Ppuft!

Kai discovered how thrilling it is to play with dandelions (when I blow at the "clock" of florets), but he can't blow--or at least he hasn't learnt how to. So he makes a really funny "Ppuft" sound, which is his interpretation of the action.

We'll be back, Apollo Bay

Terence really out did himself this time, and found us the most wonderful holiday cottage in Apollo Bay along the Great Ocean Road. The eight Apollo Bay Colonial Cottages face the ocean, and at night we could hear the winter gale and the powerful crash of the waves as we snuggled in front of the fire place in our very own cottage.

I thank my lucky stars I married a man who really knows how to get a good fire going. We spent two lovely nights chilling out in front of the fire place, toasting marshmallows, looking at flames hug the logs, and drinking wine we bought from the Yarra valley. The cottages were built in 2002, but the one we were in is so new and well maintained that you could tell that a lot of love and care has gone into the cottages.

It is set on 4 hectares of landscaped ground, so you can imagine the amount of running space Kai had. The owners had put a lot of thoughts behind planning and landscaping, blending the cottages into the green foothills of the dramatic Otway Ranges that you are almost guaranteed to see some wild life. They'd even built a Secret Garden in the middle of the field you see above, where one can cook up a barbie! Kai had lots of fun running after the birds, poking around the bush, pulling up leaves, and... he had his first tumble on the gentle slope.

The beach is just a short walk across the road, with rock pools for you to explore as well. It was the start of winter when we went. Yet when it was time to explore the beach, Terence said to me: "This is the closest we'd ever get to a beach this holiday. If you don't wear your shorts now, you'd never wear it."
I regretted it instantly the minute I stepped out of our cottage. But I sort of got used to the cold and the wind, and after a while, I was snapping away. We saw piles and piles of the thick, leathery sea kelp that were washed up to shore for miles and miles. And found out what the end of the kelp would look at, if it were anchored in the bottom of the ocean.

While Terence explored the rock pools with Kai and helped the little monkey stomp in them, I was more fascinated by the colours thrown up by the rock pools in the setting sun.

After we all bubbled the aches of the long drive away in the spa bath, we sat down and flipped through what others thought about our dear cottage.

I started penning our love for the cottage on our last night, but I was just too sad to complete the words. Terence did it for us, and I thought about whether I should take a photo of what he wrote so we could remember it too. But I closed the book, so as to save the experience for another time when we, hopefully, make it back to the place.

Yes, Apollo Bay, we'd be back!

Even steven

Kai knows how to count. Here's how it goes:

Us: One
Kai: Two
Us: Three
Kai: Four
Us: Five
Kai: Six
Us: Seven
Kai: Eight
Us: Nine
Kai: Ten

Us: Two?
Kai: Four!
...

Never an ice cream cake

Kai attended his classmate's birthday party today at Frisk 'n' Romp Kids' Play Club at Playground@BigSplash. It seems to be operated by the same folks from My Gym, unless some employee decided to leave My Gym and entice a group of staff to join in at the new venture.

That aside, there was one thing we learnt from the party today:

Don't order an ice cream cake. If your kid asks for one, try to desuade him. It'd be frozen and your kid wouldn't be able to cut the cake. Worse, you would have to expand plenty of effort cutting the cake for the clamouring kids.

Kai was a little too young for the activities, but he enjoyed it immensely nonetheless. Terence and I peered out of the window, saw what they would be serving the kids: fried chicken, french fries, water melon and honeydew. I suppose it's tough being the host. You have to serve the stuff that kids love, and placate parents at the same time.
It is hard work organising events and playing the host. But the mummy of the birthday girl was absolutely wonderful. She knew Kai's name, and asked how he was doing because "Oh, Saara told me he was sick and maybe he can't come to my party." It was really, really sweet of her and she never once looked frazzled!

My Australian fashion Mecca

On every trip to Australia, I always drop by the Alannah Hill boutique. But nothing beats her store in Melbourne. It's girlish, kirschy, boudoir-ish, romantic, whimsical, silly, lacy, frilly, conquettish, opulant, quirky... it isn't strange.

It is signature Alannah Hill.

It's the city where she started her label, and it's only right that her store in Chapel Street holds the standard in reflecting the person that she is. The designs that she creates. I would jump into into the changing room with 10 pieces, and walk away with three.

Together with a hole in my pocket.

Terence knows just where I'll be headed next week, when we land in Melbourne. This time, he is lucky. Her store is right smack in the city.

The Steakhouse: A meat lover's dream

The Steakhouse is the place to go if you want beef done right.

We were extremely pleased with our medium rare cote de boeuf, perfectly chargrilled on the outside and almost moo-ing on the inside. If you happen to get the slice with the rock salt, oh, the explosion of the flavours knocks you straight to heaven.

Finally, I'd suggest rounding up the meal on a sweet note with a lychee martini. The juicy lychee cleanses your palate and the alcohol keeps you smiling as you sign the bill.

This was the first time we brought Kai to a fine dining restaurant in Singapore, and I must say he behaved beautifully. No rude banging on the table. Here's one of the young carnivore in training; but for this meal, he had the fish.Where:
Clarke Quay, 3B River Valley Road
#01-14
Tel: 6332 1010

Chocolate dipping

There are two things that make Kai gasp:
1. Racks and racks of his favourite books in Borders
2. Rows and rows of cakes

And it's quite funny because you can hear the excitment in his breath.

He's quite a 'generous' kid too. Well, at least, he's always shared all his favourite foods with me. He was snacking on biscuits with a choco dip when I asked him: "Can I have some, please?" He dipped his tiny finger into the chocolate and offered a chocolate-covered finger to me.

How sweet is that?

Motherhood is...

The school called me up last Friday at 11am to tell me that Kai is running a fever of about 37.8 degree celsius. Terence, who was working from home that morning, picked him up and brought him to MIL's house.

Then at 4pm, his temperature went up to 38.8-39. I was commanded to drop everything to bring Kai to the doctor. In between multiple phone calls with my anxious MIL, and Terence who would call to ask "are you heading home already?", I had to:
- deal with a client regarding feedback to something we've written, and
- contact another client to ask if I could get my senior writer (Michelle) to do a phone interview with her Thai customer at 5pm instead.

After juggling everyone's expectations, briefing Michelle who too had to rush off for an appointment at 5.30/5.45pm, wrangling with an irate and unhelpful clinic assistant to get the earliest appointment with the doctor, I finally reached my MIL's home.

Everyone was calm and happy. MIL was carrying a sleeping Joshua. Kai was beaming from ear to ear despite a temperature of 38.5-ish. Brought him to the clinic which was bursting with patients. In between registering him, getting him weighed (10.7kg) and measured (83cm), I had to take office calls. I worried about Kai, I wondered if Michelle made it in time for her appointment, I thought about Florence who had a family emergency too that day.

For Kai, the most exciting things that happened to him in that short afternoon were:
1. Cooked up a storm at the play kitchen in the doctor's waiting area
2. Had medicine stuffed up his nether-region down south
3. Looked puzzled when event #2 happened

Motherhood can be hell.

Mind your language, young man

Terence reading "Spider School" to Kai (A blur picture taken with my Moto Q 9h)

Kai has been practising his vocabulary, and so not a day goes by without him say some words that he's learnt. "Trucks" is one of his favourite words, and the other day I heard "push" which originated from Gordon's--an engine from the Thomas collection--story.

Then one day, it was "shit".

That raised an eyebrow.

Can I blame the influence of tv on young kids? Or was it me? Did he overhear, *gasp* god forbid, me cursing in his presence. Have I contaminated his innocent mind?

One day, as he cuddled up on my lap, listening to the Gruffolo's story (again), I pointed to the snake in the picture and asked: "What's this?"

"Shit."

A few days later, I dragged out "Spider School", pointed to the snake in the picture and asked: "What's this?"

"Shit."

*sigh of relieve* It's just his still-developing-tongue trying to wrap around the dastardly complex word: "Snake".

See, one must be very careful the type of literature you expose your kids to.
# # #

Then today as I was listening to the Thomas song (again), a sentence jumped out at me: "...shunting trucks and hauling freight".

Or does he mean "shunt"?

Guess I'd never really know.