Punggol Marina adventure

Over the weekend, we decided to bike to Punggol Marina. We haven't done so for quite sometime. I think we have explored different parts of that area. The boys have been here last week by themselves.

Since Ira cannot pedal that far yet, he took a ride with dad on his bikeseat (he should make use of it before he  outgrows it!).

Time Management for Manic Moms - Week 1: What's in your egg timer, sand or gold dust?

It's a good start to the book, and an enlightening one to those who assume that moms do nothing around the house. Allison (Mitchell) mentioned in an example how dad finally realizes that caring for a child IS time-consuming by experience (that is being mom for A NIGHT and left with dear baby). Here are some of the important notes in the first chapter....

Kelvin Joins NJRC

Kelvin joined the Robotics CCA earlier this year. By the second term, he was chosen as a member of one of the 4 teams representing Montfort Junior School in the National Junior Robotics Competition (NJRC) 2010. 

Each team consists of 5 members - programmers, researchers, constructors, operator. He was one of the constructors (although at first we thought he was one of the programmers). They have been practicing hard and preparing well for the competition. Initially, the CCA is held once a week. With competition date approaching, the teachers/trainers added 2 more training days for the participants. That meant 3 days a week of staying back only for Robotics for Kelvin.

The competition was held during the September school holidays, and no boys were allowed to go on overseas holiday. Ira and I watched competition day at Singapore Science Centre on September 6. It was a long way from our place (we live on the northeastern part of Singapore. The venue was located on the eastern part.). It took us around an hour to get there. 

We were able to watch Kelvin's team representative with their robot - MJS Robo 4. They did a good job in Mission 1, according to their trainer. Unfortunately, Kelvin was not the one who presented their robot. He, together with the other teammates, chose their friend who was the operator. The rest of the team stayed in the quarantine room (where they are not allowed to see their trainer and other non-participants).

Here is their team video presentation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iLgO9bIgk8

Here are some of the pics taken during the competition day:

Kelvin's team robot - MJS Robo 4

the robot going through the first obstacle

we visited Kelvin and his teammates at the quarantine room during lunch break

At the end of competition day, their team got the highest score among the 4 teams that represented MJS. Unfortunately, they weren't able to qualify to the next round.

It was a good experience for Kelvin. And it was a good result for a first timer as well. Congrats Kelvin and teammates!

Book Reflections

Recently, I found a good book that actually answers some of my questions in life as a stay-at-home-mom and shares the same experiences and feelings I have. I was browsing some books in the library and found this book "Stay Home, Stay Happy. 10 Secrets to Loving At-Home Motherhood" by Rachel Campos-Duffy. As I was reading the first few pages, I knew I already love this book. I decided to make a sort of book review, but my review would involve me blogging about passages from the book that interests me and that will serve as a motivation, inspiration and guiding light through my stint as Stay-at-home-mom (SAHM). I will be updating my blog every now and then, probably every chapter, will input passages from the book, and then write my reflections/comments based on my personal experience.

On my next trip to the library, I found another book that appealed to me - "Time Management for Manic Moms. Get Control of your life in 7 weeks" by Allison Mitchell. I think the experiences, exercises, and advice given by the author are really helpful not only for moms but for people who think that they are somehow lacking time in their lives.

I can't wait to start posting my daily or weekly blogs on these books. I'm hoping it would help other moms or dads too.