So all this time I’d always thought I lived in a constitutional monarchy.
Oh how little I knew. How deluded I was.
We have been living under, what politicians (and other parents) call a dictatorship.
I’ve only realized this recently much to our despair wtf. If you are a parent to be, or a new parent (with babies smaller than 1 year), I thought it my responsibility to warn you what’s ahead.
You will have a despot living in your household.
Here are some of the laws that may not be broken under totalitarian toddler rule. They may or may not be arbitrary.
- Thou may not wear slippers or flip flops of any kind. Unless King Fighter is wearing slippers himself. Then you may apply for permission to wear.
2. Thou may not play sports of any sort. If you ever dare to put on workout clothes or sports shoes, be prepared to face your punishment – death by tantrum. Your badminton racket, yoga mat or whatever will consequently be thrown into the dustbin.
Cases in point.
3. Thou cannot go out for dinner without kids. In King Fighter’s words: “Mommy, don’t go out for dinner. It’s not good. It’s very dangerous. Later you go out at night and the bad man catch you!” *does catching motion with his hand* “I cannot take care of you. So you don’t go out. Stay at home. Just now you already ate dinner so you don’t need to go out ok.”
4. Thou cannot wear lipstick. Any color on your lips demands a penalty of swiping away the lipstick with grubby hands. Because wearing lipstick is a precursor to a worse crime: Going out for Dinner (without children).
5. Thou shalt not hold my food for me. I will hold my own banana and my own spoon of porridge even if it falls all over my white dress, dammit. Failure to do so will result in the possible spillage of food on your nice silk shirt and all over the kitchen floor.
6. Your bed is for our entertainment purposes only. Do not mistake your bed as a place of repose and rest; your bed exists purely for the whim and fancy of the Lord King and Lady Queen. If they deign to repurpose your bed as a trampoline/pirate ship/parachute/tree house, thou shalt not object.
7. Thou shalt not take showers. Thankfully this applies to Daddy only, and not me but it basically means if Daddy ever dares to take a shower when King Fighter happens to be around, well, hell hath no fury and all that. Apparently we are not allowed to be clean.
8. Thou shalt not poop alone. Heaven forbid you should poop in quiet repose. Pooping shall only occur when a sentinel (max height: three feet) is present. Preferably trying to flush the toilet when you’re still sitting on the toilet bowl.
9. Thou shalt not press the elevator button or doorbell. It is solely the job of the King. Forgetting this very vital point will produce a tantrum the size of Hurricane Katrina because HOW COULD YOU MOMMY?!, and subsequent demands to press all the other buttons in the elevator pad.
10. Thou shalt read Hansel and Gretel and The Elmo Book as many times as the King and Queen see fit. Preferably until you’re able to receit by memory. Severe punishment in the form of refusal to go to sleep if you dare to hide the book and pretend you’ve lost it.
11. The King and Queen shalt only brush teeth with expensive toothpaste. Recommended brand: Jack & Jill toothpaste, RM27 a tube. Darlie and Kodomo Lion and other inferior (read: cheaper) brands shall be banned on the basis of being too spicy for royal gums. Any money spent buying alternative toothpaste might as well be flushed down the sink together with their spit and gargle.
12. Thy stroller is not for sitting. Only for exercise. Thou shalt not presume to push the stroller because the Queen must always be the driving force behind it. The stroller may be used to place diaper bags and handbags only.
13. By royal decree, all pajamas in Tiahland must be short sleeved. In the absence of short sleeved pajamas, thou shalt let the King wear his regular tshirts to sleep.
In other words, guys, if you know where to buy short sleeved pajama sets please let me know ASAP. FML.
Sorry Your Majesty, are you displeased?
But seriously, I would like to clarify that this post was written for jokes. I don’t think my kids are spoiled; they’re going through the same toddler phase that every kid goes through. They’re trying to figure out their likes and dislikes and attempting to assert control over their lives (and sometimes us). For example, throwing Fatty’s shirt and equipment into the dustbin was Fighter’s way of expressing his major upset that Fatty was going out and leaving him. We know when to draw the line so don’t worry! I wrote this blog post as a funny reflection of the weird things my kids get worked up about and I’m sure all you parents of toddlers can agree!
So when I married Fatty, one of my wedding vows was to make him his three favorite dishes – bak kut teh, hot pot, and macaroni pie.
I made bak kut teh once, he thought my bag of herbs cannot compete with outside BKT so he told me it’s ok he’d rather waste his cholesterol intake on Klang BKT FML.
Hot pot… my mother in law makes more than enough and she’s good at it too.
But macaroni pie. I am not bad at macaroni pie.
So before meeting Fatty, I’d never heard of (Hainanese) macaroni pie before. How was it Hainanese when macaroni and pie are the two most Western sounding foods ever? I’d never even seen it in any restaurants and had no idea what it would taste or look like. And this was in 2012, mind you, when I googled and came up with nary a clue.
All I knew was that Fatty loves and it’s a Tiah family favorite.
I asked my mother in law and Fatty’s aunt described it as a pie filled with macaroni/insert whatever pasta, chicken, potatoes and whatever else you feel like putting in.
She didn’t mention anything about sauce (that I understood wtf). Or maybe she did but I just didn’t get it, being a complete noob at the culinary arts hahahaha.
So as stupid people are always confident, I proceeded anyway hahahaha. Fatty seems to like it so here’s my recipe.
Ingredients:
- Minced chicken, marinated in soy sauce, a bit of sugar, salt, pepper, sesame oil and ginger juice
- 1 bag of Prego’s Spiral Pasta
- 3 eggs
- 1 piece of puff pastry
- Brown button mushrooms
- 3 slices of cheese
- 1 carrot, diced
- 3 potatoes, diced
- 2 cloves of shallots, sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, sliced
- 1/2 cup of peas
- 1 jar of Prego’s Carbonara Mushroom Pasta Sauce
Feeds 4-5 people
- First, boil a pot of water. Add to water1/2 teaspoon of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1 tablespoon of garlic oil for taste. Boil pasta until it’s nearly cooked but not totally. (For al dente, I normally boil for 8 minutes, but now I boil for 7 minutes. Drain and set aside.)
2. In another pot, heat about an inch of oil. Boil diced potatoes until golden brown. Again, they don’t have to be totally cooked because we will be popping everything into the oven later.
3. Add cubed carrots and fry until nearly done. Set aside.
4. In a wok, throw in two shallot cloves (sliced) and 2 cloves of garlic. Stir fry in sequence: sliced button mushrooms, peas, and minced chicken. Set aside.
Add the diced potatoes and carrots for a last stir fry.
4. In a casserole, put everything together – the pasta, chicken, mushrooms, peas, potatoes, carrots, everything. 
I alternated between layering pasta and the other yummies.5. Pour in Prego’s Carbonara Mushroom Pasta Sauce all over.
6. Lay slices of hard boiled egg on top enough to cover the casserole bowl.
7. On top of the eggs, lay sliced cheese. Any variety will do. I used light sandwich cheese cos I don’t like anything too smelly hahaha.
8. Lay out the puff pastry. Brush one side with 1 egg white. Cover the dish with the pastry. You can either trim the edges of the pastry with a knife, or be lazy like me and just fold it over itself.
9. Pop into preheated oven at 200 degrees C for 20 minutes, or until pastry is puffed and golden.
10. Remove from oven and enjoy!
Okay so my pie is not the most beautiful thing in the world. Hahahahaha.
But the kids and Fatty love it. 🙂 In fact, this is a family of pasta lovers so we cook pasta at home very often.
It’s a nice change from rice and porridge, and really you can cook it with anything – a lot of times we make it with chicken or pork broth, add some chicken and random vegetables and call it a meal. Or even easier, add meat to a Prego sauce and it’s a quick, proper plate of spaghetti bolognese or carbonara. 🙂
For more info, here are the Prego platforms:
This post was written in collaboration with Prego Malaysia.
Lately I haven’t been blogging (or vlogging) much and I have a very good reason! I read a lot and often I go on tangents of different topics and totally immerse myself in it. For example, it could be Chinese history so from Amy Tan I could progress to maybe Jun Chang and then Lu Xun. I’d read up all I can find about Chinese history then branch out into Chinese literature, biographies etc. After China, I might move on to Japan, then to Afghanistan, then to women’s rights because.. Afghanistan.
So my latest obsession is education and the psychology of children. So this book I’ve been reading is SUPER interesting. It’s called Nurture Shock, written by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman.
Chapter by chapter it focuses on a certain topic related to kids. Based on proper scientific research and studies, it debunks misconceptions that we adults may have towards kids. It shows sometimes the “solutions” we have towards problems may actually be backfiring and it is mad fascinating!
I thought it’d be cool to put down some of the things that really struck me here. There’s a lot of information though so I’ll go through topic by topic ok.
Kids and praise
Everyone thinks that praising a child is good for their self esteem and confidence. But nope. Only if the praise is specific and well deserved. Kids older than preschool can already tell if praise is insincere and the effect is way negative.
Praise needs to be done right too. A child, let’s call him Bill, say he has scored into the top 1% of his school and has been praised as smart. He grows up thinking that he’s intelligent. But a child like Bill is less likely to pursue something that he wasn’t good at from the start. They are more likely to give up, and only target the “easy” tasks to preserve their self image of being clever. It causes them to underperform.
When you praise a kid for being smart, you send them the message that smart is an innate talent – you either have it or you don’t. They will not try further than that because they already think either they can do it or they can’t. But if you praise a kid for his effort, he or she is more likely to work harder and achieve greater heights.
Many studies proved this. One study had two groups of kids perform a series of puzzles, like an IQ test. At the end, the researchers told each kid their score, followed by a line of praise. Half the kids were praised for their intelligence, eg, “You must be smart at this.” The other half were praised for their effort: “You must have worked really hard.”
Then the kids were given a second test. They were told they could choose between a harder test but that they’d learn a lot from attempting this harder test, or they could do an easy test, just like the first. 90% of those who were praised for their effort, chose the harder test. For those praised for intelligence, majority chose the easy test. Ie. the “smart” kids took the cop-out.
Why? Cos when we praise kids for their intelligence, we tell them that intelligence is what matters. So kids choose to look smart and avoid the risk of embarrassment. Putting in effort becomes a stigma – it’s proof that you can’t make it with your natural gifts.
In a follow up study, the researchers gave the kids a super difficult test, designed for two grades above them. As expected, everyone failed. But the two groups of kids responded differently.
Those praised for effort assumed they didn’t focus hard enough on the test. But those praised for intelligence assumed their failure is proof that they weren’t really smart after all. They were miserable and stressed.
After that the researchers gave all the kids a final test that was as easy as the first round. The “effort” kids improved on their first score – by about 30%. The “smart” ones did worse – by 20%.
Emphasizing effort gives a child a variable they can control. Emphasizing natural intelligence takes it out of the child’s control, and it provides no good recipe for responding to failure. – Carol Dweck, whose studies these were.
So the moral of the story is: Praise your children but be careful when you do it and how. Parents praise kids as a way of showing our love and encouragement. I find myself doing that to Fighter and Penny too! “So clever!” and “Good job” roll off my tongue easily even when it’s doing something like picking up his toys after I nag him to. -_-
We praise with the intention of giving them confidence but in fact, indiscriminate, inaccurate praise creates the opposite result.
Good jo – I mean, you must be really working on opening the door, Penny!
So about two months ago (yalah yalah very late la wtf) we took a family trip to Hello Kitty Town & Thomas Town and Legoland in Puteri Harbour. Big group of us cos it was our family, helper, my parents, and the Chiams!
It was a really good trip!
Feels like it was all pros and no cons hahahaha lemme list em out for you.
- So near if you’re coming from KL or Singapore you can just drive down. I loved driving down cos we don’t have to pack to fit airline requirements – we just packed everything into the car and went.
- Cheaper than going overseas
- Legoland and Hello Kitty Town etc are damn clean and well maintained!
- Hotels were awesome. We stayed at Hotel Jen and everything looked spanking new. They accomodated us very well with an extra bed for helper, connecting rooms with Mummy & Fat Her, and a spare cot for Penny.
- It’s basically theme parks for kids so everything was very child friendly. From food to baby rooms to child sized shopping carts <3
Erm can’t think of any cons real one hahahahaah.
Anyway spamming photossssss.
The four kids at Hello Kitty Town. 
Fighter being mesmerized by Barney. Or was it Bob the Builder?
This girl not interested in taking photos with her mom. >:( 
Oh but taking photos with Grandma and Grandpa is fine.
Oh gawd. 
Erm not sure but she looks like she’s trying to hypnotize the bear hahahaha.
Finally at Legoland! I damn scared they get heat stroke wtf so I made them wear hats.
Hahahaha. 
We rented this stroller from Legoland for RM 65 I think. A bit steep but turned out to be so worth it. If Penny didn’t want to sit, Chase would happily sit with his BFF. And if the kids were walking, we just used the stroller as a cart for our bags and baby stuff.
Us: Are you guys ready!?
Kids:
Lol.
It started drizzling so we took a break. Love how Legoland had these rest stops with benches and tables and tonsss of Lego to entertain the kids. 
Whaddup Legoland!
This is grumpy me cos Penny didn’t want to sit with me hahahaha. At the Observation Tower ride. 
Busy busy.
Ice cream break after playing with Legos. 
Someone really loves ducks.
“How much? Eh discount la can?”
Whoops pictures are all jumbled. Koko and Grandpa with a shirt that we bought and Fighter chose for Grandpa’s birthday. 
At Duplo Express, which is really the most suitable for our kids at this age. It’s a miniature Lego Duplo town and is essentially a very well equipped play ground. There’s even a Duplo Express train ride. Kids spent the most time here.
Fighter on the car at Junior Driving School, another ride he loved. 
Lunch time! Pasta for everyone to get energy up.
Mummy Ooi rolling Chase and Fighter down a slope hahaha.
Ooh this is the Duplo Express Train! 
Fighter and Grandma.
A cake we bought for Fat Her’s birthday hahaha. 
Happy birthday Fat Her!!! We love you!
Yep this girl too. 
Very much. It’s one of our favorite holidays with the kids so far actually. ^^ We will definitely be back in a year or two. The kids may have forgotten some and they’ll be older too and it’d be a new experience. Thank you so much Legoland for the awesome stay and hospitality! I really recommend this if you moms and dads are thinking of going somewhere these school holidays. 🙂 Oh and here’s my vlogs on the trip!
At the hospital waiting for the doctor cos Fighter’s fever came back. 😔
Times like this I wish I was still breastfeeding so I can do something more. 😢
His fever was at 38.6 C again this morning but now subsided after another dose of paracetamol. So he’s more or less back to his usual squirmy bossy self wtf.
I on the other hand diarrhea again wtf so I’m camping out in the toilet next door to the clinic. Fml.
- Nov 21, 2014
Fml la been having diarrhea ever since we got here. Fatty’s fine so I have no idea what I ate?!!!
Anyway I’m camping in a Starbucks toilet now wtf. So scared I wouldn’t make it in time WTF sorry hahahaha. Luckily nobody asked me to buy a drink first cos I’d probably have thrown something at them. 😳
- London, 17 Aug 2015
One spaghetti carbonara two nights ago resulted in diarrhea for two days wtf but only in the morning jeng jeng.
- Pregnant, 28 Oct 2014
Anyway I had two horrific AudSuay incidents just today. 😩
First was I was in the toilet having diarrhea wtf (chili pan mee for dinner) and a rat ran out from the shower drain WTF FML.
- Suet’s wedding day, July 2016
Oh I’m very good at diarrhea-ing wtf. I may have undiagnosed irritable bowel syndrome or something cos I get diarrhea very frequently. It’s usually not too bad do I just put up with it and don’t do anything.
– 2014
- 2016
I am not afraid to admit I have digestive issues wtf. I’ve always been prone to diarrhea my entire life. (Think how bad I had it when I was in school and had to poop frequently in my government school toilet T_T) Sometimes it’s because I ate something spicy, or something dairy, or sometimes I just don’t even know what triggers it.
I’ve tried isolating my diet to see if it’s lactose intolerance or something specific but never could figure it out. I probably have undiagnosed IBS la (Irritable Bowel Syndrome).
I’m very used to it so I don’t really do anything about my diarrhea; I normally just wait until it passes…. but not when it comes to traveling. T_____T I get diarrhea so often and so unpredictably, that the day before I travel I usually stick to clear, bland foods in case I lau sai next day on the plane/car/roadside wtf.
I remember when I was 12, my family was traveling around the US… and suddenly on the tour bus I really had to poop wtf. My poor Fat Her had to run around trying to find a toilet before I lau sai on his shoes really FOL.
So the question is….
WHY HAS NOBODY TOLD ME ABOUT THIS BEFORE?
Smecta is the enemy of diarrhea wtf. It’s a product of France which not only stops watery poo, it also treats diarrhea, which apparently is not something all anti-diarrhea meds does.
Smecta is actually a sort of clay that treats diarrhea and other gastro-intestinal discomforts. Its unique structure is able to absorb the toxin and clear it from the system. It also protects the intestinal mucosa layer so that nutrient absorption is less affected during diarrhea.
I got this for my kids to add to our first aid kit for when we travel cos… yep it’s suitable for babies and children.
For kids, you can give them up to 4 sachets a day for 3 days. Although it should be fine for babies less than a year old, please consult a doctor first before starting the course. Adults can take up to 6 sachets a day.
Just mix the sachet with water or milk and consume. If you’re wondering about the taste, Smecta is known to have a slight muddy taste though (because of the clay) but it’s flavored orange-vanilla to mask it. Penny and Fighter don’t have a problem drinking it. 🙂
Smecta is sold by the box or the packet; I find the box a little too many packets at one go (30 packs) but buying pack by pack is just tiresome. Solution is …you can ask your pharmacist to pack how many packets you want for you – Smecta produces a special dispensing bag for pharmacies for this!
So this is what’s in my toddlers’ traveling bag. The bee traveling bag is actually a giveaway by Smecta via lucky draw if you take part in their survey *HERE*!
Anyway…. it’s phone charger (mine wtf in case no battery), toys and books for their entertainment, tissue and wet wipes, a snack, sanitizer and mosquito spray, and Smecta. (as well as stuff like paracetamol, thermometer, asthma inhaler, etc
Got the Smecta as a precaution for the kids… but I think Imma use it the most often FML hahahaha.
Check out their website here.
This post was written in collaboration with Smecta.
So we made it for Bersih 5.
The truth is, I wasn’t feeling very enthused about it this time round.
And from the very subdued social media posts we saw, it seemed like everyone else felt the same. Lethargic, tired of seemingly working for no results. Or maybe it just wasn’t cool anymore to care about the country.
I felt sort of the same. Tired that we were beating the same drum with no obvious changes.
And more, I felt this. Because last year’s Bersih was very much majority Chinese, I felt defeated. The Malay population was much subdued because of PAS pulling out and it really crushed me. Why are not more of them bothered about fairness, clean elections and corruption?
I will be very honest here. We are very comfortable and therefore you could say we belong to the upper middle class. If this country goes down, we will still be fine. We have the financial ability, skills and position to flee the country and settle elsewhere if we need to. The majority don’t. If Malaysia goes down, they go down with her. So why are we trying to fight for a better country, but other citizens whose futures are probably more dependent on Malaysia’s wellbeing are not?
So I honestly didn’t plan on going. But this morning, my mother in law told us she was going, and who’s with her?
So hi. Here we are hahahaha. I have to say that it’s much easier for us to attend Bersih cos we live right in the city la. So when we got to Jalan Raja Chulan, we saw this.
A wave of people walking down Raja Chulan.
Everyone was heading towards KLCC from Dataran Merdeka I think, which was the new meeting place cos of all the roadblocks.
There were a lot of people sure. But it wasn’t as many as last year’s Bersih crowd. We decided to go along to KLCC with everyone else.
It was all very peaceful. Everyone was marching (or strolling) along maybe breaking into cheers or chants, but nothing uncivilized.
Construction workers were cheering us on as we marched!
At another point, I heard a loud tooting to the tune of a familiar jingle. Everyone started cheering and I gazed around trying to find the source of it. Turns out it was the LRT train on the track above us tooting its horn to show us some support. HAHAHAHA SO CUTE.
Got to KLCC! Looks like a lot but still not really. At this point, Fatty, who’s still recovering from stomach foo, decided he had to go or else he’d shit his pants at Bersih HAHAAHAHAH. We visualized memes and headlines such as…
Bersih tak bersih
or
Najis makes an appearance at Bersih
or
Things in Malaysia are getting really shitty….
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. So we started to make our way back home. From KLCC we walked along Jalan Ampang. And there we saw it.
Wave after wave of people in yellow shirts walking towards us.
The crowd we had seen at KLCC wasn’t the full one. It wasn’t even half of it.
Throngs of people were walking towards us! 
What we thought was just ‘that group’ over at KLCC was being joined by all these other people walking over from other parts of the city. They were all converging on KLCC as the main meeting point.
People use the word ‘awesome’ all the time but if there ever was a time to use it, it’s now. As we walked against the grain, we just saw wave after wave of cheerful, cheering people of all races dressed in yellow. All for a cause we all believe in. If you look at the photo above, the yellow stream of people stretched all the way to the literally where the eye can see!
We didn’t stay for the rest of the rally (cos Fatty turtle head already wtf).
I’ve written over the years about Bersih but this time I notice myself that my blog post is sounding a lot more subdued and less optimistic and passionate. Chalk it up to hopelessness, to old age, to a feeling of depletion even.
I don’t know if what we’re doing is even working, besides maybe embarrassing Najib on an international arena. Honestly I’d rather spend my Saturday nuah sai-ing at home or spending time with my kids than slog around in sweltering weather getting blisters on my feet cos I was too lazy to wear socks wtf.
From a self-centered POV, what reason do I really have to attend Bersih? I don’t gain anything from it personally. My life does not improve. It’s only for pure love of the country. But if there’s one chance that this may effect change, if it’s so easy for me to get to the rally, I’ll still force myself to do it.
Thank you to all the Malaysians who went today.
Yesterday I was devastated. As updates of the US elections poured in, the stone in my chest got heavier and heavier.
America has always had a soft spot in my heart, having studied there for four years. I knew the US has its flaws course, but I also believed their leaders have more honor (and more checks and balances) than ours. I created this image in my head of it, perhaps due to pop culture and gorgeously crafted political speeches, and definitely due to the wonderful friends I’d made and the people I met there. Whatever racist bullshit happened in Malaysia (which is all the time), I’d bitterly compare it to the US and think it would never happen there. Today, I woke up with a different perspective.
While I myself cannot fathom voting for a man who has been known to be so explicitly racist, misogynistic, untruthful and hateful, I would like to think that maybe this is not just about people rooting for racism and hate. I understand that there are others whose shoes I will never even know who may have different circumstances, priorities and needs than I and while I seriously disagree with their choice, I will try not to judge them.
That said, I am grieving for a world in which a Donald Trump presidency exists. The thing is, I don’t even really believe that Trump meant all the outlandish things he said – about women, people of color, LGBT, Muslims, etc. I think he was just saying shit to be controversial and get attention. And I think the media bias has definitely played a large role in magnifying this frightening persona of his, compared to any more moderate opinions he may have.
But you see — Donald Trump is known for being this huge outlandish bigot and he’s now the President of the United States. He is the leader of the arguably the most powerful country in the world and his speech is peppered with slurs and intolerance and disrespect. By virtue of example, that suddenly makes it okay to be racist. To be misogynist. To attack women on the basis that you think they can’t resist you.
And it’s already happening.
In Wellesley – a women’s college that’s considered a friendly rival to Mount Holyoke, also the alma mater of Hillary Clinton – this happened.
If it’s acceptable for the POTUS to be racist, why not the regular people too?
Not just espouse racism and bigotry and intolerance but also perpetuate rape culture.
I despise what Trump stands for. Although in Malaysia we don’t talk about it often, these issues of bigotry are completely relevant here, maybe even more so.
The silver lining is that this election has given me great resolve. There are so many things I want to teach our children but this shall be my priority. That a few bad apples does not a bad community make. That the color of our skin does not matter the slightest. That to be different is not a bad thing.
To Fighter, that he must treat women right, not just because he has a mom and a sister, but because they are people and they are equals. That locker room banter or jokes are an unacceptable excuse for disparaging women. That he cannot be a Donald Trump is a given, but he cannot be a Billy Bush either.
To Penny, that whatever Koko can do, so can she. That as Hillary Clinton says,
“Never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your own dreams.”
Last weekend was a first – we attended a Halloween party at a property viewing room.
When I told Fighter we were going to a Halloween party, he said, “I don’t want. Halloween is scary. It’s so many monsters and grandpires and skellies.” (vampires and skeletons) Hahahaha laugh die me when I realized what he was saying.
Here’s us with Lina of SDB! She invited me (and I dragged the whole clan) to view their new showroom which is one of my favorite things to do hahahah thanks Lina.
SDB (Selangor Dredging Berhad) is launching a new property in Sg Buloh. It’s a SOVO (which stands for Small Office Versatile Office) & Service Apartments. In layman terms, SOVO is a small office-ish unit suited for small startups. And Service Apartments are… service apartments!
It’s located along Jalan Sg Buloh and the development is linked directly to the Kampung Selamat MRT station via a 75m link bridge which makes it super convenient! T3T It also has easy acccess to PLUS, NKVE, LDR, MRR2, SPRINT and Guthrie. To place it, it’s about 10km away from Sunway Giza, One U, IPC Ikea and the Curve. And on the way there we passed IGB International School if any parents are interested.
The property is called Sqwhere (pronounced ‘square’), I think because the spatial planning excellent
The development is still being built but here’s a site plan of the 1.7 acre elevated forest deck for SOVO and SA owners. It looks so good can!? Just to run you through, 2 = the SA lobby, 3 = Garden Sqwhere, a lush looking piece of green land, which is surrounded on all sides by a amazing looking pool. 7 is a lap pool, 10 is a kiddie pool, and there’s also a kids’ water play area and play area. I am so jealous. We live in a really old development so there is none of these lifestyle amenities. I’d love more space for the kids to run and play. T_____T Which is why Sqwhere is marketed as great for small families like ours. And why I’m invited to check it out LOLOL. Anyway moving on to the show unit. We visited two – the 2,100+ sq ft, and the 1,500_ sq ft. Our own apartment is 2500 sq ft but the Sqwhere 2,100+ one looks more spacious what sorcery! Actually not sorcery it’s cos of the excellent spatial planning really. SDB brags that no space is wasted and I agree cos I think its space has been maximized so well! 
When you enter, there’s a little foyer inside the door. I think this isn’t too common in condos here and I love it for the little more privacy afforded the home. <3
The striking thing about the layout is this. In most generic condos, when you enter a unit, the unit stretches out long and narrow ahead of you. Sqwhere units open up to both sides making it feel really spacious.
Lemme walk you through. This is the 2,100+ sq ft unit.
The living area.
Living area is mega spacious! It’s the sitting area + dining room but opened up so the space is massive.
The 2,100+ sq ft unit has 4 rooms + 1 utility /helper’s room and this is one of the guest rooms.
Taking the bed like it’s hers already :X
Another room, done up to be a kids’ room. The kids rushed in and I think if I didn’t ask them to go, they’d probably still be there.
Sorry me in the toilet and a judgmental toddler hahahaha.
Besides the formal living area, there’s also another family nook, which would be great as a study area too.
Master bedroom is a decent size with huge ceiling to floor windows.
Another angle of the master.
Went back to check on the kids and yep. Still playing.
The kitchen is like an open hallway with counters on both sides, and a doorway at both ends.
Cabinets, hob, hood and fridge come with the house!
The kitchen leads to a yard where you can put your washing machine and hang clothes, as well as this utility room that comes with a toilet. The utility room can be converted into a helper’s room and helper gets her own bathroom!
Sqhere will be filled with green spaces and sculptures like this for ambience. ^^
We were walking over to the other show unit, for 1,500+ one.
The smaller units are all the same kind of layout too! Come in, enter a foyer, living areas stretched to both sides. The master bedroom here is on the left, while living areas are to the right.
This is a much smaller unit so spaces are smaller for sure, but thanks to their space planning, it doesn’t seem cramped either.
*sharp intake of breath* Penny get down from there!!!
Ok got you down phew.
From the living area, a corridor leads down to the other three rooms.
Another one of the rooms.
SDB managed to squeeze four rooms into this space but to be honest, I would prefer less rooms which are slightly larger to fit more storage into each. But these units would be great for families with more members to house.
One more of the living area.
Oh and here’s me and a nervous Fighter hahahaha. Both the critters kept going ‘yeeee yeee’ when they saw the fake monsters but still want to go near to see. Then when go near already, they asked to be carried cos scared lolol.
Do check out the SDB Sqwhere Sales Gallery for a peek at the showrooms. Registration to purchase is now open!
Click *here* for the SDB website to make an appointment to visit, and for more info.
This post was written in collaboration with SDB.
Fighter: Mommy, you need to eat a lot of rice and chicken and vegetables and fish…
Me: Oh, I do?
Fighter: Yea. So you can grow big like Daddy!
(Cos I’m always telling him to eat more so he can grow up and be a big boy)
*
Went out on an errand and received panicky messages from Fatty, telling me that Fighter was crying and going around the house looking for me. When I went home…
Me: I heard you cried a lot just now. Why?
Fighter: Yea. Because I wanted you mommy. I wanted to go with you but Auntie Nancy said I cannot go out because the bad guy will catch me *does violent hand sweeping action*
Me: ?!
Fighter: Yea and Auntie Nancy don’t know how to drive. So I cannot go out. I was sad.
Me: Oh I’m sorry darling. I went to see a school for you. It’s a school for big boys and big girls.
Fighter: I’m a big boy now!
Me: Yes it’s for when you’re even bigger.
Fighter: Is it I’m in N2? (4 years old)
Fighter: Next time you cannot go out mommy. Or else you have to sleep on the road.
*
Told him I have to get a replacement license cos I lost my driver’s license FML.
Fighter: Why you lost it, mommy? Why?
Me: ….
Fighter: Mommy I borrow your license.
Me: You mean you lend me your license? Your Legoland license?
Fighter: Yea.
*
Fighter: I’m going to be adult soon.
Auntie Fayth: You are?
Fighter: Yea. Like you. I’m going to be taller.
Me: So what are you going to do when you’re an adult? Fighter: Drink coffee. Yea. And eat spicy noodles.
*
Took Fighter to pee in school before class starts. Their toilet cubicles have little curtains instead of doors.
Fighter: Mommy. Please close the curtain or else everybody can see my bird.
Me: ok
Because I closed the curtain, I couldn’t reach him. And he missed aim and peed all over his undies, pants and even socks FML.
Me: Oh no! How come you peed on yourself!?
Fighter: Because I didn’t hold my bird. Because I don’t want it fly away.
*
I was exercising in my room when Fighter and Penny barged in. I happened to be wearing yoga pants and a sports bra.
Fighter: Mommy, I don’t want you to wear like this. Because you shame shame.
*
Before bedtime.
Fighter: I want Mommy sleep with me
Fatty: How about Daddy? Can Daddy sleep with you?
Fighter: No, cannot. Because you are too big. Mommy is small because she didn’t eat enough.
*
Had a dinner with some friends so while Fighter was drinking his milk, I sneaked out of the house. Apparently he cried for ages looking for me. T______T The next morning..
Fighter: Mommy, yesterday I very sad. I cry because I wanted you.
Me: I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to tell you I went out because I didn’t want to make you cry.
Fighter: Where you go Mommy?
Me: I went to eat dinner.
Fighter: Can I go? I want to eat dinner. I will be a good boy.
*
The next time I had a dinner, I tried to prepare him instead of sneaking out.
Me: Jude, Mommy’s going to put you to bed then I’m going to go for dinner, ok?
Fighter: Where you going? *lip trembling
Me: I’m going to eat dinner. I haven’t eaten yet you know, and I’m very hungry.
Fighter: No! Don’t go for dinner! Sleep with me!
Me: But I’m so hungry. You already ate but I haven’t eaten cos I was waiting for you. Fighter: Ok but you eat downstairs in the kitchen. Don’t go out.
*
In the car on the way to drop Fighter off at school. Penny is with us too so he knew we were going out after.
Fighter: Where you going?
Me: I’m going to go buy milk and diapers for you guys ok?
Fighter: No! Don’t go yet! Because I go to school first. When I finish my work in school, I will come back and buy milk for you.
Me: ok *lying
I obviously ignored him and went grocery shopping. Picked him up after, and when we got home, I unloaded the groceries from the trunk.
Fighter: !!! What’s that?
Me: Uh. Groceries.
Fighter: No I told you don’t go yet! I’m still working in school!
*
Fighter is taking his bath.
Fatty: Fighter, what’s that? *pointing at his little one
Fighter: No no! Don’t touch my bird!
Fatty: I didn’t. But why not?
Fighter: Because if you touch my bird, my bird will fly away. *points to the sky
Fatty: I see.
Fighter: And then I will become a girl.
*
Fighter: Mommy, I like girls with long hair.
*
Fighter: Don’t touch my bird, Baby. Later my bird fly away.
*
Fighter: Mommy, I’m a big boy.
Me: Yea but you have to drink more milk and eat more vegetables so you can be an even bigger boy.
Fighter: Is it then I can marry? Is it big boy can marry big girl?
Me: Yes. Who do you want to marry?
Fighter: (thinks) Gemma!
Me: Gemma? Do you like Gemma or Kate?
Fighter: I like Gemma and Kate. That’s why I marry them.
#polygamy
*
In the car. The radio is on. It’s a Justin Bieber song.
Fighter: what song izzis?
Me: It’s called Love Yourself.
Fighter: Is it Love Jude?
Me: …uh I guess.
Fighter: And Penny!
*
Fighter sees Penny holding a toy he thinks is his.
Fighter: Baby!!!! No!!!! (tries to snatch it)
Penny: NUH!!!! (holds it out of reach)
*
Fighter to Penny (putting on his shoes): See you later Baby! I go out first.
*
Fighter: Jude has a bird! Baby has no bird.
Me: Yes Baby has no bird. Why doesn’t Baby have a bird?
Fighter: Because Baby’s bird fly away.
*
Trying to teach Penny how to say I love you.
Me: Penny, say “I”.
Penny: Aiiiii
Me: Love.
Penny: Waaaaa
Me: You.
Penny: Yuuuu
Me: I love you.
Penny: Ta ta ta.
*
When she puts on a shirt that she likes.
Penny: Dada! (how she calls nanny) I yike I yike. (I like I like)
*
When we make her put on a shirt she doesn’t like.
Penny: No. No. No why. (don’t want)
Penny: (taking shirt and stuffing it under a chair) Hide. Hide.
*
Playing with her Peppa Pig doll.
Penny: (pinching Peppa’s curly pig tail) Bird. Koko bird.
Life without these two would be so lame. Hahahaha.
Whoops forgot to post my vlog on Bobo’s birthday!
I think most people have seen this but I’m just putting it here for record keeping hahaha.
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