New Cellini Sofa

Finally the day has come, our new Cellini sofa is being delivered today!

We started the cleaning right after breakfast. The first step - salvaging the little titbits that were 'lost' underneath the sofa. There were all manner of balls and trinkets down there. We kept the balls and threw most of the other little toys.

It took several vacuuming and moping runs to clear off the stain somewhat. There are stains that would never go away but thankfully they are going to be covered by the new sofa.

The new sofa is everything I expected and more. The wide seats just screams comfort and the lighter shade vs the old Magnum also brightens up the room a little. We now have a space on the right for a small kids corner. Toys are still all over the living room but we can now begin the next step of getting them to the window side.

萱萱 & 阳阳 @主日学

萱萱 now has weekly Sunday morning 主日学. We try to get 阳阳 to join but he has no patience to sit there and listen to the teachers speak in Chinese. It's different for him, he never got to go to the church with Meimei and Nyama, not even once.

Hopefully someday when Covid is no longer a problem we can bring him to experience Sunday service at the church. I think he might like the singing and dancing with other kids of his age. 

阳阳's First Homework

阳阳's first homework is to collect things that make up the number 5. His classmates already did a showcase of their toys and items in the house etc. I didn't really think about it till Sunday afternoon.

As it turns out, his has to be the easiest and cheapest to complete. No need to try and buy a number of things for the homework, no need to take a picture, print it out and paste it on the workbook. All that's required is some tracing work which is fun in its way for 阳阳.

Cheap Standing Setup For Master Bedroom

With both of us stuck working at home, there were many times when Meimei had to leave the room to take a call so as not to disrupt mine. The study is small so we will be talking over each other if we get on meetings at the same time.

To get around the problem, Meimei bought a cheap standing table from Taobao for the master. It has wheels so she can move to the living or dining room when required. It's not the best of quality but sufficient for the occasional work.

Elixir Haul #1

The prices on wines have been oddly higher recently. There is also a lack of promotions and good flash sales. So the stock of wines are getting low and I started exploring other alternatives.

So that's where I made my first order of cognac online from DFS. It's not overly cheap but when you consider the number of meals a bottle can take you, its roughly the same price as a bottle of wine in the $18-$20 price tier.

I'm gonna start trying out the different brand of entry level cognac, namely the VSOPs and see if we can find a couple we like. This can be our backup plan whenever the wine stock runs low and we don't have any good ones to restock with.

The haul - Hennessy Master Blender's selection No.4 500ml & Martell VSOP Red Barrel 1L

Painting At Hillview

Another week at Hillview. It's one of the 'safe zones' we can bring the kids out to. Not really safe-safe but still better than going to a public place where you cannot tell if the person next to you vaccinated or ignoring his quarantine orders.

So yah here we are at Hillview again. This time Meimei brought along the painting toys from home. The kids can go all crazy and wild here without worrying about staining the floors or spilling water all over.

Fireman Roleplay At School

Ahh this has to be 阳阳's favourite activity in school ... Fireman role-play! It's like a little boy's ultimate fantasy to be all dressed up in his favourite character and get into action.

Makeshift Castle

It's another one of those weekends where we are stuck at home and Meimei whips out a fun activity to entertain the kids. Good thing Meimei's resourceful and focused on making the best of the weekend with the kids.

Just a simple castle and the kids were able to play make-believe the whole afternoon. Wouldn't it be good to be a 6 year old again?

If it had fallen to me to figure something out I would have chicken out right at the start and let them binge on Netflix or Disney+ the whole time.

Shopping For A New Sofa

Our Cellini Magnum sofa was tearing at the seats. A combination of years of maintenance neglect, kids' perspiration and spilling of all sorts of liquids contributed to the wear and tear. Its full cow-hide leather so it could have lasted a couple more years with the right care. Oh well with kids I have low expectations that anything will last. I think its a good mindset when hunting for a new one.

Since we were very happy with our Magnum, it's just natural that Cellini is the first place we go to find our new sofa.

We brought Nyaong and Nyama along too to try out the sofas. They are at our place everyday and probably use the sofa more often than I do. Plus it's important that they try and see if they have difficulty getting out of one. Some sofas sink in and wraps around you to give you a good cozy feeling, but those are sometimes hard for older people to get out of due to the inclined back support.

We managed to shortlist 2 models. I'm heart set on getting a wider seat so we can replace the Magnum and the one seater. That'll leave a good space to the right of the sofa to fit the bookshelf. This sofa purchase is key for a reconfiguration of the living room.

Splashing A Snail

The covid situation seems to be under control these days so we started bringing 萱萱 and 阳阳 to the playground for some outdoor fun. Obviously they were super excited. 

The 'unique' experience on this trip was the snail that was constantly soaked in water. 阳阳 spotted the little critter and keep blasting it with water ... all the while smiling and laughing with Nyaong.

Playing "Train" As I Did Before

At Hillview today and the kiddos started playing cars like I did before .... 35-40 years ago. They took the floor rails of the sliding door as sliding rails for the cars.

It goes to show that what's fun before still holds true and you don't need fancy toys or computer gadgets to make the most of the day. I hope 萱萱 and 阳阳 gets to experience more of the play experience, especially in this pandemic where outdoor playtime is so limited.

Kiddo Talk & Pic June 2021

萱萱: mama did u see me just now? Was I awesome!?? I can do freestyle! No board! Usually got people looking at me I shy so cannot do but today I’m not shy so I can!

萱萱: The name “Ally” is so nice.. next time when I have my own baby I want to call it Ally.. *shy look small grin 

萱萱 just slept so I left my spot at the tail of OO's bed to go chill in the study. Shortly I receive messages from Meimei.

Meimei: Ur audio on? Did u hear ur son? Haha

阳阳: Where is papa

          Why he not here

          I will be the leader

(Went over to sit on your spot)

Meimei: He recognizes u as alpha haha

Me: yah a leader that wipes his butt

Coffee Upgrade

This has to be the ultimate upgrade. Connoisseur grade coffee right at home. I have to thank Meimei for her perseverance in getting the Nespresso even though she knows I frown on such things. But the kitchen is her domain so if she can make the space work and pay for the machine, who am I to say yah. Plus I get to benefit from all these coffee goodness.

From a cost perspective it's actually quite economical considering our drinking habits. Before covid I would go to the market to get kopi often at $1 a pack, so that's $3 a morning. Add the regular Starbucks or Coffee Bean latte and you chalk up quite a bit on coffee alone. So even though the Nespresso cost more than $200, its cost evens out very quickly when we use it daily.

So all in all, a perfect addition to home - especially now that we are home most of the time due to Covid.

Rail Track Fun

We bought this track set some time ago and kept it hidden in the children's wardrobe. There is a saying - the more dangerous it is, the safer it is. The children's eyes are so sharp that they can catch any 'changes' to the studying room and notice even the edges of toy boxes in a sea of stuff.

Today we brought it out for playtime because if we don't we might continue to forget about it and when we do remember the next time the kids might already have outgrown them.

As with all things new, 萱萱 and 阳阳 were super excited to play with the rail tracks. We probably need to top up with more tracks as we were lacking a few more to complete another rail route.

Surprise Anniversary Gift From Meimei

I had absolutely no idea Meimei was gonna get me a gift for our anniversary. More importantly, she got me something which is very useful. *kiss thanks DearDear!

A uncle key pouch haha but I love it. Exactly the size I like. I'm surprised she actually got me this, considering she did kinda complained that I carry one like Nyaong. Well what's practical is always welcome, even if it makes you look uncle.