Proud

Of all the words a proud, jovial daddy might use to describe her daughter after a holiday trip, perhaps only I would choose quiet.

It's no secret that as a toddler continues to grow, so too will the list of parents' surprise items. The very last thing that a toddler needs is our suggestion to make up a thousand ways of playing. The toddler learns the trick by herself.

Hear that thumping sound? That's my daughter's game of flying pillow (when we stayed in a two-storeyed resort at Taiwan). Oops! Did you hear hundreds of bombs dropping on the city? No worry, that's my daughter jumping on the bed. The list goes on and on. Dad and mum are supposed to listen and stay calm, leaving room for imagination. If you're worried that you might really get a big surprise, don't worry - you will.

The biggest surprise for me happened when we visited the Taipei Fine Arts Museum at the end of our holiday. It suddenly seemed absurd for a three-year-old to whisper to her dad to lower down the voice. Things got a lot easier than I could have imagined. She had figured out herself to use indoor voice in a museum gallery. Well, even lower volume than her dad's.