Ethel's 3rd Birthday!

So many birthdays this month.. It was Ethel's birthday last Sunday. She turned 3 this year! How time flies...





We took her shopping for presents at Toys"R"Us prior to the celebration. We were in there for an hour, looking for toys after toys but found none suitable. In the end, Ethel just wanted a cheap toy car. She was, surprisingly, so easy to satisfy. Haha!

We had the birthday celebration at Ethel's Grandma's house which is one door away from mine. Haha! So it was very convenient.


Her Mum asked a friend to cook for the party who used to work as a hawker. The roast pork was bought by my cousin.

This post is going to be filled with many pictures of my niece and nephews. I just love taking pictures of children! They are so natural, so cute, so funny....



Ethel and Alvin singing to wordless songs which tunes they made up on the spot.




A VERY adorable picture of Alvin! And I just realised that he has grown so much!




I love this picture. 3 years old Ethel looking at herself when she was 2 years old.




And then it was cake-cutting time! My cousin bought the cake from Bakerzin. They were very generous with the strawberries!! Alas, I don't eat strawberry. =P




Picture with Ethel. I was looking very "cui" coz I was rushing my assignments for the past few days and I don't feel the need to dress up when they are just next door from me. Haha!




Again, I wanna end the post with a picture of Ethel.....



.......and to say that we still love her very much.

Spastism and Cuteness

Spastism

In an act of spastism, we decided to play with the straw hat that was given to me in one of my Social Studies fieldtrips.




My brother and his spastic smile... Which sort of resemble.....











Him! Haha! The character in anime "One Piece".







Me as a Hokkien RnB singer. Haha!


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Cuteness


On to something cute. Another picture of Ethel.





I love this picture. I like the rainbow of colours. Brightened up my day. =D

Prawning ..... again!

I am so into prawning! The lastest prawning trip was with my family and little Ethel. At first, my dad didn't wanna go, complaining that the weather was too hot. In end, we managed to persuade though his version of the story was that we threatened him. =P



My dad was very good to Ethel. Everytime he fished a prawn, he would let Ethel hold the rod and pulled up the prawn herself. To my brother and me, it looked like they were torturing the poor prawn. As Ethel is only 2 years old, she doesn't have the strength to pull up the prawn. So the whole time, the prawn was struggling while Ethel kept "dipping" the rod in the pond. Tsk tsk..

When she finally won the war between the prawn, we would all cheer for her. In the end, she didn't want any of us to hold one of the rods. She hogged the rod the whole time. Hmm.. We are thinking of buying her a toy rod for our next trip to keep her occupied. =P

Now, my dad is hooked too! He asked my mum to dig out his fishing rod which has been missing in action for around 10 years. Yeah! I am soooo excited! Can't wait for our next trip!

The Little Frog's Day Out

"Help! Save me!"

Ethel spun around to the croaking, wondering who was making that noise. To her surprise, she saw a little green frog in Big Bird's mouth! She got to save it!

Ethel sang sweetly,

"Sunny Day

Sweepin' the clouds away

On my way to where the air is sweet

Can you tell me how to get,

How to get to Sesame Street?"

When Big Bird opened his mouth and tried to reply, the little green frog took a leap! And he escaped from Big Bird. "Thank you very much, little girl!" The little green frog gasped. He had not recovered from his fright.

"You are welcome. Who are you? What are you doing here?" Ethel was curious.

The little green frog slumped onto the ground and began in a sad tone. "I am a toy frog and I lived in a little house very far from here. Everyday, I will have lots of fun playing with two little boys who live with me. However, one day, I was bored. I want to see the world! So, I sneaked out of the little house. Little did I know what horrors were install for me! Now, I just want to go home!" He burst out crying.

After listening to his story, Ethel thought to herself, "I got to help him." So, she said loudly to the little green frog, "Don't worry! I will help you! Where do you stay?"

"Far, far away." He replied, dolefully.

Since he lived so far away, Ethel decided she could not walk that distance. She did the first thing that came to her mind - they would ride there.

She plonked the little green frog onto her trusty steed, Black Beauty, and rode into the forest. "Giddy up, Black Beauty!" And they galloped, and they galloped, and they galloped... Until Black Beauty could run no more.

"What do we do now?" The frog asked sadly.

"Don't worry, I have an idea." Ethel smiled.

She settled the little green frog on a train. "Isn't this a good idea?" She asked. The little green frog smiled happily at her. And they rambled on, and they rambled on, and they rambled on... Until the train could move no more.

"What do we do now?" The little green frog whined.

Ethel frowned and scratched her head. Suddenly, a car beeped at them! She turned and saw Barney!

"Don't worry, I have an idea." Ethel smiled.

Ethel perched the little green frog in Barney's car.

"I love you,

You love me.

We're a happy family." They sang the song gayly. The little green frog could not believe his good luck.

And they journey on, and they journey on, and they journey on.. Until Barney could drive no more.

"What do we do now?" The little green frog grumbled.

"We need some luck." Ethel thought. And luck arrived!

"Don't worry, I have an idea." Ethel was relieved.

She arranged the little green frog in Alvin's car which happened to be in the area they were in. And they travelled, and they travelled, and they travelled... Until Alvin could not drive anymore.

Faced with a dead end, Ethel cried, "What do we do now?"

The little green frog turned and smiled happily at her, "We do not need to do anything anymore! We are here! I am home!"

A hand lifted the little green frog and placed him back in the cupboard which is his home. "Thank you, little girl! I will never forget you!"

Ethel waved and wandered off, wondering what adventure was waiting for her around the corner.

A Drawing of Me

"Ethel is going to draw Ah Yee (Me)."


"Okay, draw me with a smiling face."

Tell me how not to love this little girl.. =)

(P.S. I hope you don't find any resemblance between me and the picture.. I look better, trust me~ =P)

Family Outing

After gym on Friday, Dad decided to visit Ethel at her house in Changi. And so, he picked me up from Bukit Batok CSC and drove us to Changi.



After an uneventful lunch, we decided to do something impromptu. I love such things! Give you a clue on what we did.



















Yes! We went Pulau Ubin! It was my Mum's first time there. My dad has not stepped onto Ubin for 30 years! He told me that last time, there was no shops or any eateries. Just jungle.

My Dad has such a rubbery face. Haha! One of these days, I will post all his pictures in one entry titled "The Cam Whore Lives in My Dad". Haha!

We were not dressed appropriately. I was in my denim skirt. Lady Luck was on my side, preventing me from falling into the water while boarding and alighting the Bum boats. Needless to say, none of us brought mosquito repellent. However, only I got bitten by the blood suckers. Maybe Lady Luck decided to take a toilet break at that moment.

We took the Ubin's Taxi to Chek Jawa. It was quite cheap. We only need to pay $20 to and fro Chek Jawa. It was cheaper than renting bikes. Well, we could not cycle anyway. Me and my cousin in our skirts, Dad don't know how to cycle, Ethel's feet couldn't even reach the pedals...




Chek Jawa is still as I remembered it to be. Dad, being his lazy self, refused to go to the watch tower. So we only walked around the Exhibition house and the coastal walk. We only walked for about 15 minutes before Dad decided to leave. Grrr... Such a waste of money. When we reached the van, the driver, an ah pek, had not even finished his smoke. Hmm... Typical of my Dad.

And so it was back to Singapore. Although it was just a short trip, I really enjoyed it very much. I just love spending time with my family, showing them what I love and what I enjoy doing. =)

A Little Corner in Singapore

I guess I really have to thank Ethel. Because of her, my dad always bring us out occasionally and we will explore the different corners of Singapore, trying to dig out interesting places to visit or dine from.

This time round, we discovered Pasir Ris Park. You might be thinking, "Erm... Hello.. We all heard of it before. Big deal." Yeap, it is a big deal because at Pasir Ris Park, you can see these!

Ponies and horses! You can get to feed and ride them! How cool is that! (The ponies look like they have rebonded their hair. Haha!)




We bought a packet of Alfafa to feed the ponies. At first, I was rather scared because I wouldn't want the ponies to chew off my fingers. In the end, I gritted my teeth and allowed the ponies to snuffle my palms and lick the alfafa. Super disgusting yet fun! Haha! My hands were covered in ponies' drool after feeding them. Little Ethel had no qualms about feeding them. Brave girl, she is. If the ponies could bite away my fingers, they could bite away her whole palm! Luckily, those ponies are tamed enough for us to feed them. I also tried to feed the white horse but I stopped when I could feel its teeth rubbing against my palm. Scary...

After Pasir Ris Park, we went to the new games complex beside Downtown East. It is filled with games stores and eateries! You can find arcade, bowling alley, children's indoor playground and ice-skating rink, board games cafes, etc, all under one roof. There is also an indoor ferris wheel and we tried that out!



The little child inside me is awakened whenever I spend time with Ethel. Guess I had as much fun as her. It is a good thing my dad is crazy over her and the boys. =)

Back from Genting

I am back from Genting! It had been a fun, interesting and exciting but super tiring trip. After blogging the previous entry, I had only 2 hours of sleep. We boarded the coach at 6am and then it was off to Genting!

Day 1

I had a lot of my nieces and nephews coming along as well. Of course, Ethel was there and so, this entry is going to be filled with lots of her photos. Children make such pretty and interesting subjects that I can not stop snapping them. =)

Ethel with Bear Bear, Ruth's teddy bear.

That is Ruth, Ethel's new found friend. Another of my many nieces. So cute, right?

To our surprise, we had a tour guide! The first stop was to have breakfast at Yong Peng. My uncle's idea of breakfast is drastically different from ours. For the two days, we had about 5-6 dishes of noodles, porridge, vegetables, etc, for breakfast! It was lunch to me!



After the heavy breakfast, we went to a 妈祖 temple at Yong Peng.

My brother with his zodiac animal, Rabbit.

Me with my zodiac animal, Tiger.

My cousin with her zodiac animal, Dragon.

Ethel with her zodiac erm.. plant, Tree. Haha! She refused to take photo with the Dog which is just beside her. Well, the Dog actually looked like Wolf so I don't blame her.

The temple. Very nice, right?

After travelling for a few hours, we stopped halfway up Genting for Lunch. It was at this restaurant called Gohtong Jaya and the food was good!

We also had this wine which is made from Dragon Fruit's enzyme. Very nice!

We went to another temple after lunch. It is situated halfway up Genting. It is a very nice place. Very serene and peaceful..

The guy in the picture is another of my cousins. Ethel sticked to him a lot during the trip. Another new found friend. Haha!

Climbing up a long flight of stairs...

Was rewarded with a spectacular view. Made my legs turned into jelly though.

We went to pay our respects to Lim Goh Tong, Genting's founder. I really admire his vision and courage to turn a moutain into what Genting is today. It was like a miracle story. Another fact about him that surprised me was that he was my fifth uncle's wife's uncle, my 五伯母的舅舅!

A memorial for him.

When we checked in at Genting First World Hotel, it was already 4pm! We had travelled for 10 hours!

I do not really like First World Hotel. It is very small!! The tv is also very small! And they do not have my favourite cartoon channels! Moreover, they do not provide toothbrush nor toothpaste! Which was bad news to me because I did not bring any.

Alas, we did not have time for the Outdoor Theme Park. HAIZ!! We only went to the Indoor Theme Park's Motion Theatre where we were annoyed by some foreigners (I guessed from India). They were very rude and loud. One kept making very shrill whistles in the theatre which pierced through my head. Really felt like scolding vulgarities at that time but I did not dare. Grrr...

The two of us acting cool with the 3-D glasses.

After walking for around, we had dinner at an Italian Restaurant! Haha! I just cannot stand Genting's food and I craved for something better. Actually, it was quite cheap. Only RM73 for the 2 of us! I will definitely recommend this place.

An artistic shot of my brother.

It was casino time after dinner!! Met up with my cousin and went in search of the casino. However, we got lost for a while and managed to stumble into this garden where some couples were making out. Suppose to be steamy, right? But it was damn cold! Shiok!! I love the weather there! It was 17 degree celcius that night!

Had fun taking photos there!

Finally, we found the casino. It is such a interesting place. The dealers are so skilled in dealing out cards and chip. They also had very arrogant faces. These made the games so serious. And we could see people betting a few hundred dollars for each game and, in the end, lost their money after a few seconds.

We played Roulette and luckily for us, we won about RM300. Not enough for my Gucci wallet though. Haha! However, I was super nervous the whole time. My hands were clammy and I was cold. The feeling was like how we felt when we played Mahjong and we were waiting for the winning tile. The heart beats faster, the mind is more alert and we keep hoping that the next tile is the one we want. It was like that for me except that this feeling repeated itself every 50 seconds. Really fast and crazy.

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Day 2

We only had about 3 hours of sleep. This is because our coach left Genting at 8am!! SUPER EARLY!!!

We had breakfast at Gohtong Jaya again. And again, we had 5-6 dishes for breakfast.

That is Ethel's grandmother, my 2nd Uncle's wife.

After breakfast, we visited the Chocolate Gallery situated halfway up Genting. Using my woman's intuition, I clearly recognised that that was a tourist trap. And so, I bought nothing from there and brought Ethel out for a walk in the area. Haha! My aunties and uncles spent about RM100 per family in that place! *Faints*

We then travelled to Malacca for lunch. The lunch was super good!!! We had roast pork, steamed promfet, abalone, etc. We dined like royalties!

There was this special dish - Yam Paste. It was different from the Singapore's version. Just look at the pictures.

There was a strange sight behind the restaurant.

So weird, right? A huge statue of a man in the alley. Wonder what it is for? Creepy...

We saw this school on our way to the next destination. Look at the name of the school.

What happen to their self-esteem?? Haha!

When you go to Malacca, you will definitely go to this place. So did we.

The weather was freaking hot! I think the tour guide must had sighed in relief when we decided we do not want to climb to the top.

After that, we went for dinner. It was only 530pm though but they wanted to beat the jam at Tuas. Clever people. My sentiments exactly. =) Well, we had roast pork again. We even had 佛跳墙!

Finally,we arrived back in Singapore at around 830pm without jam. Phew..

I really enjoyed this trip though it was packed to the brim. Had a lot of fun and saw a lot of interesting things! Wished that my parents had come with us. Nevermind, maybe I'll organise one in the future? =P

I love this picture.

Since I started with a photo of Ethel, I shall end with one of hers too.

I'll be back.