like looking in a mirror

hello kitty chinese zodiac figurines. yes, i have the collection.

had chinese new years dinner out with the family. as to be expected the restaurant was a complete gong show: waiters running around as if there life depended on it yet our first course took almost 45 minutes to arrive at our table, the food churned out and palatable although my mom's cooking is more kick-ass and my niece going through the terrible twos being a handful to manage at a place where you have to raise your voice many decibels just to be heard.

watching my brother try to feed my niece was entertaining to put it mildly. she ate a little bit but then declared "full!", "no moooore!", shaking her head, fists in a ball and throwing up her forearm to cover her mouth. if you try to shovel food in her mouth, she wouldn't swallow.

it was fun to watch my mom and brothers try to tempt her with jaunts out to the lobby or to check out the fishies in the tanks, in exchange for "just one more bite."

when she's at home, my brother told me it still could take upwards of an hour for him to feed her everything in her bowl. and after she finishes eating, it'd be another couple of hours that she'll have to be fed again. a constant struggle to feed this tot.

and forget about my niece drinking the recommended 24 oz of milk a day. (according to whom i'd like to know) she only wants to drink about half of that. especially now that she's had her taste of juices and freezies. allan would have to give my niece cheese and yoghurt in lieu of milk.

and since kidlet's all about the playing, if she had it her way, my niece would probably want to play all day without wanting to eat any solid food. just give her some fruity drink and she's happy as a clam.

i started chuckling and jokingly chided my niece about how naughty she is until my mom piped up and said my niece is exactly like how i used to be when i was her age. erm, thanks mom.

apparently, i was legendary at testing the patience of those who were the unfortunate ones feeding me. i used to be so frustrating to spoon feed, that my poor grandmother always gave up on that task and gave me back to my mom. but grams had no problems feeding both my brothers. or so the story goes.

so after my mom said that, i had a bit of a childhood flashback and i smiled to myself because my niece is indeed a mini me. but that just says to me that she'll be fine.

she'll grow to like broccoli, peppers and onions (although if she's really like me, cauliflower will still be on the no list) she'll probably give up milk by high school, if not sooner. (and if i could weigh in on that decision, i would have her give up cow's milk as soon as possible; what with the amount of hormones and antibiotics in it. it's not the same milk we had when we were kidlets. and when you think about it, human's are the only species that would drink milk from another species? uh, no.)

and if she's really like her aunt, she'll be drinking juice boxes even when she's a 30-something years old adult.