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The kids went over to their grandparents place to join the fun. JS and WH were not placed in any group as we are non resident, nevertheless, the committees were friendly and welcoming enough to let this two ‘intruder’ join in.

They were placed in a group with 3 Japanese girls.

Chicken and duck talk….see how JS made instant friends.

Trick or treat!!

Spotted this cute little boy and couldn’t resist to take his picture… with permission of course.

We went to Sage at the Garden Residences for dinner on Saturday. It’s an earlier birthday celebration for SIL.

The Blue Whale @ 27 weeks ++ of pregnancy… wonder how big more I will get in the next three months

The Food

The much awaited day for WH is almost here. Tomorrow he will be having a little party at his school. I have got everything ready , just left the cake. I was excited too, as this is not going to be just a normal birthday party. I have going to do a Birthday Walk at his school. I have put up some materials , a biographical photo album and a script.

Couldn’t sleep last night as I was thinking about his cake. I have ordered it online and it will not only be a surprise to WH but also to me as I have just given the baker what I want for the cake and it is up to her creativity to come up with the cake deco.

The materials I need for the birthday walk

Party pack

JS helped me with these

I have informed the teacher I will be there during snack time tomorrow and apparently they have never done a Birthday Walk in school amid that it is a Montessori kindy. Hmmm..

We have never  celebrated any of the children’s birthday in a grand way. Not even a modest way. For the past 6 years, JS had it only with close family members, so as the past 4 years for WH. When I go through the photo, in fact I can’t even find his 2nd birthday celebration and cake cutting photo.

We had never had any party before, mainly because we used to commute so frequently during the weekend between Seremban and PJ. Moreover , I don’t have many close friends with kids of my children age and don’t have any other children at home to call up a party.

Last year was WH’s first year at school, but he didn’t complete the school year to celebrate birthday at school. JS also never got a chance to celebrate birthday at school as for the 3 years of preschooling, she had never completed any of the school year, and her birthday falls on December.

This year, both of them has special request. They insisted on celebrating birthday with their friends. WH wanted to do it at school. JS been invited to two different birthday parties this year (one at McD and another at her friend’s house) decided to have a party at home. It is her first ever party invited by friends, not those parties that she attended because of mummy’s friends and where she hardly know the  birthday girl/boy. She wanted a party like that, only inviting her close friends.

For months, (since the 2nd quarter of the year) , both WH and JS has been talking and planning about their birthday. Talking about what cakes they want etc etc. JS even drafted a guest list as well as what food to have for her party. ( I am not so optimistic that her friends will turn up though..as when her birthday comes, it will be school holiday already, I wonder if any of her friends will be around or remember to come)

For WH, I have planned for a celebration at school. To do the Montessori birthday walk. I have started planning as in start looking and ordering cake 3 weeks ago. Got the party packs ready last Friday and not quite prepared for the materials to do the birthday walk yet. I wanted to do the lollipop flower too, but it will depends on whether I have the energy to do so or not.

While seeing me doing all these preparation, JS is full of envy. She kept saying she dislike her birthday to fall on December. I hope that when December comes , I can help her to make her birthday dream comes true.

Tomorrow will be mid autumn/mooncake festival. Bought the kids each a lantern over a week ago. A little taboo of getting it earlier before the lunar 7th month is over, so I got it on the first day of the eight month on the lunar calender, which was during the Raya break. For the past years, the kids only get to play on mooncake festival day itself, they don’t really get to play the lantern and candles as much as they like. This year, I have decided to buy the lantern earlier so that they can have two weeks to play all they want.

Unfortunately, it almost 2 weeks now, I think they didn’t really get to play the lantern every night. There were nights that it rained or we were out. That was one night I was so enthusiasted wanted to bring them for a walk with the lantern around the housing area, but the wind was so strong, before we get to even walk a distant to the next house, the candle was blown out already. I spent so much time squatting down , relighting each lantern. (It is tough to handle three kids alone on the street and playing with ‘fire’!! Have to make sure baby don’t run out to the middle of the road or her touching the fire on the candle, didn’t buy those operated lantern, as I feel that it is not as fun and exciting as playing the traditional lantern…call me old fashion and clinging to the past!)

The subsequent nights, we just play at the car porch and the two older one also went over to the neighbor house to play with their kids. Tomorrow will be the last night of them having such fun. By the way, meimei burn her own lantern stick and thread last night and I have yet to replace a new thread on the lantern for her….

Just before the Raya break, JS told me that once school reopen , the teacher will teach them how to make lantern. I was glad to hear that, after all, when I was in primary school, every year we get to make our own lantern and was very proud of it. But on Monday when she returned to school after a week long break, she told me she HAS to PASS UP a lantern to the teacher and with a deadline. I was like “WTH?? Aren’t the teacher suppose to teach them to do that?  Isn’t that suppose to be part of the school art class project??” I wonder what the do in school for art period.

But luckily we have done one out of fun during the school break, just a very simple and rough one with cardboards.

This is what WH made in school today

The Bumbo Boys and QiQi visited us last Sunday!

Yeah, I finally got a chance to see them in person. Have always wanted to visit Chin Nee, but have never move my butt to do so. :>

Chin Nee, thanks for dropping by. It’s quite far from your place to mine and with three young children, you managed to travel all the distant our house, THANKS! !

The Bumbo Boys are just so adorable and photogenic, so geram, I feel like pinching their cheeks.

The three botak! JL do look a little like the boys with her head bald and the same roundness. Some one from the hymn singing group thought they were siblings.

Auntie Chin Nee and the kids. Wonder what JL is trying to tell baby. (eer..I cannot distinguish whether he’s korkor or didi! )

The older kids busied themselves with painting activity while mummies and daddies chatted away. The long hair girl is my neighbor’s daughter.

WH kept kissing baby until he got annoyed! Poor baby got harassed by WH.

KKBC had organized a hymn singing session in conjunction with Chap Goh Meh. Something like a Christmas carolling. We were honored to have the members from KKBC come over for the carolling session on Sunday afternoon. Two Sangha were at our home too.

They sang two Chinese New Year song and one Buddhist Hymn , followed by chanting and blessing session by the Sangha. Now our house is blessed!!

It’s already Christmas eve today, it’s almost towards the end of the year already!!

This year’s Christmas is pretty quiet for us. The children had not done any Christmas craft, no baking for the occasion, not much of shopping (in fact we have not done any) and we have not gone to the mall to look at the decoration. When we put up the tree at SIL’s place a month ago, the atmosphere was different from the previous years. Probably at that time everyone was tired and PIL were in hospital. JS managed to post out a Xmas card to her best friend in Seremban last Friday.

Time just flew pass. I have initially plan to buy some gifts to sent to friends and relatives, but when I have finally got the time to sit down and do it, it’s already too late for the gifts to arrive on time. (That’s how procrastinating I am, my back to school shopping is not done yet!!). Now, I don’t even have anything to put under the tree tonight for my own children. I planned to bake cup cakes for our dinner tonight, but it’s already xmas eve’s noon, and there’s NO cupcakes… all my plans didn’t materialized.

This past one month is so busy and rush, each day gone by without me doing anything productive (at least that how I felt)

The least I can do is to post up a E greeting here, wishing all my blog friends a very Merry Christmas and a blessed holiday!

Daddy wishes everyone Merry Xmas here too.

And here’s JS playing Jingle Bell on the piano. Video taken on 13/12, I just taught her the song then, so it was not played perfectly (not taught in music class)

Every 5th day of the 5th Lunar month is Duan Wu Jie , or what it’s commonly known as Dumpling Festival. This year Duan Wu Jie falls on Sunday 8/6/2008.

Duan Wu Jie is a day to commemorate the Chinese patriot and poet, Qu Yuan (ÇüÔ­). Falling on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, it is a day to remind oneself of one’s duties and obligations to the nation. Other than eating rice dumplings and participating in dragon boat races, this occasion ought to be used to commemorate the national patriots and to emphasise on the importance of loyalty and commitment to the community.

During the tumultous period of the Warring States (Õ½¹úʱ´ú), there lived a wise and learned man called Qu Yuan (340 – 278 B.C.). He served in various official capacities in the Chu Kingdom. Evil court official, being antagonised by Qu Yuan’s ability and reforms, influenced the weak-minded emperor to dismiss and exile him.

During the next 20 years following his exile, Qu Yuan travelled extensively and composed verses on what he saw and thought. With the progressive occupation of Chu land by the Qin Kingdom, Qu Yuan was totally disheartened. Finally, being overwhelmed by misery, Qu Yuan clasped a stone to his chest and plunged into the Mi Luo River (in Hunan province) on the fifth day of the fifth month.

Upon hearing Qu Yuan’s suicide, the fishermen set sail to look for his body, hence began the tradition of holding dragon boat competitions. However, Qu Yuan’s body could not be found and people started throwing rice into the river to feed Qu Yuan. Later the local fishermen were told in a dream that the fishes and other sea creatures got the rice instead of Qu Yuan. Therefore, the next time they threw rice into the river, they first stuffed it into bamboo sections. This custom is later evolved into the present day version: rice wrapped in bamboo leaves stuffed with meat, beans, salted egg yolks, mushrooms, etc..

Happy Duan Wu Jie. If you are on a diet, don’t eat too much of the “Zhang”. Actually I miss my grandma’s “Zhang” the most. Now , no one in my family make Zhang anymore. It’s quite tedious work. The old folks are too old for these work and the younger generation (my parent’s generation) are too busy and my generation, we have been left out and never taught to make “Zhang”

“Beyond darkness there is joyous light.
May The Buddha-Dhamma Be Your Guide.
Beyond ignorance there is Enlightenment.
May We grow in Wisdom and Compassion.
Happy Wesak to you and your family.
May you have good health, peace and serenity.”