Ah Dong Teh House

Once again, there's nothing at home, we're sick of the food at the coffeeshop downstairs and bored of the typical delivery... suddenly I remember seeing the sign on the way home, pointing to Punggol Promenade. When we saw the sign, we were wondering which restaurant has closed down to make way for the new eatery, so this was a great opportunity to find out! XD

Ah Dong Tea House is now located at the hut that used to be a Japanese restaurant. The seafood place has also made way to a new one...

Inside Ah Dong... the current simple menu is temporary as a complete menu will be out in 2013.

The cream of mushroom is creamy and yum! The portion is small but that's good! Usually we got quite full after just having the soup >< It's affordable at $2.90 ^^

Our drinks - hubby had grass jelly drink while I had milk tea with grass jelly.

Olio Cafe & Skinny Pizza

This is a day of catching up. First, I met a secondary school ECA buddy Sharon to catch up over lunch at Olio Cafe, with my little precious tagging along to meet the lovely lady. How time flies, my dear friend is already a mother of two, and still as sweet and dear as ever!

We both ordered the yummy cream of mushroom, which is actually very filling by itself!

She had pizza~

While I had the wild mushroom sandwich.

After our main courses we ordered a carrot cake to share, and one banana orange smoothie each.

Going out everyday!

This entry has food pics taken over 3 days: 17, 18, 19 December 2012

On 17 December, I met my girlfriends of many years for a dinner gathering at Brotzeit German Bier & Restaurant where we indulge in good food while catching up on one another's life.

This starter is vegetarian.

Some other stuff that the girls ordered...

All by myself

"When you pushed out a baby, you realized suddenly you are wonder woman and you can tackle anything!!"

I just told that to my friend, who's marveling about how I could bring baby out in a stroller and take train to a friend's place, all by myself.

Baby was alert and looking around with her big round eyes throughout the journey on MRT~

Well, I never knew I could do it, but today I did it! I just did it!

And I took the elevators a whooping 14 times today! WOW!!

1. Home to ground level
2. Ground level to LRT concourse level
3. LRT concourse level to platform level, took LRT
4. Reached MRT station, LRT platform level to concourse level
5. Concourse level to NEL platform level, took MRT
6. NEL platform level to concourse level, change MRT line
7. Concourse level to EWL platform level, took MRT
8. Reached destination, EWL platform level to concourse level
9. Concourse level to ground level, walk to friend's house and crossed 3 roads
10. Ground level to friend's house
11. Friend's house to ground level, hubby fetch me to my parents' place
12. Ground level to my parents' place
13. My parents' place to ground level, going home
14. Ground level to home... home sweet home!

Baby's photo Friday

This morning, I tried to let baby sit on the sofa and took this shot. Love the effect of it, looks like studio photography. Haha~

I'm home alone with nothing to eat and a baby to take care. I was about to submit to instant noodles when my uncle called. My uncle and aunt came to visit and brought me lunch and fresh fruits. :) When I let them carry my little one, she started crying, kept looking at me with longing eyes while huge beads of tears rolled down her cheeks. My uncle and aunt were saying she's only 3+ months and already so sticky to me, then I can prepare to quit... how to go back to work next year with her like that? ><

Here's my lunch: yummy mock fish chop rice!

My little darling has become very sensitive to my camera (my iphone) and will always look when I wanna take a shot, even when she's busy with her thumb, haha. ^^

Nursing rooms experiences

I have always been googling reviews of nursing rooms in the various shopping malls that I'm planning to go to. Those blog entries really help me a lot. These two are the ones that I prefer to most: this & this =)

Here, I am not doing a review as I am just not that good at gauging the conditions... however I'm gonna share the experiences I have in the various nursing rooms that I've been to so far.

Compass Point:

The first ever nursing room that I've visited. Spacious diaper changing and nursing room. 2 diaper changing stations and 2 individual cubicles that can be locked. Two persons can be seated inside comfortably, along with the stroller inside. I have nursed here a few times and so far so good.

Isetan @ NEX:

I haven't nursed here. In fact, I was here alone (while waiting for my colleagues to catch up over lunch on Tuesday) but I just wanted to check out the nursing rooms as I've read good reviews from the other blog entries that I've seen. Spacious with 2 individual nursing cubicles, each comes with an armchair and a small table.

Takashimaya level B2:

I was there today with hubby and baby. Baby pooed while on the way to Takashimaya, so I quickly searched the location of the nursing rooms in Takashimaya while still in car. We parked our car at level B3 and went straight to the nursing room in level B2 to change her diaper. There are 2 individual nursing rooms, each with one armchair and also each with one drop-down nursing station.

Takashimaya level 3:

After our lunch, baby seems hungry and it was 3 hours after I last nursed her, so we went to check out the nursing room in level 3. The cubicle cannot be locked and has only a curtain which makes me feel very insecure. I put the stroller right at the curtain and I thought I heard someone came to the curtain and left, probably upon seeing my stroller the person knows the cubicle is occupied. There's a sign that says no males are allowed at the nursing cubicle, and ample diaper changing stations at the other side, with chairs and benches for family or friends who are waiting while the baby is being nursed.

Oh yes, I was in Takashimaya today after my post-natal gynae check up. Had this for breakfast at the Delifrance in TMC before my appointment.

After my appointment, we headed down to Takashimaya to shop for Christmas gifts. This was my dear baby's first trip to Orchard Road~ :)

Oh look at that fascination... she likes Hello Kitty! Yes!!! :D

Lunch was at the food court in B2. I had yong tauhu noodles while hubby had chicken rice.

We bought a playard for baby and several Christmas gifts for hubby's nephews and for my gift exchange sessions coming up, and got a $10 voucher that will expire in 3 days. It is only valid in the children's department and we are definitely not coming back to Takashimaya anytime soon, so after lunch we shopped around and I decided to buy another cloth book for baby. :) This is her second cloth book, her first one on counting and numbers was bought at Kiddy Palace.

Lastly, something to share... taken at the clinic while waiting to see my baby's PD, some weeks ago. =)

It says: One hundred years from now... it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove, but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a CHILD.

The delivery

23 Aug 2012
This morning at 7+ I started to feel this cramp... Like menstrual cramp... And was having urge to pee and poo. The cramp comes like every 10 to 15 minutes, and each time I rushed to the toilet to pee and poo.

Later on the cramp gets more and more painful and frequent, and I still run to the loo in pain each time. I alerted hubby who was sleeping, at slightly pass 8am and he quickly got ready while I continued to rush in and out of the loo. At 8:40am, I see a watery bloody mess on my panty liner, probably the show and a sign that the water bag has broken.

Coincidentally hubby saw doc yesterday and was given two-day MC, so he was at home and quickly rushed me down to TMC. I was going mad in pain on the way and the slow rush-hour traffic was really getting onto our nerves... and finally we arrived at TMC at 9 plus.

While hubby was doing the admission at the lobby, I requested for gas in the observation ward and was wriggling and struggling with the pain. The nurses asked if I really didn't want epidural but I was in too much pain to even bother answering them. I was quickly dilated from 2 cm upon arrival to 8 cm in around 30 minutes and was sent to the delivery ward. Hubby was anxious to find me gone from the observation ward when he returned from the lobby and was directed to the delivery ward. I too was anxious to be in the delivery ward alone without him and hoping he could be back in time to witness the birth of his baby.

Eventually the pushing came and I was just super tired from the pushing as I haven't had breakfast. Stubborn baby slipped back each time I stopped pushing, so after pushing for an hour, my gynae was called in to use vacuum on the baby. Had a jab for the episiotomy and after the encouragements from hubby, the midwives and the gynae, plus a few more pushes that expended all my energy, the baby was finally out.

The doc got hubby to cut the umbilical cord while I was totally shagged out. I was lying there motionless when the doc was stitching me up. He said I was fast for first timer and have very high tolerance for pain. I was just too exhausted to react...

Baby was delivered just before 12 noon, measuring 3.36 kg and 50 cm. And here she is, saying, "hello world!"

24 Aug 2012
A photo summary :P

I'll miss being served and well taken care of by the professionals in my premium suite.

This entry is made up of two entries which were uploaded in another blog using blogger iphone app while in hospital bed and later edited to add in more details.

Canteen food

I'm really fortunate to be posted to a school with great colleagues, great RO, great students (most XD) and great canteen food!! ♥

These are photos posted in my Facebook album "Canteen Diary" in 2012. I'm gonna share them here now, enjoy! :D

Noodles from two different Chinese noodle stalls

My typical breakfast in school

Teacher's Day dinner

It's buffet time!

*This backdated entry was posted on 4 Jan 2013

Lunches with my parents-in-law

Lunches at the coffeshop downstairs with my parents-in-law and hubby's little nephew who was staying with us as my in-laws babysit the little boy.

24 May 2010 Lunch from the roast duck stall

And lunch is served

My all-veggie noodles

My parents-in-law's

5 July 2010 Lunch from the noodles stall

Having lunch with a little boy and his toys

My laksa has only fried beancurd and egg

*This backdated entry was posted on 4 Jan 2013

Nephew's second birthday

Guess where we went for hubby's youngest nephew's second birthday celebration?

We were here

 
While waiting

 
Horfun for the two elder nephews

 
A dish for me

Happy New Year 2010

Last meal of 2009: Had a great steamboat cum hotplate-bbq dinner with my parents-in-law, dear and friends last night~ (^_^) It was a fabulous meal sitting around together at home enjoying the steamboat together with his family and friends. We were afraid we didn't buy enough, but we ended up with so much leftover food lah! Haha~ After that we played mahjong in the living room with the countdown programme showing on the TV. We avoided the crowds and the usual long wait for cabs after countdowns, and had a great time at home!

First meal of 2010: My first trip to Kopitiam Square at Sengkang with dear after waking up late this morning... huge variety of food there! But so far all seems so-so... normal everyday stuff, nothing that I'll highly recommend to anyone. Still, if anyone's staying nearby, it'll be great to such a food centre around. If dunno what to eat, just go there walk a few rounds, I guess sure to get a decent meal in the end with the variety of food stalls. I wish there's one such food centre that's within walking distance from my place, but dream on!! XD

 

Second meal of 2010: We napped in the afternoon and woke up late, and I was having a horrible headache as I slept much lesser than him, so dear offered to cook dinner for us! MIL suggested cooking instant noodles with the steamboat ingredients left, and here's what he whipped up! He cooked mine first (instant mi goreng with the vegetarian mock prawns, mock meatballs, mock cocktail sausages and veggies) and saw me rearranging the ingredients to snap this shot, so he served his all ready for the camera! He arranged them nicely for me, as shown in the piccy inset~ ^^

 

Second day of 2010: We were busy packing up our bedroom and living room... *sigh* I shall elaborate in my next entry... after all the busy packing, dear and I went out and met his friends - a married couple - for dinner and catching up before they leave for the States soon, as the husband is posted there for 2 years and  guess what? The wife just got pregnant!

As we chatted I was reminded of dear Canny and I went to see Canny's blog after not reading any blogs for eons... Canny I really miss looking at all the yummy stuff that you whipped up when you were in the States! I even told the dear gal about Canny and she's curious where to find all the recipes as she hopes to learn to cook some local delights to curb her craving when she's there.

We had a great dinner at Tampines Mall's Din Tai Fung. 

 

Random thought

Old place of 19 years has perfectly nice tiles as good as new, while new place of 5 years has tiles that popped up and requiring repair... The kitchen cabinet in this 5-year-old kitchen looks more worn off than the 19-year-old kitchen cabinet at my parents' place. My beloved old phone of 3 years recently died. Will I be able to get myself another phone that can last 3 years? 生活中小小的插曲，引发了一连串小小的感想：

新衣哪有旧衣好？新家哪有旧家好？新电话哪有旧电话好？为什么新的东西都比旧的容易坏？科技变发达了，人也变聪明了，东西变贵了，商人更是变奸了。。。大家的埋怨也随之越来越多了。我爱新科技，却讨厌不耐的东西。人变矛盾了，储蓄越来越少了，钱越花越多了。不知不觉中，东西越买越多了。买上瘾了，却发现买了都是一堆没用的东西。

2008 to 2009

28 Dec 2008: MIL was trying out some recipes she has... if they're successful, we'll make our own goodies instead of buying them~ =)

Kueh bangkit

Pineapple tarts

Food tasting

Went for our food tasting at Furama Riverfront today with hubby, his parents, his auntie and uncle, his sister, her family and her maid.

 

 

Making pineapple tarts

Yesterday I helped Tommy's mummy to make pineapple tarts... and made so many of them! His mummy and his sister's maid started making early in the morning while I helped out after I woke up... =P Tommy's elder nephew helped too!!

Then later his 2 adorable nephews, his sister's maid and I had a fun time making cookies together!! We were like a bunch of kids making up funny stuff with the doughs and laughing at one another's creation~ so fun!!

*This backdated entry was posted on 4 Jan 2013