Last Day of 2009

Let's do a little review plus 2010 resolutuons.

1. I had neglected my sewing so from tomorrow onwards I will have to set a project list and check it off when I complete each one.
2. I was determined to set my spiritual walk with the Lord right and from tomorrow onwards I will continue with a stronger conviction.
3. I had put in too much time at work and tired myself out hence neglecting my health and indirectly neglecting my family so from tomorrow onwards I will learn to work within my time allocation.
4. Due to lack of time I had allowed my body weight to go a little haywired so from tomorrow onwards I will set aside time for some homebased stretching, toning exercises.
5. Due to the need to lower my weight, from tomorrow onwards I will have to be more selective on my food.

• However, I am not giving up on this coffeeshop version of Black Pepper Steak ... it is cheap and yummilicious good!

• Neither am I going to give up on my Salmon Sashimi... and Ash has taken a liking to it two years ago and she has been vying with me for it.

The above five points will be enough to keep me on my toes so I will not add in anymore.
Basically, the Lord had given me two precious princesses to love and to nurture so I am going to ride on His Strength and His Wisdom to parent them.

So I will place my life on the Lord's Teachings and Promises and will put my blessed family above all earthly things.

How about you? What do you plan for the new year?

'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.'

Remember this and trust me, this promise has carried me through many many trials.

Christmas will be here...

in 3 days, and I have yet to get my good old faithful tree out.

Although, I feel christmasy but I am not in the mood to bring out the tree.

I think this year, I will concentrate on the true meaning of Christmas.

Oh heck it... I may just bring the tree out tomorrow... and have a little christmas lights in the house and still let the children know the true meaning of Christmas.

It had been a hectic year and it will be an even more hectic 2010 as I have to prepare Aver for better homeschooling curriculum and Ash will be in Primary 3, which requires more guidance in her work.

For now, I am crazily preparing Christmas gifts :)

I love the feeling of giving and sharing whatever talents the Lord has bestowed upon me.

I hope those who receive my handmade presents will love (like) it too.

And Merry Christmas to everyone out there (who still click into this little space of mine...), let's rejoice that God had given His only son to us to save our lives and to cleanse our sins.

The Hollywood Dinos Show at Jurong Birdpark

Watch this...

Enjoy it...

However, if you are expecting the same effect for Hollywood Dinos in Jurong Birdpark, FORGET IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We went to the 'show' yesterday afternoon, all excited and eager to experience the 'more than real' dinosaurs and blah.. blah... blah....

BUT....

It is a big disappointment!

The area is small and it takes about 45 minutes to complete.

There is a walking dinosaur... oh yes... but not robotically controlled but a poor guy in the suit trying to walk (like the real dino!) And, 'he' does not come out often as Singapore weather is too hot for 'him'... 'he' wil most probably suffer from serious heat stroke.

The guide also sucks!!! Okay, I forgive him as he is a teenager doing a part time job but well ... he possess a 'part-time' attitude.

Then there was an entertainment by another group of teenagers. They did try their best to hype up the trail but seriously, it is a very very feeble attempt. They knew it also but really did try their best to put up their smiles. The most ironic part, one of the girls said, "I hope you enjoyed the entertainment and is all hyped up for the trail." (Yeah,... right... DUH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Big time!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

And then off we go into the caves... blah blah blah... duh duh duh...

Then you get led to the little enclosures where the sponsers tried to sell you their stuffs... another big DUH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Really... the whole trip from the time you park your car to the time get back to your car should take an hour or an hour and a half....

oh.... by the way, you are not in the Bird Park at all, it is off the side of the park. Consolation... you get to see the spoon bill bird... one kind only....

So, unless you get the tickets for free ... I really do not suggest that you spend the money for this so-called show. I rather you spend the money to enter the Bird Park itself. The latter is more worth it.

I have photos... but sorry... I am not in the mood to put it up here as it really SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you are offended after reading this post, I am sorry but this is one time that I am totally disappointed and after watching the video I posted up above.... it just gets on my nerves. The organisers think that we are stupid fools and can be easily fooled.

Polymer Clay Desserts

I tried to use polymer clay. I love the may products I saw so I went out and bought some clay plus a new (cheap) oven toaster for all my crafts needs.


I tried it out yesterday near to midnight... I just had to try it because I cannot stand another night of sleeplessness. You see, I have this bad habit. Whenever I need to learn a new thing or to design something to sew, I will go over it in my head until I am familar with all the steps before I start on it. So this polymer clay thingy has been on my head for three to four days and I slept with it in my dreams, woke up with frustrations when I cannot figure it out, went back to sleep again and the cycle went on for nights. I could not sleep properly. And since I had a birthday party coming up, I cannot embark on the polymer clay project...


So I gave it a go yesterday and I still need to get to know my oven a little better to get the right result (in other words, not burning them!)

My First Try... Donuts

Second try... Cake

Next up... Chocolates

Tell me what you think.

04 December 2009 , Homeschooling continues in the evening.

We started lesson with a quick flash card on the theme 'My Body'.
I picked a few words, showed it to her and asked her to pick out the word that I said.
Well, the ability to link the written word to the aticulated word is still not there so it requires more pratices.

This day, we learnt the vowel 'o'.
Aver is able to make the 'o' sound and identify the 'o's in each of the words in the writing sheet.
Then she moved on to practice writing it and has no problem with it.

After writing the 'o's, she practiced writing the letters that she learnt in earlier lessons.
Her tracing skills improved and her written letters looked nicer now.

After all that writing, I gave her brain a little memory work out.
I showed her the picture below for about 5 seconds and then cover it.
She was then to pick out the characters that she saw in my picture.
She was able to do it.
Then I showed her my picture again for another 5 second.
This time round, she was to place the characters that she picked out at the correct places.
She did well for this round too.
I learnt this from her enrichement lessons that she attended earlier in the year.


Then we proceeded to shapes. I had different shapes in different sizes and colours.
Here, she was to catergorise all the jumbled pieces into shapes.
Next time, I will get her to do it in sizes.

And, to end it all... READING TIME!!!

She had enjoyed her lessons so far and she will even go to the kitchen to get the red marker and then come ask me for lesson.

Aver's homeschooling continues and it is picking up speed slowly.
This is because I have kind of forgotten what I had done with Ash when she was younger, so I am cracking my head as I go along. This is just me growing old...



The second lesson comprised of flashcards, learning the letter 'i', and reading.
We started with word flashcards on the theme 'My Body'.
Then we proceeded to doing a few activities from a particular preschool activity book.
Next, we learnt the letter 'i' - the phonetic sound of it and writing both the capital and small letter 'i'.

She was then to identify the letter 'i' from the words and also from a jumble of letters.

Thereafter, she revisited the previous letters that she had learnt, 'a' and 'e'.
Here, she was to identify all the capital letters of 'A', 'E' and 'I'.

After all those hard work, we settled down to read and then it was sleeping time.

Failed!!!

My layered agar-agar.

Hello Kitty looked like it got punched by a jealous kitty.

Mickey Mouse had used a cheap dye for his hair...

It's my first try at layering so I have expected it to fail.
It requires lots of patience.
So I will practice it again.

Homeschooling Continues

We had a Parent-Teacher Conference at Aver's childcare the week before.
From the teachers' feedback, we knew that Aver is progressing well in school.
However, due to her bi-weekly fever (something that we do not know why yet) she misses school on a regular basis too. So, I decided that we (sorry, I...) should try and supplement some learning at home. It is something simple to reinforce what was learnt in school.
Actually, I had started a few months ago but time just forbade me to do it on a regular basis.
This time round, I really have sit down and structure the lessons.
This is the start...

She started with practising writing of the letters 'A' and 'E'.

Then I wrote some letters out and had her identify the letter 'a'.

For the next activity, I wrote out the capital letter 'E' and the small letter 'e'.

She was to identify all the capital letter 'E'.

As she did the activities, I had her articulate the sounds of the letters.

She did well for the lesson that day.

This photo was taken in the morning sending the princessses to the school.

It was a morning with heavy heart and uncertainties in the road ahead for year 2010.

However, somehow I had an unknown peace as I told myself that I will go where the Lord leads me.

On the crafting side...

I had little time so I had to do something small and fast.
I also had to experiment new projects to share with Ash as the year end holiday is coming.
So I made these...

These are my first try.

These are my next try and they are waiting to be vanished.

How do they look? Please let me know, thank you.

Violin performance

Ash was told to turn up for a performance in the west side of the country last Saturday.
Her instructor wanted her to do it in front of an audience to boost her confidence (not that she was all that well in her violin...)
So she practised hard... she did... both Superpig and myself were happy with her effort.

She had a solo for one of her exam piece.

She had a group performance with her friends from the Community Club.

And lastly, she had one together with the pupils from that school.

She made a few mistakes but we are still proud of her.

Time for a clean up

I have ashamed of myself by this post.
I have always known myself to be a lousy housekeeper, although I tried my very best but I guess my best is yet to be.
I had to take a photo of the evidence of my inability to remind myself to clean up.
The dust at a certain area is so thick that we could write our promises to each other.

Cleaning up does not only refer to the physically cleaning of the house, it also refers to the cleaning of my soul spiritually.

I will be mediating this verse:

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Philippians 4:13

With that, I will be able to be a better housekeeper who will be able to keep my house clean for all its members.

Under the Sea - IMAX Movie Premiere

It had been the usual Saturday morning of logging on to my mail to clear the mailbox when I saw this particular email from Diana of 24Seven Communications. It was an invitation to response to the call of watching a IMAX premiere at Omni-theatre. I checked my mail a little too late but I sent back a thank you reply though (I still have a little manner…). Well, on Monday, I got an email from Diana and I was extremely happy that the opportunity was still opened.

20 October 2009, Tuesday - Grand Premiere for IMAX Under the Sea at the Singapore Science Centre, proudly sponsored by Mead Johnson. I was all eager to go and have a relaxing time at the infamous dome shaped theatre, Omni-theatre, which will give you the 3D effect. I had been there a few times before and truly enjoyed myself, however, Ash and Aver had not the experience. Plus, this week is a week off from school, Ash had been cramping hard for her impending exam so it would be a good break for her too.

Where is Omni-theatre? Where is the Singapore Science Centre? Jurong… all the way west! Okay, if you stay at the west, it is not a challenge… I reside over at the Northeast area and am a lost cow so I had the challenge of driving there. As usual, I did manage to get lost in the process but I have my trusty GPS system, Superpig (on the phone).

Once we are safely at the theatre, we met up with Claudia and Diana from 24seven Communications. They will helpful and briefed me a little… it is my first time doing this and well… a lost cow, that is what I am…moo moooooooooooooo.

While waiting for the screening of the show, we get to go on a simulated ride, Morphis Movie Ride. Ash went for it while Aver and I waited eagerly for her. We wanted to know how the experience was like. Aver could not go on the ride as she is still a little shortie.


She was no where near the 107cm height requirement … so she argued and she whined. Sorry, my dear, you are just too short… maybe you should drink more milk?

After an estimated 5 minutes, the door opened and out came Ash. She was all excited and could not wait to tell us what it was like.
“It is a road. Then the thing will go up and up and then down and down! Did you hear the bumping sound? Yes? That is when the road had a lot of things in front of it. Then we bumped into it… we keep bumping and bumping! And ouch… I had a cut on my arm. I scratched myself on the bar when the thing go up and down. Very pain…”
So, despite the little scratch, she enjoyed the ride.

Then there was the projection room. We saw massive rims of films… I believe those were the films for the show or were they not?

Once in the theatre, the girls were all excited and were full of questions.
“Where is the screen?”
“Why are the seats so far back?”
‘Mummy, see that black thing? What is that?”
The screen covers up to half of the dome-shaped theatre. It will then give a good effect of being in the show itself. The seats are inclined as you need to lean back and enjoy the full screen. At first, the gals refused to lean back, they find it awkward, after all, we do not usually sit in this manner at a cinema.

The black thing…. Well, I believe it is the projector.

With the arrival of the distinguished guest,, Ms Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of National Development, Ministry of Education, the show was all ready for screening.

Wait…. There was the sponsor of this event… Mead Johnson Nutrition. What does this company have installed for all? I will let you know later… there is so much to share with you.

And so the movie started… we can hear the ‘aaaawwww…’ and ‘the aaaahhhh…’ and ‘the ooohhhhh….’ from around us and within us too. The feeling of underwater in the sea with the beautiful corals and the creatures simply caught my breath away. Ash was paying full attention to what was narrated. She was all focused on the screen and watching out, ready to spot the elusive fishes in hiding, waiting for its preys. Aver was speechless… she simply absorbed the sights and the sounds. I was holding her and I can feel her all tensed up when we waited for the attack on the prey by the cuttlefish. It was amazing to see so clearly the change in the colours and patterns on the cuttlefish as they communicate with each other. The graceful flapping of the jelly fish, the brilliant colours of the many coral fishes, like the clown fish, the convict fish, the sharp jaws of the Great White, the dance of the eels, the swiftness of the sea snakes, the sea turtle and so many more which you really have to go see it for yourself to enjoy it.

I don’t scuba dive and had not been given the opportunity to do so and this particular movie had given me the chance to dive into the water and enjoy sights of what is hidden under the sea. I did not have to worry about the current sweeping me away or my oxygen tank running out of air… it sure was a safe yet wonderful trip to Under The Sea!

How do I know my gals enjoyed the show? Aver blew kisses to the sea lions and Ash could not stop talking about what she saw to her Daddy. Superpig had missed this eventt due to work. He was disappointed when he heard how Ash had described the show. Well, if he promised to clear up the house soon, I would sponsor him a ticket… I want to go again! So do the gals! Well, Ash seemed to have learnt a lot more from this movie than from what she had read in her books. So it sure was worth it!

Now, back to Mead Johnson Nutrition… What does this milk producing company have to do with the show or with Science Centre Singapore?

Mead Johnson Nutrition made the move to collaborate with Science Centre Singapore to further enhance learning for young children. Mr Roger Dallas, General Manager of Mead Johnson Nutrition said that a child’s quest for a bright future begins with the parents. What parents feed them and how they are nurtured in their daily activities directly affect their level of learning during the growing years. So the company is steadfast in their beliefs of providing scientific-based nutritional solutions to help in supporting the brain development and body resistance of the child through their products. The Science Centre Singapore, on the other hand, provides the environment to nurture the child’s learning.

To further enforce this belief, with every purchase of Enfagrow A+/ Enfakid A+/ EnfaSchool A+, customers will be rewarded with a complimentary ticket for one child into the Science Centre Singapore. Adults will also receive a discount voucher for entry unto the Science Centre Singapore. In addition, the voucher includes discounts for other attractions; Snow City and Omni Theatre.

Why not? Now we not only have the milk to ensure the brain cells healthy growth, we can also have the many hands-on learning activities at the Science Centre to enhance the children knowledge and to increase their interest in learning.


There are Enfagrow A+ (for ages 1 to 3), Enfakid A+ (for ages 4 to 6), EnfaSchool A+ (for age 6 years and above) to choose from. So go grab one and enjoy the discount vouchers.

How I wish Mead Johnson Nutrition would come up with Soy milk … Aver is allergic to cow’s milk.

Lunch today...

Ham and cheese sandwiches, using my new toys.

A parcel from Hong Kong

Superpig has a friend who resides in Hong Kong and she had kindly ordered some toys for my kitchen for me. I am totally grateful to her for her help.

And in return, I am working on two knitted products to be sent there in time for the change of season. When I finished with them, I will post it up. Now, I will return to my knitting.

Our trip to the fish farm

Ash's year-end exam will be coming up next week. This week due to the PSLE marking, school is closed and with the Deevapali, school is closed in lieu today. So we have a week to prepare for the examination.

However, before we start the hard work, I requested for a trip to the fish farm for the girls on Saturday, which was Deepavali.

We did the 'long kang' fishing or translated to fishing in the drain.

Total catch was seven, 4 by me and 3 by Superpig.

My method: wait patiently and net the fish when the chance arrives.

Superpig's method: put the net in, flip hard at the fishes, unlucky one that was in the way of the net, will be flipped onto land. Then, go claim your flipping and flapping fish.

The girls tried but it was not easy for them... the fishes were too fast, the drain a little too deep.

Then, they went to feed the kois. Aver would patiently throw in one pellet at a time, at the dismay of the kois. Ash was a little kinder to the kois by throwing a few pellets at a time.

What warmed our hearts was that when Ash emptied out her package of fish food, Aver shared with her.

So we had an enjoyable outing there.

After the examination, it will be a trip to another 'long kang' fishing hunt.

And He said...

To followup on the previous post, I am better in my mental state.
Although things are still as challenging as before and I am still struggling but after last Sunday's Church service, I was better.
Last week's message was about faith and odedience. Somehow, the message got to me and I understood what I need to do now.

As I sat in the santuary and lesson to the message, I kept hearing this particular little voice that told me that I need to do a certain project. As most of you know, I am given the talent to teach, to sew, to create... and I was specifically told to start on embroidering God's promises.

So once, I clear the markings on my table I am going to start planning for it.

I cannot be sure that what I heard was His voice but I guess I will do the obedience portion that was in that week's message. A collection of hand embroidered God's promises somehow lifted my spirit.

I told Superpig about what I heard and he said to go ahead.

Everything seems to be not going smoothly

As much as I want to be cheery and as much as I brainwash myself that things will iron out soon, it seemed not to be happening.

Things are getting very difficult for me to handle here on my side of the world. I have been trying and trying but it seemed to be going nowhere except downwards to the deepest pit.

I am still trusting in the Lord that He would show me the way. I try not to lean on my own understanding and am trying to listen to what He have to say to me. However, all I hear is silence or my own head pounding in pain.

No... this is no cheery post and I am not comfortable telling everyone what difficulty I or we are facing. I only know that I have to try harder and harder I am really trying but nothing seems to be working.

At this time I can only remember this particular hymn...
Onward Christian Solider...

Yes... onward I will go in the name of the Lord.
With His strength and His blessing, I believe we will be able to iron out all the problems.

And I finally completed...

these custom ordered crochet bags!

And I had difficulty sharing it here at Blogspot.
I do not know why but uploading of pictures failed like 4 times... I gave up.
So please follow the link below to take a look.

WENCRAFTING

There had not been much going on in this household ...
More like there had not been much outdoor activities or fun activities in this household...
We are bogged down by the numerous tests and examinations that Ash had to go through...

It has been rather tiring also other then the tests and examinations but also we do not have the car on a regular basis. So on days that we have to go by public transport, there is a hill to climb in the mornings and steps to conquer in the afternoons. I am glad that Superpig has been accompanying us in the mornings and helping out.

This was Superpig waiting for me at mid-hill after sending Ash to her school. (Usually at this point in time, he would be soaked with perspiration... and so would I)

This was him when he noticed my presence.

These were some shrooms growing along the hill that I climbed. It rained that few days so the soil was damp enough for these fellows to grow. However, they dried up the next morning due to the extreme heat from the afternoon before.

This was Aver dozing off while playing with her puzzles. I was in the kitchen while she played by herself and I guess she was exhuasted too.

Taking the opportunity of the week-long school break and the luxury of the car in our possession, we visited the dentist to have Ash's special tooth examined. It was confirmed to be an extra adult tooth and it had to be extracted. So this photo was the pre-extraction.

I think I would stop here for now...

I feel exhausted just by doing this entry...

Maybe I am getting old.

...

It has been a long time ... (yet again).

Well, let start with a sale that I had to go. Borders Warehouse Sale...

I love books and both the princesses love books hence this was a must go sale.

Although the selection of the books were not big and the prices were not as low as I hoped it would be, we managed to find several books for both girls.

There was also a lucky draw which I entered and thought nothing of.

Ten minutes after walking out of the place, I received a call and this is my prize...

So I am happy with my new toy...

So I have 3 cameras and a very good camera phone... happiness!

And how else to prove its usefulness...

Now I am frantically trying to finish up gifts for the upcoming Teachers' Day.

There are also some embroidery to complete and I am not very good at it so it is kind of stressing me out.