Beach Boy

We had quite a few people coming up to us asking for permission to take a picture of you buried up to your neck in sand. Next time, I shall stick a sign in one of your buckets welcoming contributions to your "Preschool Fund" or "$5 a picture" for the conservation of one cute toddler / future tax payer (in low supply, according to our government) ...

YY shirt where? Sentosa Cove & "Organic" schools

Sentosa Cove
Had dinner with some friends who had an apartment at The Berth. I didn't know that Sentosa island can be that big. Took me more than 10mins to drive from the Sentosa gateway to the cove. Your Papa, who came later by cab said the fare from Vivo city costs him $6+. We spent a total of $12+ just to get from the entrance of the island to the house. ($2 car, $6 taxi, $2 entrance fee X 2) Quite ridiculous! Anyway, we had a wonderful dinner and you had a wonderful time playing with their children's toys and I had a pleasant flashback because the place reminds me of Hyatt Regency Sanctuary Cove in Brisbane - a place your dad and I visited in 2003, before you came along.

"Organic" School
Was introduced to the Steiner school system. Another friend of mine calls it the "Organic" school which, is not far from the truth. Because the toys they have there are all handmade with natural materials like wood & shells etc and kids draw using rectangular shaped crayons (for better grip) made of beeswax! They believe in nurturing creativity so there is lots of arts & craft activities. Kids even learn how to make their own soup, bake and they serve only organic food! There is no emphasis at all on academics i.e kids are not taught how to read or write (apparently these are not natural activities for preschoolers*) Instead, they are encouraged to experience the rhythms of the year, including seasonal festivals and feel the rhythmic course of each day. Quite impressed. Fee? $600+ a month. *faint* Quickly recovered and asked about subsidies...but apparently not recognized by MOE so not subsidized!!???!!!!!!!!!!

Sticker Fun

Had some fun today with your loot from your cousins' christmas party at Safra Toa Payoh. The party last night was a blast. You were so happy throughout. Being the shortest and youngest kid there, you had the privilege of having the 1st go at the pinata. Swung pretty well with the plastic bat and managed to hit it twice. Am really very proud of you. When the thing finally broke, all the kids went for the sweets and stickers in a frenzy. It took you about 15 seconds to make out what was happening and when you did, most of the sweets were already snatched up but you were still quite happy with just stickers and went round shouting "Stickers! Stickers! Stickers!" excitedly, picking them up from the floor and then handling them over to us for safekeeping.

Loss

I'm told your great grandmother had 8 sons, 5 of whom died while she was still alive. Your Ah Gong remembers 2 of them and one only just vaguely as a boy who very ill and coughed a lot. Tuberculosis maybe?

The other, died during a riot in the 1950s. There was a commotion outside the house. He went outside to look and was hit by 2 stray bullets whilst standing at the doorway. He was 16.

Out of fear that she will lose yet another child, your Ah Gong was taught never ever to called her "Mother".

This 16-year-old Granduncle of yours was credited to have kept his family alive during the Japanese occupation. He must have only been no more than 8-11 years old during that period. He picked up Japanese. Nobody knew how or who taught him. But with this ability, he managed to keep the family safe and fed with extra food rations from the soldiers, sometimes trading things like cigarettes with them.

Your Ah Gong said that when he died, your great grandmother tried to bite her own tongue off. I can imagine... how does anyone cope with such grief? Over and over and over and over again?

Panic

...still looking for a school for you next year.
**********What if you go missing ????***************somehow ran out of school and disappeared?????????? What if you are bullied???????? What if you got hurt?????????What if the food is unhealthy??????????? What if ..........ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ah Lian doing research

Researching which school to put you in next year. Came across one named "Pu Hui Kindergarten".....Couldn't stop laughing! It means 'SEETHING FIRE' in Hokkien. Can totally imagine. A roomful of preschoolers. Wha-leow-eh!

找媽媽!

(looking at something intently on the wall)
Y~找媽媽!找媽媽!
PP~誰在找媽媽?
Y~The ants 在找媽媽!
PP~Orh, the ants 沒有 hold hands hor?
Y~hm
PP~the ants 沒有hold hands 沒有 stop 沒有听話,乱乱跑hor?
Y~hm

Stiff Neck

You've been holding your neck at a strange position since yesterday. Brought you to a doctor in Telok Blangah today and he said 3 of your neck tendons were off position and set them back in place for you.

A check on the web threw up a few possibilities...

(1) Meningitis (WHAT??????)
"It's an inflammation of the meninges, the membranes that line the brain and the spinal cord. Meningitis is usually caused either by a virus ("aseptic meningitis") or by bacteria...the symptoms of meningitis aren't always the same for everyone, and they don't appear in any particular order. But these are hallmark signs: a fever, stiff neck, headache, and sensitivity to light."

(2) Torticollis (WHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT?????????)
"...a rare condition that causes a child's head and neck to tilt to one side. Acquired torticollis can be caused by a swollen throat due to an upper respiratory infection, a sore throat, or even a sports-related accident. The swelling loosens the tissue surrounding the upper spine, which causes the bones to move out of their normal position. This causes the neck muscles to go into spasm and the head to tilt to one side. The condition can also be caused by swollen lymph nodes, pneumonia, or a vision problem. In very rare cases, a brain or spinal cord tumor is to blame."

(3) Strain (.....phew!!!)
"When your child strains or "pulls" a muscle, she has stretched or torn the muscle tissue or the tendon that connects it to a nearby bone. The neck, back, thigh, and calf muscles are the ones most often strained. These strains are frequently the result of overuse, as in the case of a Little League pitcher who develops a sore arm."

Now I recall....we played football yesterday. You insisted on throwing it like a shot put, spinning 180 degrees to the left and then tossing the ball across the hall! Must have strained your neck then.

*Wha piang* Only 2 years 3 months 3 weeks old and you already have sports injuries!

Daddy's home!

Lots of travelling these couple of weeks. You saw more of your Papa than I did. *Counting...* 2 days in 3 weeks!

Saturday
Brought you to Cold Storage @ Jelita. They have mini shopping trolleys there. Mistake. I hadn't prepared you for such excitement. So, we went round the supermarket at least 6-7 times before we got what we needed.




Patiently waiting for Papa @ the airport. There was a little girl standing next to you with huge dark eyes and lovely thick black hair. I asked her how old she was. She held up 3 fingers and said "Three". I turned to ask you how old you were. You said "FIVE!" Hahhahaaa!! You win lah!




Sunday
Cancelled our Crepes & Ice-Cream party this morning. Both you and I were sneezing our heads off! Gave you 8 drops of Zyrtec. Myself, loads of very hot coffee. Felt much better in the afternoon so we went off to punch in @ Kuan's Christmas Party.

Here with Santa (Uncle Erik)

Call you back later...

If you have 2 incoming calls, who do you say "Call you back later" to?
The Family?
The Friend?
or...The Colleague?

Undoubtedly, it would be 'The Family'.
Hard luck being 'The Family' don't you think?

9 drinks in 1 dinner

Had a night out with some colleagues to wrap up the year at Saint Pierre. We had the degustation with wine accompaniment. By the 5th glass, I was happily toasting to some x-rated stuff...

MOMOTARO TOMATO
sauvignon blanc 2005 montana vineyards *Hmm...
granite of green shiso with momotaro tomato and fresh sea urchin

HOMARD EN TOFU
riesling gueberschwihr 2001domaine zind humbrecht *Not really
home made tofu scented with lobster consommé,
cucumber noodle and ikura dressing

VENTRÈCHE DE THON AUX LENTILLES
mâcon villages 2003 maison joulie *Nice!
flamed japanese toro with warm salad of green lentils, tomato-fumet dressing, imperial soy sauce and grated fresh wasabi

ROYALE DE CÈPES
bourgogne blanc cuvée gerard 2003 nicolas potel *Not bad too
braised leek with winter truffle, royale of porcini mushroom
and caramelised hokkaido scallop

TERRINE AUX TRUFFES
bourgogne rouge vieilles vignes 2002 nicolas potel *A red!
homemade foie gras terrine layered with black truffle served with raisin
and poached pear compote with coal toasted brioche

SORBET
sorbet of armagnac marinated plum with white chocolate mendiant

OMBLE CHEVALIER EN GRENOBLOISE
cote de nuits villages 2002 maison joulie *Yummy!!!
fillet of steamed artic char with yuzu and caper sauce with savora espuma, pan-fried brioche crumbs and parsley purée scented with oba leaf

JOUE DE VEAU EN GIBELOTTE
la grave pomerol 2000 *Eh?..So-So
slow braised veal cheek with crispy bacon, caramelised shallot
and mushroom petit farci

CRÈME BRULÉE AU SAKÉ
late harvest riesling 2002 cloudy bay *Slurp! like choya...except nicer! Any more??
sake scented cream brulée with cinnamon infused rice pudding
and chocolate maki

CLAFOUTI AUX POMMES ET CHATAIGNES
chateau doisy dubrocca 1998 *Yet Another??..Why not? *hic
caramelised winter apple clafouti with home made candied chestnut
and marron glacé ice-cream

Tang Poems, Gingerbread Man & Orangutan tails

Ah Mah has been trying to teach you this Tang poem for a couple of days now.

静夜思 - 李白
床前明月光 ，
疑是地上霜 。
举头望明月 ，
低头思故乡 。

She was quite successful in getting you to recite this other one...

春眠 - 孟浩然
春眠不觉晓，
处处闻啼鸟。
夜来风雨声，
花落知多少。

albeit with some help in between. But with Li Bai's 'Thought at night', you'd only go "hm" after each phrase. On one occasion, you asked her, "What 举头,低头?" and then went "hm" again when she explained it to you.

After yet another one of her failed attempts, I asked you, "YY, 床什么?" Much to our surprise, you started reciting the poem, word for word, without any prompts in between.

Arh! So, you were listening huh?

Did this quiz on learning styles a while ago and the results indicated that you were a strong auditory learner. Pretty true.

Gingerbread Man

Read you the story of the Gingerbread Man a few times now. Bought you one from the supermarket yesterday. He was wrapped in a plastic bag tied with a nice checked ribbon. Had a nice smiley white frosted face & three colorful chocolate buttons.

"Mummy open!"
~"YY want to eat the Gingerbread man?"
"NO!!!"
~"Mummy eat?"
"NO!!!"
~" Then don't open it. The ants will eat him up!"
"???"

The Gingerbread man stayed in the plastic bag. Safe.

Tails

"O-ang-u-tan!"
"Huh?"
"O-an-utan!"
"Orh, Orangutans!"
"hm"
"YY saw Orangutans in the zoo right?"
"hm"
"YY, Orangutans got tails?"
"Yes"
"YY got tail?"
"No"
"hmmmm.... Birds got tails?"
"Yes"
"Fish got tails?"
"Yes"
"Polar bears got tails?"
"No"
"Ants got tails?"
"No"

Pretty impressive and then....

"Snakes got tails?"
"No"
"Yes, Snakes got tails.... Butterflies got tails?"
"Yes"
"No, butterflies got no tails...."

It went downhill from here...but the one that you got consistently correct was the fact that you didn't have a tail. Hhahhahhahaa!!!

Itchy Rash

Received a call from your Ah Mah at 6pm yesterday, telling me your rashes hasn't gone away. Rushed home to find a little boy covered all over with red patches and scratching madly. Immediately packed you up and took you to the doctor. The one, near our house was closed for renovation. Darn! So, drove you to your regular PD.

On the way there, you fell asleep but woke up suddenly to continue scratching. At one point, it was so irritating, you started screaming from anger, frustration and discomfort. All I could do was drive faster. Got there, dumped the car with the valet and carried you to the clinic. The nurse at your PD commented that you have not been there for a while but added quickly that it was a good thing. *scowl*

The doctor gave you Zyrtec, ...*something prednisolone 1:1*... and some Calamine lotion.

Bill. $76.30

Fed you the medication before we left the clinic. Almost immediately, the itch went away and you calmed down immensely.

The sleep last night was peaceful.

This morning, you woke me up by saying "Good Morning! Good Morning!"

So happy.

Lapland in January

Arggggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just been booked into a teambuilding session located in Kuusamo where mean temperature is -15degrees. MINUS 15 degrees! HELPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Polar Bears, Haircuts, Night shifts & Wagyu beef

Brought you to the zoo today. Alone. Which was a good idea because we move at our...your pace instead. We saw some stingrays, a otters, tigers, kois, polar bears, lamas, a tree full of gibbons, lots of flamingoes, some playful orangutans and 3 colorful parrots. The tigers were interesting to watch today. They were all very active - surprisingly active during such a hot and humid afternoon -and attracted quite a huge crowd to the pavilion.

Haircuts
Gave you a hair cut last Thursday. Fringe is a tat short this time round but I think I'm getting better at it. Been your hairdresser since birth. (",) Quite like the result I'm getting so I don't think I'd be bringing you to the barber shop anytime soon.

Night shifts
You've been sleeping through the night for the last couple of months. Say from 10pm to 7 or 8am in the morning. I thought that our night shifts has ended. I was dreaming. Two nights ago, you started waking me up. (Me only because your Papa is away) It goes like this... "BY wants to Shee Shee!!!" Tried hard to ignore you but the decibels climbs up twofolds with every repetition. By the 3rd rendition, I'm up! Half carrying you, half dragging myself to the toilet. When I try to put you back in your diapers. You protest and we fall asleep before it happens. 3 or 4 hours later, an encore! Somehow, I'd remember that you are not wearing diapers and bolt right up! Again, we'd stumble to the toilet together. This is really exhausting. *sigh*

Wagyu beef buffet
Had a 3-day training session at the Hilton last week. This also equates to 3 days of buffet lunches at Checkers Brasserie's and 6 teabreaks with all-you-can-drink coffee or tea. My nervous system is reeling from an overdose of caffeine. Anyway, on Thursday, they had a Wagyu beef themed buffet. It was the best! I have never ever eaten so many different kinds of beef dishes in one day in my entire life! The young lad at the carvery station was a bit "ngiow" with the cut but it was still good. I really like their beef consomme which tastes like essence of chicken - with beef. (arh-but-then?) Had 2 servings but will help myself to the entire pot the next time.

Mind Games

Went swimming today. I haven't swam for more than a month. Used to swim 3 times a week when I was in uni, then this slowly dropped to once every week when you were in my tummy. I remember I could still do 8 - 12 laps @ 39 weeks. Nowadays, it would be an achievement to swim 8 laps once a month!

I decided it was high time I picked it up again, before I have to buy myself a new swimsuit. Again. At my age, I shouldn't be buying myself new suits every year. I.e I shouldn't be growing anymore! So, 20 laps was my target but I didn't think I could do it.

Then I had an idea. Instead of counting each lap I swam, I'm going to count down instead. So the more I swam, the less I had to swim. It's bizarre. Somehow, my brain liked the idea of only 6 more laps left rather than 14 done, 6 more to go. It's like the half glass of water - Is it half empty or half full? Quite nincompoopish.

Took me so many years to figure this one out. But it got me there. I finished the 20 laps in 25 minutes and did another 4 more to cool down. Was amazed and in high spirits! The 2 white strands (never found 2 at one go before) discovered while blow drying my hair didn't even bother me later.

Anyway, lesson to learn. Good to set targets. Better if you can figure out how get there before taking the first plunge and even more better if you can stick to it.

Psst...the twin antagonists have been eliminated!

Let's go!

Brought you to the doctor today again. 3rd time in a week. Am starting to wonder if your illness is a physiological reaction to my travels. It's happening often enough for me to notice.

Doctor's diagnosis: Exanthem subitum. No medication required. Will go away in 2-3 days.

What is Exanthem subitum?

Information culled from the web " A sudden onset of high fever of 103° to 106° F with few or minor symptoms. Most children appear inappropriately well for the degree of temperature elevation, but they may experience slight anorexia or one or two episodes of vomiting, running nose, cough, and hepatomegaly. Seizures (but more frequently general cerebral irritability) may occur before the eruptive phase. The rash begins as the fever goes away. The term exanthem subitum describes the sudden "surprise" appearance of the rash after the fall of the fever. Numerous pale pink, almond-shaped macules appear on the trunk and neck. They become confluent, and then fade in a few hours to 2 days without scaling or pigmentation."

Fee: $0

What? Free? This versus your regular PD who once charged us a $45 consultation fee for examining the lump on your thigh caused by the injection she gave you. Nice!

and just one more....

My work has taken me to many interesting places, many times over. The last time I was here, you were still in my tummy. Time away from home before you then didn't matter...

More Postcards

Another question from the "Why don't penguin feet freeze?" book. Goes something like this... A fly is flying in the opposite direction to a moving train. The fly hits the train head-on. As the fly strikes the front of the train, it's direction of movement changes 180 degrees and at the instand it changes direction, the fly must be stationary and since, at that instant, it is also stuck in front of th etrain, the train must also be stationary. Thus, a fly can stop a train.

There were 4 responses to this, the last one being of interest to me. Apparently there is this person, Zeno of Elea, who around 450BC said that a moving object is always in motion, and yet at any given time it is somewhere (that is, stationary). WE humans cannot see, measure, or imagine an infinitely small time any more than we can truly imagine infinity. We never will.

Got me thinking about your udon noodle zouping session. I think my mobile video camera can only capture 15fps. Your noodle went from there to not there in between frames and I couldn't find the one frame that had the noodle travelling up halfway towards your mouth.

So, each frame is like a frozen moment when everything stops. Therefore, going back to the train and the fly, neither stopped each other. One just went from being alive to being goo. The other just went from stop to stop.

Got it?

Postcards

Food here was very yummy and even more delicious with an aperitif like a glass of deliciously chilled Choya Umeshu on ice. Must remember to try this at home => Grilled fish topped with some mandarin orange salad. It's like prawn and mango. Really excellent!

'Timberland' @ Target

Spotted your pair of Timberland shoes in Target today. Only that it wasn't branded Timberland and costs only AUD$14.99 or AUD$11.99 after a 20% discount. Everything was the same, except for the logo. I think I paid SGD$35 for yours, after a massive 60% discount during the Great Singapore Sale. Given that retailers normally make a margin of between 30-50%, we can now peg the cost of goods at approximately AUD$7-8 or SGD$9. Imagine this. SGD$9 at one end and SGD$87.50 at the other end. Same shoes, different logos!

How do I console myself?

Hahhaa.. Boys Sandals. Leather upper. Made using genuine leather. Long lasting wear. Size 8. AUD$24.99 (AUD$19.99 after discount)

Notes from 30.11.06
Think size 8 might be too tiny for you. Wanted to exchange them for a size 9 or 10. No stock! *Sigh* Got you another pair of sneakers instead.

Beach. Age 2 & 1/4

Chicken Wings

Was telling your dad and my colleague this morning that you can eat a whole chicken wing by yourself!

Gu-Gu brought some BBQ chicken wings back home for dinner last night. I was munching on the wing portion. You saw and wanted to eat it too so I gave up mine and let you have it, helping you with the bones along the way. You finished it and asked for more. Gave you the drumstick portion as well and you finished that too, this time, all by yourself.

I was staring at you while you ate. It wasn't too long ago that I was scraping the banana and payayas with the spoon so that you wouldn't choke on 'solid foods'.

Ah Mah must have noticed me looking at you and guessed what was on my mind. She commented that you've grown and can now eat chicken wings like anyone else.

I want to cry.

My baby's grown up!

Little Boy

Can't you sleep little bear?

In every spread of this book, except one, there is a picture of the big bear with the little bear. On that particular spread, the illustration was drawn through the perspective of the big bear.

The Boy, "Mummy, where is the big bear?" The Mummy stops reading, looks at the picture. How to explain perpectives? Says, "The big bear is behind you." The Boy looks sideways at The Mummy. The Boys eyes starts widening and slowly, very slowly, turns his head to look behind him. The Mummy realises what she has said. Literally. The Mummy wants to laugh but decides not to. The Boy is looking behind him now, "WHERE?". The Mummy quickly turns the page and says "Here. Look. The big bear is here!"

More on Books

Attended the Asian Children's Writers and Illustrators Conference.

Met someone today whom I never thought I'd meet. Ho Minfong, the author of Sing to the Dawn. I read it when I was 14 years old! (The only other literature text I enjoyed was Harper Lee's To kill a Mockingbird)

Right now, I'm into books writted by Rohinton Mistry. His book A Fine Balance got me depressed and so, I went on to buy his other book, which I'm now reading called Tales from Firozsha Baag. I have the propensity for self inflicted mind torture as you can see. Had to convince myself that reading A Fine Balance and We need to talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver back to back was the combi that got me morosed.

Anyway, back to the conference. What did I learn?

(1) Our state libraries subscribe to certain standards. Books that fall out of these standards will never be acquired for the reading public.

Oh...he who does not read books is wondering when the lights can be turned off. Later...(the next morning)...Read an article featuring Ho Minfong in the papers. What a small world. Her brother, the successful businessman she talked about but did not name during her speech is none other than Ho Kwon Ping, founder and chairman of Banyan Tree Holdings. Attended his talk on entreprenuership some many years ago in NUS. Wow! Again. And now, back to what I have learnt....

(2) This is the normal ecosystem: Author => Agent => Publisher => Distributor => Bookseller => Reader

(3) This is how the monies are distributed through the ecosystem.

Bookseller 35-50%
Distributor 10-15%
Publisher 10-15%
Agent 10-15%
Printing 10-15%
Author (10)-25%

Yes, the author, unless very famous and very successful in the first place, makes no money at all. They are like algae. Responsible for sustaining the ecosystem but gets no recognition at all for their importance.

I have to take another break. Later... Back. From the book fair at Expo, beach and dinner with your YeYe. It's 10pm now

(4) Top 10 lists. In the UK, it's based on receipts from the till. In the US, it's based on the numbers sold to the booksellers (Meaning, all you need to do is print half a million books, ask Borders to stock them for a day and immediately, you become a bestseller.

(5) Books sell better if they come in a series. Harry Potter did not take off until Book #4. Think about it. Secret Seven, Famous Five, Mr Midnight...

(6) Manuscripts: If even you need to send them out, please remember to double space them. Otherwise, one more reason (if not the only) to not read them.

(7) Who influences book selection?

Recommendation from a friend 40%
Author 35%
Review 24%
Advertisement 14%
Promotion 5%
Book Club 4%

(8) Pictograms & Infographics. This is very important in children's books. The combination of words and pictures needs to be balanced properly.

(9) Graphic Novels are becoming more and more popular.

(10) In Singapore, don't expect to sell more than two to three thousand books per title. And going by this example, the 'Teenage Textbook', which sold about fifty thousand copies during it's heyday, is considered a phenomenal success.

Penguin books sale!!!!!!!!!!!

19 Nov: I thought I was in Vivo city! There was this book fair, a furniture fair and a food fair all side by side and the whole of Singapore must have made at least one trip here this weekend. It was packed! Bought half a dozen books for you, two for myself, some dark soya sauce and some potato chips.

Zoooooooooooooooooooupppppppp!

Did you see that?

The island of Sodor

GG: YY, where did you go just now?
YY: Park
GG: Huh? Where?
YY: Island of Sodor
Mummy *did I hear what I heard?*
GG: *a little hard of hearing* Where???
Mummy: The island of Sodor!
YY *shy smile*
GG: What?
Mummy: The island of Sodor. That's where all the train engines live.
YY *My mummy gets it!*
GG: Huh?
Mummy: *Hahhaha!!!* YY, say Goodnite GG.
YY: *grinning from ear to ear* Goodnite GG!


BTW, this was where we went...

Another reason not to buy rubber clogs...CROCS?

"3-year-old Shiyr Chong had her big toe ripped off after her rubber clog got caught in the gap on the escalator at Admiralty Place Mall....While experts say the type of footwear generally does not play a part, 'soft shoes' made of rubber are more likely to be caught in the gaps, compared to 'harder' ones." ~ extracted from Channel NewsAsia

2 little monkeys on a swing

Chaos & Creation. Why don't penguins feet freeze?

Watched 3 inflight movies enroute to London. They were ClICK (Adam Sandler), THE LAKE HOUSE (Sandra Bullock, Keanu Reeves) & THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA (Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway).

Funny. They were like a trilogy to me. All of them had their theme centered around career fulfillment & family life. Forget about balance. There's only 24 hours in a day. 1 hour put on this side will mean that that same hour is taken away from that side. Bleak.

The only groovy thing from these movies was the song "This never happened before". Love it. Must get it.

Found the soundtrack in HMV. It was going for 24 pounds I kid you not! Crazy. But now at least the music ignoramus knows that it was Paul McCartney who wrote & sang that song. Ok. Maybe his album will be cheaper? Aahaa! There! 'Chaos & Creation in the Backyard', eh...13 pounds!?! Well well well. No thank you. Go back then buy.

Bought this silly but interesting book titled 'Why don't penguins feet freeze' instead.

3 examples from the 114 more questions found in this book:

(1) Most substances melt when heated, so why does my scrambled egg turn frpm liquid to solid as I cook it?

(2) Why does a biscuit that is left in the open overnight become soft by the morning but a baguette left out for the same length of time become so hard that one could knock someone with it?

(3) Please read the this sentence and count the Fs:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE-
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIF-
IC STUDY COMBINED WITH
THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS.

How many did you see? On first reading, most people see only three. However, the answer is actually six. Why is this?

Clubs, Blades and Walking the 4-Wheeled Monster

Last weekend, we got you some golf clubs - or at least borrowed some for you. The boy who lent them to us was a 7 year old boy named Gerard, who is the son of one of your Papa's ex colleague. You spent some time in his room watching him play with his Pokemon chips. Quietly. ***QUIETLY!!!***a rarity these days***

Yesterday, we went to Pasir Ris park. Again, there were kids belonging to your Papa's circle. This time, 2 girls. A 6 year old named Alicia and a 9 year old named Amelia.


These kids definitely match your energy levels better than us old ones. Could see you enjoyed their company a lot. I also realised kids 6 years old and above are much much better at playing the 'leaders' role. They are less competitive & also more generous with young ones like you. Gerard gave you 2 Pokemon magnets and 4 Pooh bear stickers. The girls shared their milo biscuits with you willingly.

Walking the Bicycle



I really want to laugh at you. You looked 'pissed' when the bicycle refused to budge like a stubborn dog.

Oops! ***Hahhaaa!

Todd-out

Lockout: the temporary closing of a business or the refusal by an employer to allow employees to come to work until they accept the employer's terms.

Todd-out: the temporary self imposed enclosure or the refusal by a toddler to allow adults to enter until such times as when the toddler figures out how to unlock himself from enclosure or when a locksmith is engaged.

9:15pm
Todd-out #1. Toddler locks himself in a room. Everyone rushes to the door. Toddler turns the lock and manages to unlock the door. Comes out grinning from ear to ear, basking in the attention of 4 adults (1 set of parents + 1 set of grandparents).

9:25
Todd-out #2. Toddler manages to lock himself in a 2nd time. This time, toddler is not so lucky. Turns the lock but cannot get the door to open. Starts alternating between screaming for help and laughing. Laughs gleefully when someone on the other side tries to open the door. Zero signs of toddler panicking. Adults gives toddler instructions. Toddler tries to follow, then screams "Cannot! Ah Mah! Mummy! Cannot!" Adults gets tired of waiting for the toddler to unlock the door. Ah Kong the locksmith is engaged. Door Opens. Toddler tries to hide behind opened door and laughs when discovered.

Note: FIND ALL THE KEYS TO ALL THE DOORS IMMEDIATELY AND PLACE THEM IN AN ACCESSIBLE PLACE.

Flashback: 1970s. Girl ,4 or 5 years old. Locks herself inside a room in her Uncle's flat. In those days, the locks are box shaped and comes with a tiny latch and a round knob. The latch is rusty and stiff. Girl trys to prey the latch open. Fails. Girl screams for help. Gets a scolding first and then was given instructions on how to unlock the door. Girls know how it work but latch refuses to give way. There is no key. Girl tries to figure out how much of a trouble she'll be in when she does get out. Someone outside figures out how to unlock the door. Clever! There are glass window louvers above the door. Glass panes are removed one by one from its aluminium brackets. Boy cousin is lifted and squeezed through the gap. Boy cousin gets inside the room! Door opens. Girl is freed! Girl gets more scolding on the spot. Back home. Girl receives a thrashing.

Tampopo Cot

While waiting for a table at Tampopo (Liang Court #B1-50), you asked, "the food go round and round? BY take take take??" We had conveyor belt sushi some time back. Eh... 2-3 weeks ago? Was pleasantly surprised that you still remember something from so long ago.

We ordered:
**Fried Silver Fish
*****Black Pig Ramen
***Gyoza with Black Pig
*****Kyushu Ramen
*Teriyaki Cod
Bill: $50+

The Ramen was especially delicious and you loved the Kyushu version, polishing up everything that we put into your bowl.

Cot
Finally retired it to the storeroom today. Doesn't make sense having it there if you won't sleep on it, even after we've converted it into a junior bed. Every night is like merry-go-round. We have a King size divan bed with 2mattresses on the floor flanking it. Each night, all 3 of us, we'll take turns sleeping on at least 2 of them. When it gets too crowded on the divan, one of us (either your Papa or I or sometimes the both of us) will have to take refuge on the mattress. Sometimes, you'd follow suit and then someone has to get up and back onto the divan. It's a nocturnal circus! *sigh*

"Bicycling"

One hippo, Sixpoopoos & some scotchtape please!

Me: Hippopotamas
Son: Hipotamas
Me: Hi-PO-PO-tamas
Son: Hi-PO-tamas
Me: Hi-PO-PO. 2 times PO-PO then tamas ok?
Son: HiPOOOOOOOOOOOOOtamas!!! OK?
*SIGH*

6 times! you POO-ED 6 times today! How can any toddler be so full or s**t? One piece fell out while we were in the hawker centre and a fly promptly went for it.
Son: Mummy, housefly eat BY's shit.
*FAINT*

Later, at East Coast Park, you picked up a humongous fallen branch and tried to put it back, sticking it inside the crevices of the tree trunk.
Me: What are you doing?
Son: Repairing the tree!
Me: Huh??
A while later, frustrated by many unsuccessful attempts...
Son: Mummy!
Me: What?
Son: You got scotch tape?
*HAHhhAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaa!!!*

Charity on wheels

Swung by a thrift shop on the way home today and found a bike going for $20. It looked new! There was not a single spot of rust on it. Then, they offered me a carrot I couldn't resist. Hari Raya & Deepavali holiday special. 20% discount! So, there! Paid $16, lugged the darn thing to the boot and drove home as fast as I could.

Situation, Consequence & Solution

M: Eh Papa, your son very smart leh.
P: What do you mean?
M: He can state the situation, the consequence and then the solution to it all in one breath.
P: Like?
M: No shoes, cannot walk, Mummy carry!
P: Chey!

Face-Off with the Old Man

Scene #1: Toys all over the floor.

Bigone - BY! Keep your toys!
Littleone - *ignore*
Bigone - BY! Keep your toys!
Littleone - *throws 2 pieces into the box
Bigone - Some more over there
Littleone - *tries to walk away
Bigone - No, keep your things first!
Littleone - Don't WANT!
Bigone - Do you want to face the wall?
Littleone - OK!
Bigone - You want to face the wall?!!!?
Littleone - YES!
Bigone - *proceeds to make you face the wall
Littleone - NO!
Bigone - Then keep your toys!
Littleone - *trapped
Bigone - *silent
Littleone - *sits on the floor, pretends to play with the toys
Bigone - *silent

10minutes later
Littleone - *lying on the floor, fingering the toys
Bigone - *still watching you

Another 5 minutes later
Littleone - *falls asleep lying on the floor
Bigone - *huge sigh, picks up littleone and puts littleone to bed

CYC

Went to the tailor at Raffles Hotel Arcade with your Papa. Your old man hasn't got a new business shirt in years. Yes, years! He had like a dozen tailored while he was working in Thailand between 2000-03 and then, that was it!

Prices at CYC for a men's business shirt starts at $90. We chose one that costs him $127. It's not too bad, considering that you old man wears them for an average of 4-5 years... we can amortise them at $32/year. =P

I think he got a bit overwhelmed by the fuss. He told me later that in Thailand, you choose the material, they take your measurements and off they go to make the shirt. Here, he was asked what kind of pleats he wanted on the back, collar stiffness, 1 or 2 buttons on the cuff, the type for initial embroidery, button color, pocket and so on. The lady was pretty good with her recommendations. All we did was just nod like bumpkins.

So, in about 10 days, we get to collect The Shirt - a cream colored one with a slight tinge of pink ( the in color now leh!) which by the way, according to the expert, matches his skin tone perfectly!

Vivo City

Checked out Vivo City today. Itched all over as a result. Must be allergic to the dust. The building is pretty much completed, as least from the looks of it from the inside. But about 30-40% of the tenants are still busy setting up. *Scratch*

First shop I saw was Crocs. They are UGLY! I can't fathom how they can invade this city of non-boaters so succesfully. They come in such psychedelic colors, it brightens up nothing but ankles, no, nothing but itself and dulls everything except say just maybe, on rare occasions, the sun in the tropics. It's a visual pollution! *Urgh*

Noticed a couple of new clothing stores for kids - Gap & Pumpkin Patch.

And oh, there's Free Parking! Or maybe I just happened to be lucky?

Thumb Drives

Found this picture in a thumbdrive which I haven't used for a long long long time....

Height Predictor

Works for kids over 2 years old. Height Predictor

"Thanks for using our calculator!Your son will likely be 6 feet, 2 inches tall at age 18. This prediction is a "best guess" but it's still just that -- a guess. Based on the formula we used,* there's a 58 percent chance your son's full-grown height will be within 1 inch (above or below) of this prediction, an 85 percent chance it will be within 2 inches, and an 96 percent chance it will be within 3 inches." ~ParentCentre~

Wahhh......that's 188 cm! And there's a 96% chance you'd fall between 5ft9 (175cm) and 6ft5 (196cm)

The Big Man: He will grow taller than you!
Me: I will still drag him down to my 164cm height for a big kiss and hug!

Golf

Showed your Papa these videos last night and he got very excited.
A Toddler Prodigy Golfer
Tyler Stock 2 year old Golfer

Looks like we're going shopping for junior clubs soon!

act3

Signed you up for drama classes. They are already in the midst of Term4 so we have to wait till January.

"Drama helps children explore their creative potential through story telling, role-play, movement, and improvisation. In our belief to develop children to their fullest potential through Drama, we encourage both vocal and physical expression. Drama is very participatory and develops in the child a sense of self-awareness and confidence. Prose, poetry, music, puppetry, masks and a range of other creative elements are used to set the imagination free." ~act3~

Teochew Speaking? Check

Your Papa's been speaking to you in Teochew recently. Last night, out the blue, you counted 1-10 in Teochew unprompted. Getting the intonations of #2 and #5 exactly right. He was so proud of you!

Nasi Padang

We cycled to Lot1 for lunch today. Got this window seat with a perfect view of the LRT & MRT trains going to and fro the stations. You wanted "mian". I ordered some but you ended up eating Papa's Nasi Padang instead. Yes, rice with vegetable curry gravy and a some fried sambal long beans with beancurd. Definitely tastier than creamy spaghetti with grilled fish huh? Wasn't it spicy or were you so distracted by the trains that anything goes?

Today is also the last day before I go back to work after a 2 and a half week break, to look after you whilst your grandparents are away holidaying - their first since you were born.

Had a busy 2 weeks. We attended a playgroup trial, went to the zoo twice, attended a wedding, made pizza, 2 trips to the PD, 1 trip to see a chinese physician at Eu Yan Sang, toured the university, played in various playgrounds around Singapore (Zoo, Bishan park, CCK, West Coast, East Coast...etc) and watch some videos - mostly Thomas & Friends vcds.

Where again?

Sakae Sushi

Stucked at home after visiting the PD on Sunday. Or at least until today when the weather was less hazy, less polluted and less hazardous. You had one more of those runny nose turned vicious phlegmy lung choking aka asthma episode over the weekend.

Went to Sakae Sushi for dinner tonight. You went crazy over the action that was going on at the conveyor belt. Of the 12 plates of food that we lifted off the belt, 9 was managed by you alone. At some point, you became very restless and demanded, "Do you want this?" repeatedly. Each plate that went by without us nodding that you could take it was the biggest disappointment in the world. Can you imagine? A toddler shouting on the top of his voice at the rate of 90 repetitions/min? ( this should be the approximate rate the owners of Sakae Sushi set the conveyor belt to, so as to deliver this many plates past the diner every minute. If I'm wrong, it's the toddlermeter's fault!)

Calories ingested by toddlermeter...Eh, I'm not sure. Anyone care to make an estimate on this? => 4 pieces of Ebi Nigiri, a spoonful of Chawamushi, about 25 Edamame beans and a mouthful of Okonomiyaki. Doesn't sound like much huh? You worked so hard at feeding your parents with the plates of plates of food that you fell asleep on your Papa's shoulder even before we got back to the car.

BTW, Sakae Sushi! Your food is surprisingly better this time around but eh... your jingle is totally unbearable. __(",)

Thomas Stamp

Thank you Auntie Victoria and Auntie Melissa for the Thomas Choo Choo Train Stamp! I love it so much, I want to eat it up!

3 million a year

Today is a special day! We attended your Uncle's (Papa's cousin) wedding in the afternoon and then in the evening, I attended your Granduncle's (Ah Mah's brother) 50th wedding anniversary celebrations. Alone. Didn't bring you along for the dinner because you were not well.

Anyway, it's not everyday that you get to attend both a wedding and a 50th wedding anniversary celebration.

This afternoon, when the solemniser pronouced them " man and wife ", I started protesting!

Mummy: "What? man and wife? Why not husband and wife? You mean the man can continue to be a man while the woman must become a wife? / Papa: *grinning* Of course! Mummy: WHAT THE **** ???

By the way, there must be hope in this conspiracy... Hallmark has recorded selling almost 3 million 50th wedding anniversary cards in a year before.

Making Pizza

Snitched this photo off A's blog. I didn't take any. Anyway, this is what we did today - make pizza! Basically we prepared the ingredients (cheese, pineapple, peas, ham, sausages and cherry tomatoes) and you little ones put them together.

You had your fingers burnt by the oven tray. You didn't listen when I told you not to touch it. I was so angry with you! Started scolding you for not listening to me whilst rushing you to the sink so that I can put your hand under the tap. Luckily, you were not hurt badly. Your fingers didn't get cooked and there weren't any ugly blisters. *Phew!*

Which reminds me. I was having a chat with your Papa about 'finger foods' when we noticed you looking intently at your own fingers. When you licked one of them, we fell out of our chairs laughing!

Mousing around with Papa:

Safra Toa Payoh Indoor Playground

Good place to go if it's raining and it was raining today!

Rates for non-peak hours, which are weekdays between 1-6pm are $2 for members and $3 for non-members. Rates for peak hours (weekends/PH) are $3 & $5 respectively. Socks are compulsory.

So today, we spent $3.20 on the ticket, $2.50 on socks, $3.50 for a plate of mushroom omelette with fries and $6.40 for parking. Yikes! That's $15.60 in total!

Playgroup Trial

Duh, happily sent you to this playgroup trial this morning without knowing that we had to pay $30 if you don't sign up. Their fees are $275 per month for a 2.5 hr session 5 days a week.

It goes like this: Warm up/ play with toys in the room/ keep them - Gym - Story time - wash hands/ eat/ clean up - art and craft - flash cards/ music - wear shoes/ go home.

I think you enjoyed gym tremendously and also the noodles...you asked for a 3rd helping and I had to stop them from giving it to you. The rest of the time was a complete disaster. 6 toddlers in a room. All with minds of their own. What a nighmare!

So, goodbye $30!

NTU

Bing Yang goes to the Nanyang Technological University! Snapped a photo of you seated on the steps of the Chinese Heritage Centre.

We must show this to Ah Mah when she comes back from her holiday in China. Chey, no need go all the way to china to see chinese architecture. Singapore also got!

Memory Game

We tried this online game and after a couple of rounds, you caught the gist of how it is meant to be played and we would play like half a dozen 'easy' and half more dozen 'medium' games before I lose patience and shout for someone to come along and take you away so that I can continue working on my laptop.

Bought this box of Thomas the tank engine memory cards for you - found them in Peter Jones. Verdict? The online one is better for my sanity. There's no chance of you losing any online cards and I don't have to crawl under the bed to get them back for you.



Just found out there are like 103 different Thomas the tank engine and friends characters!

I also bought something from Hamleys for you - the Thomas AquaDraw. It's really interesting. All you do is fill the roller with water and draw the rails on the mat. The engine will automatically follow the railway tracks. Quite fun. Just that you have no patience for it to find his way back when it goes off track. You'd physically lift Thomas up and slam him back down to wherever you think he should be. We fear for his senses...i mean, sensor. (",)

Day Out with Thomas

August 2008. We'd be there!

Housing dilemma

We resumed our home search this weekend and saw 6 apartments on Sunday alone.

Asking prices ranged from $520K for a freehold unit at Ballota Park to $1.7mil for an astonishing beautiful 3 bedroom sea view unit at Makena along Meyer road.

Your dad liked the one in Bedok Court. Asking price is $680k. It's huge, has 3 bedrooms, a huge courtyard, 2 balconies and full facilities. But it's also more than 20 years old, in original condition and on a 99 year lease. Even if we could negotiate it down to $600k, cough up the 20% for downpayment, we still need to find another $60-100K to make the place liveable.

So how?

I came up with an idea that'll "bring the house down" literally. Can we extend our living space by building a 4th floor on top of your grandparents 3 storey terrace house? That way, we'd get space for another 2 bedrooms and maybe also a roof terrace (hopefully lightning proof) for BBQs and it wouldn't cost us more than $100k to do that.

How's that?

Buy money!

BY: Got money?
Mummy: No, no money.
BY: Mummy! Buy money?
Mummy: ???!?

Hmm...how to buy money?
Buy toto lor!
Aiyah, how else?
Spent $4.50 yesterday betting.
Eyeing today's $1.5 mil pot!

(",)

A dry diaper!!!!!!!!!!!

You kept your diaper dry through the night! A first!

Snapshots

A poem

My Little Butterfly

I saw you yesterday in the woods
Fluttering here are there
I turned and walked the other way

You caught up with me
And teased me with your bring and colorful wings
I continue to walk

It became a game
But I knew you were not far behind
You played while I walked

We've had brief conversations
I told you the world wasn't kind
You laughed and so I thought you'd stay

Then today I was stopped and told to look around
Far away, I saw your wings on the ground
I didn't know I had left you behind

I'm sorry my little one
I never meant to walk on without you
And I hope you had not thought so

I would have carried you
Or given you my shoulder to rest on
It's true

And so I pray
I will see you again
Someday in someplace nice

Check this out!

Potty Training? Nah! No need!

About a week ago, you indicated that you didn't want to wear your diapers. Ah Mah said ok, and told you to tell her, if you wanted to shee-shee or poo-poo so she can bring you to the toilet. After a couple of days with some minor accidents, you're now in perfect control! There are no more strange puddles to be found in the house for the last couple of days. Hurray!

Now, you only need diapers when you go to sleep or when we bring you out. You're so good at it that yesterday, when you came out of the toilet and announced to everyone that you had just 'shee-sheed' once again in the toilet, nobody bothered to cheer, clap and dance or give you big hugs and kisses and loads of praise. Hahahah. It's terrible. We adults are really a hard lot to satisfy.

Am really proud of you. You just decided when you didn't want diapers all by yourself. No training required!

*MUAK!*

Train Birthday Cake

This is a very lazy way of making a 3D train cake. Bought 3 Sara Lee pound cakes and a tub of Betty Crocker ready made chocolate frostings. Started cutting and shaping the pound cakes into a train and slapped a layer of frostings all over it. Was not very good with the frostings. The cake had a lot of details that were lost after the chocolate went over it. Overall, it was still very impressive to you and you loved it! Kept checking to see if it was safe on the front seat while on the way to Spizza for dinner. The eyes and nose, made with mini oreos and smarties were happily eaten up by the birthday boy...(",)

Another stay at the hospital.

18/08/2006
Originally uploaded by eggsnchicks.

3 nights, 19 ventolin nebulizer +3 chest physiotherapy sessions & $2,293.36 later, you are back home and on your feet.

Doctor says you had a severe asthmatic attack. Not much more information is given. We ask how do we prevent you from getting another? The answer is, we have to see if you have any future attacks in order to predict the pattern or cause. Wha piang. No way my little old man!

I bought a book called 'What your doctors may not tell you about children's allergies and asthma - simple steps to help stop attacks and improve your child's health'

On the home front, we got plenty of advice. Eat crocodile meat! Don't eat anything cold, no ice-creams, any cold drinks with ice, even fresh milk from the refrigerator!. No oranges, limes, bananas or pomelo. No swimming in the mornings and must make sure you are chest deep in water if you do go in the afternoons. No catching chills, meaning no bathing with cold water, make sure you are not in sweaty clothes when there's wind, no cottony pillows, bolsters or comforters in the bedroom. Oh, 1 tsp of bird's nest daily and go see a chinese physician for more advice and nourishing concoctions like chinese pear soup with "chuan pei" and lean meat.

We're going to do EVERYTHING we have to. It's really not much fun seeing a little boy so exhausted by wheezing, he falls asleep sitting up, on the couch.

Child's Pose

14/08/2006
Originally uploaded by eggsnchicks.

Stones rock!

Sentosa Island

08/2006
Originally uploaded by eggsnchicks.

Mummy: Wha...I was just pointing out to Yinglin how well endowed that teenager in the skimpy bikini is when she started talking to Bing Yang!
Papa: Ya... and she adjusted his pants somemore. You didn't put it on properly for him.
Mummy: What? Waaaaaaa...he's starting young hor?
Papa: You mean he can attract big breasted ladies arh? better than his papa huh?
Mummy: Ya lor.
Papa starts laughing..***eh? wait a minute!*** Mummy starts pounding Papa with her two fists!!!

Another weekend

08/2006
Originally uploaded by eggsnchicks.

I quite enjoy bringing you out alone nowadays.

You seated safely in the car seat and me driving. For some reason, when otherwise you would have screamed, kicked and cried murder, you don't protest being buckled down when it's only just you and me in the car.

It's usually a very short drive, to somewhere with lots of space near our house.

Last friday evening, it was to the club. We had some sort of a conversation on the way there and back and you enjoyed the jaunt on the putting green, wedging your head between 2 chairs and watching the big guys swing their clubs in the driving range and playing catch with a seven year old boy in the indoor playgound.