The Kid Who Rocks My World

* A delayed birthday post for Alden 

Dearest Alden

It is hard to believe that you are 5 years old. The years have gone by so quickly that I get worried thinking about the day you'll leave the house. Though we all know it's going to be a long time before that happens, I have already made plans for the future. Before you get married, your dad and I intend to get you a house just next to ours so mommy can see you EVERY day.  Wouldn't that be awesome?! Well, if that doesn't happen, you can always stay with us okay? Think about it Alden. You'll get free food and accomodation!

This year marks a big milestone for you because it's the year you start school. I was feeling quite emotional when you graduated from preschool cos it seems just like yesterday we had that first visit to Te Ao Tamariki. Back then, you were only 2 and you could barely say your name.  Look at you now. You're all grown up and full of ideas. 

In 2009

Alden & Thomas

Graduation Day

Lately, you've shown a keen interest in playing the Alphabet games on the computer. You know the sounds of all the letters and you're starting to learn how to spell. You love spelling your name but you always miss out the N in ALDEN. I get frustrated when this happens but your dad tells me not to worry. He said in time, you'll get it right.

As a brother to little Alva, you have learned to become more loving and caring. Yes, from time to time, you still pull her hair, punch her nose and make her life miserable. But at least now, you have developed a strong sense of need to have her close. The moment you wake up, you'll ask "Where's Vava?" and the moment you get home from school, you'll shout "Vava!!! I'm home!" She has become a big part of your life and it makes me happy to see how well you two get along. 

You are very creative  and the way you see things amazes me everyday. You see the couch as a sailing boat, the hanger as your fishing rod and the chair as your cockpit. You're really good at playing make-believe cos your imagination is limitless. Having said that, I don’t fancy our role-playing games Alden. You always make me play the same role over and over again and to be frank, I'm sick of playing Dora.

When you're not forcing me to role-play, you enjoy mimicking action scenes from your favourite movies like Cars, Fast & Furious 4 and Bolt. You're good at selecting cars that best resemble the ones from the films and you love to mimic bits of dialogue from the movies. I have no idea why you need to watch them a gazillion times a day but it really drives me nuts. Now that grandma's here, I'm spared from the torture.  

Your personality hasn't changed a bit. You are still very passionate, loving and cheeky. The cheekiest thing you did this year occurred in the first week of April. We were having dinner on a Friday night when you suddenly got the urge to poo. Since all of us were occupied, you took it upon yourself to get the potty from the bathroom. You said you wanted to watch TV and poo at the same time so we let you. After a few minutes, grandma decided to check on you. That’s when she got the shock of her life. In just 5 minutes, you had managed to smear your poop all over the carpet in front of the TV. Like Play-Doh. Needless to say, it was a poostrostophe. As a punishment, daddy gave you a time out and made you promise not to do it again.

The next morning, (yes, this ain’t over) grandma smelt something fishy. She said “macam ada lagi taik den-den tertinggal ni tau”. Driven by the distinctive smell, grandma and I turned the living room upside down in search of your poo. After 10 minutes of crawling and smelling, we found it under one of the couches. You recognized it immediately. "Popo! That's Alden's poo!! Un-ner the chair!" When grandma finally picked up the poo, you patted her shoulder and said "Good job Popo".

Yeah. That was unforgettable.

Aside from poos, you have also played with shoes....

and make up...

and headphones

and many other stuff for which I have no proof to show. Things like my liptick, eyeliner, planner, old handphone and the keyboard of my old laptop which you spilt water on.  

The cheeky things you do infuriate me at times but they are also the reasons why I have so many funny moments at home. I know there will come a point when you'll start maturing, break your voice, have one of those wet dreams and grow a beard. When that happens, you will have lost your cheekiness and you'll have turned into a fine young man. I am not sure whether you’ll still hang out with me then, or want cuddles but I’ll be there just in case you need them.

My favourite part of the day is picking you up from school and seeing your eyes light up when you see me. You'd turn to Mrs. Waterman and say "Look!! That's my mummy!! Mummy Alice!". I love the way you run to me, wrap your arms around my leg and say lovingly, "miss you mummy". It's the best feeling ever and I'm going to cherish it while it lasts.

No matter how big you get, you'll always be my baby.

Love

Mummy