Red Red Red

My garden has been invaded by RED!!!! Yes, I was too greedy that I planted 2 - celebrity tomato plants, 1 - 100 sweet tomatoes plant, 1 - cherry tomato plant, 1 - grape tomato plant. I planted 1 cayenne pepper plant and on top of it, I have 1 from last year that I took into the house during winter... so the tomatoes and cayenne peppers are all turning red now.

I've been bad and not taken photos of my plants outside... but here are the few tomatoes and chili that I have on my table. I been taking tomatoes to church and walking around my block giving away tomatoes... hmmm... maybe I should just start a tomato stall myself.. hahaha... I'll try to take photos of the celebrity photos. I showed Gilly today when we were at the grocery store that that same tomato cost $3.99/lb and how much we are saving by planting our own tomato plants. I just love eating tomatoes and we have had a few burgers with it.. and used alot for my ABC soup. I'm gonna force myself to cook some Lemongrass chicken which I learnt from Gertrude last year.

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My day.

It was Monday and the 3rd day my kids are in school fulltime. I had a few plans of running around wasting money at Linen N Things and I had a few urgent calls to make. There my phone rang and it was my gf K. She sounded like she was dying and asked if I had any plans. Of course me without any life now, I said "No". She asked if I could babysit her 2 1/2 year old baby. It looked like K caught a bad bug and even her hubby was out of commission. I quickly made my calls then jumped into the van to get "Clicket". Clicket was an easy baby so I didn't have to worry much. But it suddenly hit me that I don't have anymore potties. Then I realize, that I had to be vigilante with her doing her "pee pee". She happily followed me into the van after saying bye bye to her daddy. We got back to my place and she ran in to play with Shan. Later we went to the garden and she helped me water... and she is a good "sprinkler" hehehe... she insisted on watering all my plants. I just had to make sure she didn't shower herself as we didn't have an extra change of clothes. About 11am, I packed her into the van and we went to Gilly's ballet school. I had to signed Gilly up for ballet. All the moms in there were curious who was this little caucasian girl following me. I jokingly said "oh,. she is my russian daughter". They were shocked and I quickly told them "Since Greg is in Kindergarten, I decided to adopt a Russian baby". I added "I didn't want to go the China route you know".. They laughed and looked like the bought my story. I quickly told them that I was babysitting for a friend. After 45 minutes, it was my turn with the teacher and when I sat down, Clicket decided to climb up my chair and Mrs King asked if I knew the girl behind me. I laughed and said "She's my Russian daughter." She looked amazed and ask "Are you serious?" I turned around to Clicket and said "Clicket, say Hi to Gilly's ballet teacher." Clicket did precisely that and that shocked Mrs King. "K" and I had a good laugh at it. The joke behind it was once I had Clicket on a shopping cart in Target and this white lady gave me a weird look. I realized why she gave me that look as its a common thing to see a white lady with a Chinese baby but not a Chinese lady with a white baby. Clicket was enchanted by this pastel pink/blue tutu and kept asking for that costume. It was on sale for $25 which is a bargain considering the original price was $65. In her baby language she pointed to the dress and said "Clicket dance" with her hands up in the air and she did her turn. It was so cute. It was a nice thing to have a 2 year old around the house. Its been 3 years since I had a 2 year old and trying to understand her is a hoot.. She kept saying "cookie" when I asked what she wanted for lunch. And when I repeat cookie to her.. she said NO. Only her mummy would understand her. I'm glad I'm done with babies cos at 39... it can be tiring.. hahahaha... shhh!!!! I took a nap while she watched Cailou and then I took a nap after I sent her home. The kids got home from school and we all went down to the basement to play. Then I realize that Clicket should fit into Gilly's old ballet costumes. We dug thru her trunk and found one... Clicket was so happy when we put that piece of tutu on her. She ended up going home in that outfit and the reaction on her older sister was priceless.

Clicket in her ballet dress

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First Day of School

First day of school went well. It was only 2 1/2 hours which seem short but chaotic as we were all trying to get use to the bus schedules. Greg and Gilly are not in the same bus this year. The school separates the Kindergarten kids which is nice as its not intimidating sitting with the bigger kids. Two days before school, he had school orientation where he met his teacher and his classmates for the first time. He loved it there and was so excited to go back to school by Wednesday. That was also the day we dropped off school supplies which I like as its just too much for a kiddo his size to handle by himself.

Greg with school supplies.

Greg getting ready for school orientation 2 days before school.

They both woke up at 7 a.m. and was so excited. They quickly had their breakfast and was so ready for school. Gilly had to take some school supplies by herself and I dropped off the rest later as it was just too much for her too. This time round, I remembered to label Greg so that he won't be lost. I forgot to do it for Gilly on her first day of Kindergarten. Their bus pickup time are only 10 minutes apart so its just easy to get both of them out at the same time.

Gilly and Greg waiting for their buses.

Gilly about to get on her bus.

Gilly can't wait to jump into the bus!

Greg's turn to wait for his bus.

Greg waits for his turn to get into the bus. Hurry up lady!!

Finally with both kids off to school, the house was eeriely quiet. I was kinda enjoying the silence and yet still missed their noise. I guess I've got accustom to their noise. What did I end u doing? I was busy on the phones as I had nice girlfriends who called to see how I was faring as they knew my baby was away from for the first time. Before I knew it, they were home and the house was noisy again. I had lots of paperwork to read and checks to write.

Greg back from school.

Gilly's back from school too!!

Its been a week since they started school and my life has changed alot. I know just can walk out of the house without having anyone tagging along. I just got to get used to closing all the windows by myself and putting the dog in his cage by myself... I do miss them helping me get ready to go out... hmm.... something to get used to... but I'll survive.

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(that's how the house sounds)

All I can hear is the water splashing from my outdoor fountain.... The house is so quiet... The house is way too quiet..... I'm lost....... I've cleaned the garbage can.... Now what do I do???????

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My son is leaving me!!!

Isn't he handsome in this photo? Greg just turned 5 last month and he will be hitting a milestone tomorrow. He will be going to Kindergarten and he is jumping into that "cool" yellow bus tomorrow. For the last 4 years since he was a baby, he would get all excited seeing his sister get on that bus and finally he has his turn tomorrow. After 12 wonderful and sometimes stressful weeks of summer vacation(what vacation, I was a fulltime referee with both kids fighting all the time), both my kids will be heading to school tomorrow.

3 nights ago, in my dream I told myself, "you can go for pancake breakfast with your girls now" and within a few seconds, I realized in my sleep that for the rest of my life, I've lost my best buddy. That buddy who was a leech that stuck to me 24/7... he won't be with me constantly anymore. I've been dreaming for the last 8 years of some quiet and "me" time and now that its here, I'm having mixed feelings. I'm happy my baby is now going to school, I've done my part as a mom to change his diaper, feed him, take him to the park or to the zoo all those years and he is so eager to go to school, and yet I'm sad that I'm losing that one constant person that is always with me... he was always there to show me I'm needed... and now I'm not needed for 5 hours a day. OK.. OK... I guess I am allowed to be a pity potty for a few minutes. I do know that I will do my happy jiggle when they get on the bus... but I do know I'm going to shed a few tears when Greg gets on the bus. I'm entitled to that feeling...

What will be doing with my new free 5 hours when Greg is in school? I have a few plans and hopefully I'll follow through with them. I will have 1 hour with Greg before Gilly gets home so maybe my best buddy and I can goof around abit... oh yeah... dream on... there is homework!!!!

I've been "begging" Greg to stay home with me... here are a few of our conversations:

Me: Greggy, can you stay home with mummy?

Greg: No, mummy, I want to go to school.

Me: Don't you want play with me?

Greg: I want to go to school, school is fun

Me: Greg, I know you don't want to go to school, you love to stay with mummy.

Greg: Mummy, I love going to school.

Me: I know you love school but you love mummy even more.

Greg: But I want to go to school to learn

Another time:

Me: Hey, why don't you stay home with me.

Greg: No, I need to go to school

Me: I'll be so bored, nobody to play with me and bug me.

Greg: Mummy, you play with Shan Shan

Me: But Shan just sleeps all the time

Greg: Why don't you throw the bone at Shan

Yesterday's conversation after his school orientation...

Me: Greggy, I'm going to lock you in your closet so you can't go to school

Greg: No mummy, I love the school. Its so fun, I like my teacher. I want to go to school mummy.

Today's conversation...

Me: Greg, I'm going to let you sleep at midnight, you can play with the computer. We can play Wii fit and Mario Kart, you can watch TV all night long.

Greg: (puzzle and amazed look) wow.. I can play computer???

Gilly: (giggles) Greg, mummy is trying to trick you!! She wants you to sleep late so you wake up late and don't go to school.

Greg: Mummy, No I'm going to go to bed early. I have to wake up to go to sc hool.

Later in Costco...

Me: Greg, how about this... if you stay home and not go to school, I will buy you one big big big bag of M&Ms...

Greg: (he ran over to touch that big big bag of M&Ms)... I want to go to school! (he folded his hands and walked away from the M&Ms)

Oh well... at least I tried.. hehehe....

I know my baby is ready for school as he wasn't one bit shy when we went to his new class for his orientation. And I'll be on my new adventure with 5 hours of freedom.

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What is the bigger picture??

My neighbor, D (2 doors away), had delivered a baby boy end of May. We always assume that we would all bring home a healthy baby. D however knew earlier than her son would have some challenges. I wasn't aware of it until I notice that she and her hubby wasn't home. Only then did I find out from her mom that the baby had complications. Even when I saw D later, she briefed me about her son's situation and yet, I didn't realize how serious was the situation.

Her son has Charge Syndrome. I never heard of it until I Googled it. I remember feeling horrified when I realized what was thrown into D's way. This is something you dont' wish even on someone you hate whatmore your friend. I hate to say this but Down Syndrome would be an easier diagnosis than what D's son has.

Little D has progress pretty well but he is still not well enough to leave NICU to come home. Her previous entry had mentioned he may come home on Monday but today, when I read her latest entry, explained what went on during the weekend and little D won't be home. D has learnt not to plan too much these days. She says "Plans, who needs them anyway, right? Nothing in life really turns out as you plan them!"

She has alot of support from family and friends. Everyone has been praying for them. I do keep little D in my prayers and hope he gets to go home pretty soon. I know he is a fighter and so is his mom and dad. I just hope God gives them a good break. They need more good news and good outcome when it comes to Little D. Little D has a 2 year old sister (K) and she too has been affected by it. I just can't imagine how D feels everytime she has to leave K behind because she has to go to the hospital to be with Little D. No mother should have to feel guilty that she has to spend all the time in the hosp with a baby and having to leave the other child at home or with grandma. We always assume we would bring home a newborn and let the baby bond with the sibling.

What I've learnt in from D's situation,

• Dont' wish for a certain gender, just be grateful for a healthy child,
• Be thankful for everything. Even tiny little thing like our child having finish their milk or meal.
• God sure has his way with things, one day he will throw something good at you and another day... it may be something bad but he has his plans we just don't understand

Alright .. sorry for my rambling.. reading her journal entry just made me frustrated. I've been wanting to blog about D and her situation but today I am finally rambling... I would love to add her link here but I dont' have her permission as she doesn't know about my blog... Its a lovely journal as it tells you of how amazing this family is during this difficult time.. it shows us how vunerable and strong anyone can be... so if you have time, do find out more about Charge Syndrome. Please keep D and her family, especially little D in your prays...

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My Wii Fit

I finally got my Wii Fit, thanks to my niece who had lined up for hours at the store. How is my Wii Fit, its such a cool and cute device. I'm amazed at how innovative these techie guys are at inventing something like this for us lazy bumps to exercise.

I just love the fact it helps track my weight and tells me how unfit I am. It allows me to set a goal on weight loss for a period of weeks or months as I see fit. So far my machines has called me a couch potato. It says I've a body of a 59 year old person and I'm embarassed to announce my BMI.. so you take a guess if its overweight or obese. Please don't use the comments to play a guessing game... hmm... maybe I should disable the comment for this entry. hahahahaha. It guides me with my balance when I'm doing yoga. I love that hula hoop that makes me make 300 spins. I hate it when I cant' balance and get my head hit by shoes at that football goalie game. The more minutes I spend exercising on it, it opens up newer and harder exercises for me.

Last friday, I paid a visit to my endocrinologist. Do not ask me why I went to see this old man who is very slow paced , mellow personality. I've seen him since I was pregnant with Gilly. I just trust him enough to go get my blood drawn by him. For those of you that know me well, you know how I hate needles.. hate is a very mellow word when it comes to my distaste for needles. We were talking about me and losing weight and I told him about my new toy.. He had a good laugh at the comments I get from my Wii Fit. He is the cool and calm type of person and is one that seldom laughs (the most you see is a smile from him). He was curious at all the functions of the wii Fit. He gave me the usual card for me to call in to listen to the results of my blood work.

Yesterday, the kids and I spent the whole day in the Shedd Aquarium. When I got home, I saw on my caller ID that the hospital called. I got kinda worried as calls from Hosp usually didn't mean good news. This morning I called that 1-800 number to see what was going on.. to only get my blood work results... PLUS my doctor asking me for that device that I told him about because he wanted to get it for HIMSELF. He usually records the results and not call me. That's why when I saw he called, I got worried. I had a good laugh at that.. He wants a wii Fit. I'll will have to call and tell his nurse that its called Wii Fit.

If you are interested, here is a video I found on Youtube showing what a Wii Fit does...

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Be Nice To Me Or I'll Blog About You!!!

Last Saturday, as we had breakfast at McD's. Now, don't lecture me on how unhealthy it is to have McD for breakfast. I just love their Sausage McMuffins with Eggs and their hashbrowns. Greg asked me to finish his hashbrowns and when I took a bite, Gilly said "Mummy, you are eating more than us!" I smiled and pointed to my T-shirt and told her "Read this."

My t-shirt basically said "Be nice to me or I'll blog about you". Gilly giggled the moment she read it. Then Greg proceeded to say, yeah mummy, you are bigger than us. I turned to him and said "Read this" and continued... "oh you dont' read".. Gilly quickly said, "Greg you better be nice to her or she will blog about you." Greg laughed and said, "she always blogs about me."





Oh well, I guess the shirt is a warning to others but not my kids. It won't work. hahahaha ...I did wear that t-shirt to church and to a family function on Sunday... Good enough a warning??? *giggles*

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Stylish Ballerina

Gilly in tap outfit

Gilly in ballet costume

In June, I blogged about Gilly's ballet recital and a few weeks ago, we got to see photos taken from the formal photo session. Here is my money's worth, her sweet smile makes it worth paying $60 per costume. hahahaha... shall I say she wants jazz and tap next year and that would make 3 costumes??? arghhhhhhh....

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Happy Birthday Jane of All Trades

Happy Birthday to You.

Happy Birthday to You

Happy Birthday to Jane of All Trades

Happy Birthday to You

I can't believe that one year has passed since my first blog entry. I remember my first entry, I was still hesitant as I didn't want to fail. I thought my blog would be boring. I know I've sometimes gotten lazy and my blog stays "paused". Sometimes its also because I'm just too buzy. I'm glad I did start blogging as I now use it as a reference guide when I can't recall when a certain even happened. Last week I came back to check when I bought my patio set as I intent to buy a few extra chairs. hehehe.. Thank God for the blog!!!

So my friends who have been reading here, thank you for coming back over and over again. Mr.Ray, thanks for encouraging me to start this blog.

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Summer Birthday Party !!!!!!

The Kwannies

Both my kids are summer babies. Their birthdays are only 2 weeks apart and being a "cheap" mummy, I combine their birthday party. A friend has nicely put it as I'm frugal.. while I call it cheap.. hmmm frugal sounds nicer. I guess he used a better dictionary that I did... or I didn't know the existance of a Thesaurus... ok back to birthdays.......

Suddenly so shy Gilly!!!

Yes, I combined both the kids birthdays... hmmmm you know when I was young (dinosaur years ago...) I hated my birthday parties as I had to share it with 2 of my siblings... I never felt special.. until I celebrated my sweet 16.. hahaha my brother couldn't celebrate his sweet 16 with me as he was 3 years younger than me. In my recent call, I told my mom about how I disliked having to share my birthday parties... and yet I'm DOING the SAME thing now!!!!

Unusually shy Greg!!

I went on a guilt trip when I bought the kids their cakes. I called MJ to reassume myself that its ok to buy 2 half-sheet cakes... as I felt bad they had to share a party as it is... BTW.... Costco order form did mention 1 half-sheet cake eats 48... and how many guest were we expecting???? 45. A few of our guest did ask why I order 2 cakes and I quickly said.. "mummy guilt issues" hehehehe

We decided to order most food from Chinatown. I cooked curry chicken and beef rendang.. oh.. and I did last minute experiment with corn custard which turned out nice.. not as nice as my mom's though... We didn't have too much leftovers. Everyone loved the food and I saw someone quickly wrapping up my mother in law's specialty to take home. hehehe BTW "someone", my niece is having her birthday party next week and my MIL is making another batch. You want more ???

Kids can't wait for the cakes.

We started out inviting only few friends especially those with kids that played regularly with our kids. I wasn't being a bi*ch... just that we live in a townhouse (double storey terrace house) and was worried that if it rained, we couldn't accomodate 70 people. Finally 3 days before the party, we knew from weather forecast that Saturday was going to be a dry day.. We quickly invited more friends. I'm glad they understood and didn't feel insulted with a last minute invite. They all came... and that made me happy as they were hubby's close friends and I know how much he enjoys their company.

My sidekick and my partner in crime, you know who you are.

Preparation for the party was easy.. hehe right Katherine???? I just had to worry about the party favors and I did make sure I got the jumper. My kids insisted on the jumper and wanted back the one they had 2 years ago. I made my calls which was another funny story... which I may blog one day... Tony, if you Google and get to see this... You better give me a good discount next time. I'm Kwan... I got my jumper from Jammin Jumps. Their jumpers are clean and the rates are very reasonable. Jumper came at 10am and only left at 9pm... all for $175. The guy that came to set up the jumper remembered us.. cos funnily the same thing happened 2 years ago when he came.. the sprinkler started running just as they arrived.

The jumper.

The same jumper for 2006 party

Our guest started arriving and by end of the day.. almost everyone that was invited came. They kids had fun at the jumper and we had the bean bag games out, and the boys were playing with it. The kids helped themselves to the water balloon and I saw a few boys that were soaked wet. Yes, not only did they play with the water balloons, they were also playing with the water hose too. Oh well its ok... I did ask their parents to bring extra clothing. Its only once in a while that we have a party, so let the kids have fun while the parents get to sit and chat pleasantries....

Birthday girl

I was grateful that a few of my friends helped me out. Almost every adult helped here and there and a few precious helped mostest with packing up the food and storing it in the fridge for me. They helped wash up, I am so grateful to them. Thanks Iola and Theresa... you gals are my jewels.

Who needs a sprinkler???

Did I get to enjoy myself.. hahaha after paying $175 for that jumper.. I decided that I too should enjoy it. Almost at the end of the party, I decided that we mommies should have a turn at the jumper. I went in kicking all the kids out of the jumper and started to get the mummies in for 5 minutes. Yes we sure had fun in there. Ok.. for those of you that know how huge I am.. that freaking jumpber is 20' x 20'. It's a jumper that has basketball hoop in it.. and an obstacle whatever in there.. plus a slide.. so we mummies jumped around for awhile and then climbed up that steep slippery climber.. and slid down the slide... yehhhaaaaaa.... yahooooooo... cooollll... its fun to be kids again!!!!! NO... if you dare think of it.. we didn't damage the jumper. That jumper can take adult abuse hehehehehe....

The boys playing bean bag. Hubby made the board and i sewed the bags.

Alot of our guest stayed on. Gilly had her closest friends over and their dad came over twice to pick them up... to his frustration I guess... his girls didn't want to go home. I got him to let them stay longer and finally he sent his wife to pick up the girls.

The last guests left at 12.30am.. yes at midnite. We were playing mahjong and I made $5. No, I'm not a mahjong expert. I'm a blur when it comes to points and luckily I had an expert partnering with me. We had a few teen girls and I think they did have some fun. I remember not wanting to attend parties for little kids when I was a teenager. The older boys where playing catch at the backyard.

Eugene and I are feeling tired but even with that feeling... we feel happy. We got to celebrate our kid's birthdays with friends.. Friends that means something in our lives. Not "Hi-Bye" friends but friends that matters. Greg did enjoy himself the mostest as he calls it as his sweetheart Bella was there to sing him a birthday song. Both kids are now begging to open up their presents. Yes we got the presents unwrapped but not out of the packaging.. hehehe I milk the moments where if they are good then only they can open one gift.

Greg with the love of his life.

So friends that came to the party... Thank you for coming. Thank you for chomping down the food... hopefully no diahrrea ... I just loved seeing some of my favorite friends meet each other for the first time and actually got along well.

Impossible photo of bouncy kids!!!

oh... before I forget.. I got to meet someone for the first time.. we have been messaging back and forth from a forum. She was nice to drop by on her way back home from a vacation. Wish she had stayed longer.. WM.. you missed the rendang and curry chicken!!! Don't worry, we can always meet up and get to know each other more. When she was here, Iola(a young lady in her 70s...) was there to see for the first time how 2 ladies that met on the internet, meet physically for the first time.

That's all about the party.. wished my parents and siblings could have been here....

Please.... Please.... can we open the presents?

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Kids Learning to Swim

This summer, I signed both the kids up for swim lessons. Last year, Greg got to sit and watch Gilly have her lessons but this year it was his turn too. Long story short, Greg had a bad experience with his previous teachers and they got him scared of swimming pools. I signed both of them up for private lessons instead of group as it was only a $20 difference in prices.

Both the kids got teenage boys for coaches and Gilly was surprised as her previous coach was a girl. I guess we always assume they would allocate based on gender. Greg carefully walked into the water with his coach while the coach asked me about Greg's swim abilities. Right away he caught on that Greg wasn't comfortable with the water. The kids were taken to the Lazy river and Greg knew that it was going to be deeper than his height. Quickly the coach grabbed onto Greg's hands. In a minute Greg started to smile alittle. They started off with the kicking lessons.

Greg holding on to that blue thingy.

Water on Greg's face... "Get it off"

By second day of lesson, Greg was happy and excited start his lessons. He has since gotten more comfortable in the water and likes to jump into the water. He dares to dunk his face into the water and hold his breath for 4 counts. His kick is getting stronger and he doesn't bend his knee too much. I just hope he can float by end of this summer. He still doesn't straighten his arms when he is holding the float and the coach says its because of the age, they tend to do that at this age. I'm not worried for now.

Here I go!

I love this.

Please don't drop me, I don't trust this noodle, I usually eat noodles not float on it.

Gilly has had swim lessons before, last year her coach worked on her floating and freestyle. This year, after briefly telling her coach that the last lesson she had was last summer, he was surprise that she just jumping in and started swimming again. I guess its like cycling, where once you know it you won't forget it.

wee... this is easy.

She is just learning to inhale and exhale while swimming, I know it sounds easy but it takes a while to master it. I still mess up my breathing sometimes. She can now swim the length of 12 strokes.

I'm exhausted. I need a rest!

Here I go again.

Gilly,my fearless Gilly, has fear of heights, we found out when she went on Tower of Terrors, so you can imagine how much she loves the diving board. Part of their lessons involves climbing up those tiny steps and walking across the board, stand and start at the water... trying to gain the courage to jump into the water, and finally taking the plunge. My girl last year would stand at the tip of the board for 5 minutes. Yes, 5 long minutes and it would just infuriate me. I know I have height issues too but to stand there for 5 minutes is a torture. I kept telling her its just better to jump in and get it over than to torture yourself for 5 minutes. This year to my SURPRISE, she just got on and jumped right away. I was so happy and figured my girl is now braver as she is 1 year older. In the car, I commented that she did good on the diving board and what made her jump off right away. She said "I just want to quickly jump off so you won't scold me". Guilty feeling gushed over me.... oh well at least she jumped!!

Holy Macaroli.. or is it Holy Macaroni? Is that my daughter?

While waiting for the kids, I found ways to amuse myself. Not once did I bring my knitting bag nor a magazine to keep myself occupied. Day 2, I was ticked to see this cute activities. Yes, I could not believe that a family of ducks, mommy duck and her ducklings were swimming in the lazy river. She made a few rounds on it before the lifeguards got them out of the pool.

Look who has stepped into the Lazy River

Mummy Duck and baby ducklings... 8 of them

Greg swimming near the ducks. Ducks, please don't poop

Another day, I found myself amused watching one little 3 year old that refuses to go into the pool and her guard had to spend 30 minutes coaxing her to get it, and stay in the pool. She kept wanting to get out and he would in his gentle way get her to hold the float. I was laughing when I see how helpless he gets. He never once lost his cool and got her to a few times float and kick. These are high school kids... and they have shown how responsible they can be. Kudos to them!!

The kids will have one more lesson, I doubt Greg will be able to float by that lesson and its OK. I do have the rest of the summer to take them to the water park. We got the season pass and do go there as often as we can. We usually spend an hour or two there to get the kids out of the house. They both just love the water park and would beg to go there every morning. At least I got them to love the water.. hehehe... ciao

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Someone is riding without training wheels!!!!

We crossed another milestone on July 14, 2008. Greg is now riding a bike without any training wheels. It took him only 2 days to master it. Yes, 2 days while it took Gilly 3 weeks. Was Gilly a slow learner? No, more like parents learning from our experience. What we did different this time was to let him go on a 2 wheel scooter. He learnt how to balance himself on a scooter after a few days and finally he decided he was ready to try the bike ... and he now calls his bike the "two wheeler".

Daddy keeping a close eye on Greg

We were both exhausted running beside him while he tried riding the bike for the first time. Greg kept running into mailboxes, hahaha I can laugh about it now but at that time we cringe seing him heading towards the mailboxes. It was a good thing we taught him how to stop the bike and how to quickly put his feet down to balance himself. He didn't get injured nor did he "kiss" any mailboxes. Phew!!!

Here Greg let me help you.

The next day, Daddy decides to take Greg to Gilly's school to ride his bike. As it is summer and there isn't anybody in school grounds, the parking lot is empty and hey.. no mailboxes!!! Daddy figured it would be easier as Greg could just keep going on and on without having to stop and turn the bike around.

Look mummy, Look

The 3 of them put the bikes into the van and drove to school. After an hour, they came running into the house. Proudly screaming that Greg has "got it". I came out with my camera and there my little rascal with his impish grin jumped on his bike and buzzed about.

Mummy, I made a turn back on my own.

These past few days, the first thing he wants to do is to jump onto his bike and for a bike ride. Daddy did take them for a bike ride to the nearest park. Maybe one of these days we will all bike to the bigger park which is further away.

I'm lovin this... I'm a big boy now.

We can tick off bike training off our summer "To Do" list. We certainly are glad there wasn't any blood or tears shed this time round. We do learn from our experience with the older child and I wish I could have made it easy for us the first time round.. So for all parents who plan to take off the training wheels..... start with a 2-wheel scooter.

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