One Man Disney Movie by Nick Pitera

OMG!! This guy really has talent!! I could hardly believe my ears when he sang as the heroine! Loved his villain too! Lol. It is a fantastic one man Disney movie!! Disney should hire him! Glee should have him!! One Man Disney Movie (uploaded by goonieman86)

Problematic Blackberry and Apple

Just love British humour! :) My Blackberry is not working (uploaded by BBC)

Angry Birds Peace Treaty

A good friend forwarded this video clip to me. I was laughing so much while watching it. I thought I should share it here since I am sure there are many Angry Birds fans out there. :) Angry Birds Peace Treaty (uploaded by keshet)

The Tsunami

Slightly over two weeks have past since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami hit Japan. Survivors are still trying to find normalcy in their lives after having lost their homes, families, ... My prayers will be with them. Watching this video of the tsunami again is just as unnerving as the first time I saw it. Never underestimate the power of nature when it unleashes its fury.

Beautiful...

Beautiful cupcake (at the birthday party Juliane attended) Beautiful double rainbows (the second rainbow is much fainter and above the first one) Beautiful sunset

Earth Hour 2011

This year we celebrated Earth Hour 2011 at Orchard Road. Juliane has a birthday party to attend the next day and we have yet to get the birthday gift. So we decided to kill two birds with one stone. Get the birthday gift and celebrate Earth Hour at the same time. We saw the lights off at Ion. It looked strange without its bright lights lol.

Firstborns more Prone to Food Allergies

According to a Japanese study, presented at the 2011 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology in San Francisco, firstborn siblings are more likely to suffer from food allergies than their younger brothers and sisters. (The abstract for the study can be found at http://annualmeeting.aaaai.org/, and is No. 525.) (Source: Yahoo News, AFP Relax 24 March)
I think there is truth to this study. Based on my personal experience. :P I am a firstborn and I suffer from several allergies. I suffer from swelling of the airways, swelling of the eyelids, and difficulty breathing (the most severe allergic reaction symptoms. SIGH). My brother used to call me goldfish eyes because my eyes would swell up (HUGE) whenever I have an allergic reaction. Every now and then, I still suffer from them. :( I also know of two other firstborns who suffer from food allergies - my eldest nephew in UK, and a family friend's firstborn son.

Purposeful Visit

As I went into SCGS with my colleagues for data collection on Tuesday, I went with many purposes.
First, as a researcher, I am collecting data for the study.
Second, as an old girl, I am contributing back to the school.
Third, as a parent, I am thanking the teachers on another occasion other than the PTM.
Fourth, as an ex-teacher, I am catching up with former colleagues.
Never expected that I could achieve so much with just one visit. :)

你怕我!

"你怕我!" this was what Marieann said to her grandfather when she came out of the room and nearly bumped into her grandfather. I overheard it and I burst into unstoppable laughter.
Marieann did a literal translation of English "You scared me!" into Mandarin. What Marieann had said in Mandarin was "You are scared of me!" ("你怕我!") instead of "You scared me!" which should be "你吓到我!".
It was so darn funny to hear her telling her grandfather that "he is scared of her"! Hahaha. But Marieann learnt now why literal translation is not good... I think.

Glee "Special Education"

Here are the girls' favourite songs from Glee S2E9

Time of my life (uploaded by jazzylovesjorma)


Hey Soul Sister (uploaded by GleeOnFox)

Term 2 2011

Data collection starts again. After a week of break, it is back to scheduling of backup RAs and being on standby.

Last Day of "Freedom"

It is the last day of the 1 week March break. It is back to sleeping early and waking up early for the girls with the start of the new school term. The girls are looking forward to seeing their classmates/ school friends again but I think they are not looking forward to doing school homework again. Lol. :P

Out, Damned Tooth! Out!

M: Out, damned tooth! Out, I say! One; two: why, then, ’tis time to do ’t.

(Adapted from Shakespeare's Macbeth. Act V, Scene 1)

*One, two, Three! Out it comes!*

Marieann came to me victorious, showing me her (baby) tooth which she had pulled out! She has been complaining of a loose tooth for the last 2 weeks and has been fiddling with it, trying to get it out. She finally did it tonight.

Private Sale

It's Isetan's Private Sale again. :) Since it is the school holiday, I brought both girls along when I went to the sale in the evening. The crowd wasn't too bad. We all left the sale happy as we each bought things we wanted! :)
After the sale, we went to the Isetan supermarket which is having the Spring Kyushu Fair, 17-28 March. There are so many delicious food! If you like sweets, MUST try: the soft serve ice cream Hiryuga Orange! It is not too sweet and it has bits of orange peel, giving it more texture. :)

New Car

The girls' father collected his new car today. After dinner, we went for a ride to Kinokuniya as Marieann wanted to buy a new storybook. We thought the backseat is quite narrow, not as spacious as the previous car, Prius hybrid. We definitely preferred the Prius and I, especially so because it was an eco-friendly car over the new Mercedes Benz C-class saloon. If he had told me he was going to get a new car, I would have suggested BMW. My family had owned both Mercedes and BMW cars at the same time before and the cars could be compared. BMW seems a better ride.

Booked and Ready to Go

In June. :)
We went down to Jetabout Holidays in the morning and we booked the girls and myself on a trip to Sydney, Australia in early June! The girls are thrilled that they will get to experience winter and I am thrilled I will get to see my best friend again! :) We will be staying in the city for the first half of the holiday before staying with my best friend for the second half of the holiday.

Glee "Furt"

We love this episode of Glee, the wedding episode, so gleeful. :)

Marry You (uploaded by Ferialescott)


Sway (uploaded by joels488)


Just the Way You Are (uploaded by tblackbelt798)

Leave Cancellation

Since the Tokyo trip has been cancelled, I might as well go back to work and save my leave for some other occasion. I guess I have psyched myself up that I won't be doing work for the entire week that I would be in Tokyo! It felt really strange going back to work lol.

Unsuccessful

After cancelling the Tokyo trip, we tried looking for an alternative holiday over the weekend that we could bring the girls on but to no avail. We looked at Taipei and Korea where it is cold as we were already packed for cold weather. However, either flights are fully booked or hotels are fully booked. :( I feel bad for the girls as they have been looking forward to going away and to a cold place.
To make it up to them, I have decided that I will bring them to Sydney, Australia in June. At least with that news, the girls seem happier now and not so disappointed about not going to Tokyo.

Model in the making?!

Even though our Tokyo trip has been cancelled, the girls went right back to their normal life. Juliane attended her good friend, Miranda's birthday party held at Curly & Spike. It was a make-over birthday party. The girls got their nails painted, applied make-up and curled their hair. Future tai-tais in the making?! Haha :P

Juliane, after her make-over


Juliane striking a "Lady Gaga" pose. Sigh.

Juliane in a pose with her friend, Emma

Juliane strutting down the runway lol

Juliane really enjoyed the make-over birthday party, especially the runway portion. She really worked it on the runway, strutting down with a bounce in her walk. I think she is watching too many "Top Model" reality shows. :P

Going to Tokyo

Updated 11 March 2011, 23:22pm
At 5pm, the girls' father decided to cancel the Tokyo trip. He checked with the airline and the Narita airport was closed. It took some time explaining to the girls about why the trip had to be cancelled as they were extremely disappointed. I was actually relieved that the trip has been cancelled. I have been pretty stressed out at work and would really like to take it easy during the one week break rather than going to Tokyo and squeezing in all the sights of Tokyo in 7 days and worrying about the girls not having enough time to complete their online homework before school reopens!

We are leaving for Tokyo tonight! The girls were so excited that they told the domestic helper last night that they have no school today. Sorry, girls, the flight to Tokyo is tonight, not during school time. Lol.

At 3+pm, the girls' father called to tell me about the 8.8 earthquake that happened in Japan. However, he decided the trip would still go on, citing that the epic centre of the earthquake was not in Tokyo. I am unesay with that decision. We will see what happens as the flight for Tokyo leaves only at 11.55pm.

Packing

The girls helped me with the packing for our trip to Tokyo. They packed their own hand carriers. Everyone is getting excited for the trip. But at the same time, I feel tired, maybe because I was packing the main luggage and maybe because I would still be working on the day I leave for Tokyo.

Submitted

Overjoyed!
Relieved!
Submitted!
PhD dissertation!

iPad 2 Review

Here's an iPad 2 review. Very thorough and informative. Those of you interested in iPad 2, must see! :D



Best review I have seen of "iPad 2"... and the BEST LAUGHS I have gotten! Don't you agree?! HAHAHAHA.

Submission

I have finally been given the approval to submit my dissertation for external examination!! My dissertation was with my supervisor and her Academic Group for internal review for a month. I was just getting hopeless when I received the good news!!
I am so happy that I can finally submit! :) :)

The Girls' Weekend

It's the girls' weekend. I am not talking about me, I am referring to my kids! They had one appointment after another for this weekend.
Saturday
Juliane was at her K2 friend's place from noon till 8pm.
Marieann attended her classmate's sister's birthday party from 6 till 10pm.
I was at home.
Sunday
Juliane attended her classmate's birthday party at Sentosa from 1pm till 6pm.
Marieann had tuition from 3.30pm till 5.30pm.
I was at home.

Hmm, I think I need to have more friends. :P

Glee

My girls are big fans of Glee. They love the songs and dance segments in the show. They would go to Youtube and look up the various Glee songs. They would often show me the videos. Their current favourites are Teenage Dream and Forget You by GleeOnFox.





I am a Glee convert now lol. :)

iPad II

iPad 2 has been revealed!
It is slimmer, lighter, and has more power!
But I will still stick with my iPad.
It is still serving me well.
No plans to replace it... yet. :)

What Popular College Major Are You?

For me, this blogthings quiz result is right on the spot. Give it a try if you are mulling over what major to take after your As lol. You have to be absolutely honest and truthful when answering the quiz. :)

You Are Psychology

You are curious about people, and you'd especially like to know what makes them tick. Absolutely true. I have always been curious about people since I was young and that's what made me take up psychology to study human behaviour and thoughts. The human mind fascinates you, and you are always looking to learn more about your own psychological make up. Strike gold again with this analysis. :) You are a natural problem resolver. If someone is hurting, your instinct is to help any way you can. You are a good listener and advice giver. You like to analyze problems and provide solutions. Screams "counsellor", doesn't it? Lol.

What Popular College Major Are You?

Happy 7th Birthday, Juliane

Juliane is 7 years old today. :)

Happy Birthday, Juliane!
May laughter, joy, and love surround you always.