My favourite songs for 2009

On the last day of 2009, I wish all of you all the best for the New Year and let's all look forward to being a year older and a year wiser.

That sounds quite sad so to make myself feel young at heart, I've gotten myself into a warp world with these 2 songs which always make me wanna sing along & dance too. One for the very young, and one for the very ah lian. 2 phrases which I've gone through and reminisce.

Why are kids now so violent?

Cos they've been exposed to weapons even before they are out of their diapers.


My deal with Dw was that I agree to buy him Cabela's Big Game Hunter from the States as an advance X'mas gift on condition that he plays it only after JD sleeps.

I should have known better.... BLeAH!

Who's who

Why do people always comment that JD looks like her daddy.. hmmph! She looks like her mommy too! :)

Hi 5

Last Thursday evening. I felt like a teenager all over again, getting so excited about chasing Hi 5, only this time round it's for my baby. And once again, Ah Ma is involved. I think my mom is destined to be chasing "stars" all her life. When I was a kid, she was helping me chase Li Nanxing, Chen Xiuhuan etc so I could take photos with them and get their autographs. Now she's at it for her granddaughter. All thanks to Ah-Ma, we managed to get a photo taken with Hi 5 though JD was not amongst the 1st 70 kids. JD recognised them the moment I brought her near the stage and started her pointing & screaming sessions. And though personally I was thought Lauren Brant was the prettiest, it was Casey Burgess who took most to Jilliane. She played with her and even asked Jilliane for a kiss which she obliged. And yes, those glasses on her are mine.

X'mas in jest

No. 2 or not?

People have been asking, so when's no. 2? About half a year back, I was going no way, never.. it's bad enough with a Sleepless with JD situation.. when JD started to sleep through the night a couple of months back, I was like, erm.. Ok, no. 2 ar.. can consider ba. Now..... oh no, I don't think I want no. 2, not with this 15 month monster who screams so much and sleeps so little!

Seriously.. I don't know. I do miss the days when I feel kickings in my tummy, the anticipation at each gynae visit when I can see the foetus and hear heartbeats. I miss cuddling a newborn in my arms (on this, I gotta stress that this is only if it's MY newborn, as Dw always says, u can't afford to break someone else's baby). To think back, it seemed so long ago when I was struggling to wake up in the middle of the night trying to get my bawling baby to latch on. And now, I'm just don't feel too contented to just smile and recall the lovely moments. (not so lovely then) I want it to be re-enacted again.

But of course, these simply cannot justify me having no.2. There will be the loss of freedom.. it was not easy finally being able to travel again. There will be the hassle of fixing up sore nipples and quality of life will definitely be affected. Attention for JD will be split, spending on frivolous items like pretty frocks etc will need to be curbed.

I dunno.. maybe Dw could consider moonlighting as a tour guide on weekends? Maybe?

A not so good time

I've been feeling very lethargic since I came back from the States. I would probably attribute it to jet lag. It took me a week to accustom myself from Singapore time to US time but by then, it was time to come home and it took me another week to adjust from US time back to Singapore time. It sure didn't help that I was on another flight 4 days later. This time with an airline that didn't seem to have paid their fuel bills. It was stuffy and it sure wasn't surprising that Dw fell ill after our weekend getaway to Kuala Lumpur.

Mom was also ill just before we left for Kuala Lumpur. I guess looking after a baby full time is slowly taking its toll on her. JD's not an easy one to care for. She demands lots of attention and my mom's heart is too soft to let her cry continuously. (funny how she' so hard on her daughter but dotes so much on her granddaughter :P) JD now not only cries, she screams. It doesn't help that her hourly night wakings have returned. A week I'm away and everything's haywire. A terror is forming and I'm drained.

We're all burnt out and I feel that there is a negative aura going around. Whilst I'm thinking of ideas on how to change this positively, I'm also toying with the idea of either getting a helper in or putting JD in childcare.

I still do not know what is the right choice. It was by chance that whilst trying to google for good childcare options I came across this book by Steve Biddulph - Raising Babies - Should under 3s go to nursery. I'm only a quarter through and I'm kinda convinced that childcare is just not the way to go. In its extremity, this book recommends that I should not put materialism before my child and that I should quit my job and look after her full time. I don't think I can do that but once I've finished reading, I will re-evaluate my options and pray that God will once again guide me with the wisdom to make a decision best for JD & for ourselves.

Gen Powell (Ret)

I had a chance to attend a speech by General Colin Powell this afternoon, at the Moscone Convention Centre, San Francisco.

I can never thank God enough for creating this opportunity for me. I've always held this man in awe. I first knew him when I was in Sec 2. At that time, he was at the helm of the war in Iraq and because I was so interested in reading all the news about him, my general knowledge, especially on the topic of the war improved by leaps and bounds. In secondary school, the teachers wanted to force the students to read the newspapers so we had semester's tests on the happenings in Singapore & the rest of the world. I'm proud to say that I passed them with flying colours.

Today, he did not disappoint me. His speech was truly motivating, truly inspirational. He shared his experience on how he communicated with the janitors in the barracks and the hotdog seller along Park Avenue. He told stories on the vast difference from being a General whose presence was vital in the Oval room to a retired nobody, on how he now has to fly just like you & me as his 757 has been taken over by Hilary Clinton. He advised on how a good leader runs an organization successfully. He talked about Gorbachev and the role he played in the fall of the Berlin Wall and the break up of the Soviet Union (although up till today I still have doubts if this was a good move).

It's quite unfortunate that I was not able to take a picture with him. Nevertheless, I'm bringing home with me, words of wisdom, which will always be on my mind as I make decisions in my life, personal & work.

Cool toilet bowl

I was last in Seoul end 2005, beginning 2006.. not too long ago. 3 years later, they've the coolest, most hygienic toilet bowl seat I've ever seen! Just press the red button & the plastic on the seat rotates to a new sheet!

Playboy?

I came back from work a couple of days back and was surprised to see what Jilliane had doodled! What does this look like? 2 fingers? Playboy? *GASP* choy choy choy..

Oh boy, Hugh Hefner, go away!!!!!

老花眼

Baby girl broke my pair of glasses recently. I feel sad cos this pair has been with me for years! I just needed to change the lenses whenever my degree shifts. But on other hand, I'm glad to finally have a good reason to get new pair of glasses.

Since I hit 20, I've always thought myself lucky that my degree stopped increasing. Someone told me that's because I've stopped growing. Ok, that sort of makes sense.

Somehow when I reached into my late twenties, my degree began to drop. For the past years, it continued to drop steadily. Yesterday, I tested my eyes and now it's R 125, L 200. I can even do away with astigmatism in my lens. I was secretly smiling to myself, happy that perhaps one day perfect eyesight will come back to me without having to do any lasik. Can't bear the thought of being awake whilst my eyes are being cut open.

Alas, my happiness was shortlived. Just as I was about to step out of the shop, the optician told me that at my age, my degree should be stabilised. Contrary, degree dropping is an early symptom of impending 老花眼. Oh my! I went into panic mode. What should I do to combat this? She says take many breaks when using the computer, I should always put on glasses when using the computer (the multi-coated lens apparently do make a difference) and to take many breaks and to look at more greenery.

Age IS catching up.

Click to add to cart, click to check out

oooo... I haven't learnt my lesson from my online shopping spree when I was pregnant with JD!

I've just clicked my 2nd purchase from Amazon and it's USD300+ in 2 days down the drain..

Online shopping is just way too easy, way too convenient that it becomes incredibly addictive. Just click to add to cart & click to check out.

AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! Damage done:(

STUPID AUSTRALIANS

Warning: do NOT read this post if you LOVE Aussies.

I loathe them. They are stupid, they are lazy. They are the dumbest people on this planet. DISCOVER WEST HOLIDAYS IS AN AUSTRALIAN COMPANY THAT NOONE SHOULD EVER BOOK TOURS WITH.

I emailed them my taxi receipt for reimbursement and told them to do the refund to my credit card.

A month later, I received an A$ cheque in my mail. I do not have an A$ bank account so I emailed them AGAIN to ask them to refund to my credit card.

After a week of no reply, I emailed them with the subject URGENT.

They finally replied and said they will only do the refund if I mail them back the cheque. I told them, that will only incur extra postage charge at my end and told them to stop the cheque instead. I mean, it's no fault of mine that they sent the cheque to me in the 1st place.

They replied, NO, they cannot stop the cheque and will not refund me if I do not return the cheque to them and they will no longer continue this discussion.

DISGUSTING.

Jilliane - an artiste?

Last weekend was only 4 days but to me it seemed like a week. Jilliane got hit by some flu bug (which I suspected she caught from Polliwogs because of some irresponsible parents!) and this time it was realy bad. It's almost a week and she's still coughing with a runny nose. Her fever finally subsided 3 days ago. So, to play it safe, I decided it will be a no outing weekend. And when there's no outing, it's a perpetual situation of I look @ JD, JD look @ me the whole day. No wonder time passed so slow. Really had to crack my brains for one activity after another..

Jilliane the doodler

Jilliane the blue nose clown

Mom left early Friday morning.. I text Dw and told him to hurry home as I was incredibly bored. But of course, on days you need him back early, he came back past 8pm and it didn't help that Dad was having a whale of his time with his friend gallivanting Orchard Road.

By end of the day, I was really stinky. When JD was awake, I had to constantly accompany her, when she was sleeping, I had to prepare her meals and clean up the house. I only took my bath when Dw came home. It's amazing how she still wanted to stick with me when I was such a smelly mommy... Guess my baby will always be my baby.. *smiling to myself*

3 yrs as a Mrs

Just a few days back as I was cuddling Jilliane before her bedtime, these meaningful lyrics were playing in the background. They brought back memories of the day I walked down the aisle 3 years ago and my dad gave me away to Dw. At the same time, it was flash forward 25 years, when it'll be Jilliane's turn.. and Dw's to give her away.. and mine to let go of her hand..

There may come a day,
When you may long to say,
You'll be forever true.
To a very special man,
Who will take your hand,
As you pledge to give your love away.
So now I pray:
May that moment shine,
Like a diamond in your mind,
And may the love you find,
Keep two hearts as one.
For a Lifetime.

My day with Jilliane

Mom had a doctor's appt last Fri so I took leave to take care of Jilliane.

Initially I was really apprehensive as it was the 1st time that I'm going to drive quite abit alone with Jilliane. Yes, alone. Down to Orchard early in the morning, back home, to Polliwogs in the afternoon etc.

Am glad to say it all went well. Each time I looked into the rearview mirror, she's either looking out of the window or clapping her hands to the children songs playing in the background.

I'm looking forward to the long weekend coming up when mom's going be away and it'll be me and Jilliane once again :)

My George Clooney Machine

Remember my post sometime back on this?

Yes! I've finally gotten it! So Dan & all friends, come on over for a cuppa! :)

I was so engrossed that I didn't even realise my cousin in law took a candid shot of me! :P

Word of the moment - Somersault

She gets really excited when we mention that word and gets into position right away!

Getting ready!

We lift her legs

standing on her head

one round completed, on to the next!

On the bus once again

After a year & a half long hiatus, I'm finally back to taking a bus to & from work.

Almost at the same time when I found out that I was pregnant, Dw got a job that provided him with free parking right smack in Orchard Road. Now that I think back, I'm truly convinced by the phrase, God Will Provide. With free parking thrown in, we jumped on the bandwagon & spoilt ourselves with a car. I get chauffeured to & fro work. We get free parking when I have my gynae appointments at Paragon.

Dw changed job recently. This time just round the corner from me but without season parking thrown in. So, since 1st October, we've had to accustomed ourselves once again to jostling with the office crowd on the bus and bearing the 30min ride to work. I'm quite glad that we're not on the mrt though as I've been through those hideous rides when my nose is pressed on the mrt door or I'm literally body to body with the other commuters.

It's fun being on the bus again, especially when I'm on the double decker bus. I get to oogle at the huge, beautiful houses along Mountbatten Road, Dw & me have more in depth conversations since he need not concentrate on the roads. Just a week and we have more or less seen familiar faces everyday at the bus stop. There's this Spanish family of 3 who is always chasing no. 14 and the other people at the bus stop will need to help them flag down the bus, there's this cute, young ang moh with a pointy chin which looks just like his pointy leather shoes, there's this friendly middle aged Eurasian unlce who greets almost everyone and even struck up a conversation with us.

This also marks my 1st time providing feedback to SBS. I suggested to them that they should add an earlier session to 10E to bring people, like me, who start work at 8.30am, to Shenton Way. The current 1st session which arrives at my bus stop at 8.03am is way too late. Eurasian uncle is pleased, he totally agrees with me. :)

I feel good!

抓週

Had a little tykes gathering over at Kym's place on Saturday and to add to the mood of the mooncake festival, we had the traditional 抓週, all in the name of fun.

For JD, hers was a pretty quick pick. She took a long, deciding glance and went to the garlic, picked it up and handed it over to mommy.

Garlic = 蒜: 代表善於計算

1st reaction was from Dw who said (quite loudly for all to hear): Wah, just like her mommy. Haha. I can juat imagine that if Fong & BB were there, it would have been a trio chorus.

Of age

In a blink of an eye, Jilliane is now 13 months. In case you have not noticed, I've changed her ticker on the left side of my blog to remind me her age as she grows. I've a tendency of not being able to remember ages in small fractions. Like when I was pregnant, I had to write the no. of weeks at the side of my calendar to remind myself at what stage of pregnancy I was. Somehow when the no. goes past 15, I lose track. When baby girl was just born, we were counting in weeks too and after a while I just couldn't remember how many weeks was she and I figured that I will just stick to months. Soon, I'll have to change months to years. I just hope that I can remember years. I do not know if it's being a mother that I sometimes can't even remember my own age or is it more a self denial issue. When people ask me how old I am, I will go.. er.. I'm born in 19xx, then I will do a quick mental sum to subtract my year of birth from the current year we are in, eg: 2009 - 19xx, and there... that's how young I am!

Since I'm on the topic of age, I'll share with you a conversation I overheard on my return flight from Perth between 2 mothers who were seated on the same row as me.

Mother A: Your son's really cute, how old is he?

Mother B: He's 17 months. How old's your daughter?

Mother A: She's 22 months.

Mother B: Oh, almost 2 years!

Mother A: No, 22 months.

Mother B: That's almost 2 years.

Mother A: No, she's 22 months.

Mother B: Er... ok, she's 22 months.

Highlights of our Perth trip

In her little bassinet which was exactly her length. She definitely won't be able to fit in for her next flight.

Cruise along the Swan River to Fremantle

The lovely but extremely crowded Ciao Italia which Matthew & Vanessa kindly brought us to. Great Pizza & Pasta & Heavenly Tiramisu which I suspected caused JD to KO all the way back home.

JD loved the colourful blooms that we came across all over Perth. Spring's a lovely time to go!

The elmo yoghurt that I mentioned in my previous post.

It was mutual excitement for JD & the Kangaroo to meet each other

I'm back from my trip!

I'm all refreshed & charged up! This was a great break, lovely weather in Perth, yummy food & most importantly, I've had my much needed holiday!

Overall the flights weren't too bad. Jilliane wasn't too difficult except that she slept way too short for the 5 hour flight, so much so that Mommy could only watch 1/2 a movie on each sector. And somehow she just refused most of the meals, she didn't take to the post weaning meals SQ served which I though looked rather tasty. She was just contented on drinking her milk and eating yoghurt and strawberries. It was fortunate that there was a huge range of kids' yoghurts that I could choose from and the packaging was really cute. There was Sesame Street, Barbie, Princess and many many more. I chose Elmo in the end, not that it made much of a difference.

Will post some pics up slightly later... am looking forward to my next vacation!

Ozzies are like mozzies

I'm sorry if this post offends any fans of Oz or any Ozzies for that matter. It's just that each encounter that I've had with them recently just further proves that they are not only stupid, they are lazy too. Now I know why Asians go there & excel. It's all because their own people are just too slack.

I tell you, never book any tours or hotels through Discover West.

They messed up my entire itinerary there and just 3 days short of my arrival, I will have to re-plan my meet up schedules, my car reservations, my shopping trips, basically everything! And when I actually made the effort to make an IDD call over just so I could sort things out with them, all I had is, "there's nothing I can do". So similar to that stupid Jetstar call centre staff which I had to deal with in July. And yes, never fly Jetstar, not because the airline sucks, but because the call centre is based in Australia and therefore any issues you need help with, you won't get it simply because they are stupid & lazy. They can only say "there's nothing I can do". Asians should just go there, kick them out of their jobs and let's see how much better that country will progress.

I'm so glad we're situated above the equator. Else down under is a cursed place.

Wives - a misunderstood bunch?

Angelina J told Brad P, either get off drugs or get out of the house. She made it very clear that she didn’t want drugs anywhere near their kids and she said that this was an issue where there weren’t any other options open to him if he wanted their relationship to continue.

It always seems that it's the women who wear the pants in the family now. She makes the decision on household issues, she makes the decision on finances, she makes the decision of her husband's life. As I said earlier, it SEEMS. This was the impression I had too. Afterall, there have been so many stories about daughter in law's run ins with mother in law.

Since I became a wife, I slowly learnt that all these are just fallacies. I have found myself caught in many situations where people misunderstand that I am the one behind each & every action that the man executes. Sadly enough, people never realise that husbands themselves are adults. They have the capacities and the capabilities to make up their own minds. Unfortunately, men being men, tend to be daft, complacent and bo chap. I never once wanted to interfere but somehow I tend to get myself entangled in situations like this:

Salesperson: Sir, would you like to buy our latest product?

Man: Wait ar, I must ask my wife.

Wife: You decide la

Man: I don't know, you help me decide.

Wife (exasperated): You know yourself best, you decide for yourself

Man (who still doesn't get the hint): No la, I can't decide. You help me.

Salesperson: Mdm, let Sir buy

.........................

Things have not gotten any better since I became a Mom. Not only does it SEEM that I run my husband's life, but I also run my kid's life. True, the kid can't make decisions on her own but the kid belongs to 2 people so decisions are co-shared.

At times like these, I empathize with Angelina J. I'm sure many people out there think she controls her husband but being in similar shoes, I know that more often than not, we are being coerced into corners which leave us with no other choices but to make the judgment call.

命中注定我愛你 ...

It's been a long time since I enjoyed a Taiwanese drama.

Anyhow I'm glad I chanced upon this drama one night. What probably struck a chord is me was the episode when 纪存希 came back home late one night and completed the wooden rocking horse that 陈欣怡 was putting together for her unborn baby. It was a simple gesture but yet so touching. Perhaps it's easier for me to relate to it, given that it was not too long ago that I was preparing items in anticipation of JD's arrival.

In this show, the baby never came. How it was lost, I don't know. I missed a couple of episodes and haven't had the time to visit Crunchy Roll.

2 years later, this horse was re-created by the mom, this time round, in the form of a sculpture. It was a belated gift which re-united the unborn baby's parents.

A simple theme and clever use of props, direct, straight to the point but yet so meaningful. I appreciate dramas like these.

from DW to JD: Happy Birthday

DW

1 year has passed since you entered our lives. From the moment you entered our world, you greeted us with your cries, probably telling us that you have arrived. You depend on us to feed, bathe and clothe you, do every little thing for you and we had to decipher these from your different cries. Till this day, you still need us there for you, though it is much easier on us as we begin to learn more about you, but on the other hand you are also learning more things each and everyday and new actions and gestures emerge.

We worried when you did not start to roll over, and crawl when all your other peers started to do so, but miraculously once you started to roll over you didn’t stop, and you now crawl from one end of the room to another, laughing along the way.

You are our gift from God, and we want you to know that just as Jesus will be there for you, we will always be there for you, in good times and in bad, and we will do whatever we can to protect you from harm and provide only the best for you. The past year has been an amazing one, and we look forward to the many, many more birthdays, new years, Xmas… together as one big happy family.

Jilliane can self soothe! ~ almost

I'm glad to be able to say that my baby girl can finally fall asleep on her own. This means a great deal to both Dw & myself as now we can have a good night's sleep.

This was by no means an easy feat. We were hesitant to try the CIO method but yet we also wanted our much needed rest back. So we had to do what we had to do. Firstly, I googled for help and I came across Tammy. She was really helpful. She went through with me very patiently on the routines I had for Jilliane and after the fading method was not successful, we went on with controlled crying. Then I rang my cousin in law, Angelyn, for support. She was a great source of inspiration. When Jilliane was bawling continuously for the 1st night, she spoke with me and I believed she was praying for us at the same time. Afterall she and Ken-li had experienced this just about half a year back so she understood my apprehensions well.

My baby girl still does not sleep without wakings in the middle of the night. She still cries but most of the time she falls back to sleep on her own. Compared to what we had to go through previously, this is a vast improvement. Today is day 6 and we're counting down till day 14!

Light headed

I just had a bottle of beer. Haven't had one for a really long time. More than a year I think. And I actually feel refreshed! A mid-afternoon beer really makes a whole lot of difference! WOW!

Jilliane at 11 months

Short of a month away from her 1st anniversary on planet earth, she certainly had shown much improvement in the development of her motor skills. Those who have been speaking with me often will know that I have been worried that she wasn't as mobile as the other babies around the same age as her.

Come 11 months, she suddenly began to crawl as fast as lighting, she keeps pulling up to stand and when she does that, Dw says she looks like a giraffe whilst Dx says she looks like an ostrich. And sometimes she stands 1 leg off the floor and looks like a flamingo. Whatever animal you resemble, mommy is just happy with you growing a little more day by day.

As I blog now, we're just a week shy of Jilliane's 1st birthday and I look forward to that day with mixed feelings. I'm amazed at how time passed and how lovely my baby girl has grown. I have this tendency to think 1 year back what I was doing with her rolling around in my tummy. For eg, during the National Day Rally last Sunday, I thought back about a year back when we were cheering the Sg Table Tennis team to victory and I thought about my anticipation of PM Lee's speech on the baby bonus.

Today, I've this screaming monster at home who has taken over my place as Dw's princess and ET's & PW's baobei.

I've said it many a time and I'll say it again, Mommy loves you!

Weirdos

The bitch attacked Dw last weekend, attempted to bite him but lucky for him, his pants were thick enough to protect him that all the bitch succeeded was to make a small tear. Whatever drove the bitch to do that is probably she's nuts considering that she was unprovoked. Needless to say Dw was very very pissed and scolded the bitch. Who wouldn't? If it was anyone else, I think the police would have been called in and the bitch may have just been ordered to be put to sleep for irrational aggression.

What seems even nuttier is the bitch's owner actually scolded Dw for losing his temper, as in her words "she's only an animal" and had the awful cheek to come up to me to ask me to train Dw.. ??!!*@$%

So reminds me of a person I read about in an article a couple of weeks back in the ST -

ST: We saw a report quoting you as saying the government would take firm action to control fires only if the haze disrupted flights and sparked protests in Malaysia and Singapore.

Kaban: What I said was that this haze issue was being exaggerated domestically. Why are we ourselves making the noise? Even they (Singapore, Malaysia, other neighbours) are keeping quiet.

ST: But the haze has reached Malaysia, and to some extent Singapore. And some residents there have blamed Indonesia.

Kaban: There are also hot spots in Sabah and Sarawak.It is a matter of what direction the wind is blowing in. They need to base it on an investigation to say the haze came from Indonesia.

ST: How about Singapore, which is near Riau?

Kaban: Like I said, it depends on what direction the wind is blowing.

ST: What is the government doing to try and reduce the forest fires?

Kaban: That (task) is technically under the domain of the regional governments. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has told regional governments to act fast.
Don't ask the central government to do everything. The central government is only helping. The national police have sent helicopters. The Forestry Ministry also has permanent teams working on the ground.

ST: What is your advice for people in Sumatra and Kalimantan?

Kaban: People need to be assisted by the regional governments. They need to be given adequate tools so they will not do slash and burn... There are a few success examples like the one in Oki area in South Sumatra.

ST: Must we wait for protests from abroad and flight delays before doing anything?

Kaban: It shouldn't be like that. Like I said, it is mainly the responsibility of the regional governments.

*%#@*! What's Up with these PEOPLE?!!!

Cheesecake

Took some time off last week to bake a cheesecake. Perhaps it was due to the hot weather and the adding of so many ingredients, that by the time the cake was ready to be consumed, I was too burnt out to have the appetite for it.

Dw & dad loved it, why shouldn't they? This contained 4 packs of Philly Cheese! No joke, it's a super expensive and a super high fat dessert. Now I'll willingly pay $6.50 for a slice of good cheesecake, anything less, will most probably contain less than satisfactory ingredients. I know that for a fact as I've spent about $50 on the ingredients, not including the flour, eggs which I "borrowed" from my mom.

I'm not sure if I will bake a 2nd one in the near future, but if I do, I will cut the biscuit crumbs by 50g (that means less sugar too) and will leave the cake to cool in the oven 1st to minimise cracking.

Mauritius

Digital cams are great, esp if we put in a memory card with huge bytes. We get to take photos after photos and when we're done for the event, we just upload all into our computer. Sounds good eh. Unfortunately, not that great if the photos were taken for an occasion that will only occur for that one time in our lives.

Reason for me lamenting about this is because, 3 years down, I've yet to print my honeymoon photos. I wanted to go for a unique trip, something different from my usual holidays where I'm either dashing from one state to another or zipping in & out of shopping centres. So we settled for somewhere in Sud D'Afrique - the Mauritius. Somewhere serene, somewhere that's not too commercialized, somewhere that's far away from the hustle & bustle of city life. A beach holiday is one which hardly comes to my mind when I'm contemplating a getaway.

I never regretted this trip, except that maybe 5 days would have been more than enough. We chose the 8 days one, certainly not expecting that our return flight would have been delayed by an extra day as Air Mauritius did not have sufficient planes available. Yes, that is how laid back that country is. But the people were beautiful & warm. The sea was blue and so inviting. I spent my time sitting at the patio reading my book or shopping at the hotel boutiques whilst Dw was at the beach trying out the various sea sports. Not that we didn't want to spend time together, but even newly weds need time alone. This was healthy. Afterall, we watched TV together, we had dinner together, we went on excursions together and we have many many years ahead with each other. "I promise to love you and honor you, in good times and in bad, sickness and in health".

This was a truly unique experience for me. I, for one, am afraid of what's under the sea. To me, the sea is another world. A world where we humans should not encroach in. Anything that happens under the sea is way beyond our control. This is why I will never dive. I do not know how to work a snorkel. I tried but I just can never grasp the technique of breathing through that pipe & huge frames which cover my nostrils. It took a lot of persuasion from Dw that I finally gave in and went for the under the sea walk. Needless to say, I was still panicking seconds before I submerged. But once in, I was awed. I have never been that near to corals, I have never been so near fishes and walking on the seabed for the 1st time felt so surreal! Up till this day, I'm still grateful for the invention of this excursion, which otherwise, will not allow me to come up close with these live sea creatures. Somehow seeing them through submarine window panels or glass bottom boats is not the same.

I'm looking forward to my next holiday. This time round with a baby (or by then toddler) in tow. It's really a pity that the KL trip had to be forfeited but to look on the bright side, it could be a "lagi shiok" one.. I'm certainly looking forward to C's wedding in the UK. :)

On radio this morning

I think the topic this morning was on why 18 yr olds have to serve NS but are not allowed to vote. I was daydreaming again as usual so I'm not too sure.

But these 2 listeners' contributions caught my attention:

1) Being able to get pregnant doesn't necessarily make you competent parents.

2) At 18, you are enlisted to train but it's the operationally ready NS men, ie 21 yrs & above, who are put on the frontline during war. (Really ar? I never knew this :P )

Planning baby girl's party

This is so reminiscent of my wedding preps 3 years back. We had to think of the date, the venue, the menu, the guests, the list goes on.

Finally after much debate, if to hold it on Saturday or Sunday, at home or outside, whether to have a bbq or a buffet or both, whether to invite everyone or just limit to family and close friends, we have come to a decision. It will be a Sunday lunch at the Club and we'll only open it to family and the really really close friends, where everybody knows everybody!

Now comes the part which I dread most, the rsvps. It was good that most people had the initiative to let me know if they were attending my wedding but I distinctly remember the handful who just got on my nerves. They kept saying not sure, not sure. Well, screw them. Not sure then don't come. If only they were more emphatic that the hosts have alot on their hands and time could be better spent making the party more memorable for those who were sincere in taking part in the celebration instead of having to chase and beg them for their replies.

I can only hope 3 years on people are better educated on manners and since this is a closed door affair, family & best friends will be much kinder.

Thanks Aunty G for helping me design my invite :) xoxo JD

Ootoya

It was only after we settled the bill and stepped outside that I realised I've not taken a photo of baby girl on the tatami & the pretty dessert that was served to us.

I recommend this place for a simple, delicious japanese meal. It has a tatami mat area which Dw & I & of course the baby girl sat on. It's a good place for parents with babies as no highchair is needed and the babies can crawl round.

Servers there were Japanese who spoke heavily Japanese accented English. So there was slight miscommunication. I ended up with an additional main dish. Nevertheless, because they were so polite and looked so stressed having to speak English, I closed one eye and finished up the extra food.

Go try this restaurant on the 8th floor of Orchard Central. If you pay with an OCBC card, each of you will get a free matcha with ah bolling and azuki, very very pretty!

BB cream .. HUH?

That's how dated I am. Apparently this cream is the "must have" product amongst the girls now and I didn't even know its existence till I stepped into Sasa a few days ago, wanting to check how much discount the shop was giving for Clarins sunblock.

The salesgirl whom I approached then suggested that with my super oily & pimple-proned skin, I ought to give BB cream a try. Salesgirl must have thought that this customer was damn suaku when I went HUH, what's that?! kling kling kling, wait a minute, alarm bells ringing.. that term sounded familiar.. Oh, Ok, I recall, I just saw that TV ad with Felicia Chin advertising for BB cream by Silky Girl.

The BB cream which was recommended to me wasn't too expensive so I figured spending a little money to try it wouldn't kill. Moreover the salesgirl proudly pointed out an article pasted in the shop to me, Andy Lee recommends it.

Initially I was rather proud of purchase, till I got back to office to show off my new loot to my colleague, then I realised that I have been living in the mountains. This has been the lasted fad in Korea for at least 1 year already. True enough, googling revealed many year old reviews on this BB cream. Bleah.

So, I've been using this foundation, whitening cream & sunblock all in one for a few days and so far so good. No breakout, skin looks clearer & less oily. Hopefully this is the product that does the miracles which the rest have promised but disappointed.

Taser

I learnt a new word after reading this article this morning.

What's a TASER?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Taser is an electroshock weapon that uses electrical current to disrupt voluntary control of muscles. Its manufacturer, Taser International, calls the effects "neuromuscular incapacitation"and device's mechanism "Electro-Muscular Disruption (EMD) technology".Someone struck by a Taser experiences stimulation of his or her sensory nerves and motor nerves, resulting in strong involuntary muscle contractions. Tasers do not rely only on pain compliance, except when used in Drive Stun mode, and are thus preferred by some law enforcement over non-Taser stun guns and other electronic control weapons.

Tasers were introduced as less-lethal weapons to be used by police to subdue fleeing, belligerent, or potentially dangerous subjects, often when what they consider to be a more lethal weapon would have otherwise been used. The use of Tasers has become controversial following instances of Taser use that have resulted in serious injury and death.

Drawer Opener

It's not some lever, it's just Jilliane who's learnt how to open drawers and rummage through all our stuff, taking them out one by one. What a mess!

Apple of one's eye

This is no ordinary apple. An old lady was so amused by Jilliane's squeals of delight at the sight of apples at Cold Storage yesterday that she picked one up on the spot, went to the cashier, paid for it and gave it to Jilliane.

How Snooty!

Heard this from Dw's friend whose kid joined an elite school in mid primary as he was selected for a gifted programme. Dw's friend is just an average joe, middle class family.

At the kid's classmate's birthday party:

Kid gave classmate a book as a present.

Kid's classmate: Why you give me only a book? What does your father do? How much does he earn?

Kid: It's not how much you spend, but how much u save.

Bravos to the kid. Shame on his classmate. I do contemplate having Jilliane back at St Nicholas for pre primary & primary education but I have my doubts as well. When I was there, there were already snooty kids who say things like hdb estates are filled with criminals so she will never stay in one. I can just imagine how much worse it has evolved now.

And yes, I spent a great amount of my childhood years sleeping & growing up in a hdb flat. I don't recall having snitched anything nor am I close to being a jailbird.

Jilliane at 10 months+

On the bike

Being Vain - her favourite spot at home

Cry baby

After a self feeding attempt

Bonding with daddy


This should be the age when babies start to develop real fast. It's amazing at what these little tikes pick up in such a short period. Each day I come back from work, there's always a new development that never ceases to amuse me. Some of the things Jilliane's learnt so far are the parts of a face, such as nose, mouth, eyes. She has also learnt how to imitate the roar of a lion. I'm still wondering where she picked that up from, considering that she's not been to the zoo.

A good thing though, I'm glad that she's not scared of dogs despite not having many chances to interact with them. We were at Gab's house for his housewarming party and Jilliane kept trying to reach to pat Princess & PJ. If she was already walking, I bet she'll be perpetually running after them. She was even daring enough to put her face so near PJ to kiss him. I had to pull her away just in case. It's a real pity that the one at my il's place is a total bitch with all other humans minus the ones who bathe & feed her.

(BB, I'm coming over to your place soon to get some shots!)

And lo & behold! She has learnt to pull herself up! Or so I heard from Dw. I've not had a chance to witness this myself as when I'm around, she automatically raises her arms & whines, demanding to be picked up. Oh, and as of Saturday, she understands "Arms Up". So we've been having fun with her last weekend, playing police catch thief. We're the police, we say "You're under arrest, surrender and arms up!" and her arms go up. Then, we all laugh and she laughs along.

She enjoys waving at people. She could be saying bye bye to them, I'm not too sure. But when we were at the beach last Friday night, she was waving to each person that cycled or jogged past us, regardless whether they were looking at her or not.

As I always tell her during our "love love sessions": You're mummy's little angel. But when night falls, oh boy, all hell breaks loose...