Helen Plus Three

... soccer simpleton speaks...   Now I've heard everything... first it was about the roundest ball ever (when World Cup began) .. Which means the goalkeepers are having problems with a slipperier ball. Now it appears there is something to it if the officials are agreeing, it supposedly now feels like one of those mass produced supermarket types...it's too light.. flies to fast etc etc.. So there's more to a ball and that particular ball has a name too.. Jambulani.... Read on if interested in ball engineering World cup soccer ball still lacking .. Doesn't the saying go... a bad workman blames his tools..  Which came first the skill or the ball ?

Saturday - the last weekend of the June School Holidays. I suggested a movie before I realised Toy Story 3 was showing. And I thought oh oh I would have to sit through 2 hours for their sake. I'm not that crazy about Toy Story but the kids are (which is OK) . Then luckily there was an alternative which they thought was a better idea, Karate Kid..  yay for Jackie Chan and Kung Fu . Why is that anyway, it's about Kung Fu but the title is Karate Kid ?... are they the same .. Chinese martial arts vs Japanese martial arts ... Jackie = Chinese...  Miyagi = Japanese..... ??. Will Smith's son is a good looking skinny little kid (10 year old Jaden Smith), and I must say has his father's looks and he acts well too. It's a good movie for the kids, there is an underlying message for them to take away about the use of physical force and simple lessons about discipline, courage and determination in spite of pain and fear. There were a few times dur...

I want to get at least a couple of books by this American autobiographer and poet who has been called "America's most visible black female autobiographer",  I read one of her poems on another blogger's site and an excerpt of 'Letter to My Daughter' and knew I should get her books...... Below is one of her poems from her collection .. Still I Rise You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I'll rise. Does my sassiness upset you? Why are you beset with gloom? 'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells Pumping in my living room. Just like moons and like suns, With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I'll rise. Did you want to see me broken? Bowed head and lowered eyes? Shou...

22 June I was reminded that this is the last week of the school holidays. I am glad really, because it 's stressful, the house almost feels chaotic without the order of school timetables, and beside it's not like I get holidays too . So to cram in a little more play, on Tuesday I took a half day, prayed that it didn't rain, to let them have their swim. Actually it was mostly Ar who was pestering me about it, he wanted to practise his new found skills. We went to Anchorvale, dad brought us, mum wanted some sun and so we all went. I call it the mini Sunway lagoon, cos it's not just pool but slides and slides and waterfalls and water dumps here and there. It was pretty crowded in the play area for a weekday. Alx had to go to school, commitments to meet. It didn't rain.. Why is it, you don't want to entertain their every want (should not) but at the same time you feel you still need to give in to some things and go the extra mile ?   Do you know what I...

Motherhood is the full rosebush, sweet fragrance, gorgeous blooms and thorns  - Helen

I made my first dental appointment a few weeks ago for the first time in 15 or 20 years . Why? Because  I'm sadistic.. no, because I thought and thought and thought (gum disease keeps appearing on the tv screens)  that it was about time to give that dreaded profession another chance at my mouth. Many, many moons ago when I was still in school, I was taken to visit Dental Health (or something like that then) and they looked at my rabbit teeth and said there' s nothing to be done but consider pulling out and doing dentures. So naturally that was the end of that. Never gave it another thought for the next decade or two. Save for taking Alx and Alr to the dentist which I see as my parental duty and because it matters ( no matter how bloody costly it is to do) I, me and myself have never sought to go to a dentist for any other reason except pain some 15 or so years ago - to do a minor filling. 2 days ago, was the second appointment.. It's called root planing, it's a...

June Hols - Week 2 / week 3 Did I mention, the boys got their first successful thrill with a kite at the beach that camping day? Rb, my fren's son, bought one, so ok I had to buy two... $8 each, er.. highway robbery !  Of course it's at the East Coast and no one else is selling any close by.. take it or leave it lah.  Anyway I digress. Actually at first I bought one, but of course (how terribly forgetful of me) they would start to fight over it right.. ah but then, ok  I digress again. Did I mention my friend said and I thought it too 'lucky she has one only ' .. (giggle giggle). They got a kick out of it, managed to get it flying... up up and away... for a little while at least. I believe it is their first sucessful attempt at kite flying [cos the last one we bought was just too heavy and would not take off, I think we killed it and buried it somewhere]. I had flown a kite many many moons ago, so it's a wonderful feeling really, there is that exciting ...

Sun day 20 Father's Day It's Father's Day, so of course I asked Father what he would like for dinner. Since my sister already 'ruined' my seafood idea (by taking him out the day before), steaks should be next .... So there are a couple steak restaurants in Serangoon Gardens, why not , he's ok with it. But nope - Mum says let's go out somewhere else, drive out further.. (meaning not close to home) go to the beach, maybe pizza ?? but I reminded her it's Father's day not kids' day. I think she was confusing taking the kids out for air with dinner for Father's day. So we (dad and me ) sigh, of course somehow we would have to go somewhere close to her 'imaginationings'. So we ended up at the Marina-Esplanade area by the bay, all in all it was quite close to her 'imaginings' - cool breeze, open space, scenery, lights.. and well we managed to find steaks, rootbeer float and some interesting combination of food (satay, onion rings, ...

June 2010 - school holiday- week 2. I decided to finally try it and prepared the kids . If we could succeed to set it up, that huge tent , we would stay the night. If not we would just make it a day at the beach and go home for the night. UNFORTUNATELY, while I remembered to pack almost everything, I forgot the camera. And being overly busy with the business of the camping forgot I could have used my phone cam for that special snapshot of a probably never-to-try again experience. We managed to get it up and set, between Alx(no 1) and me. I had to hoist Alr (no 2) up some (no mean feat that) so he could attempt to to tie the top most center (where the 2 frames crisscrossed). The tent was tall. We anchored all the pegs to all corners and edges, tossed and installed the rainfly and 'presto' (not) it was done.  It was supposed to be a 6 man tent, unfortunately that did not include space for luggage!. The first day right up to dinner was not too bad I ha...

1st week Dec 2009 - We drove up to Camneron Highlands with dad, mum decided to forgo the challenging drive up the winding roads....... Tha last time I was up there was like 25 years ago or something like that. We picked a 'practical' hotel in the heart of Brinchang, the town near the top. Just remember you don't always see everything on the internet. I think it was called Hua Gin, good rates, as basic as they go - beds, small cupboard space, space enough for 4 instead of 5, a couple of drawers and a little bathroom where the hot water shower actually worked.  BUT (of course there's a but) there's no such thing as a bell hop service. Of course,  we were given the 'big' room on the 3rd floor which had NO LIFT . The expanded wing they called it. I had a huge luggage bag as befitting someone who packs for kids which had to be air lifted by 'moir'. About the rest of the stay, I can't really complain, cos the kids did enough. They're so spo...