Our weekend outings in November

8 November - East Coast and Marina Barrage

When we reached East Coast that day, the skies started to darken and it looked like it was going to rain. We've arrived with Kaelyn's beach toys and were prepared to have some fun in the sand, so I refused to believe the rain was here to stay. But just in case we really were so unlucky, David decided to put his 2 man tent into good use. It was a great idea! The rain didnt come and we had great fun in the tent and on the sand!

After our East Coast trip, we had a rest at Ye ye & Nai nai's house, where Kaelyn posed for the camera with her cheeky look

In the late afternoon, we left for the Marina Barrage for a walk. Quite a nice scenic place except that it was crowded with families and the restaurants were not opened yet. But Kaelyn had a great time there, running around on the grass and playing ball with other kids. She's one sociable baby, always looking for children to play with.

Kaelyn: 'I see people playing ball! I want to play too!'

Yay, I got the bal!

Mama asked me to return to Kor korKor kor, next time we play again together, ok?A shot with Mama

15 November - Singapore Flyer (surroundings only)

I have been wanting to go to the Singapore Flyer ever since its opening but didnt have a chance to. But today, we finally are able to make a stop there. Didnt go up on the flyer itself - David says wait till the IR is ready or else we will just be looking at all the ongoing construction sites. Well, which is quite true. So we decided to just roam around. Kaelyn enjoyed herself thoroughly at this stuff toy making shop, running, pointing to the toys, hugging the bears etc. There was nothing really much there other than the flyer. A couple of restaurants, some shops and a small 'rainforest walk'.

Where's the Singapore flyer?

Look at the dog - woof woof!

All I want for Christmas is this cuddly bear!

16 November 2008 - Popo's birthday

Today's my mum's (Kaelyn's popo's) birthday, and we celebrated over dinner at the Straits Kitchen at Hyatt hotel. Pre-dinner, we walked around the hotel lobby. Kaelyn was running and prancing around, chuckling happily at the same time. Must be the large area available for her to explore. The dinner was good, with a wide spread of food. But I still think that The Line at Shangrila is better.

Eh, what is that?

Happy birthday, Popo!A kiss for Gong gong. Oh, what a darling!Peek-a-......Boo! Ha ha, I see you!

Hokkaido - August 2008 (Day 5 - 8)

Day 5 - Otaru (5 Aug 08)

Went on a day trip to Otaru, a small town near Sapporo. Highlights were the famous Otaru canal, musical box factory, and lots of small authentic Japanese shops selling food, souvenirs and crafts.

As we walked along the streets, we couldnt stop ourselves from indulging in the snacks and BBQ seafood. It's a nice little place but was very very hot!

Famous Otaru canal

BBQ crab for lunch

Delicious Hokkaido melon (sells for S$80 - S$100 in Singapore)

Yummy BBQ scallops

Outside the musical box factory

Day 6 - Noboribetsu (6 Aug 08)

This day we embarked on a 2 day 1 night trip to Noboribetsu. Of the entire trip, the hotel accomodation in Noboribetsu (Dai ichi Takimoto kan) is the most expensive of all. There's an indoor swimming pool, and separate hot spring areas (both indoor and outdoor) for men and women. We also had buffet dinner in this hotel. I could just stay in the hotel for the entire week to enjoy the hot springs, swimming pool and food!

In the female hot springs area, there are around 9 hot spring pools with temperature ranging from 39 degrees to 42 degrees. As you soak in the bath, you are able to enjoy the beautiful scenery as well. Sometimes I wonder how they were able to build outdoor spring baths but at the same time hidden from outsiders... For those who are not familiar with Japanese hot spring baths, you are not allowed to wear any clothes (yes nothing at all) into the bath, only a small piece of towel to wash yourself. Apart from the initial awkwardness, once I begin to soak in the warmth of the hot spring water, and moving from one pool to the other, I feel I could just stay in there forever!

Apart from the baths and food, we also managed to trek around 'Hell valley', an area with hot bubbling underground spring waters and high sulphur concentration.

Hell's valley

Enjoying a hot spring for the feet along the hike

Day 7 - Shiraoi village, Sapporo (7 Aug 08)

On our way back to Sapporo, we made a little detour to the Shiraoi village. This place was recommended in the guide books and we thought it would be an easy place to find but how wrong we were! We took a train to one of the Shiraoi train station and walked for almost 20 mins in the hot blazing sun before we found the place. It was very out of the way and in there we watch a short performance by the Ainu people (couldnt understand a single word) and walked around the museum which showcased the history and ways of life of the Ainu people. We also saw a few large bears in cages. We realised that this is only catered for tourists who disappeared as quickly as they appeared. The only great thing about this place is the beautiful scenery.


In the evening, we went back to Sapporo to soak in its night life.

Sapporo with TV tower at the background

Day 8 - Sapporo (8 Aug 08)

We spent the last day of our trip walking all around Sapporo. We went up the Sapporo TV tower, the Tokei dai wooden clock tower, a big garden in the centre of Sapporo (cant recall the name now), shopping malls etc. Basically just taking our time relaxing and soaking up the culture...

Sunflowers in Sapporo

Fountain in Sapporo gardenI cant get enough of the Hokkaido melon!
Day 9 - Sapporo - Singapore

End of our trip - Home sweet home. Kaelyn, here we come! Papa and Mama miss you!

Hokkaido - August 2008 (Day 1 - Day 4)

I finally got down to writing about our Hokkaido trip. It was a trip as a couple after we had Kaelyn. We had contemplated bringing her along but after thinking about the logistics, we decided against it. In terms of the timing, we planned it such that it was after her first birthday celebration, and coincided with the time I could take my mandatory block leave of 2 weeks. So first week will be for the trip and 2nd week to come back and spend time with Kaelyn in case she forgets me after our 8 day absence.

Here are some photos and what we were up to during the 8 days, enjoying our little break from our daughter.

Day 1 - Chitose, Furano (1 Aug 08)
We flew from Singapore into Chitose airport and from there, took a train all the way to Furano (land of flowers). At Furano station, we collected our rented car and proceeded to look for our accomodation near the Furano ski area. Till now I still didnt quite remember why i booked a place near the ski area (which is out of the way) when it's summer... We still had some time before the sun set for a short visit to Farm Tomita, followed by the famous Gengkhis Khan BBQ dinner. I still can remember how the lamb, chicken, pork liver etcy tasted.. yummy!!!


Day 2 - Around Furano, Asahikawa (2 Aug 08)
The weather on the 2nd day wasnt very good, so we postponed a second visit to Farm Tomita (we had only visited part of the farm the day before). So we drove round visiting cheese and wine factories in Furano before deciding to head to Asahikawa, the second biggest city in Hokkaido (after Sapporo). Along the way to Asahikawa, we made 2 fantastic discoveries - a lovely field of lavendars (although starting to dry up) and another flower farm, Kami Furano farm.

Field of Lavendar and scenic background
Kami Furano flower farm

GPS - the greatest invention for all drivers (or rather drivers like me with no sense of direction!)

With the GPS, no need for maps, no need for a navigator while the other drives, no need to worry about getting lost in a foreign land!

Some photos at the Asahiyama zoo. Here, we could get real close to the animals!


Day 3 - Furano, Sounkyo (3 Aug 08)
On the third day, the weather was slightly better, and we went back to Farm Tomita before setting out for Sounkyo (a place with natural waterfalls and gorges). Along the way, we stopped by the 3D Trick Museum. We reached Sounkyo in the evening and enjoyed our first hot spring bath in this trip at our accomodation. It was so relaxing and heavenly!

Farm Tomita

3D Trick museum - David's actually standing in front of a painting

And I am sitting on a small stool in front of a painting of the armchair - not actually sitting on the chair...

Day 4 - Sounkyo, Sapporo (4 Aug 08)
I like Sounkyo best in this trip - lovely scenery (waterfalls, mountains etc). This is also the place where David dropped his SLR camera and damaged his lens = ( He was so upset the whole day that we decided to go hunt around Sapporo that evening for a repair shop or to by a standby lens. We eventually bought a simple lens at Bic Camera in Sapporo. By the time we had dinner, it was already almost 10pm...

Beautiful scenery at Sounkyo

Tired after spending 2 - 3 hours looking for camera lens

About Kaelyn

Realised I have been really behind in my postings. There are so many things that I want to blog on - our Hokkaido trip,Kaelyn's first major illness, Kaelyn's developments since 10 months, our various outings etc. But now I am in the mood to write about Kaelyn's developments, her 'wits' and her antics.

Her first words
Her very first words when she was about 10 months old sounded very much like Papa'. We kept hearing 'papa papa papa....' all the time, but with different tones and pitches. David was obviously very happy that our daughter has started calling him first before 'Mama'.

Subsequently, she learnt to say 'ber' (bird), 'bor' (ball) 'ba ber ber' (butterfly) etc. Notice all the b-consonents? And of course she did learn to say 'mama' and I think sometimes it is overused. Not only does she calls be 'mama' all photos she sees are 'mama' as well. And sometimes, when she sees something new, that will become 'mama' too. It's like a joker card that can replace any item!

Now she is babbling non stop. Sometimes she really sounds like she's engaged in some serious conversation with you except that it is in a foreign language that no one could understand.

Her first steps
Kaelyn started to walk unsupported about 2 weeks after she turned 1, and right after she recovered from an entire week of virus infection (more about this in subsequent blogs). She is now waddling (yes, just like a duck with her butt sticking out and swaying side to side when she walks!) all over the place.

She's now good enough to climb up and down the stairs in my parents' place, and can climb off our bed by herself. My mum has taught her how to do it safely, by lying on her front and slowly moving backwards till her feet touch the ground. I thought that was rather smart.

Her wits and antics

(1) Catching attention

We were travelling in a car one day and Kaelyn suddenly pointed towards the warmer bag and babbled something. When I didnt really pay attention to her, she hit my arm and shouted louder. Realising she may be thirsty, I reached for the water in the bag and offered to her. But she pushed it away and continued pointing to the bag. This time I took out the milk bottle for her and she happily grabbed it and started drinking her milk. I really was impressed then that she could convey what she wants using her own way.

My Dad was pointing out to Kaelyn that the picture she had on her blouse one day was a Rabbit. And I think that was the first time she ever looked at the designs on her blouses so she was really quite fascinated. She walked to me and tried calling to me. When I didnt respond, she took my hand and placed it on the Rabbit picture on her blouse and said something which sounded like 'you see'. Then I realised that she was showing off her Rabbit blouse to me. She did the same thing to my Mum and when she too didnt respond, she almost cried! It was when she touched the rabbit then she gave a satisfied smile and walked off.

2) The 'little helper' around the house

Kids are really sharp. They are able to spot the tiniest speck of dust on the floor. Kaelyn likes to pick up any piece of tissue, paper, dirt, insect, whatever she thinks shouldnt be on the floor and offer them to us. Sometimes she will just stand by that spot and point and babble, as if she's asking someone to clean the floor. My helper says Kaelyn's her supervisor, checking on whether she has done her job properly!

I was going through a stack of unopened letters one day and asked Kaelyn to play by my side so I could watch over her. After I have opened a few letters, a small hand offered me my next letter to be opened.

(3) Mimicking

Kids love to mimic too. David and I brought Kaelyn to the supermarket today, and we sat her on the seat in front of the trolley. With the shopping list in my hand, we zoomed around to hunt for our purchase. At one point, David had to call our helper to check if we were running out of a certain foodstuff. Before I realised it, Kaelyn grabbed the shopping list from my hand and put it to her ear and said 'ah o ah o'. It took me a while to realise she was mimicking David making a phone call!


Her personality

Her personality didnt change from when we first assessed her in her first month. She's still one independent, stubborn and happy baby.

Independent - she likes to do things herself if she can. She doesnt like anyone to hold her while she was learning to walking, preferring to fall over and stand up on her own again. When we show her which button to push on her toy for the music to come on, she will push our hands away and explore on her own.

Stubborn - she wants everything HER way. If you tell her not to go to a particular area, or ask her to drink her milk or go for her nap when she doesnt want to, she'll really scream, wriggle, push, cry and even attempt to distract you so she can get her way.

Happy - she's always smiling, laughing, babbling happily, except when she's being forced to do something against her will. Then she'll go into the stubborn mode. But generally, I think she's very cheerful and smiles easily. She's on good terms with anyone who plays with her, offering them entertainment and drawing comments like 'she's soo cute', 'she's so happy' etc.

Kaelyn turns ONE!

It's been a long time since I blogged.. Too busy, too many things happening these 2 months. We were busy preparing for Kaelyn's first birthday celebration and our trip to Hokkaido. Now that these 2 events have passed, and I am clearing my block leave, I am able to come back here again amidst unpacking and watching the Olympics!

We celebrated Kaelyn's first birthday on 27 July (her actual birthday was on 30 July), before David and I went on our 2nd honeymoon = P.. It wasnt a big bash type of celebration, just close family and some friends.

As Kaelyn turns 1, I think back (again) on our journey over the past year. It's just passed by in a flash. I really cant describe how happy, relieved, consoled etc that I am watching my girl grow..

Anyway, here are some of the shots taken that day. Kaelyn looks grouchy in front of her cake because we dragged her out from her nap so we can all sing Happy Birthday for her. She's a little overwhelmed..

Lunch before guests arrive - very patriotically waving the Singapore flag at the same time

Princess making her appearance

The guests

The cake
The proud parents
The presents!