[G's 8th Garden Birthday Party]

Can’t believe G is 8! Gosh, the year just passed by so quickly… it seems just a few months ago that we celebrated her 7th birthday before our trip to Japan.

For her 8th birthday, she’s comfortable enough with her school friends (the same class continued from P1 to P2) to invite them to a birthday party. Also, it was really fun to observe G in her “school habitat” with her girlfriends.

The venue for this year’s party is at the Botanical Gardens, namely the Orchid Garden. If you’ve never been there, do go! It’s a very well kept garden, with lots of orchids (what else!) and even a “cool house” to keep cool after walking the garden!

We booked a walking tour for G and her bunch of friends from school. Unfortunately, they were all so hyped up and excited about the party that they all didn’t really care too much about the “educational” walk! haha!

We made cupcake toppers and a birthday banner again. The cupcake stand from G’s 5th birthday makes another appearance! Cupcakes are from 12 cupcakes… YUMS!

After the very HOT walk, the girls came into the pavilion all ready for a PARTY! Good thing mummy was well prepared with lots of snacks and a craft activity!

Old time favorite blow your own bubbles never cease to please this age set. Good thing they are so cheap!

They all wanted to blow the biggest bubble ever! Also, we did other girly stuff like glitter tattoos and a little craft project

Here’s G showing off her big bubble while the indulgent grandpa watches on

Birthday song before everybody devoured the cupcakes!

We made the invitation cards by stamping onto various shades of green cardstock with my trusty “october afternoon” stamps

Dearest G, you at 8 yr old are the most precocious little one I have ever met! If we were every in any doubt of your determined spirit, across this year, we have all but been convinced that you are definitely gifted to us to teach us all about the most underrated qualities in life – Patience!! More and more, I am beginning to understand what my parents went through with me, how when my mum recollects how I have tried her patience so many times, how my growing up has changed her into the most patient person ever (seriously, she is THE most patient mom!) I can only hope the I am nearer the quality of zen-ness that my mom displays after the girls are all grown up. My dearest little baby, you have grown up so quickly, this year even more so! With the start of the new year, you have embraced school in your most endearingly earnest way. You look forward to school now, even venturing into joining a CCA! Your love for the Art club is now so great that you beg me to send you off to school half an hour earlier than required. This is such a total change from this time last year! Just this year too, we have tried being much more patient (see?!) with you, taking your tantrums and outbursts in stride, not screaming or shouting or scolding you. In fact, it is turning out to be so much easier that I’m just glad we did not wait till you have gotten used to being an angry child before we took on this way of treating you. Above all, we have learnt (hopefully you have too) to respect each other’s feelings, and not to take away the opportunity for you to vent out any inside anger that you have. We have to keep reminding ourselves that you are also a little grownup person, as you have so eloquently written in your many notes to us (the letterbox was such a brilliant idea!), and to allow you to speak your mind at times. Lastly, please remain so very quirky, funny and talkative little girl! You might not be the easiest child to love, but when you love back, it is the nicest, most wonderful rewarding feeling ever! Love, Mommy and Papa

[FEB 2013]

Trying to keep her distracted with the iPhone while the medicine takes effect…

Such an eventful past week it has been for us! We had to rush to hospital with K on Monday night after she had severe breathing difficulty, and was warded into KK children’s hospital for the next 2 days. Gosh! What a nightmare! It was a scary few moments when we rushed from home to GP, then from GP to the A&E ward. Thankfully the scary part was over pretty quick and K was super good at taking all the medications and inhalers. It was a bacterial infection that caused her fluid in lungs, and hopefully it is all under control with the medication (we will know after we bring her back for a review after the antibiotics run out).

 

G was so glad to see her mei mei the next day.

Sweet little note from K to V on the 2nd day of hospital

Finally given the green light to discharge! This is her little “going home” pressie from Mummy, for being such a brave little girl and the bestest patient!

Happy K going home!

So, this weekend we managed to get the girls out and about, first to some fresh air in the park, and on Sunday to the National Museum, where there were free entry to all the galleries. Here are the pix:

K being all animated and cheeky…. heee…..

O! and her 2 front teeth are out as well!

So happy to see her looking super cheerful again!

G, looking all grown up! She was really worried about mei mei when she had to be warded into hospital, breaking down into hysterics!

So sweet together

One of G’s favorite stall – it helped that she totally charmed the socks off this particular stallowner!

This has got to be G’s new idol for the day – she is now planning on being able to setup shop like little Bridgette here, who at 12 is churning out so many wonderful crafty stuff for her online biz!

We ended the day with fabulous cupcakes from the Vanilla bakery – pretty expensive but quite well worth the money!

[TOKYO : DEC 2012]

A very much belated post…. but I thought I should get it down before it all fades into distant memory!! My parents – the girls dearest popo and kongkong, decided to bring the girls for a weeklong holiday to KL. We took the opportunity to take a full 7 days holiday to our favourite city – Tokyo! It’s our longest time away from the girls and we missed them like crazy, but it was a very well deserved break from working through the year and a much needed inspiration boost in terms of work! Here are some pictures with the relevant information and sentiments of our trip

One of the places we visited with the girls the last time – K was thrilled to see her name up on the wall!

Wonderful new “old” architecture – this is OMOHARA – one of the hippest shopping malls in Tokyo!

Us on the famous mirrored walls of OMOHARA

Afternoon treats – this is one of the most underrated self-indulgence that is sorely missed whilst travelling with your offspring. If they were with us, this would be duly fought over and devoured before you could say “go!”. As it was, we had the whole afternoon to slowly savor our treats and coffee at the many many coffeeshops!

Visited Design Site – another architectural masterpiece. This was a part of Tokyo that we had not manage to visit the past few times. Really glad we did, there was so much to see and it was truly inspirational to visit really good architecture done well.

Read about this on another blogger’s blog, and also purchased the little Zakka guide from this famous blog. There were only 2 other patrons in this quaint little shop in ShimoKitazawa, we loved the homely vibe, the delicious food and all the eyecandy merchandising lining up the shop.

Totally yummy pasta! Looks like it would be easy to replicate, but have not succeeded in doing so ever since!

Standing outside the Comme Des Garcon fashion shop in Harajuku…. window shopping!

The day the bags didn’t arrive – unfortunately for us, our bags took a detour in transit at KL and only arrived in Tokyo 1 day after us! Fortunately, this meant it was an excuse to get a brand new wardrobe!

Blogged about our “new” discovery Shimo Kitazawa on our last trip to Tokyo. This time around, we managed to walk even more into the little streets, venturing into many many different nooks and cranies. It was really fun to assimilate into the locals – or at least pretend to!

Favorite shops revisited….

Still in Shimo, it was super freezing even though there was strong sunlight! Thankfully my favorite scarves kept me snug and warm throughout

We chanced upon this hole in the wall cafe while walking into Nippori. It was a real find and we were so happy slurping out 200 yen soba! 200 Yen for a meal is almost unheard of in Japan!!

A very happy and satisfied customer!

Gingko leaves – the beautiful shapes of these leaves and their colour! Gorgeous patterns on the pavements everyday

We took an impromptu trip out from Tokyo to the Premium Outlets at Gotamba, after which we stumbled upon a spa town HERE and had the most divine day out at the local hotsprings and a magical lights festival! Again, we would never have had this adhoc trip if we were travelling with the girls – too much at risk – we didn’t even know if we could catch the last bus back to tokyo!

Another famous shopping mall – GYRE building in the heart of Omotesando.

Tsukiji is a definite must go everytime we’re in Tokyo. This time round was no exception.

Stumbled upon this quaint little outdoor village

Another famous architectural visit – this time – the Visitor’s Centre in Asakusa by Kengo Kuma.

Cute and quirky little meter boxes – i don’t even think they were deliberately trying to be cute, it just turns out that way!

The Performance Hall by Toyo Ito.

In LOVE with this shop- the concept, the merchandising, the everything! check out the online version of it HERE..

Saw this in a shop and thought about G

At Asakusa, reliving the times we were there with the girls.

So, these are some of the more interesting photos of our trip. Of course the most precious memories are the ones that are stored in the heart. Those days of being together without having to worry about where to find the next meal for the kids and if they are warm enough are really quite unforgettable. Much thanks also have to go to my parents for being such sports in bringing the girls with them for a holiday (and to worry about their next meals and entertainment!) We are definitely very blessed to have such wonderful support!

[CNY 2013]

It’s been another month since my last post! Gosh, how time flies. Things have been going back to the usual routine of school dropoffs, work, meetings, family dinners etc. It is a nice break to have a few days off for CNY (and to finally catch up on my blog!) Here are the pictures from these 2 days of non-stop feasting and catching up…..

Girls are our models for setting the timer etc.

Our annual shot every CNY. Catch the previous ones here – 2010,  2012… how nostalgic!

Our traditional giving of angpows to the girls – how they have grown!!

CNY is still full of little traditional touches like this one – the giving of tea to the matriarch by all the daughters-in-laws……

Love this shot of all the little girls in the family – the number increases every year!

So blessed to have a HUGE playroom at new house – the kids all had a blast playing with their cousins.

Totally LOVE this candid shot – K just stepped over P’s foot – look at her giggly cheeky face!

Trying to pose with a wriggly K

G – so grownup and demure in this photo…. totally NOT like her at all! hah!

K – 5 going on 18! She’s truly a grownup girl in a little girl’s body!

Day 02 of CNY started nice and slow…. we only had to be at New House for lunch, so the girls had a lot of time to slowly get into their outfits for the day!

Love this shot of my 2 girls and me. K is carrying a little embroidered bag I made….

The girls are addicted to their loveys – G to bearbino, K to barney bu bu…..

Love this shot of the 2 of them – G said – mei mei is like my lovey too! aww…….

K gave her a BIG hug back!

We take this shot in front of new house every year…

Day 2 of play central at new house – it was a hit with all the visiting kids!

Love this pensive shot of K that V caught in a quiet moment in between guests…

A shot of lunch! All that effort to make a superbly stupendous lunch (&dinner!)

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!!!

May the Year of the Snake bring you lots of happiness, prosperity, good health and lots and lots of SMILES

[The Best of 2012]

Usually the roundup post is done at the end of the year, but with all our travelling this dec, I didn’t get a chance to do it until today!

Owells…. not too late!

Here they are :

JANUARY:

January marks the start of the year, G going into P1 at RGPS. She was super thrilled with the whole experience….. and we had lots of nice outdoor dinners at the Botanical Gardens.

Love the spontaneity of the shots. The girls had so much fun!

This had to be the most hilarious pose of the year. G the “samseng” and K the “bossy pants” lol….

We took some candid shots of the girls after reunion lunch. The feasting from Xmas continues into the new year!

FEBRUARY:

Chinese New Year! Love this shot in front of New House

K just turned 4. She’s a lot more vocal, and totally the “girly girl” with her hair always neatly tied up and properly dressed up with coordinating clips and handbag and shoes.

G, going on 7, is the “cheese” to her sister’s “chalk”! She’s goofy, totally zany and has a carefree streak in her that does not think neatness, staying clean and being demure is that important! Much to the chagrin of all of us!

MARCH:

March! Our 1st born turns 7! Wow, how time flies. I guess my post in March sums it up well.

We also took a long awaited trip to HOKKAIDO with the girls and my parents. It was SUPER cold! but of course the fun in the snow more than made up for it!

The girls loved it so much! even more so as their beloved po2 and gong2 came along!

Loved how this photo encapsulated the whole mood of the trip for the girls!

APRIL:

April, the month where G has finally more or less settled down in school. The past few months were super trying on all involved, we were all very relieved when G motivated herself to attend school without much fussing. Here is a happy G after school with her Best Friend D.

Love the honesty and trueness of this little note. Childhood friends are just absolutely precious!

Girls are growing taller and taller everyday! G especially…. her jeans are all too short now and we have to keep buying her new clothes and shoes.

G also had a long awaited playdate with G from kindie – who also goes to RGPS but not the same class. It was really fun to see the girls playing together so well. (previous ones are HERE)

JUNE:

School holidays in June is always a whirlwind of activities! From museums to libraries, lots of stuff to do…. we were constantly out of the house! Love this picture of G looking so grownup!

The Children’s Season at the Art museum is always a hit with the girls

We also had a super cool personalised tote made up for the girls at the Public Garden flea market. How cute!

G’s little Pinkie Promise note to her little sister.

 

We also attended Clay Class which the girls loved!

Love this pix of the 2 of them. So nice when they are totally loving to each other.

JULY:

Back to school! The good thing about being a Parental Volunteer is you get to be present at most of the school events. Which means I get to see G in her school environment with the rest of her friends. They all know me now as “G’s mummy”, and will not hesitate to come up to me with complains on her behavior!

K’s drawings of us are always super cute!

We visited Labrador Park again and the girls had a lot of fun making leafy names

This is G’s creation. She did the one for K too!

August also meant free entry to the museums…. we made full use of that!

G and K had their very 1st friend on a sleepover!

We also started the Ortho K process with G in August. It was a very liberating thing for G, she also totally amazed us with her determination on putting on the lenses! It only took her about a fortnight to master putting them on herself. Read about it all HERE.

As a treat, we brought her to my hairstylist when I did my hair and she had some curls put in!

SEPTEMBER:

September hols went by in a flash and we did a little staycation at the RWS with the girls. They were thrilled with the little loft bed

Mostly playing by the pool, then the beach, then the pool…. food was really good too!

OCTOBER:

My birthday marks the start of the end of the year! And the feasting starts too….. I was super spoilt this birthday, with a full week of nice lunches, and also celebrations with the girls!

Had a super long lunch (here) with my bffs. Love days like these…..

It was a lowkey celebration for K’s bday party this year. We suggested either a trip to USS, or to the Night Safari, and she chose the zoo! Very enjoyable, although I had to carry a sleeping K at the end of the night!

NOVEMBER:

All too soon! It’s the End of Year Party. K was super thrilled to be performing and she was the most consumate performer.

Made a few more trips to the Eye Place for G’s Ortho K process and whilst waiting for all the tests, we took family shots.

DECEMBER:

We also had lots of time to visit the library, which had an MT crafting session going on. Just in time for Xmas cards!

This is K’s entry for the MT competition.

 

G also started her weekend bake sales after being inspired by a neighbor’s kid selling lemonade. She sold Cookies for the 1st time and this is her being all sold out! So happy was she that she did a 2nd one before the year was over!

We also went to the Science Centre. Here’s another mirror family photo!

More playdates!

2nd Bakesale… this time with company!

G’s super nice (in my bias opinion) Xmas cards.

We have also moved into a proper office space over the last 2 months and this shot is of the kids (with friends’ children) making full use of the LONG work table!

Finally, we took a work & play trip (without the girls) to TOKYO! More on that coming up….

And to round off the year, we metup with the girls and my parents in KL for my godbrother’s wedding….. what a whirlwind December!! Totally crazy!!

 

So, there you have it!! 12 full months….. time really passes by so quickly, and as with all things, there are the good times and the bad. We learn so much from the girls and we are still learning!

Have a GREAT 2013 to all and hope to post up more on the blog in the New Year!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Setting Up Shop - Part Two]

G was so thrilled with her shop takings last weekend that she decided she will diversify and sell other stuff THIS weekend. Through the posts on FB, a friend with 2 little girls decided also to let her girls embark on this entrepreneurial lark. They came by to set up a little manicure station too, and it was quite a little bit of mayhem as all the stallholders and customers – all girls – went a little bit crazy with the nailpolishes!

Love her little sketches. She was really good with making all of them from scratch, and refused any help in putting them together. My fav has to be Mr Unicorn!

She wasted no time in putting up the stall – basically just added the sub-lines below the main signage from last week!

I like Mr Elephant too!

Proof that she did the whole stack all by herself!

2 little shops side by side… totally cute! Pity that there wasn’t much of a crowd!

G with her customers

My customised Xmas card

K getting her manicure done…. the girls loved this!

So, G did say that she will do another week of sales next week, this time with something else…. I really wonder what else is she intending to sell! It might be fun for them, but i’m usually super tired out at the end of the “setting up shop” day!!!

 

[Setting up Shop!]

Inspired by a few kids doing selling some lemonade at the corner of our street, G decided that she wanted to set up shop the very next day! Taking advantage of this spurt of self-motivation, I obliged by providing all the wherewithal in order for the budding entrepreneur to setup shop. Here’s a pictorial diary of what we did:

G woke me up super early, to measure out all the ingredients for her cookie bake sale. She really was quite particular, being very precise about all the weighing, and going step by step through the recipe.

At this point, K woke up and was really curious at what G was busy with….

She was promptly roped into helping with the packaging

Of course the little chef has to munch her way through some of her wares…. all in the name of “product testing” of course!

Then it was time to beauty up the stall.

Finally! Right in time for the lunch crowd at our restaurant next door, and the girls were so super proud of their little bake stall!

Say “cheese” for mummy!!! It was raining cats and dogs by now, but this didn’t deter their enthusiasm.

K was one of her best supporter! She accompanied G at the stall and then also was one of her best customers

G did 2 shifts in total, 1 before lunch, and 1 after. It was a pretty good haul actually, but she started becoming very bored after about half an hour of manning the stall!

Look at that jubilant face!! She was so super psyched up with the sales that she is full of ideas for NEXT weekend! I’m super proud of her for preservering with sitting through till the end, and being super self-motivated right from the very start.

We even had time to make Xmas ornaments!! It was a really nice weekend and can’t wait for next weekend to come for another “entrepreneurial” exercise!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Start of the School Hols]

Time really passes by so quickly with 2 really active and hyper girls! The past few months have been a whirlwind, so many things have been going on. Where do I start?! Best let the photos do the talking…..

V has always been buying / selling stuff – mostly shoes and clothes – on eBay and everytime the girls see a parcel, they get very envious and will say – aww…. i wish i had a parcel. So, instead of what we usually do – which is to make “mock” parcels by wrapping up pressies and getting them sent to our address for the girls, V went online to get for them little pressies. It didn’t look so little when the DHL man came by our house though!! The girls were SUPER thrilled to see this arriving one weekend.

Girls received a parcel from V

K received her Dr set which she chose herself on eBay!

K loved this set – Doc McStuffin. I’ve never heard about this character before, but apparently it is showing on Kid’s TV. Hah! Shows how much I’m in touch with current kid’s culture.

V chose this “how to knit” set for G and so far she has been making full use of it! She even knows all about “stockinette stitch” and “whip stitch”!

G is not so much into eBay shopping as K is, so V chose this set for her as she was very into the French knitting kit that I bought her from Hkg. True to form, she has been very engrossed in reading it and trying out the knitting patterns. It really is like seeing a mini me when G gets stuck into figuring out knitting and occupying most of her time with making little projects with the knitted squares. Down to the part where she gets tired of the repetitive knitting and tries to get either me or my mum to finish up the project! lol….

K’s drawing of V

I’m always fascinated by the things the girls draw. I love how it changes as they get older. This little sketch is of V by K. She is really into drawing pple with super long legs nowadays!

G’s little sketches are so cute!

Love love love these little compilation of animals by G. I have an idea of stitching these onto little pouches as Xmas pressies this year.

G has started drawing Anime. She says she learned most of her anime features from HERE…. fascinating videos I must say, although I do agree that he gets quite longwinded at times!

The other reason that we have been super busy is since setting up our practice, we have been working from a Home Office setup. However, due to work-life balance and all that, we have decided that it will be healthier to have more separation between “work” and “life”….. although work usually equals life to us! Anyways, it has been an eventful couple of months, from a large work commission that finally came through, to putting down an offer for an office space, to being let down by said landlord, then out of the blue, something we had our eye on right at the start came through again. So voila! We present to you our NEW OFFICE!!! (Will elaborate more on the office space in another post (perhaps by V on the office photojournal), but here are some sneaks….)

It is a small-ish space, just the right size for our growing practice, and it needed a full makeover… although we kept it relatively simple.

My space

Tada!

So far we have moved in for half a month now, and am totally enjoying working in the office space. The neighborhood is a very understated, quiet part of town, yet totally connected in terms of linkages via the subway and also to nearby amenities (gosh! I’m sounding like an estate agent!) I guess it takes time to get into the work groove, and with an office space, it is much easier to transition into “work mode” than at home. Although it is inevitable that we have to bring work home, somehow being away from home makes one really strive to make all the time spent in the office a productive one, and not to “carry over” so much work for the night shift!

It is also the end of term and as usual, there is the annual “end of term” party. Lots of yummy food, catching up with fellow parents – many of whom have been in Bethany the same number of years as us, we literally see their kids (and ours) from pre-birth all the way till graduation!! It is now our 5th year (!!) in the school, we still maintain our deepest respect and amazement at the energy and dedication of the teachers, the pastors and the entire church community.

Contribution to Bethany Kindergarten… a little token for the graduating class this year, so nice all laid out!

K was super delighted to take part in the concert, she told me later – the best time I had was on stage performing!! lol…. contrary to her personality (more introverted than G), this one is a real performer, she takes the time and effort to really memorise her lines, constantly practicing and refining her act at home, not at all self-conscious when up on stage. The only thing my mum remarked – she’s a little bit blur and needs to be cued to her next moves! haha…..

K performing her fav act – “Mango Tango!”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jacqyeo/8195411763/in/photostream

Finally, some everyday shots with the girls

Having their current fav breakfast food – Carrot Cake (the local kind!)

Posing in front of nice gates

looking forward to the start of the Dec Hols….. and our little getaway at the end of 2012 (more details later!)

[Gap Casting Call 2012]

Wow, can’t believe it is in it’s 3rd instalment! The very 1st time it was in Singapore, the Gap Casting Call attracted so many participants and was a great hit! Of course, every subsequent year saw it’s numbers grow and I believe this year is no acception. It is a crazy crazy event, you have to admittedly queue for hours (yup, we have done it all), just for that 1 chance of stardom!
Well… as they say – nothing ventured, nothing gained….. so, for those of you who feel you have that Little Miss Princess Gap or the Princely version, head down to Wisma tomorrow (the last day!) for your lucky chance!

Details are here on their FB page, and below a short little clip of the past few hectic days!! (i hope i know how to embed this right!)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jacqyeo/8193498576/in/photostream

Good luck to all the parents who have taken part and hope you get to hear the good news come Feb next year!! (such a long wait eh

For nostalgia, here’s what I wrote about it in 2011, 2010… scroll back and forth to get some ‘real time’ shots of the girls in the casting call!

[K's FIVE!!!]

K is finally FIVE! What a big milestone for her…. She is growing and maturing so much. As with all the years before, we marvel at how the girls are growing up ever so quickly. With G in primary school, this whole year has been a year of discovery and solitary play and lots of one-to-one time with the grandparents (on both sides!) and also our regular one child date nights. We have seen her personality (still largely sweet and mild) also ‘spicing’ up now to include little chilli padi moments of pure rage at her sister’s antics! Throughout all these, she is still the little princess girl, happy to play with her dolls and make up stories, to spend a whole afternoon dolling herself up, my little helper during baking fests..
Happy birthday dearest sweetest littlest baby doll Kate!  ……Love and hugs from daddy & mummy