Hammer time!

Last Saturday,  one of my to do lists was to fix the drawer of our computer table which needed several nails to keep it in place.  I got the tools and started hammering one nail when Sarah came in the room to find out what the noise was all about.  She immediately asked for the hammer to try it herself.  I read an article recently saying let the kids use actual knives and hammers (with supervision of course!) so I grabbed the opportunity, eager to see how it will pan out.

She nailed it! (pun intended)

My 3.5 year old monkey initially insisted I hold the nail while she hammers.  I said no and showed her how to do it all on her own.  These videos are the result.

World Cup fever at the office

Last Friday afternoon, our division organized a World Cup pre-finals get-together.  Most wore Germany shirts, a very obvious choice of which team most of us were supporting.  We had a group photo in front of the company logo, then a World Cup quiz followed by KFC snack boxes for tea break.

Clockwise from top left: walking to the company logo; Mi Mi and I in a meeting; German fans at the lobby; Ewe Chhong, Boon Hong, Mi Mi, Mei Li and me

World cup quiz and KFC snack boxes for everyone

Our division photo shoot by the company logo.  I'm in the center front row, holding the edge of the Germany flag.

Mariel's 1st brithday party

Early this month, we attended our neighbor's daughter's 1st birthday party with a ballerina theme.  Sarah was so excited to wear her ballerina tutu dress and matching stockings.

The birthday girl, Mariel, with pretty mom Ella.

Left: Sarah with Raine.  Right: Sarah's shoe slipped away during the Stop Dance contest.  She was the second best Stop Dance ballerina, losing to the slightly older girl.  Next time, we'll practice more haha

From top left: all the little ballerinas at the start of the Stop Dance contest; singing the happy Birthday song; seesaw fun with Raine

Sarah's 3.5 year update

She's growing fast, I need to document these moments so I don't forget her jolly antics.

Sarah singing Frozen's Let It Go while strumming the guitar.  She's left handed, cool!

Playing with our lone hamster, Ping.  Side story: The other hamster, Pong, unfortunately died.  Pong escaped twice, jumping pretty high from where the cage was and most likely sustained internal injuries.  RIP Pong.

One of our Fridates, at Gurney Plaza.

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Favorite days are Saturday and Sunday - when Mama has no office!
Playing houses, with stuffed toys she calls her kids.
So into dancing and singing. With gusto! Very loud. In and out of the house.
Helping bake goodies.  In charge of mixing with the manual whisk and tasting the batter. 
Scooter has been her thing for the past months.  Her bike's accumulating dust with little to no attention from the little girl.
She doesn't want to turn to 4 or 5 years old, wants to be 3 years old forever!
Calls her cousin Sofi, her sister :) 
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Like millions of girls all over, my Sarah was also sooo into everything Frozen.  I've lost count how many times she has watched the movie, and played the characters with matching costumes to boot.  Nowadays, she's Princess Aurora, after the Maleficient movie.  A few instances when strangers ask her name, she would even say her name is Aurora!  The past couple of weeks has seen a (slight!) decline of the Princess Aurora thing, thank goodness.  But with how little girls are, that's only till there's a new princess to latch on to!
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She doesn't like being taught Filipino words.  Conversations will run something like this:
Me:  "Sarah, eyes in Filipino is mata. Eyes, mata."
Sarah:  "No, I don't want mata.  I don't like to say mata."
Replace mata with other words like ilong (nose), buhok (hair), paa (feet), uwi (go home), tulog (sleep), kain (eat), ligo (take bath), etc and you get the same response from her.  But as long as she's repeating the Filipino words, even if she says she doesn't like it, it'll stay in her memory bank :)

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When I have lunch meetings and I inform her I'll be seeing her only in the evenings, Sarah will say:

​"Mama, don't be late. Don't do too much work ok?"  OR
"No, I want my mama.  I want mama to stay in my house forever and ever.  I love my mama very much."

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Talking about the simplest difference between planets and stars.​
R​avi: ​Stars have light on its own.  Planets do not have light, Earth does not give off light.
Sarah: Daddy, we have light in our home!  :)

Durians (and mangosteens) of Penang

 
Durian, the king of fruits, is an acquired taste.  Honestly, it was not love at first bite for me when I first tasted the bittersweet, creamy durian flesh back in 2003.  After I moved to Penang in 2007, I couldn't not give it another go.  My husband and stepkids are crazy about the fruit.  They would buy several kilos in one go, finish it at home and go back for more the following weekend!  After tasting different varieties, I gradually fell in love with it too.

Durian comes from the word “duri” which translates as thorn in the Bahasa Malaysia language.  The Penang durian season starts at May, peaks on June and July, and tail ends at August.  They say plantations around Balik Pulau, Pantai Aceh and Teluk Bahang produce some of the best durians in the country.  The fruit is categorized according to different grades depending on their taste, color, texture and aroma.  Famous varieties include Musang King, Red Prawn, Ang Heh, Hor Lor, D604, etc. 

Mangosteen season coincides with durian.  People who buy durian almost always buy mangosteen too. The recent ones we've bought were very sweet and juicy.  These two fruits are a good pairing for an afternoon snack.

Haze, haze go away

Haze season is here once again. 

The haze originates from Central Sumatra, Indonesia and spreads to both Malaysia and Singapore.  Land clearing and 'slash and burn' practices in Indonesia are the main culprits of the smoky cross border haze.

It's a problem that's getting worse each year. 

More than reducing visibility, the health effects of haze includes eye irritation, runny and/or stuffy nose, dry and/or sore throat and coughing to name a few.

Easy and simple precautions include avoiding outdoor activities, closing all windows and doors, drinking more water and increasing intake of fruits and veggies.

Malaysians can get the official Air Pollutant Index (API) from the Department of Environment.  

Before and after shots of the view from our apartment. That's how bad the haze was/is.

There was a respite for a few days of rain, thank goodness.

Night routines

Monday evening after work, Sarah and I had our evening walk at the lake side.  She happily chattered away as we walk along the path.  There was heavy rain that afternoon providing a nice crisp weather perfect for a walk.

It was quite windy and chilly outside.

 After I brushed her teeth, Sarah would insist on brushing my teeth!  She pretends she's the mama and I'm the small girl :)

The little mama brushing my teeth! :)

These are things I will cherish as time passes by.  She's growing up so fast, I want to capture as much as I can.