Walk on the Quays

Jo invited me and Brandon to go for a walk with her and Jessie this morning. Jake stayed home with his dad, and Jessie brought her scooter, so we were able to go for a nice brisk walk. We walked down Leonie Hill and across River Valley Road to the river. I have walked between home and Clarke Quay, but I have always walked on River Valley Road. I didn't know that there is a really nice walking path that runs along the quays (wharfs) on the river.








We had an amazing walk along Robertson Quay and Clarke Quay. We left for the walk just after 8 am, so it wasn't too hot out yet. There was also some shade and a really nice breeze. It was one of the very few times I have been really comfortable outside in the weather here.





I also found some really cute coffee shops and restaurants along the river. I'm looking forward to going back and trying some of these soon. Maybe when we have our company visit in June and July.





This afternoon, Brandon and I walked to Great World City apartments for Sofia's first birthday party. They had a bbq outside next to the pool. The weather was great, and the party was really nice. I would have enjoyed it more though if Steven had been able to be there. Since the party was at the pool, I had to watch and chase Brandon most of our time there. The grill was located near a deep part of the adult pool, and the children's pool was all the way across the pool deck. So, it was hard to do any socializing. :(





When we got home from the party, Steven called from the airport in London. Unfortunately, he called to tell me that he missed his flight back to Singapore. I guess he was working and just got crunched for time. He made it to the gate (I think) 30 minutes before the flight left, but they wouldn't let him on. They said that they do the last boarding 45 minutes before the departure time. Bummer for me, Brandon, and Steven!!!





Steven will have to take the next flight which leaves a few hours later. Looking forward to having him back in Singapore tomorrow!

Jurong Bird Park

Either Brandon was just exploring this morning, or he was really ready to go "bye bye". He climbed into the basket of our stroller! I can't believe he even fit under there! :)










We did leave the house early this Saturday morning. We took a cab to pick up our Australian friend, Arch, and her daughter, Aria, and we all shared a cab to the Jurong Bird Park. Brandon has been so excited by birds lately that I thought he would really enjoy the bird park. Arch's husband is also out of town, so it was the perfect day to get together for an outing.



http://www.birdpark.com.sg/


When we first entered the bird park, we saw parrots and flamingos. Brandon kept pointing and staring. When I got him out of the stroller, he didn't even run off. He just stood there and looked at the birds. When I tried to get him to follow me to the next exhibit of birds, he wouldn't budge. I think he thought we were leaving the birdies.





Even though we got caught in a downpour of rain while we were there, we had a great time at the bird park. I will probably try to go back to the park one more time while we are here. There were a few things we didn't get to see, and I think that Brandon would enjoy it again. It was also great walking exercise for me! The park covered a lot of land area, and there were hills. There was the option of taking a tram around the park. The tram actually looked pretty neat. It rode high above the ground at points, and it went through the trees. Probably some great sights from the tram.



































Brandon trying to grab Aria for a hug. She was trying to run from him!

Brandon likes the older and taller women. Aria is 2 1/2 years old!

Wow! Fish!

Brandon liked looking at birds, but these birds were a little scary. Brandon stood and stared at this bird statue, but he would NOT pass it without Mommy's hand.

Late this afternoon, Brandon, Jo, Jessie, and I walked to Orchard Road. Through tomorrow, the Thailand Trade Exhibition is going on at the Thai Embassy. We walked there and visited the booths set up in the main entrance of the embassy grounds. The booths were selling Thai household items, jewelry, and food, to name a few. I bought a unique beaded bracelet. Jo and I also enjoyed some Pad Thai. Very spicy, so I couldn't give any to Brandon. :( I like going to special exhibits and events here when I have the chance.

So, Brandon used the word "no" several times today... This morning, I asked him to come out of the kitchen, and he firmly said, "No." This afternoon, I heard him tell Aria "no" about something. Also, I was holding him at the bird park, and I asked him if he wanted me to put him down. He shook his head "yes", but when I tried to put him down, he said, "No." This evening, he was trying to climb a chair. When I told him he couldn't do that, he again said, "No." While I'm sure that this is something all kids learn to do, I think that Brandon has picked it up lately from Jake and Jessie. Not thrilled about this happening so fast, but oh, well... I just have to try not to smile or laugh in front of Brandon when he says "no". It's hard though! It is cute, and his "no" sounds like "neo". Ready or not, here we go!!!

Fidgets

This morning Jo stopped by for a bit.

Really nice to have some company in the morning, especially since Steven is gone.

Our Friday playgroup this week decided to meet at a playroom rather than at someone's house. We went to Fidgets, which is located at the Turf City mall.

www.fidgets.com.sg

Turf City was a very unique mall. It felt very "local". Old and even a bit dirty for what I'm use to seeing in Singapore. Lots of small stores and Asian food stalls with outdoor seating.

Turf City seemed like a strange location for Fidgets. Fidgets was clean and new. There were three different play areas for the kids. One play area was for small children, maybe around one year old and younger. A second play area was for kids around Brandon's age to a couple of years older. The third play area was for bigger children from around 4 to 10 years of age.

The two smaller play areas were on one side of the playroom, and the larger play area was on the opposite side of the room. In the middle between the two play areas was a restaurant/coffee shop with couches, chairs, and tables. I think the idea was that parents and helpers could enjoy coffee, etc. while letting their children play. Would have been nice, but that obviously couldn't happen for most parents.

I thought that Fidgets was okay. The thing that bothered me most was that there were no gates or doors that separated the different play areas. It would have been nice to be able to contain the children in one area at a time. Then, if Brandon wanted to go to a different play area, I would have to take him and not have to be chasing him in and out of the two smaller play areas.

If Fidgets were closer to where we live, I might be inclined to go frequently still, but it was about a 20 minute cab ride there. Not too convenient. At least I was able to share a cab to and from Fidgets with my friend Kristie.

This afternoon, Wendy and Sofia came over for a playdate. Today is Sofia's first birthday! We will be going to Sofia's birthday bbq this Sunday.

We went down to Jo's apartment again this evening. Jo's husband, Dean, travels frequently for work. He returned from Australia late last night, so Jessie and Jake didn't get to see him much or at all before bed. We were there when Dean arrived home from work tonight, and the kids were so excited to see Daddy. Brandon was also very excited to see Dean, whom he has only met a couple of times. I think that Brandon really missed Steven. He has been more interested in men this past week while Steven has been away.

As of now, Steven will be leaving London on Sunday. Hopefully, he will be back in Singapore on Monday morning!

Chinatown

Brandon and I survived our second night without Steven, but we miss him so much! When we woke up, I decided to try to call Steven's hotel on Skype. It was about 7 am Singapore time and midnight London time (both Thursdays). (FYI - It was also about 7 pm Louisville time and 6 pm Chicago time (both Wednesdays).)

I wasn't sure if I would be able to get through to Steven's hotel on Skype, but sure enough I did! The hotel connected me to Steven's room phone, and he was there! Although we didn't have webcams, it was very nice to hear Steven's voice. It sounded like he is having a good time in London and enjoying the experience. He was able to go out to some bars last night. I'm happy that he had some time to see a bit of London.

After our morning Skypes, Brandon and I took a cab with Jo to Chinatown. We hadn't been to Chinatown before. Our first week or so here we took the train to Chinatown, but it was so hot outside, we ended up leaving for Vivo City (mall).

I loved the experience of Chinatown! We walked around the streets and outdoor shops.

I saw this t-shirt which described the many ways in which Singapore is a "fine" city. Ha ha!

We saw these live crabs. Unfortunately, they were just waiting to be cooked up into Singapore's local chili crab dish. Steven has tried this dish, but I have not... yet???

We saw a couple of Buddhist temples. So beautiful!

This is the back and side of one of the temples.

This is the front of the temple.

The incense was burning. Behind the incense you can slightly see into the temple.

This was the other temple. Such unique, elaborate architecture!

We walked into the main entryway of the temple, without our shoes, of course.

This is a view of the side of the temple. You can see the back of the main entrance.

After walking around outside, we went into one of the malls. When we have company visit in June and July, I know exactly where I'm going to take them. I'm going to treat them to the spa. The fish spa, that is.

People sit and put their hands and feet in the water.

The fish then eat the dead skin off of their feet and hands. Supposedly, this just tickles slightly. The fish don't bite. Jo offered to treat me to the spa. I passed this time. :) I was tempted to put Brandon in there to see if he liked it. However, I felt a bit cruel subjecting him to the fish spa if I wasn't willing to try it myself. I had to remind myself that he is my son and not my guinea pig.

Funniest part about today -

Jo and I were taking the escalator down one floor in the mall. I was holding Brandon and standing in front of Jo. The man standing in front of us turned and smiled at Brandon. When he did this, Brandon reached out for him!

What? I thought that maybe Brandon was confused and thought the man was a grandpa or even Dino from our apartments. I thought that Brandon would realize that this man was a stranger and then cling to me.

Instead, Brandon continued to reach for the man. Out of curiosity, I handed Brandon to the man. Brandon went right to him. I was in awe!

The man carried Brandon down the escalator. Brandon did get a little shy and looked away from the man a couple of times, but then he put his face right up to the man's face.

The real kicker is that when I put my hands out to take Brandon back, he didn't reach for me! What!!!???

When I reached for Brandon again, he actually turned away and grabbed at the man's neck tightly to avoid me taking him.

Now, I was really confused! Who was this man? Was this Brandon's long lost Singaporean grandfather? What was it about this man that Brandon was drawn to?

Part of me was happy that my son isn't totally consumed with stranger danger. Then, another part of me started to get scared at how easily Brandon might go to a stranger. He might need some stranger danger instilled in him. I didn't think we needed to have the "don't talk to strangers" talk quite yet, but maybe I was wrong?

Jo and I were laughing so hard. I really wish I had a video of the whole thing. It was hilarious. Scary and confusing, but hilarious.

I called my mom's cell phone on Skype today. It was 4:50 pm our time, so only 4:50 am her time. Just wanted to leave her a message. It was so strange calling her phone and not calling her on the computer. It was so comforting to hear her voice on her voice message...

Brandon and I were suppose to go to our AWA playgroup this afternoon. However, Brandon didn't wake up from his nap until 4:30! Too late to make it to the afternoon playgroup today!

Since we were in for the afternoon, Jo invited us back down to her apartment for dinner and wine. The kids played. We talked. We even put on American Idol so I could watch the results show.

Brandon loves Jessie and Jake! I have noticed the last couple of times we've been around them though, Brandon has taken a special liking to Jake. Jake is like Brandon's big brother. Brandon hugs Jake and pats his head. Jake hugs Brandon. So cute!

Tonight the kids made a tent. Brandon still doesn't quite get the fun of homemade tents. Hopefully, soon. :)

Before we left, Brandon took a bath with Jessie. Jake was in a bit of a funk by this time of the night, so he opted out of this bath and took his own bath in the second bathroom. Maybe next time. Brandon only played in the bath for a few minutes. He wanted out of the bath to be with Jake.

Jo, Jessie, and Jake walked us back up to our apartment tonight, and we all said "night night"! Until tomorrow!

The Durian

Last night, Steven called me right before his flight took off. He flew business class on Singapore Airlines to London. He said that his seat was big enough for both of us to sit in, almost like a love seat. His plane was on time for the 12 hour and 45 minute flight to London. Such a strange feeling to know that Steven would be closer to Chicago than to us while in London.

And, wow! What a night! Brandon was sleeping at 8 pm. He didn't wake me up until 6:30 am, and then he went back to sleep until 8 am. What a treat! Especially for my first night here all on my own. Something good did come out of Brandon not taking much of a nap yesterday. (Oh, and by the way, Steven asked me what kind of a mood Brandon was in yesterday after no nap. I told Steven that Brandon was in a fine mood, and that he should rather be asking me what kind of a mood I was in. :) )

Brandon and I skyped with the grandparents this morning. So nice to have some conversation in the morning.


At 10 am, Jo stopped by to get us. We took a cab to Plaza Singapura again today. Below is a picture of the travelator they have in the mall. It's basically an escalator with no stairs. (They have these in airports. They just aren't inclined there.)

At the mall, we visited the Japanese $2 store. I also went clothes shopping at Cotton On. I wanted to get a few more clothes that are good for the heat here. Jo was an amazing help! She took Brandon around the mall while I shopped. She found some aquariums at the mall and showed him the fish. Jo is really good with Brandon. You can tell that she really likes him, and he really likes her too. I was able to peacefully try some clothes on, and I found a few things I liked.

Last, we went to Carrefour. Jo and I had some grocery shopping to do. We put Brandon in the grocery cart on the first floor of the store, and then took the travelator up to the second floor (groceries). It was so neat taking the cart (trolley) up the travelator. There was a magnetic force between the cart and the travelator so that the cart wouldn't roll going up or down the incline. Very clever.

So, this is a sign that Steven and I saw on the train on one of our first MRT rides here.

I saw this sign right after I took a big drink from my bottle of water. Trust me. I put the water away as fast as I could.

Anyway, neither of us knew what a "durian" was. Honestly, I thought that it was a grenade or weapon of some sort. I wasn't sure why they would need to tell people that grenades weren't allowed on the trains. Duh! Right? (See picture of actual grenade below. It looks similar to a durian, doesn't it? :) )

Well, I have learned in the last few weeks that a durian is not a grenade. In fact, it is a fruit. It is even known as the "king of fruits" in Southeast Asia. But, why in the world is this particular fruit not allowed on the train? It is because this particular fruit has a horrid smell that is off-putting to people. It smells a bit like really, really dirty and stinky feet. This fruit is also not allowed in some cabs, and not all of the grocery stores here sell durians.

Carrefour, however, does sell durians. When I pulled my camera out in the store, I was told that I couldn't take pictures. When I told them that I was intrigued by the durian, they then allowed me to take photos.

I haven't tried a durian yet. I've heard that it is an acquired taste. Jo tempted me to buy and try some today. I passed. I didn't think it would be fair to Steven to try this fruit without him. I'm sure he'd want me to wait for a time when he can also try it. :)

Yes, I thought that the fruit smelled bad, but I didn't think it was that bad. Maybe that's because we were in a large store. I doubt that I would want someone with durians sitting next to me on the train though. Ughhh!!!

It was so wonderful to have someone help me at the grocery. Jo joked that she was my helper/maid today. :)

Jo stopped in the store Bread Talk and bought me a couple of pieces of bread for lunch. She has such a giving heart!

We grabbed a cab home. One small accident - One of our bottles of wine had rolled in the trunk while driving. When I pulled the stroller out of the trunk of the cab, the bottle came out and busted on the ground. Bummer! Wine is too expensive to waste here. :( At least Jo and I bought four total bottles of wine, so we still have three more to enjoy!

Dino helped us get the groceries up to our apartment, and Jo helped me get all of the groceries unloaded and put away. She even helped me put some dishes away to tidy the kitchen. I am so blessed to have that family!

I checked Steven's flight status and found that he arrived in London safely. A nice relief. One hard thing about Steven being gone is that I can't pick up the phone during the day and call him. It's always nice to talk to him during the day, even if it's only a one minute phone call.

Brandon took a two hour nap from 2 - 4 pm today. Not sure what that means for tonight's sleeping...???

This evening, Brandon and I went down to Jo's for dinner. She picked up some pork and chicken fried rice earlier while she was out, and we had a picnic on a blanket on the floor of her living room. It was so much fun! I also enjoyed another nice glass of wine. What a fantastic dinner!

Brandon absolutely loves Jessie and Jake, and I think they feel the same way about Brandon. They all chase each other, and Brandon laughs so hard.

While we are at the grocery earlier, I forgot to buy dishwashing soap. When I went to Jo's tonight, she had bought me a bottle on her afternoon trip out. She remembered that I forgot earlier. Wow.

As they often do, Jo, Jess, and Jake walked us back up to our unit tonight. Jo watched the kids while I took a shower. And, when I got out of the shower, she was in the kitchen washing our dishes. I told her that she treats me way to good. I felt like a queen tonight. I keep offering to watch the three kids one night while she and her husband go to dinner. I hope she takes me up on the offer soon!

Wow! What a day!

I've noticed that Brandon is starting to get some more hair on his arms and on the bottoms of his legs. Just another sign that my baby is turning into a little boy...

Videos -

Brandon, Jake, and Jessie playing

View of our pool, Grange Road, and buildings on Orchard Road from Jo's apartment. Jessie and Jake go to school at the Overseas Family School across the street

Brandon saying "night night"