Rainforest Kidzworld

Would you believe it... today is Faith's first visit to the zoo.

Yep! First time. Ever.

Well... there's lots of reasons for it, but the single most deterrent is due to my phobia of snakes. My memory of snakes and zoo were that there were always a few of them on display at common zones within the zoo, not just the enclosure that they are kept in.

In my younger school days, visits to the zoo were dreaded and I spent my entire time at the zoo looking left, right, front and back, in fear of chancing upon any sighting of snakes; pictures or those in the flesh.

Its hard to explain this phobia and people who do not have phobias will never fully comprehend the level of fear. Its irrational, unexplainable and I had never had any frightening experiences with them to be so deeply petrified of them.

But after checking and double-checking with Jaz and a few other friends that these days, the snakes and their keepers don't lurk anywhere except in their enclosures and during show times, I decided to brave going to the zoo with Faith.

Becos, what has been so irresistible to me and that I think would be loads of fun for Faith was the Rainforest Kidzworld with the water play area. With the searing heat that has been zinging its wave right down on our little island, its no wonder that its a haven for most parents with kids. A rather expensive one at that if one's not a Friends Of the Zoo member - S$18 for an adult ticket. Anyways, it was my own entry fee that I had to pay cos Faith goes in free for under 3 years old.

We met at 10 am at the zoo entrance. Thankfully, Jaz had told me to bring along a stroller, swim wear for Faith and a change of clothes for myself. It was a lot of stuff to bring so Louis had to give up the car for our day of outing :)

Needless to say, the heat was sweltering at usual and the walk to the Rainforest Kidzworld took about 10 mins, with intermittent stops to look and point out animals like the zebra, ostrich, flamingos along the way.

It could have been worse if I had to carry Faith all the way without a stroller. It had been 1 year since we last used the stroller - we stopped using it around the time that Faith started to walk independently. Thankfully, the little girl sat in her stroller and did not fuss at all. She kept calling out for Lecia as we walked just to check that her little friend was still with her on the walk there.

The long and short of it was that we had a blast at the Kidzworld. It wasn't too crowded when we reached there. The crowd really started coming in with bigger, rowdier and older kids around 11-ish am.

Faith was initially hesitant about the water play area and getting herself drenched. Lecia was the total opposite. She was like the proverbial bird set free from the cage. She jumped right into the play area, darted in, out and around the different play zones and essentially went all around with lots of exuberance and glee.

Meanwhile, Faith was slowly warming up, and trying at times to frantically call out for Lecia, who was zapping all around the place. I should have bought my swimming costume and wore it under a shorts or something. Jaz and I were totally drenched, following the kids around. Frankly, we were all for getting wet. It was a great respite from the oppressive heat.

The most exciting part of the water play area was the huge water can that was hanging atop a structure. It would be filled with water and at certain intervals, there would be a bell whistle to alert the kids that the water can was about to brim over with water and send it splashing down below. At which point, all the kids would run to the middle and wait excitedly for the water to come rushing down.

We initially started with the 2 girls sitting on the outermost perimeter. With each time, we would sit a little closer to the action and as Jaz warned, the splatter of water from that huge can was rather impactful and hard. Faith was a little dazed after that particular hard drenching that we stuck to sitting out at the perimeters for the rest of the time.

Lecia? Well.. that girl is such a tyke and a little dynamo. She giggled and laughed through it all, got up after each drenching and ran off in whatever directions.

We played for about 45 minutes and took a break to eat some muffins, biscuits, cheese dippers and fruits. By the time we headed back to the play area after our little picnic, the water play area had gotten more crowded. We played for another half an hour before we had to haul the protesting kids for a shower and lunch.

We agreed to drive to Causeway Point for lunch and had Japanese. Faith had her usual of chawanmushi, some of my handroll (which I ordered so that she could have the nori that wraps the handroll) and shared some items of my bento. The kids also shared a kids meal of fish and chips.

We headed home around 3 pm and Faith fell asleep in the car, all tuckered out from the day's activity. It was an early night for both of us as I was equally tired. Louis came into the room at 10 pm to find the two of us deep in sleep :)

It was the most fun that we both had for such a long time. I hope we have the chance to visit a few more times with Lecia before the next school term and I start my part-time stint.

Nokia E75 at $0

I've been itching to upgrade my handset for a while now, especially since my 2-year contract was coming up in a few months. Now and then, I'd pop into the myriad shops selling mobile phones near my home just to scout around and see what new models were upcoming.

At the end of the day, I decided to stick with a Nokia phone instead of something else, like an iPhone, cos I know I'm just not the kid of person who would use the phone for much other than calling, SMSing and surfing the Internet using WIFI.

The 2 phones that I narrowed down were the E71 and E75 models. I love the sleek and slim E71 phone. My only grouse was that it came with a QWERTY keyboard with very tiny buttons. SMSing would be a chore cos you would need both hands and frankly, a teeny QWERTY keyboard doesn't make for fast SMSing. At least not for me.

The E75 is a newer model. Its a slider phone that slides out from the left panel to reveal a QWERTY keyboard. Traditional method of SMSing is still available using the numerical keypad. Even though its a little thicker cos of the QWERTY slider, its still a tad slimmer than my existing E65. All in all, it sounded like a better fit for me.

What tilted the scales of the balance was a favourable review of the E75 on ST's Digital Life last week.

During one of my recce trips to the shops, I also found out that I could upgrade my handset even though my 2-year contract wasn't up yet. Hence, I started to pay more attention to the ongoing promotions and today, I finally bought my phone at $0. Here's how it all worked out for me:

• Best Price - M1 has a week-long roadshow at Bugis Junction this week and E75 was going at $168 based on my current subscription plan,
• Trade-in - My existing E65 had a trade-in value of $100
• Handset upgrade voucher - I called and enquired about handset upgrade vouchers and was given one valued at $70.

So now, I'm happily listening to the FM radio using my E75 while I'm writing this post.

What a sweet deal!

Cold Storage Kids Run - 24 May 2009

Two months back, I signed Faith up for the Cold Storage Kids Run 09, under the non-competitive, 700m Blue Sky Chase category for kids aged between 2-4 years old.

Flag-off time for the race category was at 9.25 am but we needed to report in at 8.55 am. The only little tricky issue was waking Faith up, feeding her breakfast and making it out of the house before 8.30 am if we were to get there in time -- she usually wakes around 9-ish am.

With all the noise that Louis and I were making, Faith roused out of sleep by 7.45 am. Even though she was still groggy, we changed her out of her PJs, fed her a light breakfast and were ready to leave by 8.15 am. My MIL called to say that she would join us for the trip to the race. My dad, meanwhile, would rendezvous with us at the Padang.

Having decided to park at Raffles City Shopping Centre, we went up the carpark basement escalator to find scores of parents and kids geared up in their exercise togs and the race t-shirts. All of us were going in the same direction to the Padang.

The parent t-shirt reads "I'm a proud parent" at the back while the kid t-shirt reads, "I'm a proud runner". Faith's t-shirt hung a little big and loose for her, but since this wasn't meant to be a kids' pageant and we weren't out to make any fashion statement, it was totally fine. I forgo the standard-issue (or rather the race t-shirt that we were forced to buy - there wasn't any option not to buy a parent t-shirt during the online registration) and wore my own exercise gear.

Scorching was the word out at the Padang. Even though it was a short distance from RCSS to the Padang, I was perspiring profusely by the time. Faith's hair was totally drenched even before she started the race.

Faith and I headed to the holding area before we were shepherded to the start of the race line at 9.20 am. My dad, MIL and Louis continued to wait at the Padang while we were racing becos there was a supposed parent to kid ratio of 1:1. In actual fact, during the race, there were lots of family exceeding the 1:1 ratio but neither the organisers nor the race contestants really minded cos it was meant to be good fun anyways.

There were lots of young kids around Faith's age. I presumed young becos they were all being carried by their parents. One Caucasian mother was jokingly remarking to me that she hope we wouldn't have to carry our little ones for the entire 700m.

I knew I would be carrying Faith for part of the race becos I expected that she wouldn't want to run all 700m on her own. However, I figured that seeing other kids running on their own would inspire her to want to get down and race a little too.

Thankfully, Faith was a good sport and was gamed to hold my hand and run for more than half of the race. I only carried her midway through the race becos I was afraid she would be too tired out or would over exert herself. I put her down again to race for the last leg of the run.

When we crossed the finishing line, we were given a goodie-bag/plastic bag with water, a race completion certificate and two wrist-bands amongst other things. Even though it was not a competitive race, there were people distributing a star-shaped medal for every kid.

We met up with Louis, my MIL and dad after the race. We spend some time cooling down at the field and also collected some more goodies -- bananas and Dettol hand soaps.

By 10 am, we headed towards to the carpark while my dad headed off to walk around at Suntec City.

Even though it was a short 700m run, we were all tuckered out. Faith slept early at my MIL's place. Louis and I too catch a good 2-hour nap ourselves at home.

Its Faith's first ever race and Louis and I are PROUD Parents!

Role of a SAHM

Faith's JG Mandarin class used to have only a handful of kids. In the last few weeks, there are more and more new faces joining the class. Now, there are about 12-13 students. For most kids, they are almost always accompanied by the moms, with the exception of some who come with their helpers or grandparents. In such cases, both parents are typically working and cannot take time off to accompany their kids.

I was talking to the mom of one of the newer kids this afternoon. I had previously chatted with her very shortly on a variety of things. Usual stuff like how far along is she expecting (she's 35 weeks along now) and my impending "re-entry" into the workforce after a 2-year hiatus. Yep, yours truly is finally going back to work, although as a part-timer, come 1 Jul 09.

This mom comes along with her helper, the latter of whom is the one that participates with the son in class, while the mom who is in the last few weeks of her pregnancy, sits or stands at the sidelines most times.

Our conversation today started with her asking about my part-time arrangements and whether I was glad to be going back to work. I said that I did have some slight apprehension about going back to work after being away for so long, and also that I would miss Faith on days that I work cos I enjoy spending time with her. She looked at me with a slightly surprised expression and said, "Really?".

I was a little surprised myself by her reaction, although I didn't think much about it at that time. When she asked who would mind Faith while I was at work, I told her that my mom comes in daily and would have to turn up earlier on days that I have to go to work. That was when she started to ask if I had a helper on hand to help me manage.

Notwithstanding the fact that we did not have the luxury of having a hired help back during my grandma's and parents' days, we also did not cotton to the idea of having to be responsible and supervise a non-family member in the house. I kind of "inherit" that mindset and becos I had the good fortune of having my mom to come in daily and a part-time helper, it had never cross my mind to get ourselves a helper.

Quite naturally, my response to her was that Louis and I personally do not like the responsibility of managing a full-time 24x7 helper. To which, this mother pressed on and tried to sell the idea of how much help a good maid can be. She said too that if I could find an intelligent helper, especially those from the Philippines, they can be really beneficial for everyone in the household.
She quoted me two examples to illustrate her point.

Firstly, the helper of another mother in the class, who I know quite well, was either trained or aspiring to be trained as a teacher back in the Philippines. So, she is very patient and good with Faith's classmate. Personally, I can attest to that cos I've seen the helper come in on days when the mother couldn't bring her daughter for class herself and saw how she helps to coach and correct the girl in both English and Mandarin.

The second example she quoted me was of her own maid, who she trains to teach her son to run through flashcards every morning. And she reiterated the last bit to me rather proudly - every morning without fail!

Finally, I felt compelled to tell her that I really did not like the idea of having another person in my house and that I was perfectly pleased with my current arrangements and that a part-time helper is about all that I could cope in terms of external help.

However, the conversation with this mom left me a little uncomfortable with her, or more likely, her mindset. While I do not have any problems with anyone getting a helper for whatever reasons, I think most parents I know would take a hands-on approach about teaching their kids or spending time with their kids, leaving the helpers to deal with mundane stuff like cleaning or feeding etc.

In fact, there are two other moms in the class who always bring their helpers. However, the helpers always stay outside the classroom and only steps in to mind the kids when they are playing outdoors. One of the 2 moms is expecting too.

Which also makes me wonder if she lets her helper accompany her son throughout the class not becos she could be due anytime but becos she's not a hands-on mother herself? Not to be judgemental, but I can't help wondering what kind of mom does she see herself? A SAHM that leaves her helper to teach her son every morning with flashcards (is that all or she does even more?) and participates with her son in class?

Maybe there's a reasonable explanation for all these, but I'm not courageous enough to ask her. So, I merely assume and wonder aloud on my own here. Well... as long as it doesn't make an ASS of U and ME :)

Did you know?

If you subscribe to SCV Cable and have Playhouse Disney (Channel 34) available as part of your package, did you know that you could get to view quite a number of the programmes in Mandarin?

I think its probably something that not a lot of people know about. Or at least I certainly didn't up until last week when an American Chinese colleague of Louis enlightened me. I was sharing about my desperate search to hunt for more Mandarin DVDs of the usual programmes that Faith watches e.g. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, My Friends Tigger & Pooh and the likes.

Turns out that like the Dual Sound Mode available for Korean dramas, you can similarly use the same switch on your SCV cable remote control to turn to Mandarin mode for Playhouse Disney - it might work with other channels too?!

The best programmes are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and My Friends Tigger & Pooh cos the shows are fully in Mandarin, including the songs they sing. For the rest of the programmes like Dibo the Gift Dinosaur, Barney, Word World, Higgly Town Heroes, the dialogues are in Mandarin. However, the songs sung continue to be in English.

In our bid to make attending her JG Mandarin lessons less painful, we have tried to expose her to as much of the language as we could, in addition to listening to Mandarin nursery rhymes and trying to speak as much Mandarin to her whenever we remember.

Watching all the programmes in Mandarin has certainly improved her understanding of the language. And mine too for that matter!

She could now count from 1-10 correctly when she's in the mood to do so herself without much prompting. I figured that if she's going to spend so much time glued to the tube, she might as well learn something useful from it. So, I've been toggling back and forth between both languages since I've discovered this little nugget of information.

Hoorays to Dual Sound Modes!

Papa's not home

Nearly 5 months since that fateful event last year that left Louis with a dislocated knee and 4 months since his surgery to reconstruct his torn ligaments, Louis is now doing well.

In fact, well enough to travel to London for a short trip this week.

Looking back at what seemed to be a long and arduous journey for him to reach this stage where he is able to walk somewhat normally without the support of any crutches feels like a miracle. Holding hands, walking together as a family with Faith in between us, whenever we are out never fails to bring a great sense of relief and wonderment for the both of us.

It was a painful experience for everyone in the family, especially for Louis. Yet, it has made us truly appreciate the simple things in life a great deal better.

Since about 3-4 weeks ago, Louis started walking without his crutches. It was all very delicate and cautious, of course. He started walking without crutches at home. Gaining sufficient confidence after, he went out for short distances without it. Starting with small, tentative steps, his gait now is more normal. He hardly hobbles. He looks more like one who is a slow, unhurried stroller. Going down stairs that are long or steep, he needs to hold onto something for support. However, its only a matter of time before he's back to walking normally, in his long, purposeful strides.

In fact, he started swimming in the last couple of weeks, swimming only free-style. The water definitely helps strengthen the leg muscles and the gentle pressure of the water actually helps to cushion any major impact on the legs.

After having him at home 24x7 for so many months, it feels a little different now that he's back at work full-time and even as I write this, hasn't been home for the last 2 nights. Its a short trip and I thought he would be back before I even had the chance to miss him. Yet, barely 12 hours after he left in the morning, I started to miss him. Similarly, he misses us at home too.

Before he left, he told Faith that he was going to go away and wouldn't be home at night for a few days and to look after mummy. Faith nodded sagely at him, seemingly understanding everything that he said.

It would be too much, I think, for a 2 year-old to fully grasp the concept of him going away on a business trip.

Ever since his marked progress in walking independently without any aid, one of Faith's final act among her slew of bedtime rituals would be to walk round to Louis' side of the bed. Lightly tugging his hand, she would pull him to sit up and say, "C'mon... sleep [with] Faith", meaning for Louis to follow and sleep next to her on the mattresses beside our bed.

Last night, she did her usual only to find that his side of the bed was empty. I told her again that Louis was not home and wouldn't be home for the next few nights. She would have to be a big girl in the meantime and learn to sleep on her own without her Papa lying next to her.

Obviously, Faith wasn't about to take what I said at face value and go sleep quietly on her own. There were lots of protest, begging, coaxing and the use of the magic word, "please", many times over to get me to go sleep with her. Unfortunately, I take a stronger stance on getting her to sleep independently :)

Actually, its sweet to see father and daughter lying next to each other and having Faith fall asleep like that. Louis certainly feels so and he being the putty that he is in his daughter's hands, would drag himself to the mattress on the floor when she comes along every night no matter how tired he was.

Come home soon, darling!

Pre-nursery registration

The rat race has begun... where parents, like it or not, get caught up about when and where to register and place their kids in some quasi formal education. From then onwards, the rat race never stops.

Technically, I think kindergarten is the start of pre-school. In Singapore's context, pre-school starts as early as the year kids turn 3 years old. We did our little "homework" late last year, recce-ing possible places for Faith's pre-nursery registration.

In the end, our very short shortlist was whittled down to Pat Schoolhouse and Chiltern House, in that order of preference. Even though we had set our sights on Pat Schoolhouse, like any KS Singaporean, we submitted our application for Chiltern house at the start of the year.

Couple of weeks ago, I had gotten a call from Chiltern. Faith was being offered the afternoon session at its Turf Club branch, meaning that lessons start from 2-5 pm daily. It was a no-brainer for us to reject the initial offer and asked to be placed on the waitlist.

Faith takes her afternoon nap daily anywhere from that time since she wakes up at about 9 am or thereabouts.

The afternoon session would mean that she would have to forego her sleep or sleep after she comes back from class. A kid without sleep equates a grouchy one and its bound to make dinner and the time before bedtime a trying one for everyone in the household. The other alternative of letting her sleep so late in the afternoon will yield either a night owl or again, a trying time for us to get her to sleep at her normal sleeping time.

Since we were still holding out for Pat schoolhouse's registration to start in Jun, Louis and I weren't too concerned about putting her on the waiting list. Chiltern was meant to be our fallback plan if she didn't get into Pat Schoolhouse.

On Tuesday, I received a call from Chiltern that they have now managed to place Faith for the morning session at Turf Club. Its the ideal time slot and branch that we wanted. IF we intended to put her at Chiltern. I asked for extra time to consider and haul butt in calling Pat Schoolhouse to check her chances.

If we were to give up on this prime slot at Chiltern, we wanted be a hundred percent certain that she is getting into Pat Schoolhouse. So, I called the school and spoke to the principal. The last time I spoke with her, she said they would call me in Jun when the registration starts.

I'm not sure if it was becos I sounded so keen on enrolling her for Pat Schoolhouse or the fact that I told them I had an offer from Chiltern, the principal said that if we are willing to register her now and make an initial deposit equivalent to a one month's school fees, then, Faith's got a confirmed place at Pat Schoolhouse.

I called Louis and we both decided that we'll go ahead with the payment to confirm her registration at Pat Schoolhouse. However, with the Influenza A alert, the school is also cautious about the number of parents dropping by its place without appointment. So, the principal and I agreed to contact each other via email for the submission of all necessary documents and to follow up with a cheque payment.

At least, we can now give up that space in Chiltern for someone else.

Truthfully, there's a part of me that can't quite bear the thought of sending my little one to pre-school. I know its a natural part of childhood and every kid's got to go through it. Who knows, maybe I'll be the one crying when I drop her off at the school gate next time.

Hmmm.... that's a sobering thought indeed! Eve, the clingy mom??!!!

Geez!