Shannon AND Lauren - Best Sisters

We're Off for A Last Binge Trip! Taiwan Part 2 - WOC, Leofoo & Weichuan Pushin Ranch

2011-11-20T06:52:00.014+08:00

7th November 2011

After a whirlwind of activities for the past 3 days (was it 3 days already?), we packed our luggage, and bid a very sad farewell to Hotel QUOTE in the morning.

We hired two taxis and spent about 1 hour on the road, heading to Hsinchu. Our destination? Windows on China, the famous miniatures park, where we could see the leaning tower of Pisa, Great Wall of China, Stonehenge and other historical buildings, all miniatures of course.

We arrived on a slightly gloomy, drizzling late morning, dumped our luggage at the customer services counter and proceeded into the park. The miniatures are all very well done, with intricate details craved into the buildings, though the weather had taken a toll on them.

We took the miniature train to the amusement rides section of the park, and the kids started to go crazy!

We first sat on the river boat ride, taking in more sights of the miniature buildings, and got warmed up. It was followed up with the mini Ferris wheel for the kids, then the vertical lift and drop ride, which even Lauren sat and giggled hysterically each time the ride dropped!

After that they ran to sit the log trains, then the mini Viking, and after that the crazy jeep rides which they went round the track 3 times.

We then took a break and sat the huge Ferris wheel, taking in the sights and beautiful scenery from the cabins. It was windy and cold but it was also serene and peaceful….

And after that, what’s there but more rides again!

But the biggest surprise was the roller coaster ride, which ALL the kids loved, even Lauren! It was a small but very fast roller coaster ride, and all of them clambered on board sat on it for at least 5 times! They each took turn sitting in the front, and switched seats after each ride, laughing with joy, so that was the highlight of the park for them. J After a quick lunch (again!) at the café, we headed to the indoor section where they sat on mini-bumper cars, and wandered through the indoor playground very much like Go Go Bambini.

By 430pm, the park closed and we meandered through the vast park and out the exit. We collected our luggage and asked the customer Service Officer to help get us 2 cabs as our next destination was Leofoo Resort, a safari-themed resort sum amusement park about a 5min ride away. Only 1 cab arrived though and by then it was getting dark and chilly. The lights at the park switched off and the place turned a little sinister, making the dads a little worried. We bundled all the kids into the cab and the women headed off to the Resort first, leaving the men there to wait for the 2nd ride.

Upon arriving at Leofoo Resort, we checked-in at the reception while the kids wandered out to stare in wonder at the animal enclosures right outside the hotel balconies.

Leofoo Resort is known for their unique hotel rooms directly facing safari animals’ enclosures. The hotel property is set in a huge ‘U’, and in the middle is a large paddock with giraffes, zebras, antelope, a group of flamingos in a shallow pond and 2 really big rhinos. Set slightly apart, is a lemur island where a big family of lemurs live, and in the stream, a garble of ducks.

Sounds cruel? Hmm, I guess to hardcore animal activists, it may appear so, but the animals appear very probably cared for, with healthy coats and premium feed for their food. We also spotted a 1 week old baby in the small family of zebras, and baby lemurs hanging on to their moms, so the animals must be happy and well-settled down enough to breed :) The hotel also took special care to outfit windows with reflective glass, so the animals were oblivious to all the spectators gawking at them.

We checked-into our rooms which was really spacious with 1 double and 2 single beds, for 4 of us. At teh end of the room, was the window. We tried to look out for the animals wandering next to our windows, but it was too dark, so we gave up and headed out for dinner at the hotel restaurant before turning in for the night.

8th November 2011

A bright and early morning – the moment we woke up the first thing we did was open the curtains to our hotel room window and woah, we were looking at natural animal behaviour at its best... You could see the animals up close, meandering about and going about their early morning activities.

We saw the flamingos preening their feathers, and dunking in their heads with their scooped beaks, fishing for food. We saw the giraffe wander by our window and gaze on the foliage left in containers on tall poles by their keepers, we saw the playful baby zebra play tag with its parents and galloping at break-neck speed around the paddock! And we saw the lazy rhinos wallow in the thick mud and snooze in the early morning sun. I plunked the girls on stools facing the window and left them there, totally mesmerised by the sight while preparing for our day.

We headed to the hotel for the breakfast buffet before grabbing our gear and heading out to the free shuttle bus to Leofoo Amusement park, just 2 min away.

The park was fairly quiet, which was great for us J There were groups of school children on excursion, but other than that, there was only a handful of people around. Divided into 5 parts, Leofoo amusement park is a sprawling and vast area covering 5 different ‘world’s, similar to Disneyland: The animals Safari section, The Western Americas section, the Middles East Section, and the Fantasy world section, and the wet park section, which is closed during winter months.

We headed to the animals Safari section first, where the children got to feed the ponies with carrot stick, pet the sheep and goats, see the orang utans, and lastly ride the miniature horses, something which Lauren did happily.

After that, we boarded the train for a ride out to see Buffalo, giraffes, geese, Hippos, wildebeests, mountain goats, and other animals. The herds of these animals were huge! There were numbers ranging between 20 – 50 and they had a lot of space to rest and move around, and breed, judging by the large numbers.

The children then headed off for another round of rides, spinning roller coasters, galloping horse and carriage ride, carousel, flying carpet ride, another carousel, scenic boat ride, the Viking, which saw all of us laughing at a giggling Lauren.

The cherry on top of the cake? The riverboat plunge that saw our TIMID Shannon urging her Daddy to go on it with her! It’s basically a river boat ride that brings you to the top of TWO mountains before plunging you down two ravines, one higher than the other, complete with water splashing, and almost guaranteeing you wet clothes. Shannon enjoyed it so much that they went on it again, surprising Mal and me, you mean this is our shy and timid girl???

Wendy and I also indulged in the scary adult rides, such as the 360 degrees CIRCULAR ride where you sit in a train which brings you 360 degrees round, and leaves you dangling upside down, the HUGE Viking ship (my favourite ride), and Freefall ride, which was so fast we were not prepared at all! One moment we were looking at the beautiful scenery at the top and the next, we were freefalling to the ground, so fast I think we left our hearts at the top!

But the scariest of all the rides was the screaming condor, a massive ‘U’ shaped ride, with an underground tunnel in the middle of the U. We get strapped in, with feet dangling, and we were hurtled at neck-breaking speed to the top of one end of the U, spiralling around the way. Once at the top, we hurtle back to the ground again, backwards this time, and back Up the sky again at the top of the other end of the “U’, and then to top it all off, we freefall back down again, back through the underground tunnel and back up again to the other end. This goes on for 4 more times before the ride stops. At the end of the ride, Wendy and I looked at each other and burst out laughing – our hair was literally standing out straight at the sides, the effect of the intense force of the wind!

While we the daredevil moms were playing with our lives, the responsible dads bought the kids to one of the park's ice-cream parlours to distract them and treat them to ice-cream.

Mal asked the kids to do 'Angry Face', 'Sad Face', and 'Happy Face!'

Alfred managed to get the bakers there to prepare a birthday cake in record time and sneaked it out without letting Wendy’s Mom see it, as it was her birthday! By the time we walked out of the park, it was deserted with only a handful of staff clearing up and heading home as well. The resort staff picked us up and sent us back to the hotel for a quick shower, birthday celebration, dinner and then its lights out!

9th November 2011
Shannon and I woke up really early and it was a very cold and rainy day today. We got bundled up in warm clothes and headed out to snap a few nice shots of the animals and of the resort before heading off to breakfast.

The kids headed off to the kid’s playroom for a while, while the dads packed up our luggage. Our last stop for this trip – Weichuan Pushin Ranch.

We left leofoo and headed to Weichuan in rainy weather. Weichuan Pushin Ranch is a commercial ranch which allows visitors to get up close on the workings of a cow farm. Weichuan supplies about 40% of the milk in the local Taiwan market, though the actual farm is not located here but elsewhere.

This vast farm sees many visitors during weekends, and there are pig races, sheepdog handling demonstrations, sheep wrangling, as well as cow milking activities. Besides free milk, and ice-cream, There is also a lake where you can boat, and you can also try our hand at soap making!

Alas, the weather did not cooperate with us, and it was raining and raining and raining when we arrived! It rained the whole day, and with the gusty wind blowing rain into our faces, it turned horribly cold. We managed to let the kids try their hand at making milk soap, and we managed to reach the barns to see the baby calves, mother cows, ponies and pigs, but that was about it.

We headed back to our chalet, and prepared for a night of bbq.

The customer Service officer was nice enough to allow us to bbq right at our veranda, and she sent a handyman to help to blow torch (yup you got it right, blowtorch!) our charcoal and fire starters to get the fire going. That was the quickest I have ever seen a bbq fire get going!

We couldn’t finish the heap of food we got in the meal package! Two packs of fish, 1 pack of pork, 1 pack of sausages,1 pack of Taiwan sausages, 1 pack of meat and fish balls, 1 pack of beef, 1 pack of chicken, 2 packs of rice cakes, 1 pack of mushrooms, 1 big green lantern capsicum, 1 pack of sweet potatoes, 1 pack of corn, and 1 bottle of coke, complete with a bottle of bbq seasoning sauce, black pepper sauce, and butter!

But it was great bbqing in the cool evening, sitting around the living room, eating and watching TV, haha!

The night temperature dropped to 20 with gusty winds and rain, and we switched off the air-conditioning in the house. I dressed the girls in two layers of pyjamas, and covered them with a thick quilt blanket before letting them settle down for the night.

10th November 2011

After a simple breakfast, we headed to the travellers shop and stocked up on milk sweets before leaving the ranch for the plane ride back to Singapore. We arrived at the airport very early, and wandered around the transit area until it was nearly time to take off, only to be told that the plane was delayed for 1/2hour. We then walked around some more and finally boarded the plane. And once on the lane, more bad news, Taoyuan Airport had closed all but 1 of its runways and now there was a jam of planes waiting for clearance to taxi off and depart off that single runway. The pilot announced that we would be stuck on the tarmac for another 2 hours! It was really lucky that we were onboard a SQ plane, and the crew turned on their in-flight entertainment system for us so the kids could stay entertained!

We touched down in Singapore close at 830pm, 2&½ hours past our original arrival time, whew!

We're Off to Taiwan for A Last Binge! Part 1 - Taipei 101, Babyboss, Danshui, Pingxi

2011-11-13T00:40:00.030+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy!

This year will mark the end of Shannon's kiddy years and the start of her Primary School life. While it is a rite of passage for all children in Singapore, it fills me with a little apprehension and lots of excitement. We really wanted to bring the family for a fun-filled holiday during the 'off-peak' season for one last time before we are forced to join the main stream tourists heading for jam-packed pricy holidays in either March, June, Sept, or December, YUCKS! So we are off to Taiwan for a LAST BINGE TRIP!! :)

And this time, Wendy and family are joining us, hurray!

4th November 2011

We reached the airport bright and early at 630am, thanks to trusty Seeni and his Maxicab. The girls were excited and after meeting up with Wendy, Alfred, Ben and Ethan and their Ah-ma, we headed off to the airplane for an uneventful SQ flight to Taipei.

The SQ air stwardess serving us was great, she was friendly, helpful and really good with the kids, thank you Ms Chang Yun Chan! Thumbs up to SQ for having this good air stewardess, its rare to see such good service nowadays!

We arrived in Taoyuan airport at about 1pm and headed to Hotel Quote, Taipei, in two taxis. The journey was uneventful and we arrived at the hotel about 2pm+. Due to a screw-up with the travel agents, we have had to change hotel plans 3 times before we finally got a confirmation with Hotel QUOTE, so it was a relief to see that the rooms was up to and even beyond our expectation.

This hotel is part of the SLH (Small Luxury Hotel) brand, like the former Beaufort Sentosa, and the hotel sure didn’t disappoint! It did not have a swimming pool, and with only about 40 over rooms, the breakfast area was really tiny. But the staff at the hotel were extremely friendly and helpful and our rooms was great! We had to pay an upgrade fee to move from a single superior room to 2 rooms connected by a common main doorway, as the hotel does not provide extra beds or baby cots. But it was well worth the extra cost as the rooms were luxurious with free wifi, a iPod docking station, high quality bedding, well-appointed bathrooms, plushy towels and bathrobes and oh sooo comfortable mattresses! Our main bedroom even had a smart & modern coffeemaker, and a tiny enclosed balcony!

All rooms in the hotel also enjoy unlimited minibar access, with the pantry drawer and fridge stocked up with Oreo cookies, chips, canned drinks and beer! The girls were thrilled with their own cosy room, with a king-sized bed, huge bathroom and a 36inch flat screen TV all to themselves. Lauren claimed the room by removing her shoes at the doorway and plunked herself onto the fluffy bed!

The staff also took the time to show us the 24hour lounge, equipped with coffee maker, cookies, M & Ms, nuts, biscuits, all kinds of chips, fruits, puddings, buns, cakes etc! The fridge was stocked with unlimited free flow of drinks (Milo, tea, juice, milk, fizzy soda), some in travel sized bottles, so we could just throw one into our bag for our daily travel! Kids Heaven!

That’s not all the lounge had – they had huge glass vases filled to the brim with free bath salts (I counted 6 vases, all filled with a different fragrance), disposable shavers with shaving cream, hair bands, Toothbrushes with toothpaste, shower caps etc. Whatever you see in a standard hotel bathroom, you can just grab a handful at the lounge... it’s that easy :) The manager explained that they wanted travellers to feel totally at ease in the hotel, and be able to get whatever they needed, much like their own home, hence the free accessibility :) Luckily they haven't met TOO many kiasu Singaporeans to withdraw thie compliementary service, cos' you all know what some SIngaporeans would do.... pour the contents of the whole vase into their suitcase!

So much for praise for the hotel! We finally settled down and freshened up before leaving the hotel at about 5pm to Taipei 101. We were hoping to catch a spectacular sunset as the sky was very clear that day, but little did we know that the sun set by 530pm everyday in the winter months! By the time we reached Taipei 101 at 6pm, it was totally darkness!

We braved the long queue of about 1 hour, and grabbed a quick dinner at one of the food courts in the shopping area before heading up again and gaining access to the top. The night view was a maze of endless twinkling nights, and we managed to get out to the outdoor observatory for a better view. Being so high up there, we could actually feel the building swaying with the wind, stabilised by the enormous damper (round metal ball) located in the centre of the top few floors.

After a quick descent in the world’s fastest lift, (20sec to travel 98 stories), we left Taipei 101 and headed to RaoHe Night market. The market was bustling with crowds and the smell of Taiwan sausages and smelly tofu was everywhere. We walked the streets and sampled the Taiwanese eats, XXL Chicken cutlets, Sausages, ice jelly, rice-cakes etc, all very yummy... but after a while the kids got whiney and we headed back to the hotel for a good night rest.

5th November 2011

We woke up early and had breakfast at the hotel before heading out to Babyboss. Babyboss is an indoor play area which is very unique in concept. Children enter into the play area at a fixed price, and when they enter this playground, they enter into a transformed ‘mini city’ with ‘shops’, ‘offices’, parks, and a ‘airport’ Kids can pick a profession and enter into these ‘shops’, get dressed in the profession, to learn to ‘work’. At the end of the 20 – 45min ‘work’ session, they get paid in babyboss currency. They can do as many professions as they wish and once time is up, they can head to the redemption shop to select items for purchase and pay with their babyboss money.

The kids started out very tentatively, they refused to try many professions, probably out of shyness. But once they started on the first one which was to be an architect, they warmed up very quickly. Outfitted in cure orange helmets, and grey vests, they shovelled sand and built building blocks in front of a construction site and got paid for their effort!

And after that, it was no stopping them! They went on to do Dentistry, where they brushed teeth models, and extracted loose teeth from a dummy patient (complete with dentist chair and lamp, and forceps thongs!).

Shannon and Ben then went on to be Dunkin Donuts staff and learned to glaze and decorate donuts, which they got to keep and eat!

After that, they were paramedics and got driven in an ambulance to aid an injured dummy, swapping iodine on its wounds, and placing him on a stretcher back to the emergency room.

And lastly, they donned on red helmets and became firemen, sliding down poles, and operating a miniature fire hose, complete with spouting water to put out orange fires (orange lights) in a warehouse!

And all this time, what was Lauren up to? She vehemently refused to take part in what the other kids were doing, and were content just to....

I find this picture of her looks like Taiwan's fast talking Matilda Tao! Any of you see the resemblance?

Armed with their hard-earned money, they exchanged them with stickers, and we left babyboss feeling totally satisfied!

We then headed to Danshui to see the Lover’s bridge with plans to have a good seafood dinner for once!

In a funny, twisted way, every friend who heard that we were heading to Taiwan would say ‘oh lucky you, good food in Taiwan!’ But the truth is, we either ate in food courts cos we just didn’t have time to go search for food, or just grabbed whatever was available then cos we were occupied (fries and nuggets at Babyboss cafe)! And the whole trip was like that.. I have vague impressions of some street streets, but no raving reviews of any famous eats on this trip! But I disgress...so we were almost desperate for a proper sit-down hearty Chinese meal!

We arrived Danshui too late to catch the sunset (again!) but we took some very beautiful pictures of Lover’s bridge. The reflection of the light of the bridge on the water presented a gorgeous photo opportunity, no wonder there were people camped out at the pier with complicated huge DSLR cameras and tripods!

We then headed to the seafood restaurant and bagged ourselves two live fish, live prawns, live crabs, vegetables and tofu dishes for only SGD $100 for all of us, 5 adults and 4 kids, not bad huh?

After that, it was a leisurely walk by the pier and playing with little street-bought plastic helicopters with blinking lights. The atmosphere was festively lively, and thongs of people walking by the shops and window shopping.

Little Mischievous Lauren did some window shopping of her own and the end result? While I didn't get a handbag I saw and coverted, SHE left Danshui with her very own Minnie Mouse Suitcase! The little monkey had been clambering after her own suitcase after seeing Shannon lugging her princess cloth bag on rollers, and had been pestering us for a Minnie Mouse one every time she sees one in Singapore.

As luck would have it, sitting squarely at the entrance of a shopping mall in Danshui, on the way to the toilet, was a gleaming red, Minnie mouse 20inch hard case, amidst all of the other dull and large suitcases. And as luck would have it, she WOULD pass by it, while waiting for her sister to come back from the toilet…. need I say more? *roll eyes*

6th November 2011 (Sunday)

Upon hindsight, if you would ask me what I could have done differently, I would have planned the Pingxi day trip either on a weekday, or rented a driver to take us there and back. Then we could have avoided the horribly jammed packed train and crowds and probably got in enough time to see Shifen as well. Oh well, next time!

Pingxi is a little quaint town where you can release sky lanterns into the sky, carrying away all your good wishes to the heavens above, but for us, it was more for the unique experience.

We headed out and changed trains in Taipei to get to Pingxi on this day. We left the hotel fairly early, but factoring in travel time, and changing trains, it was almost 11am by the time we arrived at Pingxi.

We sampled their unique shaved-peanut popiah wrapped ice-cream which was very delicious, and went searching for a shop selling sky lanterns.

We finally found one away from the crowds and selected a multi-coloured lantern which is supposed to represent different wishes. We then painted our good wishes on the sides of the lantern, much to the amusement of the locals I’m sure, as most of our wishes were in horizontal left-to-right English and not the traditional up-to-down mandarin! And we didn't know sooo many chinese characters! Wendy was smarter and used her phone to check on strokes, so in the end we copied a few from her family's lantern!

The shopkeeper then helped us bring the night lanterns to the bridge, and lit the oiled wad of paper at the bottom, sending heated warm air into the lantern and lifting it. At the count of 1-2-3, we let go of our lantern and watched it fly up into the sky, bearing all our good wishes.

After a simple chinese lunch of fried vegetable, tofu soup, eggs and hainanese chicken with rice, we squeezed aboard the crowded trains and headed back to our little blissfully peaceful hotel. I so wanted to stop at Shifen where the train tracks roll in between the pictureques village streets but it was getting late and dark, and the train was horribly crowded, so we didn't in the end.

En route back to the hotel in Taipei, Wendy stopped by a bakery and bought a Mango cake for a very special celebration, BEN'S BIRTHDAY! We headed back to their room, sang Happy birthday and cut the cake, much to the delight of the happy birthday boy.

We then opted for a late dinner at Outback (Haha, of all the food!) purely because it was just by the side of the hotel, and we just wanted a fuss free dinner. The food was up to the usual Outback standard though the servers couldn’t seem to get the varying doneness of the beef correctly. My medium rare steak (yup, I love my meat bloody!) came out well-done the first time, and the 2nd time, it was medium… They were however very helpful, polite and no request was to little. They also offered Ben, the birthday boy free dessert and threw in another complimentary slice of cake for us.

After a heavy and full dinner, we headed back to the hotel for the night.

Really A Fantasy World Where Dreams Come Through

2011-04-29T10:10:00.018+08:00

By Shannon and Lauren's Mommy:

A rare free time to myself, and what do I do? Blog our Hongkong Trip!

We had promised ourselves that we would bring the kids to Hongkong Disneyland before Shannon went to primary school. We didn;'t want to fight with the school crowds during school holidays and squeeze with everyone else, so after much debate and quick decision making, we booked a 5 Day 4Night stay in Hong Kong.

20th March 2011

We woke up really early to catch the 6.50am United Airline flight. To my dismay, Lauren woke up hot and feverish, what luck! We dosed her with Progesic and set off trying to find a 24hr clinic b4 heading off to the airport.

The flight was uneventful and the kids napped in the plane. For the price of a budget airline ticket, the flight was good value for money as they did dish out ample breakfast, abeit packed muffins and juice.

We reached Hongkong at about 11am, and I used my cousin, Jennifer's contact to get a cab to drive us to HK island, Harbour Grand Hotel, for only 200HK dollars.

We arrived to a clean and modern hotel and a nice room with a beautiful view of the habour. The room was smallish but there was space for a cot and and spacious writing table, plus a huge bathroom with bathtub and shower area.

Surreal view of HK harbour on a foggy day - beautiful!

After settling down, we walked around the hotel area and got a reocmmendation from the concierge for yummy dimsum. It was super crowded but the food was good and plentiful. And of course we stuck out like a sore thumb, showing ourselves to be forgieners when we did nothing but stare at the hot pot of water and large empty ceramic bowl being plunked infront of us by the busy and abrupt waiters. Only after we helped ourselves to the chinese tea, and looking at other tables did we realised the typical Hongkonger would place the tea cups in the ceramic bowl and wash it using the piping hot water, very much what we used to do in Singapore backstreet kopitams before the National cleaning campaign kicked in..opps, dead tourist giveaway :)

We had the usual siew mao, hao gao, and of course the siew yoke, which was a very generous serving, at only SGD $6, compared to the $20 you have to pay at home.

After a heavy lunch it was a leisurely walk back to the hotel and a pleasant look at everyday life in HK. Though the weather forecast showed temperatures of 17 to 21c, and all the Hongkongers we saw wore coats, sweaters and cardigians, I perspired walking back! But we enjoyed passing a HK version of a wet market, watching the vendor selling piping hot links of chinese sausages and roast pork and vegetables. We also drooled in front of a cake shop selling mango cakes, mango mousse, mango cheesecakes and little else :) We passed by a few cafes, and automobile repair shops, and the whole street was bustling.

After a much needed nap for the girls, we left the hotel and hopped onto the hotels complimentary shuttle bus to Central to sit the Star Ferry. A short 5min on the boat, and we were at Kowloon. A ligth drizzle had started, so we just hung around the Avenue of the Stars and waited for the laser lights show to start. The show was a little disappointing and underwhelming, perhaps the foggy night didn't help but Lauren soon got bored and started asking for milk.

Girls at the Harbour Light Show

We left the moment it ended and headed back to the hotel for a good night's sleep.

21st march 2011

Today we were going to meet my cousins Jennifer and Angie, and their hubbies, and 3 year old sons for a day out at Ocean Park. We arrived at Ocean Park about 1030am and walked the lower areas of the park first. The kids sat on the carousal and we tried to catch a glimpse of the two older gaint pandas, without avail.

Bright and HOT day at Ocean Park!

We then took the cable car to the upper levels and walked around. Lunch was a simple affair at one of the cafes. Angie and I then tried the spinning wheel ride which was pretty fun. After that, we all headed to watch the Dolphin show, but when we arrived, we realised that the auditorium was already packed to the gills, with all seats taken up 1/2 hour before the show! In the end, we stood at the top, right behind the last row of seats, near the stroller parking space and the kids managed to have a good view of the stage together with me and Lauren who was strapped to me, and Angie's husband. Jennifer and Angie was pushed to the side of the left stairs and Mal and Jennifer's husband gave up and stood against the back reclining wall.

However, soon after, before the show started, things started getting ugly when huge hoards of Mainland China tourists squeezed into the auditorium and rushed down the narrow flight of stairs in a crazy bid to get a seat in the already full auditorium. Ushers tried in vain to stop them and prevent a stampede down the perilious flight of stairs but their warnings went unheeded. I saw a very old lady trying her best to cling on the the railing and her impatient lady friends, shoving and pushing other people to try to get her to move down the stairs. People started crowding on the stairs itself, blocking Shannon's and my view. In a bid to let her see at least SOME of the show, I turned and signalled to Mal to come and carry Shannon in his arms. He approached and tried to get past the crowd of middle aged tourists standing behind me. He finally managed to squeeze over to me and pick Shannon up. But when I tried my best to get OUT, the surge of ladies squeezed even closer to me, squashing Lauren who was strapped to my front. It was as if they were rushing to get a million dollars and it was close to a stampede!

That was when I snapped. Some hidden maternal instinct erupted, and I pushed back at everybody and screamed in mandarin, 'STOP PUSHING! THERE'S KIDS HERE!!' Everyboday around stopped and stared at me as if I was crazy, and honestly, at that moment, I was ready to slug and hit out at anyone who tried anything with me, I was that hopping mad, and my temper was blazing! Now, all of you who know me, know that I'm normally a calm, collected and boring person, and I am sure you would not have believed the blazing fiery hot anger that was surging through me at that time, it was as if the lioness inside me was unleashed and I was ready to kill anyone who tried anything funny with my babies, talk about maternal instinct! We left after only 20minutes into the show, disgusted by the behaviour of the tourists and decided to return to the hotel. We vowed not to return to Ocean Park for a loooonnng time.

We met up with my cousins again in the evening and went to Fook Lum Restuarant for Roast goose and dinner. It was a satisfactory meal though the whole restuarant had run out of desserts! After that it was back to the hotel to rest.

22nd March 2011

It was a really morning start for us today for dimsum at Tao Hueng, a popular HK dimsum restuarant. Luckily, Jennifer called and made reservations, so we just had to find the place. It was quite a long walk from the train station but we finally found it. The place was crowded! We had a good table at the end of the restuarant in one of the function rooms, and we proceeded to order. The food was good, especially their mix platter of roast pork, char siew, roast goose, soy chicken and jellyfish. We overate and could barely finish the meal, and guess what, the total meal for 6 adults, and 4 kids was only SGD $80!

Thereafter, we parted ways with my cousin and went back to the hotel to pack up. We left and took a taxi to Disneyland Resort and arrived at a different world. :) Everything was pristine and beautiful, it was like a mini dream kindgom. The kids sat in a little parlour with beatiful adorned stools and watched disney cartoons while we did the check-in proceedings. After that we went into the garden where Lauren and Shannon had fun in the maze and sitting on the bench posing for pictures. The view was wonderful with the sea right front of the hotel and sprawling and well-manicured gardens.

Our room was ready by 3pm and we loved the spacious and well appointed room, with mickey mouse bedroom slippers in kids sizes, and kids cups.

Shannon and Lauren took a much needed nap, and when they woke up, we left the hotel in the evening for some much needed shopping at Tung Chung because Lauren's shoe had broken whist kicking the pebbles in the maze! We took the shuttle bus to the Disneyland train station and the kids were charmed by the Mickey Mouse train ride out.

We had dinner at the Food republic food court, and then headed to the shops to find her a replacement. She settled for a pair of butterfly crocs, and Malvin and Shannon also bought a pair each since it was very reasonably priced.

On our way back, we took a short detour and walked up to the main gates of Disneyland. It was deserted at 930pm and we took the opportunity to take some photos of the kids in front of the fountain.

Then it was back to the hotel for a much deserved sleep!

23rd March 2011

Today is the day! Time for a day of fun, fantasy and fireworks! The kids woke up at 8am, and Mal bought Shannon down to the hotel shop. As a surprise treat for her, Mal had allowed to let her dress in princess clothes with the works, makeup and tiara and fake long stresses of hair! He came back about 10am with a beaming and transformed Princess Shannon. :)

We headed for the Characters buffet breakfast, and was treated to a wide variety of breakfast foods, smoked salmon, cereal, japanese noodles, sushi, salads, cheeses, french toast, mickey mouse pancakes and waffles, cakes, buns, omelettes, ham, sausages, yogurt, jelly, fresh fruit, the list goes on. Sadly I didn't manage to eat much as the disney characters filed in and we got busy taking photos. First came 'hum-sup' Goofy who kept kissing Shannon and came back for repeated hugs, then Mickey, Pluto, and Daisy. Shannon loved them though Lauren was abit wary of them and wouldn't look them in the eye.

After Breakfast, it was off to Disneyland! Many people turned and smiled at Shannon's outfit, prompting Lauren to want one of her own. We took pictures at the front and proceeded into the park for more picture taking! We took pictures with Chip and Dale, Rapzunel, the 3 princesses, Belle, Cinderalla, Aurora, Pooh Bear, Minnie Mouse n Goofy!

It was while waiting for a photography session with the 3 princesses that a cast member approached us, and invited Shannon to sit in the special VIP area reserved for little princesses for the daily parade! He adorned her with a special lanyard and tag, signifying her 'VIP' status and told us to head to the VIP sitting area at 3pm sharp for the parade. Apparantly cast members troll the park daily for little girls who put in special effort to look the part, and invite them to be part of the parade, which was something we didn't know, so the dress-up turned out to be a value-for-money treat afterall. :)

After that we took the girls to try the rides, like sitting the princess carousel, taking the Winnie the Pooh ride, which wasn't very fun (In fact Shannon and Lauren got a little scared as it was quite a dark ride!), Dumbo the flying elephant, the teacups and many others.

We then had a casual lunch, buying bread, hotdog buns and pizza at the bakery, then sitting by the cordoned off VIP area by main street to wait for the parade to start. Cast members on hand gave the little princesses cushions to sit on and a VIP pack and badge which made Shannon feel exactly like a VIP.

And the parade was great! I'm sure that what we saw was a very much scaled down version of the ones in the US or even Japan parks, but for me a first timer, it was a visual treat full of action and colour, and sound! The swan princess float stopped right in front of the VIP area and the little girsl went wild seeing Cinderella, Belle, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty wave and blow kisses at them, and perform in front of them. After that, the little princesses were tugged onto the street to join in the parade and dance with the performers, and that was the highlight of the whole disneyland trip for Shannon...her dream come true, being a princess, being treated like one, and seeing 'princesses' come to life! :)

After the parade ended, we tried to sit the electric car ride but it was too packed. We then did some shopping before heading to the cafe for a early dinner. Though price was a little pricy, the food was value for money. After dinner, we hung around main street and waited for the fireworks to start. It was getting chilly and cold and the girls got a little cranky waiting, but the fireworks was worth the wait. Cherographed around the sleeping beauty castle, it was a fanastic show of light, music and colour!
We left after the show ended the returned back to the hotel in the cover of night.

24th March 2011

Our last day here in Hongkong!

We woke up ealry and packed everything neatly into our suitcases before heading out to the park for a last round of fun. We reached the park fairly early and did the rides for a 2nd and 3rd time as there wasn't much of a queue yet. We decided to give the parade a miss since we had watched it the first time the day before and decided to try the 'Small Small world' ride today. The girls LOVED it! It's basically a boat ride which goes through different sections of dolls depicting different parts of the world, all of them singing 'Its a small small world afterall' in different languages. Sounds creepy but surprisingly its a visually entertaining and colouful display with all the moving and dancing dolls... :) The girls loved it so much they demanded to go on it again and again and again, 4 times in total, and it was easy to get back on since almost everybody was at the parade!

After having the song 'imprinted' in my head!, we headed out to the Mad Hatter's tea cups, and and lastly shopped for presents and disney merchandise. Lauren got her coverted Minny Mouse clock and Mal acceded to Shannon's request to buy a music jewel box, so both kids came out happy... We posed for last photos outside Sleeping Beauty's castle and waved a sad goodbye to the magically Fantasy World where dreams really do come through....

The Big 40!

2010-09-28T14:01:00.007+08:00

By Shannon and Lauren's Mommy:

What started as a careless comment quickly became a heated topic... we were thinking of a short and cheap getaway during the weekend of 18 - 20th Sep as it was Mal's birthday, his 40th, to be exact. But once you start planning, you quickly realise that cheap getaways are hard to come by. Anywhere that doesn't require flying charges you crazy prices for hotel rooms and food. In the end, we settled for Bintan, though we expected the cost would work out to the same as a 3 day holiday to Penang. But at least in Bintan, Mal would get a round of golf in at one of Asia's finest courses.

We took the 2pm ferry from Tanah Merah ferry terminal in a newly refurnished catamaran. It was very comfortable and had plenty of empty seats. the girls chose to sit up the front and plunked themselves right in front of the 40 inch plasma TV screen. After a 45min journey, we reached Bintan, cleared customs, and boarded the coach to Bintan Lagoon Resort.

Refurbished ferry to Bintan, clean, new and comfy, thumbs up!

We reached the hotel after about 15min and got quickly checked-in. We opted for a deluxe sea-facing room, as the rooms at this resort had been recently given a face lift. The room was large and newly renovated, but Mal was disappointed that we were on the ground floor and what view we could see of the sea was obscured by trees. But in lieu of a balcony, we had a veranda with two deck chairs, which was pretty cool. The room also had a enormous day bed which served as a queen size mattress bed for Shannon. It was also a very short walk to both of the pools, another good thing when you are dripping wet and cold without footwear.

The Hotel Entrance, waiting to check in

The new and luxurious bathroom, with brand new tub, they couldn't resist taking a bubble bath

The moment we got into the room, the girls decided to go for a swim, so we went to one of the two pools at the resort, the children's pool. The pool had two water slides, and they had friendly staff manning huge transparent balls that you could get into and 'walk' on water. Shannon was too timid to try one of her own, so I went in with her and slided around in the ball on water, while Lauren peeked in with bemusement.

The huge water ball

Lauren and us

The slides were good too. Shannon did not dare to try the slide on her own initially, and I went up with her. But after a few rounds, she ventured on it alone, and had so much fun there was no stopping her after that. :)

After a fun afternoon by the pool, we headed back for a shower and a way overdue nap for Lauren. And for dinner, we decided to try the Japanese Restaurant since they had udon, the girls' favourite.

Reviews on Bintan food have always been bad, with tons of people saying prices are expensive and food lousy etc. I don't agree at all. Sure, the food is definitely more expensive that if you were to head to Bintan town and eat there, but if you don't want to travel 2 hours there and back, you don't really have a choice right?

The mentality of so many people is when they are in Bintan, they want to pay the same peanuts and get great tasting food, since it's well, Indonesia and not Singapore... get real lah! Go stay at some isolated kampong then and see whether you can get all the perks you want...

I'm not saying the food prices are cheap, but I think in a big resort, you have to expect these kind of prices. And I have to say, the jap food I had that night, really really good and portions were big. The ambiance was great, with the restaurant overlooking the sea and the setting sun turning the sky reddish-blue.

I ordered Sashimi with tempura bento which cost $40. The fish was super fresh and smooth and there were EIGHT thick cut (1/2 inch thick at least) slices of tuna, octopus, salmon and cod fish for the sashimi serving. The tempura prawns, 2 of them, were crispy and tasty together with Carrot, Binjai and Mushroom, and the whole bento tray was laden with other side dishes. Besides the rice, there was a big, not standard size, bowl of miso soup with lots of seaweed and big pieces of tofu, a big serving of pickles, a cold side dish of fish and vermicelli, and to top it off, a big bowl of simmered beef slices with potato, as big as a main dish that you find in some smaller jap restaurants. Sure, $40 is alot, but for that quality, and quantity, and great ambiance, I think it's value for money. I'm drooling just typing this down!

After that heavy dinner, we bought the girls some homemade ice cream by the lounge and strolled around the foyer and shops and after that it was back to the room and settling down for the night.

Running around the hotel after a scrumptious dinner, see the soup stains on Lauren's tee?

The next morning, being the birthday boy's birthday, Mal got up early and tee'd off at 6am in the morning. The girls slept till about 8am and I took my time getting them ready for breakfast. We headed to Kopi-O restaurant, where buffet breakfast was being served, and got a nice surprise, seeing Mal return from Golf. He had finished his 18 holes in 2 and 1/2 hours! So it was good having the family together for breakfast :)

After a breakfast of pancakes, sausages, crossiants, baked beans, eggs, porridge, potatoes, nasi lemak with curry chicken, ikan bilis, danish pastries, fruit and juice, we gathered up our sand making toys and headed to the beach. The sand was powdery, super fine and soft, and the beach was pretty nice. The water was clear enough that you could see small fish darting around in the shallows, though I didn't really want to wade too far in, given jellyfish warning signs. The girls enjoyed themselves at the beach surprisingly, given their fetish of cleanliness. they built a sand castle and posed with it.

All sun-blocked and hats on, ready for the beach and sandcastle building

See the rooms on the ground floor? Our room was just next to it, same style...

At the soft, powdery beach

Yay, sandcastles done!

After that it was back to the pool again. This morning, we headed for the other big landscaped pool in front of the hotel and spent about two hours wading around with the girls. Lunch was a leisurely affiar at Kopi-O again, having their ala-carte menu of Horfun, chicken nuggets with fries, and Nasi goreng special. The bill was $45, standard restaurant prices.

The girls fooling around and having fun

After lunch, we headed to the activities centre, where Shannon wanted to paint her own tee-shirt. Yup, you read it right. And she did it pretty well too! There were staff on hand to guide her and help her, so the whole thing turned out very nice.

Shannon's creation, see the different two tone mermaid and dolphin?

After the girls' nap, it was the children's pool AGAIN.. playing till dinner time. For for dinner, we opted for the Italian restaurant this evening. Again, the prices are very similar to good restaurant in Singapore, but the food was abundant and good. Shannon and Lauren shared a spaghetti with tangy tomato sauce which they nearly finished. We ordered a baguette of garlic bread which was superb! It came out piping hot, straight out off the oven, and was super crusty and aromatic. For our mains, Mal had beef steak which was tender and very flavourful, and I had seafood risotto, which portions were generous with prawns, mussels and scallops.

Dinner at the Italian Restaurant

For dessert, we bought a slice of black forest cake and headed back to the room to sing Happy Birthday to Mal and blow out the candle. the kids then jumped around the room until it was time for bed.

Happy Birthday to Daddy

The last morning, we had breakfast, a final swim at both the pools, then a morning nap for Lauren before checking out. We had a hasty lunch at Kopi-O before boarding the coach back to the ferry terminal. The ferry was pretty packed this time, with little spare seats on the way back to Singapore. We reached the terminal at 4pm but had to waited eons for our luggage to come out. And from that it was straight back home with good memories of our short getaway.

So will we go back again? Definitely, YES! Sure, you dun get to spend miserly rupiah and get happy on the exchange rate form SGD to Rupiah, and you don't get to gorge on hawker food and see the sounds and sights of REAL Indonesia. But what you get is a good getaway weekend, and a round of relaxing golf, and good luxurious food... so if you wanna indulge abit, then I'd say go ahead.. :)

Worth getting Fat? You Bet!

2010-07-25T17:44:00.006+08:00

We're back from our holiday, sun kissed, relaxed, and fatter, lots fatter from all the glorious food that passed our way. But was it worth getting fat? You bet.

We had opted to spend 3 nights in Penang, at Parkroyal, and then rent a car and take a nostalgic drive to Ipoh to spend a night there, since my dad had worked in Ipoh for many years and we had spend many a holiday there.

We touched down in Penang on a blazing hot day, the 16th, July. I had hired Ocean Jupiters to pick us up from the airport to the hotel, and Danny was there with smiles to greet us.

He whisked us away and drove us to Parkroyal. We got checked into the hotel and the first order of the day from the girls? Swimming. Shannon and Lauren, yes Lauren, pestered us non-stop until they got changed into the swim costumes.

The hotel grounds were beautiful, nicely manicured lawns with flowering bushes, and palm trees, with the pool nicely set out. There were three pools, a baby pool which Lauren turned up her nose at, a 1 - 1.5m pool and a deeper plunge pool for adults with a super kids slide at the end that looked like lots of fun. Shannon was not adverturous enough to try the slide, so the kids were content to waddle around in the adult pool.

After a swim, and a much needed nap, we headed out of the hotel to have dinner at Long Beach Hawkers, right smack into the night market. It was really convenient, and the food was yummy. We tried the Hainanese fried spring roll which tastes a little like Ngoh Hiang, but was yummy, chock full of veggies. We had 'Zi Char' and honey BBQ wings, as well as 'Or Luah' all pretty yummy, and I got my thai coconut at only 4RM.

After that it was a slow leisurely walk back to the hotel, passing through and looking at the night market stuff.

The next morning, Danny picked us up and we headed to the Botanic Gardens. We bought peanuts to feed the monkeys. These monkeys are wild, and I have clear memories of feeding them bananas when I was nine years old and last there. I still remember the gentle monkey taking the banana from my hand, and my Dad snapping a photo of the encounter. So it was great when after watching me feed the peanuts, Shannon finally plucked up her courage and tried it as well. She giggled and told me, 'the hand is furry, Mommy, not scary...' We then sat on the tram for a ride around the garden.

Feeding the monkeys, see how close they are

After the Botanics gardens, we headed to Kek Lok Si, the temple perched on top of the hill. Danny told us that now, vehicles are allowed all the way to the top, so for the first time, we managed to see the Statue of 'Guang Yin' up close. My Dad was especially pleased, as all his trips up here, he never made it to the top so this was also a first for him. The the ground were quite beautiful, with carved stone statues of the zodiac, all 12 animals lined up. Shannon took a photos infront of her zodiac sign, the rooster. There was also a pavilion in a small lake with a waterfall behind it. There were also cute stone craved cartoon characters in the parking lot that made the kids laugh.

The Year of the Rooster, 2005, the year Shannon was born

Nice Fountain in the background makes a pretty picture

Cute Stone Statues in the parking lot

Next stop was down to the 2nd level where the shops and tortise pond was. We went down the Small furnicular lift to the mid section, and bought kangkong from the vendor, and Shannon and Lauren had tons of fun feeding the hundreds of tortises there. I think this was the hightlight of the trip for them, feeding all the animals!

Kids feeding the tortises, see them in the background? There's hundreds!

Lunch was at Song River, with my Dad raving about the Giant grouper with Bee Hoon. It was good, and we ate till we were stuffed. Besides the fish, there was Tofu with Brinjai, yummy, Tang Hoon prawns, Bak Kut Teh, and oysters with bean sauce (I'm sure they were good, but personally, I can't stand oysters..).

We headed back to the hotel for a nap and after that, what else but swimming again!

That night we chose to eat at the hotel. The hotel was having a One for one promotion and the kids ate for free. We were seranaded by a singing quartet with guitars, and a cello. They gamely sang Twinkle twinkle little stars for the girls and belted out 'It's Now or Never' by Evis the King when I requested for something by him.

The last full day at Penang was spent solely at the hotel. We went to the beach early in the morning, and I went horse riding. My poor horse pooed after I got on, prompting Mal to laugh and ask whether I was too heavy!

The kids played in the sand for awhile but big raindrops chased us back to the pool. I then indulged in a facial treatment, and Pedicure while Lauren had her morning nap.

We then decided to head right of the hotel in search of some lunch as I had seen a few stalls there when I was on my horse in the morning. We stumbled on a beach cafe selling Mee goreng, Calamari and Char Kway Tiao, all very delicious. On teh short walk back, we sampled delicious goreng pisang and fried banana balls, Ohhhh, sooo very good! I vowed to go back to buy fried Chempadek as the vendor was still frying them, but by the time I hurried back, it was all sold out! Malvin then went for a two hour massage while the gals played and took their afternoon naps.

Dinner was at Long Beach again, and we tapo'ed Char Kway Tiao back for supper, yum yum!

The next morning, 19th, we had breakfast and packed up. The girls had a final swim and we got into a metered taxi to Hertz while we picked up our rental car, a Toyota Innova 2.0. It was very spacious and gave us plenty of room to fit in the girls' rented car seats and our luggage.

We then left Penang at 2pm and drove over Penang bridge and down into Perak. My Dad guided us to Sungei Bakap in search of the famous 'Ku Char Bao', (Chive dumplings), but by the time we got there close to 3pm, the stall was closed! We then headed onwards into Ipoh, and reached Hotel Impiana at about 5pm.

After we checked in, and settled a scuffle with the staff regarding our beds, (or lack of them!) we headed out to Mun Cheong Restuarant. My dad was directing Mal on the route there, but years aways from Ipoh had confused him, and we kept going around in circles. Luckily, Mal turned on our trusty (but sometimes a little wonky) GPS, and we soon reached our destination.

Hmmmmm, Mun Cheong. I remember their limpets (small clam like abalone) with golden mushrooms, and their yummy crabmeat tofu. We ordered the tofu but seems there was a change in the menu and the limpets were not available. We had a big Patin fish steamed with soya sauce, and fried Big headed prawns. We also had ginger steamed chicken with chinese wine, fried vegs and fresh mango and jackfruit pudding for dessert. I was seeing stars by the time we finished dinner!

We wound our way back, with a quick stop at the market to try to buy some dried goods from, but the usual vendor was closed. So it was back to the hotel for the kids to play aorund the room, and finally to bed at 1030pm.

The next morning, we quickly packed up our luggage and left the hotel early in the morning at 8am. Our plan was to try to head to Pantai Remis to eat their delectable seafood before making the long drive back to Penang in time to catch our 510pm flight to Singapore.

We had a quick breakfast at a coffee shop. There was good Char Kway Tiao, yummy Niang Duo Fu, and really good roasted coffee. Somehow you can't find such good food in Singapore.

We then made our way to Pantai Remis, with the help of our GPS, as well as directions from the helpful boss of the restuarant. We reached safely and in good time. And the food..... what can I say? It just bought back memories of us eating there when I was a teenager.

We had three praying mantis prawns, steamed in chinese wine and soya sauce, their meat is soooo sweet, very much like lobster, but only much sweeter and so much more tender. We had to order TWO more cos it was so good. Likewise with good coffee, you just can't find this in Singapore.

We also ordered huge Calamari rings fried in batter. The rings were really huge, so much so that when they are served each ring is cut into 3 portions. Apparantly these calamari rings come from the bigger species of Squid, hence their very chewy and springy texture. It was also full of flavour unlike their smaller cousins. Shannon relished the calamari and gulped quite a few!

We also ordered their signature steamed big pomfret with garlic and soya sauce, the thickness of the fish was about 1 inch, but the flesh was silky smooth and tasty, perfect with the soya sauce over some piping hot rice. We also ordered claypot tofu and veg, and for dessert? Their famous fried yam bread.

This dessert is handmade by this restuarant only, and you won't find it anywhere else. They take a slice of bread, fill it up with sweet yam paste (Or nee), and roll it up. Then its fried till golden brown and served. Sound simple? Oh no! The taste is heavenly... The bread is fried till it is crisp and fluffy and almost melts in your mouth, and when you bite into it, the smooth sweet yam paste flows into your mouth, mmmmm.... my brother specifically asked for us to cart some frozen ones home to him, so in the end we packed 40 to bring back on the plane!

With our bellies full of good food, we made the return drive back to Penang. It was uneventful and and girls napped in their car seats. We reached Penang Airport at 3pm with plenty of time to spare and waited for our plane to arrive.

One thing I have to say about flying on budget airlines, you meet all kinds of people. People were shoving and cutting queues to get onto the plane, infront of us, who were entitled to board the plane first because we had small kids.

Now that we are back, I have been dreaming about the food and thinking when we will get back for another round,,, anyone game? :)))

2010-05-21T11:55:00.004+08:00

I realise that once you are a mother, time just zooms fast. And the funny thing is you don't remember much of it.

Like I don't remember how Lauren turned from a tiny newborn to a eighteen month old toddler, weighing about 10kg and looking more like a little girl and nothing like a baby. Has one and a half year passed by already? My brain cells must have been burning out at a superfast rate due to the nightly lack of sleep, because I totally don't remember many of her developmental stages, even though I was present for ALL of them!

It was the same with Shannon. Looking back at this blog, I'm forever amazed by what Shannon did at what age. Lucky I blogged it down! And this forgetful mommy must do the same for Lauren.

At one and a half, Lauren is amazingly astute. She can understand up to 80% of what I say to her, and makes her opinions known clearly to me. She watches baby TV programmes, and you know its getting into her brain cos she laughs at all the funny things the characters does.

She is signing the set of baby signing time, and using words together with her signs.

Mal says her speech development seems slower than Shannon, but looking at what Shannon was saying at one and a half, I guess Lauren is just saying totally different words from her sister.

WHat she can do now:
Dadi
Mami
Gong gong
PoPo
Jiejie
Fissssh (signing fish a the same time)
Dog (signing Dog)
Cattt-Catt (signing Cat)
Bird
There (pointing a whatever)
This
Bearbear
Pantsss
Hat
Ball (signing ball)
Noooooo.... (shaking her head)
Milk
Bread
Juice
Nana (Banana, signing banana)
Sleep
Go Go
Shoee...
Prammm (pointing at strollers)
Ba bee (All kids, even ones bigger than her, especially crying ones, including her sister)
Car..
Ba (Bus
Goff (Golf)
Ma-e (Mine)
Hug
kissss (with a lips smacking sound)
Ooo-ben (open)
Airrr-pan (Airplane)
I-stein (Little Ernsteins)
I-olo (I Also)
Sweeeeet (Sweets)
Cha-co (Chocolate)
Pain
Tight! (When putting Diapers on for her, even when I strap it loosely, or even BEFORE I put it on for her)
Dance! (She will take both your hands, and pull you to the middle of the floor, then order you to dance! Daddy's her favourite dancer, cos he stamps and shuffles his feet like a prancing buffalo)

Animals seems to be a favourite with her, she gets all excited when she sees dogs, cats, birds. She will laugh joyously and say, 'more more, dog' with her hands signing 'More' for emphasis and wait for you to conjure up more of whatever she wants. She loves to touch them when their backs are to her, and giggles when she feels their fur. But once they turn their heads towards her, She will back away nervously, go 'no-no-no' and shakes a stubby finger at them.

She knows how to be quiet, like when Jie Jie is sleeping, and will put a finger to her lips, saying 'shhhh...' like wise when she sees pigeons on the ground besides her, and doesn't want to scare them away.

Ask her where her Jie Jie is, and she will scrunch up her face, and say 'sckool......'

She enjoys playing 'masak masak' with us and will take her cups, plates with plastic food and get us to drink and eat.

So are the two very different? Definitely... from the words they pick up, to their personalities(Shannon's a mild sweet girl who can be really timid sometimes, whileas Lauren is more boisterous and daring) to even the food they like.

Shannon is a big lover of eggs, cheese, diary. Lauren won't touch anything eggy, and doesn't like cheese. Shannon won't tolerate a speck of green vegetables on her plate, and Lauren? She's obsessed about Spinach, Cai xin, Cabbage, tomatoes, corn and fried Onions! She forsake porridge or rice just to eat her beloved greens on its own, lamenting the usual 'More more..'

Seeing the two girls grow up and watching them tickle each other silly when they were taking a bubble bath together just warms me heart, this is what motherhood is about, watching them grow up a little everyday... so while I really grumble at wanting badly to go back to work, for now, it's enough.

Update on Lauren's Condition

2010-05-21T11:35:00.003+08:00

Since Lauren' operation in March and her traumatic stay in the hospital, her wound has been steadily healing. She will have a scar very much like a C-section wound, but I guess time will fade the scar, hopefully.

Now the main thing is to determine whether the operation was a success and whether she is cured. Her Operation had a 95% success rate, but I have heard of failures before.

Basically as her surgeon mentioned, she must undergo firstly a ultrasound to see the general condition of both her kidneys, and 4 months later, a MCU test, which takes a 'X-ray' picture of her kidneys to determine further scarring and damage if any.

We just went for her ultrasound, and I'm happy to report it all looks good. Now we have to wait for about 4 months for the second test beofre the surgeon can totally clear her. For now, she still has to be on nightly antibotics until the test shows that her kidneys have not sustained any firther damage other than the initial scarring. Like I mentioned before, the inital 10% scarred tissue will not repair itself over time, so hopefully that is all she will ever suffer.

Her surgeon has finally cleared her for travel, so I am now replanning our trip to Penang which was supposed to happen in Jan this year, but we had to postpone it for very obvious reasons. We are staying at Parkroyal Penang and the GM at the hotel had very graciously allowed us to postpone our trip, so we are very much looking forward to staying there in July. :)

More updates soon!

One For Me, One For Jie Jie!

2010-04-02T02:58:00.000+08:00

By the Mommy:

The reason why we had wanted a second child was so that Shannon could have a companion when she grew up. When we got pregnant, everyone was telling me, 'oh, I'm sure you are hoping for a boy, then it would be nice, one boy and one girl, a complete family.'

Though I had started out the pregnancy thinking that way as well, I soon realised that it actually didn't matter one bit, and that perhaps another girl would be better. We wanted the two siblings to grow up close, and from my own unhappy experience, I felt that having a boy and a girl would make it tough to them to be truly close in the future.

So when little Lauren came, it was with a hope that our two girls would learn to cherish each other as sisters, and love one another.

Watching Lauren and Shannon grow up together has been a heartwarming journey. Shannon, having been blessed with a mild and generous nature, welcomed her sister with a full heart, and gets along with her remarkable well. She accommodates our constant requests to let her sister 'do this, do that' and the poor girl always gets scolded unjustly when the two of them get too rowdy.

She lets lauren play with all of her worldly possessions with little jealousy, save for the few times that her spirited baby sister snatches her toy from her hand.

She coaxes Lauren to stop crying when the little one wails in the car, and tries to distract her in a lilting voice, 'oh, you're crying? Don't cry, jie jie's here, see outside, car car?' And when she gets gummy bears and chocolates from Gong Gong, she never fails to remember her little sister, 'mei mei too? One for Mei Mei also?'

I'm glad and amazed that the giving goes both ways as well. Though Lauren is only reaching one and a half, her consideration for her Jie Jie is amazing. The first time it happened was at the coin operated car rides, when I hitched Lauren up to sit in one, and she went, ' Eh Eh Eh' pointing at her Jie Jie, and then at the empty seat next to her.

We watched Lauren the next time. She was in the kitchen perched on with my mom's arm, fiddling with the packet drinks when she spied the apple juice. After doing her usual, 'Eh Eh Eh' and pointing at the apple juice, and getting one, she pointed again and again, demanding another. And when my mom obliged by passing another to her, she then struggled to get down. We were mysteried, when she tottered out of the kitchen and made a beeline for shannon in the living room. And then she pushed the apple juice into her startled sister's hands, turned and tottered back into the kitchen with a grin.

Likewise, she is always on hand to drag Jie Jie's clothes to Shannon after she herself has changed, and push Jie Jie to wear her socks and shoes when we are getting ready to leave the house.

And last week, while waiting for Shannon to finish her enrichment classes in school, I watched in amusement as Lauren searched for her Jie Jie's pink shoes, amongst all the others on their shoe shelves, picked up the correct ones, and plunked it at Shannon's feet.

Six tubes Connected To Lauren, Ouch!

2010-03-28T22:19:00.009+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

Finally I am here to write about Lauren's big operation and I'm soo so so glad it's over, over, OVER!!!!

Her op was initally scheduled on 10th, but I guess from my last post, all of you would have known that we had to postpone it because she was coughing. Her rescheduled date was 24th March, though I was hoping we could get a earlier date.

As the surgeon only operates every Wednesday, the only earlier date I could bank on was 17th. Boy, did I pray and pray! Every night and morning without fail, calling the hospital without fail to see whether anyone pulled out on 17th so that we could get in, and God didn't dissappoint us! On 15th, Monday, the final day that we could reschedule the date, we got 17th! Thank you God!

On 16th, Tuesday, I bought her to KK for blood tests, oxygen levels tests, and to get her particulars recorded.

And on Wednesday morning we bought her down by 7am in the morning to be prepped and prepared for surgery. It was a draining experience, waiting and waiting and waiting, answering the same questions over and over and over again. I'm sure the hospital just wanted to ensure that no mistake has occurred, by answering the same questions like 6 times?

Anyway, we were the first people into the waiting area, and the last to be bought upstairs to the Op waiting area. And inside, I had to wait with her for another 45min.... turned out her surgeon had to do a last min case and hence the delay.

Inside the Op Waiting area, in her hospital scrubs

The nurses finally bought us into the OT at about 1030am. The nurse tried to get a vein in her hand without success, so in the end, they had to use the gas to put her to sleep.

The Op lasted beyond the 2 hours, and Mal and I got worried. The nurses finally called us in at close to 1pm. Lauren was really drowsy and slept on, crying a little at times. She had 3 big tubes protruding from her wound below her belly button, and her toe was hooked up to a sensor detecting oxygen level and heartbeat. She also had two IV tubes to the vein in her left hand, one for morphine, the other for fluids. That was six tubes connected to Lauren, ouch!

Down and Out, after the Op, see the tubes everywhere?

The 3 tubes from her wound, one full of blood

Closer look at the 3 tubes

They wheeled her to a high dependcy ward, making us concerned as the nurses had mentioned that only complications get wheeled to high dependency ward. I tried to query the nurses but nobody could give me a answer.

We spent one night at the high dependency ward. Lauren was cranky and thowing up as she reacted badly to the morphine. We were also concerned as one of the tubes seem to be draining blood, blood and nothing but blood. At one stage, her IV leaked and a fountain of blood pooled and stained my pants in a big patch.

Her wound also seemed to be leaking, and her hospital gown got stained with blood. It didn't do any good that one junior doctor opted to have her blood soaked dressing changed but was vetoed by another, saying it wasn't necessary at all. I got frustrated by the constant garble of different doctors coming and going, and nobody seemed to want to talk to us. The only way I could get some answers was to stop doctors and hound them for answers before they would entertain us.

Finally one doctor, a Indian lady, Dr. Rama or similiar, I couldn't catch her name, came by. She had a air of authority and made me feel at ease at once. She looked at Lauren's dressing, and decided to change it and she did a brillant job. She painstakingly removed the blood soaked dressing, cleaned her area with saline, and taped it up so nicely, that angel!

A Senior consultant also approached us and apologised that Lauren's surgeon was caught up in meetings and couldn't come by. She answered all our questions with ease, very different from the junior doctors.

On the second day, we finally managed to get a single room and was moved up to the General ward.

Her surgeon came by and told us that the Op was a success and was quite straight forward. She mentioned that the problem with Lauren's urethers was not because the valve could not close properly, but because her tube opening was unusually big, hence the leakage. The surgeon solved the problem by crisscrossing both tubes and making a longer tunnel in her bladder.

Lauren started feeling pain leter in the morning, and we got the nurses to page for a doctor to come and assess the situation. It took a full hour for the doctor to finally arrive. By that time, she was writhing around the bed, crying and hitting and pulling at her diaper area. The doctor looked at her, and said, 'Oh, don't let her do that!' Yeah, right, So why do you think we have been pushing for you to come?

I was at the end of my tether, and I have to say I snapped at him, 'yes, I know, she's been doing that for close to an hour already, just waiting for YOU to come! So how, doctor, can you do something? Like NOW!?'

She finally calmed down after the nurses inserted a supportiony to stop the pain and from then on, it was a cycle. The pain would ease for about 4 hours then she would start feeling uncomfortable again, It would get worse and worse until we could give her the next dose 6 - 8 hours later. The next two nights and days was crazy like that. And it didn't help that she couldn't get down the cot at all, with all the tubes. Doctors and nurses advised us not to have visitors to let her rest.

Luckily, she started feeling better on Saturday, the 3rd day. We let her watch VCD after DVD, and she started bobbing to music.

In a better mood, watching DVD, Hi 5

On Sunday, the 4th day, doctors removed two of her tubes, and her IV drip, leaving the last drainage tube from her bladder. She was stunned, and after she realised she could move her hand again. We bought up the pram and strapped her in for her first visit out of her bed, and ward. She was grinning from ear to ear, pointing at anything and everything in sight. We bought her down to the food court and she sat together with us for a first family meal in 5 days, clambering to taste everything.

Grinning away, happy to be out of her Cot and room

On Monday, the doctors clamped the last remaining tube and checked that she could pee normally into a diaper. After that, they removed the last remaining tube, and changed her dressing. FREEDOM! She asked for her socks and shoes and demanded we change her out of the hospital gown and into her own clothes. She stood up in her cot, and started dancing, hanging on to the bars for dear life. And when we got discharged and left the hospital, she waved goodbye at the nurses.

Since then, we have been back at home, letting her enjoy whatever she wants. this past week, she has been clingy and still uncomfortable with little pain. But yesterday, I stopped her pain medication, and she seemed to be doing fine. Her review will be in two weeks time, and probably we will need to schedule another test to determine whether the OP was a complete success. Can't wait for the surgeon to give the green light! Lauren has been wanting to dip in the swimming pool for the longest time! I hope to bring more good news soon!

Right, Hit Me Another time, Since We are Down

2010-03-08T11:18:00.002+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

Right, hit me another time, since we are down and out. Just when you think it doesnt get any worse than this, it DOES get worse. What we feared would happen HAPPENED.

Lauren caught a fever and cold last week. With a sinking heart I called KK to inform them. We were given a reprieve when the nurse told us that as long as the doctor didnt prescribe antobotics for the illness, the Op could go on as scheduled. So we waited and waited, and the cold deeloped into a racking cough with phelgm.

Lauren VERY rarely gets coughs, and this was a bad cough. I hoped she would get better before the Op, but as of today, she still has phelgm in her throat. SO again, I called the hospital and got the confirmation from them that she WOULD NOT be able to go for the Op as scheduled on Wendesday.

We are now scheduled for 24th March, 2 weeks later. I pray that she will be in tip top condition as we really do not want to bring this to April, fingers crossed!

D- Day Is Finally In Sight!

2010-02-05T00:15:00.003+08:00

By the mommy:

I know friends and family are anxiously waiting for me to update Lauren's test results. We went to see the specialist today and finally got back the report on her kidney function.

Well, the bad news is yes, her right kidney has sustained damage. There is scarring and the specialist estimates that about 10% of it is gone, as in not functioning. The damaged portion will never grow back or repair itself even given time, so basically she has to deal with that the rest of her life. That is the saddest news.

The good news is that everyone is born with two kidneys, so she still has her left kidney working hard, and 90% of the right one. Now our goal is to prevent another infection to come and further damage her precious tiny buds.

Surgery has been finally been scheduled for 10th march. I'm actually pretty anxious that we still have to wait one more month b4 we can do the operation, and two weeks before the surgery, she must be in PERFECT health. Any illness or fever, and the operation is OFF!

So the goal till 10th March? To prevent another infection from occuring and keeping her strong and healthy. That means little outings, short visits during CNY, and loads of good food!

I Pray for Bright Sunny Days Soon!

2010-02-04T11:18:00.003+08:00

By the Mommy:

Life is full of Ups and Downs, and Downs and Downs! Today is the day we will get the test results back, today the knife could fall on our necks, if the report shows that Lauren's kidney has been damaged.

It's been a rough month! Her swollen eye, and fever that had us scrambling to the clinic. and yesterday another fever... yup, another one...

Because of Lauren's condition, we have to take each fever very seriously, cos it could mean she's having another UTI, and another UTI could do serious damage to her small kidneys. So we are in full 'combat mode' every time the thermometer registers a mild 37.5 degrees. As it means immediate rinse and urine collection for her, and a rush to the clinic to have it tested and cultured. It also means a possible change in antibotics and the gloomy prospect of admitting her to the hospital. So you can understand how my heart pounces when I feel her little body heat up.

I pray that her kidneys are fine, I pray that the doctor will give the go ahead for the operation ASAP so that we can get it done and she can get well soon. I pray that she will be able to go swimming as much as she wants and our family will have bright sunny days again soon. :)

Lauren the One Eyed Cyclops (No special effects/Makeup needed!)

2010-01-25T12:03:00.004+08:00

By Shannon's mommy:

It seems that the funniest things always happen to our youngest one. Just when we thought nothing else could happen to her, something else did.

Don't be shocked, everyone. We did not punch her in the face, no abuse, no torture, no need to call Child Social Services. This is just the work of a tiny, teeny, winney mosquito. Yup, you read me right. A irritating, bloodsucking, mosquito did this to my daughter, it gave her a swollen eye which looks like someone socked her in the face, and turned her into Lauren the One Eyed Cyclops (No special effects/makeup needed!)

See how swollen her eye is, like a golf ball

It started out innocently last Tuesday. I put her down for her afternoon nap, and when she woke up, there was a tiny bump on the corner of her right eye. 'Oh, pesky mosquito! Hope it doesnt swell too much..' thought the Mom, aka me.

Lauren is not prone to mozzie bites, unlike her sister, who once had a record 22 bites in one night. But also unlike her sister, Lauren puffs up with every bite she gets. Her body reacts very severely to bites, and the bites swell up pretty big, sometimes with pus.

When we wet to pick Mal up, a corner of her right eye was a little droopy, and all of us had a good laugh looking at her.

Flash forward to Wednesday morning, when I was in the kitchen getting all the breakfast stuff ready, and disturbed by a stunned husband with Lauren perched on his arm. Ohmigod, her eye! It was swollen shut and looked the size of a golf ball. And she had another fever to boot!

A quick trip to the clinic and after all the exclaimations from the nurses and a gasp from Dr Tan, we were given a strong dose of antibotics and eye drops.

I had a tough time administering the eye drops into her eye the first day. Her eyeball was so swollen I couldn't even get to open her eye. It was folded and folded and folded! Even her long eyelashes were missing, that's how bad it was!

See, no eyelashes, all hidden under the swell

Luckily the meds helped, and her swelling went down pretty fast, she could finally open her eye after two days and her eyelashes finally reappeared.

Yippee, finally eyelashes are out!

By Saturday, she was looking close to normal again.

Whew, still pretty as ever.....

4th Birthday Party!

2010-01-18T23:57:00.004+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

I'm heartened by the number of people who still visit this blog depsite my tortise slow updating, and even more when they leave comments, a footprint to show me that they were here and read what little I have to say :)

Despite our uncertainty with Lauren's progress and what's going to happen, life goes on right? So on a happier note, here's some photos of Shannon's 4th birthday party. We celebrated it in school for her with a cake from Prima, my choice when it comes to kids coz theiur cakes are light, airy and soft, perfact for kids. We also arranged a Art decor party and from the looks of it, the kids had fun! We ended up with 30 pieces, with even the playgroup kids particpating.

Shannon and her cake - Snow White and Seven dwarfs

Her classmates

Some of the finished works, all the kids did very well!

Shannon and me

Some of the kids and her posing with their work

What a Way to start 2010, with a Big Hill to Climb!

2010-01-07T11:10:00.004+08:00

By the Mommy:

I'm blogging this down for the few of you who has been asking how Lauren is... and also to have this noted down as one of the memorable events.

What a way to start 2010, with a BIG HILL to climb! What started as a low grade fever in November for Lauren turned out to be something more sinister. After a bout of UTI which saw her being hospitalised for 5 days in November, our doctor, Dr, Terence Tan suggested we send her for some tests just to make sure she's ok.

Me, the unsuspecting mother, thought she would breeze through it since her first two tests came back negative. Well, the brick dropped and hit me smack in the face when her final test revealed that she has a congenital defect, called Vesicoureteral Reflux (VUR) which was unknown to us when she was born. Her right ureter is classified as grade 4, and requires immediate surgery to correct the problem. Non surgery will result in further infections, which will eventually damage and destroy the kidney.

Imagine I had sent Mal off to Golf on the day of the test thinking everything was gonna be all right...in the end I struggled not to cry and focused on asking all the important questions to Dr Tan. (I have to say, Dr. Tan is our angel!)

We scrambled to get a opinion from a specialist ulurogist who initally felt that we could wait two years while placing her on a nightly low dose antibotic. Who knew another ton of bricks fell on us on CHristmas Eve. She came down with another fever, and this time it was a super agressive bacteria which nearly invaded her blood stream. Her bacteria count was over 100,000 and she required over 48 doses of two different antibotics, inserted directly to her vein to kill the nasty bug and make sure it doesn't come back.

So, we spent Christmas in the hospital and after 5 days, she was finally discharged with a tube in her hand as we still had to come back to the hospital for morning and night antibotics. Thankfully, today morning was the last dose.

Today afternoon we are seeing another specialist who will most likely schedule surgery for her this month. While I worry and am scared thinking the surgery, I know non surgery will be disastrous for her small kidneys.

So a big hill to climb in 2010. But I know with our family and friend's support, we'll make it through :) Pray for us ya?

Spooky Halloween, Check out my graveyard and choppedup fingers!

2009-12-08T23:11:00.009+08:00

ByShannon's Mommy:

I started this entry in December, but never got around to finishing it... so it's late by a couple of months, sorry! But I have to say the photos of the kids and the food are great, so this is worth a look-see...!

Our Condo had a Halloween party on 24th Oct. It was supposed to be 31st, but the function room was booked. I'm happy we have some pretty friendly neighbours, so this is actually a annual event. Last year, not much thought went into the food preparation, but this year, we really tried hard to make it a thematic party...and it was overwhelmingly successful.

All the kids came dressed, and almost ALL the girls came as Fairies and Princesses.. not much of a scary costume, but I guess at that age, all girls just aspire to be that. I went as a fat pink pig, even got fattened especially up for the part... :)

Lauren as a fairy
Shannon as a fairy princess

Me as a Fat Pig

Some of the kids

Ghosts, Witches and bumble bees come out today!

Ultraman and a Angel to the rescue!

Don't the kids look adorable!

The food was fanastic, we tried to make it as gooey and gory as possible, check out my Brownie grave yard and chopped up fingers! Not bad for a creative first attempt I think .. :)

And after that, what else but trick-a-treat!

Abino Peacock?I Kid You Not!!!

2009-12-05T23:44:00.008+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

I haven't blogged in over 6 months! It's gotten to a point where I had to think hard what's the website address to get here, oh boy!

Anyway, want to get off my butt and start the ball rolling again, I realise that its sad when I can't record down all the memories that the two gals and us have been making.... so bear with me while I start my rusty brain and hands moving...

What have we been up to? Well, the latest thing was our 3 day trip to Sentosa from 27 to 29th Nov. I booked us into The Sentosa Resort, formerly known as Beaufort, the place where we had our dream wedding in 2004. Going back to the hotel was great, the place is still beautiful and serene, the service is still top notch and the experience still memorable.

We checked in on the first day, and saw families of peacocks, usual for this peacful and tranquil place. I remember clearly the mommy peacock and the two half grown babies strutting across the lawn when we had our wedding here. So it was nice to see another mommy peacock, this time with three tiny babies , two spotted and one abino, I kid you not! rumaging through the grass.

We spent the afternoon after checking in at the pool, followed by a lesisurely stroll from Tanjong beach to Beach station for dinner. We tried to get tickets for Songs of the Sea but no luck as it was fully sold out! So we bought tickets for Saturday and went back to the hotel lounge for a coffee before hitting the fluffy king sized bed for the night.

On Saturday, we had a lovely buffet breakfast before bringing the kids to the beach. After that, it was more time at the pool before heading to Imbiah for lunch and a try at the Luge. Shannon wanted to try it out, but after seeing that we all had to don one big bulky helmets, she bailed out on me, leaving me stranded, and having to do the Luge all by myslef. It was fun though, and after that we headed back to the hotel for a nap. In the evening we headed for Songs of the Sea before calling it a night

All too soon, Sunday came... we went to Underwater World, and beat the crowds to it. I had a fun time feeding the stingrays,and Shannon was intrigued by the Sea Angels, who strangely enough, reallky looked like little tiny cute fat angels! We walked over to the new Dolphin lagoon and got a rare treat seeing the dolphins do some practise jumps.

After that, we headed back to the hotel for a quiet room service lunch. The hotel surprised me with a birthday cake, and we had sumptious Fried rice and beef kway tiao together with complimentary black forest cake. The food is still sooo yummy....

After a late check out at 3pm, Shannon suddenly announced that she was ready to try the Luge again. I was figuring that she would play me out again, but this time, she went through with it, and had fun doing it, that's my girl! After ice cream in the hot sun, we hauled the kids back into the car, and said goodbye to Sentosa, amid Shannon's waililing ' Iwannna gooo backkkkk..........'

Blogging Back With A Vengeance!

2009-08-18T23:04:00.004+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

After a absence of six months! I figure I better get back to blogging with a vengeance! I do miss the constant updating and seeing the no of visitors jump, but it's always a hassle to downsize photos... and with now with two active monkeys running around, its tough to even sleep in peace, much less blog in peace!

But anyway, am gonna try to update this blog, so here goes!

I Will Be True To The Promise I Have Made To You And To The One Who Gave You To Me

2009-02-12T09:56:00.008+08:00

I just wanted to touch on the songs which I tagged in this blog.... in particularly the first two. They were part of our wedding and I found them especially meaningful. Both are from Steven Curtis Chapman, a Christian singer.

'We will dance' talks about a couple going through thick and thin together until 'they grow old and their steps grow weak and slow' ....while 'I will Be there' is exactly how I hope our marriage will be, to always be there no matter what happens.

No sun bursts and fireworks and grand notions of romantic love for me thank you! And who cares about Valentime's when its just a hyped up commerical event for flower shops and restaurants to dig into your pocket.

I just want a love and marriage that will stand the test of time, and grow deeper with each passing year. I love the songs because the lyrics are all about just that.. growing old together and going through thick and thin. Sure there will be ups and downs, and there will be more times when we'll be screaming our heads off at each other (lost count on the no. of times that happened!), but ultimately, it just come down to us, through the years, until we are old and grey and wrinkled.

Love You, Dear.

We Will Dance

I've watched the sunrise in your eyes

And I've seen the tears fall like the rain

You've seen me fight so brave and strong
You've held my hand when I'm afraid

We've watched the seasons come and go
We'll see them come and go again
But in winter's chill, or summer's breeze
One thing will not be changin

'We will dance
When the sun is shining
In the pouring rain
We'll spin and we'll sway

And we will dance
When the gentle breeze
Becomes a hurricane
The music will play
And I'll take your hand
And hold you close to me
And we will dance

Sometimes it's hard to hold you tight
Sometimes we feel so far apart
Sometimes we dance as one
And feel the beating of each others hearts

Some days the dance is slow and sweet
Some days we're bouncing off the walls
No matter how this world may turn
Our love will keep us from fallin'

And we will dance
When the sun is shining In the pouring rain
We'll spin and we'll sway
And we will dance

When the gentle breeze
Becomes a hurricane
The music will play
And I'll take your hand
And hold you close to me
And we will dance

The music will play
And I'll hold you close
And I won't let you go
Even when our steps
Grow weak and slow
Still I'll take your hand
And hold you close to me
And we, will dance

I Will Be There

Tomorrow morning if you wake up and the sun does not appear
I will be here
If in the dark, we lose sight of love
Hold my hand, and have no fear'
Cause I will be here

I will be here
When you feel like being quiet
When you need to speak your mind
I will listen And I will be here
When the laughter turns to cryin'
Through the winning, losing and trying
We'll be together
I will be here

Tomorrow morning, if you wake up
And the future is unclear
I will be here

Just as sure as seasons were made for change
Our lifetimes were made for these years
So I will be here

I will be here
And you can cry on my shoulder
When the mirror tells us we're older
I will hold you
And I will be here

To watch you grow in beauty
And tell you all the things you are to me
I will be here
I will be true to the promise I have made
To you and to the One who gave you to me

Tomorrow morning, if you wake up And the sun does not appear
I will be here Oh, I will be here.

Looks like a Gangster???

2009-02-12T09:33:00.008+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

Finally, all the scrambling is done... I have been up to mischief again, so poor Mal and his wallet! Been dying to get some R & R ever since L came, and after hearing about J's poor niece and her sister's trip to Turkey and back again, we are starting to doubt whether we REALLY wanna go Canada in September with a rowdy 3 year old and a cranky 5 month old.

So anyway, I went searching for a cheap holiday getaway and found a good deal to Phuket... Tiger Airways was selling their tickets at $100 for a return trip ($150 when you add all the extra charges that they can think of charging you!) and Hilton hotels worldwide was having a 50% January Sale!

So for just slightly over S$1k, the whole family is off to Phuket in April. It could have been under 1k, but we decided to splurge a bit and chose a Deluxe Plus Seaview Room (62sqm) at the Hilton... really worth it right?

Only after we had decided on this did I realise that L doesnt have a passport! A mad scramble followed, applying for her passport online immediately. Luckily, it's done now, and we are picking it up on Monday.

Check out her passport photo as compared to S. ... Not as 'gung ho' as S', which my mum constantly grumbles 'looks like a gangster!'

Lauren followed by Shannon... does she really look like a gangster in the photo?

And One More Makes FOUR!

2008-12-19T17:07:00.005+08:00

This post is long overdue. I have been wanting to update the blog but I have been so sleep-deprived lately that I started to have hallucinations about Facebook!

And here's the reason why I haven't been getting my zzzzz.....

Looks like an angel right? Couldn't be further away from the truth.... So one more makes four! We are now a merry family with two girls, though I suspect the merry part will only come later, like when the little one starts sleeping through the night and when she stops going through a 100 diapers a day.

I'm officially a mother of two, though that sounds scary, say that aloud and it makes me sound like a naggy 40ish housewife.

So far little Lauren has been very different from her older sister, from being a total piggy when it comes to latching on to feed, to having a fiery hot temper when she doesnt get her way, which is often when she doesnt get her milk FAST enough to suit her. From her weight and size, lots of people have been saying she will grow up to be bigger than Shannon. But she just lovvvvvvves attention! Talk to her, and she will coo back at you and smile incessantly. Her big eyes will follow you everywhere you go, and when you glance at her, she will give you a 'come here for chat with me, please...' look.

Shannon has been a total angel I have to say. She treats her little sister with so much love its incredible to see. SHe kisses and hugs her, and squashes her with all her might. She pinches her cheeks, and proclaims 'mei mei is sooo cuuuttte!' *pinch, pinch, pinch* She will come to me and whisper in my ear 'Mei mei likes me, mei mei loves me..' and she creeps into our room in the morning and perches on the edge of the bed, looking at the little one sleeping.

I can only hope that this will continue on and the two sisters will grow up close as can be.

Extreme Makeover : Shannon's room

2008-11-07T14:05:00.012+08:00

By Shannon's mommy:

Finally, after ONE WHOLE YEAR, I am able to blog this down as a achievement. I had been itching to do up Shannon's room since she turned 1, and we started on the project in October last year, after much persuasion and convincing on my part to Mal. Men are just... men.... they will sit on their butts and procrastinate until the cows jump over the moon and nothing will happen.

Anyway, we finally got started with the wall painitng, and the gradual improvements took place over a year. I was really undecided as to what theme the room should have, coz what if we had a 2nd kid and it turned out to be a boy? No princess theme then? Luckily, that problem solved itself eventually... :)

I also had a super low budget and a hard time finding stuff which I thought could fit into her room decor.... Luckily, my SIL gave Shannon some wallabees which fit right in to brighten up the place.

And the rest finally pushed its way through when we decided it was time for Shannon to have her own bed rather than sleep cramped in her cot... The bright curtains was a find from Ikea and gives the room a nice cosy look, appropriate for a kid her age.

The result? She loved it! She had no qualms about giving up her baby cot for the 'princess bed' and the hanging drape-around curtains, all done up with minimal fuss and cost, even for a fashion idiot like me. :)

BEFORE look: The white walls and the baby cot with boring beige curtains

BEFORE Look: The messy place we used for her changing cum computer table!

TRANSFORMATION: Painting and fixing up of new drawers, courtesy of moi

MADEOVER!: Bed and drape-around curtains from IKEA, see the monkey sleeping in it the first afternoon.

MADEOVER: Wall lamps and a bright cheery curtain sets the mood

MADEOVER: Gone is the messy table, now with wallabies and a happy watermelon pig holder

MADEOVER: Scrap book pictures framed up for her wall

Stop! Listen! Clap your hands!

2008-11-01T23:12:00.007+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

After almost a year at her current CC, it's the first time we get to see our little monkey in concert.

She was roped in in the school's annual concert on the 25th October 2008, Saturday, and it was with quite abit of anticipation that we were looking forward to her performance.

I have to say that with makeup on, my little monkey looks so grown up...

Here's her all dressed up, made up and ready to go before the concert

With her best friend in school, posing for photos

Here's the close up video of the dance.... she's dancing with her best friend from school, an energetic girl called Xuan Xuan. Mal thought she looked lost but I was charmed by the dance. There was doodles of laughter coming from the audience, and I think they were laughing at some of the other pint-sized dancers prancing around on the stage, but truthfully my eyes were glued on my little girl, so all else escaped me... :)

First 'Real' Drawing, Forgive the Doubting Mommy!

2008-08-26T22:48:00.004+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

Forgive the clearly besotted parent, but if you are just like me, seeing your two and a half doodle and draw harpzardly on pieces of paper without any direction for the past year, you can understand why a event like this causes a stir!

Shannon's teachers have been mentioning that she needs to put more effort in her drawing colouring skills, coz she doesn't use much strength in colouring, so her art work normally turns out pretty dismal, a few lightly coloured 'chicken scratches' on the paper, and she will declare it's done. Actually, I can identify with that, I used to hate colouring, was always too lazy to sit properly at the table, and use effort to press my colouring pencil and diligently cover the whole area consistently.... genes really do pass down, you see?

Anyway, other then a love for painting everything in sight BLACK, (and she can say that black is her favourite colour, ohmigod, I hope we aren't raising a future Morph!) her drawing is likewise dismal.... just a few doodles, circles, and lines here and there, and she's done.

Today however, I left her by the table with paper and pen and went for my shower. When I came back, my dear little daughter proudly showed me her masterpiece. And boy was I shocked! Gong Gong and Po Po tesified that she did it all by herself, without any help from anyone.

She later proudly declared that it was a drawing 'Baby Cayden and Shannon'...

Cayden on the left, Shannon on the right

First Sports Day, Look At Them Hop!!!

2008-08-26T22:25:00.005+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

Shannon's School organised a Sports Day on 8th August at Turf City, Premier Pitch. Yup, you read it right, a Sports Day for 2 - 6 year old kids!

Needless to say, we were all curious and wondering what the kids were actually going to do there, so not only did Mal make the time to attend, coz there was a Parents and Child race, (and it was obvious I couldn't participate!) Shannon's Gong Gong and Po Po also went along to check it out...

The camera does what words cannot, btw, the crazy woman laughing out loud was me, guilty as charged... and after you see it, I don't think you will fault me for it.... :)

Grumpy When Hungry, Just Like The Dad, And Stubborn To Boot!

2008-08-01T10:50:00.004+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

Wow, two and a half years, they have flown by so fast! Now looking at Dearest S, and seeing all her tiny less than a year old cousins and friends around her (and there seems to be a explosion of them recently! Ben, Cayden, Momiji, Nicky, Ryers), it's hard to believe my baby is REALLY really no longer a baby.

Her communications skills have jumped by leaps and bounds now.

She now tells me 'I'm not a baby, I'm a small girl! I'm not a small boy, I'm a small girl!' And you double up with laughter when you hear her exclaim ' Aiyah! Mommy, not like this! Like this!'

Sometimes she break off in song and do a little wiggle and jiggle in front of the TV, and singing Twinkle Twinkle Little stars in both English and Mandarin are easy feats for her.

And its so adorable to hear her conversing in a real conversation with her good friend at school. She now tells me what happens in school, and will solmenly declare to you ' Mommy, I cry today. Why? Becoz' I looking for Mommy.'

Sometimes, it will be 'I fight with Xavier, cos he pull the paper, and Charmaine too' These words will make Mal and I scramble in alarm and question her teachers the next morning. We're not worried about the other kids bullying her, we're just worried SHE will turn into a bully!

But like all other toddlers her age, her character is so much more prominent now. I know my dear girl will get incredibly grumpy when hungry, just like the Dad, and she is stubborn to boot!

Mal says that is definitely from my side of the family. Well, stubborness can be a strength too right? But sometimes when you have a screaming toddler who refuses her meds and screams like a lunatic running away from certain death, non stop for 1 hour (I kid you not), you start to wonder whether you're doing the right thing or not.

But I love her at this age, the little poser who smiles prettily for the camera, and her priceless remarks, like when you ask her who does Gong Gong look like, she will promptly answer, 'Gongfu Panda, coz got big tummy!'

So for now, I'm enjoying this show...

Little Poser in front of the camera

Smiling prettily with Big Cousin Samuel

Amazing, We Did Angkor Wat!

2008-06-26T22:22:00.034+08:00

After so many starts and stops, we finally made it to Siem Reap! We were slated to travel end of April, but fate would have it that Shannon fell ill two weeks before the trip and she just got worse and worse, so in the end we postponed the trip to June.

Alot and I mean ALOT! of people thought we were crazy, going to Cambodia, of all places and dragging along with us two toddlers, one baby and three senior citizens! But now that it is over, I am so glad we did it, it was a totally different experience and not one of the run of the mill holidays that's for sure!

7th June, Saturday
We jetted off on a cloudy Saturday afternoon, 7th June. It was a uneventful flight and we touched down in Siem Reap at close to 5pm. Our hotel transport was there to greet us and whisked us away from the swelthering heat straight to the cool confines of the hotel.

The service was great! From the receptionist who ushered us to the lounge sofas and gave us the room details to fill up, to the waitress who bought us cold lemon grass drinks with lemon grass tubes as straws, to the office manager who placed thin cambodian scarfs around our necks as gifts, it was overwhelming!

Our suite rooms were really comfy, with a living and dining area, and big bathtub and separate shower area in the bathroom. Twice the size of a normal hotel room, it was a really deal at only S$130 a night! And the amentities..... even we don't have a 48inch flat screen TV with over 80+ SCV channels to surf through at home! and One more 36 inch in our bedroom! Mal was in SCV surfing heaven. Just when I thought I could pry Mal away from the sports channel at home, he comes to place which offers him over 20 sports channels!

The and living and dining room with Shannon and Mal lounging on the sofa and watching TV on the 48inch flat screen TV!

Our Bedroom with king size bed and cot for Shannon

We opted to stay in the first evening and sat down to the hotel's complimentary Khmer set dinner. I liked the sour pineapple and lemon grass fish soup, really appetising. And I liked the stir fried beef and fish with preserved bean paste which I felt was good too though my mum had a different opinion about it...

8th June, Sunday, 8am
Today morning, after sitting down to a very hearty buffet breakfast of bacon, french toast, eggs done any way you like, teochew porridge, fruits, bread, noodles, and yogurt, we met Dara Ly, our tour guide for the next three days.

Dara, and his sister Ponheary Ly come highly recommended in the Tripadvisor and Fodors forums. We decided on Dara because we had young kids with us and wanted a slow and easy itinerary. Also, the main reason we decided on Dara was because both siblings had been actively helping with the poor village children of Siem Reap, and with the help of a American tourist, started the Ponheary Ly Foundation, which is aimed at getting village children off to school and giving them the much needed education they require to improve their poor living conditions.

We wanted to make this holiday trip a little different, and after reading so much about Cambodia's poor situation, and its people struggling to recover after the Khmer Rouge dictatorship, we thought we could help to make a little of a difference to these children. Hence, the meet up with Dara, and plans to visit one of their schools to meet the kids was on the cards for the second day.

Today morning we visited Angkor Thom, specially Bayon with its 64 faces. The ruins were magnificent and the craving in superb condition. Of course the kids couldn't appreciate the fine art, but it was a good long walk. After a while though, the cravings and the granite and stone just start to blur in front of you, and you get a little bored. But once the photos came out, the stark detail and intricate cravings shine through....

The Entrance to Angkor Thom

Look at the Cravings of the faces!

Group photo with Bayon at the background

After lunch at a restaurant near our hotel, Dara and his driver dropped us off for a rest and picked us up again at 4pm. Our aim was to see the famed Angkor Wat, but unfortunately it started drizzling, so we opted to go into town for abit of walk through the old market, dinner and the night market instead.

Lunch at one of the restaurants

The old market was all right, after seeing a few rows of stalls selling the same things, you mainly get a feel of what's it about, We did leave the place with a few beautiful handbags though.

I suggested Red Piano for dinner after hearing good reviews from the forums, and also the fact that Angelina Jolie dined there when she was in Cambodia filming 'Tomb Raider'. Though the reaction from our parents was doubtful as they looked at the smoking and beer drinking patrons on the ground floor, the second floor was pleasantly breezy and comfortable.

The restaurant serves mainly western cuisine and it was plentiful and good and reasonably priced! I had the Chicken with blue cheese cream sauce and french fries with a side salad and it was really yummy at only USD$7! Mum polished off a huge serving of fish and chips and Dad had his Chicken Cordon Bleu...The kids had a cheesy tomato sauce pasta which they rejected after a few bites in favour of snitching our french fries.

After dinner, Dara dropped us off at the Night market which mainly sold touristy trinkets and we walked about abit before heading back to the hotel for the night.

9th June, Monday
Today morning, we took a 45min ride out to Banteay Srey. The aim was to see the temple ruins of Banteay Srey, and later pay a visit to the Knar school, and lastly the Akri Landmine Museum.

Banteay Srey is a very small but beautifully preserved temple. Also known as the Women's temple, its red stone and intricate craving made it Wendy's favourite of all the temples we visited. It only took us about half an hour to finish the temple visit, but the gorgeous photos Wendy got from there! Really beautiful....

Bantrey Srey with a grouchy Shannon

Lovely photo which Wendy took of the kids

We left Banteay Srey to then visit the Knar School. We saw the kids hard at study and a few mischievous ones sneaking repeated peeks at us. It was a really eye opener, these kids with no shoes, very gruffy school uniforms and flies flying everywhere, trying to study. Dara told us that it only takes USD $12 to send a child to school for one whole year, but most villagers cannot even afford this amount. Though Unicef supplements some food which the school gets, it is hardly enough. Imagine 6 children sharing the smallest can of sardines we can find in the supermarket?!!

Until recently, all the school children studied in a wooden shed with a leaky roof and no walls. With incoming tourist donations to the Ponheary Ly Foundation, they were able to build a single story cement building for the kids. And the kitchen which the cooks churn out simple breakfast of rice and fish? It's two earthen mounds, thats' all.

The Old rickety shed where the kids have had to study in

Their new Classroom building

We looked at the school children and marvelled at how lucky the three kids we had with us were. Here we were debating whether to let Shannon enter into St James next year since she has gotten a place there, or letting her stay at her beloved Faith Montessori, and in a nearby country, kids are struggling to be fed and clothed and to be educated. The chinese saying 'Bu Tong Ren, Bu Tong Ming' really applies here.

The funny thing? The kids were always smiling and laughing. They looked at us with curiosity and some were so eager to pose for Wendy's camera.

Beautiful photo of the Knar School kids

They loved taking photos, courtesy of Wendy's camera

We left the place promising Dara that we would try to gather some donations to forward to them for their upcoming new school year in September.

We went on to visit the Akri Landmine Museum. Akri was a soldier who spent his early part of his life laying landmines for the Khmer Rouge. After the Khmer Rouge ended, he saw the destruction these landmines caused to his people and the helpless landmine victims without hands, legs or eyes. He vowed to help and started digging out as many landmines that he could find. He estimates that he had unearthed at least 50,000 landmines, with thousands left. The landmine museum showcases just some of the landmines and the destruction it has caused to Cambodians. Besides that, it also relies on donations to fund a home for landmine victims just behind the museum.

This place really stuck a chord with me when I read the stories of the landmine victims, most of them children, some without hands, arms, others without legs. It particularly hit home when I saw a photo of a 9 year old landmine victim, a girl with a blinded eye, the same girl I had noticed at the Knar school hard at studying.

We had lunch at the Kmer Resturant. Coincidentally, the Ponheary Foundation was bringing a group of school children to lunch there, courtesy of a Amercian family who was here so we met Ponheary in person, a very warm and friendly lady.

Lunch was really good, we had 6 dishes and it only cost USD$24 with drinks! (Btw, beer is cheaper than soft drinks there!) We had a fried egg and long bean omelette, very similar to the ones we find back home, pork ribs in sweet sour sauce, two different baked potato, beef, pork and cheese casseroles, really yummy, morning glory with small shrimp (which is really 'Kangkong' with 'He bi'), and Cambodian's famous Fish Amok, which is essentially small bits of fish, with chopped vegetables in a green curry gravy.

After lunch, and a rest back at the hotel, we headed to Angkor Wat at 4pm. Hmm, what can I say about this temple ruin? I think after seeing temple after temple, we did get templed out, so it was much of a blur for me since it was HUGE... especially when I had to juggle a 12kg toddler on my arm who refused to get down and walk on her own, and also refused daddy, Popo, OR Gong gong. I was really pooped by the end of the tour.

Pooped Lisa even before we went into Angkor Wat

But after saying this, I have to say the photos we took made it all worth while. Captured with clear skies and breathtaking scenery, the photos really show Angkor Wat in its past glory. It made me proud looking at this photo and saying to myself, 'hey, we did it! We did Angkor Wat and it was worth it!

The Pride n Joy of all my photos

Look at the beautiful clouds and sky! Wendy's Camera...

Stone cravings at Angkor Wat

The two kids taking a break

We ended the day with dinner at a Hongkong cafe with dimsum and surprisingly good fried rice! Dad chatted with the owner for a bit and it turns out he is a Malaysian who started this place about 8 months back. In any case, we satisfied any chinese food carving we had, and Shannon had her favourite Char Siew Bao' even in Cambodia.

10th June, Tuesday
Tuesday morning, and we were treated to a specially mashed potato and cheese casserole for out buffet breakfast. Mal was already commenting he was gonna miss eating all the fatty bacon he could for breakfast!

We went to Ta Phrom today morning. This temple ruin is famous because of the show 'Tomb Raider' and it was one of my favourite. The jungle had taken hold of this temple before restoration started, and because of this, many trees roots started growing along, on top and over the temple stones, creating a really beautiful and unique display of nature and man made creation together.

Tree roots reaching from top to bottom

Group photo

With a bit of time before lunch, we headed to Artisan D'Angkor. This is a school cum workshop where young Cambodians enter into apprenticeship for a number of years to become skilled craftsman in wood, stone and silk weaving. Establishments such as these are crucial to Cambodia as so many of its people were slaughtered during the Khmer Rouge, many of the old skills passed down from generation to generation are almost lost to the young. Here, we saw the apprentices hard at work cravings, sanding and moulding art pieces and displays of Angkor Wat cravings, Buddhist artwork and Cambodian murals.

We opted for lunch at another recommended cafe Blue Pumpkin, but it was a dissapointment for me, After hearing fave reviews about its crossiants which could rival its counterpart from France, well, I can only say, I was not bowled over by it food, atomsphere, crossiants or its ice cream.

To make up for it, Mal and I went in search of the mysterious Mango ice cream.... confused? You see, on our first day out, upon returning back to the hotel, we spied a couple carrying what looked to be a mountain high of mango pieces and ice cream in a big plastic bowl back to the hotel. It looked so yummy, I ask the doorman immediately whether he knew where we could get it. The doorman replied that it was from the cafe just next door... so on this free afternoon, we went on our search. It didn't take us long to find, just 3 doors down, we chanced upon the Puka Puka Cafe, which is located next to a Angkor Cookie Factory! We went in and checked out its cookies which apparantly was started by a Japanese lady living in Angkor Wat. The cookies were lovely and we bought a few boxes back to Singapore.

She also opened Puka Puka Cafe which serves pastries, bread and of course the most yummy concoction of shaved ice, sweet milk, mango syrup, Mango Sorbet and topped with chunky, sweet and juicy Mango pieces, mmmmmmmmm! We relished one and ta-po'd one back for Wendy and Alf....

For our last dinner at Siem Reap, Dara recommended a Khmer-French fusion restaurant in town. We were abit dubious seeing the arty farty exterior, but the dining area was charmingly Khmer so we opted to try it. It turned out to be a good recommendation. We sat on the cushions on the floor and the kids started rolling round in fun.

I tried the duck L'orange which was a bit tough but otherwise very nice. Mal had beef stew which was simply fantastic. The beef melted in the mouth and the taste was superb. As what Mal kept whispering in my ear, 'where else can you get good french food at USD$12???

'Though both my parents had opted for khmer one dish stir-fried chicken with different styles of cooking, it turned out very nicely as well.

Budding Talented Photographer in the Making - Ethan took this pic of Shannon

Sitting on cushions on the floor at the French Fusion restaurant

11th June, Wednesday

Today we are saying goodbye to Siem Reap. We had our last buffet breakfast at the hotel, with Mal mourning the loss of unlimited bacon, and me relishing the yummy pork porridge with salted egg.

Since our flight only leaves Siem Reap at 625pm, we were lucky enough to get a late checkout for all the rooms until 4pm, so that was really nice of the hotel. We packed our luggague and with lots of spare time left, decided to bring the kids to use the swimming pool. Shannon and Ethan had fun running around and wading in the shallow end, while Mal teased the two kids with the Helicoptor stunt.

The Hotel swimming pool

Shannon and Ethan playing in the shallows under daddys' watchful eyes

We decided to wander out alongside our hotel and explore the small cafes and resturants just next door for some lunch. We stumbled upon this Korean non spicy hotpot set lunch for four at only USD$20 and decided to give it a go. A standard meal comes with fishcakes, fish rolls, meat balls, vegetables, mushrooms and tofu. The soup base was very yummy and the chilli sauce which accompanied the meal had a tinge of bean paste in it, so it was a great complement to the meal. I enjoyed the food throughly though Mal was not very impressed by the set up.

We then went over to the cookie factory and Puka Puka Cafe next door and had a last Mango fruit sorbet dessert, gonna miss this when we come back to Singapore! I seriously doubt we can find this anywhere here!

We boarded the packed plane home to Singapore in the evening, and it was so full that they had to split us up. In the end I sat with Shannon and mum, while Mal and my dad enjoyed sitting on their own and getting some relaxing time to enjoy in flight service. We touched down at 930pm with a cranky and sleepy Shannon in tow, and rushed home in a cab...

Last Thoughts....
Alot of people, us included had this misconception that since Siem Reap is in Cambodia, it would be really rural, dirty and just plain poor. But that was so very wrong. With its many western cafes, restaurants, and posh hotels, too many to count, Siem Reap looked like Phuket!

Of course, there's no denying the fact that the people are poor, and we did see many begging children and many more hawking tourists sourveniors at the temple sites, but because of Angkor Wat and the thousands of tourists it draws every year, the people of Siem Reap are turning to this to survive. It is a stark contrast when we seeing row after row of english pubs, cafes, and restaurants in town versus the 4year old boy carrying a one year nearly naked baby begging for money at the temple. Yet there is no denying the economic boom that Angkor Wat and its temple ruins have bought to this survivors of the Khmer Rouge.

So to the people who are thinking of visiting, just go, and you will be surprised. But don't forget to stop to help the Cambodians, either through donations or through spending your tourist dollars on the kids selling the trinkets.

We were all tired out by the time we went home. But after all of us recovered from the hectic trip, I looked back at all the photos we took, and in retrospect, it was a great trip! I guess not many people would hazard a trip down Cambodia and fewer would do with with a bunch of young kids and old folks! But it was wonderful. Looking at the pics we took, I'm proud and happy we took the chance and went, we had a chance to do something different, and we did it on our own. These photos will bring us great memories when we look back and when Shannon grows up!

And we'll gathering donations right now to the Ponheary Ly Foundation to do our bit for the kids. Anyone interested can go to www.theplf.org for more details or contact me or Wendy.

Stop Asking Me Why!!!! I Dun Know!!!!

2008-04-03T10:38:00.002+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

I always thought that the 'Why stage' would not come with Shannon. I mean people who meet me alway tell me she's really shy and quiet, so I could never imagine her peppering her conversations with 'Why...' and being a jabbering kid in general.

Boy was I wrong! She started last week... and from the looks of it, its gonna get worse.

A typical conversation nowadays...
S: Mommy, (my) shoes in the car?
Me: Yes, they are in the car.
S: Why?
Me: 'Coz we didn't bring it up.
S: Why?
Me: Coz you were not wearing them and we can leave them in the car coz you are going to school tomorrow anyway.
S: Why?
Me: Coz you have to go school everyday.
S: Why?
Me: So that you can learn new things.
S: Why?
Me: So that you can be smart and earn lots of money next time.
S: Why?
Me: (gives up and keeps quiet.....)

I sometimes wonder whether she even understands my reasoning and my answers to her.

I sometimes give her really tough answers like how the rain nourishes the plants and how sunlight is important for life on the planet, just to see her squint at me and stay quiet. Well, I heard kids learn like a sponge so hopefully my 'chiem' answers will be absorbed into her brain like Osmosis and one day she will be able to answer her own 'WHY' questions.

Call Me Ms Crazy But We Are Going Siem Reap, It's Official!

2008-03-12T13:47:00.003+08:00

I never felt sooo hard pressed to come out with a vacation spot before but this time really takes the cake. You would think that it would be super duper easy to decide on where you wanna holiday, since almost ANYWHERE is better than staying at home right?

Well, I think I lost some grey matter in my brain planning this trip.

We started off thinking about Bali... hmmmm, lovely beaches, yummy food, balmy weather and clear crystal waters....halfway scouting for villas, I started hearing about big waves in Bali, and almost daily earthquakes in Sumatra which may tigger off tsumanis which in turn may hit the southern beaches of Bali, and they include most of the popular tourist destinations.

Oh well, we thought, maybe we can still go Bali but instead of staying in the south, we could look at Candidasa up at the north. But then it was like a 2 hours ride all the way up there?

So, ok, maybe instead of the beaches (shucks!), we could opt to stay in Ubud and relax amongst the rice padis. See how much research I put into this? I have the Bali map imprinted in my head now... anyway, after narrowing down 2 villas of our choice, Mal suddenly shushed me one morning while he was reading the newspaper, and pointed out a article talking about the possibility of a super 'Big' earthquake overdue along the Java Trench near Indonesia whose effects will certainly be horrendous.

Oh boy, that led me running to the PC frantically looking for articles of possible 'Big Ones' coming soon... So there goes Bali...... OUT!

Next we started discussing about Cruising. Having gone on 5 cruises, you can tell I'm a super big fan of them. I went hunting around for good dates to go and a good itinerary. We decided on the 4 day Phuket cruise, but alas, Super star Virgo was FULL all the way till March! And it was sailing off to HOngkong in April, with another ship, Superstar Aquarius coming to take its place.

We were ok with the new ship until I read reviews that Superstar Aquaris had 1 and half decks retrofitted into casino space, which effectively cuts down other facilities and activities that the kids can do.... so bye bye Star Cruises, I guess this trip is OUT!

We thought about Australia but Melbourne and Sydney was too long a flight for the little ones, and then we looked at Hongkong. Bingo! I was confirming our hotels and flights already (Hotel Paranoma!) until we started checking hotel and airfares, and whew!

Did you know it costs easily $800 a pax for a 4 day trip to Hongkong without food expenses? And it's only a 3 hours flight! We decided to turn our sights to lesser expensive locations, and it was really lucky we did, coz now with the deadly flu virus hitting Hongkong, I would feel really uneasy about going there.

After that, I went to Silkair's website, and iterally searched every asian destination on its route map! We looked at Vietnam, Danang, and Siem Reap, Cambodia. After ding donging for many days, and discussing whether Siem Reap would be doable with kids, we decided to bite the bullet and go!

People are gonna say that we are nuts, going Siem reap with the kids, but after we researched and did extensive reading on the country, I think we will be able to manage it as long as we take it easy and stay in a good hotel.

Though Cambodia is still getting back on its feet after the war, it has exploded as a tourist town due to the millions of visitors going to Angkor Wat and now there are just soo many good hotels springing up.

One thing which I learned and which we have incorporated into our intinerary is helping the underprivilaged kids of Cambodia with their dreams of studying. We're gonna plan a trip to one of the schools with the help of our experienced guide Dara, and see what we can do to help, be it a meal or money contribution to help them continue on their way.

Dara is the brother of Ponheary Ly, also a experienced tour guide, who is heavily involved in helping the underprivilaged kids of Cambodia. Through her committment and kind heartedness, the PLF organisation was set up. www.theplf.org.

I'm feeling that this is going to be the hightlight of this trip for me, seeing how the poor survive in this beautiful country, and being able to contribute to their welfare, even if its just by a little bit.

This is gonna be a real eye opener for us pampered and overfed Singaporeans, and I think we will come out of the experience enriched and more appreciative of our life.

So guys, watch out for the update after we return from our trip in late April.

Turning Two! And A Canon Powershot TX1!

2008-02-15T10:54:00.008+08:00

This is way overdue, considering that Shannon turned two LAST YEAR! But It's not as bad as it sounds, since her birthday falls just two days short of the next year... come to think of it, we really cut it really close, I mean just two days more, and Shannon would have been the 'Da Jie' of her peers and classmates, rather than being the youngest chicken in her class now... but it's ok, I've always loved holiday babies, being one myself :)

Only traumatic experience for her next time when she grows up? Not EVER having a chance to celebrate her birthday in school, EVER! Talk about emotional scars, I'm still remember my envious look whenever my classmates blew out birthday cake and handed out goody bags in my school days! But I digress, in a talkative mood today you see....

Shannon turned two and we celebrated it with a quiet lunch at Peach Garden with my parents and brother and family, and dinner with Mal's mum, sis, and bro in law... apologies, I only have the pics of the lunch with me, coz we were handed a super big birthday present from my bro during the lunch, a Canon Powershot TX1!

Ok, for all you 'Suakus' out there who dun know what this gadget is (eh, me initally included, until my brother enlightened us), this is the about the world's smallest camera cum video recorder in the market now. Weighing in at about 500gms (I just dumped it on our weighing scale) it's also the lightest so far...

So what to do now? Take pics and videos lah..... but this Suaku herre still can't get the hang of compressing the huge videos to smaller manageable bits that Blogger can accept, so for now, its photos....

Winx Fairies Blueberry and Vanilla Birthday cake from Smiling Orchid Cake Shop

Our Little Happy Family of Three

Shannon with her Gong Gong and Popo who adores her!

Dancing Girl!

2008-02-15T10:15:00.003+08:00

The Road To Wisdom Is Long And Winding

2008-01-16T13:43:00.000+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy:

It's been awhile since I'ver updated Shannon's blog and with so many stuff happening, I think it's time I do this....

What's Shannon been up to? Well the most exciting thing is that she's started school, half day Childcare to be exact.

I know tons of people out there are going to be rolling their eyes when they read this, but hey, the road is wisdom is long and winding isn't it?

Anyways, we decided to place Shannon in childcare at this tender young age, NOT because we wanted to nurture a budding Harvard child genius ( though that wouldn't be a half bad thought, hmmm...), but because she gets soooo bored at home with me....

Everyday, I hear her grumble at me and telling me, 'Go Out, go out? Go Po Po house, Gong Gong house...'

And she loves playing so much with other kids, it looks like she's half deprived everytime she spots other kids running about merrily and starts chasing them in a bid to get them to play with her.

I dun blame the other kids for running away in sheer terror when they see this little laughing mananic bearing down on them, which is what most of them do when they see her heading towards them, poor thing! The children, that is.

So after checking out numerous childcare centres, we made our choice and sent her in on Monday.

I have to be proud and say that for a two year old kid, her first few days of school have not been too bad.

Sure, she wailed her heart out for the first time today when she saw me leaving, and still cries on and off when the chinese lesson is on, but for someone who's not been out of mommy's sight ever EVER, I think that's a great achievement so far.

Her English teacher laughingly remarked today that she returned her teddy bear after the heart wenching sobs stopped, and declared... 'I dun want my bear..' Way to go, Darling!

I'm impressed by the way she picks up things just after two days in childcare, and she is ever so much more chatty in front of strangers now. Whole sentences like ' I don't want to go school' (unfortunately...) pops out of her mouth with ease, and she started reciting the days of the week, 'Monday, Tuesday...'

And today, this mommy watched while she soaped and washed her hands, pulled a paper towel from the dispenser, wiped her hands dry, then used her feet to step on the dustbin pedal to open the dustbin lid, throw the used paper towel into the bin, and come out of the bathroom, all by herself....

Mommy's little girl is growing up so fast now...

They Do This Even Better In Phuket???

2007-12-20T22:07:00.000+08:00

Finally, it's done!

I just have to post this portrait up so that you guys can see how nicely this was done, and how similar it came to the original photograph...

The lady at the framing shop commented that they actually do this even better in Phuket? Well, anyways, this is good enough for me....

Love Love LOVE CHIANGMAI!

2007-12-05T15:32:00.001+08:00

Some people will think it's crazy to go back to a holiday spot twice when the world's such a huge place to visit. Others will think you're utterly nuts when you go back to the same holiday spot in less than 4 months..... but hey, people who think you're nuts are probably nuts too right?

We headed back to Chiangmai over the weekend coz we absoloutely love love loved CHIANGMAI! when we were there in August, and now with the cool weather approaching, and my parents game to go, we thought why not?

Also, I just had to settle my unfulfilled wish of getting a portrait done of Shannon....

We had hoped for good weather in August when we went there the first time, and Mal couldn't stop teasing me that despite all my checking and rechecking of weather and expecting cool temperatures, we were lambasted with hot heat.

Well, this time, the weather was spot on and Wendy you missed it! Lovely 24 degree celcius and a chilly 21 in the morning....

We opted for a more relaxed iternary this time round, with food, food and more lovely food!

So on a early morning on 30th November, I found myslef waking up at 415am. Can't believe I let myslef believe that a 635am flight is not THAT bad, but trust me, waking up at 415am in the morning is BAD! But the flight went relatively smooth, though it was packed to the gills. Shannon choose to snooze away for 2/3 of the flight on my lap, that was how packed the flight was...

We reached the hotel at 10am and decided to take a stroll at Wororot Market before heading to Riverside for lunch. Since the Market and The Riverside was closeby we opted to walk. The weather was great, and the Pad Thai and Koi Soi equally good!

After a rest back at the Hotel, we headed to Whole Earth for some wholesome food before strolling to the Night Bazzar for a walk.

The next day, we headed to QUeen Skirrit Botanic Gardens since my parents have never been there and my flower crazy mum was already missing her orchids back in Isngapore. But it was good! The weather was chilly enough for Shannon to don her woolly hat and gloves and pose for the camera.

Our guide, a really nice man, Garry with excellent command of English, herded us to the Orchid and Butterfly farm for buffet lunch which was surprisingly pleasant and reasonable at 160bht, that works out to about S$7. AFter lunch we were free to roam the orchid farm and view the lovely butterflies fluttering about. Out came the cameras again!

We ended our day with a good rest back at the hotel and headed to roam the Saturday Market at Wulai Road. Bought Shannon a doggie balloon and some hooks for her room. I also got some cotton candy to munch on the way to dinner.

We tried a new restuarant, Thanam, and the atomsphere there was really special. Located just next to the river, we were seated outdoors right in front of a quartet playing thai musical instruments. With candle light and a balmy cool evening and excellent food, this is one place I will surely recommend! And for only 700+bht(S$30) for the whole meal for 5 of us, it was no wonder it was so busy!

Shannon posing prettily for the camera...

Sunday morning saw us having a lazy day at the hotel. We only ventured out to the Sunday market about 5pm, and thereafter I tried to get us into another local and supposedly good Resturant, Huen Phen. But the place was so packed that the waiters could only shake their heads at us. No choice but to head back to The Wok for dinner....

On Monday, with our trusty guide Garry, we headed up to the hills for Doi Suthrep. ON the way there, we stopped by Bhu Phing Palace, the King's Holiday home. I''m glad we visited the palace, coz the flowers were absolutely beautiful! Tons and tons of roses and orchids, and the landscape was serene and quiet.

Family photo by the Orchids

Fountain built in honour of the Queen

The Temple at the Grounds

After Doi Suthrep, Garry recommended another resturant very near our hotel for lunch, Gai Tong Heng. This is one of the oldest Chinese resturant in Chiangmai, and the food was good and reasonable. We ended up eating dinner there again that night!

We headed back home on Tuesday morning on another packed flight. But whether due to their good heart or just plain concidence, Tiger Airways had a free seat next to us, so Shannon got her own seat. THanks to Wendy's DVD player, she watched Elmo and Hi-5 on the way home.

Here's some more assorted pics...

Sign Me Up For The Debating Team Anytime!

2007-11-05T10:08:00.000+08:00

Shannon is fast approaching two in December, and Mal and I are amazed by the progress she has made in these few months....

I still remember the halting 'Ball.... Bear..... Po Po...' words she used when she was just 1 and a half... now she turns us speechless with her three syablus words which we have never heard her say before. So just for posterity's sake, when our little one grows up in twenty years time and is perhaps getting married soon (sob sob!) She can read this on her own and laugh herself silly with her attempts

A month ago, amidst a sudden downpour on our way to breakfast, the first stunner... 'Ummmmbraaallaaa!' Shocked the Hell out of me and Mal!

After that it, it started coming out a a choo Choo train! Words like 'No, I wannn tis!', 'Moooon... Nitetime...', 'Meeennnny Mouse', Hose keysssss' (House keys), Daddy Car, Mommy Chair', Pear Pear Juice.... Macdonny (Macdonalds), 'Wo Bu Yao' ( I don't want in Mandarin)...., 'Rainny Day', 'Cornfakes....

Lately, she started copying the Hi Five programs and us as well, so ask her how a cow sounds, and she will go 'Mooooooo', 'Baaaaaaaaaaa' is for sheep, 'Neeeeeeeiiiiii' is for horse, 'Meoooooow' is for Cat, 'Crrrriiii' is for Criket, 'Arrrrrrrr' is for Lion and smacking lips and waving hands is for fish.

Communicating with her is so much fun now, and it's amazing how their mind works. She knows when Mal and my dad disappears from the breakfast table, it means, ' Daddy toiiillet, Gong Gong toilet', and it useless trying to stop laughing when she imitates my irritated shriek at Mal when he's slow coming to get her from the bathroom after her bath....' Deeeeeeaaaaaaaarrrrrr!'

Hearing her say words like 'Opposeat' (opposite) and 'Act-tivvvvti Book' (Activity book) just blow me away.

Ok Ok, maybe I'm just a besotted love stuck parent who thinks the world of her kid, but who doesn't right? Every parent think their kid is the cutest, most adorable, most lovable child in the universe right?

I'm just enjoying this interlude before she turns into a screaming ugly child at age three, and trying to keep a straight face whenever she goes, 'Pleeez... than you....' to get her beloved cornflakes.

Ritz Carlton Just Brings Out The Exhibitionist In Me!

2007-10-09T13:32:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Daddy and Mommy got a call from Marriot Hotels Vacation Club inviting them for a talk on their new Reward Clubs Programme, and in return, they get a free 2 Day 1 Night Hotel stay at Ritz Carlton.

Being the typical Kiasu and Kiasi people that they are, they went for it and endured a hour of talk before getting the much coverted voucher.

Daddy and Mommy have fond memories of Ritz 'cause they stayed there a few times, and all because of the bathtub with the full length window! They spent their first wedding anniversary there and the hotel sweetly gave them a complimentary slab of choc cake to mark the occasion. Mommy's birthday celebration in 2003 also took place there, so it was with much gusto that they looked forward to the stay on 15th Sep, this time to celebrate Daddy's birthday, with a new addition, ME!

The room was great, with a super high bouncy King Size bed and fluffy room slippers for me to flounce about in.

I

My Own Personal Ritz Embossed Slippers! Time to do the Moo Moo Cow Slipper Dance!

But the best was the Bath room! I loooovvvvvvvvveeeee the bathtub! I am an instant convert, just like Daddy and Mommy. Which other hotel in Singapore features a full length window right next to the bathtub, overlooking paramonic views of Marina Bay and the East Coast?

Just in case any dirty minded people are reading this, Mommy was wearing a swimming costume ok!

And with a Bulter personally drawing a hugemonous Bubble bath for you?? Ritz Carlton just brings out the Exhibitionist in me!

Who Wants to Join Ex-H******* Alumni? Just Resign to Qualify!!!

2007-10-07T23:24:00.001+08:00

By Shannon's Mommy

I realise that when you are in the same industry as me, the no. of Ex-staff you can encounter is really amazing... Back in the first company that I joined, we always joked that the number of ex staff and clients we have is probably at least half the Singapore's population.. well, that may be stretching the truth by just a little, but what do you expect when we get long service awards, mind you, awardS har, not award, EVERY two and a half years? And only about 10% make it even that far?

Anyway, those who know what I'm talking about will be sniggering away in agreement, and those who dun, just be glad you weren't in the same industry as I was!

Ok, but back to the subject matter at hand... I organised a pot luck dinner at our place last Saturday for all Ex-H******* close colleagues, just for us to reminisce the good Ole' times... though a number of people couldn't make it, but it was enough that a gand of us could!

What better way to spend a evening bashing the ridiculous and crazy clients we encountered before? Or to 'suan' each other about the mindlessly silly things we did?

Like the time Nicole supposedly put a irate client on the phone, on hold so that she could blow off some steam by lambasting him and calling him a idiot to the rest of her colleagues, only to realise he was NEVER on hold and heard every single word she said....!

Or the time my dearest staff did a major boo-boo, and me, being their last line of hope! Had to put my life in danger and face 20 over pissed off people and apologise for the error....

Or the mini pantry i stocked full of chocs and cookies, and yummy pineapple tarts galore? Till date I still remember Mel's fave Marks and Spencers Choc Marshmallow teacakes, and Frances obsession with the Piggy Wiggles, and the tons of wine gums we gobbled down... and Nic's ever messy table, so messy that a cup of soy milk left on her desk actually turned to 'Tua Huay'!

Oh gosh, those were the days, man!

Nowadays, when people ask me where I'm working, the standard answer is 'oh, Shannonho Pte Ltd, as her P.A.' How times change.....

Anyway, it was a night of fun, and we DID have lots of fun times together, didn't we, Marko, KG, Frances, Mel, Nic, Monyee, and the rest? So the rest of you, if you wanna join the Ex-H******* Alumni, just resign to qualify!

Shannon had lots of fun too. She warmed up quickly for the many uncles and aunties and enjoyed being the centre of attention, posing for the camera so many times, I swear that little girl is totally vain! And I have never captured such nice shots as the ones PC got that night!

Guys, we should really do this more often, and this time, make sure everyone turns up!

The first bunch, before Titus had to leave!

Second Set of Group Photos

Happy Family? Btw, Shannon can be loaned for photoshots at market rates, please apply via email...

Jie Jie PC with the little poser (In denial that she is in fact Auntie PC)

Sunshine After The Rain!

2007-10-04T08:51:00.000+08:00

it's been nearly a month since Shannon or Shannon's Mommy a.k.a me posted...

We have been very busy with a bad episode of Stomach Flu which hit the Ho family of three!

Shannon got it first, though I still have no idea from where, since her good friend and neighbour Xuan and her both started vomitting on the exact same day.

There she was, one minute happy and cheerful and ready to have her lunch on Thursday, the next minute, throwing up every 5 minutes until all she could manage to cough up was gastric juice. And in case any of you didn't know this, gastric juice is slimy and thick, oh boy, the things you learn when you have a kid!

I rushed her down to the clinic and by the time I saw the doc, she had thrown up about 10 times, and couldn't even keep water down, poor baby.

Dr. Tan gave her some suppostitorys to be inserted up her anus, as normal fluids just wouldn't stay down. He also warned us that if Shannon was still throwing up by 6am the next morning, we had to admit her to Mt. A for drips, and she would be terribly dehydrated by then....

Thank goodness the medicine worked! She stopped throwing up and started diarrhoea the next day. Every 10 min, we would have to change her diaper and by Saturday, I was the next victim, with throwing up and diarrhoea....

Mal was the last to catch on Monday night, though his case was mild compared to Shannon and me.

Thankfully, by the following week, it was sunshine after the rain, whew!

Chiang Mai, Where Doggies Queue Up For Elevator Lifts

2007-09-04T18:05:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

I think it's high time I applied for a Krisflyer's membership card. I mean, here I am, with trips to Perth, Indonesia, Malaysia and now Chiangmai under my belt, but I don't have a card to chalk up mileage points?

My dear parents jumped at a chance to join Uncle Alfred and Aunty Wendy to Chiangmai. Daddy was raring to go since he missed out on the Bintan trip and seriously needed some R and R.

Mommy and Aunty Wendy did weeks of late night hunting on the Internet to find JUST the right hotel for us babies. By a fluke chance, they spotted this new hotel, called Maninarakorn, which just opened it's doors in late 2006. It's conveniently located 5min away from the night bazaar and priced really really reasonably at S$50 a night, wow wow! So our mommies just grabbed it and booked 3 delux terrace rooms for all of us, talk about a steal!

Daddy and Mommy spent 4 nights stuffing MY 21 inch suitcase and haversack full of clothes, toys, 3 sleeptime bears, a electrical cooker and my food! And half filled their 21 inch hard case with their bare necessities, shows who's the boss isn't it???

We finally headed off on Friday, 17th Aug for our 5D4N adventure, after Mommy exhuasted herself on the packing!

Friday, 17th August 07 (By Shannon)
Can't believe Daddy and Mommy woke me up from my beauty sleep! At 6:10am in the morning, ohhhhhhhhhhh! They dressed me up while I was still trying to catch 40winks, and bundled me into a cab just to catch a 8:55am flight??? Are they insane or what? Luckily I was too excited to get cranky at them, and blissfully had my milk on the way to the airport... yummy!

We met Aunty Wendy, Uncle Alfred, Ethan and Aunty Wendy's mum at the airport... and my doting Gong Gong and Po Po caught a train all the way from the West just to send us off at 7am! I just knew they would miss me!

We waited impatiently at the boarding gate to get on the airplane, only to be told that we were changing planes due to a technical error, and it was after a long wait! Oh gosh! We had to then walk all the way to the other end of the airport to recheck in our boarding passes, and get this, we then had to sit a bus out to the runway to board the new plane, like in those 60's movies, talk about new experiences! Anyway, after a 1 hour delay, we were finally on our way! Whew!
Why are we waiting? Why are we waiting?

Chiangmai was hot! Seeing Mommy pack sweater after sweater, and long pants, I was convinced that it would be cool and idyllic, so it was a rude shock to feel sun and heat on my face... thank goodness Mommy followed Daddy's advise and managed to stuff in two shorts into my bulging suitcase, Daddy, you're a lifesaver!

So much for her insane daily tracking of the weather in Chiangmai, what do you mean 27 degrees celsius with moderate wind? Were you checking on Perth by mistake, Mommy?

Daddy got us checked into the hotel while we were busying running around and checking out the huge sofas in the reception area and gulping down our, I mean, our mommies' welcome drinks of lemongrass cordial... first time I'm tasting this unique drink which taste a little like lemon, a little like rose.... The place was really clean, neat and stylish, thumbs up!

Unfortunately, due to a little screw up, we ended up being located to normal delux rooms rather then the delux terrace rooms which Mommy had booked. Mommy and Aunty Wendy went down to bang some tables nicely, and explain that we needed the delux terrace rooms as they were furnished with bathtubs, only to be told that they were being refurnished at the moment, and no room with bathtub was available! So after speaking to the manager in charge and slyly dropping the name of the General manager into the conversation, the nice manager upgraded us to junior suites, yipee! What great service!

And what rooms! Heaven! Complete with walk in wardrobe, pantry with mircowave, flat screen LCD TV which can turn to face either the bed, or the living room, and a see through glass bathroom! Though I have no idea why anyone would want a see through glass bathroom! Daddy had to take great pains not to let me see him showering!
The King sized bed!

The see through toilet where Daddy took great pains not to let me see him showering!

The living room, Bedroom, toilet and pantry.

Mommy quickly stuffed me up with porridge, before pulling out those 5 full sheets of itnerary... super mommies at work again! Aunty Wendy and her had apparently pulled out all the recommended restuarant names in chiangmai, top spots to visit, van hire contacts, and maps of spas! Daddy and Uncle Alfred would only gape in amazement and tried to downplay it....

After Ethan and me had our lunch, we were quickly bundled off to the Riverside restaurant. How's the food? I have no comment, since both Ethan and me were snoring away in sheer exhuastion by then..... but from what I eavesdrop from Daddy and Mommy, they serve yummy Pad thai and curry chicken noodles, as well as yummy Tom Yam soup and Mango salad! We finally got a taste of Riverside food when the mommies ta-bo'd their mince pork soup with rice for us babies dinners, and it was delicious!

We headed to the Night Baazar before dinner, and did some shopping around before trying to find another recommended restuarant, Whole Earth. No such luck though, so in the end, we settled for one of the many seafood restuarant at the Night bazzar, before heading back to knock out at 11pm!

Saturday, 18th Aug, 07 (By Shannon's Mommy)
Shannon woke up being disturbed again! This time, the cuplrit was me! While chopping up food for the babies' porridge, I discovered that the electical cord of the cooker didn't fit into the wall socket, and we had not bought a adaptor. So in the end, we passed all of my nicely cut ingredients to the hotel kitchen and asked them to whip up some porridge for the babies...

We went down for breakfast, which was really quite a good spread! Eggs, and Sausages, and different kinds of bread, pancakes, noodles, Ham, Bacon, Potatoes, Cereal, Fruits, juice, tea and coffee, we sure took our time at breakfast!

After that, it was time to get ready, coz we had rented a van and were heading to Mae Sa Valley to visit Queen Skirit's Botanical gardens, the Elephant Camp, and the Mae Sa Waterfalls!

Many flowers were blooming at the botanical gardens, and this was just the start of the bloom season! We checked out the man made waterfall in the Gardens, the desert plants, and the creeper and crawlers! Where was Ethan? He was zzzzz in the van, haha! Check out the pics!
Flowers flowers everywhere!

Mommy, did I REALLY hear you say we will go Arizona next?

Man made waterfall at the Gardens

A Nymph in the Rain forest!

Next stop was Mae Sae Elephant Camp... though Shannon loves elephants, and was eagerly waiting to see them, she got really scared when soooooo many of them turned up! There were at least 20 - 30 elephants roaming around in the park! And when they blew their trumpets, she would give a jump and hide her face in my shoulder, maybe the shrill sounds just send shivers down her spine? She clung hard to me, and kept telling me to go 'There!' as in move up the spectators bench, until we were watched the elephant show from the safety of the highest, and furthest bench I could find!

No! There! There! Go there!

The elephants were really smart, I'd never seen elephants paint really nice paintings of plants and flowers before, and it was a first! Amazing, I really wonder how they managed to train them to differentiate colour, shapes and size... the paintings were being sold to help support in the upkeep of the elephant camp, and I was so tempted to buy one! But at 40,000bht (close to SGD$800!) for the really superb ones, we just couldn't afford it... :)

Mal bought us all super nice elephant tee-shirts as souveniors though and now we can be a happy elephant family!

Last stop of the day was the Mae Sae Waterfalls. We bought out the Ergo carrier, and I backpacked Shannon to see the falls... she giggled with every left and right sway that I took whilst walking.... :)

A giggling Koala bear on my Back

We managed to climb up to the 5th tier of the 10 tiered waterfall before heading down again, not too bad...
5th Tier of the Waterfalls

On the way back, the Driver stopped at a ATV(All Terrain Vehicle) stop, and the wild streak in me was yelling again! I was raring to go for a ride! Alfred and Mal was keen to, so what did we do with Shannon? We left her with Wendy, and Ah Ma (Aunty Wendy's Mom) and a sleeping Ethan haha! Thansk so much for babysitting Wendy! We had loads of fun, climbing up the mountain, and over rocky and rough terrain! I lost control of the vehicle a few times, much to the guide's alarm, but overall, I think I did not bad, for a puny lady to handle a rough, powerful and wilful machine!
This one's for the Album! 4 daring enthusiasts up for the Challenge! Like Real.....!

Let's show the boys how it's done! This is the way to wreck and trash the vehicle into the mud!

When we finally got back, Shannon was perched on Wendy's arm, fuming at us for abandoning her! She gave us the cold shoulder, and we had to coax her to laughing again... what a little 'xiao jie pi qi' she has!

After a long day, we headed back to the hotel for a rest before going out for dinner. We got the friendly hotel staff to direct us to the Restaurant Whole Earth, and I have to say the food did not disappoint! It was fanastic, we had Tom Yam Soup, a Sweet and Sour prawn dish in coconut which was my absolute favourite, a local rice dish, Green Chicken curry, stir fried mixed veg, and a salad. The ambience was superb, as it was located in a wooden teak two storey house and we had to take off our shoes to get upstairs, just like home :)

We headed back to the hotel after the late dinner, with Shannon getting cranky and sleepy.... another day gone...

Sunday,19th August 07 (By Shannon's Mommy)
We rented the van for another half day of sightseeing. Today, the plan is to see Doi Suthrep Temple, nestled high in the hills and later, we will be heading to the weekend market!

I was busy cooking the babies porridge, which I burned slightly due to the high heat (opps!) and lost track of time, By the time I glanced at the bed side clock again, it was 850am and we had to leave by 930am! So Mal bought Shannon down for breakfast while I quickly packed and changed.

When I went down to the breakfast table, we realised that it was only 8am????!!! What in the world? So we had our lesiurely breakfast and went back to our room.

While Mal was changing clothes, I packed up a little and our little monkey scurried around, playing... then out of the corner of my eye, I see her head to the bedside, and beep beep! She had pressed something! When I got over, I realised that our little monkey had pressed the time clock to reflect the different time zones in other countries and she was now trying to change it back to Chiang Mai time! That's why we were a hour ahead! Trying to hide your little dirty deed, Shannon?

Anyway, Doi Suthrep... it was a winding journey up the mountain, but it was not as bad as some travellers mentioned, that it would make you puke.... there were many dogs milling around, which is very usual for Thailand, as Thai people loves dogs, as do their Thai King. We bought tickets to go up the elevator to the temple, as the alternative was to walk the 300+ steps... and neither of us were keen to do that!

While waiting with the crowds of people, Shannon and Ethan suddenly gave a squeal of delight, two dogs apparantly had wandered to the elevator platform and into the crowd. The funny thing was that they then sat down, and looked like they were, like us, waiting for the elevator to bring them up to the temple! We were cracking jokes about how dogs queue for elevators rides here in Chiangmai, when lo behold! The dogs ambled and squeezed into the elevator when it arrived with other human counterparts! Imagine our speechless and stunned faces..!

There so so many tourists milling around, and photograping touts trying to sell good photo shots of the temple. It was a little sad seeing this revered and holy place becoming a commercial tourist sight, but the temple grounds and temple itself was magnicient, the view of the city down below beautiful, and we could still see many devoted buddhists praying at the shrine.

After lunch at 'Good View' which was disappinting, we took a break, and used the icy cold swimming pool and the new luxurious jaccuzi. The babies then took a nap and we headed off to The Wok, another recommended restuarant for dinner. The wok is actually a cooking school by day and a restaurant by night. We ate Al Fresco and from there, it was just a short 10min walk to the Weekend Market.

Dinner at the Wok

The Weekend Market? It was loud, packed, and wonderful! The handicraft and artwork being sold there was a eye opener. It was so so big, and I think we only walked a fraction of it before the kids got cranky and tired from the heat and noise and we had to hurry back to the hotel... really sad to leave the place, coz give me a few hours alone, and I would have bought a whole suitcase full of stuff! Hmm, perhaps Mal is thinking 'just as well we had to go, before all the money is spent!'...

We bought a clay pig flowerpot for my mum and we were so tempted to buy a hand woven teddy bear for Shannon, but Mal was a little unnerved by their big heads and eyes, so no bear for Shannon. My biggest biggest regret? I had read about artists at the weekend market who can replicate amazing portraits of people from just a photograph, and I was hunting around for a nice family photo to bring along. Unfrotuanely, caught up in the packing, I did not have time to do it, and left SG without one... ohhhhhhh! The black and white pencil sketches we saw was breathtakingly beautiful! I had to hit myself for not bringing a close up picture of Shannon, what a waste...argghhhh, till date, I am still banging the table in frustration! On hindsight, I should have called my Dad in SG, get him to email a photo over, and print it out, and rush back to the weekend market, get them to sketch it out, and mail it over to me! That was how desperate I felt! Till now, I am still hoping I hear close friends say they are heading to Chiangmai, so tat I can 'Tompang' them! Soooooooo, anyone going there anytime soon?????

Monday, 20th August 07 (By Shannon)
All these late nights out have sure tired me out! I was accustomed to sleeping at 930pm in Singapore, but these nights I have been up till midnight! Still, the action, and the 'Live Toy' (read that as Ethan) which comes along with this trip is not too bad....

Today has been designated as Shopping Day. Mommy and Aunty Wendy pulled the whole jim gang to Airport Central... thank goodness there's a big toys Department with a table full of Lego! While Ethan n myself were busy trashing up the place, under the watchful eyes of our dads, Mommy, Aunty Wendy and Ah Ma swopped down on all the creations which never makes its way to Singapore. I heard Mommy comment that Thai modern fashion is ever so fashionable and feminine, much nicer than what we have back home. It must be true, since I saw her bundle up 3 sets of Lingerie from her favourite and exclusive lingerie counter, BSC, in less than 20min!

I watched with bated breath as Daddy and Mommy contemplated buying me a huge Teddy Bear as big as me, but much fatter of course! This was after I made a bee dive straight to a display chair with a hugemonous bear and carried it out without a hitch! But, as all who have met me recently can see, grouchy face, means NO BEAR LAH! Sigh..........

We headed back to the hotel in the late afternoon, and the night was spent walking about the Night Bazzar.

Tuesday, 21st August 07 (By Shannon's Mommy)
Time to go home! Though Shannon had alot of fun, some times when she is in the hotel room, she will go 'Po Po? Gong Gong? Xuan Xuan?' (her good friend) And I have to give her the standard answer ' Po Po? You have to sit a AEROOOOO-PLANNNNEE, you know, a 'Whewwwwwwwww' (with a hand sign showing aeroplane flying through the sky) then you will be able to see Po Po and Gong Gong, and we are going on a 'Whewwwwwwwww' on Tuesday. Today is blah blah day, tomorrow is blah blah day, then it will be Tuesday.....'

Today I get to just say,' Po Po? Today. You will see them today.' Fullstop.

We said our goodbyes to the hotel staff, I got all the names of the staff who helped us greatly and provided us with great service, and we left for the airport.

The plane ride back was so great. While we were waiting at the boarding gate, a airport staff came back to us, and ushered us to the plane, while a bunch of people queuing at the counter glared at us suspicously. Here I was thinking, wow, priority boarding at Chiangmai Aiport! Talk about personal service! We spent 5 min taking silly photos of the plane we were boarding and slowly strolled to our seats. After buckling in, we waited for the rest of the passengers to start boarding, since the plane was only 1/5 full.

But when the pilot started his 'Hello' speech and the plane started taxing off the runway, we realised, Oops! We were the last remaining passengers and we had been waiting at the wrong boarding gate! Everyone was already onboard, waiting for us *Cring!* The bunch of people queuing, as my hubby helpfully informed me, were actually passengers getting ready to board a AirAsia plane just next to us....... so much for personal service! *sheepish grin*

Anyway, having a 1/5 full flight is great! Shannon got her own seat, as well the the whole row of seats behind her for her bed, and the stewardesses were most helpful. It was a great flight back to Singapore, where Shannon's Po Po and Gong Gong were there again to greet us.

Daddy, hey, you're blocking me!
See my own seat!
Daddddddddiiiiieeeeee! Stop trying to bag my seat, it's mine!
Sigh, I give up! Parents can be so dificult to handle as they grow up!

This is the Life! My own seat and a bed behind me!

After Effects of the Holiday Indulgence!
When we booked the trip and realised it was either a 3 or 5 day stay if we wanted to see the weekend markets, Mal and I were wondering whether 5 days was just too long. On hindsight, it wasn't enough! Each day was packed, and this holiday was so much fun that we wished we could stay longer...

Shannon had so much fun with Ethan that she has unofficially 'declared' him as her boyfriend and given him a pet name. So whenever I have to mention Ethan to her, it's E-wee and not Ethan, ok? And I have to be super careful not to say ' Ethan' or 'E-wee' in front of her when I dun want her to hear, or else, I will be hearing 'E-Wee? E-Wee? E-Wee?' all day long!

We realise that it's so much better to go on holidays with easy going friends, especially those who have kids similar to Shannon's age... (what better way to keep them entertained??) than to tackle the holiday alone. Now, I'm secretly planning for a Bangkok getaway... anyone interested???? *Evil Grin*

Camera, Look At Me, Darn It! Ok, Ready, Set, Go! Night Fever Night Fever....!

2007-08-13T18:02:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Mommy suddenly had a insane idea today morning! Here I was, just waking up and stretching my muscles when she comes bustling into my room, whips off my pyjamas, plonks a tee shirt on my head, shorts for my butt and announced that we were going to the zoo! She was jabbering about how the weather was so good, and we should just head off... anyway, it was free for her and me too, at least until I reach two.

Apparantly, it was a spur of the moment kinda thing, and she just sent a sms out to my friend's mommies to see whether they were gung ho enough to just drop everything and hit the zoo.... well, I can now say that they are gung ho enough, coz Aunty Val and Aunty Wendy tugged and pulled Kirsten and Ethan and appeared at the zoo to join in this impromtu walk!

Fast and gungho! Here we are at the zoo, when less than 2 hours ago, I was zzzzzzzz in my bed.....

I kept gesturing and making Monkey noises at Mommy, but silly mommy was too busy to pay attention to me and in the end, Aunty Wendy had to kindly remind her that her poor daughter wanted to see monkeys...geez! Talk about child neglect!

Kirsten loved the zoo! She was grinning and laughing, and dancing away! I was more interested in the monkeys, and Ethan was more keen to be a Monkey and run around!

After we reached the Orang utan Area, we hopped up onto the boardwalk for a closer view, cool! The platform was superb, so much so that Kirsten and I decided to boogie away in the zoo! Night fever night fever...... We bounced around very much like our cousins on the other side of the moat until the mommies came herding us off the boardwalk.

Hang on! I need to Get the camera in focus!

Camera! Look at me, Darn it!

Ok, Ready, Set, Go! Boogie Away, Night Fever Night Fever....

After that, it was to the Polar Bear Enclosure, and lunch at KFC! Well, technically speaking, it was the mommies having lunch and we contributed by staring and drooling... Ethan and Kirsten lapped up Mommy's porridge while I, as usual, picked and nit my way through. I don't understand these buddies of mine, they sure have no taste when it comes to porridge, how COULD they manage to get it downtheir throats???!!!

At the Polar bear enclosure before the yucky lunch, see how they are unsuspectingly smiling and I'm not.....

We played by the children's playground for a while after lunch before the mommies herded us sleepy babies back home.....but not before sneaking in some Ben's and Jerry's ice cream for me, since mommy has staff discount! Yummy!

So what did I learn today? I saw monkeys, polar bears, meerkats, deer, mousedeer, bats, lemurs, butterflies, birds, otters, lions, and orang Utan, manatees (mommy's favorite), and penguins. I learnt the zoo was a great place to boogie away, have fun and savour my Ben's and Jerry's ice cream... and one last thing, I learnt other buddies can tahan mommy's porridge much better than me...

Ok, Now Watch Me Slice That Turtle Into Half, Mommy...

2007-07-26T23:01:00.000+08:00

Well, after travelling to so many places, I've been a little embrassed to admit this is the first time I'm going to Bintan!

We decided to make a holiday of it when our friends suggested a family holiday for 4 families, with... you guessed it, 4 eighteen months toddlers jumbled in the mix.

For those who are wondering about the fate of Angsana Resort now, yes, it's STILL there and standing after the four mini tornadoes tore through the place.

All the planing went off without a hitch. This is of course, excluding the fact that my Dear had to pull out of the trip after his company decided to send him on a course for 23th and 24th! @#&*$(&!!

22nd August, Sunday

9:00am
Picked up our backup travelling partners, my parents and on our way to Tanah Merah Ferry Terimal! yippeee! Does this mean I can laze and do nothing all day????

10:00am
Checked in our tickets and group photo taken by my Dear, who since is NOT going, doesn't get to join into group photo, and hence is kicked out to be photographer.

Photographer aka Dear takes a photo before we head off...

11:05am
We are on our way! Big ferry!

1:30pm (bintan time)
Rumbling along on the bus to the hotel after the smooth ferry ride, while Shannon nods off finally!

3:30pm
Checked into our luxious one bedroom suite! Many thanks to Rena and her friend for getting us such a great room! Whew, now I'm relieved, Dad can sleep in the next room, away from Shannon and me.... else his snore can keep us awake like owls the whole night. Went to check out Val's and Rena/Wendy's rooms... Val balcony leads straight to the pool, wow... and Rena and Wendy's 2 bedroom suite has a jazzuci! Shiok! but it's raining! Rain rain go away, Shannon want to Play! At Bintan!

Oh ho, Gong Gong can sleep on the sofa and we can have our beauty sleep in peace!

6:30pm
We are on our way to dinner at the Kelong. Shannon was super curious about the live crabs sitting in the cemented tiled tank, she kept saying, 'cra...cra...cra....' and doing a pinching action with her hands.

Food was not too bad... had a steamed grouper (750gms, the guy was crazy, wanted us to order a 850gms fish! Just look at the size of that monster!), Tofu, Sambal kangkong, Prawn paste You Tiao, Deep fried squid (sorry dear, missed out on yoru favourite), and stir fried beef. We were stuffed for the 5 of us, and and amount came up to about SG114, not too bad huh? But it's still raining????

23rd August, Monday

8:30am
Oh goodie, clear weather at last! Went to the beach and managed to persuade our little koala to come down and touch her toes on the sand, hurray! Success finally! For those of you who don't know what is going on, Shannon has this fetish about cleaniness, she detests anything on her fingers, on her toes, and thighs. A tiny splatter of food will have her touching it with a finger, staring hard at it, going 'eh!' while pushing the finger towards you for instant cleaning. But, unfortunately, this prized habit doesn't include her butt, as she is totally unconcerned about small and big business, or the need to change diapers, oh boy!

So it was hardly without surprise that she refused to touch sand.... I finally managed to coax her by bringing her to the water's edge and letting her see my toes wiggling and sinking into the soft sand and water. While cleaniness is her fetish, water is her undoing, as you would know by now, from reading her previous posts! So down we go, haha!

Shhh, dun interrupt my train of thought! Can't you see I'm trying hard not to get sand on my toes!

10:00am
Quick quick, bring Shannon for a swim before the rains come again, and it does look atlike there's super heavy rain coming! Water Baby is now in session! Elijah, and Ethan hurried in for a quick dip before the heavens released it's load! Shannon had fun in the pool though with rain splashing everywhere!

Ok guys, this is my Super Kongfu Water Crane Move, Ha-Taaaaa!

1:30pm
We headed off to Bintan Idol, located in Pasar Pasar which is a malay shopping village for lunch and abit of shopping. I bought a snazzy dress for Shannon, hope she can wear it to Jenny's wedding in september!

Gong gong, I prefer the drums to the dress, can?

3:30pm
I bought Shannon to the beach again, this time to build sand castles! As usual the neat freak in her made her timid and wanting to clean her fingers everytime sand got on it, faint!

Finally, the fun of it overtook her, and she became intent on her task of building sand turtles and slicing them up with a shovel.. eeeeeeewwww...... Ethan and Elijah went all out and splashed around in the waves... oh ho...! Surfer boys in the making! '

Then it was down to the pool for a dip and some fun with all the babies before heading back to the room for a long overdue nap...

Ok, now watch me slice that turtle into half, mommy!

Say Cheese everyone!

7:00pm
Decided to stay at the hotel and went to Pantai grill for dinner. Dinner by candlelight is very romantic, but not when you have toddlers uneasy by the meager light offered by the fire, and squeaming around, trying to get away as fast as their fat legs can go!

11:30pm
Finally, the monsters are sleeping, so time for the mother monsters to come out and play! We headed for the private jazzuci for a soak and a chat before heading back to knock out for the night....zzzzzzzz.......

24th August

8:00am
Up and early with Breakfast at the hotel before going down to the pool for a last dip before checking out... our holiday is almost over!

3:00pm
Back on the ferry for the return trip home. We took the advantage of first priority boarding to go up the stairs and sit on the second floor, where the luxury seats were. Bad move! The weather was playing havoc with the sea, and by the time we reached Singapore, the boat was pitching so badly, we could only hang on to our seats and wait for the captain and crew to 'rescue' us down the stairs! But I have to admit, the daredevil streak in me found it a wild and exciting ride!

5:00pm

Back, home sweet home, Shannon is busy cramming all her stuffed cats, dogs, bears and whatever under her chin for big hugs and signaling us to turn on the TV for her Hi-5 show, looks like it's just another day for her!

Quick quick, turn on the TV! Hi-5 is on!

Before N After Expressions Weight Gaining Package?

2007-07-12T18:15:00.000+08:00

Time sure flies, I was clearing a load of Shannon's new born clothes to pass down to the little pig (my brother's baby) who will be born soon, and I shake my head in amusement and amazement, can't believe that eighteen months ago, our little gal could fit into these teeny tweeny mouse size rompers, and now I'm having heated discussions with Mal as to which Primary School to send her to.... GOSH! What happened?

Before and After Expressions Weight Gaining Package!

Just to record for Posterity's sake, at eighteen months, our little monkey:

Can understand majority of what we are saying to her and can say
'No No No!' (her favourite word!)
'Bear Bear'
'Bye Bye'
'Bird'
'Po Po'
'Gong Gong'
'Babee' (Baby)
'Ball Ball'
'Dadi' (Daddy)
'MiMi' (Mommy)
'Woo Woo' (Dog)
'Flewur' (Flower)
'Fis' (Fish)
'Unca' (Uncle)
'Ko Ko'
'Inowan!' (I dun want!)
'Bus'
'Car'
'Purpur' (Purple, thanks to JG class!)
'Meomeo' (Cat)
'Excu' (Excuse me)
'Gort' (Yougurt)
'Hi' (Hello, or Hi 5, depending on whether she is standing in front of the TV, or a person!)
'Go there'
'Where?'
'Tis' (this)
'Shhhh' (with a finger to her lips)

She is attempting to jump, but can't seem to get both feet off the floor at the same time, and is practising ballet by tip toeing around... she is also crawling around alot! Finally! Caught up with that long forgotten skill! And not to mention climbing alot! Up backs of chairs, window grilles (gulp!), people, (i'm the unlucky horse, it seems) and beds.... Oh, and she is eating fine with a fork and trying hard with a spoon! And lastly, she is learning to drink from a cup.....

Wow! I just can't believe that eighteen months ago, she was just a RED squirmy, whiney, teeny tweeny pooey mess of a baby!

Mind you, those were newborn sized diapers!

Our little Monkey now!

Look At Me, I Can Fly!

2007-07-11T13:49:00.000+08:00

Finally! The photos are out! We took Shannon for her very first Cablecar ride on 9th June. There was a really good deal going on, only $6.50 nett for Singaporeans and $3 for Senior citizens, so we just grabbed the chance!

Cable Car Ride????? REALLY???? YIPPEEEE!

Hmm, Mommy, I'm a little unsure about this.....!

Gulp! We're so high above the water......

Let me take another peek.....

Best Buddies, Bear Bear N Me

2007-06-27T23:12:00.000+08:00

Three Little Ducks That I Once Knew, Fat One, Skinny One, Just Like You

2007-06-19T15:18:00.000+08:00

I love water till this day, and endured many jokes by Marko about me being a Water Baby... in fact when I was pregnant with Shannon, I would still go swimming and relax by the pool... and the funny part was feeling Shannon kick me in her little water world, while I soaked in the calm still waters of the pool....

Shannon's growing up to be one too, A Water Baby in the making! We headed to Suntec to try a trial lesson of Aquaducks, the swimming outfit for babies learning to swim...OK, I'm sure your eyebrows are raised to the ceiling now, swimming for BABIES? Yup, they just do about anything nowadays!

Well, the weather was quite gloomy, and Coach Annie cautioned us that the water was brrrr.... cold... so it was really up to us whether to continue the lesson or not. I dipped Shannon's feet into the pool to give her a feel, and from that point on, there was no turning back! She started to wade into the pool with her clothes on! Time to change!

You could see she had tons of fun, she was grinning all the way through the lesson, so much so that Coach Annie used her over and over again like a lifesize doll to demo the activities....! Check out the pics...

This is the way we wash our face, wash our face, wash our face!

Quick! Catch the fish before it swims away!

Three little ducks that I once knew

This reminds me of a song Mal sings to Shannon all the time... haha...

Three little ducks that I once knew, fat one, skinny one, just like you!

But the one little duck with the feather on her back,

she ruled the others with a quack quack quack!

Down by the river they would go,

Wither Waddle wither Waddle through and fro,

but the one little duck with the feather on her duck,

she ruled the others with a quack quack quack!

Well, our one little duck with the feather on her back is well on her way!

Good Or Bad, I Still Can't Figure It Out Yet!

2007-06-11T12:58:00.001+08:00

this past one and a half years have flown by in a blur, I suddenly realise that our baby girl is no longer, well, a baby girl....this hit me one day watching her hanging on the bars of the playground like a naughty monkey that she is now.... she has taken her first steps into toddlerhood, and Mal and I have no baby left to baby (good or bad, I still can't figure that one out yet!)

Here's some nice shots of our baby who's no longer a baby..... that was a heck of a eighteen months to go through, though I woldn't miss it for the world!

Are You Taking Me?

The New Sam Sui Woman of the Century!

Ready or Not, World, here I Come!

Hidden Monkey under That Demure Smile!

A nice one for the camera
I Dun Want! I dun Want!

Rain Dance! Only works in Water!

2007-05-19T23:10:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

It's time you guys know my little secret.... I do a little sidework to earn some pocket money for my milk powder, I do rain dances to bring in rain... don't believe me? Check these out.... the trick is to do a in a pool of water with my trusty Pooh Bear Rain Devices... and dance until the water shakes like nobody's business...

Preparing for the important Ritual...

Getting ready to do my Stuff!

The Finale... Shake, shake, shake, till the music stops!

Back With A Vengenance! Charlies' Angels In Malacca

2007-05-03T22:39:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Oh ho, after being MIA for nearly a month, I'm back with a Vengenance! First Order of the Day? Malacca!

Daddy and Mommy decided to take the plunge and DRIVE us 2 and a half hours up to Malacca, Afamosa Resort together with Uncle Teck Lee, Aunty Lulu, Terisse, Uncle Bob, Aunty Valerie and Rachel! We headed up on Friday, 28th April, and came back on Sunday, 30th April, leaving 1st May for Daddy and Mommy to recuperate, and unpack all my bags.... I tell you, I could see the beads of sweat and stress on Daddy's forehead trying to complete the drive! BUT! We're still here and alive lah, so suffice to say, we made it!
The accomodation.... eeehhhhh, having to sleep in a bed with 50 other flies is NOT my idea of a holiday, Mommy! Thank goodness the Uncles and Aunty banged some tables, and got the hotel staff to put us in a much nicer villa.... Luckily they did something before US the Three Charlie's Angels decided to thrash the place!

The New Face of Charlie's Angels! Coming to a Theatre Near You!

Having two other katek people running around the Villa really puts things into perspective, at least I know there exists other playmates which are Shannon size!

We ventured into tampin for dinner on the first night, and visited the local's choice resturant, 'Yuan Chu', is that translated to 'Round Ball?" Anyway, food was plesantly reasonable and good.

On the second day we headed to the Afamosa Animal world, and at night we took a jaunt to Jongers Walk in search for the perfect chendol and dimsum.

I stole some delicous dimsum from Mommy, and we had authentic Baba food at the Baba resturant...

Third Day, a cool dip into the villa pool with Rachel and Terisse, and then it's headed back to Singapore! Mommy's raring to go again, but I think I can hear Daddy hoping not to go through the long drive again!

The Toppling Girl And her Biscuit

2007-03-28T21:32:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Some days I love Mommy and Daddy, other days???? Hmmmmm...... anyway, last Sunday was a good day, coz Mommy bought me swimming, and after that, she gave me my favourite biscuit to munch on... ahhhhhh, this is the life......

Shrieking Cat, Magic Fork, and Mr. Nasty Sun

2007-03-28T21:05:00.000+08:00

Last saturday, we bought Shannon to East Coast Park for her VERY FIRST Bicycle ride! And she had her favourite buddies, Elijah, Ethan and Kirsten for company too...

We started out the day with Breakfast at Macs, and Shannon wolfed down half a hotcake. after that it was off to the bicycle shack to get the bikes. I have to say that it has been way toooooo long since I rode a bike! Check out the pics!

All tanked up with food and ready to go!!!!!!

Mommy, you mean we are gonna cycle ALL the WAY back home?

Gulp! Better hang on tight! Where's Daddy?

Shannon enjoyed the ride but she started fussing when we headed back and Mr. Nasty Sun was in her eyes. Fussing turned to whining, and whining turned to crying, and before I knew it, I had a wailing cry baby in my arms trying to do aero-acrobatics in her seat! Who knew Shannon was a vainpot afraid of freckles? Anyway, in the end I had to push the bike and HER for a long while before Raymond came along and saved the day. We struggled to buckle her in her seat again, and let me tell you, if you have EVER tried to strap a shrieking cat into a cat bag before, that was how Shannon was like!

All's well that ends well, we finally reached our starting point, and the wild cat turned back into the demure baby gal, HAH!

Have to say we had a great time, and the highlight of the activity? Ethan and Elijah failing asleep in their bicycle seats while being ferried... that I have to say, is SUPERB training! Have you every tried sleeping while cycling??? Ask the two experts how to do it!

After East Coast, Mal, Shannon and I headed back to Fairway for lunch, and Shannon decided to surprise us again, this time using a fork to eat unassisted for the very first time! Hooray! She managed to jab a few pieces of Bao skin and pop it into her mouth.... our baby is really growing up! She must be thinking that the magic fork is a godsend!

Where is my food? Where is my food?

What's the matter? Never seen anyone use a fork before?

Aiyah, Dun Look At That! Look At My Cheena Chongsam Dress!

2007-02-23T15:49:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

These few days has been weird in a fun and exhuasting way... firstly, Daddy was home EVERYDAY for 5 days! Doesn't he have to work to get money for my toys and clothes? Oh? Lunar New Year? What's that?

Anyway, Daddy is home everyday, and I get loads and loads of dresses to wear.... there's the purple and white dress from Po Po, my Cheena looking red chongsam from mommy, and my sweet ballerina dress from Aunty Wendy (Muak! Thanks Aunty Wendy! Everyone says I look like a pretty doll in that dress, until they see me in action, then they just shake their heads! Why leh?)

On top of that, we go visiting homes and homes aglore and the adults pass me red Angbaos and fiddle with oranges... AND! I get tons of goodies to munch on, like Po Po's famous HOMEMADE pineapple tarts... Yum yum... no wonder they sell like hotcakes every year!

Well, anyway, I'm still unsure what the big fuss is, and I am enjoying the home visits, and visitors to our home! But can I request that next year, I get to keep all the Angbaos instead of Mommy snatching it away from me everytime?

My First Angbao from Daddy and Mommy, but aiyah, dun look at that, look at my Cheena Chongsam dress!

These funny orange balls, what do we do with them? Gongsi Gongsi?

Gongsi Gongsi? I can do that! Okies, all done, so, where's my angbao?

PS: From Shannon's Mommy

Besides Shannon's chitter chatter about CNY, I must say that now with a small family of our own, and my grandma not around, CNY takes on a whole new significance. As our families grow smaller generation by generation, I realise CNY is no longer a crowded and boisterous holiday which I fondly remember. Perhaps Mal and I should put in more effort to keep those little family links we have left, and take the time, and YES! the effort to make it a point to visit everyone and all friends during CNY. Afterall, CNY is a good excuse to barge into people's home and say a BIG HELLO! Isn't it? It's time this little family started some traditions of their own.. :)

Birthday Mania, Here I Come!

2007-02-05T21:02:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Now they have me hooked! These birthday parties are starting to be super fun! I know, I know, it used to be such a drag, remember the TWO birthday parties which Daddy and Mommy did for me? Well, we attended ANOTHER ONE last Saturday!

This time, it was a combined Birthday Bash for all my EDD Jan buddies, all 35 of us! Actually, I think it was more of a D N D event, with goodie bags for us babies, stuffed full of gifts from Abbott, Gaia, Studioloft etc etc...

What's more, there were contests and great prizes! Fastest changing Diaper contest, Fastest crawler contest, Fastest walking contest, prettiest and handsome contest, Daddy and Mommy lookalike contest.... geez.... and Mommy and Daddy, the two spoilsports didn't enter into any of them! HMMMMFFF!

We Babies had lots of fun running around, and pulling each others' hair and clothes... I can't imagine the chaos next time when we all start walking!

Babies and Daddies and Mommies Everywhere!

The Leaders in the Pack, but only in terms of Age!

Kirsten's, Megan's, Sarah Mae's and My Birthday Cakes!

Hmmmmm, mmmmmuuummmm, muuummmmm.... gobbling down my birthday cake!

I Dun Want To Grow Up, I'm A Vitagen Babe...

2007-02-03T21:32:00.000+08:00

Anyone from Vitagen the company reading this? Keen to recruit a free model for Advertising Vitagen drinks?

But I Don't Want To Be A Bunny Rabbit!

2007-01-28T21:27:00.000+08:00

by Shannon:

Just when you think one problem's solved, another comes your way...! I had it with teeth and all their nonsense, why can't they just leave me ALONE!!!!

*Sniff sniff* I overheard Mommy mentioning to Auntie Marissa that my two front teeth are finally coming out, and from the looks from it, they are going to be huge!!! She said that... sniff sniff... I'll look like a bunny rabbit if they are really that big.... sniff sniff, but I don't want to be a bunny rabbit! I don't! Does that mean I don't belong to Mommy and Daddy??? Wahhhhh........

They're Here, They're here! The Whack On Tooth Fairy's Butt Finally Worked!

2007-01-23T14:46:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Waaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! After SOOOOOOOOO long, Mommy's finally given up and stopped poking her finger down my mouth.... cos they're FINALLY here! The whack on tooth fairy's butt finally worked!

Before any of you accuse me of Fairy abuse and report me to the SPCF, let me just tell you that after waiting patiently for soooo many months for my two front tooth, I lost my patience and finally sent a lett of complaint to the Tooth Department... saw my post last Monday?

Well, the tooth fairy in charge of me must have gotten a good scolding and bucked up, coz my two front teeth are showing! Tiny silvers of pealry white are peeping from my gums... yeah!

I'm no longer Shannon the Bogay Baby! From today onwards, I shall be called Shannon the Four teeth Wonder! Or Super Duper Four teeth Shannon... or......Front Teeth Super Shannon! Or.....(mumbling.....)

Water Inspection Going on....Stop All Your Activities!

2007-01-19T14:36:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Daddy and Mommy bought me swimming last Sunday. Well the idea was to swim and try dunking me under water, but I had so much fun splashing and tasting the water, they decided not to risk it... what would happen if I decided to just drink it all up?Pool water tastes different huh? See me slurping it up? This is a good way to inspect the water.... hey everyone, water inspection going on, stop all your activities!

See my spouting whale.. aka Dirty water detection device!

Splish, Splash, Splosh! Testing Water Density!

Will You STOP Prying My Mouth Open And Poking Your Finger In???

2007-01-15T22:49:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

it's been a loooong time since I had something to say... and you know why? Course everytime I open my mouth, Mommy's checking for teeth!

Ok ok, so my teeth is a littttlleeee slow in coming. While my buddies are chomping down on cuttlefish sticks and chewy cheesy pizzas, I am still eating mashy sticky porridge and tiny silvers of apple with two bottom teeth.... while other babies are proudly showing their set of pearlies, and putting them to good use (Ethan, I haven't forgetten the vicious bite you left on my index finger the other day!), I am still showing the same old Bo-gay smile... or frown...

BUT that is NOT an excuse for prying my mouth open and poking a finger in EVERYDAY right????

So I can only hope that the tooth fairy buckles up in her lazy ways, and sends my teeth coming! (She's another one who needs a serious performance appraisal!)

Santa already played me out this Christmas.... so much for singing 'All I want for Christmas are my two front teeth'!

Mommy Chopped Teddy Bear's Head Off!

2006-12-24T09:39:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

You know how VERY important people are given many parties in their honour? Well, judging from the number of parties I've had, I must be a president of some island somewhere!

Daddy and Mommy threw another birthday party for me yesterday! Welll, they said it was for me lah, but in truth, Mommy only invited 3 of my friends (Ethan, Sarah Mae and Kirsten) to come, and the other 60 over people were Daddy and Mommy's friends!!! Mommy said that Eljiah was having his birthday party on the same day! Boo hoo, I dun get to give Elijah a birthday kiss!

Hmmm... the birthhday party was fun...we had lots of fun toys to play and a huge bouncy castle! Everything was great, and all the uncles and aunties remembered little me, and gave me tons of presents... Hee hee...

Everything was great... until Mommy chopped off Teddy Bear's head! My dear parents
ordered a 3D Teddy bear cake for me, and it looked so nice, until Mommy whacked the head off and cut it up! Eeeewwwwwwww... Daddy says she has a sadistic streak in her... wanting to saw it into half and what not!

My Cute 3D Teddy Bear Birthday Cake

Happy Birthday to Me!

Ethan: Shannon, nice party!
Shannon: Do I get a birthday kiss from you?

Didn't we go through this before?

Where's the car???? No Car as birthday present until I'm 18????!! Waaaaaaaaaa!

Number One is Over, still have 99 more to go???

2006-12-11T13:23:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

***Ohh, the weather outside looks frightful, but the view inside's delightful, and we don't have anywhere to go... let it snow let it snow....***

Huh, not Christmas yet...? Then... oh, that's right, we supposed to talk about my first birthday celebration....

Daddy and Mommy organised a FIRST birthday dinner for me yesterday and invited all of Kong Kong's relatives to Peach Garden for a celebration... I'm wasn't too bothered about what was going on, as long as I get to wear my new bubble dress and hairclip...

Tons and tons of presents, including a fat big goodie bag from Auntie Marissa! Gonna bring the hugemonous beach ball to Ethan's birthday party tomorrow!

Miss Universe, Get ready, here I come!!

Kong kong, Mama and me...

You mean the whole cake is not only for me? I have to share??? But it's my birthday!

Hey, don't you dare eat my cake before I get my hands on it!

Please take note of the tiny teeny drop of cake I am eating!!! You see how unfair my parents are!

Presents presents presents!

This is tough work, you know...

Finally, my loot!

All I Want For Christmas Is a Baluku!

2006-12-07T00:22:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Christmas is coming! Hmmm, I'm already thinking of all the christmas presents I'm gonna get.... already busy scouting the toys section whenever Daddy and Mummy bring me out, hey, you think I ALWAYS like to go out? There's a underlying motive ok?

So, I'm wondering whether Daddy and Mommy will get my not so subtle hints about which presents to get... I hope I dun end up with some boring educational toy like Flash cards, and books..... geez....

One thing I tried out today, Nosediving! I have been hearing all my buddys' accounts about exciting falls from the bed, the cot, and pram, and so far, under Daddy's and Mommy's zealous watch, I've not been able to execute a stunt like that....

I finally got the stunt done today! Mommy had just placed me on their bed today morning under Daddy's watchful eye, while she went to pack some stuff. I figured that if I wanted to do something, I should do it NOW! So I just leaned forward and zoom! Down I went! To give Daddy credit, his reflexes were lightening fast, he lunged forward and manged to stick his leg out before I fell on the floor... the end result, a resounding THUD when my head met his leg.... OUCHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Hey, I wanted to hit the floor and what did I get? A Leg? Yucks..... come on, all I wanted for Christmas was a first time Baluku!

3 minutes of screaming and wailing and I was back to normal.... oh well, better luck next time!

Mission Control, We Have Take Off!

2006-11-27T10:59:00.000+08:00

Hmmm, I realised that Shannon is a backwards baby. Not backwards as in slow in development, backwards as in.... Backwards, she does things backwards...

Like for example, learning to walk before she knows how to crawl... until today, she simpley refuses to lie on her tummy and crawl, but will gladly stand up and walk around with a huge grin on her face...

Yesterday was another 'Backward' day... Shannon has been able to stand from sitting position since she was 9 and a half months, but she had simply no idea how to get from LYING position to sitting position... see? She knew how to do Step 2 but not step 1!

Well, our baby gal finally gave us a good surprise a few days shy of her 11months. One moment, we had put her down in her cot for her morning nap, the next, she was standing, and calling out to us, waving excitedly! Attempts to put her down only resulted in the same thing, a little gal standing and screaming away while shaking the bars of her cot furously... Mission Control, we have take off!

Well, that said, it was much easier for Mal and me when she was still rolling around in her cot asking to be pushed up to sit!

I'm No. 28th, Near The Front! but There's No One After Me?

2006-11-20T13:38:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Hey, how's that for a queue no? Mommy's family gathered for a Grand Family photoshoot a few weeks back, turns out that all the cousins were back in Singapore from Shanghai and Australia, and this was one of the few chances they had to grab a family photo, so they took it!

Not bad for a family of 4 generations! There's Pak Pak, Mama and Kong Kong, my assorted 7 grand uncles and aunties, Daddy and Mommy, my 13 uncles and aunties, 2 cousins, and of course ME! I'm 28th in line, really near the front huh? Hmmm, but there's no one after me.... does that mean I'm last in line too? This is so confusing...hmmm, better not go there....

Shopping for New Parents

2006-11-16T10:05:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Remember how grumpy and dissatisfied I am with my parents? Where, am out shopping for a new set... what do you guys think about this one? Pretty and Handsome? Well, they passed the first interview, just have to test them on their Ability to Spoil and Buffet ala carte skills....

Talent Scout For Singapore's Next Top Model

2006-11-14T16:11:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Daddy and Mommy bought me to Uncle Jeremy's and Auntie Michelle's place last Sunday, 4th Nov.... turned out that they had a brand new baby boy, Nicholas and there was a celebration at their new home and Glensprings for his one month.

Hey, I hate to digress here, but I don't remember ANY celebration of this sort for ME...! What happened to it? No rows and rows of steaming hot food and admiring visitors coming to look at my pretty face and glorious smile? Or drool over my spiky long hair and curly eyelashes...! And what happened to all the presents and red little packets...Grrrrr.....

Anyway, Uncle Jeremy and Auntie Michelle's place is verrrrrry nice, with a huge baby pool and landscaped gardens.

And I had fun too, coz there was a zealous Auntie sitting opposite me who was snapping away with her camera. I kinda suspect she may be a talent scout for Singapore's Next Top Model... hmmmm... well, I better get used to this kind of life, I'm gonna have tons of parrazazzi coming after me once they sign me up anyway.... :)

The Day The Lightbulb Came On

2006-11-11T10:01:00.000+08:00

By Shannon

By now, I'm very used to Daddy asking Mommy worriedly whether I am okay or not.... 'Dear, Shannon's doesn't seem right, is she ok?..'...'Dear, she coughed, is she ok?'....'Dear, her tummy's so bloated, is she ok?'........ (goes on and on...)

Well, SOMETHING is definitely NOT OK these few days.... cause the lightbulb has just came on!

All of a sudden I can sudenly:
1) Give lethal flying kisses
2) Drink from a straw (mind you, it depends on my mood...)
3) Do the wiggle-eiggle on my butt whenever I hear music
4) Plant wet kisses on Mommy and Daddy's faces
5) Do the 'Tou-tia' action, aka hit the side of my head with my hand... (much to Aunty Wendy's amusement when she caught me doing it)
6) Stand unaided for max 3 seconds

Mommy was amazed by my train of though as well when she caught me fiddling with a bottle of vitamins which Mama was taking. I passed the bottle back to Mama and pointed at the cap to 'ask' her to open it for me... hey, what are slaves for anyway, right?

Mommy and Daddy hopes that this burst of intelligence will carry on and not fizzle out... personally, I just dun care....

Whose's The Pretty Baby? Muack!

2006-11-01T10:37:00.000+08:00

Well, people tell me that children born in the year of the Rooster will be vain and loves to doll up... from the looks of it, Shannon has all these attributes....

We were happily playing with her shape sorter yesterday when she suddenly caught a glimspe of her reflection in the mirror attached to the shape sorter....

"hmmm? Whose's that?"
"Wow, who's the pretty Baby?"
"Wah, so cute, let me get a closer look!"
"you're soooo pretty! Muack!"

Need I say more?

I Was A SUGAR PLUM Fairy! Not A Brinjal!

2006-10-31T09:49:00.000+08:00

By Shannon

Let me get this CLEAR ONCE and FOR ALL... It's a SUGAR PLUM FAIRY!!!!! I was NOTTTTT a Brinjal OK!

Sigh, what a disaster...

Auntie Christine organised a halloween party for us babies and small kids on Saturday, and Mommy went to Toy R Us and got me a SUGAR PLUM FAIRY costume (I can't emphasize this enough!)

Dun I look cute? Well, the party was lots of fun, and Terisse and Alicia came as well... All in all we had two fat pumpkins, one ladybug, one Honeybee, one Darth Vader (how does he get time off from Star Wars?), one Alien, and one pretty Witch. And of course, ME! The SUGAR PLUM FAIRY...

However, my happy bubble was burst yesterday when Mommy and me met Nicholas and his Grandma while taking a stroll around the garden...

Nicholas' Grandma : Ohh, she looked so cute in her costume on Saturday!
Mommy: Thanks, all the babies were so cute, huh?
Nicholas' Grandma: Nicholas, remember Shannon? She as dressed as a Brinjal?
Mommy: Errr.. well...
Nicholas; Grandma: Right Shannon, you were so cute, cute little Brinjal...!
Me: *Fainting away*

See! SUGAR PLUM FAIRY! How can I be a Brinjal!

You think it's coz of the stick on my hat?

The Big TEN-O, Can I Get My Driving License Now?

2006-10-29T13:17:00.000+08:00

By Shannon

Hmmm, today Daddy and Mommy gave me a BIGGG hug and proudly announced that I'm 10 months old today... sooooo... can I get my driver's license now, Daddy? What? Wait another 17 years and 2 months? So what's the big deal?????

Ok ok, so this is just for the record.... At 10 months I:
1) Have two bottom teeth
2) Can get into Standing position from Sitting position and cruise around my cot
3) Can clap hands
4) Can wave Bye Bye to anyone and everyone (Mommy says it's imitation without knowing what I'm doing, but I call it extreme friendliness!)
5) Can point to where I want to go (My own set of transportation, Hah! And it's not only Merc, there's Porsche, BMW, Camry...)
5) Can transfer objects from one hand to another
6) Can walk with Aid

Mommy says we have to work on my fine motor skills as I still can't pick up the little Gerber puffs myself... wellll...I'm just plain lazy... why hurry when you have people feeding you right now right?

Finally! My hair is long enough to comb!

So What If I Want To Run Around With A Dirty Diaper!

2006-10-24T16:44:00.000+08:00

By Shannon

oooohhhhhhh.... I know Mommy gets very worried when I don't poo and get constipated, but this is toooo much! 5 times a day! What are they thinking of??????

I'm NOT mumbling baby nonsense ok... Daddy and Mommy bought me to see Dr. Tan yesterday coz I have been pooing too many times in the day... turns out that my tummy has a stomach bug... which causes me to keep pooing, and my my bum is sooo sore and red! I scream like crazy when they try to change my diaper... can't they just leave me alone... so what if I want to run around with a dirty diaper! It's my bum!

But what I want to know is how did the stomach bug get into my tummy? Did it crawl in when I was sleeping? Better remind myself to sleep with my mouth closed the next time...

Anyway, Daddy and Mommy has been squirting some disgusting clay mixture into my mouth to ease the acidity of my tummy, and giving me watery porridge that is just bland bland bland.... what happened to my order of black pepper steak and chilli crab? What's the use of my two teeth if all I get is slurpy mushy stuff....??? You guys are just no fun, maybe it's time to change parents... grrrrrrrrr....

Black Pepper Steak and Chilli Crab, Here I Come!

2006-10-13T09:01:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Being a baby is super tough... It's tough enough having to endure those big adult making crazy faces at you all the time, and babbling nonsense, thinking that they are talking in your language, not to say all the endless pinching of your cheeks and nose!

Add to that, though they are supposedly smarter than us babies, they have absolutely noooo idea what we mean when we go 'ggaaaaaaa', or 'bbbaaaahhhbbaaahhhh' or 'fffffffiiiii'.... and making silly assumptions over why we cry...! I won't even go there....

Yesterday was a classic example! After all the endless whining and wailing and waking up at nights, and seeking comfort in Perth, my silly (and I must admit, a little dumb) parents finally caught on...! I'm teething! Teething, teething, teething! My two bottom teeth had made a appearance, and from the size of them, they have probably been there since a week ago... but did my parents know? Nooooooooooo, they just assumed all the crying and whining had to do with adjusting to a new environment.... SIGH.... when will adults ever learn?

Anyway, yesterday, Mommy finally got a chance to observe my gums when I was doing my daily Wailing routine during my nap time... and volia! She saw the two tiny pearlies sticking out... Daddy's gonna miss my toothless grins soon.

Black Pepper Steak and Chilli Crab, here I come!

Better look all you want, the toothless grin is on its way out!

The Chronicles of Shannon - PERTH TRIP - 7 Oct to 9 Oct

2006-10-09T21:19:00.000+08:00

7th October, Saturday

Another fine day with temperatures hovering between 15C to 24C! Today our agenda is full! We returned the Hatch early in the morning, and Eileen drove us up north to Kiwana, about 1/2 hours drive away. Accordingly to her, the little community threr sets up a monthly market there to raise funds for the community projects, or something like that.

The market was great fun! The atomsphere there was very carnival and we saw alot of stalls selling homemade jams and chutney, jewellery, unique clothings, handicraft, and food! We each had hotdogs in the open jammed packed garden, with hot chocolate and coffee from the tiny theater beside us... how quaint is that?? Absolutely delightful.

With our bellies packed, we started shopping.... lots of things to see and so very tempted to buy! We passed by a stall selling frosted cupcakes, and they were sooo sweet that I just had to queue and get one to try... Yummy!

Mal also got a snazzy funky pair of handmade pants for Shannon, look how cool is that! Eileen commented that Shannon will own the only pair of pants which looks like this in SG... haha!

There were stalls selling beautiful wind chimes, stained glass oraments and crystals twinkling in the bright sun... I sneakily bought one for Eileen to deco her cozy little home, she loved it!

And Eileen bought me a early birthday present, a matching handmade set of gemstone necklace and earrings.... thanks pal!

The weather and the atomsphere was so different from our night Pasar Malams. We enjoyed the friendly atomsphere with people giving way to us for the bulky pram and stopping just to say Hi to Shannon and pat her cheeks.

After the markets, we stopped by one of Eileen's favourite Rose Nursery for Scones and Jam.... yummmmmm...and I just have to say this. This was the first time I ever had English tea of Scones with cream and jam, but I am a true instant convert! The blooming roses and a little pond there added to the charm of the place...no wonder it is a favourite place to get married! Another glorious place....

We ended the day at Eileen's home with another home cooked dinner and then it was straight to bed for us tired people.... zzzzz....

8th October, Sunday By Shannon
Mommy had initially wanted to go Fremantle today to satisfy her craving of Corn on a stick, and intro Daddy to their freshly made crepes. But after such a tiring day yesterday, they decided to have a quiet day today and start our hugemonous task for packing... I of course will be busy playing and streching my legs while they are busy packing.....can't believe our holiday is almost over!

Daddy, Mommy and Aunty Eileen bought me to the 10am mass at St. Andrews Church. It really is a very delightful and beautiful little chapel, with stained glass windows and dark brown wooden pews. Mommy liked the serenity of the place, and commented that the commentary that the priest gave was very relevant. Of course, I had to spoil it for her by starting to fuss and being carried out right in the middle of it... how Ma Lu is that? Can't help it that I was hungry right?

After that, Eileen bought us to Northbridge for dimsum.... yummmmmm..... and Daddy and mommy let me have my FIRST Chao Siew Bao! Well technically, it was Chao Siew Bao skin, but who cares? I also slurped up some yummy Tofu Fa... next stop, Peking duck!

We then bundled home to watch Daddy start cramming our stuff into our two puny suitcases. Aunuty Eileen made some tasty corn muffins for Aunty Angie, and at 6pm, we headed to Aunty Angie's house for dinner.

I don't want to be mean, but there was a huge furball in their house... wonder how long do they clean their house.... and it was moving too! yeeks! Oh.... sorry, correction needed, that was their doggie, Cougar, and he was a really lovable big furball! I couldn't wait to pet him!

Aunty Angie made Seafood Horfun which was very yummy, from what I hear from Daddy, since I couldn't have any! (fuming!) And after that, the rest continued to pig out on Durian while I sit and watch! It is soooo unfair!

9th October, Monday (By Shannon)
Here it goes again! Daddy and Mommy are in a frenzy early this morning, running around the house for I dunno what? Then all of a sudden I see not 3 but 4 big bags get squeezed into Aunty Eileen's car.... what's going on? And my bee bee? The one which hangs on the car window to distract me from my hunger pangs? What happened to it? Why was it all squashed into the bag? Hey! I want that back, you know! Grrrr....

(By Shannon's Mommy)
Okie, while Shannon is busy grumbling, let me continue... we packed all our bargains and more! today and had to borrow a bag from Eileen, depsite Mal's insistence that we could cram everything in... well dear... we just couldn't huh? Too many bargains...

Eileen drove us to the airport and we said goodbye with hugs... well, not exactly goodbye, since she is dropping by SG in mid Oct!

We did some last minute shopping before boarding the plane, and took off at 11:30am for home!

Shannon was quite a good gal onboard. Thankfully the plane was half empty, so I could prop her on one of the seats and let her play with her toys...

We touched down at 430pm and Shannon's gong gong and mama were there with our car to drive us home! Can't believe our holiday is over!

The Chronicles of Shannon - PERTH TRIP - 4 Oct to 6 Oct

2006-10-06T23:28:00.000+08:00

4th October, Wednesday

We had a lazy day in Perth today. Went Carousal Shopping Mall today, it was so huge... something like Suntec... geezzz! Mal bought his pair of jeans, much to his glee in knowing that he didn't HAVE to go for the biggest size here! Also got a few shirts for causal wear... we dropped by Myers and I got Shannon a pink and orange tee and swirly skirt combi, and a jeans and tee combi, good shopping!

Ended the day with shopping for food at Village green and back to Eileen place to cook my famous Carrot, Potato and pork rib stew, long beans and fried eggs, and stirfried cauliflower with bacon.

5th October, Thursday (By Shannon)
ooowwwww, Mommy's having bad tummyache today, better stay clear from her, her mood is super grouchy, which doesn't make MY mood any better! Been whinging and whining and crying the whole day too, sooo bored since we are stuck at Aunty Eileen's place, and I miss my toys, my friends and my slaves! Where is Gong gong, Mama and Grandma????!!!!

Aunty Eileen rushed home from work to bring Mommy to the doctor and she has been rushing to the toilet the whole day. I overheard Daddy asking Mommy what was it that caused her food poisioning, and she replied that it must have been the chinese food she had at Carousal... luckily, it wasn't her home cooked dinner which caused it!

Daddy and me lounging in bed, what shall we dooooo? Bored bored bored

7th October, Friday
Today, we were feeling brave enough to venture out again after my nasty bout of food poisioning.... was drinking soups and liquids yesterday, but today, feel so much better!

We decided to go to Kings Park and see the wildflowers. Oh, Colour galore! The grass was sooo green I kept suspecting they put colouring on it..... and the view...! Georgous!

Photos says it all....

Dangling near the edge, look at the view!

Flower flowers everywhere! Plus US two!

See the green green grass? So green it made my eyes swim!

Shannon deciding NOT to be one of the pretty flowers afterall... what do you mean the flowers are prettier than ME????

After the nice walk at the park, we headed to Habourtown for more shopping bargains... whew, it was a nightmare trying to get there after missing a turn, have to go around Hay street, and Wellington, and with all the one way streets and street works, I think we headed in circles for about 1/2 hour b4 we managed to get in... haha! I managed to get MY shopping done today. Spent 1 and 1/2 hours at Table Eight, and walked away with 3 blouses, 1 skirt, 2 pants.... Mal and Shannon? They just walked and walked, around the store while waiting for me to finish at the changing rooms...*evil grin*

We compensated Shannon for her waiting though by getting a adorable blouse and a pretty dress for her for Jennifer's wedding.

Ended the day with treating dinner to Angie, Paul, Quintin and Eileen at a chinese resturant. Yummy, Had fish, eggplant, beef, Tofu and veg... though the resturant looked dingy and isolated from the outside, we were glad we were early coz it became packed by 7pm!

Angie and family headed back to Eileen's with us to continue with our tradition, having dessert! This time it was a fruit flan with custard filling and coconut shavings..... yummmm... and Paul showed us video snippets of the trip down south.... we laughed all the way. How nice and heartwarming to end a evening like this, with friends, good food, and happy conversation.... somehow you just dun get this in Singapore? Good memories...

The Chronicles of Shannon - PERTH TRIP - 1 Oct to 3 Oct

2006-10-03T23:55:00.000+08:00

1st October, Sunday
Today dawned clear the bright! Time to take photos!

What a View! Can we retire here?

Isolated Beach

Fat Seals Basking in the Sun... Opps, sorry, uncanny resemblence there!

Which is prettier? Flowers or me?

We had a hearty breakfast of Bacon, Ham, and Eggs.. yummy! The rest of the day was just spent lounging around, walking the beach and sleeping.... what a way to go! The chefs cooked up a storm in the kitchen and lunch was BBQ (yummy! Where else can you have a BBQ in the searing sun!) with dinner being Spagetti with homemade sauce.... this is begining to sound like a food tour!

We blew up Shannon's mini bathtub and she had a blast in there... it helps that the bathroom had strong heat lights which chased away the evening chill... heaven!

Huh? What you doing? This is RA you know?

Need another Yoda for Star Wars?

2nd Oct, Monday
We headed to Busselton Jetty today and sat out on the sun to have ice cream. Shannon got her first taste of ice cream.... I sneaked some in between her fruit salad yougurt!

Hmmm, Fruit yogurt tastes so funny, 1 spoon sweet, 1 spoon sour!

We also ventured the 1KM jetty walk! Can you imgaine, a jetty that stretches out 1km, the 2nd longest in the world! The wind was blowing hard too! At the end, there was a small underwater aquarium with colourful corals and fish.

Lifting 'weights' along a very loooong walk down the jetty

Colourful coral everywhere

In the evening, we gathered by the family room and watched TV, chatted and made friendship bands... haven't made one in 10 over years, but I'm glad to say mine turned out pretty well :) Really mellowed out.....!

New Buddies

We ended the night with toasting gooey marshmallows in front of the fireplace with sticks which Paul picked up from the bush after a short rambling walk in the night. Everyone had fun poking fun at Angie for turning up her nose at the 'disgusting green sticks' which we used to stick the marshies with... that said, it was yummy!

3rd October, Tuesday (By Shannon)
After many hot hot sunny days, and cooooolllllld nights, Mummy and Daddy suddenly announced to me during bathtime that it was time to leave this little beach house... what, just when I am starting to have fun and not waking everyone up with my night howls?

What to do except take more photos to say goodbye!

Look, I adopted a whole new family! Looks like me, right?

The whole Jim Gang, well, except Quintin who's holding the camera!

Goodbye, Capeview!

we stopped by Mandurah on our way back to Perth, and I dunno much except I wass wailing my heart out for my milk feed! After that was settled, (mummy and daddy settled for a quick stop by a lakeside park) all three of them tucked into fish and chips and clam chowder at Ciserello's while I could only sit and look and drool... selfish pigs!

Satisfied look of contentment after lunch for all of us

The Chronicles of Shannon - PERTH TRIP - 28 Sep to 30 Sep

2006-09-30T22:36:00.000+08:00

After 3 whole days of physically recovering from the Perth trip, decided to get off my butt and start updating Shannon's Blog on our Perth Trip... with abit of help from Shannon of course...

28th September, Thursday night
We packed and crammed all our luggage into two 21 inch suitcases 1 haverpack, and 1 baby bag... some 'Cannot afford not to bring' items....
1) Inflatable mini pool for Shannon's baths
2) Her intensive moisturing creams
3) Her toys! Stacks and stacks of it!
4) Her nail cutter
5) BOTH her smelly teddy bears
6) Baby jar food
It got to the point that we were so overwhelmed by what to bring!

Shannon was a good gal all the way till we got to the airplane. She flirted shamelessly with all the elderly Australians and Europeans boarding the plane, stretching out her hands to them and playing peekaboo with them. All of them were charmed by her smiley face UNTIL...! The plane started taxi-ing down the runway. I had to buckle her on my lap, and it was then that she became a MONSTER! She started crying, and crying became wailing, and wailing became screaming... imagine Mal's and my hot and red faces and the pained silence surrounding us during takeoff. The little minx then decided to drop asleep once the plane hit the skies.... and from there on, it was sleep, wake up, cry, sleep, wake up, cry, sleep, wake up, cry...
all the way to Perth.

Service on the flight? Welllll, it was okie I guess, but not what I would call good... I think most airlines dun have the standards of being baby friendly yet, no baby food was offered to us, and once Shannon fell asleep, I felt that the sterwardess should have gotten us our dinner rather than wait in line? By the time our food was served, Baby was up and crying again!

29th September, Friday
After reaching Perth, and being greeted by Eileen, we headed off to the collect the rental car. Though we had asked for a Sedan, it became a Hatch.... hmmm, wonder how we gonna fit 3 suitcases and a pram into the boot?

30th September, Saturday
Today was a fenzy of packing again! We packed the bare minimum to bring to Peppermint grove Beach! Doesn't it sound so charming? Peppermint Grove Beach! Decided to forsake the pram coz we had a hard time squeezing everything into the boot.

We met Angie, Paul and Quintin at their house and it was off for a 2 hour drive! By the time we reached, it was nearly dark, but the house was cozy and welcoming.... boy, was it COLD! Brrrrrrr!

Shannon on the way to Busselton.... Huhhh? Who woke me up from my nap?

Our little family out for a evening stroll... BRRRRRRR!

Look at the Gorgeous Sunset! And the Strong Wind!

See our home away from home! http://www.capeviewcottage.com/

Family room

The kitchen where Eileen and Angie whipped up wholesome and fanastic food... also the place where the famous dishwasher which got Angie's Thumbs Up is stored!

Our place of zzzzz... thanks goodness for the King size bed and warm covers... looks out to the ocean.. hmmmm...

Dining table to seat 8... we had lots of fun lunches and dinners at that table, chitchatting in front of the fireplace.

This Is How You Tame A Tigger

2006-09-23T20:33:00.000+08:00

Today was a tiring but fun day... we went to Anita's house to meet 15 other babies... wooahhhh! The energy level was super high, imagine 16 8month old babies put together with a loadful of toys and playmats... not to say a tableful full of delicious snacks for the mommies and daddies!

Shannon had loads of fun, and she skipped her noon nap in favour of playing, playing and more playing... hmmm, what did she do today? Played with loads of toys, learned how to tame a Tigger, rode a yellow rubber Pony, sat in a jumparoo and bounced around, got her feet painted PINK! Sounds like tons of fun right?

Photos says it all....

GETTING READY FOR THE HOT GROUP DATE!
So Mommy, do I look nice enough for the gathering?

Huh? What dun match? My hairband not nice? Maybe I should have worn the other one? Can we go home and change?

HOW TO TAME A TIGGER
First you grab the Tigger by its eyebrows...

Then you pull it's mouth wide open...

Then you shake the head reallllllly HARD! There, that's how you tame a Tigger!

FUN WITH 380 BALLS!
What do you mean time's up??? I just got in only! Have to pay again???

IN THE JUMPAROO
Hmm, I wonder if this Jumparoo can bounce me home...?

FOOTPRINT SOUVENIR
Shannon's little footprints... at 8 months 3 weeks old!

SMILE 2006 - Shannon Style

2006-09-20T12:38:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Hummmf! fuming mad.... Mommy submitted my cutie passport photo to the Smile 2006 project, you know the one in preparation for the IMF meetings? I gave a demure smiley face for that precious photo, and mommy submitted it in. I had expected that the organisers of the project to pounce on it and pick it as one of the smiley faces welcoming the delegates when they arrive, who can resist such a angelic face right?But nooooooo! They choose to pick other people instead.... hmmmf! They really dun know a good picture when they see one!

See how demure and angelic I looked! This took so many hours of practise to get right!

So, who says that Smile 2006 can be the only project around town? I'm starting my own SMILE 2006 - Shannon Style, and this time, nobody can say that my picture's not in!

SMILE 2006 - Shannon Style

Another Level Higher.. Or In This Case, Lower

2006-09-10T22:54:00.000+08:00

We lowered Shannon's cot today again... after the fiasco the last round we did it, it was with a little more than anxious nerves today when we did it....

But anyways, the deed was finally done, and so today, Shannon reached another level higher, or in this case, lower :).

hmmm, this is yummy!

BURP, that was a good dinner!

Hey you! The blue one... get over here!

Mommy, they're not listening to me!

When Did My Desk Become A Leg Stretching Machine?

2006-09-10T13:35:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Hmmm, something tells me that Mommy and Daddy is obsessed with my height, or lack of it...

You know my work desk? The colourful one with such alot of stuff on it? Which shows how busy I am at times pressing the 'keyboard keys' and answering the ever ringing phone?

My Work Desk, Busy right?

Well, Mommy and Daddy raised the height of my work desk today... as if I don't have enough things to do already, like whacking the rolling toys or trying to pull the darn string off the silly turtle!

Now, I am standing on tip-toe, whilst trying to turnaround to kapo at all the things hapening around me. This is frustrating... since when did my desk become a leg stretching machine???

See how comfy I was before the height raising a.k.a leg strething excerise...

Just right!

The leg stretching machine at work...eehhhh!

Me Crawl??? Are you out of your mind????

2006-09-09T20:46:00.000+08:00

Today afternoon, we attended the Tumbletots trail class kindly arranged by Sophia. Thanks to her hard work, we met up with some of the other Jan'06 mommies like...

1) SL and Charmaine
2) Cindy and Lucas
3) Chillies and Zaxier
4) Florence and Melody
5) Sunny and Ying Xin

Well well well, what a small world.... Mal discovered that he's NOT one of the oldest daddies in our gang... he met up with not one, but TWO of his Uni school mates, HA! So much for whining about not having kakis with common interets at the mommies' gathering...!

Shannon enjoyed the singing and actions very much, which was evident in the way she furiously chewed her little fingers.

But when it came to the excerise time, she balked at many activities, and iterally sat down and howled at the tummy/crawling excerise! We could clearly see what was going through her mind at that time, "Me Crawl??? Are you out of your MIND???"

That aside, she enjoyed the trampoline, and the rubber slide, though the rope swing gave her the creeps and she couldn't really decide whether to enjoy it or wail at it.

See me bounce, bounce, bounce away... on my bouncy trampoline.... ladalalalada...

Superwoman Shannon saving the day, pushing the heavy red cylinder away! Eh, actually, am being rolled around by it...

Fish for lunch, anyone?

2006-09-09T08:38:00.000+08:00

I'll whack you if you say I look like a boy!

Fish for lunch, anyone?

Botanic CLOSE UP!

2006-09-08T22:38:00.000+08:00

by Shannon

More pics of my hommies during the secret love trst..

See, make sure you delete all my sms messages to you after you receive them, like this... can't let Kirsten see mah?

One last hug before kirsten comes.... oops, we're caught red-handed!

*Eveil Grin* Finally, it's out in the open... he has to choose, either me or her!

Shannon's Secret Love Affair - 'San Jiao Lian Ai'

2006-09-08T22:32:00.000+08:00

I bought Shannon to Botanic Gardens again today afternoon. The day didn't start out promising though, it was hazy and cloudy. We were really uncertain whether to go or not! this prompted MSN messages and SMSes flying around with a qn on everyone's mind, is it gonna rain???

Anyway, by 1pm, the skies were lifting so we just bit the bullet and went ahead. Anita with Tabitha, Wendy with Ethan, Val with Kirsten, and Celine with Edgar rounded up our group for the day.

Shannon had a great time! By some cosmic forces at work, she was in a SUPERB mood... by now, I think you should know that Shannon's SMILE switch is pertuately OFF whenever she is out, but today was a wonderful surprise.

She was chatty and smiley and downright KAPO!

Hmm, maybe her upbeat mood had something to do with the few stolen moments she got to share with Ethan before Kirsten's arrival, she even had a chance to snap a few shots cuddling up together, much to Tabitha's embrassement.. the poor little Tabitha pretended that she didn't see anything and concentrated on her toys.

Afterwhich, the rest showed up and group of babies had a merry time snatching toys, hair and westling each other to the ground...

Here, Mommy, look at me!

Look everyone, it was THIS BIG!

Hey, Ethan, this is interesting! Ethan? Ethan? Huh?

I really dunno Aunty Wendy, one moment he was sitting up, the next moment, he fell asleep!

We ended the day with Wendy sending us to the visitor centre to wait for Mal to pick us up, and dinner at Pasta Fresca (Thanks Wendy for waiting for us, even though your hubby was ready for you to pick him up!)

The View up here is GOOD!

2006-09-04T15:20:00.000+08:00

By Shannon:

Hmmm, seems like there's alot I don't know about my body yet.... Mommy and Daddy keep making me do funny things, like placing me on my tummy and asking me to kick kick.. what is that, man? I HATE tummy time, HATE IT, HATE IT, HATE IT! Everytime they ambush me and plop me on my tummy, I'll give them a half-hearted attempt at reaching for the stupid toys they dangle in front of me, and then..., I slyly turn to the side, and tadaaaaaa! I'm on my back... hee hee...

Anyway, new game of the day, using those two funny long stumpy limbs to stand... see how well I'm standing? What can I say, the View up here is GOOD! But I have heard insidious whispering going around between Daddy and Mummy that they plan to ... lower XXX (dunno wat).... XXX level XXX...(dunno wat)... cot ... dun fall XXX (dunno wat) out and crack...XXX (dunno wat) skull... hmm, better see what they are up to this weekend.

Opps, caught in the act!

Okay, give you a BIGGGG SMILE!

Come closer, see the view from up here!

$3??? You sure?

2006-09-01T20:53:00.000+08:00

Today, we met up with the rest of the mummies at Suntec.... supposedly for window shopping, when in fact, I was there secretly to shop for a birthday present for Mal.

The plot has seen been unraveled though, since I spilled the beans self righteously after my dear hubby nagged at me for bringing Shannon to crowded places... So much for being a nice wife!

Anyways, Sarah Mae and Sandra met up with us too, and we saw that Sarah Mae is still as chatty as ever! Such a Smiley happy baby! She seems to have taken a shine to Elijah, and vice versa!

Haha, that left a opening for Ethan to get close to Shannon again... the two were buddy buddy, hugging each other, and busy whacking each other with their fists... Shannon was a big bully again, and pulled Ethan's hair, ohmigosh, so sorry, Wendy and Ethan! When will the girl ever learn? Come to think abotu it, WHERE DID she learn that from?... Hmmm...

We went to check out a tip off from Christine my neighbour, about a Carters' sale at SUntec, and true enough, clothes galore! It was more for boys though, and lots of long sleeves and thick clothing... but I managed to get 2 thick pyjamas and 2 sweater suits for Shannon's Perth trip, as well as a cutie pair of bermudas and a dress romper, all for a mere $20!

Ewwwww, after all of it was over, I regret not buying more! Hmmm, Mal's eyes popping out after this realisation...

Eight Months! As in 8!

2006-08-29T18:55:00.000+08:00

Shannon turned 8 months today! How time flies... looking back at all her skinny newborn photos, and laughing at some super silly ones, we realise that our little one is changing day by day!

Well, it be may concidental that I chose to buy a loadful of toys for her today, but still Happy 8th month, darling Shannon!

Mai Tu liao! Hurry, just Grab and talk later!

2006-08-29T15:37:00.000+08:00

Talk about the auntie syndrome coming out of us when we become mummies! I've was 'infected' by it when a few of us mummies decided to go to the Mattel Toy fair yesterday...

CHAOS! That was the word to describe it! We arrived about 15min after it opened, and it was a mad house! Thank goodness Sophia and HB were there and already established a FORTRESS of toys which they hastily grabbed! If not, we would probably go hooe empty handed...

After spending about 3 hours there, I realised that in this game, if you snooze, you lose pal! So the name of the game is, Mai Tu liao! Just Grab and talk later... hahaha....

That said and done, we came out pretty victorious! My stolen bargains....:
1) FP Kick and Whirl Carnival
2) FP Popz On Circus
3) Winnie the Pooh
4) FP Rolls a ball
5) Sesame Street pop out
6) Elmo teaching and learning machine
7) FP Musical and Learning Chair (Star Buy! Thanks for Sophia and HB *Muack!*
8) FP Drop a Ball machine

Oops, after all the raving, I realised that not a word has been said that these are all for darling Shannon.... mummy's sorry, Shannon, of coz it's all for you... Mummy's.... just going through what you have... and having a little of fun doing it...!

Shopping Again! What's wrong with you people??

2006-08-25T20:50:00.000+08:00

Bought Shannon out today to Forum to meet Wendy and Rena.... and of coz Ethan and Elijah....

Managed to get EB cereal for her and can't wait to try it out....

Haha, Shannon had a good time talking to Ethan today, sitting in their high chairs, and smacking each other faces with their chubby fists...oww!

Elijah fussed a little in his pram before Rena bought him over, and oops, Ethan decided that threes's a crowd and retreated to spend time with his mommy.

I am a Mighty Lioness - hear me ROARRRRR!

2006-08-24T09:52:00.000+08:00

Well, what can I say? Our princess decided to play punk with us, and woke up from 2am in the morning, wailing away.... milk was eagerly consumed, but instead of going back to sleep like a little guai baby that she normally is, Shannon decided to stay awake and wail, and play and wail and play.... all the way till 5am.... attempts to smoothe her failed, and the pacificer was tossed around like a tennis ball.

The mightly lioness Shannon finally decided she had enough at 5am and dozed off, leaving both Mal and me totally zonked out and none the wiser... oh boy! I'm not looking forward to tonight if this was just a preview!

Hmmm, this mummy here is still thinkng whether both of us are in good enough form to go out and meet Auntie Rena, Auntie Wendy and Sumo and Ethan in the afternoon, after the big drama in the night...