My Frozen Time

Sweet Success!

2012-02-03T23:53:00.004+08:00

Look at the base! Nice and smooth.
I was bracing myself for another sticky-bottomed macaron session today, but they turned out pretty well this time.

Any changes to recipe and method?
Recipe is the same one from Not So Humble Pie

My own notes:
- I used egg whites aged for 48 hours in the fridge.
- Instead of putting in the ground almond + powdered sugar in batches, I dumped the whole lot in and mixed vigorously for the first 10 strokes, then slower and more gentle after that. This I learnt from Tartelette.
- I put the piped macarons in an airconditioned room for a minimum of 30 minutes before I baked them.
- I preheated my oven for a full 20 minutes.
- Baked them on lowest rack (single tray) at 145 degrees C for 15 minutes.
- Did not open the oven door during baking.
- I still had a few that erupted like volcanoes. These were the ones on the front row near the oven door. I suspect the oven fan was probably blowing in that direction and the heat just broke the skin.
- Once out of the oven, I lifted the parchment paper and splashed a few drops of water on the tray. Left the macarons to cool totally on the tray then I peeled them off.

Snapshots of my little man

2012-02-03T01:24:00.007+08:00

That's my sleeping baby

Rolling along at West Coast Park in the mornings with me

Getting potty trained for school this March

That's him pretending to sleep

Taken just today - he is Darth Vader with the hood

Patience...

2012-02-03T01:14:00.004+08:00

Look what I got in my letterbox today?
These babies are plump and juicy and moist.
Exactly what I need for my vanilla buttercream in my Quest for the Perfect Macarons.
I got them just 2 weeks after I placed my order.
Whereas I only just got my CDs from UK yesterday - the merchant in UK sent it out on 18 Nov 2011!
Would that be the doings of Royal Mail UK or our first world country?

I put in 8 vanilla pods to 900ml of vodka, and off it goes into a cool dark cupboard.
See you 6 months later!

Made: Macaron Take 5

2012-01-28T18:19:00.013+08:00

My 5th attempt on macarons...
If you consider my Chinese New Year stint as 2 batches, this would be my 6th.
They're still not perfect - with slightly sticky bottoms that I have to peel from the parchment paper.

Plain Macarons with chocolate ganache

My favourite part - pairing up the macarons

Look! I even managed to pair these egg-shaped macarons.

Made: Macarons for Chinese New Year

2012-01-20T00:29:00.009+08:00

恭喜发财万事如意！

This is my comparison of various recipes...
Settled for this one at Not so Humble Pie after three failures with a swiss macaron and the I Heart Macarons book.
I aged my egg whites in the refrigerator for 3-6 days and skipped the dehydrated egg whites this time as I forgot to buy them.
Added some lemon juice when whisking the egg whites at early stage and used the whisk attachment from my good old Braun Multiquick hand blender as I wanted a really slow speed.

Vanilla Bean Buttercream recipe from Tartelette

Made: The best Banana Cake ever!

2012-01-17T01:12:00.002+08:00

Waiting patiently for his banana cake to cool down.

Recipe from Wen's Delight
I reduced sugar to 110g as I used "ang bak" bananas which were very ripe and sweet.
The best banana cake ever... although it almost killed my handmixer :)

Made: Cashew Nut Cookies

2012-01-15T00:59:00.002+08:00

S helping me put "makeup" on the cookies so they will glow with radiance :)

Recipe from Wen's Delight
I substituted the icing sugar with 170g of castor sugar

Made: Red Velvet Cupcakes for Christmas

2011-12-25T13:35:00.002+08:00

Forgot to take more pictures so I've only got this dissected picture from my iPhone.
Recipe is from Joy of Baking, but I cannot remember what adjustments I made to the sugar quantity.... only remembered I reduced red colouring to 1 tablespoon.
Stuffed it with blueberry jam too, so that the cupcake will be cone-like and I can pipe green frosting to make it look like a Christmas tree.

Handmade Christmas Gifts

2011-12-24T00:33:00.007+08:00

Wanted to do a lot more but I have no time.
So I just have to make do with simple crafts like the apron.
Afterall, the kids are all at the age where they want to cook and bake.

Aprons for S, D and the cousins

Mummy and daughter aprons for a friend and her daughter

Something manly for her boy - I am sure she wouldn't approve of pink and ruffles

Celebrating his new independence

2011-12-22T23:34:00.002+08:00

Got him a new highchair - a "Big Boy" one.
The wooden kind without seatbelt nor arm rest.

Tang Yuan with peanut filling for 冬至

2011-12-22T23:25:00.003+08:00

Made them.
Love them.

Best Orange Butter Cake ever

2011-12-13T00:53:00.005+08:00

This is my favourite orange butter cake, adapted from The Little Teochew's blog.

For my own convenience and future reference, I have put up the recipe here.
That is because I tend to put in 195g of butter instead of flour... for whatever reason, I really don't know.
S says it's because Daddy and Mommy have exchanged memories.
She says Daddy has taken Mommy's memory and vice versa.
Would that explain my recent confused state of mind?

Orange Butter Cake
adapted from The Little Teochew

Ingredients:
170g butter, softened
150g sugar (I reduced this from 225g)
1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 tbsp orange zest
195g all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
12 tbsp whole milk

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 190 degrees C.
2. Sift flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Cream butter and sugar on medium speed until fluffy.
4. Beat in orange zest and eggs.
5. On low speed, add in sifted flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with milk and ending with flour.
6. Pour batter into pan and bake for about 40mins.

May the Force be with you!

2011-12-03T23:14:00.007+08:00

This is where the preparation begins... on the drawing paper.

Chocolate ganache over a simple chiffon cake.

Star Wars cupcakes - characters made out of marzipan.

Lovely pictures thanks to I.

Made: Yuan Yang Pizza

2011-12-02T09:34:00.003+08:00

Made this yuan yang pizza for dinner... messy stuff for kids but fun though!
Green part is adults' one obviously :)
The other side - the Hawaiian - is the little girl's.
The boy simply doesn't eat any bread.

Cranberry Hearts

2011-12-01T00:14:00.010+08:00

It's that time of the year again... yes, another year has passed!
S will be going on to K1 next Monday...

Here's some cranberry hearts for her teachers and classmates to 分享....Thanks for a fantastic year!

P/S. I'm not sure if I have written 分享correctly, but believe me, I am trying to brush up on my Chinese!

Recipe from Florence's Do what I Like

Mahjong Chips

2011-11-30T00:46:00.003+08:00

What do you do when your mum does her spring cleaning for renovation and passes you a bunch of mahjong chips?
We turn them into counters ala Montessori style.

Pineapple cupcake

2011-11-30T00:38:00.001+08:00

Look at all that oil!
No, it's not the recipe... it's me.
I misread the butter amount in the recipe (have been thinking about my cranberry hearts. that's why).
After 10 minutes in the oven, the cupcakes started oozing out oil and I knew something must be wrong :P
Still, for this mistake, the cupcake tasted really nice and the Boy ate 4 in 2 days!

Recipe from HappyFlour

5-minute Artisan Bread Every Day?

2011-11-29T00:24:00.000+08:00

How I was looking forward to having artisan bread every day!
And only in 5 mins! From this magical book.
Alas, my dream was shattered when my bread turned out like this:

Hard, rubbery and so salty that I thought I made the dough from seawater!
What happened to all those great reviews online?

Or maybe it's just me?
I'll be giving it another try... does anyone want to help?

Hakka Xi Ban

2011-11-24T14:10:00.006+08:00

I'm Hakka, but have never seen this before in my life!
Saw this on Wendy's blog and decided to try it.
I asked my friend who is a Malaysian Chinese Hakka to try it and she says it tastes like the real thing in JB :)

Surprise for breakfast! Baked Eggs...

2011-11-04T14:31:00.004+08:00

I gave S a surprise for breakfast today... yes, she was so amused by her "heart" ramekin.
And under the soft curds of eggs, she had more surprise... sliced sausages!
She wiped up every last bit, together with the homemade bread.

P/S. I didn't arrange the yolks like that, but they wouldn't cooperate by going further down the ramekin in a random pattern. I was probably too ambitious in stuffing the tiny ramekin with sausages and lots of baby spinach.

A day to celebrate!

2011-10-31T14:08:00.002+08:00

I've been trying to toilet train D, but to no avail.
Partly due to my lack of time and commitment.
And partly due to D not being ready yet.

Tonight as I was latching him to sleep, he suddenly said "Pee Pee".
I took off his diapers and he did a good long one in the toilet bowl!
After that, I praised him and told him he should do the same to inform me before he poops the next time.
Within 10 minutes, he told me "poop poop".
Now I really think he may not really want to poop, but I had to give him the benefit of doubt yeah?
Afterall, I am trying to toilet train him.

We got out of bed and I put him on the toilet bowl, after which he simply chuckled and chatted with me in the toilet, sigh.
There were many more "poop poop" requests that night, but I just pretended to sleep.

So much for toilet training :)

Made: Ang Ku Kuih

2011-10-24T18:15:00.005+08:00

S has been asking for ang ku kuehs, but our favourite stall in Alexandra is never opened on Sundays.
And when we finished our lessons on Saturdays, they're always sold out.
So I attempted to make our own ang ku kuehs.
Even though I never liked ang ku kuehs (I will ONLY eat the ones from Alexandra), I thought this one is pretty good when freshly made.
S also helped to make her own "red tortoises".
You can guess from the picture which one is hers :)
Recipe from Florence of Do What I Like.

Before steaming, I though we were going to get pink ang ku kuehs!

I even told S I must have gotten the wrong food colouring.

Thank God the kuehs came out red!

That's S enjoying the fruit of her labour!

Dinner Rolls

2011-10-11T00:21:00.003+08:00

These dinner rolls are pretty good.
I might have not proofed them well or overbaked them, cos they were a little hard on the outside.
Plus, I obviously don't know how to shape them properly.
But still, they were good!
Recipe from Happy Flour

Made a mental note that I can get the kids to shape their own buns next time.

Orange Butter Cake

2011-10-06T00:25:00.003+08:00

Lovely orange butter cake for tea

From The Little Teochew

I adjusted the sugar amount to 150g.

Happy Birthday David!

2011-10-04T00:07:00.006+08:00

Happy Birthday my little man!

You've suddenly grown up - you've have stopped your biting (more or less), your roll-on-the-floor tantrums and you're speaking a lot suddenly!

May you be happy and healthy forever!

The boy is crazy over Bob at the moment.

Singing his birthday song.

Sister and cousins wanting to blow the 2 candles.

R preparing the handmade aeroplane pinata.

Kids getting ready to stuff their bags with the chocolates.

Blueberry Yoghurt Butter Cake

2011-09-25T01:21:00.001+08:00

One of the best butter cakes I've ever had.
Not that oily and heavy at all.
Recipe from Cook.Bake.Love

Snippets from Perth

2011-09-22T00:12:00.003+08:00

More to come.... but I need some time to consolidate my pictures from 3 cameras :)
Just these 2 for an appetizer for now.

A crying S because a duck pecked her hand

Now who didn't listen to the daddy when he told her not to stretch out her hand? :P

When D gets excited, he bites! Anything!

Orange Muffins

2011-09-21T23:59:00.004+08:00

My little man loves his oranges.
So does my little princess.
Since R is flying off early tomorrow morning, I thought I'll make some orange muffins for their breakfast so breakfast time might be less stressful.
Of course I am also excited about my new oven :)

These muffins can be a little puffier, I think.
I guess they are a little sunken because the power supply tripped without me knowing.
And all because I stressed up the power supply by using the kettle at the same time!

Recipe is from here
Since my egg is small and orange juice is just a little short of half a cup, I reduced the flour by 1/4 cup. Also reduced sugar by 1/4 cup.
Turned out really soft and fluffy with a mild orangey smell.
No hassle of grating orange zest too!

Homemade Scone with homemade jam

2011-09-20T23:42:00.001+08:00

OK, the scone didn't turn out like what I expected.
I had wanted British scone, but I think the recipe was the American type.
Still, the kids love it, especially with the homemade strawberry jam...
yep, we lugged 4 punnets of strawberries back from Perth, but unfortunately, most were spoilt and good ones were only 1.5 punnets.

MADE: Fox-inspired dress

2011-07-04T21:00:00.005+08:00

Saw this dress at Fox which S quite like.
But the seamstress in me reckoned I could try my hand at it :)

Churned this out in a night.

Changed the skirt to a "paper-bag skirt" style.

So now she thinks her mummy can make anything.

She is asking for gloves like Cinderella's.

In this weather?!

My New Toy

2011-07-02T18:16:00.007+08:00

No, not D's stinky bear!

But this baby below.

Look what this baby can do!

My point and shoot would never be able to capture these.

Thanks to R for my advanced birthday present :)

Battle of Hoth

2011-06-26T22:41:00.001+08:00

R's new toys... to be inherited by D in future :P

MADE: My first backpack

2011-06-26T22:33:00.003+08:00

Fell asleep just like that!

2011-06-24T22:27:00.003+08:00

This mommy has been busy shopping at People's Park Complex for fabric these few weeks.
On one of these occasions, I didn't realise he's fallen asleep while I was carrying him in a sitting position.
He was slouched over and I thought the sun was bothering him... till a security guard laughed and pointed out to me that he'sfallen asleep!

What was she doing?

2011-06-23T22:31:00.000+08:00

She must have been testing out my camera on the iPhone:)
I've got tonnes of these pictures!
And not much memory left on the phone:P

Typical morning with Mommy

2011-06-21T22:36:00.003+08:00

Carrying Mommy's shopping bag after having his Babycinno

MADE: Reversible Hats

2011-06-18T23:29:00.005+08:00

S chose her own red floral fabric, and she obviously likes this side better than the pink one.
D's is a little big as I don't know how to draw the pattern... the geometry confuses me so I used a ready pattern from the web.
Still, he appreciates my effort by walking around the flat in his new bucket hat.
R has promised he can help me with patterns of different sizing next time:)

He loves his animals

2011-06-16T23:49:00.000+08:00

Our daily ritual - taking the bus to pick S from school

2011-06-13T23:58:00.000+08:00

MADE: Sleeping Bag for S

2011-06-12T23:10:00.006+08:00

This is a sleeping bag I made for S, for her daily naps in school.

Glorious Kimchi

2011-04-19T23:23:00.002+08:00

Now it's the daddy's turn to be thrilled to bits.

Do you also know that kimchi contains lots of probiotics?

MADE: Russian Doll Skirt

2011-04-18T23:17:00.004+08:00

Made the skirt on the left for Ai Ai over the weekend.
Hung it up on the wall to give her a "surprise" the next morning.
She was thrilled to bits with it.
After wearing it on Monday, she asked me to hang it back up there so she can have a surprise again on Tuesday morning.
It's funny how kids use new words :D

Big Day for D

2011-04-17T15:06:00.000+08:00

We finally turned his car seat to face front. And that's a BIG deal for the little man. Look at how pleased he is :)

Up and Down we go!

2011-04-15T15:09:00.001+08:00

I've lost count of how many times he went up and down this flight of stairs by himself. This afternoon, he's just discovered he could do it all by himself and refused any help from me.

Shopping at Daiso

2011-03-31T15:15:00.000+08:00

My strong little man:)

Naughty Corner?

2011-03-30T15:13:00.001+08:00

He does have one... and at a very tender age of 12months! But no, this is just him shoving biscuits into his mouth on his newfound favourite stool at Mamak's home.

Negotiation Skills

2011-03-15T21:09:00.001+08:00

Ai Ai (A): Mommy, when can I wear high heel shoes?
Me (M): When you're older.
A: When I am 19 years old?
M: Yes.
A: Or maybe when I am 30 years old.
M: That sounds better.

A week later, she seemed to realise that 30 years old way too long a wait compared to when she is 19.

A: Mommy, when can I wear high heel shoes?
M: When you are 30.
A: 30 is a long time. How about 19?
M: OK.

I then reminded her of how Natalie Portman's toes turned black in the movie Black Swan. I had told her it was because the "auntie" in the movie wore high heel shoes at too young an age :P

She just wants to hug her didi all the time :)

2011-03-13T15:39:00.000+08:00

Just hanging about

2011-03-13T15:35:00.003+08:00

Had a muffin before going off to West Coast Park for our cycling practice.

Sunday at West Coast Park

2011-03-06T21:59:00.004+08:00

D cooking up a storm

S going faster and longer distance

S cycling for the first time without trainer wheels

2011-03-03T21:50:00.000+08:00

We bought her a bicycle without trainer wheels on 24 February, and here she is, cycling all by herself just a week later on 3 March.

You heard the scream :)
No she didn't fall... just screaming cos she was about to hit the pillar and doesn't how to brake yet.

Did you also hear the Nazi mommy shouting a command "Move it" at the beginning? :P

Moo

2011-03-01T09:33:00.000+08:00

He turned himself into a cow with jie jie's bangle :)

Reaching Terrible Twos ahead of his time?

2011-02-17T00:08:00.003+08:00

MADE: Buttermilk Pancake

2011-02-17T00:01:00.002+08:00

Our breakfast staple

MADE: Stuff for Chinese New Year

2011-02-16T23:40:00.008+08:00

Tiramisu for CNY Lunch

Hairband with little rosebuds

Red Pettiskirt for the little dancer

恭喜发财万事如意！

For S: Happy 4th Birthday!

2011-02-08T00:05:00.001+08:00

Update 3: Mummy I want to take picture with that guy!

2011-01-30T22:59:00.002+08:00

That "guy" is the God of Fortune, my dear S :)

Picture taken on 24 January 2011.

Update 2: S is finally learning to like Lego!

2011-01-25T22:27:00.001+08:00

This was what S built.
Mommy is the "shorter" one as she is carrying S.

Update 1: Painting 5 December 2010

2011-01-25T22:10:00.005+08:00

These are some of the long overdue updates.
I'm not going to cheat by backdating my posts, so I'll just title them "Update XX".

Bear with me as they will be in random order as and when I find any good pictures!
And the updates will probably be over the next few days (or weeks!) as I struggle with synchronizing my portable harddisk and laptop which has just been returned from servicing.

An angry D when he got his hands dirty while painting

An oblivious S - she loves to do palm and feet painting too

What's the reason?

2010-08-24T22:43:00.002+08:00

I've been totally uninspired to post anything.
I'm not sure why.

Maybe it's because I am too tired after my helper has left.
Maybe it's because I am too tired looking after 2 sick kids for the last one month.

It's probably a bit of both the above reasons, but to my good friend who knows the last reason, shhhhhhhhhhhh :P

I'll start updating this blog soon!

A mantra to live by

2010-06-17T21:21:00.005+08:00

An old friend sent me this mantra after I had my shingles outbreak this week.

"Is there a solution to your problems?
If there is, why worry?
If there isn't, then there is no use worrying too."

Another old friend whom I haven't met for 10 years commented that that is very me.
But he does not know the me now.
I need to look at things from a different perspective.
No one can be a perfect mom.
I need to return to the old me 10 years ago.
The me that lived by this mantra.

Passport Pictures!

2010-06-15T21:36:00.007+08:00

You cannot believe how many pictures of Ai Ai I took for her passport!
51! Yes, 51 of these mugshots and she still refuses to cooperate and look into the camera properly!

Some of Ai Ai's 51 mugshots - cheeky monkey!

Her final passport picture which I spent $15 on!

David's was a lot easier - about 10 and we got 1 right

Update...

2010-06-04T17:00:00.000+08:00

So I have not been updating for a long time...
Been busy with the most recent move, and we've finally settled down!

Ai Ai has just started her ballet lesson.

After her first lesson, she told me all ballerinas have big tummies.
Me: All your friends have tummies?
Ai Ai: Yes.
Me: What about your teacher?
Ai Ai, thinking a while: Yes (cheekily!)

My Kek Kek is a proficient crawler

2010-06-03T17:17:00.003+08:00

He is so fast that I could not catch up with him crawling on my boney knees... it hurts!

And he's putting everything in his mouth!

My little girl has grown up

2010-06-03T17:08:00.006+08:00

Her previous version of a wedding was to walk in Thomson Plaza with an ice-cream.
Now it's almost the real stuff.

Ai Ai: Mommy, look at my long dress. I'm getting married.
Me: Where are you getting married?
Ai Ai: Chinatown.
Me: What will you hold in your hands?
Ai Ai: Flowers.
Ai Ai: But I am tired. I want to sit down.
Me: Why are you tired?
Ai Ai: Because I am sad.
Me: Why are you sad?
Ai Ai: Because I lost my prince.

I feel sorry for her.
Our move and some friends' moves must have been quite traumatic for a little tod.

We moved to a new place where she didn't have any playmates.
Auntie Cindy and family moved to Los Angeles.
Auntie Mel and family moved to Hong Kong.
Auntie Vikki and family moved the the eastern part of Singapore.

I hope she wouldn't grow up to be a loner.

Sharing a pear

2010-06-03T17:08:00.004+08:00

Sophie's First N1 Outing - Sports Day 2010

2010-05-14T19:30:00.001+08:00

Can you spot her?

P/S. Daddy worked on it too

2010-04-30T12:55:00.004+08:00

This is R sealing the wires with duct tape while I stitched the wings (my trusty machine
broke down!)

Book Week

2010-04-30T12:51:00.004+08:00

This is what I was working on every night during the past 1 week.
This week is Book week. Ai Ai will wear her favourite character costume (Tink of course!) and bring her Tinkerbell book to school.

Sneak Preview

2010-04-27T20:58:00.003+08:00

My Kek Kek

2010-04-27T00:23:00.004+08:00

It's official.

His nickname is Kek Kek because he is always chuckling away.

Such a happy baby!

Shhhhhh.........

2010-04-26T00:33:00.002+08:00

I'm working on a project.
Will post some pictures when I am done :)

An older version of the Rhinotaurus

2010-04-20T22:17:00.002+08:00

This was dated 22 Feb 2010.
A total of 6 ponytails on her little head!
Rhinotaurus has since evolved to only 2 - a "too-net" and a "too-nerd" (that's the name of the horn in front)... see previous post.

Rhinotaurus!

2010-04-19T16:10:00.003+08:00

She insists on tying her hair like that to school.
It's embarrassing... but I cannot dissuade her.
She says she's a rhinotaurus, and the one in front is her horn.
The one at the back is her "too-net".
Asked her what is a "too-net" and she said it's a kind of ponytail on the rhinotaurus.

Music Class Graduation Day Concert

2010-04-03T16:26:00.003+08:00

It's her last day of her music class and the teachers have organised a mini concert, just to get the kids used to performing.
Here is Ai Ai finishing her bow after her turn at Hot Cross Bun on the piano.
Mommy and David joined in today to show our support for your performance.
We're so proud of you, Ai Ai!

Ai Ai with her Certificate of Achievement

Class Picture with the dedicated Ms Chua and Ms Low

Old friends

2010-04-02T16:20:00.003+08:00

The old friends met at the beach, after that we proceeded to Isaac's home for a karaoke session.
Click here to see how much the 2 of them have grown since they first knew each other.

Farewell to May

2010-03-30T14:08:00.002+08:00

Ai Ai's playmate whom she used to hang out with at our previous place is relocating to Hong Kong.
Today is a farewell party for them.
This is what Ai Ai is giving to May - designer paper bag painted and made by Ai Ai, and hairbows made by me.

Paranigal

2010-03-23T21:03:00.004+08:00

One day, Ai Ai told me she has a baby in her tummy.
I asked her what the baby's name is and she replied, "Paranigal."
(Hope I spelt it correctly!)

She said Paranigal is Mommy's baby.
Paranigal will jump out of Ai Ai's tummy when Ai Ai is 4 years old and then Mommy will carry Paranigal.
I asked her, "Then who is Sophie's baby?"
She replied, "David."

This is how she thinks Paranigal looks like:

A lazy Sunday afternoon

2010-03-21T21:12:00.000+08:00

D can stand supported for about 10 seconds

2010-03-20T21:14:00.002+08:00

Can't pull himself up yet... still, I am proud of him... this, at 5.5mths!

Ballet!

2010-03-18T21:21:00.001+08:00

She wants to bun her hair up and dance ballet!
I'm a little disappointed she chose ballet over violin after her Baby Music class ends at Mandeville, but I think I should respect her choice.

Ai Ai's Art Museum

2010-03-18T21:17:00.001+08:00

The bird is for Uncle Ian,
the house for David,
the flowers for Daddy,
the boat for Auntie Jaime and
the kite for Mommy

She places her art pieces along the wall all the time and gets upset when our helper packs them away to mop the floor :)
"What happened to my art museum? Why did S jiejie keep my art?" she'll wail.

The beginning of teething pains!

2010-03-12T21:24:00.000+08:00

Back to work...

2010-02-28T11:52:00.002+08:00

OK, I've been in a holiday mood.

First it was the BIG move which rendered me totally web immobile as my IT department was a little slow in setting up my connection.
Then I lost the momentum to update my blog and instead immerse myself in CNBC website and property pages every day.
After 3 months of blog holiday, I think it's about time I get back in touch with my friends :)

Get ready for some very backdated postings and pictures!

Crawling/Kicking Backwards

2010-02-01T21:22:00.001+08:00

Yesterday I heard D cry a desperate cry - something which I have never heard before.
I rushed into the room and found him in this position.
He had woken from his nap, kicked the bolster and ended with his lower body off the bed.
He must have felt the danger of emptiness and cried for help.

And no, I did not stop to take a picture with him in such a dangerous state.
Of course I scooped him up immediately.
This is just a reenactment with my hands beneath him but out of view from the camera in case he falls.

The reenactment :)

My happily naked baby

Who's who in that Bumbo seat?

2010-01-28T21:17:00.002+08:00

Watching jie jie's favourite cartoon - Tinkerbell!

2010-01-25T21:14:00.001+08:00

Grandpa's Birthday Celebration

2010-01-16T21:12:00.001+08:00

Whoever says learning to crawl is easy ?

2010-01-13T21:09:00.004+08:00

But I'll get there eventually!

More pics of D

2009-12-31T21:05:00.000+08:00

His contented face after a feed :)

我有小肉肉

This is what Ai Ai's Chinese teacher would say

I am breastfeeding D !

2009-12-30T21:03:00.000+08:00

Ai Ai's Mickey Mouse - can you see it?

2009-12-20T20:59:00.001+08:00

Kisses from jie jie everyday

2009-12-18T16:38:00.000+08:00

My babies at about 2 months old

2009-12-13T16:50:00.001+08:00

My Baby!

2009-11-30T12:52:00.001+08:00

She says "D is my baby" and wants to use my breastfeeding pillow to breastfeed him :)

The reason is scary!

2009-11-25T21:40:00.002+08:00

Sometimes Ai Ai uses words that I suspect she doesn't understand, but she speaks with such conviction that you would think she knew what she was talking about.

Me: Sophie, Mommy is sad.
Ai Ai: Why is Mommy sad?
Me: Mommy is sad, because for some reason, David is rejecting Mommy's milk.
Ai Ai: The reason is scary!
Then turning to her daddy, she asked "Did you see the reason, Daddy?"

Ahem, I think Daddy did not see the reason, but Mommy found out and it was really scary!
It's because I took some spicy food and caused some discomfort in D as he was not used to the taste... so the reason is indeed scary, as this means I cannot take spicy food for the next few months, at least!

Getting a little too big for his tub :)

2009-11-24T12:07:00.001+08:00

My 2 babes

2009-11-19T12:04:00.000+08:00

Something to Share

2009-11-07T15:33:00.004+08:00

A friend shared this with me online. I love it so much I've decided to post it up on my blog so I can share it with everyone else.

Please Mom and Dad...

My hands are small. I don't mean to spill my milk.
My legs are short. Please slow down so I can keep up.
Don't slap my hands when I touch something bright and pretty. I don't understand.
Please look at me when I talk to you. It lets me know you are really listening.
My feelings are tender - don't nag at me all day. Let me make mistakes without feeling stupid.
Don't expect the bed I make or the picture I draw to be perfect. Just love me for trying.
Remember, I am a child, not a small adult. Sometimes I don't understand what you're saying.
I love you so much. Please love me just for being myself, not just for the things I do.

- Author unknown

Ai Ai's First Haircut at the Hairdresser's

2009-10-25T10:57:00.007+08:00

We decided to bring Ai Ai for a haircut as she refuses to dry her hair in the evenings after her bath.
She wasn't upset about it - in fcat, she was really excited about her first trip to the hairdresser.

Getting ready for the snip

The first snip

Her hair in a ziplock bag I brought along

Looking worried that the hairdresser will snip her ears off?

A very happy Ai Ai