Tagged!

I've just been tagged by Ling (who was tagged by Brenda) to write about 5 things people don't know about me. Tagging is so narcissistic... I like!

1. Weirdest Nickname
Cockles : PF calls me this because... because... (you gotta promise to still be my friend after this) a char kuay teow uncle actually wrote 'no cockles' on my styrofoam box becoz I don't eat the bloody things and it tickled us so much that the name just stuck. It's not funny now, but it sure was funny then. Really!

2. Childhood Ambition
Computer Programmer : Back in the day when starting up your computer involved a cassette tape, I wanted to be one even though I had no idea what a Computer Programmer did. It just sounded really good to a 7 year old.

3. Secret Talents
Sorry, I'm breaking the rules by listing 2 things here, but I'm so proud of both, it's tough to choose.
Discount Calculator : I'm so good at calculating discounts at sales, it's not funny. Really! 30% off $195?
*dormant brain cells kick into high gear and dust starts flying out of my ears*
$136.50! (7 x $20 - 7 x $0.50) NEXT!
Eyelid Flipper : Haha! Funny Bee absolutely hates it when I do this, so when she reminds me about it, I do it for 5 minutes straight until her skin crawls off her body.

4. Insecurities
Short legs : I am only 1.53m tall short. PF is about 1.78m tall. When I stand next to him, I look like a hobbit. -_- In pri school, I used to be in the middle of the line when my class lined up. Over the years, I slowly moved forward. Drat!

5. Fav Sports
Rock-climbing : I LOVE IT! (Must be my strong monkey genes, LOL) Funny Bee and I used to climb all the time. We've even climbed in the UK. *sigh* I miss climbing. I need to start climbing again, but I'm so terrified to try because I've gotten so fat and wobbly.

Okay, that's it. Now I have to tag 5 people : Dawn, Funny Bee (just try la!), Josh, Buttons and JRT Joanne.

Dish the dirt, come on. ;)

We're back!

Total distance travelled within Western Australia : 1,200 km
Total pieces of unworn clothes : 15-20 (overpacked again!)
Total number of meltdowns : 1.5 per day (average)
Total number of IT gadgets PF brought over : 1 mini-laptop, 1 baby monitor, 1 DSLR camera, 3 SD cards, 1 portable harddisk, 1 emergency handphone charger, 1 battery charger unit, 8 rechargable batteries (he's a walking, talking IT Show)
Total number of photos taken : Don't know... too many to count! 800???
Total number of family photos taken : ONE.

And this is it. Humph.


Taken on the last day of our holiday... sunset at Bathers Bay, Fremantle








I'll blog about our holiday, but I'll backdate all the posts so make sure you scroll down. :)

Yes, I'm anal that way... and proud of it! (Funny Bee will understand.)

Last Day :: Fremantle - Perth City - Singapore
Wow. That's it. 8 days gone just like that. It me longer to blog about the holiday, LOL.

0800 :: All of us are up and we scramble to down breakfast, do some last minute packing and check out by 10am.
1045 :: Drive to the Fremantle Chocolate Factory nearby to pick up some souvenirs. (We're 100% Singaporean la!)
1130 :: We're back at Harbour Town again. (Sorry, 110% Singaporean!) PF and I shop with a vengeance.
1415 :: We rush to the airport for our 4.30pm flight. Somehow, we manage to squeeze 5 pairs of shoes, 2 pairs of slippers, 2 shirts and 1 hoodie (Harbour Town spoils) into the bursting bags.
1630 :: Ta-ta Perth!
2130 :: Touch down, we're home. :)

There was an apple on DN's Kid's Tray and he ate the whole thing with gusto. Ah-hahaha! His face is so funny.






Plane rides are boring for me, what more a toddler?! We walk up and down the aisle, go say hi to the stewardesses, go say hi to other kids, look out the window at the emergency exit and...

...take goofy pictures!



Not surprisingly, DN enjoyed his fish fingers and chips.



Except for the apple bits, I think this is quite a nice picture, heh.

DN : "But Dad, I AM smiling!"

Day 7 :: Fremantle - Subiaco - Whiteman Park

0830 :: Up!
1030 :: Drive to Subiaco for a walk around. Dang! Everything is shut. -_- The Singaporeans are flummoxed. Holland Village is extra busy on Sundays! Mustafa is open 24 hours a day!
1145 :: We're back in the apartment and DN naps.
1400 :: On a whim, we head to Whiteman Park for the Classic Car Show.
1530 :: The Ongs are hungry so we wander around and we find this! I also find a cafe and buy an iced chocolate (yum!) and am tempted to buy a kangaroo burger. (Goodness! I can't believe I actually thought of it, they're so cute.) Anyway, DN has a swell time at the playground.
1700 :: We manage to peel DN away from the playground and head back to Fremantle. He naps in the car.
1815 :: After feeding DN dinner, we walk to the Fremantle Harbour in search of some fish & chips and stumble upon Bathers Bay. :)
19oo :: Dinner at Cicerello's.
2030 :: Story time & bed for DN. PF and I then try to squeeze 3 bags full of stuff into 2 bags. -_-

We met someone at the car show who collects these vintage toy cars. He buys them and restores them. Sweet.

The playground had a huge tent over it. So even thought it was blazing hot, the kids could still play comfortably and safely.



Hee hee!

The seagulls were swooping in on leftover fries.

DN doesn't like to wear hats, but he's okay with his hoodie. Funny!

I like this pic. :)
At Bathers Bay, we hung around and waited for the sunset (which DN is pretending to admire).

We took off his shoes and let him run around in the sand. He loved it! The sand is so soft and fine. Not like the mucky, clumpy sand we have here.


One of the basins in our apartment is massive.

Day 6 :: Fremantle - Perth City

0830 :: Up! (and I don't know how, but we manage to flop about in the apartment for 3 hours!)
1130 :: Walk to the Fremantle Markets. We buy some peaches, plums, nectarines, a smoothie and a hotdog. Hmm... turns out less than what we expected. More like a pasar malam with tacky souvenirs than a place for independent artists/craftsmen to sell their wares. (Honestly speaking, I have more fun at Daiso.)
1500 :: Drive to Harbour Town and DN naps for half an hour on the way. The nap's long overdue (his first of the day) and he's super cranky when we get there. DN is a light sleeper and we've never been able to transfer him from car seat to stroller successfully without waking him up. The poor guy's tummy is also not well and he pukes in 2 stores. On the carpet. In front of other shoppers. Oh.
1700 :: Back in the apartment. DN takes his (long-deserved) 2nd nap from 5-630pm. We cook his dinner and stay in tonight. DN feels much better.
2100 :: Story time & bed for DN.

Lunch :: AU$11.50 (smoothie, hot dog)
Dinner :: AU$13 (subway, chips)

* we're really eating junk on this trip. we miss our rice & noodles. :(

How does a bored tot entertain himself in a boring apartment? He plays with the pots and pans of course! The first thing we had to do was remove all sharp items and cleaning agents from the lower cupboards and drawers.

The act of childproofing is now second nature to me. When I visit friends' houses, I feel like Bionic Woman. My eye becomes a "power eye" you know? I see those red circles that zoom in on toddler hazards (mobile phones on coffee tables, wine glasses on floors, and in DN's case, opened containers of biscuits) and a teh-teh-teh sounds off in my brain.

ps : can you see his furry feet? they are actually socks! (from his grand-aunt in shanghai) i love them. it's a lion's face and the furry bits is the lion's mane. haha!

Day 5 :: Margaret River - Bunbury - Fremantle

0800 :: DN is up and again, starts terrorising his parents and egging them to wake up.
0945 :: Check out of cottage and visit Sunflowers Farm for the last time.
1130 :: We drop by Margaret River Nuts and Cereal and Margaret River Chocolate Factory.
1230 :: The night before, PF comes up with a brilliant idea of visiting one more winery before we leave Margaret River and buy a bottle of wine for us to enjoy after DN sleeps! So we go to Ashbrook Estate and buy a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. *hic*
1300 :: Start drive up to Fremantle. DN naps from 1 - 2pm in the car.
1400 :: Lunch at Bunbury. On our way out of Bunbury, we spot a Sheridan outlet and we happily traipse in and spend AU$250 on bedsheets!!! The sales lady knew we were Singaporean when we walked in! Aiyoh.
1600 :: DN naps in the car for 1 hour.
1900 :: Arrive in Fremantle. The apartment is GREAT!
2100 :: Story time and bed for DN.

Farm Entry & Animal Feed :: AU$19
Lunch :: AU$20
Shopping :: AU$60 (nuts & cereal), AU$60 (chocolate), AU$27 (red wine)
Groceries :: AU$47.50 (chicken steaks, water, chocolate, broccoli, onions, potatoes, sausages)
Petrol :: AU$36

That's Alf the Alpaca. He's now eating the remains in the bucket - oats and grain meant for our feathered friends. Alf's a greedy pig!



I forgot what this guy's name was. But he's also a pig in alpaca's clothing.


Look at his funny face! Heh heh.




DN met a kamikaze sheep. *bleat*


"We are orphaned lambs (baby sheeps) (sic). We are too big for milk now. So you can feed us if you like but please don't feed us lettuce! It makes our tummies sick."

I love how every pen had signs like these. Nice that they gave the animals voices. :) Most of the animals had names too. The rabbits didn't have names. Go think about that. ;)

Rabbit with no name. Maybe if he and his friends thought about family planning, the farm will start giving them names. Haha!

The sign on this guy's pen said, "We are Chinese Geese. Our wings didn't come out that right, but it's okay, we don't fly anyway."

I'm thinking, "Why Chinese???" -_-

DN was afraid of this pony. He only got 1 carrot then DN scurried away. I like him. He's got short little legs. (I understand his insecurities.)

Another one of my favourite pics of the trip. :)

I like this one too. :)














That's our apartment in Fremantle.











There were foldable doors at the bedroom so we could close it off after DN slept. It was like an Ikea showflat. Everything was spanking new! Even the floor felt newly waxed. (We confirmed that when we checked out. We were the 2nd ones to rent the place!)















Except for the 1st night at Hillarys, we rented self-contained units all the way. This way, we could still cook some of DN's meals and eat in on some nights. This kitchen had everything - pots, pans, microwave containers, cutlery, cooking utensils, dish cloths, oven mitts, cooker & hood, microwave, kettle, toaster, detergent and sponges. EVERYTHING.

Day 4 : Margaret River - Dunsborough - Gracetown

0800 :: DN is up. (ugh... so early)
1030 :: After a breakfast of toast and some porridge, we drive to Mammoth Cave.
1230 :: We drive about an hour to Dunsborough and DN naps in the car seat all the way. So far we've been planning our day such that we start driving when it's about his nap time. That's really easier
1400 :: Lunch at a cafe at Dunsborough. On hindsight, we should have just driven to Busselton and checked out the Busselton Jetty Underwater Observatory. Except for the beach (which we didn't go to), there wasn't very much else in Dunsborough.
1500 :: We drop by Yallingup Shearing Shed and bought a pair of Uggs for DN. Perfect for winter in UK. :)
1600 :: Since it was nearby, we dropped by The Natural Olive Oil Soap Factory. I love all these cottage industries! We bought 3 room diffusers - bottles of essential oil for fragrancing rooms.
1700 :: DN naps in the car again, until 6pm.
1830 :: We drive to Gracetown and have dinner at Sea Bar Beach Cafe, which overlooks the bay. Very pretty! Don't know what comes over us, but we decide to share a milkshake. A bad idea for 2 people with problems digesting dairy. We were "exploding" all the way back to the cottage. Thank goodness DN still cannot talk! If he could, he'd be cursing his parents.
2100 :: Story time & bed for DN. PF and I pack up coz we're driving to Fremantle the next day.

Lunch :: AU$16 (fish & chips, burger)
Dinner :: AU$52 (scallops, chicken filo, milkshake)
Cave entry :: AU$38 (free for DN)
Shopping :: AU$65 (Uggs), AU$128 (room diffusers)
Petrol :: AU$31 (AU$1.4 per litre)

We chose to visit Mammoth Cave and not the rest because it has the least number of steps. Plus, it's self-guiding so we could go anytime. The other caves have timed guided tours. The cave was interesting. Mother nature makes beautiful things.

DN wasn't a very happy koala bear in the carrier.






DN and me at the Sea Bar Beach Cafe.


Seared scallops with dunno what dunno what dunno what...


Chicken in filo pastry with pink peppercorn cream sauce and raisin chutney.

Phwoargh.

DN's new boots. Note to self : Avoid fashion faux pas! Remove all tags and stickers!

Day 3 : Margaret River

0800 :: As usual, DN is up before us and he bugs us to get up by (trying to) lift our heads and saying "Up! Up! Up!"
0845 :: Bussells Bushland Cottages is actually a group of 8 cottages on a big (ish) piece of land, so there are little walk trails around the estate. We decide to try one out and we saw... 2 kangaroos bounce past us! The city mice are very excited. (especially the female one who almost dropped the camera when trying to take a photo of them and took pictures of trees instead)
1000 :: DN naps in the cottage.
1300 :: Lunch at Xanadu Winery and the city mice are very satisfied. (now we can tell people we visited a winery!)
1500 :: Visit Sunflowers Farm. DN is so excited about the whole thing, he misses his 2nd nap totally.
1730 :: We drop by Margaret River Town and pick up some groceries.
2100 :: Story time and bed for DN.

Lunch (at Xanadu) :: AU$47.50
Farm Entry & Animal Feed :: AU$19
Groceries :: AU$12 (cheerios, eclair, pear tart, water, baby toothbrush)

That's DN on the trail. He's strangely dressed coz we didn't change him out of his pajamas, haha!



I swear the kangaroos are somewhere in the picture!

That's us at Cottage 2. :)



I put some bird food into the bird house and they came! While DN was napping. -_-

PF and I shared this sampler plate (AU$33). It was so good, it's not funny.








(clockwise from top left)
Coriander crusted lamb rump, chickpea salad, minted yoghurt :: Miso marinated king george whiting, sushi rice, tukudani (the best!) :: Spiced curry tofu, broccolini, black bean sauce :: Sheep's feta tiropita, beetroot, pear & rocket salad ::

That's the Xanadu Restaurant. It won a "Gold Plate Best Restaurant within a Winery" award in 2007.

PF took this as we were leaving. One of my fav pics of the holiday. Wish DN didn't have the "tutu" in his mouth though.

DN carrying the bucket of feed at the farm. It was filled with carrot sticks, lettuce, wholemeal bread and oats. He LOVED the farm so we went there again on our last day at Margaret River.

He liked feeding the alpacas best, we don't know why. Their pen was our first stop and DN gave away a third of his bucket there. It was also our last stop and the alpacas came running when they saw DN. I'm serious.

PF took this pic as we left their pen. I think DN overfed him. (the alpaca, not PF)

DN and a joey. :)














DN : "Geez you stink. Go take a shower NOW."

(that's a rabbit btw)

Day 2 : Sorrento - Bunbury - Margaret River

0800 :: DN's up! His breakfast - raisin bread.
1030 :: Check out of motel and drive over to the Aquarium of Western Australia. These are the people who came over and helped build Sentosa's Underwater World. DN has a swell time there.
1330 :: Start drive to Margaret River. DN takes his first nap, until 3pm.
1630 :: Take break at Bunbury and do some grocery shopping (for dinner).
1800 :: Continue drive to Margaret River. DN naps again, for 1 hour.
1900 :: Arrive at Bussells Bushland Cottages, Margaret River. It turns out exactly like what we saw on the internet, complete with bird house.
1930 :: Dinner - roast chicken for us, Pigeon instant porridge and a chicken drumstick (he nicked that from us) for DN.

Groceries :: AU$35 (pork, rice, stock, butternut pumpkin, juice, iced tea, coke, dried fruits, chocolate, instant pasta, salad, grapes, pears)
Shopping :: AU$8 (hat & slippers for me)
Lunch at AQWA :: AU$26 (tuna melt, turkey sandwich)
AQWA entry :: AU$52 (free for DN)
Accomodation :: AU$240 (for 3 nights)

DN really liked AQWA. His favourite bit was the touch pool. He didn't last long in the Ergo though... about 10 minutes.

What's the first thing DN does when we spill out of the car? Pick up dirt.















"Your complimentary starter breakfast includes: (per person) 2 coffee, 2 tea and 4 sugar sachets / 1 small packet of cereal / Orange Juice and Hi Lo Milk"

There was also bread in the fridge and butter and jam in the basket.

I like!















"Some oats to feed the birds. Sprinkle some on your verandah. Enjoy your stay."

Now this thrilled me to bits. Birds on my verandah! So cool! (this from a Singaporean who sees pigeons, crows and sparrows every day. Jakun is jakun, I say!)


DN ate his drumstick like a neanderthal. He grabbed it like a club, haha.

Day 1 : Singapore - Perth - Sorrento

My biggest worry about this entire holiday was the plane ride. I mean, how many times have you had to stop yourself from throttling the screaming kid in 38C? We must have done something right in our lives because on our way to Perth, DN slept for the first 2 hours of the flight and on the way back, he slept for the last 2 hours. On the way back, I even managed to watch an entire movie! WAH!

As far as possible, I've created links to the places we stayed at / visited. Click on these places if you're keen to find out more about them. ;)

0930 :: Plane takes off and DN takes his morning nap
1130 :: DN wakes up and has lunch. On his Kids Tray, there's fish fingers & chips, a pack of juice, Yan Yan strawberry dip & sticks, chocolate covered jellies, cheese & crackers and fruit. Gee. I'm requesting for the Kids Meal the next time I fly.
1645 :: We arrive in Perth, declare all the baby food we brought over, collect our car from Hertz (we got a Hyundai Elantra) and drive to North Beach. DN takes his 2nd nap in the car.
1745 :: Check into the Sundowners Ocean View Motel. It's not a fancy place, but we figured it'll do for one night. We were going to check in late and leave by 10am the next day after all.
1830 :: Drove 5 minutes to Hillarys Boat Harbour for a walkabout and quick dinner. All the shops are closed though, humph. Walked around for a bit, then decided to go to a supermarket instead.
1945 :: We have dinner in the room - fish & chips takeaway for us and Pigeon instant porridge and chips (he nicked some off us) for DN.
2100 :: Story time and bed for DN.

Groceries :: AU$19 (apples, plums, apricots, water, raisin bread, chips)
Dinner :: AU$11 (fish & chips, salad)
Accomodation :: AU$125
Car Rental (8 days) :: AU$500

The minute we got into the room, DN started exploring, opening all cupboards and drawers, taking things in and out.


In one of the drawers he opened, we found these! We thought it was the motel that left them for us (we asked for a cot), but it turned out that they were left behind by another family. DN loved the books so we took them along for the trip.

Parenthood makes you more responsible. Ish.

Here are 4 holidays I will never forget.

1. Chiang Mai with PF, Nov 2005 : The flight was at 6.45am. After packing, we slept at 2am. "Just a short nap," we said. We woke up at 6.35am. I swear, I lost 5 years of my life just by looking at the alarm clock.
   
2. Phuket with Dawn, Dec 2001 : I planned this whole holiday - flights, accomodation, activities. What I didn't plan on though, was my sister discovering at 4am on the day of departure that her passport was missing. (She thinks she threw it away.)
   
3. Vietnam with PF, June 2001 : We booked a flight into and out of Saigon, but the 9 days in between, we didn't have any plans. Well, we had a rough one, but no transport or accomodation.
   
4. New York with Funny Bee, June 1998 : The original plan was London-Aberdeen-Backpacking in Europe with PF. In London, we changed it to London-Aberdeen-New York (w/o PF!) and I had to change my franc and lira into USD.

Scary, but it's these funny ones that you remember forever, not the ones where everything went according to plan.

Okay, back to DN's first holiday. Now that we're parents, we cannot pull this kind of stunt anymore, so I think this is the most prepared we've ever been for a holiday. Granted we've had one or two heart-attack moments...

• applying for DN's passport 10 days before flying off
• confirming all our accomodation 5 days before flying off

... but it's all good. DN has a passport (collected it yesterday, phew!) and we don't have to sleep in the rented car. We've got "prepared" coming out of our ears!

1. Perth is 2 days away, but we've started packing! (A feat in itself.)
2. We've got medicine for fevers, coughs, colds and allergies.
3. We're bringing over some Pigeon instant porridge meals.
4. We've printed out the contact details of the hospitals near us.
5. We've decided on the farms to visit - Landsdale Farm School and Sunflowers Farm.
6. And of course, our accomodation's all booked. :)

In Margaret River, we're staying at Bussells Bushland Cottages, 5km from Margaret River town. We booked a self-contained 1 bedroom cottage and the property promises "colourful bird and animal life, and walk trails that provide easy access to delightful Australian bush." Heh.

The cottage costs AU$120 per night and DN stays FOC because he's still an infant. We got a special deal for this cottage - stay 3 nights, pay for 2 - so it actually worked out to AU$80 (SGD$103) per night.


A bird house! How quaint!



I hope a wombat walks into our cottage. Hee.



















In Fremantle, we're staying at Harbourside Apartments, a 5 minute walk from the Capuccino Strip. We got a 1-bedroom apartment with a view of the Port of Fremantle. It's got a kitchenette, washer/dryer and FREE INTERNET ACCESS! Wooooo! I can blog!

This place is costing us AU$180 per night, no special deal. :( So that's about SGD$230 per night. AH! After paying SGD$103 per night in Margaret River, everything else is expensive.


We're on the 2nd floor, so I wonder what kind of view we'll get. -_-


Wah!



Oooh!

Going to the doctor's is... FUN!

DN is sick again. This time it started with a cough on Saturday, runny nose on Sunday and fever on Monday. A sick kid is no fun. He is extra cranky and he can't sleep well. This means we are also extra cranky and we can't sleep well.

Going to the doctor's is fun for DN because it's like a playground over there! While waiting to see Dr Keoy, DN usually busies himself with the slide and see-saw. (You can hear him say "up" in the video.)



DN never complains when he sees Dr Keoy. Dr Keoy can prod his tummy, peer into his mouth and jab his butt, and DN won't even whimper. That's because Dr Keoy ALWAYS gives him a biscuit. He's got all sorts of kiddie bribes on his table - milk biscuits, sugus sweets, stuffed toys, rattle toys... he's even got an activity table and a little scooter in a corner of the office. I wonder if there are other parents who think, "Me leh?" when Dr Keoy hands their kid a biscuit / sweet.

I hope DN gets better soon... we're flying to Perth on MONDAY!

Hai Yu's Blog

I used to be a regular "viewer/reader" of Little Hai Yu's photoblog... then I lost the web address. :( But because I met her mom again during CNY '08, I have it again! :)

I've added a hyperlink to her photoblog and you must check it out. Emmeline takes these amazing photographs. Look!


Taken in Chinatown


Taken at the recent air show



DN on CNY '08 Day 1



DN & his cousin, Hailey on CNY '08 Day 4


Awww...


And this is Hai Yu! She's about 4 months younger than DN.

18 months old

At 18 months, his personality, likes, dislikes, abilities and quirks are quite obvious, and I think I have a fairly good idea what kind of person he is.

Personality

• Short-tempered : He flys off the handle when he doesn't get what he wants. (alamak)
  
• Friendly : Unless he's just woken up from a nap or due for one, he can be very friendly with people. He'll smile and wave at strangers and if he knows you a bit better, he'll interact and play with you.
• Independent : He doesn't need us around all the time. At playgroups, he's usually off playing on his own or with other kids.
• Gung Ho : He's game to try anything, even a dark and narrow tunnel at the Julia Gabriel playground.
  
• Observant : He can spot things that we can't! (like the narrow & dark tunnel which was under a Little Tykes pirate ship)

Conclusion : If there's an Amazing Race for toddlers, DN will join it. He'll eat grubs and leap off playground slides, but if he doesn't win, you'd better siam! (leave quickly to escape from the exploding toddler and his tantrum)

Likes

• Eating : DN really likes eating. Even after his own dinner, he'll want to join us at the dinner table and eat, instead of play with his toys. During the day, we often see him dragging his high chair to the dining table and pointing at us to put him in it.
  
• Grapes & Kueh Belanda : He will give up his parents for these.
  
• Bathtime Peekaboo : One of his 2 favourite books now. He likes lifting the flaps and discovering the duck, penguin, fish etc. I like this book too because it's very baby friendly - board book, huge flaps, huge pictures & few words.
  
• Goodnight Moon : His other favourite. For the longest time, he couldn't sit through 4 pages of this book. Now, he'll sit and listen from beginning to end. These are the only 2 books he'll read in their entirety.
• Slides : Short ones, tall ones, straight ones, curly ones.
  

Conclusion : When he's older, I can just see all three of us hanging out at a cafe having tea/coffee/hot chocolate and cake and reading books. Lovely! I can't wait!

Dislikes

• Wiping his face : He likes washing his hands with soap, but hates us wiping his face. Go figure.
• Finger Paints : Strangely, although he doesn't like the feel of paint on his hands, he has no qualms smearing my carefully-cooked-on-the-stove-for-2-hours porridge on the table.
• Sitting in the stroller : I'm like, "Do you know how much this monster stroller cost us? SIT DOWN!"
• Sleeping through the night : -_-
• Bittergourd : Can't blame the guy, but trust the chinese to eat, and like, this awful vegetable.

Conclusion : A nightmare for him would be being chased by a giant face towel.

Abilities

• Signing : He's building up his signing vocabulary and recently added the signs for - carrot, umbrella, stand up (he made this one up himself), grumpy, grapes and vegetable. He's also more precise with his signs now. When signing 'more', he now uses his fingertips instead of his knuckles.
• Language (1) : He's definitely physically dominant and not linguistically dominant. He can only say "mama", "mum-mum" and "up", but he understands 95% of what we say. Like if he overhears us talking about going home, he'll go get his shoes and start waving bye to everyone, even though we're still sitting on the couch. He's been doing this since he was about 14 months old.
  
• Language (2 ) : He understands 95% of what we say, in both English and Mandarin. Woah nelly. I think his understanding of Mandarin is better than mine.
• Physical Development : He started walking at 12 months and it's been a whirlwind journey since. It wasn't long before he started running (13 mths) and walking backwards (15 mths). He cannot sit still. I think that's why he's not fat even though he eats so much.
  

Conclusion : In primary school, his whole world will crash when it's raining and he cannot have PE.

Quirks

• Eating medicine : He eats his paracetamol medicine and shows us the 'good' sign! And he'll open his mouth and receive other medicine willingly. Amazing. I love it!
• Fish Lover : He likes fishes so much that whenever he hears running water, or sees a pond, he'll run over to see if there are fishes in it. One of the first few signs he learnt was 'fish'.
  
• Guttural Sounds : None of us can do it, but DN can make this strange guttural sound from deep inside his throat. He started doing this just before he turned one, whenever he saw a dog or cat (like a growl!). Now he also makes this sound when we ask him to call 'gong gong' or 'gu gu'. It really does sound like it, haha.
  
• Smiling : At about 14 months, DN finally understood the concept of "smiling for the camera". Because he's seen me shove my phone-camera in his face so often, he started smiling as he held my phone-camera and pointed it at his face. He also accomodates when we bark at him to "smile", and he gives us his trademark squinted-eyes-scrunched-up-nose smile.
  

Conclusion : Strange taste buds? Vain pot?


Feb 2007


Feb 2008