy most of the time, especially when they squabble, but that's all part and parcel of growing up. And for me, that's what I knowingly got myself into when I decided to spawn.

We've had lots more downs than ups in 2012. I'm no oracle to foresee the future so I can't guarantee 2013 would be any brighter. But we can all hope a little, can't we?

Here's wishing everyone a Happier, Merrier, Cheerier and Infinitely Better 2013!