Think Serendipity

Mission Completion!

2007-09-13T04:23:00.000+08:00

Hello everybody! Sorry for going MIA for so long! ;p

I am recovering from a cough that developed after we completed our grand tour of the three major cities (San Francisco, Los Angeles & Viva Las Vegas) on US West Coast. The 16-day trip was truly fun and memorable!

Top 4 highlights of this trip:

1) Watching the spectacular Cirque du Soleil's "Ka" at MGM Grand, Las Vegas!
The theatre was custom-built for the show with an amazing stage that you gotta see for yourself to believe it! And the performers are really world-class.

Owl and I were fortunate that we could leave Kiki with his mom and aunt while we sneaked off to catch the show. :)

2) Bumping into Paris Hilton twice!
The 1st time was so paparazzi style at Caesars Palace... We were on our way to the hotel room when she waltzed past with her entourage!

While we still hadn't gotten over how lucky we were to see a celebrity in person (especially now that she's so infamous), we caught her being interviewed at Treasure Island before the "Sirens of TI" show started. She's pretty and really petite!

3) Meeting up with our Sec Sch classmate, Jiawen and his family in San Francisco :)
I always refer to Jiawen as Owl's ex-best friend (I guess I am now his best friend! Haha...). Our visit brought 2 old-time buddies together. It was heart-warming to see how well they bonded during this reunion.

Many thanks to Jiawen & Bixia for showing us around San Jose, San Francisco and Napa Valley! They also have a baby gal, Kendra, who is super cute!

4) Seeing the surreal Grand Canyon at Arizona...
Grand Canyon is oh so beautiful... Nature's greatest creation... Truly a spectacular wonder! However, its scale is unbelievably overwhelming. So much so that it simply looked unreal to me...

It's a pity that being not that sure-footed, and having to carry Kiki, I found that I was spending more time looking at the uneven pathways than the view! I will definitely try to go back again. And the next time I'm there, I will stay overnight so as to have enough time to appreciate this heavenly gift from Mother Nature!

Our trip, which lasted from 18 Aug till 2 Sep, was pretty tiring for me. I was carrying Kiki (who weighs 11kg now) most of the time on a hip hammock (even when we had to go up and down SFO's super steep streets!). Many nights, I only finished packing luggage (and our new purchases!) and washing stuff till past midnight. And I made sure I stayed awake on the car journeys to keep Owl company. Hence, I really count myself lucky that I fell sick only during the final leg of the trip. The dose of good food and company in San Francisco area had been much appreciated!

Believe it or not, I have yet to see the photos that we have taken during the trip. :) I had decided that I would not push myself too much when we are back in Boise, Idaho. Most important to get enough rest and regain my health, right? Kiki was also not feeling well when we were back. But not to worry, the two of us are now on our way to full recovery... In time to enjoy autumn, or better known as fall here, in USA!

Before I end, this post is titled "Mission Completion!" because my primary aim of coming to US with Owl is to visit the three cities. Haha... Greater details will be provided asap. =)

Sun Valley (30 June 07)

2007-08-09T06:49:00.000+08:00

I was working on this post before we left for the trip to SFO/LA/LV. There is in fact another day trip that I had not covered. Tsk tsk... serious backlog problem here. Haha... ;p

We were drawn to visit Sun Valley as it is a world famous ski resort where Hollywood "royalty" visits during winter. Some stars are even known to own vacation homes there. It's early nickname is the "American Shangri-La" and the chairlift was invented here.

A tourist brochure boasts that summers there are just as amazing as winters. But Sun Valley is afterall a ski resort for "Winter Fun under Summer Sun", since 1936 (It enjoys 250 days of sunshine each year). So with great disappointment, we found that there was really nothing much for us to do there.

In search of Wood River Trails

Kiki enjoying a juicy orange

Candid shot of Veera, Quinn & Li Kiang

The young girl manning the tourist information booth could only suggest that we take the chairlift up Bald Mountain. Since we could not go hiking along the Wood River Trails (the trails do not follow the river and are more suitable for cycling), the group decided that we would go for the chairlift ride.

I was apprehensive about taking Kiki on a chairlift. So it was kind of a relief when we found that kids under three are not allowed on them. Hence, while the majority of the group went for a short trip up the mountain, we had some time to spend at the lodge together with Veera, Li Kiang & Quinn.

Another sunny day at Sun Valley but Kiki wasn't that happy

Are they twins? And both were sucking fingers. Haha...

Mummies & babies with big black bear

The daddies braving the icy water

Kiki dashing around under the sun

Stepping on the symbol of Sun Valley

For Hemingway fans, Ernest Hemingway was a frequent visitor to the Wood River Valley. In fact, the world-renowned writer and his wife were laid to rest in the Ketchum cemetery. There is even an annual Ernest Hemingway Festival in Sun Valley.

Hemmingway was a regular at Pioneer Saloon

We walked past the Pioneer Saloon in the town. It is now best-known as Hemingway's favourite haunt and is "typical of an earlier Idaho, when ore wagons rattled down Main Street and business was done with a handshake and a drink".

Daddy, get me this car!

So this visit was more of a "been there done nuthin'". It was really not worth the five hours that we spent on the road. Long road trips are very stressful for me, as Kiki, being just a very young kid, cannot stand being confined in a small place for long. Sigh...

The only consolation is that we didn't stay overnight there. And maybe that we had cheap and delicious ice cream from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory!

Welcome relief from the heat comes in the form of yummy ice cream

We dropped by Ketchum, a neighbouring small town

And grabbed dinner at Wicked Spud before the long trip home

Day Trip:
30 June 07 - Sun Valley and Ketchum

Julia Davis Park Centennial Celebration (23 June 07)

2007-08-01T05:59:00.000+08:00

Boise is also known as the City of Trees. The Boise River flows through the heart of the city and there is a 25-mile (about 40km) river front greenbelt.

Nestled in the Greenbelt is Julia Davis Park. Many local attractions like the Boise Art Museum, Idaho Black History Museum (strangely, there are really very few blacks here), Idaho Historical Museum and Zoo Boise are located in the Park.

Tom Davis donated his apple orchard to the city in 1907 in honor of his late wife Julia. Julia Davis was known as a generous soul who offered help to passing pioneers travelling on the Oregon Trail.

Bronze statue of Julia Davis offering an apple to a pioneer girl

This grand dame turned 100 years old this year, and we happened to catch her Centennial Celebration!

Quite a crowd!

Kiki getting a ride on daddy's shoulders

Watch me soar into the sky!

The highlight of the day for us was seeing the humongous dogs that their owners proudly paraded around the park. They looked more like bears! It's a pity that I didn't get to photograph any of them.

Patting a mid-size dog (courageously)

Chin Wei, Jeslyn, Min Li and Shu Yunn partook in the pancake breakfast where there was free flow of pancakes, scrambled eggs and sausages!

Kiki eyeing the yummy-looking pancake

We left after listening to the Mayor's speech.

Boise's Mayor David H. Bieter making his speech

On our way back to the car, we went past the Rose Garden again and took more shots with the beautiful blooms.

What a lovely day!

Kiki likes to be carried by Jeslyn

Local Celebration:
23 June 07 - Julia Davis Park Centennial Celebration

Thanks guys! =))

2007-07-28T05:23:00.000+08:00

I have just received a belated birthday present... ... Really very touched! That's so nice of you all.

Check out my friendly neighbour's blog: http://tribolum.com/archives/2007/07/26/when_the_cat_is.php

Meow! ;p

Stanley (16 June 07)

2007-07-26T07:08:00.000+08:00

Our second day trip was to Switzerland... ... no, Stanley. Can't blame me for having this illusion when I saw snow-capped mountains framing a beautiful lake.

After travelling on a long windy road for more than 2 hours, we finally arrived in Stanley, which lies within the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.

Kiki had fun sitting on a wooden fence

We stopped for lunch at Bridge St. Grill. The restaurant sits right beside a fast flowing river and offers great scenery.

Cute wooden bear statue outside the restaurant

Keep an eye on your kids!

Beautiful scenery

Stop! Private property

Checking out the icy water

After lunch, we went in search of Redfish Lake. Little did we know that we would be blown away by the view!

We are in Switzerland!

Kenneth decided to stay with us while the others went hiking. Owl, Kiki and I took a stroll on the beach.

You will never walk alone... ...

We then went to the Visitor Centre and learnt that Redfish Lake, named for the sockeye salmon, was formed by the action of glaciers. It is about 5 miles long, 1/2 mile wide, and over 300 feet deep.

Wow! Snow-capped mountains in Summer

Gimme a five! Kiki gave Dr Lau a High 5

Kiki & her beloved pacifier

After a while, we went back to the beach to meet the hikers.

Kiki carried by Min Li

A photo with Shu Yunn

Boon Pin & Kenneth getting cold feet

I'm so glam!

Unwilling to return home so soon after the long drive to Stanley, we went on to the Redfish Lake Lodge. Boon Pin, Kenneth, Min Li and Xin Tian went kayaking, while Chin Wei and Shu Yunn shared a paddle boat.

Look at those nice deck chairs

With the great scenery, it would have been fabulous to stay overnight there!

Second Day Trip:
16 June 07 - Stanley

Celebrations!

2007-07-21T07:15:00.000+08:00

Kiki and Quinn love gatherings! They always have a swell time, lapping up the attention from the doting uncles and aunties. I believe Owl's colleagues also enjoy having these two kiddos around. Their innocent smiles and laughter really brighten up our days here. :)

Peekaboo! (Kiki holding her fave elephant)

Gotcha!

The default birthday cake for us is cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory! We had earlier celebrated Kenneth's birthday at a nice Japanese restaurant. As there was no birthday cake then, we got two yummy cheesecakes when we went to a Vietnamese restaurant to celebrate Shu Yunn's birthday.

A group photo with the birthday gal & guy

In June, we had also celebrated my birthday and Father's Day for Owl. After passing 30 years old, I decided that it is best to keep my birthday a private affair. Haha... ... We had a good dinner but Qi (aka Kiki) wasn't feeling well, so we bought a slice of White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cheesecake home.

Gosh! Time flies... I'm 31!

As for Father's Day, we met up with a number of Owl's colleagues for delicious ribs. Yummy!

Happy 2nd Father's Day!

Celebrations:
15 June 07 - My Birthday! Dinner @ The Cheesecake Factory
17 June 07 - Father's Day! Dinner @ Texas Roadhouse
20 June 07 - Kenneth's Birthday. Dinner @ Fujiyama Japanese Restaurant
2 July 07 - Shu Yunn's Birthday. Dinner @ Saigon Grill

Bruneau Dunes & Canyon (2 June 07)

2007-07-15T06:34:00.000+08:00

My blog is super outdated. Kiki still demands my attention when she is awake. And the moment she (finally) falls asleep in the afternoon, it's time for me to quickly prepare the ingredients for dinner and do other housework. Sigh... ...

Now that both Kiki and Owl are taking a nice nap, let me share our first day trip out of Boise!

Bruneau Dunes State Park
This state park has a romantic slogan, "Feel the Sand; Touch the Stars". Sadly, I didn't do either there.

We have chosen one of the hottest days in Idaho to visit North America's largest single sand dune! The sun was so ruthless, Kiki and I hid in the car when Owl climbed the dune with Min Li and Zhi Jun.

Fortunately, Owl's other colleagues arrived after a short wait. After they had also gone up the sand dune, we hurried off to the next stop. We were really baking in the sun like hot potatoes!

Not everyone is in the picture though

A nice family portrait

Bruneau Canyon Scenic Overlook
After leaving the sand dunes, we drove a few miles farther to look at a small canyon. If only the sun was more forgiving, we would be able to appreciate the grandeaur of it.

It's small but still magnificent!

It's like a sneak preview of Grand Canyon for us! We are really looking forward to seeing GC after this.

More shots for Owl while we hid in the shade

The lesson learnt is to check the weather when planning our trips!

First Day Trip:
2 June 07 - Bruneau Dunes State Park and Bruneau Canyon Overlook

Day Trips and Celebrations

2007-07-07T02:37:00.000+08:00

We look forward to the weekends. Come Saturday, it's time for us to travel out of Boise to explore the nearby areas! Sundays are usually rest days, more for groceries shopping or checking out the factory outlets.

Since I have quite a bit to catch up, I will just use this post to list the places that we have visited. Details will be provided in subsequent posts.

Other than day trips, we also participated in some local celebrations. Birthdays and even Father's Day were celebrated too!

List of Day Trips and Celebrations:
2 June 07 - Bruneau Dunes State Park and Bruneau Canyon Overlook
15 June 07 - My Birthday! Dinner @ The Cheesecake Factory
16 June 07 - Stanley
17 June 07 - Father's Day! Dinner @ Texas Roadhouse
20 June 07 - Kenneth's Birthday. Dinner @ Fujiyama Japanese Restaurant
23 June 07 - Julia Davis Park Centennial Celebration
30 June 07 - Sun Valley
2 July 07 - Shu Yunn's Birthday. Dinner @ Saigon Grill
4 July 07 - Independence Day - Fireworks Display @ Ann Morrison Park
6 - 8 July 07 - McCall
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
11 July 07 - Cheryl's Farewell Dinner
14 July 07 - Snake River/Celebration Park
15 July 07 - Li Kiang's Birthday. Dinner on 14 Jul.
20 July 07 - Zhijun's Birthday.

Will keep updating this list! :)

Fireworks

2007-07-06T05:24:00.000+08:00

Yesterday was 4th of July, Independence Day of USA.

After dinner at The Cheesecake Factory, we went to catch the fireworks display at Ann Morrison Memorial Park with Kenneth and Minli. Now being summer, the sun sets real late. The display would start only at 10:15pm.

The car park at AMMP was closed to public. Hence, we parked our car somewhere nearby and waited at the pavement. In a short while, we heard the countdown and soon the sky was lit up by the brilliant display of fireworks. Kiki was scared of the noise. But she would not let me cover her ears!

Together with the American anthem, the fireworks ended with a climax. Kiki was mesmerised by the sight. When the display was over, she uttered her favourite phrase, "More, more, more". Haha... Mummy can't do wonders. ;p

Back home, we managed to catch some fireworks from our balcony. Kiki refused to sleep till almost midnight! Poor mummy... :(

Kiki's Playmate - Quinn

2007-06-27T10:17:00.000+08:00

We are lucky that one of Owl's colleagues also brought his wife and kid. Otherwise Qi would not have any playmate.

This sweet, good-natured boy is called Quinn.

We have established a comfortable routine of meeting downstairs for a stroll every morning after 10 am. The kids will start off by playing around the only pavilion in the courtyard.

Their favourite activities include picking up stones, pine cones and leaves (in no particular order), running up and down (and even crawling on) grass slopes, throwing and kicking balls, stepping on hole covers and puddles (if we let them), spotting squirrels and birds, and saying Hi! to whoever we bump into!

Future talent for STOMP!

Watch my dinosaur blows bubbles!

What's underneath this cover?

We love our Ball Ball!

Wait for me!

After a while, it's time for us to make our way to the clubhouse to open our letterboxes. We are so bored that we actually feel disappointed if there is no mail! Haha... ...

The two cuties sitting on a low wall, "singing" Twinkle Twinkle Little Star!

Swordfighting with leaves

Can you spot the squirrel?

Having "inspected" the stones around the letterboxes, the kiddies then allow us to make our way back to Quinn's house. Kiki is happy to stay there to play while I dash back to our own house to collect her lunch. When I return, the two tots will then have their meal together.

Kiki and I normally stay till Quinn asks for his milk before his nap. By then, Qi is sleepy too. She will happily say Bye Bye to Auntie Li Kiang!

Back home, it's also a bottle of milk and naptime for her... ...

The Huntington Apartments

2007-06-23T05:58:00.000+08:00

Life as a full-time mom is really busy! Other than the cooking and housework, taking care of little Kiki occupies much of my time. Qi is still much of a koala. Well, except when she is engrossed with watching her Barney or baby songs VCDs.

Oh gosh! Today is already 26 June. We are in the States for exactly one month! And I have not put up any photos of our new home. ;p

We are staying in a one bedroom apartment that comes with a bathroom, an open kitchen and a combined living/dining room. The apartment is fully equipped and comes with weekly housekeeping!

If you go to Google Map (http://maps.google.com/) and search for E Mallard Dr, Boise, ID 83706, the satellite version will show our apartments, identifiable by the zigzag pool!

Check out the facilities that we get to enjoy: http://www.thehuntingtonapartments.com/

Kiki in main living area

Happy Kiki on the huge sofa

Missing Singapore?

Let me show you our bedroom

I love my air bed!

Time flies... ...

2007-06-05T23:01:00.000+08:00

Today is already 5 June! It has been 2 weeks since I stopped work.

Day Before Departure
I had taken 3 days leave to finalise the packing. Unexpectedly, we were still trimming our luggage till late Friday afternoon! We intended to max out the baggage allowance and exceeded quite a bit. ;p

Dinner was steamboat. In addition to our families, Owl's aunts and cousins also turned up. It was quite a party! We ended up going to bed very late.

Flight & Fever
Qi was charming at the airport. Waving goodbyes and blowing kisses without being prompted. I thought our little adventure had started off very well. :)

After some hours on the plane, Qi became cranky. She also refused water. When she finally fell asleep, I put her into the bassinet and covered her with a blanket. To my horror, she woke up with a fever! When I tried to feed her dinner, she even threw up! :(

Even when we arrived in US, Qi's fever did not go away. She was found to have ear infection and prescribed antibiotics. Poor Kiki lost much weight and looked terrible.

Thankfully, we bid Qi's fever goodbye on Thursday. Her appetite also returned. So did her smiles! :)

Expat Tai Tai? Dream on... ;p
All the washing to be done after the cooking had dried my hands till my knuckles cracked!

A clingy toddler is also not the best fashion accessory. Haha! ;)

Nevertheless, it is a nice change from the madness at work. Qi is driving me crazy with her demands to be carried though!

The best part so far? Seeing how much Qi enjoys the food that I cook. It brings such immeasurable joy to me! (^.^)

A little about Idaho

2007-05-10T21:45:00.000+08:00

When I mentioned that we are going to Idaho, the few people who have actually heard of this US state remarked, "It's where they grow potatoes!"

Haha... Indeed indeed... But Idaho is not only about potatoes!

"Known as the potato producer, Idaho’s diversified economy is lead by the science and technology sector. Home to such companies as Micron Technology Inc., Hewlett-Packard and Dell, Inc., Idaho is the only US manufacturer of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips. Agriculture is still important to the state, producing a third of the potatoes grown in the nation, other industries include lumber, wood and paper products, chemical products, electronics manufacturing, mining and tourism." (Source: NewsweekShowcase.com)

By the way, no prizes for guessing that Owl will be going to Micron. :)

A new chapter

2007-04-28T23:03:00.000+08:00

Owl's company is sending him to US for 5 months training.

Since Siqi is still young, we decided that it is the best time for us to have a taste of living overseas and fulfill my dream of being an expat tai tai! Haha... ;p

So this blog will begin as a record of this new chapter of our life, titled 'Boise, Idaho'!