Singapore Botanic Garden

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Brandon and his friend Cheng Hoon

Jasmine, Cheng Hoon, Brittany, and Brandon at the Singapore Botanic Garden

This morning, Brandon and I took a cab to the Singapore Botanic Garden to meet Jasmine, Cheng Hoon, and her helper. I met Jasmine on an internet forum for expats.

The botanic garden was amazing! So beautiful and so peaceful. Brandon loved feeding and watching the fish, and he seemed to enjoy just looking around as we strolled through the garden. My favorite part of the garden was seeing all of the different types of ginger. There was an entire area of the garden just devoted to ginger. We are definitely going to have to go back to the garden a few more times. There was just too much to see. We missed the orchid exhibit this time, and I'm sure that is a must see.

It was nice getting to know Jasmine and watching Brandon play with Cheng Hoon. Jasmine has two older boys, one is eighteen and one is fourteen. Cheng Hoon was a bit of a surprise. Jasmine has lived in Singapore for a long time (I think ten years), but her husband lives in Taiwan for work. He comes here on a regular basis to see the family.

Jasmine gave me a ride home from the garden. It is so strange riding in a car with Brandon without his car seat. I put the seatbelt tight around both of us, and I hold on to him tightly, but it is really weird...

This afternoon, Brandon and I spent some time at the pool. Little Brandon wants to be a big boy so badly. There were some older boys playing with balls in the pool. Brandon wanted to play ball with them. He stared at them and tried to push me away. I guess I should get use to that.

:(

Brandon spent an hour walking around the pool chasing balls. The Japanese woman that I met last week was also down at the pool. She said that Brandon is a ball addict. She is so right!!!

Brandon is starting to run. He loves to be chased, so when he sees me coming, he takes off in the other direction very quickly. He keeps me busy!

This evening Brandon and I went to Borders for a bit, and then to dinner at Food Republic (food court) and the grocery. I was so excited to find Nestle 3-in-1 coffee packets at the grocery tonight! I loved these when I was in Romania, and you can't find them in the States. I can't wait to enjoy one tomorrow morning!

I was feeling a bit lonely, and I was missing home a little today. But, I talked to my mom, my mother-in-law, and a friend from home on Skype today and that helped.

I have another playdate with some women from the American Women's Association tomorrow. I am very thankful that it has been easy to meet up with people here. I really want Brandon to have other children to play with. He is so social, and he gets bored hanging out at home with just Mommy all day.

I hope that tonight is a better sleep night for us. Last night, Brandon cut another molar, and it was pretty rough. Poor, poor baby! Those teeth hurt!!!

Hiring Help

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Brandon and his new friend Giles.

I was really looking forward to our first playdate today! After dropping Steven off at the MRT and grabbing some breakfast, Brandon and I caught a cab and headed to our friends' house.

Elizabeth is from Sydney, Australia, but she and her family haven't lived there in a while. They left Australia a few years ago and moved to London. Her husband's family was there. After leaving London, they moved to Hong Kong and now they are here in Singapore.

We had such a nice time hanging out with Elizabeth and Giles. Brandon had a great time playing, and it was beneficial for me to talk to Elizabeth. She was able to give me so much helpful information for living here!

It was also nice to see Elizabeth's home. They live in an apartment complex that's in a more residential area, and it was beautiful! Since Elizabeth and her family have been in Singapore for a while and will be here for the forseeable future, they have an apartment that they have furnished themselves. It definitely felt like a home.

Later this afternoon, Brandon and I went back to the playground at the Forum (mall). So happy that I found this place yesterday! There were lots of other children playing there, and I met another very nice woman from Australia. I think that Brandon and I will use this playground often!

Best part of the day - Brandon and I took the MRT to meet Steven for a quick dinner. It was so nice to see him!!!

After talking to several people over the last week, I have learned that most expats here with children have hired help - (maybe all expats, even those without children). I have had four people in the last two days ask me when I'm getting my hired help. At first, I wasn't exactly sure about what this was. Basically, it is really cheap here to have a live-in nanny. Children call them "aunties". The helper does the laundry, the cleaning, the cooking, some/all of the childcare/babysitting, and whatever else you ask them to do. Our apartment has a small room in the back behind the kitchen. This room has a bathroom and the washer and dryer. I think that this room is intended to be where our hired help would live.

Not sure we could even get hired help if we wanted it. Most of the time the nannies want two year contracts. They need long term work.

This idea of hired help is so new to me, but it is just what people do here. Wild! I'm so use to taking care of everything myself, but it sure would be nice to have someone take care of all of the household chores for us... Speaking of which, I have some dishes to wash... :)

Same, Same, but Very Different

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The Ion Center on Orchard Road. This is where one near MRT (train) station is located.

Pink roses from my Mom and Dad. What a surprise today when I received a call that I had a delivery! The flowers just made

my day. Thanks, Mom and Dad!

I miss you and love you too!!!

So it's already Monday... We had such a great weekend, and it was extra hard to watch Steven go to work today. :(

After dropping Steven off at the train, Brandon and I went for our morning walk.

First stop was Borders. Brandon loves to play there! I took a ball with us, and he had a blast! He threw the ball, chased the ball, pulled books off of shelves, read books, and tried his best to run away from Mommy. Why is Mommy always following him and trying to keep him from having too much fun?

After Brandon was able to run some energy out, I didn't feel too bad putting him back in the stroller for a while. I needed to walk to the American Women's Association in order to submit my membership application and join. There are some playgroups through the assocation, and I'm hoping that we can attend one later this week.

I wanted to grab some lunch with Brandon before heading back, so we ducked into another mall. Before we could find food though, I saw a sign that said "playground". I can't tell you how excited I was! When I found the play area, I read that you had to be a member to play there. I was worried that it would be super expensive. They have Gymboree, the Little Gym, and some other kids' playrooms here, but they are soooo pricy! They cost from $250 - $400 for a session, which is maybe 8-10 classes. When I inquired about this new playground cost, the woman told me it was $10. Not too bad... Then, she told me that it was $10 for two years. Yay! I joined right away, and Brandon enjoyed a good hour of play there today.

This afternoon, Brandon and I took a cab to IKEA. Pretty much just like the IKEA back at home. A little more expensive than that one, but not much. I bought Brandon a couple of toys there.

So many things with our life here in Singapore are the same as they would be back home. We are developing a daily routine. Steven goes to work. Brandon has a few hours in the morning, then a midday nap, and then a few more good hours before bedtime. Brandon's sleeping at night is much better. It took about a week for the jetlag to work itself out.

I will get involved with friends and playgroups here, just like at home. (Although I will always miss my friends at home!!!)

However, there are some very big differences. The weather here is so different from the weather at home. We had to go from cold to very hot (and humid), and we are getting use to sweating. :) Really, it's not been too bad yet, but I've heard that it gets much hotter here soon. Hot, humid, and no breeze. Yikes!

While we came from a big city, we are now living more in the heart of a big city. We are also living in a high rise, which is new for us. Before now, we were use to taking trains, and cabs, but we have never had to rely on them. Here, we have no cars. We either have to walk, take the train or bus, or take a cab. I miss the comfort of my car, mainly when it comes to the shopping. But, I'm really enjoying all of the walking that I'm doing.

We are missing our television shows back home. Right now, tv can't be relied on for as much entertainment. (This is probably a good thing for us, but what is happening on American Idol and Lost???) Jeremy, if you are reading this, we are waiting for your Slingbox!

It has been really nice having maid service here. It felt so good to come home this morning to clean towells and a freshly made bed. I was also asked today if I will be hiring help. I was told that many people here have live-in nannies. It is supposedly very cheap. Don't play on hiring help at this point, although a babysitter once in a while would be nice. :)

Tomorrow I have a playdate with a woman that I met last week. I am really looking forward to it!

Brandon has been asleep for a while, so I better get some rest too. Goodnight all!

Easter Sunday

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Orangutans being led by hand through zoo

Brandon admiring the crocodilian

Steven and Brandon in front of white tiger

Mommy baboon nursing baby

Brandon enjoying his chocolate bunny!

Happy Easter!

This morning Steven was up early. He was able to watch the Final Four live on the internet. It was strange having the basketball games on so early in the morning!

It was raining this morning, so we decided to take a cab to St. Bernadette for Easter Mass. The church was pretty crowded. Not sure if it is always like that, or if it was just because it was Easter. We were comfortable there. Catholicism is like the McDonalds of religions. There might be local twists, but the main courses are the same everywhere.

After mass, we walked across the street to the Great World City (another mall...) for lunch, and then we headed home for Brandon's nap.

By the afternoon, the rain had stopped, but it was still overcast. We decided that it was the perfect day to visit the Singapore Zoo. It wasn't too hot or sunny to be outside for a while, and we thought that Brandon would enjoy it. I actually enjoy when it rains and is a bit overcast here. It really cools things off - probably to the low 80's. :)

The zoo was awesome! It was more natural and less sad than zoos that we've seen in the States. We didn't feel like we were walking from exhibit, to exhibit, to exhibit or from cage, to cage, to cage. It just felt like a big tropical forest with lots of different animals. Brandon loved the otters, the baboons, the giraffes, and the zebras. I think he loved those particular animals because they were active, and he was able to watch them move.

We grabbed a cab out of the zoo and headed back to Orchard Road for dinner. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, you can't always trust a cab driver to know directions to where you want to go. Tonight, we actually had every intention of trying something new for dinner. However, our cab driver made a couple of wrong turns and ended up dropping us off a little away from where we had intended. We were tired and didn't quite have the energy to search around for food, so we ended up eating where the cab dropped us - Hard Rock Cafe Singapore. :)

Great weekend, but we are exhausted! Oh, and I can't forget to mention that Brandon really liked the chocolate bunny that the Easter bunny brought. So did we.

Looking forward to starting our second week in Singapore!

Saturday

Top two pictures - Brandon enjoying

a water fountain at a children's play area

Bottom picture - Chinatown, view of city in background

Brandon's sleep schedule is finally getting back to somewhat normal. Last night he was only up twice, and he slept until 7 am. So much better for Mommy and Daddy!

Steven didn't have much work today, so we were able to spend most of the day together. We decided to get on the train and just go.

Our first stop was Chinatown. We didn't spend much time there today though. It was really hot for us and Brandon, and it looked like a place where we would be doing a lot of walking outside. We'll for sure have to go back there another time, probably a bit earlier or later in the day!

We left Chinatown and headed for VivoCity (another big mall...) at the Harborfront area of town. We grabbed some lunch there and found a nice children's play area. There were some fountains spraying water, and children were splashing around on the ground. Brandon was very interested in checking this out, so we let him go for it! Within a minute, he was having a blast and soaked. Good thing Mommy still had an extra change of clothes in her bag!

Brandon was so exhausted from the fun that he fell asleep in the stroller on the way home.

Later in the afternoon, the three of us explored Orchard Road some more. We ate dinner at a delicious Chinese restaurant called "Din Tai Fung". We had noodles and chicken in a broth and some amazing pork dumplings. We decided to also grab some ice cream on the way back, so we stopped at the Somerset MRT station area. I enjoyed a green tea tiramisu. It was definitely interesting. The top was dusted with a green tea powder, which was honestly horrible. Very strong flavor. Everything underneath the powder was delicious though, and the powder wasn't as bad once it dissolved in your mouth. It was edible, and I didn't let it go to waste. Brandon and I also shared some cinnamon ice cream, while Steven had his usual - the standard vanilla cone. Go Steven!

We are enjoying the weekend and looking forward to celebrating Easter in Singapore! (Oh, by the way, I've gotta get going because the Easter bunny needs to bring Brandon his little chocolate bunny!)

Good Friday

Good Friday is a national holiday in Singapore, but Steven still had some work to do. Fortunately, though, he was able to take his time getting into work. It was so nice to be able to enjoy a nice walk and breakfast together in the morning.

I heard that there was a free kids' play area in one of the malls, so I headed there after walking Steven to the train to investigate. When we found the play area, Brandon and I were both in Heaven. It was so nice to have a place to let Brandon run around, and there were lots of other kids!

Brandon met another little friend while he was playing this morning. The boy and his mother were from Australia, and we are going to get together for a playdate next Tuesday. I am so happy that I am meeting such nice people here!

I am learning a little more about Singapore each day. For example, while there is a law that kids must be in a booster seat until 8 years old, it is not really enforced. Jwalking is also not something that police take the time to worry about. However, chewing gum is illegal, as well as fake guns. I'm pretty sure that both of those are enforced. I'm glad that I didn't pack Brandon a water gun for the trip! :)

You also can't expect a taxi driver to know the directions to your destination. I was told that you need to make sure you know how to get where you are going. The cab driver merely escorts you there.

As I mentioned before, I am finding Singapore to be pretty expensive. The woman I met from Australia told me that they bought the cheapest car they could here for about $45,000 U.S. dollars. The same car in Australia is $20,000! The interest rates on loans here are lower, like maybe 2-something %, but still!!!

Brandon and I tried a new bakery this afternoon. The bread was super soft and delicious!

It's a short blog tonight as Steven got home from work at 8 pm! Yay! Looking forward to having him around some this weekend.

Happy Good Friday!

Getting to Know Singapore

Brandon and I have been exploring Singapore again today. I was feeling pretty homesick this morning, so it was nice to again walk Steven to the MRT station and get out of the house.

Orchard Road really is like Michigan Avenue. Shops, shops, shops. Malls, malls, malls. While there are many shops here that we don't have back home, so many of them are familiar to me. Starbucks, McDonald's, California Pizza Kitchen, the Gap, BCBG, etc. I don't think that all of Singapore is like this. I am curious to explore neighborhoods other than our own soon.

The American Embassy here has a women's association, so after leaving Steven we walked there for more information. I am waiting to hear back from the woman in charge of children's playgroups. If there are playgroups offered for Brandon, then I will probably join.

I was on a mission today to meet other moms. It is really hard and exhausting to make the effort, especially on two hours of sleep. However, I know that this adventure will be what I make of it, and I also know that I could be very miserable if I'm not proactive. These first three days have been hard. I don't want to do six months of the same.

As I said, Orchard Road has many of the same stores we have in America. So, I was hopeful that Brandon would enjoy playing in the children's book section of Singapore's Borders as much as he likes the one at home. When we walked into the children's section, I had to chuckle to myself. The carpet was the same exact carpet at our home Borders. That made me feel a little better.

I met a nice mom at Borders whose son is 10 months old. She was so nice, and we exchanged contact info. We are planning to do a playdate over at her house on Monday afternoon with some of her friends. So nice! It also relieved me to see Brandon playing with other kids. He is so social, and I know he really misses his friends at home. Brandon gave his new friend, Federico, a big hug before we left. :)

Later in the afternoon, we walked to another mall. We were told that there were places for kids to play there. It was just okay. There was one Gymboree type place there. They have classes for the kids and some open play time. The only problem I am finding is that things are soooo expensive here! Based on the prices I've been looking at in stores, items that we can get in the U.S. are almost 3 times more expensive here. So much for buying Brandon quite a few toys here... I do need some indoor play activities for Brandon. It is very hot outside. Today was the hottest day since we've been here. Not sure what the temperature was. Don't think I even want to know.

I am talking to many people that I see with kids on the streets. Most of them are expats. I am amazed at how many people have come so far to live here for work and at how long they stay. Many people I have talked to have been here for years or are staying for years. I also met a family today who has been here for four weeks for the birth of their child. They are from Holland, live in Vietnam, and came to Singapore to have their second baby. The medical care here is much better than that of surrounding countries.

Brandon and I had a really nice ending to our day. I took him to the pool and to see the tennis courts in our building. Three older boys were playing tennis, and I knew that Brandon would be thrilled to see "balls". The boy's mother was there with them, and she was so friendly. They just moved here from Tokyo, and they will be here for three years. The mother loved Brandon and gave him their beach ball. He was in Heaven! I am so thankful to have met some nice people today. This particular woman even called me this evening to ask me if I need anything since she was making a trip to the grocery. How wonderful!

New things from Brandon - His new word is "more". He also told me "Ma Ba" today. He wanted me to play pass with his ball. Brandon is also enjoying the furniture we have here. The couches are a little lower than our couches at home, and Brandon is able to climb up onto the couch all by himself. Now, we have to worry about him falling off of the couch. We've had to place pillows on the ground to cushion him when he climbs/falls off. Brandon is also pushing the kitchen table chairs around.

Brandon just went to bed, so I think I'm off to bed in a few minutes. I am doing so much walking, talking, and thinking, and I am exhausted! Until next time!