However, he did not receive any letter or birthday stickers from Disney Junior informing him of the feature, like he did in previous years.  As such, we were not able to record the feature when it was shown on TV, as we did not know what time slots to wait for.  Instead I managed to record it off the computer, from the Disney Junior site.

The background *accompaniment* you hear is courtesy of Ethan and Hannah…and sorry for the streaming of the video, which was not very smooth.

Adorable, ain’t it?

She specifically requested me to plait her hair that way for her.

]]> http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2012/01/22/all-dressed-up-for-chinese-new-year-in-school/feed/ http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2012/01/19/no-i-didnt-forget-the-christmas-2011-post/ http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2012/01/19/no-i-didnt-forget-the-christmas-2011-post/#comments Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:30:26 +0000 joyce http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/?p=5158 Before it goes way past Chinese New Year and I have another to-do post to publish, allow me to take you back to the not too distant past and share how we celebrated our Christmas last year.

Our Christmas Eve was spent in Taiping, and although most adults looked forward to the steamboat dinner, the kids’ highlight of the day would be the paddle pool session, courtesy of Ethan & Hannah’s Patrick Ah Chek.  It was an impromptu session, so I did not pack the kids’ swimsuits, but we made do with shorts and tank tops anyways.

It was certainly a welcome activity in the hot scorching weather (if only the pool was bigger, I would have hopped in myself!).  The kids really enjoyed themselves, save for cousin Jonathan, who was taking his afternoon nap.

Definitely a great prequel to the yummy steamboat dinner we had at home that night.  No fancy restaurant could beat a cozy gathering at home with family, and warm food for the tummy…

…and that’s how it came to be…all the screaming and noise died down when the four cousins fell to the temptation of ice cream…

All the bowls had equal amounts of ice cream, but Hannah, no surprise at all, finished her bowl first and asked for seconds…look at her eyeing Phoebe’s bowl…

After-dinner activity for the kids: Uncle Tee Bin busy *hiding* candy canes on the Christmas tree, and then getting the kids to look for them.

Next: gift time!  Because of logistic reasons and because “some people” were too eager to open their presents, we had a first round of gifts that Christmas eve.

We went to church after that, and only came back home after midnight.  The kids were really tired and fell asleep soundly.

And so did I.

On Christmas Day we took a drive to Ipoh, and the kids were very excited to see Ah Ma and Ah Kong again.  It was very apparent that they’d missed my Dad because they kept sticking close to him, especially Hannah.

We had a scrumptious dinner at a restaurant which frankly serves the best chicken chop ever

It was back home to Penang the next day where we had a few more presents to open.  Ethan had handpicked a present especially for Hannah, from himself:

…and he was visibly touched when he found out that Hannah also had a gift for him.  He was eagerly looking forward to opening it.

]]> http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2012/01/19/no-i-didnt-forget-the-christmas-2011-post/feed/ http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2011/12/21/childrens-christmas-party/ http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2011/12/21/childrens-christmas-party/#comments Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:08:46 +0000 joyce http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/?p=5050

Last Saturday morning, Hannah’s parent-toddler class was more or less “transformed” into a Children’s Christmas Party for all the kids and their siblings.  It was an annual affair for all the kids in the parent-toddler classes, and they had a garden party with Teddy Bear tents, splash pools, ball pits and also art and craft areas for the kids to explore.

Both Ethan and Hannah had a fun time making a Christmas wreath with Daddy.  Check out the level of concentration on my little girl’s face…

And of course, a Christmas Party is never complete without food!  Each family was asked to bring something to share with the rest and for a change from my usual cupcake fare, I decided to try my hand out at making Christmas sugar cookies in the shape of Christmas trees

I’d forgotten that I did not have enough icing sugar for the frosting, and my last minute attempt to buy it from Tesco the night before the party failed because Tesco had run out of it too.  So I had to use whatever icing sugar I had left to make the royal icing and improvised.  Not bad for a first attempt, eh?

The party ended with some songs and fun for the kids, and finally an appearance by “Santa Clause”, who gave away the presents to the kids as part of the gift exchange.

It was a fun Saturday morning for all, and a great way to end the year…

]]> http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2011/12/21/childrens-christmas-party/feed/ http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2011/12/15/water-play-and-a-surprise-in-december/ http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/2011/12/15/water-play-and-a-surprise-in-december/#comments Thu, 15 Dec 2011 15:24:13 +0000 joyce http://duhbulats.giddytigers.com/?p=5017 We just got back from our family vacation in Singapore last week, and I am far far behind in my blog postings.  I’ve got so many drafts sitting and collecting digital dust, and other non-blogging things to do too, so while I gather my thoughts and (hopefully) publish alternate posts about our Singapore getaway really soon, here are some pictures taken at Pauline Kor Kor’s condo’s swimming pool, during our recent trip to KL for the Barney show…we had the whole pool to ourselves that day!!!

**********

Oh and by the way, check out this month’s issue of BabyTalk, where Hannah picture is featured in the Star Toddlers section.

And if you like reading, you could also read one of my personal Christmas stories here, featured in that same magazine  Just click on the image to enlarge it.

I made the cake, but it was the kids who helped keep it a secret.  We kept it a secret from Daddy for one whole week…

And Ethan helped it stay a secret right till it was unveiled before Daddy’s eyes!

Happy Birthday Daddy!  Hope you had a great birthday! (the kids sure enjoyed the cake though) — hopefully it will be a sign of great things to come for Liverpool this season!  Heh Heh…

Just to have a little bit of fun during the Lantern Festival night this year, I took the kids down to our condo’s swimming pool area for a night walk with their lanterns.  Both Ethan and Hannah received lanterns from Ah Ma from Ipoh, and these lanterns were battery-operated.  Ethan had insisted that I bring along and hold the paper lantern he had made in school too (pictured above), because that one required a tea light candle and he was afraid he would accidentally burn the lantern.

It was a just a very simple walk round the pool area, but despite that the kids enjoyed themselves.  I had expected more kids to be around but it was just us.

Stayed for a while in the area, enjoying the cool night air…up until Hannah started poking her whole leg in the water!

We’ll be back next time!  Could you see the joy on the kids’ faces even in the dim light?

When we told Ethan we were going to AdventureZone once again, he was ecstatic!  He had been asking and asking and asking to go back there and he was really really psyched up this time.

Took all of their effort to pose and smile for the camera before I let them run into the play area…

Amazing how much energy these kids possess.  They had 2 hours to play in the area, and after what felt like an hour and a half, Pete tells me it’s only been 20 minutes.  Thank goodness the entire area was air-conditioned.  Hehe.

This time round, Ethan was more adventurous, and loudly proclaimed that he wasn’t afraid to go down the slides now.  His favorite was the “Hyperglide Astra Drop” (rainbow) slide, which had a height of 18 feet (5.5 metres) and a length of 50 feet (15.2 metres).  This one required the us to use a mat as we slid down.  Ethan also tried the  “Double Drop” (blue) slide, which had a ball pit exit, and stands 20 feet (6.1 metres) tall and has a length of 48 feet (14.6 metres).   The red slide is called the “Demon Drop” slide, and is not for the faint-hearted.  It has a vertical drop of 24 feet (7.3 metres) and spans 75 feet (22.9 metres).  Pete got on it a couple of times, and I got on just once (because Pete dared me to).

Since Hannah was not old enough to get on the Hyperglide Astra Drop on her own, she would either sit on Pete’s or my lap while we rode on the mats.  Ethan would go over and over again, each time gaining more and more confidence.  Initially he needed our help to carry the mat up, but in the end, he would carry the mat up by himself.

Here’s a video I took of Ethan riding the Hyperglide Astra Drop all by himself:

And after a two-hour PLUS workout, we headed nearby for a totally satisfying reward: The Rasa Sayang Seafood Buffet Dinner. *burp*

August 31st (Merdeka Day) this year saw us making a one-day trip to Taiping.  Cousin Jonathan would be having his 4th birthday celebration, and Ethan and Hannah were really excited to go celebrate it with him.

The *long* wait for the cake to be cut and served was incredibly excruciating…

…but definitely a worthwhile wait!  All the 4 kids really enjoyed the cake…

The idea for the game I initiated, “Who can stay quiet the longest?”, was eagerly received by the kids…

Later in the evening, we took the kids to one of the huge playgrounds in Lake Gardens where they worked up a sweat (and appetite).

Just in case you’re wondering, Ethan is saying “1 Malaysia!” and was asking Jonathan to do the same, but Jonathan wanted to hold up the “peace” sign instead.  Hannah and Phoebe, meanwhile, were just contented to look pretty for the camera.

And there you have it…all in a one-day trip

Therefore it goes without saying that when Daddy arrived at our front door last Sunday afternoon, he was greeted with cheerful faces, hugs and kisses.

…and then the kids swarmed around Daddy, saying, “Daddy, I want present…”

Well…urm…we’re still working on steering the kids away from too much materialistic ideas, but you know, kids are still kids…

Anyway, here’s a glimpse of some of the goodies and surprises Daddy got for the kids…

One could never ever go wrong with Cars 2.  With the movie release set for later this week, Ethan was definitely thrilled to see this 4-piece die-cast set.  He did not own any Cars die-cast *anything* before this, so he was overjoyed when he saw it.

As a bonus, the kids also got a new Lego set; Cars 2 themed as well.  That’s the box it came from, by the side of Hannah.

…and it had all these new cool Lego pieces, from which awesome buildings could be constructed!

And then, especially for Hannah, Daddy got her a pretty nifty little teapot set.  It had the sound effect of water/tea/coffee/Milo being poured out and also says things like “Why, thank you!”, “You’re very welcome!” and “More please!” to teach the child manners.

The kids also needed some new shoes and sandals and Pete chose some really great ones, at unbelievable clearance prices…anyhow, Ethan was too busy playing with his toys to bother trying them on, but Hannah, of course ever the willing *tryer*, wanted to try out all her new stuff.

Aren’t her new sandals daintily pretty?

Oooh…and I love her new pair of Mary Janes!