That time of the year

Jayden's 5th Birthday

For the past 4 years, I will block my office calender and make time for the kid, on this day - rain or shine.

This year proved to challenge my limits as I was told to go on a work trip 16 - 19 Oct. 为何啊？！

Anyhow, the kid will still get his celebration, his goodie bags for his friends, his cake, his presents. And he was pleased to receive them earlier too!

Jayden was excited and helped out to pack the goodie bags. He even made suggestions who he thinks will like what. It is very endearing to witness the child being such an observer with his friends.

What's in the bag - pencil case + color pencils + snacks
 

 

Jake and the Neverland pirates cupcakes

 

 

 

 

The Son very blessed with presents from everyone. Thank you all!

 

Happy 5th Birthday my dearest boy!
You have grown to be such a vocal and sensitive child. Teachers in school mentioned that you enjoy interaction and plays a big brother role to your pre-nursery sleeping buddy. Something we don't get to witness at home!

You always show a keen interest in school performances and we truely enjoy watching how you shine on stage. You love the sand, sun and sea - that's why we put you in swimming classes, hoping that this skill will bring you further.

Your inquisitive mind never stops you from asking, sometime incessantly but curiousity for a young mind is good! Never stop learning my child!

We're so proud to have you as our son and hope you continue to nurture to be a fine young man. Stay healthy and happy always!
XOXO Mom + Dad

Big Uncle's wedding on 20-Oct

At the age of 5, Jayden had to wear many hats for his 1st Uncle wedding. Imagine being the page boy cum 'bed jumper' cum ring bearer all in a day! And the kid did not once whine or suffered a meltdown.

I am truely proud that he performed all the tasks dutifully and delivered the ring pillow with no glitch!

Of course, the day is also important to me as my younger brother upgraded himself to a married man and we welcome another family member. Coincidentally, the wife shares the same surname as Dylan. We sniggered at the thought that the Tans and Yips are fated together. Here's wishing Mel and Von everlasting marital bliss!

 

 

The reason for my hiatus

And so what seemed like it happened just a while ago has already past for 2 months.

Why have I stopped blogging? Where are the photos?

3 rounds of celebrations

2 back to back buffets (yes one lunch, one dinner)

2 large and very yummy cakes to finish

2 brunches and a lunch later... ....


怎么可能不肥呢?!?!

While I was editing the photos, I looked at myself in horror. The evil hub has secretly converted me to look like him. Like they say, if you cannot lose weight, then make your partner look like you. Ok I don't know who said that but I'm sure that must have been the plot.

It started with a very innocent off-day with C at the spa.


Spa was fantastic and we were even lamenting why it only lasted for an hour. And then C suggested we have a good brunch for my birthday treat. I suspect it meant to 'compensate' our short-lived luxurious day. We had brunch at Antoniette Mandarin Gallery and a very good time gossiping.

One of the perks of being a middle aged woman is that we have the ability to slurge on something we like. We did our nails, went shopping around town - very wrong move to do that when you're in the midst of GSS. C lured me to onPedder and said they had sales. Bought a Stella Mccartney faux python clutch at a steal!

We were all out to be a full fledged tai tai for a day - except the difference was we were using our own money. *hur hur hur* (Mental note: Must not jio C out for shopping on a weekday again. Very dangerous)

  The following day, I went back to Mandarin Gallery to try Wild Honey. Imagine it had a queue on a Mon 2pm!!! People no need to work one huh!     And mini celebrations with the peeps in my life. This has got to be most interesting cake. It was so life-like, I thought it was REAL xiao long baos and a candle! Very creative idea Bon.         The back to back buffet happened on my actual birthday. Met up with the sis for asian buffet at Hotel Rendezvous where they served a myraid of durian bites. I half suspect Liv picked the place for the godson instead. :P And then come evening, the hub planned a surprise get-together with my family members at Scotts buffet. How to eat 2 buffets in a day!!! 怎么可能!   Sharing some photos I took using instagram. :)

 Thank you everyone for your love, your gifts, your well wishes on my birthday. Every single gesture is deeply remembered. And I wish everyone good health and a smooth-sailing life!   Wallet courtesy from the hub. Thanks Dear! :D  

Bye bye 2011

So 2011 came and gone. It whizzed by so fast that I didn't have the time to blog about what had happened for the past 2 months. I am also ashamed to look at the number of posts I had done in 2011 as compared to 2010.

We had alot of "First time" experiences as well so let's re-cap.

Thanks to Adrian, we got a night stay at the renowned MBS. Of course, we had to take a dip at the "must-go" Sky pool regardless of how cold the water was at 8am in the morning! Like tourists, we also walked around the mall for the first time. I know, very suaku.

We celebrated Rene's birthday together with a new addition to the group - baby Mabel! Finally Jayden gets a playmate. Welcome to the world baby Mabel!

And I finally get to go to Universal Studios for the first time! Another suaku moment. All thanks to our company team building event - imagine tonnes of fun at ZERO cost! Sweet.

And for the first time, I muster enough courage to take up the challenge to sit on ALL THE RIDES. Talk about good team spirit. I have no idea where I managed to find the guts to even convince myself to walk up the stairs to The Cylone. But I did and our team won the "Amazing Race"! Prize is free meal ticket to ANY restaurants in Singapore! :D I am thinking Cut, Les Amis, Kunio! Anything to bring a smile to my stomach!

For the past 3 years, it has almost become a ritual to host the X'mas party at our place. This year, we got to make merry at our friends' new houses instead. And for the first time in 5 years at our place, we actually did not bring the X'mas tree out. Dylan is very pleased with the arrangements as it saved up alot of his house-keeping. -_-

First stop, the Tan's abode. Lots of yum-meh food painstakingly cooked by chef Rachel, pressies and alot of blues in the house! A very heartwarming event indeed. Hopefully, we keep this tradition going on for years...

And my two boys opening up their pressies on X'mas day itself. I have intentionally hidden my self-bought gift(s). Tsk tsk. Note the plural form. All I can say is, I'm very satisfied with the purchases. :)

2nd round of merry making at Bon and Trav's new place. Another round of feasting and gift exchanges. I am almost certain that dieting should be shelved up in the month of December.

And finally, we wrapped up the year counting down at the 25th floor with an excellent view of the fireworks! How awesome is that! :D Another "First", this is Jayden's first time counting down with us since the boy is old enough to stay up till 12.

A walk down memory lane in 2011: -

• Holiday trips - Went HCM, Europe, Hong Kong and Club Med Bali!



• Baby boom - 5 friends popped - 3 boys and 2 girls!



• Career - Got double promotion with an excellent remuneration (stayed on the current job for > 3 years. Broke my record) and Dylan changed to a better job



• Health - Finally got the clean bill after a year of doubts



• Family - Spent a staycation with my family on Jayden's 4th birthday



• Indulgence - Spent a 5 figure sum in Europe (something which I would never EVER do), made my 2nd timepiece investment in Aug - a whopping $7.4 grand (after severely influenced by Dylan), bought 2 pairs of extravagant shoes at $400+ each (after laughing at Cel that spending that kind of money on shoes is like stepping on your money. Note to oneself: Never laugh at a friend again). I have come to realize that this kind of indulgence (within my limits) is a necessity in "Living life to the fullest" (even if you don't agree to my methodology)

I am exceptionally glad that 2011 had been fulfilling with so many great things going on. What used to be an uncertainty in my career is finally taking flight, everyone's healthy (minus Dylan's slipped disc) and we visted so many new places in a year.

I hope in the year 2012,

• Finding a new home - After 5 years in our nest, it is time to move to greener pastures, hopefully a place near Jayden's prospective primary school.


• More holiday trips - Booked BKK in Feb, going on girls trip to Taiwan in Mar, HK Disneyland in July and hopefully States in Dec!


• Career - Hope to move on to new roles to move up the ladder. Stay in the same company for the next 2 years. Likewise for Dylan for a smooth sailing career.


• Health - Everyone to be in the pink


• Family - Hopefully Jayden to stay in the new school for the next 2 years. Be patient and kind to family members.


• Bonding - Despite everyone having their own family now, make a point to stay in contact and never stop our traditional celebrations - birthdays, anniversaries, festivals.


• Indulgence - I am still trying to keep the wallet tight but having bought 10 pieces of clothes for Chinese New Year is not a good sign.

And certainly, to live life to the fullest!

And so he is 4

Once again, before we head off on our long-awaited family trip, I am compelled to write about the son's 4th birthday. Unbelievable Four.

I have been trying to keep a low-key celebration so as not to give the boy the notion that birthdays are lavished with tonnes of balloons, a humongous cake and gazillion of presents. Ok I'm exaggerating but the point is to keep it simple. But simplicity is always an understatement when it comes to the only child of the family.

So first, let's draw attention to the food spread before we go into the party details. We had seafood with a full sea view at our table. How nice. My dad aka the grandpa suggested to have a family staycation over at Changi Beach Club. I thought this was really a nice idea to bring Jayden to see my childhood playground - this is the place when I was young, where my family would frequent to on every single-never-missed weekends, where I would look forward to meeting my friends and do all sorts of silly things that you don't even need an iPad/Facebook to pass time and where we practically grew up in.

Food galore *nom nom nom*

Introducing Uncle Melvin - they are exactly 24 years 3 months and 19 days apart - both also pig la. You can see that Jayden is giving a patronizing smile because Uncle Melvin didn't prepare any present. *gua gua gua*

And this is Uncle Dickson. Considering that the bigger 'pig' didn't really get along with this younger brother, I am surprised that Dickson has a knack with Jayden. Of course, bribery with a gift always helps. See, even the dimples are showing.

How to miss out the hosts of this staycation - Ah Gong and Ah Ma. Thank you for making it possible!

As you can see, towards the end, the boy has practically lost all the energy to smile. He just can't wait to open up the presents. Tsk tsk.

See what I mean?

And then it's time to cut the cake and get down to the crux of the itinerary... ... SWIMMING.

Again, I'm glad that we had another family bonding time with my side of the family. The birthday boy had his fun but of course the fun never ended there...

The following day, we met Godma Liv for... ... *DRUMROLL*

*** ICE CREAM ***

No words can express his contentment.... Except probably this... ...

*beaming* We had no rules that day. Jayden picked his ice cream creation and had it all to himself!

** ACTUAL DAY CELEBRATION **

Armed with a bag full of goodies and his 'self-picked' cake, we head off to his school for his celebration finale.

Dear Son,

Thank you for staying healthy and happy for the past 4 years and growing. We hope you have enjoyed your journey with us so far. We know you enjoy annoying us with your endless antics but sometimes it's good to mellow down and go slow. Please continue to bring joy to our lives and create beautiful memories. Hope you'll enjoy our family vacation to Club Med Phuket tomorrow! Stay healthy, stay cheerful, stay as my little baby always.

Love,

Daddy & Mommy

P.S Jayden says thank you to all Aunties & Uncles for the lovely presents and well wishes!

In the pink

And so another year older has gone for me. I cannot be more than grateful than to have lived another year unscatched, healthier and happier.

I did say I wanted a low profile celebration this year. But this group of friends had never failed, rain or shine, to keep this day free just for me. And this year was another surprise again. They arranged to go to a long lost poly friend's restaurant. Four of us used to hang out together, after lectures, skipping lunch to go to one of their houses for a quick nap and long coffee chats at Starbucks after school. Those were the days... ...

Definitely felt like a superstar that night!

Superb Japanese fushion food! I am salivating as we speak!

Thanks my dear friends for having me in your thoughts as always! Of course, not just the gifts but all the yummy treats as well! I can certainly feel the tightness in my pants now.

Ok, after all the appreciation, it's time to show off. Please bear with me. Bleah.

Gift no. 1: Goyard St Louis GM
Gift no. 2: Classic Chanel logo necklace in Swakorski crystals

Got the hub to get the Goyard St Louis when he was in London. Super happy as we didn't had the time to go to the boutique in Paris. :D
Yes, another bag. *yawn* But bags of different shapes and sizes, patterns and colors, suits for different occasions. So how will one complain about having an extra accessory right? :D

Gift no. 3: Loewe Amazona boston bag in blue slate color

Ok. This was never part of the gift plan. But I'm sure people will understand love at first sight. *goes on digressing and indulging* After having a few shoulder bags, I felt the need to get a hand carry boston bag. And this color, according to the SA is a limited edition shade.

That was it. She said the magic word - LIMITED EDITION. Just take my credit card!!!

Gift no. 4: Gucci zip-around wallet

This was part of the scheme. But after I got Loewe, it was slightly forgotten until I saw this. Similiar shade with my Loewe !! How to miss right! *sigh*

Gift no. 5: Tory Burch belt

This was an impulse buy. I have never own a belt for more than $30. But but but the material was soft, the design was pretty and it was on sale, blah blah blah.

Alright.

So after all the impulsive self indulgent and getting the limelight, it is also time to reflect.

2010 was a rather traumatic year for me.

I contemplated whether or not to share my life on a public blog. But I thought it served as a good reminder as well and not to take things for granted.

I discovered something and went to do the necessary tests. Thankfully, the results came back negative but the doctor could not pin down the cause of it. It was a constant nightmare having to wonder what was wrong and if the diagnosis was really benign.

After almost what felt like a year, I took up the courage to seek a 2nd opinion and decided to get rid of it from my system. The process was swift but excrutiating. I really hope that is the last of it.

So now, being in the pink of health is my life's priority. I cannot be more thankful that I'm still here receiving love from people who cares about me.

On another note, work has become extremely up my neck. They say with greater power comes greater responsibilities. I got my promotion and a handsome remuneration package. Now I just need the time to spend it. :p

Baby boom

Nope. Nothing from me yet.

This year seems to be a good year for baby influx. Just last month we attended 2 baby showers in a row and I have 2 close girlfriends delivering in Oct (Yep, 2 more Oct babies!)

It is truely amazing to watch your friends moving on in different ways of their lives, having their own family. And to think we were once kids ourselves!

This is Daniel's precious girl Kailynn. I knew him as early as when Nintendo was invented. Back then, we will look forward to weekends where our parents will bring us to the country club and we will do all sorts of monkey things - hide & seek (yes, imagine in a huge country club compound. we end up not finding each other anyway), seeing who can do the longest head stands, playing gin rummy and seeing who can last the longest at the arcade with just one token. Yes, those were the days.

With our next generation, hopefully we can pass on these memories to them as well.

Lunch was at Pan Pac Claymore. Buffet is always a child's favourite as they look forward to the sweet treats towards the end. Obviously, the son is very delighted.

The following week, we attended Dylan's buddy's baby shower. Meet Jerome. Likewise, Dylan and his buddy were secondary school mates. I think his buddy knew more dirty secrets of Dylan than I do. Haha. As you can see, the man is pretty happy for his friend. But did he have the sudden urge to have another baby? Guess not.

So another 2 more babies in Oct. It's also a boy and a girl each! I wonder who is next on the list?