Is this the price tt we have to pay?

After ‘working’ a few nites researching on sch and writing ‘resume’ for ALY while I’m still hospitalised, we were unable to get any Sec Sch to review her case yet. Sec Sch posting results just came out: majority of her classmates go to NHHS, some to MGS and Crescent; so actually those sch tt I’ve shortlisted are within ALY’s capability.

NHHS is ALY’s choice sch too. When Man called the sch’s VP(Admin), he was told that there was no procedure for returning Singaporeans (RS) [I was so surprised ... either this VP doesn't know MOE procedure well or no RS was interested in NHHS]. After explaining our situation, he told us to submit an appeal form personally and we could look for him for more information.

When we were ready for submission, my sister called him up to arrange for a meeting. This VP(Admin) then gave all sort of excuses to reject our application [My guess is after getting hubby's call, he quickly went to find out more abt RS]. One of his reasons that I could not accept was that the school can’t gauge her performance based on P5 results and they don’t recognize International Sch’s results :O. Basically no chance for RS since all results (except PSLE) cannot be used??!! … This is ridiculous. He simply refused to even let us submit the form & resume.

The other 3 sch tt we approached actually got their in-house procedure to handle RS and one of them even bothered to email to let me know there’s no vacancy at this moment, and I appreciated the reply (Thanks, Mrs Lim from BPGHS).

Now, I just hope that ALY cld perform up to her standard during the placement exam and could start her academic year as soon as possible w/o having to approach and appeal to sch again.

Even sooooo … … I have no regrets in moving to Germany for a yr and exposed the kids to Europe at an earlier age.

Fr Our “Beloved” MOE (website) … …

“In support of Singapore’s regionalisation efforts, Ministry of Education (MOE) is committed to assisting all Returning Singaporeans to benefit from our education system.”

“In recognition of the different needs of returning Singaporeans, MOE has provided several options for school admission. Returning Singaporeans can choose one or more options based on their individual needs. For example, Returning Singaporeans who have a strong preference for a school of choice may choose to approach the school directly to seek admission, or also apply to MOE for assistance for placement into the school.”

Girls started their adventure … … flying on their own, fr Dresden to Frankfurt to Singapore.
Hv a safe journey.
Will miss u dearly.

Skype conversation btw me and GG … … she and ALY r gg to fly fr Dresden back to SGP on their own today.

Me: so hv u decided which softtoy to go on an adventure with u?
GG: pooh bear, debbi, poccy, bcos there is space
Me: nooooo … too many!! only 1 in yr handcarry
GG: why there is space? aw man .. i like them all 3. dd say i can bring pooh bear and poccy, 1 got no difference.
Me: u may lose some of yr stuffs if u dun take care of them properly
GG: no i put them in my bag, i know i can take care of them.
GG: fine, i will take out…. i dunno wat to take out
Me: take everything out and put mummy in, ok?
GG: ok
GG: mm u need to be quick if u want to be inside the bag. i hv tit-bits.
Me: i luv u GG.

2nd time to Moritzburg, Saxony, Germany.

1st visit was to see Schloss Moritzburg, a Baroque castle served as a hunting residence for Augustus the Strong. We didn’t go inside the castle, just walking around, taking in the views of the big pond, the landscape and the beautiful castle. At that time, there was a dog competition and those dogs were really really big.

When we were taking pics while on our way to the bus-stop, I saw adults and kids picking up seeds/fruits on the floor but didn’t know what they were picking. Then GG picked one, and on closer examination, it was chestnut. As there was still some time b4 the bus came, we went around picking up chestnuts. Some chestnuts had not shed off their outer covering, and the outer covering was vy vy pricky bcos i kena pricked!

Few days later, we still didn’t know what to do with the chestnuts as we weren’t sure if they were edible. So Man cracked open a chestnut and found the taste bitter. We therefore discarded the bag of chestnuts.

On our 2nd visit, we were there to find the ‘lighthouse’. One which was built for entertainment rather than for its function. We saw more birds on the pond, guess they were resting while migrating. The weather was getting colder, temperature had been dropping to below 5C.

We finally found the lighthouse and took several pics against the sunset. The sunset was beautiful, making everything looked so picturesque and romantic. There was a snack store nearby and we saw many pple bought waffle sticks. We ordered 2 waffles and tea … … the hot tea gave much relief when our hands and feet were freezing.

On our way back, we saw an elderly man with his baby owl standing outside his house (I think he stayed there). We were told that the bird was 6-7mths old. It was a beautiful and lovely owl … … was glad that we cld be in such a close range with an owl.

Left about a mth to go, packing hasn’t started yet but got to settle several things in SGP b4 we touch the land … …

First and most impt thing … kids’ education. GG will be going back to her sch, so it’s pretty straight fwd. I just need to know which class will she be assigned to and get a copy of booklist. After notifying her sch, I got an email fr the admin a few days later. She asked me where should she send GG holiday homework to -.-” … … starting to feel SGP’s education stress.

Next, is ALY. After surfing a few Sec Sch’s websites, they all ‘advised’ returning SGPoreans to take MOE placement exam instead of applying directly. Luckily there is another placement exam in late Dec and i submitted the application with payment of S$125. Received SEAB’s email to provide proof of our posting overseas and reason for gg back to SGP … … was wondering what if I don’t hv any good reasons for leaving and returning the c’try, wld my kids still allow to take the placement exam? After submitting the letter, abt a wk later I got their confirmation that ALY can go for the exam. *phew!*

Wow, next big thing is Dr appointments … … bcos we hope to claim fr the insurance before expiry of the contract. Emailed to my fren’s hubby’s dental clinic but didn’t receive any reply. No choice but to contact my fren to help … … dental appointment is so difficult to make, the earliest that I cld get is mid Jan 2012 :O. Next, appt with KK hospital. It was a breeze, just an email to the central booking system and was settled within a few days *thumb up*. Left one more to send email … … chiropractor.

Contacted their ex-music teachers to check if they still have available time slots for my girls. Was told to video their practices to gauge how much progress they hv made … … I’m still waiting for the teachers’ feedback.

First time fall ill since we moved here. Started with tummyache the nite b4 and continue till today with an emptied bowel. For fear of triggering my gastric, I ate some noodles for lunch … … cldn’t digest it and in the end, vomited in the late afternoon. Feeling too tired and discomfort, I fell asleep after fetching the girls home and asked them to help themselves with the dinner (porridge).

When i woke up, my throat was vy dry and i felt giddy, so i sat on the sofa for a while. Was vy pleased when GG took the initiative to get me a glass of water. No choice, still not feeling good, so popped a Panadol. Still vomit. Still hungry. Gastric seemed imminent … ate a little plain porridge + soya sauce. Hopefully, it will go down well into the intestines … … hopefully, i’ll recover by 2mr bcos Dong Hee is gg to cook authentic Korean bibimbap for me and Flo.

Case 1

I noticed GG was sitting beside my bed, so I asked her what she wanted. She said, “Mummy, 笑笑!” So I made a big grin and she fell back and slept.

Case 2

Someone was hymning, a tune that i had nvr heard b4. It was so near, i thot it was ALY, but no, not her, it was GG. After that, she patted on her cheeks twice on both sides, then clapped her hands. Happily she continued her sleep.

All these happened during middle of the nite when all of us were asleep. In fact she was also asleep while doing all these and happened several times. She didn’t know about what she had done when I asked her the next day . Sometimes I was amused by her, but after that I’ve problem to continue with my sleep.