Why I LOVE Hainanese Men...

The recent bustle of moving made me realise that there is good reason to believe the saying that Hainanese men make good husbands.. Well it all started when my mum told me this story:

MY MUM'S STORY
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My mum told me that when she was very young and working, her colleague one day made an announcement to her fellow co-workers that she wants to marry a Hainanese man, and asked who of the co-workers are Hainanese. And her reason for wanting to marry a Hainanese man stemmed from the belief that Hainanese men are very good husband, that "海南老公疼老婆”(Hainanese men dote on their wives), and that they are caring family men.

So that impression was formed when I was a young girl, this story stuck in my mind and I recall it vividly.

"海南老公疼老婆”

My STORY
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I did not consciously look for Hainanese men as husbands, well, back then, I dun really look for husband, period.

But my hubby did consider having a Hainanese wife so as to preserve his pure Hainanese bloodlines (both his parents are pure Hainanese - i.e descended from parents who are both Hainanese... now I seem to have "corrupted" the bloodlines.. sinner, I am.

Still, when hubby and I were dating, I visited his house one afternoon, and I saw hubby's dad doing the ironing. Wah! Very impressed ok! So he very 疼老婆 to do the ironing - a traditionally female domain of work (ok, not now but think people from the 50s generation)

And his dad can cook, does beautiful flower arrangements and lots of other handycraft stuff. Then I remembered my mum's story and what I saw seem to validate that Hainanese men are GOOD family men material. That was when i went.. hmm, can consider marrying hubby if he is cut from the same cloth..

THE FINAL ASSESSMENT
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And so, recently when we are moving (i keep having to resist the temptation to type "moving house" - ala a direct translation from Mandarin 搬家）, once again my father in law proved that Hainanese men are very good family men material.. All the nick nack in our new home are done and managed by him, from fixing the light, wiring the cooker hood and hob, and even moving the electrical socket plugs! Very good handyman!

It can be heart-stopping to see him lift the heavy stuff or climb the tall ladders to do the stuff.. but all his work stem from his devotion to his family - the willingness to go all out to help his son.. Strong sense of family commitment and no wonder they are superb husband and father material.

The Hainanese Men in my Life
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Now I have to bring up 2 half Hainanese men, and I think that it is a worthwhile belief for them to uphold, to train the boys to be good family men material and to 疼老婆. My husband does dote on me quite a bit.. well, back when we were dating, I know he will make a good husband when during one of our trips abroad back then, he actually helped me pack and unpack my luggage early in the morning and late at night so that I can catch more sleep..

Now he dotes on our 2 boys and me, so quite tiring for him actually..

Now that I have enjoyed the benefits of marrying a Hainanese man, I must contribute by making sure my boys uphold this Hainanese reputation.. My En and Xuan must first learn how to 疼妈妈， then 疼老婆!! hekhek!

Finally in 12 College Green

I thought I hate moving, but the greater evil is UNPACKING!!!!! I hate the feeling of searching for items like looking for needles in the hay; one has to plow through numerous boxes before we can even hit the right box, and then look through all the items within that box..

When you want a new item, the search starts all over again..

BREASTMILK LOST IN TRANSIT

The moving has been a nightmare.. and the joke or the saga or the greatest nightmare, whichever you want to call it, was, I lost 150ml of breastmilk in transit.. yeah..the milk which I painstakingly expressed for Xuan was lost in transit.. And I looked through all the boxes but I could not find it..

Of course as usual, the cooler bag with the milk turned up at 12 midnight, amidst a box containing hardware stuff and the vacuum cleaner... Dun ask me how it got there, no one knows, and I never thought to check that box as it was sealed before I took the milk outta the fridge..

See the huge box in the middle of the living room? That's the incriminating box which hid my breastmilk.. sob sob, UPset I really was.. By the time the milk was found, I did not dare to let Xuan Xuan drink it.. what a waste of good vitamins, antibodies, DHA, etc etc... blah!

************************************************************************************

First day at college green was hectic, but Xuan Xuan seems to love it.. i brought him for walks around the estate, visited our cousin across the estate, read him a few rhymes from a book at cousin's place, walked back and he fell asleep.. peacefully..

Music played through the hall in the bright morning, and Xuan xuan enjoys it in his rocker.. I enjoyed sitting out in the deck, and I took this picture while having my fruit and drink..
The snail on the bird of paradise seems so .. nature.. something I will not have seen in my flat, and it reminds of this lyrics from a very nice and moving song, though I dunno the song title, anyone who knows, tell me?

我要一步一步往上爬....



No lack of Visitors - I love the Company

Early morning, Von (NJ's cousin's wife - see that's why Chinese is a powerful language, her status is just 2 words in Mandarin 表嫂 instead of who's who's who) came over to offer lunch and help for us, anticipating that we may not have time to do much marketing for the foods, really nice and thoughtful of her... and other cousins dropped in too: Sze who visited Von also came over, and Si who came to fetch her kid from Von's place also dropped by for a chat.. it's fun to have company and i love the family communal feel.. and of course my mum is staying with me, and i enjoy coversing with her, like I am back home..

All in all, it's a great start - except En seems to sensitive to the dust of moving, and is now having runny nose and a watery left eye, can't wait to have the house settled and have him at home in the day so that i can play with him in the outdoors and bring him for walks!

Baby Xuan, the Boxer?

Xuan Xuan is a very funny boy, like En, he hates to have his hands swaddled..

Even when we swaddle him tightly, he is now able to nudge his hands outta the wrap and wave his arms around..


Recently, he even started engaging me in fist fights.. quite fun actually. And quite strong, for such a young bundle.


He can even sleep with his arms raised, how funny right? He is already starting to amuse me, another cheeky boy in the making I foresee..

Last Blog From Cantonment Close

The babies are sleeping.. Hubby is still doing the last minute packing, and I am here surrounded by boxes of accumulated memories and nostalgia as I blog this...

The nite scenes which I am used to, and so love for the longest time, are going to be out of my life and I am really sad..

I love the city and the sea view; on nights when I have a lot on my mind, the lights of the city scrapers comforted me.. and the breeze of the sea and the lights and bustle of the port always excite me.. I remember telling hubby before that I have always (as far as I can remember) lived in flats where there is a sea view.. Such flats are often breezy and I love looking at the vast waters.. (Ok, so Teban Gardens did not really have a sea, still, the reservoir is spectacular during sunset and it is vast area of water right?!) I will miss these views... very much... And I will miss this house, which has housed so much of my life with hubby and the boys.. life here has been lovely!
















The packing has been horrendously horrible!! I hate the packing, but the glimpse of the new place motivated me.. still, while the new place has its own seductive allure, it does not have a seaview.. Still I feel quite at home already, cuz I also remembered telling hubby (I seem to be telling hubby a lot of nonsensical things hor, now that I blog about it..), that I want to go back to stay in Bukit Timah, which was my first home, according to my parents..

Well, i did not remember staying there, too young as a baby I guess.. (just as I am sure En & Xuan will not remember staying in thsi high rise city cum sea view flat, so we took lotsa pictures to preserve the memories for them, esp. for En)

So I was looking at my birth cert the other day, and true enough, it states, 2B- Namly Avenue.. Wa Zan!! Very high class leh.. well, my parents rented the place, and now i am back to the Bukit Timah area, also renting the house.. Well, so much for Karma right.. I mean, when I told hubby I want to eventually go back to my birth place to stay, I never really thought that it will come true. Then again, life has its owns twists and turns and I believe in karma, or when I am romantic, I can fantasize that my hubby takes all the nonsensical stuff I say to heart and make them come true for me.. hahaah!

Finally, A look at 12 College Green as its nick-nack stage.. and the furbishing of the house made me realise I LOVE HAINANESE MEN (yes, in addition to Hainansese Chicken rice), but more on that the next time, I promise..

Many faces of Xuan Xuan - the Hardcore hand me down Baby

Presenting the many faces of Xuan Xuan... and he is getting a bit rounder, looking more like En when he was about the same age.. even his brownish Beckham hairstyle resembles En... one day I will put their pictures side by side and you will see the similarities.. Then again, they are brother hor, so what's the big deal about looking the similar?Duh..

Xuan is really a hardcore hand me down baby, see his nice blue sweater is a hand me down gift that Aunt Sharon gave to En. I mean, back then with En, it was bad enough with quite some hand me down clothes, and scrooge parents like us even went bargain hunting at second hand baby store to look for items that other parents put up for recycling.. how desperate hor..

But I feel there is nothing wrong with getting second hand stuff for babies so long as the condition is good, and I am sad to hear that Babytown is shutting down its recycling operation.. We had hoped to be able to put some of our stuff up for sale when we no longer need them, after all we did benefited from their store.. see the infant ca seat cum rocker Xuan is sleeping in in the the above pic, we got that in excellent condition for 50 bucks, and that was an instrumental piece in training En to travel in infant seat and later his car seat, it was also great in rocking En to sleep when he was in a tantrum.. We also got a great spare pram at 80 bucks.. How I will miss Babytown, which facilitated the sale of recycled items and ensuring the condition of the item.. How will we be able to get great items at a fraction of the price from now on?

Now, Xuan not only inherited his Bro's clothes, he also inherited all the other baby stuff, ala the cot, the new pram travel system, the playpen, the baby monitor, the wall posters, ..the list goes on.. at least En had some new stuff.. I am now wondering besides the few new pieces of clothes we bought for Xuan, what else did Xuan have that was new.. *scratch head*.. eh, not much indeed.. so bad hor. Thank goodness I bought a new set of very nice cot set for Xuan, like I did for En.. that is something lah..

Well, my philosophy is, scrooge on some, and splurge on others.. then the bill will work out to be quite balanced..

So far, we have bought quite a number of second hand books for En, and that is fine since eventually all the books get worn out or chewed out. Till now, I still can't live with the fact that En is close to totally destroying his Baby Einstein mega book which probably costs over 50 bucks, a very nice and useful gift thanks to Aunt Sai..

But we also splurged on his Baby Leapfrog, easily 80 bucks sans the books and tapes...Simple things like crayons, we splurge on the supposedly non toxic and washable Crayola for his doodling which costs at least 2 times the usual cost of crayons lor..

In the end it is all about balance and sensibility.. so poor Xuan Xuan will have to live with the current state of super hand me downs for now, I am sorry to say even his boardbooks and toys will be hand me down (but dun worry, Mummy did buy REAL cool and great toy stuff for En) so while they are hand me downs, they are superb hand me down..

I am the elder child - no hand me down; Hubby is the only son - dun think he has much of hand me downs, so I do feel for Xuan.. ok.. once Mummy finds time away from his tight feeding routine, I will go get a fabu-whammy-super-duber toy for Xuan Xuan, maybe for his Valentine's Day gift since he is such a sweetheart..this I promise..

My Musing About Parenthood

Check out this video we captured over the weekend..

Again, one of many En's spontaneous moments, and we were glad we had the camera ready..
It captured En's innocence and Baby Xuan's contentment to just lie in bed while his brother shows off his antics...



It is tough and challenging handling these 2 highly demanding babies.. especially now that, Ling Jie the confinement lady, is gone, but lovely moments like these make it all worth while..

Sometimes I think the reason I cope better with Xuan is largely cuz of En. With him around, he provides the entertainment and antics which constantly reminded us that the hardship of parenthood has its returns... Back when I had only En, one of my main grouses was "the baby was so stoic and non-responsive, how can anyone say that parenthood is rewarding, worthwhile etc etc.." and I was highly cynical and skeptical that all the laurels piled on the concept of parenthood were just marketing spins and gimmicks...

But as Celest-al constantly cheered me on back then, she kept saying that it will get better once the baby is older and true enough, now as En gets older everyday, the time spent with him are really more enjoyable and fun and importantly, FUNNY...

So now that I have tasted the fruits of painful labour (pun intended), perhaps, I am better able to take all the pains in strides, as I know that the better days are ahead and they will come.. once Xuan gets older and more animated, we are gonna get double the joy and fun..

Now, I am not saying that being parents are all that blissful, joyful and easy.. It is not. It is really horrendously painful, tiring, highly effort and time consuming and is just one of the toughest and bloodiest job ever in this world, and as one Baby Blues comic very aptly puts it - "Motherhood (in this case, i will include the dad to make it Parenthood) is not for WIMPS", nor the WEAK I will add..

I am now, here typing away, after barely 4 hrs of full sleep for the last 2 nights, but my body is slowly adjusting to the hours.. and just like any tough job, the payback can be, and will be, good to make it all worthwhile..

There are still days in which I still feel like crying, moments when I am immensely frustrated and full of angst, but the little lovely moments like the ones in the video wipes out all that..

I have learnt that in Parenting, the balance sheet never balances and an accountant will always lose, because while the bad stuff always run up to be more on one side, the little grains and nuggets of good stuff just tip the balance and all is well again... That is the way of parenthood, and a reality.

I used to question all the good stuff that some people say, I used to be such a cynic, that I thought that parents always said the good stuff or made parenthood look saintly and jolly cuz they were stuck in that rut, so what else can they say right.. now I know how ignorant I was.. But it is no fault of mine seriously.. Because, Nature always win, and parenthood is one of those stuff, where the golden moments and rewards are only realised and tasted, when one throws oneself in it.. you can't stand by the pool and expect the miracles of joy to be revealed, they will only be revealed to those who are already in the game... and Take this from me, I know better now because I am in it.

Calming Babies... & The State of Serenity

I must say most of the gifts we had received thus far for both En and Xuan have been really creative, innovative and immensely useful in nurturing and developing the creativity and skills for the babies.. from the musical instrument sets, to board books and the developmental toys..

Many thanks to Hsien, En and Xuan received this really nice and calming gift, this CD of calming music comes with a really nice board book too..

The only silly thing is.. our wall mounted CD player which we bought from Muji in Japan was spoilt by hubby when he forgot that the player needs to be plugged in to a voltage converter before it can play (as Japan and SG share different voltage input/ output). That is also one reason why Xuan did not received as much musical stimulation as En when he was in my womb..(next time if En is more creative, smarter etc etc, oops, we know why.. now I feel bad!!)

When I was preggie with En, every night we go to sleep to the music of Bach and Mozart.. Ever since the player was down, Xuan was only stimulated during the last 3 months of pregnancy, occasionally, when I remembered to play classical CDs from my PC..

So I am also trying to make up for lost time by playing him music often post birth.. the only thing is he is such a sleepy baby i wonder if he is getting it..

Calmness and Zen are critical concepts to parenthood, I find.. And it is such a challenge just to stay calm.. given the extreme lack of sleep and the demanding attention and patience needed to cope with babies.We will need to be calm first before we are in a good position to calm the fretting and wailing babies... and this is one of my weakest point..

But I must say, I am getting better.. Back then with En, I totally can't stand his colicky wails and hubby had to be the one to calm and pacify a very demanding En.. En's wails always made me fel like screaming too..

Now with Xuan, I am a lot more zen and calm.. and in turn, Xuan is a lot less frantic and less impatient compared to En. Xuan seems to be a more serene baby,which in turn, kinda influences me and has a calming effect on me.. which makes me wonder if calmness and zen-ness are feelings that are mutually influencing for babies and mum..

Still, there are off days which I am totally impatient with the daily toils of coping with a baby.. those are the days when I crave for a strong steaming acidic mug of coffee.. but I have not given in to the "Coffee's Trap" yet.. since I delivered, I have only half a mug of Old Town white coffee, and only because it was a new discovery which we made.. and tempting as the coffee is, I have made it a point to swear off coffee while I am breastfeeding.. perhaps, the lack of coffee also made my nerves less raw and edgy? and So I can stay more calm? I dunno.. but much as i miss the coffee (and lots of other stuff such as raw oysters and sashimi, bloody beef steak, lovely white wine and the toxic red, which are all taboos while breastfeeding), I will persevere!!

Xuan xuan is grOWing...

Tomorrow will be exactly 4 weeks from the birth of Xuan Xuan.. and look how he has grown!! I mean he is growing and changing right before my eyes.. his hair is much brown-er, baby lashes are brown too.. chubby cheeks, hands and legs are filling out..

Essentially he is becoming to look a bit more like En.. the likeliness is showing up, except Xuan has a more masculine face, you won't mistake him for a girl..

Hubby was just relating this incident of a neighbour telling his relative, when they met En in the lift, that En is a gal.. Duh.. with that ah beng haircut and dressed in blue, how to be a gal..

Well, Xuan is clearly more boy-boy face.. and he is much more alert now.. and often smiling and displaying his cute dimples... and I really adore him.. maybe I miss En when he was such a baby..

Babies are so small, cuddly and red.. but Xuan has a mighty voice.. he is always making noises, even when he is in deep sleep.. and we would wake up thinking he has awaken! This is the start of my frantic photo stage as Xuan seems to be changing more and more everyday! And check out the lines on Xuan's forehead.. ala our esteemed MM Lee... a thinker perhaps? A leader maybe? But a cutie boy definitely!!

En and his Power Comb

This little boy learnt the concept of combing recently... that is, if you count the action of picking up the comb when you ask him to comb his hair, and then knocking his head with the comb ..

Guess his fine motor skills have yet to develop and it seems tough for him to administer the bristles of the comb to his hair.. he seems to be knocking on his skull more than combing and grooming..

So what did the cheeky mum ask him to do one night?
I asked him to comb Papa's hair.. and Baby En Promptly took the hair brush and started knocking Papa's head with it.. HAHAHA!!!

Lash Out!!

I said before that I love En's lashes best.. Again, see the length and the curl, i just can't help noticing it..

Baby Xuan now has some tiny brown lashes, I wonder if they will turn out the way En's did.. I am keeping my fingers crossed..

But at the same time, I keep having to remind myself that the two boys are different, will be different, and that I have to take their differences in stride and not just hoping that Xuan will turn out exactly like En..

I mean, its such a conflict.. On one hand, cuz I am so used to En's looks and ways, sometimes it is so easy to lapse into the "En-centric" mode when assessing or looking at Xuan.. then again, if Xuan is everything like En, then Xuan will always have to live in En's shadows, which will be unhealthy..

I suppose, it is good to have different and distinct features and characteristics between the 2 brothers, but perhaps cuz En was our first and only baby for a while, it is inevitable that he kinda became the benchmark with which we form our opinion of babies.. and it really does not help that even very objectively speaking, En is quite a cutie pie.

Maybe its still too young to assess for Baby Xuan, as he grows, who knows, Xuan may be a real charmer in his own right too.. after all, they do share the same gene pool ya?!

Xuan's First Trip Out!! Hek Hek

Baby Xuan spent the bulk of his first trip out sleeping... much like Baby En the last time.. We brought Xuan along for En's Kindermusik class on Sunday, and it is Xuan's first official trip out, at about 2 weeks..

His "debute' trip was much later than En, think we brought En out at about 1 weeks plus to the famous Prata shop at the Thomson.. while we eat our prata, En was sleeping away in his infant basket..

So here is Xuan too, while we are enjoying our coffee, tea and cakes at an eatery in Tanglin Mall, he is sleeping away in his basket.. And what is En doing? Enjoying his bites of the creamy lemon cake before his class!

Musing about Brotherhood and love...

One of these days, I swear I am gonna put up a list of Top 10 Most Asked Qns to a Mum who Has Just Delivered... well, but for now, I just want to talk about the topic of brotherly love and bond..

Those who have been to hubby's blog will have seen a sneak preview of the 2 boys together.. that video seriously will also have a serious contender for one of the best shot videos this year..

But I have been asked this question so often (I have lost count, but hey, if you have not asked me that question, maybe you are the only one? haks!), I feel compelled to blog it down..

From the moment En was introduced to Xuan, he seems very pleased with Xuan (dunno whether its the way Xuan looks or its the fancy toy blocks which we bought him - as a token of gift from Baby Xuan..)

En also picked up the term 第第 very fast, and when Xuan came home, En will often seek Xuan out by dragging daddy or our helper into the room to see 第第.

En also displays his affection for his brother by hugging his brother (laying his side of his head by his brother)... and i was very touched one day when I witnessed the folllowing:

En came into our room one night making a sudden ruckus, and startling Baby Xuan from his sleep.. and so Xuan was wailing and crying away.. En stopped what he was doing, seemingly shocked by the wails too... So we brought him to see me cradling Xuan, and En actually reached out his tiny fingers to touch Xuan, and then hugging Xuan as he laid his head gently on Xuan, as if to pacify him when we asked him to hug baby.. such a sweet gesture!

I agree when a fren remarked that the responsibility of making sure the siblings get along lie with the parents.. it is indeed our responsibility to ensure objectivity and fairness to both kids, to provide adequate attention for both so they wont' have to fight for our attention.. and not to ever pit one kid against another..

So far, En and Xuan seemed rather different, so I react to them differently too.. En excites and stimulates me with his funny antics and ingenuity, he takes up a lot of our energy engaging him in play and fun.. he is also getting a lot more mischievous as he is easily picking up the bad habits along with his cute antics.. so we also spend a lot of energy disciplining him and keeping him in line, and doing it with care so that we do not stifle or jeopardize his creativity and high spirited-ness..

Xuan so far seems a contrast to En even at that tender age, En was a very challenging baby from the start, even Ling Jie (confinement lady) remarked back then that En was a very "fierce and impatient" baby.. Thus far, Xuan has been less demanding.. and very sweet, although he does not have that immediately "cute" look often associated with En, his sweetness comes through in his frequent smiles, yes, even at 1 weeks, he started smiling quite often, displaying his tiny dimples.. and I love him a lot for his subtle and quiet sweet ways..

I think each parent loves his child/ children in different ways, as per the child's personality..but that does not mean the parent is not fair.. it is all part of the greater human exchange, that's all...
Hubby once told me that there are now 2 more persons in the family sharing his love, but cuz I think we love each person in a different way, sharing does not seem to be the right concept because the source of love is different, don't you think?

Baby En the TV Monster?

Here the angelic boy -- glued to the TV watching his favourite Mother Goose VCD.. See the enchanted look in his eyes, face and all?

He definitely gets this TV monster trait from his father.. who is the infamous "TV freak", or so I call him.. I mean, when we go holidays and check into any hotel, he is more enraptured with the TV and availability of TV than me lor.. And he watches all kinds of program, even if he does not understand the language of the program..

So i have taken precautions when En was young not to expose him to too much TV, but still, how to fight with genes right?

I really hope he will not have to wear glasses like his daddy too.. that will obscure his lovely eyes don't you think?

Now that's a SURPRISE! & the Art of Gifting Tips..

Recently, I ve been reading the bits and pieces happenings in blog of Blinkmummy, who happens to be hubby's colleague/ friend..

And well, check out the Blinkymummy's Christmas surprise, now that is what I call a real surprise, well executed too.. and very well captured, kinda like a spontaneous movie.. I like very muchz.. since i am a great fan of surprises.. well hubby can take many leaves outta that.. since hubby kinda often has the concept, but sometimes not very well executed la.. (think he is gonna complain about me soon).. either that or i a bit too smart - kinda always been able guess what he has planned..

I have always been more of the IDEAS person when it comes to gifting, but I am a tad lazy about execution.

So here is to share some of my ideas for gifts to mums/ mums to be.. if you have a girlfriend who is pregnant, or have just delivered a baby, or if your wife is expecting, try out the following ideas, i think these are things that will make the pregnancy more tolerable, more enjoyable and for those who have just delivered, brighten up their postpartum days/ blues..

People always ask what should we get the baby, but come'on, its the mum who has to go through the 9 mths of pregnancy, its the mum who has to go through labour, and then the post labour tedium and stress of looking after the baby; the baby really just sleeps and drinks and enjoys this new world, so who deserves better attention?! So give your girlfriend/ wife a break with the following - seriously....

***Pre-natal/ Post-natal massage sessions - indulgence, pampering and lessen any mum's worry about that horrific weight gain..

***Facial sessions - same idea as above

***Face Masks, Eye Masks - to prepare or to overcome the stress that comes with parenting, the sleepless nights of breastfeeding

*** Pregnancy or Parenting Books by the Gurus - to kill time, both during the pregnancy and post pregnancy, while waiting to feed the baby..

*** Any good books - to occupy the mind with something else, aside from all the usual baby stuff which can be somewhat of an overkill really...

*** Anti cellulite lotion, creams, ya you know those stuff - pampering stuff so that the mom does not forget that she first has to take care of herself before she is adequate to take care of the baby.

As for surprises for your babies / kids, here are some ideas that you may want to try out...

- Send new year, birthday and christmas cards to your babies, when they are old enough, you will have fun opening them and reading the messages

- Make videos of your pregnancy progress with you and hubby, and record the messages of how much you love them.. the love at this stage is the "purest" - untainted by the fatigue of post birth or the daily tedium of dirty diapers or breastfeeding.. years later, you can review the videos together and more importantly when kids are naughty or tiring, these serve as reminders of how much you really love them - from the very beginning!

- Write letters to your babies/ kids, paint a picture for them, basically any forms of expression of your feelings towards them as a momento for years to come .. something that has strong sentimental value and will stay in the family, e.g. for us, believe it or not, our furniture are kinda selected with the aim of passing them on to the kids in mind.. yeah!

OK, so much of my secret recipes for now.. for the rest, I will have to kill you or charge you if i tell you, since I have not made up my mind yet, well, these will have to do..

The principle of gifting - make it a point to be different and make sure it is surprising, thrilling, enticing and exciting.. basically the gesture needs to produce the effects of a caffeine/ liquor/ banned substance high to have the greatest impact... Good luck!

My New Year Wishes...

Every year I have some fanciful new year wishes and resolutions - such as vowing to curb my temper (duh!), to be more reasonable and patient even in face of extreme antagonism (Duh duh!), or to be more organised around the house and at work (i.e. no more piles of paper or books stacked up anywhere - as if)!

But over the past 2 years, my wishes and resolutions had gotten simpler and more down to earth, i.e. more concrete and tangible and actionable, as guided by things I really like to do or have.. having kids kinda puts one in a different zone..

1. I wish for good health for all my family and myself, only with the blessing of good health, will we have the energy to pursue other things, e.g. no point wishing for more holiday trips etc if we are always sick and fretful right?

2. Next, I also vow to spend more time with hubby, and Momo.. I have excluded the boys because I think it is currently in their nature to demand for attention, but I will have to make a conscious effort to spend time with Momo and hubby.. and quality time at that. That means more private quality time spent with hubby, sizzling spontaneous moments still, (hopefully no aborted plans or disruptive phone calls) and good walks with Momo. Hubby commented one day that Momo is quite pitiful as she spent the best of her glorious 2-3 active years as a pet waiting.. waiting for me to deliver (so not much active sports for her), waiting for En and now Xuan to grow older so she can be around them more easily and play with them... I feel very sad at that.. I don't want to think of Momo old and tired when the boys are old enough to engage her.. So this year, I make it a point to make an date with Momo often..

3. Lastly, something a bit more intangible, I wish to keep the child in me alive, to continue seeking my desire for dreams, romance and believing the impossible-may-come-true .. . I will be turning 30 in (oh God) 30 days time.. yup, counting down to it is like a time bomb going off.. but I don't want to turn old and dodgy.. I don't want to turn jaded and dis-illusioned, as the years go by, sometimes i feel myself being terrible cynic.. So this year, and every year forth, I am gonna remember to keep my dreams alive and LIVE constantly.. I mean really live a life, and not just go with the flow..

Here's to my toast to the new year with a blast!
With the 2 boys, along with Momo and Hubby, life has never been more spontaneous, exhilarating and and vibrant.. it is tiring many a times, painful sometimes, but always memorable and meaningful.. Well, it seems quite like "Life starts at 30" for me!

Last New Year @ 16 Cantonment Close...

and i feel such a strong sense of nostalgia and sudden reluctance to move...

We just saw the most spectacular display of fireworks from our flat, and every year since the Esplanade was launched, we never fail to celebrate new year and CNY with the wonderful festive fireworks.. This year is no difference, except we kinda lack the usual gang of kakis who will stop our mahjong session halfway and scramble to assemble drinks to toast the coming of the new year in line with the fireworks..

But it also seem appropriate for us hubby, me and of course an amused Ling Jie to watch the fireworks in awe.. I will miss the fireworks.. and I so LOVE fireworks lor... esp. in Singapore where there are only so few occasions where there will be fireworks displays..

Like i said, i believe in fate and things falling in place.. whenever hubby (back then boyfriend) drove along AYE headed towards ECP, and when we spot our current blocks of HDB flats, we will always lament how lucky and nice it will be to stay in those flats.. and we always wondered if the flats are for sale..

And as fate will have it, when we are sourcing for our home, the round of balloting include Cantonment Close.. not that we knew it then.. and so we dropped our names for the balloting and indeed got a Q n. of 97.. Hubby even lamented that he had never really won anything and getting the ballot seemed so lucky.. to me, now on hindsight, it seem so fated.

I love everything about this flat.. and it embodied our love and things we like, as manifested in the furnishing and finishings.. Then there is the fireworks.. I love fireworks, both literally and metaphorically.. Hubby scored loads of brownie points for driving me to view the National Day fireworks some 10 yrs ago when we were dating, and from then on, it is like a ritual to go chasing for fireworks on National Day.. and lucky us, our flat offers us view of fireworks from the esplanade!!

So now, I am feeling this sense of loss, that I am surrendering this flat, and all it had brought us, and represented to us, to someone else.. it is as if I am cutting off something.. we really feel so at ease in this place and with perks such as fireworks, what more can we ask for?

So here I am, 10 mins after viewing the fireworks, and spent the first few minutes of 2007 feeling this awful sense of loss...

In any case, welcome to 2007, and may this year only bring us all bliss and peace!! and lots of love and laughter...