The Parenting Thread

[Bidoofdude]

Very nice. Looks like a very healthy baby to me.

[GoktimusPrime]

So what are people's plans for the kiddies during the Easter period?

We're taking our daughter to the Sydney Family Show this Sunday -- I find it's a lot more fun for kids, cos it's more about just rides and stuff for kids to see and do without all the commercialisation (i.e. agricultural promotion) of the Royal Easter Show. They have animals for kids to see and touch, but they don't have all those big fancy shows like sheep racing, pig diving etc. (nor those dog and cat competitions etc.) Having said that, we're going to the Easter Show too... Yukikaze hasn't been to one before, and also I've got an old friend coming from overseas who's wants to bring her kids too (her kids haven't been to Australia before). Not sure if there'll be an official Transformers showbag, but I'm sure if there is, it'll be greatly disappointing. Although I'll probably get it if it's the same as last time because my TF backpacks are falling apart and I need a new one! Well, I do have another one that I got from my Hasbro prize pack, but it's kid sized and way too small for an adult!

If anyone else in Sydney feels like bringing their kids (or just yourself ) along... well... you'll know how to spot me.

On another note... Yukikaze will be eligible to start Kindy next year (whether she will or not is yet to be decided, cos she was born in June, so it's a tricky decision -- we're gonna wait until the end of the year and see what her pre school teachers say). But in the meantime, we're looking around for a school, so any stories/advice from some of our more experienced parents here would be greatly appreciated in this regard. Our particular circumstances are:
1. We want to send her to a public school, as my wife and I support public education. (not meaning to rag out on those who prefer private education, but that's our preference)
2. But we don't want to send her to a local school... cos our local area is... yeah. *cough* Although the area that I work in is a better area, so we're looking at sending her to a school near my work, with the proviso of safety (i.e. if anything were to happen to her at school, I can get to her more quickly if it's near my work as opposed to near our home).

Anyone her have experience in enrolling their child(ren) at a non-local govt school?

[GoktimusPrime]

We recently bought a pair of Pororo training chopsticks from a Korean store and Yuki loves it! We got the one with Petty (the girl penguin, pink chopsticks). Here's how they work. The one thing that impresses me about this design are the thumb and finger rings that teach the child how to hold the chopsticks with the correct grip. It's such a simple but effective idea.

So yeah, for anyone wanting to help their kids learn how to use or improve their chopstick skills, I'd highly recommend getting these. The only downside is that they're not cheap - about $9-10 a pair. I really should get myself a pair of Star Wars Chopsticks (they're also pretty damn pricey too)

[GoktimusPrime]

Just went to our first Open Day as we're trying to apply for a primary school for Yuki next year. Our first choice is a public school that's out of area, but we want to enrol her there because:
a) It's closer to my work
b) It's one of the top ranking schools in NSW
c) It has a fully immersive bilingual Japanese programme (where Japanese is the primary language of instruction from K-3).

Gah! It's unbelievable how even enrolling a child into public education can be so competitive and stressful!

[Bartrim]

Just went to our first Open Day as we're trying to apply for a primary school for Yuki next year. Our first choice is a public school that's out of area, but we want to enrol her there because:
a) It's closer to my work
b) It's one of the top ranking schools in NSW
c) It has a fully immersive bilingual Japanese programme (where Japanese is the primary language of instruction from K-3).

Gah! It's unbelievable how even enrolling a child into public education can be so competitive and stressful!

Really ?!?! I had no problems. Guess its a benefit of my location.

I thought with public schools you had to use the one closest to your place of residence?

[GoktimusPrime]

You don't have to, but it's easier because all public schools legally have to accept all kids who live within their catchment area. But the schools we're trying to enrol Yuki into area all out of area (but close to my work).

Safety/welfare is another reason to have a child attend a school closer to a parent's workplace rather than residence, because my work is about 22km away from home, so in an event of an emergency (e.g. gets injured) it could take me up to an hour driving through traffic congestion to get to her, whereas I could get to her within minutes if she's at a school near my work.

[Sam]

Gah! It's unbelievable how even enrolling a child into public education can be so competitive and stressful!

It can be, but it's fairly good here in Australia.

If you're in places such as Hong Kong, even to get into kindy the kid has to be "interviewed" by the school principal. If you are in China, it's ridiculous - you sometimes have to pay "gift money" (i.e. bribes) to the school because of huge demands to get into the good schools.

[GoktimusPrime]

A woman in Germany has given birth (naturally) to a baby bigger than Fortress Maximus!
http://www.nydailynews.com/life-styl...#ixzz2aSrxUSqo

[jazzcomp]

How a parent feels! Could be on the teacher thread as well

Another link

[MayzaPrime]

Thats awesome! Proud Dad

I didn't notice this thread, I have 4 kids under 6yrs so you can understand why I may have missed it.