Christmas Dinner with Gramps & Yiyi

Christmas should be spent with people whom you love. Hence, for 2010's Christmas, we decided to invite gramps and Yiyi to our house for a Christmas dinner. Too bad, papa had to attend a colleague's wedding banquet dinner, so he was unable to join us. Nevertheless, we had a fun time together. I cooked western food to blend with the occasion. It was simple food but cooked with love. Yiyi bought nice Christmas presents for the children - Musical Percy train for Reuben and Princess accessories set for Phoebe. The children enjoyed having their loving gramps and Yiyi around. It was an enjoyable and meaningful evening.

Proverbs 17:6
Children’s children are a crown to the aged,and parents are the pride of their children.

The children love their Yiyi - She is strict with the children but doting 0n them too!

Children Can't Sit - The Evidence

When I am in class, I often have to tell the Primary 1 and 2 children to sit on their chairs. I will ask them,

"I didn't punish you, why are you standing?" or
"Do you have a porcupine on your chair? Why can't you sit?"

Then when I am back home, I see my two children not sitting too. When I revise some work with Phoebe at the dining table, she will sit on the edge of the chair for a minute and then for the next minute, she will be standing. Haha. Why can't children sit ? I guess it's either

1) They are always on the move, or

2) The height of the chair and table is not in proportion to their body size.

I just think it's a combination of both reasons! Verdict : The Bouncy Butts Can't Sit! Haha! :)

Each one one computer, no fighting, no issues... :)

Little Knitter

Aunty Ann has given Phoebe a very special present for Christmas in 2010. She brought the present all the way from Taman Jurong to the Pasir Ris chalet. It was a present well thought of and Phoebe enjoyed the process of knitting. It was her first time knitting and she needs some help from me. I can still remember myself learning to knit when I was in primary school. It was my "gu-ma" (my dad's elder sister) who taught me how to do it. I could only knit simple scarf and I have knitted two scarves before. It was a skill passed down to me. When Phoebe is older, I will also teach her how to knit a scarf for herself. But right now, I think she is just very contented to be able to knit scarves for her stuffed toys :)

It Doesn't Matter Where

Last December, we did not know where to go but were longing for a holiday that was no expensive and yet enjoyable for all of us, not just the children. We did not want to go to far away places such as Hong Kong or Australia yet as we thought that the children may not understand where they were and it would be a hassle to bring along Reuben's diapers. And with the higher cost, we may not be able to bring Aunty Nia along too. So after much consideration, we decided to book a chalet in Downtown East again. Our last trip to Downtown East chalet was very pleasant and the children remembered that place very well. We asked our family friends to come along too and they also got a chalet unit next to ours. To our pleasant surprise, this time round, the rooms were even better than our last trip. They were newly furnished and we did not have any noisy neighbours as the rooms next to us were used as storage.

The children truely enjoyed themselves and since that trip, Reuben kept saying,"I want to go holiday again!" He has fond memories and could even tell us what he did there. I realised that, to the children, it doesn't really matter where they go, whether is it expensive holidays or nearby places. Most importantly, they are with their parents, doing something together as a family. That's what they want most!

Prata Eating Monkey Viewing

Sometimes, we like to go to the Causarina Prata Place to have our pratas. Reuben and Phoebe has learnt to eat prata recently. We always order cheese prata for Phoebe and egg prata for Reuben. They will eat it plain because I do not like the idea of adding sugar to the already existing fats. After our prata meal, we will proceed to the Pierce Reservoir to look at the wild monkeys. The children enjoy it a lot. We will just observe them from the car because we are afraid that they may be dangerous. Usually, they are very bold and will come close to our car to see if we have food for them. But being law-abidding citizens, we will not feed the monkeys. We also teach the children how to read the sign for "No feeding monkeys". The children are obedient and will not pester us to feed the monkeys even though they do ask us what the monkeys eat.