Ofsted Party : 24 Mar 2011

To celebrate the kindergarten's excellent Ofsted inspection results, they had a party on Thur 24 Mar. They received an "Outstanding" report and most of the parents were not surprised, as we felt the kindy has always been a great place for the kids to flourish under the guidance & care of the Steiner teachers. It was a meaningful event to show appreciation for the teacher's dedication & hardwork, and we were happy to be there to be part of it. I baked my orange chiffon cake (which received a surprising praise from a mom - she mentioned to her other friends that this cake at first looked like a "bread" but when she ate it, it is really soft & tasty! I was beaming!)

(Orange Chiffon Cake, made using Angel Cake Pan given to me by Angel - Yes, that's her name! TQ very much Angel!)

Earlier on in the morning, we went out to get some roses for the teachers. It was Shean Wenn's idea - she had been asking me if she could give her teachers flowers for a long time, so I thought this would be a good occasion to do so. We then went home & wrapped them up in bright colourful "Origami" papers I had bought the week before. So useful and made the flower-bouquet so cheerful!

There was a room prepared by the teachers for exhibition of the children's work & various projects that the kindergarten has done. I quickly spotted some cute artwork from the kids below the counter. In each of the kindergarten's room, there is this section (as shown below) which is like a pantry. They use it to bake, or prepare some of the kids' meal (cutting and some simple cooking). Everytime when the teachers bake, the aroma fills the air and I LOVE this! Can you spot Shean Wenn's artwork?? Here it is! This must be her "body-less portraits" phase. She now draws people with a body, limbs (and fingers) and hair.

The whole time, the kids were having a grand time playing in their playground!

Chalk-drawing on the pavement! I love how they have free-reign to express themselves. A few times when I came to pick her up from kindy and get a nice surprise as I stepped into the school - I can't help but admire the chalk-artwork the kids/teachers have done on the pavement. Very cute!

In one of the rooms, they have a wooden horse which the kids love to go on.

I took a couple of photos of the Easter decoration (which was celebrated 2 week later) in the kindy. The below must be an "Easter tree" handmade by the teachers, branches being picked form the garden, flowers were made by paper and possibly stuck together with the kids and on it, are hung the kid's handiwork : Clay in some Easter shapes. I spotted Shean Wenn's piece, which is a pink bunny!

We went home 2 hours later well-fed and happy!

Karmen's 2nd Birthday Party

Last Saturday was Shean Wenn's friend, Karmen's 2nd birthday and her parents : my friend Michelle & her husband Simon held a BBQ for her big day!

Everyone has a role to play in this party :

1. Meng, the BBQ Chef! Thanks to my hubs (the Australian BBQ Connoiseur), we get chicken wings just grilled to perfection, frankfurters that are crunchy on the outside but still maintained its moisture inside, and juicy pork steaks (he commented that the steaks were cut too thick, should've been thinner - all bow to his vast knowledge in BBQ! Hail the BBQ snob!)

2. SK the Engineer : DIY man-of-the-day, SK managed to fix up the trike we got for Kaka's birthday in record time! (Uhhh.. that's in between complaining of hunger and how the manual is mocking him :P) Thanks to him, the kids who roamed around the garden that sunny saturday got to ride on it safely, and gleefully!
3. Shean Wenn, the chic gardener : Hey, teddy needs to get somewhere, doesn't he?
4. Tsu Lin : Trying to set up the choc fondue but it failed miserably - oh wells... but at least a few of us got to use it before the choc got hardened and stuck on the machine.
Garden roamers : The kids absolutely loved all the garden toys and basking in the sun! (Tobey pushing birthday girl Kaka while SW stops to pose with her frankfurters!) This is the first time SW is actually POSING infront of the camera - I think she didn't do too badly, did she?
ML & I with the kids! After all their hardwork, it's time to sit and enjoy with a can of beer. The mummies Cake cutting ceremony : With the cake made by our friend Jessica who's pursuing a course in cake-making and will be happy to take orders soon!



------------ Me & my dear daughter who's testing out Karmen's new trike (A pressie from us).

Opening presents time : Shean Wenn is always eager to help! :)

Goody bag from Karmen : SW is more interested in what's in her goody bag than returning Kaka's kiss!! Oh, my little girl!
HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY little Karmen!

(All photos courtesy of Michelle Kong)

Housewarming at Karmen's

Shean Wenn's friend, Karmen moved into their new home last month and on last Saturday, they had a housewarming at their new place. Their development is a new-built and we were told that their postcode does not exist on googlemap and TomTom (sat nav) yet. So, we were given a set of instructions and also a postcode of a place opposite of the new development. We found their house without much trouble, and were told we are the first people who came over without having to call them asking for directions! We were also told we are the only guests that day - the rest couldn't make it (Good. All the food to ourselves).

Michelle (Karmen's mom) served us finger food with drinks - we asked for orange juice first. :)

(Hubs & me with our hostess, Michelle)


See that sunroof on the second picture? It cost them £800 to install the blinds on it! And it seems it was cheaper because they didnt' install it during summer. It really is so expensive to move into a new place. (We better save monies now before we move back..)

(Shean Wenn at the "kid's corner" - lots of toys!)

While the adults were eating and drinking merrily, and Karmen sleeping sopundly upstairs... Little Shean Wenn pottered around the house and made no fuss to us, helping herself to the toys and entertaining herself very well. Simon (Karmen's dad) commented that she is very independent because she doesn't "stick to us like glue" like some kids. Well, I believe the toys helped.

(Getting started - Simon started rummaging his "alcohol bar" for some serious drinks. They went for a beer first)

Karmen woke up midway and she and SW played for awhile.

SW : There, I share with you my toy "Zhu Zhu" (cantonese for piggy) if you would trade me yours!



Dinner is served! Everyone taking their place, including SW on the high chair. We opened a bottle of Spanish red for this. It was just right for me, not too dry.


After dinner, the kids made their way upstairs for a tour of Karmen's home.
SW getting comfy in Karmen's igloo tent.


SW and Karmen identifying objects on the wall chart.


And then... they climbed up Karmen's bed and pretended to sleep! SW was really happy here. I guess she loves company - especially those with toys!