Pigeon Poo Poo

We brought Phoebe to KK Hospital for her yearly ultra sound scan for her kidney. After the scan, we took a walk at the pond near the carpark. There were many pigeons at the pond. Phoebe said,

"Look! Many pigeons. I like pigeons you know."

I told her that pigeon's poo poo is poisonous. It can make us sick. They poo poo everywhere. It is very dirty. Then as she walked, Phoebe said,

"I will bring the pigeons to the toilet to poo poo. Then it is not dirty."

She's so funny. I couldn't help but burst out laughing. Such innocent answer! :o)

The Kissing Machine

Whenever we make the "Hmm..." sound while carrying Reuben, he will push his face against us to kiss us. He loves to to do that, especially with mommy. We call him the Kissing Machine. Such a cheeky fellow :o)

Reuben kissing mommy

Papa kissing Reuben

Splash Park

On Sunday evening, we visited Sembawang Shopping Centre. It has been reopened since December 2008. What entices us to go there was the Espirit Outlet Store, Daiso, Giant Hypermarket and the spacious 15 000 square feet Splash Park situated in Level 3. There are three segments in Splash Park - the wet water features, the dry play land and the adult gym area. There is also a small open air shower area for little children. We were (or rather, I was) busy shopping in Espirit**. So Phoebe and Reuben only got to visit the Splash Park when it was past 9 p.m. There were no other children there except the two of them. The water play features were switched off too. Nevertheless, they had fun. We will surely visit the Splash Park again. And hopefully, mommy will not get distracted by Espirit and Daiso again :o)

When you watch the video clips, survey the surroundings too. You can hear the crickets at the background. That shows how late it was. Haha :o)

For those driving, you can reach Sembawang Shopping Centre by travelling on the Upper Thomson Road, which will lead to Sembawang Road. Sembawang Shopping Centre is on the right hand side of driver. Make a U-turn and you're there!

Phoebe and Reuben wearing the same white bear T-shirt and green army shorts

Reuben enjoyed the see-saw with Phoebe

Papa loves shooting water at Phoebe

Energizer bunny - once start, cannot stop

Reuben did not want to stop spinning though it was time to go. He had fun too

You can survey the wet water area. It's suppose to be wetter than this, but everything has been switched off. Hence, the place appears dry. Papa and Phoebe was collaborating to shoot mommy using the water gun. It was pretty fun :)

**For UOB card holders, the third item purchased will be at a 40% off. I bought three Espirit pants for $119! That's about $40 per pair of pants (usual price about $80-100 per pair). Wow! So cheap! How can I resist!! Haha :)

I Can Feed My Di-Di

Last night, we had nothing to do, so we went to Terminal 2 of Changi Airport. We had our dinner in MacDonalds. We were reminscing at how fast time had past. The last time we ate at the same MacDonals in Terminal 2, Phoebe was about 13 months old, about the same age as Reuben now. But Phoebe looked more babyish, maybe because she was botak.

How come every child will take a picture with this same clown? A bit spooky...

After two years, we revisit the same spot, and we have the same little girl, all grown up, feeding her di-di fries instead. So sweet of Phoebe :)

The Great Escape

I guess all children go through the same routine before bed time. Reuben will wash his butt, fingers and face before changing into his pyjamas. He seems to be fascinated with the tap. He had a hands on session, learning how to turn on and off the tap. :)

Then it's time to get changed. Phoebe took a photographic record of his brother trying to beat the system. As usual, Reuben will perform the escape of the naked baby by crawling up the mountain of pillows. We were so scare that he would pee on the pillows and bed!

Too bad, mommy caught him and he had to surrender to his fate.

Still with a bit of struggle, Reuben changed into his clean diapers and pyjamas, getting ready for dreamland.

I bet he is saying in his heart, "I don't want to sleep... I want to play..."

My Valentine

I forgot to blog about this. Phoebe came back home from school in February and gave me this.

It was a Valentine's Day card from her to Papa and Mommy. This is Phoebe's First Valentine's Day card to us. :) It was made using toilet roll printing and the heart shape in "I love You" was created using her thumb print. It's really sweet. :)

Bento and Chawanmushi

I've tried to make steamed egg a few times but it is always not very successful. It is always too watery because I added too much water. So when my hubby asked me what that was, I always tell him, "Oh! It's egg soup. It's my new invention." But after trying for so many times, finally, I got it! If anyone of you wants to try, here's the formula :

1) Beat 3 eggs, add a little light sauce.

2) Add a cup of chicken soup (or plain water).

3) Add in whatever ingredient you want e.g. crab stick, minced meat. I added Chinese Mushroom.

4) Steam for 6-10 minutes.

Here's my steamed egg aka Chawanmushi. Tada! :)

That's all. Seems easy ? I don't know why I took about 4 trials to succeed. Maybe I'm just a slow learner :)

After reading some mommies' blogs on Bento-ing, I was a little inspired to try it out too. I bought some cute little rice moulds from Daiso. They're easy to use. On Saturday while preparing lunch for Phoebe, I decided to make her usual food more enticing, not that she's a fussy eater. I'm doing all this in the name of fun and bo-liao-ness (my hubby said that). I decided to use the bear mould that day.

I told Phoebe to come, mommy had made something interesting for her.

She came over, took a look at it and here's our conversation.

Phoebe : Mommy, what is this?

Mommy : This is your lunch.

Phoebe : I know. But what is this ? (pointing at the rice)

Mommy : What do you this looks like? (%$#*&!)

Phoebe : I don't know.

Mommy : This is teddy bear rice.

Phoebe : Teddy bear rice ?

Mommy : Doesn't this look like teddy bear? (%$#*&!)

Phoebe : Mommy, why... why... why you do this?

Mommy : Mommy does it for you. (And your mommy is super bo liao...) Anyway, shall we eat our lunch ? You have to mush up the bear.

(I mushed up one of the teddy bears)

Phoebe : Oh no! Mommy why you do that? No more bear already.

Mommy : You have to mix the food up to eat your lunch.

Phoebe : (Frowning) Mommy, why you make the bear and mush it up?

Mommy : (because your mommy is super bo liao and your questions have intensified your mommy's bo-liao-ness... arrrggg...) Nevermind, next time mommy will make you another bear. Come, lets eat.

She posed for the camera

I wonder if I would use the rice mould again? Is it worth the effort and trouble? Well, at least she finished every morsel of her food, as always.

Sand Art @ Pasir Ris Park

The usual swing ride took almost half of the time we have spent in Pasir Ris Park yesterday evening. Both Phoebe and Reuben swang on the swings. The other half of the time was spent in doodling on the sand. We picked the twigs from the ground to dig the sand and did sand art. I drew a picture of my angel Phoebe and darling Reuben. Reuben also joined in the fun by scraping on the sand, drawing something which resembled a rainbow. Phoebe drew her usual, signature face with the button nose and sunshine smile. Then she saw my drawing of her brother and started to copy my drawing too, except that hers was a stick baby. After the park, the children were really hungry. Feeding session after that was very easy and no trouble at all! :) By the way Auntie KKF, do you recognise this suit that Reuben was wearing? Yes, it was Dash's ! :) Thank you Auntie KKF for handing down this handsome suit to Reuben. He looks very MAN in it! Haha :)

Can you see Reuben's rainbow ? Phoebe is drawing her signature face.

Phoebe's signature face Sand Art. She later on tried to imitate my drawing and drew a picture of her brother. Can you spot in the crown on her happy face? She drew a stick baby :)


I drew a picture of my princess and prince.


Phoebe and Reuben enjoying the swing.

Reuben loves the see-through bubble glass. And Yes! He walked on public ground again! :)

On Public Ground

The weather has not been good these days. It is either very hot and humid, or raining cats and dogs. Sometimes, it is a combination of both, the sun and the rain, which is even worse. Since the children were feeling better, we thought that it's better to take them to somewhere spacious and sheltered from the harsh elements. We brought them to Vivocity. As usual, our favourite food hunt - Kim Gary HK Restaurant. Phoebe was pretty well behaved. We gave her paper and pencil and she drew a picture of an underwater world with an octopus and two fish. Her octopus has exactly 8 tentacles! :) This March holiday, I've taught her how to draw fish. She practises a lot and I think she is doing well. Reuben, for the first time, wore his shoes and laid his feet on the ground of a public place. Wobbly as he is, he has covered quite a distance which is an achievement in my eyes. Will definitely let him walk more in public places.

Phoebe drawing "Ünder the Sea"


Walk walk walk walk, in His Light...

The Medicine Junkie

Phoebe is still under medication but now, she enjoys eating it. Her attitude towards eating medicine has taken a 360 degrees turn! Previously, we had to constrain her and force the medicine down her throat and she would be spitting it out and crying and struggling and begging the whole time. But now, she brings her medicine box to us on her own accord and tells us, "It's medicine time." She will eat it with pleasure and victory. We now have 2 Tupperware boxes of medicine. One for Phoebe and the other for Reuben. Tupperware boxes are great in keeping the ants out of the sweet sweet medicine. These 2 boxes were part of the Tupperware MM boxes given by KK and other NCPS staff when I gave birth to Phoebe. It was a wonderful and useful gift! Thanks KK and all! :) Anyone who wants to buy Tupperware, ask KK! :)

The Medicine Junkie

One box for Phoebe and the other for Reuben

Poor Reuben

After Phoebe was down, then comes Reuben's turn. He had developed a bad cough, probably caught it from Phoebe. The cough was very phlegmy and the phlegm had affected his lungs. I could feel his body vibrates as he breathes. It was so bad that he cough till he vomited. I brought him to Dr. Vanessa Tan in The Kidslink on Monday morning. The clinic was so crowded that we had to wait for two hours to consult the paediatrician. She diagnosed him and said that his cough was even worse than his sister. Reuben had developed bronchitis. It is an inflammation of the mucous membrane of the bronchial tubes in the lungs. She put him on a nebulizer to open up his airways so that he could breathe better. Reuben cried badly not because it was painful but he felt very uncomfortable with the foreign object on his face. The mask emitted cold smoke which he felt it was choking. He had to be on antibiotics for a week and was given 3 other medicines. Like his sister, medicine-taking has always been a struggle. However, he is small in size, hence, it is easier to hold him down and syringe him. Poor Reuben! But thank God that he is feeling better today.

Reuben on the Nebulizar Inhaler

To add on to this month's medical bill = $32 + $208 + $52 + $98 + $69 + $172 = $631! Tsk.... tsk... tsk... Next time must tell Phoebe and Reuben to be doctors!

Goodbye Jennifer Lopez, Hello Mrs. Wishy-Washy

After faithfully serving us for 4 good years, we bade our Nissan Sunny goodbye. I must say that I really couldn't bear to part with her. She has been our faithful servant, seeing us through the good and bad times, ferrying our two little babies home from the hospital, bringing them to the doctors when they're sick, helping us with our groceries shopping, cooling us down in the sweltering heat, cushioning the children's buttocks when we change their soiled diapers. She's very close to us. Without her, it would have been a hassle to go out. I've even given her a name. I named her Jennifer Lopez coz of her large bum, the spacious boot size.

Notice the similarity in their rear view?

However, Jennifer Lopez can no longer meet our needs due to the addition to our kampong - my son and maid. Total head count - 1. My hubby, 2. me, 3. maid, 4. dad, 5. mum, 6, sister and 7. my two kiddos. Jennifer Lopez cannot hold us all in. Whenever we go out with my parents and sister, one of them have to sacrifice and that is usually my dad. I really felt very bad to see my dad taking the MRT while the rest of us enjoy the cool car ride. Since the previous COE for cars >1600cc was $200. We decided that it is time to get the Toyota Wish. It is one of the cheapest 7-seater cars in the market and a 7-seater will be able to suit our needs.

On Friday the 13th (March), we collected our Toyota Wish. Immediately, I named her Mrs. Wishy Washy due to the story "Mrs Wishy Washy" written by Joy Cowley. It was one of the story books used in the Primary 1 Stellar programme and I have read it to Phoebe.

We hope to drive Mrs Wishy Washy all the way for ten years. Hopefully, she will also serve us faithfully and fulfill her duty as a car well. Welcome to our family, Mrs Wishy-Washy!

Mrs Wishy-Washy

I-Theatre Performance

Yes! Finally, Phoebe is eating her medicine and because of that, she's recovering fast. Last night, she was even well enough to catch the performance "Aesop Fabulous Fables". The performance was an hour. I've thoroughly enjoyed the show!! The music was awesome and I could see that Phoebe was captivated by the animal characters. That was the second performance we've watch from I-Theatre. I think their production is very good. There are two more of their production coming up - Little Green Frog and The Gingerbread Man (click on the hyperlink for more details)

Anyone interested ? :)

My Family and Neighbours

Yesterday morning, we had nothing to do. So I gave Phoebe a large sheet of paper and told her to draw some people. Phoebe started drawing her papa, herself and then, her mommy, her brother and her Auntie Nia. Then she saw her good friend, and she exclaimed, "Oh! I forgot to draw Vera!" And she drew her good friend and then, her good friend's family members. I sat beside her, encouraging her to colour the picture and suggested some details, such as fringe, eyebrow, legs etc. Then I suggested writing the names for the characters. I held her hand and we wrote the names together. It was a wonderful experience. After a while, her picture was completed. I thought it was a very beautiful piece, coming out from a 3.5 year old child. I stuck her picture on the wall.

I will try to get her to draw something else next time, maybe animals? Haha :)

Reuben Toddling

More video of Reuben toddling :) I reward his effort by giving him lots of kisses :)

Anti-Medicine

This week has been a rather tough week for me. School is busy, as usual. Reuben had a little running nose but he recovered within two days. What caused me headache and heartache was Phoebe. She has been running a fever since Sunday night, after Reuben's first birthday party. Her temperature fluctuates, ranging from 38.9 to 38.3 degree Celsius. On top of that, she has a phlegmy and bad cough. Her stools is also runny. She has been out of school for the whole week. We brought her to 2 different GP but she did not get better.

Actually, the whole episode would have ended within 2-3 days if she is willing to eat her medicine. Phoebe has a phobia for medicine since she was a baby. We've tried coaxing her, reasoning, threatening and even wrestling just to get her to eat her medicine. We have to wrestle with her just to get 3ml of syrup into her mouth, out of which, 2ml will most probably be on our clothes and faces. To save us the trouble of fighting, we have always added her medicine into her milk. When she was younger, naively, she would finish all her milk. However, she has grown smarter by the day and can easily detect it from the taste of her milk. Hence, she will either refuse her milk or drink only half the amount. How to get better without medicine??!!

My parents thought that running a temperature for almost a week is too much a damage to a child's health. They suggested taking her to the paediatrician for a fever jab. I thought so too and if a jab can put the trouble away, why not? So last night, we brought Phoebe to KidsLink Children's Clinic in Compassvale Walk. Dr Vanessa Tan is a good paediatrician and I think she must be earning big bucks from us parents! I must psycho my children to study hard to be paediatricians next time!

Anyway, back to my recount, Dr Tan said that she does not administer fever jabs in her clinic. Only the hospitals do that. She gave Phoebe a new set of medicine. We wanted Phoebe to have her new set of medicine in the clinic before we go home. Once again, the taming of the 'shrew' starts! Everyone watches the show as we try to force feed Phoebe.

She kept saying, "No. Don't want. No need, thank you. Don't want, auntie. I don't want..."

I must have smelt like strawberry shortcake as Phoebe perfumed me using her mouth. Then one of the 'nurses' (or counter attendance? Whatever you call them) came to our rescue. She managed to coax Phoebe into eating her medicine, all FOUR TYPES! I was so happy that I would have hug her if no one was around! haha. So, according to Phoebe, her 4 bottles of medicine taste like orange, banana, peach and apple.

Hopefully, tomorrow morning, she will eat her medicine more willingly. I will try the same method. Lots of prayer needed! :)

We Read Together

Phoebe and Reuben like to imitate each other's action. Monkeys see, monkeys do. Haha :) In this video clip, Phoebe is imitating Reuben flipping the pages of a magazine. Halfway through filming, Reuben, for whatever reason, decided to backface the camera. Camera shy? Maybe :)

Reuben Can Toddle

Phoebe started walking pretty steadily when she was thirteen months old. Now, at twelve months and one week old, Reuben is able to walk without any support. The distance may be short but he is quite stable in toddling. He is officially a toddler now! :) We will get him to practise toddling every day so that he'll be more firm in his steps. Way to go, Benbeni! :)

Spot On!

Phoebe is pretty attentive when she is in class. She enjoys listening to her teachers, even in Sunday School.

Phoebe in pink cardigan, holding her name tag while listening to her Sunday school teacher

When I was watching her through the glass window, I saw giant size drawings done by the children in Phoebe's nursery class. Immediately, I spotted her drawing! The face of her cartoon character is very distinct - round face, small eyes, button nose, big smile, noodle hair and string-liked limps. Some of her classmates are pretty good in drawing. Some could even draw details like toes and fingers and teeth. Love these drawings very much :) Maybe I should give Phoebe a BIG piece of paper and get her to draw her signature cartoon character and I'll cut it out and display it in her playroom, just like the one in her classroom! :)

Phoebe's drawing the the 3rd one from the right


Phoebe's (1st picture in row 2) and her friends' drawings

Reuben's 1st Birthday - Part 2

We celebrated Reuben's first birthday again on Sunday, one day before the actual day. We had a small party. We invited a different crowd from Phoebe's 3rd birthday, consisting of families of my hubby's parents, siblings, my old classmate, Linda, my hubby's ex-colleague, Alex and my neighbours. All of them had young children so it was very noisy, messy but fun. Reuben did not know what was going on but he was very well-behaved, didn't wail or drop a single tear. Because he was born in the year of the rat, we decided to get him a Mickey Mouse cake.

I was so busy running in and out that I forgot to take pictures of my guests! Only Phoebe managed to capture some moments but some of the pictures were distorted with headless beings... haha :) Anyway, everything ended after about 2.5 hours. I keep the decorations intact just to admire a little more of my effort. Some of the decos were recycled from Phoebe's birthday but others were new ones.

After all the guests had gone home, the children washed up and then, it's presents-opening time! Reuben didn't know how to open his presents so naturally, Phoebe got to open them. Thank you Auntie Linda and Uncle Jonathan for the cute Activity Island toy, Auntie Kwan and Uncle Thomas for the handsome Fox Baby clothes set and Uncle Alex and Auntie Joyce for the cute Mickey Mouse clothes. Thank you grandparents, uncle and aunties for the ang paos too.

Parties are fun but tiring. I told my hubby that we shall not have anymore parties for the whole of this year, just to take a break from it. For Phoebe's 4th birthday at the end of the year, we might just have a small dinner gathering or maybe a MacDonald's party? I will have seven more months to plan ahead :)