Deepavali Light and Shine at Bishan

Our celebration of Deepavali Day is extra special this year as we learnt about and experienced a traditional Deepavali light-up as celebrated by a member of the Punjabi community here in Singapore.

Auntie El’s mother-in-law invited us to her humble abode to see how she celebrates this special day. She talked about the symbolic significance of the light-up and also touched on the various rituals practiced by Indians of different faiths. She also prepared some tasty Indian food.

The kids experienced the preparation of the flat bread. And before the light-up, at Auntie El’s place, the kids had fun having henna painting done, making their own rangoli designs and dressing up in Indian wear.

After the home light-up, the kids walked with their candles through the adjacent gardens while singing to the tune of a shiny sing-along song.

~ Collecting candles for placing on the corridor areas ~

~ Waiting for Auntie El’s mother-in-law to pass out the flour ~

~ Princess experiencing the making of the flat bread ~

~ Tasting the flat bread that was prepared by the kids earlier ~

~ Princess’ rangoli design; our mini light-up in our pets corner ~

PS:

Thank you, Auntie El for this unique experience, and for the kind invitation.

Zoo Outing w/ Jaime & Pu Zheng

Princess loved outings to the zoo, especially with friends of the same age group. They can run together, explore together, and are definitely great company for each other.

On Deepavali Day, much laughter and joy were shared, at the new Kids’ World at the Zoo, especially at the water-play area, which Mummy Eliz found to be similar to the Kids’ Playground at Wild Wild Wet.

There were so much money-spending opportunities in Kids’ World; smart marketing on the side of the Singapore Zoo; no wonder they managed to stay profitable despite the gloomy economic outlook.

Well, which parents can bear to say ‘no’ to their precious kids too often?

~ $4 for pony riding ~

~ Another $4 to go on the Merry-Go-Round ~

~ Outside Kids’ World ~

~ At the entrance; just before leaving ~

Faithful are the wounds of a friend

Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.
[Proverbs 27:6]

Education & Creativity

Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining (and profoundly moving) case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it.

Think about this: “We don’t grow into creativity, we grow out of it; actually, we get educated out of it.”

View the video here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

Reminds Mummy Eliz of a story…

The teacher gives the class a picture to color in. A little girl finishes hers, hands it to the teacher and the teacher puts a big red X on the page. The little girl is in tears and asked why did I get an X on my picture? The teacher tells her, you used the wrong colors, you colored the grass brown, grass is green, you colored the sky yellow, the sky is supposed to be blue, and the tree’s are supposed to have green leaves. The little girl asked the teacher to look out the window. Outside the sky was a golden yellow sunset the grass was brown and there were no leaves on the trees, just as she had colored her picture!

Downtown East weekday excursion

For the month of October, Buzz Fridayz is joining hands with Downtown East, offering exhilarating thrills and fun games with every $5 at any buzz pod. Details are at http://www.buzzpod.com.sg/promo.asp.

Mummy Eliz also just confirmed the following benefits for NTUC members at Downtown East.
- 1-for-1 unlimited play at ExplorerKids every Wed
- 1-for-1 entry to Wild Wild Wet at member price every Fri
- 1-for-1 entry to Escape Theme Park at member price every Sun

Not wanting to miss out on bargains like this, we went for the 1-for-1 unlimited play every Wed at ExplorerKids, and both kids only had to pay $9 in total for unlimited play, complete with free entry for adults who are NTUC members. Mummy Eliz certainly felt that it is a good deal.

The only drawback is that Downtown East is so far away from our residence. Luckily a free shuttle is available from Pasir Ris MRT.

~ “Come and give your sister a kiss.” ~

~ The sister-brother pair sharing a lovely moment ~

~ Enjoying the free Ferris Wheel Ride ~

~ A sweet smile for the camera ~

PS:

Without the NTUC member promo, and the Buzz booth promo, Downtown East is still considered pretty expensive. Thus October might be a good month to check out the attractions, as the two promotions make it pretty affordable, especially if public transport and packed meals are being utilized.

Learning 2 show honor 2 everyone in ur path

All living beings have preferences, whether is it for another living being, a place, a way of doing things, or a certain way of thinking. How does one balance respect for one’s preferences, and also showing honor to everyone in one’s path? That certainly is something challenging.

As pointed out by Uncle Kah Hoe [a polytechnic mate], a great way to show respect or honor to an occasion initiator or planner, is by not letting the attendance list influence whether or not one would attend the occasion. One should also not try to question who’s on the attendance list.

Mummy Eliz used to excessively question who’s on the attendance list for events that she was being asked to, and once in 2003, she got an LONG lecture from Uncle Kah Hoe, who was asking her to join an outing.

As usual, she started asking if her usual group of pals would be attending, and without answering her directly, Uncle Kah Hoe simply asked her whether his presence alone is not enough.

He told her that her questioning made him feel like a second class citizen, even though she might not meant it that way, and that if she kept sticking to the same group of friends, she would only be depriving herself the chance to make more new friends, and have new experiences. And that is actually discrimination in a subtle way.

Well, that was a LONG lecture, and it left Mummy Eliz feeling really embarrassed [lecturing in public]. Thus that incident stays etched in mind. Looking back in hindsight, Mummy Eliz is still thankful to Uncle Kah Hoe for pointing her undesirable behavior out.

Mummy Eliz had a bitterly hurting experience recently, and was left feeling like a second class citizen when trying to organize some mummy-kiddos fun [perhaps what goes around come around].

Her hope is that this blog will help in acknowledging the feeling, and then enabling it to pass quickly. She discovered that some mis-communication [regarding price] was the cause of it, but then also hope that more EQ be displayed.

PS:

If Mummy Eliz had not taken Uncle Kah Hoe’s advice, she would not have got to know Daddy Tiong better and there would not be Princess Chelsea and Prince Christian today.

Science Ctr trip w/ Dear Audrey

It had been a while since Princess last saw Audrey, but she certainly remembered her. And she got really upset at not being able to bid farewell to Audrey when we left Science Center.

Luckily, Prince and Jaime were there to provide some form of much-needed distraction at the water-play area and also on the way home.

~ Impossible to capture the lady who is always on the move ~

PS:

Audrey, thanks for remembering us, we surely hope to see you again.

Home Exploration: Practical Life

In a Montessori school setting, much emphasis is placed on Practical Life, where kids are taught practical skills like sweeping a floor, clearing up crumbs etc.

Princess spent a good hour with Mummy Eliz scrubbing the kitchen floor, tile by tile and in between the grooves. Is Mummy Eliz depriving her of rest, and also depriving her of the chance to better utilize her time by learning more academic skills?

Mummy Eliz felt otherwise; in fact, this provides a great opportunity for a good workout, and also a chance to learn about honoring the family. In fact, helping around with household chores, in her humble opinion, does more good than harm for kids' character building.

Prince’s wish; Be as handsome as Dad

Perhaps it is due to the fact that Prince was not given a first month shave; perhaps it is in the genes. Whatever the reason; his hope is that one day, he will be as handsome as Daddy.

~ "Am I more handsome?" ~

Bird Park trip w/ Auntie Jolene & Jaime

Outings with kids provide a great chance for parents to put into practice all the skills of conflict-resolution, peaceful negotiation etc. It is during those trips that parents gain real hands-on practical experience and get a chance to know their children better.

Thus understandably, Mummy Eliz and Daddy Tiong felt physically drained at the end of the day, but are thankful for these beautiful memories to bring home.

~ The two pretty gals in their cool sunglasses ~

~ Feeding the birds; Prince amazed by the experience ~

~ The sister-brother pair getting ready for some water fun ~

~ “Where is my jie-jie?” ~

~ Prince ‘chatting’ up some babes,
by willingly allowing them to splash water on him ~

PS:

Thank you, Meiway for allowing us complimentary entry, and thank you Auntie Jolene and Jaime for the wonderful company.

Little Issac’s Full Month Celebration

Little Issac is a very special baby [he have a little hole in his heart] and his parents are long-time family friends, thus we would not miss Issac’s full month celebration for anything in the world.

Issac was so excited that day, he missed his usual nap. The extra stimulation from the visits of so many family members and friends must have triggered extra brain connections in his little growing brain, thus making him so alert-looking.

Little Issac, Princess Chelsea and Prince Christian are waiting for you to grow up, and then an outing could be arranged, and we could all have so much fun.

~ Little Issac looking like an angel ~

PS:

And yes, thank you for the ride, Auntie Yvonne.

"An old Cree Indian Saying..."

Only after the last tree has been cut down
Only after the last river is poisoned
Only after the last fish has been caught
Only then will human find that money cannot be eaten

- An old Cree Indian Saying [lifted from a poster at the zoo]

Zoo trip w/ Auntie Jolene & Jaime

Princess tried giraffe feeding, and while she was busy feeling excited, poor Prince was left feeling totally cheated, witnessing the giraffe using her long sticky tongue, to wrap around the carrot stick and then lifting it into its mouth without any warning.

With new experiences like this in store for us each visit, how can we ever resist a visit to the zoo?

Thank you Auntie Jolene for the complimentary entrance, the ride there and back and of course the great company.

~ Princess feeling all excited at see a giraffe so close ~

~ With Auntie Jolene and Jaime ~

~ “Daddy, what is this animal doing? ~

~ “Daddy, why did you not stop the giraffe from snatching MY carrot stick?” ~

"Untamed emotion in constant motion."

“A child is emotion in motion – untamed emotion in constant motion. Only with maturity and experience will a child develop the tools that bring emotional control.”

Cayden's Thomas Theme BDay Party

“Oh, I love love love parties!” exclaimed Princess each time a party invitation is extended to her.

And she is certainly fortunate to have a Daddy who being unwilling to disappoint his lovely Princess; agreed to bring her to Cayden’s birthday party on his own, while Mummy catch up on some rest at home.

Thank you, Uncle Ten and Auntie Fiona for having us once again!

~ “Happy 3rd Birthday to Cayden!” ~

~ Enjoying a ride in a Thomas the Train carton vehicle! ~