the impossible hair cut

Joseph is just not very cooperative when it comes to his personal grooming. He hates hair cuts, he won't let me brush his teeth, he doesn't want his nose to be wiped, he won't let me clean his ears and he only lets me wash his backside because he can't stand the thought of faeces on him.

So, I have no choice but to wait till he's fast asleep before I embark on my grooming business. Last night, I decided it was time for another hair cut.

The first 5 minutes was very fruitful. I managed to cut from the left side till more than half way across the back. After that, he just started to wriggle and scratch his head. At one point, he opened his eyes, looked at me and said, "off light" before he went back to sleep. Thereafter, it was impossible to get anything done. So I gave up and went to sleep. I'll have to continue tonight.

This side, cut already.

This side, not yet cut.

Do I look like I care???? Of course not! I look good anyhow, hair or no hair!

cheap thrills for joe

Remember the 2 empty cardboard boxes that we lugged home from 1Utama? Well, it's another new toy now. I turned the boxes upside down and drew train tracks on them. I also made little coconut trees using straw and paper and my mother made a cardboard house for a station.

Joe will take his Thomas the tank engine and move it along those tracks following every turn.

See how engrossed he is with his 'new toy'.

Joys and tribulations of parenting

Today I stumbled upon this blog by a lady named Dawn who has a pack of 6 kids between the ages of 1 and 12. I couldn't help laughing (like everyone else) while reading through her entries. It has certainly helped to put my parenting experience in perspective.

I thought Joseph was a hyperactive handful. But compared to her Spaz, Joseph is an angel. For instance this morning while we were in church, he said shee shee about half a dozen times over a duration of less than 2 hours (so I had to walk back and forth from the loo half a dozen times), shook the box of milk so that the contents sprayed all over the chairs and the people behind, threw his Barney bolster on the floor and then rolled on the floor and under the chairs while whining "I want to go home".

At home, he likes to feed himself which isn't a bad thing. But halfway through eating a banana, he will put the banana to his ear and say, "hello yee yee. Ok bye bye yee yee". And then he mashes the banana with his hand and rubs banana puree all over his face and hair. He does the same with fried rice, papaya, kiwi fruit, dragon fruit and anything else he gets on his hands. Well, I guess it's not that hard to just shower the kid as compared to washing yoghurt off the tv screen or butter off the carpet (which is why I don't use carpets).

Indeed, parenting....the days are long but the years are short!

Papa's art

Joe says :

Last Monday while we were in church for morning prayer, Mama forgot to bring my toy cars to keep me entertained and quiet. So Papa tried to entertain me with his drawings. He drew this....and asked me what it is.

I took one look at the long nose and said, "elephant". Mama burst out laughing. Apparently papa tried to draw Mickey Mouse. Mama thinks it looks more like Mickey Mouse has been telling a lot of lies.

Then papa drew this...

That thing on the left....I said it's a dog. Papa said, "no, it's a tiger". And I said again, "no....it's a dog".

Mama says that Papa was never a very artistic nor creative person. He didn't score As for art when he was a kid in school.

Oh well, I guess it doesn't really matter. I still love my papa. He takes me to the park and the playground. He takes me swimming. He's my 'horse' when we have fun on the bed and he buys yummy mash potato from KFC for me. He may not be the most artistic dad but he's my dad. Papa, you're da best!

Bye Bye at the airport

While mama and papa went to work yesterday, Joe went to KLIA with nana, kong kong, yee yee and ah ku.

I was told that he walked up to Ronald McDonald and said, "take photo". He had mushroom soup, bread and pasta at Delifrance for lunch. And he learned to say the words printed on his shirt - Somebody in Texas loves me!

Bye bye yee yee.... see you again....soon I hope.

Yee Yee goes home

It's been a very hectic past one month for me and also for Joe. There were countless days of all-day shopping at 1-Utama, The Curve/Ikano/Ikea and Midvalley Megamall. With Yee Yee back home, Joe had a new playmate. Everyday, it's "yee yee, come play with me" and "yee yee, where are you?".

Playing with Yee yee the first time she came back in December 2005.

Playing with Yee yee now at 2 years plus.

Yee yee flies back to Dallas today. I think Joe will miss her as much as she's gonna miss him.

Yee yee carrying Joe at 8months.

Joe's such a big boy now!

sugar fix

We were at Chili's last night for dinner. Joe was a very good boy. He fed himself the chicken-mushroom soup while I fed him fish and mashed potatoes. I like looking at him when his cheeks are full and puffy with food and he looks like he is really enjoying his food.

After we were all full and stuffed, we decided to share a hi and mighty pie. Joe decided he would also share our dessert.

Now, children can get very hyper and 'high' when they've had a dose of sugar. In Joe's case, he will keep shaking his head (like one high on estacy) with a silly smile on his face and babbling nonsense while running all over the place in circles, knocking into everyone and everything in his path.

Nevertheless he had his fair share of dessert while making a mess of the place and his face.

Mmmm....this is soooo yummy! Yummy in my tummy!

Yeah....this is good!

So good....finger-lickin good.....you want some?

Oh ohhhh....I think I'm a bit mabuk. Somebody catch me quick!

free fun for kids

I'm one who is of the opinion that kids do not need expensive toys.....regardless of the impressive labels and instructions on fancy packaging of exorbitantly-priced toys. Ask any mother and you'll probably be told that their kids' favourite toys are handphones or empty boxes and container, eating utensils or the tv remote control.

Last Monday, my sister and I were shopping for her shoes at 1-Utama. In the Scholl shop, there were a few big boxes of shoes just delivered by the supplier. Joe took the liberty to start taking out the shoe boxes, one by one, out of the big cardboard box. When we stopped him, he climbed onto the huge box with all the smaller shoe boxes. So I sheepishly asked the lady in the store if they had any empty boxes that they would be throwing away soon.

The very nice lady took the trouble to empty those cardboard boxes, fold and tie them up neatly for me to take home.

Joe has been enjoying his new 'toys' at home. He climbs in and out and really exercises his imagination. I found a round plastic cover and made a 'steering wheel' for him. One minute the box is a train. And he'll say, "choo chooo.....chuga chuga. Oh oh...no wheels. How to move?". The next minute it's a boat.

Then he makes it his secret hideaway. "I go in....close the door", he says. We then pretend we can't find him, and he'll jump out and say, "here I am!"

peekaboo!

weekend in Pangkor

Edwin and I spent last weekend in Pangkor Island and the lovely Pangkor Island Beach Resort (former Pan-Pac). It was a much needed break and for once, I had almost no complains about the entire place.

We placed our booking with the official hotel website because that offered the best deal. Our Ocean Wing room was lovely and very clean.

The bed was soft but firm and the sheets were spotless. The bathroom which had separate bathtub and shower cubicle was also huge and spick and span with plenty of fresh towels.

Sitting on the daybed in the above picture offers you this magnificent view of the well-manicured gardens surrounding the pool and the beach and ocean beyond. It was lovely to just sit and hear the ocean.

This picture isn't very clear because it was drizzling slightly when I took it on Saturday morning.

We had our meals at the Hornbill Restaurant which is adjacent to the pool and offers stunning (when it's not too cloudy) sunset views at dinner time.

The food was palatable enough with good variety. I do think it is overpriced so it's better to pre-pay (We paid RM80nett per person, per day for buffet breakfast and dinner) for it when placing your hotel booking. Walk-ins would be charged RM65++ per person for International-themed buffet dinner on Friday nights and RM75++ per person for BBQ buffet dinner on Saturday nights.

Hornbill Restaurant is probably named because of the many hornbills that flock to that area. There's a hornbill feeding station where the hotel places plates of fruit during the daytime for the birds to feed on. It's quite an attraction for hotel guests.





We were quite happy to just laze around in the room and in the pool. Thankfully it wasn't too crowded for a weekend.
The private 1.2km beach is clean if you enjoy swimming in salt water. Tucked in a little bay, the waves are not too strong. Lucky for me, hubby is my kind of specie...we enjoy looking at the beach and hearing the waves break on the shore but no thanks to swimming in the sea. Hence the nearest we came to the ocean was just walking around near the beach. Sunday came all too soon and we headed home. I wasn't too sad to leave because I was missed Joseph so much and couldn't help wondering if he was alright all weekend.

For those interested in spending a weekend there...here are some travel info...

The drive from KL to Lumut took us 3 hours. We headed to Shah Alam on the Federal Highway and used the Guthrie Corridor Expressway to reach Kuala Selangor. From there, roadsigns will lead you to Tanjong Karang, Sekinchan, Sabak Bernam, Teluk Intan and on to Lumut. The road is not too bad. Bumpy at some parts and too bad if you get stuck behind a huge lorry. But most parts are 2-lanes so overtaking is not a problem. It's scenic with lots of coconut trees and paddy fields along the way. Total amount of toll paid was RM3.90 each way.

At Lumut, we parked at the Majlis Perbandaran Manjung multi-storey covered carpark. It's RM6.90 per 24hours for weekdays and RM10 per 24hours on weekends. What we liked was that the car was not burning hot when we got back and it does look safer (compared to open air private carparks).

We took a private ferry which goes direct to Jetty 2 on Pangkor Island (there are 2 jetties on Pangkor Island). It costs RM16 return per person and took merely 30minutes to reach Pangkor Island. The ferry was large and we sat in air-conditioned comfort. The upper deck has an open-air section for those who like the breeze in their hair. Jetty 2 is mainly for guests of Pangkor Island Beach Resort and Teluk Dalam Resort. The shuttle from the ferry to the hotel is free and takes no more than 3 minutes.

If you can afford it, opt for the Ocean Wing room. The other room categories are Garden Wing (far from beach and supposedly not so nice), Pacific Wing (I think partial seaview) and the villas. The villas are chalets on stilts are just at the ocean edge. It's quite a walk to the lobby/restaurant/pool areas but perfect if you just want to hibernate with lots of privacy.

View of Ocean Wing rooms from pool area.

Pangkor Island Beach Resort is pretty secluded and there are no nearby restaurants/shops so unless you're prepared to take a cab out to town, you've got to eat in the hotel.

We anticipated that drinking water would be expensive so we brought four 1.5L bottles of mineral water. Otherwise you can boil tap water or try being a camel and drink lots of juice at breakfast and plain water from the restaurant at dinner.

All in, we paid exactly RM800 for 3D2N accomodation in an Ocean Wing room with daily buffet breakfast and dinner for 2 pax. I'd say it was worth the money and would definitely do it again if time and finances permit.

Christmas in July

It's only July but Christmas comes early for Joseph. Santa Claus is back! Again! With loads of presents and goodies. (Thank God the plane could take off)

Joe's private Santa Claus, also known as Yee Yee, lives in Dallas on the other side of this planet. Before Joe was born, Yee Yee didn't come back to Malaysia for a good FIVE years! And after there was Joe, Yee Yee came back every 6 months!

Hello Yee Yee....when are you coming back to see me?

Everytime Yee Yee comes back, the contents in my tiny little apartment increase by leaps and bounds. This time, Joe's goodies included...

Two big, soft and cuddly Lightning McQueens (USD8.50 each) and a Luigi (only USD1.50!!!).

Another Lightning McQueen (USD8.50) and a Mater (also USD1.50 only). These can talk and move their eyes .

Lightning McQueen t-shirt. USD2 only. So cheeeeeaaapppp!!!!!





American Airline toy plane. (USD7) Press the button on top to make the plane emit 'take-off' sound and flash lights.


Veggietale figurines and books.




Veggietale puzzles and a study bible.

More dvds...

Chocolates and popcorn. This is only a third of the original stash. The rest has been wallopped by Ah Ku, Papa and Nana.

Yee Yee also bought 4 pretty baby girl outfits although I don't know yet the gender of baby no.2

And there's this huge present still unopened. Joe has already claimed that it's for him. It's a Veggietale pirate ship inside! Yeah...the one from the Jonah movie.

Of course Yee Yee is most happy when Joe wears this t-shirt...

Joe and his new stash!

Joe's many faces

I always find it very difficult to take nice photos of Joseph. He's just not very cooperative in front of the camera. In fact, my brother commented that in almost all of Joseph's pictures, his mouth is open! And that's not necessarily open in a smile. Most times, he has a blur "sor chai" look.

I'm not sor chai....just deep in thought.

But when he's in a good mood, he'll show you his cute-cute face - which is when he puts his fingers to his cheek and tilt his head to oneside.








And then there's his "cool" face.

mmmmmmmMMMMUAK!!! Here's a kiss for you!