Happy Birthday to Kung-kung

We celebrated Kung-kung's 60th birthday earlier this month at a chinese restaurant in Yu Lek, Cheras. I ordered a cake for this ocassion from here as the usual baker that I like was not able to take in my oder for that day. To me, the price was reasonable but it's on the higher side.

Result: the design and workmanship of the cake were good and the cake was HUGE for about 20+ pax. We only consumed 1/3 of the top tier and left the bottom tier untouch. The texture and the flavour of the cake itself were so-so. Not very much to my liking. Oh well...at least my parents and others were pleased with the whole presentation of the cake. Never try, never know right? Norelle was fasinated with the cow figurines (my dad born in the year of the Ox), she had fun decapitating one of them into bits and pieces (sorry...a bit gross).

Preston @ 9 mos

Time flies, now lil' Preston is 9+ mos and he's been acting up a lot lately. His always amuse us with his endless expressions. Now he:

is teething: 2 bottom teeth have sprouted and more to come, gnawing on everything he can find / drooling a lot

is standing: able to stand unsupported for a few seconds..sometimes he does it so effortlessly (without realising that both of his hands are not holding onto anything)

is babbling: graduated from ba..ba..ba.. to deh..deh... maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...daaaaaaaadiiiiiiii...no no no....

is a milk junkie: still needs his night feed (could be a habit)

still sticks to me like a PLASTER! enough said!

Run...Norelle...Run

Yup! Norelle did just that on 8 August 2009 as she participated in her 1st ever Sports Days organized by her school, Summer Academy. The event took palce at a multipurpose hall at Subang Jaya. When we arrived, the event has just started and very quickly, she was being 'whisked' away by her teacher to be with her team mates. She was placed at a 'Yellow' team (I was also on a Yellow team during school time) and we were told before hand to wear something to reflect the colour of the team. HY had a bright yellow shirt on, and me, well..the closest thing I had on to yellow was my 'beige' top (hey, I've been out of the 'fitness' world for quite sometimes).

She was lined up as the 1st person in her team (due to her petite size) and oh, she looked adorable having a yellow sash pinned onto her top :) She had no clue or whatsoever what's gonna happen, so she just followed whatever she was being told to do. Hahhaa...then the game started and she was supposed to run until she reaches a bench and crawl underneath it and run to the meeting point, turn back and run back to her team mates. Phew! I was so nervous for her as she looked quite 'lost' when the teacher was briefing her what to do. Then, the whistle went off, and surprisingly she did all the things correctly. It was so exciting and fun to see my lil' baby ran and ran..Hahaha...

She took the other games pretty well too. She had lots of fun on that day. We brought Preston along as well. There were also games for the daddies and mummies too. It was a fun event and in the end, the yellow team was in the 3rd runner-up position but to all of us there, all those kids were already a champion in their parents' eyes. Well done, Norelle. Daddy, mummy and di di were so proud of you :)

Lil' Preston @ 8+ Mos

Infact, he's going to be 9 mos in 11 days time :P I've been slow in updating their milestones recently as I was caught up with work (what else!). At this moment, this lil' rascal of mine is getting quite a handful to all of us.

Now he:

- crawls like a pro, able to sit up from crawling position

- climbs stairs like a pro as well

- able to pull himself up and started cruising

- more babbly (making a lot of baby talk)

- capable of making funny faces/expressions (this guy is such a drama king)

- loves his food (he eats practically whatever he's been offered)

- better control of his pincher grips

His characteristics (so far):

- quite cautious (he will make sure of his surrounding before making his next move, i.e. one hand to hold onto something before letting go of the other)

- loves attention/crowds (will bawl his eyes out when being left alone)

- loves his jie-jie a lot (also means he likes to disturb her)

- of course he loves to smile (he's a happy baby overall)

Hopefully I'll be on time to update his next milestones accordingly :)

Beach Retreat

My PIL (parents-in-laws) informed us that they are going to Hong Kong from 21 - 25 August to visit my FIL's (father-in-law) eldest brother. So I had to take leave and be a SAHM for a few days. Since I'm onleave, I thought of going somewhere, and we decided to head to Kuantan.

We left on the 22nd August, with 2 of my kiddos strapped onto their car seats at the back of the car. The journey took about 4 hours as HY took the 'old' road - more scenic according to him. Lil' Preston fell asleep not long after we started our journey. We stopped for lunch at Termeloh as that place is famous for their 'live' patin fish. Well, the food was mediocre but the price was cheap.

We checked ourselves into Swiss Garden Resort & Spa and when we arrived, we could see that the lobby was newly refurbished. Very resort like - with dark wooden panel but with a modern twist. Norelle was estatic that she's finally there as she has been asking about the trip for a whole week.

We chose the 'Deluxe Sea View' because I checked that they have refurbished that too. The room was spacious enough - with a huge King-sized bed and wooden flooring. It even fit 2 baby cots (for my kiddos) and still plenty of room to move around. We had a clear view of the swimming pools (altogether 3) and partial of the beach (it was blocked by trees).

So what did we do? Of course we hit the pool. But it was already close to 6pm so we didnt spent a long time in the pool as the weather was getting bad. The nice part of pool was, there's a baby pool (2 feet), an adult pool (1.5m) and a heated jaccuzi. We spent quite some time 'soaking' in the jaccuzi :)

All we did on the trip was eat, pool, beach, sleep, eat, pool etc... Norelle and lil Preston enjoyed the trip a lot and we're glad that we chose this place. The slightly put-off part was the things which we brought. With a toddler and a baby in tow, there were A LOT of things to pack. Somehow as a mom, I have this habit in me to pack extra of all the things that I am bringing - better be safe than sorry. Thank goodness we went by car and a huge car boot does make the difference :)

We checked out on the 24th August and both of the kids slept mostly all the way. It was a good trip but I'm glad that we're home.

Water Play

Ok..this is a (super long) overdue post. We went to a friend's house on a Sunday afternoon for a little get-together as HY's college friend was back from Australia for a holiday.

The highlight of the day was of course kids-centered event - water play! It's great that the house has a huge swimming pool as the kids enjoyed themselves tremendously. Norelle of course was very excited and she can't wait to get into the pool. Having seen the rest of the kids splishing and splashing away, lil' Preston also wanna have a share of the fun. But he's not going into the pool as this 'forever-rushing' mummy forgot to bring along a change of clothes...so he settled in the big red basin instead...hahahha...

Preston @ 7+ Mos

Here is our lil' Preston @ 7+ months. Some milestones at this stage:

- his weight was about 9.32kg (2 weeks back)

- able to pull himself up

- can crawl VERY fast on his tummy

- able to crawl on his knees (a few steps forward)

- able to climb afew flight of stairs: all by himself!!!

- having 2x porridge meal (a FULL chinese bowl) then subsequently down a bottle of milk

- able to sit more steadily

Norelle goes to school

We enrolled Norelle into a half-day nursery at Summer Academy in Damansara Utama. This place was recommended to me by Fu Bee as her girl, Sophia is going to this nursery. Summer Academy’s main branch is in Subang Jaya where we attended their Open Day. We like the programmes they are running and the teachers seem passionate with education and kids.

On a Friday morning, we decided to visit the branch in Damansara Utama. The nursery is housed in a corner unit of a HUGE bungalow. The surrounding area is very quiet and calm and it is facing the DU primary school. The place used to be Pat’s Schoolhouse but it has since ceased its operation and moved back to Singapore.

The place is very airy and bright, and comes with complete facilities such as proper classrooms, play room, library, outdoor garden and many educational toys. Norelle was very excited when she first saw the place. There and then we decided to put her for a trial class and she loved every minute of it. She didn’t even notice that we’ve left and she had a great time there.

So after that we enrolled her for the nursery. It starts from 8.30am to 12.30pm with a tea break and lunch provided. The fees for this nursery is higher compared to the rest but judging from the quality (teachers) and quantity (of kids) there, we feel that it’s worth it.

Norelle started her first official day in school without much problem. She’s so eager to mix around and play whereby she forgotten to bid me goodbye. She has been attending the nursery for a week now and she’s been adapting very well. She didn’t even cry for once and didn’t look out for us while in school. We are so proud of our little girl.

Sweet Moments 2

I just want to document this down while it's still fresh on my mind...

One morning while I was surfing the net and Norelle was by my side reading her books, she suddenly asked me (she spoke in half English and Cantonese):

Norelle: Mummy, kam yat yau rain mou? (mummy, it is raining today?)
Me: Nope...It's not raining
Norelle: Then jang kan hui kau slide, ok mou? (then, we go and play on the slide, ok or not?)

I was caught off-guard! She's so clever as she knows when she asks me such question, I would normally answer her by saying 'it's raining outside, the slide's wet' or 'it's too hot to go outside'. With that, she knows that she can't go and play outside.

This time, she twisted the question around!! Did I answer her???? Hah! I tried to divert her attention other things :P Bad mummy......

Preston 1st Solid

Preston started on semi solid earlier at the 5th month as he seemed not contented with only milk. His first reaction towards 'real food' was so much better compared to his jie-jie. He finished everything and asked for more.

Hong Kong Trip (15-20 May)

We brought Norelle to Hong Kong last month. It was her 1st time taking the plane and to our surprise, she handled it very well. No fussing, managed to nap for about 2 hours (to and fro) and enjoyed the inflight entertainement and food. She was given a complementary baby kit by Cathay Pacific - a bag with some crayons, stickers, colouring book, etc.

Hong Kong was ok overall - we dont really enjoyed it very much. Maybe we had too high expection for that place. Anyway, we brought Norelle to Ocean Park - nope, we didnt make a trip to Disneyland despite that would what most people thought we should/ would go especially when we are going with a toddler. Norelle enjoyed Ocean Park very much and she had a blast - looking at those dolphons, sea lion, panda and the rides.

Overall, it was an experience and we look forward to bringing Norelle to other places since she's fine with the plane - more vacation? Oh yes! We (at least I do) need another vacation after this one......and actually it's going to be one soon....................... :)

Too much

The title says it all...too much to update, too much to handle (all of us in the family were sick - just recovered), too little time...

And..I'm TIRED!

An Easter-licious Sunday

Last Sunday we went to Delicious at Dua Residency for its' Easter brunch buffet. The setting of the place was very spacious and bright. Love the different shades of blues and white that decorated the whole place. There were 2 floors whereby the buffet-line was laid out at the upper floor and all the kids' activites such as face painting, bounching castle, arts & crafts were located at the lower floor.

There were quite an impressive spread of food ranging from fresh oyster to foie-gras, champagne to desserts. Norelle had great fun at the arts & crafts whereby she did her first 'bunny mask'. It's such a great joy seeing her little hands cutting and pasting and colouring her masterpiece :)

Indeed, it was a great Easter to all of us....

Lil' Preston @ 4-month young

Lil' Preston turns 4-month young today and he's getting cheekier day-by-day. His waking hours stretches longer now and he's eating more. Well, not surprising, judging by his size :)

He is more receptive now and able 'realised' the existence of his hands. He loves to suckles his fingers and fists (which I fondly call them 'french fries' and 'drumsticks'). He is not flipping yet but he loves to be on his tummy. He loves crowds and loves to play with Norelle.

Some 'not-so-new' updates

Was lacking behind in updating both my kiddos' milestones. Work has been crazy since I returned begining of March. Well, good and bad. And plus having to adapt my pumping schedule minto my work routine = crazy! But I am surviving through these 'chaotic times'.

Ok, now move to my kiddos :) Norelle turned 26 months on 30 March and lil' Preston now is 3.5 months. Both of them are fine and growing well respectively. Let's see at some of their milestones:

On Norelle:

- her vocab is getting much much advanced. Her knowledge of some words amazed me from time to time.

- she loves to sing and can complete the entire song on her own such as:

twinkle little star, happy birthday (out of tune), baa baa black sheep,

and some other songs partially like:

yi san yi san liang jing jing (twinkle little star - mandarin version)

liang zhi lau fu (2 little tiger - mandarin)

london bridge is falling down

- can count 1-15

- can recite A-Z

- able to differentiate between alphabet and number

- able (understand) to count some items (as in 1 ball, 2 sweets, 3 cakes, etc)

- able to recognise some colours, red, blue, green, orange (her favourite is green)

On appearance wise, not a big jump as in her weight - she's about 12kg and she has a very small feet . I call her 'cinderella feet' as she can fit into the smallest size for Crocs (C4/5) and is still wearing the same size since last year!!!

On Preston:

- getting much more alert

- still on total breast milk

- loves to talk / sing (he can actually make a tune when he's 'talking')

- loves to smile

- able to reach out his hands and grab things

- able to sleep longer at night (6 hours straight)

- he weighed 7.4kg and 62cm in height

- outgrowed most of his 0-3 mos clothes, he's wearing 6-9months now

- realised the presence of people and able to 'interact' and play

- can sit longer in car seat/stroller (which makes going out easier)

These are some points I can think of right now. Hopefully I am able to post next updates soon :)

Norelle's new haircut

Her worst fear.....getting a haircut. It's such a nightmare for all of us whenever we bring Norelle for a haircut. No amount of coaxing, treats, bribing will do for her. We can reason with her all we want BEFORE the haircut and she will obligingly says OK but once she sits on the chair, all the OKs are gone. Think I will try cutting her hair myself next time. Wish me luck!

Preston @ 2 Mos

Another month passes by and Lil' Preston is 2-month young :) These two months are indeed a challenging one for all of us. But, looking at our lil' Preston growing day-by-day is even more rewarding. He is much more alert now and is able to lift up his head for a good few secs when we put him on his tummy. Still the ultimate drinking machine :) He now weighs 6.3kg and 59cm tall. Loves to 'talk' and smile. His favourite time of the day - BATH time! To the extent that he will instantly stop crying / fussing the minute his body touches the water. Now he is able to sleep longer at night but haven't sleep through yet.

Oh, he has the CUTEST pout ever!, which melts your heart instantly :)