[Langkawi 2011 - back and burnt!]

We are back!!! It felt like just yesterday morning we left the house and now we're back again.... of course the mountain of laundry that i just put to wash attests otherwise.... boo :) I guess because we didn't really DO much - just mostly bask in the sun and swam in the pool - repeat ad nauseum.... the days felt super short! Plus we were so tanned and burnt that everybody slept early every night!
Photos......
1st off, our room. The resort is made up of 400+ of these quaint little chalets dotted around a rainforest (actually more like jungle?) landscape of hilly terrains - great for jogging as V reported! Not for those of you who like your 5* comfort of 400 count bedlinen and 5 piece bathroom, but it was a good compromise for us - not too expensive for a getaway, and a certain rustic uniqueness. Anyways, for the girls, anywhere is fine so long as they have the beach, long bath and pool! There was the main entrance hall, which had all the facilities annexed to it - the restaurants, pool, changing rooms etc... and the chalets were all a distance away from it. So, in order to get to and fro the beach / swimming pool, we had to call for the tram that will take us there. It was probably the most fun thing for the girls! They loved the tram ride, even making friends with the tram drivers....
One day, we decided to take a tram ride around the whole resort - these were some of the premier chalets up near the beach side.
Us on the tram... it's really quite fun and chill! And to have a tram at yr beck and call is quite cool! :)
We didn't actually see any jellyfish, although i thought i might have seen a dead one.... but it was a good thing to scare the girls with when I didn't want them to venture too far out into the water..
View of the beach - it was amazingly private, as our resort was the tip of the whole stretch of beach, the only other people on that beach were the other resort guests... and as it wasn't near any school hols or major holidays, it really was pretty empty!
Perfect to sip your breakfast cappucinos...
The most wonderful thing about this trip had to be how the girls are playing together so much more.... of course there are all those silly fights and bickering that go on all the time... but they are also getting a hang of entertaining themselves with games like Snap, Uno and also monopoly!

Here's what sisters are great for!! -
Feeding you breakfast when you're too busy playing with sand :) and before you say - poor K, she has the advantage of getting rid of the parts of the pastry that she doesn't like..... an altogether win-win situation!Jumping waves with and making up silly songs all the better for splashing in the water!
Spotting swimming fishies in the clear clear water..
Chatting non-stop with about all the silly things they can think of....
Writing yr names out in the sand....
And doing fun poses with them when mummy says so!

Girls, I hope you remember this holiday as much as we do, we love how you are so much alike and yet so so different... we love the many ways you drive us totally crazy with your constant episodic intense dislike for each other, but also make our hearts warm right to the core when you watch out for each other and take care of one another, and laugh and chatter nonstop with each other. We love how cuddly you are and how clever the things you say. We love the total optimism and unfailingly enjoyment you have in every little thing. How just being able to spend time with us is enough and how you both will exclaim every time of the day that it is the BEST holiday ever! lol....

Signing off with my favorite shots of you -
K, you with your impish grin, you are starting to be such a little miss know-it-all... you love all the little girl things like cuddling up to mummy or daddy, yet insist on being a big girl by eating all by yourself, packing your own bag and making sure that che-che has the same amount of treats as you do. You never fail to make everyone around you fall a little in love with you, when you say please and thank you so sweetly, and prance about without a care in the world. You complain every single morning that you don't want to go to the beach or the pool, yet when you are there, you sheepishly say actually you quite like it there and might have been a little bit silly to throw a tantrum back in the hotel room. You love to sleep in and take a long while to adjust from sleepy to awake.... you probably take after me in that respect! :) G, my little teenager in a 6 yr old body, we have often been bewildered by your intense behavior. You have definately grown up so much with every holiday that we take. No longer do you collapse into tantrum-y sulks and screaming matches with yr sister, you also don't lose your cool at the drop of the hat. You still test all the boundaries we set you, but are so much better at keeping within the lines. We are starting to look out for signs when you are over-stretched on your emotions, we know now that when you are tired you start to become a lot more hyper, and we cut you quite a lot of slack when that happens. The change of attitude to yr behaviors have made it so much easier on all of us than it has been to have met you headon.. You love your little sister so much sometimes it is so wonderful to see you take care of her when we least expect it. You love making her laugh and i can only hope your non-stop chatter with each other will last through the growing up years. You are so beautiful when you hold your own in all our conversations, you're curious about everything and everyone. You form your own opinions on things and often act on your own accord to make things right (although mostly for yourself!) You are so brave about so many things, and yet have a lot of fear if you are doing the 'right' thing. You make me feel so loved when the first thing you did on the beach was to draw a little heart and in it that said 'i love you mummy'. You are my little me and I love you...

love mummy & daddy

[blogging on the beach]

We are on holiday!!! :) Well, kindof, as lots of work and also V's upcoming exams have made the trip a lot more of a 'work/play' sort of escape. But, can't complain, the girls are napping now while I'm blogging. Wi-fi at the beach also lends a certain joie de vivre to the everyday tasks of checking and answering emails, drawing etc....
We are staying at the Berjaya Langkawi, a very quaint series of chalets (we're in the rainforest one), although the ones that are perched on the water look pretty cool too (but a little scary for us over-paranoid parents as none of the girls can swim!) So far, we are on Day 02 here out of 4 days, and we just went to our favorite eatery - The Loaf - which conveniently has an outlet a short drive away from our hotel!

No pics as yet of the holidays, as I did not bring along the download cable (i need to figure out this flash drive thing on my MBP..... so perhaps there can be some pics later!) So, here are some pics of our bedroom (more like photo vignettes) as I finally did a little decorating :)
Entrance into the room... our arty wedding pics are on the wall..
Lacey doilies and my old childhood teddies obscure us from any peeping neighbors!
My quick 'make-up and go' station
Bedside lamp & books on my side of the bed!

[April 2011]

We are madly finishing up our work before we jet off for a mini-break at the nearby island of Langkawi over a long weekend. Last weekend, we visited the newly opened Bishan Park (well, part of) and had a Mc-D's brunch at the same time. Here are some of the recent pics:

K posing w popo with her new fav outfit from kuku's hkg spree :)
G looking all grown up on the new bridge connection into Bishan Park
K loved scoottering around, and I think she must have practiced in school quite a bit....
Happy that G, who learnt rollerblading when she was 4, has not forgotten her wheelies :)
After the morning workout, i caught these priceless pics of the girls in the car..... am constantly struck by how gorgeous they are! :) Love their silly faces and giggles...
Rosy rosy cheeks
G and her fav softie
Afternoon activities over the weekend include making a little house with blankies and the dining table and chairs.


Recently, their kindergarten also organised a little outing to East Coast Primary school, for the K2 kids to have their 1st taste of the "big girls and boys" school. G was super excited!! She was a little apprehensive about the buying of food from the canteen, but we rehearsed it at home and she finally did it by herself with her friends at the primary school. An excited pre-primary girl
Counting out her change for the food.... well, actually snacks, all of them zoomed straight to the 'snack' stall!
G and her best girlfriends posing for mummy
School's over!!!
Proud Daddy!
Saying bye bye to mummy and daddy...

Gosh, time flies so quickly! Can't believe that we are parents to an almost primary school goer!! (sometimes we can't believe we are parents.... period... )

[falling off]

Again.... i'm falling off the blog-wagon. Too much things on my plate, too much to do, too many things to organise. Plus I haven't been taking many photos with the "proper" camera, only lots of iphone shots and vids. Before I forget, I need to blog about a certain Major milestone in our home - the girls are finally sleeping in their own room!!! :) I know i know, they are already 5 (oops 6) and 3, and should have transitioned looooong ago. But somehow, through the years, the major events like #2 arriving, then moving house etc, have always delayed that process. They were in their own rooms for the longest time, just that it was always with 1 parent who will sleep through with them in their room. Lots of times this was justified, as usually G or K will wake mid-sleep and wake the other up with their wailing, on which a speedy exit from the room was required, else the other sibling will wake and it will be a night of disrupted sleep for all! We realised this happened less and less now, so finally bit the bullet to let them sleep through the night by themselves!!! And it worked! hurrah! It is bittersweet naturally, and I feel like a mum of a newborn when I walked across the hallways every other hour till 3am to check on the 2 of them. But.. now I can (finally!) start to think about decorating my own room... definately something to look forward to... if only I can also find the time to do so!

So, what have we been up to :
Been going back to knitting, using chunky needles and chunky wool this time- so fun!
Also, Gocco-ing at a friend's (thks E!) and can't wait to go back there to letterpress on them... :) soon soon....

Finished up a commissioned MonogramWe went pony riding at the saddle club
Some priceless goofy faces from the girls
Making art on the patio
Playing dress up at Cotton On Kids... heh.
G's vocabulary - she wrote these using her phonics. We were pretty impressed!
This one is a real fashionista wannabe. She will pick out her outfit for various activities - and they are pretty specific! Flower dress, fancy handbag, pink clips, flipflops etc... sometimes sunglasses too!Lots of picnics at Botanical Gardens. This was taken before the mosquitos attacked!!
Finally, a recent pic of G after i cut her hair. Her long long hair is now a shoulder length bob. A breeze to wash and dry!!