The month of merry making...

DECEMBER - The month that arbitarily denotes that you should keep your weighing scale under your bed. Because dieting just doesn't make sense in the month of feast-ive season.

It also happens to be the month where parents - like frantic fans go around the island malls to fulfil your kid's dream of seeing their favourite TV cartoon character LIVE.

And so to avoid the frenzied crowd, we specifically took Jayden to watch Barney & Friends at United Square on a weekday. It really doesn't help when we have parents who think alike as well. -_-

19 Dec 09 - X'mas Gathering at The Yip's Abode

It started off with the casual idea of having a simple X'mas gathering like last year. But I was glad that there was a spontaneous member - Rachel, who decided to make X'mas even more memorable. So instead of just dinner and gift exchanges, there were also X'mas hats & bands and a neat red & black dress code.

The almost perfect red & black photo if not for an unassuming family who didn't read the theme. :p

I'm almost certain that Jayden loves X'mas - which meant log cakes, presents and lots of nice yummy food.

Hopefully, we can continue with this next year. Anybody want to volunteer their house? :)

24 Dec 09 - X'mas Eve

Instead of hitting down town and getting yourself stuck in the human jam, we decided to have a quiet X'mas eve at the comforts of our home. Bon and her partner came over and we had a simple X'mas feast.

Stuffed chicken from Hans
Black pepper bacon from Carrefour
Xmas cake from Conrad
The company of your friends & family on a quiet X'mas night. :)

25 Dec 09 - X'mas morning

Jayden, or rather the parents, couldn't wait until boxing day to open the presents. The X'mas tree was literally brimmed with presents for the son. All thanks to Mummy & Daddy's friends who doted on him.

The most favourite gift for the moment is the Thomas & Friends book collection from Auntie Celeste. It has now become his everyday bed-time stories. :)

This X'mas, I think Dylan and myself must have had a strong affiliation with bath works and chocolates & candies. I am now smelling of lavendar everyday.

Merry X'mas Everyone!

A very belated gift

When Liv asked what Jayden wanted for his 2nd birthday, I was stumped. Not that the boy has all the toys in the world - it's just that we didn't want another bulky plaything lying around the house.

And so the autocratic mummy pondered on other options - Enrichment, dancing, art and even swimming classes. We attended a trial at Gymboree Music. And I must say it was DREADFULLY BORING. The teacher failed to even get Jayden to dance. The long waiting list on the swimming classes was enough to turn me off.

So after much procrastination, I finally decided to bring the son to the Thomas the Train show - after witnessing how much he enjoyed himself at the Hi-5 Musical.

I requested for only Mummy and son tickets but who knows Liv surprised us by coming along as well! "Just to spend some bonding time with Jayden", she said. :)

Before the show starts

I was a little apprehensive on the show due to the last time we watched the free performance at Marina Square - Thomas was literally stationary all the time. How can a live show be anything interesting when nothing is moving?! It needs to be dynamic!

And we, together with Jayden, were pleasantly surprised at how comprehensive the props were. Definitely every dollar well spent! :)

Although Jayden loves Thomas the Train, I must shamelessly admit that I couldn't recognize any of the other characters (except very obvious Thomas) until that night! So very unglam.

Thomas & the crew

And there we have Jayden with his very exorbitant Thomas light spinner. We realized that Singaporean parents are willing to splurge on their kids. The poorly crafted toy costs 20 bucks and it was sold out before the show started.

Thanks Liv for the wonderful birthday treat! :)

How much was it again?!

Cookie Flavour - The Apple of My Eye

It used to be branded bags, clothes and accessories. Nowadays, cookies can be considered a luxurious gift as well.

The husband wanted to get something 'unique' for his clients this year. From Harrods to L'occitane to C&E - I have exhausted all ideas until someone recommended The Cookie Museum.

On first look at the place, it was delectably decorated in Victorian settings and a wide array of cookies, chocolates and cakes to choose from. Flavours unheard of - Chicken rice, laksa, nasi lemak. Not something I would have fancied for a sweet tooth.

And then I teased the husband to get a tin for me. I usually only eat chocolate chip cookies but these cookies were different. They were, as the sales assistant proudly mentioned, 99% FAT FREE. And of course, with the premium of being fat free, comes the very fat price tag as well.

"Please take your time to eat them" - the husband warned. The cookies burned a $45 hole in his pocket.

A little bit of something going on...

Not that we had alot of activities going on but blogging seemed to have taken the back seat when the year approaches to the end.

Just last Nov, we went to the zoo *AGAIN*. But this time with Dewi & family. Jayden simply loves animal watching and so we had to make the parental sacrifice.

Jayden has also started to accept Chloe whom he used to refuse saying hello to much less holding hands now!

And after much encouragement from Celeste, I decided to start baking again. I don't recall scoring badly in my Home Economics classes. Or it could be that I needed more practise now.

We woke up pretty early and brought the ingredients, tools and a very hungry stomach to Celeste's place and started baking.

I made a horrible mistake by putting ONE TABLESPOON of pandan paste when the recipe said one TEASPOON. *smack forehead*

And so my pandan chiffon batter looked like incredible hunk.

Celeste was nice to help me mix the ingredients. Noticed the 'surgery' hands in the photos. She didn't want to get her medicure scratched. Hehehe...

Because I halved all the ingredients thinking I could make 2 chiffon cakes instead of 1. It turned out like a donut - a very hard one too.

So for my first try, it was A FLOP. :(

Being very thoughtful (and perhaps have predicted my failure), Celeste prepared a set of ingredients beforehand and we made a coffee chiffon instead. "Must bring home something mah..." she said. And it did taste very yummy. :)

LC, if you're reading this, please don't laugh at me. :p

And we finally, or rather I, got the Xmas tree up at our place. Both father and son agreed to helped me put up the tree. In the end, Jayden only put up the star while Dylan put up one of the ornaments - it does not count ok! Our 3rd Xmas with the son this year. :)

I simply love the time of this year. Everything is so warm and fuzzy - time for celebrations, reminiscing and also getting fat!

Addicted

It used to be that four letter word that sends my heart pulsating rapidly. Getting the feet all burnt and sore was part and parcel of getting the good deals and discounts.


But when project B (for baby) came along, the shopping rendezvous slowed down and eventually stopped. Bringing a kid in tow just didn't seemed comfortably feasible any more.


Lately, I started to develop an addiction. The adrenalin was far more exciting than having to travel down town in search of something I may not eventually find.


The sheer exhilaration of pounding the keyboard, clicking the mouse and anticipating the arrival of your purchases a few weeks later in a neatly wrapped parcel was gratifying. Whoever said we need to get out of the house to do shopping?


From clothes, to accessories, toys, kids stuff, and even shoes. All you need is a very healthy mouse and keyboard that won't die on you when it runs out of battery. And when meagre item shopping doesn't satisfy, it's good to have contacts who travel overseas.



Introducing my latest hedonistic purchase... ...




Ahhh... ...whoever said early Xmas shopping hurts?

When it all comes to an end

After reading Celeste's critic on 2012, Dylan and I decided to catch the movie over the weekend. (Not that there were alot of movie selections to choose from these days.)

I thought it would have been another Armageddon or Independance Day action flick that would have had us applauding on the visual effects. However, 2012 struck me with a different tone.

Perhaps it was age that has caught up, perhaps it was motherhood that has enhanced my emotions. I had alot of revelations when the scene of people dying, people losing their loved ones kept playing in front of me.

What will I do if I knew the end is near? Most probably nothing. Because I'm not rich enough to be kept alive. But I know I will risk my life to make sure Jayden lives.

Before I was a mother, my priorities were just circled around myself. Having being taught to be independant at a very young age, I learnt the hard way that if I needed to get myself something, I would have to earn my way thru part-timing. Because of that, I worked hard to buy the luxurious items (be it a toy, a new dress or a nice pair of shoes) I knew my parents will not pay a cent for. I must admit that I grew up to be quite a selfish person and took money issues very seriously.

That was until motherhood changed me.

It has taught me that love is non-material, is unconditional and boundless. I still find children's cries annoying. But surprisingly, your own child's cries sound like a knife piercing through your heart. Your tolerance level magnifies a hundred times more. Their smiles warms your heart instantly. And most importantly of all, you never stop worrying for them, to make sure they always gets the best.

2012 - indeed a awe-inspiring movie. Kudos to the producers!

Another Jayden and Ziv moment

What do you do when the 2 men in the house needs to be at work on a Saturday?

We made our own plans and had lots of fun!

So Celeste invited us to her place to swim. The weather was good. The place had a nice shelter so we didn't need sunblock. However, the water was COLD, very cold. And for someone like me who cannot tolerate coldness, it must have been mother instincts that made me determined to jump into the pool with Jayden.

Mummies, we're all ready to get wet!

Ok, we jump in together!

With the help of Celeste's float and self-timer, this photo was made possible.

And how did we manage to keep the boys occupied while the 2 mummies showered in peace???

Dancing to Hi-5

All the jumping and dancing must have zapped up his energy. Jayden had a long nap when we got home.

Thanks for inviting us over and the sumptuous lunch! :D