hong kong trip - part 2

day 2 of the trip - we continue to visit disneyland park!


the boys lazing in their beds and watching cartoons on tv

we headed to chef mickey for our buffet breakfast.
selection was good though it seems that the chinese food tasted better than the western one. heh.

me with my boys.


lil' nut messing things up in the shop. tsk tsk.

we bathed and packed our luggage before checking out.
after leaving our luggages with the concierge, its time to hit the park again!

i cant believe ah long is the only one looking at the camera!

we went fantasy world and adventure land. yz had the most fun, apparantly.

im glad, since this disneyland trip is mainly for him!

we left disneyland about 3+pm and took a cab to our butterfly on prat hotel at TST.

the challenge of the whole trip started once we left disneyland.

HK is just not a baby/kid friendly place!

too many people smoking.

too narrow streets for navigation with stroller.

too many impatient/rude people affecting our moods.

i see HK in a new light with kids in tow this time round.

so for the next 3 days in town, our routine is pretty much set:

set off in the morning for breakfast followed by shopping/leisure walking around city area.

Then, its back to the hotel for the kids to nap. mum will nap with them, freeing hb and myself to venture out on our own for that precious hour or two. wahaha.

then its time to hit the streets for more walking and dinner before retreating back to hotel by 8pm for the kids to wind down.

after they zzzed, hb and i will go out again but most shops are closed so we eat. haha.

so day 2, we just explored the area near our hotel - Harbour city & dinner was @ crystal jade (boring safe choice).

day 3: central/jordan

we set off early for an authentic breakfast at lin heung tea house @ central!

the dim sum was good but quite challenging finding seats and ordering food with the "fast-paced"/impatient waiters...

breakfast was less than HKD$150 for all of us!

then, its shopping time for all of us at the biggest H&M store @ central.

followed by tracking down the yummy egg tarts from tai cheong.

ive made reservations at yung ki restaurant before we left sg.

yes, its that crowded.

but, im really really glad we did this lunch.

the char siew might easily be the best ive eaten in my life! *slurp*

though its really a lil' overpriced if you ask me.

char siew!! & its famous roast geese

after that, back to hotel for the boys to nap.

evening was spent around jordan area and we had dinner@ australian diary company!

i had my fav. HK desserts there - steamed egg white fresh milk?

day 4: causeway bay/TST

we shopped more at causeway bay area and truth be told, we were all pretty worn out by the polluted and crowded HK by then.

we spent alot of time just settling down at cafes in shopping malls and resting our tired feet/achign backs. haha.

light drizzle in the evening, so time was spent around TST.

mum had the best time shopping for all her buys for friends/relatives back home.

day 5: mong kok/home sweet home!

pretending to be best friend again

we had breakfast at tsui wah tea house this time and again, im fascinated with the good food and cheap prices of HK tea houses!

after which, we bathed and packed our luggage for check-out.

after leaving the luggages with the hotel staff, we set off for langham place @ mongkok.

finally, the brands there were less atas as compared to times square, IFC etc.

more suitable for us, heh.

time flies, and we were soon on our way to the airport for our 630pm flight back!

flight was smooth except for the last part where yr was wailing out loud during landing after being rudely waken up from his sleep.

all i can say is luckily, he's not the loudest among all the crying babies. :P

what can i say!? home is still the best!

i felt much better breathing in the fresh air in sg.

my asthma ceased to act up much once we touched down. amazing.

ok, more on my loots in next post.

hong kong trip - part 1

the ng family + mdm chew survived a family trip to hong kong! wahaha.
when even the ever-positive ecookie used the word "survived" to describe a trip, one can imagine how tedious and tiring the last 5D4N can be! :P
but well, we still have our share of fun n joy during the trip though 4 out of 5 were down with mild cough over at HK!
poor me almost had an asthma attack due to the bad bad air there.
what's up with almost everyone puffing away!? i hate 2nd hand smoke. PUI!
and after 4 years+ since my last visit, it seems like hong-kongers are getting more impatient and rude! oh well.
home is still the best!

we took one of the earliest flight out from SG to HK on tuesday morning.
reached T3 around 7am for our 830am flight. the boys were decidedly well-behaved.


airport combi stroller for 黄豆豆！

we had a smooth flight to hong kong (god bless! for i am so scared of air turbulences can!) and touched down before noon time.
we took a taxi and checked into disneyland hollywood hotel in no time!

us in our room! :)

after settling our stuff, we were good to move out.
but 天不作美, it started drizzling just when we reached the park by the shuttle bus. @_@
poor hubbi has to make his way back to the hotel to get us brollies & raincoats!

fooling ard while waiting for papa...

finally, we were in the park by 3+pm! we started shopping at main street US to avoid the rain wahaha.
bought some toys, clothings for the boys and some rubbish stuff there.
when we were done, the rain has stopped! good timing!
we spent our time exploring tomorrowland. its a good thing HK disneyland is so small.
we actually managed to cover almost all of it in day 1 & 2.

this peanut enjoying walking around in the cold weather.
我是冬天里的一把火！ LOL

on the autopia ride/yz with the buzzlightyear gun we got for him

we had a go at the buzzlightyear ride where you shoot at all the notti aliens (quoted by yz!).

it seemed to be a mistake for the elder son was totally terrorized by the "notti aliens" inside.

in the end, he suffered from night terrors that night. tsk tsk.

before long, its dinner time and waiting for fireworks at 8pm.

fireworks 很美!

i saw the amazement radiating from my boys' faces and i felt tears welling up in my eyes all of a sudden!
so emo! hiaks. must be old age catching up. tsk tsk.
we headed back hotel for an early night.

it has been a long day for all of us!

new love!

my trusty LV vernis has served me well for the past 4 years.
but sadly, I've not treated it well.
i let it kena stained badly over time. sigh.
so, its time to get another new wallet!
i just have to get another one that is equally not easy to maintain! @_@
but this BV baby is in one of my fav. color! *wee*
thanks to mad DD for making this purchase possible.
i so love getting stuff from europe!
this purchase is almost 38% cheaper compared to buying it in sg!
yes, im a happy woman now.
hope this wallet can last me another good 4 years or more!

shape sorter!

the lil' pumpkin surpised me this morning when he managed to put the right shapes in their respective places in the shape sorter toy.
though its just a simple circle, triangle, square and star, im very impressed! :)

yr is definitely more advanced than gor gor in the gross motor department and he seems to be catching on things faster too.
like how he can play with lego bricks on his own - he can even stack 2-3 bricks on each other! yes, he has the strength and precision.
like how he play with yz's tool set and work it like they should be, ie. turning the bolts in, sawing motion with the saw etc.
like how he play with yz's cooking set, like stirring a spoon in the cup and going around feeding people.
ah.. how cute!

but, he's still slow in the speech department.
talking wise, its still pretty much around papa, gogo (for gor gor i presume), mum mum (for food, not me!) bao bao for carry and of cos, his trademark shouting. heh.
just have to be patient and wait for him to catch up with talking, i guess.

i love my lil' peanut so much!
though im still not his favourite person yet (its my mum). ha.

matt damon - the everyday man

caught the adjustment burea with the husband and elder son yesterday.
perhaps the expectation was held too high from the trailer, the show ended up at best mediocre.
which was a shame, given the fantastic acting by matt damon & emily blunt.
i guess it was never really easy to translate Phillip K.dick short stories.

anyway, the main point for this post is how versatile matt damon is!
just caught him last week in True Grit and he was almost unrecognizable as the gruffy sheriff!
and here in adjustment burea, he was totally convincing in his role as the guy running for a senator place.

i've half the mind to watch one of my fav. show again - Goodwill hunting!

sentosa broadwalk!

hubbi has been suggesting this excursion for the longest time!
seeing the good weather today, we decided to go ahead after the boys' naps in the afternoon!


funny faced yz again

in the lift! yah, yr is botak boy again!

the boys in their seats!

大头照 with a kapoh little boy in the background

wahaha, non-stop camwhoring

the plan was to park our car at vivo and walk over to sentosa, spent the evening there and then take the monorail back to vivo again.
and what a good plan!
if we didnt drop by vivo, i wouldnt have know that pedder red is having sale!
cant resist getting 2 pairs! hubbi was lamenting that all my talk about saving all shopping for hong kong is just hot air (maybe he's right!). bleh.
as usual, i threw away 2 old pairs of shoes once home to keep my stock quantity at a consistent level.
and to save hubbi from nagging the lack of space in our shoe cabinet! :P


a berry happy hb trying out gong cha for the 1st time!

start of the broadwalk!

getting nearer to sentosa!

we just had a short walk around resort world as well as window-shopping at the limited shops there before settling our dinner.

candies on the go! didnt manage to take photo with hershey cos too many people crowding round it!

pretending to be chummy. haha.

then its back to good old vivo with more shops!

let the kids walk around in the water play area on 3rd floor.

1st time for yr and look how happy he is!

hubbi and i were glad with how the day turned out!

it has been fun and most importantly of all, manageable with the 2 terrors! :)

and the boys were tired out by the excursion that they K.O.ed by 930pm. *muhaha*

hubbi and i managed to catch another movie after that. hehe.

*yawn* ok, time to zzz for me now!

victoria peak & wedding photos!

hubbi was on half-day leave yesterday so i went to look for him for lunch.
i was more keen to have a quick lunch before going for a spot of window-shopping!
but the man said he wanted to bring me try some restaurants around his workplace.
chinese cuisine or dim sum? he asked.
so i chose chinese cuisine and he brought me to victoria peak @ orchard central for lunch!
we ordered the set lunch which was quite sumptious.
for the price, i thought the food was rather good.
we had dim sum for appertiser, garlic steamed prawns, roasted chicken, char siew, soup & ee-fu noodles.
*burp*


dim sum!

steamed garlic prawn

since hubbi fetched yz from childcare after lunch, it means that for once i dont have to rush after work!
so i took my own sweet time exploring my favourite street - haji lane!
prices seem to be on an upward trend over here now. tsk tsk.
still, got myself a pretty bracelet. :)

oh oh, i managed to uncover 2 things recently too!
one is a stack of wedding photos developed by my wedding photographer previously for our album layout selection.
the other is a clear photo holder i bought in 2009 south france/spain trip.
tada, now we have this hanging up! hehe.

argh! i miss travelling in foreign lands, digging up foreign things. :(

buy less buy better part 2

feburary review of good buys:
so what purchases i made this month that add value to the exisitng warbrobe?

1) a light pink perforated belt from gg5
now i can give all my same old dull black dresses a new lease of life!

2) a high-waisted shaping panty from spanx
been wanting to own one for ages. since robinson having 25% off last week, i finally own a pair from spanx!
now i can wear my body-hugging dresses/tops without worrying about my wobbly bits!
*woohoo*
i cant wait to try their bodysuits in the future!

3) a green romper from dressy which may or may not add value.
hmm.. i say value cos im very lacking in this color department. heh.

ok, that kinda round up the worthy purchases for the month.
looking very excitedly to march -
1) for im going to hong kong with my family! H&M, zara, staccato etc here i come!
2) my friend may just be able to help get another long sought-after purchase for me! :)
*fingers crossed*

gb's bday dinner @ huat kee restaurant!

*hoot* im having birthday party/dinner every month!
this time round, its gb's *ahem* 30th bday dinner!
him being him, we got very scared trying to think of where to eat and what to get him. LOL.
in the end, a fred perry shirt plus yummy dinner @ a teochew restaurant on amoy street did the job!
as usual, we were the noisiest bunch there. :P

photos:

zm, me & candice

super yummy food! we felt like we were attending a wedding with the dishes. LOL.

mandatory group photo. look at the birthday boy's grin!

after dinner, we went for some drinks around ann-siang hill area.
this rooftop bar called yingyang which we have to climb up 3/4 storeys! *pant*
it was a great evening/night with the gang again!

oh oh, caught "no strings attached" with candice and tanny before the dinner.
it was surprisingly good!
for once, aston kucher actually has good chemistry with his female lead!
both natalie and him did such a good job that we believe in love again! *awwww*

ok. a good saturday spent with kakis again!
thanks to my lovely mum & hubbi who babysit the boys!

updates on the boys

黄虫虫：

darn the stomach flu virus!
yz has been unwell since last wed! :(
his childcare called me on wed noon that he was running a fever and to fetch him home.
quickly rushed back to do so during lunch time. on wed, the poor boy puked 3-4 times, LS twice and fever reaching as high as 39.6 degree celcius!
thursday was worse, he viomitted twice (subsiding) but LS non-stop during the day and fever continued to yo-yo up and down.
went to kkh at night when the meds from GP didnt seem to work.
doc @ kkh said his is a case of stomach flu and just have to let the virus runs its course.
meantime, make sure he stays hydrated from all the loss of body fluid from LS. :(
friday, he spent it at my mum's place and though no more viomitting, the LS continued.... fever was on-going still though the range is coming down to 38+.
on both sat/sun, he continued to LS though no more fever. the poor boy lost almost a kg in just a few days time.
so sad to see his clothes hang loose on his thin frame and his previous tight-fitting XL diapers fitting his small butt again. sigh.
brought his to PD for review this morning and PD changed his meds again.
seems to work this time or maybe he is already on his way to recovery.
he LS 3 times in the morning before seeing the doc at ard noon.
after the meds at 1pm, no more LS till now! though a low grade fever seems to creep back again. @_@
really hope tht he is well on his way to full recovery!

really broke my heart when taking care of him these few days. really, health can never be compromised!
there was once the tummy ache was so painful he called out in pain and said:"妈咪， 帮我！"
a helpless me can only asked him:"妈咪要怎样帮你？"
when he replied:"我不懂, 妈咪sayang我 快点！", i can only teared silently. :(

and he was so sad today during bathing time today.
when i asked him why he is sad, he just said he's sad for bring sick.
the whole ordeal must be a harrowing one for him.

黄豆豆：

the lil' froggy has learnt to walk!
and crawling around on fours are yesterday news to him.
so now, he insisted to walk anywhere, anytime! and the real work begins for us caretakers! @_@
just this afternoon, he lost his balance and fell down, hitting on his mouth.
his lower pearlies cut his upper lips and there was blood! sigh.
luckily, the bleeding subsided after a min or two and the swelling went down in a few hours time too.
我家两个宝贝总让我过日子过得提心吊胆！

buy less, buy better!

i realised i didnt set any resolutions for 2011.
perhaps i was too caught up with activities in dec mth.
or i was just too depressed with the busy jan working mth coupled with the chinese zodiac forecast that bunny year will be a sucky one for roosters.
but if there is 1 resolution worth keeping for the new year, it will be this one:-
BUY LESS, BUY BETTER.

especially for me who have plans for this year which all involve cash outlays. @_@

#1: no surprise to most who know me, hubbi and me have plans to shift back to the east!
hopefully by end of this year.
so the more we save for the new house, the merrier!

#2: i have been toying with the idea of getting myself a good classic watch when i enter the next stage of my life:-
turning 30- for the longest time.
my trusty omega has served me well for the past 4 years+ but i guess im ready for another one. :P
thanks to a husband who knows a wee bit about watches, im able to narrow down pretty fast to the brand/model that is suitable for me.

initially, the frivolous me wanted a J12. who can resist such a chic-looking watch!
that is, until (almost all) my friends started protesting against my preferred choice!
what ceramic looks like plastic lah.
what quartz watches suck lah.
what chanel is a fashion brand and overpriced lah. blah blah blah bleh.
sigh. the quartz part is actually also big no-no to myself even.
so i went intensive window-shopping and research for a few weeks on brands like cartier, rolex, AP even.
eventually, i settled for this beauty!!


Rolesor (everose gold/stainless steel) oyster bracelet,
everose gold domed bezel,
boy size - 31mm
pink dial

pardon my detailed specs of the watch, i did a lot of research one ok!
can come ask me for some advice if you interested in getting a rolex time piece wahaha. very thich-skinned me.
rolex has so many combinations that its mind-boggling to just decide on a design to buy!
AND if you only interested in buying from authorised dealers (aka hour glass, cortina etc), all of them have limited pieces (normally all on display in the shop already)!
AND you cant order a specific design unlike other brands like AP/panerai etc.
SO its really a hunting game for rolex.
i wonder if the pricing is controlled by limiting the supply? must be!

anyway, i was quite specific on my watch being boy-size, having 2 tone rose gold/steel and most importantly of all, a pink face!
must highlight here that this shade of pink is only available to rolesor everose bracelet to compliment the rose gold. wahahaha.
frivolous special feature to bullshit frivolous buyers like me!
SO when i saw this baby one day, i decided to mai tu liao!
as the story goes, the rest is history.
this is a VERY early birthday present from myself according to candice. LOL.

so now im a berry happy woman with a berry light wallet.
oh well.
psst.. i see see look look for my next watch already! wahaha.
but getting it will only be another 5 years or more down the road!

#3: travel!
at the end of every year, irritating me will pester the husband on our upcoming new year travel plans!
so for 2011, the tentative plans are HK trip in Mar (confirmed!) and hokaiddo (fingers crossed that we can do it!) in Q3!
money printer spoilt for the time being, so i need to save up!
im treating my mum for this HK trip too. and this auntie requested only for SQ and hotels in TST. @_@
两人份的费用真不少！

so how should i curb the shopaholic in me to stop buying and start saving?!
as i said: BUY LESS BUY BETTER.
i figure i should buy stuff that add value instead of bulk to my wardrobe.
true, buying tons does bring me joy.
but to be honest, most of those impulse buys i bought are very similar to what i already have.
not to mention some of them are a lil' ill-fitting, low quality or stayed hidden in the wardrobe for the longest time!

i still do shopping - the joy of browsing and searching for items that suit you cant be missed!
just that i check-out items much lesser since the start of the new year! :)
so how am i doing so far?

jan - coat from zara is a steal. slashed 60% from original price and i added a chio-looking cold-wear to my wardrobe!
previously, i only layer on the usual run-of-the-mill cardis or a boring bach coldwear jacket when i go travelling to cold countries.
so value or bulk? value, definitely!

feb: my watch!! definitely a good investment.
the month is not over yet. lets see what else i'll be getting to update my wardrobe!

hope some of you out there can try and benefit from this new resolution of mine too!

ah boon's bday party @ new majestic hotel

huiwen booked a night @ the new majestic hotel for her big 3-0 (yes, most of my friends turning 30 this year, including myself!) bday! :)
the room's theme was "watch and be watched" and true to it, there were alot of mirrors in the room!
as usual, i brought 1 of the boy along and it was yz this time round.
managed to (barely) juggle between keeping the notti tot in check and having a blast with the girls.
it was a great afternoon/evening for me!


cheers to 12 years of friendship.
has it been that long?!

lost again in the reel world

in the past 3 weeks, i've watched the following:
1) Black swan
2) The king's speech
3) Snatch
4) Moon
5) Jerry Maguire
6) The fighter
(not in order)

sacrificing my beauty sleep and making my already-dark-eye-circles darker. @_@
its time to spend my time on other more "constructive" stuff.

MJ+blackjack. what will we do without them?

this is our 3rd year running gathering @ ah d's hse!
and for this year, i gambled the whole day/night away! unbelievable!
hubbi dropped me off at dan's house at 10+am and from then, we had MJ alllllll the way till 7pm!
(of cos, we took a break for a fast lunch. LOL)

after yummy dinner cooked by dan's mum, we started our routine blackjack session from 8+ till 11+pm!
after blackjack, we had lou hei from crystal jade. yum yum! :)
soooo tired from all the gambling. and nett win so little only.
80% of my winnings went to the cab fare after. wahaha.
still, all in the name of good fun!


us with oily faces after blackjack & lou hei.
its almost midnight and we've to work the next day ok!

新年快乐，身体健康！

its peanut's 1st CNY and wormy's 3rd one!
this rabbit CNY is wayy too early in Feb!
apart from the good cool weather and the long break from work, i dont feel particularly excited or happy.
most probably due to my non-stop crazy hectic busy jan at work.
i was still busy at my month-end closing on tue/wed!!
it was really a blessings that my team can go off at 1pm! :)
we were initially told beforehand to "standby" till 5pm in order to rush out the reports to corporate side. bleh.

went to fetch the husband and elder son from childcare after that.
went home to do last minute housework chores since no cleaning allowed on CNY day1!
managed to sneak in a short nap too! i really need it!

this year, mum didnt cook as we had our reunion dinner @ soup restaurant @ suntec city!
the yusheng sucks! but the rest of the dishes were good.
almost all the shops were closed so we left home after dinner.
had a relaxed night just lazing in front of the tv and letting the boys stayed past their bedtimes!
in the end, they dozed off to sleep in minutes at 10+pm!
and of cos, i K.O.ed with them. LOL.
thanks to hardworking papa for settling peanut's night feed and changing his night-time diapers!

some photos of CNY eve:

the boys have matching tees! but super hard for them to pose and had a decent shot!


i took separate shots with them. dont bother to try taking 1 with them both inside! too hard!

CNY day 1
same routine for the longest time!
reached my in-laws house around 11am. catch-up with hubbi's other siblings.
had mee-sua for lunch.
then we left at 2+pm for my maternal grandmother house (just that she;s no longer around) for gathering with my uncles, cousins etc! :)
yz had so much fun there that he cried when we left after dinner, @_@

this year, i didnt play blackjack for too long.
long enough for me to lose $20 though. lei diao. haha.
just need to jaga the 2 boys from time to time to have a decent game.
though they were in "many" good hands. LOL

some photos:

my lil' ah beng with his gold necklace

father and sons

separate shots with the boys again. and peanut missing 1 shoe. wahaha

@ in laws house. why this NCL so tan!!! for the nth time!!

the boys! looking very different in these shots.

this 不自量力的小青蛙 learning to walk.

to his credit, he can managed 5-6 steps if he tries hard enough

ok. hope the rest of my new year be happy and HUAT ah!

the wedding saga continues......

yz was looking intently at hubbi's and my wedding photo frame on the tv console for the longest time.
finally, he turned around and asked:" 怎麽办！？我还没有结婚嘞！"

this is sibei funny.
why is a 3yo+ boy getting so upset being single?!