Is afternoon sun really that bad?

This has been a wonderful week, and not just because term 3 has started (which is great, btw!); after all that rain, I'm welcoming the sun back into our lives!

One of our duvets sunbathing, cover and all

We didn't know that three of our four bedrooms would get the afternoon sun (or 西照 in housing speak) when we bought this house. When we got the keys and saw the sun, we had the windows all tinted. Blackout curtains definitely but those were more for the kids' nap time as they were all still taking afternoon naps at that time.

When we moved in, we realised that it got really hot after 3 pm as the sunlight goes about 1 metre into the bedrooms. 

Solution? Aircon. But this doesn't affect our electricity bills:

• The kids napped with aircon with or without afternoon sun.
• Now that the kids are not napping, we are also not in the bedrooms in the afternoon. And I'm at home the whole day most days!
• Until WFH happened as The Hub converted a bedroom to his office. But even if there is no afternoon sun, he will need aircon for WFH.

So afternoon sun doesn't affect us negatively. In fact, I love the afternoon sun! It's usually windy so laundry can dry even without the sun. But it's really nice to smell the sun in the laundry, you know? The kids' school shoes get a good wash during the major school holidays, and nothing dries them better than the good old sun. 

My fave is to sun pillows and duvets - these are difficult to wash but why wash when the sun is free to use?

Just like today. I usually sun pillows and duvets when I wash the bedsheets. But since it's so hot and sunny today, let's smell some sun when we sleep tonight :)

Yang is eight!

My sweet boy has turned eight!

He was a bit sad to know that term 3 would start on his birthday... As it turned out, the school gave them all an ice cream surprise to welcome them back to school :) With parental consent, of course.

Celebrations started on Saturday with a BBQ. I had wanted to get a cake for him then but he preferred to have his Doraemon cake on his birthday instead. So Sito arranged his schedule to celebrate with him :)

So his first cake was on Sunday, at AhMa's place. And it was actually eight mini cakes! I had already ordered Doraemon for him but we passed by Polar that day when we went to Lot One for Jurassic World Dominion and he saw Angry Birds... So he asked AhMa for Angry Birds. Both Yang and Yu liked the cake but they couldn't finish it *.*

The two in front can't wait to dig in!

Dinner was at Crystal Jade. Plenty of char siew and XLB for the birthday boy :)

For his birthday today, I made longevity noodles for him. Actually, just mee sua. Didn't add the egg when I realised I prepared way too much meat :p Kai had the same thing but with extra duck left over from Sunday.

Let them play Yang's present from YeePo - Super Mario Maker 2 - in the afternoon before we went to fetch Yu. Yang chose Ichiban for his birthday dinner. He also extracted a promise from me to let him play the Pokemon machine *.*

First time and they got a nice disk!

Eight candles for him to 吹到够！

Making a wish... 

I also have a wish for him - to have smoother bowel movements?! Oops :p

We bought him a box set of books some time ago but told him he could have it only on his birthday. He also received hongbaos from the grands and aunt. He still hasn't finished reading the birthday card from the grands - too distracted *.*

Very happy with his books :)

Oh yes, he had to change his shirt coz he somehow got cream on his back and a sleeve!! My dear sweet boy, eight years old now, please be more careful when you're eating, ok? :)

 Happy happy birthday to Yang Yang!!!!

Happy June holidays!

Why do we call it June holidays when they start in end May and end before June is over? :p

There are so many happenings in June - bah zang, Chengzhu, National Family Week, Fathers' Day!

Yu must still go to school - saw this in their new classroom

Let's make a wish at the Fountain of Wealth!

Yang made two - one for baluku to go away and one for GeGe to not bully him, poor boy! Kai and Yu made candy wishes *.* I had to carry Yu around the fountain three times - I should have the wish, hoho!

Went to Suntec to support the National Family Week and bumped into quite a few old friends who were, sadly, on duty that weekend. The kids weren't terribly excited as they couldn't go on the bouncy castle having just got their vaccination.

Hello, the sign says not to climb...

This was quite fun for them though

Kai found chess so he played that...

My sweet boy and me resting by the side :)

We made a terrarium! It was quite fun!

Biggest kids at the ECDA booth :p

Hopped over to Marina Square and found photo ops!

Mama also wants a photo! Pup must join in...

I had planned for an early dinner but there wasn't much to do so we ended up with a late lunch. Timing was just nice as they had late breakfast at Yakun just before leaving for Suntec.

20 XLB not enough!

One last stop before going home

Yu wanted to poop when we stepped out of the train station. Jialat. But ice cream beckoned. Then he really wanted to poop in the shop but refused to go so he didn't want ice cream - couldn't eat. Then he changed his mind. Then he had 10% of his cup. Yang also couldn't finish his ice cream. I ended up eating a lot when I already had my sinful Emperor Mao. Next time, they shall share!

We weren't hungry for dinner but the kids gotta eat something. I bought spinach from Dian Xiao Er and cooked some rice for them. I had spinach neat :p But I also packed some fried chicken from the pasar malam for my supper :p

Yang helping me with pizza dough

Yang likes to help here and there. He has helped me make bread, make pizza and stir coffee. He also likes to see me wash the toilets *.* Your turn will come, don't worry :p

Their poor bolsters!

Papa and his pups were all in horizontal stripes!

Went to CCK to support National Family Week again, hoho! And we ended up having BBQ for dinner. The kids enjoyed the beef and even the rice!

And we gave them this pretty candy floss - $4!!

We went back to Lot One the following week to watch Jurassic World Dominion. Kai and Yang enjoyed the show and of course, the popcorns!

Snacks on my bed?!

Yup, decided to do a sleepover instead of a staycation. Quite ex to find a room to take all of us so I chose a night when Sito wasn't home to do sleepover, else not enough space... I went to check on Yang who slept on the outside and Yu rolled over to my side *.* I slept at the foot of the bed for a while, gave up and went to the kids' room to sleep. 

In the end, none of us slept well! But quite fun la. They had yummy snacks, watched YouTube Kids until late, and did a short video call with Papa. The next morning, we had Yakun.

Yu was wearing swimsuit as he had water play in school that day

Discovered a rainbow when taking out the laundry and called the kids in!

Kai: Boring..

And he returned to breakfast.

Yang: Do you know why the rainbow ends there?

Mama: Why?

Yang: Because in cartoons, rainbows always end in the clouds *sweet smile*

I melted :)

Yu: It's so bright!

Ok, let's all get back to breakfast!!

Happy Fathers' Day to Papa!

I got the idea for this cake a couple of months back when I saw Sito playing Chinese chess with the boys. I thought 帅 stands for handsome, general and Chinese chess! But I couldn't find it online easily so decided to make it as a surprise for Sito. The boys were in on this and were supposed to help but in the end, guess who did all the work? 

I baked two cake layers on Thursday and froze it. On Sunday, I made the frosting and decorated the cake. Couldn't do cake piping so I searched high and low for red decor and found candy beads! Yang and Yu kaypoh added more candy beads to the bottom.

When Sito saw the cake, he wondered if he had missed a kid's birthday, haha! No la, the cake was for you, my dear!

The cake was yummy but the frosting was too sweet! Maybe try a different recipe next time...

Yang made a card for Papa - but couldn't explain why lonely Papa!

Yu made this in school - he pats his chest and says it's for here :)

My drawing of our little family - same hand and leg pattern coz lousy artist :p

And it's on recycled paper - it's got some stamps all over the other side hence the blackish hue. Yang and Yu wanted proper shoes instead of slippers. Yang said I could draw very well, hoho!

Sito changed his travel plans so he spent the last week of school holidays in Singapore, yeah! He took leave but had plenty of meetings anyway *.*

Yu discovered a drawing lesson at the back of a library book so they all started drawing!

Yu vs. Yang

Kai vs. Yang vs. Yu - written by Yu

Kai vs. Yang

And again coz competitive :p

Finally brought them to Bouncy Paradise on the last Friday of school holidays. I told them I'd bring them only after they were vaccinated. And we clashed with a student care trip - so many kids and so many pulled down their masks *.* But ok, so far no one got COVID!

Spot the boys!

He decided to bua butter on bread with his finger coz yummy

But I later discovered the wonders of whipped butter - way easier to spread! I whipped up a block for our BBQ on Saturday, and I have enjoyed spreading butter on bread easily for the past two days! 

Anyway, this was our second BBQ in five years... It was meant to end the June holidays with a bang. At first, it was also a birthday party but the birthday boy didn't want a cake that day.. Akan datang for birthday post...

What's on the grill?

Burgers!

Yu stuffed his mouth

The burgers were really yummy! I made the buns and patties that very morning, and Sito was the chef. Yang took the first burger, which was unfortunately ugly. He ate it over a long period of time so I didn't manage a picture. But Sito got the hang of it very soon so burgers looked wonderful too!

Lettuce for the adults; none for the kids :p

We also had salmon, pork sausages, chicken satay - must have all sorts of meat for BBQ! :p But we didn't manage to finish the sausages and fish. For vege, I prepared mini portobello mushrooms and Mum brought vege bee hoon and salads. I just realised I forgot to take a photo of all the food together :(

The kids had fun playing in the pools until the sun set and we got them out of the cold and changed their tops. They watched and played games while the rest were chatting until past 8 pm. Quite nice to chillax downstairs. Also a treat for the kids to stay up late. They all said they like BBQ!

Watch YeePo first, then complete takeover!!

On Sunday, the very last day of school holidays, Kai solved a 7-cube within an hour. He didn't read the instructions. Just used experience from his smaller cubes. We're all so proud of this boy!

Kai was also very happy with the cube :)

And so we're back in term time! Lots of cleaning this week coz I did only basic cleaning, i.e. toilets and floors and kitchen,  while the two were home. Hope the kids have a good term!

我们一起讲华语！

We went back to Chengzhu after four years, this time for a week of holiday class from 6 to 10 June. I didn't plan to cook those five days. So in the morning, it was mostly cleaning. As luck would have it, I fell ill at the end of day 1 - runny nose and cough and yellow phlegm kind of ill - so the remaining mornings were relatively free for me to rest after basic cleaning. Cooking and its preparation really takes a lot of time!

Lunch at Cali on day 1 - they're so cute!

Lucky I ordered the quesadillas which they ate. They had only the wings and carbs from the big platter. Yup, I ended up eating most of the platter *.*

I found that Kai was the only boy in his class of five. The only thing he mentioned about his classmates was that a P3 girl was about the same height as him. Ok, no complaints :p Yang's class has seven kids. Good gender mix.

Both said it was boring! :( I told them to make good use of the time anyway, just enjoy themselves while learning something...

I left them to poop at home while I fetched Yu and packed char siew noodles for them. And we had an early night :)

Lunch at Yayoi on day 2 - guess what's for lunch?

Yes, niku udon. Kai said this was better than Ichiban's but Yang did not think so. I didn't remember having this when we were regulars back when we stayed in Holland...

Kai had an excursion to the National Museum on day 2. Yang wished he could go too.... 

Dinner at Tori Go on day 2 - very happy!

Yu didn't want to go to Tori Go at first even though he kept mentioning it when we passed by on many mornings. He said he didn't like it when we went last time. This "last time" was three or four years ago! Anyway, I decided to stick to the plan.

When I went back to the table with drinks from their kiddy meals, Yu exclaimed, "Oh, I like Tori Go now!" Anything for apple juice?! When their bolognese came, they were happy with the garlic bread too. When they had the chicken wings, they also thought they were tasty. Success!

On day 3, we had Carl's Junior. Kai told me he wanted double cheeseburger. I didn't see it on the menu but the staff heard and said it was available for kids. But I wanted him to try something different so I ordered a regular burger for each of them. I had what Yang couldn't finish.

Jumping from one black square to another - their usual activity while waiting for 1.30 pm on those days

By Wednesday, they seemed to be enjoying their lessons. I was outside Kai's classroom. He saw me and waved me away. Later, he told me he was listening to the teacher :)

But that evening, Yang slipped and bumped his right brow against his bed, resulting in a big bump. He said he didn't want to go to Chengzhu anymore coz it was ugly! Had to reassure him that the bump would look better in the morning...

The bump did go down a lot by morning. But the spot of impact was still red and the bruise became visible. It wasn't too bad actually. He went to Chengzhu, phew!

We had pho for lunch. Yang disliked it less, haha! Dinner was a crowd pleaser though - Shi Li Fang! Kai was complaining about it before we started, as usual. He forgot he liked it last time. After a couple of shabu, he exclaimed his love for it *.* And I ordered more meat and rice. Note to self - no need to order fish next time coz they didn't like it.

Teacher sent a picture of the backdrop for Kai's performance

Source: Chengzhu

I took this picture outside Yang's classroom - they drew it on Wednesday

On the last day, we went to 18 Chefs for lunch. Really missed it after they left Bukit Panjang! Belly full, Kai and Yang then went into their classrooms confidently. Final performance! Drama and tongue twister. Kai practiced a lot on his own. I practised with Yang on evenings and mornings - luckily I didn't intend to cook!

Kai acted as an Indian merchant, an octopus and a pirate who fought against Raffles. Yang acted as a T-rex. The teachers sent us the performances by evening time. Both did so well! Yang missed out a line but it didn't affect the plot - he was a cute T-rex :p We all had a good time watching them! :)

Celebrate with Macs! Oops, didn't realise Yu's face was blocked :p

Yang's dino egg (balloon inside) before we dumped it

Kai got two balloons from his class. So hard to bring them all the way home. Had to keep them from throwing them everywhere, especially when crossing roads! Then, both burst within an hour of getting home *.*

I asked them about the camp as a whole. They said they didn't like it much but both would like to replay the drama at home. I think that's good enough :) Yang added that he was nervous about the performance and his ugly bruise. But practising helped him overcome his nerves about performing. Couldn't help about the bruise though, sighs.

I'm happy to hear them speak Mandarin this week and see the results of their efforts. But holiday programmes are rough on me. Last December, they went to Mountbatten for a week and I travelled back and forth as it was a full-day programme. This time, it was only 2.5 hours per day. I ended up squatting in Buona Vista, visiting Japan Home, Phoon Huat, supermarket and walking around many many times.

• Monday - drama with kopi at Killiney
• Tuesday - drama with coffee and cake at Cedele
• Wednesday - drama with Liho and some ants on a seat in the mall
• Thursday - ventured to Ghim Moh and had a very good body massage; slept so well that night
• Friday - a lovely buttery scent pulled me to Headless Bakers when I had too much pastry 

And I definitely ate too much! So I didn't get dinner for myself the whole week. Only Yang noticed on Friday when our burgers and nuggets arrived. "What are you having, Mama?" Whatever is left, my sweet boy...

Looking forward to the next two weeks of school holidays!