Trip to Mount Faber

For the past two weeks, shopping malls have been crazily over-packed with people due to the festive seasons. Thus, we are not going to any of these sardine packed malls for the time being. We decided to get a little closer to nature and get away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Anyway, we are not attending our lesson at Shichida today due to the term break. We headed to Mount Faber after our lunch. This is also Edison’s first visit to Mount Faber.

We enjoyed the serenity of the natural environment as well as the breathtaking sceneries. It was a sweet weekend getaway. Here are some pictures to share:

My favourite picture is this:

"Yo! What's that over there?!"

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This Christmas vs Last Christmas

Christmas 2007 @ Vivo City

Christmas 2008 @ Paragon

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A year passed us by in a glimpse of an eye. Our little Edison has blossomed into a 1.5 year old toddler; who is so intelligent, loving, active and adventurous.

Learning to Talk is FUN!

Edison has achieved his biggest milestone in walking when he was around 12 months old. Nowadays, he is simply unstoppable – walking, climbing, running and dancing (yes! my boy can dance!). All these activities keep him busy throughout the day.

The next milestone that we are anticipating is talking. So far, he can pronounce these words clearly – mama, papa, bird, star and flower. We are delighted whenever a new word creeps into his vocabulary. This is a positive sign towards his language development.

There are a few words that are 'super sensitive' to little Edison. Whenever he hears them, he will react immediately.

Word: flash cards
Action: He will walk to our room, open the cabinet and pull out the flash cards.

Word: shower
Action: He will walk to the bathroom, take his shower gel and shampoo, and place them onto the floor.

Word: music
Action: He will pull his high hair to our dining table and look out for my lappie. We always sing together with the musical flash card slideshows in my lappie.

Learning to talk has been fun for little Edison too. Here’s my conversation with him this morning:

Me: “Edison, call mama.”
Edison: “Mama!”

Me: “Edison, say Jagung.” (maize in Malay)
Edison: “Ah-Ung.”

Me: “Edison, say Jambu.”
Edison: “Bu-Bu.”

Look at this picture. He seems to be talking @#$% language too! Cute! He talks with gestures too.

Merry Christmas!

HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS AND AN EVEN BETTER NEW YEAR!

DIY Flash Card #4: Occupations

In my earlier post, I mentioned about sharing my DIY flash card files. A few mothers e-mailed me to express their interests in sharing the flash cards. I’m so delighted. Thanks all for your e-mails.

I’ve uploaded all the flash cards in Microsoft PowerPoint in Ripway. The download links have been added to my previous DIY Flash Card posts. The short-cuts have also been created at the right sidebar of this blog. If there is any broken links, please notify me via comments or e-mails.

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If you are using A4 size blank flash cards, you can print one slide per page. For me, I'm using A5 blank flash cards. So, I print in handouts with two slides per page. Two slides will be printed on one A4 paper. Then I cut them into two and paste them onto A5 blank flash cards.

This is set #4 for occupations.

Title: Occupations
Contents:
1. Doctor
2. Dentist
3. Police
4. Teacher
5. Scientist
6. Pilot
7. Singer
8. Pediatrician
9. Nurse
10. Soldier
11. Sailor
12. Barber

Download URL: http://h1.ripway.com/newbb77/Occupations1.ppt

Oatmeal: An Alternative to Porridge

Edison has been a little fussy with food recently. He doesn’t want to eat porridge, no matter how hard we try. As a result, we have been cooking oatmeal for his lunch and dinner. He seems to enjoy eating oatmeal. Much to my surprise, he can finish one full bowl of oatmeal as compared to half bowl of porridge that he usually eats.

If you are having problem feeding your toddler with porridge, oatmeal is a good alternative for you. Oats are an excellent source of soluble fiber, protein, vitamin B, iron and calcium. It's a good idea to get our toddlers to enjoy oats from an early age, as they play a very important role in good health throughout adulthood too. Regular consumption of oats can reduce the symptoms of asthma, lowers cholesterol, aids in the prevention of heart disease and boosts the body's immune system.

Due to the high fiber content, oatmeal does not cause constipation. In fact, little Edison has bowel movement almost everyday. I would say 98% of the time; he has smooth bowel movement everyday.

Apart from all these nutritional benefits, oatmeal is actually quite easy to prepare. I’m using Quaker Instant Oatmeal. I mix one serving of meat/fish and one serving of veggie/egg in cooking oatmeal for little Edison. Here’s a simple recipe for oatmeal with fish and veggie combo.

Oatmeal with Threadfin and Broccoli

3 tbsp of instant oats (for one bowl of oatmeal)
Broccoli
Threadfin
Bovril (optional)

1. Cook broccoli with boiling water to soften. Finely chopped, then put aside.
2. Cut threadfin into thin slices and remove all the bones.
3. Boil two cups of water in a pot. Cook the threadfin once the water is boiled. Once it is cooked, scoop the threadfin into a bowl and mash it.
4. Don’t pour away the water that we used to cook the threadfin in step #3. Leave it in the pot to cool down for about 5-10 mins.
5. When the water is cooled down, add the instant oats into the pot and cook over small fire. Keep stirring to prevent sticking and clumping. Add the mashed threadfin and chopped broccoli with the oats.
6. Continue to stir and cook until we reach a smooth texture. I normally cook for about 10 mins and the oatmeal will turn smooth and creamy.
7. Finally, add Bovril or Marmite if you want. Turn off the fire and let the oatmeal to cool down for a while before serving.

This is Edison’s lunch of the day. Complete the meal with two teaspoon of cod liver oil.

A yummy lunch to meet his growing appetite!

A Toast to My Last Working Day in 2008

Yippee! Today is my last working day for this year. I’ll be officially off from tomorrow till 4 Jan 09. The next two weeks are going to be a well-deserved break for me. My company is shutting down to reduce cost due to the terrible downturn. Nonetheless, I still need to follow-up on some urgent builds and pilot runs. I can't shutdown my mind completely.

Well, it seems like the holiday mode has been turned ON today. I’m seeing lesser people in the canteen and office. I’ve started to receive Christmas presents and chocolates from my colleagues. Now, I’m going to do some clearance & cleaning, throw away unwanted papers, polish my white board, change the calendar and set my out of office notice.

2008 has been a super busy year for me especially the first 4 months where Edison was attending infant care. Back then, I didn’t have a maid. I thought that infant care will be a better option than maid or babysitter. I was totally wrong. The infant care turned out to be a disaster! We made the right choice by withdrawing him from infant care in end April.

We employed a maid to take care of little Edison. People always say that finding a good maid is like striking a lottery. I’ve never strike any lottery before, but I think I’m really lucky to find such a good maid. Niti has been with me for 8 months now and I’m very satisfied with her work performance.

One of the main reasons is because I have a superb mother-in-law. She is the supervisor and trainer for my maid. She provides guidance and help to my maid whenever she need. She treats my maid like part of our family and I can see that my maid respect her a lot too. My father-in-law is a very kind man and he is always there to help us. I’m so grateful to both of them.

On the other hand, I’m grateful to my boss too. When Edison was sick, I took urgent leave to take care of him. My boss has been very understanding and she never rejects my leave application. I have a bunch of helpful colleagues who always help me during my absence. We all work like a team!

2008 has been a tough year, and we managed to overcome all the difficulties and obstacles. Now, come toast with me! Sayonara to 2008 and Welcome 2009!

More about Flash Cards

Today, I’m going to blog about this boring subject again – Flash Cards. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you’ll notice that I talk a lot on flash cards. In fact, if you are with Shichida Method (SM), you know that we can’t escape from flash cards. I believe that it works somehow, and that’s why I’m putting so much effort in it.

Purposes of Flash Cards
If you are wondering what the purpose of practicing flash cards is, let me give you a good introduction about it. Flashing the cards in a high speed activates our child’s right brain and empowers their memory ability. When we flash the picture cards, we read out the words at the same time. While the pictures are processed by the right brain, the left brain picks up the language. Both sides of the brain are connected during the process. In addition, flash cards can also increase our child’s vocabulary.

Topics for Flash Cards
I focus on the basic concepts; i.e. colours, shapes, sizes, numbers, orders, time etc. Understanding these basic concepts is the most important milestone for a one year-old. In addition, I also make picture cards with the same theme or topics, i.e. types of flowers, occupations, food, fruits, things you’ll see in town, Disney characters etc.

Pointers
I want to share with you four important pointers when we are practicing flash cards with our child. [taken from Shichida Method Parent Education Course Manual]
1. Do not repeat the same set of cards at a time.
2. Start with 100 cards in the first month, then to an average of 250, and then slowly move forward to 1000.
3. Have a title for each set of cards.
4. Set the cards higher than the child’s eye level.

DIY Flash Cards
I’ve made lots of them. In fact, it’s very easy, not to mention the cost savings if we make the cards ourselves. We can customize the pictures, themes and topics the way we want.

Sharing of Flash Cards
Yes! E-mail me! I’m open to sharing of flash cards and resources. Oh, I’m thinking of sharing my flash cards in Power Point format with you. I need a web hosting site for me to upload these files. Let me think of how to do this.

Read:
DIY Flash Card #3: Sesame Street Characters
DIY Flash Cards – It is so easy!

Okay, after a long post, let’s relax your eyes with pictures of cute Edison...

--Yippee! Christmas coming! Can you see the snow? =)

Thoughts on Parenting: Avoid Raising a Spoiled Child

1. Is your child’s unreasonable needs constantly met?

2. Is your child’s annoying whiny behavior often tolerated?

3. Is your child’s minor wants are always met at great cost even if they cause severe inconvenience to others?

Any ‘yes’ to the above questions means that we are potentially spoiling our kids. I read these questions over and over again, think and think. Honestly, I don’t think I have a ‘yes’ for any of them.

Children of this generation are becoming more spoiled. They have power over their parents. We have seen many of them at shopping malls, MacDonald’s and at schools. They throw tantrums to get what they want; complete with screaming, whining and crying. We should not let this happen to our children.

Spoiled children are caused by permissive parenting; parents who don’t set the limits and constantly give in to their children whenever they throw tantrums or cry. Spoiled children often find it hard to share, wait for their turn, appreciate what they have and accept what they don’t have. Negative behaviors such as selfishness, bossy, rude and bad tempered are often associated with spoiled children.

We can prevent this from happening by setting the limits and maintain healthy boundaries for our children. Be firm and do not give in to their screaming or crying, let it falls on deaf ears. It takes a strong willpower to say ‘no’ to them. When we say ‘no’, we really mean it. Always be consistent.

I would like to share with you a very beautiful write-up about ways to prevent our children from being spoiled. Click HERE to read.

In short, we should spend more quality time with our children. Do not replace time, love and affection with money and material objects. We should provide them with the attention that they need, always set limits and maintain the healthy boundaries.

Currently Watching 'The Gem of Life'

I crashed into bed at 10pm last night and had my 9 hours of beauty sleep. Phew! It feels so good and refreshing when I woke up this morning. I was so exhausted yesterday due to the lack of sleep for the past few nights. I’m on another drama marathon. My brain malfunctioned yesterday, and I realized that I should get my hands off those DVDs and get some sleep.

I’m currently watching The Gem of Life (珠光寶氣), a Hong Kong TVB mega drama with 82 episodes. The Gem of Life is said to be the most expensive TVB production to-date and it took one year to complete the filming. Be dazzled with the glamorous life styles of the rich and famous, elegant wardrobes, diamonds and expensive sets. Be exposed to the ugly sides of socialites. This drama has them all. Full of trills.

The drama revolves around three sisters played by Maggie Siu, Gigi Lai and Ada Choi. I’ve watched 8 episodes to-date. I would say that the first 8 episodes give a very good introduction to the many characters in the drama. The three sisters have their own marital problems that lead to their divorce at the beginning of the drama.

This drama has three celebrities that I adore – Gigi Lai, Moses Chan and Bowie Lam. They did an excellent job in the previous TVB hit War and Beauty. I’m a bit disappointed that Charmaine Sheh is not in this drama though. Another piece of sad news is that Gigi Lai is retiring from showbiz. This will be her last series, sobz…

I’ll be off for two weeks starting next Monday, so this drama really comes at the right time for me. Yippee!

I want that Dotty Top!

I was surfing Shinnpark’s website this morning and a lovely dotty top caught my attention. I clicked on it and I was so pleased with what I saw. Risolene Dotty Top - a spaghetti strap white cotton top with print on black and polka dots. It is so pretty and cute. Perfect for that Sunday outing!

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This is one of the items under the Perfectly Wrapped Collection which was launched last Wednesday. If you are looking for a dress for your Christmas party, then you should take a look at Shinnpark. The dresses are awesome, plus the prices are so affordable!

Within an hour, I made my order and received my order confirmation. This Risolene Dotty Top will be posted to me tomorrow. Eeek! I’m so excited!

Snow Effect Widget

Christmas is around the corner. Want to add some "X-masy" feel to your blog? How about some snowflakes that trickle down the page?

You can add a simple snow effect widget to your blog with just a few clicks. Very easy, no need to crack your head with those XML codes. It works wonders on dark background. If you are interested, check it out here:

Add Snow Effect

I've added the widget too. But due to the light background in my blog, it is not obvious.

Drama Marathon is Back!

Hey, I guess I am back! … Back to those days where I watch dramas in a marathon way! It has been 1.5 years since my last drama marathon. And now, I’m officially hooked again!

It all started last Monday when I watched the debut of this Taiwanese romance comedy called 不良笑花 (Miss No Good). It is now showing on Channel U from Monday – Friday 7pm.

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Initially I thought that it’s just one of the too many teen idol dramas from the Taiwan entertainment industry. However, after watching the first episode, I found that it’s actually quite refreshing and funny. Rainie Yang and Wilber Pan pair up for the first time in this drama. There is lots of chemistry between them.

The story is about Jiang Xiao Hua (played by Rainie Yang), a jewelry store owner with a screwed fashion sense and a head of bouncy curls. Prince Charming Jia Si Le (played by Dean Fujioka) came back from Japan with the intention of dating Xiao Hua. Xiao Hua engaged Tang Men (Wilber Pan), a famous fashion guru whom she met by chance to transform her into an upper-class lady worthy of Si Le. Along the way, she fell in love with Tang Men.

I’m really excited to see Wilber Pan as an actor and I’m not disappointed at all. He is a very natural actor. I’m impressed by his performance in this drama.

For the past three nights, as soon as little Edison dozed off to Lala Land, I immediately hopped into the study room, switched on the computer and glued my eyes on the monitor to watch this drama on YouTube. Guess what? I’ve completed watching the drama last night. 13 episodes in 3 nights. Not a bad record huh?

Another TVB drama marathon is coming up soon for me. Hehehe… I’ll tell ya later.

How Life Changed

People often say that parenting can change us in almost unimaginable ways. It’s true. For me, I don’t keep late nights anymore except for little Edison. I don’t go out without a kid in tow, unless I desperately need some alone time. Everywhere I am, everything that I do, little Edison is always in my mind and priority.

The same goes to my hubby, but to a lesser extent. He still meets up with his friends for drink, play computer games etc. I do understand that a regular dose of ‘personal time’ is important, especially for the men. But I prefer to stay at home and take care of little Edison.

So, what are the changes in ME? Mmmmm, let's see.

I no longer brave the Orchard Rd crowds to shop for latest fashion clothing, cosmetics, perfumes and accessories. In fact, you will see me when there’s a sale at Toys ‘R Us, Mothercare, Pumpkin Patch or the children’s departments at Robinsons or Takashimaya. Toys, children’s clothing, shoes, groceries, books, flash cards etc; they are always in my shopping list!

I’ve also revamped my bookshelf. No more Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Nicholas Sparks and Nora Roberts (although they used to be my favorite authors). It is now solely devoted to What to Expect series, Gina Ford’s baby trilogy, Tracy Hogg’s baby whisperer, Annabel Karmel cookbooks and various parenting books.

In terms of dressing, no more tubes, high heels or ear rings for me. I find them not suitable especially when we go out with our toddlers. I'll clad in light clothings and sandals or flats during the weekends.

How life has changed for me! I believe all of us (mothers) will have the same experience as me. We all changed for our kids.

He Calls 'Mama'

Until now, Edison doesn’t talk much. At 14+ months, I’m not sure if this is considered slow in speech development. He doesn’t call anyone, even if you ask him to.

But there is ONE exception.

Me: “Edison, call Mama”
Edison: “MAMA” (loud and clear)

Of course, this doesn’t work all the time. If he is occupied with toys, he will not respond. I would say 70% of the time, it works.

My heart really melts every time he calls me MAMA. I’m sure many first-time mothers out there will feel the same too. It’s really a very good feeling!

And another 30% of the time, he would babble about something that I don’t quite understand. I know he is trying very hard to talk and communicate with us, he just need a little more time.

In addition to ‘mama’, the words that he can pronounce clearly are ‘papa’, ‘star’ and ‘bird’.

About Me

About the Author - Edison's Mum-

I am a full-time working mother to Prince Edison (born on 11 Sep 07). I’m a Malaysian, born in Ipoh, currently holding a Singapore PR. I’ve been staying in Singapore for 8 good years. I love this place and I love my life here.

I came to Singapore in year 2000, after I graduated from University Technology of Malaysia with a Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical/Electronics. As I started working in Singapore, I spent another 2.5 years doing my post graduate study in National University of Singapore. I graduated with a Master of Science in Industrial and Systems Engineering in year 2004. But none of these degrees have any relevance to my current field of work.

Career
I’m currently working in a US MNC in the electronics sector. I plan for the supply of products based on their demand. I deal with numbers everyday – customer forecast, shipment plans, inventory level, product cost, production capacity and lead time. Ultimately, I deliver what the customers want and maintain a healthy inventory level for my company.

Family
I’m happily married to my hubby (Venneth). He is a wonderful man. He is thoughtful, funny, helpful, loving, dependable and supportive. I gave birth to Edison in 2007. He is an adorable, intelligent, loving and spirited little boy. Both of them are the most important person in my life. They are my inspirations and my strength.

Parenting
Life is always beautiful with children. Edison brings joy, happiness and surprises to my everyday life. The experience in raising him has been bitter sweet. I’ve learnt so much for the past one year and I’m still learning. I will continue to improve and provide the best for Edison.

Interests
I love taking pictures, dressing-up, shopping, reading, writing and learning new stuff. Although I’m obsessed with shopping, I’m still very careful in my spending. I don’t go for luxury brands, unless really necessary. Nowadays I find great pleasure shopping for clothings and toys for Edison.

Recently I've started to enjoy blogging. I write more often now. I’m still new but I'm eager to learn.

Contact Me
I love to hear from you. Drop me a note at emily77 (at) mymelody (dot) com.

Pretty Edison?

Sometimes I like to put on nice hair clips on Edison... With a pair of big round eyes & relatively fair complexion, he looks a bit girlish with the hair clips...

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I wonder if Edison's mei-mei (younger sister) in future will look like this picture.. :)

Mattel Toy Sale

I can’t believe I actually did this. It was the first time in my 30 years of life – to go for a toy sale on a weekday!

It’s the Mattel Toy Sale at 1 Lok Yang Way. I was told by my friends that there are lots of good buys in this toy sale, with discounts up to 90%. Fisher Price and Barbie are the two favorite brands in this sale.

My hubby and I reached Lok Yang Way at around 11:45am. Finding a car park was our first challenge as the road was already full of cars when we reached. The place was hot and super crowded. As we made our way through the crowd and hunt for our toys, we were sweating like mad. Worst than the C&K warehouse sale, it’s really like fighting a war here!

The crowd reached its peak at around 12:30pm. From the amount of toys that the people are buying and the length of the queue at the cashier counters, I can conclude that the toys must be really cheap. Can you imagine what will happen if the toys are free?!

Our damage was minimal (I think!). Only $190 for 4 items. I couldn’t find anymore suitable toys for Edison. Here are our loots from the sale:

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FP Little People Music Parade Ride-On $35
FP Little People Shop n’Learn Market $40
FP Doodle Pro Colour $25
FP Trike to Bike $90

As we reached home, we cleaned the toys and displayed them nicely in our living hall. When little Edison came home, he got a very BIG surprise! His eyes beamed with joy when he saw his new toys. That night, he played with the music parade ride-on until 11pm!

They're All There!

There is really no excuse for the lack of exercise in my weekly routine when:

1. there is a free gym at my place (ok, not really free cos my hubby pays for the management fees).

2. there is a swimming pool that is sparkling clear just below my unit.
3. there is a huge nature park just 3 mins walk from my place – Punggol Park.
4. there is another free gym – at my workplace, complete with staff shower facilities.
5. one year membership at the Amore Fitness (which I already paid!). With free use of their gym and steam bath facilities.
6. tennis court, basketball court, badminton court, cycling track, sauna. They are all here!

Call me a lazy bum! I just can’t get those lazy bones off me. I’m turning into a couch potato pretty soon. Rounder and rounder each day. I can't seem to bother. Sigh.

Perfect Foundation!

Looking for a compact foundation with oil control, pore control and UV control? Try this: Christian Dior DiorSkin x3 Control. I’m using it now, and I love it to bits. Light coverage, stays fresh all day and maintains a matte and even complexion. It’s my ideal choice!

DIY Flash Card #3: Sesame Street Characters

Edison’s attention span has improved tremendously. He is able to sit and listen attentively during our home practice. Last night, he amazed me with his initiative. He pulled my hands and walked into our room. Then, he opened the cabinet and pulled out the flash cards. I was so surprised!

I’m motivated to make more flash cards for him. Since he loves Elmo so much, I’ve made this set of cards with Sesame Street Characters.

Title: Sesame Street Characters
Contents:
1. Elmo
2. Cookie Monster
3. Abby Cadabby
4. Big Bird
5. Ernie
6. Zoe
7. Bert
8. Oscar
9. Rosita
10. Grover

Resources:
http://www.sesamestreet.org

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Download URL: http://h1.ripway.com/newbb77/Sesame Street Characters1.ppt

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Read:
DIY Flash Card # 1: House of Disney
DIY Flash Card # 2: Sports

December 2008

Being the last month of the year, December is usually the busiest month for everyone. A month of celebration and festivals; full of parties, happiness, family traditions and get-together.

December is also a popular month for travel. However, this year, we are not going for any year-end holiday. The main reason is because of little Edison. I feel that it’s too difficult to travel with a one year old toddler. Secondly, in this economic downturn, I opt to be a bit more conservative in my spending. So, save money for the rainy days ahead.

I will be off from 20 Dec 08 – 4 Jan 09 due to company shutdown. I’ll make use of these 2 weeks to accomplish something meaningful for myself and my family:

1. Try to exercise (at least!)
It’s not the first time that people think that I’m pregnant again. Sigh. I take it as a compliment; they think that I’m so ‘productive’. Anyway, accepting the fact that I’m really putting on weight now, I should start exercising. For a start, what about 20mins of gym exercise every night?

2. Spend time with my husband
After our first post-baby date in Oct, we both agreed that we should spend more time together as a couple. We still have a long way to go together as husband and wife. We will do our very best to keep our relationship strong and alive.

3. Spring cleaning
I will start doing spring cleaning for my house. Dump those boxes in my store, clean-up the wardrobes, pack-up the old clothes and shoes; and clean the fridge and kitchen cabinets. The last time I cleaned my fridge, I actually found some rotten potatoes! Eeeek! Sounds scary, but it’s true!

4. Make flash cards and music slideshow
I have a new project this month. I want to make flash cards on Alphabets Phonics. Little Edison has started learning phonics in his class, so I should start doing home practice with him. And make one more music slideshow for him – The Bear Party!

5. Organize a Christmas lunch for the family

This will keep me busy running around in December. Going to be another fruitful month, it seems.

Kiddy Rides Fun Again!

Yesterday, we spent our evening in Marina Square. The Christmas decorations were fantastic, we instantly felt the dazzling Christmas spirit. Most of the shops are having sales now. We were lucky enough to catch the Sesame Street show just in time!

We were searching for some toys for little Edison. He loves to play with plates, cups and spoon now, so I thought of getting a kitchen set for him. But on a second thought, I’m worried that this is maybe too ‘girlish’ for him.

Daddy found this police car in Kiddy Palace. We did a 'trial' on it. Little Edison loves it so much! But judging from its size, this police car is really not suitable for our home. Apart from the police car, we have short listed a few exciting toys for Edison. We are hoping that we can find them in the upcoming Mattel warehouse sale (it’s this coming weekend actually!)

Something caught little Edison’s attention again. This time, it’s the animal rides outside Kiddy Palace. His eyes beamed with joys as he saw the little girls riding on the animals. With $2 coins in my pocket, I popped them into the bear. Little Edison happily rode the bear with my helper.

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It was another fun filled kiddy rides session for little Edison.