landofnana on Xanga

Weblog

Tuesday, 08 December 2009

Hello WA (October 2009)

October 2009
On Edna's 4th birthday (1 Oct), I gave her a fairy dress and a dress-up doll and put her tiara on her. She was wearing the dress over her day clothes as it was still 20degC in the house. But I must say it suddenly made her look very girlish - after all those month of wearing pants in the cold climate I'd almost forgotten what she looked like in a dress/skirt.

Don't know why, it inspired her to start shaking her tush and arms and nodding her head and she said she was doing the "jellyfish dance".

These are the best photos of Jireh I've taken so far. She was in a very good mood and the lighting in the room happened to be great, so Voila! these are my favourite photos of her:

Right after these photos were taken, I found Edna to be in a lively mood too, so I just continued snapping away. The thing about living in harsh cold climate is that we are home-bound most days and there is really nothing much to do except spend our time huddled together. I got two very lively and active girls and they drive each other into hysterics, sometimes their high-pitched laughter reach a deafening and hysterical crescendo.

We moved into our permanent rental house in mid October, so tune in for a different setting in the upcoming entries.

Sunday, 06 December 2009

Hello WA (September 2009)

September 2009
Here are some pix of the family in the temporary accommodation (from July-mid Oct).
We were put up in a very decent double-storey townhouse in a prime location of the city (2 minutes drive to town centre and 1 minute drive to the beach). The lower level contained the 2-car garage, kitchen, dining and TV areas, laundry room, toilet and an outdoor patio that we never used. The upper level contained 3 over-sized bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a study lounge. Unfortunately I didn't manage to take proper photos of the house (both inside and outside).
Joel busy in the kitchen:

One of those rare days when Edna was not in 3 layers of clothing, although she's wearing double layer of socks, cos the ceramic floor tiles were extremely cold. I cldn't believe that in the 3mths there, she had outworn all 3 pairs of her thick outer socks. That's how active she was.

We arrived in Bunbury in only 4 suitcases and had to buy quite a few essentials, including this baby swing/chair. It's just so that I have somewhere safe to place Jireh when I was busy and about:

The girls chilling out in the TV room, the warmest part of the house. Jireh was not very comfortable sitting up yet:

Another photo of the girls in the TV room. Later we managed to borrow a bumbo seat for Jireh from another family:

Edna in the TV room:

Wellington Dam
We arrived in early July in the heart of winter and dreaded it whenever it rained cos it just made us all colder and the days greyer. The locals don't complain about it however, as it is the only rainy season and provides the region with the much needed water. This last winter season brought about an unexpected higher rainfall, so much so that by the end of winter the nearby Wellington Dam was overflowing. Apparently this didn't happen every year. Like many other locals, we made the trip with another family to the dam.

Perth and Fremantle
In end September, to celebrate Joel's and Edna's birthdays, we made our second trip to Perth to visit my former church mentor and for some sightseeing.
That's Farida in her house. We managed to squeeze in a surprise celebration for Joel and Edna, with her cupcakes, singing and candles. Unfortunately I didn't manage to capture on camera cos I was carrying a sleeping Jireh Farida and Trevor were just fantastic, throwing a small gathering for us to get to know another Singaporean family who used to live in Bunbury but have now moved to Perth. And she is a fantastic cook, making mee goreng, sushi and other asian snacks that we sorely miss. A great big *hugz* and thanks to her for making us feel so at home.

After that we drove to Fremantle to visit the Fremantle Market and Fremantle Prison.
(In the market)
(On the road)
(Watching a street performance)
(Outside the prison)
(Waiting for prison tour to start).
I shall not bore you with photos of the prison tour as most tourists to Perth would have made this tour themselves.

Wednesday, 11 November 2009

Goodbye Queensland; Hello WA!

Hello? Anybody out there still reading this blog? Paiseh, I'd taken a 6 months break from blogging as I was extremely busy with baby Jireh and Edna, and due to our move from Townsville to Bunbury, Western Australia (2 hrs south of Perth). Anybody ever moved inter-state with infant and preschooler in tow? It's extremely exhausting and hectic. Yet by God's grace, Joel and I did it and are surviving to tell the tale. Well, I am still sleep- and time- deprived, so no long stories to share here, just short photo updates by the month:

July 2009
We left Townsville in early July and at the same time arrived in Bunbury (2hrs south of Perth) in the heart of winter. It was bitter cold in Bunbury then - daytime temp would be 10-15degC while nights would drop to a few degrees (once or twice it hit 0C although it didn't snow). I didn't have my car, and the outdoor conditions were too harsh (rain and wind speeds up to 100kmh at times), so we were pretty much stuck in the house except when Joel brought us out for groceries and shopping for essentials (only had 4 suitcases of things with us so had to buy the rest in Bunbury).
Jireh - almost 4mths old

August 2009
Went to recce a beach-side suburb that we were considering for a more permanent rental home. Found it a tad too far from the town centre, but eventually we decided to stay there, renting a house about 1km away from the beach. Isn't it great to be able to cross the road from your house and step into the beach? Well, fortunate (and rich) residents here can literally do that!

The same day, we visited Koombana Bay in the town centre (like tourists siah), and chanced upon a rowing competition.

This is the Bunbury Tower (an office building probably about 13 storeys high) and the tallest building in Bunbury:

This is the only cinema here:

This is the arts theatre-cum-entertainment centre-cum-concert centre... :

Busselton
One of the best things about staying in Bunbury is its proximity to Perth city (and Singapore!), as well as the region where the wineries and sights attract tourists worldwide. We could literally take road trips to places like Margaret River, Busselton etc and back home within a day. On one weekend, we drove to Busselton and had brunch at one of the beach cafes:

These are die-hard surfers - we are aghast that they are entering the waters at 15degC climate (water temp is surely less than this!):

Edna clicking away with her new kiddy camera that is a real working camera:

Pemberton
On another daytrip we drove to Pemberton because Joel had an urge to climb a tree. Yes, just one tree in particular. This town is noted for the tall and straight Karri trees (which to me look like rubber trees), and one particular tree has been earmarked for climbing - the Gloucester Tree - all 61metres of it.

How could a father leave all this cuteness below to climb up a tree???

Saturday, 23 May 2009

Sisters these two

I am looking through some photographs of Edna in her baby days and the memories come flooding back to me. Warms me up to think that she has grown from a baby like her little 2-month old sister right now, to the pre-schooler that she is today. As I take care of Jireh now, can't help but compare the two of them - not the comparisons of good and bad, but how different and yet how similar they are. Two chips off the old block.
We still kept many of the baby items and furniture that we used for Edna, and will be using for Jireh. Take for example the bouncer chair that Edna used since she was a month old. Now we let Jireh sit in it. Can you tell them apart (Edna was 3 months old in the photograph and Jireh almost 2 months)? They are even wearing the same pants!

And when I fixed in the musical lights attachment (which we'd removed when Edna was about a year old), it was fun to watch Edna reminisce her past...

Haiz... can't wait for them to grow up quickly so that I can have my life back, kekeke...

Friday, 08 May 2009

Our Mothers are Awesome!

No words can describe the gratitude both Joel and I feel about our mothers who flew into Townsville to help us out after Jireh's birth. From gardening, doing the endless laundry, cleaning, the endless cooking, caring for Edna and Jireh, to caring for me (brewing confinement soups, herbs, dishes), they showed us just how sacrificial and unconditional is their love for us. We could never have coped without them. We are so eternally grateful to them.

So here's wishing you both a very Happy Mother's Day!
Love from Joel, Evelyn, Edna and Jireh