I am impressed by children who have won the "Do Something Award" to receive USD100,000.

Though this award is only open to all US and Canadian citizens under age 25, I hope my children will be inspired and motivated by stories of previous winners.

What a good way to be remembered.

I wish I could let you but I have to stay faithful to my weight. Maybe in my next life...

When I was younger, my friends seemed to be laughing about things that did not make sense to me. It was not that I did not have a good sense of humour then; I was just downright clueless about sex.



How would I know about "the birds and the bees" when all my mom said was that I was picked up from a dustbin. So, what was the consequences of my ignorance?

No, I did not become a candidate for unwed motherhood but I was the perfect butt of the joke for my friends. And as a result of that experience, I do not tell vague stories about "the birds and the bees" to my children. I try my best to tell them as clearly as their young minds could understand, whenever they asked me anything related to this subject.

"Sex" is no longer an easy topic to avoid since you can hear insinuations of it in songs or catch the "act" on TV, in movies and even in advertisements. Moreover, sexuality is so publicly full blown in the way people dress these days.

I would rather my children feel comfortable about talking to me about it then to seek answers at the wrong places. So, I am keeping myself armed with some useful websites that I can turn to if I am stuck for the right way to answer them.

Fact sheets - A to Z

Sex education - primary school children

Talking with your kids about sex

Parents' Sex Ed Center - Advocates for Youth

One day if they think that they are old enough to have casual sex, I will direct them to take a look at "A letter from an unborn child".

I will be on a look out for websites my children can go to if they want to understand about their bodies and sexuality on their own. Here is one that will appeal to them when they are older:

Sex Education by Teens, for Teens!

Sex Terms

Comix and Quizzes

Sexuality and U

This is a good reminder for me to write about the children's piano purchased in February.



These are websites that I had been to while researching brands and models to look into.

Inside Tips on Choosing a Quality used Upright Piano posted on eBay

Before You Buy Your First Piano by Espie Estrella on About.com

In the end, their father chose a US50 model Kawai because he enjoyed the resonance of the piano when played by the shop owner. It is an upright grand and that means that we do not have to upgrade it as the children progress in their piano lessons.

Based on its S/N 1279742, I discovered from Kawai that it was manufactured during the period of April 1980 - December 1981.

Following are websites that should be useful for my little music learners:

The FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS about Kawai

Basic Music Theory pages

Free Sheet Music Sites:

Choral Public Domain Library is one of the world's largest free sheet music sites.

The Mutopia Project: Classical music for free download.

Gutenberg:The Sheet Music Project. Browse by category of authors, titles or languages.

More from Google Directory

To find more of such sites, do a search for "public domain Music Sheet"

This is my post for the day. Take a rest when you need one.

I know I can be so long winded. So, have fun resting.

Talk about being self-sufficient, what are you going to do if there are no food, water or necessities during a disaster or because of global warming?

Best learn some "do-it-yourself" at Self-Reliance first.

The earthquake in Sichuan should make us ponder on this question. If a disaster occurs and our children are separated from us in the confusion, will they be able to stand on their own? I discovered Survival & Self Reliance Studies Institute provides many useful guides for:

Natural disasters
Terrorism
Emergency Situations
Camping
Outdoor Survival Basics

I discovered that it easier for me to teach my children after sending them to the Sunday Dhamma School at Sungai Long Buddhist Society.

Should they misbehave, I can stop them by saying that it is bad for my karma to shout or beat them. If they do not finish up their food, I would say that it is bad for their karma.

"Karma" is best described as a debt owing or reaction to an action. So, bad actions begets bad karma and good karma creates good reaction.

My children understand that if they harm anyone physically, emotionally, mentally or spiritually, they will be placed in a similar incident where they will be the victim. So, it is a mighty magical word to teach my children with.

Do you see the picture now?

Some animals have to die to feed us. So don't throw away your food. I cannot find a better picture to get my children to clean up their plates.

Thanks, Chow.

This T-shirt design reminds me of a song, "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother". It was sang by the Hollies in 1969.

I cannot find a better picture to teach my children sibling love for each other and get a laugh out of them.

Here the link to the lyrics:

http://www.oldielyrics.com/lyrics/the_hollies/he_aint_heavy_hes_my_brother.html

Every time you scold the kids for misbehaving, reflect on how they became this way.

Is one always threatening the other to get things done? Recollect how many times you have done that to them.

Do they roll their eyes in disdain and use profanities whenever they have the opportunity to? Reflect on who in your family or circle of friends do that. Remove these influences.

You hear compliments about your children from their friends and teachers but when they are with the family they are rude to one another. Is that how you are treating your spouse? What are you like when you are with your friends?

If your children are always shouting in the house, you have to stop shouting at them. Admit that it is your mistake to shout or continue living in the state of self destruction.