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you guys caught the inaugural yog opening ceremony on tv?

well, i didn't 'cos i was making my way to janet's room at marina bay sands for a look-see and also get free entry into the skypark. :) the entire property is huge including a long promenade overlooking the bay.

didn't spend too much time at the top since i was a bit late and we wanted to view the fireworks in the room instead. very good views from the skypark. crowded so i couldn't get a good spot to park my lumix for a decent night shot. :(

the room is big, the bathroom too but doesn't have a bath tub which i think it's disappointing considering how much it'll cost at its usual rates. janet encountered the now well-known "frustration" of trying to check into the hotel at the promised check-in time of 3:00 pm.

doris and thomas were there too. they had to take a cab from suntec city to mbs as the helix bridge was closed due to the yog opening ceremony at the float @ marina. since doris had warned me about the bridge closure, i took a train to marina bay and walked over instead.

after the ceremony had ended, we had wanted to go for drinks somewhere but it was too troublesome for janet and jason since there was a long queue to retrieve their car from the valet. so we settled for coffee at the makeshift foodcourt outside the swatch boutique.

ethan chua

the much anticipated arrival of ethan finally happened on 7th july at 1447hrs, just 1 day after my birthday.

when i dropped by at mount elizabeth, the proud parents showed off their new bundle of joy. they even brought along the laptop containing cayden's baby pictures for comparison. hehe... :)

and he does really resembles cayden. cute with lots of hair just like his brother, but bigger and more 'vocal'. :P

my mum asked me what did we do to ethan after i showed her this video... nothing, i swear that we didn't pinch his rosy cheeks or anything like that. it's just his usual crying. :)

vital statistics:

• weight: 3205 g


• length: 50 cm

tea time

was craving for hk-style milk tea for a week when doris ask if i'm free to meet up today since she's not working. so i suggested going to crystal jade kitchen at taka.

later, we realised that janet is having her gynae appointment today so we asked her along. she's complaining that ethan is later than what she had expected and she can't go for maternity leave earlier. hehe...

had the usual instant noodles and 菠萝包with butter set at crystal jade. yummy!

since i was feeling greedy today, i suggested going over to shimbashi soba for desserts.

what a leisurely afternoon!

surprise party

janet had planned this dinner gathering today to avoid any unplanned disruptions by her delivery. the last time when she was heavily pregnant with cayden, i think he wanted so much to join us for dinner that he chose that very day to come to this world. :P hehe...

even though janet had set up today's date weeks before, it ended up with single parents bringing the kids along. coincidently, one half of all the couples had something on tonight.

it was only in the afternoon that janet had sms-ed to say that it's going to be a surprise birthday party for cayden. caught me and doris by surprise too because we had not gotten a present for cayden. :(

prepared my usual salad for the gathering. jason likes the imitation king crab that i had bought for the salad. eric jested that we've upgraded from mere imitation crab sticks to imitation king crabs.

jason got the kids mad about musical chairs which later became musical chairs in the dark. this led to eric asking how much is the cover charge. haha... :)

painfully alive

sharp tummy-ache at 1:00 am... weren't awoken by the pain but had to disrupt my online activities. :P

it was the most excruciatingly painful ordeal that i've ever experienced. the pain was searingly acute that i broke out in cold sweat so profuse that my tee was soaked thoroughly. i thought i was going to faint even.

and i wonder how does this compare with labour pains? janet says that it's very painful. but how painful is that?

a taiwanese artiste described the pain level during labour as akin to cutting off one's fingertips so labour pains are like repeatedly cutting off one's fingertips. arrgghhh...

faint...

ibm @ play

janet asked me and doris to join her for ibm family day at sentosa since she has extra tickets.

it was an afternoon of sun, sand and sea with a difference because cayden came along. and of course nora too since she had to be around to take care of him.

my first experience with baby and pram on public transport. no mean feat i must say especially when it’s a crowded bus.

3 things that i learnt about cayden today:
1. he drools… a lot
2. he weighs 7.3 kg… which feels like 15, 20 kg if you had been carrying him for a while
3. he can laugh… endlessly if you know what to do to him

his laughter at coffee club at harbourfront was truly infectious and attention-grabbing. even the babes at the next table thought he’s cute. i guess he was in a good mood today.

you folks should ask to see the video from janet the next time we meet. it will definitely bring a smile to your face.

fun @ east coast

doris booked a chalet at east coast costa sands resort and invited the jcgang to join her for some sea, sun and sand.

sl [wong], ky and i shared a cab there from clementi. eric arrived shortly after us. we just lazed around watching tv in air-conditioned comfort while waiting for janet and cayden. johann and diane surprised us by arriving before janet did.

doris, ky and i were just kitting up for our skate so johann and diane joined us on a rented “family” bike. that’s a tandem bike with a child seat right at the back.

janelle had been clamouring “bicycle, bicycle!” earlier. she seems pretty excited by it all since it’s her first time at east coast. i think she enjoyed herself very much today.

we skated/cycled over to bedok jetty. took a short break there to enjoy the sea breeze. we didn’t skate too badly considering that we haven’t been practicing for a few months. :) nobody fell. :P

after that we split up as we wanted to skate a bit more in the other direction while johann and family returned to the chalet. i was told later that janelle kept asking for “uncle mun yue” on the way back.

this is proof that nice cookies can buy your way into children’s hearts. :) haha…

dinner was at pasta fresca since we needed a big table and a child seat. unfortunately, it wasn’t one on the beach under the stars. after that, we bought desserts from the food centre back to the chalet.

i recommended my favourite cheng tng to eric and he likes it.

janet mentioned about cayden’s head being slightly big. the paediatrician will measure jason’s head at the next appointment to determine if it’s in the genes. then the talk went to cayden’s smelly poop.

doris wondered if that’s in the genes too. :) we couldn’t stop laughing... it was hilarious… haha…

we left at around 10-something. ky and i got a ride out to bugis mrt from eric since he’s going to pick tracy up.

and i thought i’ll be going home for a good night’s sleep…

replies to invite: janet & i

johann’s invitation prompted us to crank our creative juices to come up with suitable replies. janet was pretty amused.

here’s her reply:

Salutations Holder of the Milkbottle and Guardian of the Wet Nappies.... I hereby raise my wand & declare my interest to attend the Triwizard Tournament on 16 Nov. Kindly purchase one precious ticket for myself alone as Sir Wizard Jason has gone to the Magical Oak Forest on the island of Rockhampton to search for a very special wand for our Prince Cayden.

As Prince Cayden was born in the period Jun 10 - Jul 7, his wand is to be made from the King of the Forest - the mighty Oak tree. I know Sir Wizard Jason will be very disappointed that he missed the tournament but no worries... I will record the event and Silverhead will deliver the disc to him. Sir Wizard Jason can then view the tornament on his holly PSP.


Your Royal Highness.

Janet Chew Royal Guardian of Prince Cayden


and here’s my contribution:

greetings to my fellow wizard and dear friend, johann pang, royal wizard of the court of princess janelle

i see that you must have perfected the spell for checking your usual sloven spelling habit. no names have been mis-spelled in your invitation! per chance you've acquired a more powerful wand from ollivander's at diagon alley?

how time flies... the triwizard tournament is upon us again. and to have harry potter represent hogwarts must have been our dear old professor dumbledore's idea since harry is underage. then again, who else but harry who had stood before he-who-must-not-be-named and triumphed. i'm sure he'll do our alma mater proud.

speaking of which, the rumours that he-who-must-not-be-named has returned is utter rubbish!

any wizard or witch worth his hogwarts education would feel it in their bones the putrid sense of dread that now pervades us. the dark lord is back! no question about it. we must not let our guard down nor succumb to his death-eaters underlings!

that said, do count me in for the tournament for i can't wait to re-visit hogwarts after all these years.


yours magically,

mun yue
guardian of the yummy-licious cookies, friend of the royal court of princess janelle

sun with moon @ wheelock

this dinner was set up 2 weeks ago… yes, not easy to coordinate considering that we have to accommodate the quarter-end closing for some of us and a business trip for another.

sl and ph were early, they had already finished an appetiser when i reached the restaurant at 7:30 pm. yup, they’re that hungry.

we had a booth seat furthest away from the entrance. most private and good for conversations but also meant that service was difficult to come by.

since janet had sms-ed doris to say that they’ll be late as most couples with kids tend to be, we proceeded to order appetisers first.

i ordered the sun salad and yam cake while doris ordered the agedashi dofu.

sl and ph went on to order the okonomiyaki.

the sun salad came in a bottle. the waitress gave a bubble tea “mechanical doll” shake to it after pouring in the sesame dressing. the yam cake was bland in a delicate, japanese way.

the okonomiyaki had lots of cabbage and only half an oyster in the piece that i had. :(

by the time we’re about done with our food, cayden finally arrived with his entourage of janet, jason and nora. :) hehe…

cayden was in a good mood… we passed him around the table. haha…

i ordered the salmon kamameshi which is like a metallic version of our claypot rice. not a very big portion though. if not for the appetisers and the desserts later, i don’t think i’ll be full.

had warabi matcha which is green tea ice cream with green tea jelly cubes. nice!

the bill for me came to about $37. slightly expensive but a good place to go to for the ambience and when you feel like splurging.

lunch @ marmalade pantry

met up with doris, janet, jason & cayden for lunch.

haven't seen janet & cayden since i last visited them when he was just 2 weeks-old. i think it's their 1st foray into orchard road without the maid... quite a leap of faith, i say.

passed them the baby mickey jigsaw i done up for cayden.

marmalade pantry was fully booked. fortunately doris had made a reservation otherwise we would be left out in hunger with a "cranky" baby.

i had smoked salmon bagel, blush [juice of carrot, beetroot & celery], nutella cupcake and tea. the food was ok but a bit on the expensive side.

cayden had his milk and demostrated how loud he can fart. the whole table heard him.

and i discovered he doesn't burp easily. i guess that's how he channels out the air in his tummy. :P

new bundle of joy

1 more addition to the 2nd generation of jcgang. this time round by janet & jason. congrats to them on the birth of their son. ain't he cute? i love babies... only when they behave.

my close friends from jc all named their children with "j" names. starting with janine, janelle, joshua and jerrell. i'm still rooting for a "j" name, janet, as is the rest of the gang. but think this little guy is growing up as "cayden" most likely.