funds required

this posting is for all ex-st. nicks girls.

major funding's required to rebuild the school. read up more on this link or visit the alumnae website for details.

the easiest is to give a one-time donation via cheque and send it to the school. (again, details are on the web).

there's also going to be a 75th Anniversary alumnae dinner next thursday, 3 july 2008, at raffles city convention centre, raffles ballroom.


dor and i will be going for the dinner, to give some support. (it's going to set me back $150 for dinner though - but that's the point about fund raiser dinners). and wei will probably be snuggled in my sarong sling. ;)

i'd initially wanted to bring xian along since i'm registering her in st. nicks for primary one. but the dinner's held on a weekday and she's got school on friday, and i know she'll have trouble getting up if she doesn't have enough sleep.

anyway, i hope all ex-st. nicks girls will contribute, even if it's a small amount.

mumsy shops online

it's a tad difficult to enjoy a trip to the malls these days.

especially when i've got my eye on a new outfit and want to give it a try. it's troublesome when i'm wearing a baby in the sarong sling and am alone as that means i can't ask someone else to carry her while i go to the changing room.

i've brought wei out alone twice - once last week for her inoculation and the second trip was just on monday when i met up with viv, an old schoolmate for lunch. i did take a stroll in the shopping centres and bought a couple of skincare products from the body shop and miscellaneous items like photo frames and beanie babies. but i had to miss the clothing section as i just couldn't place the baby on the hard floor while i satisfied my retail lust!

the only comfort i gave myself? my unflattering postpartum figure doesn't justify the expenditure on clothes. it would take a couple more weeks, perhaps months, before i can squeeze back into my pre-pregnancy size.

if it ever happens, that is.

but i do need some nursing tops as the old ones are too well-worn and showing signs of disintegration.

my next best option? online shopping!

over the years, i bought 90% of my nursing wear from moms in mind and i'd already got 3 new tops from them a month back. i've been checking for updates but the outfits i fancied didn't have the colour of size i wanted so i decided to check out other online shops.

while surfing last night, i chanced upon a new online store called maternalove. it's slightly more pricey, but the designs are a change from the ones i'm used to and with the GSS offers, i purchased 4 tops for slightly under $120. that's a steal as most basic nursing blouses cost about S$35-45 each.

as for sizes, one can't go far wrong as there's a reference chart - and since the store owners are/were nursing mothers, they know *exactly* which areas to hide.

plus most of the designs hide the *problem* areas too. and the outfits make breastfeeding in public so much easier and more convenient.

so yes, i did manage to get some shopping done and satisfied my retail fix online.

3,000 cheers for online shopping!

HOOOOORAYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!

how companies got their names

my dad sent this to me and i thought it's pretty interesting.

unfortunately it's a rather small jpeg image on screen but once you click on it, the image becomes its original (larger) size:

i'm 34

happy birthday to me!

i'm 34-years-old.

the hub took leave yesterday and we brought the older girls out for a movie. of course, it had to be kid's friendly one as wen's still a little too young to watch action-adventure types - 2 weeks ago she was cowering in her seat and crawled onto and sat on my lap for 3/4 of her first cinema experience with The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. i guess the movie was a little too loud and too dark for her although xian at her age was lapping up Van Helsing, Hellboy, Spiderman and all 3 LOTR movies!

so we caught the wacky Dreamworks release Kung Fu Panda. it was a comic riot and we loved it! by the way, cathay cinemas have a great moms 'n' tots promotion - 1 child below 7 years old gets to watch for free with each paying adult. (we watched PC and KFP at AMK hub as we didn't want to venture too far from home.)

then we headed to Kuriya Japanese Restaurant at shaw centre for my birthday lunch. it was our first visit there and we weren't disappointed though it's hard to fully appreciate meals when the children are with us. i always make it a point to ensure the kids have their fill first before i tuck into my food. i needn't worry of course, since they both love japanese food, like me. as usual, the kids licked their plates/bowls clean without me asking them to finish up their lunch! if only all meal times were this easy!!!


the hub took xian out of the restaurant after they were done, leaving wen with me while i finally got my chance to savour the fresh sashimi...and they returned with this:

wow! flowers! a sweet surprise.

the hub revealed that he was trying to get irises but couldn't find any and he was surfing the web to try to order them but wasn't successful. i'm not a flower person, but i love irises because blue's my all-time favourite flowers. and i was touched as he remembered about the irises - he'd asked me once when we were dating what flowers i liked and i think he was a little disappointed when i told him as irises aren't easily available in our humid country.

anyway, since the baby was home and i'd only managed to express 6 ounces of milk in the morning, we didn't stay out for too long for fear that she'd go hungry. the hub and i had initially wanted to drop the girls back and take baby out with us for dinner. but i decided not to eat out and we all had dinner at home.

the day ended with our "tradition" of cake-cutting. the hub bought a chocolate fudge classic cake from angie the choice and we waited for my folks to drop by after their regular thursday qi-gong session before we cut the cake and blow out the candles. i'd just taken a shower when my parents arrived, which explains my messy and semi-wet mane:


3 lovely daughters.

1 playful dog.

1 wonderful husband.

i'm a lucky mumsy!

and very, very contented.

happy birthday to me

happy birthday to me
happy birthday to me
happy birthday to mee-eeeeeeeeee
happy birthday to me

i'm 34 today! :D

sign o' times

here's my all-in-one present from the hub: a ball watch.

the hub gave me a really pleasant surprise last month with this ball watch: Ball Lady Trainmaster 60 Seconds, the lady's version of his own Ball Trainmaster 60 Seconds, Stainless Steel, Black Dial.

it's supposed to be my 9th anniversary-cum-birthday present. a very costly one at! i think it set him back about 1.3K.

*ouch*

the hub and i have always wanted to own a pair of "his & hers" watches, but never really got round to buying them. it was either the guy's version that was perfect and the lady's version wasn't or vice versa.

i never like the all-too-dainty-for-ladies or fancy the flashy types. plus we always had a budget to consider...the nice ones always cost a bomb. :(

i was both surprised and thrilled when i saw the box. the hub got his watch last year but the lady's version wasn't available then. actually, i'm not really into watches and don't usually wear one, especially after the kids came along (because i'm the one carrying them most of the time and the watch sometimes gets in the way).

and i'm extremely careless with my belongings too - most of my watches end up with heart-wrenching scratches.

i love my new watch, of course. it's got an understated charm that doesn't shout out for attention. and the unique, quaint numberings on the black face are a bonus. and i've always preferred stainless steel watches!

trust the hub to know my taste. after all, we've been together for 13 years!

the sarong sling

it's happening again. for the 3rd time in my life.

my heart's tearing up into pieces at the thought of heading back to the office without wei. we'll both need to adjust to the long hours without each other...

i know it's impossible but i just wish i could bring my terrorliza with me to work! can't bear to leave the little firecracker at home.

if only i could place wei in my old trusty sarong sling from moms in mind and bring her along with me, even to class when i teach!

i've been out several times with wei and she's always snuggled up in the sling. this pix was taken while i was having lunch at a food court - very unglamourously crossed my leg and shifted her (in the sling) to rest on my thigh while i ate with my free hand.

and i know this sounds gross, but the sarong sling even allowed me to visit the ladies - i was "hands free" and could go about doing what i had to do in the toilet, all the while with the baby in the sling!

the sarong sling's probably the best baby product investment i've made. i bought it for about S$36.00 when xian was 4 months but she didn't really like it much and i wasn't very comfortable or confident in using it.

when wen came along, i practiced using the sling with a toy teddy bear first and proceeded to place her inside whenever we went out. it was so much more convenient (and easier for breastfeeding) and we didn't need to take along the baby pram!

so wen practically grew in the sarong sling until she grew out of it! she was still using it last year (at the age of 2) during our road trip to malaysia. here's the proof as the hub slings his mirror image at his hips:


see? it's really no hassle!

if only i could sneak wei to work/class in the the sarong...*sigh*

me, mumsy

it's hard to believe but i'll be heading back to work soon.

9 july 2008 to be exact. i've marked it on my calender already.

after almost 12 weeks of staying at home with the kids, i've become used to a standard routine. a typical weekday: waking up in the mornings to wake the girls, packing them off to school, watching some CNN, bathing the baby in the late morning, logging on to clear emails while baby naps, bathing the older girls when they're back, watching more tv in the afternoon or fiddling with facebook, feeding/burping/diapering the baby in between the hours whenever necessary, chasing the girls to finish their meals, washing them up and getting them ready for bed in the evenings, watching tv etc...

a predictable albeit boring schedule .

strangely, i think i'm going to miss all this when 9 july 2008 comes around. especially my "exclusive" moments with baby terrorliza.

as a 3rd time mumsy to a newborn, i'm definitely more confident in handling wei. with xian, i was a bundle of nerves. at a loss most of the time and felt utterly useless when she cried - couldn't decipher what she wanted - wet nappy? poo? hungry? windy? bored??!!

i didn't even dare to bathe her as she was a tiny infant and i was terrified of dropping her. i was even hesitant about changing her clothes as she seemed so fragile and i was afraid to hurt her! and the sight/smell of her poop made me gag so diapering was a real snag.

when wen came along, i was slightly better equipped (mentally) to care for her. i was still awkward and clumsy, but the poo/pee/vomit didn't seem so icky. and i even bathed her myself when she was back in the hospital for jaundice treatment (during my confinement i'm not supposed to touch water).

now, i'm totally unfazed by whatever that comes out of wei's body to the point that i actually enjoy cleaning up after she dirties herself. i love bathing wei! 'm certainly no expert in taking care of babies - but let's just say that the MIL's left me alone to care for the baby, and that's an indication that i'm not that useless and helpless. ;)

i'm quite proud of my little achievements. never in my wildest dreams did i imagine i'd be married with 3 kids! heh heh. but my greatest triumph would be successfully breastfeeding my girls.

when i decided on total breastfeeding with xian, i faced some obstacles. not that anyone vehemently objected or disapproved, but neither my own mum nor MIL nursed their children so i was bombarded with concern queries about whether the baby was getting enough milk. but once they realised i was adamant about not supplementing breast milk with formula milk, and that the baby was growing well (and healthy), everyone left me alone.
also, in 2002, not many mothers were breastfeeding their kids exclusively and even if they did, few continued to do so after they returned back to work. i believe i'm among a small minority of mothers who breastfed past 6 months. both xian and wen were weaned at 25 months and i hope to do the same for wei.
i've come a long way indeed. now, a proud mum to 3 pretty princesses :)

the 3 amigos

it's been ages since i last met up with my chums M&M - mish and mae - and i was honoured that they'd decided to drop by to visit me at home since i couldn't go out.

coincidentally, they've both just left their respective gruelling jobs and so have a little bit of free time on their hands. mae's starting on her new ad agency account-serving position in 2 weeks. mish is going to take a break to prepare for her baby son's arrival in late july/august and will rejoin the workforce once he's older.

we met while studying for our OCU masters in mass communications in 1997. somehow, among the class of 14, the 3 of us just clicked and continued to stay in touch after completing the course.

anyway, yesterday was M&M's first visit to my haven @ arif. mae bought pressies for the kids: 2 pretty debbi notebooks (1 each for the 2 older girls) and a Playskool Busy Basics: Step Start Walk 'n' Ride for the baby.

wen was home during their visit and she "helped" to open the present for wei and eventually "helped" to play with it on wei's behalf and even "warmed the seat" of the toy mobile. i've stashed away the walk 'n' ride toy up in the attic. if i didn't do that, the toy will probably be broken by the time wei's old enough to play with it!

a VERY pregnant mish gave me a really nice gift from the body shop which included the much-needed Body Focus Cellulite Serum and Body Focus Cellulite Massager.

i haven't glanced at the mirror recently (haven't got the guts) but i'm sadly aware that my soon-to-be-34-year-old-body's bore the brunt of 3 births and nature's gravitational pull.

so yeah, mish's gifts will come in pretty handy. will try them out later tonight. after i've packed the kids off to bed and hopefully when i've got a few spare minutes.

it really was a wonderful chit-chat session and we should do this more often. oh, but a reality check reminded me that once my maternity leave is over, i'll be rushing to-and-fro work to mind the kids. that effectively cancels out any physical social-networking activities i intend to engage in.

furthermore, mish is due to deliver in late july/august and i'm certain the 1st time mum will have her hands full with the new boy in her life. and mae's ad agency life isn't going to be smooth sailing either. so it's tough to arrange for another get-together within the next few months. maybe even years!

*sigh*

our lives definitely change after having children.

for better or worse.

The Children of Húrin

i managed to get a copy of The Children of Húrin, the novel J. R. R. Tolkien started but never completed. it was his son Christopher Tolkien who edited the manuscripts and published it last year.

now, i'm just waiting for the perfect opportunity to pick up the book and read it without interruption. :)

not possible, i know. especially since its the school holidays and both my older girls are at home in the morning.

plus the baby's totally unpredictable and her sleep-poo-pee-drink routine isn't cast in stone. and so far, i haven't managed to synchronise their nap times (plus xian doesn't sleep in the afternoons anymore) during the day so that i can get some quality rest.

no matter. will start the ol' "wait-till-everyone's-asleep-at-night" cycle and finish the book within the week.