Brisbane Parting thoughts.....

As we enjoy our last couple of weeks here in Brisbane, the weather's gotten enjoyably cooler. Just a shame we can't take in some more swimming before we leave. Not that we can't go swimming in Singapore, but my brother lives in a townhouse complex which has a pool in it. The pool is almost always empty, so we get to enjoy it as if it's our own private pool.

I know this coming week will go by so fast. Edmund is arriving Friday morning to spend our last week here and we'll all go back together the following Friday. Tho it's sad to leave here, I have been a little homesick and am looking forward to going back to my own house and my own bed and my own kitchen.

It has been a very fruitful trip especially for Caelyn. I can see that thru having the interaction with someone her own age everyday she's grown more into her own person. Her language skills are also developing well and she's even picked up a bit of Indonesian and Chinese all from being here for 2 months! Her appetite has also increased since being here and she'll be returning with a rounder belly than before. She occasionally gets bullied by her cousin, which makes me a little scared thinking about her being at school all helpless and alone. But I know it's a stage all the kids will have to go through and I can only hope that once she does start school she doesn't get bullied too much. I worry a little how she's gonna be back home when it goes back to being just us two at home again. She's definitely going to miss the company of having so many people to play with all at once.

As for me, it's been a real eye opener this time around. Usually my trips back have been around 2 weeks max so during those visits I've usually got my tourist goggles on. This time tho I was scouting the place to see the changes, the changes in ppl & the environment and to see how I would feel if we were to be back here again for good. I must say that it surprised me that it took me such a long time to get used to being back. For the good part of the first month I couldn't get used to it at all. And I was analysing and scrutinising every little thing and experiences. I started to wonder whether the Brisbane I knew 5 years ago didn't exist anymore. People had changed, less friendly, less welcoming in some instances. And you couldn't help but wonder whether it was a race issue - eventhough you don't really want to entertain those kind of thoughts, they do come up. You really can't help and feel different when people start treating you as if you are different from them, especially when you can see how differently they've treated the person in front of you.

During the first month I came to realise that I may not enjoy living back here and come to a sudden realisation how much i was in denial about how much I enjoyed living in Singapore and all its conveniences - including the food and shopping conveniences. The past few years I'd always wanted to move back and I guess I tried to not get myself too attached to living in Sg, but little did I know how much I am attached to the place already.

However by the 2nd month, my views changed again as I got more and more settled. I then realised that I probably could enjoy living here again, but at the same time I also realised that I think I also wouldn't mind it too much if we stayed in Sg longer. I guess as long as you have your family and time with your family it doesn't matter too much where you live. Economics and all other things considering of course.

Economy still seems pretty gloomy especially when you keep hearing about job cuts (Rio Tinto just announced they're axing over 500 jobs in the mining areas in Gladstone). So it probably wouldn't be too wise to move and give up your well paying job right now. I just wonder how long things are gonna remain gloomy - when will things start looking brighter......

Free Meningoccocal C vaccine

Today Caelyn had a free Meningoccocal C vaccine by the Brisbane City Council. It was a great experience, the nurse was friendly and the jab was given swiftly. But I don't understand why this vaccine isn't compulsory in Singapore, while in Australia it is. It sounds pretty serious if you ever contract the disease.

It's great not to have to pay for the vaccine considering how much it would've cost in Singapore. I wish Singapore would give free vaccines for children. It would definitely help with the lower income families. But as with everything else in Singapore - nothing is for free.

Did anyone get their kids vaccinated against Whooping Cough? It's not compulsory in either country. Is it necessary? There seems to be a vaccine for almost everything now, would it be over vaccinating our children to give them ones that aren't compulsory?

Caelyn's New Awesome (Umbrella) Stroller - the Kooper Joovy

I've actually never heard of this brand before and there seems to be more choices for strollers here. We've been using the Maclaren Volo for a while now because it's so light and easy to tote around, especially for travelling. And in Singapore she didn't really want to sit in her stroller that much, hardly even wanting to sleep in it. When we bought the Maclaren Volo, we did it with travelling in mind because it was so light, weighing in at under 4kg. Anyway, while we've been here, she's gotten into the habit of sleeping in her stroller and the poor girl's head keeps on drooping when she sleeps because the Volo doesn't recline.

So we purchased this little beauty called the Kooper Joovy. It folds up quite compact and weighs in at only around 8kg. The seat reclines to an almost horizontal sleeping position, the sunshade pulls down quite low, there's 2 mesh drink holder pockets in the back of the sun shade cover, a zip pocket and a sturdy basket underneath. In addition there are also mesh pockets on either sides of the seat so you can store toys, snack, drinks, dummies whatever.

It is by far the best stroller I've ever had!


POSTNOTE: This stroller was actually pretty bad after using it for a while. So we sold it on ebay. I really wouldn't recommend this to any parent. There are better strollers in the same price range if not cheaper.

Caelyn's all better now

Caelyn's back to her normal self again since yesterday. After seeing two Drs, we're just putting this down as another mystery non-serious virus. Would've been nice to find out what happened to her, but I guess we'll never know. Thanks for everyone's concern!

Caelyn's first visit to a Dr in Australia

It was unfortunate that Caelyn got sick on our holiday. She developed a high fever overnight and I woke at 5am this morning somewhat panicking when I felt how hot Caelyn was. Gave her some Panadol then went back to sleep, but the fever still hadn't subsided. I was concerned she might've had a sinus infection like before since yesterday under her eyes were a bit puffy and slightly flushed/pink. So I had my suspicions. So this morning I decided to bring her to the Dr. It was unfortunate that my preferred childhood Dr was fully booked till Friday so we had to see another Dr we didn't know. Seriously, how can anyone wait to see a Dr if they're sick and in need of immediate medical attention. I now realise how spoilt I am in Singapore where going to the Dr means just going to the Clinic and taking a number and waiting till your number is called up. You are almost never turned away unless you came at closing time and there's still a lot of ppl waiting to be treated. For the first time ever, I actually missed Caelyn's PD. Caelyn disliked the Dr so much, said she was scared of him and asked me to bring her outside. She was crying uncontrollably.....now I worry she's traumatised about going to the Dr. She used to be very excited about going to the Dr - think she thought today we were going to see her lovely Dr Ellen Tay at Hougang Mall :(

We wanted to see Malcolm's Dr, but alas his Dr wasn't taking in any new patients! Wat tha??? I've never heard of such a thing in Singapore.

I've now realised how Singaporeanised I am. It's taken me A LOT longer to get used to being back here. It had always been my dream to come back and live here with my family, but you know ....... I am now seriously reconsidering. Maybe I'll talk more about that after my trip ends.