jet-lagged baby

Joel is definitely jet-lagged from the trip. He's been sleeping only at 2+AM for the past 2 days. That is Belgium time 8pm CET (6 hours behind). His usual bedtime is anytime from 9pm - 12am GMT. During the day, he's fine and takes his 2 naps as usual. Now, he will whine (mmmm....aahhhh...mmm.....mamamam...mmm....aaahhhhh...) ...then go to bed in the late evening...and i'll be thinking that he's going to sleep through the night. But if he has to get up for his last feed (at 10/11pm), he'll hear Daddy's voice and look at him 101% awake! And we'll go, "Ooo...NO...!!!"

snap snap

I was just looking at LiJia Baby's website (which i dont visit coz it's in Chinese and the delivery is from Beijing which takes longer and will incur freight charges) ...and i saw this cute toy that's actually a real digital camera! How cool!

Here's the info in English (from US).

e/tel- everything

One of the best thing about living in Shanghai is that u dont need to step out of the house to get anything. Yes, almost ANYTHING!

Yesterday, i was looking at the Carrefour website and realized that they do delivery now! (The last i checked a few months ago and their e-shopping was still under construction) The website is sooo good - in English, easy to navigate & can add items as 'Favorites' too! The best part, it's next-day delivery & FREE for purchases above ¥200/S$40. That's a piece of cake! I've tagged a whole bunch as Favorites and am going to order next Monday! ;)
There's a huge supermart just opposite our place which stocks almost everything i need, but online Carrefour is so much better! I dont need to carry Joel & lug the goods home.

And if u are hungry, just order delivery. I'm surprised i can remember XingWang's number. I cant remember any local number other than Elvis' cell coz mobile lines are 11-digits (!!!), land lines are the same as Spore's 8-digits but it's harder when i try to remember it in Mandarin.

Since i came back in April, there's these 2 guys who started a very smart business doing delivery for a few eating places in the area at a fee of only ¥3/S$0.60. XingWang used to deliver only if it's above ¥50/S$10 (which is impossible if i'm ordering for just 1). Now, i call XW delivery almost everyday, Mondays-Fridays. That's really really neat esp when it's too hot/cold/lazy to go out. If i want to eat McDonalds or KFC, i can just call their cellphones direct. (Note: McDonald charges ¥7 for their delivery) This "freelance" delivery is so good and i dont need to go out at all! And they make many rounds of ¥3 in a day (sometimes multiples of ¥3 in 1 trip). Recently, they increased their fees to ¥5 and they hired more people to do the rounds. Good business huh!

I've also been ordering Joel's milk, cereals & diapers etc from the LiJia Baby catalogue. (I really wish their website is in English) I just call the hotline, state the product codes and the items will reach the next day. I can also choose free gifts for purchases of ¥100/200/300/500/1000/1500 (but it excludes milk & diaper) OR get ¥30 off ¥300. Selected brands also give free items. So far, we've got free bathing sponge, flash cards, Lego-lookalikes, sandcastle set, Little-Tikes toy ball, inflatable swimming pool and even a skate-scooter (which i got from 6 cans of milk but we gave it away to Ahyi's 5-yr old son)! IF i order 18 cans of milk at 1 go, i can even get one of those "motorized bike"!!! And LiJia Baby's delivery is FREE too!

I wanna tell u more of the advantages of being here...but i'll spare u that. ;p

Haha! I just love being in China - well, most of the time! ;)

P.S. My friend from Hong Kong was so amazed that XW's "sai dor si" & "qiong fun" (french toast & rice rolls) tastes just as good as in HK!

pucker up

flying forward indeed

Elvis told me that when he was in Cannes a few months ago, many of the French were wearing Feiyues - shoes from Shanghai, China. They were kinda like Shaolin shoes in China coz they're incredibly comfortable to wear. Now, even Orlando Bloom has been sported wearing them.

During this trip to Paris, we saw Feiyue selling in Galeries Lafayette at 50 Euros (S$104).

Anyone interested, dont need to fly to Paris to buy them. I can feiyue them to you for 25 Euros... ehhh, or make it 20 Euros. ;p

joel likes the eiffel tower

Bet u werent expecting this! Haha! ;p

getting married?

My good pal's bridal "planner" website is up! Please take a look and call them if you are planning something soon...or just tell your friends! THANKS!

Simple Blessings
- bridal bouquet package
- church deco package
- ROM/party deco
- personalized invitation cards

www.simpleblessings.com.sg

city of not-your-regular bikes

When you're in Amsterdam, you'll be surprised at the number of bicycles you'll see on the roads and parked everywhere! And it actually seems a lot more than what i see in Shanghai!
Quote: "City of Bikes...the 750,000 people who live in Amsterdam own over 600,000 bicycles".
This sure sounds like A LOT to me. The ones with a cart in front are used for babies, kids, dogs or anything! The kids just look so cute in them...and so happy too!


In fact, bicycles were all the rage here in Shanghai too, and many "cool people" have bought at least a bike - for "some reason" other than for transportation. (Thanks to Chanel & Gucci who made it fashionable with their US$12,000 price-tag) Suddenly, it's cool (fashionable even!!!) when you tell people that you ride a bike to work! Well, not everyone looks like Gisele Bundchen on a bike. Besides, here in China, even if u were to pad-lock it, I'm sure your entire bike will be moved somewhere...so what's the point of riding it out and going home in a cab! I thought that maybe the best way is to lock it to a lamp-post or something...but wouldnt they still be able to snip off the chain/lock. So i guess most fashionistas just leave them at home for fear that it will be stolen. (At least our friends who bought nice bikes are still meeting us in cabs! LOL! And the brave one with the most expensive bike got his stolen on Day 1!) Many shops here - big or small - have also found a way to display a cool-looking bicycle. Guess it's just the 'IT' fashion accessory.

Anyway, when we were in Amsterdam, we noticed that almost every bicycle has this really nice bag attached to its back. They come in so many material, designs and colours! Daddy was sooo attracted to THE "IT" BAG that he wanted to buy it (he couldnt decide between black/red)...and then buy an "IT" bicycle TO USE the bag. Finally, we gave up looking for it coz he decided that he wasnt going to cycle to work anyway. And the bike would cost much more than the bag, right? So it's finally making some sense here! ;)

Anyways, we finally saw this red bag in Brugge (a small and charming town in Belgium) and it costs 49.95 Euros (approx S$105). So i guess if he had bought it, people will have a reason to steal his bike...AND his nice bag! Haha! ;p


This interesting bike and the "tuk-tuk" (same as the ones you find in Thailand) are more for tourists. Sure looks like a lot of hard work to ride it.

He also saw this cute super mini Honda and wondered if we're able to buy it back to Shanghai! In China, people dont really need to wear helmets, so Daddy can ride a bike! Haha!

belgian chocolates

Blogger: jo+el - Edit Post "belgian chocolates" This is what more than S$500 worth of Neuhaus chocolates weigh like...and what it actually (just) is!
- 6 tins of Tintin chocolate thins (30Euros; 40 pieces in a tin),
- 1 box of 500grams pralines (25Euros),
- 1 box of 1kilo pralines (50 Euros) and
- 1 small box of candied fruits (17 Euros; 80% of it is FRUITS).
I think it's about 4-kilos of chocolates in all. I went to buy them alone and had a hard time lugging them back to the hotel in the rain.

After giving away the bulk of it to Daddy's team yday, we're only left with 2 Tintins. 1 for ourselves (which meant ME) and 1 for X&X - my nephews who are chocolate connoisseurs.

There goes S$500... ;p

home zzz home

We're finally back home in Shanghai! And we're completely exhausted from the trip because it's been almost 2 days since we last slept! We had to leave for the airport at 3.30am (flight at 6am) so we didnt sleep a wink. When we reached Brussels Airport, we realised that the VAT refund counters were not open yet and we had no choice but to let our luggage go (checked-in to Amsterdam). We asked around and none seems to know what we can do (and they probably didnt wanna work their minds/butts off that early in the morning). We later tried to ask to off-load our luggage so that we can do the VAT refund in Amsterdam airport but were told that we had to go on a later flight (which we really didnt mind). But the ticketing counter lady told us that we could still retrieve our luggage in Amsterdam. In the end, we decided to get on our flight... :(

Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is really huge with lots of shops and even a casino. There were many corners where people could rest/sleep, so we found one of those lounge chairs and rested there until Joel made too much noise we were so paiseh (coz everyone was sleeping). We later found out that our flight will be delayed for another 1.5hours, so we were in the Amsterdam airport for about 10 hours! (Can u imagine that???!!!)

Fortunately, their VAT Refund counter open at 6am, but as we did not have our items with us (YES, THEY CHECK!), we were given the stamp but told that the actual refund will be done at the airport in Shanghai (at a bank). So NO refund into credit card, NO Euro, maybe RMB Cash.

Anyway, when we reached Shanghai airport and as things usually go in China (i.e. cork-up and troublesome), we went home without the refund and have to go down to the bank another time. :/

Joel has been a little difficult lately - always whining and wants to be carried. When carried, he also whine. So, we had a tough flight back to Shanghai. ;p

So now we're home...unpacked his sterilizer etc (only the really necessary stuffs) and his clothes for Ahyi to wash just now. Daddy went into the office in the afternoon while Mummy & Joel slept for 5 hours straight! Maybe after dinner, we can all sleep early today.
Home Zzzzzzz Home....

the ups and the downs

The Ups:
- This Brussels-Amsterdam-Brussels-Paris-Brussels holiday
- Taxis rides (dont need to take the metro/subway) LOL!
- The Asian food we ate whenever we felt like it (Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai, Japanese...)
- Joel growing his lower tooth here. So that makes it 2!
- Daddy buying things he likes, Mummy buying things she like, and Baby Joel buying things he might not like but no choice coz Mummy likes.
- Joel seems to have grown more (fatter) and cuter!

And the Downs:
- Always forgetting to ask for our VAT refund (which is about 15-20%!!!) Sob sob... :_(
(MUST remember, MUST remember...)
- Carrying Joel when he doesnt wanna stay in his stroller (which is very often now)
- Packing and unpacking every time we move in/out of a hotel
- Losing my cellphone
- Joel is getting grouchy and whines and screams...
- Joel's face is red and patchy from the cold weather esp in Paris. So he really looks like a China Baby now. LOL!
- ALL the shops are closed on Sundays except LV (coz their cash registers are ringing keching keching by the seconds)
- All the shops close at about 6pm. Many cafes/restaurants close early too.
- Getting a LV bag which has a thread-run in the middle of the fabric! How "lucky"!
- Just realising our return flight has a waiting time of 8 HOURS in transit. That makes it a total of 20 hours home! Joel & my tickets cannot be changed, and to buy another ticket to Amsterdam would cost us another S$1000+ for the 40-mins flight! So, we're gonna wait in transit and find something to do...SHOP! (What else?!) Total from check-in till reach home will be 1 full day! Faint!
- 3 heavy luggages home (which we thought would be much lighter after Joel finishes the milk & diapers). It was 2 suitcases when we came and it's about 60kg for both. Now...i'm not sure. Daddy will have a really hard time.

paris!

Daddy will be free over the weekends (after his meeting today: now), so we've decided to head to Paris! It should take only an hour or two from here. It'll be my 3rd time there, and i'm really excited! Must be sooo romantic with Joel too - if he behaves! Haha! ;p

Eric (the one who invited us to the lovely BBQ dinner) also offered to let us stay in his OTHER house by the beach "somewhere in Belgium"...but we decided to give it a miss. The summer here is too cold anyway.

We booked a hotel last night (i forgot the name)...but i guess one shouldnt expect too much of hotels in Paris...so i guess a clean room at a good location is good enough. Hope it's slightly bigger too coz we have Joel's stroller and stuffs. Keke... ;p

After this, we'll be heading back to Brussels on Sunday...and then back to Shanghai in another week. Looking forward to a good weekend! ;)

1 week of fun

1. Joel's 1 and only tooth while trying to grab our Belgium waffles.
2. Joel's new trick with his pacifier.
3. Joel's Day 1 of shopping with Mummy in Brussels. (Diesel tee and Zara SALE! 3.95 Euros tee and 5.95 Euros sweaters. Mummy didnt buy anything for herself - yet.)
4. Joel in Uncle Eric's huge house in Brussels (a 1 hour ride) where he cooked a really wonderful BBQ/smoked meat dinner. There were 2 really nice Belgium couples and a really beautiful Ashley from US who loved playing with Joel. She is so pretty Joel kept staring at her! Or maybe he's thinking she's a moving doll. Keke...
5. Joel's inflatable tub in a tub.
6. Joel & Mummy in the big white room.
7. Joel is bored while waiting for us to get ready (to go to Amsterdam).
8. Joel holding his bottle for the 1st time when we arrived at the Amsterdam NL Hotel (he's 7.5 months). NL Hotel is really really small...but it's a nice boutique hotel at a good location.

blessing blessing

I forgot to tell you guys about the BLESSING x2 that we got when we flew here. When we checked-in at the counter in Shanghai airport, i asked the lady to "confirm-AND-confirm again" that i'm given the seat for the attached baby crib...and she said OK. After that, i just asked her if the flight is full...and she said, "If you dont mind sitting right at the back, I could give you another seat for the baby." (OF COURSE I WOULDNT MIND!!!) So it's a real BLESSING that Joel paid for his Infant airticket and got a FREE regular-sized seat! To him, it's a Business Class seat coz he could lie down flat when he sleeps (with his legs on my thighs). Keke... ;p

It was also so much easier for me too when i ate...and changed his diapers - even his "big business". And the lady who sat next to Joel (at the window seat) didnt need to go for toilet breaks! She only went ONCE towards the end of the 12-hour flight...and she drank a lot of water! WOW! ;p

Baby Joel also took to the long flight pretty well. It was almost 14 hours including transit. And with the time difference of 6 hours (behind Spore/Shanghai), we thought that he could be jet-lagged! But he slept well from Day 1 and at his usual (adjusted local) timings. He ate well too - milk & solids. He was a good boy on the 3-hours train ride to/from Amsterdam (sitting on our laps)! So it's blessing after blessing after blessing...

O ya, we also brought along his Bear-Bear which made him smile everytime when he's getting ready for bed. ;)

P.S. I lost my cellphone in Brussels which could be a blessing in disguise too coz it's a 'reason' to buy a new phone! ;p

oo...my!

Baby Joel is getting hard to please these days. He shows us his emotions by whining, crying and screaming! He's also very interested in the food that we eat. He will whine and cry...and even grab at the food on our plates! So we always hope that he's sleeping when we have our meals. (It seems to me that these Caucasian babies seldom cry!)

We also tried to feed him the baby food we bought in Amsterdam and he seems to love it too! Nestle FrisFruitje. It's like pureed mixed fruits - apples, pear, peach - in a yogurt-like cup packaging. Smells very good too! Hmm...just that baby Joel is too greedy to be satisfied with just one small cup! Yes, he will whine after we're done. If we're back in the hotel, i will mix it together with his (fruits flavoured) cereal to ensure that he's really full. My big-eater baby! ;p

hello...

from Amsterdam! We've been away for a week now. Daddy has some free time off work (in Brussels), and we took a train here (a 3-hours ride). We're going back to Brussels later in the afternoon...and should be staying for another 2 weeks. Hope his work will go smoothly (GOT TO PRAY VERY HARD)...and we can all go home on the same flight! I cannot imagine a 12-hour flight alone with baby Joel. Even though Daddy is in Biz Class, at least he comes around to help me out - esp for my toilet breaks! Keke... ;p

Check out this hotel we're staying in Brussels! The White Hotel is a really cool 4* hotel and looks like a boutique hotel. As the name suggests, almost everything is in white! It's looks really really cool! O...and the hotel room (not a suite) is about the size of 4 normal hotel rooms.

(The 1st room we had was on L2. Quite noisy with the traffic just below. The room we got the 2nd time is on L8 which is identical but with a fireplace and balcony...so Daddy dont need to go outside the hotel to smoke! LOL!)

1 week to the Olympics 2008

Counting down.......

heelarious

I couldnt decide if these looked silly or cute! LOL!

But if adult heels could be this comfortable, i would get all 6 pairs! My feet has got so many problems - flat, no "meat", no arch... - which explains why i'm always in sneakers or flip-flops. And my pre-delivery 1-size-up didnt go back to normal. My feet are still 1 size LONGER (from size 35 to 36)! Still "no meat"! ;/

joel likes dark girls

Yes! Every time baby Joel watches his DVDs and a dark-skinned girl appears (African/American Indians), he will smile sooooo sweetly! To the blonde cute girls...he doesnt show such reaction at all! It's so funny!

I told Clara when she came to visit, and she also saw Joel smiling at the dark girl! LOL!

p.s. Aunty Sandra should be very happy to know. ;p

korean wave hit us too

안녕하세요 An nyoung ha seh yo...
Check out this korean label with really really nice clothes! We ordered some stuffs (clothes & bags) a few weeks ago...and they finally arrived today! We waited until our necks damn loong coz it was supposed to take about a week. Nice nice! ;)
for Guys
for Gals

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hotboom
m2m
duluba
bossboy
mersh
smallman
mitoshop
gujelove
buyder
styleboy
zeroback
cokuni
mutnam
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please bring me