Archive for » September, 2008 «

Shopping in Chatuchak

30 Sep 2008 by

Hubby and I have been to Chatuchak before but never with the kids. It’s a big open weekend market, but you can walk along the aisles of some indoor stores too. It’s best to check out the directory before you get yourself lost in Chatuchak as there are about 10,000 stalls or more here, so don’t be surprised about the variety of things such as clothes, shoes, bags, Harley parts, something like Alien (ya, really Alien from the movies) and etc. If you are planning for a trip there, you may check out this online directory too.

Since Auntie Wan had not been here before, we decided to bring them here for shopping. They can really walk, so I don’t have to worry about them getting too tired. LOL! We parked our car at JJ Mall and entered Chatuchak market from the other side where they are selling pets.

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I was tempted to get some bunnies, but better not…

 

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Are these baby Asian palm civets?

 

Isabelle had a good time checking out the animals…


Snake! I think it’s a small python.

 


She dared not touch the parrot.

 


Checking out a rooster.

 

If you are wondering why there isn’t any photo of Justin, here he is…


Justin missed the pet section as he’s taking a nap.

 

We shopped a few hours here, and of course, we ended up getting more stuffs for the kids again. LOL! Most of the goods here are pretty cheap, so again, you won’t feel the pain of spending money. However, Auntie Wan said “men kok men kok dou mai chor men sui”. She meant she bought a lot without realizing it!


Did I mention that Isabelle loves Hello Kitty lately? :)

 


Justin woke up blur, but he likes his Mickey cap and the “horse” fan.

 

Isabelle basically changed into everything new here. Hubby accidentally tilted her stroller and she spilled the orange juice on herself. So, after cleaning her up, she had a few set of clothes and sandals, all from the stalls in Chatuchak. Justin didn’t want to buy any clothes, maybe he thinks that he has had enough already.


The salesgirl putting on a new belt for her. That mini skirt is so cute! (Healy, want a piece or not?)

 


Posing for mommy. LOL!

 

BTW, don’t forget to try the coconut ice-cream. Nothing beats a bowl of nice ice-cream on a hot day.


Makan coconut ice-cream…

 

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…because it’s so sunny and hot!

 

It’s impossible to cover every part of the market, even if we had walked for hours. My kids were tired, but we brought along their strollers, so they could take naps once in a while.


It’s my turn to Zzz…

 

Anyway, don’t miss this market if you are traveling to Bangkok. But then, it only opens in the weekend, so plan your trip well.

Category: Family Moments, Shopping  8 Comments

The Grand Palace and Central World

30 Sep 2008 by

We had visitors from Singapore last weekend, and after a few days of day tour on their own, they came to our “village” (means taman / housing estate) and stayed at BIL’s. My kids hardly see them when we were in Ipoh, but they had no problem warming up with this auntie and ah yee.

We brought them to the Grand Palace in Bangkok city, and it’s my kids’ first trip to the Grand Palace too.


The Grand Palace

 

If you haven’t been here, check out this info:

Open: Daily 08:30 – 15:30
Location: Na Phra Lan Road, Old City (Rattanakosin)
Tickets: Tickets sold from 8:30 – 15:30 and cost 200 baht (but we paid 300 baht each). One ticket includes entry to Vimanmek Palace and Abhisek Dusit Throne Hall.

Important Note:
A strict dress code applies. The Grand Palace with The Temple of the Emerald Buddha is Thailand’s most sacred site. Visitors must be properly dressed before being allowed entry to the temple. Men must wear long pants and shirts with sleeves (no tank tops. If you’re wearing sandals or flip-flops you must wear socks (in other words, no bare feet.) Women must be similarly modestly dressed. No see-through clothes, bare shoulders, etc. If you show up at the front gate improperly dressed, there is a booth near the entrance that can provide clothes to cover you up properly (a deposit is required).


Our relatives had to put on the sarongs because their pants were not long enough.

 

It was a sunny Saturday, thus it’s nice for photography. I snapped lots of nice photos here, but I am “roasted” after hours in the sun again. We are always out in the sun in Bangkok, so maybe I should get a pair of Wayfarer sunglasses huh? But even if it’s really sunny, my kids were doing fine. Isabelle slept most of the time at the palace, but Justin was awake and eager to look around.


Beh tahan….I take a nap first…

 

IMG_7441 by you.Some where in the palace

 

Many years ago, hubby and I came here as couple, but now, we are blessed with 2 kids. :) However, we had to bring the strollers up and down the staircase so it’s not as”convenient” as it used to be, but no complains ok? I’m not the one doing the hard work mah…. :P


A family pic with Isabelle napping in the sun. :P

 

After a short nap, Isabelle was energetic again. The kids spent some time looking around and playing among themselves. Again, mommy and daddy had fun taking more photos of them. :)

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Sunshiny Justin and Isabelle

 


Shoppingmum and Kids. LOL!

 


Shoppingdad and Kids (or should I say the one who pays the shopping bills? :P )

 


Shoppingkids? :)

 


I should be in the pic huh?

 

The soldiers who won’t move nor smile.

 

After a few hours in the sun, we finally left The Grand Palace but on the way back to the car park, my kids wanted to feed the pigeons opposite the palace. Justin likes Beauty and The Beast and he was hoping to feed the pigeons from his hand, just like the Beast (or is it Belle?). However, we advised him not to do so as there were a lot of pigeons, so who knows if he will be “attacked”? The kids just threw the corns on the ground, and Isabelle glued to auntie most of the time.


Feeding the pigeons

 


Isabelle glued to auntie but Justin was eager to get as close as possible

 

After that, we headed to Central World for lunch. It’s way past lunch hour, so you can imagine how hungry we were. My kids took their bentos in the car, and Justin feel asleep when we reached there. He basically skipped lunch that day, but at least he had taken something.


No special effect, but I managed to grab a photo of him sleeping with a smile. :)

 


On the other hand, Isabelle ate a lot that day, and even sapu some of auntie’s noodles!

 

We didn’t go to Mister Donut, so maybe we will go for donut decoration next time when we have another batch of visitors. We did some shopping at Toys’R'Us and Asia Books and bought stuffs for the kids again. But since auntie and Nini were still in the mood of shopping at the stalls along the road, we decided to grab a drink at one of the cafes at Big C instead. It’s quite tiring for all of us after so much walking…


Isabelle kept herself busy with blueberry blend and her Sleeping Beauty

 


We finally got a few Disney books for Justin, but they are not from Ladybird.

 

We went back for dinner at BIL as SIL cooked a banquet of Thai food. LOL! Too bad cousin Nini doesn’t take spicy food… :P

Anyway, it’s such a fun day for the children, even if all of us were totally exhausted. We had another exciting and tiring day after a good night sleep, but that will be written in another post.

Category: Family Moments  6 Comments

TGIF

26 Sep 2008 by

Friday is my kids’ favorite school day. It’s the only day they can dress in whatever they want, and they will normally pick their own clothes without asking us. Isabelle still can’t differentiate the days, and sometimes, she refuses to wear the uniform and insists on putting on her own clothes on normal school days. I would have to coax her or just let her wear anything she wants and only change her later when we are going out from the house. But on Friday, it’s stress free for all of us.

She picked her new dress from Platinum Fashion Mall this morning, and guess what, it’s only about RM15 if you buy more than one piece of the same or different design!!! I will surely go back to the store and grab more next time. LOL!

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Isabelle looks fairer in this dress, or maybe it’s due to the color?

 

Since I’ve forgotten to get Justin a Mickey tee the other day at Platinum, I bought him a new set from a stall at Tesco. Most of the clothes here in Bangkok are surprisingly cheap, and this set only cost me about RM30. I guess you understand why I shop so much in Bangkok huh? You really can’t feel the “pain” of buying more. LOL!

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I look like Mickey Mouse or not?

 

I’m not the type of shoppers who go for brand name but value for money. That’s why I love shopping in Bangkok! I might get some more clothes later this year as it gets windy during “winter”. Some north face jackets will be great, if we have time to go to Chiang Mai. Hopefully, hubby is not too busy by then.

Category: Isabelle, Justin  10 Comments

A Friend’s Visit

25 Sep 2008 by

Starting this week, we will be expecting more visitors from Malaysia, and I guess we will be busy “entertaining” them. LOL! Last night, we went dinner with Chee Sing, a friend of hubby from university. We haven’t seen him for about 2 years. The last time we met was on our trip to Kuching to attend a mutual friend’s wedding. Do check out the link to see how “botak” Isabelle was. Oh boy, my kids have grown up so much!

Back to the dinner…Justin and Isabelle definitely can’t remember this uncle, but then it didn’t take them too long to “warm up” with him.


Snap photo with uncle first…

While waiting for BIL, the kids enjoyed the view around our table. Our table was set on a platform on a pond, and I like it.


Looking around…

 

 


The water lilies, but too bad they are not blooming now.

 

 


Isabelle keeps telling everyone not to lean against the rail so that you won’t fall into the water!

 

Remember the post about me hoping that my kids can order food for us one day? It started earlier than expected… :P


Isabelle tried to order the food, but the waiter ignored her. LOL! I also can’t understand what she’s trying to order.

 

I think I better add some Thai books to our bookshelves. It’s time to go to Kinokuniya again.

The dinner was great and we really enjoyed the evening breeze. But later on, there were some mosquitoes, as expected. However, they only attacked baby Thong Thong. O.o

Hubby didn’t follow us home as the men had some drinking session catching up to do. My kids were grumpy about daddy’s not coming back with us after dinner. Isabelle cried for daddy at bedtime, and that’s something we don’t see before we moved to Bangkok. I guess she’s getting attached to hubby now, and that’s great. Can hubby tug her to bed instead of me? I’m still waiting for that moment to come…

Category: Family Moments  3 Comments

Wordless Wednesday: My Little Helper

24 Sep 2008 by

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Category: Justin, Wordless Wednesday  7 Comments

Sleeping…Sleepless…

23 Sep 2008 by

 When my kids were babies, they slept close to me because it’s easier to breastfeed them at night. They were not close to hubby who traveled a lot and only tugged in bed with me. However, Justin became close to daddy when I had Isabelle. If hubby was not traveling, he would sleep besides Justin and both our king and queen sized beds were joined side by side.

We planned to train our kids to sleep on their own here in Bangkok, so they have their own bedroom. However, all of us have to squeeze into their queen bed first before we can sneak out to my bedroom. Every night, Justin will come to our room looking for daddy, and a few hours later, hubby will carry the crying Isabelle to me. It’s like the kids are switching room the whole night until morning. LOL!

But last night, not only Isabelle came to me, Justin followed along and said we all had to sleep together. Both of the kids wanted to sleep as close to me as ever, and I could hardly move. Frankly, I couldn’t sleep at all. Isabelle likes to stroke my arm until she falls asleep soundly, so it’s very tinkling!!! How to sleep like this leh???

I was lying awake until I couldn’t take it anymore. I sneaked out to the kids’ room and have the bed all for myself. Wow, what a night of switching here and there. Did I mention that I have to wake up at 6.30am to fix breakfast? Can die wan la, if I don’t sleep for 6 hours…Really blur now looking at this pending mortgage quotes review and the paper work on my table.

Tell me please. How do your kids learn to sleep on their own, in their own bedrooms? If you are telling me it started at babies, I’m too late for that.


Category: Mothering Moments  4 Comments

Shopping at Platinum Fashion Mall

22 Sep 2008 by

I know that we should be revising with Justin since he’s having an exam this week, but when SIL called us on Sunday morning suggesting that we go shopping at Platinum Fashion Mall, we were all excited about it. :P I thought that Platinum Fashion Mall does not open during weekends, but I was wrong. It opens everyday. So, don’t miss this place if you like shopping for clothes, shoes, bags, and etc at wholesale price. But if you are looking for branded stuffs, this is not the right place for you. Don’t be surprised to see people pulling big bags of stuffs as most boutiques or store owners get their stocks here.

My kids prepared their own bentos for a quick snack in the car. I have to prepare some snacks for them when we are out as the traffic is unpredictable. Sometimes, we will just get stuck for some time in the city, and not to mention, hubby might get lost if we are not going with BIL who knows the way around. So, it’s best to have some food in the car…

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I put the Hello Kitty picks by myself. I love Hello Kitty (lately…)

 


Me too, I do this on my own (by placing the banana, spring rolls and biscuits in his lunch box).

 

It took us awhile to reach Pratu Nam as we were caught in a traffic jam in the city. But anyway, it’s not a serious one. Platinum Fashion Mall was crowded with shoppers, just like it always has. Thus, we told the kids to stick around us but not wandering around. We bought shoes for Justin and dresses for Isabelle. I couldn’t find shoes for her, and I missed buying the Mickey Mouse tees for Justin because hubby said we looked around first. After that, we couldn’t find the store!!! If I’m not mistaken, it has 6 storeys, but 5 of them are loaded with shop lots and one of the floors is food court. After shopping for 2 or 3 hours, we took a break at the food court. SIL and I continued shopping while the men took care of the children. I thought they would just feed the kids with food, but later on, I found out that the men went shopping with 2 young kids and a baby. :P So geng…

I forgot to snap a photo of the things we bought, but never mind la. If you love shopping for stuffs at good bargain, don’t miss Platinum Fashion Mall. It will be more fun if you come with friends as you can easier pick more items from the same store to get wholesale price. I found that there were a lot of tourists from Malaysia that day as they spoke in Hokkien, English, and also in some dialects that I’m familiar with. I almost wanted to ask them if they are from Malaysia. LOL!

Category: Family Moments, Shopping  5 Comments

At Home This Weekend?

20 Sep 2008 by

Justin brought back the books for the first semester, and we were informed that he’s going to sit for exams next week. O.o My first thought was he’s going to fail his Thai language. :P I’m sorry ya boy? When you’re reading this next time, it’s not that mommy don’t have the confidence in you as I know that you do well for counting and English for your age, but then you have only learned Thai for 3 months, so it’s going to be tougher. Anyway, I don’t mind about his score, and I don’t think he knows much about exams.


Revising his Thai, and I know nothing about the Thai consonants. I better dig out hubby’s CD later.

I guess we will stay in this weekend as hubby’s out for golfing today, and we don’t have any particular plan tomorrow. We might revise Thai with Justin, if he’s willing to. He sat for his first exam a few months ago, before leaving for Bangkok. Hubby and I were away in Bangkok, so my mom revised with him. She said he didn’t really want to revise mostly, but he did well in the test. At that time, I thought he would get “red mark” for his Chinese, but he didn’t. LOL! So, I guess we just have to trust our kids and let them learn at their own pace. If they do well, we “celebrate” and praise them. If not, just encourage and see if they are willing to get more help in their work. Some times, I do wonder if I should let them have Thai tuition, but I guess it’s not really necessary.

Hubby still plans to send them to international school after a year or 2. So, they will go back to English as the main medium and Thai will be an extra subject. As long as they can read and write Thai, even if just a little, it’s more than enough. :P But as for Chinese, we will work on that next time. They enjoy reading (I mean we read and they look at pictures) those Chinese books we bought on our previous trip back, so I will get more next time when we go back.

BTW, some of you might be worrying about the safety in Bangkok, but seriously, it’s just the politic which is very chaotic, but most of our lives are not affected. It’s similar to the condition in Malaysia, like itu 916 mau berlaku tapi belum and Bodohwi masih berkuasa tapi Anwar mau “rampas” kuasa bla bla bla. But life is still normal there right? :P

Anyway, maybe we will just go shopping, as usual. I need to check out a humidifier and some baking stuffs. Some of the cookie cutters from NST arrived, so I better make good use of them.

Category: Justin, Ngam ngam cham cham  2 Comments

Speaking Thai

17 Sep 2008 by

 Isabelle has been speaking “alien” to me lately. She has always spoken to me in English, but lately, she will just come to me and say “a ya yaya ….bla bla…an ni…. an ni…kah…” Hubby said it sounds like Thai, but not all.

She has a “boyfriend” at school whom she looks forward to see him everyday. She calls him chai chai, and she always play with him. Maybe that’s how she learn how to speak Thai, by talking to her friend.

As for Justin,  he can speak some Thai now, and some times, I notice that he speaks Thai to Isabelle like “mai dai (cannot), bai (go) Future Park, and etc. BTW, he said he has a girlfriend at school too and her name is “Pom”. She always sits besides Justin, and she’s the first classmate who took the initiative to befriend with Justin on the first few days at school.

So, my kids sudah ada boyfren and girlfren now huh? LOL! And they are picking up Thai rather well, even if they can’t read the letters yet. I always joke with the kids that they have to learn how to read Thai so that mommy can order food easily from the menu. LOL!

However, I’m still thinking about how long should they stay in Thai school. One year or two years? It’s pretty expensive to send the children to international schools but what to do? That’s the price to pay unless I home school my kids. I guess hubby will have to work on his biz or make a fortune from online trading so I don’t have to think much about the school fees!

Category: Isabelle, Justin  9 Comments

Wordless Wednesday: Tired…

17 Sep 2008 by

Category: Isabelle, Justin, Wordless Wednesday  8 Comments
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