Darius is cotinuously growing up every single day and very soon, he will grow up into an older toddler who will be able to participate in more activities with us.

Besides the new toys that we would be getting for him (e.g. soccer ball, kite), we have also left him many pre-existing possessions that he will fortunately be privileged to enjoy:

1) Comic Books

There is actually another whole row of books behind these books you are seeing ^^|

Since young, I’ve been very interested in reading comic books (aka Manga in Japanese), starting off with 老夫子 (usually reading them in barber shops since I couldn’t afford them then) and 小叮当 (Doraemon). Over the years, I now possess one whole bookshelf filled with different kinds of comic books, all in Chinese. It’s not exactly a cheap hobby, but I do derive entertainment and learn things from them which I wouldn’t be able to get elsewhere, so it’s all worth it. ^^

Many people have the perception that comic books are unhealthy and reading them is a waste of time, but I would have to disagree with that. Yes, there are indeed some series which do not impart beneficial lessons and are purely meant for entertainment (老夫子 is one such example) and might even corrupt the readers (i.e. violent or sexual-related comics), but the key is to identify the right books to buy and read. With proper selection and guidance, comic books provide good learning lessons for the readers while improving one’s reading skills. It’s also an useful tool to cultivate one’s interests in reading and learning the Chinese language.

When Darius has learnt to read, I will be introducing him to our comics, selective in letting him read the ones that we feel are appropriate for his age and maturity. For instance, romance comics will not be introduced to him till a much later stage as it might provide him with false information or prompt him to get into an early immatured relationship. I also wouldn’t want to let him read those which are too focused on fighting since kids tend to imitate the characters blindly.

These comics will act also like an incentive for Darius, like when he has diligently completed his homework or performed a good deed. I would rather he read books/comics than to have his eyes glued to the television.

As for now, these prized possessions of ours will continue to rest safely in the bookshelf, picked up by me when I’m free and in the mood of re-reading them again. I do enjoy re-reading many of the comics (in fact, I’m re-reading the 魔法老师 series nowadays), thanks to my short-term memory (so that the story still feels new and fresh even if I’ve already read it before). ^^|

2) Board Games

Playing board games is a good, low-tech way to bond people together, and it will certainly a good way to build up the bond between parents and their children too.

We don’t really have many board games right now, except for Scrabble and a 3D Snakes and Ladders game which we had bought a while back. However, I will not hesitate to get more board games when Darius is old enough to play them with us. ^^

A few years back, I’ve also made a board game named Sequence, inspired by the original version which me and my friends played at a cafe. Players can team up or compete individually, drawing cards from a deck of cards and placing their chips on the board according to the cards they possess. The objective is to form a line of 5 chips or more, but of course opponents will counter your attempts while starting their own lines. This is where strategy and ‘chemistry’ between your teammates (no communication between team members allowed) come into play.

Unfortunately, this board game isn’t sold locally so I decided to create one from scratch. Making use of the mini poker cards from a Gachapon (capsule toy) machine, coin chips from a toy roulette set and cardboards bought from a stationary shop, I managed to re-create the board game.

Though it's made up of poker cards, this game does not have any gambling component

We haven’t been touching it for a while now but hopefully we will be able to make good use of it again when Darius is old enough to play it with us. ^^

3) Video Games

Another expensive hobby... ^^|

I am an avid fan of video gaming, but I don’t consider myself a hardcore gamer since I only possess one console for TV gaming (i.e. Xbox360, out of the three current generation consoles PS3 and Wii) and a PSP for hand-held gaming (gift from Catherine). I also only buy my games selectively.

Like other forms of entertainment, not all games (if not most) will be suitable for kids, especially those that involve wars and violence.

Fortunately, I do have quite a collection of games suitable for Darius when he’s older, such as rhythmic games like Guitar Hero (where players need to pluck and strum the correct notes on a guitar controller following the music), cute co-operative games like Lego Star Wars and virtual farming games like Viva Piñata.

I usually sell off completed games that I won’t be playing again but have especially kept the games mentioned above so that we will be able to play them with Darius in the future (provided we still have the Xbox360 console with us by then). I’m looking forward in getting quality parent-child bonding time through playing these games together. We might even get a Wii in the future for more family fun. ^^

Darius couldn't wait already... ^^|

Like many other things else when kids are involved, moderation and supervision are the keys to a balanced lifestyle and ensuring that one gets a healthy dose of learning and playing activities. However, I will keep my PSP out of his reach as unlike console games, hand-held games are easily more addictive since they can be played anywhere (e.g. in the bedroom or outside while on the move). I’ve seen parents using hand-held games as babysitting tools for their children, unknowningly missing out on any quality communication and interaction they might have made. We are not going to make the same mistake.

With that in mind, I look forward to participating in these activities with Darius as a family when he grows up! On the other hand though, I’m in no rush for him to grow up too quickly so that we can continue to enjoy these joyous times with this young and innocent him~ ^^

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