{SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW.}

Sunday, June 19, 2011

title:{famine camp}

joy was on a 1-day famine camp in ngee ann poly.

when we picked her up close to midnight on friday, she was carrying a signboard on her neck, reading,"i have aids". and she had started fasting since 1 pm, but commented that she wasn't feeling hungry at all! maybe, it was the mental readiness to face up to the challenges.

she rattled on about the camp events, which basically created awareness of all types of problems facing the developing and poor nations, aids disease being one of them. shortage of supply in food and low literacy rate in some.

she made 2 good friends, one of whom is studying mass comm in ngee ann poly.

it was funny to hear her comment that poly stdts are more approachable and fun, unlike the nerdy and competitive jc stdts. well, maybe she's right. different institutions have different profiles altogether.

she was only able to stay for a day while all her friends hung on till sat night. reason being, she had a dance show on sat afternoon.

the funny part was, joy told me that to break the fast at 7 pm sat, all her friends would be having a feast at crystal jade. she lamented at not being able to be part of them. i was really puzzled how the event organiser could arrange for such an expensive meal for the stdts.

when the cat was out of the bag, i was amused. the break-fast meal was just a simple packet of nasi lemak, which all her friends claimed to be too little for their satisfaction.

well, it was a good experience. at least, it created awareness of the challenging problems faced by the poor nations, and having let her experience what it would be like to go without food for many hours!

(sad to say, i haven't for a single day try to fast....)

4:12 AM;

Saturday, June 18, 2011

title:{father's day celebration}

4 fathers coming tgether. and that was a celeb gathering at chow's place.

food was aplenty. i regretted for not having tried more....esp the asparagus wrapped with ham and the dessert. i told hubby that i would boil the 'chuan bei' soup myself. i loved it!

well, i was assisting mebelle with her 3 challenging math questions, with 2 aptly done after trying so hard to focus in the midst of the crowd's chatter. haha. the
3rd question on ratio/ algebra was solved with the help of steph, as she has understood the question better than me. her skill in reading long sentences and focus ability was confirmed, unlike joy who just said,"i dunno hw to do leh!"

well, we carried out our general knowledge quiz session. steph and gillian formed an unformidable team too. well, of coz, at their age, they sure would be one edge higher.

but the whole idea of the quiz session was just for bonding purpose and for one to learn from another. nicky was his usual funny self. at one stage, they were asked to sing nursery rhymes to get their 2 points score.

everyone had an easy time except for joanna who claimed that she knew no nursery rhyme. only 'abcd...'! aiyo, poor kid!

so, the hmewrk assignments for the 4 cuzzies who were having sleepover at chow's place last nite were:-

1) to teach joanna a nursery rhyme (and i heard the girls telling her to learn 客人来, haha)

2) mebelle to teach the girls a dance ready for x'mas presentation (she was all excited about it, and i thot it's the best way to bring out her confident self!)

3) claire to guide megan in her math questions since the latter indicated that she had not done well for section (c) this time round (claire was exuberant about the task, afterall she could be megan's 小老师!)

4)for megan, it was to ensure that every kid plays along well and have a good time hanging out in her big room.

clearly, i felt that the girls were growing up.

i like it when joanna said,"ya, sometimes, we dun agree on things or we have slight arguments. but we make up quickly!"

mebelle said,"claire is a fantastic cousin. we can do so much things together. it's so rare for us to meet and have a sleepover!"

megan's response,"i waited for 6mths to have a sleepover. if i dun hv it now, then i gonna wait for some more mths."

even on boobies' matter, jo and claire confessed that they would continue to share same shower room, even when they grow up. apparently, they aren't shy about their physical body developments. how nice to see them bond that way!

6:45 PM;

title:{joy's performance at tampines one}

well, this performance wasnt a novelty anymore.

apparently, the 5 girls from 'dfunkatron' weren't happy with their show. few made mistakes and felt lousy about it. the audience response wasnt fantastic when it came to the MC asking,"who would like to learn k-pop? we hv these girls here who would like to teach you, foc!"

claire and her 3 cousin girls (nat, na and caelyn)just got themselves rooted to the spot. claire even stared at me hard trying to fend off my 'friendly invitation' for them to go on stage. nat even freaked out by switching her seat from the front to the 3rd row. aiya, this outcome was so different from the mooncake festival celeb at my condo when all the indian and angmoh kids would fervently raised their hands to participate on stage.

anyway, joy commented at the end of it,"maybe our girls are getting too complacent, so we didnt' really put much effort to discuss and practise..."

well, i responded,"life is such, joy. stage show needs prep work and everyone has to do her best. maybe it's time to choreo another dance, change into another set of costumes, acquire new spirit in the show...i also feel 'xian' already, having watched it for the 3rd time!"

yes, one positive thing though, joy said when the 5 girls strutted themselves around in the mall, like puss in 'boots', they felt so special, since it attracted lots of attention.

in fact, when her young cousins spotted her, they trailed after her, making me feel like the young fans were after the super stars. haha.

anyway, the whole event ended with each kid being rewarded with a doughnut from jco, for their support. thks to all.

i wish joy will enjoy more satisfaction in her future dance performance and will keep the passion in flame, for as long as her life journey will carry her.

6:34 PM;

Thursday, June 9, 2011

title:{cellulite joke}

last nite, lying in bed, claire asked me"mommy, can i ask u sth?"

"what?" i responded.

"how come nini got cellulite? she's so young!" haha, in her small brain, only joy and me will hv cellulite. haha, maybe, joy only.

cellulite was a term that i introduced to her not too long ago, describing it as 'orange peel'!

"u saw it?" i queried.

"ya, when she wears her costume, i saw her butt and thighs from the back!" came an innocent reply.

"haha, that's just layers of fats lah...like mother, like daughter lah!" i answered, with no intention to ridicule red. (red, really no offence, cos' claire doesnt hv an inch of extra fat, so she was all puzzled with nini's body constitution, though i think nini looked really cute in that swim attire, haha)

"but, did i hv such fat layers when i was young?" she probed further.

"yes lah, all kids have baby fats." i said.

"but i dun even rbr i was fat before..." she went on.

actually, claire even had double chin before, just that she didnt register this painful memory in her little mind.

i was shocked when claire asked again,'do u think uncle colin also hv such layers on his ....?"

"i'm sure lah, but of coz we cannot see. he's also quite big, u knw?" i was hoping she would stop asking me anything abt cellulite.

so, the conclusion was, nini's swim suit was really 'outstanding' , in claire's eyes. but, i tell u, she's a real good eater, consuming claire's home-made cinnamon streudel muffin and taking almost anything that was sent into her mouth.

for the first time too, she did not cry in my presence. in fact, she was quite comfortable moving around following all the jiejies, esp nana.

5:19 PM;

title:{cousins' gathering - thur 9th june}

it was a great gathering at my place.

a dip in the pool that took close to 1.5 hours. different games were played, including 'finding the gold coin', 'diving' and 'ball throwing'.

when all the kids were already immersed in the pool, only trisha was not. she was looking her 'impatient' self, haha, as gonggong was still trying to 'inflate' her arm floats. no skill lah, poor gonggong. i did her left hand side and it was super fast! she was almost in tears, seeing gonggong's tardiness....

the weather was a cool refreshing one. dad was relaxing himself in his newsreading world. liuyi and i were talking while the 'lo hei' mom, was watching the younger lucas and trisha with her sharp eagle eyes.

she commented,"小孩子这么小，一不留神，就惨了！"

in the pool, u could see nini's blissful look of a princess being doted upon. liuyi was saying,"有妈妈的孩子就是不一样！“it was the first time i saw nini in the pool, she was a comical picture. her sexy costume revealing her 'porky' legs (like mother, like daughter lah, red, no offence, yo), her hyper-active 'diving in' and lastly, when she rested on the floor with the kickboard as her head rest, she looked so contented and happy.

didn't knw group swimming brought so much cheerfulness...

liuyi was telling me about her feeble granddaughter's nafa test in sch some time ago. a call came from sch informing her about caelyn's 'wheelchair-bound' condition. apparently, she was running a large part of the distance (not sure if she did manage to complete it) and then ,suddenly experienced calf cramp, to the extent of not being able to walk. so, she had to rely on a wheelchair till liuyi visited her in sch...anyway, the rest was history. just a pampered princess body without good bout of exercise, haha.

i was indeed amazed that liuyi has been the one attending the parent-teacher-meeting for the 2 grandchildren since kindergarten days....her role, apart from having given birth to them (in her exact own words), is a mother's role.

she's a great woman who is able to take setbacks in life with no grumbles. even when i offered to pick her up with the 2 young kids, she preferred to take a bus to my place, holding an umbrella in the light drizzle. to ensure that her bus route was the correct one, she even went 'racky' at the bus post sign, to confirm the bus no. to take.

that's what i call 'traditional respy'.....self-learnt all the way! that's what many young pple
lack these days.

i m pretty sure the kids had a great time coz' they werent ready to leave until 7 plus.....we also played blanket games, musical chair and ended the session with a k-pop dance taught by joy. joy even commented that 'trisha has the aptitude to dance. she twists her body well and shakes her bootie well too..." well white, maybe u should consider signing her up for dance, a way to dwindle her excessive energy, haha.

well, we'll hope for another time of gathering, nieces and nephews.

5:04 PM;

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

title:{my cousin is getting married!}

well, 2 weddings for this year. we are all excited, esp with my cousin's.

i watched LN grow up. a well-mannered and reticent child, she has always been a dilligent worker.

it was out of the blue, that she is the first one to get married, between the twins. guess what, i learnt from her mom that she's been in a long courtship, having started in early 20s, as coursemates!

i saw her the other day. still the lukewarm neutral personality. for the first time, i saw her complexion slightly 'dotted' , haha. maybe it's stress building in her body.

afterall, all brides are concerned about their appearance and shapes on the very important day.

i wish her a smooth journey towards the wedding date in november.

beyond that, conjugal bliss.

hope she takes care of her health and will soon have an offspring ......she's not young, afterall!

4:58 AM;

title:{2 wks holiday is over....}

wow, the first 2 wks passed so swiftly.

thks to the continuing teaching classes.

normally, i take a break during school holidays and will have my minds wandering in free spirit...to the extent of feeling restless and bored, sometimes!

so, this time round, i'm more than pleased that the kids hv no problem resuming classes during school holidays, since parents are also enthusiastic about the arrangement.

this is how competitive the education scene has become.

i was just told by a boy that he's expected to bring his assessment books when he travels for 2 weeks. the parent explained that it was to ensure that the kids dun over-play and forget about what they have learnt.

maybe, i've been too lenient with my own kids all this while.

holiday is always a real break, with no books, let alone remembering stuff that were learnt.

this time round, it seems like there's no hol break for our family. joy is bz with exam prep, hubby is on biz trip, claire will be back to sch in 3rd and 4th wk of hol.....well, i'm not griping.

just hope our year-end togetherness will be confirmed!

4:52 AM;