2nd Try Get Better.

Ya we'd done it again, but this time thanks to the present of mummy, Gracia finally sits pretty steady on the baby seats while daddy ride with her. You should guess that she's still getting kind of phobia after the first incident. But realizing her insecurity from her last experience, daddy learn to put her in the baby seats but not peddle immediately first. I pushed the bicycle slowly instead and asked mummy to be in front or beside us and keep calling out her name to let her feel more calm. Indeed, mummy's effort prove to be very effective. After seeing her being more steady, daddy gets on the bike and starts peddling slowly but increasing the speed gradually.

The final conclusion, it's the 2ND ride of Gracia's life but the first to be consider successful. A day to be remember.

Gracia First Bicycle Ride With Dad

Gracia got to experience for the first time the force of speed when daddy brought her to East Coast Park (ECP) last Thursday for a bicycle ride. Mummy had again forwarded her tuition one day in advance so daddy had to spent the 1 an a half hour with his little princess.

After walkiing around the park for a while, daddy walk passed one of the bicycle renting vendor and saw some bike with baby seat attached. And daddy is tempted to give it a try and see if she like it. Unfortunately for both of us, it's a stressful experience. She cried immedialy less then 1km ride away from the bicycle booth, daddy had to stop and try a few time to gently tell her it's fun and safe and she don't have to be afraid. But she doesn't listen and when ever i started peddling, she'll cry like there's no tomorrow. After 15min of crying and consoling, daddy decided to give up and not trumatise her too much to avoid letting her getting phobia of riding a bicycle in the future.

I actually brought my camera with me and intend to ask someone to take picture of us riding bicycle since this was the first time for Gracia. Unfortunately, handeling a crying and fearful Gracia and still have to pushed the bike slowly back to the booth seems too much for another camera shot. (So no picture taken)

HEE HEE!!!
But daddy managed to take some tearful picture of her at the playground outside Mcdonale. See how reddish and wattery her eyes really is....... wahahahaha...

A Meaningful And Interesting Paradox I Want My Child To Read

The Paradox Of Our Time In History Is That

We have taller building but shorter tempers,
wider freeways, but narrower viewpoint.
We spend more, but have less,
buy more, but enjoy less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families,
more convenience, but less time.
We have more degrees but less sense,
more knowledge, more expert, yet more problems,
more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, ger too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not life.
We've added years to life not life to years.
we've have been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space.
We've done larger things but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted our soul.
We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
We write more, but learn less.
We plan more, but accomplish less.
We're learned to rush, but not to wait.
We build more computers to hold information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion.
Big men and small character.
Steep profit and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two income but more divorce.
Fancier house but broken home.
These are the days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies.
Pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.

It's a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.
A time when technology allows me to type this paradox into my blog and a time when you can choose either to share this insight or just close and delete this page for good.

Another Money Saving Project.

Yes! My wife has done it again, a selfmade Shape Sorting toy which usually cost around $15-$20. This Shape Sorting Cube gives Gracia the opportunity to feel solid shapes and discover where and how they fit into their appropriate space.


THIS IS WHAT YOU CAN GET IF YOU ARE WILLING TO SPENT AROUND $15 FOR IT


The classic Shape Sorting Cube usually are made from solid wooden or plastic material and comes with 4 most common shape,(square, round, triangle and rectangel). But my wife substitute it with recycling cupboard and it actually turn out to be as good or at least firm enough to play with though it's not as solid as wood or plastic. Each solid shape has it's own 'door' to place the shape into. We show Gracia how each solid shape fits into it's own 'door' and then listen for the drop inside the cube. Allow the child to show you next and if they are still interested move onto another side of the cube. By demonstrating one side at a time, this will diminish confusion and the young child becoming over whelmed with too many shapes. After Gracia has accomplished one side at a time, i suggest to my wife we can actually demonstrate sorting the shapes by color and then finding their 'doors'. So when i am free, i will colour each side of the cube to match with the individual shape. Hee... There are just so many learning possiblities with the Shape Sorting Cube.

IF YOU WANNA SAVE THE MONEY FOR BETTER THINGS, TRY MAKING ONE YOURSELF.

Reunion With Shine...

The person i want to thank is Mr Ricky, the current proud owner of my previous Golden Retriver 'Shine'. Thanks for the love and care to all the dogs under your ownership. The time, money and effort you unselfishly given to each of them is unmeasureable. You are such a passionate person i am glad to know, you're truely the hero of all the dogs and a man of a kind soul.

Also want to thank you for the hospitality we recieved during our visit to Malaysia.
Your sincerity is unspeakable, thanks for driving all the way with us up and back so that we won't lost our way. More than thanks, i want to dedicate all the amazing pictures below to you and your nice beautiful wife, WeiLing. Enjoy!

Note: The Quote Added In Each Of The Picture Is Not Related To The Blog.
Just For Creativity Purpose So The Picture Looks More Alive.

First Shoe.

My wife had her tuition forward from friday to wednesday, it turned that my mother will not be at home helping out looking after Gracia and so i have to replace that responsibility. My wife suggested i drove her for tuition together with our baby and then wait for her some where nearby before fetching her later again. After alighting my wife, i decided to bring Gracia to Parkway Parade for a walk. And this is the first shoe i bought for her there at kiddy palace for $15.

Working Mum Vs Stay At Home Mum

Oh wow what an amazing discussion about working mothers v's career mothers during 7/05/08 on FM100.3>>>
There is always a battle over making decision like this. This can be controversial. Well, obviously both types of mothers have to work very hard, that's for sure! So who's lifestyle is the easiest of the two? That's hard to say. Although i am a dad instead of the mum, it has been a hard time for me letting my wife stay at home without bringing extra income to support the family financially together with me, but if i let my wife go to work, my worries will turn to the development of our daughter not to mention that her bonding with her might also be affected.

Some listener point out that research has demonstrated that the early relationship between infants and preschoolers is the foundation of all subsequent personality development.Thus they deciced to stay at home and nurture their baby by thier own.
But is there really evidence to support that statement, because we know that there are children who are in quality day care whom have increases in cognitive skills, intellect, social skills and social comfort. So again this can be controversial.

I have never been one way or another - Because I thought that we have to fight for the right of choice and should not be made feel guilty for the choice we made.

Easier said than done, - We manage to feel guilty about everything we do. From doing enough or too less, if we say the wrong thing, give too much advice, spend some time on our own projects or hobbies, neglect the housework, neglect the child, not being able to support financially for the family, not being a good wife, husband, in-law, father or mother etc etc etc the opportunities for feeling guilty are endless.
After listening to the discussion aired on the radio, i noticed there is a obvious split between the two groups. Each have their valid points and views,I wouldn't say that either one is better or harder than the other.

My final conclusion is, i am not so sure about others, but we are definitely a pair of happy parent feeling delight seeing our daughter growing and becoming a happy baby. Not only we felt she's growing happy, but we are satisfy with her over all development. Her physical growth( my wife BF her for 11 months and is still feeding), her way of communcating with us ( we teach her sign laungage), and to be able to witness her first sitting, first crawling and perhap her first walking soon is truely amazing. All this wouldn't be suceeded if my wife choose to work. All i can say is, we are both glad to made the choice to stay at home.

Children Love To Make Their Own House

There is something fascinating about the miniature world of the 'make believe house' which has enchanted many children. It is the chance to act out the lives of their own tiny family. For others, the appeal is in lovingly decorating and furnishing each room to create a beautiful model home. Whatever the reason, our gracia sure seem to enjoy making her own with the help of her mother.





One of the most appealing factors of making 'self believe houses' for parents is the educational value they offer. Through playing with her little own house, a child can learn a great deal about the world around them. The choices a child makes about how the house is decorated and furnished will also help them to develop imaginative and creative skills which they will find extremely useful in later life.





The benefits of playing make believe can be found physically and mentally. Physically we know the benefits strength endurance and builds coordination. Playing together with your child is also valuable for babies. In many ways it promotes their development and social skill. Babies, toddlers and preschoolers are sensory-motor learners. Besides all the benefits, playing stretches children's thinking and knowledge. Children need coordination, they need a chance to practice their basic physical skills. 'Make believe house' playing time also allows children to move freely and make noise, forms of self-expression.

Our Daughter seems to enjoy every part of it.

Opening Of Downtown East Cathay

We are so excited about having a nearby cinema within our estate, we used to go to town for a quick show, the nearest one we can go was Tampines. Now that the one in Downtown East has open, we can enjoy movies more easily. Further more, there's this kid's Xplporer ( the biggest children playground so far ) for kids and children to enjoy. Looking forward to bring Gracia along with us. Mean while, we had already showed our support for being an early bird to the cinema and watched "The Forbidden Kingdom".

Make yourself a drink in this HOT HOT weather.

Recently Singapore's weather is pretty hot, so hot i almost got roasted working under the Sun. Checked on the Singapore weather forecast website and it shows 34 degree c in the afternoon. What a hot hot day. Periods of extremely hot weather--heat waves--can cause serious health problems for everyone.

Normally, the body cools itself by sweating. If temperatures and humidity are extremely high, however, sweating is not effective in maintaining the body's normal temperature. When this happens, blood chemistry can change and internal organs--including the brain and kidneys--can be damaged. Heat also can be stressful if the temperature changes suddenly, since it usually takes several days for the body to adjust to heat. The most common heat-related conditions are heatstroke, heat exhaustion, heat cramps, sunburn and heat rash. Heatstroke and heat exhaustion are the most serious conditions.

Below are a few example to cool down yourself :

Limit outdoor activities. Try to plan activities for the coolest times of the day--before noon and in the evening. When physically active, rest frequently in the shade.

Protect your body. Wear as little clothing as possible when indoors, and wear light colored, loose fitting clothing outdoors. When spending time outdoors, avoid direct sunlight, wear a hat and use a sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) greater than 15 to protect yourself against sunburn.

Never leave children the elderly or pets in a parked car, not even for just a few minutes.The air temperature inside a car rises rapidly during hot weather and can lead to brain damage or death.

Most Importantly Drink plenty of fluids. During hot weather, you will need to drink more liquid than your thirst indicates. Even if you remain indoors and limit your activity, your body still needs to replace lost fluids, salt and minerals. Make an extra effort to drink a minimum of six to eight 8 oz. glasses of cool fluids daily. During heavy exercise in a hot environment, drink two to four glasses of cool fluids each hour. Parents should be sure young children get sufficient fluids. If you are on a special fluid-restricted diet or if you take diuretics, ask your physician about fluid intake during hot weather.

Maybe you would like to make yourself or your loves one a cool and sweet coconut drink. Add some fruit to make it more tasty and refreshing. Enjoy!