Cheeks to Cheeks

Continuation from Part 1 and Part 2.

The weather was getting warmer and it was close to lunch time. We rested a bit and had the girls drink from the juice boxes.

Waiting for our hay ride.

The hayride was in a truck and yes, we got to sit on bales of hay.

We rode under a trellis of variety gourds. I don’t mind having something like this at home.

Pumpkins can only be grown in a certain plot for 3 years. After the 3rd year, that plot of land needs to be rotated with a different crop. This is definitely no Farm Town or Farmville.

Sunflower Field. There were at least 2 types of sunflowers grown in that farm.

Then we came upon the most gorgeous field filled with Mums. The photos do not do its justice. If we could just get out of that hayride and snap photos at a lower level, it would be much better.

The hayride was bumpy and this is the only clear shot we have.

Cassie taking in the view.

Sun worshipers.

Another ride, Hayride to Butterfly Valley. I think everyone was conned into it. We expected to see butterflies fluttering in the fields but all we saw were fake plastic butterflies attached onto corn stalks. Oh, and there weren’t any hay bales in that ride. By far the most boring ride but we were educated about butterfly life cycle. This ride was the most bumpy ride in the farm. Here is Cass enjoying the bumps:

A view from the back.

Cass was laughing one minute and then there was silence. I looked down and saw this…

While Cass napped in the stroller, Daddy and Belle went on to the mini train ride.

Cass took a cat nap. We then snacked on White Chocolate & Macadamia nut cookies, which I’d baked the day before, and sugar loaded blue icy. We decided to snack first and get our lunch after we’re done with all the rides and attractions. Belle finally got to ride her pony. It was the most pathetic ride and the most expensive too! That ride cost us 5 bucks and they only walked the pony for 1 and a half round.

It was getting hot and we were tired. We zipped through Storybook Path and Bootsie the Bee corn mazes, and didn’t bother to take any photos. By the time we were done, it was 1pm. We’ve enjoyed going through this farm. If we were to go there again, it would just be for the Hayride, Carousel and the Pumpkins. But then again, we might go to a different pumpkin patch next year.

Continuation from this.

After a lot of pumpkin touching and ooh’ing and aah’ing over them, Miss Belle got fidgety. She wanted her pony ride badly.

When you see a whachamacallit face cut-out stand, you just have to take a photo with it.

Introducing Do Re Mi, the pumpkin contest winners:

On our way to our first ride, the Cow Train. In case you’re wondering, why Daddy wasn’t in any of the photos, well, he wasn’t in the mood to be in ‘em.

So, what is a Cow Train? No, we don’t get to sit on real cows.

The main attraction in the farm: The Pumpkin Pyramid. It is said to take over 4000 pumpkins to cover that pyramid.

Check out Belle!

Towards the end of the ride, the driver revved up and both kids loved it. See how happy they are.

This is Belle’s first time riding the Carousel without an adult holding on to her. The Carousel ride was not included in the day pass. We figured Cassie will not oppose to opting out on this ride, so we didn’t get an extra ticket. We did get a chance to take a pic with Belle before the Carousel started.

During the ride…

Dora Sunflower Photo Trail is just a short hay covered trail with some pit-stops where you can take photos with the beloved Dora and friends characters.

Belle loves Dora. Cassie knows who Dora and Boots are from the toilet seats we have at home.

Here’s me teaching Belle how it should be done…

Belle giving it a try. Not bad at all!

Just us being silly…

More photos to come in Part 3. It should be the final portion. Stay tuned!

Last Saturday we went to Uesugi Farms Pumpkin Park. The weather was perfect and the crowd was decent. We woke up early and left our house around 10am and arrived at Morgan Hill a little under 30 mins. If it weren’t for our “faulty” GPS (it had an old map), we could’ve arrived a little earlier. We bought the day passes which consist of all the rides except for three: Caroussel, Pony Ride and some other ride which I’ve forgotten. We had to pay extra for the first 2 rides mentioned. These are the photos taken on that day…

HUGE Pumpkins!

My little poser.

The tough cookie who hardly smiles and this is a rare sight.

Have you ever seen a Blue Pumpkin? No? Well, here they are…

A mini train that circles around the farm.

Miss Cass decided to wave back.

Pumpkin poachers.

This is just partial of the farm. This farm grows not only pumpkins but corns, sunflowers and mums too.

Daddy asked Belle to pick one up.

In case you don’t know what mums are…

Cass amongst the mums and pumpkins.

Jon: Okay, one more shot! (that is after many, many shots, and in the same spot)
Vien: Haiyoh! Hurry up! I can’t feel my legs!

The end result (last shot) below. I have a constipated smile plastered on my face. Belle was as sassy as usual and Cassie couldn’t care less.

Little missy is awake from her beauty nap and demands for attention. More photos to come in Part 2.

Click here for Part 3.

Both girls and I have our flu shots yesterday. With our upcoming trip, it is best that we get our shots early. I am still weighing out on whether we should get the H1N1 vaccine. Kids may need two shots and at this moment the supplies are not available at the clinics.

We didn’t tell Belle about the flu shot until last morning. We psyched her up by telling reminding her how well she did last year and she had to set a good example to her little sister by not crying when she gets the shot. Belle thought it was a fun event and even opted to go first. I do have to admit, I have one brave little girl. We’re super proud of her ‘cos she did not cry when the nurse gave her the shot. She had the stunned face but she kept her tears in and braved out the pain. Cassie did well too. She cried during the initial prick but started laughing when Daddy showed her the lollipop.

The kids were awarded with lollipops and stickers. I am sooooo proud of them!

Belle’s school had its Picture Day on September, 23rd. These are the photos taken of little missy…

Miss Obedience:

Little Miss Poser:

The package was a pretty good deal and adding sibling shots only cost us extra $12. It’s a no brainer, so I brought Cass along for the photo shoot. But, alas, Cassie refused to smile. This is the best shot…

Everytime I see Belle’s individual photos– especially the one with her posing with her hand– it cracks me up!

Cass has blossomed so much since my last write up on her milestone update. She is a full-fledged toddler and the “terrible 2s” antics have leapt forward four months early. Let’s start with her vocabulary:

For a non-small talk person, she has picked up a few words and decided to say them. We know she understands what we say, be it in English, Cantonese or Shanghaiese, but getting this girl to talk is a challenged. What makes matter worse is she would shake her head no if we force her to repeat after us. She is quite strong-willed and will only repeat the words only and when she feels like repeating it. So, here are the new words she has been saying…

Ung-nya – Junior
Ngo-nya – Dora (the explorer)
Bot – Boots (Dora’s friend, the monkey)
Butt-butt – Butt, of course!
Baat-baat – “Pet pet” (a term we use for female genital part)
Hawt – Hot and sometimes it could mean cold. Till this day she refuses to say “cold.”
Ya-ya – Paternal grandfather in Shanghaiese
Gong-gong – Maternal grandfather. She has mastered the “G” sounding words
Bubble
Mao – Cat in Mandarin
Kaat – Cat in English
Guut – “Guut Guut” (an endearment term for water)
Bok – Book
Ngh – a grunting sound meaning she needs to do Number 2
Fla-wa – Flower. This is a hit-and-miss word ‘cos sometimes she will need us to prompt her for it.

I guess the biggest milestone achievement so far is her willingness to poop in the potty. She would signal us with a grunt and upon asked (Do you wanna go poo poo?), she would nod and runs for the potty, as in the big throne. She has completely skipped the baby/toddler potty and feels comfortable doing her thing in the regular toilet. Of course, we have some accidents and it is perfectly alright. After all, she is only 20 months old! Earlier I have blogged and facebooked about her peeing in the toilet, well, we’re still working on it. Sometimes we hit the jackpot and it has been rare lately.

Despite being a slow talker, we know she comprehends us. She has begun to nod and shake her head to yes or no type of questions. She isn’t impede by her lack of speech ‘cos she would literally show us what is in her mind through her actions . Hence, she has developed this strong-will personality. She will not back down easily and I’m afraid this has caused her to be impatient. She gets frustrated easily and will show her frustrations by lying on the floor with a full fling tantrum. So, now we’ve introduced time-out to her. She knows what it is ‘cos she sees her sister gets it whenever she doesn’t behave. It is funny to see her standing in the corner but as parents we always have to keep our faces straight during time-outs.

She loves her sister so much ‘cos she loves calling out to her jie-jie. Yet, when her sister starts to give her enormous (rough) hugs, she would fight back by biting Belle. Sisterly love, you’ve gotta love it! Cass always insist on following her sister and having her sister doing what she does. For example, I would be feeding both girls breakfast and would call each of them to take a bite. Whenever I call for Cass, she would point to her sister and insists that her sister takes a bite before her. If her sister still has her mouth full, she would not eat until her sister gets that bite. What a brat! Then again, I get to use that excuse to encourage both girls to eat fast.

Talking about eating, Cass likes to spoon-feed herself, as in, she holding the spoon while I feed her. She is still a fingers and hands toddler and loves to use her hands to eat. I know of friends who let their children spoon-feed themselves and don’t mind the mess created by their kids. That is SO not me. I can’t stand mess on the table and floor. I rather spoon-feed them than cleaning up after them. Cass will just have to learn to fully spoon-feed herself in preschool. I’ll let the teachers deal with the mess.

Another note before I pen off, I’ve noticed her left hand being the dominant hand. Could she be a lefty? I thought Belle was until she started preschool and was taught to use her right hand for writing. By us delaying Cass from preschool, maybe it gives this trait (left-handedness runs in the family) a chance to “grow”.  I guess we will just have to wait and see.

We love you, Cassie girl!

The girls were playing around the baby crib and this conversation happened…

Belle: Mommy, look!

Belle was doing a monkey stunt of climbing the baby crib from the bed.

Belle: Mommy, new thing for Meimei to learn!
Mommy: Oh, no! Meimei is not going to learn this.
Belle: But it’s great!
Mommy: No. Meimei is too small for this kinda stunt.
Belle: It will be great for Meimei! I will learn (teach) Meimei to do good stuff.
Mommy: No, Belle. You will not teach Meimei this. And, this is not good stuff.

One monkey in the house is bad enough. Imagine this monkey trying to pass the tricks on to another? Mayhem.

I must be a Bear in past life. I feel the urge to hibernate when the season gets cooler. Yes, Fall/Autumn is here and my beloved Summer days are gone. It has been getting more difficult to wake ourselves up in the mornings. Cold morning + Warm Blankets = “Give me 5 more minutes.” Hence, Belle has been late to school. Thank goodness it is only Preschool and not Kindy.

Lately I have been keeping myself busy with projects. This year I will be making the kids’ Halloween costumes and I’m soooo glad there are only finishing touches to it (I’m 97% to finishing both costumes). I’m no Martha Stewart; therefore, I’m only making the necessary part of the costumes. I will post preview photos once I’m done with Cassie’s wings.

Today I will finish up with those wings and embark on another project. The inner rubber rim of our washing machine has been plagued with black mouldy spots. For the life of me, I could not get those blasty spots off. I tried all sorts of chemicals and bleach might be my last resort. Anyway, I tried googling on “How to clean those spots” and chanced upon a post/blog on Eco-enzyme cleaners. The writer wrote very convincing posts and I can’t help but to try it out myself. So, for the past 2 days I have been juicing (oranges) like crazy! I didn’t use my power juicer this time and went back to the basics–Squeezed oranges.

If I get any good results, you will be seeing a post on this Eco-enzyme cleaner in a month’s time. Wish me luck!

Mommy, you need to sleep with your children.

That was the exact phrase the Daddy taught the youngling (aka Belle) to say when he couldn’t get both girls to sleep an hour ago. *Mommy shakes head and sighs*

Out the 12-18 months and 3’s.

In comes 18-24 months, 2’s and 4’s.

I have been productive today: I’d cleaned out the kids’ wardrobe. It’s unbelievable Belle will be turning four in a month and Cass will be 2 in four months.