Fun Facts from BabyCentre

Fun Facts • for your child

Hummingbirds are like mini helicopters. They can hover in place and fly forward, backward, sideways, up, and down.

Your eyes are round balls, called eyeballs.

Hippos can run faster than people.

Homemade Fireman Suit

Tomorrow, Kayden has a special assembly at school with the rest of his friends where they're supposed to dress up as the character of their favorite book. 

After careful thought and consideration, the boy had taken his all-time favorite, "The Fire Engine Book" from The Little Golden Book Classic collection, to school on Tuesday. 

So I guess, then, the costume is set, he needs to go as a fireman! But I dont have one, we only have a fireman hat. Hmmm, and no one seems to have one too as I asked friends and relatives. Funny Eliza even thought I needed an adult sized one for a kinky time in bed, haha.

So at 2.30pm today, with not much time left, I finally had to make one. 

A search on Google shows that its actually quite easy to make. Quickly drove out, and got 3 duct tapes ($1.70 each), a black oversized shirt ($3) and a grey (can't find a cheap black one) sweat pants ($3). And me being me, always have to be complete, bought a small plastic axe (part of a $5.90 carpenter's set) and yellow torchlight ($2.50) as well as velcro tapes as fasteners for the coat.

Spent 2 hours, and this is what we got :)

And this, this is the happy boy, albeit very reluctant to take a nice photo!

I'm quite happy with the result! A 2 piece suit costs less than $10, much cheaper than a store bought one. Whats more, there's still more tapes and velcro left for more costumes making! Think will make another one for Mei Mei instead of let them share one :)

Bangkok Day 3 - Chatuchak Mk, Cabbages & Condoms and toothpaste

Sorry this post is late, actually am back in Spore, but thought I should keep the daily writeup going, so at least there is completion, and it tells a full story.

Chatuchak Weekend Market

Every webpage I browse and read of Chatuchak (also called JJ (Ja-tu-Jak) Mkt to the locals) says to get there as early as possible before the crowd comes thru and mostly, the heat! Reports also claim that the market gets overcrowded over the weekends. 

So I set the alarm for 6am Bkk time, but of course we ended up sleeping slightly later (its tiring leh this "holiday" with so much back breaking walks) and only got there at 730am via Skytrain to MoChit station.

Firstly, its silly to get there that early as advised (it was hinted best to start at 7am when the market opens), I think only an estimated 10-20% of stalls are open. So we spent close to an hour walking past mainly close stalls (which actually is good for my wallet) and ended up walking past the same aisles a couple of times later in the day. The market's really big, and we practically walked around in circles in the same section of fashion/clothings. Only in the later part did we find the furniture and pet section, by then, poor hubs' nearly peng-san. Haha.

We were there for about 7hrs (730am-230pm). Yes, it was indeed very hot, but somehow, I could feel spring in every step (haha, this is the shopaholic talking) as there is just so so so much to see. Did you know I see different things walking past the same stall twice? We didnt even comb the whole market, I think probably only close to 50% though hubs think its 100% with the amount of walking involved. Haha. He even tried to convince me we've combed all when we got lost and couldnt seem to find any other parts of the market. We keep on seeing the same shops selling clothes (you can guess, thats his least favorite item) :)

The poor fella, really felt faint esp after lunch when it gets so warm and the air's too thick (me, I was oblivious to it all, if I am allowed to, I would have stayed till the market's closing time) but looking at poor hubs, called it a day at 230pm after walking through an aisle or 2 of the furniture/pets' block.

There was so much to see, and BUY. And, again, I emptied my wallet like yesterday! At Platinum, I shopped till I was in a deficit, cos was withdrawing from hubs' wallet, which took a little out of the joy of buying so that kinda pulled the brake on me (though slowly) hehe. Money is never enough in Bkk, scary!!!

One thing, kids in Bkk dont quite fancy Dora it seems aswe didn't see any the whole 3 days, except for day 1 at MBK - that too some lousy designs at exorbitant prices. So to keep my promise to Mei of getting her some Dora clothes, will have to try Tangs here! But she's still too young to even recall, cos she was just happy to see us today, no mention of items from her fave character.

We headed straight back to the hotel and I did a few laps in the hotel pool. It was quite a nice finish to a hot and tiring afternoon.

Dinner @ Cabbages and Condoms

We took tuk-tuk for the first and only time this trip, to the Cabbages and Condoms restaurant across the main road. The food's alright, quality not much different from those we've eaten so far, and is quite ex for our standard. The meal came up to around THB8,300 (about S$35), we've been spending only THB200 per meal for 2 of us so far. But anyway it was a different experience, seated on a tabletop lined with condoms. And we got a condom each instead of mints after the meal :) 

For more on them and their message (which is population control ie reducing unwanted pregnancies in Thailand), you can visit their website.

They also serve brown/red rice for those who choose a healthier option with your coconut curries :) Hehe.... Anyway, if you're in Bkk and looking for good Thai food, do head there, afterall proceeds are donated to charity.

Parodontax toothpaste

I would say hubs is a last minute person as he generally dont make plans ahead of time. So anyway, armed with a shopping list of only 1 item for one of his colleague, we set out to buy Parodontax, I call it the most expensive off-the-shelf toothpaste, as its even more ex than Sensodyne, no need to compare with Colgate, its double that price. It costs about THB1 per gram so a tube of 100g costs us THB99 (S$4).

Sorry in case I didnt paint our bone breaking walk today, we did head for a foot massage after dinner. We both fell asleep on the chair while the masseuse did their things. THB250 for 1 hour. It was money well spent, and in Thailand, a daily massage seems necessary to tired shoppers, its a lifesaver, for which if not, hubs would have called it quits and headed back to the hotel straight after dinner.

Anyway, back to this Parodontax, his colleague swears by this brand and ordered 1kg. Hubs bought him 5tubes, ie 500gms. We got ourselves one. His colleague says once we use it, there is no other toothpaste that comes even close.... Hmmm... Guess we'll find out, once our cheap Colgate runs out. Let me know if you're interested in our review :)

Why does this toothpaste deserve its own section in this post? Cos we walked at least 20mins looking for a store that sells it. Pharmacies dont carry them (we checked every single one we pass by). To be fair, we did find it in Boots, the first place we went to after dinner (while hubs still could walk), but he didnt buy cos the price's at least 30% more than the first time he checked in Central World.

After a whole lot of walking and a halfway stop of the foot massage, we finally found a cheaper one in Watsons at Nana Square. For all that walking, did you know we chanced upon a big supermarket 100m away from our hotel when we were walking back? And the price, even cheaper there! Drats!

Anyway, the reason I didnt blog yesterday's cos I was browsing for Watsons as I really like this organic ginger body butter that sells 3 for THB199. There is also shampoo, conditioner and other stuff in the range, and all goes 3 for THB199 when original price's THB150-200! So its a steal. The quality's good too (for the price!) and the fragrance's pretty soft it doesnt give me sensitive sneezy nose. 

So anyway, instead of blogging, I was browsing the Watsons' website, I wanna go back and get somemore today! But alas, not to be, I was silly enough to get us too early into the airport, and didnt wait for their stores to open at 10am! So anyone who knows anyone in Thailand, can buy for me please? :) See this for their catalog, item number 17 from top down. 2 hair shampoos and 1 body butter please! I will be so thankful!!

Haha, do i see hubs rolling his eyes? Come back to home soil alr, still planning on shopping in Thailand?? Thats what a shopaholic is right? :) 

OK gtg, Sophie's cranky, want me to sleep w her. Photos tomorrow. Tatas

Bangkok Day 2 - Shopping!

In keeping with yesterday's writeup of Bangkok, here's a short one of today as basically, we did only 3 main things:

Shopping @ Platinum Wholesale market

A shopping heaven for those who want cheap fashionable clothes. 5 levels of amazing shops that supply an endless stream of men's, ladies', children's, shoes, bags, accessories... Really superb. We spent 6hrs there that I didnt even get to go down to Pratunam Market across the street, tsk tsk :( There's also a good supply of cheap and nice goods in the market, guess will have to be next trip as we didnt have the stamina, time, and more importantly, cash at the end of the day.

What's amazing today is that hubs managed to find his way to Platinum from Chit Lom station where he got left behind as I stormed off. And this is the first time in his life shopping non-stop for so long! Think the previous record must've been just 2hrs long?? Hehe, I am very proud of him!

Thai Body Massage

We had wanted to return to Healthland but as its just way too far, we just settled for a nice massage parlour across the street from our hotel. The massage was good, 2hrs for THB500 (S$21) per pax and we also tipped THB100. 

It was OK, but didnt fix our sore backs nor feet. Guess the bodies are beyond repair, haha. 

Street Food

After the massage, we just had a tomyam noodle salad, Thai style satay sticks, chicken noodles, BBQ pork balls and chicken drumstick from the different street vendors as we walked along Sukhumvit Soi 11 and Sukhumvit Road. The food's good and cheap, ranges from THB10 to THB50.

And now, I am really tired, gonna call it a day as tomorrow, the plan's to head down to Chatuchat Market and to get there as early as we can. Hopefully by 8am as it gets very hot, we heard. What's more, this month's the hottest month in Bangkok, with temperature reaching 40 degrees the day before we arrived. Needless to say, walking in the street's like walking in an oven, but its OK, there are good sights to compensate :) New places and people and street hawkers' wares to see!

Okie, really got to go, and sorry, no pictures again, most likely when we get back home ok. Tatas.

Sawadee-ka: Bangkok Day 1

Sawadee-ka!

Logging in from our apart-hotel, really what its called, cos its serviced apartment with hotel service, with latter being daily housekeeping I suppose. We're in Citadines (Ascott) on Sukhumvit Soi 11. Hotel is brand new, everything is clean and nice. But its about 5-10mins walk from Nana BTS, manageable even with our aching feet. But not for shopaholics who tend to drop off their loot in their rooms, it'll be too far.

What've we been up to today?

Our first time at the Singapore's Budget Terminal and what's cute is that everyone boards the budget planes from the runway via the mobile ladders (haha, what an unglam description I gave). It reminds me of one faded childhood photo of mine, it gives me a quaint feeling. Also, its an easy job being a budget air stewardesses. It calls for no service, and even in the event of an emergency evacuation, opening the middle (emergency) doors seems to be the duty of the passengers seated on the emergency doorway aisle as the "privileged" passengers are given a detailed briefing of what to do with a referral to the instruction card. Hmmm, me think, shouldn't these emergency doorway passengers be eligible for a cheaper fare in view of their big responsibility??�

We got to the hotel and headed straight for lunch at a hotel cafe opposite. The simple Thai fare that costs THB70 (SGD3) per plate's so delicious, guess we were hungry, but simply so too that their ingredient's fresh! In my curried catfish, there were even fresh green peppercorns, so original!�

Thereafter we hung aroudn the Siam BTS after a visit to the Erawan Shrine (Four Faced Buddha). It was basically lotsa lotsa walking. And followed again by lotsa lotsa walking. Leading a sedentary lifestyle back at home, today's given us such a great workout that our feet feels like breaking (even after a THB300 foot massage), and poor hubs, even nursing an aching back. Haha. But I say, today's training will give us a better shape for tomorrow and the day after!

We ended the day by watching a Digital format of Alien vs Monsters in 3D at the Central World cinema. The sound system's fantastic, and what's special is that we got a sofa seat for 2., of course at THB140 (for 2) more than the normal seats. Good experience at their highly acclaimed world class cinemas.

One thing as we were walking through 4-5 megamalls today... How could Spore give a great shopping experience? Here, they have humungous malls, not only that, they have all the big names that we dont even have! We always get the same brands in every mall back home, but here, the variety's endless! And whats more they have the quaint markets that offers more traditional basic Thai fashion. I dunno, I think Spore's got a mean opponent!

Summary of day 1?

Exhaustion, bone breaking and good thing kids didnt come, we would all not have been able to make it, imagine the amount of whining and tantrums they'll partake just so for not liking being stuck shopping all day.�

Food's fantastic though we just ate normal Thai fare in a cafe and food court.

Shopping wise, just oiling the engines, think close to 9pm, finally got engines slightly warmed up. Tomorrow, will be revving to go (hubs - watch out!)

Thoughts of the day?

Are tips really necessary all the time? I'm not a tipping person I must say, if not for hubs giving the cue, all of them would not have gotten more than the price of what we ate or bought. Hubs says its a local culture, guess if it is, we'll need to follow....

Foot massages here are heavenly! Not like those painful ones in Singapore Chinatown. However, we realised for sure, that the ang-mohs get a more detailed course than us. Hubs say, very simply cos they pay more, tips well even! So... guess money makes the world go round.

Plans for tomorrow?

Platinum Shopping Centre for wholesale cheap items, and then perhaps the Suan Lum Night Bazaar. Will take it easy. Hopefully we'll get to visit the hotel's pool too... And maybe a good makan at a popular restaurant. And definitely a body massage.

Really late now, will try post pictures tomorrow.. So sorry this post's bare.

Nights 2am now, Spore time.�

I wonder if the kids are sleeping well without us... Hugs and kisses. Oh I forgot, Sophie called before bed and asked "Ma why so long?" translated into normal language "Ma, when are you coming home? I've been waiting for a long time" which is what her brother uttered. We miss them too, but its good, being on our own. Free of duty, schedules and responsibilties - good once in a while...

Really nights this time, lights off.

American Idol Season 8

Every week, I look forward to watching American Idol with the hubs. 

After each performance, we'll both have a little review and we'll kinda compare it with the judges. Hubs, he's been good, usually spot-on, but after weeks of training, I gotta say, I'm getting to be much better than him, haha.

So anyway, its great entertainment watching the Americans singing it out. And boy, seriously, they have talent. Each year, the contestants who take part are more talented, better than the year before. Every year, there is a positive evolvement, amazing what the big country has to offer.

Last year, we supported David A, but it was good David Cook who won. Admittedly he has a more pop-star quality than A. But still both guys are talented, and A, being young, still has a whole future ahead of him - sic Jennifer Hudson, it doesnt take a winner to be a winner.

Anyway this year, I'm definitely in Adam Lambert's camp.

This guy is amazing, he is in a class of his own. He has personality, style and he rocks. He is original, and every week I only look forward to his performance. He can sing all genres, though his original style is punk rock.

Separately, when I see them perform, I imagine, how proud their parents are. Cos if my kid is up there one day (even if on a stage way smaller than that) I'll be so proud, tears won't stop flowing (yes, I'm a sentimental nut deep down inside).

Cannibalistic frogs

Why do frog eat frog?

Apparently it is nature, big frog eat small frogs! See writeup in "The Somewhat Amusing World of Frogs". But its freaking me out.

Disgusting.

So what now? Buy one more tank to separate the big from the small?? Or simply just chuck them out? Or perhaps, its timely now that we let the frogs lead their supposed life, be fish food. 

Think the last one would be most viable. Anyone whose pet fish want a free meal? Let me know, we'll bring them over next week, after we come back from Bangkok, provided, of course, there's any left when we come back 4 days later.

*shudder*

P/S. The chomped on frog was not digested, merely injured limbs, perhaps my presence had stopped the feast. But the poor little guy died anyway, must be from shock or injured limbs, I dunno. So we've thrown the body out. Will feed more worms, perhaps that'll work, maybe they're just too hungry. 

Frog eating frog world

ITS DISGUSTING.

The bigger frog is eating the smaller frog... Biting it by its legs, front left first, then now on the hind left. Yucks! Yucks!

Albeit when bought, they were relatively the same size, they have now grown to varying sizes with the biggest one double the size of the smallest one. At yesterday's count, there's 10 left. Now with one being chomped on, there will be 9 left as I doubt the big one's letting go of this prey. I went near a couple of times, which merely made it hop and change directions, but with his mouth firmly gripping the poor little guy still.

YUCKS.

And, what do I do next???

So this is quality time vs quantity

You know you've been doing too much yelling (at the kid) when your son says happily "I love playing with Mama... and Papa" when all you do is trash around and tickle him for a mere 3 minutes.

And for that, he gives you a big bear hug and a huge kiss. And you see volumes of contentment and happiness on his face.

So this is what it means, quality over quantity. A mere 3 minutes of fun vs 30hours of just being around him/them. For it is the 100% attention during the 3minutes that he remembers and cherish.

I gotta start giving up being crappy and especially, anal.

Every moment counts, and with every moment, I can choose to be part of a wonderful moment or let it slip and just be nothing.

Its timely to remind myself, that cherishing the children's childhood's the sole reason for giving up my job.

Ben 10: The fans

*Roll eyes*

First, the boy got hooked on Ben 10. Its just a reliable show on TV somehow, perpetually on at the times K is free eg 2.30pm, 7pm. So, he hankers, he demands, he pleads to watch. Usually, I relent, it gives me time to waste on myself, his eyes glued on TV.

Now (actually since last year) he's been hooked. He asks to wear his Ben 10 t-shirt all the time. Yes, we bought him one last year (he chose an all green one depicting Diamond Head), and just a week ago, his GM got him another one with Four Arms (apparently the strongest alien on the show - I understood from our 7yo cousin-nephew, not that I researched!).

On some days, K would ask me the names of the characters. I would Google, and woo-hoo, everything's on Wikipedia nowadays, so yes, there's a writeup, that honestly, I didnt finish reading, think I should one of these days. 

Then 2 Sundays ago, WK watched the show with K, and now, father is also hooked.

Good grief.

Now we have 2 Ben 10 fanatics in the home. I wonder if AWK will also ask for a Ben 10 t-shirt or an Omnitrix (the watch-like device that transform Ben into the Alien of choice)!! 

And now, being 11pm, the "big" fan is watching it on cable, and me, I just HAVE TO blog about this! 

*Roll eyes again*

(Photo credits (from top) - http://www.popartuk.com/g/l/lgpp31146+ben-warping-ben-10-poster.jpg and http://www.araba-oyunlari.org/files/image/ben10zorda.jpg)

Rotting

I was doing nothing. I am doing nothing. And. I have no plans for anything.

I just wanna rot. Waste time reading blogs, play games that I am lousy at on FB, just basically lie in bed and do nothing.

I need to have a new gameplan.

I am waiting for my house, waiting to bake stuff with the kids, waiting to bring them out on the bus again, waiting to just feel and lead a different life. Perhaps I wont feel so complacent and replacable then.

Life's good now, just boring, but it'll get better and more exciting. I see it coming, yippee.

Good things come in 3s?

We're scheduled to leave for Bangkok this Thursday for a maiden holiday without, yes, WITHOUT, the kids. First time, after nearly 4 years.

WK's never been quite up for leaving the kids behind, but since I stopped working, I've been hankering for time out from the kids and when he suddenly convert, I pawed at the suggestion and booked us on Tiger! Way to go!

It'll be a nice 4days 3 nights which will give us plenty of time to do a free and easy trip, which I see a lot of massages, shopping and food blended in. The last one gets me excited, though I am so so scared of the extra pounds I'll add, yikes!!! 

Not quite one who's familiar with Bangkok, only been there twice in the last 2 years for work, where I was whisked into a waiting limo or bus to the hotel, I really do not know much abt the city. Shopping was also done around the vicinity of where we stayed, and mostly, was ushered by the more well-heeled colleagues. You know when I dont plan the route nor the destination, I find it real hard to rmbr where I was or how to get there again. So, my knowledge of Bangkok, practically zero. 

So busy google-ing now, and if you do have tips on authentic food sources, let us know!! :) Shopping-wise guess, will follow the big names of markets, malls and stuff. Think that one should be well covered. Massage, Healthland was where I went, came highly recommended by a lot of people, so that's OK too :)

When I was booking the ticket, I rmbr trying to plan as long a trip as we could and that, finally, I will relive the freedom of being kid-less again (thinking: HK last year, was swell). But just suddenly last week, a momentary flash, I felt a sense of loss and how funny it would be without the 2 kiddos around, for they feel like an extension of my limb nowadays.

But hehe,  surely knowing myself better, I'm sure I'll have a great time without them, and finally, we have time for just the 2 of us again, and not tending to the kids every moment when we're out with them, for surely every few seconds, there'll surely be "No Kayden", "Sophie come", "Children!" and just goes on...

My guess, the kids will be OK without us, in the day. For they are anyway comfortable in my inlaws and Gigi's care. Its only night time, may be a little tough, if they do happen to wake middle of the night as they've never had a night without either one of us. But, kids being kids ie who are resilient and strong, will be OK!

So anyway, the title? 3 trips come in close succession, Mersing, Malacca now Bangkok. With our impending key collection next month of our new home, dont have any other travel plans, so most likely will be the last trip in first half 2009!

Boy, being a Sagittarius, am so happy to feel travel in my blood. Its in the elements.

And, let there not be any more fightings or state of emergency this week! Any social/political unrest, please wait till next week ok! :)

MM says.....

1 April 2009 - When MM speak...We listen....

Recently, our dear old MM Lee said that Singaporeans must try to engage our kids more in Mandarin. From his speech, i deduce that our human brains are similar to low grade hard disks and we should not try to master too many languages at the same time. The focus should be on English and Chinese language. I was a bit confused because i kind of recall there was a campaign being promoted by the grassroots leaders to keep our dialects alive not too long ago, ???

Anyway, i found myself chatting to my son in Mandarin the next day. And boy was i worried about his standard in Mandarin. Speaking to my son in Mandarin was like trying to communicate to an Ang Moh in the same language. His pronunciation was exactly like a foreigner and most of the time, he only wanted to reply in English. My daughter fared no better ....worse in fact.... every time i speak to her in Mandarin, she will laugh and reply with a loud "NO!!". No wonder i keep telling TT that Sophie will grow up to be a typical Sarong Party Girl.



I was educated in a school that was traditionally strong in Chinese but i never believe in the need to be good in the Chinese language. For me, i hardly had any use of the Chinese language since my secondary school days. I completed my Chinese language modules by secondary four and found myself forgetting most of what i had learnt 18 years back. There were no application of this language in my work except the need to speak Mandarin on occasions. That was the reason why i thought my kids should be well trained in the English language instead.

However, after MM Lee's speech, i realised that it is not a choice for us to make. Judging from the current curriculum and the criteria to enter a good & reputable school, we simply cannot afford to neglect the Chinese language. Worse still, if you notice, there are so many foreign students from China vying for a place in the local schools. These kids will raise the bar for the Chinese language and our kids will probably not be able to outscore them in their mother tongue.

And so, i conclude that the only thing we can & should do for our children is to continue to do what was done and for them to be what their parent's generation were trained to be.... to be Jack of all trades but master of none....

Fun Facts from BabyCentre

Fun Facts • for your child

Giraffes clean their ears with their tongues, which can be almost two feet long.

Birds don't go pee-pee. All they do is poop.

Hippos can run faster than people.

The copy cat

Sophie is a shadow of her brother.

No, we dont mean that she pales in the limelight, but she does whatever her brother does.

See... Say we want her to sit, if I go "Mei Mei pls sit down". It falls on deaf ears. So I say "Kayden, pls sit down, then Mei Mei will follow you". He does (he is getting so much better at listening and taking instructions now, I am so pleased and thankful), he sits, Sophie sits.

He jumps, she jumps (haha, not ala Titanic la). He runs, she does. He sits and jumps on her like a horsie, she goes on her fours and ask Kor Kor to gallop on her too. He sits, she sits.

Well... I dont think its a good thing yeah. Taking instructions only from a 3yr old?

And you know, the boy, also cant do things as he pleased anymore, cos if he does smthg naughty, she follows, I get mad, then its him I ask to stop. To the extent when Mei Mei cries, he'll look at me, and say "Its not me, I didnt do anything" just as soon as I set my gaze on him. No need to even open my mouth sometimes :) Haha.

So anyway, maybe this is just how 2 yr olds behave. They copy cat.

Age Defying Process

7 Apr 09 - Aging can be a pretty depressing process, especially when you realise that you can no longer do the same things you could easily do in the past.

I knew my body was aging faster than my calendar age but someone put a dagger into my heart during a social football game. A youthful chap (abt 8 years younger) outran me to the ball first despite my 10 metres advantage. I couldn't sleep after that....

Told myself the night after the football game that i should try my best to improve my fitness and hopefully regain some pride in the near future. And i did the unthinkable 1 hour back. I WENT FOR A JOG!!!



It was a good jog. One that has good distance, slow pace, deep breathing, sweaty body and no additional body aches or creaking sounds during the jog. I guess that was because my body was already aching badly from the football game 2 days back. I figured my jogging route to be about 3km and if i didn't remember wrongly, my last decent jog was during the IPPT test i took 2 years back.

I started off with some routine warm ups before hitting the roads. I wasn't sure how long i could last before coming to a slow walk. And so i jogged....

I jogged past Senior Minister Goh's house (& made sure i look 'fit' when i pass the Gurkha guarding his house)...

I jogged past the eerie corners of Hwa Chong Institution Clubhouse.... & still going strong...

I jogged along the busy Bukit Timah road ... & inevitably breathed in much carbon monoxide... but still, i did not stop...

I jogged past the ice-cream shop in Guthrie House....& wanted to stop for some ice-cream....but realised i didn't have any cash...

& i didn't stop!!...
.. actually i did, when a car tried to reverse her way out into Sixth Avenue.. i was afraid she might knocked me down....

I jogged past the spot where the 2 boys died in the flames of their car crash....feeling a little afraid something unnatural might attack me during this 'very vulnerable' moment...

but still, i continued jogging...

I came to the exercise area around the corner of my house and did some warm downs before trying some pull ups. I did 3 on my first try and 1 on my second. I didn't want to continue as i felt pretty embarrassed. There were some other people nearby. So i walked back to the house as my sweat trickled down my forehead.

And for the first time in a long long while, i felt fitter....well.. mentally.

When i reached home, i gave Rusty some biscuits and headed straight to my desktop and wrote this blog. ...and i wrote it with a smile on my face....

Overdue Fun Facts from BabyCentre

Fun Facts • for your child

Wind blowing over the ocean is one of the things that makes waves.

Ants don't have eyelids, so they can't blink.

Roosters are daddy chicken, and hens are mommy chickens.

Back from Malacca

Just got back from Malacca... Another 2 day 1 night road trip.

Went in a convoy of 3 cars with WK's colleagues this time.

Was good, and goodness, did we eat a lot! Even my loose clothes are now fitting, gasp! But we all had fun, its different to drive into Msia with a local guide (one of his colleague's from Malacca - she was our guide for the entire duration of the trip), without the need to refer to a map and stress of getting lost.

Overall, will say Malacca has changed a lot since we last went in 2004. Its so urbanised now, and a tourist hotspot! Crowds everywhere. So if you're thinking of going, pls do avoid the weekends as there the small town is super cramped with everyone jostling for a space in the popular chicken rice restaurant or even the streets and the carparks. Go on a weekday, it'll be more enjoyable.

Will write more tomorrow. Need to put the kids to sleep - 4 hours past their usual bed time, hope that means too they will wake up super late tomorrow. Wouldnt mind a sleep-in!

The Boy Photographer

After finishing his meals, Kayden likes to climb on to his Mei's high chair and sit on the armrest. It'll definitely, then, be followed by "Ma, chick chack" after he puts his arms around her, or he turns his sister's face at my direction. 

If I do have my phone by my side, then good, both will smile and look at me while I snap away. If not, the boss (Kayden) will go "Ma, you need to take your camera, take our photo". And if you're thinking it, no, its not usually this easy to take their photos. Actually its only this one position Kayden likes and wont turn away. So I grab the chance last week...

And almost for certain again, he will then happily have a go at photo taking... Look see below.

 

From top down: The dining table, his sister, their fruit desert (grapes & raspberries - K's fav!), Soph's hair and lastly, his fav girls :)

To his credit, one not so blur photo :) A nice pic too of my princess and I!

One Dead Bird

Last week, Thursday



Me: (in my head only) Is this an omen? A sign of bad or good things coming??

Papa: Is it bird flu??

Grandpa: (was silent for a long while then...) Josie Josie (MIL's maid) come clear it away [when all of us started to crowd around it]

Kayden: An aeroplane bang into it and the bird dropped down from the sky and it can't fly anymore



One dead bird in the garden patio. 4 different reactions/thoughts.

Photos only - Air Papan Beach

Now is my turn... 

Photos taken at Air Papan with my phone camera. Not that I wanna overload on the postings of this place, but the photos are quite nice. Shows the beach very well, how secluded it is, and peaceful.

All you hear? Sounds of the waves lapping the shore.

Air Papan, Johor

Our lonesome beach mat

The kids in their hooded poncho. Sophie just hates hers!

Our beach girl

Took some use getting to the sand, her feet

Kicking the RM3 ball... Boys just love balls. Soph lost interest after a while of chasing it :) while me, I never even tried. Haha. Diff btw boys and girls 

Review - Air wave perm

I've been meaning to write this...

Its been 4 months, and I still love my hair! Heheheh. I love that it curls and goes in all directions instead of being plain straight. With a longer length now, and to escape the heat, I tie it up in a bun or a french twist and there is a cascade of curls when let loose :)

I am glad the air wave perm's still holding, mostly I get big waves but if I do use a shampoo for permed hair, the hair will be curly still. Only now do I know that there really is a different when the label says straight hair, treated hair, etc. I had once brushed it off as marketing gimmick. Hmmm..

What I really like abt this perm as compared to my previous ceramic perm is that this is so low maintenance. Its really a wash and wear style. No need to use mousse, styling products etc like the last time with the ceramic perm, now I just let it air dry after a normal wash with any shampoo. I would usually twirl it into 4 big strands when wet as recommended by the stylist. 

At most, I will use a leave in conditioner, but mostly not, lazy la! Also, somehow the conditioner adds weight to the curls and after 2 days, the curls are "pulled" down. The one I'm using is the Oleo Curl series from Kerastase. It smells and feels good, not oily, but I guess really should only use a walnut sized dot as recommended on the bottle!

Also the hair still looks and feels natural and soft. It doesnt at all look treated or permed. Au naturale :) Heheheh. Again, I like.

Overall, if you are looking to curl your hair, do consider the airwave perm. Its really good ;) hehee... Especially if you are someone like me who's not keen to use too manay hair products or spend too much time on your hair. You will really be pleased with the result :) However, if you are looking for strong waves that hold, then this is not for you, as this is gives a more natural curls/waves.

No photos of my hair now, no one to take photo for me, and also, I just developed a phobia of seeing myself on my own blog. Yucks.

Hehe. Overall? Still very much satisfied. No regrets.

A Heartwarming Sight

Sometime in early 2008 - The kids were so busy playing and running around at the kids play area in Marina Square Shopping centre that they didn't even realise that their parents were no where in sight...

TT & I decided to play a prank on the kids (that's what cheeky kids get in return) and we sneaked away and hid in the clothing section just next to the play area. The kids were so engrossed with the doll house and toys that they did not notice us tip-toeing away.



It took sometime before the kids became aware that their parents were no longer standing nearby overlooking them in boredom. Kayden, being the more emotionally dependent child was the first to react, by looking around and trying to spot someone familiar to him. Sophie, on the other hand, did not even finch. I suppose she must have felt comfortable to see her brother around.

TT & I were well hidden but was able to see their reaction from behind the clothing racks. As we braced ourselves for the 'moment of truth' where we expect nothing short of loud sobs and cries that will have all patrons looking at them, the least expected happened.... Big brother K went over to his sister and talked to her with his usual over-exaggerated expression. He then held his little sister's hands and led her away from the play area. What's amazing was that the usually stubborn Sophie just followed her big brother like a little duckling following the mother duck. The two kids walked out of the play area, hand-in-hand, in search of their parents, in a calm manner.

Our hearts melted at the sight of what we saw and immediately rushed out to hug our kids. At that particular moment, we were so filled with pride and happiness that our kids took care of one another in the absence of their parents. And even though it might be a cruel prank to play on our young kids, it was from this that we were able to see how much the 2 love one another.

Conversation: From the Internet

A backdated post - 19 Mar 09

Kayden: I am thunder (rowr!)

Me: Who am I?

Kayden: You are Mama Thunder.

Me: Do you have a sister thunder?

Kayden: Yes, Sophie.

Me: Do you have a brother thunder?

Kayden: Yes, Kayden.

Me: No Kayden is a brother to Sophie. I mean do you have someone who is a brother to you, like a Kor Kor or a Di Di to you?

Kayden: I have a Di Di.

Me: Where is your Di Di?

Kayden: You go and find a Di Di in the internet.

Me: Find a Di Di from the internet?

Kayden: Yes, get one from there.

... OK.... Meaning

1. I've been using too much computer and been quoting "Let's find the answers from the internet" too often
2. Life is so straightforward for kids. Solutions come in a one size fits all packaging
3. Kids are really so cute! When they dont drive one up the wall! :)

He still wants a baby brother, but been asking less these days... 

Good thing, cos right now, Mama and Papa are not ready. And to be fair, what's really been in my mind is that, I dont wanna dilute our attention on them further. Sophie's never gotten our full attention being no 2, Kayden still calls for attention on himself, and if we have a 3rd one right now... there'll just be more battle with the kids, and personally, more guilt on my end. Yes, I've heard of the adage, quality over quantity, but where possible, I'll try also for latter!

Air Papan Beach + Mersing Trip

THE JOURNEY

It was an excellent trip. The drive was much more enjoyable than our last trip 4 years back. The thing about Malaysia east coast roads is that you MUST NOT drive after 6pm. Therefore, proper planning is required as it is difficult to find lodging. Compared to Western Australia highway and Malaysia North South Highway, i would rate the east coast roads as the most challenging route to drive on after dark. There are no lights but only reflectors, the terrain is windy and bumpy, and worst of all, animals running across the road is very common, judging by the carcasses of the dead snakes, monkeys, ...etc


MERSING TOWN

We left our house in Singapore at about 820am in the morning and arrived in Mersing at about 11am. Mersing is a really small town and it took just a few minutes of orientation drive to familiarize ourselves with the layout of the town centre as well as locate the key restaurants and cafes we had planned to visit.


LOKE TIEN RESTAURANT



After some grocery shopping, we had our lunch at the famous Chinese restaurant - Loke Tien Restaurant.

We waited outside the restaurant for 45 minutes before they opened for business.

The important thing to note (thanks to TT's inquisitive personality) is to place your order first.
And so we did, TT placed our orders by communicating to the stall assistant even before their doors were opened!!






TT ordered a steamed Garoupa, sweet and sour pork, vegetables and tau pok with pork.

The sweet and sour pork and tau pok were average and their vegetables were very fresh. What stands out was their steamed fish (also recommended in other websites). It was really fresh. However, i had only a few bites, TT & Kayden ate most of the fish.



Al-Hamid Cendol

After lunch, we went in search of the famous Al-Hamid Cendol. The Cendol came in small bowls and looked plain but still it tasted good. The Cendol was not too sweet and had a strong coconut milk taste. It tasted even better under the hot weather condition.


AIR PAPAN

Right after our dessert, we drove another 15km to Air Papan beach. My first reunion with the beach was a feeling of slight disappointment as we could not park our cars directly on the beach due to the construction of a concrete open car park. Nevertheless, it was low tide when we arrived and the scene was breathtakingly relaxing. We then started our search for a place to spend the night.


SRI MERSING RESORT

It didn't take long before we decided on Sri Mersing Resort. It was exactly the same kampong style chalet that we remembered since our last visit. The original price was 180 ringgit but TT managed to lower it down to 160 ringgit thanks to her excellent Malay language skills. (which reminded me that i had wanted to learn Malay language since 10 yrs back)



Air Papan was like a ghost kampong as there were no other tourists staying there and there were no stalls or food available during weekdays. We were the only non-locals and we had the whole stretch of beach to ourselves. Our chalet is similar to those found in East Coast Singapore but with an additional car porch. In terms of security, we were told that the resort was being looked after 24 hours but still we would advise Singaporean tourists to bring along their own padlocks to lock the gates. The room was ok and the toilet was in a decent condition. The first thing we did was to smoke out the room with all sorts of Insecticides and Mosquito coils. Somehow, we noted that the mosquitoes in Mersing were not as aggressive as those in Singapore.


THE BEACH

The beach was just 2 minutes walk from our chalet. It was still low tide at about 430pm and we soaked ourselves in the sea and 'frolicked' in the sand!! Kayden and i had a kick about with a small ball we bought in Mersing town. Kayden was laughing like a madman throughout, kicking the ball away from his daddy. The weather was perfect and everyone enjoyed themselves.













THE ANIMALS

Whats even more interesting for the kids was that our chalet felt like a farm stay. We had visitors in the form of a kid (baby goat), kittens, chicks & chickens coming into our garden. There were also many different animals (Geese, ducks, turkeys) wandering around the area. The kids fed the kitten with some noodles and Sophie even kissed the baby goat 3 times!




DINNER

We drove back to Mersing town for dinner. It was a 15mins drive from Air Papan beach. We had initially wanted to try this particular 'Lan Ji' restaurant which was supposed to be popular among the locals (as mentioned in the Internet websites) but soon found out that the chef had already retired. (He was already into his 70s!)

And so instead, we had Mee Goreng (Indian style), Indian Rojak, Roti Chenai (Prata in Singapore terms) for dinner.
Somehow i enjoyed eating by the road side and under the stars , especially when you know you are on holidays. We bought some fruits before driving back to our chalet in Air Papan.


THE SEA BREEZE

As mentioned by TT in her previous post, it just felt relaxing to sit at the veranda enjoying the sea breeze.



NEXT MORNING

We had wanted to catch the sun rise in the morning but there were dark heavy clouds overshadowing the view (not to mention i was too lazy to get out of my bed). We drove up to mersing town again for breakfast. This time, waiting ten minutes before Sri Mersing Cafe was opened for business. We tried their famous Kaya toast with butter, half boil eggs, nasi lemak and coffee. I find their kaya toast pretty unique with caramel taste in it.






THE LAGOON

After spending some time at a children playground in Mersing town, we drove back to Air Papan and spent the rest of our time on the beach. The thing about the beach is that it looked totally unpleasant during high tide as compared to low tide as there were rubbish (including broken bottles) all over the place. We managed to find a part of the beach where the tide was going down and there was a temporary lagoon created. The sea water was much better than east coast Singapore and we can still find small fishes & crabs in the lagoon. Sophie and i even managed to pulled a few decent size crabs out of their hiding holes but they managed to escaped into the sea.







GOODBYE AIR PAPAN

After checking out, we drove back to Mersing for our lunch at 'Le Yuen' restaurant before embarking on our journey home. Along the way, we bought fish sausages and dried fish products.


JOURNEY HOME

The drive back to Singapore was comfortable. Along the way, we stopped by the same goreng pisang place i had 4 yrs back but it didn't taste quite the same as the original seller had retired! (so much has changed across the span of 4 yrs!). We left Mersing at 2pm and reached Singapore at about 530pm (could have been earlier if not for the jam).


Overall, we all enjoyed ourselves and we definitely will go back again.

TV

TV.

TV and I are friends, but not the best of friends.

If I have spare time in my hand, I would surf the net, read a book, or even sleep, but never ever turn on the TV.

For me, the TV is only turned on to watch a particular show. I thus, generally do not channel surf, for something to watch. Totally the opposite of my husband.

For the past year since I've stopped working, I have only insofar, followed the following shows to a tee (ie daily or weekly whatever's the frequency)...

• American Idol 2008
• American Idol 2009
• And surprise, surprise, a Channel 8's (local Mandarin channel) drama series "A Housewives' Holiday" that just ended yesterday

The last dot, WK ended up watching with me daily for 2-3weeks before it ended. I remember feeling a little lost this evening, how am I now going to spend my 9-10pm nowadays? Well I ended up sleeping with the kids and then picking the hubby up.

Oh well.

I dunno, you think I ought to add more shows to my list? Like make TV watching a new hobby?

I am scared to be addicted to something, eg like my horrific way of having my nose stuck to a book with no rest. And I dont really wanna be addicted to the idiot box?? But I do have to say, some programs are really nice to watch like those above, and it can be a realxing hobby though a total waste of time on the other end.

Hmmm.... Dunno, still.

Watching Project Runway now, first episode ever and this is already their 5th season, hehe. I figured, watching a sewing and designing show may be good as I do have intentions of using my sewing machine more pro-active and creatively. Let's see :)

And, if you have any recommendations of good shows, let me know!

The frogs

I was just looking at my new pet last night, and wondering, worrying, if they have grown? You know, like a worried mom.

(Psst.... You did notice I mentioned MY new pet, no more OUR new pet? And dear hubby also referred them in that same way "your pet is now so big (in a yucky tone)". So, great, I'm so happy someone's answered the question in my head)

I feed them frozen bloodworms every night (or every other night on those nights I forgot, haha) and their water gets changed once in the morning (usually by the maid when I'm out doing the school run) and maybe another one more time in the evening if they poo a lot.

I've gotta say, these frogs are quite satisfying to keep.

#1 - They're cheap

#2 - They're hardy

#3 - Their food's cheap too

#4 - They show signs of growth

And before you get me wrong, no, I dont touch them. If any should hop out, the maid will be hollered to help put them back in their tank.

My MIL's maid says these are the types that could be eaten. She knows how to de-skin and cook such frogs. Woo hoo. Food for thought hey.

But we've still got a long way to go... cos for now, they are only this small.

The above post was written on 20 Mar, but I didnt take a new photo of them until today (above pics), thus another backdated post.

To-date, 6 have died due to unknown reasons, so we've got 17 left! Btw a dead frog is one who's aall stretched out. So their limbs are just straight, that's how different they look from their living counterparts, in case u're wondering :)

Actually, day by day, I have started to ask myself really hard... What is the point of keeping them?? What do we actually wanna do with them? Do we let them lead their original reason for living, ie being fish food???

And how long can I keep them? They grow everyday! They will outgrow their tank. If I wanna let them go, where??? Dont think I will be able to stomach eating them, so that idea's gone out the window!

Tough.

In the mean time, anyone wanting to rear my type of frogs, let me know, we have many to spare!