Hort Park Sunday

Dear Diary,

This is my second time visiting this park. I have previously blogged about this park before. Well this will be the second entry about this park!
Its a beautiful park where many people choose this park for wedding photoshoot. The sun was shinning very bright and the weather was good! We met up with minnie and mikey for a catch up. We walked for a short distance and we were sweating already. We took some good shoots on the way. During the afternoon there are not much people around, so we offleash.

The girls enjoying the freedom.

chasing the sun!

The girls with mikey and minnie, exploring the place on their own.

runnnnnnnnnn~!!

posing for the photo.. Minnie's head held high!

*lick*

So many cute things around.

Minnie enjoying the freedom.

Mikey wants some grass smell on his body.

Love this. but the sun was so hot and glaring. hahahaha!

I love my walk there and will love to go back there again. Maybe this time i will go towards the evening when it's less hot. HAHA! This park is a gardening park. So there are lots of plants and they have labels on it. Its a very educating park and its recommended to bring kids there. They also have a very big playground for the kids. 

We had a lovely walk and lovely day! Bb and clover also accompanied me for facial before that. 

I am so glad i have the girls in my life!

Love,

Bumver Mummy

Punggol Settlement + Coney Island

Dear Diary,

We started off our weekend with a hearty breakfast at Punggol Settlement. It has been a while since i last went to Punggol Settlement. This cafe is my personal favorite. They have very delicious food. All-day breakfast till 3.30pm. This cafe is called Just The Place. There are a few dog friendly cafes on the second floor, just have to ask the store owners.

Happy smiles!

Farmers platter

I forgot what is the name of this plate my friend ordered. :p

We had a very slow and relaxing morning. Then, we decided to take a walk. We initially didn't intend to walk Coney Island as we didn't prepare our full gear. We are also afraid that there will be monkeys that may attack our chihuahuas. Chihuahuas are so small after all! I know, i am a very paranoid fur-parent. *hahaha* 

Anyway, as we walked closer, we got curious and we didn't see any monkeys. Previously, few months ago, I saw a lot of monkeys sitting outside the gate of Coney Island. No monkeys for the day, that's why we walked in bravely. To take more precautions, i carried the girls. On the way in, i saw beautiful butterflies. I do no own a Micro-lens for my DSLR. So i couldn't get a best shot. We walked by the side and sat by the sea. Still no monkeys. :)

The Gate of Coney Island

Beautiful Butterflies 

BB enjoying the wind

This is Buddy!

The brave fukids that are not afraid of monkeys!

Clover just don't wanna look into the camera today.

The sound of thunder came. We faster packed and walked back to the car. The distance from Coney Island back to the main entrance of Punggol Settlement is quite a far walk. Suggest to rent a bike. 

One day when i got all my precautions ready, we will explore Coney Island deeper. For now, we don't want to risk any thing. hahhaha!

Thanks for reading!

Love, 

Bumver mummy

Labrador Park

Dear Diary,

Last weekend, we went to Ladrador park for a short walk. The weather has been quite bad lately. There is no sun and has been raining in the afternoons. This is my second time coming to this park. The first time we came here, it was also a rainy day. Previously, we only managed to walk for less that 15 mins and got stuck waiting under a shelter for at least half an hour due to the sudden downpour. This time, it sky didn't look too promising but we were already on the way there. We managed to walk one round around the park. The floor was quite moist and muddy since it was a wet weather day. We intended to explore towards the Cannon area, but was afraid of ants due to the rain. I noticed that during raining seasons, ants come out to play all the time. So we have to be very wavy. Not long later, it started to rain again. We hid under a shelter and waited for the rain to stop.

The park is quite small but the air is so fresh. If lucky, we can also catch a glimpse of a cruise departing!  There are only 4 bbq pits there. We have yet to explore further due to the rain. We will find a good opportunity next time to explore the whole park again.

Clover greeting Wulf!

Crazy bb enjoying herself

Wulf wulf, catch us if you can!

Hide and seek?

Hanging out at the playground

  

Bb figured how to play with the tunnel!

Didn't manage to take a picture of the environment because it was quite cloudy due to the wet weather. 

The furkids didn't get wet at all as these shots were taken after the rain. The floor was quite muddy but I was intending to give them a bath after all. 

Due to the rainy season, its not surprising that other bugs may come out to play. Safety precautions to prevent ticks and fleas have to be applied. Bb and Clover are under Bravecto, a medication that has fleas and ticks prevention for 3months. Everyone has different measures and different methods for prevention. Many people do not dare to try oral prevention as it may be harmful to their body. Actually, as long as its not natural and it's a form of chemical prevention, i feel that it's equally harmful. Bravecto it's certified and recommended by our vet. Some other dogs have side effects of vomit. I intend to switch them to natural prevention. Eg, Essential oils. 

I have been doing some research on some essential oils and intend to try it out to see if it works. I will do an update soon once my research on this natural prevention is successful! 

Have a good day!

Love, 

Mummy bumver

Sembawang park - Dog run!

Dear Diary,

This was our 3rd visit to Sembawang Park. The park is big and there are a lot of things that we can plan to do there in the future. There are BBQ pits, a mini beach area, a cafe (not sure if dog friendly as i didn't ask), playgrounds and most importantly, a enclosed dog run! This park is located at the end of Sembawang, that's why there is a mini beach area.

We visited the park at about 2pm in the afternoon. It was the raining season, so we took opportunity when the weather seemed good. There was a small incident that happened in the park but i had already feedback to NParks about it and they were very efficient in their response to the situation,

The incident: When we arrived at the park, we made our way to the dog run. When we were approaching the dog run, we saw a park worker driving Tractor around cutting grass. He was talking on the phone while he was on his job. At first i didn't pay much attention to him as it was none of my business anyway. So i proceeded to go into the dog run to have some fun with my girls. My girls were so happy running around and i was taking pictures of them. Then suddenly i noticed one of the fence was widely opened. I looked closely to make sure i didn't see the wrong thing because it is not a usual thing to have a missing fence in the dog run. I was shocked at first then i saw the same park worker who was driving the Tractor driving the Tractor into the dog run! Despite me shouting at him to stop whatever he was doing, he ignored me. I guess he was still on the phone and couldn't hear me. I quickly grabbed my girls and got out of the dog run, I was very furious by his actions as this might cause any unwanted accidents. If he was scheduled to maintain the grass in the dog run at that timing, he could have informed me first so that i can leave the dog run. I was so concerned what if my girls dashed towards his Tractor when he drove in? Well, I went back home to send in a Feedback to Nparks to notify them of this issue.
Nparks was very responsible and called me back within 1 working day, They informed me that they will take necessary actions and ensured that this will not happen again. I did mentioned to them what if there are other people in the dog run as well. What if there are dogs who will run out of the fence while it was being opened. What if the Tractor knocked one of the dogs down? Well, as long as Nparks ensured that they will take necessary actions, i am contented already. Hopefully there will not have any other similar incidences like these.

Lesson learnt: no matter where we are, we can't be complacent with our environment. Our Furkid's safety is our responsibility. No matter what happens, we have to act fast.

Anyway, Sembawang park is still a very beautiful place. I guess that incident is just a one off mistake so we will just shake it off. I will still come back to Sembawang park again. We met a few friendly dog owners on our first few visits there. We will come back one day in the evening to catch up with them again. Well, we left the park ar about 4pm as it was about to rain. It started drizzling and we had to run back to our car. Overall, we had a good day. At least some pictures where taken before the Tractor came to spoil our fun.
Enjoy the pictures!

WEEEEEEE~~~!

Wait for me~!

Sisters walk

mummy! stop taking pictures already! Let's Walk!

Love, 

Bumver Mummy

New Year 2016! - the proposal

Dear Diary,

Its 2016! We planned to countdown the new year at Bay East garden as we heard that there will be fire works at Marina Bay. We chose Bay East garden is because this garden has very beautiful view. We brought BB, Clover and Kashew along. Kashew's owners came too! We wouldn't leave them at home for such big occasion. They are very important to me, therefore they should be involved in every important part of my life.

We thought that there will not be alot of people there as on normal days, the park is usually very empty. Least we expected, there was a massive jam to enter the park. There were road blocks and the traffic police stopped us from entering the car park. No choice, we countdown in the car. We managed to have a small corner view of the fireworks. Well, better than nothing. haha! most importantly, all of us are together for the countdown, no matter where we are.

We waited at the side of the road. Even after the countdown and many cars had already exited the car park, the traffic police still refuse to let us in. They even tried to chase us away. We managed to persuade them to allow us to wait as we really wanted to go in the park. Finally after 1 hour wait, we managed to drive in.*piew*.

There were no more fireworks but there will always have good night view!

this is the night view from Bay East Garden. Beautiful right? This garden is also connected to Marina Barrage. A lot of cyclist enjoy riding thru the park connectors.

I also had a very huge surprise. Bumver daddy proposed! His initial plan was to propose during the fireworks, but we missed it. It doesn't matter at all because i was very touched! With our friends witnessing the whole process, i felt really blessed! First beautiful thing that happened in 2016!

I wanna thank our friends, KK and SH for being with us during the process and helping to make this possible. BB, Clover and Kashew were also there to witness us. My night was so special and we spent the whole night celebrating the occasion. 

Kashew greeting us in the morning. 

Seems like 2016 will be a busy year for the both of us since there will be a lot of preparations for our wedding. we have yet to decide on location and other details. 

Reflections on 2015:

2015 was a tough year for me. Bumver daddy was working overseas and not home most of the time. i had to overcome alot of things alone and have to be independent. Lucky i have true friends who were there for me to overcome obstacles. There were times where i didn't have the courage to drive far places and edra and gang taught me how. They took care of me like family would. I am really very glad i have them.

There were times miss Daddy Bumver so much that i randomly flew overseas to look for him, yuki would help me take care of my girls unconditionally. I really appreciate and the girls really love her a lot. 

There were lonely times when PK will come over to my place to accompany me or invite me to her house for dinner. She would accompany me anywhere. 

Many true friends also reached out to help me once they found out that i suffered from anxiety. i really appreciate all the love and concern and i really do treasure each and everyone of them. 

 I was lucky to have my family members to support me and always there for me whenever i was down as well. I had my neighbor's support who invited me for dinner everyday. I felt so loved and well taken care of. 

With everyone's love and care, i grew stronger. i had to face many situations alone. It wasn't easy but i was thankful to be given this opportunity to learn. When i look back at 2015, i know i been thru a lot. most importantly, BB and Clover was there to give me the courage. It was them who made me learn as it was my responsibility to look after them. 

2016 is here and more challenges ahead. A new phase of life is coming for all of us. 

2016, here we come!

Love, 

Bumver Mummy.

Christmas celebration 2015

Dear Diary,

It is the season of giving! Time for celebration!

Christmas party - Part 1
We planned a small celebration at Tanjong beach. We wanted to take this opportunity to introduce the beach to Kashew. He just got his 3rd vaccination a few weeks ago and was ready to explore the world! I was really very excited for him as this will be his first outing as well!

I baked a mini Christmas cake for the furkids to share. What is Christmas without a cake right? haha! I used pork as the base so that it will be more gentle to the stomach as this will be Kashew's first home cooked meal. Usually i use lamb as the base of my cake as it will be more yummy. This is the cake!

Kashew couldn't wait and started to lick the cake. i felt so satisfied that my cake was a success!

BB and Clover were also enjoying the sun running around and having a dip in the sea.

Clover is very curious as Kashew is trying his first swim too!

Slow and steady, Kashew managed to swim on his own! he was afraid at first and later, he got the hang of it! So proud of him!

After the swim, we play with sand. some kids at the beach gave him sand bath! 

BB had her fun digging a big hole as well! Clover helped by supervising. 

The mini party was fun and all the furkids were tired at the end of the day. We exchanged presents and all were so happy of what we got! 

Christmas party - Part 2

This was a post Christmas party with our chihuahua gang. We went to Bay East Garden for a mini picnic celebration. As usual, i prepared the cake! This is my second Christmas cake for the furkids!

Strawberry snow man!

Its also pork based with the same ingredients as the first Christmas cake. Just different decorations. 

All the furkids enjoyed the cake as usual! yum!

We had presents exchange on the spot! Look at all the smiles on their faces!

BB was busy dating her favourite boyfriend, Lilo.

It was a super wonderful Christmas and everyone had so much fun!

We love holidays!

Love,

Mummy Bumver

Bumbie's job as a Therapist, healing paws.

Dear Diary,

BB has been with the Therapy Dogs Singapore  organisation for about a year. *wow* Never knew how time flies. What we do is that, we go for visits to adopted TDS homes. There are about 5 homes that they schedule to visit once a month, each. We have to commit as least 4 hours for every 6 months. This is a non-profit organisation, so all visits are voluntary, Sometimes they do have ad-hoc visits to some other places on random too! For us, we have been visiting Bishan Home for the intellectually disabled constantly almost every month. Not until 6 months ago, BB tore her ligament and had to go thru operation and was on "medical leave" for 6 months. Now that she is fully recovered, we are back to "work" since last Saturday!

We also joined People Association for some ad-hoc visits. They call their team, Pets and Friends. I went to St. John Home for the elderly for therapy visit before and Ling Kwang home for Elderly last Saturday. Not sure if they have commitment hours, as i never heard about it before.

Before joining Therapy Dogs Singapore, we need to go thru certain procedures to ensure that both me and BB are ready for this job. First, i have to visit a chosen home to see my comfort level. If im ok, I had to bring BB to the vet for full body check up. The vet had to write a report to testify BB is in 100% good health condition for this job. Lastly, we have to go thru a test for temperament. BB is a natural. She ignored most of the items which was being used to test her reaction. just make sure no aggression is being shown during the process, and everything will be ok! BB had no expression at all *HAHAHAHA* so it was a natural pass! i was so proud of her!

The day she passed her test

Well, it goes way back when i got BB from a farm. i was a first time owner and i didn't know what to expect. I learnt everything on the way and found out that there was this organisation. I set my mind that one day, i will join them and do good deeds. I wanted to share the joy with others. So one day, i met a friend, whose dog is under TDS. He encouraged me to join the organisation since i already had an idea of joining. At first, i was afraid of committing the 4 hours for every 6 months. But i decided to give it a try anyway.

I chose to visit Bishan home as it was the nearest to my home. Once i started to visit this home, i know i couldn't stop this monthly routine. the residence do actually look forward for us to visit them every month. i was very happy and felt very appreciated by all the residence there. BB and i didn't visit for 6 months and they could still remember us and was very concerned why we didn't visit them. I explained to them slowly and they were happy that we are back again.

Basically therapy service is easy. We just have to allow the residence to play and touch your furkid. You can also create your dog's favorite activity for the residence to play. some of the volunteers brought toys to play fetch, brought treats to show the residence some tricks and 2 leashes so allow the residence to walk them within the area while we guide them using the 2nd leash. BB is small so usually we will just sit around and her favorite residences will crowd around her and pat her while i chit chat with them.

One important thing is that we are not allowed to post photos on social media with the residence faces as to protect their family's privacy. So i will not be able to post any of the photos in her related visits.

Sometimes during my visits at bishan, i will tear and felt upset for them. When i visit old folks home, some of the residence reminds me of my mum who had lost her battle with cancer 2 years ago. Each time i see an old folk, i always wished that i could take care of my mum till her old age. My mum was only 60 years old only and didn't get the chance to see me build a family. I believe that all the residences have their own stories to tell but they wouldn't know how to share. All i can do is to share the joy with them. Just 1 hour per month is reasonable to set aside from my busy schedule.

As much as i wish to bring my Clover along, she is just too feisty to join us. *haha!* We don't have a choice but to leave Clover at home alone for that 1 hour of therapy visit. BB usually gets very drained and tired after an hour as she needs to face so many people and she is only so tiny. But she love the touch of people so this job is suitable for her.

Well, if anyone's furkid is suitable for the job, mild and friendly nature, and if you can set aside time to commit, join TDS! I am proud that my BB is part of TDS and a therapy dog with healing paws. She is so small and only weighs about 2.5kg and she is able to make a difference in someone's life and make someone happy.

Love,
Bumver mummy