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Ethan

All about Ethan

Day 3 Singapore Getaway: Singapore Zoo & Chicken Rice Dinner

February 2, 2012 in Ethan, Hannah, Vacation | 1 comment

Day 3 was our trip to the Singapore Zoo (wouldn’t miss it for the world!) - It was Hannah’s first time, but Ethan could hardly remember his first, so it was sort of a brand new experience for both of them.  We took the hotel shuttle to Orchard MRT and then boarded the MRT to a station near the zoo.  Thereafter we arrived at the zoo via bus.

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The weather was scorching hot, but still we managed to see a fair bit of animals.  The kids were ecstatic to see the animals in real life, but when the kids got restless, the cameraman was still busy taking animal photos…

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We ended up having our lunch in KFC and Hannah was especially excited about the animal shaped chairs, switching from zebra to elephant to lion to panda…

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We couldn’t escape it.  KFC was situated right smack in the middle of Rainforest Kidzworld, just next to the Wet Play Area.  And of course Ethan and Hannah wanted in on the fun…this time (as opposed to when we were at Jurong Birdpark), I remembered to bring their swimming gear.

Ethan was well above the height requirement, but Hannah was at the height where she needed an adult to accompany her…so hmmm…what to do???

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Since Mommy was the designated photographer, that leaves just Daddy…with one problem.  I forgot to bring the ADULTS’ swimgear.  So Daddy had to go in with his shirt and jeans…which actually turned out to be a splendid idea, up till the moment when a gigantic bucket of water poured water all over him! :D

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Here are some other precious shots from the Wet Play area:

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We made it a point to catch the Elephants of Asia show, which we remembered was really good, from our last visit to the zoo.

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The children definitely agreed.  The show was a full house, and we had to make do by sitting on the steps along the actual benches.  But what made the experience memorable was when Ethan and Hannah experienced feeding the elephants some fruits and vegetables.

“Mommy, don’t we need to peel the bananas for the elephants?” Ethan asked.

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Oh yeah…and Ethan will tell you that he witnessed an orang utan peeing from one of the overhead tree branches onto the road below.  It was a good thing no one was standing there at that time!

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We also succumbed to the temptation of an icy cold sensation in the form of Icy Slush…something like a slushee, but served in a really tall novelty container with a sippy straw.  The kids LURVED it!!

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Amazing how we managed to have loads of fun despite the hot hot weather…

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Yes, the many different colorful elephant statues which were all over Singapore made their appearance in the zoo too…

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…and then, just as we were wondering how the kids can still have so much energy left in them, little Hannah fell asleep on my shoulder as we were making our way out of the zoo in the evening (Carrying a sleeping toddler was like déjà vu from our last Singapore Zoo trip)

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We decided to take a cab back to our hotel then, since we were running a little late and were meeting some friends for dinner later.  Turned out we reached our hotel with a few minutes to spare for a much-needed toilet break and quick freshening-up.

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Wonder why Ethan is so excited about dinner?

Our friends took us to supposedly the best chicken rice restaurant in Singapore…and it definitely did not fail to deliver.

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The Boon Tong Kee restaurant we went to was the one next to the Boon Keng MRT station.  Ethan had seconds and was enjoying every single morsel on his plate…while Hannah enjoyed nibbling on the soft and succulent roasted pork ribs.

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See how yummy it looks?

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All in all, a very eventful day which ended on a tasty and delicious note!

For the 3rd Year Running

February 1, 2012 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan | 1 comment

This year marks the 3rd consecutive year in a row that Ethan’s picture has been featured on the Birthday Book on Astro Channel 613, previously Playhouse Disney, but now known as Disney Junior.

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.

All Dressed Up for Chinese New Year in School!

January 22, 2012 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah | 1 comment

Ethan and Hannah had a Chinese New Year school celebration last Friday, where the kids were requested to dress up in their traditional attire or something red.  Managed to snap this cute picture before we left for school.

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Adorable, ain’t it?

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

No, I didn’t forget the Christmas 2011 post…

January 19, 2012 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah, Vacation | No comments

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.

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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.

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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…

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…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…

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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…

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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:

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…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.

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Oh How My Babies Have Grown!

January 4, 2012 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Milestones, Parenting | No comments

They won’t let me call them “Baby” anymore, but I still do..sometimes.

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Today both Ethan and Hannah got ready to go to school.  Ethan is in Kindergarten 2 this year and Hannah is starting off in Playgroup level.  They had both been looking forward to this day for months, and Ethan had been planning with his sister on how she should wait for him after dismissal, how he would hold her hand and take her to her class, etc.  The night before, Ethan was too excited to fall asleep, and I believe he only slept at around midnight.

It was a miracle we managed to get ready and left the house at about 8:15a.m. this morning.

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Then again, miracles happen when kids cooperate, wouldn’t you agree?

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So anyway, we arrived in school and we found out the kids’ new class names.  Ethan very independently walked up the stairs to his new K2 class and started playing with his friends again.

As for Hannah, since it is her first time in school, there is an orientation program that lasts till the end of next week, where the parent is allowed to accompany the child in class to sort of ease the process of being in school, away from the parent.  This is a very important step to alleviate separation anxiety where possible, and during this period, Hannah’s class will only run for 2 hours a day.

Well, she seemed okay today, and was willing to sit on her own listening to stories and doing her art and crafts.  She was also very happy and enjoyed herself while playing in the playground.  Of course, it certainly helped that she had already been going to this same school for her once-a-week parent-toddler class the previous year and her teacher was the same one she had.

Lunch, consisting of meesuah soup, was served at about 11:30a.m., and Hannah readily finished the entire bowl.  Afterward she even had a few slices of apples.

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After her class had dismissed, we waited a few minutes for Ethan’s class to end and went for lunch.

In the late afternoon, Hannah fell asleep and took a very LONG afternoon nap.  Must have been tired from all that running around in school!

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Another day beckons tomorrow! :D

Sorting Beans Can Be Lots of Fun!

December 30, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Parenting | 2 comments

On one of the days when I was running out of ideas on how to occupy the kids’ time, I decided to try this Bean Sorting exercise I had read about in one of my newly-acquired homeschooling books.  It was an activity I felt both Ethan and Hannah could share and enjoy..and I was right.

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I made use of the Organic Soup Mix beans that I had, and explained to them both that the task was to sort the beans according to type and color into separate cups.  They had to work together to complete the task.

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It was fun to see how attentive both Ethan and Hannah were, trying to complete the task on hand.  I assisted in telling them that they could each take a different type of bean and then sort that out.

They were done in about 15 minutes.

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And then I asked them to count the beans in the individual cups and I provided some sticker labels to label the number of beans.

Kids enjoy simple pleasures in life :) - and they were so proud of their “completed assignment” that day and couldn’t wait to show Daddy when he got home.

Day 2 Singapore Getaway: Jurong Bird Park

December 28, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Parenting, Vacation | No comments

One of the first things we prepared before Day 2 was to get our ez-link cards to use on the MRT and the buses in Singapore.  Kids up to 0.9m in height can travel for free, and Hannah just barely made it :)  However, for preschoolers over 0.9m and below 7 years old, like Ethan, we got him the Child Concession Card, which entitled him to a 50% discount on all fares.  Of course, Ethan was all happy and felt grown-up when he could also tap his very own card and walk across the gates.

On Monday morning, armed with our day backpack, camera and loads of energy (somewhat), we made our way on foot to the nearest MRT station near Bernard & Pei Ling’s house…..but….halfway there, Pete turned around and asked,

Pete: Did you bring the (Bird Park) tickets?
Me (giving him a blank stare): Nooo…..I thought they were in your bag!

So while the kids happily whiled away their time playing in the play structure in one of the HDB flats, I walked back to the house to get the tickets.  It was a little extra exercise for me, and we haven’t even gotten on the train yet!

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We had actually left the house quite late and when we boarded the MRT it was close to lunch time.  So we decided to stop at Jurong Point Mall for lunch…instigated by pictures of Burger King’s food in the MRT too, actually!

Ethan was busy looking at the MRT map and telling his sister which station would come next and which station we would get off.

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…and finally we arrived!

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It was our first time at the Jurong Bird Park and one of the highlights the kids wanted to go to was the Lory Loft Feeding.

“Mommy, Mommy, can I feed the birds?” Hannah would ask, and hold up her hands as if holding the bird feed.  But when we arrived, as soon as I was handed the sweet bird feed in the little plastic cup, I daresay at least 4 or 5 lory birds swarmed towards me and started eating from the bowl.  The kids would not hold the bowl, and they were visibly afraid.  We tried to cajole them into feeding the birds, but the most we got was them touching the feeding bowl together with Daddy (missed the chance to take a picture though. Boo.)

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Other pictures from our enjoyable Bird Park trip:

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It was a hot, hot, hot day that day (contradictory to the weather forecasted then), and the kids had their Kidz Banz sunglasses to protect their eyes (and look cool at the same time)!

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Read the rest of this entry »

Children’s Christmas Party

December 21, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah | No comments

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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.

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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… :)

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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 :)

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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? :)

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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.

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

Day 1 Singapore Getaway: Southward Bound and the Marina

December 20, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Vacation | No comments

It was a Sunday on December 4th when our long-awaited family vacation was to begin.  Both Ethan and Hannah had been eagerly looking forward to this day for weeks, and I had told them that they would need to get up extra extra early that morning, for our cab would arrive to pick us up to the airport at 8a.m.

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Well, miracles DO happen when the kids excitedly got ready and did not dilly-dally.  We got to the airport well on time and even had time to grab a quick breakfast at McDonald’s in the departure terminal first.

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It was another short wait for our plane to arrive, but you know…the kids got restless and kept asking, “Why is our airplane not here yet?”, “When are we boarding?”, and the like.

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day1-5We’d redeemed airplane tickets using our Krisflyer points (finally), and it was an exciting occasion for the kids because I felt this was the time they would both remember they were in an airplane together.  The last time Hannah boarded a plane, she was only 4 months’ old, and could only lie down in a crib!

The kids occupied themselves with complimentary doodle pads from SilkAir and drank some milk and juice that was served, and before we knew it, we had already landed in Singapore.

Read the rest of this entry »

Share-A-Gift of Love

December 17, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Parenting | 1 comment

About a month ago, while we were at MPH bookstore, Ethan noticed the Christmas tree at the bookstore had many many paper hearts hanging on its branches.  And he was curious as to what they were.

So I explained to him that it was a charity drive MPH bookstore did every year during Christmas where they would put up names of kids who were in orphanages or who were physically- or mentally-challenged, and the customers in MPH are invited to participate in this charity drive by choosing a child’s card from the Christmas tree and then purchasing a gift from MPH to present to the child.  MPH would then wrap the gift up and place it under the tree and present it to the child for Christmas.  I told him that it would make the kid(s) very happy indeed to get presents.

Ethan was very intrigued and decided immediately that he wanted to do it.  Pete and I choose a present each year for a child, but this year, we decided to give the honor to Ethan.

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So he chose a card from the tree, and we helped him decide on an appropriate gift for the child he chose.  Then he wrote a message to the child and signed off, “Love, Ethan”.

I thought that was very sweet of him and I am so proud of my big boy with an EXTRA BIG heart.

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Water Play and a Surprise in December

December 15, 2011 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Exercise, Hannah | 3 comments

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!!! :)

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

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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.

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With a Great Big Hug and A Kiss From Me to You

December 1, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | 3 comments

Mommy: Hannah, we’re going to KL this weekend.  Do you know who we’re going to see?
Hannah: Barney!!
Mommy: Yes..
Hannah: …and Baby Bop!  And BJ!
Mommy: Oh yeah…and..?
Hannah: And Riff…and Mother Goose…
Mommy: Hehe…oh yes..
Hannah:…Oh…and the kids.. :)

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Turns out we did see all of the above at the Barney’s Space Adventures show, held at Plenary Hall, KLCC last weekend…well, save for Mother Goose and the kids though.  Mother Goose did not make an appearance because I suppose she doesn’t take too kindly to anything “outer space”y, and as for the kids, well,…they were replaced by some singers and dancers who looked quite like adults to me.

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Hannah was in total awe when Barney and his friends appeared on stage, so awestruck was she that she could hardly sing and dance, and could only watch in amazement.  During the 20-minute intermission in the middle of the 90-minute performance, she was visibly upset for a while, asking me, “Where’s Barney, Mommy?”

And when I told her Barney and his friends had to make their way to the perfectly purple castle and the journey would take them 20 minutes, she wailed, “Nooo…:(”

Her brother Ethan, on the other hand, was having the time of his life, singing and dancing and clapping to almost every song during the performance.

In fact, Daddy looked more excited to watch Barney than he was when we went to watch Cats some years ago. :P

It was an enjoyable show, and fun-packed with great songs the kids enjoyed.  I might add that the seats were really comfortable too, and the sound system was superb.  There were some people who showed their true Malaysian kiasu colors by moving from cheaper seats at the back to the front more expensive seats, since the hall wasn’t full…ah, but that’s a story for another day.

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We had a great family time together watching Barney, and if that wasn’t enough, later that night, we celebrated cousin Caitlynn’s birthday at Friday’s at Alamanda too!

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Saturday Evening at Straits Quay

November 19, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | No comments

When I heard that the Penang International Kids Storytelling Festival (PINKS) was coming back to Penang for the second time, I was undecided about bringing the kids there.  Last year, they had it at Youth Park and it was scorching hot, even under those tents equipped with strong-blowing fans.  But this year, they changed the venue to Straits Quay, and since my Mom expressed her interest in checking out the festival, we decided to bring the kids there.

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The kids had been looking forward to this event and were very excited when we finally arrived.  Got slightly delayed due to the heavy traffic.

We only managed to arrive in the evening, close to the end of the program, but we were still in time to witness Jeeva Ragunath (from India) entertaining the audience with storytelling, song and dance.

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The Christmas decorations at Straits Quay were already up, and my “models”, as usual, were ever ready to pose. :)

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We had a simple dinner at Secret Recipe and were just about to leave Straits Quay for home when we heard a very mesmerizing rhythmic beat coming from the foyer near the sea.  Turned out it was a group of talented performers from The Performing Arts Center of Penang (PenangPAC), making rhythm and sounds using drums, tambourines and other percussion instruments in a Drum Circle.  Ethan and Hannah started dancing to the beat, and some of the musicians started asking some of the kids to join in with the musical instruments.  Ethan and Hannah were not excluded. :)

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Ethan got to play with some rhythm sticks, and Hannah played a triangle.  They enjoyed themselves so much and could be seen shaking their booty along to the rhythm.  They even sat in the circle together with the rest of the players.

At the end of it all, it was all in great fun and the kids were tired but definitely happy.

No wonder they’re both knocked out now!

Wake Up Call

November 13, 2011 in Ethan, Funny Moments | No comments

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Ethan and Hannah love it when their “Ipoh Ah Ma” comes to visit.  She’s a fantastic storyteller, a great singer and sometimes even a budding *magician*!

But one of the rare highlights of her visits, at least for Ethan, would have to be Ah Ma’s cellphone.  It’s not a fancy-schmancy cellphone, but what intrigues Ethan about it is the fact that the alarm on Ah Ma’s cellphone TALKS!

Every night, Ethan would request that Ah Ma set the alarm on her cellphone to a certain time, say for example 7:17a.m. And the next morning, Ethan would be awoken by the alarm saying: “It’s time to wake up, it’s 7:17a.m.” repeatedly.  If he wakes up before the alarm goes off, he would stay in bed and eagerly wait for the alarm to *wake* him up.

Ain’t that cool?

Dancing and Exercise Go Hand in Hand

November 4, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Exercise, Hannah | No comments

I’m always amazed at the amount of energy my kids have day in and day out, and even at home where space is kinda limited, they can find some activity to indulge in.  Whether it is building an imaginary house on the bed or running their own little restaurant, I love to watch their antics and know that they are having fun.

Recently Ethan asked me to bring their Veggie Tales audio CD from my car back to our home, because he and Hannah wanted to dance to it…oh, and did I mention that Hannah also tried singing to the songs?

We’ve Reclaimed Our Bedroom, but…

October 24, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Milestones, Sleep | 3 comments

Ethan and Hannah have been sharing our bedroom space ever since they came into our lives.

Ethan, who started from the crib, and moved to the cot and then to our bed and then to the mattress on the floor, had been indicating that he is all ready to move out to his own room, on the condition that the bedsheet is a Cars bedsheet.  You see, he currently has a Cars bedsheet, but it’s on a single mattress.  We figured it’s time we moved our little big man to his own room with his own bed, and currently our only available option is our 2nd bedroom which has a queen-sized bed.  So we had to get a Cars Queen-sized bedsheet set.

Hannah, on the other hand, has been wanting to sleep on her brother’s single mattress for the longest time, and has requested for a Barney bedsheet.

Coincidentally, we finally found the Cars bedsheet (in Queen size) last weekend, so we got it for Ethan and he was very excited when I washed it clean and laid it out on the bed for him.  He happily said goodbye to our room and moved to his new room with his new bedsheet.

The plan was for Ethan to sleep in the other room and for Hannah to move to the single mattress in our room, as a form of gradual transition.  But what we hadn’t expected was when Hannah requested to sleep on the single mattress in Ethan’s room too.  She wanted to be with her brother, apparently.

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That’s not all.

She asked me to LEAVE the room and said that she could sleep by herself.

On the first night, I sat at the foot of her mattress till she fell asleep.  On the second night, she asked me to leave the room.  On the third night, she wanted to lie down with me.   But now most of the nights, she can fall asleep on her own.

I was still a little apprehensive if she would be able to sleep on her own, so since Ethan and Hannah moved out, we have left both the room doors open, and on almost every night, Hannah has either wandered back into our bed in our room, or she has cried and I’ve carried her into our bed.

I say “almost every night” because last night was the very FIRST night that she slept through in the room with Ethan.  I woke up in the early hours of the morning and discovered that she wasn’t by my side.  When I checked on her, she was fast asleep, albeit she had rotated 180º!! :)

That’s a HUGE improvement and we are so proud of both Ethan and Hannah for making this transition.  Shows that they are growing up in leaps and bounds…

…but why does our room feel kinda empty now? :(

Happiness Is…Just Having Fun in the School Concert

October 23, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up | 1 comment

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For weeks and months, Ethan had been telling me all about his concert practices in school.  Initially he would show me some of his dance steps, but as the date of the concert drew nearer, he told me he was not going to reveal anymore, because it is supposed to be a surprise.

His school’s annual concert has always been a grand affair, and this year the concert, which was entitled “The Broadway Kids - In Search of Happiness”, promised to be a truly enjoyable one, because I am a big fan of Broadway.  The school’s annual concert is performed by all the kids from K1 and K2, and is even grander than the wee concert.  Typically the K2 kids would play the main roles and the K1 kids will be supporting as dancers, but nevertheless, I was very excited.

Check out the one of the many lovely backdrops used as the concert props.

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As the date drew nearer, Ethan would grow more and more excited.  I gave him extra vitamins every day to prepare for the concert.  They had concert camps and staybacks, full-dressed rehearsals complete with makeup and photo sessions too, and when the day finally came, we dropped Ethan off at Dewan Budaya in USM at 1:00p.m. and quickly went off for lunch before coming back at 2:00p.m. to get ready for the concert at 3:00p.m.

I’d extended invitations to our close relatives and family members, but only my Mom could make it.  Ethan was thrilled.  And his sister was equally excited to watch her brother perform live onstage! :)

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Although we weren’t allowed to take any videos during the concert, I did see some parents ignoring the request.  I didn’t take any videos though, but the full video will be made available to us soon by the official videographer.

The show was very enjoyable and it was so much fun to see Ethan out there having fun (I’d have to say the makeup was a tad garish though, but that’s concert performance makeup for ya).  All the songs were taken from famous Broadway musicals, either in their original English forms, or translated to Mandarin and Bahasa Malaysia, all with the kids voicing and singing the words.

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Ethan’s item was a very lively and well-choreographed dance done to the song The Other Generation from The Flower Drum Song.  In addition, he also made an appearance in the Concert Finale, singing the theme song: Happiness.

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Ethan was very happy and relieved when it all ended well, and that night, he slept ever so soundly! :)  (I’m not surprised!!)

I’m looking forward to next year’s concert excitedly when my boy will be contributing more :)

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Faith in God

October 20, 2011 in Christianity, Ethan, Growing Up | No comments

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In his young age, Ethan just *may* have grasp the difficult concept of faith in God.

While he was playing with Daddy a few days ago, I overheard this verbal exchange between them.

Daddy: Haha, I’m gonna tickle you!
Ethan: Noooooooo!!!! (climbs on top of Daddy and tries to wrestle him)
Daddy: Ethan, Daddy’s gonna get you soon!
Ethan: I’m not afraid!  God will help me! :)

Spoken confidently with true conviction.  Ain’t he a gem? :D

Little Meaningful Messages

October 11, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | 2 comments

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I was clearing up some of the kids’ stuff and books last weekend and I found this little notebook that belongs to Ethan.  In it, I found a message that Ethan wrote early this year.

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Just in case the message is hard to decipher, it says, “Dearest Mommy, Sorry Hannah accident(ally) drop(ped) 28 Super Dominoes.  Please do not bring me and Hannah to hospital.”

Actually, all I said was, “Uh-oh…Hannah, did you drop those dominoes?  Please be careful, okay?  If you drop those dominoes, you might slip on them and hurt yourself.  Then I’d have to bring you to the hospital.”

Hannah didn’t know how to apologize then, but Ethan took the initiative as a big brother to apologize on her behalf.  Doesn’t he have a BIG heart? :)

Lately, my two kids have sometimes been involved in sibling squabbles.  Most of the time, they will be playing happily together, but sometimes, the inevitable happens.  He would be playing with something and he wouldn’t allow her to *destroy* what he created.  She snatches from him.  Or sometimes Ethan asks Hannah to play with him, but she doesn’t want to.

Little things like that, ya know.  Small to us, but a big deal to kids.

Well, anyway, we try to get Hannah to apologize to Ethan, and she would say, “I’m sorry Ethan” or “I love you Ethan.”  And we’d ask her to add, “Please forgive me, Ethan.”

And then they’d hug.  (awwwwwww)

The other day, Ethan was engrossed in reading something and his sister wanted to show him something she had drawn.  He impulsively crumpled her paper, and she came running to report to me, “Mommy, Ethan crumpled my paper!” , while pouting.

And then later, Ethan asked me for a pencil and said he wanted to write a message to Hannah.  This is what he wrote:

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Makes me feel all emotional inside when I see such caring behavior from someone so young. :)

Happy Birthday Dearest Daddy!

October 6, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah | No comments

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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… :D

Simply Smurfy!

September 22, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah | 2 comments

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We took the kids to watch The Smurfs at the cinema last Friday, and boy, were they excited!  Hannah sat through the entire movie without getting restless or sleepy, and both kids happily sang the very distinct Smurfs tune together with the Smurfs in the show.

After the show, I explained to Ethan how the individual Smurfs got their respective names.

Me: Ethan, do you know that the Smurfs are all named after their individual character?  For example, Brainy Smurf is brainy, Clumsy Smurf is clumsy and Narrator Smurf loves to narrate a story.
Ethan: Oh, okay…and what about the girl Smurf: “Smur-fet-tee”? (He was reading and pronouncing Smurfette the way it was spelt)
Me: The girl Smurf’s name is pronounced as Smurf-fet, Ethan.
Ethan:  SMURF-fet.  (pauses) So that means she is FAT!

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Behold, a Masterpiece!

September 21, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 1 comment

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Yesterday, I decided to introduce paint-stamping to the kids, using vegetables.  Thanks to my friend’s blog, it had evoked many happy memories of my childhood.  I remember as a child, I used to bring lady’s fingers and lotus root to school for art projects and such, and I remember having a good time doing it.

So as I prepared the items, I explained to Ethan and Hannah how vegetables can look pretty too, and then I demonstrated how to make the paint.  It was actually edible paint, as I used corn syrup and dropped some food coloring into it.  The kids thought it was simply magical :)

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They mixed the colors and made stamps of different colors, patterns and sizes.  They filled up that one piece of mahjong paper with so much color, you’d just had to smile.

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And they were so pleased to show Daddy their masterpiece when he came home…it’s still on our balcony, by the way :)

Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe

September 19, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up, Hannah | No comments

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We’re all used to hearing the Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe chant, albeit some in different versions from the rest.  Do you wanna know how my kids do it? :)

Here’s Ethan giving a demo:

And here’s Hannah proving yet again that the power of sibling influence is really strong… :)

Just for the record, here’s what they were saying:

Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe
Catch a tiger by the toe
If it wiggles, let it go!
Mmm mmm mmm…Buffalo..
Eeny, Meeny, Miny, MOE!

Forgiveness

September 16, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Parenting | 1 comment

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This is one of my favorite photos of Ethan with Daddy.  Every time I look at this picture, I am thankful for what a big heart my little man has and how much he has grown up way beyond his years.

At an age when most of his peers are so keen on fighting for their toys and always wanting to have their own way, my little boy has, in many instances, shown us that he understands and knows what are the more important things in life.

Just last week, when Daddy was playing with the kids, Daddy had wanted to hug Hannah, but Hannah playfully pushed Daddy away.  Daddy was sad and in jest, he mentioned that “Hannah is a naughty girl.”  This conversation then ensued.

Ethan: What, Daddy?  Why is Hannah naughty?
Daddy: Because she pushed Daddy.
Ethan: Oh…but you can forgive her, right?
Daddy: Oh yes, of course I can…

I am so proud of my boy that he can think of forgiveness in such a situation. Good job, Ethan! :)

How I Make Daddy Shower the Kids

September 16, 2011 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah | 1 comment

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When it’s time for their showers, my kids sometimes like to choose whom their “showerer” will be; whether it’s Daddy or Mommy.

I’ve finally figured out a surefire way in order to get Daddy to do the showering. :)

Here’s how…

I’ve trained them to say this to Daddy:

“Daddy, please shower for me today…because you are the BEST Daddy in the whole world!”

Cheesy, I know, but it works every time :)

“I love you Ethan!!”

September 13, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 4 comments

You would have remembered this darling video a while ago, where Ethan gave Hannah a very loving embrace, while saying “I love you, Hannah!”

It feels just like yesterday and as I look at it, I realize how quickly my kids are growing up! :)

Back to the video…Hannah recently reciprocated with this gesture, which is so déjà vu yet so adorable at the same time… :)  A perfect display of sisterly love!

Ain’t that precious? :)

I’m Gonna Let It Shine!

September 12, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah | 2 comments

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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.

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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.

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

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

A Simple Caring Gesture

September 9, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Milestones | 2 comments

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What do you think Ethan’s doing?

He asked me for a piece of recycled paper, pencil and color pencils and he said he wanted to write a note.  This is what it said:

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This evening, Hannah had a small accident in Queensbay Mall.  She tried to climb up the escalator as it was riding up and somehow tripped and grazed her shin.  Although Daddy was holding her hand, the cut was rather deep and there was slight bleeding.

Ethan was very worried about his sister and kept asking, “Is Hannah okay?” …and when Daddy cleaned up her wound at home, and Hannah didn’t cry much, Ethan commented that Hannah was so brave.

That was when he asked me for some paper to write her a note.

Ain’t he the best brother ever? :)

Fun, Fun and More Fun at AdventureZone!

September 5, 2011 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Vacation | No comments

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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…

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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*

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Logos Hope: Second Time’s a Charm!

September 4, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Parenting, Vacation | 2 comments

Mommy: Ethan?
Ethan: Yes, Mommy?
Mommy: Guess where we’re going later today?
Ethan: Where?
Mommy: We’re going to visit a floating bookstore on a HUGE ship! (trying to make it sound really exciting)
Ethan: Errr…no!  I don’t wanna go!
Mommy: But … why? It’s gonna be really fun!  Can you imagine a bookstore in a ship?
Ethan: NO!  I don’t wanna go on a PIRATE SHIP!!!

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Well, we’ve since made it clear to him that it’s NOT a pirate ship and we’ve reassured him that there will be NO pirates aboard the Logos Hope.

So.

Both Ethan and Hannah got all excited to get on the famous Logos Hope, which holds the biggest ever floating bookstore…and what happened when we arrived at Swettenham Pier on the first day of Raya?  The queue to get into the ship was like a mile LONG!  I remembered going onboard the Doulos years ago, and there was NO queue at all!  Things certainly have changed.  Or perhaps it was the public holiday.

In any case, we decided to come back another day, which we did, and that day was a day after Merdeka Day.  It was still a public holiday, but we were praying that the queue would not be as long.

Hurrah!  The queue was like a tenth of the LONG queue we encountered the first time, and we promptly got in line.  After about 15 minutes, we had already gotten our tickets and were on our way onboard the ship.

As we entered the bookstore proper, it was as if the air-conditioning stopped working altogether.  There were so many people that it was so difficult to move around and browse to our hearts’ content.  Add to the equation 2 kids with minds of their own who wanted to see different things at different times and you can imagine how nerve-wracking it was.

But despite all this, we still managed to land some cool stuff, some chosen by me and some personally selected by the kids.

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There was also a pictorial exhibition section in the ship called the Journey of Life, which depicts a modern day story based on The Prodigal Son.  I had wanted to take more pictures but because of the influx of visitors, I could not get all the pictures…just a few random ones of the kids…

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The cafe on the ship was also packed full of hungry visitors…so we did not stop there.  It was a memorable day for the kids and although it could have been a more relaxing visit if there weren’t so many people, we had great fun!

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What Can a One-Day Trip Achieve?

September 3, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah, Vacation | 1 comment

Quite a lot, apparently.

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.

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

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

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

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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).

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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 :)

What Did I Do to Deserve a Great Kid Like This?

September 2, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Parenting | 1 comment

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I’ve always thanked the Lord for blessing us with a great kid like Ethan, who’s wise beyond his years, caring and forgiving, and sometimes his words and actions do strike a chord in our hearts.

He may be very active and boisterous, but deep down he is a gentle spirit, who puts others above him and who is an obedient boy (most of the time).

Just a few days ago, when he saw how upset his cousin Jonathan was when he did not get what he wanted for his birthday, Ethan told me in private, “Mommy, maybe we can get Jonathan a real Finn McMissile for Christmas.  Then he will be happy because he will get to play with it like a real car!”

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And today, when Hannah tried to snatch Ethan’s new Cars 2 water tumbler (check it out, by the way…it’s way cool!), Ethan again whispered to me, “Mommy, I think we should get Hannah a new tumbler too…because her tumbler is leaking!  We can get her one for Christmas…”

Such love being displayed for someone his age is really admirable, and I could not ask for anything more.  Ethan is indeed one-of-a-kind and we love him dearly…

“For somewhere in my wicked miserable past, I must have done something good…” ~The Sound of Music~

Lightning McQueen - Here we come!!!

August 29, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | 2 comments

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Last Friday, a day after the new movie Cars 2 officially opened in our local cinemas, we took the kids to watch it at Gurney Plaza.  Ethan had been reminding me a week ago to book the tickets online.

“Mommy, have you booked the tickets for Cars 2 yet?”

Alas, I discovered that online booking would only be available 2 days before the movie date.  I had book and pay for the tickets via e-payment ticketing, because there were no more seats available through the regular online reservation system (where we reserve and pay upon ticket collection).  Thankfully, and to Ethan’s HUGE relief, we managed to get the tickets.  Ethan even had the chance to choose the exact seats he wanted!

On the day itself, we had to drop by Poslaju first before going to Gurney Plaza.  All along the way, we’d hear:

“Daddy, why is it taking so long?”
“Are you SURE we can reach Gurney Plaza by 4:30p.m.?”
“This is going to take forever!”
“Why are we not at Poslaju yet?”
“I have been talking and talking and talking, but we STILL have not reached!”
“See?  I *told* you it will take a long time!”
“Mommy, what time do you think we’ll reach?”

Yes, he can be quite he drama king…

FINALLY, we arrived at the cinema at about 4:10p.m., 20 minutes before showtime.  We still had time to visit the restrooms, get some popcorn and get our tickets…and also some time for the kids to run around a bit.

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It was certainly an enjoyable movie, both for the kids as well as for the adults.  I would watch it again in a heartbeat :)

Ethan, of course, was glued to his seat and was absolutely transfixed by the movie, while Hannah was busy hopping up and down on her seat, eating popcorn and drinking water.  Towards the end, Hannah got restless and tried to get some shuteye, but when that did not work, she attempted to walk up and down the stairs on the aisle, even inviting me to come along with her.

“Mommy, I wanna go outside”
“No Hannah, the door is closed.”
“Let me see..!!!”

Suffice to say, it was quite a challenge, but a good one at that.  It was a great family date that Friday, and we were all tired but thrilled at the end of the day.

Here’s a charming little photo of Hannah, taken when the boys were at the loo, before we left for home..

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Ooooh…notice the store that will be opening soon? :D

Weighing the Importance

August 25, 2011 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Parenting | No comments

importance

Lately I had been training and teaching Ethan to think and make decisions for himself.  The right decisions - that would lead to the right actions, which would in turn lead to independence.  I would ask him questions like, “What is more important, Ethan: watching TV or taking a shower?”  and he would cleverly reply, “Taking a shower!”

Me: What is more important: cleaning up your toys or playing on the computer?
Ethan: Cleaning up, Mommy!

And he would also form questions like this by himself.

One day, he asked Daddy..

Ethan: Daddy, Daddy…I wanna ask you a question.
Daddy: Yes, Ethan?
What is more important, Daddy: watching TV or taking your bath?
Daddy: Taking my bath..
Ethan: So next time, you need to bathe first and THEN watch football!! (grins happily)

Errrr….ooops.

The Goodies that Returned with Daddy

August 23, 2011 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | 2 comments

Daddy came back home on Sunday.  He had been away for a one-week business trip to US, and although it seemed like just a short while, we do miss him dearly.  Ethan, especially, told me how much he misses Daddy.

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…” :P

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…

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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.

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

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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.

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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?

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

Memories are Made of These…

August 20, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah, Vacation | 2 comments

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Whenever Daddy travels away on a business trip, we all miss him dearly.  But on the flipside, the kids and I really look forward to spending some top-notch quality time with Ah Ma and Ah Kong from Ipoh.  You see, my parents will try their very best to come and accompany Ethan, Hannah and me in Penang during Pete’s absence, and I am eternally grateful for the “extra hands” they lend :)

The kids enjoy the story-telling sessions and the undivided attention they get from Ah Ma and Ah Kong, and likewise, I would say the reverse is also true. :)

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Sometimes, if the timing is right, we will also take a drive down to my hometown in Ipoh for a short holiday.  The kids enjoy their time spent with their grandparents and they get to do a myriad of activities in Ipoh too.

Well, we recently had this golden opportunity again, and even though Ethan kept asking if we had arrived yet, all the way from Penang to Ipoh (Hannah was fast asleep, naturally!), both the kids were overjoyed when we finally reached our destination…would have reached earlier had I not been delayed by a police roadblock, where I was flagged aside and asked to show my driver’s licence…not for speeding, rather it was a random check that was being conducted.

Anyway, I digress…

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We spent 4 days and 3 nights in Ipoh…so what did the kids do to occupy their time?

Look how simple it is to keep kids entertained (albeit for only a short period of time).  The Ipoh City Council is using the parking coupon payment method, where we need to scratch out the date and time on a coupon and then display it in the car when we park.  Ethan and Hannah then used these used coupons to further scratch out the rest of the numbers, using coins.

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Look how engrossed they were… :)

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The kids enjoyed taking their baths with a scoop container too!  With the weather being so hot, a cool bath definitely helped to lift their spirits and upped their energy levels.  There was no problem whatsoever when I announced it was time for their baths.

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In Ethan’s words, he said, “Wow Mommy…it’s SO cooling, I love it!”

Ethan’s favorite computer game in Ipoh is Solitaire.  I was incredibly amazed at how fast he picked it up and soon was able to play on his own.  He was so impressed when he completed his first game ever…announcing to everyone, “Look!  I made mountains with it!!  I win!”

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We all have been there and done that now, haven’t we?  Maybe it’s time to introduce FreeCell to him :)

While walking around in Kinta City, we came across a height and weight machine, and Ethan remembered that I had asked him to remind me to measure his height and weight.  And of course, if Ethan gets on it, so will Hannah…

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I’m happy with their height and weight, especially since their BMI readings showed that both Ethan and Hannah were in the healthy zone. :)

Lastly, of course, any vacation is incomplete without the presence of good food.  Although this time round I did not get to eat the usual Ipoh fare, the kids did enjoy the yummy food.

Hannah discovered a love and appetite for wan ton mee, especially the one Ah Kong ordered from the hawker that rides past the back lane of the house.  Great tasting food that comes straight to your door, who could ask for more?  I was surprised she could eat half a plate all by herself, including the wantons!

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At the special buffet lunch at Excelsior Hotel, Ethan and Hannah had fun *making* and *creating* their own signature dishes…and tasting them too, of course!  They were excited because I told them it would be just like in MasterChef!! :)

Here’s Ethan tasting his version of koay teow soup:

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Hannah eating her own creation of “ABCD” (I had told her it was “ABC” but she added the “D” in herself!):

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…and Ethan wanted a go at making his version of ABC too…but he ended up drinking “strawberry soup” instead!

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We all sure had a good time in Ipoh :)  Thank you Ah Ma and Ah Kong for the excellent hospitality!  We look forward to more visits and enjoyable times soon! :)

Bubbles Bubbles Everywhere!

August 18, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah | No comments

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A few days ago, I decided to inject a moment of surprising fun by taking the kids downstairs to the swimming pool area for a bubbly fun time!  Of course, I could only do that at that time because my Mom and Dad were here for a visit from Ipoh, and I knew they would also appreciate the session…plus there would be more hands to look after the 2 extra active kids! :D

Ethan and Hannah took to it immediately, and it was a good thing I brought 2 separate bottles of bubble water, one for each of them.  Ethan had done it before at our swimming pool area, but it was a first for Hannah.

Ethan was a complete pro and managed to blow beautiful big bubbles in abundance and with tremendous ease.

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Hannah, however, appeared to be using all her might and strength to  make bubbles.  She managed to, a few times, and we all laughed together at how funny she sometimes looked (and sounded).

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Ah Ma and Ah Kong were the designated bubble bottle holders (and sometimes “demonstrators”) and the kids would then dip their bubble-making sticks into the bubble solution to make bubbles.

It was definitely a fun and enjoyable activity, which I am sure the kids will enjoy again and again and again.

A Heart Full of Courage Makes the Medicine Go Down

August 16, 2011 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Growing Up | 1 comment

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We thought this day would never come.  We overcame and survived obstacles, negotiation and difficult sessions of coaxing, force-feeding and bribing.

Yes, it was THAT difficult to feed Ethan his medicine, and it started all the way back when he was a wee babe.  He would kick and scream and absolutely refuse his medicine.  Nothing would work, and we’ve tried virtually everything.  As he grew bigger and stronger, it became increasingly difficult because he would push with all his might.

SIGH.

But then one day the turning point came when we managed to cajole him into taking his antibiotics.  It was either white or colorless, and he didn’t mind it.  He had other medication to take too, but he would only want the WHITE/colorless medicine.  He would also take Zyrtec (an antihistamine) and now he will take Mucosolvan (for cough) too.

When once he flatly refused, he began by asking for chocolate milk or water immediately after his medication.  By the by, he proudly told me that he didn’t need water anymore, just as long as Zyrtec is the last dose of medicine he takes.

So now, the kids are nursing a cough again (SIGH), and Ethan will take Mucosolvan first (peppermint flavor) followed by Zyrtec (banana flavor).  And it’s a breeze feeding him medicine now :)

Two shots of 5ml using two separate syringes and we’re done!  You’ve really matured beyond your years, dearest Ethan boy!  And Mommy and Daddy are ever so proud of you! :)

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Dear God…

August 12, 2011 in Christianity, Ethan, Growing Up, Parenting | No comments

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“Dear God, Thank You for the wonderful day we had with Ah Ma and Ah Kong today.  I had so much fun!” (after a short visit from Ah Ma and Ah Kong from Ipoh)

“Dear God, can You please tell me the names of all the people on the earth?” (pauses for a moment) “Errr…not so fast God…God, can You please speak slower so that I can hear You?”

“Dear God, please make me grow up faster so that I can drive a car just like Mommy and Daddy.”

“Dear God, please let Daddy buy Hannah her Barney mattress as soon as possible.”

These are some of the little conversations Ethan has been having with God.  I told him that he could tell or ask God anything at all.  We started out by saying short goodnight prayers taken from a little prayer book, and then sometimes, I would say a short prayer in my own words and the kids would say “Amen” at the end.

Nowadays, sometimes Ethan would also volunteer to say these short prayers in his own words.  I am pleased and proud of his newfound confidence and look forward to nurturing him in God’s way every day.

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The Sleep Process that Worked Itself Out

August 10, 2011 in Ethan, Sleep | 1 comment

Have you ever encountered a problem that you tried to solve but could not, and then one day, you realize that it had worked itself into a solution?

Well, I think that just happened to us… :)

When Ethan was born, I made up my mind to implement co-sleeping.  Well, actually initially he slept in his crib, but the frequent middle-of-the-night feeds for a new mommy who was exclusively breastfeeding her firstborn was getting too tiring for me.  So thankfully, I managed to master the art of breastfeeding him while sleeping/lying down.  Besides I didn’t want to put him in another room then, and have to run into his room to sleep with him at night.  That would defeat the purpose altogether, wouldn’t it?

So eventually Ethan moved into our bed and we were all happy.

However, as he grew bigger, his rotational sleeping behaviour was causing us our peaceful sleep.  We ended up with no space at all!

When we moved to the States (at that time Ethan was about 2.5 years old), we’d planned on training him to sleep in his own room.  After all, he would have a room of his own and it was a fresh environment perfect for training.  Alas, that plan backfired when he refused to sleep in his room alone.  In the end, all three of us crammed into the queen sized bed.  Imagine, our bed in Penang is a king sized one, and now we had to all somehow fit into a queen sized bed!  On top of that, at that time, my pregnant belly was also getting bigger and bigger.  How on earth we managed to do it is beyond me…

Anyway, we came back to Penang with Ethan still refusing to move to his own room.  We told Ethan he could use our guest room as his own room, and he agreed to move when he turned 4 years of age.

When the day came, he tried sleeping in his own room, but got up and complained that he didn’t want to.  He claimed that sleeping there gave him bad dreams and he always dreamt of a snake.!

So back we all went on to the king sized bed.  To make matters more squeezy, Hannah now had moved onto our bed as well.  Yeah, blame it on me who did not train her when she was a newborn…anyway, the nights got really crammed, is all I can say.

Then one day, Ethan had a bout of food poisoning and threw up frequently.  I took him to the doctor and gave him medication.  Then I advised him to rest, but not on the bed, because he might dirty it if he threw up suddenly.  So I put a single mattress on the floor in his room (the guest room) and he agreed to sleep there.

When he got better, he still requested to sleep on the single mattress in our room.  And we obliged.  He said sleeping on the mattress on the floor was so much more comfortable!

Well, seeing that he was SO comfy on the mattress, and realizing that half our battle might already have been won, I decided to get him a little present.

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Combining his Lightning McQueen and Cars craze and his newfound love in sleeping on that mattress, I made him an offer he could hardly refuse!

So now, Ethan sleeps on his own Cars mattress in our room.  He can go to sleep on his own without needing anyone to be in the room with him.  And he can wake up by himself too!  We have reclaimed our space on our bed, with the exception of Hannah, who is still sleeping with us. By the way, Hannah has also recently shown a keen interest on sleeping on her brother’s mattress too..so perhaps we can work something out there. :)

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The next step is for Ethan to move into his own room.  He has already indicated he is ready.  It’s only a matter of time now.

Crazy over Cars!

August 8, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan | 4 comments

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Ethan’s current craze is non other than Cars.  Oh yes, he has moved on from his Thomas & Friends craze…

I can’t really remember when it started but it could have started from the time he got his first Cars magazine.  He has been eagerly looking forward to every monthly issue since then and has amassed quite a number of magazines too.  On top of that, he has also won some prizes from some competitions in the Cars magazine and right now he is collecting the Cars stickers for the Cars Panini collection.

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He also has a Cars calendar and some posters, plus a height chart, which he uses to measure his height frequently.

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His favorite character from Cars is Lightning McQueen, and it’s no surprise that he has already made a special request for a birthday cake next year!  Not sure if his mind will change then, but we shall see…

So guess who’s eagerly counting down the days to the movie premiere of Cars 2 later this month? :)

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Creativity, Storytelling and Imagination

July 29, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Milestones | 1 comment

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Ethan goes to a school that uses the “Learning through Play” methodology.  The kids are taught what they need to learn through arts and crafts, projects and simple stories they enjoy.  For example, in a Mathematics lesson, instead of drilling the concept of 1 + 2 = 3, the kids will pretend to buy things in a grocery store, e.g. “If  you buy 1 orange and 2 apples, how many in total do you get?”

In addition the amount of “homework” per se pales in comparison to other schools.  I am totally opposed to the idea of homework, especially at such a young age.  To have kids being drilled every day to complete their “work” is definitely uncalled for, in my opinion.  It brings unnecessary stress to the kids and to parents too.  Ethan only brings home homework once a week; 2 pages of handwriting (1 page of purely letters, lowercase and uppercase; and 1 page of words beginning with the letter of the week), and sometimes, 1 page of Chinese handwriting homework…and even then, I feel this is too much. :P

Ethan also brings back an English book and a Chinese book each week, as a move to inculcate the love of reading from young.  I applaud this move and feel that it is very useful as Ethan looks forward to reading it every week.

One of the aspects his school has been encouraging the kids on is in honing their creativity and storytelling skills, which I am truly happy with.  I’m impressed and am very pleased to see the progress Ethan has attained in this field.

When he was in Nursery, the kids were initially asked to draw what they thought or felt.  This gave the kids the freedom to explore their feelings and thoughts.  They were also prompted to express themselves verbally.  For example, in this following picture, Ethan was prompted “Love is…?” and he replied, “My purple bicycle.” “I love….?” and he replied, “The wind, kites and circles.”

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I found it fascinating that even his thoughts rhymed! :) (never mind that he does not own a purple bicycle!)

In this next creative writing exercise example, the theme was “When I was a baby…”.  The kids were asked to draw what they did as a baby and then narrate to the teacher.

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Ethan’s picture showed:

  • When I was a baby, I played with baby balls (depicted in top right)
  • When I was a baby, I played with a toy rectangle (bottom left)
  • When I was a baby, I drink breast milk (picture of the breast at the bottom right.. LOL) - I found it heartwarming that even till then, one of his fondest memories as a baby was being breastfed! :)

Another example of creative writing and imagination:

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As time went on and Ethan entered K1, the kids were then encouraged to create and write their own stories using their own ideas.  It may seem very difficult for kids their age, but you’ll be amazed at what stories these kids could come up with!  The kids would then draw out their ideas to illustrate it in a clearer manner.

An example of Ethan’s short story, as dictated:

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And one of “Creating a Fairytale”:

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Such vivid imagination, don’t you think?

The next step which Ethan is being encouraged on now is creating and writing their own thoughts and stories.  Words are formed by way of trying to sound and blend the phonics of the alphabets together.  Some of the words might be spelled wrongly at first but what is being focused on is the idea that is created and not the spelling of the words.

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It’s a great start, isn’t it?  And I find that this is certainly better and more interesting that mindless drilling of words and letters and numbers…but that’s just me.

Anyway, Ethan is sharpening his listening and comprehension skills now; the teacher tells a story and the kids are prompted to repeat the story in their own words.  It’s an activity I hope to enforce at home too. :)

Apart of creative writing, I’m surprised the school curriculum includes some topics which I’ve either forgotten about or not aware of, like a few weeks ago, when Ethan told me there were FOUR layers in the rainforest: Forest Floor, Understory, Canopy and Emergent.

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Wow.

See?  We can learn things from kids every day too! :)

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We Made it for Ethan’s Sports Day!

July 23, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Exercise | 1 comment

This year, Ethan’s School Sports Day (or Sports Carnival) was held on a Sunday morning, as opposed to a Sunday afternoon last year.  Coincidentally, the Sports Day falls on the Sunday following the Liverpool Asia Tour 2011 match in Bukit Jalil.  As a result, after the Liverpool match, we had to make a beeline all the way back home to Penang, so that we could attend the Sports Day the following morning.

We had to be in Ethan’s school by 8:30a.m. and we only reached home at 2:00a.m.  I was also worried for Ethan, because he was still coughing a little, but after he’d woken up and brushed his teeth, he said he wanted to go for his Sports Day.

Here’s Daddy and Hannah waiting for the events to start, with Daddy cleverly donning a pair of shades to hide sleepy and tired eyes :P

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Ethan in the march-past, where all the kids assembled on the field and presented their class cheers in unison.  Look how happy and handsome he is…makes it all worthwhile to make the rush back from KL the night before :)

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Hannah, cheering her brother on, and happily joining in the clapping.

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Ethan’s event was the penultimate event of the day, but thankfully, it was not too hot.  Here are Ethan and his classmates, waiting for their turn.

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The event saw two teams (BLUE and RED), each with its members taking turns to hop on paper-shaped lilypads, whilst holding a ball with both their hands.  Ethan had briefed us on what he was supposed to do for Sports Day.  He said, “I’m supposed to hop on the lilypads like a frog, Mommy.  NOT like a kangaroo.  I have to keep my body low, like a frog.”

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He did very well, I would say, and it was a very close fight between the two teams, however, Ethan’s BLUE team came in a close second after the RED team.  His team still got a medal though…a silver medal, and everyone was given a goodie bag.

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Awwww…don’t look so sad, baby.  Daddy and Mommy are SO proud of you!  And you know, the important thing is that you tried your best!  *hugssss*

Ethan, Our Little Red Supporter

July 20, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Sports, Vacation | 3 comments

When we heard that Liverpool would be playing Malaysia as part of their Asia Tour 2011, we wanted to take Ethan to the match, but still, we were not sure if he would want to go.  We told him that it was going to be noisy, very hot, and the match was going to be a whole 2 hours.  He thought for a while and then he decided he wanted to go.

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We enlisted the help of Allan Aku, Pei Gee Ah Kim and also Ah Mah, who had travelled all the way from Ipoh to take care of Hannah for a few hours while the three of us went for the match.  We took an LRT from the Sungai Besi station, which was only a station away from the Bukit Jalil station.  It was Ethan’s first time ever on the LRT.

He was having a little cough but not once did he complain that it was hot or crowded.  He asked for a snack before entering the stadium.

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He only kept asking when the match was gonna start.  You see, we’d arrive in the stadium about 1 hour and 45 minutes before kickoff..and it was a good thing too, because a little later and we would not have been able to get seats.

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We didn’t bring any scarf or banners, but we were approached by a Standard Chartered representative to provide our contact numbers and in return we would get a Liverpool poster.  So that’s what Ethan held during the singing of the Liverpool anthem, You’ll Never Walk Alone.  I also taught him to sing the “Liverpool…..Liverpool….” tune :)

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Ethan taking a catnap 45 minutes before the match started.

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Throughout the match (especially during the first half), Ethan kept asking us when the goals would come.  And when they did, he cheered as loudly as all of us.  I’m sure he wasn’t disappointed with the score :)

Tired though we may be, we had to rush back home to Penang after the match.  Both kids, especially Ethan, were very tired too, for they slept through almost the entire journey.  Thanks to Daddy’s safe driving (not to mention FAST), we arrived home at about 2:00a.m.

Well, if you’re wondering why we had to rush back so soon, there’s a very good reason, and here’s a sneak peek…

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For more pictures from our Liverpool Asia Tour 2011 match, please click here.

Dental Checkup Time

July 9, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Milestones, Parenting | 1 comment

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We took both Ethan and Hannah to see the dentist for their twice-a-year checkup yesterday. Well, for Ethan, it was his 2nd time with this dentist, but for Hannah, it’s her first time ever going for a dental checkup.

While waiting for their turn, the kids were fascinated by the door sensor that went “Ding Dong” every time they’d go near it.  The waiting area was pretty spacious, which allowed them to roam around.  SIGH.  They obviously ignored our reminders to “keep it down!” :P

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I took both kids into the treatment room, because I wanted Hannah to observe Ethan having his checkup first.  The dentist remarked that Ethan’s teeth were absolutely clean and told him to keep up the good work.  Our boy was beaming from ear to ear! :)

Then came Hannah’s turn.  She willingly got into the patient’s chair and did not wriggle or scream when the dentist ask her to open her mouth to check.  Such is the power of sibling influence :) and I was very impressed by her courage at such a young age.

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Unfortunately though, the dentist detected a small cavity in Hannah’s 2nd upper right incisor, which she said had penetrated the dentin layer (not sure why Hannah had not complained of pain).  Anyway, the dentist did a composite filling for Hannah using slow frequency equipment that would not be so *scary* and loud for a two-year-old.

And Hannah did GREAT.  I’m so proud of her.  She laid very still as I held her hand and the filling was done in less than 5 minutes.  No wailings, no screaming and no tears.

I told Hannah she had to let Daddy or Mommy brush her teeth from now on (or at least take turns with her, i.e. “First Mommy will brush your teeth…and now it’s Hannah’s turn!”).  Sometimes she would insist on brushing her teeth herself, which could be the reason why she had a cavity in the first place.  Well hopefully, in 6 months’ time when they go for their dental checkup again, the dentist will give an “all clear” report! :)

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My Little Songstress

July 4, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 2 comments

Hannah LOVES music.  When she was a small baby, she would respond very positively to music and it came as no surprise when she started to tap her feet and move her booty to the music too.  She loves to sing now, and a few days ago, I was able to capture a few snippets of her singing.  Enjoy!

Oh, they were laughing at the end because Pete was behind me doing something funny, trying to make them laugh! :)

Day-Trippin’ to Taiping Zoo

June 28, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Parenting | No comments

During the same long 3-day weekend when we visited the beach, the other place the kids wanted to go to was the zoo.  Ethan and Hannah both adore animals, and since Hannah had not been to the zoo before, we decided to make a day trip to the nearest zoo: Taiping Zoo.

We initially planned on arriving in the morning and then having lunch afterward, but that plan clearly backfired and we only arrived in Taiping around lunch time.  We had lunch with Taiping Ah Ma and Ah Kong before we headed for the zoo.

After slapping on lots of sunblock all over, we bravely walked into the hot scorching sun ….err…. ooops, I mean zoo. :P We wanted to start off our trip with a tram ride, but after waiting for our turn for 20 minutes with no sign of movement from the LONG queue, we decided to walk around the zoo first, and then do the tram ride later.  Amazing how so many people there were at the zoo despite the burning hot weather!

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It was definitely no walk in the park, for the weather was really hot.  Plus I wasn’t really in the mood to take pictures too, despite bringing my camera along.  The kids weren’t in camera-smiling mode either.  So pictures were rather minimal…

Anyway, here are a few pictures I snapped of some of the animals in the zoo:

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I was surprised that most of the animals were rather well cared for.  I didn’t remember them looking this good from my last visit years ago.  The elephants especially, looked really healthy! :)

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We went back to take the tram ride after we had walked round the zoo, and the kids really enjoyed that.  Despite the hot sun, we had a swell time, and no one got sun-burnt! :)

The Lure of Toys R Us

June 24, 2011 in Ethan, Hannah, Parenting, Shopping | No comments

When we go to either Queensbay Mall or Gurney Plaza, the kids would be exhilarated!  In a normal scenario, after lunch/dinner at the mall, they’d come up to us and ask sweetly, “Daddy, Mommy, NOW can we go to Toys R Us, please?”

We try to accommodate whenever we can, because they do enjoy themselves there, even though it’s just for toy-window-shopping.

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Kungfu Panda Mania

June 22, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | 1 comment

Better put up this post while the show is still showing on the silver screen…hehe…

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We went for Kungfu Panda 2 the 2nd day after its opening.  It was also the last day of school before the school holidays, and the best seats in the house were about 4 rows from the screen.

Not wanting to let the kids down, I bought the tickets anyway, and upon entering the cinema, we found that the seats weren’t too bad after all.  I mean, we didn’t need to strain our necks or anything, in fact it was rather comfy, cos ours was the first row before a group of rows which was nearer to the screen, hence we had a LOT of leg room!  We found out that the majority of the tickets in that cinema was booked by an international school for some of its students.

Anyway, we made sure this time that the popcorn lasted way longer than our previous experience with Rio. :)  Hannah was quite all right and was very excited every time she saw Po, the panda.  Halfway into the show, our little Hannah fell asleep in my arms, and we managed to watched the entire show without disruption.  Ethan of course, is an expert cinemagoer now and he enjoyed every bit of the show.  Even Mommy and Daddy enjoyed it (some parts tugged at the heart strings too…)

We enjoyed the show so much that last weekend, we decided to watch Kungfu Panda 1 at home, simply because we had not seen it, and we wanted to piece together the entire story.

If there is a Kungfu Panda 3, we’re definitely gonna watch it! :)

Happy Father’s Day 2011

June 22, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah | No comments

First off, I just wanna wish all fathers, including my hubby, my father (Papa), my FIL (Papa) and all daddies out there a Happy Father’s Day.  Belated, rather.  It’s a day that is oft overlooked and stays much in the shadows of Mother’s Day.  Psstt…maybe it’s because it’s so much harder to get a gift for daddies…some parties choose to have Parents Appreciation Day instead.

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In any case, last Sunday Ethan presented Daddy with his self-made laminated heart-shaped card with a Chinese written message, and a bag of self-made heart-shaped cookies (with colorful sprinkles; didn’t manage to take a picture of the cookies, because they all ended in our tummies.  He made both in school and had whispered to me on Friday that we ought to keep it a surprise from Pete.

For our Father’s Day lunch, we decided to head off to Victoria Station.  We had not been there in AGES, and it was a familiar comfortable surrounding that greeted us.  Plus, the kids were overjoyed to be dining in a “train”! :)

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Enjoying the bun and butter before the main course arrived.  Hannah preferred to dip her bun into Daddy’s Cream of Dutch Pea soup, before eating.

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They did not have a kids’ menu available, so we had to order a plate of spaghetti bolognese for the kids to share.

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Vanilla milkshake for Hannah and Chocolate Milkshake for Ethan:

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Pete ordered the Feast for the King of the House special (but of course!) and I ordered my all-time favorite rib-eye steak (which I am happy to say turned out marbled and medium just like I had requested).

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After our very satisfying lunch, Ethan and Hannah had the privilege to climb onboard the front of the train (which formed part of the restaurant).  Well, Daddy too…of course!  I declined the offer because I was wearing an above-the-knee length dress that restricted me from climbing up.

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The Art of Using Chopsticks

June 20, 2011 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Growing Up, Milestones | No comments

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Doesn’t Ethan look like a pro using his pair of training chopsticks?  They were a gift from Pauline Kor Kor a couple of years ago (when Ethan was way too small for chopsticks), but look at my little big boy now…

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He is not really a fan of noodles or beehoon, but just last week, I just asked him for fun if he wanted rice or beehoon for lunch.  Surprisingly, Ethan said he wanted beehoon soup, so that’s what I served him! :)

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Add a pair of chopsticks to the equation and you have a happy camper of a toddler :)

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Our Saturday Routine

June 17, 2011 in Ethan, Exercise, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | No comments

The weekend is here, oh how we have missed it.  Our Saturdays are more or less routinely planned out each week.  In the mornings, we’ll all go out together and Hannah and I will be dropped off at her parent-toddler class.  While we are at the class, Daddy will take Ethan for a *bonding session*.  They’ll either go for a quick exercise session, some football in the park, or lately, sometimes they’ll just take the car for a wash.

Anyway, I’ve come to realize that I have not been posting any pictures of Hannah enjoying her parent-toddler class, because the fact is she really does!  She looks forward to her class every week and would cheerfully wave goodbye as Daddy drives away.  She’s always asking to go to “Teacher Puva’s class” and will happily participate in all the activities.  Sometimes she will even volunteer to “go first” in some of the group activities.

Hannah intently cutting up some pretend fruits and vegetables with her pretend knife…

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Fun with arts and crafts…

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Water play can be methodical too.  High level of concentration needed here.

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Hannah loves a good story, and the pretty stickers she gets afterward.

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And here are a couple of pictures of when Ethan and Daddy went for a short visit to the Botanical Gardens during the recent Floral Festival.

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Isn’t it marvelous to see the kids happy that way? :)

Our Saturday lunches are almost certainly our favorite chicken rice at Fatty Loh.  Even the kids know that by now.  Then again, kids thrive on routines.. :)

Sun, Beach and Sand

June 9, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Exercise, Hannah, Sports | 2 comments

Last weekend, we’d asked Ethan to choose where he wanted to go, since Pete had a long holiday weekend (Agong’s birthday).  At first, Ethan was undecided, but then he later announced that he wanted to go to the beach.

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I told him that if he wanted to go to the beach, he would have to wake up very early, and he would also be responsible to wake everyone up, so that we could reach the beach early.  The previous weekend, cousin Jonathan (from KL) went to the beach too, but Ethan declined because he said it was TOO HOT.

Anyway, on Saturday morning, at approximately 6:30a.m., I was awakened by Ethan at the foot of my bed, saying, “Mommy, wake up!  Time to go to the beach!”  At 6:30a.m. I tell you!

Well, despite waking up so early, we got ready and arrived at the beach at about 9:45a.m.  That’s considered very early for our standards.  The sun was still warm (not baking hot), and the sea was inviting.  We chose a rather secluded beach that was not too rocky, and that was not too popular with tourists.  Slapped on copious amounts of sunblock on top of the layer I put on them at home and we were all set!

The kids got to play with the Rio beach ball Ethan had won in a magazine contest.

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Ethan and Hannah immediately wanted to go and play with the waves.  But as soon as the waves licked their feet, Hannah was screaming, “Carry me, Mommy!” and she wanted to return to our umbrella.  (see that pout?)

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Ethan, meanwhile, had a LOT of fun with the waves, showing totally no fear whatsoever.

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Hannah preferred to steer clear from the water’s edge, and play with her plastic cup, scooping up the sand and pouring it out.

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We definitely need to get more sand-castle building tools for them the next time we visit the beach.

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Ethan said, “Daddy and Mommy, thank you for bringing us to the beach today!  I had a LOT of fun!! Please, can we go again?  Please please?”

Of course we can, darling…and hopefully soon!  Can you believe that it was the FIRST time Ethan and Hannah had been to the beach in Penang? :P

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Literature Night 2011

June 1, 2011 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | 3 comments

About a week ago, Ethan’s school organized a Literature Night for all the Kindergarten-1(K1) students.  Apparently this is an annual event for just the K1 kids.  It was held on a Saturday night and there were 2 classes of K1 kids involved.  Unfortunately Pete had to miss this rare opportunity because he was away on a business trip.

The rationale behind having a Literature Night is to celebrate literacy amongst students, and also it is tradition that there would be short presentations from parents/siblings/grandparents who were sporting enough to volunteer.

Initially, because I knew Pete would not be around, I intended to give Literature Night a miss, but then I discovered that it would be only for K1 and next year, Ethan would not have this chance again.  Plus, he kept on telling me that he would also be performing with his class as Narrator 1.

He said, “Mommy, Teacher said I am Narrator 1 because I can read SOOOOOOO well.” And then he beamed with pride.

How can I say no to that?

So I checked with my Mom and asked if she could accompany us to Literature Night, and I was so grateful she said yes.  Even though she had to rush to Genting Highlands the next morning, she still came all the way from Ipoh to lend her help and support.  And for that I am eternally thankful. :)

Ethan was SO excited in the days leading up to Literature Night and kept giving me a countdown as to how many more days it would be  to Literature Night.  Here he is, all ready for Lit Night, and impatient for us to leave the house.

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On the way to his school that evening, he kept telling me that he had to arrive BEFORE 7:00p.m.  Well, of course we arrived on time, and the event was going to start very soon too, because everyone was incredibly punctual :)

Here’s Hannah posing for the camera before Literature Night started.

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…and with Ah Ma too:

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Ethan and his classmates getting ready for the Chinese presentation:

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…and Ethan doing a spectacular job at being Narrator 1.

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Ethan’s class did a rather ambitious performance in the form of a Readers’ Theatre.  His class teacher chose the story Skyfire by Frank Asch.

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Some of the kids gave very good recitals of poetry and song presentations.  And Hannah had a good time watching the presentations too.  She even sat close to one of Ethan’s classmates, Marcus, to watch. LOL

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When it was time for our presentation, we headed out to stage as the “Three Generation Quartet” (Grandma, Mommy & Kids).  We were supposed to sing a two-song medley comprising Do-Re-Mi and This Little Light of Mine, but halfway through Do-Re-Mi, the mp3 stopped playing.  Nevertheless, as the saying goes, “The show must go on”…so we continued singing Do-Re-Mi till the end.

Later on, when the school principal managed to make the mp3 work, we were asked to present the whole medley again, this time with no glitches.  Hannah more or less *grabbed* the mic from me so I was left without a mic for some time.  She even asked to go up to the stage to *sing again* after we had come down from the stage. :P

Errr…pictures and video of our presentation are with a friend of mine, who has not passed me the downloads yet. :P

All in all, a really enjoyable night.  And Ethan had a really great time.  So glad he managed to experience this night.

 

(Late) Morning Exercise at The Botanical Gardens

May 22, 2011 in Ethan, Exercise, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | 1 comment

Time and time, we had planned on going to The Botanical Gardens for a family exercise session, but time and time again, circumstances, (reasonable) excuses and sheer laziness got the better of us.  Granted, Ethan and Daddy do go there quite often…well, it’s either there or the Youth Park.  Ethan and Daddy has about an hour or so of bonding time on Saturdays when I accompany Hannah to her parent-toddler class, so they’ll either go for a walk/jog or football session.

Anyway, I digress.

I was gonna talk about our recent family exercise session at The Botanical Gardens. :)

It was the long Labor Day weekend, so Monday was a holiday too.  I remember years back I used to arrive at The Botanical Gardens before 7:30a.m. for a hike up Penang Hill.  But now, I’d be happy to reach there by 10:30a.m. 

Anyways, we decided against riding the tram and decided instead to take a walk around the park.

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Ethan, who was brimming with boundless energy, kept on asking us to “Hurry up!”

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His stamina was quite good, and he could run for a long while before he got tired.  When it was obvious it was a shorter distance to walk on the pavement, Ethan decided he wanted to make a detour and climb up and down a mini hill by the road instead.

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Every time either one of us caught up to him, Ethan would quicken his step and try to outrun us.

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…and every time that happens, little Hannah would ask us to “Catch Ethan!”  Not a problem at first, but when she started to get tired, and whoever was in *charge* of her had to carry her AND run after Ethan…well, let’s just say it’s a combo of cardio and strength training at the same time.  Try carrying 13 kilos and sprinting! :P

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After the workout, the kids were all rosy-cheeked and exhausted (we thought).

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Well actually, the adults were also rather tired out themselves…but that is certainly not a deterrent.  We’ll definitely do this again.

I’d very much like to take the kids along to the gym too…that is, IF I can find a gym in Penang that has a section/classes specially catered for the kids. :)

Random Bulat Shots

May 12, 2011 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah | 2 comments

Sometimes…when my kids are in the mood to pose for pictures, I will grab this opportunity to snap a few random shots.  Usually what I get is a series of pictures that money definitely cannot buy…and pictures that are bound to light up even the dullest day, and guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.

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These pictures were taken in the compound of our condo, while waiting for Daddy to get the car ready to take us out for dinner last Friday.

Getting warmed up…

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Watch and Learn…

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…and Copy!

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I asked for a SERIOUS shot and this is what they gave me…

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Time to get cheeky again!

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“Where’s your nose?”

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“Simon says, ‘Touch your hair!’”

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My Mother’s Day Gift

May 8, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Parenting | No comments

Last Friday, when Ethan came back from school, he told me he had a Mother’s Day gift for me in a little brown baggy, but I was not allowed to open it until Sunday, because it had to be a surprise.  I asked him if I had to keep it in the fridge, but he said no.

However, just to be on the safe side, I asked him to show it to Daddy and then Daddy can decide if it needs to be refrigerated.  Well, turns out it did.

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Ethan did drop *hints* here and there, so I had more or less guessed what it was…so when I opened the baggy this morning, it wasn’t really a surprise to me,…well, the only surprising thing was the star sprinkles on top of the blueberry muffin.  Nevertheless, regardless of whether it was a surprise or not, I was more touched by the effort he put in and the genuine excitement and pride he felt when I told him I LOVED it.  It was a gift from the heart, with words that he wrote all by himself and it was really yummy too (I shared it with both Ethan and Hannah)…

Happy Mommy’s Day to me, and to all the lovely mothers out there too!  Take the day off if you can…you so deserve it!

Age Classification according to Ethan

May 5, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up | 2 comments

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This is how Ethan classifies age and age groups.  According to Ethan:

  • At the age of 0 years, you are considered a baby.
  • At the age of 1 year old, you are considered a small toddler.
  • At the age of 2 years, you are a medium toddler.
  • At the age of 3 years, you are a small kid.
  • At the age of 4 years, you are a medium kid.
  • At the age of 5 years, you are a BIG kid.
  • You remain a BIG kid from 6, 7, and so on until you attain the age of 12.
  • At the age of 13, you are a small teenager.
  • At the age of 14, you are a medium teenager.
  • At the age of 15, you are a BIG teenager.
  • You remain a BIG teenager until the age of 19.
  • When you hit 20 years old, you become a small adult.
  • At the age of 21, you are a medium adult.
  • At the age of 22, you are a BIG adult.
  • You remain a BIG adult until you get married and have kids.
  • As soon as you have kids, you become either a Daddy or Mommy.
  • And when those kids grow up and have their own kids, then you move on to become Grandpa or Grandma.

Me and You and Déjà vu

May 4, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah | No comments

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During our regular visits to Toys R Us, Hannah never fails to “test drive” the kiddie cars.  Of course, it’s rather difficult now because they do not have any which aren’t chained up.  But that does not deter her, for she will just climb in and out of the cars one after another in a row.  Sometimes she finds herself stuck and unable to get out, so I will have to carry her out from the front windscreen of the car.

Now, doesn’t this scenario sound familiar? :)

Yes, it was exactly what her brother, Ethan, did several years ago, when he was about 1.5 years old.  See photo evidence below:

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Ethan has definitely outgrown that phase, but it looks like his sister is quickly learning the ropes! :)

Cheeky Bulats

April 26, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | 1 comment

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I call him Mr Bulat and I call her Miss Bulat.

She absolutely adores him, and obeys his every word.

He loves her to bits, although sometimes he claims she makes him SO angry.

She copies whatever he does and follows whatever he says.

He holds her hand as they walk across the road, and he supervises her when she washes her hands.

They have their fun times, and their *naughty stool* times…but at the end of it all, they still hug each other and say sorry.

They are both generous with their kisses and hugs, tickles and giggles…and they light up each others’ lives as they lit mine up each and every day.

I love them so…

They are God’s miracles.  And I am so thankful to be blessed with them.

She gets away with anything!

April 25, 2011 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up, Hannah | 1 comment

…I mean *Fashion-wise*.

The other day, Hannah INSISTED she wanted to wear her sneakers and socks.  No issues with that, except she was wearing a pretty little demure dress.  She complained that her sandals were too tight, so I suggested she put on her Mary Janes instead, but she held firm to her decision on wearing sneakers….so…

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But then, come to think of it, no fashion police would arrest her, don’t you agree?  She still looks sweet and cute, despite the clash of fashion items….kids!  They get away with just about anything!

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A Rainbow Sky

April 15, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Parenting | 2 comments

Recently, Ethan’s school had a fund raising campaign to raise funds for the people in Japan in the wake of the natural disasters that had affected the country.  The children were exposed to what happened in Japan and the teachers explained how and why it was important for us to help in whatever way we can.

Apart from organizing a donation and food fair, the K1 and K2 kids in the school were also given the chance to paint a picture to express themselves.  These pictures would then be displayed in a silent auction whereby proceeds would be channeled to the Japan fund. 

I attended the food fair, where all these paintings were displayed.  Ethan told me, “Mommy, I used REALLY strong paint to paint this picture!”

It was a very colorful and I would say abstract piece of art, and I was very proud of him.

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Bidding starts at RM20, but I don’t know why I put down RM50.  Anyway, I was incredibly impressed with Ethan’s work of art and also of what he felt and expressed in words.  You see, the kids were asked to express and explain their painting in their own words and the teachers would then note them down with a little piece of paper next to the painting.

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It was a very sincere message, straight from the heart of a 5-year old.  Ethan told me he hopes the funds collected from his painting can be used to help the Japan people build their homes back, “because Japan is broken”, he said.

As a mother, I couldn’t be prouder.  It was RM50 well spent. :)

However, the framing was not done very well, and because I was afraid the splinters would hurt the kids, I did what any mother would do: I took it to an art shop and had the painting reframed.

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…all ready to be hung in Ethan’s room! :)

Samba in Rio!

April 15, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Milestones, Parenting | 1 comment

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Last Friday, on a whim, we decided to take BOTH kids to watch Rio.  We knew Ethan could sit through the entire movie, but for Hannah, it was a first.  True, she was only 2, but at home, she had displayed tremendous concentration when she watches videos and TV, we figured why not try it?  The worst that could happen was if she made a fuss, I would just take her out of the cinema.

We used one of those free child movie passes that came with a Happy Meal purchase.  We had to buy 2 adult movie tickets though, to get the free child movie pass, and it was only valid at TGV.  The only TGV in Penang is at 1st Avenue, so it was a first time watching a movie there for all of us too.  Hannah did not need a ticket, so she just sat on my lap.

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The kids went wild with excitement and waited eagerly for our cinema number to flash, so that we could go in.

 

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Inside the cinema, Hannah was kept busy eating popcorn, so she was very well behaved for about 45 minutes or so.  Once the popcorn was exhausted, she started playing with my mineral water, and fidgeting in her seat.  Note to self: in future, make sure the popcorn lasts the entire movie. :P

She began to wander up and down the aisles and wanted to try out the couple seats at the back row, the other seats beside us as well as the stairs.  The suddenly she wanted to go potty (for a big one).  So I had to take her out to the toilet.  Thankfully the toilet was very clean, and just a few steps away from our cinema :)

When we got back, Hannah was still restless.  Good thing though, that the cinema was very empty that day.  She snuggled up and tried to get some shuteye, but couldn’t.  In the end, we managed to sit through the entire movie, without too much of a fuss.

Would we do it again?  Sure, if it’s a suitable movie, and this time, I’ll make sure there’s plenty of popcorn to go round!

Oh, and I’m still perplexed as to why Rio has already been released in Malaysia, whereas the release date in US is only on April 15th!  Ethan LOVES the show though…when he wanted to go toilet somewhere near the end, he said, “Mommy I need to go to the toilet.  Can you please pause the show?”

Haha…yeah, we’re currently on a collecting spree for all the Rio toys from McDonald’s…(see first picture at the top)

Kop Love and Loyalty begins at home

March 25, 2011 in Ethan, Sports | 1 comment

We’re starting him young… :)

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We got a fantastic deal on this set of Liverpool jammies for Ethan and he has been asking to wear it every night. 

“Mommy, I want to wear my Liverpool jammies 5 rows in a day because it’s SOOOoooooo comfortable!”

He means “5 days in a row“…hehe…he sometimes mixes up his words when he gets incredibly excited.  Well, garbed in that slammin’ set of jammies, Ethan will certainly never walk alone :)

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My (almost) Foolprof Plans

March 22, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | 1 comment

The one week school holidays is over, and we’re back to our usual routine.  We didn’t travel anywhere for the holidays this time round, but the kids (Ethan especially) did get a good rest at home.  For one, he was allowed to sleep in and watch a few kiddie shows on the telly in the mornings.

But the kids can’t be sleeping, eating and watching TV the whole day long, right?

I knew I had to think of things for the kids to do to occupy their time..something that would (hopefully) keep them active and alert, tire them out so that they would be able to retire earlier at night… hehe.  An idle mind is the devil’s workshop, no?

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My plan backfired, of course…the kids didn’t get tired, on the contrary, it made them hungrier for more activities.  In the end, it was Mommy who got tired cleaning up after them. 

My Morning Sunshines…

March 22, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | No comments

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Every morning I am greeted with two happy smiles
With hugs and kisses that never go out of style
Looking sweet and adorable is only their morning call
But they’ll be up to their pranks and mischief in no time at all!

Questions, questions and more questions…

March 15, 2011 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up, Parenting | 1 comment

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Extremely wise beyond his age, and extremely talkative too, Ethan has been asking a gadzillion questions.  In fact, there have been so many questions that I could hardly keep up with them all…some have really stumped us too!

“Mommy, how did God create the earth?”

“How did God know how to create the earth?”

“On what day of the week did God create the earth?”

“Why did God put us on the earth?  How did he know the earth is the best place for us?  Why didn’t he put us on another planet?”

“What year was it when God created the earth?”

“If Adam and Eve are the first man and woman in this world, who got pregnant with them?”

“Why is it only girls can get pregnant?”

“Mommy, when I become a teenager I will have LOTS of hair, right?  Will Daddy and Mommy lose their hair then?”

“Mommy, why is it that when I use these letters to form words, they don’t turn into things like WordWorld?”

“Why is it only boys wear underpants and girls wear panties?”

And when we ask him why he has SO MANY questions for us, his reply is very simple, “Because Mommy, I’m VERY interested in everything that God makes!” :)

Hannah’s Birthday Celebration in Penang

March 7, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah, Milestones | 3 comments

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Slightly more than a week away from Hannah’s actual 2nd birthday, we had a very simple lunch gathering/celebration in Penang.  We chose to have the lunch at the Chinese Recreational Club.  It was actually my first time having lunch there, with rice and dishes.  I had been there before, but it was for a wedding course dinner.

The kids were very excited (as they usually are) and Ethan (more than Hannah LOL!) was looking forward to celebrating his sister’s birthday. 

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Also, another reason for the excitement was that Ah Kong and Ah Ma from Ipoh came all the way to Penang to join in the fun and celebrations.

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Took me some time to coax her into this gorgeous dress her Daddy bought her, but she was sweet-talked into it when I told her it was going to make her VERY pretty! :)  She had wanted to wear sandals at first too, but we managed to persuade her into her Mary Janes.  Don’t you think Hannah looks adorable? :)

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After our very satisfying and delicious lunch, we had a cake-cutting ceremony (we ordered a cheese cake this time round, and everyone had seconds!).  Hannah again proudly showed off her perfect blowing-out-the-candle skill, and enjoyed the cake and the attention.

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…and she was also extra eager to cut the cake:

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Ethan also had *other* attractions besides the food.  Anyone and everyone who has an iPhone or iPad is immediately Ethan’s best friend, and on that day he was best buds with Tuah Kim Poh (with her iPad) and Uncle Yao (with his iPhone):

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Of course, Hannah was not distracted at all, and preferred to enjoy her yummy birthday cake!

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And Dale makes TWO!

February 24, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | 1 comment

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…or is it FOUR? :D

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Couldn’t tell if Chip was happier or Ethan and Hannah were happier…when we brought Dale home a couple of days ago.  I can’t believe that we actually finished collecting 2 sets of ‘em Guardian cards!

Dale won’t be lonely now, that’s for sure! :)

Chinese New Year…and (more) Birthday Celebrations

February 17, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Milestones | 1 comment

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Our recent Chinese New Year celebration was nothing short of exciting.  As is usually the case, this year saw us travelling from Penang to Taiping on the eve, then to Ipoh on the 1st day, and then back to Taiping for a pit stop before heading back to Penang on the 3rd day of Chinese New Year.

Some picture-snapping moments from Taiping…

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Kor Kor with Ethan and Hannah…

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3-Pek-Kong (a.k.a. Granduncle Albert) with the kids…

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…and with Taiping Ah Ma…

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Photo session continued in Ipoh… with Ipoh Ah Ma…

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And with both Ipoh Ah Kong and Ah Ma:

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…and of course, with Mommy :)

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We took the opportunity to have a simple birthday celebration for Ethan in Ipoh while we were there too.  He requested for a really really simple chocolate cake with white wordings (yes, he was THAT specific!)

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And since cousin Collin was celebrating his birthday around the same time too, we decided to do a dual birthday celebration!

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Talk about a major cake overdose! :P  Obviously the kids didn’t mind…here they are, patiently waiting for me to cut the cake and serve them.

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And then it was presents time!  Gift exchanges are so much fun when accompanied by hugs and love!

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We arrived back in Penang on the 3rd day of Chinese New Year, which coincides with Ethan’s Chinese birthday (he was born on the 3rd day of the Lunar New Year).  We had yet another birthday celebration for Ethan, this time at home.  And since we could not get a freshly made cake from any cake shop we inquired from, and also, it was too late to bake a cake for him, Daddy very creatively volunteered to shape the cake we used during the Ipoh celebration into something new (perhaps he’d been watching too much of Top Chef!)…and voila!  Looks a bit like a piece from a jigsaw, if you ask me…

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Dinner was pizza delivered to our doorstep, on top of the cookies and mandarin oranges we had at home.  And here’s how you should eat a slice of pizza!

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Happy New Year everyone!  Hope the Year of the Rabbit will bring you boundless joy and blessings!

Ethan turns FIVE!

February 11, 2011 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Exercise, Hannah, Parenting | 4 comments

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My little boy turned FIVE on January 31st recently.  And I still can’t believe how much he has grown!  I look at pictures of him from a year ago, and the difference is so vast!  He has grown physically, mentally and spiritually, and I can’t even begin to express how proud I am of him.

I could tell he was really looking forward to turning five.  Before, he refers to himself as a “medium boy” but he tells us that once he turns five, he is a “BIG boy” :)

So where did we take our big boy for his birthday?  After we picked him up from school, we went to one of our favorite Japanese restaurants for lunch as a family.  Then we headed to Golden Sands Hotel in Batu Ferringhi, where there was a kids activity center called AdventureZone.  Admission was only RM20++ per child (since it was a weekday), and adults need not pay if accompanying the kids.

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AdventureZone had something like an obstacle course for the kids, and gigantic slides that were NOT for the faint-hearted.  See how scary those slides looked?  We only went on the colorful one and the blue one.

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For Hannah, there was a little play area specially designed for kids aged 4 and below.

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But of course, she wanted to do whatever her brother did…

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Actually we were allowed a duration of 2 hours in AdventureZone, but the kids were very reluctant to leave…in the end, we left after spending about 2.5 hours there.

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AdventureZone certainly tired us all out, for not only were the kids exhausted, we adults also had a good workout chasing after the kids.  Errr…. well maybe it was just the adults who were exhausted…

One thing’s for sure though, we sure worked up a HUGE appetite and we headed for dinner at Chili’s in Gurney Plaza.

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Birthday boy making like a “moose” when I asked him to pose for a picture…

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And how old are you now, Ethan?

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Because it was his birthday, Ethan was given a complimentary chocolate brownie sundae, complete with a candle, and the crew sang him a birthday song too!

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And then later that night, he opened up his presents from us.

This one’s from Hannah…

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…and this one’s from Daddy and Mommy.  We gave him something he had been hinting he wanted for the past month.  Ethan is very interested in all things planets, outer space, solar system, and the Earth.  And his expression was simply priceless when he unwrapped the gift from us.

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“Wow!!!  It’s the PLANET thing!!!” :)

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Happy Birthday Ethan!  You’re a BIG boy at 5 now! :)

Ethan’s Birthday Celebration in School

February 8, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Milestones | No comments

The day Ethan had been looking forward to finally arrived.  We had wanted to have his birthday celebration in school on his actual birthday on January 31st, but one of his teachers would not be around then, so we decided to have it the Friday before his birthday, i.e. on the 28th.

This time round, we bought the party gift packs well in advance, and I already had them packed up days before the event.  Ethan had wanted a Mickey Mouse themed party, so we got stationery sets according to theme and placed them in party packs.  Ethan wanted party hats too, so we got some to match as well.

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There was a reason we didn’t put any edibles in the party pack.  All the candies, chocolates and sweets were going into this piñata!

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I spent days (and nights) making this piñata, and yes…Ethan specifically wanted to have one at his celebration.  Initially I planned on making a piñata where the kids would take turns to hit it till it broke, but decided instead on making a pull-string piñata.  It was a less violent alternative to the piñata game, and the kids would not be *tormented* by the fact that they were hitting their favorite characters on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse…(well, that and also because my balloon piñata burst the first time I set it up. LOL)

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Anyway, this Mickey Mouse birthday cake pull-string piñata had a trapdoor underneath the bottom layer, and I fixed the ribbons in such a way that only one ribbon would open the trapdoor, releasing all the goodies.

I managed to keep the piñata a surprise from Ethan until the day of his birthday celebration, and he was thrilled to see it that morning.  Made my day when he exclaimed that he really loved the piñata, and that it was beautiful! :)

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So Pete and I arrived in his school and brought all the stuff up to his classroom.  First his teacher requested Ethan to pass the party hats round.

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And then it was birthday cake time.  Ethan had also spelled out exactly how he wanted his cake, and this year, it was my utmost pleasure to be able to bake and make the cake for him.

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As soon as the cake was put on the table, 21 pairs of little feet rushed to the table to take a look at the cake.

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And someone’s party hat very nearly fell into the cake…

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We sang Happy Birthday in English, Mandarin and BM, and then Ethan blew the candle and cut the cake.

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I was so touched when a few kids came to ask me for second helpings of the cake :)

Every child that is celebrating his/her birthday will get to sit in the teacher’s chair and give out party packs, and that’s exactly what Ethan got to do.  Look how happy he is…

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The final part of the birthday celebration was the piñata game.  Daddy had to stand on a chair and hold it up for the entire duration of the game.  After the teacher had explained the rules, the kids each took turns to pull on a ribbon.

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And here’s the one who managed to yank open the trap door! 

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Unfortunately somehow the candy and goodies got stuck in the trapdoor and I had to manually jiggle it so everything would tumble down.

And as soon as the goodies came tumbling down, sheer havoc ensued as all the kids rushed to claim whatever they could get.

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Here’s Ethan with whatever goodies he could get…

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… and the piñata that (thankfully) stayed intact during the game, finally fell apart when the party was over!

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Let’s take a trip to Candy Land!

January 31, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 1 comment

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Candy Land was one of the board games Ethan played while we were in the States.  At that time, he didn’t quite understand the whole works yet, but he certainly had fun with Venice and Aunty Van that time.  I had wanted to buy that board game before we came back, but somehow procrastinated because I felt that the price was a little bit expensive.

However, when Pete came back from his recent trip and surprised the kids with the Candy Land board game, let’s just say I was just as ecstatic as the kids were.  At only USD5, it was a great family game that we could all play together.

Ethan and Hannah loves Candy Land, and it’s a game where everyone is involved in it, as each player has a pawn to move.  When asked what color pawn she wants, Hannah always replies, “Yellow!”  Ethan will take the Blue pawn (because that’s his new favorite color, after previously being yellow and red), Mommy will take Red and Daddy Green.

It’s one of our afternoon activities together at home, and also sometimes we have a game of Candy Land before the kids say goodnight.  Ethan says it’s his favorite game yet! :)

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…well…better Candy Land than real candy, I’d say! :)

A week spent with Gramps…

January 30, 2011 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | No comments

There’s no denying the joy that grandparents bring to a child’s life.  It’s that wonderful, magical bond that will bring on that cheerful grin and adorable giggle.  The beautiful thing about this bond is that it’s a reciprocal one. :)

Recently when their Daddy was away in the States on a business trip, Ethan and Hannah had the utmost privilege of having their maternal grandparents around.  A few days before Ah Ma and Ah Kong were due to arrive from Ipoh, Ethan had already started his countdown and kept asking me every day how many more days to go before Ah Ma and Ah Kong were to arrive.

During that one week that Ah Ma and Ah Kong were here, Ethan and Hannah were showered with loads of gifts, attention and love.  Now that Hannah is more vocal, she was also able to *demand* things, like what songs she wanted Ah Ma to sing to her and what pictures she wanted to be drawn.

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Sometimes she would also “borrow” Ah Ma’s accessories to wear.  Hannah’s becoming quite the little fashionista, isn’t she?

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Of course, now that Hannah can call “Ah Ma” and “Ah Kong” very very clearly, it makes things that much easier…surprisingly, the kids tend to behave a little bit *better* with Ah Ma and Ah Kong around too. (perhaps they bully me too much…SIGH)

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Ethan will be chatting non-stop to both Ah Ma and Ah Kong from daylight to daybreak.  He would wake up very early every morning, so early in fact, that he sometimes reached school before his teachers did!  He would tell Ah Ma and Ah Kong all about his activities, all about his friends, and wow his grandparents about facts he learnt from Wikipedia (which I looked up for him)…like when he proudly told Ah Ma and Ah Kong that Jupiter has at least 63 moons and that Saturn has 62 moons.

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Me?  I’m just extremely thankful my parents were here with me to keep me company during Pete’s absence.  It really meant a lot to me ! :) … plus my Dad helped out a lot on the spring cleaning and Mum cooked some delicious meals too… hehehe…  Thanks Papa and Mama! :)

And after a week of quality time spent with gramps, Ethan and Hannah bade a fond farewell to Ah Ma and Ah Kong, but not before promising to see them again real soon during Chinese New Year! :)

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Pasta Perfection

January 28, 2011 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Hannah | No comments

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Sometimes it IS rather easy to make kids happy.  Mealtimes are great examples, and one of the easiest, fail-proof recipe I use for my kids is PASTA.  My kids love pasta in any shape and size.  The colorful varieties just add to the excitement of it all.

The beauty of this traditional favorite meal is, of course, its simplicity in preparation.  I only need to stir-fry some onions, add some minced meat (if I’m more hardworking, I’ll make meatballs instead), then pour in a can of tomato purée, and then add enough pasta sauce.  Then I’d ask the kids which kind of pasta they want.  Giving them that choice makes it that much more fun :)

And although it can sometimes get a tad messy, we all enjoy the great taste and balanced meal (carbs, vegetables and protein all in one) and the fun that comes with it!

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All Chipped Up!

January 27, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan | 1 comment

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Finally, after weeks and months of collecting the Guardian Disney Cuties stickers, I made it to 60 and qualified for a free redemption of a Disney Cutie soft toy!  Wheeeee!!!!!

I only had about 30+ stickers a few weeks ago, but when Ah Ma and Ah Kong came to visit from Ipoh, I managed to *earn* the rest of the stickers.  Talk about working hard for them! :) Every time I did something good, like when I put away my toys after playing with them, or finished my lunch/dinner really quickly, Ah Ma would whip out her sticker collection and give me one sticker for each good thing I did.  Sometimes I would try to negotiate with Ah Ma to get more stickers too…hehe…

Anyway, last week, Mommy brought me to our favorite Guardian store, and we exchanged the sticker card for Chip!  I had already checked the box next to Chip on the redemption card and the lady in the store gave us Chip in a HUGE box!  For now, I am sharing Chip with Hannah…but I do feel that Chip is lonely without a squirrel friend of his own. 

Hannah and I are hoping to collect enough stickers to redeem Dale before the dateline.  We currently have only TWO…So if you have any extras, please kindly pass them over, yeah? :)

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My brother’s on TV…again!!!

January 24, 2011 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | No comments

For the past few weeks, Mommy has been diligently plonking herself in front of the television at certain times during the day, holding her camera in front of it, in the hope of recording a video with Ethan Koko’s face in it.  Mommy said that Ethan Koko’s face appears on the Playhouse Disney Birthday Book for January, and what’s more it’s his 2nd time so far!  Apparently he appeared on the birthday book last year too!

The thing is…even though we know he has been chosen, we do not know exactly when his picture will show up.  So Mommy has to get ready the camera every time the Birthday Book comes on. And we have been told to try to keep as quiet as possible when that happens…

But you know me…I couldn’t help myself when I saw my brother’s face on TV.  I mean, who wouldn’t be excited, right?  Yes, that’s my voice you hear when Ethan Koko’s face appeared…and errr….I *thought* the other girl looked like me…heh heh…well, a girl can dream, can’t she?

 

And yeah, Mommy FINALLY managed to record the video…I think it had something to do with me sitting on her lap while she was recording it.  :)

Awww….how I wish I could be on TV too!!!! :)

Our Christmas in Pictures

January 8, 2011 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah, What's Cooking | 2 comments

Every holiday season is a perfect reason to stuff ourselves silly with food, no?  Well, it’s a reasonable *excuse*, if you ask me… :)

In any case, we certainly utilized that *reason* to its max during the Christmas that just passed.  We kicked off the eating marathon on Christmas eve itself.  With a scrumptious Chinese course lunch at Starview in New World Park, everyone had a hearty meal and happy tummies could be seen everywhere!

One of my favorites from lunch: Peking Duck served in 2 ways: sandwiched between soft and fluffy mantous AND served in shredded salad form in pie-tees.

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Baby abalones cooked to perfection, and served on a bed of broccoli:

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And the prawn dish:

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Ethan and Hannah got to meet up with their cousins, Jonathan and Phoebe.  While the kids were packed with boundless energy and had fun running around, chasing each other inside and outside the restaurant, the adults had to take turns supervising them…which was a good thing too, as it certainly aided the process of food digestion and calorie burning…

Pretty gals in a row…

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And just as the food from lunch was about to be completely digested, it was time for dinner.  We had a simple gathering at Pete’s brother’s (Patrick’s) place, where the food was served buffet-style (kinda).

Jiu hoo char made by Paul, Pete’s brother, and my humble attempt at fried beehoon:

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Chicken rendang from Eng Ee:

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..and my chicken curry, which I’m a little sorry to say, was a tad too oily…

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Then it was time to unveil the big bird we ordered from Victoria Station:

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Yummy yummy…with lots of gravy!  We kept the turkey leftovers to make turkey sandwiches, and up till today, there’s still some of that turkey in my fridge!  I’m planning to enlist my Mum’s help to make kiam chye boey in a few days’ time :)

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While the grown-ups had dinner, the kids busied themselves having fun with the toys…

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And then the inevitable came…it was time to unwrap the presents:

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Technically, it was still a day early, but the kids were all too impatient to bother…never mind, they’ll have another gift-unwrapping session on Christmas Day itself!

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*****

On Christmas morning, we miraculously made in on time to church at 9a.m.  Ordinarily, getting to church at 10a.m. was already a daunting task for us.  It must have been a Christmas miracle! :)

Anyway, after church, we did a light breakfast at Kayu…yup, we had roti canai for breakfast!  Haven’t done that in donkey years!

Waiting for our food to be served…

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Doesn’t Hannah look adorable in a girly-girl dress?

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Okay, Ethan…you look adorable too! :)

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After breakfast, we resumed our gift-unwrapping session, this time at a different venue…  OUR HOME!! :)

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We gave Ethan and Hannah each a toy car garage set.  Very very cool…and yes, it will definitely take up more space in our humble home, but at least they won’t fight over it…(well that’s what we think.. :P)

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Merry and Blessed Christmas everyone!

The weekend before Christmas

January 4, 2011 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Vacation | No comments

(I had better post this before CNY comes around…gasp!)

We took the kids for a vacation in KL the weekend before Christmas.  It was just a little something we planned for the school holidays, and although we knew it was going to be quite tiring, it would be worth the while because the kids would surely enjoy themselves.

As usual, we had our fair share of “tummy-stuffing” (like a prelude to what’s to come for Christmas)…this was the steamboat pot that every table was provided with when we had buffet lunch at Shogun at 1-Utama.

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After Ethan had had his lunch, he began to tap into his Top Chef skills…

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A *yummy* creation made with his own two hands? :)  Amazing what he could create with the remnants of the cheesecake…

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Hannah, despite her young age, also thoroughly enjoyed herself … and made a PERFECT mess too!  Hopefully we won’t be banned from the restaurant after this…

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Had to give her a change of clothes too, after she spilled the grape juice all over herself!  Here she is, checking to see if there’s anything left to eat on the table:

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Hannah with Daddy…

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Hannah with Kor Kor…

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Ethan too busy being Top Chef, remember? :P

Anyway, after that we walked off the meal by strolling around the mall.  The kids *insisted* on riding on these *animals*…

A kid-sized doggie for Ethan…

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And a small toddler-sized elephant for Hannah…

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Daddy wanted in on the fun too:

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After a whole day of fun, Hannah was totally knocked out by dinnertime!

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The Horsy Show

December 25, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | 3 comments

We took the kids for the Horse Show at Penang Turf Club a week ago.  We managed to find time on Friday, so it would not be so crowded.  Besides, we were due to go on vacation the following day, so Friday was the only day we could make it.

Ethan and Hannah were really looking forward to the outing, and Ethan kept asking us, “When will we be going to the Horsy Show?”  This was because we had to run a few errands before we finally drove to the Turf Club, but once there, the kids were ecstatic!  It was also my first time in the turf club and I must say that the Penang Turf Club is very well maintained.  Ample car parks located in a multi-storey car park, clean grounds and beautiful landscaping.

The kids immediately wanted to go on the horse carriage (RM4 per person), so we got tickets and got in line. 

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Ethan wanted to ride on the carriage with 2 horses, and I thought it would be fun for the kids to ride up front.  Since there weren’t many people in line, we waited to get in the carriage and sat in front.

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See how surprised and stunned Hannah looked?  She must have been amazed to get up close and personal with a horse for the first time in her life!  After she had warmed up, she kept saying and waving, “Hi Horsy!” and “Buh-bye Horsy!” :)

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The kids were treated to a splendid display of different breeds of horses, each one in its own stable.

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We also satisfied our curiosity as to what the Farriery Demonstration was all about.  There were farriers showing visitors how to make and shape a horseshoe, and also some real horseshoes on display.  Ethan was only too happy to be offered the chance to take a picture holding a hammer, as if he was shaping a horseshoe.  Of course, the person-in-charge had to look for a smaller hammer for Ethan :)

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Our next item on the agenda was the Pony Ride.  We got Ethan a ticket and was already in the queue when our plans were spoiled by the rain!  SIGH…we got refunded for our ticket, but we were sorry Ethan had to miss the pony ride.  Ethan, however, was very mature about it, and said, “Oh, that’s all right Mommy…”

With the rain storm, we practically ran to our car, trying our best not to get even more drenched than we already were.  And as we were leaving, Ethan asked me if we could come back again.  “Of course, baby…if they have another horse show next year, you bet we’ll be back!”

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Sunday at the Carnival

December 15, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Parenting | 1 comment

Pete’s workplace recently organized a carnival event at Gurney Plaza.  It was basically a family day kinda event, where the employees were allowed to invite up to 5 family members and friends for a fun-filled day.  Ah Kong and Ah Ma from Ipoh also came to Penang to join us for a day out.

Ethan and Hannah, as usual, were really looking forward to the carnival.  Ethan, especially was all geared up for the coloring contest, which I told him about.

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There were coupons for kiddy rides for Ethan and Hannah, but unfortunately there were only two coupons (i.e. 2 rides).

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There was also a booth for us to take a family photo, and a couple of coupons for a 3-minute back massage (Ah Ma and Ah Kong enjoyed their 3 minutes of pampering there!) 

We also wanted to get ourselves a footrub and manicure, but too bad, all the appointment slots for those were taken up for the day.

There were clowns giving out balloons and there was also a magic show for the kids.

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But what Ethan was really waiting for was the coloring contest.  It was his first one ever, and he kept asking me when the contest would be starting.  His set of color pencils was getting worn out, so just for this coloring contest, I specially got him 2 new boxes.  There were 3 categories for the coloring contest, and Ethan was registered into the Age 4-6 Category, where they were each given a picture of the sun to color.  Time limit was 1 HOUR!!!

…and he eagerly got down to work…

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Check out our little artist at work…Ethan’s coloring skills have improved tremendously!! 

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Hannah wanted to join in the fun too, but she was underaged for the contest, so I had to get her a random piece of paper from my bag, just so she could do some coloring of her own.

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Meanwhile, Ethan’s coloring was taking shape…

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He had to make the sun colorful, because nobody remembered to bring a pencil sharpener…and when the colors he was using ran out, he had to use other colors…hahaha…

And here’s Ethan with his mentor…looking on, as Ethan puts his finishing touch…

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Ta-daaaaa!!!!

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And now, we’ll just have to wait for the results…

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Here’s how pleased Ethan looked, after the magician gave him a sheet of Thomas & Friends stickers…

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The results for the coloring contest was announced after the magic show.  Ethan was in the category with the most number of participants, and the names of the consolation prizes were announced first, followed by the 2nd runner-up, 1st runner-up and the winner…and you know what?  We were all pleasantly surprised and proudly beaming when Ethan’s name was called up as the WINNER!  Woohooo!!!

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Look at that look of surprise on his face!

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Ethan got himself a medal, a set of color pencils, a crystal paperweight and a recorder. 

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 Picture of all the winners…looks like Ethan is the smallest-sized of all.. LOL!

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Congratulations Ethan!  We are so very proud of you…You must have inherited those “coloring contest winning” genes from Mommy, huh? *wink*

We also did some sand art before we left the carnival.  It was a first time for all of us too.

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Here’s Ethan with his masterpiece…

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He had wanted to do another one, but the person-in-charge told us that one child was only entitled to one piece of sand art.

So Hannah had one done too…with the help of Ah Ma!  Hannah chose the colors she wanted and Ah Ma did the “sand-arting”:

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It was a very exciting day for all, and Ethan and Hannah really enjoyed themselves to the brim!  Although the grown-ups were all tired out after the long day of events, the kids still had the energy to go on and on and on!

Butterflies and Lobsters

December 9, 2010 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah | 5 comments

A week and a half ago, we finally took the kids for a fun trip to the Penang Butterfly Farm.  I use the word “finally” because all this time, we’ve been reading countless accounts about fellow bloggers and friends taking their kids there, but we had yet to make the trip.  Ethan was really looking forward to this trip and he was certainly very excited about it.

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We reached the farm at around 3:00p.m.  The weather was simply beautiful, not too hot and not too cold either.  Although it did rain a few drops, our experience at the Butterfly Farm was not fazed.

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Amid all the “Wow!”s and the running around, we managed to get some pretty shots of some butterflies too…

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The area was not very big, and we found ourselves making round after round and round.  The kids had a lot of fun, chasing the butterflies and also each other.  And when they were tired, they made a pit-stop at the exhibition room.  Ethan exclaimed, “Wow…it’s so cool in here, Mommy!”

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This was what he told us he wanted to do at the Butterfly Farm, and I’m glad he had the opportunity to do so…

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After our Butterfly Farm visit, we headed on to Rasa Sayang Hotel with our hungry tummies, and had a splendid seafood buffet dinner at the Spice Market Cafe.  It was our first visit there, and the food was simply amazing!

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It was a daunting task to take pictures of all the glorious food while looking after our hyperactive kids, and there were so many other dishes I left out.  For dessert, I adored the cheese cake, tiramisu, and the small bowls of crème brûlée.  Sorry, no time to take individual pics of these, but just a faraway shot…

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See how much Hannah enjoyed the food too?

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Ethan didn’t want to take a photo because he was too busy eating! LOL

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“Daddy…may we come back again, please?”

Ethan must miss school

December 4, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up | 2 comments

It’s hard to believe that a whole school year has already passed.  It feels like it was just yesterday when I took Ethan to his school on the first day of the school year in January, as he started his year in Nursery.  And now it’s the end of the year, and he is anxiously waiting for the coming year when he would be in K1.

Yes, my boy loves going to school.  And yes, he tells me that. All the time :)

I’m so thankful that with Ethan I don’t have to deal with tantrums and tears on why he doesn’t want to go to school, because he genuinely LOVES school.

He has made so many friends in school, and he has grown in leaps and bounds in all aspects: physically, emotionally, spiritually and socially.  He started school as quite a shy guy but now his teacher tells me he is quite *noisy* in school and will volunteer information and answers quite readily.  His confidence, too, has skyrocketed and he has mastered many useful skills.

In fact, I am not surprised that he looks forward to school.  During the final week of the school term alone, Ethan was out on a school field trip to Sushi King, where they learnt how to make sushi, ate the sushi they made and had plain clean fun.  On that day, his teacher had asked them to arrive at school before 9:00a.m. and although I was afraid we might not be able to make it on time, Ethan wasted no time in getting ready and we arrived at 15 minutes to 9:00a.m.!

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And then on the last day of school, there was a school party, with water play, food and games for everyone.

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How could Ethan not love school?

Well, much as he loves school, he is also enjoying his school holidays very much now.  During the 1st week of the school holidays, Ethan attended a Circus School Holiday program and next week, he’s looking forward to a Science Holiday Program.  Whatever it is, we’re trying to keep him occupied as much as we can, because we know he has tons of energy to expend!  Besides, we all know that an idle mind is the devil’s workshop, yes?

Just because I love you

November 29, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Parenting | 2 comments

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We use the “naughty stool/chair” method as a form of discipline for our kids.  So whenever one of them misbehaves, he/she will get sent to the naughty chair and “sit out” his/her time.  For Ethan, he needs to sit for 4 minutes and for Hannah, it’s 1 minute; the number of minutes spent on the naughty chair is equivalent to the child’s age.

After their “time done” we’ll explain to them what they did wrong, and the child concerned will then promise to not do it again.  He/she will apologize and give each one of us a hug.

There was once when Hannah did something wrong.  I think she hit me with a toy or book, so she sat in the naughty chair.  When she was ready to say sorry, she came over and gave me a hug. 

Ethan said, “Daddy, come here.  I want to hug you too.  But I didn’t do anything wrong.  I just want to hug you because I love you…”

Awww…..

If Ethan were Handy Manny…

November 19, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments | No comments

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Ethan has been picking up a few foreign language terms lately.  He learns a little bit of Chinese (Mandarin) in school and he has been asking me how to count in French (thank goodness I paid attention in class), how to say simple phrases like hello, goodbye, etc.  Other than French, he picked up how to say “hello” in Spanish.

Ethan: Hola!
Me: Hola!  Yes, Ethan..that’s Hello in Spanish…just like Handy Manny, right?
Ethan: What, Mommy?
Me: You know, Handy Manny?  He says, “Hola!  Handy Manny’s Repair Shop!  You break it…?”
Ethan (without missing a beat): YOU FIX IT!

Well…that’s how Ethan would run his “repair shop” :)

You make my day

November 19, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up | 1 comment

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Ethan: Mommy, your makeup today is beautiful.  I like it!
Mommy: But Ethan, Mommy’s not wearing any makeup today.
Ethan: Really?
Mommy: So do I still look nice?
Ethan: Yes of course Mommy! :)

Making an Influence

November 18, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up | No comments

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As the eldest among all his cousins, Ethan’s role as an influencer is reinforced each time he meets up with them.  Of course, it goes without saying that he gets daily practice by being a role model for little Hannah. 

Hannah adores and admires her brother.  She follows his actions and his words and looks up to him like any girl would look up to her big brother.  He is her idol, and Ethan…well, he basks in all that admiration.

Ethan’s influence does not end just there.  When his younger cousins are around him, they tend to gravitate towards him and follow his every move too.  Not long ago, I witnessed his cousin Jonathan, learn how to jump, just by watching Ethan.  His cousin Collin also followed exactly what Ethan did when he last visited us a few weeks back.

Big brother.  Role model.  And superstar to his sister and all his cousins.  Ethan has really come a long way from being Mr Bulat. :)

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Ring Around the Rosy with Hannah

November 9, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | No comments

One of my favorite playtimes with Ethan Koko is when we play “Ring Around the Rosy”.  Sometimes Mommy would join us and we would all join our hands and make a little circle and sing and dance around together.  Sometimes it will just be Ethan Koko and me, and Mommy will sing the song.

But there are times when Ethan Koko is busy with his other activities.  During those times, I customize my “Ring Around the Rosy” playtime and have a lot of fun by myself too!

 

Who says we can’t have fun on our own? :P

Our Genting Highlands Getaway

November 1, 2010 in Celebrations, Entertainment, Ethan, Hannah, Vacation | 5 comments

Two weeks ago, we took a short and much-needed vacation and headed up to Genting Highlands.  It was our very first trip up there in a really long while, the last time we’d been up there being in late 2005, a few months before Ethan was born.  The kids were both totally psyched up about the whole idea of the holiday, so much so that they didn’t even sleep at all the entire journey!  Normally Hannah would fall asleep midway, but this time, she was very much awake, and Ethan was asking, “Why is it taking so long to get to Genting Highlands?” all the way there…

We took a little bit longer than usual to reach our destination because we had to make more stops than usual: Ethan had to go for very frequent toilet breaks.

And despite the fact that the kids had no sleep at all the entire journey, they were as excited as ever when we arrived!

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Besides being a chance for the kids to have fun, we also met up with Ah Ma and Ah Kong from Ipoh in Genting Highlands, and the kids were pleased as pie to see both their grandparents.

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Although the 3D2N stay in Genting Highlands left us all tired out, we all had a lot of fun… :)

I’ll let the pictures do the talking…

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Got the All Park day pass for us so that we could enjoy the rides in both the outdoor and indoor theme parks.  Hannah could still enter the parks for free for now, but there were some rides she was not allowed to ride on.

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“Daddy Daddy, can I please go ride on the airplane like Ethan Koko and Mommy?”

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Sorry baby, no can do…but we did take a family ride in the revolving teacups…and boy did that leave us incredibly dizzy!

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Hannah showing her “dizzy and confused” look.

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Feeding the koi in the koi pond. 

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Making sure the fish are well fed.

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All the fishes sure had a healthy appetite!

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Ethan..in deep thought…perhaps thinking about which ride to go on next!

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“What??!!!  You mean we need to go for lunch now??!!  So soon?!!!”

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…not before Ethan takes us for a drive in the antique car! :)

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Happy and contented passengers in the antique car ride.

 genting14 Lunch at Ming Ren “Lamb Specialty” Restaurant: Braised Lamb with Lotus Root (Yummy!)

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“No more pictures, please, Mommy!  I wanna go back to the Theme Park now!

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In Beryl’s Chocolate Wonderland.  Hannah is errr…making a getaway!

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In a land far far away…

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Spectacular view of Genting Highlands

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“Daddy, are you sure there are no dinosaurs around here?”

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Entrance to Dinosaurland

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Little Miss Pouty Lips

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What goes BUMP in the night?  Ethan having a go at the Junior Bumper Cars.

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All smiles as he got on the Ride de Paris in the Indoor Theme Park.

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And here’s one for the road!  Don’t we all look utterly satisfied with our buffet lunch at Coffee Terrace? :)

 

Swan Pose

October 26, 2010 in Ethan, Exercise | No comments

Ethan has totally perfected his swan pose…look how flexible he is:

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And if we have any visitors, Ethan would very willingly demonstrate this pose to them.

To refresh your memory, he was actually doing the downdog pose when he was much younger.  He learnt the swan pose from his music and movement class in school.  And guess what?  Hannah is actually doing the downdog pose now! :)

The Power of Breast Milk

October 15, 2010 in Breastfeeding, Ethan, Hannah | No comments

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I have not been writing a whole lot about my breastfeeding journey with Hannah, at least not as much as I did when I was breastfeeding Ethan.  The thing is, breastfeeding does get easier with the second kid onwards.

Hannah was and still is breastfed from birth till now (she’s 19 months now), and she’s showing no signs of stopping yet.  Several people have asked me when I would be weaning Hannah off the breast, but with all the perks and fringe benefits that come with breastfeeding, it’s difficult to make a conscious effort…especially since we recently discovered another PLUS point of breastfeeding.

When Hannah was down with herpangina, the only source of food she would take as she was recovering was breast milk.  I have no doubt in my mind that Mommy’s milk helped her tremendously as she was battling the virus.  Since herpangina was a highly contagious disease, the doc told us to try our best to ensure Ethan does not come near Hannah.

But we all know that is close to impossible.

Ethan visited Hannah once in the hospital, and a few hours after he went home with Daddy, my heart sank when Pete told me that Ethan was registering a high fever.  The next morning, his fever was still prevalent, and when I told the doctor, she advised me that I should give Ethan my freshly expressed breast milk, since I would possibly have developed the antibodies for the disease.

So when we got home from hospital, I expressed a little bit of breast milk for Ethan.  It wasn’t even an ounce, I think, for I had just fed Hannah.  When I told Ethan I was going to give him breast milk, he said, “I don’t want it, Mommy.  Breast milk is for babies!”

I told him I knew that, but since he was not feeling well, the doctor asked me to give him some of Mommy’s milk to help him recover.  I mixed the breast milk with his chocolate milk in a cup and he drank it all up. I did this about 3 times that day, and once the following day.  By the end of the first day, his fever had totally gone, and he was back to his normal self.  And when I was preparing the drink for him the following day, he said, “I don’t need breast milk anymore Mommy, I’m all better now!”

Well, I don’t know if it was coincidence or not, but I do think Mommy’s milk had something to do with healing him. Now wouldn’t you agree that Mommy’s milk the most wonderful thing in the world?

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We did lunch at Sushi King

October 14, 2010 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Parenting | 1 comment

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Strangely enough, Ethan has developed a huge liking for Sushi King.  It must have started from the time his school was discussing “Restaurants” as the theme and the name Sushi King must have come up.  Suffice to say, Ethan will request to have lunch or dinner at Sushi King sometimes, and he enjoys himself on every occasion.  Although we don’t really like the food there, the look of joy on Ethan’s face is enough to make us feel satisfied. :)

Today, I decided to let Ethan skip lunch in school and opted to take him to Sushi King for lunch (it’s Japanese fast food, but it’s healthier than the *other* kind of fast food).  Whenever I take him for lunch, he would tell all his teachers and friends where he would be going, and today was no exception.

Sushi King was having a “RM2 per plate of rice-based sushi” promotion and today was the last day.  Thankfully we managed to get a good spot by the kaiten belt, and Ethan had fun helping me get the plates of sushi from the kaiten belt.  Our boy finished his entire bowl of rice in his kiddie’s meal and also a bowl of chawan mushi. 

Well…what can I say?  It was definitely a great lunch and an equally awesome mother-and-son bonding experience :)  We’ll be back!

Impromptu Soccer Training

October 14, 2010 in Ethan, Exercise, Growing Up, Hannah | 2 comments

Last Sunday morning, we made it to Youth Park for some fun impromptu “soccer training”.   It was also the first time we used the 1 on 1 soccer set we bought for Ethan.  The kids had a lot of fun, as did the adults… I’ll let the photos speak for themselves :)

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Ethan doing some warm-up exercises before *training*.

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Hannah doing some light stretching too…

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Run Ethan, run!!!

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Ethan doing a mental calculation of the angle he should curve the ball before taking a free kick…

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Hannah, preparing to shoot for the goal!

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 …and Ethan scores…from an EXTREMELY close range! (he could even do the celebratory hugs and whatnot!)

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Ethan and Daddy, perfecting a *pass and score* sequence.

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“It’s mine!!!”

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…and…err…honing his goalkeeping skills.

 

Happy Birthday Daddy!

October 12, 2010 in Celebrations, Ethan, Hannah | No comments

Last Wednesday, we celebrated Daddy’s birthday.  Pete took a day off from work, and we both went out for a nice lunch, just the two of us :)

Then we fetched Ethan from school and caught a movie in Queensbay Mall.  We saw Alpha & Omega, simply because it was the only *kid* show at that moment.  Ethan was so hyped up and excited about the whole thing.  He was bouncing around and couldn’t wait to get into the cinema.  We got some popcorn too, of course!

We picked up a nice football cake for Daddy before we left the mall, and I had a birthday voucher which entitled me to a discount on the cake PLUS a free ice cream.  So Ethan got to eat some yummy chocolate ice cream too.  Actually some time back, Ethan had wanted to get the football cake for Daddy and had told me that.  In addition, he had also spilled the beans and told his Daddy what cake we were getting…so no surprise there.  Bah.

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But he did have fun eating his ice cream …

Sure sounds a lot like Ethan’s birthday instead of Daddy’s huh?

We picked Hannah up and headed for home where we had a simple dinner and the cake-cutting (before the ice cream cake melted!)

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Look what I can do, folks!

October 11, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up | No comments

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Ethan, proving that he has inherited the ART of rolling the tongue from Daddy and Mommy :)

The shoes that fit

October 8, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah | 2 comments

One of the hardest things to do in the mornings, when we are ready to leave the house for school, is to get both kids ready, wearing their sandals/shoes and out the door pronto.  I had been battling with this for a few weeks, with one kid or the other dilly-dallying, and short of tearing out my hair, I honestly didn’t know what to do.

Until I stumbled on the perfect solution!

I decided to make wearing sandals a competition.  Knowing my kids and their competitive streaks, I would ask, “Hmmm…let’s see who’s gonna win and finish wearing their sandals first today!”

Ethan will jump up and head straight for the door, and Hannah will scream, “Me!” and run out too, getting her sandals ready.

Ethan will then say, “Ready?….. Set?….” and Hannah will say, “GO!!!”

Ethan will wear his sandals and I will put on Hannah’s sandals.  Ethan wins most of the time, and will proclaim loudly, “I’m the winner!”

This *system* was foolproof…or so I thought.

Lately, Hannah has other ideas… When she says, “Go!”, she refuses to let me wear her sandals for her.  She would kick and scream and just sit there holding her sandals.  Took me a while to figure it out, but I soon found out that she wanted her BROTHER to wear them for her instead!

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Driving Mr & Miss Bulat

October 7, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 2 comments

Many many moons ago, our visits to the malls were only for shopping, movie-watching and (sometimes) eating.  Now, with kids, our trips to malls are for (mostly) window-shopping, eating and, more often than not, include visits to certain *sections* in the malls where the kids can have a go at the rides.

Here are some shots this blogger-mommy managed to snap whilst my kids were having fun.

Hannah *driving* a red car next to Mr Bear:

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My kids LOVE the little merry-go-round.  Ethan loves to high-five us as he goes around and around…look how cheeky my boy looks!

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And Hannah’s favorite is the purple horsy.  I think it’s so adorable the way she hold’s the horsy’s ears, instead of the handles provided!

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There are also some rides where both Ethan and Hannah get to ride together, like in this red convertible.  Here’s a short video I managed to take:

 

Ethan and Hannah have also enjoyed driving their own kiddy cars…see how cool they look?

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Ethan had a go with the go-kart car, and Hannah got into a car that could be controlled remotely, by, who else but, Daddy! (by the way, the band-aid on Hannah’s forehead was because she had a small ouchie when she fell and hit her head on the cabinet earlier that day).

 

Kids say the strangest things!

September 28, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments | 5 comments

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Ethan: Mommy, I want new babies!
Mommy: Huh? What do you mean?
Ethan: Mommy, I want 5 new babies; 2 more baby girls and 3 baby boys!
Mommy: And how are we getting those new babies, Ethan?
Ethan: Buy them Mommy!
Mommy: Buy the babies?  Where do we go to buy babies?
Ethan: At the Baby Shop, Mommy!  The same place we got Hannah from!

Dessert time = family time

September 23, 2010 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Funny Moments, Hannah | 1 comment

Who doesn’t like desserts, eh?  When we dine out, if the kids are behaving well at the dining table, we occasionally indulge in a serving of dessert at the end of our meal.  The dessert is shared, because the serving is often way too big for just one person, and also because we do not want the kids to be super-hyper-sugar-charged afterward.

This here is the delicious scrumptious Molten Chocolate Cake we ordered from Chilli’s.  It’s warm chocolate cake at the bottom, topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzled with yummy chocolate sauce at the top.

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In any case, we’ve discovered that these special dessert time moments are awesome family time moments too.  Look how happy the kids are…

Ethan loves it…

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…and so does Hannah (see how she’s giving a “thumbs up”?)

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We also love the simple pleasures of the sundae cone from McDonald’s:

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My Glee-ful Kids

September 23, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Hannah | No comments

You know that distinctable starting sound of that Glee song “Don’t Stop Believing”?  Yes, the part at the beginning when the cast of Glee sings, “Da-da-da-da-da…..”?

Well, this is what Hannah does whenever she hears this song, be it on the radio, on the TV, or when we play the CD..

 

…and errr… the last bit of that video is just Ethan trying to get part of himself into the shot. LOL

A Lil bit of Doggie Lovin’

September 17, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up | No comments

When Ethan was much younger, he loved dogs.  In fact, his close encounter with a golden retriever was a really fun and loving one.

But somewhere along the line, he began to have a fear of dogs.  We would be taking our walks in the park when we were in the States and he would scream, “Aaaaahhhh!!! Dog!!!!” and run away or hide behind us.

So a few weekends ago, when we were vacationing in KL and decided to pay his Aunty Adelle a visit, we were bracing ourselves for some major screaming.  Adelle has a labrador and we figured Ethan would be afraid.

But we were so wrong…!!!

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Look at how well they got along together…in fact, I think the lab (Hazy) was a bit scared of him for following her all around the house.  Even Hannah was not afraid of the dog.

When we asked Ethan why he wasn’t afraid of the dog, he said, “Because it’s a friendly doggie, Mommy.  It’s not a barking one!”

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Come to the Table

September 15, 2010 in Ethan, Hannah, Parenting | No comments

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We should have done this a long time ago…but we had always thought the Green Mamut table from Ikea would not be able to fit into our trunk. 

We took the risk anyways, and were surprised to find out that it fits!

So the kids now have a new table.  They use it for just about anything under the sun: for their activities, for the coloring and drawing, for their meals…and errmmm…for climbing on too!  Sometimes Daddy and Mommy will join them at the table for their meals as well (we get that Japanese vibe cuz the table is lower).

Ethan loves the table because he can do almost anything there, and Hannah loves it because she does not need to be strapped into the high chair for her meals now.   I love it because it’s round and has absolutely no sharp edges (and also because crayon and pencil marks wash off super easy!)

The green table has taken over the place of our dark brown side table in the living room, making the room brighter and more cheerful.

Both Hands Full!

September 15, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 4 comments

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We should actually be counting our blessings that the phase had lasted this long.  For after 18 months of sitting in the stroller when we’re about to go out, pushing Hannah all the way in the stroller to the car and then loading her in the car and unloading her back onto the stroller when we get back home, Hannah finally decided to *put her foot down* and now refuses to get into the stroller when we are going out.

It started with her in the infant carrier, where all I needed to do was carry her in the carrier and place it in the carrier base in the car.  Then when she outgrew the carrier, I pushed her in the stroller and loaded her into the car seat in the car.  Sometimes she would refuse, but we’ve always managed to get her into the stroller with the lure of a toy or a book.  The use of the stroller has made it so much easier to handle both kids, especially when we have other stuff to carry.

Not anymore though.

Now she wants to walk with us all the way to the car.  So now I have both my hands full, one hand holding Ethan and the other holding Hannah.  She also insists on slinging her bag whenever she walks.  Looks like I will not be able to carry a lot of other things with me now.

And the picture above was taken just yesterday, just after we had parked our car and were preparing to go upstairs.  Don’t they look happy and cheeky at the same time?

Do-Re-Mi Ethan-style

September 12, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments | No comments

I ran out of videos to show the kids the other day, so I finally decided to show them the song segments from The Sound of Music DVD.  After a couple of times watching the Do-Re-Mi portion, Ethan started singing the song over and over again…in a style that is all his own…

I recorded this while we were waiting for our food in a restaurant .. here is his version, albeit a little cut short.. LOL

 

Ethan’s First School Concert

September 3, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up | 5 comments

A few weekends ago, Ethan’s preschool had a little concert.  The theme of the concert this year was “The Garden”.

Prior to the concert day, Ethan had been reporting to us as to what he would be doing.  Apparently he would be singing and dancing in a Chinese song performance.  Initially he was supposed to say something in Chinese onstage together with another girl, his classmate.  But the teachers then decided that the girl would say it on her own, and Ethan was instead tasked with introducing his performance number….yes, in Chinese :P

On the evening of the concert, we all drove to Ethan’s school and Ethan went off to the room to get into his costumes and do some *hair and makeup*. 

The concert was rather well-organized, and given the fact that the performers were all 2 to 4 year olds, it was superb.  Based on the concert’s theme, all the performances were centered around the garden theme: flowers, planting, the sun, farmers…etc.

Ethan’s performance was the very last one, and the truth is, both Pete and I were REALLY proud of our boy because he did a FANTASTIC job.  He danced, he sang and he thoroughly looked like he enjoyed himself. :)

Hannah unfortunately had fallen asleep before her brother’s performance, so we’ll have to show her the video some other day.

Here’s Ethan introducing his group’s performance.  What he said was,

“我们是地球的孩子 ( wǒ men shì dì qiú de hái zǐ  )” which means “We are the children of the Earth”, a very meaningful song indeed.

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We actually practised saying what we *thought* he was supposed to say during the concert, but little did we know that what we practised was a different phrase.  It was the *earlier* one, but the teachers had changed it.  Anyway, Ethan still managed to say the right one when the time came.

And here are some of the *rather blurry* photos from the concert - these were the best we could get from where we were sitting.  We’re waiting to see the video :)

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Ethan exuded confidence and showed us what a big boy he was becoming.  On stage, we could tell he was very HAPPY and he was looking out for Daddy and Mommy, perhaps to tell us, “Look Dad and Mom!  Here I am!”

And we are so very proud of him. :)

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Home Activity Time

August 19, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | No comments

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It all started off when I decided to print some simple activity sheets for Ethan to occupy himself with.  The internet has an endless resource of all sorts of activity sheets and Ethan loved them all.  He loves using his pencils and color pencils and completing everything those activity sheets required.

Then Hannah got interested too.  Of course, she can’t quite do the activities per se yet, but she just simply loved the idea of holding a pencil or color pencil and scribbling on a piece of paper.

She would pull up a stool and sit together with her brother and they would both go wild with their creativity.  Yes, sometimes they snatch from each other and yes, sometimes it gets out of hand and they start scribbling on the tables, but still, it’s such a joy to watch them spending time together…and not pulling each other’s hair out! :P

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Little Mister Creativity

August 11, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Parenting | 1 comment

Ethan stayed home from school today, because he was still nursing a forceful dry cough.  Didn’t want him spreading those germs around school.

Just so he doesn’t miss out too much, I called up his teacher and asked if I could homeschool him today.  His teacher prepared some activity sheets and I stopped by his school to collect them just now.

After I had explained the first activity (writing and coloring) to Ethan, I left him alone and went about my house chores.  When I came back to check on him a few minutes later, this is what I saw on his chair:

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Now I don’t know whether to laugh or cry…he said he wrote his name on it because the chair belongs to him. :P

..oh by the way, the picture above shows him in the background busy doing some *painting*… :P

Lullaby

August 10, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah | 2 comments

 

Is Hannah asking for a lullaby?

Well, Ethan certainly thinks so…for every time Hannah sweetly says, “Lullaby, lullaby..”, Ethan will say, “Mommy, Hannah is asking you to sing her a lullaby”, and when Mommy is busy, Ethan will take matters into his own hands and sing, “Lullaby, and goodnight…little Hannah go to sleep…”

Everybody say…”Awwwwwww…..” :)

Bursting with Confidence

August 4, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up | 5 comments

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It’s difficult to imagine that Ethan was once a quiet boy, unable to express himself … but now, he’s all words and active as ever.  He speaks like an adult, possibly because we have never used baby talk with him before.

I’m not allowed to call him “darling” or “sweetie” or “baby” anymore, because Ethan says he is not a small baby anymore.  Now he is a “medium boy”.

He picks up after us like a sponge; whatever we say or do is repeated in a similar fashion, often in an endearing manner:

One morning, when his Daddy gave him a kiss on the forehead before he left for work, Ethan responded with, “Awwwww…” , maybe because he heard me say that before.

He’s also learning the “Copy me” game now, where he would cheekily follow what we say or do.  And then when I start speaking to him in Hokkien, he would retort, “Mommy, why are you speaking in Spanish?”

Sometimes Ethan says logical things like:

“Mommy, I drink chocolate milk and fresh milk.  I don’t drink low fat milk, because I’m not fat!”

We’ve had embarassing moments too, like last week in church during the sermon, Ethan proclaimed loudly, “Daddy, why is he taking so long?”

…and his questions just keep getting harder and harder:

Ethan: Mommy, where is God?
Mommy: God is everywhere, Ethan.  He’s all around us, He is in our home, He is in school with you, and most importantly, He is in our hearts. 

Ethan: Where is heaven?
Mommy: Heaven is where God lives.  It’s a really beautiful place and someday we will all go and stay there together with God.

Ethan: Why doesn’t everybody know God?
Mommy: Well, maybe because not everyone has gotten the chance to know God yet, Ethan.

Ethan: Why doesn’t *** pray to God? (he makes this remark because he noticed that some homes do not have the cross hung outside the door)
Mommy: Oh, maybe *** DOES pray to God…it doesn’t mean he/she doesn’t pray to God if they don’t have a cross outside their house.

Some questions are simply too *HARD* to answer…

Ethan: Daddy, why are we parking on the 6th floor, Daddy…why why why?

He’s even got a plan for the future:

Ethan: Mommy, when I grow bigger, I’ll go to office with Daddy; and when Hannah grows bigger she will go to market with you, Mommy. :)

And he keeps surprising us every day…especially with his reading skills.  A few nights ago, as we were tucking the kids in to bed, Hannah brought their goodnight story book, and Daddy said it’s Mommy’s turn to read.  But Ethan interjected and said, “NO!  I wanna read tonight!”

And he did.

The whole story…all by himself, save for a word or two, which he paused and asked us how to pronounce.

He did such a good job, really.  And even ended the story with a dramatic “THE END”.

How can we not be beaming with pride? :)

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Football Fun in the Field

July 28, 2010 in Ethan, Exercise | 2 comments

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Last week, Ethan was literally counting down to the weekend, because we told him we would take him out to play football in the field.  You see, it’s quite hard to experience the Jabulani ball at its fullest potential by merely kicking it around the house, yes?

Even on Friday night, he was already telling me, “Mommy, tomorrow will be Saturday the 24th of July.  I’ll go and play FOOTBALL!”

Yes, he was THAT excited. :)

So on Saturday morning (well…actually it was quite LATE in the morning), we packed his ball, his boots and socks and we headed off to the Esplanade field, where Daddy and Ethan could kick some ball.  On the way there, while in the elevator, and in our apartment lobby, Ethan was eagerly telling every Tom, Dick and Harry that he was going to play football.  He even told the apartment cleaning lady!

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We got him into his gear when we arrived and he went absolutely crazy!  He really had a lot of fun, running around and screaming GOAL!!!!  everywhere… even though there was no goal post.

A Dutch family, who was in Penang for a vacation, happened to be there too, and coincidentally, the twin boys in that family were Ethan’s age.  So Ethan had two new friends playing football with him.

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Just look at the way he kicked the ball!

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And here’s how you complain to the referee…”Hey ref!  That was a FOUL!” Ethan said.

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We have GOT to get him that makeshift goal.

Ethan’s first-ever Sports Day

July 26, 2010 in Ethan, Exercise, Growing Up | 4 comments

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Ethan experienced his first ever Sports Day last Sunday.  He had been looking forward to it for many weeks now, and every day leading up to the Sports Day, he would report to us the preparations and pratices he did in school.

We arrived about 15 minutes before the events kicked off, so little Hannah had some time to roam around too…

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First, they had a torch run and then the kids from all the classes did a march past.  Look at my little boy, all grown up! :)

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For the events, each class was split into two teams of different colors.  For Ethan’s class, he was in the GREEN team, challenging his other classmates in the YELLOW team.

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First they had to walk on a balance beam.

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…and then weave in and out of the traffic cones.

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Then, pick up a small coconut, aim and hit a row of 4 cans. 

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Pick up the coconut, arrange the cans back in order, and run back to the team to tag the next person.

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Cheer as loudly as you can for your team!

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It was a close fight, but at the end of it, Ethan’s green team won!  … and parents of the kids in the green team cheered and high-fived each other! :)

Yay for team spirit! :)

The kids each got a medal and a goodie bag:

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There were also events for the parents to participate in together with their kids.

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I had not planned on taking part at first, because I had to care for Hannah, but one of Ethan’s teachers offered to carry Hannah for a few minutes, so I could participate.

And our team WON!  Yay!!

All in all, Ethan really had fun during his Sports Day.  In addition to winning his medal and prizes, he got to hang out with his friends after his event.

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..and of course, he kept saying that he WON! :)

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Ethan goes to the movies!

July 20, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan | 1 comment

Two weeks ago, I decided to take Ethan to the movies for a treat.  His school was closed on that day, so we headed off to Queensbay Mall to catch Toy Story 3.  Check out his happy and excited face:

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Unfortunately though, all the tickets were sold out and so we had to walk away disappointedly :(

Of course, to appease him, we hung around Queensbay Mall for a little while longer and did some fun stuff. 

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And I promised him I would take him to the movies some other day.

Little did I know that the screening of Toy Story 3 ended on that very same day, so I was left to look for other suitable kids’ movies.

..which was when I heard about Despicable Me.  The title sure doesn’t sound very kid-friendly, but I read a few reviews and apparently it was deemed more suitable for kids compared to Toy Story 3.  Plus, a few of my friends had watched it, and gave their thumbs up.

So yesterday, since Ethan’s school had declared a holiday/rest day following their school sports day on Sunday, my boy and I trotted off to the cinema to catch a movie.  It was Ethan’s first ever experience watching a movie, and we could tell he was really hyped up about it.  The night before, he had exclaimed, “Yay!  Tomorrow we’ll go and watch a movie!”  He even proudly told our neighbors in the elevator that we were going to catch a movie.

We were a little bit apprehensive about bringing Ethan to the movies before, because at home when he is watching TV, he would ask to change the channel every now and then.  And we ALL know changing channels is not to be heard of in movies, right? :P

But just last week, he managed to sit through an entire movie session of Toy Story 2 on my laptop, so we figured he must be ready.

So anyway, to make perfectly sure we had tickets, I had booked the tickets online and collected them a day before the movie.  Before we left the house, Ethan reminded me over and over again to bring the tickets.

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We arrived in Queensbay Mall and had a quick chicken rice lunch, after which Ethan said we should hurry to the cinema before the show starts. Got ourselves some popcorn, and headed into the cinema.

I got back row seats, so we could exit quietly if need be, but there was really no reason for concern.  At first, Ethan asked lots of questions, and commented on why the show had not started, all LOUDLY.  But after I’d explained the basic rules to him, he was good throughout the movie and sat through.  There were times when he said the movie was “a little bit scary” and he held on to my arm, but most of the time, he watched it intently and even went “Uh-oh” and “Hurry!” at the right parts.

All in all, we had a blast and after the show, Ethan wanted to sit through all the credits too.  We’ll definitely do it again…hopefully really soon! :)

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Round and spiky and … RED?

July 19, 2010 in Ethan, Exercise, Growing Up | 4 comments

Ethan’s got new playthings!  Check ‘em out…

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We finally managed to find a pair of football /soccer boots for Ethan in his size, and Daddy got him a Size 1 Jabulani ball in the Liverpool flavor too!

Ethan has been *scoring goals* around the house ever since, and he really can’t wait to break into his new boots too!

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There was something else we are seriously considering getting for Ethan…we’re holding back only because it’s a little bit big on him…but what do you think?  Should we get it anyway? :)

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Scissor Skills

July 8, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Milestones, Parenting | No comments

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I knew this day would come, but it came a little faster than I had expected.  Using the scissors is very important fine motor skill to master, especially for toddlers, and Ethan is now old enough to learn and perfect that skill.

He has been showing a very keen interest in mastering the scissors, so I try to coach and guide him as best as I can.  I got him a scissor-cutting book with different shapes and lines to cut, and of course, a pair of safety scissors. The first pair of scissors we got for Ethan was way too blunt.  It did not have any steel blades, only plastic edges.  And this became very frustrating to use.  So a few days ago, I spotted a pair of scissors with steel blades but BLUNT points, and the packaging mentioned that it was recommended for children aged 4 and above.  Perfect, I thought.

And Ethan has been happily using this pair since.

Among the *skills* I am emphasizing are:

  • How to hold the scissors (point blades down when not in use)
  • How to pass the scissors to another person (i.e. close the blades, hold the blades and pass the handles to someone)
  • Turn the paper, NOT the scissors
  • Alternative ways to cut shapes

We try to cut out shapes and lines a page a day, but we can only indulge in this when Hannah is asleep.  Hehehe…

Ethan the Star Kid

July 6, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up | 2 comments

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When I picked Ethan up from school yesterday, he had a medal around his neck.  He proudly showed it to me, saying, “Look Mommy, I’m a STAR KID!”

Apparently, his school has a Star Kid of the Week award whereby kids who are at their best behaviour get awarded with the Star Kid medal for the week.  Ethan has mentioned this Star Kid award before, but this was the first time he has gotten it.

His face was beaming ever so brightly, and Mommy is as proud as can be. :)

Capturing Little Miracles

June 30, 2010 in Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Parenting | 5 comments

When Hannah turned one, we had been looking for a photographer to take nice portraiture shots of her.  We had gone to a kids photo studio when Ethan turned one the last time, but that photo studio had already moved.   

We were still hunting for a photographer, when our friend Linda, who’s a freelance photographer, very kindly offered to take the photos for us.  We also wanted some family shots and of course, of Mr Bulat (aka Ethan) himself.

Now, if you don’t already know, family and kids’ portraiture shots are quite difficult to take and need a lot of patience and time, both from the photographer and from the *objects being photographed*.  This is because kids lose their focus easily and might not be at their best behaviour at all times.  And knowing my kids and how active they can get, we were prepared for a *highly energized* session, … which was what we got.

It was a Saturday morning in late May, and we planned on taking some shots indoors in our home, just to allow the kids to relax and be themselves, and then adjourning downstairs to the pool area.  However, it started RAINING just as Linda walked in, so we had to make do with indoor shots for most part of the morning, with the earlier shots taken of Ethan and Hannah in their jammies :)

Ethan warmed up immediately (which was so unlike him) whilst Hannah took a little while to *get into the mood*.  And with whatever *props* we found at home, we tried to make the session as lively and as entertaining as possible. We only went downstairs to the pool around noon, and because it had been raining the whole morning, it wasn’t that hot.

And I’d like to add that Linda was such a sport and took so many many many photos, of everything we did, and of everything that happened.  It was a delightful (but Pete said *tiring*) session and I loved every second of it.

Linda recently passed us the photos and they are awesome!  I love all the shots she managed to capture, and they all looked simply amazing!

Here is a preview of our Family Portraiture shots … I’m experimenting with Windows Live Movie Maker and decided to compile some of the shots into a short movie-presentation… :)

  

You can see the rest of the filtered shots here.  For the entire collection on DVD, please make a viewing appointment and come view it at our house, okay? :)  Thanks again Linda, for creating these wonderful memories! :)

Follow my Lead

June 24, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up, Hannah, Milestones | 3 comments

Hannah is VERY intuitive.

Ethan recently started playing a game where he would hide and scream “Surprise!!” when Daddy walks in the door in the evenings.

After about two times of doing this routine, Hannah has picked up this *game* too.

When we hide ourselves, Hannah would put a finger to her mouth, indicating “Shhhhhh…..!!!”  (see how she picked it up from her big brother?)

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and when we yell “Surprise!!”, Hannah raises her arms in the air and screams out loud too!

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What follows after that is the welcoming committee greeting of hugging their Daddy as he comes in the door…. (Awwwwww….)

A Train Shared

June 24, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Funny Moments, Growing Up, Hannah | No comments

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This ride-on train is one of the most popular toys in our house.  Ethan still rides on it, even though he is way too tall for it now, and Hannah can now climb on it on her own and move around in it with her feet.  Yeah, that’s how much our little girl has grown!

When once Hannah needed Ethan to take her for rides in the train, now she can give her brother rides too!

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Soon, I doubt the seat would be able to fit the two of them simultaneously! :)

Of course, sometimes there are squabbles as to who gets to ride on the train, and sometimes Hannah is forbidden to ride on it, but in the end, my two little ones do work things out… :)

Earning his Ice Cream

June 23, 2010 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Funny Moments | 3 comments

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Yesterday, while I was driving Ethan back from school, we passed McDonald’s and he asked me to stop for some ice cream.  However, I had already driven past it, so I told him he could have ice cream at home instead.

Mommy: Don’t worry, you can have the vanila ice cream at home.  We have some in the freezer.  You want some?
Ethan: Yay! YES!  I want some ice cream, Mommy!
Mommy: But wait..is your cough all better?
Ethan: Yes Mommy, my cough is ALL GONE.
Mommy: Good, then you can have some ice cream.
Ethan: Mommy, my cough is ALL GONE because I give ALL the germs to HANNAH!

Five days in Ipoh

June 21, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Hannah, Vacation | 2 comments

Nope, we didn’t just spend our Ipoh trip stuffing ourselves silly with food.  That would be BAD.

The kids were occupied with other interesting things too!

Pete’s recent business trip coincided with the first week of the school holidays, so I decided to take both Ethan and Hannah down to Ipoh for a short holiday.  So what were my kids up to?  Hmmm…let’s see…

We had a belated birthday celebration for Ah Ma :)  I ordered a delicious butter cake and had candles so that Ethan could provide his candle-blowing services.

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Kinta City mall was having a mini clay-sculpting workshop for kids where they would guide the kids to make a clay statue of their fathers in conjunction with Father’s Day.

First, you roll the clay between your hands and press it firmly onto a cardboard:

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Make sure you press it hard so that the clay mould sticks to the cardboard:

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Make indentations for the eyes, and shape the nose and mouth:

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Next, roll the clay and mould the base:

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Sculpt the hair on the head and create the entire face, neck and ears.  Then write a Happy Father’s Day message to Daddy:

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Attach a string to the card and tie it around the sculpture:

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Finally, pose cheekily with finished product :)

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Ethan was so excited about his sculpture, that he called his Daddy almost immediately and told him, “Daddy, I made a statue of you, Daddy!”

…On some days, I would allow Ethan to play some games on my laptop.  We found this cool baking game where he needs to *bake a cake* according to the picture provided.

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We also found time one morning to take both the kids to Polo Ground.  It’s a nice exercise area where lots of people come to do their runs or group exercises.  Now Polo Ground is also equipped with beautiful play structures for kids.  Ethan was thrilled!

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Hannah had her share of fun too!  Although she couldn’t quite explore the entire playground structure like her brother, she found other ways to have fun…

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I’m sure the kids had a good time in Ipoh, and especially spending that extra time with their maternal grandparents.  We drove back to Penang on Friday, tired but also just happy to be back home :)

World Cup Mania

June 18, 2010 in Entertainment, Ethan, Growing Up, Milestones | 2 comments

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Everyone’s high on World Cup Mania nowadays…yes, even Ethan!  And when the newspapers published a pullout with pictures of the 32 teams, Ethan was VERY excited and wanted to learn how to say the names of all the countries.  He kept the pullout and has been learning the names of the countries ever since.  His favorites are Brazil and South Africa (because the team’s jerseys are yellow).

And now, he can proudly name them all! (I love the way he pronounces “Ivory Coast” :))

 

And you know what?  It’s not only from memory that he can name the countries!  Ethan can really read…here he is, reading from our World Cup Guide magazine.

 

So is this an indication of interest in:

A: Sports
B: World Geography
C: Reading
D: All of the above :)

 

Time to have a Pet?

June 15, 2010 in Ethan, Funny Moments | 1 comment

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We live in a condo, so it’s impossible to keep a pet.  But we do harbor hopes of owning a pet one fine day.

Recently Ethan started role-playing as an animal doctor.  He would tell us all that he has changed his name to become “Animal Doctor” and that he would tell all his friends in school he has changed his name too.  He would use his Ben 10 watch (with light feature) to check our mouths and ears, and declare us “Healthy!”

We figured it might be because he wanted to have a pet of his o