Big brother Eric officially turned 9 yesterday. He wanted to celebrate it in Tuaran with our relatives, so I’m holding off buying the cake until tomorrow when he goes there (we planned to go today, but he misbehaved just now so he has to wait until tomorrow if he behaves well today). Yesterday was school day and it’s still in the fasting month, so he can’t bring a cake into class. I only took him to dinner at his favourite restaurant, Pizza Hut, after all of us returned home (by the way, I’m back at work after an almost-restful maternity leave, and why does Eric have to like Pizza Hut, the slowest fast food joint in the world with the worst service).

Baby laughters are so infectious, don’t you think? In my household, the only person who could make my kids laugh is Eric. He has a way with little children. Those babies and toddlers seem to gravitate towards him. Is it his voice that causes it? His face? His smile? Whatever it is, I’m clearly not complaining. Our family sure is lucky to have Eric around.

I went shopping with Edry yesterday. Maybe it’s how small Edry looks, but a few people saw him and said, “Kesian,” which is Malay for the word pity. Is this a habit for some people when they see a small baby? I understand if they say, “Aw, how cute,” which I am SO sure is developed out of habit. I know that because I used to not do that at all when I see small babies. I didn’t even care about babies and small kids until I become a mom.

Anyway…

I hope people won’t pity me for having a child who has Down. Nor do I want people to pity Edry for having Down. I just want people to understand that we need support like any typical moms and kids do. I want people to understand that Edry might need to be educated the way other children who have a hard time learning do. We need empathy, not sympathy.

Because if you could just give us the chance, if you could just be patient with us, Edry and differently-abled children can grow up to become happy and fulfilled. They are educationally-driven, run their own businesses, and can even drive around doing their own errands. They can even bust criminals.

So, you know… I’m OK. He’s OK. Life’s OK.

Don’t say you pity us. Just understand us. And give us a smile. That’s always a great way to make our day.

It was Monday.I go to the hall every monday.I was tired after the exam.I was walking to the hall.I was lining up.And I was standing and hearing teacher’s advise.After that my teacher said”Eric you got num.1 in class.”I was so shocked and I said ”Wow!Thank you teacher!”Ok that is all don’t forget to see The Last Airbender in 3D.

I took Eric to watch the 3D version of The Last Airbender when it was released in our theaters last week. This was Eric’s first time watching a movie in 3D, although he claimed he’s watched 3D movies before. I explained to him that watching those Spy Kids DVD isn’t the same thing as this one, and that he needed to use a special pair of glasses to experience it properly. He insisted that he’s experienced the real deal, though, so I let it go.

We got our spiffy 3D glasses at the entrance of our movie theater at GSC Suria Sabah. As we waited, Eric was pretty calm and relaxed.

The show started with a 3-2-1 countdown in 3D. Eric almost jumped out of his seat in surprise. When the countdown ended, he exclaimed so loud, the whole theater could hear him say, “WOW! THAT WAS SO REAL!” I was half amused, half wanted to hide under my seat out of embarrassment — I’m sure the others in the theater were holding their laughter We left the theater with a huge grin plastered on Eric’s satisfied face, and he started imitating Aang’s every move once we arrived back home.

The Last Airbender is a great movie for kids, although the adults watching it may think the storyline was lame. What do you expect, coming from an adaptation of a Nickelodeon kids cartoon series of the same name? I certainly didn’t expect anything mind-blowing, since the series isn’t that great, either. Good, but not great.