Master Chef Sito & Junior!

Before exams, I was chatting with Yang and/or Yu at bedtime when we decided to open our own breakfast cafes. So the kids dreamt up their cafe names and (much later) wrote their menus. I also had my own cafe :) 

When we had more time in the holidays, they took orders from everyone one day, and one fine week, we finally opened our doors!

Mama went first on Monday, 4 Dec - as a demo but these kids were too busy playing *.* Anyway, my 小妈妈餐室 served up scrambled eggs and omelette on toast for all of us :)

Kai's Delicious Food Cafe opened on Tuesday. His was Yakun style breakfast only. Everyone had kaya butter toast.

Must make angry face

Yang's Sunrise Cafe started operations on Thursday. But the kitchen opened a bit on Wednesday as he served up egg mayonnaise in addition to scrambled eggs and omelette on toast.

Happily beating eggs

He made jolly nice scrabbled eggs!

Yu's Eggs R Us ended the breakfast series on Friday. He lost one egg when he cracked it too hard! And he was just tall enough for the stove plus he found it a bit hot so sous-chef aka Mama helped a lot... He served up similar fare as Yang.

Pushed a bit and... too hot!

Papa and Mama rated the breakfast, and Yang scored 18.5 out of 20 vs. 17 for Kai and Yu! He won himself the first Master Chef Sito Junior title! And a whole bottle of Mentos candies while his brothers had a lollipop each.

Ok that was a very filling week, full of toast and eggs haha! And after that, we started having kaya butter toast quite a bit coz must use up the kaya! Yu didn't like it as much (Yakun better) so he had cheese on toast.

But we're not done yet! The following week, Master Chef Sito made radish cake! He used the radish I used for soup - no waste! And it turned out fabulous!

Happily panfrying Chinese sausage, dried shrimps and a fat scallop

The steamed version with homemade sauce

And we panfried it for dinner!

Actually, we cooked very little during school holidays. Most of the time, we pack or eat out. And we eat a lot when we eat out *.* Don't dare to weigh myself!

14 years since our last proper dance

We have known each other since 19yo, i.e. 24 years. That's more than half our life already.

We have been married for 14 years. That's more than the time we know each other.

We have not danced to a full song since 14 years ago, when we danced at our wedding :p

These days, we just sit around, eating :p

Kids too, eat and drink

Since last year, we have been spending this day with the kids. Quite nice since they're bigger now and can enjoy some of what we enjoy - like BBQ! Also must take every chance to tell them that 没有这天就没有他们！Haha!

Kids, daaash!

Kai and Yang went for the StanChart Kids Dash when they were 3yo. But I forgot to register for Yu when he turned 3yo - tickets were sold out by the time I remembered, oops... And that happened to be 2019, the last time the event was held and physically, no thanks to COVID.

So this year when the event was to be held properly once more, I made sure I registered in time, and this time for all three of them! And I kept their school shoes for this day - dumped all this morning!

On our way for an early dinner yesterday

Actually, I just wanted to show the back of their tee :p I was rather upset on Thursday when I collected the race packs, as the tees were all quite small. I followed the sizing at registration and measured their chest size. Don't remember there being age recommendations. Then when I saw the tees, Kai's was for 5-6yo!! 

I managed to exchange Yu's for a slightly bigger one. Kai and Yang just had to make do as there were no bigger sizes to change for. I guess better than nothing coz I remember last time, there was no exchange booth at all.

Canton Paradise!

Yu was so busy 埋头苦干开心吃-ing that he didn't pose for the shot! 

We had wanted to check out the new mall which opened yesterday but Yu had to poop for a long time right before leaving the house so we had to head for dinner first to avoid running on a full belly later. So we came back after dinner to check out the mall - not all shops were ready yet but it looks quite nice! Looking forward to full opening...

Standing in front of spanking new mall

All ready to dash!

We had bibs too

I even wore my old Ekiden tee from 2013 - 10 years ago! - and my running shoes. But nope, didn't intend to run and didn't run :p 

Sorry, Yu had to tiptoe coz I forgot the selfie stick!

There was a very nice carnival inside, with music, games and snacks. So we were quite occupied while waiting for our turn. Kai could go in with his brothers instead of waiting for his age group. 

But when we came out, we had to show the parent's bib corresponding to Kai - I didn't see this in the guidelines and FAQ at all. We flashed our family photo. There were kids in a pen waiting for their parents to pick them up with the parent's bib, macam animals in cage *.*

Peanut butter ice cream which mostly landed in Papa's belly, while queueing for popcorn

Anyway, we set off with the boys. In the past two times, only I went with the runner as it was - and still is - one accompanying parent per child but this time, we had more kids participating! Sito went ahead with them but as it was a U-turn, I turned early - went under a loop barrier to wait for them :p I totally missed Kai and spotted only Yang; Yu spotted me.

All done and got a medal each!

Macam playing pub game, with drink in hand!

Besides the medal, the kids were given snacks and drinks at the end of their run. The boys decided to play more games after their run. There were so many game booths!

Last ones to go for basketball as the booth was closing - do together!

They also got the very last cotton candy so must share

Bye! We had fun!

This is probably the last Kids Dash for us. Glad it was a fun one!

Go go go!

The kids went for a 围棋 weiqi mini camp on Monday to Wednesday. Just an hour each day at Ulu Pandan CC so Sito and I stayed in the CC to wait for them. We only walked around the market area on day one to check out dinner options. Needless to say, we had dinner there for three days - happy :)

Also needless to say, there was whining coz they "lost out" on TV and Nintendo. But these days, they have been wanting to play the game on the iPad... We are also looking at getting a physical set for them.

Kai vs. Papa

Now I'm the only one in the family who could not play weiqi. In fact, I'm also the only one who could not play international chess :p I can't tell the chess pieces apart *.* 

But I think I can learn weiqi. Then I can be like a 古人 in the dramas, playing weiqi and holding the seed, thinking... Haha!!

Our little living room

We started having movie nights on Friday in our old place. This continues today, but with way more snacks as we now store snacks within easy reach. And with them captivated by the TV, we sometimes hop out for date nights on movie nights :p Usually downstairs but also as far as Sheng Siong one MRT station away.

Bye bye! Have fun!

That was taken from the corridor outside. Made them open the window for better ventilation. Grilles are all locked. Told them to stay in, not to respond to strangers, not to open door, and just ignore the "haunties" - aunties who walk to and fro and peek in at our place!

They had to eat messy snacks on the floor coz the sofa is not modular - whatever drops in, stays in!

Yes, we had fun in the form of a very nice waffle downstairs!

Our living room is smaller than in the old house. We figure we don't invite guests over much so there's no need for more space than the five of us need, and it's better to have guests in the dining area than in front of TV?? So I also like to call it our family room.

The TV cabinet is also much smaller so we have less storage for toys. Buy less, haha! But we moved here with a lot so some toys go into their bedroom cabinets. There is still ample circulation space. We can all fit on the floor to play games. 

Giant colouring sheet 

Best of all, there is enough sofa space for all of us! The old three-seater in the old house was too squeezy for us so now, we have three one-seater for the kids, and a love seat for us. Three months in, Yu's sofa is very flat thanks to him standing and bouncing on it. Yang's still feeling good. Kai's is in between. Feels like the three bears in the fairy tale :p

Just last week, Yu puked suddenly and he didn't make it to the toilet. So his sofa had some puke stain. Yang's next to him also suffered a bit, sighs.

Anyway, we spend quite a bit of time in this room, reading, watching TV, and playing electronic or physical games. Sometimes, we just goof around.

Like Yu who happily wore a jacket and rolled around - it was meant for his learning journey the next day

Oh yes, we have decorated our walls, finally! The living room wall carries our memories - some 40-50 photos from our wedding to now! A giraffe height chart is outside Yu's room. I even found the same world map decal we had in the dining room of our old house, to place in our dining room.

Sito writing in names of key cities in Asia - coz the kids know more African countries *.*

I wanted to make a house tour video but honestly, I don't have the skills... So maybe I'll start with this, and add on other rooms later...

Final Legoland trip?

Our annual passes expire in December/January. Next year is Kai's PSLE year, so we thought we would go for a nice trip at the end of the year instead of heading to Legoland every term break. It's not just the kids who 舍不得 but I guess we should go for new experiences?

Day 1, 22 November, Wednesday

Departing for Legoland from Holland again, just like our first trip back in 2017! Traffic was smooth so we got there just after the opening show.

Finally a nice family shot! Ex but I think worth it

It was pleasantly not crowded at all! We took our time to put our suitcase in the locker and went to the toilet before going for the rides. No need to queue most of the time. Kai and Yang took the VR ride some six or seven times in a row! Even Burger Junction had plenty of seats. Just post a few photos this time.

I need to find earlier shots of this boy with the ninjas!

Watching a new 4D show, Dreamzz

Finally just Sito and me on Ninjago! Yu is big enough to be with his brothers, no adults!

And Yu takes four out of five!!

Before this, he was first with Sito in second place, Then he went on to beat Papa again and again until some guy beat him. He got high scores consistently. Sito said his arms were at the right height for the sensor :p

Back to Mindstorms - think we went only once before in a previous trip

They joined in before/after VR

We left Legoland later than usual. Bought water and buns at the supermarket and unpacked our stuff a bit to get things ready for bedtime before grabbing a ride to Aeon.

Dinner must be at Vivo Pizza coz of their Vivo Day every Wednesday! We kept eating the same stuff from their menu but those were really good!

Somehow, this one must also nua on Papa here, this time reading the bill

Massage followed :) The kids got to play phone games while we refreshed our poor legs, nice :) Then we had dessert at Blackball before going back to the apartment.

Three monkeys slept together - so cute!

Day 2, 23 November, Thursday

So happy that it was sunny! Time for water park!

We went round the lazy river maybe six times?!

Yang and Yu were happily building rafts and floated or swam with them instead of using the big floats. I had to keep up sometimes and wait sometimes... 

Also queued for the family raft, and spent some time in the wave pool and joker slides. But only Yu was game enough to go for the mat racer this time, while his brothers played in the wave pool. The guard encouraged me to go but no way!

So brave, my boy!

Then I chased after him to help him carry the mat up the stairs. I did that twice, and I think that was the cause for my super painful calves the next day! Weak :p

Lunch was at Tian Lai again but another branch between Legoland and Aeon. Same price, same good food, less (not no) flies despite the aircon.

Next was Paradigm Mall. Bought clothes and underwear for the kids. Kai did rock climbing while his brothers went to the arcade. All had fun!

So high up!

Dinner was Sushi King. Sito and I were not hungry at all but the kids were ready to eat. And as it turned out, the youngest ate the most! I had one plate and Sito had two, with Yang taking half of one of his two!

Happy!

At first, they were not so happy coz there was no tamago and no kappa maki. But when the mini bowls of curry rice and gyudon and udon arrived, all were happy :)

Later, Sito and I packed some noodles and Guilinggao to eat back at the apartment. Super satisfied :)

Day 3, 24 November, Friday

It was a busier day, queues almost everywhere. So we didn't do much, just ran about and did whatever was easy. 

Despite the crowds, the cafe at the supermarket was not as crowded as the last trip. Kai had steak, his brothers spaghetti bolognese, Sito schnitzel and I schnitzel wrap. Yu had to poop in the apartment after finishing his lunch, so I sent him back. Spent some time in the aquarium after that before returning to Legoland.

Sweet smile on this boy :)

Monkey smiles on these two

Parents vs. kids as firemen!

Lost but still happy to compete with us!

Yang enjoyed the robotics at Mindstorms :)

Actually the photo was a re-enactment as Sito didn't take photos during the session *.* We signed Kai up as well but he gave up shortly coz he found it difficult *.*

Must pose with Einstein like I used to pose with Confucious

Familiar shot? We did one pre-COVID!

Now, Miniland is all sheltered. My tripod came in useful too! Totally worth lugging it all over the place!

Since it was crowded, we left early. Sito brought water and buns back to the apartment while we waited at Medini Mall for him. Else the kids would be stuck playing games and we had to nag them to move again...

Dinner was Korean BBQ!

Free ice cream but only the parents had them

Kids had Baskin Robbins ice cream - so did Papa!

Plus a bandung drink!

Then we had another massage :) It was raining a bit so it was quite nice to huddle up and enjoy a massage to the sound of the rain... Just nice used up our credits since we don't know when we would return...

Day 4, 25 November, Saturday

Nothing much - just bought some candy at the supermarket as usual before going into Legoland. Didn't have much time but Yang managed to convince Yu to take the Lost Kingdom Adventure ride!

And he liked it!

Didn't even need me to sit with him after the first round *.* But none of us did very well with the shooting haha!

We said bye bye to Legoland just before exiting. Will we be back??

Another thing we miss, or the parents would, was the bakery at the supermarket. Bought RM75 worth of buns and cake before leaving - their bakes were so nice! We had them for our breakfast and tea these few days. Now we only have a pound cake left, sighs...

I showed Yang and Yu my post for the last trip this morning before asking them to write their own journal. Super cute. Now I know what Kai and Yang were doing on the VR ride on Wednesday - trying it opening and closing their eyes! Yu seemed to enjoy the BBQ more than Yang. As it was busy this morning with the aircon installer checking a leak in Kai's room which turned out to be from our room, I'll read their journal again with them tomorrow :)