Jurong Lake Garden | Children Hurt | Positivity | Singapore Short Stories | Favourite Song Golden

Brayden 8Y5M24D

Bevlynn 4Y2M17D

We went to Jurong Lake Garden. As soon as we arrived, the rain started to drizzle. We started our way to the nearest shelter; heavier and heavier it got. Where does the sudden black clouds and rain come from? We covered ourselved with a towel; which we prepared for after swimming. Bray, Bev and I were under that one towel (enough to cover our heads) like a lion dance performance; we tugged it to ourselves every time it slipped out of our heads. Laughter echoed through the rain. We enjoyed this spontaneous nature's tears as much as swimming in the cove. 

At the shelter, we saw the sign "the pool is under maintenance". Oops, no swimming allowed today!

We went to a nearby restaurant and waited for the rain to stop. It did stop, after we finished our early dinner. I looked up the sky and the clouds were gone. The air is fresh and the trees along the way were wrapped in colourful knitted clothes. The children played at the sand pit. They enjoyed digging a "river" - a dry one.

This week, Dr Yip one of my close friend, had her private clinic opening. We were invited to her new clinic, her office is at a corner and the window has such a nice view of the Novena town; at a little corner is her home. Such a proud, happy moment. 

We also dropped by to visit a friend who recently got a new little bundle; she now has two little ones clinging for her attention; she is confused with her new state of motherhood and asked for advise on how to cope with two. 

I remembered the day Bev came into my life, I was filled with such bliss and light-heartedness. It felt like a sense of completeness. Although with all the havoc of handling a new baby is still there, I loved how I could enjoy every single moment better without having to worry about firsts (with Bray everything was new and it was harder to know what to do. I was an anxious mother). And Bray made me realised how much time flies and children grow, I wanted to seize all moments with both of them. 

The children were clumsy this week. 

Bray fell at the playground (net area) and got a big scar on his leg. 

Bev fell head first as she leaned forward on the sofa. A sudden loud thud and an innocent cry filled the room. Her head started to swell, I was worried but did not want to show it. Her head bump was like a mini ant-hill hidden in her dark black hair. It was so swollen and tender with small dots of redness. My brain was screaming in anxiety "Should I send her in for an emergency? Will she be alright? What if......" I took a deep breath. "Let's just wait and see" For now, I'll hug her tight. 

Winning a 6-star pokemon at a Mezastar game, can comfort them easily. Singing aloud Golden from K-pop demon hunter helped too; their latest favourite song. The song is addictive.

In this movie, I was motivated at the positivity from Ryan Serhant. When many office politics are going on, his composure and leadership are so refreshing. We needed this - I NEEDED THIS. It is such a good leadership strengh to build - positivity that can infect others. Mind my mindset. 

I finished a book from a friend this week - Singapore Short Stories. It is a light read, I liked that it was filled with different writing styles from different authors and the stories narrated the ways of life in Singapore from the past. I love "Vroom Down New Bridge Road", "The Story of the Mask", "The Jade Pendant", "The Rose and the Silver Key", "The Interview". In these stories, I was brought back to some of my past memories which I am fond of - especially my trips to the the chinese opera with my grandparents. Our next generation will not be able to understand its significance. 

 

SG60 National Day | STEM Fest Singapore Science Centre | Brayden Kindergarten Reunion

Brayden 8Y5M16D
Bevlynn 4Y2M9D

Eve of National Day, Bray had a reunion gathering with his kindergarten friends. Every year, we have this gathering for the parents and children to come together. Most of the children were dressed in Red and White. The parents were talking about how their children adapted in their school (all the children are in different schools). The children still loved playing together, laughing, eating... Such a nice effort from the parent who organised it yearly. 

National Day SG60. Happy Birthday Singapore! 

This year, Singapore Science Centre had open its doors to the public - Free entrance. It is called the STEM Fest. We met with Jane and her children. The children loved the AI drawing corner, they will draw and their friends will guess, if the AI can guess the drawing, the children loses.

We also interacted with Ameca, the super expressive humanoid Robot. It was remarkable how the robot can interact so clearly. We asked for it to draw a simple triangle and it replied that it only knows how to draw pyramid. We asked for it to draw a pikachu and it replied that it can draw a surprised pikachu meme. The drawings were good. It was abit scary to me to see the video of the robot sight kept moving around to scan the whole room. 

The children loved the virus playroom corner and the Laser Maze. While queuing, someone tapped on me lightly. I turned and saw my ex-roommate from university, HK. It had been years we had not met. The last time was before we had children. We had a long overdue chat. 

After lunch, we went over to the Carnival area. Tickets were S$6/coupon. There were multi-racial food such as laksa, otak-otak, icre-cream in bread, pani puri and muar chee. There were also free flow of popcorn and cotton candy. There were games and the children's favourite was the bouncy castle slide, they went up multiple times - good way to drain their energy. 

The children had balloons and air brush tattoos. 

 

Putrajaya | Moxy Hotel | Connaught Night Market | IOI City Mall | Maharaja Karaoke

Brayden 8Y5M15D

Bevlynn 4Y2M8D

Another trip this week. On the way there, we stopped at Ah Koong Yong Tau Fu Restaurant.  

This time we stayed at Moxy Putrajaya; it is located right next to IOI City Mall which is the largest mall in the Southeast Asia. I got a nice corner room, with window views overlooking the mall and golf course. The hotel is modern and chic.

In the evening, we went to Petaling Street. We discovered a nice spot for tea tasting for RM8 a pot. We walked over to the street for the popular air mata kucing (a drink with luohanguo, dried longan and winter melon), bak gua and lalapot (clam soup). At night, the Merdeka 118 was in view and lights started to decorate the outline of the building. A close friend, Linda who was also on a business trip came to meet us.

We took a ride to Connaught Night Market biggest night market. We tried many different food; dragon beard candy, smelly taufu, kimchi wrapped in bacon, fish satay (lekor), ban chang kueh, seaweed popiah (crunchy jicuma + chicken floss), 

An influencer was walking behind us. We did not noticed until suddenly someone from the crowd was shouting excited "Oh my god, I need a picture, I need a picture" We turned there he/she was the crossdresser Xiao Honey Deacon Chai. I did not know who he/she was, not until my friend showed me some photos and videos.

We had some nice food & shoulder massage at Healthcare Wellness Center, they have a nice hot stone bag over the shoulder during the massage. 

Next evening, we explored the shops in the IOI City Mall. It was so big I could not even finish walking 2 levels from end to end. We decided to go for Maharaja Karaoke, the cheapest room for 2 pax was at RM19/hour. The entrance was grandly decorated; like a room for Maharaja & and screens were showing Bollywood dancers. My friend decided to go for Putera (a room that could fit 7 pax). With 2 person in such a large room, the echo was so much better. I chose some difficult songs; Shallow, Divorce in Ghana, Flowers. Did not know I could sing these songs before, but somehow I could hit the notes; probably they have very good sound system and the mood was good.

After karaoke, the night was still young, we played free snooker at the lobby of Moxy. There is also a classic arcade at the corner, we chose one of my young time favourite Paper Boy. How it brought back some very nice memories. We also played air hockey table, I got so competitive and hit the puck hard, but I still lost. It was already close to 12 am. Time to go to bed. 

Time to head back to Singapore for National Day celebration. 

Captain Marvel for girl in Salvation Army | National Day Celebration SG60 | Cappucino Assassino

Brayden 8Y5M10D

Bevlynn 4Y2M3D

On Thursday evening, we had a short walk organised by my company around IBP area. The weather was nice at first, then it started to drizzle. We had a nice dinner at Vision Exchange. 

On Saturday, I was at Salvation Army to buy some items. There is a 30% off on all items because of the SG60 National Day promotion. However, the cashier input the amount wrongly and could not correct it as it was already charged to my card. I was overcharged S$20 dollar, she apologised for the mistake and asked me to pick some toys to compensate for the difference. 

I was looking through all toys and was very reluctant to pick. Then, I saw a young girl walking about looking quietly at some toys. She paced about the area, picked some and put them back every single time. I asked her if I could get her some toys, she politely shook her head and put down the packet of toys which was already in her hand. I told her I have some free credits from the store and I can use them on her toys without having to pay. After I insisted a few times, she finally picked one pack of toys in front of her. As I walked towards the cashier, I picked another box of Pop Mart Toy with Captain Marvel in it. I told the cashier to pack them for the girl. Both of them thanked me, looking so happy, but I thought to myself, "Thank you both for making my day!" 

In the evening, there was National Day SG60 Celebration at Bukit Batok at the open basketball court. There were goodie bags, snacks, sausage buns, cotton candies giveaways.

There were also many activities: catching the baton, moulding the colourful quick-dry clay, bouncy castle, batik painting, gift wrapping, coaster crystal design, colour stones.

While we were waiting for the mini-ferris wheel, the performers on stage started singing "Home". I brought out my phone and started shining the light. Soon the whole crowd began to follow. It was a nice sight. This is home truly~~ 

Bev and Bray were in the mini ferris wheel. She was waving goodbye to me. 

It reminded me of the everyday goodbyes I get when I am on my way to work. Her tiny hand would wave from the window of our home, as my bus passed the block. Oh how much I love this morning routine...

On Sunday, Bray and Bev were mumbling some names - Cappuccino Assassino. Me and Hubs thought it was some random slang by the young ones. Apparently not. These are characters in "Italian Brainrot". We found it funny and also started calling out the names: 

• Cappuccino Assasino
• Ballerina Cappuccina
• Tralalero Tralala
• Bombardino Crocodilo
• Lirili Larila
• Chimpanzini Bananini
• Bombombini Gusini
• Bobrito Bandito
• Tung Tung Tung Tung Tung Tung Tung Sahur

It was fun how the children corrected us each time we got it wrong.

4 events | Selera Senibong Seafood | Holiday Inn Restaurant | Amazon Coffee

Brayden 8Y5M5D

Bevlynn 4Y1M28D

My crazy weeks at work started. 4 back-to-back events in 2.5 weeks. 

i)  First event was in Malaysia. Although it was a ad-hoc event , it was still a good event. I presented on a new topic, started preparing 2 days before the actual day. What a day... 

We had dinner at Selera Senibong Seafood JB. I never knew of this nice spot. 

Such a grand meal; lobsters, crabs, prawns, fish, squid,... 

With a nice view overlooking Singapore island, nice weather, cooling breeze, soft gentle waves breaking the silence. 

Suddenly some fireworks filled the dark night sky. Such a random spectacle but a nice surprise - as though quietly celebrating small victories as it comes. 

ii) Thailand event. Another event filled with more than 30 pax. By the time this event started, I was half drained. I guess the midnight knocks on my hotel wall did not help. The nights were short, the days were long. But I managed to pull through. Thai food was also refreshing, one of my favorites.  

 A week gone by very fast. 

I was very lucky in Thailand. 

For dinner, we had the Holiday Inn Rooftop Restaurant. There were many food ordered. I was thinking to myself, if only I can cancel my order, then the food on the table would not go to waste. After awhile, the waitress told me that my duck confit cannot be served as there was a mistake. It was the last duck in the kitchen, so they had to cancel my order and asked me to order another meal. I was so elated, I told them it is ok to just cancel it. However, the French head chef came to the table , apologized and mentioned that anything I order will be on the house. Such a sweet gesture from the chef. I decided to order a French dessert, it was a good one. 

In another coffee place, we ordered some coffee Amazon coffee - I ordered mine HOT. But when we entered the meeting room, it was so stuffy and warm. I was wishing to change by drink to cold. When the waitress served us, my coffee came in ICE. She apologized and wanted to have it changed but I was so happy and told her it is okay! Actually, the one writing the order made a mistake, in his mind is hot but he wrote cold in the order sheet. I got really really lucky. 

On the last day, we decided to go for a quick oil Thai massage. Since we were coming from different directions, I walked to the massage center on my own, along the dark streets. At the corner of my eyes, there were some Thai ladies waving, but I kept walking. After 20 mins walk and one train station away, I arrived - sweating. 

After massage, we ended up sleeping only 3 hours that night.  

iii) Singapore event. Training for lecturers and researchers. I can feel my body started to run some fever. I continued. But that night, the cough was starting. 

iv) Vietnam event. I was coughing away. It was a full day presentation day. Good thing, I have a good colleague that came in last minute to support. I continued to go through the event, the customers who flew in from Vietnam were leaving in happy smiles. It was a good event. But as soon as I stepped home, I lost my voice, my fever was high, with continuous overwhelming cough (at this point, I think the whole HDB block can hear my cough). I think I might have run the last few days on adrenaline. Finally when everything was over, my body gave in.

More events to come.... For now, rest first. 

Senibong Seafood

Holiday Inn French Dessert

Thai durian

Cute Dog at the Thai restaurant

Happy at the airport

Legoland | Paradigm Mall Jungle Utopia | "Le Petit Restaurant"

Brayden 8Y4M13D

Bevlynn 4Y1M6D

7 July Monday was a school holiday in replacement for Youth Day. 

Even with my upcoming back-to-back travels for work, we've decided to make a quick 3D2N trip to JB - Legoland and Paradigm Mall. 

This time, Jane and family joined us in Legoland. It was a fun time for the children. Bev still couldn't go on most rides - about half an inch short. She had to stick to her usual kiddy rides. Going on a non-public holiday definitely has its perks. There's no crowd at all. Bev went on the same car driving ride, over and over - more than 5 rounds without having to queue. 

I broke the best record of the day in Ninja 4D Ride - and became the Master of Spinjitzu. My hands worked really fast as I threw the invincible fire elements at the enemies. The ninjas and the giant snake were defeated in shame. Bev and Bray were envious and asked to play again and again. Then Bray won the best record for the team - 189K points. 

We always rented a double stroller to push the children around. I had a feeling this was going to be the last time we could fit both children into the stroller - Bray and Bev had grown so much since we first came. 

For dinner, we tried Jubilee's Nanyang Coffee. It's no wonder the restaurant was always full, the food was good for this area inside Medini Mall. It is also near to the arcade and claw machines. The children caught some soft toys again. 

We went to Paradigm Mall - the children loved the indoor Jungle Utopia playground. There was a clown show. They still loved building large lego block castle. I was reading a book at the corner as I waited for them. Bev came over to me once in a while when Bray didn't want to follow her rules. She wanted to be the "Mommy" and Bray to be her "Baby". But her "Baby" was quite a naughty character, e.g. Bray threw her balloon up to the ceiling, got stuck and it popped. 

The airbnb we stayed in this time had a dance mat that was connected to a TV with mini-games. We played the games of catching fish, rowing boats, playing tennis, etc... There was also a mini Ikea kitchen with plastic cooking utensils and food toys. 

I held Hub's hand and invited him for a romantic dinner at "Le Petit Restaurant". Bray and Bev were the pretend little chefs; cooking up some wonderful dim sums, bubble tea, afternoon tea tier tray with various cakes. After dinner, all four of us cozied up on the sofa bed and watched a movie till we fell asleep.   

Back to Singapore. Oh no, I can already feel the tiredness kicking in. More travels to come in the next weeks...