AWA

This morning, Brandon and I met the AWA playgroup at The Coffee Club at the Forum. This week there were some new moms there, and it was so nice to meet them and their little ones. It's such a small world... One of the moms there today knows the mom who lives one floor below us. The three of us are going to get together next week for breakfast.

After hanging out at The Coffee Club, some of us went up to the play area in the mall. I am so thankful for that place! Brandon loves it!

This afternoon, Brandon and I spent some time at the pool. I think he actually likes his life vest now. Before we left to go down to the pool, he handed me the life vest to put it on him. There were more kids down at the pool today. One little girl had a ball with her. Brandon was eyeing that ball down! The girl was so nice; she shared her ball with Brandon. He was so happy!

Great end to the day - Brandon and I took the train down to meet Steven for dinner again. So nice to have that time with him.

Oops! I forgot to take any pictures today! First day since we've been here... Oh, well. Got a good video. Brandon is taking more of an interest in little cars. Vroom vroom!

Little India

Pictures -

Little India

Brandon in his new life jacket. He loves it! :)

This morning our lives were changed. Steven's brother hooked up a Slingbox for us at his house, and now we can watch American television! Thank you soooo much, Jer! We have set up a couple of season passes on the Tivo, and we can't wait to watch our shows. The only shows we have been able to keep up with here are American Idol and Glee. We never had the chance to watch Glee at home, but now I am addicted!

Today, Brandon and I didn't have any playdate plans, so when we walked Steven to the MRT we decided to get on the train too. We took the red line with Steven for one stop, and then we switched to the purple line for one stop. We got off at the Little India stop.

Little India was definitely different than the other parts of Singapore that we've seen. It was clean, but it didn't seem as clean as some other parts of the city. While I did see one mall, most of the shopping was markets (food, clothes, etc.). Many little stores were selling produce, and the prices were better than in the big grocery stores I've visited. There were clothing stands and souvenir stands. I didn't buy anything, but I was wondering if Little India is a place where you can negotiate prices. I'll have to find out.

There were so many food stands, and even though it was a bit before lunch I wanted to try something tasty. But, I'm going to be honest. There were some good smells and some bad smells, and overall nothing smelled very appetizing. I really wanted to be brave and just order something and try it, but I couldn't do it. Maybe next time. It's funny. I might have done better if Steven had been with us. While Steven is the pickier eater, he is often the one who is more willing to try something. I did stop at a juice stand and get a apple-beet-carrot juice. It was tasty, but a little to beety for me. At least I tried something, right?

Brandon got up a little too early this morning, and he crashed in the stroller a couple of hours before when he normally takes his nap. He woke up when we got back on the MRT, so I decided to stay out and go to the Paragon on Orchard Road so he could play.

On the way to the Paragon, I stopped at 7-Eleven and got my cell phone hooked up. Yay! Now I have a phone!

When we got to the Paragon, Brandon and I ran into two moms and babies that we had met on Monday. They were having coffee and asked us to join. Such a nice surprise for our day! They met each other in Singapore, but they are both from South Africa.

After letting Brandon run some energy out at the mall, we headed to Toys-R-Us. I bought Brandon a life jacket since he has been so crazy at the pool lately. I also bought him an alpahbet floor mat and a generic Lego toy that was on sale. Trying to get a few things for the apartment that make it feel more like home to Brandon.

This evening Brandon and I went down to the pool before bedtime. Brandon was not a fan of his new life vest when I first put it on! But, once we got down to the pool, it didn't seem to bother him. And, the vest was great. Even though I still followed Brandon around the whole time, it helped me relax. You know - just in case. There were a couple of other families at the pool tonight, and Brandon was mesmerized. He loves other people, especially other kids. He just kept waving at everyone. It was so cute!!!

New Neighbor

Pictures -

Housework and Snacktime!

This morning, Steven, Brandon, and I walked to the Great World City mall. We hung out there for a bit before Steven headed to work. I bought a cell phone yesterday, and I wanted to buy the Sim card for the phone at Singtel. I'm going to just buy calling cards for the phone as I need them. I forgot my passport though this morning so I was unable to get my phone up and running. You have to have a passport here to get a cell phone, and if you want to sign a long term phone contract, then you have to show your work pass. Singtel is like America's AT&T. Right now, they are the only phone company in Singapore that carries the iPhone. Oh, the iPhone... So tempting...

We also decided to walk to the Great World City because I was planning on meeting some other moms at a coffee shop there. A mom that I met last Friday at the playgroup invited me. Brandon was up at 7 am this morning, so 11:30 was a horrible time for us to meet at a restaurant. I knew that he would be fussy, but I really wanted to get to know other moms. I decided to go and just leave if I needed to. I was able to enjoy a quick coffee, but then as suspected I had to head home. I know that many people wouldn't understand why I don't just want Brandon to nap in his stroller while I am out. Sometimes this is fine, but I really like to be home for Brandon's nap. 1) Brandon sleeps better in his crib and 2) It's the only hour and a half of my day that I have time to myself.

While I was a little flustered and out of sorts at the coffee shop, I am glad that I went for a while. I met some really nice moms, one of which just happens to live in our apartment building one floor below us!

This afternoon, I stopped down at my neighbors to see if she wanted to go with me to the Forum playground. She has a three year old daughter, and they live in a three bedroom apartment in our building. Their apartment was so nice! Much larger than ours, and it seemed like a home. They have been here for ten months and will be here for a while. She is from Malaysia, and her husband is from America. She met him years ago when he was in Malaysia for work, then they moved to Texas for a while, and now they are here. They plan to go back to the States eventually.

My neighbor joined me at the playground. It was really nice to talk to her. In a way, it was like talking to someone back home since she has lived in America. But, her family is only a 45 min. drive from here, so it was also a little bit like talking to a local. I don't think she would consider herself a local. She is not from Singapore, and Malaysia and Singapore are very different. I guess I mainly mean that since she is Asian, and she is familiar with Asia and the area.

I opened a window in our apartment tonight. It's a little crazy because our windows here have no screens and no bars. It wouldn't be too hard to just fall out. It's a good thing that Brandon can't reach the handles to open the windows. Just in case, though, I don't think that I'll show him that the windows actually open!

Forgot to mention in yesterday's blog that I weighed Brandon on a hospital scale while at the NMSG. He weighed 10 kg. So, at 13 1/2 months, he weighs 22 pounds.

Brandon was a little fussy today. I hope that the fourth molar pops soon!

NMSG Meeting

Pictures -

Brandon in his favorite spot - the couch

He enjoys eating crackers, playing with his new IKEA toy, and looking out the window - "Let me out of here!" :)

This morning, Brandon and I walked to the Camden Medical Center for a New Moms Support Group of Singapore function. There was a speaker at the hospital who talked about vaccinations for children. I was interested in hearing about additional vaccinations Brandon might need based on other Asia travel we might do while we are here.

This was my first NMSG event, and I really enjoyed it! The meeting was in a large room, so there was plenty of room for Brandon to run around. And, I mean, literally, "run around". There were also toys. And, I met some more great people at the group. One lady I recognized and realized that I had met her last weekend at the Forum playground.

After the group, I went to lunch with some moms. Everyone is so inviting and welcoming!

This evening, Brandon and I walked to the Somerset MRT station. I wanted to go to this clothing store that sells only cotton clothes. It is soooo hot here, and I needed a couple more cotton skirts. We also made a trip to the grocery. Yesterday, I spent about an hour doing online grocery shopping. I was going to have the groceries delivered since it is hard to do the shopping here without a car. I can walk to the grocery, but I can only carry so much back. So, I got all of these groceries in my online shopping cart, and then I waited for Steven to get home before placing the order. I wanted to find out if there was anything he wanted that I missed. When I went to place the order, my shopping cart was empty! I guess that I was idle for so long, the site automatically emptied my cart. I was so frustrated, and today I just didn't have the patience for online shopping.

I found out that they sell Brandon's favorite crackers here. At home, they are called Mum Mums. Here, they are called Baby Bites. Same package, but a different name. I've noticed a few things like this. I wonder why??? Would Baby Bites not sell as well in America, even though the packages look the exact same?

My dad told me the other day that my blog makes it sounds like I am living in Disney World. In a way, I am. It is so clean, and the moms I have met seem to be living a vacation life. Lots of fun activities and helpers... So many things that people have taken care of for them... So, I learned today that Singapore is actually called "Disneyland with the death penalty". Funny.

One mom told me today that she likes living in Singapore because she can be a stay-at-home mom here. She said that if they moved back to the UK, then she would have to work. I wonder if this is a reason that so many moms love living here. They have more options and a better life than they would if they lived in their home countries. I found out that Singapore is one of the few countries (city-states) where helpers are "allowed". Hong Kong is another city. It is easy for women from other countries to get work passes to come to Singapore to be helpers. Many of the helpers are from the Phillipines and Vietnam. I met one helper who left her two boys back in Vietnam to come here for work. I guess that she can make more money here and, therefore, provide a better life for her children back home.

In the last few days, I have met a couple of women without helpers. However, the majority of people I have met do have them.

Still hoping to explore another part of the city soon, but it is hard for me to do by myself. Brandon can only handle so much of the heat and the stroller. Exploring means that we have to be out walking in the heat for a while, and it's hard to be out for that many hours without an extra set of hands to help with Brandon.

Brandon is catching on to more every day! Today I asked him if he wanted to talk to Grandma. He went straight for the computer! He is getting the hang of Skype! :) Also, if you ask him to wave, he will wave. This is cool to me because I don't have to wave to show him. If I say the word "wave", he understands. Such a neat stage! I am impressed every time I see that Brandon is learning! He loves attention too. At lunch today, Brandon grabbed my metal fork. I took it from him, and then I saw him staring me straight in the eyes with this ear to ear grin. Suspicious. Then, I noticed that his hand was hovering over another fork and knife next to him. Little stinker! What was funny to me was that he didn't just grab the fork and knife. He was just looking for a reaction from Mommy! He got it. I quickly moved the other silverware away... Oh, Brandon. You crack me up!!! :)

City Hall MRT - The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd

Pictures -

Fun at the pool!

Our day definitely started with some excitement. Within about a minute of being up, Brandon had thrown one of Mommy's shirts in the toilet. Yuck! I guess it was laundry time...

We decided to try a different church this morning. We took the MRT to the City Hall stop. From there, it was about a ten minute walk to the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd. This church is the oldest Roman Catholic church in Singapore. The chapel was built in 1832, and the church was completed fifteen years later.

When we got to the church, it was so full that we had to stand outside and listen from there. It was a very hot morning, but there was a breeze. Actually, it was probably cooler outside. There was no air conditioning inside the church, just some fans to cool the large crowd.

Even though the cathedral was restored just over ten years ago, it still looked very old - much older than the Catholic churches we are use to seeing in America.

After mass, we went back to the MRT station. Since the station was located in another mall, we found a restaurant and enjoyed a nice lunch together before parting ways. Steven took the train one stop to his work, and Brandon and I took the train two stops in the other direction to home.

Brandon was in great mood this afternoon, and he was very content playing with his toys at our apartment. We decided to stay in and lounge this afternoon. It's not always that Brandon is entertained at home for so many hours.

When Steven got home from work, we went down to the pool for a bit. It was the first time that Steven has had the chance to swim since we got here.

Brandon is getting crazier around the pool. The first couple of times we went to swim, he was content to hang out in the baby pool. Then, he learned that he could climb out of the pool on his own. Since then, he just wants to walk around and around the pools. He chases his balls and gets very close to just jumping in the water. Toys-R-Us here we come! We need a life vest asap! Even though we follow Brandon the whole time, he is fast. I think he was actually close to running today.

Steven learned today that when we go down to the pool while he's at work, it's not for a lazy, relaxing swim... :)

We met a nice older couple at the pool this evening. They are from the UK, and one of their sons and his family live in New Zealand. Because it is such a long flight from the UK to Aukland, they decided to meet each other in Singapore. I think this was the second time they have done this. They don't get to see their son and his family very often. They were here for twelve days. Today, their son's family went home, and tomorrow they go home. They seemed sad. Their son is in New Zealand permanently. The older man made some comment about how the distance breaks the family. So sad...

Tomorrow starts our third week in Singapore.

The Weekend

Pictures -

Brandon playing at the playground in the Forum mall

Brandon phoning home to his two grandmas

I was hoping to explore a new area of the city today, but it didn't work out. It rained really hard for a while this morning, and Steven was home. By the time it quit raining, it was about lunch time, so we all just went to a nice lunch together before Steven headed to work.

Brandon didn't wake up from his nap until late afternoon, so I just decided to head to the Forum to let him play for a while.

It was a nice relaxing day, and it was wonderful to have Steven home for the first part of it.

This evening I took Brandon down to the pool. I love having a pool here. If I have an itchy hour of the day, then we can take the elevator right down to the pool. Brandon loves the water. I can tell that he loves it more and more each time we swim. He is starting to kick his feet more and splash the water with his arms. He doesn't seem to mind as much as he use to when water gets in his face. Only two problems are that 1) Brandon wants to drink the pool water and 2) Brandon will try to just walk into the pool with no fear. I need to get him a life vest. The arm floaties that I bought him are way too big for his little arms...

Brandon is picking up on so many new things! Yesterday, I sang the Indiana University fight song, and he went and got his IU board book! He did it again today. So cool! His little mind actually works!!! :)

Steven and I are so thankful to be able to talk to people at home everyday on Skype. We really appreciate the effort that friends and family are making to talk to us. Talking to people back home so frequently and so easily really makes it feel like we are closer to home and not on the other side of the planet.

While it feels like we haven't been in Chicago for ages, it also feels like our first two weeks here have gone by quickly. Singapore has been welcoming and warm (literally) so far...

Playdates

Pictures -

Dragon fruit, Brandon wasn't quite sure what to think of it

Royal Thai Embassy on Orchard Road

This morning, after we walked Steven to the train (of course), Brandon and I took a stroll down Orchard Road. We had some time to kill before catching a cab to our playdate, so I let Brandon get out of the stroller and run around in front of the Orchard Ion (mall). He loves to run wild and be chased!

I didn't know anyone going to the playdate today. The woman that I went to the botanic garden with on Tuesday invited me to the playgroup, but she wasn't able to go at the last minute. It was a little intimidating showing up at some random person's house, but I am so glad that I went! There were about seven other moms and babies. They were all so welcoming. A couple of them don't live far from us, so we are definitely planning on getting together again. It's also nice because we can share cabs when we need to in the future. I've already connected with a couple of these moms on Facebook. I looovvvveeee Facebook and Skype!!!

This afternoon, Brandon and I tried a dragon fruit for the first time. It had the texture of a kiwi, but I didn't think it was as flavorful. I will definitely buy another one so we can try it again. Maybe the one we bought wasn't a good one. Brandon wasn't too crazy about this new food...

Brandon and I had another playdate this afternoon with the woman I met in Borders last week. Her apartment is about a 20-25 minute walk from us. It rained this afternoon, and I thought that the rain would cool things off. However, it seemed to make the heat much, much worse. It was so humid, and I really couldn't feel any breeze. I felt so gross by the time I arrived at my friend's house.

The last couple of days have been noticeably hotter here. I actually had a craving today for some fall weather and a Sam Adam's Octoberfest beer. (For those of you back home who are longing for a few months of warm weather, I'm sorry for even saying that. However, I feel like I skipped several months and ended up in the worst part of August.) They have a place here called "Snow City". It's an indoor place where you can snowboard or ski, and they have a children's area where you can build snowmen and see an igloo. They maintain the temperature at 23 degrees Fahrenheit. When I get a little hot or homesick, maybe I should just go there to hang out. :)

Looking forward to the weekend. Not sure what we have planned or how much Steven will be at home and work, but I'm thinking that maybe we'll have to explore something new here in Singapore.