Happy Mid Autumn Festival 2012

Happy Mid Autumn Festival!

中秋节快乐!

I was supposed to bring the girls to Botanic Gardens tonight for a walk with their lanterns. However, we totally forgot as the girls were learning their spelling for the following week. At least, the girls managed to play with lanterns and sparklers last night when we went to their father's friend's place for Mid-Autumn Festival gathering. But we were eating mooncakes while the girls were learning their spelling. :) As the girls are now older, we could share and eat mooncakes! I love mostly the yolk, Marieann loves only the lotus paste and Juliane loves a mix of both lotus paste and yolk. So there is no need to fight lol. :)

What Should You get a PhD in?

Bored. Did Blogthings quiz. Tickled by result. 

You should get your PhD in Education

You have a lot of inner strength, and you can dig deep when you need to. You are resilient. You are both patient and persistent. You don't give up on anything or anyone. You have what it takes to be an amazing educator - no matter what the subject is or who the students are. You are good at meeting people where they are, and you'll work hard to make sure they learn what you are teaching them.

What Should You Get a PhD In?

  

Thank goodness, I haven't wasted my time. I do have a PhD in Education lol.

Storm Walker

There was a thunderstorm last night. The heavy downpour with thunder and lightning occurred just as my father was returning from his third and final trip to the Isetan Private Sale. He was stuck at the bus-stop. As his daughter, I couldn't possibly leave him there to wait out the storm. Who knows what time the storm would let up. So I ventured out into the thick of the storm to "rescue" my father. 
I have never been in such a heavy thunderstorm before. The rain was pouring down in sheets! The wind was gusty! With most parts of the pavement flooded, I kept wondering if I would be electrocuted with the next lightning that lit up the sky. It was quite an experience - a very cold, wet and scary experience, one that I do not care to repeat anytime soon.
A short three minutes walk to and back from the bus-stop had both my father and I drenched, despite each carrying a huge umbrella. :( 

A Shopaholic's Loves

My father is a shopaholic. He shops more than the female members of our family, namely my mother and I. There is not a day that he does not go shopping and not buy something home.
Today is the Isetan Private Sale, 8.30am - 10.30pm. He went to the sale three times - at 10+am, at 4+pm and at 7+pm. 
The first time he went to the sale was due to his love of shopping. He bought a pair of shoes and some clothes for himself. 
The second time he went to the sale was due to his grandchildren. He saw children's home wear which he thought would suit the girls. He brought Juliane along on his second trip to the sale. They came back with shopping bags full of kids' clothing. 
The third time he went to the sale was due to his grandchildren again. Juliane likes the shorts that was bought for Marieann. Her grandfather decided to go back to the sale for the third time to get Juliane a similar pair. He came back empty-handed because the kids' shorts were sold out. 
My father is a shopaholic. My father loves shopping. My father also loves his grandchildren.

Good Luck for PSLE 2012

PSLE 2012 (Primary School Leaving Examinations, a high-stakes assessment) starts today, Thursday 27 September and continues till  Wednesday 3 October. 
Good Luck to all my counsellees who are sitting for their PSLE. Remember, don't panic and do your best. :)

The Talented ThePianoGuys

I have featured ThePianoGuys before in late July 2012 and I still think that they are really talented and brilliant. 

Rolling in the Deep - Adele (Piano/Cello Cover) (uploaded by ThePianoGuys)

The Talented Mr Mike Tompkins

Mike Tompkins never fails to amaze me with his talent! :)

Rolling In The Deep - A Cappella Cover - Adele - Beatbox (uploaded by pbpproductions)

Psy Gangnam Style Parody -Wedding MV

This is one of the best Gangnam Style parody I have seen so far and a wedding MV at that! Bravo to the wedding couple. :) Their wedding MV has been seen over 1.6 million times and they were reported in the newspaper. Here is the link to the newspaper article http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2201998/Gangnam-style-Couple-create-hilarious-wedding-video-based-YouTubes-biggest-K-pop-hit.html And here is their wedding music video. 

Gangnam Style parody - Bay Area Wedding (uploaded by LightbulbEnt)

Gangnam Style by Psy

This is the current rage all over the world: a song called "Gangnam Style" by Psy, a South Korean rapper. The video was only available to view from July 15 and as of today, it has been viewed 273,600,000+ times and has been liked 2.7 million plus times!  According to a post on the Guinness World Records website, it is the most liked video in YouTube history. :) 

Gangnam Style (uploaded by officialpsy)
 

I have to admit the dance moves, although cheesy, are darn catchy lol.:P

Hearty Breakfast(s)

Here are some pics of hearty breakfast that I have had and enjoyed very much. They kept me going for almost the whole day till dinner! On separate days of course! Lol.

Scrambled Eggs with chicken sausage, mashed potato and grilled tomato @ Hatched, Holland Village

Country Scrambled Eggs with bacon and salad @ Nassim Hill Bakery Bistro Bar, Tanglin

Scrambled Eggs with chicken sausage, bacon, and mushrooms @ Drips Bakery Cafe, Tiong Bahru

Mixed Berries Pancakes with Gula Melaka Syrup and Fresh Cream @ Food For Thought, Botanic Gardens

My favourite breakfast so far are the Scrambled Eggs from Drips Bakery Cafe and the Mixed Berries Pancakes from Food For Thought. :)

Design Work by Yello3

Yello3. 
That is my brother's website where he showcases his design work. I never truly fathom the extent of my brother's talent and creativity until I look at his website. I am extremely proud of my brother and his achievements! He has done website designs, interaction, animations, games, as well as online advertising. 
Here is the website: http://www.yello3design.com/  Check it out!! See if you can recognise some of his design work. [Hint: Gamers might recognise some of my brother's work! :) ]

Anyone wants to hire my brother's services? :) 

Happy Birthday, Yeun Zhen

Happy 2nd Birthday, Yeun Zhen!! :)

Lots of love, 
Ah Ma and Ah Gong,
Cousins Marieann and Juliane,
Aunty Hwei Ming and Uncle,
Singapore

The Hobbit II

I posted about The Hobbit and its trailer way back on 23 December 2011. Since then, there has been a change. Now, instead of two parts, The Hobbit will now be a trilogy - An Unexpected Journey (2012), The Desolation of Smaug (2013) and There and Back Again (2014)! :) It is good that the movie will now last longer but the waiting would be painful too lol. What's also exciting is that a second trailer for The Hobbit has been released!! It coincides with Tolkien Week - the 75th anniversary of the release of JRR Tolkein's The Hobbit. :) 

 The Hobbit trailer 2 (uploaded by PromotingFilms)

I can't wait for The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey (part 1) to be released in December 2012!

Mommy's Cheesecake

That is what my girls called the lemon cheesecake that I made. It has been a couple of years since I last made my lemon cheesecake. The girls, especially Marieann, have been pestering me for the last couple of weeks to make it. I am surprised that they actually remember about the cheesecake as they were quite young then. If I must say, my cheesecake is not too bad. :P I had former colleagues who asked me to sell my cheesecake because they thought it was tasty and they bought from me too lol.

I finally made my lemon cheesecake this afternoon. It took a few hours to set in the fridge because my cheesecake is the non-bake version. By 9pm, the girls were eating their slices of cheesecake with glee lol.

Knock+Fall=Bump

I received a call from school that Juliane had an accident. According to her teacher, after the computer lesson, Juliane went under the table to check if she dropped her stationery under the table. Her classmate, not seeing Juliane, pushed in the chair which knocked into Juliane and caused her to fall forward against a protruding metal piece under the table. A huge bump appeared on her forehead in between her eyes. The teacher used an ice-pack to try to reduce the swelling but it was really evident. 
I brought her to see the doctor and the doc said she is really lucky because just a little lower, Juliane would have broken her nose bridge. That's too close for comfort! :S Juliane was given an ointment to apply on her bump. I was told that the swelling would take a few days to go down and that I should monitor Juliane to see if she feels giddy, nauseous; if there is sudden lethargy; if she has headaches; ... for the next 24 hour period.
When at home, Juliane said she was tired and took a nap. However, after an hour's nap, I couldn't wake her up and she usually wakes up promptly at the first call. As "difficulty to awaken" is one symptom to look out for, I panicked for a moment! Thank goodness, after a few more tries, she finally woke up but seemed a bit dazed. I asked her a few questions and she was able to answer them correctly. Phew. Maybe she was really just exhausted after her "eventful" day in school.
I hope that Juliane will be less accident-prone. Not too much to ask, right?

Mom's Away

My mother has gone back to Taiwan again. First reason, my cousin is getting married and of all days, on my birthday - 27 October lol. Second reason, as my mother is an accomplished cook and baker, my cousin-in-law who is a baker asked my mother to help her with her Mid-Autumn Festive mooncake orders.
We will miss my mother's cooking the most. Thank goodness, we still have a back-up, my father who is a pretty good cook too lol. :)

Pet Froggie

Marieann and Juliane has a new pet frog. They brought it home about three weeks ago in a make-shift tank made from a plastic take-away container. The frog was a reward from their tutor for their good behaviour. I was initially bewildered with such a pet. Thoughts were running through my mind, "How do you look after a frog?", "Don't they eat only insects?" "Who is going to catch the insects?", "They should be in the wild", and ended with "Hey Girls, maybe it is better to let the froggie free?" voiced out loud to the girls. Of course, no such luck. So I did a Google search on how to create a habitat for pet frogs, and how to care for pet frogs. Found plenty of information. :) 
Their frog, no bigger than a dollar coin, which they named "Naughty" is currently eating and growing well. :)

Sweet Dessert@Food For Thought

Both Juliane and I were craving for desserts. Currently, Food For Thought at Botanic Gardens are having a Sweet September promotion of desserts and tea. After dinner, we literally skipped over (less than 3 minutes away from our apartment) for our dessert. We ordered a Spiced Toffee Apple ($8): spiced caramelised apple and crispy cinnamon churros with walnut and chocolate sauce. 

YUM YUM! The churros with chocolate were simply delicious. The apple halves were soft but not mushy and still had some bite to them. The sweet-sour taste of the apple complemented the cinnamon churros with chocolate well, reducing the cloying sweetness which would otherwise ruin the dessert. :) We packed home some mini cupcakes for Marieann (Red Velvet) and ourselves (Carrot and Blueberry). Dessert for supper lol. :P

Dinner@Medz, Orchard Central

I went to Medz for dinner with my friend because she wanted to celebrate my achievement of getting a PhD lol. It is the first time that I ate at Medz even though I past it several times whenever we were at Orchard Central. It is a Marche-style restaurant.

Being a Friday night, it was crowded. We managed to get a table and we went to get our food. There are Italian, Greek, French, Turkish, Moroccan and Tunisian, Spanish, Drinks, and Dessert stations. I was so lost with the different choices available lol. My friend got a Chicken Tajine with Couscous with caramelised onion while I ordered a Pork Ribs with Sides. We shared a Pork Belly skewer and a Mixed Salad Platter (eggplant, salad and hummus).

Chicken Tajine with Couscous

I have never tried tajine or couscous before so I thought they were pretty good and tasty. The tajine gravy was a tad salty on its own but with the couscous, the combination was of the right flavour. The chicken was tender and went well with the gravy and couscous. :)

Pork Ribs with sides: mashed potato and grilled tomato

The pork ribs were tender and juicy. The sauce was delicious.

Pork Belly skewer

Mixed Salad Platter: eggplant, hummus and salad

The pork belly skewer was a surprise. I didn't expect it to be crispy and tender at the same time. The mixed salad platter, especially the eggplant and hummus brought balance to the meal lol.
If we hadn't stuffed ourselves so full, we would have gone for more desserts! Lol. But for this meal, a slice of rainbow was a fitting end to a very satisfying meal. :)

I am likely to come back as there are dishes that I would like to try. :)

The Royal couple is in Town! Day 3

The Royal couple's last day in Singapore: A visit to Kranji War Memorial to honour the fallen heroes who battled for Britain during World War II.

The Royal couple at Kranji War Memorial (source: diamondjubilee.hellomagazine.com)

The Royal couple taking a moment to read the headstones of the fallen heroes of WWII (source: sg.news.yahoo.com; photo: Tim Chong/ Reuters)

The Royal Couple is in Town! Day 2

Day 2 of the Royal couple's visit to Singapore: Gardens by the Bay, Rolls Royce Factory, and Queenstown: Strathmore Green and Rainbow Centre.

The Royal couple at Gardens by the Bay (source: www.relax.com.sg)

The Royal couple at Gardens by the Bay (source: sg.news.yahoo.com)

The Royal couple at Strathmore Green, Queenstown (source: sg.news.yahoo.com; photo: Edgar Su/ Reuters)

The Royal couple at Strathmore Green, Queenstown (source: www.asianewsnet.net; photo: Joyce Fang)

The Royal couple at Rainbow Centre, Queenstown (source: zimbio.com)

The Royal couple at the Istana on Day 1 (source: www.justjared.com)

The Royal Couple is in Town!

The Royal couple, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and his wife Catherine are in Singapore (11-13 September) to mark Britain's Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee.
Marieann and Juliane are really excited about their visit and have been asking if they could go catch a glimpse of the Royal couple when they are in Singapore, especially when they are at the Botanic Gardens which is just 3 minutes away from our apartment. Unfortunately, we were too lazy lol. Well, they could watch the Royal couple on television from the comforts of home rather than stand in the hot sun lol. :P Here are some photos of the Royal couple at the gardens.

The Royal couple at Botanic Gardens (source: eGeekBee, bloggers.com)

The Royal couple with the orchid to be named after them (source: Danny Lawson/ Getty Images)

The orchid named after Prince William and Duchess Catherine (source: Press Association)

Payphone by Maroon 5

I better start keeping in touch with what's going on in the Top 40s chart lol. Here is a song I like very much, Payphone by Maroon 5. :)

Payphone (uploaded by Maroon5VEVO)

Out of Touch

I was watching The Voice, an American reality talent show with my girls. There are four coaches: Christina, Blake, Ceelo and Adam who would choose their own team of singers through a blind audition, then train their team of singers to battle each other, etc. I only recognised Christina Aguilera. :P I thought my girls would be worse than me- not knowing any of the coaches at all! I was so WRONG.

Girls: We know Adam.

Me: You do?! Don't bluff!
Girls: He is the singer from Maroon 5. You don't know?

Me: Err.. no. You know Maroon 5?!

Girls: Maroon 5 is the group singing the song that you like.

Me: Which song?

Girls: Payphone

Me: OH  :O

They proceeded to Google up Maroon 5 to show me that Adam Levine is indeed the lead singer of Maroon 5. I felt so old. :(

Old World Singapore

Old World Charm 1 - Tong Xian Tng (Buddhist Temple) @ Devonshire Road

School is reopening soon. My parents and I brought the girls to Tong Xian Tng (the temple we frequent) to pray for good results for their coming exams in Term 4. Tong Xian Tng temple has been around for a long time and it has really beautiful traditional Chinese architecture.

Old World Charm 2 - Tiong Bahru Market and area

After the temple visit, we went to Tiong Bahru Market for brunch. There are quite a number of famous stalls here. :) Marieann had her Laksa, Juliane had Chicken Rice, my mother had Lor Mee, my father had mee (don't know what because he sat near the stall he got his food from) and I had Popiah. After brunch, we walked around the market, both the wet and dry portion. We also walked a little around the Tiong Bahru estate to look at the Art Deco style low-rise flats that are built in the 1930s (pre WWII). Marieann thought the Art Deco style is really nice and different.

Old World Charm 3 - Chinatown

After our brunch, my father dropped us off at People's Park Complex, Chinatown. A family friend owns a hair salon there and we went for our hair trim, especially for the girls who are going back to school soon and for my mother who is going back to Taiwan for my cousin's wedding (late September). I didn't intend to trim my hair but had no choice as I had to be a role model to the girls. :(

Glad that the girls managed to glimpse more of Singapore's past.

Happy Teachers' Day 2012

To everyone who has taught me something, HAPPY TEACHERS' DAY 2012!

I had myself a little Teachers' Day High Tea treat ($9.90: choice of tea/ coffee and a slice of cake) at Brunetti, Tanglin Mall. Simply lovely. :)

San Remo (flourless pistachio sponge filled with lemon cheesecake and strawberry jelly centre) and Spiced Chai Latte

Work, Food & Park

The girls were finally able to follow me to work today. They brought their tuition homework to do. Marieann also managed to do some online activities using my notebook while I read some articles. During lunch, I bought them some storybooks as a reward because they have been really attentive while doing their homework. At the end of the work day, the girls finished all their homework and I had the outline of my conference presentation. A very productive day for us! :)

For dinner, I brought them to Chunkwagon BBQ & Grill at Portsdown Road area. It is our first visit to Chunkwagon. The girls loved the surrounding greenery, the outdoors as well as the food! :) 

We ordered a Lord of the Rings: batter-fried onion rings (regular $9.80) to share. Juliane had a 3 Little Pigs: 3 pieces of bbq pork ribs (kid's $8.80) and Marieann had a Classic Marinara (kid's $8.80). I had a Tumbled US Pork Chop with apple sauce ($23.80). My pork chops were really tender, juicy and tasty and went really, really well with the apple sauce. :)

As there was still light after our dinner at 6.45pm, we went to Labrador Park as the girls have never been there before. They were thrilled to see the Machine Gun Post (WWII war relic). They also managed to find the sealed entrance of a tunnel near the machine gun post lol. They wondered if it was the secret tunnel that would lead to Sentosa. :) Marieann was especially excited to see the replica of Dragon's Teeth Gate because she has learnt about it in her Social Studies. 

The Machine Gun Post

Dragon's Teeth Gate (Long Ya Men): That way lol

We left around 7.45pm as it was too dark to see much and also the haze was quite bad. We had Yoguru yoghurt at a nearby shopping centre before we finally went home.

The girls definitely had a great day - finished their homework, had good food, and had a little glimpse into the history of Singapore. Labrador Park made a deep impression as they couldn't stop asking me about the secret tunnel at Labrador Park! Lol. I am very glad that the girls totally enjoyed themselves today. 

Cute Cupcakes@Food For Thought

It's Sweet September time at Food For Thought restaurant, Botanic Gardens. Just for this month of September, a whole range of mini cupcakes have been especially created as well as a few new desserts!

Mini Cupcakes from left to right: White Chocolate Strawberry, Banana Chocolate, Red Velvet, Blueberry, Carrot, and Bandung 

So far, we have tried Red Velvet, Blueberry and Bandung mini cupcakes. We loved them all lol. Going to try the other cupcake flavours soon as well as the new desserts! Just need to lose a few pounds first... :P

September Hols

It is the one week September hols again. Time for some rest as well as some revision for the girls. :)  Well, SA2 (Semestral Assessment) has been scheduled to start in Week 2, Term 4 so no choice lol. :P

Graduation Studio Shoot

We finally went to the studio to take our family portrait and my individual portrait on Sunday. It has been a month since I graduated on 1 August lol. The girls were tickled at first when taking the family portrait because the photographer was asking us to move this way and that and to smile more, etc. But after the 10th family shoot, the girls were no longer amused lol. Truth be told, I could understand why they were grumbling. After our 12th family shoot and my 6th individual shoot, I could no longer feel my face/ smile! :P 

The family and individual portraits will only be ready in 10 weeks' time. Will show them when I get them. :) Meanwhile, here is a photo of the family portrait, not very clear though lol.

Family from Afar

My aunt-in-law was back in Singapore for a visit. We met for dinner (Japanese, the girls' choice lol) and caught up with one another. We had a great time.

Aunt Gracia, it was really nice seeing you again and catching up with you. Hope we can visit you, Uncle Tim and the rest soon in SF. :)

The Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention 2012

I attended The Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention 2012 that was held at Marina Bay Sands convention hall from 11am till 3pm. Four phrases to describe STGCC: 

Beautiful artwork!
Amazing cosplay!!

Huge crowd! 

Absolute fun!!! 

At the convention, there were many talented artists/ illustrators such as Leinil Yu, Sonny Liew, Andy Diggle, Mark Brooks, Andie Tong, Mark Torres, and many more. (I think my brother would probably appreciate those talent much more than I do as he is a talented artist/ graphic designer himself!) I saw many Japanese manga cosplayers. The costumes are simply amazing and breath-taking. There are a few western comic cosplayers such as Power Girl, X-Men Pixie, Wolverine. I went kinda crazy snapping photos of cosplayers lol. 

Artist/ illustrator, Sonny Liew who autographed my copy of Wonderland

Japanese manga Cosplayer

Power Girl

Artwork by Leinil Yu

Artwork by Leinil Yu

Japanese manga Cosplayer

Goodies I bought at STGCC

The Avengers MyStamp Collection

The Light Side - Harry Potter and Star Wars MyStamp Collections

The Dark Side - Harry Potter and Star Wars MyStamp Collections

I had a really great time at STGCC 2012. I can't wait for STGCC 2012! :)