The Bub in the Belly: SMH

Showing posts with label SMH. Show all posts

Monday, July 15, 2013

Weekend update

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 9:19 AM

Rachel at Shichida class

The weekend disappeared in a flash! Saturday was such a busy day - Rachel had Heguru in the morning and Ryan had an audition to go to around the same time. In the afternoon, Richard left us to attend a long meeting. I stayed home with the littles and Rachel had me all to herself because Ryan took a long nap. In the evening, Richard and I had dinner with one of his clients at Lei Garden in CHIJMES. We asked our nanny to babysit the littles and she very kindly agreed. It was a very long (and pleasant) dinner and, by the time we all got home, it was past 11 pm. Babydoll hadn't slept all day and was out like a light. Ryan survived a little longer.

Anyway, that was Saturday. It felt like we were at work because we felt like we hadn't been with the littles much and because we were actually working.

Sunday was much better in terms of family time. Rachel and Ryan attended their classes and, in the afternoon, I brought Rachel for a playdate at Happy Willow with some of the SMH June 2012 babies.

Here's babydoll on the rocking horse - her favourite! We have two at home and every morning she will climb onto them and rock away. She's quite the expert!

Babydoll wasn't too keen on the ballpit. Not very glamorous, to be slipping and sliding about.

She was much happier when she found stable ground. I couldn't let her stay there long because people were coming down the slide, so we left the ball pit soon after.

Richard and Ryan came over to join us after Ryan's Shichida class, and Ryan couldn't leave without giving the obstacle course several tries, so we spent another hour plus there. After that, Richard and I were quite reluctant to call an end to our very short weekend so we drove over to Holland Village for a quick walkabout and dinner at nydc, before finally, finally, surrendering.

This was Rachel's second time at an indoor playground. She went to Singkids at T3 last weekend. Actually Ryan was there, and she insisted on sneaking in to join him. Here's a video of her!

I wanted to share this because it shows her personality perfectly. First, she went into the ball pit fearlessly, without hesitation. Then when she wanted to get out and couldn't, she kept trying and trying and trying and trying. She didn't kick up a fuss, she didn't get disheartened. She was so determined, she just kept trying different spots and different techniques and, in the end, she succeeded. And then, just like that, she was off, fearlessly again, on her next adventure.

Friday, December 28, 2012

Christmas gatherings

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 6:57 PM

That's our Christmas family shot! Taken on Christmas morning! Yes, I know not all of us are looking at the lens, especially Max who is sniffing out the presents, but we'll take what we can get!

Christmas weekend stretched over four days for us, as we didn't get into the office on Monday (Christmas eve). Saturday was a quiet day. We had lunch at Goodman Arts Centre (Cafe Melba) and spent the rest of the day at home. Sunday was busier - we had a lunch gathering with the SMH June 2012 mummies. There must have been more than 30 mummies there. It was a big crowd.

Some of the mummies made calls/sent emails to get sponsors for stuff like baby yoghurt, diapers, baby oil, toy rental vouchers, playgroup vouchers and a Sophie the Giraffe teether. There was also a gift exchange.

It was quite a fun meet up and we got to meet some familiar faces (from previous meet ups) and some new ones too.

The next day, Ryan's friends, Brayden and Rou Ern, came over to play. Of course, their families came too!

Richard and I spent the earlier part of the day at the cinema (watching The Hobbit) and at the supermarket and deli picking up stuff for the gathering.

The gathering was, as always, a ball of fun for the kids. There was miniature tree-trimming for the three toddlers.

Simple cookie decorating.

An impromptu puppet show about the story of the birth of Jesus.

Some fooling around with Shann, which sent the kids into peals of laughter as they chased her up and down the place.

There was food of course. Simple fare, given that there were only six adults among us. Richard whipped up our long-time specialty, fried instant noodles, and I tossed some spaghetti. We picked up some pork knuckle and rotisserie chicken from the deli (and I made a simple gravy for that), while Chris and Alicia brought the ham. There was chicken alphabet soup for the kids and I made some trifle for dessert. Shann brought a fruit cake, although we didn't get around to eating it.

Rachel yummed some of the spaghetti, together with the rocket and cherry tomatoes.

Before everyone parted for the night, we exchanged gifts.

Not forgetting these two lovely cards from Brayden and Rou Ern which came for Ryan!

Christmas Day was another quiet day at home. We were quite tired from all the festivities and I'm still a little under the weather.

Ok, that's all from us. We are off to KL tonight! It's a spur of the moment decision! Yesterday, I was just telling a friend, Geraldine, that we didn't have any plans to travel during this time, and this afternoon, Richard said to me, let's pack up and go! Looks like I have to eat my words! We'll be back on Tuesday. Enjoy the last weekend of 2012!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Our Saturday

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 12:01 AM

Yesterday, Ryan went for Edudrama in the morning as usual. Richard accompanied him.

Richard reported that, during English Edudrama, when Teacher Alexis was going through the students' names that were written on the board, Ryan kept yelling out the first letter of the name as she pointed to each one. When she pointed to his name and asked, "Who is this?", he didn't say a word! Instead, he crawled all the way to the front of the class where she was and stood beside her! She said he was so cheeky! I think so too! Hmm well, it's good to know that he knows that RYAN is his name.

Teacher Alexis served a butter cake (Sara Lee) to the class today and Ryan ate a whole slice! He was super hyper after that, so much so that, in Mandarin Edudrama, he kept running about and talking loudly. When he was asked to count from 1 to 10 (in Mandarin), he yelled the numbers out! Normally, he won't say anything (even if he knows the words)!

Anyway, his hyper state of mind continued till the afternoon and he did not go down for his nap. We were supposed to meet up with some friends at Singkids Vivocity and we stuck to the appointment, Ryan yawning all the way. He perked up when we got there, and I think he enjoyed himself a lot, especially in the balloon chamber.

After that, Ryan fell asleep for a little while, as our group adjourned for dinner in Tiong Bahru. Ryan woke up in time to have some rice, but he was generally not in the mood for socialising. He spent most of the time nursing. Nevertheless, we had a good tummy-filling time catching up with everyone and, all too soon, it was time to go home.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Taking it easy

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 11:53 PM

On Friday evening, I joined a group of mummies for dinner at Hanabi. With the end of Chinese New Year, it was time for some non-Chinese food! There were 13 of us, and we ate and chatted non-stop. We discuss the same topics everytime we meet up: children, husbands and sex (making more babies) - hahaha! Well, I guess parenthood brings so many unique experiences, no matter if you have one child or five, so there's always something "new" to talk about.

On Saturday, we brought Ryan for PlayClub. They had Parents' Chats this week. This is our third Parents' Chats and we really didn't have anything to ask. As usual, the class photo was taken after the chats, so that was the only thing we were interested in!

Class photo - we are standing in the middle
(my mum is standing next to me, wearing red)

Something different this session - I got my mum to accompany Ryan in class! I think she was quite curious as to what the class was about so I suggested that she attend the class with Ryan. She seemed quite keen so Richard and I went to have some tea nearby and left her to it. After the class, Richard and I went to pick them up and my mum was quite happy with her experience, although Safina said that Ryan bullied my mum during class! Apparently, Ryan was dancing up and down the classroom the whole time! My mum just let him dance and dance and dance, I think she was amazed because she'd never seen Ryan so hyper before!

Anyway, it was a good experience for Richard and me too - we got to take some time off and have a little couple time.

Back home in the evening, we brought out the sprinkle mat. We haven't had it out for a long time - we lent it to a friend for her son's birthday party and when we got it back, the rainy season was upon us. Now that sunny days are here again, we're going to pack on that Vitamin D!

Dinner was at Crystal Jade Kitchen in Plaza Singapura and we did a little shopping after that (Spotlight, Daiso and Carrefour). Ryan was yawning away at the supermarket, but the sweetie didn't make a fuss at all. He fell asleep on the way home (he hadn't had a nap the whole day) and I managed to put him down in bed quite smoothly when we arrived home, he was so tired! I think he had a good day though!

Sunday, December 5, 2010

High tea at the Ritz

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 11:04 PM

I took a few days off work this past week to unpack and to stick around the apartment to wait for various deliveries (furniture and lights) and various workmen (electrician, plumber). I had Ryan with me in the mornings and he went to his nanny in the afternoons when I ran errands and bought some small items for the apartment. On Wednesday, Ryan's nanny fell sick so Ryan stayed with me the whole day, which meant I did very little unpacking and lots of playing. On Thursday, I went back to work and boy was it a tough day, as I had to prepare for a hearing on Friday and Saturday. Friday was more than full - I got home from the office at about 9 pm. Then I was at work again on Saturday from 9.30 am till 5.30 pm.

Richard was wonderful - he looked after Ryan the whole day on Saturday and had absolutely no problems. They had a great adventure - I'll pester him to write a post about what they got up to.

Richard also went solo on Sunday afternoon while I had some "me-time" - I joined the SMH mummies for high tea at The Ritz Carlton, which was a wonderful way to reward myself for a tiring week. It was also a farewell for Sue Lin, who is leaving for USA later this month. There were 12 of us and I think we all had a great time, relaxing and chatting away.

High tea at The Ritz Carlton

Monday, October 11, 2010

Dinner with a surprise ending

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 11:59 PM

Earlier this evening, I went for the monthly SMH mummies' dinner. This round was a cozy affair - there were just five of us, and I quite enjoyed the intimacy of the small group. We went to Peperoni Pizzeria at Greenwood Avenue and shared a manhole pizza, some appetizers and dessert. Food was excellent.

The manhole pizza. Yum yum!

Conversation was easy as the five of us have much in common and before we knew it, two hours had zipped by. We were sitting around contemplating our empty plates when Ophelia, who is pregnant and ready to pop, announced that her waterbag may have broken. She went to the ladies' and confirmed it and we all got so excited! It brought back all the good memories of our own birth stories!

Of course, we had to take a photo to document the exciting moment! I don't usually post photos of other people on my blog but this was such a significant photo so here it is!

Top row (L-R): Me, Serene
Bottom row (L-R): Florinda, Ophelia and Angeline

After that, Ophelia was quickly whisked home by Angeline, with all our good wishes for a safe and smooth delivery. See you soon, baby!

Friday, September 10, 2010

Picnic at The Botanic Gardens

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 12:15 AM

On 29 August, after JG class, we joined some SMH families at The Botanic Gardens for a fun picnic. Here are some photos taken by Kenny.

Sunday, July 18, 2010

The spine operation

Posted by Pinkie Pirate at 11:45 PM

Work continues to do its best to wear me down but I'm not giving in without a fight. I had some heavy-duty work stuff to take care of this week, which I'm glad to say went well.

Apart from that, it's been a week of guests popping in and out of our house.

Richard's dad and Richard's second sister, Mary, flew down to Singapore on Tuesday to see an orthopaedic surgeon at Mount Elizabeth Hospital about a problem that Richard's dad has been having with his spine. It was serious enough for the surgeon to have him book the operation for Thursday, so he stayed with us till then. He'll be staying with us until the follow-up appointment, which will be on next Thursday. Mary flew back on Tuesday night and Richard had dinner with his dad (and Ryan) while I went for the monthly SMH mummies dinner at Coca Steamboat Restaurant at Ngee Ann City. It was a raucous affair, 15 ladies talking all at once, and I think we all enjoyed the break and the adult interaction (although we still talk a lot about children).

The operation was on Thursday evening and, praise God, all went well.

Richard's dad stayed one night in the hospital and was discharged the following morning. Mary flew down again to stay the night with him in his room and keep him company. She flew back to KL the next day. On Saturday, Richard's mum flew down with Richard's first sister Margaret and her three children and stayed one night at our house.

On Saturday, we had breakfast at the Botanic Gardens and after lunch at Suntec City, we popped in at the Singapore Garden Festival at Suntec City. We actually got stuck in a jam on the way to Suntec City on account of all the road closures for the National Day celebration rehearsals, but I am glad that we made it there because the displays were fantastic. I got lots of inspiration for my dream garden... haha.

We took Ryan for his swimming class on Sunday morning. Two weeks back, I was writing about how I felt that the exercises were the "same old, same old" ones, and someone must have heard my voice because this week, the coach introduced some new exercises! Ryan enjoyed himself a lot!

The family left on Sunday evening, after a nice dinner at Long Beach Seafood Restaurant. Richard's dad is still with us, perhaps we'll take him out for a movie before he goes home.

Looking back, I actually think that it was a great week, although Richard's dad had to undergo a spine operation to make it happen. The way that the family came together to deliver support, encouragement and care, without any complaints or bitterness, was truly amazing and I know that Richard's dad was so very touched.

I'm happy that Ryan has a family like that, who will come to his aid without question and who will always make themselves available for him and I hope that being a part of such a family will show Ryan how to himself be a good son and a good brother. Brings to mind the latest tagline of the Singapore National Family Council: "How one generation loves, the next generation learns", which I never seriously thought about until this week. If the tagline is true, then Ryan definitely has a wonderful generation of loving family members to learn from.

Hope your week was just as wonderful.