KRISSA'S PRECIOUS MOMENTS

Mummy's Birthday - 22/07/2010 To 23/07/2010 (Part I)

2010-12-15T02:31:00.008+08:00

Oh mine! Another candle to be added on my birthday cake. Time sure slipped by fast without one noticing! It seemed like only yesterday when we went on a staycation at St. Regis. This year, Daddy booked a 1 night stay at St. Regis and buffet dinner at The Carousel to celebrate my birthday. The highlight for me is a session at the Remede Spa in St. Regis while Daddy took care of K. Mmmmm.....a really, really pampered treat (^-^) Thanks dear!!

P/S: It was a BIG mistake to let K check-in with us when she had to attend school shortly after as she insisted on staying with us and threw a BIG tantrum but of course she had to go! Hmmm.....I guess she could still remember the enormous fun she had during the last stay :P

Luxurious spa session at Remede after K went to school

K & Daddy monkeying in the bathroom after school

Watched Little Einstein while waiting for mummy to be ready

Pictures with mummy in the room and sitting pretty in the lift

Sumptuous dinner spread at The Carousel

Pictures in the restaurant

K swallowing jelly from a test tube

Happy family!

Outside the restaurant

Delicious cake back in hotel room after dinner

Seemed like K's birthday instead!

I wish...I wish....

Pant-less + A wide grin {^.^}

Sand Art - 19/07/2010

2010-12-15T01:21:00.008+08:00

Bought this sand art kit by Alex from Borders as there was a promotion. Though Krissa has never done this form of art before, it seemed pretty easy according to the instructions and true enough it was simple for K to manage on her own yet challenging at the same time as she has to patiently peel off the stickers with care. K was extremely happy with her finished piece and asked for more :)

Eager K!

K working hard

An extremely happy and proud K

We're Going To The Zoo...Again - 17/07/2010

2010-11-01T01:47:00.008+08:00

Thanks to Joycelyn...yet again...we were able to visit the zoo for free! Yippeee....apart from the zoo, K was thrilled to be able to meet up and play with Trishelle jie-jie. If K has a list of her favourite playmates, Trishelle jie-jie definitely will be at the top of the list :)

2 pretty girls posing for the camera. I love the way K pretend-played with her toy camera (see the bottom 3 pictures)

Daddy is a strong man!

Bubble time after a showHighlight of the trip: Waterplay!!!
2 hot babes and 1 old hunk...hahaha!!!
The 2 girls monkeyed around!Bonus: a kiddy ride after waterplay! Very happy indeed!

K did this Noah's ark animal sticker scene after the zoo trip

K's 2nd School Excursion - 17/07/2010

2010-10-31T22:33:00.010+08:00

K should be in for a good time this field trip as she will be on the bus and ride on the MRT for the first time. Any idea yet where we will be going? Drum roll.....Changi Airport, Terminal 3 via MRT at the Tanah Merah MRT station. True enough, she became very excited the minute she sees the buses at the carpark! We took the bus to Tanah Merah MRT Station.

I shall let the pictures do the talking:

K's bento lunch: Three cheese tortellini in bolognese sauce, baby carrots, brocoli, mango and strawberries
Parents and children waiting in the classroom before setting off for Tanah Merah MRT Station. A friendly and approchable staff of the station gave an informative briefing.

All children and adults listened attentively

K with her MRT pass

In the train with Maximus' pretty mummy, teachers Auntie Shuyee and Auntie Sunying

Arrived at Changi Airport MRT Station

The girls were hungry and snacked while waiting for the Skytrain to Terminal 3.

Left to right: Ella, K & Joyce

A garden theme exhibit at the airport

After much efforts, we finally have a decent group photo

Daddy met us at the airport :)

So sweeeeet!!!

Playground time & home-sweet-home

K Progresses In Reading - 11/08/2010

2010-08-12T01:55:00.010+08:00

I am really happy that K is progressing well in reading and loving it! I have started her on the Ladybird Level Keyword Readers (Peter and Jane series). She has finished level 1 and will start level 2 tomorrow. As K progresses each day, I can see her confidence level rise and clearly she is happy that she is able to read the whole page/book on her own. However, although K likes to read, her concentration span is very short. On average, she can only sit through 3 to 4 pages at one go. I would let her continue with the readers whenever the opportunity rises e.g. during her daily poo-poo time...hahaha!!! Rule of the thumb: Stop before your child wants to stop. See how applicable Glenn Doman's teachings are?

Apart from the Ladybird readers, we read other books too but of course, these books are filled with vocabularies strange to K. Unlike the readers which she would "snatch" to read on her own, K would patiently wait for me to read each sentence and then repeats after me. If the vocabularies appear again in the book, there is a good chance that she is able to recognise and read them aloud!

R&R(Romantic & Relaxed) Phuket - 14/05/2010 To 16/05/2010 (Part II)

2010-08-11T22:28:00.011+08:00

Hotel breakfast; mediocre in my opinion

Our tutuk driver, Mr Man, whom we engaged whenever

we go to Patong Beach because Cape Sienna is located

highup on Kamala Beach

Phuket is hot, hot, hot! Bought a big hat from this lady

Unable to escape the clutches of Junky "M"

Hubs enjoyed 2 hours of body massage here while

I had an hour of massage and another hour of cuticle pampering

Idyllic soak at both Sienna Rocks and the hotel pool

after our massage

The overhyped and definitely over rated(food wise) Baan Rim Pa Restaurant

You can't miss the restaurant with its ice carving and huge golden signboard at the entrance

Beautiful staff and numerous accolades adorned its wall

The patio

Inside the restaurant; very romantic ambience and good view

Come here only if the ambience is of primary concern

e.g. a proposal and you have extra cash to spare for it is not cheap

The restaurant was so dimly lit that the staff had to give

each diner a table lamp so that we can read the menu clearly

For the record, we were dressed too casually(especially hubs) for at our next table,

a caucasian gentleman wore a tuxedo(yes!) and his partner a cocktail dress

Food which looked better than they tasted

After our dinner, we went to the Phuket Town Night Market

which is about 20 minutes drive from Patong Beach

and is opened only on weekends

Food and shopping aplenty in the night market to keep one busyYou wouldn't believe it but yes, we went back to Patong Beach

after the night marketing for a last round of seafood feast

before we leave Phuket! A dog's life?! A super fortunate canine
Back at the resort :)
Enroute to the airport, the taxi driver brought us to a popular

local stall which sells Mango Glutinous Rice. Yummy!!

Finally, my first and last drink in Phuket - Ice Buay!!

We had a great time in Phuket and indeed, it was relaxing and pretty stress-free the few days we were away from K but we missed her badly. Surprisingly, it was me who seemed to miss K more. Machismo act up for hubs? Hehe.....

Still, I hope to take a similar vacation soon. After this short getaway, I am now a firm believer that "couple only-time" is very, very important to keep a relationship healthy and alive (^_^)

R&R(Romantic & Relaxed) Phuket - 14/05/2010 To 16/05/2010 (Part I)

2010-07-29T23:32:00.013+08:00

- Patiently waiting for our flight which got delayed

- We had a simple but costly breakfast inside the terminal

- Tiger Airways' measly compensation of Fried Bee Hoon Set for its flight delay

- A vintage Mercedes parked at Phuket's airport

- My favourite drink found only at this store and

nowhere else in Phuket - Ice Buay!!

Our lovey dovey resort - Cape Sienna

View of the resort lobby and view from the lobby...simply breathtaking!
- Welcome welcome - chilled tea with hints of cinnamon & cold towel
- Select our favourite aroma for our room from the given 4 fragrances
Our room with a huge balcony and jacuzzi outdoors
View from our balcony
Apart from the usual pool, there is also an infinity pool
Must visit! Sienna Rocks - an extension of Cape Sienna with
superb view of the ocean and a big infinity pool.
Although many ply its entrance daily,
not many knew about its existence which was good for
we had the whole place to ourselves!
Love is in the air @ Sienna Rocks *blush blush*
What's Phuket without cheap and good seafood?
You should try the Phuket way of eating oysters, delish!!
Food, glorious food! So much for only S$70+!!

- Jungceylon shopping mall

- There are 2 big facial salons in the mall which adopt the "open concept",

thus all customers have their facials done in full view.

Somehow, in both salons, there were more male customers than female.

Hubs got vain and did a facial too! I did not want a facial, thus I shopped

in the mall and amongst other things, I bought a bottle of bathing oil from

Boots which was put to good use in our jacuzzi :)

- Outside the mall, there were many street vendors plying their ware

- Some caucasians clad in nothing but their swimming trunks/undies!

Under the recommendation of my colleague who had heaps of praises for Cape Sienna, we decided to go for a short getaway. We wanted to bring Krissa on this trip but as the resort practises an "all adults only" concept and no child under the age of 12 is allowed to stay overnight, we had no choice but to leave Krissa under the care of my sisters; Keng yee-yee and Auntie Anna. This was the first holiday we had without Krissa.

As strange as it may sound, Krissa fell sick (high fever) in the wee hours of the morning on the day we were suppose to go for our getaway! We kept mum about our going away as we did not wish to upset her. I have heard from friends that it's a kid thing; premonition or intuition whichever term you want to coin it i.e. even if the adults do not tell, the child somehow knows and triggers a reaction. As in K's case, she fell sick! We were suppose to leave for the airport at 6a.m. but we were at KK Chidren Hospital at 4+a.m.! I had thought that hubs would call off the trip but he did not. All of us went home to catch some rest and then ferried K to my sisters as per scheduled.

This trip certainly did not kick off to a good start because after K's episode, we were told that our flight was delayed and instead of departuring at 8+a.m., we were to depart at 11.20a.m. instead! Tough luck! What else could we do but to resign to fate? Moving on, we had breakfast inside the terminal and after brekkie, I can contain my sleepiness no more. I sat myself comfortably on a couch and slept! For the first time, I was like a vagabond sleeping on a couch under public scrutiny! But I can't be bothered, really.

Fortunately, our luck changed for the better when we reached Phuket International Airport. We managed to get a ride to Cape Sienna for a what we deem as justifiable rate after some bargaining. We all know that we have to bargain our way in Thailand, don't we?

Once we stepped in the lobby, I was blown away by the view and had a gut feeling that this trip, in spite of the initial hiccups, will turn out good and memorable afterall :)

New Clothes AGAIN From USA - 20/06/2010

2010-07-27T23:25:00.003+08:00

Those who know me would know that I LOVE to buy apparels, shoes and accessories for Krissa. I just love to doll her! These dresses are customised and are handmade. I had spreed together with some other mummies who, like me, has a softspot for all things handmade. For the record, I had also gotten matching mummy dresses. I love customisation. I get to mix and match different fabrics and the end product is an unique piece. They are, of course, more expensive than the off- the-rack clothes and take a long time to arrive (mainly from USA) but they are definitely worth every penny and the wait :)

Rustic Collection - 19/06/2010

2010-07-27T01:15:00.004+08:00

K with her treasured collection

Look at the upper left 1st picture; doesn't it look like K is looking at the mirror?

Daddy got to work in the evening, so after Krissa woke up from her nap, I brought her to the garden downstairs to practise riding on her G-Bike and play at the sandpit. She was the only child at the sandpit but we had tremendous fun! She would pick up a leave from the ground, threw it in the air and watched it descend to the ground, all the while letting out loud giggles. She also liked to dig the sandpit with some twigs she found nearby. When it was time to go, she happily collected some leaves and stones. Her treasured collection will be given to her art school teachers to help her create a beautiful collage.

2nd Visit To Horse City - 19/06/2010

2010-07-26T23:44:00.014+08:00

Daddy helped K get ready for her pony ride The helmet was big, so K did not feel comfortable wearing it

Princess in one of her "sedia" moods.

Daddy had to coax her to hold onto the reins of the pony

Finally, all set! Look at her helmet....too big :( Feeding frenzy!!

K was definitely happier without the helmet

The girls enjoyed the interaction time with the animals

Daddy Ryan & Tristan di-di enjoying a stroll Want to know how high the temperature was?

Just look at the girls' hair!!

Enjoying the aircon at Sol Playground cafe

This was our 2nd visit to Horse City. The last time we visited, the girls did not have the chance to ride on the pony, much to their disappointment, due to the wet grounds and the absence of a trainer. This time we did not take any chance; I called up a day earlier to make sure there would be a trainer available and called them again at 9a.m. on the actual day to make sure the grounds were suitable for pony riding. We just cannot afford to make the girls disappointed again and twice for that matter.

Krissa was the first in line but instead of being happy (she was looking forward since the start of the day), she was so so blue as the helmet made her very uncomfortable. Anyhow, she went ahead with the ride and her mood seemed to brighten towards the end of the ride...hahaha!! Trishelle was the exact contrary. The ill fitting helmet did not affect her mood and she was so happy on the pony :)

After the pony ride, the girls fed the rabbits and had fun chasing and being chased by the rabbits. The temperature was high, so we seek refuge at Sol Playground Cafe. I like this cafe; mummies get to enjoy their meals and aircon in peace and the children get to play both indoors and outdoors. Erm...daddies?? Kekeke....daddies are kept busy as they have to keep an eye on their precious gems while mummies relax ;)

Cheryl Buddy - 06/06/2010

2010-07-26T23:31:00.002+08:00

My buddy came visiting from Zurich alone. We had cze char at Irvin's along River Valley Road and yes it was really cheap and good per the numerous reviews on the internet. Their infamous salt yoke crab was really delish...drool.....

Graffiti! - 28/05/2010

2010-07-26T01:40:00.004+08:00

K, in the car, after watching Graffiti!

We bought a copy of the cd which was

autographed by the musicians! Mummy & daughter matching outfits at 8Q SAMMy favourite picture!

This musical act brings together 2 male musicians playing a cello and a viola and 2 female musicians playing the violin. The intended age for this gig was 4yrs and above but we decided to bring K for the show as unlike the previous plays which she had watched, this act was all about classical music and since she is attending Mandeville, we thought that this act would be appropriate for her. We saw Junyi gor-gor(Mabel's boy) and Celeste (Shymz/Sheila's girl) too. Although K did not sit on the floor throughout the show, she was happy as she was clapping and dancing to the tunes! After the show, we bought a copy of the cd autographed by the musicians and went to the "Food For Thoughts" bistro located at 8Q SAM where Art Loft is for a yummy lunch.

The Legend Of The Magnificent Moon - 22/05/2010

2010-07-26T00:43:00.007+08:00

K & Trishelle coloured the fishes which were made

into a mobile
The jie-jies and gor-gors helped to cut and string
the mobile
2 Daddy + 1 Baby Boy + Finished Mobiles + Waiting = Bored
Play area where the wall was made of felt and velcro
Bricks, books and another wall made of magnet

The girls met again to catch "The Legend of the Magnificent Moon" presented by iTheatre at the National Museum of Singapore. The unique thing about this show was that there was a 10 minutes workshop for the children after the play. The storytellers cum actresses were 2 ladies and they really talked alot. At first, we were worried that the girls may not understand, thus may not enjoy. Luckily, our worries were unfounded as not only did they listen intently to the actresses, they understood the lengthy dialogues! At the 10 minutes workshop after the play, each child was given a picture of a plain moon, glitter glues and some scraps to exercise their creativity. Krissa did a mean interpretation of her moon! I took some pictures of her moon and her together with one of the actresses using my iPhone which unfortunately "passed away" in my toilet bowl, so all the pictures and video clips which I did not synchronise with my computer were gone.....sob, sob......

The play fell on Children's Museum Week, so there were a few activities in the museum for the children at no extra cost and the gals enjoyed all of them :)

**Krissa also caught "The Gruffalo" organised by iTheatre at Alliance Francaise with Junyi gor-gor and both children really enjoyed it. Even to date, Krissa would still perform The Gruffalo Roar!!

After watching these shows presented by iTheatre, I am impress with their quality productions and will definitely support their works in future.

The Luxe Museum - 22/05/2010

2010-07-24T01:51:00.002+08:00

K's art school, Art Loft, incorporates field trips in their curriculum. The venue this time was The Luxe Art Museum to learn about the works of renowned sculptor artist, Han Sai Por.

Happy Birthday, Zegna - 09/05/2010

2010-07-24T01:41:00.004+08:00

Zegna's birthday is 10th May which falls on a weekday, so we celebrated a day earlier.

Happy 3yrs old, Zegna jie-jie! May you grow up pretty, smart, healthy and happy!!

Krissa Starts To Read! - 13/04/2010

2010-07-24T00:40:00.010+08:00

Krissa & her cards

K searching for the right cards

K reading

K reading but in a tired mode already

I had bought a set of sight words dvd after Shymz told me that her girl, Celeste, enjoyed the dvds and was able to recognise the words! At first, I was quite reluctant to show them to K because in my opinion, the dvds were boring! However, for some unknown reasons, children loved them. Anyhow, I played the dvd and after a while into the show, the magic happened......all was silent, the word "horse" appeared on the screen and before the narrator could mouth the word, Krissa said "horse"!! I was dumbfounded, stared at her in disbelief and asked her to repeat the word again to confirm what I had heard some few seconds ago. Yipppeeee....both hubs and I were sooooo happy!!

Although these video clips were taken a few days later on 13th April 2010 when K was about 2yrs 8mths, I have no doubt she was able to read even way earlier than we have discovered.

Swimming @ Raffles Town Club - 01/05/2010

2010-07-24T00:27:00.003+08:00

K loves to go on playdates with Trishelle nowadays, so we went for a swim with Joycelyn and family at Raffles Town Club. I did not charge the battery, thus my camera died out on me after these pictures. Pictures were taken before the swim at the Chinese restaurant in the club. Hey, did I ever mention that Tristan is such a darling? He is by far the most "well behaved" baby I have come across :)

K Ate Her Veggies - 28/04/2010

2010-07-22T01:49:00.004+08:00

Cheeky K ate her greens!!

Look at her mouth stuffed with butterhead!

Best actress: K likes to pretend to be asleep

Back at home from the excursion, K wanted to eat my sandwich which was filled with quite abit of greens. For the record, K likes to ask us to eat our greens whenever she sees vegetables but she would refuse to down her greens. Her latest new found favourite food is ham, so in order to down the delicious ham, I told her to eat and swallow the greens too. She obeyed and boy am I happy she can do it. Ok, a salad dinner next? Hahaha!!!

K's 1st Official School Excursion - 28/04/2010

2010-07-22T01:02:00.005+08:00

Bento for K's 1st excursion! A very cheerful K at Kok Fah Technology Farm
All of us literally "melted" under the blazing sun

A staff demonstrating on how to cut an aloe vera.

K threw away the cut aloe vera as she did not like the

slimy feeling.

K quenched her thirst with a much needed cold aloe vera drink.

K with mummy dearest & Auntie Shuyee

(yes, all the children address their teachers as Auntie)

K and her classmate, Tomi, enjoying a refreshing bowl of mango pudding.

Look at K's hair! It sure was a hot day!!

At Pasir Ris Park: I'm so proud of K's quick thinking and motor skills.

She went up and down the space nets on her own without any assistance and

just when her friends tried walking from one end to the other end, she simply

sat down and used her butt! I think her 6 months stinct at My Gym when she

was just 6 months old really helps :)

I really think I felt more excited than Krissa on her first official school excursion! I had always wanted to make her a beautiful bento and the pink soba noodles which I bought from Meidi-ya sure helped alot :)

We went to two places; Kok Fah Technology Farm Pte Ltd and Pair Ris Park. It was a guided tour at the farm and the children were shown various types of vegetables that we often eat. However, due to the extremely hot weather, all of us were happier to be indoors enjoying a bottle of refreshing aloe vera drink and/or a bowl of chilled mango pudding. Kok Fah Technology Farm Pte Ltd supplies their produce to NTUC supermarkets under the brand "Pasar" and we were given two packets of their produce before we left. Next stop, the Pasir Ris Park where the kids, needless to say, had great fun!!

I am very happy that Krissa had enjoyed herself very, very much on this trip :) When she is happy, I'm happy *contented*

The Magic Garden - 24/04/2010

2010-07-22T00:30:00.004+08:00

The Magic Garden @ The Esplanade K's favourite spot at the Singapore Flyer

Time to feed the fish!

Pretty Trishelle....forever so smiley for the lens :)

It was the first time the kids (Krissa & Trishelle) caught a play at The Esplanade and even though it was staged in the small recital studio, it was comfortable enough. The 2 princesses thoroughly enjoyed the show. I bought a cd titled "The Magic Forest" after the play and both mummies set our minds to bring the girls to catch "The Magic Ocean".

After the show, we went for dinner at our usual haunt...Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits at the Singapore Flyer where the kids had great fun running around, watching the tortoises and feeding the fish.

I am really glad that K likes to hang out with Trishelle nowadays. Oh but for some strange reason or simply difficulty in her pronunciation , K calls Trishelle carrot/Karen jie-jie...but in a very affectionate manner, so I guess it makes up for it. Hahaha!

Poster Girl For Berries - 11/04/2010

2010-07-21T23:49:00.005+08:00

Isn't the pencil cute? Even I like it let alone the kids!

Berries always makes learning Mandarin fun :)

I happened to see this picture pinned on the wall and

am very happy that K enjoys her lesson.

Outside Berries is a playground which K often lingers after class.

International Friendship Day - 16/04/2010

2010-05-22T01:48:00.007+08:00

My favourite picture!! Her school's hat was a good match for her kimono!

Don't K look like the ambassador of the school?

K at grandma's home before going to school

K helped to keep the toys. Wish she could be as organized at home!

Auntie Shuyee with K & Joyce. The girls taking a picture with a fellow schoolmate who wore a Hanbok

To mark International Friendship Day, parents were asked to dress their child in costumes representing either their native country or other countries. If not for this day, I had nearly forgotten about a set of cotton kimono which I had bought about a year ago. It was very interesting to see children clad in different costumes. Apart from the usual Chinese, Japanese and Korean costumes, there were Hawaiian, Indonesian, Thai etc.

Happy Easter - 02/04/2010 & 03/04/2010

2010-05-22T01:18:00.006+08:00

02/04: Easter chocolates for Krissa's classmates and teachers

03/04/2010: Happy K having a hearty brunch of chocolate

banana pancakes and hot chocolate after Art Loft

03/04/2010: Easter art and craft bought from the Food For Thought cafe
where we had our brunch. They make a mean pumpkin risotto! Yummy!!

K Loves Her Hat - 28/03/2010

2010-05-22T01:04:00.002+08:00

After all the fun she had with her motorised car and other toys, K insisted on wearing this hat and pulled it below her eyes....and to make herself more comfortable, she placed our bolsters on her sides and propped her legs on them! Before we knew it, she had already dozed off...hahahah!!

K's Car - 28/03/2010

2010-05-22T00:51:00.002+08:00

Look at my tomboy! Look at where her legs were...aarghhhh!!! K's legs were propped on the sides of her motorised car because the "insides" were filled with toys, thus there was no legroom for her!! She was having such a good time that we had to switch off the lights and threatened that we were going to bed without her to make her keep her toys.

Recipe for Cooling Beverage

2010-05-22T00:38:00.004+08:00

I got this "cooling" beverage recipe from my colleague who got it from her boy's childcare center teacher. This recipe came about as there is this girl who rarely falls sick and when probed by her teacher, the girl's granny said it maybe due to this drink which she prepares for her grand daughter every week. Cook this beverage as you would cook barley water.

K's 1st Taste of Lollipop - 21/03/2010

2010-05-22T00:19:00.004+08:00

We had gone to Queensway Shopping Center to hunt for a new pair of school shoes for K and when K passed by one of the shops, her eyes lingered at a bunch of lollipops for the longest time, so we decided to let her try. It was her 1st lollipop and she definitely enjoyed it!

It's Good To Be Free - 20/03/2010

2010-05-07T01:56:00.004+08:00

More shoes for K! K eagerly took off her own pair of shoes.

Another 2 more pair of shoes to add to K's growing collection ;)

We have been going back to this lady for K's haircut as her

skills is good. K had a splash of colour on her hair..party time!

I love this picture of K! Just like an anime character!

K wolfed down the birthday cake!

K 's day was fully lined with programmes:

1) Seek HFMD clearance from doctor
2) Haircut at Vivocity
3) Art lesson @ Artloft Joo Chiat (Please see my blog entry dated 20/03/2010)
4) Music lesson @ Mandeville
5) Attend Leroy gor-gor's 4th birthday party

Fake HFMD Ordeal - 15/03/2010 - 20/03/2010

2010-05-06T21:49:00.016+08:00

Showcasing a few dishes I had cooked during "homestay"

K had her mouth full of chocolate cookies when she

went for clearance at the pediatrician's!

The whole HFMD woes started in the noon of 15th March 2010 when my mum called to inform me that K was running a temperature :( From that moment on, my world turned bleak and gloomy...yes!! it was that bad as I had to take on the role of a "yellow-faced" housewife, isolated from civilisation, for a whole week!

15/03

- K's fever hit 37+ degree Celcius.

- My mum gave her the leftover Progesic from her previous fever episode.

- I brought her to see her regular pediatrician at Mount Alvernia.

- Doctor first assumed that it maybe HFMD as it was the peak period of this dreaded contagious disease and K did not want to swallow her saliva as her throat was most probably sore.

- Doctor confirmed HFMD after he claimed to have seen 2 wicked dormant ulcers in her mouth.

- Told to feed her with whatever food/liquid she can consume e.g. ice-cream, soda etc...eeeekssss......to prevent case of dehydration.

- Went home with some medicine to help alleviate her discomfort (there's no known cure yet), a 7-days medical certificate and $100+ poorer :(

- K looked very lethargic, didn't want to play with her toys.

- Very, very red lips, burning forehead and poor appetite. K rejected all kinds of food/liquid we offered e.g. milk, yogurt, yakult etc. Both hubs and I were very, very worried and it pained our hearts to see her suffer but could not do anything to take the sufferings away.

- Temperature rosed to more than 38 degree Celsius. Gave her Ibuprofen and sponged her throughout the night.

16/03

- Asked for milk in the morn possibly due to the empty stomach the day before.

- Temperature subsided to 37+ degree Celsius.

- Able to swallow her saliva but lips just as red.

- More active than yesterday :)

- The start of me being Super Nanny cum Cook.

- Lunch: udon with fish cake for lunch. Finished only about 1/3 bowl of udon but all of the fish cake.

- Cooked a cooling water chestnut and apple soup for the first time and boy was it delicious!! Easy, cooling and delicious - the recipe's a keeper!! Got it from another mummy's bloggy. K drank quite alot for lunch and dinner..."strike"!

- Tea: the ever cooling green bean soup but K did not like it :(

- Dinner: "mee tai mak" with meatballs. K finished the whole bowl..."strike"! Cooked other stuff for hubs and I.

- K did not nap at all, so I had to tend to her the whole day! It drained me for I didn't even have time to make lunch for myself! Only managed to catch a breather when Daddy came home.

17/03

- No more fever...yay!!!

- K was active and has enough energy to go "mi-mi, mi-mi" (K calls me "mi-mi"instead of mummy...hehe...I want her to call me this)

- Appetite was good! Definitely did not show any sign of erupting ulcers in her mouth! No rashes on her hands, feet, groin either! Started to doubt diagnosis but decided to give the benefit of doubt and observe another day.

- Breakfast: milk & "mee tai mak" with meatballs. K even asked for second helping!!

- Lunch: water chestnut and apple soup & "mee tai mak" with flakes of salmon. K didn't take to the salmon as usual perhaps because I had omitted the mirin and soya sauce.

- K finally napped and allowed me time to cook my own lunch and vent my grouses/gossiped with Joycelyn ;)

- Tea: green bean soup but again, she rejected it. Gave up :(

- Dinner: rice, water chestnut and apple soup & eggs with tomatoes. Finished everything on her plate...hip, hip hurray! Cooked other stuff for hubs and I.

- Self-proclaimed that K did not have HFMD but mere fever and sore throat. To call and seek pediatrician's opinion tomorrow.

18/03

- K has definitely fully recovered as she drove me nuts!!

-Called the clinic early in the morning to speak to the doctor but was told by the nurse that the doctor would only return my call when he is free i.e. no patients.

- Breakfast: milk & udon with meatballs. Finished 3/4 bowl.

- Lunch: old cucumber soup & pasta with meatballs. Finished everything :)

- K didn't nap :(

- Tea: yogurt

- Dinner: rice & old cucumber soup

- Doctor failed to return my call and Friday is his weekly offday, so I called the emergency hotline. Managed to get him on the phone and booked a consultation for Saturday. If K is cleared of HFMD on Saturday, she would be able to attend her enrichment classes and Leroy gor-gor's 4th birthday party.

20/03

- Waited almost 1.5hrs to see the doctor.

- K had her mouth full of chocolate cookies when she saw the doctor! Proved that K had no ulcers. No spots on her body either.

- Cleared of HFMD immediately and was given a letter which must be shown to her enrichment classes and submitted to her kindy as it is mandatory for the clinic to inform the Ministry of Health whenever HFMD is detected.

- Our ordeal finally ended!!!

- Enough of cooking! Went to restaurant to settle our lunch. Dinner was at Anna's home as it was Leroy gor-gor's 4th birthday! So glad we are able to make it :)

- After this experience, I conclude that it is nearly impossible for me to stay at home as a homemaker. I was so happy and looked forward to going back to work on Monday! LOL.....

P.S. Although I had misgiving in the doctor's diagnosis, I still have trust and faith in him for in the past, he was able to detect symptoms which other pediatricians couldn't and administered the correct course of treatment. When I went back to work on Monday, one of my colleagues told me that she had gathered from the internet that there is a chance of preventing full-blown HFMD if the child takes alot of "cooling" stuff. K drank plenty of "cooling" soup, so could it be the soup? Oh well...I'm just glad that K is in the pink of health!!

Outrageously Bold Polka - 13/03/2010

2010-05-06T21:19:00.003+08:00

LOL...my girl is definitely not a spokesperson for Polka from Down Under but I can't help but to compliment the designer for her bold idea! And yes, only a child can pull off such bold contrasting colours and I love the deer motif at the bottom and by the sides of her dress!

Last Day Of Term 1 (More Pictures) - 12/03/2010

2010-04-28T03:03:00.003+08:00

K happy in class

The children participated happily

K at granny's house wearing my high heels...again!

Art Loft's New Branch At Joo Chiat - 20/03/2010

2010-04-28T02:25:00.006+08:00

Interior of Art Loft's new branch
Leaves printing art with one of K's favourite teachers, Ms Shireen.
The leaves used were cut from the potted plants in the backyard!

Jun Yi gor-gor came to join us
Teacher Shireen guided the children to make a dreamcatcher.
Jun Yi gor-gor used a roll of yarn as binoculars and K put the
incompleted dreamcatcher on her head like a headband...faint!!
Hahaha!!
Jun Yi gor-gor & K with their completed dreamcatcher....
nightmares go away!

This new branch at Joo Chiat Road is so cool! From the outside, one would never know it is an art school! Primarily, Art Loft is contented and happy with its humble existence, so it does not want to do any form of advertising or publicity to create awareness. Also, they are sharing premise with an interior design firm. The wall mural is made up of projects executed by the interior firm! In this new branch, Art Loft will be operating a cafe so that parents can enjoy a cuppa while waiting for their kids. There is also a backyard where they planted quite a few pots of plants. The leaves used in the leaves printing session today was cut from these potted plants! Way coooool!!!

Dog Groomer - 19/03/2010

2010-04-28T00:55:00.001+08:00

Am I the youngest groomer around?

Rain, Rain Go Away - 19/03/2010

2010-04-28T00:42:00.002+08:00

K crying in her raingear just like the skies. Hahha...she cried as she was not used to wearing the oversized raincoat!!

Child Size Presented by Act 3 - 14/03/2010

2010-04-27T23:20:00.012+08:00

Entrance

K likes Auntie Mabel a lot! She would rather hold

Auntie Mabel's hand than mine! "Journal of Figures" station
Jun Yi gor-gor & K preferred colouring to crafting the cardboards
The artist sewed a button on K's "man" at the

"Beautiful Garden" station Jun Yi gor-gor posing with his "man"
Bookworms :)
Dance workshop

Jun Yi gor-gor was able to dance very well!

K liked the peacock feather but hated the bells tied to her ankle! Jun Yi gor-gor singing on stage

Act 3 International has a new festival for young children aptly named "Child Size". The writeup seemed pretty interesting with many fun filled activities for the children, so I asked Auntie Mabel and Jun Yi gor-gor to join us.

There were 2 different packs available and each lasted about 2.5hrs; Chamber Pack and Play Den Pack. We opted for the latter as it appeared to be more interesting with a puppet show, singing and dance workshop. Unfortunately, we were quite disappointed. The Chamber Pack seemed a better choice as we had seen a segment with quite a number of children and adults having fun with some percussion instruments. One of K's Art Loft teachers, Ms Shireen, also commented that the story telling program in Chamber Pack was engaging.

We were pretty early, thus had time to create art from used corrugated cardboards at the "Journal of Figures" station and to create a "man" wearing clothes from recycled magazines at the "Beautiful Garden" station. Both counters had artists to demonstrate their craft and guide the children but K preferred a ready-made aeroplane(lazy bum or smart aleck?!) to making one from scratch. We finished these 2 artmaking stations pretty fast as the children were not very keen in them.

First to come was the highly anticipated puppet show. Unfortunately, it was not very interesting. Too wordy and lengthy even for adults but I am grateful that K did not scream her lungs out to get out! Next comes the dance workshop (Indian dance). At first, K appeared to be interested and tried to follow the hands and feet movements demonstrated by the Indian lady dancer but soon lost interest. By the time the singing workshop starts, she was too tired to even want to participate.

Amongst the shows K has attended, this is by far the longest, most expensive and most disappointing :(

Last Day Of Term 1 - 12/03/2010

2010-04-21T23:56:00.005+08:00

K at my mum's before going to school.

Don't be mistaken....K did not pose for the camera.

These are just some of the nicer candid shots.

In class

K's interpretation of saying "cheese" for the camera;

2 index fingers on her cheeks. Hahaha!!

Look how smiley her classmate Ella is!

The children were to dress casually on this day. Don't K look pretty and cute in her outfit? *beam beam* If only she would smile for the camera :(

K's MRT Train - 12/03/2010

2010-04-21T23:20:00.004+08:00

Why did K line her play kitchen toys on the floor? Although both hubs and I were baffled, we decided not to question her. It was quite a sight but we were more curious on why she did that and what was it. After a talk with her teachers, it turned out that they had talked about our local MRT system and had the children lined the wooden blocks on the floor to create a MRT train. Hahhaa!!! No wonder! We are very pleased that K remembers what she has learnt in school and although she doesn't have wooden blocks at home, she exercised her initiative and imagination to substitute them with her toys!

Simple Dinner - 09/03/2010

2010-04-21T23:10:00.002+08:00

K loves soup, so here's a simple but healthy noodle meal for her. My picky eater slurped up all the soup and finished all the fishcake but barely touched the rest. Aarghhhh!!! For the record, the noodles tasted yummy! *pull hair*

A Go-Go Princess - 06/03/2010

2010-04-21T22:48:00.006+08:00

One can never have a dull moment with this

bubbly princess around (^-^)

A go-go diva!

Diva sulking:(

Pictures taken in a Hong Kong cafe after Mandeville lesson on a Saturday evening. We frequent this cafe because K likes it as she can see the outdoors - namely a water feature and traffic...hahahha!!!

Soon-To-Be Muffins - 04/03/2010

2010-04-21T22:18:00.004+08:00

The last time K helped out in the kitchen was when we made pizza using pita bread. It was fun and she enjoyed the healthy end product. I have been thinking of baking some muffins with K for quite a while as muffins are very simple to make and I sure can use a little help to stir the mixture. Hmmm.....if I can just decide on a date...hahhaha!!! Procrastinate....procrastinate....

Trial Lesson at Berries - 07/02/2010

2010-04-20T02:01:00.008+08:00

Children are shown real objects, wherever possible, instead of illustrations.

In so doing, the children get to feel, smell, observe and even taste the subject of study!

K held on tightly to her ba(1) bao(3) he(2) - 8 treasure box

I am bought over by Berries' methodologies but believe that having the right teacher is even more important as the right teacher, apart from being able to effectively impart her knowledge, would know how to make learning fun for children of this young age, is able to motivate and cultivate their love for the subject.

The teachers in charge of K's class are experienced and speaks fluent Chinese with no wierd accent. Parents are discouraged from attending the class with the child, except the trial lesson, but I took the plunge and didn't even spend a single minute with K in the classroom despite being her first lesson in a new and strange setting. I have observed from various enrichment classes which K attends that she is able to perform better without parents in the class. I am proud that K did not whine or cry when I left her....hehehe actually mummy peeped through the door panel....hey it was a trial lesson afterall! So of course I have to monitor the ongoings in the class to see if K enjoys her lesson, how the lessons are executed and frankly I was quite worried that she might not make it through the 1.5hrs for none of K's enrichment class lasts so long! Luckily, K soon warmed up to her teachers and classmates and happily engaged in the activities:)

K In My High Heels - 05/02/2010

2010-04-20T01:55:00.002+08:00

K, at granny's after school, in my uber blue high heels

Going Down The Water Slide Alone - 31/01/2010

2010-04-20T01:50:00.003+08:00

My brave girl has done it again! K followed behind Daddy and went down the water slide on her own!

Mini Earthquake On X'mas Eve - 24/12/2009

2010-04-20T01:33:00.004+08:00

Hubs got to work overtime on X'mas Eve, yes on X'mas Eve...drats!!!

I brought Krissa to Toys 'R Us at Tampines Mall for some last minute X'mas shopping and rewarded her good behaviour with a mini earthquake. She stared in awe at the "smoke" effected by the dry ice when the ice-cream came...hahhaha and although I gave her the green light to finish up all the ice-cream, she didn't, much to my glee ;)

Expensive Meal - 19/12/2009

2010-04-20T01:19:00.004+08:00

We had dinner at the Burger King outlet at East Coast Park and why was it expensive? This was because Daddy accidentally bumped into a T-bar in the poorly lit carpark, causing both the car doors on the right badly dented and we had to spend quite a bit of money to replace the doors...tough luck :( On the other side of the coin, we are grateful that Krissa was not in the car when the freak accident happened :)

My New Found Helper - 09/12/2009

2010-04-20T00:53:00.005+08:00

K likes to help out whenever she can e.g. on this grocery shopping trip, she helped to carry/drag the basket.....hahahaha and tried her best to put all the stuff on the cashier counter though she can barely reach it. Oh do expect impromptu act like sitting on the floor browsing the X'mas takeaway menu the supermarket has to offer! Though my little helper has plenty of room for improvement, her commendable level of efforts is most appreciated and welcomed by mummy dearest (^o^)

Leroy & Krissa

2010-04-20T00:28:00.002+08:00

Leroy loves Krissa and Krissa loves Leroy!

Leroy is Krissa's cousin and he loves K even more than his own sister!! These 2 rascals play, quarrel and fight with each other but would ask to play with the other during the weekends when K doesn't go to my mum's house. At times, Leroy even chipped in to help me scold K! Oh yes, their favourite activity is to bully Leroy's sister Zegna!! Nasty yet adorable rascals!!!

Aquaintance With The Cello - 05/12/2009

2010-04-20T00:11:00.004+08:00

K "wandered" happily while Teacher Ping played the cello

K had a go on the cello!

Collection of Passport - 02/12/2009

2010-04-19T23:59:00.006+08:00

K waiting to collect her passport VERY early in the morning

in order to avoid the long queue. With the passport, K is able to travel!

1st stop: Malacca!!!

(See my blogpost 01/01/2010 - 03/01/2010)

K's 1st Bottle of Yakult - 24/11/2009

2010-04-14T01:15:00.005+08:00

K enjoyed her 1st bottle of Yakult and even appeared defensive

when we requested her to share with us! Hahhaha!!!

K was very happy to be able to finally have a taste of the drink which her little cousins seemed never to get enough of! She frowned when she took her first sip as it was cold, but gradually her frown disappeared and a bright smile took over! She was very protective of her Yakult and refused to let anyone touch it. However, she only finished half a bottle and did not ask for more :)

Aquaintance With The Violin - 21/11/2009

2010-04-14T00:48:00.005+08:00

Incorporated in the Baby Music Course by Mandeville, the children will be introduced to some commonly found instruments in an orchestra e.g. violin, cello, flute, clarinet, oboe etc just to name a few. Apart from showing the children video clips of the instrument and a performer playing the instrument, the real object will be shown to the children and the children will get to fiddle with it, of course, under the guidance of the teachers.

My Little Hip Hop Drummer - 19/11/2009

2010-04-14T00:11:00.006+08:00

Groovy!!

K working on her drums

We got this toy keyboard & drum set from a Toys 'R Us sale. Inexpensive and keeps K busy...and when K's busy, we get to rest! Hahhahha!!

Swimmy - Pictures From My iPhone

2010-04-13T23:56:00.005+08:00

K loved this poster!

Post-Swimmy: for a few days after the show, K would play with this Swimmy die cut

Remember I blogged about the play "Swimmy, Frederick & Inch-by-Inch" dated 15/11/2009? These are some pictures taken using my iPhone which I did not upload previously.

Fun With Blocks - 24/10/2009

2010-04-13T23:41:00.003+08:00

K likes to play with blocks and has been playing for quite some time. Her first set was Mega Bloks and she still plays with it. Here, K played with the blocks and built them to quite a height that even Teacher Lavina was impressed :)

K Danced With Only Her Upper Body - 14/10/2009

2010-04-13T23:27:00.006+08:00

These 2 clips are hilarious. See how K shook so vigorously with only her upper body? Hahhaha....when she danced, the image of the Taiwanese Bubble Tea Doll came to my mind....both hubs and I just couldn't stop laughing!

Idolising - 13/10/2009

2010-04-13T22:46:00.008+08:00

K thrilled to see her idols - Little Einsteins!

Question: Who has the honour of being K's first idol?

Answer: Wheels on the Bus! K loves the whole series from the kiddy ones with animations and songs to the ones which are more suitable for toddlers featuring Argon the Dragon and till this day she still requests for the toddler version.

In this blog post, however, the star is Little Einsteins! You can see K mimicked the actions of the characters, danced to its tune and even tried to sing!

My Bud Came Visiting - 12/10/2009

2010-04-13T22:07:00.005+08:00

Cheryl, her hubs Klaus & their handsome boy Colin.

K watched with admiration when Colin was strumming away

on his guitar playing PlayStation. K, not wanting to be left out,

beat on the drums too!

I took plenty of pictures with my iPhone but did not have the time to blog them. I thought it's high time I do it, and to start the ball rolling, here is the 1st of many blog posts to come with pictures stored in my iPhone.
Introducing Cheryl who is my best bud and my mentor. She was my first colleague from my first job donkey years ago. She taught me alot (both business & personal issues) and although I quitted about 1.5 years into my job and she got married to faraway Zurich Switzerland, we do still keep in touch. We try to spend as much time as possible whenever she is back annually but it is never enough and all the more so after the birth of K.
I love you bud...you know...I know...and that's enough :)

Tuesday is Fruity Bento & Waterplay Day!!!

2010-03-20T00:59:00.005+08:00

Different fruity bentos!
K's customised swimbag

I get busy on Monday nights when I have to think of what to pack in K's fruit bento and her swimbag for the next day. I had customised a swimbag with 3 compartments; the middle compartment is a wetbag, so the teachers can simply throw her wet costume and towel in it without having to put them in a plastic bag and I need not worry about the dry clothes getting damp. Apart from fruits, I like to throw in 3 to 4 cheese cubes too as K loves them, thus an ice cool lunchbag is a must!

More Arts!

2010-03-20T00:39:00.002+08:00

Krissa's art journal cover.

Not bad for a 2.5yrs toddler!!
Collage done on 13/03/2010

Happy Chinese New Year & Valentine's Day - 14/01/2010

2010-03-17T17:07:00.011+08:00

Gong Hei Fatt Choy & Happy Valentine's!

I so so love K in this outfit from AugustAnna USA!!!

Beautiful bouquet from Dearest Hubs

Must-have activity during Chinese New Year!

Hahhahah!!!!

Gong Xi Fa Cai & Happy Valentine's!!!

This year's Chinese New Year was special as Valentine's Day also falls on the same day! I had thought Hubs will skip the Valentine's Day part and celebrate just the Chinese New Year. Fortunately, I was wrong for he had the florist sent me a big bouquet of flowers 2 days before Chinese New Year :) We didn't do much visiting this year; only visited my parents, mother-in-law, grandparents and a few gatherings. Per the Chinese New Year "traditions", it was a few days of eating, catching up aka gossiping and gambling sessions all rolled into one!

4th Day of School - 13/01/2010

2010-03-17T16:19:00.005+08:00

Having fun!

It was the last day for parents to be with their child in class. The children were finally able to use the playground after eyeing it for the past few days! Before going for outdoor play, all the children are to put on their hat and afterwhich, the teachers sprayed insect repellent on them. I really like the idea of putting on hats when playing outdoors especially in a tropical country like ours and I applaud the school for being so considerate when they thought of applying insect repellent on the children.

3rd Day of School - 12/01/2010

2010-03-17T15:53:00.008+08:00

K enjoying her fruits and biscuits

Nothing unusual from Day 1 for Day 2, so I shall skip and go to Day 3. Day 3 was the start of the 3 hours school routine.

Every Tuesday is "Fruit Day" for the children and parents are to pack the child's favourite fruit for them to eat during snack time. For the first Fruit Day, I packed an apple and a chinese pear for K. I had put the lunch box in a lunchbag with an ice pack in it so K was able to have the fruits still cold and fresh when it was time to eat. I was glad that K finished everything.

1st Day of School, A Lifetime of Learning - 08/01/2010

2010-03-13T00:38:00.008+08:00

K in her uniform
Fun in the classroom
K liked the microwave oven alot!!

K at ease in the classroom

This day marked an important milestone for K. I can't believe how time flies and how much my little pea has grown. Both Daddy and I are way more excited than her! Here are some of the things we have done to get her ready for school: a new haircut, a personalised Stephen Joseph school bag and lunch bag which I had bought a year in advance, labels for her water bottle, uniform etc.

K is to embark on her pre-school education at St James' Church Kindergarten which is a reputable kindergarten with an amazing long waitlist.

I think it helps that we have explained to Krissa what school is going to be like to gear her mentally prepared e.g. there will be no papa/mama/popo, she has to share toys/stationeries with her classmates, she has to listen to the teachers etc. and I think it works on her because she didn't seem to have any separation anxiety!!! The minute we stepped into her classroom which was filled with toys, she broke loose and played by herself. I guess it was the norm as the other children too played by themselves. The teachers were friendly and looked loving.

We were given 3 days to stay in the classroom with the child to help her tide through this period. The 1st day lasted for only an hour and went very smoothly. Both Daddy and I were very proud of K.....hmmm.....I wonder if the 4th day i.e. the 1st day without parents will be equally smooth sailing. Pray, pray....

Malacca, We'll Be Back! - 01/01/2010 - 03/01/2010

2010-03-12T01:10:00.017+08:00

1st stop: The infamous chicken rice ball. We decided on Chung Wah,

though less famous than others, but invites ONLY good reviews

on the internet. True enough, the rice ball/chicken/chilli didn't fail us.

Only chicken rice ball is served here unlike the other operators

who also sell other dishes. Krissa loves the rice ball!

Warning: Don't come on an empty stomache; just look at the

crowd outside the shop! I love this vintage clock with

the shop's name printed on it.

Christ Church with Jonker Street just right behind it
A. Famosa
K was in a very good mood!
Our hotel suite and adjacent view from balcony
K was really tired so she plonked herself comfortably on the bedLove this picture of K looking up!
Another view from the balcony and hotel X'mas decor
Need I say more?!

Daddy & K bonding in the pool

A nearby park which can bring us to Jonker Street via
Christ Church from our hotel in about 10 minutes
Playground facilities in the park: Look at the merry-go-round!
It invoked childhood memories in me! How I wish we can find
more merry-go-round in Singapore!! Look at K and one will know this is
an evergreen hit! On the more modern equipment, K hanged on the bar and
did some swings before sliding down.

My monkey K!!!

K enjoyed herself tremendously in a shopping mall!
More makan and grocery shopping before we make our way home.
I like the idea of the "trolley-basket" in Carrefour!
This had indeed been a gastronomical trip for us! During our short stay,
we had stuffed ourselves with many local delicacies
e.g. nonya food from different well-reviewed restaurants, teochew food,
the infamous Jonker Street chendol with their legendary gula melaka and laksa,
street delights from the weekend night market of Jonker Street etc

We have never taken a road trip....come to think of it, this is my first holiday ever since I was found pregnant with Krissa! Having to have the little one in tow really wasn't easy and having a paranoid Daddy made matter worse. Anyhow, I was glad that we made this trip but it wasn't all that plain sailing.

First, due to the New Year, no room was available at Hotel Equatorial after checks with several online agencies BUT my efforts paid off and we were able to secure a room :) However, nearer the date, I realised we had a BIG problem; the furthest we ever drove to was Johor Bahru, so how are we to drive up to Malacca although everybody said it was easy? Luckily my colleagues, chum Kok Peng who kindly lent us his GPS and the internet were ready to help and provided invaluable information. Hence, we were able to get to our destination safe and fast {^-^} Thanks to everyone! *bow* I would like to give credit to Krissa too for being so cooperative and obedient throughout this trip *muacks..muacks*

I had visited Malacca thrice in my younger days and each time, I would tell myself I would never go back because it was very boring but I ended up there thrice! Malacca now is quite different from the past. Mega malls have sprouted over the years and the little town is now bustling with life, ready to take on the world! Perhaps, being a mother now, I have learnt to relax, slow down and take time to smell the flowers. Or simply...age is catching up.....whatever it is, the pace suits me fine now and I appreciate the town more than ever.

Hollywood Dino - 27/12/2009

2010-03-11T02:03:00.004+08:00

A disappointing experience

It was very disappointing....the exhibition grounds was very small, not many dinosaur exhibits on display and they were not as impressive as what we had imagined. Luckily I had bought the tickets at a discounted rate. Krissa was scared of the dinosaurs because they were much larger than her and the frightening sound effects didn't help to alleviate her fear.

Sol Sunday - 20/12/2009

2010-03-11T00:43:00.008+08:00

Only 1 horse :(
Daddy resigned to his fate that he would have
to feed the horse alone as K would not feed it
K getting her face painted K with her face painted...matched her romper prefectly :)
Play, play, play!!!
Look at Trishelle! Pretty butterfly!!

Both girls enjoyed their horse ride at the zoo so much that Joycelyn suggested we let the girls ride a horse again but at a horse riding school in Turf City instead. We reached the school bright and early with the girls who couldn't contain their excitement. K was so looking forward to riding a horse that she went "horse, horse" repeatedly in the car. Unfortunately, the riding ground was closed as there was no trainer available and the soil was still damp due to the rain the day before. In their website, they should have advised the public to call the school to make sure a trainer was available instead of simply stating the opening hours to the public :( The closest the girls can get to a horse was to visit it in its stable. Why did I use "it" instead of "them"? This is because there was only 1 pathetic horse in the stable. Horse feed is available at $2.00 per packet and both daddies bought a packet each. They coaxed the girls to feed the horse but only Trishelle dared to. Whatever happened to my gutsy K!? Hmm......oh well!! Needless to say, our mood was dampened, so to cheer the girls up, I suggested breakfast/brunch/lunch at Sol Playground Cafe. We used to frequent this cafe almost every Saturday when K finished her lesson at Kids' Loft, so I knew they offer free balloons and face painting to the children every Sunday. So glad that we went to Sol because the girls did enjoy themselves thoroughly! It was a beautiful Sunday afterall :)

Jingle Bells - 12/12/2009

2010-03-10T01:29:00.003+08:00

X'mas is just round the corner and we are terribly late in setting up the X'mas tree! K can qualify as one of Santa's little helpers as she was able to listen, understand and execute our instructions. We had purposely gotten a smaller tree this year so that K won't feel overwhelmed when putting up the decor.

25/12/2009 - My siblings came over to celebrate the festival and we had X'mas goodies for dinner. The children had fun unwrapping their presents. Oh no!! I did not take a single picture of our gathering! Goodness....I'm really showing signs of aging! I had better eat more gingko nuts to boost my memory...hahha!! Erm...it should be...Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry X'mas & a Prosperous New Year!!!

Zoo! Zoo! - 06/12/2009

2010-03-10T00:33:00.007+08:00

K didn't even want to go near the manatees, let alone feed them!
Daddy was worried that K might not want to ride on the horse but
his worries were unfounded because K enjoyed the ride very much and
requested to ride on a horse for the next few days!

Well done, my girl! We are so proud of you (^-^)

Princess K on her horse :)

Grand finale: Water play!!!
Time to say goodbye

We like to bring K to the zoo every 3-4 months for it is interesting to compare her previous and current reactions towards the same animals which she had seen a few months back. She used to just observe the animals but now she would get very animated when she sees her favourite animals e.g. horse, tiger, penguin etc.

At the very kind invitation of Joycelyn and her family, off we went to the zoo! K used to be very gutsy, doesn't know the meaning of "afraid" but not anymore now...just take a look at the manatee feeding photos and you will know what I mean. Oh no! She had better not take after me in this aspect! I am a coward when it comes to touching animals, jumping off from a height etc. Hahahah!!!

Last Lesson @ Kids' Loft - 05/12/2009

2010-03-09T23:50:00.004+08:00

A very pretty water globe with stunning visual when shaked.
The last tea session

Princess K in action!

K's "graduation" ceremony and

Ms Lavina playing with K

Sob...sob....as Krissa will be attending pre-nursery come January 2010 on weekdays, we have no choice but to stop Kids' Loft. A big, big thank you to Ms Lavina for all the wonderful memories and knowledge which you have imparted to the children. Perhaps K will go back to you again.....for your holiday program :)

Goodbye to all my weekly playmates! Hope we will meet again somewhere, someday......

Eric Carle's Today is Monday - 04/12/2009

2010-03-09T02:48:00.006+08:00

Warming up the pizzas!

Pizza Craft!

Time flies! We are already at the end of our holiday program. It was indeed an enjoyable experience for both Krissa and I. I hope to sign Krissa up again next year.

Eric Carle's The Grouchy Ladybug - 03/12/2009 & Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See? - 03/12/2009

2010-03-09T02:32:00.003+08:00

02/12/2009 - I had forgotten to bring my camera, so no pictures for that day. The children made a beautiful ladybug craft out of paper plate.

03/12/2009 - Again I had forgotten to bring my camera but luckily Joycelyn helped me capture this precious shot of Krissa looking through her self-made binoculars! She thoroughly enjoyed looking through the green cellophane paper :)

Eric Carle's The Secret Birthday Message - 01/12/2009

2010-03-09T02:09:00.004+08:00

K was happy when she saw Teacher Zai lit up the candle and

eagerly blew it! A far cry from her 2nd birthday when she ran away

once the birthday candles on her cakes were lit.

K wolfing down her cake!
Kids went gaga over the bubbles!

Catch the 2 bubbly girls grooving away to the music!

Holiday Program @ Zoophonics - 30/11/2009 to 04/12/2009

2010-03-09T00:45:00.004+08:00

K's own "night sky" and K sponging away

Krissa and Trishelle attended the Zoophonics holiday program at the Bukit Timah branch from 30/11/2009 to 04/12/2009; 1.5hrs daily at a very affordable price of only $120.00!!! The theme of this program is aptly named "The World of Eric Carle" with 1 book of Eric Carle being used per day.

First on the list was "Papa, Please Get The Moon For Me". All the kids loved this story and had a great time touching the "moon" hanging from the ceiling (with a little help from mummy). In lined with the book, the children made their own snack (sandwich) by spreading blackcurrant jam (symbolising the night sky) and honey stars (symbolising the stars in the sky) on their bread. The children were tickled pink when they saw what was in the mystery box and enjoyed the art, singing and dancing taught by Teacher Zai.

"Snow" Castle @ Changi Airport Terminal 3 - 27/11/2009

2010-03-08T23:23:00.010+08:00

K having fun at the mini playground. Notice K's shoes? Hahha!!

She enjoyed herself so much that she decided to run around barefooted!
See the long queue to the bouncy castle?
Luckily it was well worth the wait :)

"Terminal-hopping" by means of the Skytrain

Must see! K & T bouncing happily in the castle!!

This video is sure to put a smile on your face!

Daddy & K making their way up to the top of the castle

Daddy & K bouncing their way down

I know I have MANY backlogs :( Everytime when I was about to start blogging, something else would cropped up. Geez...anyway, do allow me some time to clear my backlogs.

I was told by Joycelyn that in conjunction with their Christmas promotions, T3 had this large bouncy castle with snowflakes falling from the top of the castle at interval of 10 minutes. Wow...it sure sounds magical and admission is free, so we made plans to let our girls have a go at it! Actually, snowflakes or not doesn't matter. What matters is the large bouncy castle! Krissa loves bouncy castles but never played in one of this scale. Due to her tender age, all of the castles she was previously permitted to enter were pretty small.

The castle was indeed huge! Both Krissa and Trishelle couldn't wait to enter but the queue was horrendously long! Luckily T3 was thoughtful enough to have arranged a mini playground for the younger kids to entertain themselves whilst waiting for their turn at the bouncy castle. The girls were happy at the mini playground and needless to say, they were even happier in the castle! After the bouncy castle, we took the Skytrain to "terminal-hop" before making our way home.

Swimmy, Frederick & Inch by Inch - 15/11/2009

2010-02-04T01:18:00.004+08:00

We had Dim Sum at Yan Palace for breakfast and K helped to carry a bag of bread.

I love this dress from Polka, understated and elegant. I'm glad I had stocked

up some pieces of Polka :)

The actors explaining how their props worked after the show.

It's showtime! Hehehe...for the children.....how fortunate! We brought Krissa for this play presented by Act 3 International. These 3 stories by Leo Lionni were acted out using realistic and giantic props, it was as if the books were being brought alive on stage! Among the 3 stories, K like Swimmy best, followed by Frederick and Inch by Inch. To prepare her for the show, I had borrowed these books from the library to read it to K and Mabel, Junyi's mummy, was very kind to burn 2 DVDs for us from the Scholastic videos which contained these 3 stories. I knew my effort paid off when K happily pointed to a banner stand with both Swimmy and Frederick at the entrance of Victoria Theatre. She also had fun playing with the Swimmy cut outs which was given out for free after the show.

A Mind of Her Own - 08/11/2009

2010-02-04T00:43:00.004+08:00

From the pictures, you would have thought that K was happy with Daddy putting on her shoes for her but no, no, no! K wasn't happy at all when Daddy put on the green colour boots for her, she wants to wear her flowery slippers instead! She threw her tantrums but Daddy wasn't in the mood for her nonsense, so he scolded K and as usual, she cried....but not for long and was soon busy trying to pacify Daddy by hugging him and telling him she was sorry. Of course, Daddy's heart melted when he saw his precious gem cried. Hahha!!!

Sponging Art @ Kids' Loft - 07/11/2009

2010-02-04T00:29:00.003+08:00

K enjoying her art with Daddy watching on.

Sorry for missing in action for such a looooong time. Had been very busy(nah! just plain lazy to update) and being under the weather for a few weeks (this much is true!). Anyhow, here are some posts which should have been up long time ago and quite a alot of pictures are from my iPhone which explains why the dates are not in chronological order from this post on.

2nd Handmade With Love Skirt For Krissa - 08/11/2009

2009-11-28T23:53:00.003+08:00

May I present to you my second handmade skirt!!! This skirt is way simpler to make than the first but in terms of workmanship, I should think this is better :) Don't know if I can make a top next, we shall see (^;^)

Krissa's Tee Shirt Art - 07/11/2009

2009-11-28T23:30:00.006+08:00

K proudly wore the tee shirt art she created

I'm so happy with the curriculum in Krissa's art school - Art Loft. The teachers really put in alot of effort in planning the activities for the children. Not only do they try to expose the children to different mediums where they can create art on, many a time, the children will learn precious and useful knowledge along the way too. This time kids learnt that they can create art on cloth using special fabric markers and scraps which can be recycled. In this way, not only do they learn about recycling (of course K is kind of too young to understand but there's no harm in starting them young!), they get to wear the tee shirt they've created too! Hahahha....this tee shirt is meant to be an art apron i.e. to wear on the outside to protect their clothes. Any additional stains in future only serves to make the tee look more interesting!

I Like Company!! - 06/11/2009

2009-11-28T23:15:00.007+08:00

Krissa having loads of fun with Dylon gor gor & Racquel jie jie

After K had finished decorating her shakers, our neighbours came to play. It was K's first time playing with them and boy did she enjoy their company! When they left, K lingered at the door for a long time and asked: "Gor gor where? Jie jie where?" Hmmm.....maybe its high time K has a sibling of her own to play with. I think it would do her good too...hmmm.......

Shakers Fun! - 06/11/2009

2009-11-10T01:25:00.007+08:00

K having a great time with her creations!

Our materials to decorate the containers.

The green beans and paper clips will each go into a container.

A butterfly glued onto the cover of one of the containers.

K first decorated the yellow wrapper with dot markers,
then glued the surface with sequinns.

K puts the paper clips into the first shaker

The beginning of the second shaker

Yes, darling?

Glueing of the poms poms

Filling the second shaker with green beans

Shaker fun!

The finished products!

We were told to make at least one shaker and bring it for lesson at Mandeville on Saturday. I managed to dig up two containers at home, so we made two! Both K and me had great fun doing it and apart from decorating the containers, her fine motor skills were reinforced by having to transfer the green beans from the plate into one of the containers and to pincer grip the small sequinns to glue them onto the container. She was able to call out aloud the crayon colours which she wanted on her containers and correctly took them from the crayon tray. We are still on butterfly, so I glued a butterfly onto the cover of one of the containers. It proved to be a hit with K! Finally, when we were done, K had a fun time playing with her new creations!!!

Pretty Girl + Pretty Dress - 01/11/2009

2009-11-10T01:01:00.005+08:00

I just have to take this picture and show it to the world! Hahahaha.....I love, love, love the colours on this dress! Erm..actually it is a tunic top but K will wear it as a dress first and when it becomes too short, she can wear this as a top! Another piece of fabulous handmade. Please support handmade!!!Pictures were taken on our way to Caden's 1st month celebration.

Our 2nd Caterpillar Kit - 28/10/2009

2009-11-10T00:21:00.007+08:00

Our newly hatched butterfly takes to the skies.

May it stay safe from all her predators.

Life cycle of a butterfly

Having learnt our lesson, we dashed for home after we had bought the kit and immersed the plant in clean water immediately. We had better luck this time :) K liked the caterpillars and would request us to show her the caterpillars every so often. She would say hi and goodbye to them. This real kit was very useful for she was able to associate the caterpillars and chrysalis with the real illustrations in the Busy, Busy Butterfly book. It was a real pity that K did not see the butterfly. Hmmm.....a 3rd kit, maybe?

Leroy's 1st Performance - 29/10/2009

2009-11-09T23:53:00.004+08:00

29th October 2009 was a big day for my nephew Leroy for it marked his first time performing on stage! It was not difficult to tell that Leroy was shaken and overwhelmed at the sight of the crowd, so he didn't exactly did what he was taught during the rehearsals and towards the end of the performance, his tears welled up in his eyes and he looked as if he would burst out crying anytime. To sum it up, Leroy had stage fright but it was an experience for him and he will definitely do better in future.

Mommy & Daughter Slippers - 27/10/2009

2009-11-09T03:48:00.005+08:00

Tell me these aren't sweet??!!! My happiness was short lived. In fact, it didn't last for 24hrs even! I wore this pair of slippers to my friend's place and it got stolen! All the footwear placed outside the house were stolen and I had to go home barefooted!!!

To the person(s) who had stolen the slippers:

Beware of karma! What goes around, comes around!

Spa Drink - 25/10/2009

2009-11-09T03:42:00.003+08:00

Using the mint leaves bought from Oh's Farm and some oranges, I made a jug of this drink which I drank in Remede Spa. Very sweet smelling and refreshing, something different from the usual lemons.

Happy Birthday, Grandpa! - 25/10/2009

2009-11-09T03:29:00.005+08:00

My grandpa and grandma.
My grandpa surrounded by his great-grand children!
The kids were delighted! Look at the sweet smile on K!!

A very, very happy 79th birthday to my grandpa & K's great grandpa. I wish you longevity and the best of health. You are a VERY VERY IMPORTANT person in my life (I know you knew it too) and I love you as much as you love me (I know you dote on me the most!) and thank you for showering K with your love too!

I LOVE YOU, GRANDPA!! IT IS MY BLESSING AND GOOD FORTUNE TO HAVE YOU AS MY GRANDPA!!!

Visit to the Butterfly Lodge & Hydroponic Farm - 25/10/2009

2009-11-09T01:41:00.008+08:00

Very good books on the life cyle of a butterfly for very young children.

I especially loved the Busy, Busy Butterfly as it is filled with real and big

illustrations accompanied with concise description of

the insect in its various stages.

A list of the species we may spot in the lodge, courtesy of Joycelyn!

Daddy had the honour of holding one of the newly hatched butterflies
and released it into the lodge.

If you look close enough or zoom into the 1st picture at the top left hand corner,
you will spot the butterfly eggs (tiny, white colour spots) on the leaves.
The 2nd picture right next to it shows a hairy caterpillar and the picture with
a few butterflies under them shows the male butterflies engaging in
an activity named "puddling"; we were told that the male butterflies are
absorbing the salt content from the ground which is damp and this will
aid them in increasing their sperm count! Hence, only male butterflies
engaged in this activity. The other 3 pictures show some of the
varieties of butterflies found inside the lodge.

K watches the puddling of the male butterflies.

Daddy showing K a tiny caterpillar,
K & Trishelle in the lodge,
Where are you looking at, darling?

Our 1st kit: sadly both caterpillars died.

In front of one of the many hydroponic vegetation plots before it rained.

Today is a busy day for us because we have arranged to visit Oh's Farm with Joycelyn and family in the late morning and to attend my maternal grandfather's 79th birthday celebration in the late noon.

I wanted to kickstart the series of "Bubba Bear" lessons with butterfly as Krissa is familiar with this insect. I borrowed and read her books from the library and after trawling the web for more information, I learnt that Oh's Farm has a butterfly lodge where the butterflies are kept in an enclosed area, making the study and observation of these beautiful insects much easier. We were very lucky to have met a member from the Butterfly Circle who acted as a guide during our stay in the lodge. We were also very fortunate to be in time to catch the staff releasing some butterflies just hatched from their chrysalis into the lodge. Really, without the explanation from the member (I cannot remember his name, very sorry!), it would have been just a see-see-look-look kind of field trip. Oh, and Joycelyn was very nice to photocopy the species of butterflies which we may see in the lodge (thanks babe!) for us. We had fun in trying to identify as many species as we can find. Each of us bought a caterpillar kit containing 2 caterpillars in the hope that our girls can learn and witness for themselves the magic of mother nature. Included in the kit was also leaves for us to feed the caterpillars with. Alas, my caterpillar died on the 2nd day because the leaves which we were supposed to feed them with had browned. Caterpillars, being fussy eaters (different breed of caterpillars eat different kinds of leaves), would rather starve to death if the leaves are not fresh which sadly happened in my case as we were late in immersing the roots of the leaves in water. I bought a 2nd kit and managed to successfully have one of the caterpillars hatched into a butterly. I had decided to release the butterfly although Krissa was not home yet as I was afraid the butterfly may die if it was kept inside the container for too long a time. Luckily, with the help of my neighbour, I managed to video the whole freeing process to show Krissa. The butterfly was beautiful, a far cry from the ugly hairy caterpillar it once was. The other caterpillar sadly didn't make it. I guess it must have tried too hard to free itself from its chrysalis that the chrysalis snapped and detached itself from the top of the container where it hung. Yes, once the chrysalis drops, you can pronounced the caterpillar dead.

Alright, coming back to Oh's Farm: this farm specialises in hydroponic vegetation and supplies to local supermarkets. We ran out of good luck when we wanted to tour its hydroponic plots for it started to rain. However, before we left the farm, I bought some hydroponic vegetables from its store. The store is opened to members of the public. Imagine a big packet of butterhead lettuce at only $2.00 while the rest of the many varieties of vegetables and herbs go on sale for only $1.00 per packet!

**Credit must be given to my dearest hubs for clearing all the caterpillars' poo and feeding them with fresh leaves everyday till they turned chrysalis :)

Back Log - Final Instalment For Allie Alligator

2009-11-09T01:19:00.004+08:00

I don't know why I have failed to blog this entry....my memory is indeed failing me. I have to ask my mother-in-law to make me more gingko barley with beancurd skin dessert to boost my memory...hahahha!!!

Backlog: 2 Days 1 Night Stay @ The St Regis - 11/10/2009

2009-10-24T01:37:00.015+08:00

1st peep into our room & welcome goodies.

There were 3 cupcakes but K & hubs gobbled them before

I could take pictures!!

Room & bathroom
K had fun staying indoors!

Must watch! Hahah! K's hilarious moves.

BTW, she was "singing" to Little Einsteins!
Breakfast in the hotel
Top left corner shows the Spa. Other pictures show the pool.

Here comes the water babe!!!

K kicked hard!

Daddy threw K up in the air!

K jumped from the edge of the pool! How gutsy!

Daddy booked a room at The St Regis because his Astor Card is to be expired in October and we only a month to utilise the freebies which were tagged with the card. The hotel really lives up to its reputation; it was nothing short of luxurious living. Along with the room, Daddy also booked a massage session for me at the Remede Spa. Yes, I went for spa while he took care of Krissa. How nice!! I thoroughly enjoyed the massage and the spa facilities. I will definitely return for another session soon.

The hotel room and bathroom were very spacious with ample space for Krissa to explore. Apart from the "hardware", the service level of the staff was impeccable. We had requested for someone to check on the airconditioner of our room as it was pretty warm although it had been on for quite a while. In under 5 minutes, the butler came to check and confirmed that the machine was working and explained that it had probably needed more time to cool the room. Nevertheless, he would return to check again in the next 30 minutes. We told him we would not be around but he said it was alright. When we were back about 2 hours later, we were pleasantly greeted with music in the background, bedroom slippers by the side of the bed, remote controls in a tray on our bed etc. and of course, the whole room was cool! Krissa had a great time too! She loves the tub...what else?! Hahaha...and the couch, bed, telephone, controls...hahaha!! How could I forget about the pool? K loves it alot!! Although the pool does not have any slides or even a designated baby pool, it was enough. Just look at the pictures and you will know why.

Both K and I fell in love with this hotel, no joke! Hence, Daddy has renewed his membership for another year. This time, we must make full use of the card!

Backlog: A Big & Warm Welcome to Caden!!

2009-10-24T01:05:00.005+08:00

Caden - the latest addition to my big family! He was born on 02nd October 2009 and this goodlooker, my nephew *beam beam*, is son to my younger brother Wei and his wife Annie. Quite difficult for me to digest that my little brother is a daddy already, but I know he will make a great dad!!

Backlog: Kite Flying @ West Coast Park - 04/10/2009

2009-10-23T23:49:00.008+08:00

Children's Carnival: Look at the innovative games!
Hahaha!! This picture looked so funny!! Trishelle was
very friendly but K was not at all appreciative.
Ryan found out how to use the tree to lessen his load. Hahha!!

Ryan setting up the kite & the girls had fun flying it!

So funny! They looked like they really knew how to fly a kite!

Kites soaring in the sky. Can you locate our kite?

It's the one under the black coloured kite.

The men flying their stunt kite. I especially like the picture of K

pointing to the kite which Daddy was flying.

The girls had loads of fun at the sandpit.
K really made herself at home!

Notice she walked everywhere barefooted?!

Hehhehe...that's my girl!

It was a bright, cheery Sunday morning. Indeed, it was a good day for flying kites! Letting K have a go at flying a kite has always been on my mind ever since we missed Act 3's Kite Flying Festival a few months back due to bad weather. We were joined by Auntie Joycelyn and family.

We chanced upon a children's carnival at West Coast Park as it was only a couple of days after Children's Day (1st October). I was in awe of the games/attractions at the carnival and can't resist posting some of the pictures here.

There was a kite for each family and we were so embarassed for we do not even know how to piece the kite together! Yes! We know nuts! Luckily a very nice uncle came to our rescue. I think he had probably ran out of patience to see the four of us cracking our brains, trying to figure where exactly should the metal attachments go. Hahhaha!!! My kite had a missing piece so this kite is coined a white elephant :( However, after our kite was setup properly, it was good to go!! As it was a windy day, the kite was literally heading to the skies as soon as the string was tied...quite effortless I should say and it flew pretty high:) The girls love the kite and tried their hands on it but I thought they love the sand pit, which is only a stone's throw away, more. Hubs also brought along his "antique" stunt kite which he bought in Australia ages ago and the men had a good time flying it. After the park, we went for lunch at West Coast Plaza.

I like West Coast Park more than East Coast Park because it has a big sandpit which the girls love and a big open field for flying kites and running about. The human traffic is significantly lesser than its counterpart; I do not have to worry that my girl may get in the way of the roller bladers, cyclist etc.

Backlog: End of Another Term @ Kids' Loft - 03/10/2009

2009-10-23T23:25:00.007+08:00

So fast! Another term has gone by...swoosh!! The kiddos are happiest during the last day of each term because that's when they are allowed to indulge, K included:)

The children learnt about transportation this term. Guess which is Krissa's favourite mode of transportation? The TRAIN!! Choo! Choo!!! It must be the doing of one of her favourite books "Chugga-Chugga Choo-Choo". Apart from reading, I use this book to play "I Spy" with her too!

A Skirt Made of LOVE For My Lil' Gem - 01/10/2009

2009-10-03T22:05:00.007+08:00

Krissa wearing my handmade skirt.
Pretty? Must work harder and practice more!

I am so proud of myself!! (**blush**)

Happy Children's Day!

The skirt which I have been learning to make for my baby has finally materialised and in time as a Children's Day present!! Yeah!! Quick, give me a cheer!! Hahahah!!! Not too bad for an amateur, right? (^_^)

Krissa the Ripper - 29/09/2009

2009-09-30T00:31:00.005+08:00

The title of the book is "There's A Nightmare In My Closet". How aptly named! When I first saw this book in its current condition, I freaked out! My heart sank as it is one of K's favourite books. She would request us to read this book over and over again each night, so how could she?! My mum told me she was unable to stop this "tragedy" from happening because she was busy in the kitchen. She decided to check on the children as it was exceptionally quiet which was rather unusual! When she walked into the room, she witnessed 3 happy children, K together with her 2 cousins, having a good time ripping the book into pieces! Both Daddy and I did the usual reasoning and counselling routine and now I would have to get Auntie Cheryl to help me buy it again from Amazon Germany as it is cheaper. Hopefully, this is the first and final episode to this book tearing issue.

Sentosa Part 3 - Final Chapter 21/09/2009

2009-09-30T00:02:00.005+08:00

The peacocks joined us during breakfast!
Free balloons! Erm...it was a poodle at first, but somehow,
K transformed it into a sausage dog! Hahhaa!!!
After breakfast, we headed for the beach with a
happy tot in tow.
Sand play!

Bubble fun! Look at the big bubbles!

Bought the bubble kit from the island's 7-11 store.

Final water play at the pool after the beach.

Isn't K adorable? She's sooo kawaii!!!

A few tourists came up to her and snapped her picture

with their cameras without even soughting permission!

Daddy & girl shared a quiet moment while waiting for the

animal performance to start. We didn't catch the show afterall

for it was simply too hot! We had to seek refuge somewhere

.....airconditioned!

Sentosa Part 2 - Lovely Pictures 20/09/2009

2009-09-29T23:07:00.012+08:00

Flowers in full bloom...a lovely sight!

K made herself very comfortable with one of her favourite

books "Goodnight Moon", her milk bottle and her bear-bear.
Water Babe & Macho Man at the pool!!!

Bathtub fun!
Our hotpot dinner at an exhorbitant price of S$100+!!
Exploring Sentosa: One of K's favourites was the Merlion!
See K sitting on the floor? She was throwing one of her missy tantrums,
so I made her stay in a "naughty corner" while waiting for the beach tram
which for the record, did not turn up. We gave up after waiting for about 20 minutes. K getting ready for bed.
I have to take this picture because naughty Daddy pulled K's
pyjamas pants so high, it was as though K wore a tube pantsuit!!
The red portion is actually the tummy protector. Both Daddy and I
laughed really hard...tsk, tsk, tsk....naughty parents!!

Pool slide fun!!

Spooky Sentosa Part 1 - 20/09/2009

2009-09-29T22:06:00.006+08:00

It was the Hari Raya public holidays and we decided to check into Rasa Sentosa for a 2 days 1 night "staycation".

The weather was great, too great in fact!! Hahahha...we were all melting under the scorching sun and there were many people on the island, thus we queued for quite some time to get our tickets to the Songs of the Sea, a mesmerizing show with a live cast and dramatic effects pyrotechnics, water jets, brilliant lasers, special computer imaging and stunning flame bursts. We tried all ways to get Krissa to stay awake for the show as I believe she'll enjoy it and yes, she indeed enjoyed the show but was super duper tired at the end of it. She has never stayed up so late and to think she did not nap at all during the day!

I had an eerie encounter, nope! 2 encounters actually during our first day in Rasa Sentosa.

First eerie encounter: After waterfun in the hotel pool, Krissa continued with her waterplay in the bathtub before we went out for dinner and the show, Songs of the Sea. I took some photos of her having fun with her rubber duckies in the tub. One of the photos showed some red dots on her left side of her body. The red dots resembled those dried-up blood stains that we would get after we fall. I was shocked! I looked at the photo in my digital camera, then scrutinized K's body to make sure she was alright. After thorough examination, there was not a single trace of red dot on K's entire body let alone only her left side! The red dots in the photo didn't turn up anywhere else in the photo too, so I don't think it was a technical fault. I then started mumbling "Nam Wu Oi Ni Tuo Fuo" in my heart and at the same time I also mumbled, again in my heart, that I did not offend "you" or hurt "you" in any way, so leave us alone! I deleted that particular photo and the rest of the photos turned out fine. Yes, I continued taking photos as if nothing had happened.

Second eerie encounter: This happened at night. Both Daddy and daughter were snoring away after a long day while I surfed the web and watched the television program at the same time. Then I heard it.....After Daddy's snore, I heard a "hoo..."....it sounded like a woman crying. Most people under such circumstance, especially so after the first eerie episode in the noon, would have wakened their snoring partner but I did not. I thought to myself that it may be just my imagination or a continuation of Daddy's snore, so I decided to see if the "hoo..." would be repeated. Again, I heard it for the second time. This time, in my heart, I mumbled what I mumbled in the noon. Then I heard it for the third time! Again, I didn't wake Steve. Why? Hahaha...I don't know too...I simply did not want to disrupt the beauty sleep of both Steve and Krissa. After the third "hoo..", it stopped. I continued watching the television program and even ordered supper in the room! After my hearty supper, I slept...with the lights on and a half full bladder...hahahha!!!

Was it really some kind of spirit? I mean Sentosa is well known as a "dirty" place....I really don't know for I did not see it. Touch wood!!! I DEFINITELY do not want to see any...not before, not now, not ever!!!!

Steve told me the next day, when we were out of Sentosa, that he knew because when he woke up early the next morning, the lights were still on. He even said I was really brave but he was shaking his head while he said that....so was it a compliment? Hahahaha!!!!

**Will I ever stay with Rasa Sentosa again? Yes!!! Why not? The hotel staff was polite and rendered good service, the buffet breakfast spread was very sumptious, the pools for the children are great BUT I will NEVER again stay in Room 625 and I will NEVER book a room with sea view because the sea is blocked by the tall trees! No point paying more for such view!!

Boating Time @ Kids' Loft - 19/09/2009

2009-09-19T23:13:00.005+08:00

Teacher Lavina read the book "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" today and had activities planned in line with this theme. The kids made and decorated a paper boat and had great fun with this dam and boat set!

My Gym - 17/09/2009

2009-09-19T22:51:00.004+08:00

My whole world was spinning when I woke up this morning at 7+a.m. and it did not get better even at 8+a.m., thus I went to the doctor and was on medical leave for 1 day. Krissa stayed with me as I could not drive her to my mum's. Anyhow, the giddiness subsided around mid noon and seeing how restless K was, I decided to bring her to My Gym for some fun. Although K had stopped My Gym for about 10 months, she still remembers Teacher Amelia. However, perhaps she is older now, K was more reserved and apprehensive when asked to join in the activities. Luckily, after a while, K warmed up and happily joined in.