Travels with Isabelle & Sebastian

Looking back over the past years since birth, my daughter has her ’seasonal’ fancies as she grows and develop.

1st year: Snoopy [influenced by yeh yeh's Snoopy collection of stickers and little trinckets in the old house]

2nd year: Bananas in Pyjamas – there’s no way any of us would get to watch any tv any time of the day when she’s home. Sadly B1 & B2 had to make way for Barney, Baby Bop and BJ later that year.

3rd year: She started out going ga-ga over anything Barney & Baby Bop. There’s the Barney bolster, Baby Bop back pack, Baby Bop soft toy, Barney & friends utensils etc. Not forgetting non-stop Barney VCD/DVD being played day in day out.

Then suddenly, after watching “Cinderella III: A Twist in Time” on Astro Disney Channel 615 one fateful night a few months ago, Isabelle turned obsessed with anything and everything to do with ’Cinderella’.

First we got her ‘Cinderella’ pyjamas, then Daddy downloaded ‘Cinderella’ the original cartoon for her viewing pleasure, followed by yeh yeh’s generous shopping of ‘Cinderella’ + ‘Sleeping Beauty’ + ‘Snow White’ dolls ala Barbie dolls, more ‘Cinderella’ & ‘princesses’ books, clothing and other merchandise.

Before we know it, it’s now ’Sleeping Beauty’ Princess Aurora and Prince Philip. Isabelle’s watched the original cartoon twice so far and she asks me to read the story every alternate night. I think the story’s embedded in her subconscious mind - she tells me how Princess Aurora pricks her finger, then the ‘naughty witch’ catches Prince Philip – tie the mouth, tie the hands – and how Prince Philip escaped by riding Samson, then fought the ‘naughty witch’ and then kiss Sleeping Beauty, and they lived happily ever after. Isabelle’s even named her soon-to-be-born brother ‘Prince Philip’!

I wish I have an ever-ready camera by my side to capture her facial expression whenever I mention ‘happily ever after’. She’s got that dreamy look, smiling away as though she’s the princess in the story being read/watched.