Here's My Story

We were supposed to check out at 10.30am on our third day but upon enquiry, the holiday house owner allowed us to check out late because she didn't have consecutive bookings. Hooray! What made it even sweeter was the weather finally reverted to its expected sunny-beach-friendly temperament :) So we drove to Surf Beach and found this scene: Oh yes, it looked like a beautiful day for beach goers. I tried the water but it was shockingly cold for me lol. The constant wind was not helping either, with sand and water droplets clouding my glasses @@. It was relaxing though, doing nothing but just watching...except I did something later. It has to do with these: I chased the seagulls for a while to protect our food and picnic mat hehehe. It was silly but quite fun :) We had some seafood from the nearby fish & chips shop for lunch. It was delicious and reasonably priced too. Although my sister's family enjoyed this beach visit, I wouldn't choose to ...

This is the sunroom at the holiday house. It was also the best place to get good internet connection on your phone :P It was where we played Boggles. I found a set at the rack and taught the kids to play it. Their parents soon joined us. The weather was once again not the beach-friendly type. Nevertheless, we checked out the nearest beach (for future refence), Corrigans Beach, which was a mere 5-min walk away. My sister and her hubby decided that it wasn't suitable for the kids to play at. The tide was fierce. Gloomy weather. We then made our long walk to the town area. We passed by some tennis courts, belonging to the local tennis club. University of Wollongong's Batemans Bay campus, which basically consisted of 2 buildings @@. A skatepark was just a short distant away. There were some skaters and cyclists around. Walking past the marina. Seagulls! We lunched at The Starfish Deli after my sister found some good r...

Yes, I'm on my annual trip to my sister's place in Australia. This time, I'm staying longer to attend my sister's graduation ceremony (Masters degree :) ). It's much more expensive, though, because I would leave only in Dec. Summer price ticket is a shocker. So that means I would be doing work while I'm here since there are 2 projects commencing mid-Nov (postponed from Aug) and Dec (the usual year-end project). Oh well :| The good news is that Ban's here from 2 weeks and he gets along tremendously well with my nephews :) What do they talk about? At least half the time it's about Civilization V lol. I learned something new on this trip: cricket. My nephews roped Ban and I to play rudimentary cricket in their backyard. Not bad :) Weather has been a little unkind. Cold and rainy. Not the usual late spring weather. Hopefully it'll get better soon.

Every year I will go to Australia to visit my sister (except for one particular year, I believed). This year will be no exception (cross fingers!) but it is extra special this year because she and her family are down here in Malaysia :) It's their first visit since almost 5 years ago. We are (including my parents) at my youngest sister's place in Butterworth. We had vacation in Penang for a few days. Notably, we went to Kek Lok Si Temple and Botanical Garden/Penang Hill. More importantly, we went to sample different food at my sister's request :) Everyday tired though. It's been a while since we are all together and it has been a good reunion thus far. Hopefully it'll be good throughout later.

I'm in Canberra now. In fact, typing this while in a library at Australian National University, my alma mater. I've been here since Saturday, 9 May. My objective is to spend time with my sis and her hubby and twin sons (nothing new here :-) ). Been rather busy that I didn't have time to surf net. During the days when the kids are at school and their parents at work, I'm at the library supposedly trying to do my assignment. The first time I tried that on Monday, I estimated I got a whole 2 hours of work done on the assignment. Hehe. The rest of the time? Read newspapers, walk here and there, deciding on whether I should walk up to the actuarial department to request giving a short talk on practical applications of what you learn in university, and people watching. It seems that all the cute guys have not returned from parading for William in Melbourne . Well, I better get going with my assignment. Hope to finish it today or at least get a draft out. Meanwhile, here...

(1) ... a slight change in environment may yield different results than previously. (2) ... even adults have to say "please" if want things done faster/correctly. (3) ... it is better to push the boundaries gradually rather than suddenly. (4) ... clear and consistent words with actions work better than otherwise. (5) ... actions have consequences. (6) ... sometimes we just need hugs.

I'm guessing that most people would have wanted to rest after travelling from Singapore at 8pm and reaching Canberra the next morning at 9am with only half an hour of sleep. I didn't. Firstly, I wasn't exhausted. Secondly, I figured it's best to try to adjust to local time as soon as possible, which means sleeping only at night. I supposed taking nap in the afternoon is ok but definitely not in the morning. However, we (my sis, her hubby and the twins) went back to my sis's place mainly to dump my stuff and also to let the twins have some healthy snacks. They are so adorable lah! Although they are well trained by my sis and her hubby (with no physical punishment involved), they of course still exhibit typical behaviour of toddlers around the age fo 2 e.g. saying "no" regularly and trying to exert independence by not holding hands at times (but after awhile, they'll want to hold hands again). As I'm keen to get hold scout around and get hold of ...

qantas , originally uploaded by cronus . This Friday night, I'll be flying to Australia to visit my sister, her hubby and her adorable twin sons. I'll be there for two weeks. Oh yeah!!! It has been a year since I last saw them and it is my objective to do that each year. I've also chosen mid-spring as the time to visit as spring is my favourite season. Weather is mild. Cool, not cold. Just enough warmth. Flowers all around. But this time, it'll be a bit different because of my nephews. My sis has cautioned me that there's likely no time to play board games (oh man) as they don't even have time to sit! So it's probably either activities that all of us can participate or I'll have to do it alone. I'm thinking of paying a visit to the National Museum as the last time, it was a rush and I didn't get to look at all the things inside (everyone else was sitting around waiting for me hehe). I may also visit Floriade: the Flower Festival, where the...

This is for you, sis :-) THE TERRIBLE TWOS Do the “terrible twos” really have to be so terrible? Just ask any two-year-old. The answer will most assuredly be “no”. If there is one word that characterises the period between 15 and 24 months of age, it is “no”. “No,” he doesn’t want to eat his cereal. “No,” she doesn’t want to have a bath. And – you can be sure – “No,” he doesn’t want to go to bed anytime at all. Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of the“terrible twos” is the tendency kids have to spill things, eat horrible things, fall off things, flush things, and to get into things (our son Ryan used to blow bubbles in the dog’s water dish, which horrified his mother). The picture sounds bleak. And admittedly there are moments when a toddler can wreak havoc on a home. However, even with all the struggles, there’s no more thrilling time of life than this period of dynamic blossoming and budding independence. And it passes by all too quickly. There are many parents of older chil...