Thoughts on Moving!

It just occured to me that I should be taking pictures of this lovely place we spent 2 years in. It's often that pictures are taken of a place on entry when it is either filled with boxes or when it is near empty just after the removalist came by.

NOTE TO SELF: Take pictures for memories for kids!

Then, will blog a 'Goodbye' message to this place.

We are MOVING!

Coming back from our church camp trip in Putrajaya K.L. We were faced with the possibility that we'll have to move out of our lovely 'luxury' apartment in Braddell. After further communications with the landlord, he's decided to raise the rent up by a whooping S$1,000 per month. So, we ARE moving. Spent a week running up and down (apartments), scouring the newspaper classifieds and have decided that we can only afford non private government housing. We have found one at still S$250 increase but a smaller unit also with 3 rooms in the North Eastern part of Singapore, Serangoon.

We'll be getting the keys on the 15th July and have to vacate here by end of July.

From now on, homeschool has to continue, ministry starts plus the added bonus of logistical moving house nightmare. Am happy that we can 'reduce' our stuff, yet again!! (This is the 12th time I have moved my entire life, sigh! Am getting quite good at it!)

Do REMEMBER contact us for our updated details!

Imagination

Have often wondered why is it that my girls are still 'imagining play'. Even while we were on the beach amongst the white sand with little toys as props, the girls were STILL being Atlantis princesses, mermaids, queens in sand castles etc. Now am happy that it's normal.

Why encouraging imagination is important

An active imagination helps your preschooler in more ways than you might think.

Improving vocabulary. Children who play imaginary games or listen to lots of fairy tales, stories read aloud from books, or tales spun by those around them tend to have noticeably better vocabularies.

Taking control. Pretending lets your preschooler be anyone she wants, practice things she's learned, and make situations turn out the way she wants. Stories where the brave little girl thwarts the evil witch or playacted fantasies of being the one to rescue all those kittens from that sinking ship give her a sense that she can be powerful and in control even in unfamiliar or scary situations.

Learning social rules. Getting along socially can be tricky at any age. When your preschooler joins the other kids in the sandbox to create a castle out of sand, sticks, and leaves, she's not only exploring a fantasy world, she's learning complex, real-world rules about sharing, social interaction, and resolving conflicts.

Solving problems. Dreaming up imaginary situations teaches your child to think creatively in real life. A study at Case Western Reserve University found that young children who are imaginative tend to remain so as they get older and to become better problem solvers. Tested later in life, early "imaginators" were more resourceful when it came to coping with challenges and difficult situations, such as what to do if they forgot to bring a book to school they needed that day.

For the rest of the article see: How to raise an imaginative child!

Our 4 day trip (II): Mersing and Pulau RAWA

We swam and played around these..

The YEOs and the CHANs
After the speediest ferry trip, we arrived. Non nauseated or green in colour (the first!). The bost ride was actually 'refreshing' as the sea was calm, the weather was great, and the sea air smelt great!We arrived to this views from the jetty..

Checked into a bungalow with these views...
Girls were looking 'down' at these..Yep, we all come home after 2 nights of blissful rest, sun and surf. Never in my life would I think that Malaysia has such lovely beaches, I am WRONG! See Pulau RAWA (the pics don't give justice to the true beauty of the place!)

Our 4 day trip (I): Kota Tinggi Rainforest and Falls

It was quite an anticipated trip, a road trip! it's been ages that we've driven more than 30mins into a different country/state for a family break. We were blessed with a family who knew places (they own a boutique tour-travel company) and was invited along this trip. We set off 6.30am Saturday(31st May) morning and first survived the 1 hour queue at the SIN/M'SIA customs. We then had a 1.5hour car ride to the north of Johor, Kota Tinggi.



We checked into a rainforest resort (very earthy and quaint in character!), only 5 mins from there, we had a splashing afternoon at the reknown Kota Tinggi Falls.





We missed out on the 'fireflies' boatride which we heard was pretty spectacular but the highlight was the next day when we headed northwest to the city of Mersing.