Movie nights!!

Dear All

We rented DVDs for 2 weeks in a row. The girls' friends were supposed to come over for a get-to-gather, but it kept on postponing. So we ended up having movies week for 2 weeks.

Out of the 6 DVDs we rented (3 per week), these 3 titles were outstanding:

1) Funny Bones

2) 7 Pounds &

3) The Last Song

Be warned though....maybe it's just me, but all of these movies involves the death of a loved one.

Funny bones is about a teenager who pines for things she'll never experience. Kind of sad, with some creepy/suspense moments.

7 pounds is about a man who finds a way to relieve his guilt. Some heart-thumping moments, as the movie moves to the past and then present...a little disconnected till you reach the end of the movie. Feli didn't "catch" the meaning of the movie. So not suitable for primary levels.

The Last Song is a coming of age movie, also about teens. It has some kissing scenes but done "cleanly". It's really worth watching this, in my opinion. Although I don't quite like Miley Cyrus sitcoms, I must say her movies like Hannah Montana and this one, which touches on family relationships and love between parent and child, are really touching.

Love Theresa

Another Nov holiday activity...Fish farm

Dear All

It was right after Sunday Mass when Bert decided to get a replacement fighting fish. His fighting fish in the office died (again). We brought back the little tank the day before (we drove down to his office...got caught in the very heavy downpour on the way back...actually had no choice on the highway. We could see the dark clouds and haziness ahead. The on-coming cars were all wet...we were not yet. Then into the storm we went).

So, after Mass on Sunday, we dropped by the 2 fish farms at Pasir Ris. We dropped by the 1st one and there were koi feeding, longkang fishing, kiddy water rides and a huge ball thing where you are inside the ball and the ball rolls about in the water. The rides are quite pathetic and too small for the kids. So I let them feed the koi and go fishing instead. Took some pixs on my hp but don't know how to download it. So I took photos of the prized guppies that we caught (8 of them) and the fighter fish that we bought from another fish farm down the road when we reached home.

The fighter fish we chose...an unusual white vein-tailed:

This was the pretty tank Bert bought. Unfortunately, it fell off the wall mounting and broke. But the fish survived...it's not called fighter for nothing!!

The damage to the pocket wasn't much. Fish food - small pack for $1. Fishing - $4 for a pail and a teeny-tiny net (yes, it's really that small, and the pond/stream is deep and quite big). The fighting fish - only $1.50.

Whatever fish you've caught you can keep. We were so stressed as we were given only half hour to fish, and after 10 mins, the girls caught nothing. Then this father with 2 little ones came along and got fish, one after another, like a pro! Bert tried but it wasn't easy. Finally, Tiffy caught our very 1st fish....a female white with black spots guppy. Then, when the owner came to pour in a pail full of fish, the father just netted even more fish! I told Tiffy to quickly net the fish, as I think they were groggy, and true enough, in one scoop, she netted about 3 guppies including a baby fry. Feli was upset she couldn't net any.

The pretty guppies and frys staying at the top of the tank:

Heheh, I, who never caught fish before, managed to net 2!

This was the 1st one Tiffy caught!

We put the guppies in Bert's tank. After a few days, they died, 1 after another. They stayed mostly at the surface, except for the white guppy, which wandered to the bottom of the tank, but was very wary of the other bigger fish. We wondered what had happened to the rest....till Bert saw our white guppy, without the head, dead as a nail, being nibbled at by our big goldfish! Bert scooped it up. We couldn't find the last remaining male guppy. Must have been eaten up. The bigger fishes must have thought the tiny guppies were live food!! Oh dear!!

Our fighting fish is still alive though :)

Love Theresa

Nov Holiday activities..so far...

Dear All

We will be spending our year-end holidays here and will not be travelling. Reason - the kids are taking their milestone exams next year and are using the holidays to catch up. It had been a tremendously hectic school year for them...so many activities rather than studies. School is not like what it used to be. So guess what? The schools could not cover quite a few topics...hence, it's up to us parents to "catch-up" for them :( Anyway, their tutors say no holiday for them. So everyone of us are grounded.

But, that doesn't mean we can't have some fun squeezed in, right?

One of the firsts we did was to make an impromptu decision to go to Changi Airport's Swensen for dessert, as Tiffy was going berserk cooped up in the house.

At Earle Swensens, Changi Airport...after our dessert..happy faces!!

We drove off around 9+pm and it was so fun when the airplane was taxi-ing along the bridge just as we were driving under it. The plane was HUGE! I had the sudden fear when I recalled the previous season of Ghost Whisperer when the plane crashed on the town and many people died. Morbid right? Just me and my worrying mind.

It's Christmas time!!

Mommy & Feli...

Tiffy & Dada (above) @ Earle Swensen, Changi Airport T3

The pa-rum-pa-rum rum sundae (below):

The prawn fritters :

The sizzling icecream in hotplate:

This is good...pita with tuna :

I thought very happily, that Swenson would be opened 24h...afterall, the airport is opened 24h right? How wrong I was! We reached there in time for the last order at 10:15pm...we were there at 10. We ordered soup for Feli (I know....having a starter for dessert sounds crazy...but we don't care...haha), 1 of the 12 christmas sundaes...it was the pa-rum-pa-rum-rum....did you notice the word "rum"? We didn't think much of it till Tiffy dug into it! It was rum ice-cream! And the taste of rum was very strong. Cheeky Tiffy alerted us that it was rum, and then dug in again and again, and again! To get a better taste of it, so she claims. But it was yummy. It was filled with fruit-cake chunks with raisins and caramel.

The mushroom soup...

Feli and I shared the banana crumple icecream in hotplate.

We also ordered fries and some kind of pita filled with tuna which was delicious, and some prawn fritters.

Bert said he's not hungry! Caught red-handed pinching Tiffy's fries!

Next post....another in-expensive outing with the kids.

Below are pictures of what we saw there after our yummy dessert!

Exhibits on show outside Swensons on how food is prepared for flight and model airplanes (above & below pixs):

Sitting in front of display on how tall the Control Tower is (above)

and a rotating "wind-mill" structure (below):

Love Theresa

Dear All

For easy reference, in case we need to use it, I've appended the Student's Prayer below (courtesy of Lenz's email):

Personally, I find it a very appropriate prayer to get our priorities in life right and focused on God. No doubt, making enough money for a decent living is important, but work and the means to the end must be morally right.

As I guide my kids, I always have to pause and sometimes pray for divine inspiration, to give the right explanation, and the wisdom to speak according to the way God wants of me.

Love Theresa

Prayer of a Student

Lord Jesus, you are the Way, the Truth and the Life.

May I find your truth in the books and sciences that I study every day.

Many times I hear confusing voices in my studies.

Send your Spirit to guide me and to make clear your ideas, your doctrines and your truth,

That I may firmly believe in them.

Lord Jesus, you are the way that I must follow.

Help me be honest and sincere in my search for the right path and when I find it enable me to walk along it courageously.

Lord Jesus, let me grow in your divine life.

Help me share my God-given talents with others so that they may live in your joy and peace

Jesus my friend, you know there is so much fierce competition in schools, colleges and universities.

Help me cope with the pressure and tension but above all, Lord make me remember that my studies are not for money, power, position.

My education must lead me to contribute to a better society where people have opportunities for work, for family life, for peace and justice. Only in this aim of living for others will my education be worthwhile.

I ask this Lord, in your name.

Amen.

All Saints Day Quote from Fr Albert Ng

Dear All

Fr Albert Ng replied me and here is the quotation:

"Saints are like windows. Through them the light of God's wisdom streams into the world, banishing the darkness, and brightening the road for uncertain travellers. Through them the warmth of God's love radiates through the world, banishing the coldness, and warming the hearts of even the most forlorn of his creatures. And through them we catch a glimpse of another world, a world that lies not just beyond the walls of our earthly home, but even beyond the stars. Be a saint!" - Author Unknown

Love

Theresa

All Saints Day Mass - 1 Nov 2011

Dear All

I was searching for the poem Fr Albert Ng shared at the end of his sermon and came across this sermon website on All Saints Day, which I found very meaningful.

http://www.motherflash.com/sermons/range/allsaints3.html

The reading for All Saints Day is the beatitudes. Fr Albert's poem about what is a saint was beautiful. Saints are windows for us to see the beauty of God's love and for God's light to shine through. The Saints are windows for us to see heaven. We can always call upon the Saints to intercede for us, for they are in heaven and are always concern for us here on earth.

Have a Blessed All Saints Day and All Souls Day (which is today 2 Nov).

Love

Theresa