Whats Whys and Hows

Jedidiah is in the phase of asking lots of whats hows and whys endlessly. Like

"How are tables made?"

"Hows are trees made?" etc etc...

Recently he has been asking about Heaven. Pehaps this topic was opened up in school or at Sunday school so he began to ask endless questions abt what is Heaven and the concept itself.

So he would say things like" Mommy when you go to Heaven can I do this and that (all the no-nos that he is not allowed to do)? " @__@

Then one day as I was hanging clothes, he said this

" Mommy next time when you go to Heaven I will learn to bathe myself and hang the clothes for you....And when God tells you its time to go.... I will block your way so you can't go."

A heartwarming moment from the mouth of our little 4 1/2 year old...

Math, Penmanship and Blocks

This is what Jedi has been up to these days when its too hot or rainy to go out and play. His penmanship has improved alot since last year and he is definitely left-handed! Just like his Daddy!

He loves his blocks and recently this is what he made...

His version of a church! hahaha! reminds me of our church at Tanglin...

Two Little Teethy Smiles!

Keziah is now 6 1/2 months old!!

Last two weeks were hectic as she was teething and a little fretful at night. Then she came down with a bout of cough from her two older siblings because they keep kissing her! And giver her their 'doggie' and 'bolster' to smell and bite!

On top of that, I started weaning her and its back to pureeing and steaming and blending baby food again. Tiring as I have 3 little ones to attend to. But she is a great eater I must say!

Her current fave is to play peek-a-boo!

School Days and Birthdays

I have been so busy since the year started that I haven't had the time to really update our blog as it was an eventful month!

Krisalyn started school! In a blink of an eye she has turned 3 years old and is off to school like Jedidiah. We are really proud of her for being brave and not crying on her very first day. Probably because her Sunday School is at the same place and her Kor Kor rides with her on the school bus. I was feeling rather apprehensive as Jedi was a different ball game all together. Took him almost a month to adjust!

Then our little princess turned 3! She celebrated it in school on her actual day with her new friends and we had another one for her at home with family and cell group mates. Dan as usual is our family party man. He went around scouting for all the 'Hello Kitty' stuff he could find to make the party packs. I think I'm really lazy as if it was me I would just put one item in the bag! Well, most importantly our little princess enjoyed herself with the royal treatment and the presents of course!

Keziah's Baby Dedication

We dedicated our littlest one to the Lord on 27th December 2009 at our church.

Thank you Lord for the precious gift of this child to us. Because Your Word says that every good gift comes from You, we know that You have given Keziah to us to care for and raise and we pray that she will grow to be a God-fearing woman and grow to be a woman after Your heart. Guide us Lord as we parent her and help us to love her the way you do. Thank you Lord for this little blessing.

Amen.

Clear Blue Skies In December

Had a lovely holiday catching up with my parents from the 5th to the 20th December. Thought two weeks would be a long time but it flew by just too quickly! Guess time flies when spending time with loved ones.

We decided to take the 9am flight. Not our usual red-eye flight at 1am as we did in previous years. I used to think that the kids would be asleep and we could have a restful flight but it was actually worse as the kids would be overtired the rest of the day from not being able to sleep properly during the flight. This time it was much better. Think the two older ones are older too so it was not so stressful. My dear aunt came along with us. So Dan sat with the Jedi and Krisa while I sat with my aunt with Keziah in the baby bassinet. Worked out well as the older kiddies could now enjoy the in-flight entertainment and the food that came on the neat little trays. The bassinet was great as I could quickly pump or gobble my food while she napped. But I must say I wasn't too impressed with the Quantas service...was a roller coaster ride with lots of turbulence and the staff weren't too friendly or helpful.

We reached the airport at abt 2pm and my dad fetched us from the airport. Was so good to see him as I haven't seen him since April this year. Was greeted at their home by my mummy and it was such a lovely feeling! Though I live in Singapore and have never lived in Perth, I always feel as if I'm coming home whenever I visit. Nothing like seeing your loved ones.

Our daily routine would be indulging in a lazy 1 hour brekkie with my mum. She would cook fried eggs and bacon which we would eat with either toasted bread or english muffins. Had my favourite soft-boiled egg with my dearly missed Maggie sauce. Simple breakfast but was good to just enjoy one another's company while the kids had their fill of cornflakes, cookies and honeybuzz yogurt.

TThen, we would either go down to do some grocery shopping at Coles. Loved the cooking times with my mum where we would experiment and exchange recipes. We would come back for Keziah's 2 hour nap so that she won't be so cranky the rest of the day. Then we would set off again to my dad's pie shop for another round of eating pies, coffee and tea.We would head back after about an hour or so and Dan would wash the kids up while I would get Keziah ready for her milk and bed by abt 6.30pm. She was a great travel baby and kept to her routine throughout the trip. Really thankful for that.

By the time my dad was back for dinner Keziah would be asleep and the kids would either join us or entertain themselves in the family room watching "Alvin and the Chipmunks"and other kiddie shows. Dinner was always a feast of either my mum's cooking or fish and chips or takeaway food. But nothing could beat the sashimi! The best I have ever tasted!!

Then once the kids went to bed by abt 9, we could sit down and chat in the family room. My dad would always open a bottle of wine when there are visitors so all except me had a glass. Think its his chance to have company to drink wine! hahaha!Then, it was off to bed and another day would start again...

Well, the kids basically had a whale of a time! My parents indulged or rather over-indulged them with lots of toys and gifts! So many that we had to leave them there so that they can play again the next time they come again!Some highlights were that Keziah mastered rolling onto her tummy while we were there.

We also visited a beautifully decorated home for Christmas which was featured in the local newspaper. Felt quite paiseh to just go up and see their home but my dad assured that it was ok. Different cultures I guess. Dan kindly weeded my folks' garden and cleared up the shed.

But the most memorable of all was the time spent together as a family. Times that I would always treasure close to my heart. I realize that it is only since I got married and had kids that I appreciate the time spent with my folks. Perhaps absence makes the heart grow fonder. I only get to see my dad once a year when we go down as he can't come back due to the shop and my mum at least twice when she comes back mid year to visit us. But the things I will miss till the next time I go is the smell of my parents' home. The smell of waking up in the morning to see my mum who I only see twice a year. I will always remember the smell of pies and the smell of coffee when we go down to my dad's shop and the "ding-dong-ing" of the bell. I will miss the dinner time and grocery shopping. I will miss the family devotions on Sundays. I will miss the chatting and tv time when the kids are asleep.

See you soon Mummy and Papa! We love you lots and thank you for the lovely and precious time with us!

Birthday Cake for Daddy!

Celebrated Dan's birthday yesterday. He was still on reservist so we used the time while he was not at home to prepare a birthday surprise for him. The kids made cards for him and did some decorations here and there.

The kids wanted to get Dan a cake. Decided it would be more fun for them to make one. So bought those instant Betty Crocker chocolate cake mix and decided to make muffins. Bought some strawberries, coloured sprinkles, chocolate sprinkles and chopped almonds as toppings.

The kids helped to mix up the mixture then I poured them into the muffin cups and popped them into the oven. Was really fun as once they were ready we were all excited about topping them! BUT.... I FORGOT TO BUY THE CHOCOLATE SAUCE!!! so decided to use Nutella as a spread so that the toppings would stick. Worked surprisingly well.

Dan came home a little late as it was the last day of reservist. was thinking of putting the kids to sleep first if it was too late. But Jedi's bowels had other plans! suddenly wanted to bomb so by the time he was done...Daddy came home! The kiddies were really excited as they helped to make the little cakes so was great fun for them to see Daddy eat it. Only thing was that Jedi asked:

"Why is Daddy only 1 year old??"