Jacob Ballas Garden @ Botanics

Heeeeeeelp!! I'm scared of this water monster that spits!

Ok i think i can handle this pretty well now ... (looks very cautious^_^)

WOW! Look at those children! They are all wet! HAHAHA

Dancing in the "rain"

WOW! Free backside washing service! GREAT!

Brought wawa to the botanical gardens for the first time. It took quite a bit of determination to make it happen that saturday morn as it's kinda far from home. But have heard from my friends about the JC gardens and how children seem to enjoy themselves mad with the water play so i had hoped the trip is worth every cent of my petrol ... haha ~~

If you've heard pple say "every child loves to play with water?", then mine must be quite "abnormal". Wawa has always loved bathing but she was so terrified of the mini water fountains and sprouts! We took a long time to get her see how the other children are having so much splashing fun. After quite some efforts she finally loosened up and tried to touch the water with her bare hands. Still she was very apprehensive and broke into cries every now and then.

Wawa managed to have some enjoyment not long before the darkened skies opened the water gates. It started to rain so we had to take refuge at the nearby cafe. Overall i think the 20 mins of "exposure" was a good enough start. Will have to bring her more often and get her used to being close to mother nature!

Educational Toys III

We bought wa a box of building blocks some months ago, but at that time baby had no interest in them. In the 21st month now, she suddenly likes to play with them. She would sit down (this is unheard of before) and patiently try to stack the blocks into a tall tower where she'll burst into a sense of elation.

We are happy that finally we found something that could stick her butt to the floor, though just for a few minutes!!

Down with Bronchitis

Happily enjoying a biscuit the day before she got sick

YAY! Thank the Lord i'm fianally well and out of the house after TWO weeks!

See i can walk and run around as before!

Ah?! Catch me if you can! ^_^

Dear Lord, please protect me, i don't want to be so sick again!!

Wa has never coughed in her life, and when she did it was much more serious than we ever expected.

On sat she was just the usual active self running around and eating snacks and playing pretend with us. In the evening we even brought her to the adult fellowship gathering where she sang and clapped along with us. At night on the way home, she was extremely quiet in the car and to our unpleasant surprise she had a temp of 38.8 when we got home.

That was the beginning of a traumatic two long weeks where a stubborn fever refused to leave her for a whole full week; where she started coughing with lots of phelgm which she didn't know how to spit out and just swallowed them back; running nose with mucus over the face which she refused to let us clean them off; sleepless nights due to blocked airways, discomfort, unease; poor appetitie where the skinny girl just had milk most of the time ...

The doctor says this is an early case of bronchitis, if left untreated will cause much more harm to the lungs. She had various medication, as well as the nebulizer (a tool that disperse a kind of vapour that helps to clear the airways) which we faithfully administer round the clock. We also found VICKS being extremely helpful during this time. Imagine a team of pandas working tirelessly and prayerfully ...

Thankfully, the dark days are over, and today, wa is pretty well. We haven't heard her cough in two days, no more running nose, and she's also starting to eat a little more like normal. We think she might have caught the bug from school, and indeed this is a "must-go-through" experience for every child (and parent too!!) going to the childcare.

We have heard from other mommies how persistent coughs can be, and some lasting up to 3 weeks or so or even a month! Even the doc told me, there is no miracle pill and it certainly takes time to heal. For now, we try to boost up her immunity by feeding her with fruits and a balanced diet. She'll be going back to school next Monday and may our kind and merciful Lord continue to watch over her! AMEN!

I am going to SCHOOL! ~

I love going to school! ~

Hi! Guess who i am? :)

Wa is 21 months now, and we feel she could be feeling quite bored at home facing just the maid all day long. She has always liked to play with the children at church, and so we thought it might be good to send her to child care so she has some interaction with other kids, and also pick up some skills (hopefully ^_^).

There are many child care centers around my place, i think is because Seng Kang is a new town with LOTS OF LOTS OF children. However when i went around to ask, all the centers were all filled up and i have to be on waiting list! Oh my, i didn't expect this?!

In the end, we found Cambridge Children Development Center, a franchise CC around the island. The SK branch is newly opened and only about 5 mins' walk from our block, and still have one place in the toddler class. So thankful for this wonderful opportunity, and we quickly enrolled her. We thought, well in future she can tell other pple, "i studied in Cambridge when i was 2 yrs old. How about you?" hahaha ~~~

We prayed for her adaptation to the new environment many days leading up to the actual day. We were wondering if she would cry, refuse to let us go, and how we should react and manage all these drama. Anyway we committed to God and ask that His angels will guide and protect wawa.

The big day finally arrived. While walking to school, i keep preping her about what to expect in school, she would meet teachers and friends, learn to sing songs, play games etc. We dropped her at the door, the teacher picked her up and voila, she went in without a tear! WOW it was a milestone for US!

It's been about 3 weeks now, and each day she's quite happy to be in school. When we ask her what she learnt, if she sang any songs, she'll break out in her own tune which nobody understands haha. Also, she became a little more "bossy" at home, like telling us to keep the toys (points to the toy box and say "put"), telling us to sit down, stand at a certain place etc. We think she's trying to act like her teacher! LOL!

We're very thankful and happy that she's enjoying the new routine. We put her there for half a day now. Probably some time down the road we'll let her stay there for the whole day :)

To the ZOO!

WAhhhh! What did we see??

Oh it should be rrroarrr! ~~

Only two out of three are real ^_^

We fed wawa some ice-cream on the sunny day hehe

Wawa was excited to see the actual size giraffe!

National day holiday! and it was our first trip to the zoo with wawa! I had wanted to bring wawa to the zoo for a long time now and finally we set out early in the morning on national day!

When wawa was much younger, we started to show her pictures of animals, and i also pasted wall decor animal stickers right above her cot. She could point to each one as you name them, and well you could say she was "familiar" with her animal friends. However, i think she lacks the real perspective of how big/small these animals are. Hence i was really keen to bring her to the zoo and let her see for herself the "real friends"!

Initally wawa felt some fear when she saw the animals. When she came up close and personal with a tank of swimming fishes, she was quite frightful and refused to go near! She was clinging to us most of the time like a koala... it was actually quite hilarious ^_^ However, she loved the monkeys, the giraffes, and also the horses in the children's play area. She was very amused and enjoyed imitating them by making strange sounds!

We went home slightly after lunch as she was already pretty tired in just a few hours. Overall, it was a great experience, and we are very thankful to God for the great weather. Mommy friends, do plan a trip to the zoo but be prepared to spend just at most 3-4 hours for the $18 ticket haha. Don't worry, your child's smiles will make your money worth :)

A day out with Baby

YAY mommy this is my first time on a swing!

So safe we just let wawa enjoy herself while the camera snaps away

Heh heh mommy can we come again pls?

This is what i call HOLIDAY! YAY!

WOW my first porsche! Look how well i'm driving!

My little cottage - would you like to come in?

Hahlow! Anybody out there?

Yes pls come in! But did you bring your own chair?

Ok! We're going to close shop for the day. Byeee! ~

It sure is hard work to keep the active toddler entertained through the day - it's better exercise than running on the tread mill and more effective slimming treatment than the beauty salons!

We brought wawa to the youth park in the morning. Somehow i liked this penang park, it still has all the playground facilities that i enjoyed as a child. The "traditional" see-saws and swings, which i can hardly find in my neighbourhood playground anymore! The only downside was that there were a lot of mosquitoes ^_^

Later in the afternoon we went indoors to the Queensbay Mall. I think this is the largest mall in Penang, and i simply love how spacious it is and the endless no. of shops and the flagship Jusco. Most importanly, it is NOT crowded! You will never have this kind of shopping experience in Singapore haha ~~

There are also child friendly facilities to keep the kids entertained while parents get busy with great buys. I am so thankful for the playground area which made wawa really happy just moving around that tiny little house. Isn't it really easy to please a child?? It brings me great joy to see her laughter!

Oh what a day! Baby went to bed early that evening (which is great for me!) I need to start thinking what we should do for her tmrw ... hahaha ...

Happy Bday to Me! ~

My bday wish ... eat all that and don't get fat

My favourite sotong! Not paul don't worry ...

We're having footballs ...

My happy princess

Hola dearies! I'm finally back after a long hiatus! Ho Ho HO ...

It's not bad at all to be born on this day. After all it's the FIFA finals and at least half the world should be celebrating (with me). ... hahaha ... Ok on a serious note, yes it's my special day today, and i have so much to give thanks for ...

Big thank you to all my dearest friends who sent me so many heart warming bday wishes. And to dearie mel, my lovely sister whom is always so thoughtful and never fails to touch me with her love. And my hubby who "sang" me a bday song via msn ... hahaha ... My mom and bro who came by to celebrate in advance before i leave for penang .... and my cute future sis in law who bought me this very pretty t-shirt which i can't fit in hahaha ... My in laws who took time to celebrate for me and got me this ooh-so-delicious-there's-choc-oozing-out cake (sorry no pics i devoured it!!) and brought me to steamboat for dinner.

Above all, my gratitude to my gracious and faithful God, whom has blessed me so abundantly in all ways, such that we're not lacking in anything, but overflowing with thanksgiving in everything! On this day, i remember His purpose for me and will continue to serve Him all the days of my life. Amen!

I'm pretty thrilled to be in Penang this week for a holiday with my girl. It's gonna be a eat shop eat shop and relax trip! haha ~~ okok that's the shallow part of me ^_^ of course i'm looking forward to spending more time with my where-does-her-energy-come-from toddler.

So far, we've started out not too bad. i've had much fun (and weariness) entertaining my princess (and vice versa i guess), did some shopping, and most importantly had a lot of FOOD! Still no char kuay teow YET ... it's coming, i promise :)

Ok, hope i don't be too lazy and will be diligent to take shots through the week! Catch up again soon! :)