RaeAnne is sick

Raeanne refused to eat dinner today n turns out she was feverish (37.6), must be cos she slept with hubby on the bumper mat (she woke up and refused to go back to her room to sleep) on Mon night n caught a cold. She started coughing since yesterday. Last week, got a bit of runny nose. But we only self medicated but never bing her to see dr yet. If Tom still not ok, will have to skip school for her.

Sometimes, I wonder how much enrichment classes I should sign RaeAnne up for. Now, she only has yamaha music every Sat afternoon. And I'm not keen to add more. But hubby thinks that she doesn't seem to be very interested but I think it's too early to tell. So we've agreed to give it another term to try out. I wonder if at 3 years plus, it's too early to know if she has any interest in music/piano lessons. Or should I let her stop music and try ballet or swimming instead? :P

I am also worried that I'll end up like my cousin, her no. 1 has shicida, jap and music classes while her no. 2 has music and shicida classes. She initially wanted no. 3 but she changed her mind cos she said she's too tired ferrying the 2 kids for enrichment classes over the weekend. She is FTWM and her kids don't attend childcare so all the classes cramped over the weekend. But at least her MIL and maid look after the kids in the weekdays and her younger sis will even help her bring her no. 2for music class on Sat. I don't want to deprive my kids of fun or impromptu outings/gatherings over the weekends esp since hubby's tuition means sunday afternoon are already burnt. But yet I don't want to miss the 'prime' 0-3 yrs stage when they are supposed to learn things fastest. Dilemma. :P

Tripadvisor.com review

Wrote a review for Marriott Mai Khao Beach Resort n it has just been published online.

Leapfrog Phonics

The set of leapfrog dvds arrived last week and I started to let RaeAnne watch it. Luckily, she seems quite entertained by the frogs and even asked me to switch it on for her on her own accord. Even Mei mei tries to imitate the phonic sounds with her usual babbling.

But despite this, RaeAnne still can't remember the phonic sounds of the vowels and I dun blame her cos even after watching it for 4-5 times, I can't remember them either. :P At least, she knows the sound of M is Mmmmmm and sound of C is ke. :)

Physiotherapy

It's been one week plus since hubby went back to work, getting used to the routine but shoulder aches are getting worse. Not sure if it's due to the more active lifestyle or because of the mobilisation exercises.

Still can't carry Raelynn and it's physically tiring for me to keep bending down to her level (she loves to take my water bottle and get me to feed her water using the straw, or play with the straw) or play with her on the mat. So sad that she doesn't seem to recognise that I'm her Mummy. Ask her where is Mummy and she turns her head to look for the maid. Hiaz. :(

Looks like I got to keep parroting to her that I'm her Mummy and play with her more. But I wonder if it makes sense to make an effort to get close to her then 'throw' her back to the maid again after I take the real estate course or find a job. Dilemma. :(

Daddy is going back to work

More than 2 months after the car accident, Daddy is officially going back to work tomorrow. I said 'officially' because unofficially, he has been going back to school to print exam papers, teach a cartooning module, watch over the GP exam and bring 7 classes of scripts back to mark. All these while he is still on hospitalisation leave leh. A teacher's work is never done, even if you are sick. Duh...

Hubby's latest book 'Why Study Smart?' made it twice to the top 10 top children titles on Sunday times. All the other titles in the chart were bestseller fiction titles like Geronimo Stilton, Diary of Wimpy kid by the seasoned top publishers etc. So, clinching the 9th spot with a non fiction title (involving studying which teenagers obviously hate) is something to be proud of. Congrats Daddy!

How will life change after this? We are still ordering tingkat cos the doctor and physiotherapist are still forbidding me to carry the kids. Trying to cook makes my shoulders ache badly then I'll need to lie down. I really miss carrying Mei Mei but still need to wait for the all clear from the medical experts. :P Definitely, I will need to be more hands on and will pick RaeAnne up from school again so that the maid has time to cook lunch and feed Mei Mei while I am out.

After the Phuket trip, I'm wondering if it's time to restart my 'career' engine ie. take up the postponed real estate sales course or to look for a job near home. We still can't afford to buy a replacement car and taking taxis are taking a toll (they are never around when you need them). Plus, the maid needs a higher pay after her contract ends, Raelynn needs to go to school soon (add expense) and RaeAnne will be starting full day CC next year (another add expense)

The only thing holding me back is that I won't have much time to spend with Mei Mei once I start 'working'. She grew up so fast, although I was home with her, she was taken care mostly by the maid other than breastfeeding. Thought i will have some time before she goes to school in July but post accident recovery took up 2.5 months. Wonder if I'll miss the chance again if I take up an time consuming job after I fully recover, that's why I still prefer flexi hours working arrangement. Oh well, I'll leave it to fate and see how things turn out. :P

Back from Phuket! :)

Touched down in sg at 1.05pm and reached home around 2pm. The jetstar flight was smooth and I'm thankful cos I really hate turbulences. :P I'm glad the kids enjoyed the trip esp RaeAnne who insisted she doesn't want to come home and she wants to stay in the hotel room forever. Had to threaten to sell away all her toys, bicycles, storybooks etc to 'entice' her to come home.

Recap of Day 3
We brought the kids to the pool around 9+am cos hubby didn't want to bring them too early when the water was cold. We didn't had to worry, the water was not cold at all, maybe cos the weather was so hot. Raelynn fortunately enjoyed the shallow end of the pool (just 5cm deep) and didn't cry unlike the night before when we put her into the 'oversized bathtub' in our bedroom (maybe cos the water was too warm). RaeAnne had fun but fell twice in the swimming pool and swallowed some water.

First time was because she missed a step going down the steps inside the pool and the second time was because hubby was carrying her and she slipped. After that, she told everyone she could that she 'fell' twice in the pool. kekeke. We only spent less than 1 hr in the pool cos MIL kept reminding us that it's very warm for the kids. Oh well, grandparents will always be the protectives ones. After we brought the kids home, then I realised that we brought them to the wrong pool, we went to the nearest pool with jaccuzzi but that was meant for adults. The kids pool was the one with the water slide. :P

MIL fried bee hoon for lunch while the maid showered for the two kids. I took a shower too cos my hair was wet. Bee hoon was a bit bland cos it was catered for the kids. Raelynn woke up early from her nap so I brought her and the maid to the Kids Club and left them there until RaeAnne woke up. Cooked some macaroni soup with veg, mushroom, silverfish stock, topped with fried egg tofu, fried chicken drumstick with garlic. RaeAnne loved it. And kept telling me 'Mummy, I love your tofu'. It was such simple food but she must have missed my home cooked food and soup after 2 months of tingkat. Poor gal.


Around 4+pm, we went to Turtle Village one last time to shop and went into the Esprit factory outlet. I bought 2 t shirts for myself ($12-15 each), 1 pair of white pedal pushers for the maid ($15) and 1 flowery top for MIL ($20). Then we took the shuttle to the beach that was at JW Marriott. The beach frankly was nothing much cos the sand was golden and quite coarse. The drop off was steep too. But RaeAnne and hubby did have fun collecting tiny seashells and hubby even caught a small crab and put it into RaeAnne's pail so that made her day. :)

That night we cooked all the rice we brought along and ordered food from Kindee (there was good review at tripadvisor.com) and delivery is free. There wasn't enough rice to go along so hubby fried 'salty' bee hoon (with the leftover chicken seasoning granules). hehe.

I felt relaxed cos the resort apartment was large enough for the kids to roam about happily yet self contained and the facilities made it convenient for us if we want to cook, brew coffee for ourselves, let the kids swim in the bathtubs or pool, order food in and watch kiddy dvds and have fun with the kids. It is also easier now that Mei Mei is eating most outside foods. If I have a job and there is spare cash, I really don't mind taking up the Marriott package like two of my friends. But right now, I think saving up for a car is of higher priority.

Phuket - Day 1 n 2

I was too tired to post last night, having slept just 2 hrs on sun night, partly because hubby was marking n didn't want to sleep early n partly cos Raeanne woke up at 2+am n didn't settle until 3+am.

Day 1
The plan was to book the cab n have it waiting downstairs while the adults load the luggage so that we let the kids sleep as much as possible. But in the end, had to wake a sleeping Raeanne at 6am cos mil said must let her pee before going up the taxi but as I expected she was grouchy n refused to pee. She only peed after we reached the airport n checked in. Mei mei on the other hand only woke up when she was in the cab. The flight was short n smooth though Raelynn was a bit grouchy towards the end. Think she was hungry. Booked a taxi n a half day safari tour for the next day.

Luckily we reached the Marriott Mai Khao Beach slightly after 9am. We were welcome by jasmine lei but waited at the lobby for a long time. Even had time for Raeanne to do some coloring at the Kids Club. It is open to all kids but only those above 4 yrs old can be left there alone. Our room was still not ready by 10am so we decided to head straight to Turtle village and we had breakfast at coffee club which was a recommended cheap n good place for Thai n western food. True enough, the thai mains were cheap, only 100thb, which was SGD4.20.

Ordered a soupy rice with minced pork ball for Raelynn n Raeanne, asked for no salt but it was still too salty. Next time, should ask for no salt. But no prob, just asked the waitress for hot water, n diluted the soup. They ate a lot cos very hungry by then. The hotel called us just after we ordered the food but we wanted to eat first. Decided to go to the Turtle Mart supermarket to stock up on fresh produce before going back to the resort so that we can cook. In the end, we bought some frozen chicken drumsticks, small cabbage, fresh mushrooms, baby corn, a papaya. I had brought from home rice, dried scallops, dried silverfish n ikan bilis for stock. Too bad, the pork didn't look fresh or we can vary our cooking a bit more.

When we saw our room, everyone was wowed cos it was so big. The rooms are big n the kitchen is well equipped with 4 electric cooker stoves, rice cooker, kettle, blender, toaster, microwave oven. It even has washing machine n dryer n ironing board. I. Managed to go to the spa at the nearby JW Marriott hotel while everyone else had their afternoon naps. The 2hr massage was relaxing but steep ($200) but I expected it but at least it was convenient. After I came back, the kids showered n we went for dinner at Turtle Village again, this time at Bill Bentley pub. the ribs were great n food servings were large. We shared a bottle of Thai Singha beer since it was the same price as fruit juice. Mei mei had her first Phuket hotel cooked soupy rice n she ate a lot. :) Went to the supermarket to stock up again, bought macaroni n bee joon this time.

I ko at at 10+pm thailand time (1 hr later than sg time) with Raeanne. Ironically, though the guest bedroom was so big with 2 twin beds, she ended up squeezing with us. :p

Day 2


Raeanne woke up early cos she has not adjusted to Thailand time but we were still almost late for our 9am meeting with the guide. It was a 45 mins ride to Island Safari but RA fell asleep in the mini bus. The ride was quite windy and I was a bit nervous due to the effects of our car accident. Kept worrying that the driver will misjudge and the kids will be in danger. Paranoid. :P


We did a lot at the tour, ox cart ride, orchid farm (not much blooming orchids), photo with buffalo, Thai papaya salad demonstration, monkey show, baby elephant show, elephant ride. The kids were tired n hungry but we took the opportunity to feed them at 1pm when choosing photos. On the bus ride back, it was Mei Mei's turn to sleep but Raeanne did nap for a short while.

When we reached hotel, the adults had cup noodles while I cooked some miso soup macaroni for Raeanne since she didn't want to nap anymore (used instant miso soup as base). Then we watched the panda dvd that i bought from singapore. Wanted to bring the kids to the swimming pool but it was hot n later found out the pool is closed at 6pm. So I cooked dinner instead, chicken apple soup, fried lettuce with mushroom n carrots, n canned teriyaki sardines with fresh cucumbers. The kids love the soup n apple n Raeanne ate two small bowls of rice. :)

Hubby went to the Kids club to borrow some DVDs n while Raeanne n MIL watched Lion king, hubby n I sneaked out for ice cream at Swensons n shopping at Turtle Mart n Jim Thompson. RA fell asleep on the long sofa just now but woke up to cry, think will have to let her sleep with us again. :p Tom is the last day n we have no plans except to bring the kids to the pool n the beach. :)

Blood

Yesterday, we were surprised when the maid told us there was blood in the potty after Mei mei farted. Examined her anus n found a 'crack' n it was bleeding. Not sure if it's a anal fissure cos her stools have been a bit hard. Applied destine n will monitor for time being.

Mei mei can say more words now. Last fri, she can say dog dog n Monday, she said duck duck. :)

Dr review

Saw the dr on Monday, After comparing the x-rays taken 3 weeks versus new x Ray, she said that there was 2-3 degree of shifting for t5 so recovery is not perfect. Felt very guilty when I heard that cos I had to take care of myself (showering, eating etc) since hubby had his hand op, I have not been very compliant with the brace since after cny when the initial pain eased. Also because I felt discouraged when she said 6 more weeks afterbthe first review. Sigh. :p but at least she said it's still ok, cos 30 deg is considered bad so she said i can take out the brace. But try to minimize 'nodding' actions. Referred to physiotherapy, first session on thurs so hope massage will ease the pains.

Raelynn is 15 months old!

She is 9.9kg, 74cm today. She has 6.5 teeth, 4 on top n 2.5 on the bottom. Cheh cheh was only 9.1kg at 15 months but looks older because she has longer hair. Mei Mei is always trying to take a spoon to feed us (strangely not herself), may be the first step toward self feeding. We have stopped cooking porridge for her cos she doesn't like. She prefers plain porridge or rice with savoury dishes. Last Sat, brought her to Jap restaurant and she ate 1 piece of tamago (egg) sushi and rice with pork shabu shabu soup (gave her the lean pork, carrot, tofu and veg). Today, she ate plain porridge with stir fried pumpkin, steamed fish and steamed spinach. She's drinking 220ml of Friso3, even more than Cheh Cheh. I think I can give up thinking of bringing the baby bjorn to HK cos by June, she may exceed the weight limit. :P

Glad that she can eat outside food cos we won't have to always cook separately for her. At this rate, there'll be no problem for her to adjust to eating outside food at HK bah. I'm prepared to bring a travel cooker otherwise. But think shouldn't need to cos there's always bread, porridge and rice, eggs at hotel. The most, bring a thermos flask of hot water to rinse the food before giving to her if it's too salty.

She loves to drink water and especially loves to drink water from my water bottle cos I put in a straw so that I can drink easily without bending my neck.

The happiest thing for me is that she has finally learnt to call Mamee last week. The reward of me playing with her more often in the day now that my shoulder aches are getting better. Sometimes it still sounds like she is calling Mei Mei but at least it's an improvement.

Phonics?

Raeanne's cc will only start teaching phonics next year but I am thinking of starting her early on weekly enrichment class. A bit worried cos that day, ask her to read to me n she chose her favorite book (beauty n the beast). She read the first page in entirety 'once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince stays in a shining castle'. But the next page, she went blank. Which shows that it is pure memory, she does not recognize any of the words at all. She doesn't even know the phonic sounds of the 26 alphabets. Hubby asked me to teach but I told him I can't cos I don't know phonics. More confident to teach Chinese. :p

Called 3house phonics enrichment at Tampines Central CC this morning, n they have weekday night class, 730-930pm every Thurs. $100 for 4 lessons, got free trial too so think I will bring her for it. Actually, they have a new class on sun morning 1130-130pm but I think timing not good. But the class is not accompanied by parents, afraid she won't be used to it. Hubby thinks she definitely won't take it well.

Asked some Jan08 mummies and a few of them said Leapfrog phonics DVD is good. So, decided to buy from Amazon and give it a shot. If it's really good, will buy the numbers DVD too. Until now, she can't count from 1-20 without omitting 6 or 16 or both. :P