Cotton Plant Blossoms

21 December 2012 (Fri):

After 3 mths of planting & diligent watering, our cotton plant has finally blossom into a pretty little thing. Yes, the first bud opened up with white petals & yellow stigma. It was such a pretty sight to behold.

Can u see the flower?

A clearer view of it. The morning sunlight reflects on the leaves instead as this litle one is shy here & hides beneath the leaves.

There u go..

Strong, healthy & full green coloured leaves, waving in the winds & reaching up high, stretching to get more sunlight. :)

Jurakids VS Kids Explorer

19 December 2012 (Wed):

On a rainy afternoon, we left home for JuraKids @ East Coast. It was a wet dash across the carpark as there was no shelter at all. To our disappointment, the place was quite run-down & small. The playgrd was next door to the restaurant & there was no way to get across without gettin wet.

We got the kids into the playground and my sil went abt looking at the menu. But after a few mins, we left the place, irritated & disgusted. The cafe was crowded, not to mention small & stuffy but the roof was leaking. Imagine gettin wet while eating.

In the end, we had our lunch at the nearby Mac & proceeded to AMK, Explorer Kids instead. The kids had a whale of their time & we spent more than 3 hrs inside. Both adults & kids played catch now & then & my bil got each of us a cup of pearl milk tea each.

Not able to gain entry into LEGOLAND even with the Annual Pass??

18 Dec 2012 (Tues):

Daddy told us he saw the news reported on Sunday that even with the Annual Pass, one may not be able to enter LEGOLAND due to the huge crowd. The management is restricting the number of visitors. Uh-oh!!

And that is only a Sunday. So what about Xmas weekend? Isnt it worst? So here's praying & hoping our plans to visit LEGOLAND on a weekday (24 Dec - Xmas Eve) will not pose a entry restriction.

But i did tell Daddy - Xmas Eve is also gonna be a crowded day... but his reasoning; its a Monday & still a work day for some. We gotta arrive early & hope for the best.

The kids are gettin excited as the days draw nearer & we really do not wish to disappoint them and for some obvious reasons, the adults too. 

LEGOLAND Malaysia

15 December 2012 (Sat):

Plans were made in early December to visit LEGOLAND Malaysia during Xmas but we kept putting it off as no confirmation can be given from neither one of us working parents.

Finally we decided to stay put on our initial decision & a look at LEGOLAND's website last night sent us into a frantic mode.

Firstly, the promotional rates on the Annual Pass will be increasing soon & the last day to apply will be 15 December 2012.

Though its just a $50 increase, it is still an increase..

We decided to go for the day pass but yikes, the dates are all fully sold out during the Xmas period, marked in red.

We did not think that such a thing would occur; I mean, c'mon, tickets are sold out for a certain day??? Okay, maybe these were done online so they have a restricted number.

What to do next? We can try & see if they have tickets on sale at the tickets booth itself on 23rd or 24th December but there is a risk involved. What if they are no more admission tickets left??

The booking for the Annual Pass was also sold out but we spotted a little box that said " Book Online" and presto, it brought us to the payment page where we have to fill in all the neccessary details.

Quickly, Daddy filled in the details & got the system to start processing our booking.

Tadah!!! We got our vouchers that enables us to skip the queue & redeem our Annual ID Card at the counter inside the park. All we need to do is to scan the barcode.

** I logged onto the website again this morning but was unable to see the little box that said " Book Online " anymore. The system only allows us to click on the Day Tickets purchase instead. We were lucky to be able to purchase our pass at the old deal. :)

Primary 2 ~ 2013

14 December 2012 (Fri):

Went to YPS to buy Lionel's school books for year 2013. And yes, i spent almost $200 just on his books alone.. *sign*

The English Stellar Worksheets will given to the students at the start of the new academic year.

Maths Text Book, Activity Book & Assessment (Visible Thinking) 2A.

Maths Text Book, Activity Book & Assessment Book (Visible Thinking) 2B.

Higher Chinese 2A & 2B, including Civics & Moral Education.

Music, Health Education & Social Studies, Handbook & Progress Card.

And of cos all the different exercise books; single lined, big & medium squares & even jotter books, files, etc..

Need to pop over to Sembawang Shopping Centre soon to buy his uniform soon as MIL told me his school shirts are getting smaller ~ hmmm... Lionel is on a growing spurt; within a year, he has outgrown his school uniform.

As for Rachel, since the beginning of December, they have started the formal education for K2s. Not that much on academic yet but slowly & surely easing into what a K2 student has to learn.

And my nephew, Yi Jie has joined Little Footprints  Schoolhouse for the new academic year 2013 for playgroup classes.

Rise Of The Guardians

10 Dec 2012 (Mon):

Caught this movie some time back & the kids love it. I had to explain some of the characters such as Jack Frost, Sandy & Tooth Fairy to them as we do not have such characters in Asian countries, or rather, the kids do not know what roles they performed. LOL!

I was half expecting Rachel to snuggle up in my lap halfway thru the show but she was enjoying herself so much that she sat by herself thru out the show; of cos with the caramel milk tea she've been "pitching" from me.

Next movie in queue: Hotel Transylvania. :)

Rachel's Year End Results 2012

07 Dec 2012 (Fri):

Rachel got back her year end results last Fri, 30 Nov 2012 but I was only able to blog about it now...

With a score of 99 for English, compared to 81 in the 1st half.

100 for Maths compared to 98

Chinese has dropped a teeny weeny bit, 93 compared to 94.

She got all 1s for her developmental skills except for 1 part of her Language & Social Skills - read simple story books; she got a 2 but its also an improvement as she got a 3 for the 1st half of the semester. 

Language Arts ~ Rachel speaks with confidence to the group. She enjoys participating in conversations and discussions. She spaces letters and words correctly. She grasps new ideas promptly and she is always willing to help her friends. In addition, her reading ability has completely progressed when it comes to speed & loudness. As an advice, she should have a diary that will enhance her writing skills & she can use dictionary to acquire new words to improve her vocabulary.

Maths Concept ~ Rachel has a strong foundation for Math. She is capable of doing her written work independently. She gets good results and is fast in solving the sums. She asks when she faces difficulties on those more comprehensive ones. Great! Continue to work hard.

Chinese Language ~ 经过半年的学习，佳璇的阅读能力有了很大的提高，口语表达也更加规范，标准。希望你保持学习热情，继续努力！

Rachel reads well. She can complete the task independently an within the time frame. Great!

佳璇能够将图片和文字准确匹配， 对字词熟悉， 认读情况忧异。