Kartini.es: Curious Kids Need to be Tough Inside

How I ensure that my two little heroes that is curious enough to explore things become tough from the inside ?

You’ll see as parents we want the best for our kids. 1001 rules we try to apply to them to ensure that they are all safe, clean and proper. Though we forget that the best immunization comes from their body to fight it naturally.

When I first got Aariz I am pretty concern when he plays with dirt. Each time I will try my best to get him cleaned, feed him well with good foods means a lot of veggies and fruits which is a battle. I remember when we were in Miri we send him to nursery where they bath them like 3 times in a day, play in the compound and we end up pick him up clean and well feed but not a very happy child.

I am sure a lot of parents did this..when they spill the water we get upset. When the play in the puddle we said no. When they explore and open the component of the remote or the toys that we bought them we scream. When they climb and open the Tupperware and start to play with milk or milo we said no as well. When they try to feed themselves we said no fear of getting the designer shirt that we bought the get spotted from the food or the drinks or the crayon and water colour that they are holding.

Things change when we get our New Zealand assignments. We have to send both our kids Aariz which just turn 3 years old and Fawwaz that is 8 months old to playschool since both of us is working. Things are pretty different there. They let the kids to choose their activities and do what they love to do. And what they love to do means they are free to play indoor or outdoor. Be it with the mud sand or water. Climbing and jumping and running and cycling...do whatever you want to do basically. They let the kids curiosity to lead them wherever they intend to explore. Imagine our horror for the first few weeks when we have to scrub them almost half an hour everyday to remove their face painting, not sure what tangling from their hair and those dirt that trap in between their nails ?? Let alone their shirts which I do not care to scrub anymore. Let it just be coloured with whatever painted on it.

Our routine changed dramatically there. Since the curiosity being fulfilled and their brain keep on stimulating by doing what they intend to do the most, their eating habit become much better. It is no longer a battle. They’ve been taking milk, yogurt, cheese, rice, meat, fish and fruits without no complaint. Even for the little one. I’ve been packing their lunch and some extra finger foods and all be gone by the end of the day. The playschool provide finger fruits, veggies and crackers with cheese during morning tea. And according to the teacher Aariz and Fawwaz is taking their food well. I take it since the brain is running and they are doing many physical activities the body just tell them to get the right food so that they can keep on going.

Of course during the first 6 to 8 months both of them keep on getting cold and fever and also diarrhoea. It could due to the change of weather, the food or the outdoor playing as they are becoming extreme on what we used to say no before. Since we know that the kids get exposed to the germs more that they used to be, a good formula milk like Friso® Gold come in handy. The nutrition from the milk can help to boost their own immune body system to fight bacteria.

Now after almost 2 years we are back in our own soil Malaysia. I start to let them be curious in their own way. It is sad not to get the same quality of playschool back here in Malaysia as we parents are very concern with their hygiene rather that to help them explore and satisfy their curiosity.

For us parents to Aariz and Fawwaz we decided to stay near to our parents house which still a virgin village. There they could still play bicycle at open space, explore the mud and the drain, looking at the caterpillars, beetles and worms alive. Well not really looking ...most of the time they just pick them up and examine the insects themselves!

Surprisingly after the series of fever and cold for the first 8 months in New Zealand. They come out as healthy boys. Hardly catch any cold or fever and if they do..they recover quite quickly with minimum helps of medications. Tough kids I have and it’s all starts with their curiosity that help to build their body immune system.