Ethan and Talia are now 4 and 2! This year, Ethan articulated that he wanted to celebrate his birthday with his classmates "with a cake, and then everyone will stand near me!" So we had a simple celebration in his class and he clearly enjoyed the princely treatment for the day! All his friends crowded around him to admire his cake and wish him a happy birthday.....no wonder he is looking forward to his 5th birthday already! We decided to celebrate both their birthdays together as they are only 2 weeks apart, and share mostly the same friends at this stage. Here is the birthday Boy & Girl looking very focused on their birthday cake lovingly and freshly baked by Ah Mah (it was still warm when it came!) It's in the shape of a horseshoe so both got their own corners to blow out their own candles!
Daddy was away on Talia's actual birthday so we celebrated simply at home with some candles on birthday muffins followed by a fun-filled outing to West Coast Park. Sometimes the simple things are often the best and the kids had a great time playing with the sand and each other there. After playing out in the hot afternoon sun, they got a special ice-cream treat to cool off! Daddy happened to call us from the US while we were having ice-creams and Ethan was so excited he called him "Ice-Cream Daddy"!
We've been exploring our new neighbourhood and found that One Fullerton & the Marina Bay area is a short 5 min bus ride from our home! It's a really nice place to stroll around with the kids or just sit and have a nice coffee or brunch.
We didn't think we would be living this close to such iconic symbols of Singapore!
Talia's a little more appreciative of the scenery than her brother is. He looked quite unimpressed -- until we found some amazing automatic doors in the underpass that open & close once you step into the range of its sensor...... You should have seen the glee on their faces when they realised the power they now unleashed on the auto doors! Best backyard in the World!
We have a little Tiger in our lush jungle. She is small but can roar quite sweetly.
Tigers have been quite popular among our critters of late. They had a great time watching the tigers at the zoo some weeks ago and Talia 'chatted' with them by roaring cheerfully back at them! She seemed to be amazed with how big the real ones were and said "Big!" with outstreched arms to emphasize her point!
We also took Tiger Airways for our recent family trip to Phuket and the kids were thrilled to be in an airplane with a tiger on it! Now every plane they see is "Tiger Aeroplane!".......They probably think that Tiger is the best airline in the world!!!
Most kids enjoy the great fun of splashing around in pools but when I saw the sparkle in Talia's eyes when we brought her swimming, I just knew she was a natural water baby! Here she is splashing around in Goo Ma's nice pool......
So we signed her up for Swimming classes at Jane Marsden's Swim School and she's really taken to it very well. In fact, the lessons are the highlight of her week and she loves going swimming every Monday! I was quite amazed she was hardly fussed about getting her face wet or even going "under" the water. (although we had to remind her to close her mouth!) Even her swim teacher is quite amazed at how fearless she is with water and its really a joy to see her in the water. Here she is happily "lying down" on the water (which is not easy to get most kids to do!)
I'm really glad we brought her for these lessons..... will have to work out some time to do the same for Ethan soon. He enjoys the water but is a tad more cautious about water than his sister!
We had a surprisingly nice evening out recently when Ethan accompanied me to the office in the evening. We visited a friend in the evening and I asked him whether he wanted sausages for dinner. "Yeah sausages!" came the enthusiastically affirmative reply. So off we headed to a small stall in Woodlands that serves great sausages and rosti. We had french fries for an appertizer and a great father-son time for both of us!
It has been quite some time since we've been to the dentist...about one year overdue. It was also due to the fact that we were looking to change our dentist as our previous one wasn't very child friendly and we wanted Ethan to have a good visit. At just the right time, we found out about one of Renata's church members so off we went...
Mister Dentist was really good! First, he met Ethan in the waiting room where the little fella was playing with all the cool toys. There Mr. Dentist "counted" his teeth using the familiar 1 to 10 that toddlers know so well. Of course he wasn't really counting, but making Ethan feel comfortable with something familiar. After this was done, he brought Ethan and sat him in the dental chair. It was a fascinating world for Ethan with the myriad of gadgets, lights and various computer screens around. He was allowed to press the buttons to lower the chair and down he went into the lying down position. Ethan got kids sunglasses to protect his eyes. "Hands up," Mr. Dentist said. Ethan stretched his hands above his head which were promptly held and used to pull him up to the right position. He looked so funny in that big chair we were stifling our laughter.
The firm yet sensitive-to-toddler instructions continued and we were amazed at how readily Ethan opened his mouth and let Mr. Dentist examine all his teeth. When it came time to polishing, he let Ethan press the button so that he could "control" the sound and not let it frighten him. He allowed Ethan to choose which toothpaste he would use. "Cars" was the final selection after which Mr. Dentist used it to polish Ethan's fingernail so he could feel what it was like before it went into this mouth. "Taste it now" he said, and Ethan did. "Does it taste good?" A quick nod was sufficient affirmation and the dental visit continued!
So it was a superb visit overall and so much better than we imagined! We can certainly recommend this dentist for your kids. He was gentle yet also firm at times so there was no nonsense from Ethan throughout! Ethan even left with a toy. "That really was fun Ethan!" I said. "Do you want to come back again?" A grin and a nod signified that was indeed an unqualified success!
We are now Friends of the Zoo! And so is Goo Ma too! This means we get to go to the Zoo unlimited times for a year. It's a great place for a family outing and the kids love going there. We also get free tram rides on weekdays which is great on the legs and lots of fun for the kids!
There's nothing like getting up close to the animals and here they are happily watching the turtles swimming in the tank......
Talia was thrilled to see the monkeys, butterflies and bats in the rainforest enclosure.......most of the butterflies she had seen before were on the pages of her books!
And here's the latest addition to the zoo's impressive bat collection!
Of course the main highlight of most kids visiting the Zoo has got to be the water playground! It's one of the best water playgrounds around and no one ever gets tired of it. Here is Talia flashing a spunky grin before changing up into her swimsuit for a splashing good time.....
Our Friends of the Zoo card gets us a discount on the F&B outlets there too. Look how far a little Ben & Jerries goes in making a holiday feel complete!
We're having a great time at the zoo this afternoon. I roused a sleepy little boy from his post-lunch nap to bring him here. We watched the elephant show, rode the tram and played in the water playground. After the water fun, I bought popcorn chicken for him and he said, "Mmmm... Yummy food!" about 5 times while eating it. He was so happy, and he didn't even know i was saving the french fries for last...
Just before i took this picture of us he was sitting in my lap, turned to look up at me and said, "I like daddy time with me." it was so sweet and solicited that I asked him to repeat it just to make sure I wasn't imagining things!
We sometimes don't really know what Ethan does at school (he's still in nursery class) and often wonder what he actually gets out of spending so much time there as he can't really tell us what he is learning and we only get to meet his teachers & see his work much later in the term. Sometime, though, we do get clues into some significant progress in his learning progress -- here is a funny clip of Ethan breaking out exuberantly into a recent Chinese song he learnt from school......
While he was in the mood, he also discussed some of the recent Mathematical skills he had accomplished. Quite entertaining.......maybe we can get him to tutor his sister too!
We have a new home! After months of dreaming, talking, planning and hard work we are finally settled into our very own special place! Ethan had been looking forward to having his very own ceiling fan in his room and he proudly shows it to everyone he gets to show to his room. The kids also now enjoy their very own little table where they love to do their 'cooking', colouring and snacking. Its really cute to see them entertain their own buddies in their own corner having little tea and dinner parties there too!
It's hard work being a pre-schooler these days so Daddy has lovingly set up their own little computer corner (yes -- that's their own recycled computer complete with Skype capabilities!) right next to Mummy's. Here they are engaged in a computer puzzle that is keeping them very busy!
But their favourite place is probably their new bedroom which they now share and seem to have quite a happy co-existence in. Here is Ethan in a rare moment of affectionate passion with new roommate Talia, who is similarly thrilled with the new bedtime company...... Although there are challenges with having two young 'uns trying to settle into a restful state in the same room, there have also been sweet moments like one evening when Talia suddenly started crying after a loud & nasty motorcycle went by. I wasn't sure what she was disturbed about but her perceptive brother gently informed me that "Mummy, Talia cried because the motorcycle was noisy". They now love their Story Times together and the routine seems to calm them. This is followed by a race to be the first to climb into their own beds, a soothing milk drink served in a cute dog cup and the happy 'tuck tuck tuck' into their blankets.
They say moving house is a very stressful experience but we are thankful that the kids seem to have adjusted well and are loving their new home......
Some time ago we found this cute little car dumped by the side of the road ready for the garbage collector. It wasn't working but it was still clean so we salvaged it as we thought that just sitting in it, the kids would have fun. That they did, but with a recycled battery and some loving fixing, Daddy got it working again! "Grandma, we fixed the car!" Ethan proudly claimed. He had such great fun driving it around. It was most fun to see him driving Talia around in the little car.
Around that time, I came back from my long 7 week overseas study trip. Mummy and Ethan had made this fantastic "Welcome Home Daddy!" poster. It got me thinking...
Why not have a father-son project together? If Mummy and Ethan had such a wonderful time hand painting (and Daddy doesn't like arts and crafts) then Daddy and Ethan can have a father-son project. And what better project than fixing up a car? Sure, Ethan's car was moving but we could spruce it up a little....
Some of the electrical work was done without a 3 year old toddler pulling at everything, but we did other stuff together. Ethan loves fiddling with tools while Daddy fixes things. It really is doing things together and he is always careful to say later that, "Daddy and I did it!" We don't have enough pictures to cover everything, but in the end the whole body was dismantled and repainted so we had lovely black and silver convertible!
Photos of Ethan and Talia were printed and cut to fit on the steering wheel and the rear boot. It was their very own car and they loved!
Below is the picture that is on the steering wheel, though on the steering wheel it also has the caption "Ethan and Talia's Car." When Ethan first saw it he yelled, "Talia it's yooouuuuu!" And when Talia was a passenger for the first time she kept pointing at it saying, "Ethan... Ethan!"
The project was completed during the school holidays so for about 2 weeks after that, Ethan would drive the car every opportunity he got. In fact, he would often jump out of bed and run to the car. The corridors outside our apartment were totally safe at that time, so we would often awake to happy sound of the whirring electric engine and squeals of happiness going up and down the corridor. He very quickly became an excellent driver with only one hand and very good spatial judgment, managing to maneuver his car through doors and into elevators and go very close and fast but just miss doors and walls! Needless to say, he made his Daddy very proud!
It gave us an extra kick when we saw the same car selling brand new in the shop for $230. Of course, our black and silver custom model was priceless as were all the memories that have been tucked away with it.
"Neck!" squealed Talia as she pointed at the stuffed giraffe. Then she tipped her head forward and pointed to the back of her own cute little neck! She just loves animals, even furry fake ones in shopping malls. As Ethan is now 3.5 years old and Talia enjoys animals so much we are thinking about getting a family zoo pass to go there with the kids!
At bedtime last night, Ethan asked in the sweetest most earmest voice :"Mummy, can you be my best friend?.......I want you to be my best friend..."
I was totally disarmed by such cuteness lovingly directed toward me and just had to cuddle this cute and loving creature......sigh....! Of course I could be his 'best friend', and was almost driven to tears that he had asked me......even though I knew that he probably didn't know what a 'best friend' really meant! But hearing that from Ethan after coming out of a hectic few weeks with a number of things weighing on my mind, it was like finding a jewel in the most unexpected places.....
The best things in life are often the most simple & childlike ones. Its a wonderful thing to be able to see this world through the eyes of our kids. I love you son, much much!
Talia is getting much more regular in her sleeping patterns as she crossed the 1 year mark, and has now been sleeping well through the night and longer at nap times. This is such a relief because everyone else can also sleep better too! (You will notice how few sleeping photos we have of Talia -- its because she is such a light sleeper and often wakes when we go in to take pictures!) In recent weeks we have even been able to leave her in her room while she is still awake to "fly to the moon on her own"!! This has been our elusive dream for the last 13 months......
We were even able to put her to sleep in the same room as Ethan with some success for some time. Unfortunately this seemed to fall apart after we went to KL for a short holiday and they have since had to sleep seperately........ Meanwhile we are hoping they will get better and be able to share a room sometime soon.
A. Mei took us to the Gallop Stables at Pasir Ris park with the kids. We had planned for a nice brunch but unfortunately the cafe was closed on New Years Day! We did see the horses and ponies though. Ethan liked them... for about 60 seconds, after which he was bored... but Talia was totally fascinated with the animals. The trip was worth it to see her eagerness and longing look at the gorgeous horses, without any fear at all.
Ethan and Talia are now 4 and 2! This year, Ethan articulated that he wanted to celebrate his birthday with his classmates "with a cake, and then everyone will stand near me!" So we had a simple celebration in his class and he clearly enjoyed the princely treatment for the day! All his friends crowded around him to admire his cake and wish him a happy birthday.....no wonder he is looking forward to his 5th birthday already!
We decided to celebrate both their birthdays together as they are only 2 weeks apart, and share mostly the same friends at this stage. Here is the birthday Boy & Girl looking very focused on their birthday cake lovingly and freshly baked by Ah Mah (it was still warm when it came!) It's in the shape of a horseshoe so both got their own corners to blow out their own candles!
Daddy was away on Talia's actual birthday so we celebrated simply at home with some candles on birthday muffins followed by a fun-filled outing to West Coast Park. Sometimes the simple things are often the best and the kids had a great time playing with the sand and each other there. After playing out in the hot afternoon sun, they got a special ice-cream treat to cool off! Daddy happened to call us from the US while we were having ice-creams and Ethan was so excited he called him "Ice-Cream Daddy"! 
But their favourite place is probably their new bedroom which they now share and seem to have quite a happy co-existence in. Here is Ethan in a rare moment of affectionate passion with new roommate Talia, who is similarly thrilled with the new bedtime company...... Although there are challenges with having two young 'uns trying to settle into a restful state in the same room, there have also been sweet moments like one evening when Talia suddenly started crying after a loud & nasty motorcycle went by. I wasn't sure what she was disturbed about but her perceptive brother gently informed me that "Mummy, Talia cried because the motorcycle was noisy". 
They now love their Story Times together and the routine seems to calm them. This is followed by a race to be the first to climb into their own beds, a soothing milk drink served in a cute dog cup and the happy 'tuck tuck tuck' into their blankets.
They say moving house is a very stressful experience but we are thankful that the kids seem to have adjusted well and are loving their new home......
