Sand Play At Gardens By The Bay

We know OO and YY loves to play with sand. Well most kids love it and most parents hate it due to the mess. The last few times we brought them to the beach but it's always so hot there. So we are here at Gardens By The Bay today at the Children's play area. The main attraction here is the water play area but there is also a sizeable sand pit and treetop playground.

Although there is shade from the trees, the place is surrounded by a thick mangrove that stopped the breeze from coming into the area. The kids had a blast of a time even though it was hot. They were elated with the chance to go back foot and feel the sand on their feet.

YY @21 mths - Playing Together With 姐姐

He likes to follow OO around and gets excited every morning when he sees her coming out of the bedroom. YY seems to like the company too but not always. YY can be a 跟屁虫 like most siblings, especially when they are young. Plus OO is the only playmate that YY has so naturally he idolises his big sister.

Mild OCD On Shoes?

I'm suspect this came from school where they teach organization and order. Then again I don't think it sticks easily on any kid. And it probably works better on a kid that has the tenancy to keeps things in order. 

I'm not complaining, its good to see the shoes all tidy and neat. I wonder how long this will last before its back to the good old messy entrance. Heh.

Dominating Move

You know how instinctively mammals will try to display dominance to state their territory and superiority versus their own kind.

Here I offer you exhibit A ... a 21 months little kiddo ... that sits on his papa while the papa tries valiantly to get the kiddo to take an afternoon nap. The little kiddo proceeds to bounce up and down constantly to exert maximum own-age on his underling. Savage!

Front Facing Seat In The Van

I recently replaced YY's back facing car seat with the old one that OO used to use. It's front facing but definitely safer on the van since it has its own chest strap unlike a normal sedan. YY is loving being able to face forward and see the road. He has the best view in the van!

Meimei is concerned about the safety aspect of it but I think it's fine on the van. If this was on the Lancer I would be worried since it would only be secured on the waist strap.

Summoners War: New 5* ... Wind Unicorn!

The summoning rates are so shitty in Summoners war that it contributed majorly to my decision to quit back in 2015. Everyone was getting powerful monsters regularly and progressing in the game whereas I was stuck in a rut. Now that I'm back I expect the same and am prepared that this return would be short-lived.

My luck improved yesterday when I pulled a new 5* monster from the event Legendary scroll. Maybe the game had a algorithm written to give returning players better odds so we stay. Whatever it is, I'm glad to have a new toy, and one that seems to be powerful based on reviews.

It took me just a day to get it awakened and up to Lv40. I threw in some crappy runes on it and took it for a spin. It's highly reliant on good runes to shine ... and that's where I sorely lack. Oh well no matter, I'm happy to get a rare monster regardless.

Pokemon Go: 3 Excellent Throw In A Row

I've tried to collect many Pokemon through the quest when I started this game a few months ago. However there was always this one quest which I didn't attempt to try ... simply because of the sheer difficulty of it all - 3 Excellent Throw in a Row.

The usual reward for this near impossible quest is a Larvitar, which I think I can do without. But that changed when they introduce a different Pokemon for the event quest reward. This event featured a Golett for the prize and I was determined to get my hands on it.

To make sure I maximise my rewards should I somehow achieve this feat, I collected 3 of the same quest. And then I slowly worked on the throws, carefully selecting the Pokemon I would try to catch whenever I get a first excellent throw.

It usually cool and calm on the first two throws. If I missed the 2nd I would simply brush it off and try again. However when I get a 2nd and try for the 3rd, that's where it gets hairy and fraught. I've lost countless streaks when trying for the 3rd. I'm not sure what is it that makes me blip on the 3rd throw. Maybe it's the excitement or the stress or tension. Whatever it was ... it was highly frustrating!

I managed to ride my luck and complete it today. Phew ... now I can say that I've done all the field quest. All these frustration for a little Pokemon named Golett ... Ha ... you have to catch them all!

Sleeping On The Bicycle

The naughty boy refused to sleep in the afternoon no matter how I try to coax him. OO was better and having a nap with Meimei. Since its Sunday Siti wasn't around to keep him company so it was up to me to entertain him.

I thought I'll bring him out for some playground fun on the bicycle. As usual he was elated to be out of the house. I think he had lots of fun at the playground and love the ride as well with the wind in the hair.

We were on our way to collect the Dominos pizza I had ordered when he fell asleep on the bicycle. He looks uncomfortable but in deep sleep due to the sheer tiredness. I burned him out running around the playground with him hehe.

It's close to 6pm and this kinda messes his schedule. I doubt he'll sleep at 8.30pm later but oh well ...

Getting Back To Summoners War

I started playing summoners war back in mid of 2014 and quit before OO was born. That's like 3 and half years ago. I happen to watch a Summoners war stream recently and thought I would get back into the game. I was surprised that they still have my account and I don't have start all over again. 

There seems to be a lot more to do now in the game. It now sports a Real-Time-Arena (RTA) for those who are keen on PVP. There is also Rift Raids, Labyrinth guild quest, Dimensional Holes for 2nd Awakening.

I discover I did not have most of the current meta units like Fran, Loren, Aegir, Twins etc. My account would probably look like a time wrap for the current players. Oh well ... I'll slowly get up to speed. I already have about 30 6* so that's enough to participate in many of the new activities. I'll probably focus on fusing the 'new' 6* first like Fire Panda, Jeanne and Fire Emperor.

Pokemon Go: Trapinch Community Day

OO is sick and vomited so Meimei had to lock her in the room and rest and couldn't join us for the community day. So Hazey and I setup our phones (3 each I think?) on the dining for the community day. I'm excited to catch this Pokemon since you don't normally find them out in the wild.

We tried hard to catch them but they keep head butting the balls which frustrates me to no end. I think we caught close to 300 of them, a quarter of which are Shiny, before we chance on a perfect 100% one. However the CP on it was so low, I didn't bother powering it. Instead I evolved another one with better CP and pretty ok stats.

I took it for a spin and attacked a Team Go pokestop. Bheh ... it was so squishy and went down easily. Good thing I gave it a try before deciding to power up the 100% one. No way I'm spending stardust on this monster.

Pokemon Go: Shiny Legendary

I have class today so I was not able to join Meimei for raids. Thankfully a raid was gonna pop in 30 minutes when I arrive at school. I grab a quick dinner and set out to navigate to the gym and hope there are folks playing too. It's my first time playing in school so I wasn't sure if there was anyone at all.

As it turns out, there are lots of people playing Pokemon at the school too. I was able to join a full 20 pax raid team and we took down the Giratina in no time. And then when it came to catching it, out jumped a Giratina that was different in colour from the others I've caught before. Jackpot! A shiny.

I threw on a pineapple instead of a golden berry since Shiny are always 100% catch so long as you hit it. Please let it be a 3* wonder I thought excitedly as I catch it. Well it turns out to be a wonder, though a relatively average one. No matter, the shiniest of the Pokemon always gives it extra brownie points. Heheh.

YY @20mths - Mr Bookworm

I think it was about this time that OO started taking an interest in reading. And now it's YY's turn. He would take a book on his own accord and flip through them. Granted, he is probably looking at the pictures but that's the first step to reading, to associate pictures with words he hears.

I think a lot of this has to do with Mama and Siti reading to him too. So kudos to them for giving him an early education, which for my part, I've failed to do. I'm great at bringing the kids to playgrounds for fun and play but cannot seem to find the patience to slow repeat words to YY. I need to improve on that.

YY's Turn With Fever

As expected, YY has fever too. We tried to keep them apart but kids will be kids and they are playing together more often these days. YY especially likes to follow OO around and tries to play with her. OO gets irritated often when YY butts in on her make-believe plays.

Oh well, that's what siblings are for right? Get in your way, fights for stuff with you, messes with your stuff etc etc. But as they get older, we hope they start to bond better and get themselves a chance to experience the joys of having a sibling company.

I'll never get to experience it. My brother and I don't talk. Never. We are brothers simply because we have the same parents. That's about it. It's sad but it's the reality. Can I change it? Probably no, we'll worlds apart. This is something I never want my kids to end up at.

So I say, go ahead and continue to play together even when you are sick. Live and play together. And create bonds that never break.

Mysterious Fever

OO has been running a fever over the weekend. We brought her to see the doctor today and after a whole suite of tests Dr Ang cannot tell what's wrong with OO. It wasn't influenza A or any bacteria infection. But to be safe she put OO on a course of antibiotics and we were to simply ride it out.

Although we couldn't tell what caused the illness, it did leave a pain in my wallet. $500 for all the test and medication. I'm rather perplexed about the 'diagnosis'. It wasn't something serious ... or at least not something that is known. But could it mean other more serious problems that average tests cannot detect?

There really isn't much we can do. We can only cross our fingers and hope that whatever that is causing OO to have high fever is a passing phase and nothing serious comes of it.

Getting Home & Random Food Pics

I got on the first flight home on Wednesday morning. Per schedule, I was going to touch down in Singapore on Friday 12.30am.

The first flight from Cincinnati to Chicago was on a similar small plane I came on a week and half ago. I cannot even stand straight along the aisle and I think they had to find shorter air steward/stewardess to work these planes.

The trip home was uneventful except for a flight delay at Narita where they had to do a on-the-spot replacement of an engine part. That set the flight back another hour and it wasn't till 1.20am when I  touchdown in Singapore.

Next section are just random pictures I took on my meals.

Salmon at Uno Pizzeria. Was better when I was in back in April. Was disappointed that their standards have dropped.

Bourbon cheese steak at Applebee's, which has always been my go-to restaurant here. The picture doesn't do it justice ... its pretty decent fare and I finish every bit of food on the plate.

Dinner on the Friday night on the first week. I didn't want to go anywhere after a week so I ordered room service. Same salmon dish I had in April but I added seasonal vegetables this time instead of fries.

Lunch at Mellow Pizzeria on Saturday. I had been driving to the carpark of this restaurant for the past week to spin the two pokestop and gym. There was a particular spot where I can reach all 3 points. Finally decide to step in to eat and it was pretty ok fare too.

Lunch at Cheesecake Factory on Sunday after the walk at Sharonwood. Sashimi salad variant and an ice cold beer.

Breakfast at Cincinnati airport before my flight to Chicago. A little sick of egg and potatoes after a week and a half of it. But hey ... better eat something than get onto a long flight on an empty stomach.

Supper at the only restaurant opened at the Jewel before I took my cab home. It taste so much better than anything I had in Cincinnati ... maybe its the sweet taste of home.