Dan & Evan's Site

 Thought this June would be a mundane one but it turned out pretty eventful with family outings and celebrations as well as unexpected events that happened along the way. Here is a quick peek at what we were up to this June hols....

                                        Driving with a hunk and babe! hee!

                                     Doing silly things at home.....

                                              Fishing with the cuz....

                                                 snoozing frog-style...

                           Swimsuit posing....(its underwear actually...impromtu swimming fun!)

                             Enjoying a Father's Day Celebration with Dan's family

                                                 At the Barney Show!!!!

  Daddy went to hospital for a minor surgery....  But Praise the Lord he has recovered well!

                                                    

It was certainly an eventful one which we enjoyed with the love and company of family. Reminds me to treasure each day as a precious gift from the Lord. Life can be so unpredictable and I realize that its the Lord who has sustained us and blessed us in many ways though we don't see it at times. Thank you Lord for blessing us with a family and help us to remember to treasure the time with our loved ones which you have placed in our lives.

 Thanks to my dear Aunt and her helper, Dan and I managed to steal some couple-time alone for three days and two nights! It was great as we had time to spend together alone without having to handle the two kids and their burst of all-day-long energy.

On the first day we went to pig out at Copthorne Hotel for their buffet which has free-flow fresh oysters and SASHIMI!!!!! SUPER YUMMY!!!!!!!!!!!!! then we just took our time to sit down and have coffee together and just talk. It was great to have the leisure of time on our side and just enjoying each other's company. Hmmmm...pigging out and yakking seems to go well together!

We managed to catch a late show after FIVE years!!! The show ended about 12+ am and it felt surreal going home so late that even the last bus was not around. Felt a bit nostalgic too as it reminded us of our dating and couplehood times before our little bubs came along.  But in the middle of the movie my phone rang and it was Jedi looking for us. He wanted us to pray for him before he slept and kept asking my aunt why we didn't come to pick him up and give him his goodnight kiss and hug! So we gave him a virtual pray, kiss and hug via the phone and went back to the movie. hee our little 'lampost'!!!

The kiddies though had a great time with my aunt and her helper who was ever doting over them! She showered them with much love and care and we were able to enjoy ourselves without worrying about them. We ended our mini retreat with dinner with my aunt and her family. Jedi and Krisa had a special treat from Ikea...fries and nuggets! That explains the beaming and contented faces. Just realised that Krisa likes to hide in corners when she has something she really treasures! Guess that is where she thinks she can enjoy without Jedi coming to tease her!

 Thanks so much Ah-kor for giving us this mini-retreat to help us to have time together as a couple. It means alot to us and its much much appreciated! Thanks too for loving our kiddies even when they were whiny, grouchy and competing with each other for attention! *hugz* They love you very much too!

We  our Daddy because:

He works hard for the family and so we can get our favourite food and snacks to munch on...

He tells bedtime stories with funny voices...

He plays trains and cars just like a three-year old boy with animated and imaginary scenarios...

He carries us when we are tired and his shoulder is much more comfy than Mummy's boney one!

He plays wrestling and lets his tummy get slammed...

He teaches us about who God is and that thunder is nothing to be afraid of...

He loves to smell our cheeks and give us 'sniffy' kisses...

He is our French Fries provider at Macs...

He hugs and kisses us every night before we go and sleep...

And MOST of all because he loves us in all the little things that he does... We LOVE you Daddy!

                              HAPPY FATHER'S DAY DADDY DEAREST!!!

Well, I decided that since its the June hols and Jedi is home, to give the two kiddies a treat. This was also a first time for me as I have never brought them out on my own before so I was a little apprehensive at first! Got the two of them ready, packed their water bottles, some biscuits for Krisa (so she would stay put in her stroller) and off  we went!

Jedi was as good as gold and I was really pleasantly surprised at how mature he has become. We went grocery shopping (only 2 items: some spices and his Pocky snack reward for good behaviour.) He was super happy when we reached Macs and even offered to wait for me at the table while I went to order....but less than 2 sec later...he cried! think he realised Mei Mei went so he should go too! 

To sum it up, I was proud of myself for taking 'the leap of faith' to bring them for a short outing. Should have done it long ago but being the procrastinator that I am I just didn't muster my guts to. Also, Krisa was relatively good too as she was contented with her hashbrown and Jedi was in bliss with his hotcakes with butter and maple syrup! For me, it was a great time with the two little ones. Wasn't as terrifying or traumatic or stressful as I thought it might be. A first and hopefully many more to come. Only drawback was that my breakfast was their leftovers....

Had an enjoyable time with the kiddies and family at the zoo with our church. Been some time since we had time to bring them out and enjoy nature. Jedi and Krisa enjoyed themselves getting a suntan in the sweltering heat! It was nice to see the kids thrilled to see the animals up close and not just in their picture books especially for Krisa. We brought Jedi when he was her age but we don't think he remembered much at that time.

One of the highlights for the kiddies was the magic show and the face / body painting that they had. Jedi asked for a Spiderman tatoo much to our surprise! He as never seen the show or cartoon before! The most hilarious thing was that the could actually do the Spidy pose too!

Celebrated Mother's Day with my grandma and my mum's side of the family last Sunday. I also met up with my family's first helper Debbie who looked after me when I was 6 years old. She came back to Singapore to work again for my grandma aftter 17 years!!!!! Always wonderful to see my grandma as she has been a such a prayful and loving grandma to me. She's 78 already and she will still take a cab to my place to bring cod fish and salmon for the kiddies despite my insistence to pick it up from her place. Love you Ah-ma and Jedi and Krisa says, "Happy Mother's Day Ah Zhor!"

thanks Ah Kim and Ah Koo for blessing us with the dinner too! Mel and Caleb you guys rock! thanks for giving them smoky memories with the dry ice!!!!

                                         with cuz Melissa and Caleb and Jee-Yee

                                                          with Debbie

                                     with ah-mah, ah-kim & ah-koo

Krisa loves to smile! She keeps smiling and smiling and we think she is practising to get it right. Here are her more recent attempts...Keep smiling sweetie...

 

We had a feast with Dan's family at Vienna Restaurant at United Square where they had a huge spread of food buffet-style. Well, let's just say it was probably the BEST day of Jedi's life! We hardly give him sweets and snacks so we let him pig out and just look at his TUMMY!!!!!!!!! He ate like 6 small plates of jelly, ice-cream with their cones, some chocolate cake and some marshmallows! Think he ate enough to last a year!!

 

To My Beloved Wife Evangeline and the Mummy to Jedi & Krisa,
Thank you for taking care of our kids, and being there for them - 
- rain or shine,
- in annoying crying or infectious laughters,
- at times of snatching or sharing,
- loving or the times when you need to love them,
- in good or seemingly bad times,
- through packing toys or ransacking rubbish,
- in good health and drippy noses
- through neat arrangements of cars and masak masak and table, floor and clothes littered with all kinds of food bits
- through "I love you Mummy" and "I don't want Mummy" s 


YOU ARE THE BEST MUMMY TO THEM!
Their smiles show it all!


With the help from his playschool teacher (Ms. Pandian from Grace House), Jedi made this Mother's Day Gift for Mummy. 

HAPPY MUMMY'S DAY, MY DEAR
DAN

 

 

Dan has to travel sometimes for his work and this year was no exception. However, as Jedi is now older, he has begun to understand the emotion of missing someone. On the third night Dan was away, I heard some sniffing sounds from his room and went inside to see Jedi sobbing softly. When I asked him what was the matter he said tearfully, "I want Daddy!". After some reassurance, he went back to sleep. This happened again for the next night and gradually he began to understand that Daddy was away but will be coming back soon.

He would often doodle on his doodle board and on the day Daddy was about to come home, he drew this and said it was Daddy wearing a shirt.

The kids especially Jedi were very happy to hear that Daddy was coming home and were in a very good mood smiling and posing for the camera.

So to welcome Daddy home, I learnt to cook some bittergourd chicken from my MIL and made it a few days later. Can't put the recipe here as it is her secret recipe. Turned out good for hubby so thats good enough for me. Still need to fine tune it a little. All in all, I'm glad my dear is home. Been a tough week without him. Welcome home dear.

One afternoon Krisa didn't want to nap long so Dan carried her out so she would stop hollering in her room and wake Jedi up. He held her in his arms and she stayed so still and was so contented that he fell asleep. She never does that with me! Guess Daddy's arms are just as good as her bed. Captured some snapshots of the sweet moments...

think Dan is going to kill me for these unglam shots!

Krisa has begun to be very interested in whatever Jedi does and wants to follow or do the same much to his dismay at times. Unintentionally she would take a piece of his Thomas the train track or a lego piece that architectually decides the success of his creation!  Depending on Jedi's mood or whether he has had enough sleep, Jedi would either errupt in a flood of angry tears and say "  You naughty girl!' or if he is in a good mood, he would actually sound quite motherly and say, "Mei Mei don't destroy my tracks. You see now? How?" Whatever it is, Dan and I often watch with apprehension  and amusement when Mei Mei is on her curiosity quest while Jedi is having is Einstien moment... Here's an example...

                                   hmmmmm... Since i can't reach the pile...

                                I'm sure Kor Kor wouldn't mind.....

Mealtimes are literally becoming a battleground for me! Feeding Krisa can be so patience-trying! I was so frustrated that I just simply could not feed her...not even ONE spoon of food in her mouth! And she would willingly go hungry for lunch and dinner! Then one day I was soooooo fedup I just placed the bowl of food with her spoon in front of her and to my amazement she begain attempting to feed herself. Yes..this mommy has literally forgotten that Krisa, although she is a Mei Mei, is also growing up and wanting to be independent! So its wasn't that she didn't want to eat....she wanted to try by herself. Of course the floor was fed too but at least some of it was in her mouth and I could 'steer' the spoon into her mouth at certain intervals. Well done sweetie pie!

I'm wondering is it a guy thing to love round things??! Jedi loves balls, cars coz of thier wheels and now he has started to arrange everything in a circle. It has to be in perfect symetry so you can guess the reaction when Mei Mei is in her Destroyer mode to wreck that neverending perfection! yup! World War III and a mommy whose eyes are rolled heavenward!

But we were really impressed by his arrangement. He has had this trait of arranging his cars or trains since he was young. Used to be in a straight line but now the current fashion of the month for him is CIRCLES! Check this out...

What a month! Just started doing some contract work for my ex-company and balancing working life and mummyhood is TOUGH!! I really miss my afternoon snoozes and internet sufring time! But I tell myself to finish fast so I can enjoy the rest of my time off with Dan and the kids. The extra income is good too!

My comp crashed just after i started work from home!  I guess like me its not used to working! Thank God for my dear aunt's laptop which saved me much lost time! Finally my comp is back and running again and I am feeling less traumaitsed too! Then, I fell sick and lost my voice as I wasn't used to talking for such long stretches to conduct interviews.

Initially, it was a change for me as I had to be more disciplined with time and use my kiddies' nap time to do some snippets of work here and there. And it was a releif and wonderful to see the work coming together to be submitted. One thing I told myself was to allow myself to do my work only when the kids are sleeping and for a little while at night so that I don't neglect Dan and the kids and become my workaholic self when I didn't have kids. I thank the Lord for somehow multiplying my time.

But I thank the Lord for all the little blessings. For Dan who helps me with the kids at night if I need to do a home visit or interview. That my workload is flexible. That my workplace is within walking distance if I need to conduct interviews once or twice a week. For my aunt who is always there to help me in my time of need. And most of all for Dan and my kids who have given me much support. These little blessings remind me to be thankful in all circumstances. Adjustments are the humps in life but they will smoothen out in time with prayer and patience.

These are Krisa's recent attempts at smiling for the camera! I wonder who in the family smiles like that! Then I realised the 'culprit'....

Ok here is a Mommy and Daddy getting reallllllly excited over our kid''s drawing. Jedi was at my aunt's place and he was doddling on the doodle board. His first proper drawing of a tractor...I think its inspired by 'Mater' in the Pixar Animation 'Cars'. Daddy looks thrilled to bits!

Had a good Tim Sum lunch with my dear Ah-mah and my mum's side of the family. Jedi was really good and sat throughout the lunch on the high chair, drawing and pasting stickers while Krisa gorged on rasins. Hmmm....new formula for parenthood?

Keeping little mouths and hands busy + food+ crayons +stickers = freedom for Daddy and Mummy to eat in PEACE!

well almost....towards the end Krisa decided she had enough of formalities and began standing up in her high chair and waving at the people at the pool deck! But was a good job for both for them! *clap clap*