Bwwahhhhhh!

2009 is ending.
2010 is almost here.

At this time next week i'll be back at work.

='(

maybe i over-reacted...

I'm halfway through the BOOKS and i've learnt quite a few things, the most important lesson so far being that i've over-reacted.

I better set the record straight before i sabotage my daughter's chances of getting hitched. Yes i can just see it . Mothers warning their sons, "No, Ah Boy, you can't marry her. Haven't you heard? She's incredibly violent... Her own mother said it, so it must be true! What if you get into an argument with her and she TaBAH you?"

But seriously, i HAVE misrepresented Glory, and i'm not saying this just to up my chances of one day being a grandmother.

See, when i read the books, there were so many examples of difficult toddlers, and Glory's nowhere near that league. Put in perspective, she's an ANGEL. Even at her worst, she's just a very normal toddler.

And, as it turns out, although the word TaBAH has now become so commonly used it's in the running to become The Toddler's Lexicon New Word of the Year, it is actually not as violent as we first thought - it is sometimes used as a funny word, a sound word. It's meaning is more like "Watch out!", or "Look at me, Listen to me, Pay Attention to me" so she uses it not just when she's frustrated, but also when she wants to play.

Anyway, she hasn't been hitting in a while. I think this girl actually gets it when adults tell her not to, she doesn't even need further punishment. Like a couple of months back, she decided that pulling Mama's hair was fun. I put on a serious, displeased face, gravely told her not to, and she cried! And since then, she hasn't pulled my hair. In the same way, she now seems to be much better at expressing her frustrations without hitting.

She's also a lot less territorial. When we first put her in school, she wouldn't let anyone come near us. She guarded us like a watchdog, and when she saw another toddler heading our way, she'd get up, hold her hands up and gave a warning bark. ("DUFF!" she blasted) If the intruder didn't get it, she'd push them off by the forehead. After the first victim, the other kids got it and never dared venture near us again. Even when they wanted to, they'd back off at her DUFF.

Today, i peeked at her when she was in class. She was sitting among a group of children, drinking from her bottle. A classmate was fiddling with her bottle, but Glory seemed quite ok with it. Ha, i really got a kick out of seeing that scene, coz
1. Glory wasn't pushing her away or hitting her for touching her bottle.
2. Glory wasn't clinging on to an adult . Hooray for independence!
3. Glory was hanging out with kids!! She has friends! (i was a little worried she would be antisocial)
4. Glory has a female friend! =) (i was a little worried she would only hang out with boys)

Seriously, it's been fun seeing her grow as she gets used to school. Sure, the perpetually snotty nose is a bit of problem (and an eyesore) , but she's a lot less shy and clingy now. We went for a Christmas party last night and she actually sat around and smiled and made "small talks" with unfamiliar uncles and aunties. She understands when i tell her to wait, she even sits down, cross her legs, and repeats "Wait (for) Mama here."

Haha... i love her to bits, that cute little spark.
=)
Get in line, boys. And prospective mothers-in-laws.

Tough Love

That girl.
She really knows how to get herself out of trouble.
When adults are trying to correct her, she knows exactly the right answer.

Adult: Glory, can you hit?
Glory: Noooo. (shakes her head and wags a finger emphatically)
Adult: What happens when you hit?
Glory: Friend pain pain. Cannot hit.
Adult: Say sorry to XX.
Glory: Sorry XX. Sayang.

Then what else is there to say right??

Or check out this other tactic:
Munch: Glory, DO NOT pull papa's spectacles!
Glory:  M-u-a-a-k!(Cups papa's face in her hands and kisses papa on the lips)

Win already lor!

But as much as Munch and I secretly laugh over Glory's funny  naughty antics, we are determined to raise well-behaved, sociable, polite, discerning, upright, compassionate, respectful children.

So we went to the library to do some research on how best to outsmart this baby.

Raising your spirited child -

a guide for parents whose child is more intense, sensitive, perceptive, persistent, energetic.

Parenting with reason -

 evidence-based approaches to parenting dilemmas.

Parking lot rules and 75 other ideas for raising amazing children.

The Happiest Toddler on the block -

 The new way to stop the daily battle of wills and raise a secure and well-behaved one - to four-year-old

The no-cry discipline solution-

gentle ways to encourage good behaviour without whining, tantrums and tears.

Positive Discipline for preschoolers-

 raising children who are responsible, respectful and resourceful

I refuse to raise a brat -

 straightforward advice on parenting in an age of overindulgence.

The titles and tag-lines all sound so promising right! Well, hopefully we'll pick up some good strategies and ideas that'd work!

We got to work immediately, and here's what we've learnt today:

1. When she's angry, help her to find an acceptable way to express her anger. Glory's way is her infamous "TaBAH!". We told her that when she says TaBAH, she should put her hands on her hips instead of other children.

2. Give positive labels. This is similar to what we do in school when writing comments in report books ;)

Look at every trait positively. For example, i have an assertive and charismatic child. 

Gotta go read some more now! 

人之初， 性本善？

Glory was such an easy, angelic baby.

She was reasonable, patient, easy-going and low maintenance... Everyone agreed i got it easy.

She started sleeping through the night before she was three months old. She hardly cried. She was always cheery and smiling. Even when she was hungry, all she did was thump her legs and arms, and waited for me to attend to her. Uh-huh. She waited.

She was so meek and gentle too! When her cousin kicked her, she didn't retaliate. When the cousin hit her on her head, she merely looked at us adults with teary, beseeching eyes.

Needless to say, when i was planning to put her in childcare, one of the most important criteria was that the teachers were able to handle naughty, boisterous boys (oh yes, i'm sexist) so that my darling angel would be safe.

Little did i know...

***

Soon after Glory started school, we noticed that she started hitting when she was frustrated. It wasn't a hard hit, and she didn't look like she meant it to inflict pain. It just looked like an expression of frustration.

But it worried us...

we're very careful with her sources of influence, and as much as possible, we keep her world very sanitised. No one in the family swears. No one shouts or speaks rudely. No one hits. We screen every book she reads. She only watches Barney, Nursery Rhymes, Your Baby Can Read and Wink To Learn Chinese. And they do not hit. They read words, they sing, they dance, they hold hands and run in circles, they speak to one another with exaggerated animation and enthusiasm.

But they do not hit.

So how on earth did she learn to hit??

Not only that, her hits even came with a sound effect.

"Ta BAH!"

Now i was sure she didn't learn this from home. Naturally, i concluded she picked this up from someone in school.  "Must be one of the boys," i thought. Glory seemed to be more inclined to befriend boys than girls. And boys, i believed, are generally more likely to hit and say strange things like TaBAH!

I wrote a note to her teachers. Perhaps they could do something before my angel learns more bad stuff from the boys...

***

Today i was thrown off my high horse.

Apparently, Glory didn't learn "Ta BAH!" from any of the boys. Apparently, the kids in her class have never heard of the term "Ta BAH" until Glory came along.

Today, i received a note from the teacher, informing me that Glory has started a new "trend".

"Some of the kids in class has started to mimic Glory's word "tapaw!" whenever she gets upset. Subsequently she'll also hit the person who upsets her.  I guess she's marking her territory!"

omg

***

From today on, Glory Faith Wong Si Syun is gonna attend Moral Education classes every night.

Pepper throws a tantrum. Pepper learns to take turns. Let's be Polite. Let's be Kind...

These books were screaming "BUY ME, I AM GLORY'S CHRISTMAS PRESENT!"

My Babies

Hi, I'm Celeste, and that's my sister, Glory. Do we look alike?

Pink overalls, hair-clip, round eyes...

Check out our eyebrows and lips!

We even have the same expression!

We love biting our lower lips!

i love my JieJie, coz when i am down,

She'd give me a kiss,

a hug,

and patpat me!

Recently, Papa and Mama took JieJie to Melbourne. Without me.

So, to make things up to me, they took me to.... Ikea.

It wasn't the most exciting place, really.

Sheesh. Parents.

Glory Goes to School

We've been searching for a childcare centre for Glory and after many visits, even enlisting the help of Glory's godma to observe, finally chose Rosyth Childcare Centre .

The children looked happy, the teachers looked positive, prepared and professional, the place was bright and airy, and the vibes were good. Munch liked the curriculum, Huiping and i liked the fact that the children were engaged and well-behaved, but not sedated. Plus, they had a pretty good integration and orientation plan for new kids.

So we decided to register Glory there.

During registration, we found out that the fees had JUST been raised, and in the 2 months or so we spent deliberating and confirming our choice, we've missed the original fees!

Ouch...

But in spite of that, we're still glad we chose Rosyth, coz Glory really seems to like it there!

Pictures (and captions!) provided by Rosyth Childcare Centre.

I thought it was a very nice touch, sending the parents a pictorial update of the child's first independent day in school.

Hehe, the caption is quite cute too, right! Though it probably wasn't what Glory was thinking. She was probably just thinking, like, "Wheeeeeee" or something.

Melbourne 2009

Had a pleasant week in Melbourne with the Kohs!

And here are some wonderful memories...

1.  Flight!

Been a while since i last flew... It was in Dec 2007, to chiangmai, while i was pregnant with Glory. We flew Tiger, and it wasn't the best choice for a preggy.
This time round, no budget airline, no budget terminal for us!

Here's Glory bouncing on Bouncy Castle at Terminal Three before the flight.

I love the airport (except e budget terminal. that one is just ugly),
 i love watching planes,
i love the way it whispers "fun", "holiday" and "Wheeeeeeee!"

We took the A380, but it feels like just another plane. i think i expected too much.

Booked the window and aisle seat, and the middle seat was empty =) =)

What a relief, coz entertaining a restless + tired + insomniac toddler on a plane is no joke!

2. Penguins!

I decided that penguins are my favourite birds! =)

Pastor Ken took us to Philip Isld, and the penguins made me think of Celeste...Missed my cuddly little milk bun. ='(

All cheek, no neck. So cute hor?

They were so cute and Celeste-like that they actually triggered a let down. Fwahahahaha.

3. Ocean!

The cool breeze, sound of waves, running on the wet sand with Glory... =)

And Glory started naming all the dogs at the beach Cookie. I have no idea why.

4. Car rides!

Now this wasn't the most beautiful memory, but probably one of the most memorable.

Entertaining a tired, cranky, teething (yeah, her premolars were pushing thru) toddler in a car, for hours and hours and hours is no walk in the park. And that girl just wouldn't fall asleep in the car.

We found some ways to lessen the agony though.

Tip 1: When she sobbed, "Take out! Take out!" (meaning remove the car seat straps), offer to remove her shoes instead. I don't know why it works, but it buys us another 4 min or so of relative peace.

Tip 2: Offer bread. (be prepared for the crumbs, but it yields a good 15 min of peace)

Tip 3:  Offer strawberries and cherries. (again, be prepared for the red stains)

Tip 4: Portable DVD players (but be prepared to have strange cheena kiddy songs stuck in your head the rest of the day)

She was still traumatised by the car rides though... ever since we came back to Sg, she has been fighting to get out of her car seat, though we've never had any problems before. Golly gosh. One-and-a-half is a tough age.

Glory and Bread.

5. Wineries!

The wine, the cheese, the views, the green grass ..... Aaaaaahhhhh!

6. The company!

Truth is, the reason i went for the trip at all was because i wanted to go on a holiday with the Kohs. Baby Koh is such a darling, he looks so serious and grown-up, but cries so helplessly and baby-ly. And when he smiles, he looks so Huiping! =) Plus he's so cuddly, like a koala... wished i could carry him more, but Glory wouldn't let me.

Danny is so easy-going (essential for a good travel mate, i feel) and he knows just the things to make the trip great - he planned for everything, though he probably is the busiest of us lot. Plus he's a decision maker, which is really cool coz without him, we'd probably sit around the whole day saying, "anything, anything" and never get round to anything!

And my Pecky!! =) Hey, this year marks the year when i've known her for exactly half my life, since we were 15!

At 15, we laughed ourselves silly every day, called ourselves silly names (she was Motorcycle, I was Milo), playing silly games. Then we went on to JC and lived through silly crushes.

At 20, we were dancing our feet off in hall, going for unending bashes, suppers and camps, and ICQ-ing each other when we stayed just one partition away.

At 25, we were both in church, becoming good girls :).

At 30 we find ourselves mothers, forever having a baby latched on or expressing milk.

It really is priceless, having a friend like peck. i love her, and i know everyone does  (i have NEVER met anyone who doesn't like peck! not one! ) but i have the extra privilege of knowing her for half my life!!

we were often too preoccupied with our little ones to sit and talk slowly, but there'll be chances yet.

Maybe 4 years later, we can go for a Club Med trip, where there are programs for the little ones!

7. The Dance of the Seagulls!

What they would do for some hot chips. It was such a sight! 

pic by peck

8. Good food!

endless strawberries and cherries

super sweet and fresh veg and corn

(Glory's not sleeping. she's just in her newly-favourite carry position, "Carry Like a Baby".

BenBen made it look so comfy she wanted some)

Danny cooked, and i must say his kangaroo steak is yummy!

Plus, the goat cheese, the restaurant meals, the wine....

it's such a change from my usual travel fare -  a bag of apples could be my sustenance for 2 days!

bet Munchy was thrilled i didn't starve him this time =P

9. The Apartment!

Danny's friend lent us his apartment for the week. The place is lovely.

There's a cute dog opposite,

the couch is comfy (glory's having strawberries, benben's having potato chips, and i think munchy is just yawning)

and the location is perfect!

10. Pooing with Glory

We decided not to take her potty seat with us, so when it came to poo-poo time, i had to sit behind her to make the toilet opening smaller for her smally butt. It was a weird experience i tell you, sitting there and hearing the plop-plop below you, all the while fully clothed and knowing the poo is not coming from you.

It's just... strange.

Malu.

Phone with a missing button. (Still usable, why change?)
Ripped sweater with holes on the sleeves and seams. (Maybe no one will notice?)
Dust-covered dress from a decade ago. (Maybe people will think that this is SUPPOSED to be a LIGHT burgundy dress?)
Hospital toiletry bag as a purse. (Maybe it can pass off as a translucent purse?)
That's what i wore/ held when i went for a course recently.



i'm so embarrassing aren't i.

11.11.2009

We've moved Celeste's bed to her own room the night before, and at 7:30pm, she was drifting off to sleep.

Glory's room was dimmed, and florencia was tucking her in. We could hear Glory chatting and chuckling away.

Kids in order, we left for our anniversary dinner.

It's been a long time since we last had a quiet, unrushed dinner. No toddler to entertain or feed, no baby to tend to, no bedtime routine to rush for - just time for us to slowly enjoy each others' company. 

Munch made reservations at Buono, an Italian restaurant tucked in a quiet corner at Serangoon Gardens. We had Portobello mushrooms, seafood risotto and gnocchi (italian mee hoon kuay?) which came with a fly camouflaged as ground black pepper, so we had it changed to a 4 mushrooms pizza. A lava cake came complimentary, on account of the fly. The food was good, the place was nice, service was good, and to top it all off, we had a lovely time chatting.

Pastor Tiak had just sent us a copy of our wedding exhortation (so cute hor, our pastor ) , and we were gonna discuss it over dinner. Yeah, i like evaluations and reflections. =P 

The Six Areas to Building a Strong Marriage.

1. Conflict Resolution - doing fine. We both realized i get very uptight about road safety. Ok... not that he's a terribly unsafe driver la, just that i am really very finicky about it. Just dread the thought of ever hurting some innocent folks and causing grieve to their family members due to our rashness. So i'd very much rather crawl along at 50-60 kmh and patiently drive behind a turtle, than to overtake unnecessarily.

Munch agreed safety is important, and i have to be careful not to get too flustered over his driving. 

2. Roles and Responsibilities. We have failed to allocate, so we spent some time deciding on each person's roles. In the end, we came to such a cliché, gender-typed conclusion it's embarrassing! Munch's taking care of the major,  "manly"  things like car, bills, insurance and household repairs and maintenance. I'm in charge of guniang things like school fees/enrichment/education, childcare, maidcare and groceries.

3. Money - Need to give more. And we've got a family project coming up!!! =) Excited!!

4. Communication - doing fine. 

5. Sex - two kids in three years, whaddya think?

6. In-laws (Honouring in laws like your own parents) - We've been visiting weekly, but need to build more meaningful relationships, more than just polite talk. How? Well, for a start, just increase amount of polite talk ba... Ay, considering how afraid of them i was before, i've come a long way ok! =P

Pastor Tiak closed off his exhortation with this:

"Children. All i want to say is this: may God bless you with many children in his good time."

Kekekek. =) 

We'll see. 

The Honest Truth

I was clearing my desk today and found some old stickers.
I brought them back for Glory - she loves stickers.
I gave her one.

"Cheh-cheh!" she exclaimed, upon receiving the sticker.
Thinking she was referring to something else, i looked around the room and found no picture of a little girl.
"Is this cheh cheh?" I asked her, pointing to the sticker i just gave her.
She leaned forward to take a closer look.
"Nooooo," was her answer, "Aunty!" she declared.

And here's the picture.

Aunty Beckham.

With that hair and pretty-boy face, you can't blame the girl.

Studying

I'm at it again.
I'm itching to study.

Perhaps it's because i feel unstretched. After 6 years (... i think... i lost count...) of teaching, i have become very comfortable with my duties. Perhaps too comfortable. That i can't even remember how many years i've been teaching speaks for itself... each year is beginning to feel more and more like the previous one. Or perhaps i feel "unstretched" because for a good 7 months in the past 2 years, i've been on maternity leave, and while my flesh luuurrrved it, my mind has not been working out enough.

Whatever the reason, I'm getting stale professionally... i long to have new theories to ponder over, new ideas to be excited about, new projects to work on.

i want to study.

Taking unpaid leave is out of the question. We can't afford that now with 2 kids, a maid and a car. Plus i still want to go travelling.
Studying at night seems to be the only option - but is it worthwhile, taking away time from family and ministry? Or should i just forget about getting a masters degree, and just read the odd book to keep myself vaguely satisfied?

As i continue thinking about that, my daughter is about to live my dreams for me. That's what every unfulfilled parent with unfinshed dreams do isn't it - impose their desires on offsprings?

That's right. Glory's going to school come December.

She's growing up fast, that one.

I read that at 18 months, an average toddler does about 20 words. At 17 months, Glory's way above that!

It's fun observing the way she articulates her thoughts.
She started off with nouns, labelling things she sees and hears, and some verbs. Eg. car, thunder, echo, eyebrow.
She recognizes shapes - circle, square, diamond, oval... but she calls crescent "moon", and her pronunciation is still quite baby-ish)
Letters and numbers (hasn't mastered it yet tho. about 75% accuracy. on good days. on bad days, she doesn't bother looking but randomly rattles off letters patronisingly)
Colours.  (on bad days, every colour is blue)

Now she's using adjectives, nouns, verbs to get her ideas across better.
Eg.

• When we walk out on a sunny day: Sun, bright, eyes. (and for effect, she squints)
  
• When we're waiting for papa to get the car from the carpark: Papa. Noooo. Wait. Papa, car, red.
  
• When she sees someone crying: Cry, waahhh, pat-pat. Eyes, wet, sayang
  
• When she wants to be carried but i'm carrying Celeste: Put there(points to rocker), Meimei. Please bao-bao.
  

She likes to give instructions: "come", "sit down", "take out" (remove seat belts, take out toys etc), "put there", "pat pat". She sounded too bossy, so we quickly taught her to say please. And she immediately put it to good use.

Check out the way she says "Please bao-bao".

Step One. Grab a leg. Look up with her large eyes. Say, "Please baobao"

Step Two. If adult does not bao bao immediately, look sad and puppy-like. Squat, and repeat request, preferably with a sad, emotive voice. (she can do this really well. her voice cracks with emotion, and sometimes she can even make her eyes water!)

Step Three. (Last Resort) Sit and repeat request. Works best when the floor is dirty.


How to say no?

Dreams... to reality?

I dreamt about it again.
I was visiting kids, going down the row, unit by unit.
But the houses were different - not HDB flats, but more slum-like.
And every unit had at least one child, i remember being very pleased with that.
And as i went along, the children from each unit would tag along as i visited the next unit, so more and more kids were coming along.
Until i came to the house of Ruffy/ Rufus. He obviously had a bad rep, coz as i was chatting with him, parents of the other kids came along and warned me about that family. From the way the other kids buzzed, i could tell that he probably got into trouble a lot.
I felt bad that the little boy had to hear all these nasty things said about him, as if he wasn't there, as if he couldn't understand. He didn't answer back, hardly even reacted, as if by pretending he couldn't hear, he could protect himself. Then  i noticed his dad, Mr Sammy, sitting in the shadows nearby. Sitting still, hoping he would not be noticed, perhaps also thinking that if he acted like he didn't hear, he wouldn't have to deal with the hurtful words.
I made a note to come back to Mr Sammy's place after official visitations, and hurried the kids over to the next house so as not to prolong Mr Sammy and Ruffy's sufferings.
But i noticed that Ruffy was tagging along too, and was pleased...
* * *
Some dreams don't go away.
They're probably meant to stay.
I haven't forgotten.

A generation of God-loving children who would be a blessing to all.
And, maybe, next stop, India?
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

On a lighter note... have you heard?
I wanna have four kids!
One more girl, whom i'll name Desiree, and a boy, Elijah.
So that we'll have a family straight flush of sorts.
Celeste, Desiree, Elijah, (Faith), Glory.
It's kinda hard to make it all the way to M(unch), so i think 4 kids will have to do.

When?

We'll start when i make my first USD50 000 on forex trading.
;)
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Glory Fan Club!

I'm not one who thinks that ALL babies are cute.
Long long ago, in my pre-believing, bitchier days, i once saw a less-than-cute baby and ...umm... told my friends what i thought.
Well, i have since repented, i've stopped passing negative comments about helpless innocent babies. I've cordially acknowledged that all babies are precious and deserve our love and care and respect....
but you gotta admit, some are just more awesome. ;P

And i think it's every mother's right to say she's got the most awesomest ones!

At the playground with papa. Look at the affection she has for him =)

Sweet isn't it?

Know what else is sweet? This morning she took a piece of tissue and gently wiped meimei's drool.

=) =)

these two girls are gonna love growing up together

swinging is fun

until you get motion sickness from all that swinging

Elephant ride

with ah-bing

even the sweetest and cutest may get rejected at times...

clip, dress and dora bottle.

so that people would stop asking me if she's a boy or girl.

grrrrrrrrr

Brushing teeth with papa

i lovelovelovelovelove her!

if she has a fan club, i'll be her number 1 fan! =)

NB: Of coz i love celeste too! Just that she's still not doing very much, so i haven't taken many pics of her.

An Influential Babe and a Significant Corn

A Momentous Corn

When i was a kid, Saturday afternoons were always spent having piano lessons at Yamaha at Marine Parade.  And i hated it. I always felt i couldn't play as well as kor-kor and the girl with long curly hair. I always felt i didn't practice enough. I was always worried the teacher wouldn't be pleased with me.
So piano lessons always gave me stressed-induced stomach aches, even before i started primary school. (and there i was, wondering why kids cry over math questions . Hypocrite!!)

It didn't help that  i was very susceptible to motion sickness, and the journey from Realty Park to Parkway Parade was quite a torture for me.
So Saturdays tended to be a stressful time for little YanYan.

Saturdays weren't ALL bad though. We had a few happier family rituals. Like going to McDonald's, going to Toys R'Us, and eating buttery corn-on-the-cob from Parkway Parade.

But one day, the car-sickness plus piano-lessons-stress proved too much for me - i took a whiff of the buttery corn and i puked big time.

Ever since then, for at least 25 years, i have not had corn. (popcorn not counted)

Until this afternoon.

I was having lunch with Glory, and she was going "Commm, commm, commm" She had already finished one serving of corn and she wanted more. Now, she has been having corn almost everyday, and sometimes twice a day. And still she was asking for more.

Pure, unadulterated desire. That's always the best advertisement.

So i simply had to try.

i plucked up my courage and reached for the corn.

"I'm going to eat the corn!" I told Florencia, perhaps hoping she would hold my hand to give me moral support or something.

"Glory eats a lot of corn," she told me matter-of-factly, oblivious to the battle that's raging inside my head.

I looked to Glory for support, but she's already attacking her corn with gusto.

I'm facing a 25 years old phobia and that's all the support i get?

I half wanted to call my daddy but decided against it. He might have company and what would they think! A thirty year old woman calling her daddy in the middle of a work day reporting that she's gonna eat corn? That'd be strange.

I stared at the corn. The corn looked very pretty and yellow. And the kernels seemed to be saying, "We're juicy and sweet!" (No, really! Really! They did!) And their voices drowned out the lone menacing voice repeating the decades-old refrain of "Eat it and puke! Eat it and DIE!"

And then I did it. I bit into the corn.

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

Well... it was okay. I didn't hear choruses of angels, i didn't start floating or swooning or anything like that.

But neither did i puke! And that's something.

HAH! I win! Liberation! Victory! Oh Yeah!

I'm gonna tell my daddy tomorrow! =)

X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

It's usually not with eloquence and clever arguments that people are won over.
But when you love passionately, and unabashedly show your insatiable desire and devotion, you make others want to take a bite.
That was how i came to know Jesus too! =)
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

GASP!

A question in this year's PSLE Math paper:


Jim bought some chocolates and gave half of it to Ken. Ken bought some sweets and gave half of it to Jim. Jim ate 12 sweets and Ken ate 18 chocolates. The ratio of Jim’s sweets to chocolates became 1:7 and the ratio of Ken’s sweets to chocolates became 1:4. How many sweets did Ken buy?




( Answer is 68.)


Golly.... by the time Glory and Celeste take their PSLE, they'd be doing quantum physics and building space shuttles.


But what is even stranger is that nowadays, kids cry when they can't do an examination question. 


Why is there a need to score 100%? 
90% is still an A* right?


And why do some parents get all up in arms when they find out such questions are set?



Strange and scary. 真的许要这样吗？

Cuties...

Celeste with god-brother Victor

Yups, Carol & CT are Celeste's godparents.

i must say my little ones have lovely godparents.

Check out Victor's pose =) Cuteness.

(Photo by peck)

This is Celeste with Benjamin, born 15 days apart.

Always wanted to have a baby at the same time as hp, guess this is as close as it can get!

Don't you just want to bite those cheeks?

But don't you dare bite my scrumptious strawberry shortcake!

playing with benjamin's toys, and boy does he have many!

(photo by peck)

near to far: g, v, b, c.

lil bubs all in a row.

we crashed a meeting at the koh's, and the little ones crashed too.

(Photo by peck)

"Glory's lashes", the photographer calls this pic.

i like.

Glory at Nathan's party.

She loves the "shake star" and the "fly".

One of her fave food.

Affectionately called "commmmm", otherwise commonly known as corn.

picture that!

you're looking at a picture of a page of a magazine,

which has a picture of a picture of glory n godpa.

ha. i love how convoluted that sounds. =)