I stumbled across this old snapshot of Nathan at one-and-a-half years old …. Compare that with this snapshot of him at four-and-a-half years old… I spent one lazy Sunday afternoon just hanging out with Nathan, watching him play and listening to his numerous made up stories about his Lego characters and action figure toys. He doesn’t have many action figures, but the ones he has, he treasures them immensely. The Spiderman and Soundwave Transformer are hand-me-down toys from hubby’s childhood days. The small Bumblebee Transformer is a souvenir given by his grandpa from Universal Studios Singapore. And the grey robot is a McDonalds Happy Meal toy which he named ‘Kudor’. It was great fun getting acquainted with a few of the many characters in Nathan’s imaginary world and getting caught up in the suspense and action as I listened to story after story unfold in his own words. “Don’t ask him to live in your world… Visit his world instead” ( source )

{A special post in support of the heroic mountain guides who lost their lives in the recent Sabah earthquake tragedy} It was nearly fifteen years ago. My first and only climb up the iconic Mount Kinabalu of my homeland, Sabah. Climbing up an endless stairway upwards. Step, after step, after step… “How much longer?” we ask our guide. “Not long, just a little more”. The same patient answer every time. The question was a pointless one I suppose. It didn’t matter how much longer it was. I still had to keep walking. The next morning at we were roused before dawn to continue the final painful ascent up the mountain. It was dark and cold and damp as we trekked up the rocky incline. Why did I ever decide to do this? My muscles were burning. My lungs were on fire. I couldn’t think of anything else except… “I can’t do this any more”. The distance to the peak was just about 50 metres away. But I simply sank down on the ground and refused to move. If I took one more step, I ...

On the other end of the spectrum (next to his little sister’s fixation on all things practical and tangible) is my imaginative four year old with his whimsical and sometimes offbeat ideas… “Mummy, when I grow up, I want to be a knight. I will ride on a horse and have a sword. I will wear a black helmet with a red feather. I will fight dragons and bad people. Grace can be the princess. And I can also be the prince so we can get married.” ***** “Mummy, you know what? I wish our blue car can drive by itself. So daddy will sit in front, but the wheels will turn by itself and the car will go on its own. And our grey car too! And I can sit in front and the car will drive by itself. That will be nice.” ***** “Mummy, I was thinking about something… that our family can all be like superheroes. Daddy can be Batman. I will be Superman with a blue cape. You can be Batgirl. Grace can be a Superman but a girl Superman… Oh I know! A Supergirl. Daddy and you will drive a Batmobile. I will driv...

Our dearest little Gracie turns two in just a over a month. I’d forgotten how delightful two can be. Her hilarious and quirky antics. Her funny toddler speak. Her round squishy belly and wiggly tushie. And her innate curiosity about all things practical and tangible around her. Food is still very much an important part in her life. “Mummy!!! I hungee!!! I hungee!!!” (spoken literally ten minutes after breakfast) “Errrmmm… I want chips… and errrmmmm… cracker…. and errrrmmmm… cake… and errrrmmm… that one… and errrrmmm… that one!” (making some important decisions at the refreshments table) “I want eat….. that one!” [This is chilli, Grace. It’s very spicy] “I want eat chilli.” Daddy insists on giving Grace a taste anyway despite mummy’s protests. [So do you like chilli, Grace?] Grace makes a grimace but nods her head anyway. She didn’t ask for it again, though. She is decidedly vocal on what she wants and doesn’t want. “Where my lion shoes??? I want wear lion shoes!!! I like l...

After our action-packed week in Singapore , we eagerly packed our bags again and headed to the airport for a relaxing getaway in Bali. { Daily swims @ our private pool } We stayed at Villa Kayu Raja in Seminyak. I booked a one-bedroom villa which was decked out with the standard luxuries in Bali, including our own private pool. This was the absolutely number one perk for the kids. Every single morning right after breakfast on the dot without fail, they would pop the same question “Please can we go swimming?” . And because we were on holiday and there was no particular agenda, the answer would usually be “Yes, of course!” . I snapped this picture looking down at our pool from the balcony of our bedroom upstairs. My hands were almost shaking as I held the camera the balcony. What if the camera just happened to slip out of my hands at the moment? I was gripping the camera as tight as I possibly could as I snapped this picture. { Afternoon tea @ Biku } The first day after our arrival...