12 Dec 2012~

it's 12/12/2012 12.12pm!

seriously, what's the significance of such ''important'' dates? maybe i lack EQ, but i truly cannot appreciate... my take is, juz treat every other second as the most important time of your life. treasure all around you my friend. =)

Jesus my Lighthouse

"There's a lighthouse on a hillside

that overlooks life's sea.

When I'm tossed He sends out a light,

light that I might see.

And the light that shines in darkness now

Will safely lead me on

If it wasn't for the lighthouse

This ship would sail no more.

"Oh I thank God for the lighthouse

I owe my life to Him

King Jesus is the lighthouse

Upon the rocks of sin

He has shone a light around me

That I could clearly see

If it wasn't for the lighthouse

Then where would this ship be.

"Everybody that lives around us

says tear the lighthouse down

You know the big ships

they don't sail by this way no more

so what's the use of it standing 'round?

Ahh, but then my mind goes way on back

to that stormy night,

when just in time, oh thank God I saw the light

'Twas the light from that old lighthouse

that still stands up there on a hill."

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birthday boy!

it's the mopappy's birthday! hmm not exactly a successful attempt for a socially acceptable full fledged birthday celebration. in fact, we pretty much had a slightly more than normal day that's all.

~that's pappy looking v hungry~

we decided to chiong into the restaurant juz cos there is happy hour 20% off! only to find out that we were cheated. it's not so cheap after all! =(

but surprisingly when food came, they were more delicious than expected (not too sure if we were too hungry, or that our expectations werent too high to begin with). note: the tempura plate only had prawn left cos i had to eat up the tempura veg so that i have enough strength to hold the cammie. too hungry!

 

at night, we headed to starbucks for a slice of birthday cake! alsto not v peaceful considering we had a hyperactive baby in tow... but i tink we enjoyed every single moment with bb around, happy, tired, or bittersweet!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOPAPPY!

chalet!

Venue: Treehouse Chalets (SAF chalets) at Changi

Originally intended to be the venue for bb's first birthday bash, but due to unforeseen circumstances and various reasons, the plan was aborted.

counted the costs and decided to go ahead with using the chalet instead. we had a small family gathering with a tiny BBQ and some home cooked food. crazy grandma insisted that cooking chicken wings using the  血滴子 is better than BBQ-ing. erm, true la, nvm, the impt thing is i've finally understood why they named that cooking thing 血滴子.

from wikipedia: The flying guillotine (Chinese: 血滴子; pinyin: Xuèdī zǐ; literally "Blood-dripper") is a legendary Chinese ranged weapon used in the Qing Dynasty in the Yongzheng era.

~it does look abit like my mom's chicken BBQ-ing utensil... haha~

ok, i'm digressing... anyway, the chalet is HUGE. everything is huge. there are 3 rooms, one of which is a kinda outdoor room facing the courtyard. well, if the chalet is not in changi along the same road leading to the old changi hospital, i might consider staying in it for a feel of the old colonial house type of residence.

there is an inhouse open air jacuzzi too! once again, if the chalet was not in the middle of forested areas, there prolly would be less mossies. in the end, we didnt even use the jacuzzi. arghs, am i getting too old for exploring new things?

on the whole, i would say that it's a pleasant stay! spacious, clean, fully airconed, and cheap! would definitely want to go again!

i'm BACK!

hello everybody! yes i'm back in the online blogging scene after a loooong 1 year break, taking care of the lil one.. well not exactly full time taking care, if u know wat i mean, but it's juz that the lil one does sap away 99.99% of my energy! 

anyway, in short, i've spent the previous 1 year... doing the following stuffs...

1. breastfeeding. haha, it's money saving, healthy, and the in thing to do! i've finally opened the first tin of PAID (with my hard earned money) formula milk yesterday. hopefully, darling giselle baby does not waste a single drop of it! eh but why am i feeling more sad about my hard earned money than my earned squeezed milk? booboo.

~M is for MOO. milk milk and more milk~

2. shopping. online shopping. window shopping. sales shopping. preloved items shopping. in all forms. except that now i buy baby stuffs. i love hunting for the best deals for diapers, milk and foods. it's a natural talent. heh.

~yep, tis me and angela at an expo bb fair with the pampers mascot!~

3. celebrating birthdays. oh 1 person's birthday to be exact. the lil one's. she juz turned 1 not too long ago, but she already had 5 birthday parties! my oh my. 

~FIVE bday cakes! the aeroplane one dun count, it's bb's friend's cake to stand in cos i forgot to take the pic of the last one~

excerpt from 栏目：《早报副刊》缤纷

abit wordy... caution: you might get a migraine headache from reading too much chinese characters. but it's inspirational nonethelesss.


我相信三种“反向理念”：

1．爱你变成害你
天下有哪个父母不疼爱孩子，但有时过度/错误的爱会造就一个坏孩子。问 题在于不懂爱|、不会爱就会变成害，无私的溺爱可能摧残孩子。

现代父母很多出外工作，迟回、加班令他们疲倦，回到家未必有时间好好陪子女；有些家长为了弥补时间上的不足，通过物质或金钱来满足孩子，希望这么做会让他 们快乐一点，或至少让自己好过一些。
物质追求的危险在于它的无穷无尽，如果我们过分追求物质享受，最终不是 我们占有了物质，而是物质占有了我们。

2．你要他好，就不要对孩子太好
你要他好，就不要对孩子太好，不然孩子会习惯父母的好，他未必会因此对 自己、家人、朋友和其他人好。
孩子比我们相象中坚强，更能承受压力、打击和拒绝。如果对孩子凡事都有 求必应，那日后当他面对不如意时，可能缺乏应变能力，把失败看得太重，因为在他的生活里你对他太好，他不能理解为什么别人对他不好。
三姐弟起争执时，我尽量克制“老妈子出马”干预的冲动，让三人自行解决 问题。我告诉孩子：“除非有人头破血流，妈妈才做“包青天”，不要一点小事就来投诉，动不动就哭。哭不能解决问题，最糟糕的是一边哭一边投诉，让人听不到 你伤心什么，浪费精力和眼泪。”
我没有告诉你们，妈妈最大的愿望是，当我不在你们身边，当你们被别人欺 负、有委屈时，能够拿出勇气与智慧，面对自己，应付他人，因为已经在家学会化解不合，出外容易一些。

3．不要全部安排好好，让孩子跌倒
今日父母的另一项“惯性运作”：为孩子安排一切，包括一天24小时如何 度过。
多数人觉得为人父母的首要任务是督促子女学习，推动他们考取更优秀的学 术成绩，所以尽量安排补习、课余活动如学习琴棋书画，周日和周末的行程排得满满的，甚至比大人还忙。
学业成绩真的这么重要吗？中国南部一所教育学院追踪过去30年来，在高 考中考获优异成绩的首1120名状元，发现今日无人成为工业精英或国家领导。
如果你今天为孩子安排得太好，那就必须做好心理准备：长大后的孩子，未 必有能力替自己安排人生。他也可能对父母的好意产生反感，一有能力反抗就故意“你叫我做什么我就偏不做！”放心让孩子跌倒，记得一首童谣唱道：自己跌倒自 己爬，我是个好娃娃！

我希望给孩子的三份礼物：自信心、沟通能力，和献身精神。
一个有自信的孩子，不容易被挫折和别人的伤害打倒。一个善于表达自己的 孩子，能够整理并控制情绪，知道问题出在哪里。更重要的是，千万不要用言语来伤害别人。最难得的好孩子，是对别人好的孩子。妈妈希望你们做一个这样的孩 子：对别人好，令人快乐 —— 做个好孩子，这是孩子们能给父母的最好礼物。

Giselle Baby *hearts* Surely!

Hohoho! Giselle Baby is one lucky baby who has gifts every other day! Alright I'm exaggerating. On days she doesn't have gifts, mama G aka I will be buying all sorts of funny things. My house is turning into a infant care centre, seriously.


- Posted from my iPhone

Dentists

Visits to the dentist are horrifying! Perhaps it's due to our traumatic experience with dentists when we were young that caused such dreaded reactions in us today.

I'm at the dentist now and I'm having cold feet. Technically it shld be easy peasy, faster than giving birth. But if u ask me, I'd rather head to the labor ward again. :(

Will the tooth fairy pls appear NOW???


- Posted from my iPhone

CNY Gathering!

CNY gathering this year is at Ad's place! she had kindly opened up her house for potluck! 

i wasnt really feeling v well that day, but i lugged my lazy ass outta home nonetheless. after all, it's VERY difficult to organise a gathering for 5 busy people to come together. =)

apart from the many tins of CNY goodies on the living room table, our potluck was nothing near CHINESE. we have shepherd's pie, salad (with super high end cheese), pasta, stuffed portabello mushrooms moscato (of cos, coke for me, boohoo).

 the only CHINESE thing to adhere to the CNY festive mood is ngoh hiang! i contributed to chopping the ngoh hiang into cubes... dats juz about all i've done in the kitchen, hehe.

 finally the table is set! yummylicious!

 we remembered to take a photo of ourselves to remember CNY 2012. =)

 and not to forget angel! she looks so cute!

CNY/Valentine's Day Gathering!

this has gotta be one of the most happening groups i've ever joined... moms from all walks of life, all parts of the country (and some even from overseas), gathering together to share our joys, pains, experiences, questions and answers to everything i can ever asked regarding our bunny babies.

finally i managed to physically attend a gathering. yes, i'm quite the scaredy cat you know. bringing baby out alone is like a nightmare. and this time round, the Husband has agreed to attend gathering with me! yippee! 

and off we go, preparing for our first date with the moms and babes! it's PINK THEME too!

~Giselle Baby found a valentine!~

 

"zay bo ho": (hokkien) this no good...

it's too much to handle to have a screaming/yakking/shrieking baby at home. it's even more mind boggling when the fanatic grandparents come into play.

giselle baby has been getting too much attention from the crazy granny and grandpa... every whim that comes from giselle baby, grandpa will immediately get down to finding out the root of the 'problem', even if it doesnt exist.

for example, when giselle baby lets out a shriek after being put into the high chair, grandpa goes "zay bo ho", followed by a trillion reasons that may have caused discomfort to his precious granddaughter.

when giselle baby heaves a sigh of relief after flipping on the playmat, grandpa says "zay bo ho", cos giselle baby says so (or heaves so)...

when giselle baby screams while looking at her cloth book, grandpa also screams "zay bo ho", i'm not too sure if it's the cloth, or the contents which is "bo ho".

so when everything is "bo ho", i wonder which is "ho"?????

online shopping!

every since Giselle Baby was first discovered to exist, i've been venturing into the unknown, and dangerous world of online shopping. dangerous, it's truly dangerous, for you do not know the amount of your wealth u've been pouring into it.... 

in any case, from baby gap to osh kosh to gap for meself, u name it, i surf it. recently aunty lim recommended me fred perry and asos too... thank God i aint a fan of fred perry. so i better stick to the free shipping asos for now.

oh and did i mention that i shop in LV too? yep, choose my loot and tompang mimi in paris to get it for me. my recent buys are the tivoli PM and a wallet for the Husband. love the smell of new leather! 

(shall upload pics soon!)

20 tips for better living in the new year...

1. Rise and pray every day: "Again today, dear God, I commit and trust my life and way to you. I'm available. Please use me to be 'as Jesus' to every life I touch."

2. Don't sweat the small stuff.

3. Remember these simple sentences: "I was wrong." "I am sorry." "Please forgive me." "Thank you." Say them whenever needed and say "I love you" often-whether needed or not.

4. Come apart and rest a while before you come apart-stress is a killer.

5. Remember, "Nothing changes if nothing changes."

6. Don't nurse grudges: "Failing to forgive is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die."

7. Carpe diem. Seize the day. "Opportunity comes to pass—not to pause."

8. Quit the blame-game—"choice, not chance, determines destiny."

9. Control your thinking or your thinking will control you. "What the mind dwells on the body acts on."

10. Invest your life in a worthwhile cause by having a noble purpose for which to live—one that is bigger than yourself—one that will help make your world a better place in which to live.

11. Be a positive realist. You will always see what you are looking for: "Two men look out the same prison bars. One sees mud, the other stars."

12. The greatest abilities are availability, dependability, and responsibility."

13. "There is no pillow as soft as a clear conscience."

14. "Smooth seas never make skillful sailors."

15. When God is silent. "I believe in the sun even when it isn't shining. I believe in love even when I am alone. I believe in God even when he is silent."

16. Cry when needed. "Every unshed tear is a prism through which all of life's hurts are distorted."

17. Laugh a lot. It's still the best medicine.

18. Remember, "The bumps are what we climb on."

19. Fear not. At least 95% of the things we fear never happen. Trust God for the other 5%.

20. Have faith and put God first with your time, talents, and tithe (money).

- Posted from my iPhone

back to work!

my maternity leave officially ended on the 21st of December... they always say, babies grow up very fast, treasure the moments when they laugh, cry or even poo on you... yes, it's true...in the blinking of an eye, Giselle baby is 3 months old! 

going back to work is bittersweet. on one hand, i am kinda looking forward to the normal, sane lifestyle i used to be leading for the past 21+++ years. well, on the other hand, i will miss my baby! =(

first day of work passed, not surprisingly, extremely slowly. didnt really get much work done. in fact, there was little or no handover of tasks back to me at all... i thank God for understanding colleagues, and i thank God for those not-so-understanding ones, they are the ones who make me cherish the nice colleagues even more.

and speaking of nice colleagues, i have to say that the nice ones are those who leave most of the time. first there was cat, surely, sherrifer, wanqing, sebastian, joanne, irene, and now agnes. she's one of the most patient girls i've ever seen around. gonna miss her much! 

 work now includes the lunch time pumping milk session. i was told the nursing room is very comfortable. indeed. it comes with a fridge, steriliser, wash basin, brushes, power outlets, and even my own personal locker! i love my big BLUE company!

and tadah, milk from my first day of work! mooooooo~!