Proud of you, RaeAnne!

RA has always been a quiet and reserved gal. From CC to Primary school, her teachers have commented that she should speak up more, and be more active in class discussions. She has never performed on stage alone so far.

Last week, her FT msg me and her Bestie's mummy if both of them will like to participate in Fashion Channel, a dress up costume show and this year's theme is on Inventions and Inventors. Both gals were a bit reluctant but both mummies thought it was a good experience and exposure so we managed to convince them.

So I researched and thought of the Ice Cream Maker's female inventor Nancy Johnson since we have 2 gals. Valerie's mummy came up with many good ideas on how to make the costumes, props and make the show interactive. We met up 3 times to research, make the props and rehearse within the week.

Today was the big day, last minute we had to change their catwalk cos there was no rehearsal for the kids. RaeAnne was very nervous when she went on stage but I was very proud that she overcame her fears. She spoke clearly and loudly and her friend was good too. When they pulled out the ice cream from the ice cream maker, the audience clapped. It must have impressed the judges. Because RA won Best dressed and the two gals both won the Best prize for Primary 1 level. So happy for them.

Artary

The gals started art classes at Artary in Sept. They have been taking classes at Globalart for 1 yr, 2 yrs for RA. Felt that it's time for a change cos Globalart is very focused on colouring and blending with crayons and very guided by the teacher. I think it's good when the gals are younger and their fine motor skills are not strong. But now that they are almost 6 and 8 yrs old. I think they should be more independent.

Until now, RA can't blend on her own despite 2 yrs at globalart. The gals enjoy painting now. So I switched them to Artary which focuses more on painting. Fees are similar, $37.50 for 1.5 hrs class. Only thing is don't need to buy the books at Artary unlike Globalart as all materials are provided.

So far, they have done a few artworks. Will try out until Dec and see if we should continue next year since both gals are entering primary school and they get art class once a week. :)

Children's Day Celebration

We were lucky to see a good offer for Hard Rock Hotel so decided to bring the kids for a staycation. Mil came along too. It was good that Hard Rock Hotel's hotel room has double beds and a pull out bed so it was big enough for 5 of ua.

We had lots of fun. This time we did not go the RWS attractions since no free tickets were included. Instead we tried the Luge and Mdm Trussards' Wax museum. The Luge was fun, $51 for all 5 of us. RL is below 6 so her ticket is only $3. Mdm Tussard's wax museum is really expensive though, 5 tickets costs $178. Almost enough for a staycation at a Far East hotel. Faint!

It included a 40 mins play about History of Singapore that is only in English using real actors but speaking in Singlish. Kids and MIL were bored. Some parts were even scary as the kids have to cross a dark forest with sounds of roaring tigers. Wish they skip the part and just sold us the wax museum part. We took many pics but yes, once is enough.

We took so long at Mdm Trussards that we are half an hour late to check out. Luckily, the hotel gave us 1 more hour and extended our checkout to 130pm. Which is a good thing because I promised to let RL swim again before we leave the hotel. :)

First school prize for RA

Thursday was RaeAnne's school celebration of Children's Day. She came back with many presents. From her form teacher, Mrs Teo Lee, she got a purple teddy bear key chain. Secretly, she preferred the white and gold one. Lol. Her Chinese tcr gave her a notebook so that they can write more Chinese. But the best present for her was getting a 优胜奖 for the bookmark competition that she submitted after June holidays. She made a Chinese bookmark for 我的猫宝宝。 She said she was very excited to receive the certificate and prize from Mr Mah, her Principal. Proud of you, RaeAnne!

Another of her classmates, Gerrard also received a prize. The school did not return her bookmark n I couldn't find the photo taken in June. The most interesting thing is the prize she received was a Chinese storybook for 2-3 years old. Hb jokes that maybe in China, it is a book meant for 2-3 years old. But in Singapore, it is only Primary 1 standard. Lol.

I Look Smart

RaeAnne got the I look smart award at the end of Term 2. Must be because of her short fringe and short hair. She only received her badge when Term 3 began. She is happy to wear it everyday. Haha.

Outdoor play at Pasir Ris Park

RL didn't have her usual LC class last Sat so very happy that we had a free day on the weekend. That has not happened for a long time. Initially we were thinking of camping at ECP but that still felt a bit too ambitious because we didn't know if the gals can sleep on the cold hard bumpy ground without their bolsters and soft bedding. lol. Luckily we didn't do it cos it poured from the wee hours of Sat morning. We would have been drenched if we were out in the open on Fri night.

So instead we went to Pasir Ris Park. We brought the gals' skate scooters along intending to skate scoot at the park but got stuck at Ehub for a long time.

Had breakfast at a Taiwanese eatery run by non Taiwanese. Can tell immediately from their accent. Lol. Then we went to Downtown East and spied the Megabounce that the gals are really into. They tried it for the first time at Sentosa during June hols when we went to watch the Peppa Pig musical. Then again at Bali WaterBom water park so they were very happy to see it at downtown east.

Unfortunately, it wasn't open yet so we walked to the beach instead. Let the gals skate scoot. Tried to find a playground and we ended up walking all the way to the playground near Elias Road. Really far.

Got tired out so after the gals had a go at the swings, we walk to the nearby "5 Drunken Rabbits" for a waffle and fried chix wings. The wings were really good. Super crispy. Even nicer than Ikea's.

We walked back to Downtown East at 3+pm and luckily the Megabounce was opened. The gals jumped on the Megabounce as well as the normal Trampoline. It was $8 per jump for NTUC members. Then after that we went back to E hub to buy takeaway pizza for dinner and the gals got to go on the motorised animal rides just outside Explorerkidz. We finally reached home at 5+pm.

PTM and start of school holidays

It has been a hectic Term 2 for us. So much so that I did not blog at all since end March. Quite happy with her HA results. She scored full marks for her 3 mini tests. Being the first HA for the P1s, the teachers probably set the standards very low. But still at least she did not make any careless mistakes so still very proud of her.

Had a 3 hrs PTM/sharing session from 9 to 12 today. Really tgg after that. The form teacher shared updates of what the students have done so far. What she will be doing in Term 3, what tests are coming up, change in format for English comprehension and how to help the kids learn Maths in daily life etc.

The FT said RaeAnne is a well behaved and polite student. But very quiet. Even the Chinese teacher said she is very quiet. Actually her cc teachers have been saying the same thing so I'm not exactly surprised. But this term, she got to be the group leader for both Chinese and English class. So I am glad she has a chance to be more confident and take on leadership roles.

Term 3 will be an even more hectic period. With Reading Aloud, more mini tests. In fact, the next mini test is on 7 July, less than 1.5 months away. Zzz. But for now, we are just going to enjoy the long weekend. And leave her school bag untouched. Lol.

The passing of Mr Lee Kuan Yew

Mr Lee Kuan Yew, the Founding Father of Singapore, passed away at 3.18am at SGH today. As Singapore wakes up to the sad news and mourns his loss, flags around Singapore including schools flew at half mast. I asked RaeAnne if she knew that the very important person whom I told her about, has finally passed away today.

She said the Principal told that a leader of Singapore has passed away. That's why the flag is not going all the way to the top as usual. I asked her if she knew the name of the leader but she didn't. And she didn't know who was he and why he was important to Singapore.

I think that's really sad. So I showed her video clips of the PM's address at 8am which I missed as I just reached office and had to login quite a few screens to get to the CNA live feed. The special documentary programmes that paid tribute to the great man and what he did to build Singapore to what it is today. But I don't think she truly understands at 7 years old.

She was also clueless when her Ah Gong passed away when she was 4 years old. My Papa was born in 1928, 5 years after Mr LKY was born. My dad was 83 years old when he passed away. If he was still alive, he would have been 86 years old. My dad was the generation who witnessed Singapore's transformation from the kampung state to the modern city state.

My dad came from Swatow China as a Chinese immigrant to find work but ended up staying here for good, became a hawker, got married and started a family. We are not well off when we were young when my dad's business at the market grew poor due to the resettlement of rental flats. But my brother and I were the examples of how education and meritocracy will lead us out of poverty.

My dad once whipped me with two canes tied together when I refused to go to school on the second day of Primary 1. I had studied at a Chinese PAP Kindy and could not understand what my P1 form teacher was saying. But my dad was not one to coax and cajole. Our parents frequently told us, "Study hard. If not, you will become a road sweeper".

After that painful experience, I did not dare to say "I don't want to go to school" anymore. I studied hard at Alexandra Estate Primary School (which closed down for good in 1987, I was the last batch of students to graduate from there), and got into good secondary schools. My brother got into RI and I into Crescent Girls. Both of us got into university though our parents did not even complete primary education. Both of us went to NTU, my school fees were paid through the PSC Loan and my bro through other loan schemes. Truly after both of us graduated, life got better. Like many of the older generation, he respected Mr Lee Kuan Yew.

Every year during National Day, my dad will hang National flag at our flat. If the flag gets faded, he will buy another one to hang. My father is not the demonstrative nor sentimental sort so I was surprised that he would do something like this to demonstrate his love for Singapore.

My dad never went back to China. Not even to visit his only sister and cousins. After I started working and could afford it, I asked him before if he will like to go back to visit. But he said he doesn't feel a need to do that. The successful Singapore that Mr Lee Kuan Yew helped to build has become a real home to him.

I have never met Mr Lee Kuan Yew in person. And I may not agree with all PAP policies. But I am grateful for what he has done. I hope my daughters' generation will also be grateful for his vision and dedication towards Singapore, though they will not have the chance to meet or get to know him anymore.

Rest in peace, Mr Lee Kuan Yew.

March Holidays - Night Safari and Ice skating at Jcube

March holidays are coming to an end. We didn't do much this time because of RA's piano exam and because hubby has many block test scripts to finish marking. So I only took 2 days leave.

16 March

We went to Night Safari on Monday night. Got the free corporate passes through balloting. Finally got lucky. We encountered the famous woodlands to Causeway jam at around 545pm so yes, next time better go very early or very late. :P

Reached the Night Safari at 620pm. Time to grab dinner. Missed the 645pm fire show as there were no seats left at Bongo burger. We ate at the food court instead. Food is v exp there. $18 for roast duck/chicken noodles set with some veg. Bongo burger was better value. At least it's western food even if the prices are similar.

We went straight for the Creatures of the Night show at 730pm. First time watching it. RA likes it cos there are funny games and antics for this show. By the time we finished the show. Night has fallen so it was very dark. Roads are wet cos it rained in the afternoon. So we decided to take the tram ride.

The 40 mins tram ride took us to see the lions, tiger, flamingoes, elephants, Tapir and lots n lots of different deers. By the time we finished, it was 845pm. So we decided to just go to Bongo burger for a snack and wait for the 9pm fire show. A family of 4 including a very inconsiderate mother decided to just pull chairs from all around and sit right in front of our table to watch the fire show. And no, they did not order anything from the restaurant at all. Even put their pram right in front, blocking our view. Super buay zi dong idiots!

Anyway, by the time the fire show and we finished our supper, it was 930pm. We went to look around at the gift shop and left the place at 10pm. Had to fight hard against the zzz monster who was knocking RL out in the car. She was very grumpy when I kept trying to wake her up but she was the one who refused to nap in the afternoon. Grrr....

19 Mar

We drove down to Jcube cos I had promised to bring the gals ice skating ever since some of my friends went and posted pics. We didn't know there were scheduled slots. We reached at 11+am so was too late for the first session at 1030am. So we went for brunch at a nearby Taiwanese restaurant which overlooked the skating rink. Tickets and rental of boots, skating aids etc were not cheap. Gloves cost $2 each. In total, we paid $99. Luckily we already saved money from the Night safari admission tickets on Monday. If not I will really feel the pinch.

Ice skating was really difficult. We rented 2 skating aids for the gals but I realised I need one for myself. haha. We only lasted 1.5 hours though we paid for the 2 hr session. Hb and RA both had blisters so it was painful to continue. Blame the ill fitting skating boots and our inexperience. My arms ached after that cos I was holding to RL's penguin for dear life and it was way too short for me. After that, we walked over to Westgate where they had a good free playground at level 4. It was nice but RL jumped around too recklessly and cut her lips. Sheesh, 3 injuries in 1 day. What an accident prone family we are. So it was time to head home and rest. :P

First Piano Exam

RA went for her first Grade 2 piano exam today at

Juzmusic Parkway Parade. She has been taking private piano lesson since Nov/Dec 2013 after finishing Yamaha's jmc course. Quite long to prepare for a 15 mins exam. She was quite nervous but hope she passes. We will only know the results in 3 weeks time.