at brunch...

Ever wondered why babies have soft, smooth skin?
Well, try doing this like... errrm, 3 times a day!

While mommy and friends were enjoying brunch, Kristin discovered a way (smearing cold, yummy yoghurt) to keep herself cool on a hot day. It was 27 deg yesterday, and April isn't over yet. Aunty Wendy was quick to snap some shots. Read post here.

I think I did everything right yesterday: cookies in animal shapes, a Babybel, a Fruchtzwerg and lots of water. Then off went Kristin to pick up stones so that Mommy and her friends could enjoy a nice brunch :) She came back to present her prize each time after having examined her stone for a few seconds.

joke of the week...

Mommy, it's "C" for "syrup".
No, Bryan. It's "S" for "syrup"!

kristin's 20 months!

Yet another month has flown by...

I would have forgotten all about Kristin turning 20 months old if it hadn't been for all those electronic newsletters I get from Babycenter.

And indeed, what the newsletters warn me is true!

When I take Kristin out for a walk now or sometimes just to run errands, she will kick up a big fuss to get off the buggy to walk. She will go, "Walk, walk! Mommy, I walk!" What an assertive girl!

And when she does get a chance to come down to walk, she will run as fast as her legs can carry her and is totally oblivious to any cyclists, dogs, people, whatever... I usually have to drop everything and chase! Ok, that's about the amount of work out I get now since I'm barred to drop Kristin off at the childcare in the gym. You see, it's quite common to have a sniff or cough here, but the management at the childcare in the gym is so particular at any slightest sign of an infection. I need her to be really tip top... so it's back to OUCH for shoulders and upper back.

But it's not anything serious right now. I think she's probably teething again. The running nose looks pretty harmless.

Ok, no call for worries too. I usually do let her run in the Palmengarten which is cyclists- and dogs-free.

A 20-month-old Kristin is a handful to deal with now... she climbs, runs, fights with her brother and snatches his toys. She's no angel now, although strangers are still fond of her. A woman even walked up to ask if she could take a picture of her yesterday in the city centre. She was squealing how cute Kristin was. I wonder why she's such a heart-throb among people we don't know.

Just look at this shot! Definitely nothing lady-like! She was lying on Daddy's office floor, trying to kick down his cabinet.

drink up, mom!

It was quite hilarious last night, observing how Kristin was imitating Mommy.

She came armed with her water bottle and put it right in front of my face, saying, "Drink, Mommy!" As soon as I took a sip, she immediately went, "Ahhh.... "

Actually, this has always been my trick while I got my children to drink since they started drinking off a bottle with a drinking straw by the time they turned 8 months old. This was to ensure that they wouldn't have the water in the mouth for a long time or have it spat out.

Anyway, back to the anecdote: I went along with an "Ah..." after a sip. Kristin then looked at me intently and asked, "Is it nice?" When I replied yes, there was a triumphant grin on her face. She must be thinking, Yeah! I fed Mommy water and convinced her that it's nice!

Hmmm, so this is how it looks each time when I want my children to drink.

X!

I was talking to Alan over dinner when Kristin picked up a flip chart of letters and was trying to get my attention, "Look, Mommy! X! It's X! X! X!"

It's indeed an X that she was pointing at. Then I quickly flipped up a few letters and then down a few letters and then back to "X" again. She could identify it without any hesitation.
Wow, I thought!

As Alan continued with his dinner, I decided to continue the flip chart game with Kristin. Let's just see how many letters she can identify, I thought. She was doing fine until she became fixated on the letter "T". Then everything else became a "T" too, even the "X". My hope for any early letter recognition in my little one was dashed! Ok... we've got to work harder on those letters on the wall frieze. We've stopped doing that for a while now.

a squash and a squeeze

A little old lady lived all by herself,
With a table and chairs and a jug on the shelf.
A wise old man heard her grumble and grouse,
"There's not enough room in my house."
She said, "Wise old man, won't you help me please?
My house is a squash and a squeeze."
etc

I brought this CD from Julia Donaldson along when we drove down to Nuremberg last Friday. And now this song is ringing in my head 24/7!

Bryan is so amused by this song and listened to it again and again that by the time we reached Nuremberg last Friday, he was already singing part of the song. And by the time we came back, he could point out the mistakes I made when I forgot some lines of the song. Gee, if this is what I get when he doesn't know how to read, wait till he starts reading proper. I think I can't skip lines anymore nor add anything I fancy. Sigh! I think gone are the days when my children worshipped me, thinking Mommy knew every single tune and rhyme.

Another Bryan's favourite is Julia Donaldson's Sharing a Shell Song. Even Kristin will hurry to the computer each time I play the song. You see, I need to learn this song quickly too. Every time when I read the Sharing a Shell story to Bryan now, he'll request me to sing some of the verses out.

It's quite interesting to observe how he entertains himself with Julia Donaldson's books. The other night, he didn't even come out of his room to complain that he couldn't fall asleep - very unlike his usual self. I heard him singing "A Squash and a Squeeze". I could almost see him through the door, flipping through each page and singing out the verses. I really can't wait for the day he can read independently. Too bad I need to return the copy of A Squash and a Squeeze to the school's library. I'm terribly embarassed to say that it's quite worn out by now and Bryan's name is the first on the check-out card... oops! We really need to get our own copy soon.

By the way, in case you wonder whom this is that we adore so much and rave about, this is Julia Donaldson performing the Sharing a Shell song with her husband: www.gruffalo.com Isn't she awesome?

easter eggs...

We had lots of fun the other day sticking up cards for the Easter eggs. We weren't around during Christmas last year and already Bryan was pampered with goodies from the parents of his friends in school. Anyway, we just thought a little egg holder, a card and some chocolate would light up someone's face during Easter too. In the end, it kind of looked like a mass produce here... didn't it? But Bryan and Kristin couldn't get enough of the sticking. They wished there were more cards to be made.

Bryan also did some Easter-themed crafts in school. It was quite a challenge to bring these things back intact, especially when one's travelling with a bus and a buggy with two children on tow. See how the other parents pamper my kid again...

Easter Weekend with the Ow-Yongs

The Easter weekend was fun-filled with lots of sunshine and a great company, both for the parents and the children. We drove all the way down to Nuremberg... Initially we were looking to book at the Playmobil Inn, which is a stone's throw from the Playmobil Park itself. But we heard that the Inn is so red hot that nothing is available until the first weekend in September.

Luckily, I thought of this hotel where we stayed in about 1.5 years back. Nothing fabulous, just a three star hotel. But the room is huge, gigantic enough for all four of us. A double bed for the parents, a single bed for Bryan and a baby cot for Kristim and still plenty of room for the kids to run about. Besides, we got the Siemens Corporate rate at only 71 Eur with breakfast and taxes included. We had to pay for Kristin, still that was only an additional 5 Eur per night. It was really a fantastic deal! We are definitely going back there next Easter... looks like a lull period for them coz the hotel is only hot for conferences. Hope we still get the corporate rate next year too... somehow they remember Alan with Siemens.

Ok... I promise, the photos will be up soon. Actually, there aren't too many shots. There were more video clips showing the children in action. Patience... uploading takes a while, plus I can only work on it when the children nap or sleep.

mmmmh... that smells like...

CURRY!

Bryan caught me by surprise while we were walking out of the train station this morning on our way to the gym. What curry? Yes, curry from an Indian quick bite at the train station. Hmmm, to someone who hasn't the faintest idea how curry tastes like, Bryan sure sniffed it right on!

Yes, scent is something that needs to be nurtured. And I think we've had enough curry at home to teach Bryan how to sniff out the right spices. Scent also goes way back... So one day when I'm old and senile, I hope I still remember the smell of spring. Got to associate the scent with more pleasant emotions so that pleasant memories will come flooding back...

By the way, this is an interesting finding from a professor on olfaction:
'As humans, we’re not immediately predisposed to respond to a scent and believe that it is good or bad,' said Rachel Herz, a visiting assistant professor of psychology at Brown and the lead scientist of the study. 'When we like or don’t like a smell, that is learned.'
Hmm, so for Bryan, this is certainly something he doesn't quite fancy, I think.

Easter holiday...

Playmobil Park, here we come...
Will be leaving tomorrow, possibly late morning, depending on Daddy and Mommy. He only got back from a trip today - 5 hours of drive and another 5 hours of meeting altogether! So terribly tired that he was already sleep walking even before the kids hit the sack. Mommy has had enough of dealing with two extremely whiny children the whole of yesterday and today - a possible sore throat coming up due to all the yelling and screaming at the children. Gee, when will they ever learn not to get on my nerves? Kristin has been quite a terror these few days. Terrible twos at its height? She's been wanting everything that Bryan has and without giving any warning, she'll melt into a puddle of tears! I was thinking things were getting better after all the colds and flus! Anyway, I just wanted to say - Mommy hadn't have time to pack anything at all!!! I'm glad that we're driving. That means I'll just dump whatever we need into a huge suitcase and then go!
Weather looks promising! Pleasant spring temperature at about 16 deg C with sunshine! Can't wait... I've always been a Playmobil and Lego fan since young. So errm, this is like my dream come true too! Haha!

a better overview...

Finally got the free tickers from TickerFactory.
They're pretty, aren't they? Easter motif, hee!
Am still figuring out where to put them best on the blog...
They do serve a good purpose: Help me not to lose track on how fast my children grow.
Just realised that in exactly 4 months' time, Bryan will be four!

mother

The vanity in me... :p

http://www.myheritage.com

daughter

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com.

Is this it? Is this how she's gonna look like?

a gruffalo...

"A gruffalo? What's a gruffalo?"
"A gruffalo! Why didn't you know?"

About two weeks back, we discovered Julia Donaldson at the English bookstore here in Frankfurt. She's since become Bryan's favourite author. He even asked me tonight before he went to bed if he could visit Julia Donaldson. I could see the sparkle in his eyes.

I always think it takes a special something in someone to write children's book. And Julia Donaldson is certainly that special someone who adds magic and spark in her stories. Also not forgetting those catchy tunes that she writes and sings for her stories. She's not just Bryan's idol, she's mine too!

Alan was travelling today and that gave me a good excuse to go down to the Stadt to acquire a few more titles to expand our home library. While he was working hard in Hamburg, I was also working hard to spend his bonus! I went ga-ga grabbing all the titles available with the name Julia Donaldson stamped on them. It didn't take me long to chalk up a bill of 70 Euros for the books. And what do we have now to add to our collection of books at home?
Gruffalo, The Gruffalo's Child, The Gruffalo Song and other Songs Book, The Sharing Shell by Julia Donaldson.
And Helen Cooper's Pumpkin Soup and Green Eggs and Ham by Dr Seuss.

Ok, Daddy... I will go easy on buying books the next time when I'm back at the bookstore, I promise. You know what, I think I will leave my purse at home. Otherwise, it will be tough to resist buying more children's books.

what's on the menu?

I'm sure everyone knows about Babybel cheese. The nice little round cheese all wrapped up with a layer of wax and then pretty red foil - hmmm, in a way, Babybel really does resemble a huge candy in the eyes of a three-year-old.

It didn't occur to me to give the kids this healthy snack until Bryan picked them up at the supermarket the other day. He looked at me with a pathetic expression on his face and was on the verge of begging, "Mom, you know, I've never eaten this type of cheese before. Why don't we buy them?"

Now, before you even have thoughts on what a terrible mom I am, read on...

Admittedly, my heart melted when I heard Bryan's plea. So I bought the cheese and guess what? He immediately asked for it as soon as we left the check-out and he quickly popped it into his mouth. Ok, not the whole thing, though he did try. He took a bite and then decided that the taste was far less appetising than how the cheese was packaged. Thus, he started offering Mommy, Daddy and then his sister the other half, claiming that he's stuffed already.

Mommy and Daddy didn't fall for his trick to help him finish up something he didn't like. But his greedy little sister did! And ever since, Kristin's addicted to Babybel which I gladly offer during breakfast time.

So what has Kristin been eating, at 19 months?

8 am --- 180 ml Formula Milk

10am --- a slice of toast (lightly buttered or spread with cream cheese and jam)

1 Babybel and water

1 pm --- Lunch could be cereal, porridge, rice or pasta or sometimes even a sandwich on the go,

depending on Mommy's busy schedule.

4pm --- 150 ml Formula Milk and then followed by her nap.

6.45pm --- Dinner: What the family eats but all chopped up and served in a bowl.

9 pm --- Another 180 ml of Formula Milk before bed.

And throughout the day, she's offered plain water - good thing she hasn't discovered juices - and snacks like bananas, yoghurt, cheese or crackers.

Her appetite has never been better after she recovered from her bout of stomach flu. Kristin, you're finally getting fat! But that's not my concern. I need her to put on more weight because she loses weight as quickly as she gains it, especially when a virus strikes. Something is certainly amiss when she doesn't drink, eat or sleep well. I think that's the universal rule that applies to all young children.

joke of the week...

Daddy: Hey, Bryan, you've got to put on your shoes.
Bryan: Hay is for horses, Daddy. (Grinning away!)
Daddy: Huh....? O yes, horses do eat hay. A good one! I'll just call you Bryan then.

We've got a cheeky boy here!