Any Brides whose HTB is 'Ang Mo'?

[cuclainne]

de_luxe, maplehue, the green pan is supposedly more environmentally friendly and it's more healthier since you don't get toxic fumes from heating PTFE (usually used for coating ordinary non-stick pans) above 260 degrees C.

emi, maplehue, well the topic had came up again sometime last week - basically they have reshuffled elias' responsibilities to accommodate for him spending more time on this project and possibly going to paris but it's still not confirmed yet even though they had asked how long he's comfortable with staying there. the guy who'll be ok-ing the trip will be coming to singapore in a few weeks' time so the earliest we would know anything about it would be sometime in june/july. even though i am apprehensive about the move, there's just no way that we would even entertain the idea of staying apart so i would just have to suck it up and go with it.

maplehue, the kids have been out of school for almost 3 weeks now. last week, there were still cases of HFMD in the centre and with the stepped-up precautionary measures at the hospital, we just thought it best for the kids to remain with my parents during the day even though sofi was a bit sad at not meeting her friends or going to school.

well, the current lease ends in november and if we leave for paris, then there's no point in us looking for a place cos we'll be away for 2 years. elias had expressed his intention on just renting for the moment and then buying a property in sweden instead - we've got enough to put down for a downpayment. i've been looking at some properties, but nothing is confirmed as yet.

the AWARE saga - elias told me to join and vote at the EOGM .. hahahah ..

 

[cubitus81]

Hi there,

I am new to this thread. Cuclainne, I read that you might be leaving for Paris? I will move to Paris g in the end of August. Let me know if you are relocating, we can keep in touch : )

 

[cuclainne]

hi natalia, yes i might be moving there if the husband has to go there for work .. what about yourself, are you moving to paris for personal or work reasons? yes, it would be nice to know someone there

 

[cubitus81]

Hi cuclainne, I'm moving there because my husband is posted in Paris.

 

[cuclainne]

natalia, i see .. are you looking forward to the move? as you can read from my previous posts, that's not the case for me .. hahahaha .. but if it comes down to it, i have to look at things positively for the family's sake

definitely not looking forward to all the strikes that the country's known for but at least we'll be closer to the husband's family and who knows, we might be able to do some visiting to the lovely ladies living in Europe and also to the family retreat in Coullioure.

 

[de_luxe]

pris gd suggestion, but I think J is currently to young for baby sitters (think your pastor’s kids are older?) as he’s still on total breast feeding and still needs me around to put him to bed and soothe him if he wakes up. Also as I live in a really ulu corner of sg, not many pple want to come visit, much less baby sit! Now gg out with him is troublesome and tiring not cuz he’s hyperactive(he can’t even crawl yet!) but simply cuz he has so much barang to bring along and he gets hungry every 2-3 hrs, plus nappy change… always a scramble to find a nursing room or somewhere quiet. He is so kay poh that when out he often doesn’t feed well and nap so by the time we’re on the way home he usually gets very cranky. I’ve not been able to persuade him to sit in the stroller for long – yesterday was the first time he spent 30 mins in it without crying. So most of the time, if not all, I have to carry him in a carrier – extra tiring for me!

chrisl sorry can’t recommend anyone. I just called the Singapore National Eye Centre’s hotline and had one of their docs assigned to me. I think the prices have dropped dramatically in recent yrs, prob ard $1500 per eye these days?? It was still quite expensive when I did mine but since my dad sponsored I didn’t feel the pinch… haha… well he was bugging me to get it done when I started working and I said no money, so he said he’ll pay… if someone offers a gift, don’t reject right??

mrs n I tot D sleeps in his own room now? How come he’s scratching your face?

IMHO I think it shld be the time u left to go overseas… I dun think visits home count since they are just short trips, but not very sure lah…

EJ oh dear… aren’t there any sg grps in brissy? The gals in melb do seem to be hamming it up quite a bit, I’ve seen the pixs… and jacq’s due pretty soon too.. mayb u can pop by for a visit some times on a budget fare? At least brissy doesn’t have 4 seasons in a day… cheer up!

maple I shld be back to normal, just being extra careful not to fall sick again. So tired of being on medication, but have to finish the last 3 doses of my medicine… I’ve calculated and guess wat? I’ve only had 4 medication free weeks in the past 4 months. Horrifying isn’t it?

After having been housebound for the past 2 – 3 wks (grocery shopping doesn’t count right?), I’ve finally ventured out to Dempsey yesterday afternoon w hb and J… was a nice trip, just for a short walk and coffee…

I think it takes time for our immune system to build up again… my sis told me that taking manuka honey daily will help and is a more natural way than vits and supplements. Be careful wat kind of vits u take, cuz certain pills when taken tog with others cancel out each other’s effectiveness.

I’ve picked up more german words recently since hb speaks to J in german, unlike prev I hardly heard him it. Been dropping hints re mother’s day but dunno if hb gets them… not sure if there’ll be any celebration… he can be so kayu sometimes… wonder if I shld be more direct??!?!

I think real estate prices will drop further still if the economy continues to stagnant. But if you dun want to wait, it’s ok to buy now too… foreigners have certain restrictions, not all properties are available to them.

Natalia hi n welcome.. I assume u r engaged / married to a French? Do share more abt urself

 

[cubitus81]

cuclainne,I'm a bit anxious about it, considering that I have to find another job there plus the fact that I have to speak a language that I don't really master. The good thing for me is that I can travel around Europe pretty easily .

de_luxe, yes you are right. I'm 'half-married' to a French (we are going to do the holy matrimony in August). I'm Indonesian myself, and I have been staying in Singapore for the past 9 years. Are you currently in Singapore?

 

[cuclainne]

chrisl, i've been practising with singing .. hahahaha .. elias downloads some podcasts in swedish and he listens to them in the car so i've had to listen to them too - just that i'm paying more attention now.

it's getting there.

is it first mother's day for Mrs N too? i get cards from the kids for mother's day and valentine's too - the centre is fabulous for that. elias is like that too, de_luxe, quite kayu - i've resigned myself to accepting that fact! hahahah ..

natalia, congrats! how's your wedding plans coming along? is your FH also in Sg at the moment with you?

 

[cubitus81]

Hi cuclainne, planning is going ok. It will be a small wedding so it is easier to plan. FH has already been transferred to Paris, so we plan things via skype : )

 

[maplehue]

cuclainne..thanks for the info re green pan. now I know! I wonder whether they'll be as good as the tefals. I heart Tefal! Hmm. Have you bought any?

woah...paris is definitely possible yeah? so exciting and abit scary too right? that is normal la girl. i think at the end of the day, after the pro and cons, you guys will decide based on your gut feeling. sometimes the prospect may look so good, but if your heart and gut don't feel right...you will know it!

AND if its a yes to paris, at least now you have Natalie there...provided that you guys stay close to one another la.

Welcome Natalie, how is the wedding prep? It is so cute to know that you and future hubby are discussing wedding prep on skype.

Has your FH been to Singapore? I agree with deluxe, do share more about yourself

So cuclainne, the HFMD is still going around? I thought there is no more of such here in Sg..no? Your mom must love having the girls around! Afterall grandmas love to spoil their grandkids..just like my Mom. The other day when I was at my sis, one of the girls asked my sis for something and when my sis said no, she said, "OK.I will ask my grandma".

We went to see a few condos around Marine Parade/Katong area. They are the smaller and lower rise ones and they are actually quite nice. One of them has a 99 year lease and we are not really interested. We rather buy the freehold. So will see some when the agent has something else to show.

So you and Elias are thinking of buying a property in Sweden? Does this mean you guys will retire there? Someone I know who is married to a Canadian who is in Canada now just completed their house in Vancouver Island. They bought a land and built the house bit by bit. It is a massive and beautiful house, but a little isolated. It is cheaper in total compared to any condo I've looked at here!

Hi deluxe wow...you sure had a lot of medication lately. I am the same...I don't feel confortable taking medicine all the time. I feel like my blood is not clean or something. So far, since we've moved to this condo, my health has been better. I am also swimming and exercising daily. Something both jeff and me didnt get to do when we were in hk. Haven't had any migraine attack lately either(touch wood) and haven't been taking my ponstan or synflex either.
I don't like honey at all. My Mom bought me some, but i just couldnt do it. Are you taking honey regularly? Does it work?

Ahh Dempsey road..I miss that place and we used to go there for drinks and infact had an engagement celebration with friends at one of the winebar. ALSO love to see the nice furniture there. I heard that they will have to move soon. AND Sammy curry? Spicy and scrummy. Been trying to have dinner there, but the hubby is not keen at all cos first he doesnt like spicy food and second, it is fish! Ha. Jeff loves the ocean so much, he sometimes call ocean creatures his 'brothers'. A bit extreme right!

I can't help with the supplements la. Im not getting enough sun cos of my sun allergy and has to supplement that with something. And jeff won't let me skip my vit c cos of my cold. Haizz.

As for Mother's Day..cuclainne, you are right it is mrs n first time too with deluxe. Deluxe..men can all be kayu sometimes and i think you should just be direct la. Now Bertil needs to buy you one pressie, later when baby J is bigger he needs to buy two.,one from him and one on behalf of J.

As for purchasing a condo. Because the hubby is a foreigner and he is not working in Sg, the bank will be a bit more strict. Only DBS gives out 90% loan(but there is no way we will get this) and other banks 80%. This means the buyers must fork out 20% of the purchase price. I already own an hdb so we are definitely looking at a private property this time like a condo. I wanted Cote d'azur cos I loveeee Parkway Parade. Its just next to it. It has been my fav. shopping and eating place since I was young, but when my agent told me that cote d'azur is only 99 yrs..with the price and leasehold i lost interest.

 

[cuclainne]

Natalia, i planned my wedding in that manner too - at the time, husband was still working in sweden so we planned things online .. he was trained in the paris office for about a month before he came to work in singapore so he kind of knows the team that he'll be working with, should we move over. which part of paris will you be staying at?

maplehue, i've been banned from buying any new kitchen items until we get a bigger kitchen - i think if we move back to sweden, our kitchen is going to be better equipped than any other swedish kitchens .. hahahah .. if it's one thing that i have to pick, it's the rice cooker - not common in sweden.

elias has some ideas on tackling this paris issue without us having to move there but then again, it'll be up to the office's discretion - if we have to go, we'll have to go.

one of the teachers called me yesterday and informed me that the last three cases of HFMD in the centre happened last week but i'm still not convinced to send the kids in just yet. plus with the stepped-up thermal screening at the hospital, just a hassle to bring them to school every morning.

my mom is complaining that sofi is becoming quite a handful - my nephew gets extra naughty since he got kaki in sofi so they've been up to doing naughty things together like jumping from sofa to sofa, etc. my mom said yesterday sofi tried to do a somersault from the sofa - my mom is worried she will break her neck from that stunt! thing is, she never does this sort of thing at home so that's why elias prefers to have the kids at home with us cos he thinks sofi learns to be naughty from my nephew!

freehold is more expensive than 99 years - elias prefers freehold too but the cost is just turning us off.

hahahaha - retire to Sweden? that i'm not sure of - all we know is that we will be moving back, though we're not sure when exactly and for how long, cos elias does want the girls to experience life in Sweden, just as they have experienced living in Singapore. he said it's his chance to share his background/culture with the girls .. my MIL told us to not come back until it's time for the girls to go to Uni (hahaha!) but I'm sure she'll be pretty pleased if we returned sooner than that! she's already looking forward to spending a summer with the girls when she retires in about 4 years' time - she made us promise that we'll send them up for the holiday.

i would prefer to live downtown (cos frankly speaking, it's like dead quiet if you live in the suburbs plus no malls!!) but apartments there are super duper expensive and that's not taking into account the monthly maintenance fee. basically downtown is divided by three areas: ostermalm, norrmalm is the posher area; kungsholmen is the in-between and sodermalm is bohemian, cozy, family-friendly (apartments are bigger and more friendly to the wallet here). elias' previous apartment was in norrmalm in the vasastan area. i liked it here, was sad when we had to let sell the apartment. but since then, i've had the opportunity to stay in the different areas (stayed in Kristineberg area on Kungsholmen in '07 and Asogatan on Sodermalm in '08) - each area really has a different feel, vibe to them. elias reckons this will help me decide where we would stay when we move back - hahaha. he, on the other hand, would prefer to live in the suburbs like his dad, get a landed property especially with the kids, so i've been looking at a bit of both online ..

 

[eminozy]

helloooo.

Chris thinks i whinged too much. I am beginning to think so too. SO i think I will try and start to focus on my creativity and work. Hopefully that would help. The thing I find odd is the fact that I do not mind isolation when i am in a non-english speaking country at all, coz of the language barrier. But when you are in an English speaking country and still feel isolated, something is definitely wrong?

Anyhoo... I was looking at greenpan and I wonder if the price is reasonable? I am also a TEFAL lover. heheheha. it seems all of us here HEART TEFAL! so funny. Chris does too, he said he is happy that when he fry his roti prata, it does not smoked or cooked lopsided. Funny husband!

Corrine, yeah Jacq is popping soon. She is very excited and a few are starting to think about having a no.3 in the family. Claire fell down the stairs and have been bedridden for a month, she broke her arm, bones jutted out and now in physio for recovery.

Hernie, is cote d'azur the one at the corner about 4 storeys high cluster housing with lift on each level into your apartment? Its very pretty with woody element and tropical flora around. I remember looking at them aboout 4 years ago and it's about $1.5 mil to begin with. LOL

Oh and the cure for lack of Sun is Vitamin D, i think.

I am glad that both you and Jeff are doing better now, and seeing that you are going to stay put here longer... so will that mean that you will be around until end June?

So many flu going around, my 2 nephews bedridden too in SG. what can you do....

Hi to Natalia and yes , please do tell about yourself.

Talk later ladies....

 

[cubitus81]

maplehue, yes FH has stayed in Singapore for almost 4 years before he went to Paris early this year.

cuclainne, I'm not too sure where we are going to stay. Currently FH is staying in 9e arrondissement (probably not too far from bvd Haussman). We might target an apartment in the same area.

emilia jo and maplehue A bit of intro: I'm Indonesian and I have been staying in Singapore for the last 9 years. I'm currently working as a quantitative developer

. How about you ladies?

 

[eminozy]

aaahh... nice one natalia.

i have no idea what is a quantitative developer but sounds good to me. I learnt about actuaries 2 years ago too and was stunt. Must be one of those really good jobs!

hehehe.
I am currently an arts management student in Brisbane and working as a Student business support officer at QUT, a university here. making sure international kids stay legal in OZ. ehehehe

Married to a polish german who embodies an asian man. very scary. married fr 2 years already. time flies...hehe.

How u met your FH?

 

[cubitus81]

Hi emilia jo, I know how you felt, I took similar course like the actuarial science, and I told myself that I paid the course fee to suffer hahaha. Are there a lot of Asian students in Brisbane?

I met my FH via the internet

 

[georginat]

welcome, natalia? I am georgina, married to a spanio..;-p have a little chi-nio, his name is Luke and he is going to be 1 year old in 2 weeks time

Nisa, now i know whats called a 'green pan'...

wah ! so many Tefal lover here, Julio has companies..he only like Tefal too...

de_luxe, ya, i have seen some mommies carry HUGE nappy(diaper) bags ! My nappy bag for usual use is small, in fact its my normal carry bag..i have this so-called 'nappy wallet' which let you put diapers, wipes ,nappy cream and change mat in a bag and i just dump it into my carry bag and when i need to use it, i just take it out. The milk bottle etc i put it in a small tote bag and put it my bag, when i need it, also just take it out. No fuss at all.Ya, BF babies tend to poo more often than FM fed babies.

maplehue, that would be nice !Julio will be in Riyadh early june, as for me and baby, we will go there much later after he has settled there ..i bet you are feeling much much better now continue to rest and relax ;-P

 

[cuclainne]

maplehue, imagine paying 12 million SEK (2.2 million SGD)for this apartment and that's not counting the 5868SEK (1092SGD) monthly fee.

natalia, i met my husband online too

the paris office is located in rue Bellini and the last time he was there, they put him up in a hotel nearby. don't know if there are any apartments near there though.

georgina, my mom loves tefal but unfortunately i don't have a single one yet .. elias reckons i already have way too many pots and pans and kitchen appliances .. i mean, come on, you might never know when you will need an ice-cream maker or even a waffle pan ..

better to be prepared!

 

[georginat]

nisa, lol, u r right !! never enough for kitchen appliances!! way toooo many kitchen gadgets...and the designs are getting nicer and nicer...there are soooo many kitchen items i would like to buy and bring back to sg, but its impossible, too ex to air them back to sg !!

wow, beautiful apartment !! but frankly speaking, if u wanna get such an apartment in sg, i bet it will cost you more than S$3M ! i likkke the bathroom !!

natalia, i met my hubby online too...hi 5 !! hee hee

 

[liz4jeroen]

Hi hi popping by again.

Nathalia welcome, I also met my hub online. God is our matchmaker. : )

Maple, r u moving back to SG?

Cul, are u moving? The apartment is super huge! WOW!

Hi hi to the rest! Got to go again! I have placement today, extra in fact.

Take care!

 

[cuclainne]

gina, yeah have to admit that the apartment is super luxe but i don't have the 12 million SEK for it. i saw another apartment which is in the downtown area and it's like 8 million SEK for an 8-room apartment. i was gobsmacked but elias says that the price is actually cheap since it's about 1 million SEK per room. Yikes!

Elizabeth, me not moving anywhere yet - just being nosey and poking around the property pages ..

 

[mrs_n]

Hi peeps! So many posts in the last few days.

Natalia

Not long before you make your big move to europe. I'll be just across the channel from you then.

cuclainne we have already celebrated 'Mother's Day'!

In the UK it's called Mothering Sunday and it's celebrated in March. We didn't do anything special. In fact I did all the cooking that day as we invited my PILs for lunch and my BIL's family joined us for tea. So much for having a break that day!!! The problem with it celebrated on a different day in the UK makes me lose track of when it's celebrated in Sg. I meant to send something to my mum but didn't realise it was this Sunday!

Is it also Gina's first no?

Living in the suburbs could be nicer and you can always drive to the malls. Can you drive now? You were learning weren't you?

maple you having a good rest in Sg?

deluxe yes he's sleeping in his own room. But we're going thru' the teething stage (again) where he's fussy and cranky at night and with P doing very early mornings the easiest thing to do is to put him to bed with us if we want any sleep. The last time it happened he was ok for a few weeks before the next lot of teeth came thru. So hopefully he settle down soon once this phase has passed.

Gina your carry bag sounds like a 'Mary Poppins Bag' can hold so many things. My diaper bag is a haversack. I also dump everything into it and carry it around like a turtle!

So fast Luke is going to be a year old. D will be 9 mths tomorrow!

Emi you're still relatively new in Brissy so it will take time to find a bunch of kakis to hang around with. Don't worry your 'isolation' won't last forever!

 

[mrs_n]

Hey Liz long time no see!

 

[cuclainne]

Mrs N, understood - i have to remember that Mother's Day in Sweden is at the end of the month, cos we intend on sending something to Elias' mom. why can't it all fall on the same day?

elias' father lives about 20 minutes south of the city centre so that's not too bad but another of his friend lives like 40 mins (on a good day) north - during the typical peak-hour, the journey would take about 2 hours or so. that's why he's always hanging around his office (used to be walking distance from elias' apartment) and leave around 10-11pm. i don't want that! hahahah ..

actually it all comes down to the city planning - cos it's a 5-lane expressway that becomes three-laned as you get closer to the city centre and then if you need to go through the city centre to get to the suburbs on the other side, it's only a single-lane road which everyone seems to take!

hahaha - yeah i just sat for my BTT again cos the last time i took it was about 10 years ago and so much has changed since then. i haven't sat for my practical lessons yet - elias has been hassling me to go for it quick. i think he cannot stand being the family driver anymore - hahahaha.

yah, a driver's licence would be useful .. but i'm too scared to drive!

 

[cuclainne]

Mrs N mall parking is expensive!! 2-hour parking costs about S$80. we are no longer complaining about how much it costs in Sg

 

[cuclainne]

yoo hoo - where is everybody?

 

[georginat]

nisa, in sydney, a friend told me 3 hours parking in a mall costs about A$25, i find that it's so ex ! Sweden even more ex !Gosh ! Better to take public transport to the city, thats what we did when in Madrid, parking in Madrid city is ex and very difficult to find parking lot too..

once a while should look at property ads to update and know hows the prices like..property prcies in oz very high and not worth buying in my opinion..

Sign up with a driving centre will let you get a driving licence faster than getting a private instructor, thats what i was told but my late uncle was a driving instructor, so was taught by him and got my licence on the 1st try..gees..that was 19 years ago !!But i am so lazy to drive now, i hardly drive in oz, somehow i prefer to be the passenger now

Mrs.N, sometimes i am so lazy i didnt even bring the 'nappy wallet' along, just the milk bottle and flask . luckily Luke hasn't really poo when out, pee still ok, he doesnt cry when he wets his diaper so can change when back home..

yes, Luke will be 1 year old on May 20 but only me celebrating with him coz Julio going to Perth on Monday for 2 weeks, back on May 23..so will have a small celebration tomorrow for Luke..thinking for letting him try a small bit of cake..

 

[cuclainne]

Gina, just realised that when we went back with just Sofi, we took public transport to go everywhere and at that time, we rented elias' mom's friend's apartment quite a distance away from city. last year, we rented a car for the entire two weeks cos elias said it's such a hassle to bring the kids on the subway - and we stayed like one train station away from downtown (on one occasion, elias dropped us off in town and then went off to do some work with his friends - we managed to take a nice, slow walk back to the apartment!) we've definitely have gotten more lazy and using the kids as an excuse! hahahaha ..

yah, now i kapo-kapo checking out the property in sweden .. there are some really nice ones, downtown, fits our criteria and most importantly our budget

also checking out places to rent here .. i would love to rent somewhere close to my office so i can just walk over with the kids but those are still pretty ex, even for a 2-room apt. Now looking at government landed properties in changi, those cost about $2K per month but i'm damn scared - they say changi is haunted mah and then with elias going for overseas trip, etc .. i don't want to stay alone!

i used to be quite onz by bringing nappy wallet, etc out but now i usually just bring diapers, wet wipes, milk bottle and flask. if just going nearby, i won't even bring anything if i think it's going to take 2 hours or less. so so lazy now! i figured that in an emergency, we can always buy the stuff we need - hahahah - but we have a small pack of diapers and wet wipes in the car as back-up.

kids love cake!!! luke will love it!

 

[eminozy]

heheh. Talk about parking. Australia has an interesting system. Park in private carpark houses anywhere in the city is expensive BUT find a street park run by the council, It will be dirt cheap if you know your 'corners'. And weekends if you are lucky, like today which I managed to convinced Chris to drive to the city rather than take the ferry we paid about $13 for 3 hrs and got an hour free because we spent over $30 at the supermarket. If we would have gone to the city before 10am and left at 3-8pmish, we would get the early bird special that would be $6. And then there's the free parking in all surburban huge shopping malls. So, there you go. Oh there are parking on Southbank across the river from the city- like a chic area and it cost about $30 minimun for 2 hours and it can go higher! So silly.

Anyhooooo.... I love the link to your apartment in Sweden, Nissa. It looks like one of my dream EURO ones! LOL I showed Chris and he said, for that price, it is quite good for EUROPE BUT of course we can never afford such. LOL. We've been looking at many apartments around OZ and also Singapore and we find it weird that Oz is so ex now. When i first came here near to 10 years ago, you can buy a house about 10km fr the city for about $150k. Now 150k doesnt even allow you to get a 1bdrm apartment in the city. The market is dropping currently but too slow, on the other hand, SG is going through a wonderful rapid price drop... So we might try and invest there instead! Coz we know the market is super yoyo and hopefully in 4 years after the recession, the prices will go up again and we can make profit!

What a lazy Saturday it has been for us. Happy Mommy day to all mummy!

 

[cuclainne]

emi, that's how it is in stockholm too .. cheaper if you park on the streets but very difficult to find parking!! each time we've always had to park like several blocks away. in stockholm at least, you have to check the sign to find out if you can park there or not for the day cos on one street, you can't park there on a thursday between a certain time for example so you have to find another street where you can, etc. elias says this is to enable them to clean the streets in turns .. hmm ..

yah, the apartment is nice and elias was telling me that in sweden at least, the downpayment for an apartment is about 5% (unlike 20% in Sg). anyway since i was noseying around the classifieds, found another apartment facing the harbour at half the price. it's quite a walk from downtown but quite scenic so i wouldn't mind.

i love scandinavian apartments - don't know why but they always look so bright and clean/ functional to me .. hahahah ..

 

[maplehue]

Hi gals,
this will be short. just wanted to say Happy Mother's Day to everyone especially Cuclainne, Mrs.N, Georgina and Deluxe!. Did I miss anyone? All your babies are beautiful and I know you gals are awesome mummies!!

I've been down with a migraine lah..it usually takes a few days if not a week for it to go. Hopefully tomorrow is not a bad one cos taking my mom out for dinner.

Will come back when feeling better. Enjoy your day mummies!!.

 

[cuclainne]

Thanks maplehue! Hope you'll feel better in time for the mother's day dinner tomorrow

 

[christie79]

hi ladies,

dropping by before starting on the refurbishing of hse again!

too many posts to track..sorry if i missed anyone out

Maple~ take care of heath! Try to take herbal tea if you can instead of pills..oh! my cousin just bought her condo at the seaview, it's freehold and opp parkway..i've not been there to see the actual unit so dunno if it's small or not but seems like quite nice thru pictures..hb and i were racki-racking a little, we like those in east coast, kambagan, telok kurau and changi. But will wait till prices drop 1st and see..and also what cuclaianne said abt some haunted changi places..im not too sure now..hehe

cuclainne~ Im also very afraid to drive hahah im just feel so intimidated by the big trucks and lorries..even here whenever hb drives and the big trucks comes along driving past, i'll go 'OH!!! so near!' you see the roads here are super narrow compared to the ones in sg, but still, i think i don't really have the guts to drive in sg either cos of the super many many traffic and ppl who don't give way

oh yeah keep it up with the singing&learning swedish

hehe you can do it gal!

Natalia~Welcome! Hope all plannings go well despite the distance with your FH! I planned mine in such circumstances too

Deluxe~Thanks for the lasik info

Will be weighing the pros and cons of doing it..and will have to save up 1st hehe

mrs N~ Im not too sure about that perhaps ou could email and ask? But im sure that you should be in sg at least 30 days in last 3 years to qualify for overseas voting

think the next election is next year..

OK gotta go!

Happy mother's day everyone!

 

[cuclainne]

chrisl, that's so like me too - i think it frustrates elias esp. when i say things like "oi, oi, that was soooo close!" .. hahahah .. i don't know if i ever will have the guts to drive, even in sweden cos for one thing, i'm quite confused over their road layouts, they drive on the other side of the road, etc ..

doing not too bad - i am trying, you can see from my occasional status updates on facebook .. hahahah ..

 

[cuclainne]

hey hey everyone .. been really busy arh?

emi, btw i still have your bliw .. not sure when you'll be back to sg??

 

[georginat]

thanks, maplehue ! u take care , hope yr migraine will be over very soon

nisa, we went to KFC on sunday !! haha!! yes, KFC ! first time there , wanted to try it at least once before back to sg..let Luke tried the mashed potato without the gravy, he loved it ! haha! horrible mom me

those chalets at changi are haunted for many years already ! haha !! always heard stories about it when young, but dont know true or not?

 

[cuclainne]

gina, i think kids love mashed potatoes in general - sofi and elin loves the kfc mashed potatoes too sofi had whipped cream when she was about 5 months old .. hahahah .. my MIL asked if she could give to Sofi and before i can say yes or no, she already fed Sofi .. hahahah ..

Sofi loves chicken .. if you ask her what she wants to eat, it's always rice, chicken and soup .. she loves fried chicken, steamed chicken, chicken nuggets .. Elin is more fussy. What's Luke's favourite foods? Is Julio speaking Spanish to Luke?

so scary! i don't dare stay in changi leh .. my aunt used to stay in changi (she was staying in those 2-storey government bungalows) .. i stayed overnight exactly once and never again cos i saw something la .. in her room somemore .. brrr .. and us cousins actually pitched a tent in the garden and wanted to sleep there - don't know what else we might see if we had done so.

 

[de_luxe]

Hello ladies, been busy with lots of house and baby stuff. Tot I pop by for a while and catch up here. Happy belated Mother’s Day to all the mummies here!

Natalia yes I’m living in sg at the moment, married to a German (will be 3 yrs in Jul) and have a 4month old little boy. I studied in France for 3 yrs from 1997 to 2001, of which 6 months were spent in Paris on an attachment. Can’t say that I like Paris – IMHO it’s nice for a short visit but not for living. I very much prefer the smaller towns and villages outside Paris. But it’s also a personality thing as I’m generally not a big-city person. I have Asian friends who loved living in Paris and hated the small town where our school was based. It’s not impossible to get by with imperfect French, tho getting a job would be a little more challenging. I dun speak French well and survived working 3 internships and numerous practical work experiences in France. At times, just need to be a little thick-skinned.

The 9e arrondissement is a nice place, but can be v ex. With a proper job and all, it wouldn’t be that tough to find a place. I had a hard time as I was a student and Chinese plus only renting for 6 months (they usually want min 1 yr) and ended up w a really expensive tiny studio near Place d’Opera that was mice infested! I freaked out when I found the mice and managed to wriggle my way out of the tenancy agreement after a month and moved to a cheaper, better place in the 13e arrondissement.

cuclainne I saw green pan at Taka on Sunday… so so so expensive!! More than S$200 for a med sized frying pan! Think I stick to Tefal, thank you very much!!

I’ve heard abt Changi… we once walked ard the area and came across a rather spooky place that’s all fenced up and says “no trepassinng, govt land”, seems to be some disused army place but the way it looks really sent shivers up my spine!

Can’t you rent somewhere ard Farrer Park / Potong Pasir? Still quite close to your work right?

maple I’m ok w honey. Used to drink a cup of honey water every morning but I stopped a while ago as I wanted to cut my sugar intake since I typically have a very sweet tooth. My sis just bought me a bottle of Manuka honey but I’ve not opened it yet. Apparently not all honey works for boosting the immune system, only Manuka honey does that. My sis also swears by Pokka Carrot Juice for curing and preventing colds… she drinks gallons of it when she feels like she’s coming down with one and says it works.

Not all the old furniture tenants at Dempsey are moving, those who can afford the increased rent will stay on. While it’s nice to have more makan variety there, it’s now a little too chi chi for me… kinda miss the old rustic feel that it used to have. SG is just so great at developing “hubs” but plain lousy at preserving the unique, authentic, original atmosphere / ambience!!

emi I understand how you feel, that’s how I felt when I was in Melb. The isolation and lack of meaningful / intellectual interaction was driving me nuts in the early days… my feel is that Aussies are friendly but dun let you come close to them easily. Much easier to get to know Singaporeans more intimately, I feel. I guess guys in general tend to have a “get on with it” attitude to facing challenges like this whereas women tend to brood more as women are more social beings than men… we need our support network. Well, in any case, if you need to vent or whinge, u’re welcomed to do so here

I saw Claire’s comment abt her injury on FB, but din realize how bad her injury was… wow, must have really hurt! Did she fall at home?

gina I still have not figured out how to go out with a small bag. At first only used my normal large shoulder bag but found it too troublesome and ended up buying a nice diaper bag. It’s now my staple going out bag. No matter what, I must have diapers, wipes, extra clothes, plenty of hankies, nursing shawl and a bottle of water (for me), plus my own stuff, wallet, tissues, lip balm... u get the drift… n can imagine wat a large bag I have!!

I was drooling over the Kenwood titanium mixers, but really can’t afford it, plus no space. If you are going to bring any kitchen appliances back from oz, the best buys are anything to do with western cooking e.g. grilling, roasting. I was looking for a roasting pan at Taka and they are all ard S$200+ (small ones!).. so heart pain, in the end din buy… really regret not getting one when I was in melb. Could have gotta a fairly decent one for A$50!!

 

[cubitus81]

hi de_luxe, thanks for sharing. I hope I'll adjust quickly to living in Paris and if I can find a job sooner that would be a plus

.

By the way, do any of you ladies know the process of changing surname? Thanks.

 

[de_luxe]

natalia if u want to make a complete change to the way your name is written in order to add married name, then you need to do a deed poll.
e.g. maiden name: tan mei mei natalia to change to tan-smith mei mei natalia or natalia smith-tan mei mei

I find that troublesome as you need to have lawyers and then notify the whole wide world of new name.

But if it's just to add your married name to IC and passport, all u need is to go to ICA with your marriage cert to add an additional line to your original maiden name
e.g mdm tan mei mei natalia
mrs natalia smith

you'll need to pay a fee to get new IC ($50) and passport (i think it's $70 - 80)..

 

[eminozy]

hi hi..

Nissa- I am no.1 chicken and rice fan too!

I will be in Sg for a bit in june. maybe we can meet up.. I really hope we can... We were to stressed the other time with so many activities and obligations.. Its horrid! Then i can pick up my bliw!

Greenpan so ex?? aiyahhh...

Corrine, so....what you are saying is that when you add the new name, you will get a new IC and Passport? How long does take normally take, before you to get them back? I hope a few days? Coz I wont be around that long to wait.

heheheh.yeah I am isolated. I have a few Aussie friends here but I find it hard to connect with them deeper. I think I faired better in Adelaide and Melbourne with them crowd. I dont know, maybe its age.. maybe its environment? Maybe I need more time and cant expect people to suddenly be your kaki? heheh. Its all about interest. Most people here are unfortunately not interesting enough. They are mostly country folks ( very KAMPUNG attitude) living in the city who thinks BRISBANE IS THE BEST!!! or people who just want to get drunk and have no intellectual needs. So, I m stuck!
Oh well, I (we) am giving my(our)self another year, if nothing interesting pops up. WE are gone. Never coming back. Chris dont even want us to get pregnant here, dont want Brisbane to be stated in the Birth Certificate. LOL.

I know it sounds totally wrong but hey...we cant help it!

Claire fell down the stairs at work, shes in physio now and just started doing part time work now, after resting for a month? Oh by the way. Celine is pregnant, due in November! iTS exciting times for the SGbrides in Melb!

 

[watcatwants]

Thanks Chrisl & Emilia Jo. Sorry for the late reply. Life has been crazy lately.

I agree with you Emilia Jo, Brisbane is not a very nice place to live. I don't like it too. We're planning to live in Singapore for now.

Whereabout do you live? I guess I'm still not used to the travelling distance it takes to get to places. I'm such a singapore girl

I just came back from Brisbane on Monday. Was there scouting for wedding venues. It was my first time up in the Sunshine Coast Hinterlands, its sooooo beautiful! I fell in love with the place right away.

We confirmed our ceremony & reception in one of the boutique vineyards there.

I am looking forward to my wedding now

 

[cuclainne]

de_luxe, so expensive?! oh gosh .. guess i'm sticking to my ikea pots and pans for now .. hahahah ..

oh the reason why we were considering changi is because rent is cheaper than say a place close to my workplace since it is technically closer to town too. elias desperately wants to rent a landed property and if the price is right, he doesn't mind the commute since we are driving the car everytime anyways ..

was looking to rent the government units as it's quite reasonable - unfurnished though, of course. would love to rent the apartment at monk's hill (very near to newton hawker centre) but no way we can get out of the current lease before it ends .. hmm .. elias likes the homes in seletar and changi ..

emi, yes yes we should try to meet when you come back in june

Cat, Natalia, welcome back ..

Cat, so you will be having weddings in both countries or just in Oz? yay, one thing's done on your list

 

[de_luxe]

emi when u add new name, u have to get a new IC. Passport is optional as that’s considered as renewing ur passport. For me, I din bother to get new passport cuz my current one will expire 2010 so I was just going to wait till then to renew and add married name to it. Partly also cuz I dun like the new biometric passport as the passport no is no longer ur IC no but a brand new no altogether… so leh chay.. that’s why I wanted to keep current passport for as long as possible. I recently applied for Johann’s sg passport online and could get it in 3 working days. Guess that would be the same for u. As for the new IC, it will be issued on the spot, after some waiting. The ICA webby has full details. Would suggest that if u have all the documents on hand, just apply for both passport and IC online then collect when u r back. That way u can be sure that it’ll be ready on time.

Hmm.. actually I think that a lot of aussies think that oz is the best country in the world… that’s the general impression I got when I was there… lol..

Wow.. I really lost touch w the melb happenings now… u r in touch w them via FB or wat? Cuz the sg brides thread is dead now…

cat great to hear that your planning’s going smoothly, I can imagine how beautiful a vineyard wedding will be… is ur hb originally from brissy? Yeah, the travel distances are long… that was something I never quite got used to. Still remember a housing agent telling me that the apt to view is just round the corner when it was at least 20 mins walk away!! On a hot summer day some more, walk until sweat like a pig!!

cuclainne u mean u din know the price before?

Generally all landed properties are cheaper than condos.. a steal considering that u get a lot more space. In 2007, a fren rented a semi-d at upper bkt timah for abt 2k.. and I think someone else rented a terrace at yio chu kang for 1700… Why does Elias want a landed property in sg? Tot would be better to get one in Sweden instead, since more land??

I like those black and white houses, esp the ones in sembawang but I heard from someone that SLA has changed the rental system to a bidding one or something like that and he had to move cuz couldn’t retain his lease due to lower bid. He was so fed up, he moved all the way to JB!!

 

[maplehue]

hi gals,
we just got back from watching 'angels and demons'. nice one. the artworks,churches, italy in the movie made me wanna go back there.

cuclainne,you sure made me laugh with your ice cream maker and waffle pan.you lah! kekeke.you should cook and bake professionally and write a cookbook. the green pan is quite expensive yeah. thanks deluxe for checking the price. i think i'll just stick to my tefal pans for now.

that apt.in sweden is a beautiful one eh, but very very dear.are you guys thinking of buying something similar? jeff and i went to see more condos near east coast,upper east coast, telok kurau area and siglap.i like a couple of them.

definitely not buying around changi cos have also heard that the area is haunted!i used to be very brave, but recently got a little bit timid la.
ha. So are you guys going to move apartment if you guys are staying put in sg and when your lease expires? we are now renting at farrer park. its right next to farrer park mrt station. very convenient.its quite nice and very new but the only downside is the crowd that comes from little india on weekends.it can be very oeverwhelming and i hate being stared at.

emi, how are you and how is chris? cote d'azur is the big condo right next to parkway parade.99yrs and high rise buildings. have you thought of buying a property too in sg? when in june will u be in sg? yes we should all meet yeah? you, nisa, deluxe, gina, who else is going to be home? chrisl? i dont know whether we'll be in sg this june, but should be if we are still paranoid about flying and get quarantined after that. we decided to cancel/postpone our trip back to canada and italy for now.
yes yes..vitamin D is one of the supplements that i have to swallow every day, yuks!

liz, no la..not settling in sg. not yet. we are just taking longer leave and trying to recuperate...physically and emotionally.

georgina,our friends will get there in late july. just let me know and i'll hook you guys up yeah. so luke loves mashed potatoes from kfc? haha. scrum. i love it too and no...it doesnt make you a terrible mom la.

mrs n yes, im resting and sleeping in a lot since we came to sg. i am still detoxing. the nightmares related to work are lesser now but not totally gone. thank God. hk has definitely scarred me and i dont see myself going back there ever.

how are you and how is baby dominique. i tried looking for you on facebook, but couldn't find you. can you add me instead? my addy for my facebook is [email protected] who else is on facebook? im like a donkey when it comes to inviting/adding people. it never works!

chrisl, thanks. yes i take herbal tea often and definitely trying to stop taking medicines.so bad for the good cells! wow..Seaview is a nice condo! so near to parkway some more! i also like the east coast, siglap,teluk kurau area.

been looking at a few places with our agent. definitely have to come up with the 20% cash and this doesn't include stamp fees and lawyer fee!

deluxe, my mom gave me a jar of honey, but after mixing it with water, i cannot bring myself up to swallow it so i gave it back to her.she wasn't so pleased cos apparently it was an expensive jar of honey! heehee.i said 'sorrylah mummy!'

hey i found the new dempsey samy's curry near our place here(farrer park).now i dont know how to convince jeff to come with me cos he cannot stand the curry there.samys curry was the first place his collegues took him when he first got here and i guess not only it scarred his tongue, but also his overall impression of that place. ha

In btw, are you feeding baby J honey? and how was mother's day?

Cat and Nat, hello to you gals and hope to hear from you both more often

Nat, I assume you are a Singaporean? If yes, like what deluxe had said, just bring your wedding cert to ICA at Lavender and it wont take too long for them to add Mrs.XXXX on the back of your passport. As for your IC, you need to go to the Traffic Police at Ubi to get it changed. ALSO in one day. This was almost 3 yrs ago, i dont know whether things have changed.

cat hows your wedding prep? is future hubby actively planning with you?

deluxe and emi, i'll be collecting my new biometric passport tomorrow. yeah, the only leceh thing is the number. it wont be the same as our NRIC no anymore and our photo will be in black and white, but flying to canada and sometimes via the states often, i'd rather have the biometric passport now since i have time. had to pay $70. emi just do it la when you come back this time. if you are just adding chris' last name, you just need to wait there.

okay ladies, i hope i havent missed anyone. thanks for all your care. my migraine is now gone.hope it wont come back. had to suffer only 5 days this time. jeff was so sweet, kept rubbing tiger balm on my neck and one time, he rubbed his eyes accidentally after massaging me.

 

[cuclainne]

de_luxe, we did look at landed properties at serangoon gardens before we settled on our current place .. the thing is, elias is quite fussy about the standard of the place and sad to say, even though the rent is cheaper than condo, sometimes even the basic necessities are lacking.

there was one house we saw in serangoon gardens, the rooms were nice and big, we like the layout but there is only one toilet and even then it was sectioned like a dorm toilet. you walk into the toilet (there's no door here) and the first thing you see is the sink and two other doors, one is WC and the other is WC and shower in a confined space (have barely space to move). the washing machine is located outside the house, in the backyard and best of all, no kitchen cabinet!! so the gas cylinder is exposed - not safe for kids. it was 2.8K then and they said if we want them to do the kitchen and toilet, they would charge us accordingly. elias considered doing it ourselves so we could get it done to our taste - in exchange for cheaper rent but why should we give the owner the satisfaction of using the renovated works to increase the rent for the next person who comes in?

another place lagi best - chuan park .. they tried to push this idea of "open kitchen concept" to us - please la. basically their kitchen is in the open area at the back of the house - yes, no walls!! there's just a flimsy fence (the kind that can topple over if you put your weight on it) that separates outsiders from the inside of the house. plus got construction work going on in next plot - and lots of dead cockroaches on the floor!!! asking 4K - such a joke! even our agent told off the other agent, telling him not to waste our time cos she wouldn't even recommend it to her clients.

whether here or in sg, elias has been leaning towards renting or getting a landed property more so because of the kids .. he said he wants them to have the chance to run around freely - also because then he can banish them outside if they've been naughty, hahah.

maplehue, hey girl - you're so close to my workplace then.

our current lease ends in november and if we are still in sg, then we have the intention of looking for a new place to stay.

 

[christie79]

hi ladies!

good news..i'll be going back to SG!!! Yeah! actually to attend my bro's wedding on the 20th june. Initially i thought i won't be able to attend and was crying thru skype as school/work will be only over on the day before so it's not possible to travel there using a day! But then my nice MIL told me that she could stand in for me for 2 days as her schedule fits

Anyway she said it's not a big deal to work a couple hours for me so i could attend the wedding

Felt so blessed

So will be there for about 3 weeks

in between im thinking of HK yamcha already hehe..and yeah maybe a meet up with some of you in sg if time permits

Maple~we're actually thinking of going to view some apartments while in sg this time round with hb so as to get a feel of what's the procedure and price range on different types of properties etc..so hb and i can plan more on our savings structure and stuffs like that if we're investing on one in SG in near future..

Cuclainne~heheh just had chicken rice for dinner just now..not the best but made do with steamed chicken fillet instead of the normal juicy chicken thigh

will reply your mail soon

going for my shower..tata for now, take care girls!

 

[christie79]

oh yeah maple i've just sent some friends sugestions to you at FB, makes things easier cos some email are unsearchable..cheers

 

[eminozy]

wahhhhhhbianG!

So many people coming back in JUNE! Hmmm. seems like a good time to make a date then!I think its convenient mid June onwards for us. So exciting! Any suggestions?

Corrinne- yeah fbk lah. where else and sometimes SMS and MSN with the girls. I miss them terribly lah. Kept wanting to fly back to Melb but the airtix is ridiculouly expensive! I rather pay to go back Sg with such price! LOL Hopefully can visit them somewhere in September and Xmas!

Hi Cat, Thought you dissapeared. hehehe. Where in the hinterlands are you thinking of? near Glass Mountains? I still have not been there yet, passed it a couple of times though. In fact I am off to Noosa this Tuesday. Folks flying in and I thought it will be a nice retreat for them! haha.. Every week Chris will get more and more convinced we are not coming back here if we leave. For me, My spiteful/hatred days for Brissy is slowly calming down as I was at the tip a couple weeks ago but i cant agree more about leaving and not coming back

Already start to tikam2 where to go next! We are living in Toowong, by the river near Regatta Ferry stop. Its convenient and its the only thing we enjoy. Taking the ferry to work and back home. IF not for the river, I think i die long time ago! hehehehah

Aaahhh.. Since so much issues with the biometric thingy and numbers. I think i shall wait for the passport and just do my IC first then! Anyhoo, I renewed my passport like 2 years ago, so wait till it kapootlah

LOL

Hernie- yeah we have been in and out looking at properties but due to our nomadic and travelling priorities, we can only get cheapo places! LOL. and prolly more for investment/stopover at the end to chill when we are in SG. We looking at 3/4rms HDBs in Chai Chee, Farer Road, Kembangan, Clementi and Teban Gardens. We have looked around Oz as well, but i think prolly in a couple of years when we are sure where we will end up living as right now, we are floaties.

Later!

 

[watcatwants]

HI Emilia Jo. Our wedding will be in Flaxton - that's between Monteville & Mapleton. We saw a few places with a view to the Glass Mountains but I didn't like it as much. We drove passed Noosa but we didnt go into the town. I'm still very unfamiliar with the place. My hubby's family live near Minden which is a distance from civilisation (by my definition!).

I hope I'm not being rude here, but what happened that made you disklike Brissy so much? If you are comfortable discussing it, thats fine. I understand. For me, the city & some of the people didnt leave a good impression on me.

Maplehue, the wedding is coming along alright. My hubby's participation is in "no, I won't wear a baby blue tie! yes, rib eye steak on the menu please!"

Thank goodness for the wedding planner. She is a life saver. Otherwise, i would have 'peng san" to plan this wedding out of Singapore in time for October!

 

[cuclainne]

chrisl, so happy for you - i know it must feel awful if you can't attend your brother's wedding .. but now it's time for celebrating!

yes yes if you have the time, must meet up!

saw your email - will reply soon