The day before our trip II

Daddy got back ard 8pm and as I've already taken my dinner with Renee, he bought me KFC's popcorn chicken which we both just had, together with the soup that I've boiled :)

There're just sooo many things to pack(mostly for Renee) and we decided to lighten our load by not bringing some of them. The luggage seems alot 'better' now hahaha.

Earlier in the evening, I suddenly recalled Elsie asking me some time back, if Renee is able to answer a phone call - independantly. Yes, she could but in the past, she tend to forget to press the 'talk' button. So, remembering this, I quickly text her(in case I forget and drag for another period of time or til she ask me again lolz) and asked if she'd like to 'give it a try'. No reply from her and I thought she might still be busy working in the office but shortly after, the phone rang and as I wasn't prepared that she's calling, daddy picked it up haha and because Elsie sounded very much like me, he thought that I was playing a prank on him hahaha. I took over the phone and quickly told her to try again so we hang up and I put the phone near Renee. 10 secs passed and the phone rang, this time, the intended party picked it up and talked like nobody business hahaha. We asked her later what did her aunt talk to her about, she said "oh i don't know" hahaha very cheeky.....

So, Elsie, what did you both talk about ar? heee

Our flight will be at 7:40am and Vicky will take the cab down from her place to pick us at around 6:20am.

Sooo looking forward to our very first trip(can't really count Batam since it's too short and near, hee)!

Cya next week, everyone! :D

The day before our trip

Woke up this morning feeling sleeping(expected, since I slept late last nite) and had only managed to rest for about an hour before I got busy again. Preparing Renee's lunch, chose/packed up her clothes/stuffs, some of mine. Whilst cooking her lunch, I packed up some macaroni/rice and the added chore with daddy's laundry(yeah, he has to go wash them this morning and left it there as it is, expecting me to hang up), I was already quite shacked up by the time I sat down and have my lunch with Renee.

And just when I'm expecting daddy would be home earlier today since we're sooo not done with the packing, he said he'll be going to the golf range..... haiz.

Rush

Monday

Since daddy was unable to confirm if he'd be going to get his 'office' stuffs, I decided to bring Renee to Compass Pt, to try and get whatever else we'd need so that if we still missed out anything, we still have 1 more day to 'salvage' the situation.

In the morning, I asked daddy again, to bring down the large luggage bag and as I put some stuffs in, I realised that perhaps it's not so feasible to bring the tap filter along as we might end up not using it either. So I phoned daddy to double-confirm with him and he said to bring... I told him that we could have it exchanged for other stuffs if he really felt it's redundant(and I've a feeling that he'll certainly find it troublesome) and he said ok, get it changed. I quickly called the store up and was told to go down asap, within these few days for the exchange and so I rushed down to Hougang Mall...

Whilst at the store, I was walking up and down, looking around for things to exchange the filter for but I simply couldn't find enough stuffs amounting to/more than S$148. Finally, gave daddy another call and after a few 'this or that', he finally suggested getting a drill. Immediately after the exchange, I got some bbq food and brought Renee over to Compass Pt(she had wanted to go there also hahaha) and with the stuffs that I got from there and the packed dinner(for daddy), I had to take the stroller out from the boot and used it to carry the bags. Then, whilst waiting for Renee's macaroni(her request) to be cooked over super low fire, I got to the car and brought back the 2 big tool boxes myself. Renee didn't want to go with me as she wanted to watch her 'Mr Bean' and so I closed up the kitchen glass door, warned her about not going there(though she's still unable to push/slide the door open, too heavy) and knowing that she'd be where she was when I get back, I still can't help feeling very worried! I dashed up and down, perspiring like mad and when I got back, there she was, where I've left her - sitting on the sofa, watching her TV. I really really hope I don't have to do this again(it's not e first time and I really hope it'll be the last!) although she's old enough to 'know' but I would really prefer not to, if possible.

Shortly, daddy called up and informed me that he'd be back late and at almost 12am, he came back >90% drunk! haiz... Hopefully, this won't happen again either... Some clients are just sooooo shitty!!!

A last 'singlehood' birthday celebration

Sunday

Remembering what my sisters and in-laws had commented and their urges abt the bottle weaning(and since it'd better for her to suckle when the plane takes off), I decided to put this action aside til she's older and gave her milk(all 3 feeds) in the bottle. U can see the joy on her face when I passed her the milk, she said : "milk in bottle?" and smiled away...

Today's my gf, Vicky's birthday and as she'd be getting married this November, they decided to hold a 'last singlehood' birthday celebration at her bf's place.

We were told that they would begin at 5pm but as our cleaner will leave only at 5pm and I've to go pick up this bottle holder from another spree organiser(there were some hiccups on this purchase & I end up still having to get it from this lady haha but it's quite small, so may need her to get another type for me. Meantime will try to use this for the trip :<), we only managed to arrive at Carribean at Keppel Bay at 6pm(good thing her sister hadn't arrived yet) and... without the present! I've wanted to pass her the present when we met up on Wednesday but she said to give it to her today since there'd be a celebration... Anyway, I must remember to pass it to her at the airport this coming Wednesday hahaha.

This condo is really very nice and has alot of facilities(imagine a jacuzzi pool is also available there - at the main pool area). And unlike most Condos, although there is a main swimming pool area, there are also a few other pools available in different 'zones'. Probably it is very big, so u can find pools here and there(so one may enjoy privacy too). There's one baby pool, right next to the bbq pit that they've booked and it's such a convenience! The kids can have a play/dip at the pool which is very shallow whilst the adults have their chat/bbq thingy and still watch over them... Pity, none of the kids were prepared for a swim today but Vicky's nephews had fun before 'dinner' began. Renee however, only wanted to get into it when the sky got darker but she too, had a great time and it's a good thing I've brought spare clothes for her to change! Geez, her hands and legs were sooo cold hahaha and her hair was also wet from her splashing! I couldn't resist and took some pics, some with Renee and also some w/out her so as to put up here to show u guys :

At certain location, one can overlook the Keppel Marina(below 2 pics)

I like this and daddy & I both had nice pics taken with Renee here :D

Here's the jacuzzi pool(behind it is the main pool area, besides the other pools in other places)

This is the baby pool next to the bbq pavillion that I've mentioned earlier(well, from the 'quality' of the pic, you would hv guessed that I've taken it after the sky's turned dark hahaha)

Overall, it's a good gathering/celebration, no matter how small or simple an event it was 'cos the food(both the home-cooked and catered) was good and the people are nice/humble/friendly...

Gathering/Botte Weaning III

Friday

Wanted to go get some stuffs but as daddy couldn't meet up with us there, we'll have to go another time, haiz.
Meanwhile, since I was there, I went to get a couple of my stuffs and was told that certain amount of purchases would get us shopping vouchers from the mall and the departmental store. As such, we ended up rushing here and there, trying to make our buys and redeem the vouchers(so as to avoid the long ques when the crowd start coming in).

Again, daddy told me to pack some dinner for him and since both Renee and myself were already very hungry, we decided to have our dinner then and there. No prize for guessing right - yes, we had our KFC dinner.... I didn't dare to eat too much these days as afraid that I'll feel sick of eating them soon hahaha. Renee saw the toy set that comes with the kiddy meals and said she wanted it, so there again, I've to order the chicky meal for her. She had wanted the paint set but the boy gave her the badge maker set instead. She was very upset when she looked at the box but I kept telling her that we can always come back again to get the paint set the next time. And guess what, she kept herself busy/occupied the whole night colouring the artwork that would go with the badges hahaha. So much for her complaining earlier...

Saturday

As Eileen had to go to Wayne's school on Fri, she did her marketing on Sat and when so, we'll only have to pick the foodstuffs up from her place. I was supposed to go collect from her and get daddy his mee rebus breakfast, so, gauging the time that she'll be back, I set my alarm at 8:30am but before I woke up, daddy already woke me with his noisy actions. Then he told me that he'll go collect as he wants to go eat there and I went back for another 1/2 hr of sleep hee.

After her milk(very slowly), she began playing with the badge maker again. As I was cutting up the foodstuffs, I asked daddy abt Li's suggestion of a small gathering at her place or ours and he didn't provide any conclusion(always like that, making it hard for me to plan stuffs. I would prefer to go today, incase of crop-ups on Mon or Tues), so I turned to Renee and teased her :

Mommy : "Renee, shall we ask all the aunties to come to our place?"
Renee : "I only want aunty Elsie, aunty Lili, aunty Poh Choo"
Mommy : "what about aunty Ellen?"
Renee : "yes, aunty ellen also but the doggy very naughty, will bite, the white colour one"
Mommy : "oh, that's kiki"
Renee : "yes, kiki"
Mommy : "ok, we ask aunty Ellen don't bring kiki here ok?"
Renee : "ok, only kobi"
hahahahaha

I checked back with daddy again and he finally concluded that we can go get our stuffs on Mon or Tues and so I began texting them to come over. Dinner was delivered Pizzas and KFC(yes again hahaha, wat to do, it's alot us' favourite :D) and Elsie brought alot of new clothes for Renee again :>. These are what I've chosen :

still comtemplating which of these 2 to keep as there're gonna more jackets to 'come' and I don't wanna take on so many to avoid of 'wastage' of wearing them just once/twice

Elsie has also got her this 'In the Jungle' sticker activity pack - includes 2 stickers scenes, 4 sticker sheets and a poster to colour (this pack of artmaterial is very good!):

Bottle Weaning III

Although I had switched back to 'once a day drinking from a cup/with a straw' milkfeed for her, I couldn't help but thought to persevere and reverted back to 'twice a day drinking with a straw' routine. However, when my sisters saw her drinking from the bottle(night feed) last night and hearing from me that she's now drinking very slowly with the straw during the day(sometimes to the point that she didn't even want it-the aftrn feed) and they all urged me to just let her continue having it in the bottle else she might wean off milk totally. I cited to them that there're successful cases of children who still drink their milk(though lesser) after being weaned off bottle and they told me that these belong to the minority and most of the children, from past experiences, would usually wean off milk totally as the desire of drinking from bottle is actually a longing of suckling for 'comfort/security' - 'a natural instinct'.

Photo Recovery II

Yes, I've got the refund! :D

As I've only been able to recover 3/4 of the pic(though full in preview) with the paid programme, so I emailed them. They provided some explanation, like those I've already read in their Q&A but they were very nice to suggest that if I do not wish to keep the programme for future use, I could give them my order no. and they'll provide me with a full refund.

I've just checked with my card's bank and noted a S$57.45 credit though I was charged S$57.90, why the deduction of S$0.45? exchange rate difference? Doesn't matter, just take it as payment for the 3/4 pic heee.

I've successfully connected the 2 pics together and though if u look really really close, u can see a line but nevertheless, it's good enough for me already :)

Travel Drawing Board

I dunno why I'm feeling sooo tired these few days(after our short Batam trip), anyway, that's not the point of this post :P

I've seen a couple of other drawing(magnetic?) boards by another brand in Metro when I went to get Renee the 'table', but to get the colourful one(option of pink of cos hahaha), it would cost S$16.90 and I thought to look around and see if I could find it elsewhere I could get GSS deal on it but I forgot about it later, hee.
It was just as well, 'cos I found one in her favourite 'Dora' character today! And it costs less than half of the earlier one we had wanted, though slightly smaller but it's good enough for her to draw on, especially during travel!

It was an accidental find actually. I had gone to the supermarket to get some stuffs for the coming trip(but ended with groceries instead) when we chanced upon this item. Renee saw it and kept telling me that she wanna 'draw draw', so I decided to get it for her to do so on board the planes. She had wanted to use it immediately upon reaching home but I told her to eat up her rice first and that it's for her use during the trip. She relented though not without her usual "Why?..." :)

Daddy has gone out very early this morning, for his golf game in JB again and had asked me to pack dinner home for him. But shortly after we've got home, he called to say that he'd be meeting his clients and will be late :( . Nevermind, the foodstuffs(chicken wings, bbq-ed prawns, etc) that he's bringing back will be just nice for my supper(good thing I've cooked soup again today, it should go well with the food hee. geez, and I'm complaining abt my weight gain!).

The Sticker Scenes artwork

Yes, I've finally got them!

These are what I've ordered. And as I'm sharing them with Karen, I've to sort them(co-share half with her as they come in a dozen each) before I bring them along the trip/for Renee to play. It took me a while to have them sorted(especially the 3d snowman foam scene) as they were all in loose pieces. It's now almost 2am and I've just finished sorting(started at 10pm+ with a little break in between) :D. - the one of the first pic below is the heaviest!

I've requested yellow and blue colour for the beginners' scissors but I was given yellow and green instead, arrrgggh.

Our next trip is confirmed!

Daddy had always been waiting for the chance to tag along with my gf, Vicky, on one of her trips to thailand(whichever part) 'cos she knew friends and the whereabouts there well. And finally, after sooo many years, she asked me few wks ago if we'd like to join her and her bf + mom to Hua Hin(a beautiful resort and quite alot of their royalties go there) and Chiang Mai. I told daddy and we sorta 'grab the opportunity' and yes, we're bringing Renee along too! I just hope we won't slack in our 'watch' over her there man!!!

Today, I'm going out wif Vicky to a few places, mainly to her tour agent to make my payment for our tickets(leaving next wk) and I thought it'll be better for us to wake up alittle later. So, I woke up at 9:45am whereas Renee, at 10am heee.

Afraid that I might not remember correctly the route to her place, Vicky got her dad to send her over at 12:20pm(supposed to be 12pm but as usual, she's late hahaha) and we drove to Chinatown. On her list, we were supposed to eat at the hawker there(where she claimed has got nice food and for a fine diner to eat there, I sup it must be really good hahaha), go to the bridal shop to view her gown(not complete yet but she hope wld give me an idea), go to the shop that sells wedding stuffs. We parked at the open space carpark 'cos she's made quite a few unsuccessful trips there due to not being able to find carpark there but when we got there, it began to drizzle. So, we decided to have our lunch first and ended at Fei Zai Weng Restaurant instead. As we were eating, the rain stopped but it poured when we've finished our lunch, geez! We were stucked there for almost 1 1/2hrs and not wanting to waste more time, we went ard looking for shops that sell umbrellas(whilst I have my umbrella and Renee's raincoat in the car). When we finally got to the car, it was almost 3pm! We went over straight to the tour agency and after paid up, we chanced upon a shop that sells some wedding stuffs in a corner, but Vicky didn't fancy anything there and we left. As it was already 4:30pm, we headed home and Vicky took over the wheels as she'd like to test drive the car(she said she hasn't driven a European car) and I think she liked it - Vic, u liked the drive rite? lolz.

Back at my place, Vicky got to check-out the filter systems and she said "mmm" when she tasted/tested the water hahaha. I'd thought that she has a sensitive taste bud like me but she said it's 'cos she drinks alot of water, thus the taste of difference is present...
Then whilst she's playing with Renee, I got a sms from the spree organiser and I quickly agreed to meet her at Compass Pt to collect the Sticker Scenes artwork, else I dunno when I'd have to wait til again hee.

My, the artwork's verrry heavy!

Photo Recovery

Some of you whom have tuned in earlier might have seen my 'notice' for technical help/advice.

I was cropping the photos late last night and I must have been too sleepy that I accidentally saved an edited version on one of them(the one of her holding/showing her shells collection on the beach) to its original copy instead of the copy that I've created! Tried frantically to salvage the situaion (even did system restore-back date a few times) but to no avail. Finally gave up due to sheer lethargy at 3am...

When I told daddy about it this morning, he also felt the heartache as that was really a very good pic of Renee! Luckily he didn't scold me hehe. So, since I'm unable to meet the spree organiser to collect the artwork today(again), I decided to stay home instead, cook some soup(for dinner) and get set for more explorations. I put up queries in the forum, emailed photographers and friends but none could help, so I went online to search for more help.

Found a couple and there's one pretty good one(a card recovery prog from USA) but to get the full picture, U'll need to pay. My friend Karen also helped me sourced for a couple more(thanks to her) but sadly, they all ended the same - either have to pay or can't view/retrieve. Most of these programmes would need to read the card from the camera or card reader and I was perspiring like mad, switching from gadget to gadget.

In the end, I telephoned daddy and he said to go ahead and pay for the card recovery programme(S$57.44) but the particular picture that I wanted to recover was only 3/4 when viewed full! Aiyoh! But funny thing is that it's full view in the preview box... why? I don't know, but I've emailed them about it.

Meantime, 'cos I've still got the 'cropped' section, so I tried to 'connect' the 2 pics and finally got a full view(not entirely but at least her face/body is in full view) and I feel sooo relieved! At least I could still have this nice photo though it sure cost a bomb! hehehe

Now I just hope that the merchant would be able to resolve the problem and let me have the full pic back.

Batam Golf Trip II - the photos

Ok ok , here're the selected pics which I've taken during the trip(but be fore-warned that the pics are gonna be very small ok hehehe) :

There are alot more though, so some of you will get to view them 'full' on our album :)

Father's Day II - a belated one...

I've overslept and woke up at 9:45am today! I don't know why I feel soo tired, perhaps the trip has worn me out? Geez, it was only a 2days trip!!!

The sudden thought that I'd have to fetch Eileen from Kovan market all by myself from this week onwards made me decided to do a trial-drive there today hehehe. It was a 'smooth' trial and allowed us time to go check out the small table with board(for use with marker and chalk on the other side). However, all the boxes are sealed ans since I'm still unable to see how big/small it is, I just took one(pink colour one of cos hehehe). It also comes with magnetic numbers/alphabets which might be useful for her learning in the near future(that's if she hasn't outgrown the size of it hahaha):

Then, suddenly remembered about 'yesterday', I took Renee to Emicake shop after packing our dinner. They've got really nice small individual round cakes and I got one Choc Fudge(for daddy) and Renee chose the blackforest one, which she really took quite abit of it after her dinner(mostly of the chocolate mouse) and a couple of others for my supper and breakfast, heee.

Here're the cakes - I only remembered to take pics of them after they've started eating hahaha: