Kai and Godma Eva

Finally brought Kai to see his Godma Eva, and our camera had to fail on me. It's starting to give a very 1970s-look to pictures, and some look like they're from the twilight zone or something.

Kai's wearing his Junkfood T. He doesn't know how lucky he is yet.

It's funny. I've spent the whole weekend with Kai; he's sleeping now and I miss him already.

The sling is it

I'm glad I persisted with figuring out how to use the sling (thanks to Corinne). It's damn useful to have around. In addition to using it as a blanket and something to wipe baby's nose when I run out of tissue (!), I used it as a shade for Kai in the car during our trip.

The Australian sun is notoriously strong, and despite Adeline's tip to bring a shade for the car, I forgot all about it. So I draped it over the car seat, not only giving him respite from the sun, it proved very conducive for napping.

I love my bickies!

30 Mar 2007, Day 6: On the way back to Perth, Terence wanted to invite the Tays over for dinner. Popped into Coles and bought all that we needed even before we knew if they could make it. Called them as we neared Perth (they said yes!), found our way back, and Terence cooked pasta. Kai's had his dinner already, but we gave him a rusk which he was only too happy to have. Check out his cheeky, happy smile.

It was really nice catching up with the Tays. Our holidays together have always been a rough-it-out type of vacation, which we all miss.

Tasting note: Terence cooks a mean lamb chops and pasta. The lamb chops is always nicely charred on the outside and red on the inside. *Drool drool drool*

Doing some serious reading over lunch

30 Mar 2007, Day 6: Staying a second night at Quay West Bunker Bay would be too expensive (AUD425!), so we checked out and headed back to Perth. On the way back, we stopped at Wise Wines Vineyard for one last wine sampling, and for lunch. Their restaurant came highly recommended because of its "panaromic views over vines and natural bushland to the great expanse of Geographe Bay", but I just discovered that it's also a "four-time finalist in the prestigious Gold Plate Awards".

Tasting note: OK, so this means that it never actually won anything. But we both liked it. Terence had the quail which was divinely delicious though small (it's a quail after all). I had the venison which was ok only, but I really enjoyed the view, its chardonnay and ambience.

Kai needs to be distracted during mealtimes, and we found this particular "Thomas the train" book particularly helpful throughout the trip. You can imagine how grimy and worn it looks by now.

Now where did I leave the baby?

29 Mar 2007, Day 5: Arrived at Quay West Bunker Bay after a wonderful lunch at Vasse Felix. Tasting note: We both had the Wagyu beef. It wasn't as fatty as we'd like it to be. But it wasn't too bad, and there were nice views of their vineyard which is HUGE.

Drama: Rush to the hospital

28 & 29 Mar, Day 4 & 5: Heard Kai wheezing in the morning of Day 4. Heard it again at night; told Terence. After he tried listening to Kai's with his "naked ear", he made a few phone calls to the reception enquiring about pharmacies/hospitals, and to the hospital. He finally said at around 8pm: "Let's go the hospital." He appeared very calm, though I was worried sick about Kai getting bronchitis.

Packed and wrapped baby in multiple layers, and drove down to the district hospital just 5 minutes away. Borrowed the nurse's stethoscope so that he could listen to Kai's chest. The wheeze wasn't too serious. But we decided against going down south to Albany where it'd be colder.

The question then was where do we go?

Up to Quay West Bunker Bay, one of the most luxurious hotels in WA (Thank you Terence!).

On the way there, we dropped by The Margaret River Chocolate Factory. There were three big bowls of chocolate for sampling, and no one cared if you kept scooping chocolates into your hands. Tasting note: If you ever make your way there, you MUST buy the hot chocolate drink (dark chocolate) there. It's really to die for.

Voyager Estate: Yummy Yum Yum!

28 Mar 2007, Day 4: We stopped by at Voyager Estate the day before, and were so wowwed by its immaculate lawn, acres and acres of vineyard, and wonderful rose garden. But what made us decide that we MUST eat here was when we spotted their herb garden.

I saw the basil first (here's us in front of the basil patch), then we spotted dill, thyme, rosemary, chilli (yes, chilli!), parsley, and many other herbs. It's a working herb garden! That's when we said that with a garden like this, we just have to try the food here.

Turns out that their restaurant has won a series of awards: the State's Best Overall Restaurant, Best Winery Restaurant (Third Successive Year), and Best Tourism Restaurant. (Check out the Autumn menu.) We both had the "Over-roasted pork belly with pickled rhubarb, eggplant caviar and a rasberry verjuice glace".

I'm not one for pork belly but my oh my.... The meat was so soft that it simply melted in you mouth, and the fats just dissolved into a molten experience of flavour.

This part of the trip makes me wish the Chows were with us. I'm sure they'd love the experience too.

Sick baby

27 Mar 2007, Day 3: One of the things we did on the trip, which we know we shouldn't do, is to hold Kai rather than place him in the car seat. But we did this initially as he was sick, and really wanted some "baby-ing"--i.e. have someone hold him in the car. This somehow comforted him, and made him fall asleep which is really helpful during the sometimes long car journeys.

Today, he started waking up at night crying and was inconsolable. Nothing we did could make him stop. Poor kid. Sometimes he just cried himself to sleep.

Baby poop and food

27 Mar 2007, Day 3: Next vineyard on the list was Brookeland Valley Vineyards. Tasting note: Real reason for visiting this was to have lunch at its Flutes Restaurant, which has a fantastic view of the lake and the vineyard. If I recall correctly, I think its Chardonnay was nice, but we weren't crazy about it.

In addition to a peckish, snort-filled, and coughing baby, he started giving out volumnious amount of wet, stinky poo that squeezes out from the back of his diapers if you're not careful, twice to three times a day. We learned the art of changing diapers in really weird locations. (I once changed him on a stage in a Mexican restaurant in Fremantle, Perth because it didn't have a baby changing room.) I also discovered that the vineyards have really nice, well equipped baby changing room. (Bless their souls!)

Anyhow, Kai left his mark in this restaurant. Somehow, as I carried him up to go to the changing room, one drop of poop popped out from his diaper and landed on the floor.

Here's him and Terence before the lovely incident.

Man saves boy from dog

27 Mar 2007, Day 3: It's really not what you think. Terence was playing fetch with this really friendly dog in the Edwards Vineyard. We loved the Semillon Sauvignon Blanc there, but because it's the first vineyard we visited, we decided we should visit a few more before buying it. But maybe because we visited so many thereafter, and bought a few bottles that we never made it back there to buy the wine.

Anyhow, this is one of the main reasons for making the trip to Margaret River. To visit the vineyards, sample the wine, and enjoy the food.

Tasting note: (This is not a real tasting note per se. I can't remember all the wines we tasted in Margaret River. But this serves as an overview of the vineyards which were recommended by local hotel staff.)
Edwards Vineyard is a cosy, family owned and operated boutique vineyard. The dog, the two llamas, and a small basket filled with toys in the very simply-decorated, no fuss room for tasting wine gave us a first peek into how a family-run vineyard would look and feel like. We love it!

Nature right in the backyard

27 Mar 2007, Day 3: I've forgotten how wonderful it is to live in Australia, and being in Margaret River brought it all back. I really miss the fresh air, the vast space, the neverending blue skies, and nature that's just a heartbeat away.

Anyhow, the initial euphoria of lapping in the luxury and peace of the very lovely Assured Margarets Forest apartment on Day 2 soon gave way to stress. It was terribly cold at night, and we were worried about Kai. They didn't have a heater which we could put in the room, so we layered him with lots of clothes before we put him to bed.

In the morning, while Terence went in search of breakfast, I brought Kai out for a walk. I don't think he quite enjoys the cold, crisp morning air!

The apartment faces a forest, and boy what a forest. It's teaming with birds, and it's nice trying to spot them. There's always this kookaburra that rests on the trees just outside our apartment every evening. And best of all was the smell of eucalyptus in the air! Imagine waking up to eucalyptus everyday. Heaven.

Kai fell sick

26 Mar 2007, Day 2: We made our way down south today. Final destination--Margaret River. The weather was strangely cold although it was suppose to be autumn. Temperature was suppose to be in the high-20s in the day and high-10s at night. We were totally unprepared for the cold wind, and a temperature of low-20s/high-10s in the day and sometimes below-10s at night!

Worse of all, Kai fell sick. He was already coughing a little the day before we left for Perth. But it got worse along the way.

On the way to Margaret River, we stopped at the Dolphin Discovery Centre at Bunbury. Well, we very nearly didn't as it was drizzling but Terence insisted we all go stretch our legs after the long drive. (Kai still refused to eat/drink much.) So I grabbed him, and ran from the car to the centre--yes, through the drizzle.

We didn't see any dolphins but Kai was terribly fascinated by the birds he saw at the centre, especially the Willie Wagtails that hopped in to the centre in search for bread crumbs and melted ice cream. That's him staring at the birds...

And then, silly mommy and daddy decided to walk the long jetty WITH the baby at the next stop--Busselton Jetty--to see the Underwater Observatory, which was at the end of the jetty. It's a 45-minute walk there-and-back. But we abandoned the trip half-way. It was way too windy and cold, the jetty was narrow at certain spots, and the floor was uneven. One mistake, and mommy and baby would be blown into the cold, cruel waters.

This was Kai after we peeled off the layers of clothes, got into the warmth of the car, and drove off to Margaret River. There were lots of tears and mucus shed before he fell asleep.

Lost in transition

25 Mar 2007, Day 1: We almost never lose anything during our trips. Hotel rooms were always checked thoroughly before we leave. But this time, we lost Kai's polar bear shirt from GAP sometime during the trip--as seen in picture with teething rusk stains on them. (To the uninitiated, rusks are biscuits for infants who are teething. They melt into a mushy mess that stains not just baby's clothes, but their caregivers' too.)

This was taken in Saville Park Suites Perth. It's a modern, well-equipped serviced apartment with staff who are efficient though a little clinical and strange. When housekeeping removed our toaster and we requested for it to be "returned", they gave us a entirely new one, still in its box and came with warranty attached.

Our first overseas holiday as the Tan family

25 Mar 2007, Day 1: We woke up early to get ready for the flight at 0905hrs. We somehow always forget to pack something. The last time we went to Sentosa as a family, we had to turnaround and head home three times to grab stuff. (We were just a few minutes away.) This time we didn't forget anything that important. The list this time includes:
1. Terence's watch
2. Dental floss

Kai was ok during take-off and landing. He, however, cried buckets when he got tired. (He can't sleep in public, too much distractions.) I'm sure lots of people stared daggers at us but we were too busy to care. He finally got so tired that he fell asleep in my arms. He didn't drink much of his milk either, whether on board or after we landed. I was worried that he'll get dehydrated.

Anyway, it turned out that there was something sinister happening...