All I Want For Christmas

One of my fridge magnets is of Bielet on the lap of Santa :):) It was taken during our NZ trip last year at The Base Shopping Centre. Here are some behind the scenes shots!

That's me on the left - trying my darnest to get Bielet to smile. Evidently, I failed. Sadness. But at least she was looking in the direction of the camera! ;)

Right after the shot, we thought Bielet was going to try for her first Christmas wish but she had other plans. She tried to pull off Santa's beard! Good thing I saved Santa from being de-bearded or we'll never get any Christmas presents. Ever.

This mall is fairly large and has a good mix of stores. I was really really tempted to buy the stores down, but thankfully my mum knocked some sense into me ;) I did get myself a whimsical necklace from one of the stores alongside the carpark to add to my accessory collection, and which has become one of my favouritest necklaces! The necklace is from the Neverland line. I had such a hard time choosing from the fabulous pieces but finally decided on one that reads "So barefoot we shall go" (read more here).

Adding to the variety of stores are a few other standalone buildings around the mall, which include a collection of factory outlet shops and supermarket. There are plenty of parking lots but you might have to walk rather far just to get to the stores on a crowded weekend. We tried the food court as we wanted to have some variety but we were solely disappointed as it was quite substandard.

With such a large mall, there are many baby changing rooms as well. While our baby changing pull-out tables are located in the Ladies back home, the tables here are in the handicapped loos. There is a sign outside which will light up when it is occupied. So my mum and I happily made our way to one of the said loos which indicated 'Unoccupied'. She opened the door and had the shock of her life - because there was a man at the bowl! Like OMG, she managed to utter a "Sorry" before banging the door shut. Me? I was just bewildered as I was still trying to get Bielet out of her stroller. From then on, I had to open my own doors.

EEK! All I want for Christmas is for that never ever to happen again.

Bielet with Grandpa and Mama at The Base Shopping Centre! (She was still learning how to walk when we were in NZ, hence we had to support her as she edged her way through the mall)

Adventures in Aunty Monty's Garden (Part 2)

(Cont'd from Part 1)

We went back to Aunty Monty's place one last time before we left NZ, for a spot of tea and to chat with Auntys Gael and Andrea :) Heidi was so chuffed to continue her grass plucking tutorials! This time, Aunty Andrea taught her how to make her own daisy chains - see this video on how to make your own.

Doesn't she look absolutely adorable? We weren't very successful on the daisy chain front though. Bah.

She moved on to terrorising an orange ;) Or rather, the orange or something else terrorised her. LOL.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek

Yum, this orange tastes great. I think. Mama doesn't even let me lick it!

Some other shots of us at Aunty Monty's house. We will miss all the memories and joy.

Heidi and I arriving at Aunty Monty's house

Have you seen a lovelier garden?

And here's a sneak peek of Aunty Monty's studio off the garden. Imagine working in such lush surroundings and basking in the serenity of nature :)

One of the many collections that Aunty Monty created.

Aunty Gael teasing the little chump Heidi!

Why is Heidi so glum?!

And, a final shot for the album. We miss you all!

The Zoo With Personality

One of the local attractions that we didn't wanna pass up was the Hamilton Zoo, especially since Heidi adores animals :) Their tagline is "the zoo with personality" hence the blog post title. If I were to sum up that "personality", it would be a cosy and intimate one.

As far as zoos go, you are really as close as possible to the animals and there is quite a good range of animals for you to encounter. There were lots of children there on school trips and looked like they were having a ball of fun; especially at the Tiger enclosure as they could use the gadgets there to zoom the overhead cameras in around the compound and spot the tigers while feeling perfectly safe behind the thick glass walls. So there were 1-2 kids manning the zoom while the rest of the group was either plastered to the glass walls or faithfully following the screens to see any signs of the elusive tigers. (They were behind some bushes, by the way, and I didn't even see them. Kids are so sharp!) Check out below snaps showing the close proximity to the animals. I guess there's a trade-off because the creatures might be disturbed by the constant stream of visitors, as opposed to our Singapore Zoo, where they get to roam freely from across the moat.

There's also a little game around the Rhino enclosure, which is sponsored by the Waikato Science Teachers Association, a professional agency which represents the Waikato Region's science teachers. There are altogether 50 'stages' of the game, where everyone begins as a newborn white rhino calf and then proceeds on their next instruction by choosing a number between 1 to 6 and matching the number to its respective 'stage'. If you were suay and chose a wrong number, then you die halfway during the game, say due to poaching by unscrupulous hunters. If you were lucky and managed to reach the end of the game alive, your survival state was in varying states of fitness. I bet kids would love playing this - if they spotted it in the first place, as it's rather inconspicuous. I only grew intrigued when I realised there were round tags on alternate posts around the enclosure and started reading further. Only then did it hit me that it was a game. Brilliant! I like :)

Start of the game

Sample 'stage' 23

If you have survived, can you breed?

Heidi all worn out and ready to take her afternoon nap...

The rhinos!

With Grandpa, Granny, Mama! Heidi has KO-ed at this point

Some other creatures in the zoo were new to me as I had never seen them before (or maybe didn't pay attention in our own Singapore Zoo), such as the Bleeding Heart Pigeon and Capuchin. Have included a sampling of some of the zoo's inhabitants below :)

The said Bleeding Heart Pigeon. Doesn't it look like it got stabbed in its chest?! Omgggggg

Brown Capuchin

Cotton-Top Tamarin. Looks fluffy enough to sleep on ;)

Other furry friends

Piggies!

We had a great time at the zoo, and wanted to grab a bite but the fare on offer looked disappointing so we decided to head to the Hamilton Gardens Restaurant (read here). There is a small shop at the entrance/exit which has cool zoological souvenirs. Was also pleasantly surprised to find merchandise in support of the Jane Goodall Institute. Jane Goodall is considered to be the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees and has worked extensively on conservation and animal welfare issues. I bought two lovely beaded necklaces in turquoise for my sis and another multi-coloured one for myself :) It's for a good cause!

By the way, if you don't intend to bring your own baby stroller, there are a limited number of prams for hire at the reception.

WHW

Safari dress from Zara Baby, Grey polka dotted tights from Fox Baby, Pale green knit cardi

WBW

White V-neck tee from Gap, Green floral midi from Style Societal, Rose printed scarf from Downtown East, Flats from Moda Paolo

Yummilicious!

The last time we were in NZ, we basically lived on fish and chips. This time, we tried to have a more adventurous menu but it was a bit hard to find good eats in Hamilton. The best meal we had has got to be at The Gardens Terrace Restaurant, Hamilton Gardens!

We initially wanted to walk around the Hamilton Gardens amidst the lush, pretty grounds of beautiful flowers but we didn't have enough time, as our schedule was really tight. Nevertheless, we made it to the restaurant for a yummilicious lunch.

The restaurant is nestled among tranquil surroundings, and just a wee way off the gardens.

My Mum's cuppa. Boo. I don't like kopi.

In the Christmas mood!

To fulfill even the pickiest carnivore ;) This was my choice and it put a big smile on my face!

My Mum's generous portion of spaghetti with scrumptious prawns

My Dad's delish fish with greens on the side

We were quite lucky to get a spot in the restaurant as it was rather full. There were plenty of families so it was super kid-friendly, although I don't recall seeing any children's menu. Perhaps it was because Heidi was too young to eat a whole meal? But there was children enjoying themselves at every other table so guess the food went down well with them as well!

Happy Heidi!

If I go back to Hamilton again, I have to make time for the gardens. My Dad managed to have a quick walk around the gardens a couple of days before we arrived and his photos looked gorgeous! Will put up his pics soon ;P

Miranda Shorebird Centre

One of the places we intended to visit with Aunty Monty was the Miranda Shorebird Centre. My Dad and Aunty Monty are avid birders (read: bird-watchers) and they had formed a firm friendship over many a birding session. The Miranda Shorebird Centre is an independent facility funded by a trust, of whom Aunty Monty was an active member.

If you are part of the birding fraternity and have not yet heard of this place, you should hustle down now! Check out the centre's website on how to make your way there. There are self-contained units there too if you intend to have a restful time nestled in nature and a stone's throw from the bird hide.

I admit that though I've joined my Dad on his many birding trips, I know very little about the craft. Do you know that experienced birders know exactly what bird it is from their call? Man, one of the only birds I can recognise from its call is the koel because it sang so loudly outside my window every morning previously that I wanted to cook it for breakfast. That aside, my Dad is a superstar birder who birds almost every other day! For interested noobs, you can check out the Nature Society (Singapore) website and the scheduled bird trips that the Bird Group organises once a month.

Back to Miranda. At the bird hide, you are able to have sight of the different species ranging from native NZ ones to migrants and vagrants. For followers like my Mum, Heidi and me, we just trudged along and tried to keep up with my Dad ;)

Dad found some fellow birders!

Unlocking the hut for us noobs to rest

Picture perfect moment for Heidi and me!

All snug and wrapped up in her blankie. It was coooooooooooooold that day!

WHW

Green knit cardigan, White pinafore with multi-coloured hearts from Carter's, I Heart Mom pants, Pink socks from Cotton On Baby, Brown moccasins from Bobux

WBW

Black cardigan & Denim shorts from Cotton On, White tee from River Island, Grey tights from Topshop, Rose printed scarf from Downtown East

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Now that wasn't very enticing was it? That's because you weren't seeing it from a birder's point of view! Check out these stunning photos I grabbed off my Dad's camera.