This morning Brandon and I took a cab to Plaza Singapura with Jo. Plaza Singapura is a mall located at the Dhoby Ghaut MRT station. It's so hard for me to do much shopping with Brandon, and Jo offered to go with me.
There is a store at Plaza Singapura where everything costs SGD$2. It's like the dollar stores in the U.S. I loved this store! I bought several items, including two wine glasses, Ziploc bags, refridgerator magnets, an elephant watering can for Brandon, and, of course, another ball for Brandon. Jo was so helpful. She took Brandon out of the store and entertained him while I shopped. She was also great company. We had lunch at the mall.
There is also a department/grocery store at Plaza Singapura called Carrefour. I bought Brandon some generic Croc sandles. The sandles that I bought back home are still too big for him. I also bought Brandon a toy rotary dial telephone. He loves talking on the phone, so I figured he might leave our phone alone if he has his own. (Yeah, right!) I also broke down and bought Brandon another Playskool Busy Ball Popper. (See video.) It's the same one that Grandma D got Brandon for his first birthday. It was his favorite toy at home, and we couldn't bring it with us. At home, the toy probably costs around $20. Here, I've seen it for about $45. Today, I saw it on sale for $30. I called Steven about it, and we both thought that it was worth the money. I waited until after Brandon's nap to open it. He went wild when he saw the box. "Ball. Ball. Ball." I've gotta say that I was a little disappointed though. Brandon liked the toy, but he didn't seem as into it as he was at home. That's how it goes though, right? I'm thinking that he will play with it more later. He goes through all of his toys when we spend time at home.
This afternoon, my friend Wendy came over for a playdate. I realized that this is the first time we have had someone over since we've lived here. It was really nice. Brandon and Sophia played together and fought over toys. They were both screaming and having a little trouble with the idea of sharing.
This evening I put some pictures on the refridgerator with my new magnets. Something little that makes this feel a little more like home...
Mr. Brandon is learning how to scream and make noise when he doesn't get what he wants. He use to just point at what he wanted. Now, he points and grunts and/or screams. He is still a very, very happy boy. But, he is learning more and more each day that he has his own mind and his own will. Isn't this not suppose to happen until Brandon is 2 years old? :)
