1st birthday party!

Today, we celebrated Caleb's one year old birthday party! It was 5 days earlier than his actual date as his real birthday falls on a weekday.

Anyway, we spent the afternoon preparing the decorations. We kept everything simple. So, there really wasnt much for us to do but get ready the balloons, which we did not blow but left it to the vacuum cleaner to do the job!

I like this "Rainbow" Vacuum cleaner as it has lots of functions...though it is extremely costly. But it has served us well.



Caleb was enjoying himself as we put him into his playpen with all the balloons.



Transporting all the balloons down to the multi-purpose hall was a challenge as CT and Vicky tried to squeeze into the lift. Here's a picture taken in the lift.



Went down at about 4 plus pm to decorate.



Everything was ready by 530pm and guests were starting to arrive. Of course, I quickly snap pictures of the food before more people came. So, here's what I catered!

Ordered from Revada as my mum and aunt knows the owner for a long time already. So they gave me a special rate for the food.

Thai Green Mango Salad as appetizer which was my favourite!



Thai Olive Fried Rice with Cashew Nut. This dish was one of the first to finish!



Sautee Authentic Seafood Linguine with Traditional Tomato Sauce. If I had known it will turn out this colour, I wouldnt have ordered. I guess the colour put people off. So there was quite a lot of remainders for this dish.



The next dish which I enjoyed is the Hong Kong Style Dory Fish Fillet with Supreme Sauce and Chinese Condiments Garnish



Next we had the Braised Japanese Egg Beancurd with Seafood Sauce. A dish which I find,suitable for kids.



There was also Thai Style NZ Half Shell Mussel with Spicy Tangy Sauce



As well as Chinese Dough Fritte Stuffing with Sotong Paste (especially for my brother who loves it)



Another favourite dish by the guests was the Fusion Style Prawn Ball with Wasabi Mayonaise & Exotic Fruits Garnish which was also swept out quite fast.



And for veggies, we had the Brocolli with Mushroom and Abalone Clam Combination



Another dish which had leftovers was the Thai Style BBQ Chicken with Thai Sweet and Spicy Dip as it was all left with the breastmeat.



As for dessert, we had Thai Authentic Durian Rice Pudding as well as Chilled Honey Sea Coconut with Longan and Aloe Vera. All so yummy!!

Here's the setup of the spread! All in all, there were 12 dishes in total for the price of only $13 per head!



We also prepared goody bags for the kids or babies who came for the party. We had a mask, a party blower stick (dunno what you call it), san zha sweet (haw flakes), as well as snack which I always loved when I was young- the ball-like egg, flour snack that just melts in your mouth. Caleb likes to eat that as well!



Just before the guests arrived, when we were setting up the balloons, because it was too big, some of them popped! So, here's CT sweeping the floor.



CT and Vicky as really made the day enjoyable and light as they did most of the labour. Thanks guys!

And here's Caleb in the park as he awaits for the guests to arrive. It seems as if he knows there is a party for him as he did not sleep the whole day except an hour from 10 am to 11 am plus. Each time we tried to put him to sleep in the afternoon, he just couldnt. Hummfghh.



Throughout the whole party, I hardly have the time to take pictures...to my regret as I really forgot all about it. Guess I just had too many people to entertain since almost 100 people turned up! The only picture I took was of my close colleagues whom I invited.



And lastly, the birthday cake which my aunt Rosalind helped me to buy as she works in Hyatt Hotel. I knew I could trust her to get me a nice birthday cake for Caleb...and because of her brillant idea of putting Caleb's photo on the cake, Caleb was all smiles when he saw his own face just when we revealed the cake. I have yet to upload the video of the party but he was really smiling away the whole time as he stood in front of the cake.

So here's the yummy personalised brownie cake topped with marzipan from Mezza9.





Everything went quite smoothly and just when the guests were leaving, Caleb started getting cranky as he was dead beat. So it was rather timely as throughout the party, he was smiling and playing.

He knocked out by 9pm...what a day for him!

Mood to cook

Ever since I tried the osmanthus jelly with wolfberries about a month back, I always wanted to try making it. And finally, I felt like making it and instead of using Konnyaku jelly, I used agar agar instead to my regret as I still prefer the texture of Konnyaku jelly because its chewy and soft. Agar agar is too firm for my liking.

Anyway, here's the outcome.



Didnt turn out as sweet as I expected. Anyway, the next time I make, will definitely get the Osmanthus Sugar from Chinatown first and use Konnyaku jelly too.

Recently, I was also in the mood to make pork chop bun for CT as promised. Ever since we came back from Macau, I knew CT has missed eating that. So, I did promise him that I will make for him when we go back to Singapore. So finally, I cooked it.

I first got a bun from a supermarket in Bedok as I did my marketing there.

It already came in nicely shaped buns which I didnt have to cut. I guessed its much easier to eat than baguette because its softer.



I toasted this(instead of deep frying) it to get the crispyness and melted butter taste.


Got the fillet pork chops from wet market so that they can cut nicely for me in a butterfly shape. Marinated it with oyster sauce, salt and pepper.



Also caramelised onions to give it some kind of sweetness to it as well as cucumbers.

Would have actually cut the onions is a big circle form.



Then put everything together..



And voila!



It was delicious and look who else was enjoying it!



No worries, he was just eating the bun which was soft and easy to eat. He really enjoyed it!

Many faces

The many expressions of Caleb...which he does all the time.

1) The silent and stoned look just before his poo



2) The "what-are-you-doing" look..



3) The pouty but actually happy sniffle(he makes the sound of air coming out from his nostrils)look




4) The squint-eye sniffle look with teeth



5) The amused look



He would even do all those expressions to strangers- in the lift, public bus, in the clinic of my gynae. And because of this, strangers have been coming up to him, playing with him, carrying him and amusing him even more.

That's my boy.

Love to dance

Here's Caleb on the swing as he tries to move it himself....

At the same time, he loves to head bang and dance!

Farewell for Auntie Marcelle

Auntie Marcelle will be going back to NZ today and just before her flight at night, we had a potluck dinner at my aunt's house.

But before that, I went to my mum's place after lunch to hang around there and spend time with my grandaunt. My parents recently spent a lot of money renovating their rooftop garden. It costs almost as much as my renovation for my whole house. But anyway, they did it solely for their grandchildren as they added a swing upstairs.



So here's Caleb enjoying himself upstairs.




CT was not with us the whole day as he went with my mum-in-law to the hospital to visit his aunt who is down with leukemia. I do hope she can find a suitable bone marrow to treat her illness.

So CT came to my parents place in the evening..and he, too went up to the rooftop garden with Caleb. Here's father and son.



Went to my aunt's place that is near my parent's house. So, it was convenient. I enjoy looking at the flowers at their house as my uncle loves growing orchids especially. Here's his orchid garden. It felt like a trip to the Botanical Gardens.



Here are some nice flowers he has..





And Caleb was also enjoying himself. He has really changed as compared to when he was a few month old baby. It is definitely more enjoyable spending time with him now as he smiles much more. He would only cry if we scold him, if he is very tired or hungry.



I was actually craving for my aunt's popiah as it has been a while since we went to her house for a popiah party and I was so glad that tonight, it was THE night!

I love eating popiah especially since we wrap it ourselves. Its more tasty and rewarding that way. The ingredients were turnip, lettuce, chinese sausage, bean sprouts, garlic (ooo..a must-have!), chilli, and peanuts! So healthy and delicious!



We also had bee hoon which my mum prepared as well as longan almond agar agar and jelly which my other aunt prepared.



Caleb was walking around and having fun. Because my aunt's driveway is a slope, here's Caleb walking up the slope- just seconds before he fell down hard on one side!



My happy Caleb started wailing and crying so much as his face was so red!



I knew the only way of making him stop crying was to distract him. Yup, it works wonders. Brought him in and let him play with thomas trains. And immediately, he stopped!



What a night for him!

Trim Trim

Caleb's hair, especially on the sides, have been growing wildly. His hair is slightly curly, so it makes him a little girly. But anyway, today, I decided to trim his sides only to make it neater.

I am quite amazed that he could still fit in his BUMBO seat which he used when he was few months old. I think Caleb has helped me save a lot of money as despite coming to one year old, he is still wearing clothes which my form class bought for him just before he was born and that was for 3-6 months old baby.

Anyway, here's Caleb after his hair cut.



Left a little of his sides to make him look more handsome. Haha..so I just snipped off his curls and made him look neater.



Bought his party supplies for him at Eastpoint as his one year party is coming up. And when he saw it, he couldnt wait to play with it.





Hope he would have a great one year old party!

Too much walking

Caleb has been walking since a couple of weeks back. He walks like a drunkard but has slowly been more steady. There was once when CT and I went down to our house supermarket to grab something and the whole time, daddy just held one hand with Caleb and we walked with him all the way from our house to the supermarket and back home.





I felt a sense of achievement for Caleb as it was quite a feat. During the walk, he would sometimes stop to take a look at the leaves or play with something interesting he sees along the way. I can't help but think of the times I used to walk my dog as well..haha.

Anyway, of all that walking we have been doing with Caleb, here's the evidence!



Doesn't this pair of shoes remind you of the ones in Shaolin Soccer (if you have watched it)?

Get together

Today, after school, went straight home to change and rushed out with Vicky and Caleb to see my gynae. Took a cab there. It is the day I would know the gender of my baby. Last month the gynae could already tell me but she say its a guess and so, I told her not to tell me if she was guessing. SO I was pretty excited to find out.

Ok, I remember asking my viewers whether they could guess if 'it' is a boy or a girl and most say its a girl. Even my colleagues mostly guessed 'it' is a girl...and yes, the majority is right! 'It' is a girl!

Many asked if I was expecting a girl or a boy and I didnt really tell them a definite answer as I did not want to expect too much. But deep down inside, I do wish for a girl because its nice to dress her up and moreover, each time I visit the kid's section, I always see the huge selections of pretty dresses and shoes, while as for guys, the section always look so pathetic. So anyway, I must really thank God for providing me a girl this time round.

I also havent told many that I kind of felt it was a girl because of how I have become more emotional since I had her. Just watching a HK drama show could bring me to tears which I would seldom cry about. For those mummies who had girls before, did such things happen to you as well? I find it rather strange but its true.

Anyway, after my appointment with the gynae, CT came to pick us up after his work to my parent's place.

I met up with my old time friends at Werners, the German Restaurant for dinner. Yep, old time because I have known them for more than 20 over years! (almost my whole life)...and now, one of them is pregnant as well and she will be giving birth a month before me. How cool!

Anyway, here's Jane (the one who is pregnant) sitting beside me, and Doris (who changed her name to Abigail which I am still trying to get used to...)



After dinner, we walked back together to my parents' place for them to say hi to my parents and to talk to them. It was nice to see my aunt and my cousin there as well.

My grandaunt would be leaving soon so they probably came to spend more time with her.

Here's a family photo with my grandaunt!

Check out Caleb's girly hairstyle. Even the gynae thought Caleb was a girl because of his hair. Haha.


And here's Caleb sitting obediently with my grandaunt.


I am so happy Caleb can get a picture with my grandaunt as Caleb did not go with me to NZ in March to see my grandaunt and it was nice that they could now spend time together.