~It's SummerTime!!~

Saturday, June 20, 2009

"Dear Daddy and Mummy, HELLO!!~ Can you see my tiny hand waving? =p"

So we went for the ultrasound on 18th June, 8.30am, together. And jw saw BB for the first time ever. He didn't really look excited, but he helped to take some pictures and videos for memories. Waha. Maybe guys and gals just show their emotions and express their feelings in different ways. It, again, felt magical to me to see baby on the screen, tossing and turning as the midwife shifted the scanner here and there. This time round, we could see the heart, bladder, lungs, body, head, brain, hands, feet quite clearly. =) Jw asked the nurse to focus one shot on the BB's hand, see the above pic, it's kinda cute. Hee. Really like saying HELLO!

The BB's head diameter was 3.34cm instead of the predicted 3.5cm at 16 weeks. SO, after some measurements and re-calculation, the midwife declared BB as 15w3d old instead of 16w5d old, and postponed my EDD by 9 days to 6th Dec instead. =) Well, I don't mind anything so long as baby is safe and healthy when he or she comes out to greet the world. The midwife initially told us to come back again in 1 or 2 weeks but we all knew how hard it could be to fix an appt, so she said she will try to carry out the whole scan and thank goodness everything else was fine. She said baby looked healthy and good for now. Yippie!

You know, I am eating my usual portion and it's really quite alot for a girl so to speak. Good appetite for 99% of the time. So, I will just continue doing so and hope the food and nutrients will all go to the baby soon! Kuai Gao Zhang Da! Hee.

That's all for the updates now. Will be back next week to update our stay in Kiel, Germany! Am looking forward to cooking with Karen and playing with Claris and Cayden there! Tata!

~Summer~ 6:23 PM

Saturday, June 13, 2009

JJ's 30th bday..

We celebrate jw's 30th on 29 May. Wow. He turned 30! Waha. No more twenty something for him. Quite a milestone, isn't it? I think I will feel old turning 30. But well, for guys, it's like 30 years old is when life really starts, you have a career, a family and all. I always remember someone told me men are like wine, the older the better taste you get; women are like milk, too old will become sour. Kind of true.

I cracked my brain to think of what to give him as a nice bday prezzie. Went to look around in town but honestly nothing caught my eye. Shirts, pants, underwear, wallet, toys, accessories, ornaments. Grrr. Nothing. It's not like he needs any of them now, so what's the point of buying for the sake of buying when we are hubby and wifey. That's what I thought lar. Wahaha. Not that I niao and wanna save $$$. And the fact is if I buy anything, I'm using HIS money to buy for HIM. That idea sux.

SO, I decided to do just a bday card for him. Keke. But to make it special, I did a GIANT one. I put a really cool pic of him on the front, one that looks like a superstar. Hehe. He didn't even remember taking this pic. =) And inside, I put as many of his childhood pics as I had in my hard disk, and put funny captions in each of them. =) I thought it'll be nice to look at your own childhood and past, and reminisce how you grew from a baby to a toddler to a child and to a man. He really liked it though. Hee. Cheng Gong!! =)

For lunch, I surprised him by making his favourite shao rou fan (aka roasted pork with rice). Not that it was a huge success because the pork skin wasn't as crispy as it could be. But well, first time so I didn't expect that much too. I just wanted him to be happy when he saw it. =) and he was!

So we had a nice and simple lunch, but it was loving and happy on this special day. I promise next time we'll make the roasted pork much nicer okie? =)

Basically my whole day was spent on teaching the kids in the early morning, then cooked lunch, then for the first time in my life tried to bake something, and then prepared steamboat for dinner in evening. I practically didn't breathe much. Haha. Kidding. I did. Just that I was really in the kitchen for the longest time in any day. But hey, check out my heart-shaped apple crumble! Wahaha. I'm so proud of the shape, not that it has anything to do with me cos' the baking tin was shaped lidat. Keke. It was such a memorable baking experience for me, tried using the hand mixer for the first time and gave up on it cos' it gave up on me, and in the end used my hands to knead the dough like doing mee hoon kueh. Waha. I was so sure it will turn out a disaster. But luckily, in the end it was okie. Hehe. Happy bday dear!

We had a yummy steamboat and grill session in the evening. If you are wondering what's that in jw's mouth, it's a crayfish! Hehe. We actually finished a whole box of crayfish. Cindy tried it for the first time and loved it! Then Gallen became our grill chef and whipped up a few tepanyaki dishes. All was delicious and finger licking good except for the over spicy sotong, but well, it was still gobbled up. Hehe.

The only thing about using the grill is that it's pretty hard to clean up and it leaves your whole house feeling greasy and smelling of, well, the food. Worse thing is we only remembered to shut our bedroom door halfway through dinner. HAHA. But thanks to all the friends for helping us to clean up everything, even mopping the floor! Hehe.

Cindy and Ekmond brought over a nice fruit cake too. Good good. I didn't manage to get a cake the day before and was worried the crumble will, well, really crumble. So it was cool that jw had a proper cake to cut and blow candles on. Hehe. Arigatou! Along with delicious ice wine, we really made ourselves very full with all the food.

After dinner, we played some games together. Hee. Pictionary time! Well, sometimes not just clubbing and drinking alcohol and dancing is good old fun for bdays. I think we had tonnes of fun that night too, with laughter all around. =) Waha. Yeah yeah, maybe I am saying that cos' I am banned from alcohol now. But no, I think I mean that from the bottom of my heart. Hee. Right, dear? It was fun! I guess the company mattered alot too.

It was a battle among the couples, with an odd group with three guys. Wahaa. Here are Gallen, Kenneth and Han Qiang. They came up with some really funny actions. Hehe. Gallen's acting of the word "mother" was a stunner.

We had 4 groups in total. Here are Cindy and Ekmond. Cin is so good at guessing, she can say a whole string of words in one go. And boy, her acting of the word "escalator" was good! =)

And we also have Naga and Priyah! They always create alot of laughter. It's soooo hilarious, esp when all of us can guess what one of them is acting but the partner just can't. And like the last time, Naga had alot of classic actions, like for "vegetarian" and "disneyworld".

It's also funny when the hubby starts scolding the wife or the wife chiding the hubby. Wahaha. When he or she just doesn't get it. It's funny. Well, of cos it was just a game in the end. =) Jw and I were lucky and we were the first to reach the finishing line! Hee. I guess we had plenty of 'mo qi' after so many years of being together.

There, the bday boy and the pretty gals. Hee. I think it was like 1am. Nearly. After we finished playing and cutting the cake.

And there, jw and his buddies. Cheers to 30, old man!

Hope it was a memorable bday celebration for him. =) and it's kind of exciting to think that next year on the same day, we will have a 6-month old baby to celebrate this very special day with us. Hee. Tata. Sheng Ri Kuai Le dear!

~Summer~ 4:30 AM

Friday, June 12, 2009

I love snow!!~

I am feeling happy today because I learnt something new. Keke. I always wondered how snow looked like and felt like when I was a kid, never thinking that one day I'll really be able to have it surround me. So when I felt snow for the first time here in Sweden as well as spent a really white christmas in new york last year, it was truly a memorable experience.

I kind of think that snow makes a photo look more romantic. Hehe. And pretty of cos. But it's never easy to capture real snow in a nice light. SOOOOO, the point is, today I learnt how to create snow in Photoshop. Hehe. Thanks to all the geniuses out there who always post all these tips and tutorials, making it foolproof for people like me. Wahaha. Yeah, so that's my achievement of the day.

Let's see how it looks.

Here's the BEFORE pic taken in Malmo. Lotsa snow on the ground, but they already stopped falling from the sky. Even if they did, they were too fine to be captured on a normal camera like mine.

And ta-dah, my AFTER pic after adding some snow flakes to it. I kinda like it. Wahaha. Somehow it makes the pic so much more 'shi qing hua yi' (aka poetic). Yeah yeah. Hopefully I will have more time to do up some nice pics and videos of me and jw after we are done with the thesis and before BB comes out. Hee.

Oh, just to be fair and let jw know I love him, keke, I did a snow pic for him too. I think it makes him look even cooler. Keke. Like it mah?? =)

JW on the snow

Jw on and in the snow

You know, I am so into videos and pics as always, esp videos, even though I can only make really simple ones. But I think it's nice to keep them as memories of life as we move from one phase to another. Videos tell a different story from pics, somehow. I really feel happy when I see the finished product, and when I am in the midst of doing it, I just feel so energized and hyper and full of passion. No need eat, no need rest, no need sleep. Waha.

Well. BB will be mad if I keep skipping meals or sleeping late. So I promise to be a good mummy, hmmm, as best as I can control. Keke. Buaiz buaiz!

~Summer~ 7:23 PM

Friday, June 05, 2009

Hi BABY!!~~

Today marks an important day and I definitely need to mark it down here. =)

I went for the doctor's appointment at the clinic today. This very pleasant and friendly 50-year-old lady attended to me and told me I was made to see her cos' of my thalassemia condition. Well, while the thalassemia thingy still makes me and jw worried now and then, but today I wasn't that affected by it. Not even when she told me I have to go back on Monday at 8am to take another blood test. Why? Keke.

Cos' the nice doctor surprised me by asking me if I wanted to listen to the BB's heartbeat, of course I said YES YES YES PLEASE! And in the end it was even better, she allowed me to see the baby on the monitor!!~

HELLO BABY!!

Mummy sees you for the first time! I could see your head, your stomach and even your tiny miny legs. =) It's so amazing, plus the doctor was so positive and encouraging when she was scanning here and there seeing how the baby moves. Her laughter and words just reminded me how much baby is a gift and a treasure. Remember I said I wanted to Knock Knock on the door and ask Baby if he/she was there because it's not showing much on my tummy, well, now I don't have to. I know baby is there.

Hee. And baby had a dot for his heart which seemed to be beating so the doctor said we don't have to listen to it in this case. Everything seems ok for now. Just that 1 minute of seeing baby on the monitor made me beam the whole morning, even when I was walking in the rain with a heavy bag of groceries in hand.

Life, is simply amazing.. =) Excited to go for the ultrasound on 18th jun, and at that time jw and I can see baby together for the first time ever.. We love you baby!!

~Summer~ 6:59 PM

Yummy foodie here i come!~

いただきます!

So we will be back in Singapore in a month's time! Finally! It's been a long 11-month period since we bidded farewell to our friends and family at the airport. Well, even though it may sound long, but sometimes when I think back about it, I guess time really can fly. I always say that. Haha. Time has WINGS! Everything seemed to flash past quite quickly and we have already celebrated our first year of wedded life as hubby and wifey.

Anyway, I wanted to think of the few food items that I crave so badly and swear that I will gobble all of them not once, not twice, but as many times as I can when I step back onto the beloved island. Hehe. I wonder how many of them coincide with jw's, should be quite alot bahz! Hopefully he will bring me around and satisfy all my food cravings. Wahaha. =) Luckily they are all cheap and easily bought food though. So, here goes the list.

1) Kentucky Fried Chicken!

Yeah, you may be the memorable place where we lost all our belongings in Barcelona, but you remain as my No. 1 favourite fast food chain. I wanna eat hot, juicy, crispy chicken thighs and drumsticks! Woohoo! Along with all the fats! Hee.

2) Hainanese Chicken Rice

Though we always try to cook this dish at home in Sweden, we can never get the true real taste of the authentic Hainanese Chicken Rice back in Singapore, especially the gravy!!~ So, it's a must-eat too!!

3) Rojak

Rojak has never been one of my favourite favourite food back in Singapore, but somehow I miss it after all this while. Keke. It will be nice to tuck into some yummy, but clean and hygienic, indian rojak in July!

4) Prawn Noodle Soup

Yeah I am thinking about the Big Prawn Noodle store that jw used to bring me, mummy and popo to. Where they had nice wu xiang also. *drools* I wanna eat the pork ribs and big prawn noodle soup along with some chilli powder and nice lime juice!

5) Kuehs and more kuehs

Mummy always use to buy kuehs for me for breakfast or snacks last time. I miss kuehs! All the different kinds of kueh. Like xiang jiao gao and bai tang gao. Oh, I guess this is something jw won't miss, he was never that much into kuehs. Hehe.

6) Boon Lay Nasi Lemak

This was one of our favourites when we were in NTU. The super power nasi lemak that always had super duper long queues. I miss the yummy crispy chicken wings, otah, fragrant rice and even the chilli sauce! wahaha.

7) Orh Lua

I always eat this without eating the orh, and I still find it super yummy. Hee. Market 85 and East Coast Food Centre both have yummy orh luas that I like. And alot of other places too lar. Hee. I wanna eat the starchy starchy egg!!

8) Katong Laksa

How can I give this a miss... I love it soooo much!! I can eat two bowls of it at once because it's so yummy! Love the noodles and the soup. Just thinking bout it makes me drool. Hee. I will make sure I eat this when I get back. The real authentic Katong Laksa, not the imitation ones!

9) Roti Prata

I also keep telling jw that I wanna eat prata when we go back. Hee. Not just any kind of prata, but the super crispy go-song kind that he brings me to eat with his parents. I forgot where. Wahaha. But I like pratas! I wanna eat not only a few go-song, but prata with egg, plasters, tissue prata and drink milo peng and kambing soup all together!

10) Bah Chor Mee

Last but not least, one of our favourite supper places, Bedok Market 85! Right beside our secondary school. Hehe. The bah chor mee is a classic, so I really wanna eat it too! Oh and not only bah chor mee, but also BBQ chicken wings, satay, porridge, sting ray (which I can't eat now boohoo) are all our usual tuck in dishes!~ Jw loves to eat the bah chor mee here too. Hehe. So I'm pretty sure we will go there. Keke.

Well, that's it! The ten dishes that I wanna gobble down when I get back. It's not an exhaustive list, I can still write down more. Waha. But well, you get the idea. =) These are the first few I thought of. Hehe. Cheap, yummy, finger-licking, authentic Singaporean food, here we come soon!

~Summer~ 2:14 AM