Rock Shopping and Nat turns 5!

The munchkin officially turned 5 today and I had actually taken half day afternoon leave with the intention of doing something for her in school but she refused to let us come! She hates the limelight on her and insisted we not do anything for her in school, although Gigi did let on to the class last week her birthday was coming and they sang her a song.

Well, since she didn’t want me hanging around and she spent the afternoon in school, I made use of the opportunity to shop in town, with the purpose of finding my rock. Went to Tiffany’s, Lucky Plaza and Paragon, saw a few potentials but they were loose stones.

My dream ring is the Tiffany Legacy but the 1ct size H colour was going for over $18K. No way Nick would spend that much and I had to find something in the 8-10K range. My plan was to buy a loose cushion stone and replicate the Legacy setting but all the shops I went to had no loose cushions and Nick was uneasy about buying online from James Allen or Blue Nile though I feel they are legit.

H Sena also didn’t have anything in stock and their prices were on the high side but then I walked past Larry and saw they had some weekly specials, including a gorgeous cushion diamond ring. When I went into the shop and asked about cushions, they said they only had the one in the display. I knew the price was WAY, WAY over Nick’s budget, about double in fact but I was lost and in love!

Considering the specs and size i.e. G colour, VVS2, 1.44ct centre stone and surrounding diamonds I thought the price was a fair deal compared to all the Lee Hwas and Goldhearts which mark up exorbitantly then offer you 50% off. Plus it was bigger and cheaper than the Legacy ring I saw.

The salesperson Angela was really patient and a bad influence, lol. I promised her to talk to Nick, I was willing to top up whatever difference because I just wanted one solid ring and I would never bug him again. It’s meant to be for our 10th anniversary plus push present in advance so it’s 2-in-1.

Anyway, after Larry’s I met Nick to pick up our new helper, Geraldine….she seems really sweet so I hope we all get along!

We had another cake cutting for Nat, courtesy of Swana. She said she actually preferred this small celebration compared to a big party so I think next year, we’ll keep it small!

Happy Birthday Munchkin, Mummy loves you!

Anyway, I told Nick about the ring and received a flat out 'No'! Even if I offered to share, he didn't want to consider it! Bugger. 

Princess Natalie's 5th Birthday

The moment Nat has been waiting finally arrived…her Princess Party!

I might have gone a tad overboard with all the décor…can’t help it when buying online is so much cheaper! This was her invite and we had posters, banners, cupcake picks, centrepiece, tattoos, tablecloth, disposables, goodie bags all in the theme. Even the pasta and Pez dispensers!

Since I had the cupcake picks, I made cupcakes from scratch. The vanilla recipe I chose claimed to be the best online, but I didn’t like it, need to find a better one. I did find a good buttercream frosting recipe though and it was my first attempt at buttercream but quite happy with the results, must practice my piping though!

The Cinderella dress I had bought from eBay weeks ago for Nat arrived just in the nick of time, thank goodness it fit. Nick had bought some Cinderella accessories in London last week and she was all set to dazzle.

Gigi was dropped off earlier while Swana and Kevin helped me run errands. She was the Belle of the Ball with her yellow gown and matching gloves. Sasha too was so pleased to be Snow White, and the 3 of them made sure we took lots of pictures.

Caitlin and Bella were among the first to arrive, they came as Belle and Rapunzel respectively…so cute! Am glad all the little girls came dressed up, we must have more Princess parties so they get mileage out of their costumes!

Food was catered from Sakunthala’s, can’t go wrong there…mmmm, pepper mutton. I made pasta for the kids, with choice of tomato or cream-based sauce.

Before the cake cutting, we played a simple game of ‘Paste Cinderella in the Castle Window’ where the girls were blindfolded and the one whose Cinderella made it closest to the window won a prize. The winner was Mika.

Cake was from Bengawan, they have the whole range of Disney Princess cakes. We went with a chocolate sponge with Valrhona chocolate crunch, yums.

Nat chose to hide behind her sister during the cake-cutting, so shy that one…

After that we played a couple more games, ‘Musical Thrones’ and ’12 Dancing Princesses’ which is basically your usual musical chairs and statue dance.

Am glad everything went well, now I can put my feet up and start planning Sasha’s birthday. She wants Snow White but I’ll have to see about that!

Double A Birthdays

Attended 2 birthday parties today, Aidan’s 1st which was combined with Jane and Albert’s housewarming, plus Ananya’s 4th which was held at Amazonia.

Jane and co have moved to a new condo in Potong Pasir and to celebrate their new home, they held the housewarming together with Aidan’s birthday, which was celebrated well ahead of the actual date 14th, because of the upcoming CNY.

We were among the first to arrive at the function room by the pool which looked really inviting….must bring the kids swimming one day! Rena and Germaine couldn’t come so am sure we’ll come visit again when they are free. 

After lunch we took a quick peek at the new apartment, there are 4 bedrooms but Jane is already complaining about the lack of space. Pity the window seats take up so much space! I hear a lot of condos have them.

Aidan has such chubby cheeks, just want to pinch them! Don’t think he really knew what was going on, LOL. He had a cute naked baby birthday cake though!

 

 

Napped the afternoon away and then it was off to Great World for Ananya’s party. Kavi spent a bomb on her cake! Some local cake designer apparently. Ananya had a Shakespearean look going on, with ruffled collar, ha ha.

The kids had fun running around, as usual my koala bear stuck to me, especially during mealtime. Tomorrow is her party, I think I will stop celebrating once they hit primary school, getting too old for this! 

Nat approaches 5

Just a few days till Nat turns 5 and I’ve succeeded in kicking her back to her own room with minimum fuss! Sasha is with her too so I guess they don’t mind so much because they have company…my days of co-sleeping are over! At least for now!

It all started a couple of weeks ago when Nick had a bad flu and didn’t want them to catch his bug so he insisted they stay away from him. Even I slept on a mattress on the floor. The first night, Nat came over around 3am, the second day about 7am and by Day 3 she stayed put and I think relishes her own space now.

Had to incentivize them a little too by redecorating their room while Nick was out of town. Gave it a fresh coat of paint, bought Sasha a matching bed, new sheets, new curtains, new ceiling fan and new pictures on the wall.

 

Sasha is starting to throw tantrums again, I wonder if she’s started to seek attention because of the baby. She cries when she thinks she’s being scolded, even though it may be a simple reprimand or just a firm voice. She’ll say “I don’t want you to scold me” and even when we’re out, she’ll want to be carried and say she’s tired or lazy to walk. 

She’s still a cheeky little monkey though, had fun with a beanie Nick brought back from London.

Nat is maturing but starting to rebel as well. I keep reminding her not to waste water, especially now that we make them brush their teeth before they sleep, after drinking milk. But she’ll still turn the tap full blast and leave it running as she brushes. I keep threatening to deduct some of her savings and put it towards the utilities bill!

Ma found an old dress of mine that she’s been keeping these past 30 years and now Nat can wear it! Uncle Alvin also sent some Disney princess dresses from Darwin, and the girls were thrilled to receive them. 

Poor Nat has to re-pierce her ears down the road. She picked up an infection and after a couple of days of ‘airing’ her holes, she screamed when I tried to put back her earrings and we decided to leave it in the end. The left lobe was quite swollen and it’s going to take a few weeks for it to heal.

Mildred came over bright and early this morning to be the first to cut cake with Nat for her upcoming birthday…she insists that Nat do it with family first, rather than at her party with other kids around. She even had a post-it note stuck on her mirror for the last few months as a reminder to cut cake with Nat on 1st Feb!

This evening, I went to get my hair done and the kids came over to trim their hair too. It was Sasha’s first salon cut and she did quite well and vainly showed off her new locks. Gone are her curls but they’ll be back I’m sure. Did a shoulder length layered bob for Nat and we’re trying to grow her fringe but she was so self-conscious after the cut, thinking she looks ugly. I think it’s sassier, not so heavy for her little frame.