Walk With Me

the journey

2012-01-01T01:20:00.000+08:00

This blog will turn 4 years old in March this year. I remember the day I started this blog, as clearly as if it was just yesterday. Readers who had been with me since the beginning might remember that the title of this blog used to be "Teaching Isaac". My sole purpose for this blog was to record the homelearning activities I was doing with Isaac, who was only 2 years old then.

How this blog has evolved over the years! From Isaac, I started blogging about Jaden, and then finally Ellicia. Besides sharing about activities I did with my kids, I started writing about places we visited, and even shared quite openly about our daily lives, and my personal thoughts and experiences. Through these few short years of blogging, I've met some really wonderful people online and a few in person. People whom I might never have a chance to meet otherwise.

The past 4 years had been rather eventful. From a working mother who took a year's no-pay leave to stay home with my kids in 2008, I had returned to the workforce in 2009, only to decide to be a SAHM again in 2010. From having 2 lovely boys, to a miscarriage, to trying for a baby again, and finally having a baby girl to call our own. From having a secret desire to want to start my own business, to finally really starting it.

I've lost some, have gained much.

The last 3 months of 2011 had been the lowest and most challenging months of our family life, as well as that of my husband and I. We literally walked through the valley of the shadow of death. This episode has brought my hubby and I to rethink the way we live. It has changed us. Our perspectives. Our relationships with people. The way we live our family life. The way we want to relate to our children. The way we want to reach out and connect with people.

I am glad I started this blog. I am glad that I can look back and recall certain moments by reading this blog. I think I have quite an interesting life (Haha!). It has been a wonderful journey. I thank all of you who have "Walk(ed) With Me" and are still walking with me.

And now, I'm starting this new year saying goodbye.

2012.
Isaac is going to Primary 1.
Jaden is going to K1.
Ellicia is now 1 year old.
My hubby is starting his new job, on the same day as the kids' first day of school.
We have got ourselves a live-in domestic helper since last week.

A year of new beginnings.

And I will not be blogging anymore in this space. Well, I will still record my thoughts, photos, family outings and stuff, but only privately. I think it is a good time to conclude this blog and move on.

If you're looking for parenting blogs, there are many really great blogs out there, many of which I will still continue reading.

If you wish to contact me, I can still be reached at nghuiing@gmail.com.

And for those of you who know me in real-life, nothing will change! You will still see me! And my hubby! And our kids! :)

So farewell, my dear readers.
Heartfelt thanks to all of you who have been following this blog, and to you who have left comments here.

Here's wishing you the most wonderful and "best-est" year in 2012!

Happy New Year everyone!!!

XOXO

PS:
As an afterthought, I was thinking, since this blog is about our kids, this post wouldn't be complete without their photos! So, I'm leaving you with these latest shots of our 3 little ones.

Happy Isaac.

He's entering P1 tomorrow! *gasp!*

Cheeky Jaden.

Still as happy and carefree as ever.

Little Ellicia.

I like this girl! :)

She's growing up into a little lady.

Ok, goodbye friends!

I hope I won't be adding one afterthought after another... and still adding afterthoughts for the next few years! LOL! Well, it's hard to kick the habit of blogging, and even harder to say goodbye! ;p

swiss surprise

2011-12-20T01:04:00.001+08:00

Over the weekend, the hubby gave us an extra huge surprise. The moment I woke up on Friday morning, he came to me, passed me our family's travel checklist and asked me to pack for a 2-nights stay. I stared at him, thinking that he was joking. It turned out that he was serious. But he refused to tell us where he's bringing us to.

So, I obediently packed our suitcase and the dear hubby drove us to the surprise destination. We ended up at my parents' place. Ok, that's not the destination. He was just picking up my mum, who was going with us! My father was supposed to meet us later in the evening! It was only then that I found out that the hubby had planned this surprise and had informed my parents about it 2 weeks ago. Which means all 3 of them had been secretly keeping quiet about this for 2 weeks!

So, where on earth is our destination?

Here's where we ended up in...

The tallest hotel in town... Swissotel

We were surprised, exhilarated, thrilled. The boys went wild when they saw the room.

They were even more over the moon when the daddy showed them the interconnected room... which is supposed to be the kids' room.

We didn't expect him to have booked a family suite for us! The kids literally went crazy running around their room, exploring and jumping up and down on their beds. Even baby girl was excited.

Well, who can blame them? Even I was attracted by the colourful room!

There are soft toys, colour pencils and colouring papers provided for the kids.

Kids' toothbrushes, toothpaste, plastic mugs, shower foam and shampoo are provided in their toilet.

And a stool for them by the sink.

What thoughtfulness!

We stayed on the 51st floor and the view from the balcony was awesome, especially at night.

View from our balcony.

View of St Andrew's Cathedral from 51st floor.

The hubby had also booked a separate room for my parents, to thank them for all their help in taking care of our kids during those past 2 months of drama.

View from my parents' room balcony... beautiful.

And of course, besides the rooms, another place that can make the boys go crazy is the pool.

As baby girl was having flu, she could only watch enviously by the poolside...

The kids had great fun over the weekend. We had a good family time.

5 more days to Christmas. Remember to spend some quality time with your loved ones.

Here's wishing everyone a Merry Christmas filled with love, joy, peace and hope.

running

2011-12-09T15:13:00.001+08:00

We signed the boys up for this year's Standard Chartered 750m Kids Dash. Due to the unexpected turn of events, I had actually wanted to let them skip it, as I had neither mood nor energy to bring them for the run early Sunday morning. But the hubby said they should just go for it. And so, they did.

Together with their Uncle Steven and Aunt Lydia, I brought the 2 boys for the event.

Getting ready for the run.

Look at the crowd... we're that far behind at the Starting Point.

Halfway through the run, the boys were getting a bit grouchy due to the crowd and heat. Jaden started to complain of tummyache while Isaac complained of itchiness on his skin (due to the heat). They walked most of the time instead of run. Well, it doesn't matter really. At least they persevered and walked to the end....

And received their medal, and bottles of water and cold 100-plus.

Well, they were more excited over the cold drinks than their medal!

For you, Daddy! We did it!

A shot with mummy.

This was Jaden's first run and Isaac's second. Isaac took part in the POSB 800m Kids Run earlier this year.

Here's him with his medal.

This boy is on a quest to collect medals. He had asked me to sign him up for other runs EVERY year. And that's what we're gonna do!

she's one

2011-12-06T11:07:00.000+08:00

Seriously, how can time pass so fast? Baby girl turns one today! And I've not even blogged about her birth story, after 365 days...

Anyway, it doesn't matter.

What's important is that she's growing up happy and healthy.
She's crawling all over the house. At a super fast speed.
She's able to pull herself up to standing position.
She's taking lots of solid food, as well as still being breastfed after one year.
She can wave goodbye.
She nods her head to indicate 'Yes', and shakes it if she wants to say 'No".
She can finger-feed herself.
She can drink from a straw, by herself, holding her bottle in her own hands.
She plays, she laughs, she's full of smiles.
And of course, she cries too.

All in all, she's thriving.
We're just waiting for her to say her first word(s), which I believe, should be anytime soon.

Happy Birthday Baby!

a walk through the valley

2011-12-05T11:40:00.000+08:00

It's the month of December. My most favourite month every year. I'd usually start listening to Christmas carols since November every year! This time, however, I've not listened to any yet.

2 months ago, during a routine health check, my hubby discovered a lump in his neck. After a series of tests, the results show that it is a malignant tumour. So start visits to the doctors, blood tests, scans, biopsies, and finally, a surgery last week.

Our lives were thrown into a whirlwind of confusion, fears, dread of what's going to happen.

Thoughts that crossed my mind were not good ones.
I fear that he's going to leave me alone in this life with 3 little kids.
When I walk around our house, I dread that this might be the place where I'd say goodbye to the one I love the most.
Where the kids might have to say goodbye to their precious daddy.

It was as if we were suddenly being hit with a huge invisible fist, and our heads were spinning.
Unexpected.
Shocking.

We would not have been able to pull through these few weeks, if not for the love and support we've received from our friends and church pastors.

My hubby is now on the road to recovery. The operation was a success, with no complication at all. He's now recuperating and resting at home.

Looking back, we see God's grace in this seemingly hopeless situation. My hubby would not have discovered the tumour had he not been required to go for a health check for his new job. It is his first change of job in 14 years! It was a good thing that the tumour was discovered early, and thus there was not much spread!

Our perspectives on life is forever changed. Petty issues are not important anymore. We treasure each other more. Treasure our family, friends and loved ones more. Each day that we're alive, we want to live it to the fullest.

Through this episode, we have experienced overwhelming love.
Friends who stick with us and see us through.
We have experienced great grace.
Empowerment to live and fight through the most difficult times.

Our lives have been forever changed.
And we are grateful to God for his grace in our darkest moments.

"Though I walk through the valley

Of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil;

For You are with me."

~ Psalm 23:4

a little kindness

2011-11-17T08:01:00.000+08:00

Reposting... for a worthy cause.

================================================

13 November was World Kindness Day. A day where we celebrate kindness. A day where we are encouraged to show kindness, and to appreciate kindness shown to us.

It is interesting that there's even such a day in the calendar. In the busyness of our lives, sometimes we can forget the fact that a little gesture of kindness on our part can make someone else's day.

Recently, a group of mummy bloggers came together to start an initiative of raising awareness and funds for the hungry children of the world. This year alone, 6 million children will die from hunger-related causes if nothing is being done about it. That's more than the population in Singapore! These mummy bloggers have shortlisted The Children's Hunger Fund as a channel for us to do our part to help the hungry children.

According to their website, US 5 cents is enough to provide a meal to a hungry child! 5 cents! How many of us would blink an eyelid if we were to lose 5 cents?! Yet, millions of innocent children are dying just because of a lack of 5 cents, so to speak.

As I browse through their website, I realised that the funds they raised are mainly used directly to the benefits of the hungry children, such as providing them food, school supplies, and even toys. So donors can be assured that their donations are helping the hungry children directly.

As we approach Christmas, which is a time when many of us would be busy buying gifts for our loved ones, let's remember the millions of hungry children in this world. Just a US$5 will provide 100 meals to these children. Most of us would spend that amount, or even more, on just one meal alone!

We can all do our part, in this season of giving and sharing, to show a little kindness to the children.

You can make a donation here.
You can also make a direct contribution to areas that are most needed, such as disaster relief.

If you're a blogger, you can help to spread the word by blogging about this.

1. Simply crop and paste any of the above information on your blog.
2. Appeal for your blog readers to go to make direct contributions to The Children's Hunger Fund website.

Even if you're not a blogger, you can still share The Children's Hunger Fund's website link via facebook or twitter.

If you are a parent, this is a great opportunity to teach your child about kindness and helping the needy.

I'll be doing my part by donating too, and will be talking to our two boys, Isaac and Jaden, about the hungry children and asking them to do their part, out of their own money in their piggy bank.

We can all do this together, and help the hungry children!

nine years

2011-11-16T01:22:00.000+08:00

You have taught me many things.

I've seen how you handle problems, pressures and stress

yet do not crumble under it.

I've seen how you silently sacrifice for the family.

You give without grudge.

You toil without complaints.

You're always patient with the kids.

With me.

You have taught me how to treat others.

You befriend those who are rejects, outcasts and unpopular.

You willingly lend a listening ear to their problems.

And more than just a listening ear.

They look to you as a great friend, a brother.

You are known to be a faithful friend.

And I am so blessed to be your wife.

Thanks for walking life togther with me.

As what I've always said,

"I want to grow old together with you."

Here's to many more beautiful years ahead.

HAPPY 9th ANNIVERSARY,

MY DEAREST!

simple but not easy

2011-11-15T02:11:00.000+08:00

Starting a business has never crossed my mind before. Although I have a Diploma in Business Studies, to actually start a real business was the last thing on my mind. That is, until 2 years ago...

So, I'm now into the second month of operating my online store. A simple idea. Creating, sourcing and selling. Yet, it entails lots of sleepless nights, planning, thinking, discussions with my hubby. Not to mention lots of juggling during the day, with processing of orders, handling customers' emails and queries, with housework and the kids.

In these few short weeks after starting the online store, I've learnt some valuable lessons.

1. There is no perfect time.

I've harboured the idea of starting this online store for months, but was hesitant to really do it, simply because of the fear of not being able to cope with my various roles.

"Wait until the kids are older."
"Maybe when I have more time."
These were my reasonings.

But thank God for a great husband who encouraged me to just do it. So here I am... into the second month of business.

And I couldn't agree more to this verse:

"He who observes the wind will not sow,
And he who regards the clouds will not reap."
(Ecclesiastes 11:4)

There is no perfect time to do something.
If you have a dream, go for it.
Just do it!

2. Depend on people, but don't depend on people.

The reason why I started this business was largely due to the encouragement I've received from friends and relatives. When I first started selling my handmades two years ago, a few of my friends and relatives bought from me. They gave me very encouraging and positive feedbacks. Some of them told me to make more and start selling online.

When I started doing this last month, the hardest thing for me was not the sleepless nights nor the juggling. The hardest, toughest, most difficult thing for me was actually to send out emails and facebook messages to my friends, informing them of my new online store, and asking them to help spread the word as a form of publicity.

Some of my friends are very encouraging and supportive, and I am very, very thankful. There are those who are not even parents and do not have kids, yet they helped to spread the word, liked the facebook page, and sent me encouraging emails and notes.

Yet there are also friends who did not reply to my emails or messages, even after more than a month. My hubby told me to manage my expectations and not be disappointed. Which I agree. And this is one great lesson that I have to learn in this new journey.

Be thankful.
Be gracious.
Have a positive attitude when faced with negative responses.

3. Keep on going.

On the same day that I launched the online store, my hubby and I received a very disheartening news. I felt as if our world might be collapsing soon. Yet, I've created the website, invested the time and money, sent out emails and announed the start of my new business. I didn't feel like continuing, but I also know that there is no turning back.

I guess even if nothing works out, I would have developed some "muscles" of determination and tenacity through this new venture.

So, yes, this is a simple thing.
But it is definitely not easy.

But I'm still glad that I've finally started this. It is in fact, one of my goals for this year.

47 more days before the year comes to an end.

What were the goals you've set at the beginning of the year?
What are your dreams?

Go for it.
Just do it.

11.11.11

2011-11-11T14:43:00.000+08:00

Today is a special day,

because our dear Jaden turns 4 today!

You have brought much joy and laughter into our lives.

We love you and we thank God for you.

Happy Birthday Son!

graduation

2011-11-05T02:42:00.000+08:00

Our first baby will be graduating from Kindergarten soon. We attended his Graduation Concert last night. Seeing him performing on stage, albeit for that brief moment, makes the daddy and me feel that our little boy has grown up. He's going to his P1 Orientation in 2 weeks time, where he will get to meet his new teachers and classmates. On that same day, he will also be saying goodbye to his dear K2 friends and teachers...

This afternoon, he came to me looking sad and told me that he cried. When I asked him why, he started crying and said he feels sad that his concert is over. That he likes his concert, that he likes his friends. He was crying and talking to me at the same time. It broke my heart to see him already starting to miss his friends...

I sat there hugging him as he cried. All I can do is to be there for him, and to comfort him. Kinda dramatic, I know, for a K2 boy... but well, our boy is a very sensitive guy. Very much like his mummy. So I kinda understand him.

Anyway, he was alright after crying and became his usual happy self again.

I guess this is the first big transition of his young life. And something he just has to go through.

And somehow, he gets to experience the pain of separation and know that such things are part and parcel of life.

Our baby is growing up...

Isaac's Graduation Photo

giveaway - i love handmades!

2011-10-25T00:52:00.003+08:00

Besides being busy with housework and the kids, I've been busy working from home the past few months. Which means I'm now no longer a 'Stay-At-Home Mum' but a 'Work-At-Home Mum'. And I love it! You can say that I'm a weirdo who delight in torturing myself and giving myself more work and less sleep.

Readers who have been following this blog since 2009 would remember that I started selling handmade hair accessories that year. After doing that on and off for the past 2 years, I've finally decided to go full-force. All thanks to the support and encouragement from my dear husband and some of my family members and friends.

So, on 1st October 2011, my online store was launched.

My main products are handmade hair accessories for girls. All lovingly hand-crafted by myself... in the middle of the night... when the 3 kiddos are asleep... and nobody is shouting for 'mummy!'... okay, except for baby girl waking up crying for milk. I would then 'take a break' from my work to go feed her.

I'm in the midst of designing and creating more stuff here, which will be up in November.

Besides handmades, I've also included other products which I've sourced out.... and there'll be more on the way.

And in case you're thinking, 'What about the boys?!" Don't despair. Come November, there will be products for the little guys too! Great to stock up on some Christmas gifts.

So, to celebrate the opening of my new online store, I'm having a giveaway!

To take part in this giveaway, all you need to do is:

1. Choose an item from my online store.

2. Like our facebook page.

3. Leave a comment here under this blog post, telling me which item you have chosen AND what else you wish to see being sold in the online store.

Giveaway ends 31st October 2011 midnight. 2 winners will be randomly selected, who will get to receive the items you have chosen.

This is the first time in my blogging life that I'm organising my very own giveaway. Do give me your support, won't ya?

Well, even if not for the sake of the giveaway, just do like our facebook page and tell all your friends about it to support this SAHM-turned-WAHM!!!

Thank you, everyone!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

~ Giveaway is now closed. ~

Homeschool @ SG and June, you have won this giveaway, congrats! :)
I'll be mailing you your chosen headbands. Thank you so much for participating! XOXO

water play

2011-10-24T02:07:00.001+08:00

In our family, weekends usually mean outings, especially when the daddy is not overseas. We brought the kids to Lower Seletar Reservoir today and there's this Water Play Area for kids. A small and simple place, but I think it's fun enough for the little ones. Anyway, as long as there's water, the boys are happy! Little Ellicia is excited to want to get into the water too!

It's great that the water is shallow enough for babies like her.

There's a fountain area which I think is rather cool. However, the boys didn't really spend alot of time there. They prefer to play in the shallow pool with their water shooter, spraying water.

There are plenty of seating places for parents to sit and watch their kids at play. Good to bring some food along for a mini picnic too!

Nice place.

We'll be back again.

4 kids

2011-10-21T13:18:00.001+08:00

This past week, I've had the chance to experience how it's like to have 4 kids. Yes. FOUR! My little 9-month-old nephew is here in our house this week, together with my mother, as my hubby is overseas. This is the fourth week that he's been overseas, by the way.

Anyway, how is it like to have 4 kids together in the same house? Only one word. Tiring! Alright, maybe two words. Tiring, crazy, chaotic! Ok, that's 3 words! You get the idea!

What's more tiring for us is that my nephew and Ellicia are only 2 months apart in age. That's like looking after a pair of twins. When one is sleeping, the other wakes up. When the other falls asleep, the first wakes up again. My mum was so tired these few days that she knocked out at 9.30pm last night. First time in many years! LOL!

To those of you who have 4 kids or more, I have only one thing to say to you:

I Salute You!!!

And in case you're wondering, are we planning for number 4?

No way!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

I'm off now to go rescue my mum...

eye of the storm

2011-10-11T10:57:00.006+08:00

At the centre of a fierce storm, there is a small area of calm which is characterised by clear skies and light breezes. This is known as 'the eye of the storm'.

We're facing some challenges in our family at this moment, storms of life, as some would call it. During times like these, I embrace the mundane. When storms hit, you crave stability, security, peace and calm. So for the past few weeks, I LOVE the mundane!

Waking up early in the morning to send the boys to school. Listening to the boys' favourite Children's Church songs in the car and singing together with them.

Playing with Ellicia at home.
And by the way, we won the Elmo Giveaway by Denesa! It was really a very pleasant surprise. :)

The kids were thrilled to receive the Elmo, which Denesa had kindly come all the way to deliver it to our house. I am grateful. The moment Elmo started singing, our dear Ellicia will start rocking to the beat. It was hilarious to watch!

When the boys come back from school, it's the same old familiar chaos. Digging out stuff to play with, fighting and squabbling, laughing and crying.

Jaden's latest favourite is playing with my guitar. For the past few days, the first thing he does when he wakes up, is to go strum my guitar. The first thing he plays with when he's back from school, is the guitar again.

My very old 5-string guitar. LOL!

The hubby has been overseas thrice in the past 3 weeks. It would have been real tough, if not for my mum who has come to stay with us for this period.

And in the midst of the storm, the Word of God has been a constant strength and encouragement to us.

But Jesus spoke to them at once.

“Don’t be afraid,” he said.

“Take courage. I am here!"

(Matthew 14:27 NLT)

the first few years

2011-10-03T10:25:00.003+08:00

Will be over soon. Those first few years. 7 more weeks of kindergarten, and Isaac will bid farewell to his preschool days. In another 3 months, he will step into the next phase of his life, as a Primary School student. Strangely, I do not feel nolstalgic about him growing up. I'm actually happy, knowing that I've been there for him and with him throughout his formative years. The only times I was really too busy was when I was working full-time during the first two years of his life, and the year when he was 4. Even so, I know that I've done my best to make time for him after work and during weekends.

Now, at age 6, Isaac is becoming very much independent. Since many months ago, he has already learnt to shower himself and wash his own hair. He's been brushing his own teeth twice a day since last year. He changes his own clothes and knows how to throw the dirty clothes into the laundry bag. He puts away his toys after playing, most of the time.

Isaac celebrated his 6th birthday in school, with his classmates and form teacher. I know he's growing up because this year, he told me that I didn't have to go to his school for his birthday party. He will celebrate with his classmates and teachers.

So, we had a simple birthday celebration for him at home. He made a birthday wish before blowing off the candles. And guess what he wished for?

He told us, "I wish to have lots of money."

Okay, now where did that come from? I have no idea.

We bought him a few presents. Hubby suggested hiding the presents all over his room for him to find. That was a hit. The 2 boys had an exciting time running around their room searching for Isaac's presents. The look of excitement on their faces was priceless.

Seeing how Isaac has grown, from a tiny infant to the big boy that he is today, makes me realise once again to cherish the time we have with our kids when they are still small. Afterall, they are children for only a few short years of their lives.

giveaway

2011-09-30T09:17:00.000+08:00

Yes, a giveaway! But not on my blog...

Hop over to Parentimes for a "Let's Rock Elmo" Giveaway! It seems to be the in thing now.

I know, I've been MIA again... what with the hubby overseas for more than a week and me busy with the three kiddos, sending the boys to school, and all that.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

I'll be back!

I hope...

liking art class

2011-09-22T23:03:00.003+08:00

Isaac and Jaden love going to their art class. Which is a reason good enough for the hubby and I to let them continue attending. Whether they end up learning to be creative (or not), or simply just learn to colour and follow instructions, it really doesn't matter at this point. What matters is that they have found something they like, and look forward to do every week. They feel a sense of accomplishment and pride when they see their completed work each time.

Most importantly, they are learning the priceless value and skill of patience and focus. To get a preschooler to sit and complete a project over a span of a few weeks take alot of tenacity on their part, I think. And to do it cheerfully, AND enjoy it, is amazing.

And so, here are their latest art pieces.

Lovely House ~ by Jaden

Garden Life ~ by Isaac

Seashore ~ by Isaac

mummy school

2011-09-20T14:38:00.001+08:00

In recent weeks, we have established a nice routine of getting the boys to do some work every weekday (almost). We call it the "Mummy School".

During "Mummy School", we will all gather at the dining table. I will either guide Isaac in his homework that he's brought back from school, or teach him some P1 Math. At times, we will just read and read, or check out some stuff from the internet.

As for Jaden, I don't stress him with the academic stuff at this age. So, he gets to do whatever he likes, be it colouring, tracing, drawing, counting... whatever. The funny thing is, when he sees his elder brother doing his work and writing in his books, Jaden also wants to do the same. So, he insisted on writing in his books. I usually ended up teaching him numbers, as he simply loves doing Math.

When I first tried to implement this "Mummy School" on a daily basis, I met with some resistance from Isaac, who was whiny and didn't want to do any work. However, after a few times, it has become part of his daily routine and he's beginning to enjoy it.

Jaden, on the other hand, loves "Mummy School". On some days, the first thing he asks when he reaches home from school, is: "Can we have Mummy School now?"

This is one of the things in my daily life that causes me to have no regrets staying at home for the kids at this point of my life.

m.i.a.

2011-09-17T02:23:00.001+08:00

Okay, so it seemed that I've been missing from the blogosphere. We've been so busy these days that I didn't have the time or the energy, or the chance to switch on my laptop and update this blog. In any case, the tagline of this blog is 'Inspirations in the mundane'. So, if there's no posts, it simply means there's no inspiration, only the mundane. Unless one can be inspired by loads of dirty laundry or a sink full of dirty dishes.

Anyway, the September school holidays have come and gone. This time round, I was exhilarated to have my beloved mama coming over to help me with the kids during the one week holiday, as my baby nephew went holidaying in Taiwan with his parents. So his nanny, my mother, was free!

I brought the kids to various places, which I will probably blog about in the next few posts.

For now, just a few quick photos of what we've been up to in our mundane lives.

The Philatelic Museum, which was more interesting than I had expected, being our first time there. Our two boys had a blast there and didn't want to leave. Well, if you've been there and found it totally boring, just say that we are easily contented people.

The hubby brought the whole family to the Bird Park after church one Sunday. It was tiring! But a great family outing too.

We also went to watch Cars 2 movie. All I can say is, halfway through it, I couldn't wait for it to end. It's too complicated and dry a plot for kids. Is it supposed to be a kids' movie anyway? It doesn't seem to be so. Anyway, this is not a movie review, so I shan't say much. Isaac watched quietly throughout while Jaden was restless after awhile, but the popcorns and soft drinks kept him staying on his seat for 3/4 of the movie.

I'm supposed to bring them for the Smurfs movie too. Well, we'll see...

On a more exciting note, Isaac will be taking part in the POSB Kids Run this Sunday! The Daddy brought him out for a run, just to get him ready for it. Cool!

Jaden went along but in his bicycle instead. He doesn't qualify for the run this time as he's underaged. But we've signed both of them up for the Standard Chartered Kids Dash this December, so Jaden will have his chance to run then. For now, he's happy just cycling.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

then and now

2011-09-07T11:54:00.000+08:00

When I was little, we didn't have computers, iphones, ipad. We didn't even have alot of toys. My brother, cousins and neighbours would play together along the corridor. Five stones, zero-point, seven-up. Okay, if these words make no sense to you, then you're probably not from my era. We also flew kites which we made using red, ugly plastic bags tied to a piece of string. We played catch, badminton, we cycled. In fact, anything we could think of.

As for my hubby, he has fond memories of catching insects, fishing, and climbing into big canals.

Now that we have our own kids, and two little active boys, we like them to be active and not be stuck in front of the screen, be it iphone, computer, or tv.

The daddy encourages them to get out and be active. Be a real boy, you know.

He brought them to Bedok Reservoir. And guess what they were doing?

Doing some serious, boys stuff.

Daddy showed them what he used to do when he was a little boy.

He caught grasshoppers. And he's now teaching his sons to catch grasshoppers.

Isaac is becoming good at it.

Jaden tried and he, too, caught a few and he was really happy and excited.

This is better than playing with any electronic games or being glued in front of the tv.

In case you're wondering, no grasshoppers were harmed in this activity. We released them all as soon as we caught them.

baby-following starts now

2011-09-01T13:14:00.004+08:00

Baby girl is turning 9 months old soon. She's growing and developing well. As of now, she has sprouted 2 tiny front teeth. She's just learnt to finger-feed herself last week.

Nowadays, whenever she sees us eating, she'll go smacking and licking her lips, as if wishing to try our food. Her diet consists mainly of cereals, porridge and breastmilk. We do let her snack on baby biscuits and fruits and vegetables puree too.

Ellicia is now crawling steadily. She's also able to pull herself up to standing position. Just yesterday, she pulled herself up and tried to climb up the stairs. My mum followed behind and assisted her in climbing up a few steps. It is time to baby-proof the house!!! Or I'd be spending my day following her around like a hawk.

Baby girl likes to play together with her two brothers. She just wants to be involved, whenever she sees them playing. Usually, when the boys are playing, we'll also sit her on the floor and pour out some baby-safe toys for her to play. However, most of the time, she'll start crawling towards her brothers and grab their toys. Whatever they're playing with seems to interest her more than her own toys.

I would say she's sociable like that. She just wants to be involved in her brothers' play.

Busier days are ahead for us as baby girl starts to get more mobile.

this is blending, mummy

2011-08-24T23:30:00.003+08:00

Upon the encouragement of their daddy, Isaac and Jaden have been attending art lessons once a week, for the past one month. The hubby believes that kids should be exposed to a wide spectrum of learning opportunities when they're still young, so that they can have a chance to discover their areas of interests and talents.

The boys have been enjoying their art class and love going there for lessons. There are 2 components in this art class - drawing and colouring. Once a month, they also have a short lesson on art history, where they get to learn about the art work and techniques of various famous artists.

Today, they brought back their completed colouring artwork. Both hubby and I were surprised at the quality of their work, especially for Jaden's, since he's barely 4. When I asked them whether these are done by them or by their art teachers, Isaac indignantly said, "Of course it's by us! But teacher helped us to choose the colours and draw lines for us to blend."

He went on excitedly asking me whether I understand and know what blending is.

"You know blending, mummy? You know what I'm saying?"

I tried not to laugh, but I love their enthusiasm.

When I asked Jaden if he coloured the entire piece by himself, he said proudly, "Ya, and must fill up all the white space."

Anyway, here are their art pieces.

Happy seal ~ by Isaac

Night sky ~ by Jaden

I am now contemplating framing these up and hanging them as decorations in our new house. I think they should look nice with white frames...

so thankful

2011-08-24T00:06:00.000+08:00

It's a blessing to have my mum come over today. My sis-in-law is on leave and so my mother doesn't need to look after my nephew. I was so over the moon when my mum told me she's coming over. Incidentally, Isaac, Jaden and myself are down. Jaden is recovering from flu while Isaac and I are having sore throat and fever. So it is REALLY a blessing. God is good. :)

Having my mum here makes a HUGE difference. Despite being sick, I was able to be very patient with the boys. My mum cooked lunch for them and I cooked dinner, with some help from her. I brought the boys down to the shops as Jaden was asking to "go play the ball game". It's the kind of kiddy game machine where you slot in 50 cents to play and a few tickets will come out, depending on your points. You can then exchange those tickets with a small prize. The boys love it. Don't ask me why.

We even managed to do some work today! Yes, real work! Can you believe that?

Jaden was happily asking me to teach him numbers, from a numbers book I bought for him few weeks ago. As for Isaac, I got him to do some P1 Math. Muahahaha... kiasu mother syndrome is kicking in!

After dinner today, I was washing the dishes while hubby was playing with the 3 kids in the room. Listening to the boys' laughters, all of a sudden I felt so blissful. It has been some time since I felt SO relaxed like today.

And I am so thankful.

And you know what's even better?
My mum is coming again tomorrow! Yippee!

and he turns 6

2011-08-19T15:15:00.000+08:00

Today is our firstborn's birthday. Isaac is now officially 6 years old!

In our family, we have never ever once organised any birthday parties for our kids before. I know nowadays almost every child will have a birthday party at least once in their growing up years. Parents will plan way in advance for the party, take leave off their work, send out invitations to family and friends and have a blast celebrating their kids' birthdays.

For the past 3 years that Isaac is in school, he celebrates his birthday in class. This year will be his last year celebrating in preschool. I brought him to order a cake last week. He chose this dinosaurs cake himself and was excited when we collected it last night. He will be giving out goodie bags to his classmates and have a fun time celebrating in school.

All of a sudden, it dawned upon me that our little boy is growing up. Very soon, he will be celebrating his birthdays by going out partying with his friends. Before you know it, he will only want to celebrate alone with his girlfriend!

Well, this mummy thinks too much...

Anyway, who can blame her?
She's the one who gave birth to this boy, who used to be just a tiny little infant.

Happy birthday, son!

Know that you are forever loved.

ideal versus real

2011-08-18T09:59:00.000+08:00

Ideally, the house should be spick and span.
In reality, it is messier than it should be.

Ideally, one should have 7 hours of sleep every night.
In reality, it is almost impossible to have 2-3 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Ideally, I should have lots of time with my kids, doing fruitful stuff with them.
In reality, my time is spread thin. Very thin.

Ideally, a baby should sleep alot.
In reality, she only naps about 30 minutes each time. Before I could get anything done, she's crying to be carried!

Ideally, I should be coaching and preparing Isaac for P1.
In reality, I only managed to supervise him in his homework and weekly spellings.

Ideally, we should have nutritious homecooked food everyday.
In reality, we eat out often.

Ideally, I want to bake. Cakes, cupcakes, muffins, cookies.
In reality, the flour and butter I've bought weeks ago are still left unopened.

If only we live in an ideal world, things would be wonderful. But more often than not, life is not ideal. As much as I wish to make it work, I'm finding myself getting crankier than I wish to.

I am someone who sets very high standards for myself. Sometimes way too high. I expect myself to be able to do it all. And to do it well. But when you try to do too many things without any help, certain things have to be compromised. And I don't like that.

We have since employed a part-time domestic helper, who comes in once a week to lighten my housework load, although 4 hours once a week is not much. I still have lots to do everyday. Nevertheless, she's still a great help. At least I don't have to do the major stuff like cleaning the toilets and ironing, which I hate.

As for the kids, we have worked out a schedule for either one of the boys to go to my parents' place after school, one or two days of the week. Which means there are about 3 days in a week when I only have 2 kids at home during the day. In this way, I can focus more on coaching Isaac when Jaden is not around, or doing activities with Jaden when Isaac is not around. The only thing is, baby girl still wants to be carried and doesn't nap for long. So, I'll have to work that out.

marina bay city gallery

2011-08-15T22:59:00.000+08:00

After watching the fireworks the other day at the Marina Bay Sands Waterfront Boardwalk, the kids were drawn to some water fountains on our way back to the carpark. Kids and water is like magnets to metal. No point trying to pull them away from it. So, we spent a good few minutes letting the boys splash around.

Baby girl couldn't resist and decided to join in the fun too... with some help from Daddy.

This area seems to be full of life and activities. We saw a new gallery just next to the water fountains and popped in there to have a look.

Turns out that the gallery houses a model of the entire Marina Bay area, showcasing the developments in that place. The interesting thing about this gallery is that when you press a button of each place or buidling, the corresponding model lights up. You can also read a brief description of it. Isaac had a great time going round pressing the buttons and refused to leave.

Here's a glimpse of some of the models...

Marina Barrage

Marina Bay Sands

Singapore Flyer

It was a good thing that we stayed back exploring all these. By the time we left, the NDP preview crowd had cleared and we were not caught in any jam.

Anyway, it's a nice place to go for a family outing.

one crazy family

2011-08-12T09:09:00.004+08:00

When the hubby is at home, especially during weekends, he likes to bring the whole lot of us for family outings. It's funny how during the weekdays when I'm all cooped up at home with the kids, I'd be dying to get out of the house. Yet when weekends come, and finally I can get out, I'd be dying to just laze around at home, simply because the man is around to help out while I snooze.

So, on most weekend mornings, you'd find the hubby and I discussing where to go for the day.

We had the same discussion again last Saturday, but because I was feeling rather like a zombie, I suggested why not just bring the kids cycling around the neighbourhood. THEY will cycle. Hubby will push Ellicia in her stroller, and I will stroll VERY SLOWLY behind them. Great idea!!!

So, off we went with the kids' bikes. Isaac and Jaden were thrilled!

Somehow, along the way, the idea of cycling just around the neighbourhood evolved into cycling to Bedok Reservoir... in the heat of the noon sun.

Isaac was happily pedalling along, glad to have the chance to release some pent-up energy.

Jaden, too, was pedalling real hard.

As for Ellicia, she was happily relaxing away in her stroller, taking in all the sights and sounds, and watching her two brothers cycling with all their might.

It took us about 30 minutes to reach the reservoir. And the boys were still pedalling hard.

While their mama was panting and melting under the hot sun, the boys seemed to have boundless and unlimited energy. Along the way, Jaden suddenly shouted excitedly when he spotted some ants crawling on the ground. Those ants saved my day. We stopped for a rest while the boys took their time to look at...well, ants. I never knew ants could be so entertaining.

A close-up of two red ants.

When I showed the boys this shot, they went wowing and wooing.

Meanwhile, Ellicia was still happy in her stroller, although somewhere along the way, she started fussing and crying, wanting to be carried.

Now that we had gone all the way to the reservoir, the question on my mind was "How on earth are we going to cycle all the way back again?!!" The hubby suggested going by a shortcut... which was great, because we get to see views like this.

Only thing was, the sun was beating down on us mercilessly. By then, Jaden was getting real tired and sweaty. Yet he persevered on. We're so proud of the boys!

The shortcut proved to be a shortcut for everyone except the hubby, as we had to cross an overhead bridge. So, our strong, tough man carried one bike up the stairs, came down for the next bike, carried it up, came down again for the baby's stroller and carried that up the long flight of stairs a third time. At the other end of the overhead bridge, he had to carry one bike down the stairs, came up again for the second bike, carried it down, came up again for the stroller and carried that down. I couldn't help but noticed some pairs of eyes staring at us.

By the time we reached home, we were all sun-burnt and soaked to the skin with perspiration.

Who on earth would bring three little kids for long distance cycling under the noon sun?

Well, we did. Just call us crazy.

who's who?

2011-08-11T11:03:00.001+08:00

Was going through the photos folder in my laptop and saw some of the kids' baby photos. Any idea who's who?

First one is Isaac, followed by Jaden and finally Ellicia.

Do they look alike?

just so you know

2011-08-10T01:48:00.001+08:00

Some people have asked us, how on earth did we decide on our kids' names. There seems to be no relation between Isaac, Jaden and Ellicia. Unlike some conventional ways of naming one's offsprings, such as starting all their names with the same letter, or ending their names with the same sound (e.g. Joel and Noel). Ours have absolutely no link to most observers.

Well, we didn't just pick any random names for our kids. There is actually a pattern, but a not very obvious one.

It all started with Isaac. When we first knew that we were expecting our first child, I told my husband that if it's a boy, I'd like to call him Isaac. Simply because I like that name. And secondly, Isaac means 'he laughs' or 'laughter'. I want our child to be a happy child, and to grow up to be a happy person. So Isaac he is called.

When we were expecting our second child, we had wanted to follow the conventional way of giving him a name that starts with the letter 'I'. However, after searching and cracking our brains for one, we couldn't find any to our liking. So, we decided to move on to the next letter, which is J. And so he is called Jaden. Which means 'God has heard' or 'thankful'. We are thankful to God for hearing our prayers and giving us another child.

So, if we follow this progression, our third child should have a name that starts with the letter 'K'. And in fact, he/she did. We had wanted to call our third child Kaelyn, if she's a girl. We were still undecided on a boy's name that starts with 'K'. Well, God had other plans and we had to say goodbye to our third baby before we had a chance to meet.

When it came to our next pregnancy, initially we were thinking if we should give her a name that starts with 'K'. However, to us, Baby K is still part of the family, and so our next one should be 'L'. And so we decided to look for a girl's name that starts with 'L'. It was not easy! I couldn't find one that I like. And finally, the name Ellicia came to my mind one day and I thought, hey 'El' is the pronunciation of the letter 'L'. So, I looked up the meaning and it means 'Our God saves'. Immediately, I knew that's the one. God has graciously blessed us with another child. He has saved and turned our sadness into joy.

That's the reason why Ellicia is named 'Ellicia', instead of K... or L...

So, in case some of you were wondering, now you know that we DID give some thought while choosing a name for our kids.

Most importanly, Isaac, Jaden and Ellicia will know the story behind their names...

fireworks

2011-08-08T01:35:00.002+08:00

With National Day just around the corner, our little nation is suddenly abuzz with a celebratory mood. This is the time of the year where people start to hang the flag outside their homes, gather to watch the NDP and fireworks, and get all patriotic once again.

This year, we discovered a wonderful place to catch the NDP fireworks - at the Marina Bay Sands Waterfront Boardwalk. This is a rather new timbre boardwalk just behind Marina Bay Sands, near the edge of the water. It offers a beautiful view of the city skyline, as well as a vintage point to catch the NDP fireworks.

We were expecting a huge crowd there as it was the NDP Preview. However, we were pleasantly surprised that it was not really that crowded. While strolling along the boardwalk, we saw some families sitting on mats having picnics. What a great place for a family outing!

The city skyline lit up beautifully as the sun starts to set.

While the NDP was ongoing, the boys were enjoying their can of free coke. We could actually catch a glimpse of the parade at the float, but the boys were not really THAT insterested. Instead, they were clamouring to play with the angry bird game in my iphone!

It was not all a boring wait for them. From the boardwalk, we actually had a bird's eye view of the parachutists floating down, the chinook and helicopters flying past with the gigantic national flag, and the impressively loud fighter jets.

And this was what we came here for...

Okay, I didn't bring my tripod. A must if you want better fireworks shots.

It was loud and Jaden was scared. But boy, it was beautiful! Together with the fireworks, national day songs were blasting at the background. There was a sudden surge of patriotism in the air. At the end of the fireworks, many at the boardwalk stood up to say the Pledge and sing the National Anthem together with the spectators at the float.

Isaac and Jaden were not as keen as the hubby and I to watch real fireworks. "Too loud," they said. So, I taught them to create their own 'fireworks' with the camera, while waiting for the actual ones that day. And they had a blast with this, which seems more fun to them than REAL fireworks.

Images taken by Isaac and Jaden

If you're thinking of bringing your family to watch the NDP fireworks this National Day, this is a great place to go. You can even have a great family outing or picnic while waiting. For us, we'll be watching the NDP and fireworks in the comfort of our living room this Tuesday!

Happy National Day Singapore!

a break for me. or not.

2011-08-06T01:51:00.000+08:00

I can't believe another week has passed just like that. This week has been a blur. All I can recall now is that there have been lots of screaming and shouting (the boys'), lots of yelling (mine), lots of crying (the baby's and a couple of times, mine), lots of running around trying to get things done while attending to the needs of the kids. In the midst of all the craziness, I somehow had to miss my lunch for a couple of days. My last check this morning showed that I've lost another kg in 5 days. Good news. Or bad. Depending on how you see it. I can't say the same for my bladder. I'm sure it has grown over the past one week, considering the fact that I couldn't visit the toilet when needed.

Anyway, today I decided to give myself a short break, after sending Isaac to his Chinese class. Jaden was at my parents' place. I had to bring baby girl along with me though. So I slinged her, took a bus to the interchange and went to the malls there. I had almost 2 hours to myself. I thought it'll be great to buy some stuff for myself. Clothes are out of the question as I couldn't try them on while slinging a sleeping baby. I made a mental note to maybe get myself some earrings, necklaces, or a bracelet or two.

The first thing I did when I reached the shopping mall was to head straight to the nursing room and fed baby girl. As expected, she fell asleep. I placed her back in the sling and went shopping.

I walked around for about an hour. When my two hours are almost up, I realised that I didn't even check out any earrings, necklaces or bracelets.

So, what did I buy in that hour of shopping?

A water bottle for each of the boys, two T-shirts for Isaac and a packet of baby biscuits for the baby.

Am I still normal?

limestone cave and late night supper

2011-08-02T15:17:00.000+08:00

Limestone cave

Tiny stream flowing through...

Stepping stones for the adventourous

When we were in there, for a moment it didn't feel like we're in Singapore. The boys were excited at first and Isaac had insisted that he wanted to go to the cave. Yet when we went in, he started to feel abit scared.

We even saw a few bats flying across, overhead. Real ones. It was quite an exciting experience. At least for the boys. And we saw this beautiful thing in the ceiling of the cave... Don't ask me what that was because I had no idea. I'm not even sure if this is something that exist in a real limestone cave.

No, we didn't go overseas. We were in the Naracoorte Cave at the Singapore Night Safari. The cave can be found within the Forest Giants Trail. We also saw some creepy crawlies in the cave. Yucky ones like big black rats, snakes and toads. Make my hair stand!

We were soon out of the cave. The rest of the night was more relaxing, as we travelled through the night safari in a tram. It was an interesting experience for Isaac and Jaden, to be able to see those animals in the night. They went wow-ing and woo-ing at the sight of huge animals like hippos, rhinos, buffalos and elephants. As the commentator in the tram talked about each animal, the boys were actually listening to her. At the mention of the weight of some of these huge animals, Jaden would exclaim, "Wah! 1000 kg!"

Zebras grazing in the dark

Creatures of the Night Show

This was the first time we brought Jaden and Ellicia to the Night Safari and the second time for Isaac. It was a fun experience and a lovely family outing. We left the zoo past 11pm and headed to MacDonald's for supper. We were still eating way past midnight! I think the kids will remember this outing. One of those rare ones when they didn't have to go to bed by 9pm!

she's got her first tooth!

2011-07-28T12:03:00.001+08:00

I was saying in my previous post that time flies. Even our 5-year-old Isaac remarked last night before sleeping, "So fast, it's going to be Friday! Scary!" It sure is. Before you know it, the year will be over!

Our baby seems to be caught in this fast pace too. We just spotted her first tooth late last night! At close to 8 months old. I guess this means she'll be chomping on some biscuits very soon. Gotta stock up on some baby biscuits!

I've been breastfeeding her exclusively ever since her birth. This is the first time I'm successful in breastfeeding, so in a way, both of us are blessed. For her, it means better immunity and she's not been sick since day 1. For me, I've bid farewell to my pregnancy fats and my weight is now less than pre-pregnancy. Yippee! We've started her on cereals when she turned 6 months and she's taking in more types of food now. Purees like pumpkins, potatoes, bananas. She likes porridge too.

Her sleeping habit is another story. She can take a one hour nap at 9pm and wake up smiling brightly at you wanting to play. She's been going to bed pass midnight for the last couple of days. The good thing is, because of that, she'll wake up at 10 plus in the morning. Which means when the boys are in school in the morning, I totally have about more than 2 hours of peace and quiet. And I'll be scrubbing the floors and washing the toilets. Ya, like real.

Ellicia can now sit without support. And is absolutely curious about the things around her.

She likes to put things into her mouth. Anything. Whatever gets into her hands goes into her mouth. That's the baby's way of exploring the world around them.

Having 2 elder brothers means that she's constantly surrounded by noise and lots of actions. She enjoys watching her brothers and we can all tell that she loves her two brothers. Whenever she sees them, she starts kicking excitedly and flashes a wide smile.

Now that she can sit without support, she joins them when they're playing with their toys. But of course the boys will go shouting whenever she puts one of their precious toys into her mouth.

Here you can see a sulking Jaden. In his own words, he's "angry with mummy".

Because I refused to let him drink Yakult before his lunch. Ha!

Baby girl is so captivated by all her brothers' toys that we noticed she's trying to inch towards them. It'll not be long before she starts to crawl.

Like I've said., it is really a bittersweet experience to see Ellicia growing. It thrills me whenever I see her reaching yet another milestone. But also sad in a way knowing that this is gonna be our last baby.

Which is why I wish time can pass slower sometimes.

bits and pieces

2011-07-26T13:59:00.000+08:00

The past week flew by like a whirlwind. Baby girl is now more active and has more awake time during the day. She takes 2 to 3 naps a day, which sounds great. Only thing is each nap lasts not more than 45 minutes. Which leaves me very little time to do anything. It doesn't help that she's at a separation anxiety stage now. The moment I'm out of her sight, she cries. Even at home. So, she's mostly stuck to me like a koala.

Isaac, being the eldest, is busy with school, homework and other activities. He's also a great help at home. That is, when he's not whiny or mischievous. And when he's not irritating his little brother.

Jaden is still the lively bub around. Cracking us up once in a while. He has his quiet moments though. When he's into something, he's really focused. He can spend a long time alone in the room on his own, just playing. I found this one day, after he's been in the room playing quietly on his own.

The two boys are great together when they're not fighting, squabbling or irritating each other. Just the other day, they got into another squabble and ended up scratching each other. I thought only girls get into cat fights.

Anyway, I've been bringing the kids down for walks more nowadays. And they like to pick up things. The clean freak in me will usually scream and stop them from picking up 'rubbish' from the ground. But I've learnt to just bite my tongue and let them get dirty. Whatever won't kill you will only make you stronger.

Jaden picked these and asked if he could bring them home. I said, "Sure." I saw them lying there next to the sink in their bathroom later that night. He had arranged them nicely after announcing, "I want to water my plants."

Isaac picked up these rocks one day. They're learning about rocks in school and his teacher gave them a homework, to go collect some rocks and bring them to school. Jaden picked the flowers. I found these neatly arranged next to their sink again later that night. Done by Isaac...

August is coming. We're into the third quarter of the year.

Time flies.

Must make every day count.

for daddy

2011-07-17T23:42:00.000+08:00

While you were on the plane, we were on the road,

on our way to Fusionopolis.

~ Great weather, beautiful sky, magnificent building. ~

Before the show, we went around exploring.

As usual, the boys were clowning around.

During the show, they watched with interest,

the colourful puppets captivated them.

We had a wonderful "mummy and sons" time.

~ Okay, I need to perfect my self-portrait skills! ;p ~

The boys enjoyed themselves,

and knocked out at 8.30 pm tonight.

Peace in the house.

that's water, baby

2011-07-11T00:06:00.000+08:00

Ellicia is now 7 months old. We thought it's time to introduce her to the wonderful world of water. Well, Marina Barrage is a great place to start! She watched with keen interest at her two brothers, who were having such a great time splashing around.

There she sat contentedly next to her daddy, watching all the crazy stuff her brothers were doing...

She had no idea what lies in store for her...

And daddy plonks her into the cold water!

(Okay, mummy was the mastermind.)

She was attracted to the bubbling fountain of water...

and leans so cautiously towards it.

After a few attempts of touching the cold water,

She's cool!

Next step:

A real dip in the swimming pool.

we did it!

2011-07-08T12:17:00.000+08:00

Monday being Youth Day, the boys had no school. I was feeling adventurous and so decided to bring the 3 kids out. By myself.

I only had the courage to venture to a safe and familiar place, as it was my first time bringing three of them out. Alone. So, I decided to bring them to the airport. I loaded Ellicia into her stroller, walked with the 2 boys and off we went to flag a cab. Thank God for a helpful taxi driver who helped me place the stroller into his car boot.

The boys had fun running around freely in the big space. I had a good and relaxing time walking and pushing Ellicia in the stroller. Bought some jelly beans for the boys. I've promised to get some for them when I see them. They have never tasted jelly beans before. Ended up they didn't like it! Ha.

I managed to snap some pictures using my iphone.

Everyone was happy.

We should do this more often.

a great find

2011-07-06T15:52:00.000+08:00

Do you know that there's a very tiny island, tucked in between the main island of Singapore and Sentosa? We didn't know about the place until recently, when my husband's colleague told him about it. We went to check it out last weekend. Keppel Island, it is called.

a model of Marina @ Keppel Bay, with the new condominium

Reflections at Keppel Bay at the background

We headed to Marina at Keppel Bay for our dinner. There are a number of eateries there, including Prive, a well-known restaurant. We tried out TCC @ the Bay as they are having a 1-for-1 promotion for their main course from now til 24 July.

we like the ambience of the place

the boys were excited to be there and they enjoyed the food too

We took a walk around the place after our meal. This place is great for a photography enthusiast like me!

the bridge connecting Singapore and the island

a great place to take a quiet stroll after our meal

The place was relatively quiet at night. Our two boys were making way too much noise, running around and talking at the top of their voices, disrupting the peace. Ha. I guess they were just excited. Kids being kids.

There's a long, beautiful tank along the path just outside one of the restaurants. The boys couldn't resist putting their hands into the water.

I won't exactly say that this is a child-friendly place, since it's a place for fine dining and luxury yachts. I had to change baby girl's diaper but wasn't able to find a diaper changing area inside the ladies' washroom. I ended up changing her on her stroller instead.

Nevertheless, it's a nice place to chill out with friends or your spouse. I think it's also a rather romantic place to go for a date. Without the kids!

big brother

2011-07-04T08:45:00.000+08:00

Was looking through some of the photos on my phone and came across this. Taken more than a year ago.

Gives me a warm fuzzy feeling, seeing the big brother taking care of the little one.

Reminds me that he actually does love and care for his little brother, despite the daily squabbles and fights.

relax

2011-07-01T23:29:00.001+08:00

When you're with your kids for long hours every day, sometimes the little irritating things that they do start to get at you, until they make you really frustrated and high-strung. It is especially so when you are cooped up indoors for long hours. Every. Single. Day.

I find it happening to me, especially during the past one month of school holiday. Never a day passed without me having to nag at, scream at, reprimand, scold and discipline our 2 boys. Especially our eldest. I'm not sure if it's because he's turning 6 soon and is at a phase where he's testing limits and challenging authority.

It's been rather depressing as I find myself getting irritated with him very easily and scolding him more than I had wanted. The hubby said that the boy is feeling bored at home and suggested that we should sign him up for more activities. I, on the other hand, have been trying hard to get him to do some activities at home. But given that my time is spread thin among the three, it's been a struggle.

Few days ago, my father fetched Jaden over to his place, and I was able to have some time at home with only 2 kids. It was a breeze. A welcomed break from the usual craziness. With two, I was able to get out of the house. We went for a walk around the neighbourhood, with Ellicia in her stroller.

Isaac saw a flower on the pavement, picked it up and said, "Mummy, for you." The last time he did that was about 2 years ago!

We ended up walking for more than an hour. Baby girl fell asleep along the way and it was only Isaac and me, talking and walking. And him asking me questions after questions. About plants, insects and whatever things that we saw and whatever that came to his mind. I got him to take pictures of things along the way that he thinks are interesting.

~ things we found on our walk ~

(most pictures taken by Isaac, with my iphone)

It's amazing how joy can be found in the simplest things.

And getting out of the house for a breather does everyone good!

playing with clay

2011-06-30T00:34:00.001+08:00

Our two boys have always loved to play with dough, play-doh and glurp. In fact, anything messy, they like! If you've followed this blog for a while, you'd know that I encourage messy play. Well, as long as I don't have to be the one cleaning up! Not really. Truth is, most of the time, I have to be the one to clean up. Who else?!

Anyway, they simply enjoy fiddling with play-doh and can spend a long time sitting there quietly playing with it. So, I was glad that Sophie & Friends sent over these two tubs of Kanten Clay for the boys to try out. Kanten Clay is an all-natural Japanese modelling clay that is safe even with accidental consumption, as it is made from agar-agar extracted from naturally occuring seaweed.

Isaac and Jaden were thrilled and started playing immediately.

Now, I would NEVER allow them to play with dough on our bare floor, for obvious reasons. However, after being told that Kanten Clay is oil-free and residue-free, I wanted to test if it is true. So, I let the boys play with the clay on our dining room floor. I was pleasantly surprised that it is as they have claimed. Our floor was neither oily nor sticky even after the boys rolled the clay on it for quite some time. I didn't have to mop or wipe the floor at all after they're done playing.

Since it is made of natural ingredients, I felt safe enough to let Ellicia play with it for awhile.

Our Isaac, who has a sensitive nose, was surprised that there was no smell on his hands at all after fiddling with the clay. This is another good point of Kanten Clay - it is absolutely odourless.

The boys had fun making food and other stuff with the clay, which is very soft and moldable.

Look like real 'kueh', don't they?

After trying out Kanten Clay, the boys verdict: LOVE IT!

Since we received only 2 tubs of the clay, Isaac and Jaden asked me to go buy some more for them! Kanten Clay is available in 7 different colours and new colours can be created by mixing two or more colours together.

My verdict: LOVE IT too! Especially since I don't have to clean up nor mop the floor at all! Which is very important for someone who has to do all the housework, you know.

Kanten Clay is available online at Sophie & Friends.

You can also visit these two fabulous mums' blogs, Mommy Cafe and SANses, who are currently having a Kanten Clay giveaway. Have fun!

camouflage

2011-06-28T10:35:00.000+08:00

Left on his own, playing with his toys, Isaac came up with this.

He was trying to camouflage the dinosaurs.

Simple play that kept him happy and focused for quite some time.

The balls kept rolling off and he kept trying.
He was real pleased when he succeeded.

In another few short years, he will not be interested in these anymore.

So this is precious.

time to breathe again

2011-06-24T02:28:00.000+08:00

This school holiday is the first time ever for me to be at home with all three kids by myself. In the past, when my mum still came over daily to help me out with the kids, school holiday means outings and more outings. I would bring Isaac and Jaden out, together with my mum, almost every other day. It was fun, fun, fun. I would drive my hubby to work in the mornings, so that I can have the car to drive the boys around during the day.

This time, school holiday is different. One of its kind. My mum is busy looking after my 4-month-old nephew. We now have three instead of two kids. And Ellicia is still a baby. Which means to bring her out involves a whole lot of planning. And to bring her out with the two boys, alone, all by myself, without the car as we don't have a baby car seat for now, is near impossible. On top of that, in the past 4 weeks, we were busy with packing, renovation, house cleaning, house shifting, AND unpacking.

Some people asked me how I cope and keep my sanity. Well, I don't! I was sane for maybe 2 out of the 28 days of school holiday. The most 3 days. Those were days where I managed to get out of the house, or when my mum managed to come over to help. Or when I ordered Mac delivery for lunch.

one of the more sane days

Or when I managed to think of smart ways to get the boys interested for more than an hour.

When the three of them were able to entertain themselves while I hide.

Those were rare days.

On most days, the normal ones, I find myself running here and there, meeting the needs of the three kiddos. Brushing Jaden's teeth, bathing them, feeding, cleaning, breaking up squabbles and fights between the two boys, preparing milk, meals, snacks, nursing Ellicia, changing diapers, disciplining bad behaviours, nagging, fighting the boys to eat, nap, bathe, pick up their toys, share, don't shout, don't quarrel, don't fight. And it doesn't end there. I still get woken up in the middle of the night by Jaden and sometimes Ellicia.

In the past three weeks alone, baby girl had fallen off her baby rocker once, Jaden had banged his head into our kitchen glass door once, and fell and knocked his head on the floor another time.

In the midst of all these, I do get frustrated, exhausted, even felt kinda depressed at times. Simply because I'm stuck in the house with the 3 of them this month, day in and day out, unable to go anywhere!

Someone came to me recently and told me that I ought to try and learn how to cope with my stress and not get frustrated. I simply felt like asking that person, "Do you actually know what you're saying? Do you have any idea how a typical day is like for me this month?"

Anyway, I just need to get it out of my system. After all these craziness, I still love my kids. I still do not have a single bit of regret to be staying home during their growing up years. I guess it's a vicious cycle. Staying home drives me crazy. I'm crazy, that's why I stay home. Ha!

Well, how do you cope with your stress?

Do share and enlighten me.

And by the way, if any of you, or you know of someone who, no longer need your baby car seat and are thinking of selling it, please send me an email. I'd be glad to buy a second hand, since this is our last baby. Thanks!

railway station

2011-06-22T02:19:00.001+08:00

Over the weekends, we checked out Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.

This railway station, which was built in 1932, will cease operation with effect from 1st July 2011. As expected, there was a huge crowd and many are holding a camera in hand, taking photographs of the place before it is closed permanently.

We were hoping to catch sight of a train or two and had told the boys that we were going to go see a real train and they were excited. It was quite disappointing that we didn't manage to see one in the end.

But it was still interesting to see real train tracks. Right here in Singapore.

We were there for only a short while, together with my parents, who also wanted to go visit the old railway station before its closure. We even met one of Isaac's K1 teachers there, with her family. She remarked that it was the first time she visited the station and planned to visit it again before 30 June.

As we didn't get to see any train there, Isaac and Jaden soon lost interest. While they were interested in drinking their cola, I was happily walking around, snapping away.

I like the architectural designs of the old train station.

If you're also keen in paying the quaint, old train station a visit, you still have less than 10 days to do so. The last train will depart the station on 30 June 2011.

Farewell, Tanjong Pager Train Station...

she can sit

2011-06-20T01:03:00.000+08:00

She's 6 months old.

Time flies.

good mucus remover

2011-06-16T23:58:00.000+08:00

Our 5-year-old Isaac is born with a sensitive nose. He wakes up most mornings either sneezing or with a stuffy nose. Usually there'll be mucus stuck in his nose, and I mean those dried or semi-dried ones. No problem with the watery ones as we can easily ask him to blow his nose. In fact, he has learnt to blow his nose since 2 years of age.

Ever since he was a baby, the only way we know to remove those dried and semi-dried mucus from his tiny nostrils is to twist a piece of tissue paper into a sharp end, stick it into his nose and try to drag out the mucus. Well, it is not an easy feat.

It was only a few months back that I finally taught Isaac how to clean his nostrils every morning, using tissue paper. Now that he's 5 years old, he can easily do it himself.

Well, we still have our 3-year-old Jaden and 6-month-old Ellicia.

Which was why I was really glad when Sophie & Friends sent over their latest product - Cleebo.

Cleebo is a revolutionary new tweezer for removing dried or semi-dried mucus from babies' and children's noses. I was attracted to the compactness of its packaging and the vibrant colours of the tips, which are made of safe, medical-grade silicone.

I find it interesting that a boring thing such as a tweezer for removing mucus can come in 5 interchangeable colourful tips. Whoever invented this product really understands kids! Isaac and Jaden were intrigued when I showed them the tweezer.

Well, fun and aesthetics aside, does this thing really work? That is what I want to know!

I tried it on Ellicia two nights ago when I noticed a piece of mucus in her tiny nostril. Normally, I would employ the only method I knew to remove such dried mucus - a twisted piece of tissue paper. And usually, I won't succeed in getting the mucus out as she'll be wriggling and struggling. Furthermore, the tissue paper is actually way too soft and unable to provide enough pressure for dragging out the dried mucus.

I got hubby to help me carry baby girl while I tried out Cleebo. She struggled when I tried to put the tweezer into her nostril. But this time, I felt totally relaxed as I know that the soft tips of Cleebo won't hurt her at all.

The result? I got this yucky stuff in less than 5 seconds. Serious.

It works!

In fact, Cleebo has been positively reviewed by many parents in the UK. According to a survey of 23 independent medical professionals, 91% of the doctors list Cleebo as the most practical solution for blockages in the nasal passage. 82% feel that it is the safest option for clearing nasal congestion in children.

Cleebo is available online here.

I'm glad I don't have to wait 5 years for Ellicia to learn how to clean her nostrils herself!

art garden @ sam

2011-06-15T03:00:00.002+08:00

I finally made it out of the house yesterday with the two boys, as my mum was able to help look after baby girl for a few hours. This was our first outing this school holiday, can you believe it?! Having enjoyed last year's Art Garden at the Singapore Art Museum, Isaac and Jaden wanted to go for it again this year.

We were greeted by a wall of Dancing Solar Flowers upon entering.

To be honest, after a wonderful time at the Art Garden last year, I was expecting alot more and was a little disappointed by the lack of exhibits this time round as compared to last year. I was happily bringing the two boys up to Level 2 thinking that there are more Art Garden exhibits and activities for kids, only to walk into other exhibitions which, in my opinion, are just a little scary for the kiddos. Well, just my personal opinion.

Anyway, they are not all that scary. At least here's one that the boys like. They walked into this room, cautiously at first, but when I pointed out to them that there are papers and pencils available for them to trace the engravings on the wooden desks, they got excited. Especially Isaac, who was happily tracing away.

Jaden, on the other hand, was excited at first but soon exclaimed, "Why only black? I want colourful!" Well, he was referring to the pencils. He wanted to trace with colour pencils. Which explains why he was no longer interested in the tracing and started wandering around the room, and this caught his attention.

A huge pair of angel wings, made entirely of slippers! Impressive, I'd say.

When I finally realised (how blur am I!) that the Art Garden exhibits are only at Level One, we spent the rest of our time there. Here's one room which Jaden loves... scribbling with COLOURFUL markers.

In this room, the boys spent only a few minutes here. Isaac tried the 'Dress Me Up' dolls but Jaden refused to. Instead, he was interested in decorating the gigantic cake in the middle of the room.

Isaac taking a picture with his 'art work'.

We went into another room where the boys did some colouring.

Again, Isaac was more interested in this than Jaden. His meticulous colouring drew comments from the worker in the room, who told him, "What a nice piece of work, so colourful!"

The next room was a hit with the boys. A room full of Thomas The Train tracks! The entire ceiling and four walls are covered with blue tracks! Not only that, there are trucks and cranes and animals all over the place. A sure hit with boys of all ages, I reckon!

If not for this Paramodel exhibit, I think we would have left within an hour. The boys stayed for more than an hour in this room alone, building tracks and playing with the trains.

If you're thinking of bringing your kiddos to the Art Garden, it is on til 30 August 2011. Just remember, it is located only at Level One of the museum. Oh and there are various films being screened at Level Two, which we didn't watch at all as the boys were not interested. All in all, it was a fun day of outing with the boys. Anything is better than being couped up at home!

And Isaac and Jaden will exclaim, "We love Art Garden!!!"

one week later

2011-06-11T02:10:00.001+08:00

The past one week has been crazily busy. The night before moving into our new place, we were packing our stuff all the way til 3am. Right now, I'm typing this post in our new flat... which is still kinda messy. I guess it'll take us a couple of weeks to really settle down, unpack, and do up the house.

Isaac and Jaden were excited about moving and they love their new room, especially their new bed.

Since it's the school holiday, the boys are at home everyday, which gives me a real challenge to keep them occupied while having to unpack all our stuff. For the first couple of days, I thought of some activities to keep them occupied. One of the first things I did when we moved into our new place was to unpack some of their toys. At least that kept them occupied for awhile, playing with their old, familiar toys in a new home. Well, that caught their interest for, like about 30 minutes?!! Great. After that, they grew tired of playing and went exploring around the new place.

The next couple of days, I got them to play with play-doh, water, drawing, colouring, lego... while I tried my very best to unpack.

7 days later, we still have boxes of stuff left unopened. Rooms still in a mess. Kids still stuck at home.

I need sleep. And I need a tidy house.

But 2 weeks of school holiday have flown by and the boys have been stuck at home. I'm thinking of forgetting about unpacking for now. I just want to bring the kids out next week.

Well, we'll see.

busy as a bee

2011-06-01T02:02:00.000+08:00

Two days of the June holidays have passed. Has it only been two days? It feels like two weeks!

We're into our last few days of staying in our current place. Our living room and kitchen have become like storerooms, with cardboard boxes stacked high up, ready to be moved to our new place in a few days time. There are still tonnes of stuff to be packed and lots of cleaning up to be done at the new place...

I can't believe how we can try to accomplish so much within such a short time. But well, nothing is impossible!

I guess the next time I blog, we'd be in our new home...

So, I leave with you these snapshots of Ellicia in her bumble bee costume (gift from her Uncle Steven and Aunt Lydia). How aptly this describes us now... busy as a bee, fluttering here and there, working non-stop.

Hope you're all still enjoying the school holidays!

across the universe

2011-05-27T00:29:00.000+08:00

The quietest times during weekdays in our household is in the mornings, when the two boys are in school. For those three hours or so, I'm alone at home with baby girl. This precious quiet time that I have every morning is one of those things that keep me going and gives me the renewed energy to face the hectic day ahead, when the boys are back from school.

On some mornings, I'd let baby girl listen to music while I go about doing some light housework and have my breakfast.

More than once, baby girl would fall asleep while listening to the music. And she'll usually nap for an hour or so, giving me the much-needed 'me-time'.

Here's one of such moments today. It's the first time I let her listen to this tune which I came across while searching for music for babies. And she seems to like it. I like it too.

Lullaby from Ing on Vimeo.

Today is the last day of the school term. I've to say goodbye to my cherished morning quiet times for the next 4 weeks, as the boys will be at home everyday, the entire day!

Well, maybe I should try this piece of music on the boys, and see if it'll get them to nap for an hour or two. Or maybe playing rock music is more suitable, as they'll be jumping up and down rocking along and hopefully get tired by noon-time.

Happy school holidays everyone!

chinese painting

2011-05-25T09:11:00.000+08:00

This.

And this.

And a few more strokes of the brush.

Gives you this.

Isaac's Chinese painting masterpiece.

Done at the art class.

Painted entirely by himself, with instructions from the art teacher.

He's happy that his teacher gave him an A+ for this piece.

To me, A+ or not, it is a beautiful piece.

But most importantly, he's learning and liking it!

wild vs tame

2011-05-23T09:49:00.001+08:00

After having two boys, and our final one a girl, hubby and I have come to the conclusion (at least to us) that girls are so easy to look after!

While boys are into crazily wild and active play,

with guns and fights, shouting and running around,

their idea of fun being making funny faces and getting into mischiefs.

A girl can sit contentedly just hugging her teddy.

Or simply being quiet, observing the world around her.

And when you go take a look at her, she flashes you one of her sweetest smile.

Life's never boring for us, living with these three.

scribblings and writings

2011-05-18T10:25:00.002+08:00

After almost five months of school, Jaden has improved tremendously in his pencil grip and handwriting. From not being able to hold a pencil properly, he has progressed to being able to write almost legibly. Nowadays, he likes to sit at the table and write. He'd attempt to write starting from letter A and will go on and on until he gets stuck or bored.

Another of his favourite is to write numbers. I'm not sure why but he just likes to talk about numbers. He will go "2 and 2 make 4... 4 and 4 make 8... 8 and 8 make 16..."

The other day, he just sat there scribbling away, and when he was done, he proudly presented his work to me.

Okay, it's just a whole piece of scribbles. Or is it?

Upon closer inspection, I figured he was trying to write addition sentences, although he got the presentation wrong. Instead of writing from left to right, he went from right to left. Well, who cares?!

1 + 1 = 2

3 + 3 = 6

4 + 4 = 8

He also drew a rainbow. It was kinda cute watching him as he was singing the rainbow song while drawing this rainbow. That two yellow 6-look-alikes are actually musical notes, according to Jaden.

Now, here's the rainbow song which Jaden loves to sing. He learnt it from Julia Gabriel Playclub. I know some people have issues with the lyrics of this song, like where do you find pink in a rainbow, and how to even listen with your eyes??? Well, again, who cares!? As long as kids love this song, at least mine does!

Enjoy.

Transition

2011-05-16T10:16:00.000+08:00

In another few weeks, we'll be moving out of our current apartment into a new one. This has been a very long process, from searching for a new place, viewing different apartments, to looking for renovation contractors, comparing quotations, planning, designing, buying furniture and now renovation and packing.

Right now, we're in a stage where it is real chaotic. Our current apartment is in a mess, with half-packed boxes stacked up at various corners.

Of course, the boys are excited to have free license to mess up the house.

Our new apartment is in another kind of mess, as it's currently undergoing renovation.

I have mixed feelings about moving.

We've lived here for more than 8 years. This is where my hubby and I moved in after our wedding. This place holds too many memories for me and for us as a family. This is where we went from two, to now a family of five. A place where our three kids were born, where Isaac and Jaden grew up from being infants to the boys they are now. A place where many friends have visited over the years. A place where family gatherings have taken place.

On the other hand, we're excited about moving into a new place.

For now, we just have to live with this mess, and this "hanging in between".

I told my hubby that I think I'd cry on the day when we take one last look at our empty apartment and say our final goodbye.

Carefree

2011-05-12T10:00:00.000+08:00

Bubbles.

All kids love them, some adults too.

There's something about watching kids play with bubbles that makes you feel oh so relaxed.

So carefree.

As if all your troubles are being carried away by the bubbles

and disappear as they burst.

On My Own

2011-05-11T10:54:00.000+08:00

Now that my mum is babysitting my 3-month-old nephew when his parents are at work, I'm officially on my own on most days. I used to shudder at the thought of being at home alone with the three kids. I still do, actually. The question that keeps coming is "Can you cope?"

After doing it alone for a few times, I can say that "It is possible". I realised that humans are highly adaptable creatures. Once you're thrown into the water, you'd struggle for awhile but somehow just learned to swim. I've learnt to take care of the needs of the three little ones, fetch Isaac from school with the two younger ones in tow, do housework, cook, help Isaac with his homework, and whatever else that comes up during the course of the day. Multi-tasking to the max!

Of course there are times when I hit my sanity ceiling. When this happens, I just need a few moments of quietness, to switch off from the demands of the day, and I'd come out feeling better.

So, here are some little things that inspire me and keep me sane on such days.

A nice, aromatic, hot cup of coffee!

Listening to Christmas carols!

It helps to give me the "holiday mood". LOL!

Taking photographs.

And playing with them.

Watching the three kiddos laughing and playing happily together.

And reminding myself that they are the reason why I'm home doing what I'm doing now, instead of climbing the corporate ladder.

And remembering that these few short years will be over before I know it.

Random Art Pieces

2011-05-05T15:49:00.001+08:00

I love art.

Which is why I do not have an issue with letting my kids spend their time doodling, drawing, painting, creating. That, to me, is NOT a waste of time. I'm happy when I see them sitting down at the table totally engaged in creating.

Isaac is currrently taking a once-a-week after school art lessons in his kindergarten. These are some of the art pieces he did, with the help and instructions from the art teacher.

The next two are drawn entirely by Isaac. I'm intrigued by the details in his drawings.

These, the boys did with some shapes stickers which I've found while packing my stuff.

Isaac's

Jaden's

Have I mentioned that I love art?

They Aren't Naughty, They're My Brothers

2011-05-03T10:58:00.000+08:00

Here's what happens when you're the youngest in the family and you have two elder brothers. They treat you like a plaything. They'll get you to join in their games. Even rough games.

They got Ellicia to sit on a pony (with the help of Daddy) and off she went galloping away.

Truth is, the boys are fond of their baby sister. Yes, even Jaden now. They will want to look at her whenever she's awake. They will get Mummy to place her near them while they're playing.

They simply adore her!

It is wonderful to have two elder brothers doting on you.

That is, as long as they don't treat her like one of their toys!

Age Of Innocence

2011-04-28T22:50:00.000+08:00

Children say the most innocent things sometimes. Here are some of Jaden's latest words that make us laugh our heads off.

Numbers

Jaden: Mummy, two three is 'twenty-three'?

Me: Yes.

Jaden: So, zero three is it 'zeroty-three'?

On whining

Whenever Jaden or Isaac whines, we always tell them not to whine. Sometimes, when we're really frustrated, we'll question them sternly, "Why are you whining?!!"

Just the other day, I was sort of complaining to the hubby about some things during dinner and our dear Jaden looked at me and asked,

"Mummy, why are you whining?"

On cuteness

This morning before going to school...

Jaden: I don't like Mrs Yap.

Me: Why?

Jaden: She laughs at me.

Me: Oh, why does Mrs Yap laugh at you?

Jaden (with a serious frown on his face): Because I'm very cute.

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

Alright, now the next one has nothing to do with innocence, or maybe it does? Anyway, I call this "Full of Excuses".

When it's time to keep the toys, Jaden likes to say all kinds of things just to try to get away from doing the task.

Me: Jaden, keep all the toys now.

Jaden (frowning): But I'm very tired.

Me: Keep the toys NOW.

Jaden: My tummy's very painful.

Me: Keep your toys!

Jaden (looking real serious): My back is aching. I'm coughing. I have sore throat.

Is this innocent or what?

Marble Art

2011-04-26T10:25:00.000+08:00

One day last week, when I didn't know what to do with Isaac, I took out some marbles, syringe, paint, paper and a cardboard box cover, and we did this.

Place a piece of paper in the box cover.

Using a syringe, spray some paint on the paper.

Throw in some marbles and roll them around.

Isaac decided to pour some glitter on it.

Here's what we got.

It was a simple project and Isaac spent quite a long time playing with it. When he finally got tired of it, we just left the art pieces to dry. A couple of days later, I got the two boys to cut out shapes of eggs from these art pieces and glue them onto coloured papers, to make an Easter craft. This time, Jaden joined in the project.

The final product.

Hope you've had a great Easter weekend.

Easter Craft

2011-04-20T09:55:00.001+08:00

Here's a simple Easter craft that we made yesterday. All you need are papers, tapes and paint.

Start by taping the outline of an egg on the paper. I did this for Jaden but asked Isaac to try it himself. Then, I tore small pieces of tapes for the boys to paste within their egg outlines, to form patterns on their eggs. When this was done, all they had to do was to paint over the whole piece of paper, including the tapes.

Isaac wanted blue while Jaden chose purple. I didn't have purple paint, so we mixed blue with red. Took the chance to show them that blue and red make purple.

When the paint is dry, peel off the tape from the paper, taking care not to tear the paper. Here are their final products...

By Isaac

By Jaden

Total time taken for this craft... 15 minutes. Easy and fun!

Robots

2011-04-19T10:31:00.000+08:00

This term in school, Isaac is on the theme "Robots and Machines". He's learning about robots, machines and their uses. Besides making robots in school, he had to write a piece of "creative writing" on the topic.

Yesterday, I wanted to keep Isaac occupied while I prepared dinner, so that he wouldn't go disturb his younger brother. So, I gave him some chicken essence boxes and other used boxes which I could find from the kitchen. Passed him the tape and asked him to "use his brain" and come up with something.

I left him and in the middle of my cooking, he excitedly ran to the kitchen with this.

Not too bad for a first attempt, all by himself.

Baby You've Grown

2011-04-14T14:14:00.001+08:00

You're now 4 months old!

You're discovering the world of toys...

And can now reach out to grab them.

You can lift your legs effortlessly...

And touch those tiny little toes.

Sometimes even trying to put them into your mouth!

Your laughter and chuckles

are the most contagious.

You sleep through the night at 3 months plus. (Thank you!)

You can now flip over all by yourself!

And lift your head up.

Great achievement!

You had your first haircut and you're so cool about it!

No crying, no fussing.

Although now you look more like a baby boy! (Haha!)

How you have grown, baby gal!

While You Were Away

2011-04-13T14:12:00.000+08:00

We had an impromptu outing in the evening

To one of our favourite places.

We bowled,

We drove,

And rode.

We ate,

And played,

In this kid-friendly restaurant,

Enjoyed our free flow ice-cream and drinks.

Took a ride on the ferris wheel

All in the span of two-and-a-half hours.

Besides wishing you were here,

I wished I had brought my camera!

(Lights on the ferries wheel)

~all photos taken with my iPhone~

Middle Child

2011-04-12T11:05:00.001+08:00

Middle child syndrome. Seriously, I have no idea what that is. I still don't, and have yet to go find out or read up about it.

Our Jaden, who used to be the baby of the family, has become our "middle child", since the birth of his baby sister.

Our cheerful little boy is still as cheerful, although there have been bouts of tantrums from him in the past few months. He is definitely more clingy than before. I'm not sure if that's just part of his developmental phase, or is it really due to the arrival of baby girl.

He still gets up in the middle of the night, at least once every night, to look for me. He seems afraid that I will disappear out of his sight and never come back! To the extent that when I step into the bathroom, he will stand outside banging at the door, asking me to come out! Which means I cannot even pee or poo in peace. However, he's still the funny boy in our family, saying and doing things which tickle us.

Once, I was so fed up by the boys' constant squabbles and whines, that I shouted, "Can you two stop it?!! Please give me some peace!!!"

And our dear Jaden responded innocently, with a look of concern, "Mummy, I give you two hundred peace, ok?"

I have noticed a slight (very, very slight) lack of confidence in him, which wasn't there before. When Isaac and him were doing things together, Jaden will attempt something but gives up very easily, saying he doesn't know, or he can't do it. I suspect it's because he's comparing himself to Isaac, who is able to get the same thing done much better and faster.

Having to give our attention to three kids means that sometimes we may unintentionally neglect one or two of them. As parents, we have to be aware and make a conscious effort not to neglect any one of them. Daily. Constantly.

Jaden.

You're still our lovely and precious boy.

Middle child or not.

Editor's (me, of course!) Pick

2011-04-07T10:33:00.003+08:00

Once in a while, you pick up a book which, once you've read the first few lines, you simply can't put it down until you've finished the entire book. I got my hands on one of such books last week.

I can say this is one of the best novels I've read in a long while. It has caused my heart to skip a few beats, made me go "Oh no..." with disbelief and dread many times, brought a few chuckles and many tears. Most of all, it made me reflect on myself as a mother.

This is a story told by a 5-year-old boy born in captivity. His mother gave birth to him after she was being kidnapped and imprisoned in a small room. Read the words on the back cover:

"To five-year-old Jack, Room is the world. It's where he was born, it's where he and his Ma eat and sleep and play and learn. At night, Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where Jack is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits. Room is home to Jack, but to Ma it's the prison where she has been held for seven years. Through her fierce love for her son, she has created a life for him in this eleven-by-eleven foot space..."

I'm touched by the fierce love this mother had for his boy. I think this book moved me alot, probably because I, too, have a 5-year-old boy. If you've ever felt frustrated with your child's tantrums, or thought that being a parent is difficult, this book will make you feel that there's so much more you can do for your kids. At least it did to me.

Go ahead and get hold of a copy from bookstores or the library.

I highly recommend it.

Labrador Park

2011-04-06T11:49:00.000+08:00

A year ago, we brought Isaac and Jaden to Labrador Park for the very first time. We had a nice family outing there, with the boys playing quietly in the sand. Somehow, we've forgotten about that place and didn't go back, until two weeks ago. The place still looks the same, but this time, the kids are a year older, and we have Ellicia with us on this outing.

Photos taken a year ago... the boys playing quietly with the sand.

It's interesting how, in this tiny island, there can still be places which we forget about. I've totally forgotten about this place until one day a few weeks ago, the boys were flipping through the photos in my iphone and saw the photos we took in this place. Isaac asked Daddy then to bring him there again and we were cracking our brains trying to recall what place that was! Jaden totally couldn't remember having been to this place before. Isaac could still recall slightly. Anyway, the boys had a fantastic time playing with the sand and the playground again this time. The sand seems whiter and cleaner this time.

The maze-like thing that they played in last year is still there.

While the boys were running around, all Ellicia could do was to lie quietly in her stroller. I think the next time we visit this place again, she'll be running around together with her two brothers. That'll be fun.

One thing about Labrador Park which I don't like is the mosquitoes! If we ever visit that place again, insect repellant is a must! Nevertheless, it is a great place to catch the sunset. I was snapping away the whole time, experimenting with my new Canon Powershot S95. We saw quite a number of photography enthusiasts there that day, with their bulky cameras and tripods, shooting the sunset.

Here are some of the shots I took that day.

We left that place when the sun was setting. On our way to the carpark, we saw a double rainbow!

Beautiful, I must say.

A memorable way to end the day. And I believe I won't forget the name of this place again. :)

Good Quality Stuff For Kids

2011-04-05T01:28:00.002+08:00

Now that I have 3 kids, having the time to go shopping is a luxury and a very rare, almost inexistent one. That's why I've taken to online shopping nowadays. I've bought a number of items the past couple of months from online stores and I simply love the convenience!

A few weeks ago, I heard of this relatively new online store - Reebonz. This is an online, members' only shopping club that offers branded and luxury items up to 70% off the retail price. There are monthly sales going on, which are known as 'Events' in their website. Each event typically lasts between 2 to 3 days and is exclusively for members.

Recently, Reebonz has just launced a new section - Reebonz Kids! Members can look forward to good quality items for kids in this section.

I'm always on the lookout for good educational toys for our boys. So, I was glad to receive this Magnetic Mighty Minds set from Reebonz for Isaac and Jaden! This is a puzzle set containing 32 design tiles in 6 basic geometric shapes. Children complete this set of puzzle in increasing levels of complexity. The retail price for this set is S$46 but Reebonz is offering it at only S$39! What's more, delivery is FREE and orders are sent personally by courier to your designated address!

The puzzle set was couriered to us in this delightful paper bag. How cool!

When I opened it, I saw this and was impressed by the packaging. Great if you're getting it as a gift.

Isaac saw the new puzzle and was excited to play with it!

He spent close to 2 hours completing the puzzle from stage 1 to 30.

As the complexity increases, Isaac had some difficulty towards the later part but I was glad to see him persevering and he was finally able to complete the puzzle all by himself. You should see the look of triumph and satisfaction on his face. Priceless! He proudly showed Daddy his work the moment he returned home from work.

Jaden was equally thrilled to try out the puzzle, although it was slighty too difficult for him. So, he only played with the first few stages.

I find this a good toy for the boys as it stimulates their thinking. It kept them engaged and occupied for a long time. Better than them stoning in front of the TV anyday!

If you're on the lookout for good quality educational toys, crafts and fashion for your kids, be sure to take a look at Reebonz Kids. Their items are NOT found in local stores. Here are some of their upcoming events for kids.

Clothes

Crafts

Educational Toys

Membership is FREE but by INVITATION ONLY.

It's Been 3 Years...

2011-03-31T01:21:00.000+08:00

I've been blogging for the past 3 years! A check down my archives shows that my first post is on 15 March 2008. I recalled that day when I was at home and decided that I wanted to make my time at home with Isaac more fruitful. So, I thought of a few simple activities to do with him. And out of the blue, an idea just came, to record those activities in a blog. Simply for my own record.

Now, believe it or not, up to that point in my life, I've never ever read a blog before. Neither did I know anything about blogging. All I knew then was that there's a thing called 'blog', which is like an online journal, where you can record and write stuff... something like a diary. That's about it.

So, I explored and learnt. Spent hours tweeting my blog, reading others' blogs and along the way, discovered many inspiring and wonderful blogs.

And now, 3 years have passed. I've learnt so much along the way and made some new friends.

Am I glad I started blogging!

To celebrate the entrance into our third year, here's a new look for the blog!

Preparing For P1

2011-03-30T14:26:00.000+08:00

Most of the time when we think about P1 preparation, it usually refers to academic preparation. No doubt, that is important, but I think there are other aspects of preparation which are as important, if not more.

Here are some areas which we want to train Isaac in so that he can be better prepared for P1.

1. Life Skills and Independence

In preschools and kindergartens, teachers are there to look after you, most of the time. Teachers will bring the kids to the toilet, help them to clean up if necessary and ensure they wash their hands before snacks and after visiting the toilet.

However, in Primary One, our children have to do these themselves. We're teaching Isaac to have a habit of washing his hands before meals, as teachers will not be there to remind him. We also want him to learn to clean himself properly after pooing. I have met students crying in the toilet because they did not know how to clean themselves! Another aspect is to get him to know how to dress himself and put on his socks and shoes. When I was teaching P1, some of my students do not know how to put on their own socks or unbotton their school uniform! Some schools require students to wear their uniform to school daily, even on PE days. That's why on those days, students have to bring their PE attire to change before their PE lessons, which is really quite a hassle and challenge for those who do not know how to dress themselves. I'm glad to say that since the beginning of this year, Isaac has learnt to dress himself and wear his own socks and shoes. We now have one less thing to worry about.

We're also starting to let Isaac learn to handle money and buy things by himself. He's still kinda shy and not so willing to do it. Well, let's just say that we still have many months for him to learn and practise. Moreover, I've planned to let him bring his own snacks for recess, so this may not be so crucial now.

2. Taking care of personal belongings

In kindergarten, stationery is provided and available in class. Students do not need to bring their own stationery. When these children enter P1, it is so common for them to lose their belongings. Almost everyday, I would have children coming up to me in class, telling me that they couldn't find their pencils, erasers, rulers and so on. There were times when I turned the pages of students' workbooks to mark, only to find their pencil tucked inside the book. They had handed in their book together with their pencil, and sometimes eraser!

Along with bringing their own stationery to class comes the responsibility of sharpening their own pencils and colour pencils. This is a skill very necessary for P1 students as they do alot of writing and colouring in class.

We're teaching Isaac to learn to pack his own bag, keep his homework books and water bottle in his bag by himself.

3. Copying from the board

An important skill to teach Isaac is copying. Not in exams and tests (LOL!), but copying words from the board. Teachers usually get their students to copy homework instructions into their Pupils' Diary. This is almost a daily task. Children who have problem with that may miss out on the homework to be done or important announcements for their parents.

4. Working with others

One of the first things teachers do in class is to place students into groups. Nowadays, children do alot of groupwork in class. I guess interpersonal skills are so important. It's good to teach Isaac the importance of sharing, listening and speaking when in a group. I think our boy has no problem with listening, as he is very quiet in class and usually very observant. The challenge is to get him to speak up and share his ideas publicly.

These are the few vital skills I can think of as of now. I'm glad we still have many months before Isaac enters primary school.

The 4-Wheeler

2011-03-28T14:47:00.000+08:00

I first saw this on Motherinc and thought it was real cool! So we brought the kids to East Coast to give this thing a try during the March holidays. All three of them, yes, baby included. I think this is called a quad cycle, if I'm not wrong. We used to enjoy bringing Isaac and Jaden cycling before we had baby girl. Now that we have to either carry baby or push her in a stroller whenever we venture out, it is almost impossible to go cycling with her around.

When the guy at the bicycle rental place told us the rental fee for this, our first reaction was "wow, so ex!" There are two types available for rental, a 4-seater and a 6-seater. We rented the 4-seater, which technically, is able to carry 2 kids in front and 3 adults at the back, if you squeeze a little. This costs $30 for a 90-minute rental. The bigger 6-seater costs $40.

As you can see, I was carrying baby girl in a sling and this is one way which I can still 'cycle' while carrying a baby! It was actually quite relaxing for me, as hubby was the one doing most of the cycling on his side of the pedals! Good way to train those leg muscles. :)

It was a leisurely ride as it was not easy to go on super high speed in this vehicle. The boys had fun. The only compaint was that it was way too hot as we went there close to lunch time. So, if you want to enjoy the ride more, better to go in the early mornings or late afternoons.

Nature Not Enough

2011-03-25T10:22:00.002+08:00

We couldn't get enough of the outdoors, so off we went to Kids' Kampung last Sunday! This is our third time there. The last time we went, Jaden was only 2 years old I think, so he couldn't remember being there before. This time, he's able to try his hands at 'longkang' fishing, although he still finds it way too difficult to catch the fish.

Bright and sunny day. I like!!!

Trying very hard to catch the fish.

Nevertheless, he had fun and was happy with his catch that day, with alot of help from Daddy. When he brought the fish back, he even wanted to bring the fish to bed with him when it's bedtime!!!

Funny boy.

Isaac, being older now, was moving around very fast trying to outdo the fish. He got a liitle frustrated though, when he wasn't able to catch any. Good lesson for the kids: It takes a great amount of patience to catch a fish! The great thing is, they get to learn perseverance and to have a never-give-up attitude and when he finally caught one, the joy and sense of satisfaction is priceless.

Isaac dares to (and likes to!) hold the fish in his bare hands! Yikes!

Something which I'd never dare to do.

The boys moved on to feed the ever-so-hungry koi fish in the pond. Somehow, these fish always go crazy at the sight of FOOD. As usual, Isaac went to TOUCH these fish with his bare hands! And he was even feeding them from his hands.

Isaac was showing me how the fish was slurping the food FROM his hand.

The boys then spent the remaining time feeding the rabbits, ducks and other farm animals.

Don't put your fingers in. The rabbits may bite, thinking they are carrots!

(said a sign above the cage)

Baby girl was still unable to join in the fun. But she was still happy lying on her stroller and making her coo-ing sounds.

You can read about our first visit to Kids' Kampong here.

In Love With Nature

2011-03-24T10:22:00.002+08:00

Due to our (read: my) inability to venture outdoors nowadays (as I still don't have the courage to bring 3 kids out all by myself), I'm greatly missing nature!!! The thought of letting the kids bask in the sun and running wild outdoors has been bugging me. So, on weekends when the hubby is around, we packed the kids and off we went for some nature fun!

Three Sundays ago, we went to Botanic Gardens for a short 2 hours where we had our lunch at Casa Verde, a lovely place for alfresco dining within the gardens. After that, the boys got a chance to spend some time feeding the fish and turtles. We didn't get enough of that place and Jaden kept saying he wanted to go back there. So, we went back again the following Sunday with my mum, this time for a picnic. And we spent a longer time there. Coincidentally, there was a performance by a military band that day and it was lovely to have music playing in the garden as the boys play and feed the fish.

The boys went wild running around the huge patch of grass. You can see how deprived of nature we were.

They had fun together with Daddy, playing with their frisbee and remote controlled helicopter, although the battery went flat after only a while.

After which, they started clowning around...

As for baby girl, she was lying contentedly on her stroller most of the time, but we carried her out for a breather and to take in the sights of the greenery around her.

As for me, I was enjoying myself the whole time, listening to the music played by the band and playing with my new camera - birthday present from the hubby. This is what I call RELAXATION!

We're loving this place.

Here are some upcoming performances at the Botanical Gardens.

24 Apr 2011 (Sunday)

Singapore Chinese Orchestra

Venue : Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage

Time : 6-7pm

8 May 2011 (Sunday)

Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Venue : Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage

Time : 6-7pm

29 May 2011 (Sunday)

Brass Explosion! Presents: Eras of Swing (Sun)

Venue : Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage

Time : 5.30pm - 7.30pm

Go here to see more upcoming events.

A Little Help

2011-03-15T13:21:00.001+08:00

When we heard about the earthquake in Japan last Friday, we watched the news together with our two boys and were saddened by the devastation we saw. Isaac was busy throwing questions after questions at us regarding earthquakes and Daddy told him about tectonic plates and stuff. Jaden, on the other hand, was disturbed when he saw the buildings shaking, things falling, and vehicles swept away by the waves. He went, "Cannot! The buildings cannot fall!" with a frown on his face.

It is indeed troubling to see the number of casualties rising, and more so to read and see photographs of the survivors grieving over their lost loved ones and homes. They will need alot of courage and strength to rebuild their lives.

As much as we wish to help, in times of such a huge scale of devastation, our efforts seem so tiny. But somehow in times of trouble, it is difficult to just sit back and do nothing. So, whatever little we can do, we'll do. As rescue efforts are pouring in from all over the world, here's a little bit we can do from the comfort of our home. We may not be able to be there to help with rescue work, but we can all give a little.

And we can all pray for Japan.

She Turns 3 Months

2011-03-10T10:08:00.001+08:00

Ellicia is now a 3 month old baby. Looking at her, I wish that time will pause or at least pass a little slower. We've always wanted 3 kids and now that we have our third one, I cherish every moment, knowing that this is gonna be the last time in my life that I'll be holding my very own baby. I guess because of this, every milestone is a bittersweet experience. I'm happy and excited to see her grow, yet at the same time feeling a little sad that I'll not experience this ever again. You know what I mean?

Anyway, sentimentality aside, Ellicia is gaining weight and growing taller. At her 3 months checkup, she weighs 5.3kg and is 56cm long. Slightly chubbier but as compared to her brothers when they were at her age, she's still lighter and smaller.

She's a very smiley baby. She has a smile that always melts our hearts. Whenever Daddy looks at her in the morning, she likes to flash a sweet wide smile at him. She's also started to coo when we talk to her. I simply love the coo-ing sounds of a baby.

She's born with a head full of hair, which has since grown even longer. We didn't shave her when she turned one month. After her bath everyday, I like to brush her hair and air her scalp as she has slight cradle cap. She looks like this after her bath...

"What have you done to my hair, Mummy?!!"

Ellicia has reached yet another milestone. She has discovered her hands and fingers! There're 2 things she likes to do with them... suck her hands and play with her fingers.

"This looks fun!"

How fast our tiny infant has grown! Can we stop the time for a while?