I’ve always loved the concept of exploration & play as a great activity (and for expending our kids’ evergrowing energy especially) so when the chungkin started to belly his way into mobility at 8 months, I welcomed indoor playgrounds with open arms.

As much as I enjoyed bonding over evening strolls in the outdoors with the little fella as part of our exploration, the very erratic & dreadful weather  often dampened our plans. Walking in the hot afternoons would often result in a cranky baby being exhausted from the heat and so I embraced the alternatives of sensory play in ‘safer’ spaces where I could let him explore on his own.

I loved how much ‘freedom’ and space I could give him at indoor playgrounds without needing to tower over him frantically as I would at home, keeping him away from edges of furniture, the kitchen, fan wires, drawers despite already child-proofing the home with safety gate, safety appliance covers, table cushion guards etc. Plus what a perfect play-date activity it often turned out to be, no needing to impose on anyone’s place or worry about our kids of different ages not being able to play together just yet.

So for my first sharing in Jus’s Friday Five, here’s 5 favourite play spaces that we’ve been to a little more frequent than the others.

1. Royce Kids Gym

By far the most expensive fee (admission fee gives you a limited duration) but also one of the cleanest, with the most extensive range of toys; Liam’s first indoor playground experience was here at 7+ months during his playdate with his older cousin Callum. The cousin suggested the venue as it was her 3-yo son’s favourite toys ground and mentioned that Liam would probably enjoy himself better at toy-land-galore as opposed to structural playgrounds which were more suited for older toddlers-kids.

The little fella was definitely every bit gleeful seeing a shelf full of toys which emitted both sounds AND lights. He didn’t fancy being on the swing as much but was happy to stay in front of the shelf of toys and play with a different one every 10-15 minutes. We went back another 2 times for playdates when he was about 11 & 12 months and he enjoyed it a lot more, being more mobile on his all-fours, managing some cruising in between.

I love that the shopping mall that Royce is located within is also fairly quiet as compared to the ones in the heart of Orchard Road, and that there’s a supermarket below for any last-minute groceries (you know how we’re always grocery shopping for the kids…) although I wished that there was a direct train access from the mall for the heavy public-transportation user that I am.

2. Amazonia

Also introduced by the cousin, my first time here was when I brought my nephew from Dubai on a playdate with the cousin’s son about 2 years ago. I loved how huge it was, and how there’s a cafe within the grounds (which means the adults can coffee+chat while the kiddos play). Although they cater for kids till 12 years old, I appreciate that there is a “baby area” which clearly states that it’s meant for kids from 0-3 years. During the little man’s first time there at 7+ months, he spent the whole duration (which was 20 minutes) on a giant beanbag starfish amusing himself by watching other toddlers roam around the area. We went back another 2 times for playdates when he was 10 & 12 months old and those times, he definitely enjoyed himself better.

The baby area is smaller than what Liam’s been used to at Royce. And recently he would crawl towards the bigger kids area, following majority of the kids who were running towards there. We went on the big slide a couple of times which is usually the highlight of those visits – sliding down on mama’s lap on a long slide. Whee.

It’s also pretty neat that you don’t have to pay entry fee if your child is below 1, considering that he/she won’t be able to do much with the structural play set-up. All you got to do is spend $10 at the cafe if your child’s under 1, and that is really easy to achieve considering the number of coffees & cakes you’ll be able to have in peace while your child is happily occupied. The bonus and lure of going there has definitely got to be the many cafes available, supermarket shopping within reach just before we head home, an well-stocked organic store for me to busybody to see if there’s any new food I would like to introduce to the little fella and retail therapy (I’m a sephora girl!)

3. Hokey Pokey 

The first time we went there to check out its grounds was at it’s new relocation – Millennia Walk. Liam had just turned 1 yr old, and he was so excited the moment we stepped into the place. To be honest I didn’t think it could compete with Royce in terms of space & having a huge variety of toys at first impressions. But HP quickly grew on me and even my mom enjoyed taking the little man there on her own for a play session recently. We’ve been there about 5 times now, thanks to the very convenient circle line train which gives me direct access from station to mall in 5 minutes (which means I can pram all the way from home to HP without hassle too!).

HP’s set-up may be cozy compared to toy grounds such as Royce but…I’ve observed that Liam really enjoys himself here. I like that per entry fee gives unlimited play, and that most of the area is within my radius of vision if I can’t keep up fast enough with my quick cruiser. Lately he’s been very into pretend play kitchen sets – he would always head there first and spend about 25-30 minutes tottering between the 5 different sets before checking out the ride-on toys one by one, with McQueen being his favourite, before destroying some train tracks on the train table, banging a few keys on the Schoenhut pianos before making his way to the mega stairs to slide down to his least favourite ballpit. I also appreciate that they have a staff that supervises the play area and so far during the off-peak hours on weekdays, she’s also been a fun play companion for Liam (he would flash his signature grin at her in agreement).

Do check out one of the many cafes available at Millenia Walk post-playtime too. My tummy always has a gastronomical tea-time treat whenever we’re in the vicinity.

4. The Polliwogs

Perhaps because Liam’s still considered relatively young in age and isn’t able to walk or climb independently, I didn’t think Liam would enjoy Polliwogs when the cousin suggested a playdate at the Robertson Quay branch. I was obviously proved wrong when the little guy’s face started to light up when we ventured to the baby/toddler section. There was this water/rainbow slide thingy which intrigued him so much he went up and down it so many times wearing a glee each time.

It was also here that I climbed up structures for the first time (who? me? yes!). I always wondered why parents were gamed to climb up these structures because I never was due to my fear of heights, but now I know why! We even cozied up in a little corner for a much needed break (yes, I panted. I’m that lousy.) in-between with the cousin & nephew. Turns out Liam has so much fun just crawling everywhere without me going “no!!!!!” and I really appreciated the complimentary cuppa coffee that came with the entry fee at the in-house cafeteria (hooray to a spacious cafeteria within the grounds!).

5. Fidgets

We’ve been to the newly renovated Fidgets once (as with Tickle Tickle, Singkids Vivo, Peek-a-boo!) and I really liked how spacious the place was (which also meant a lot of walking and moving around for me to burn off some cal). While the toddler area didn’t quite appeal to Liam as much as the bigger kids’ area, I liked how I didn’t have an issue of kids potentially bumping into each other because even with some 8 other kids there during our time of visit, every child kinda had their own personal space – Liam managed to cruise back and forth to his heart’s content. I also spied a craft section for kids there…interesting.

Strangely, I was so occupied checking out the place and playing with Liam (alongside chatting with my gf on pre-schools) that I didn’t even take a picture. Hah, perhaps the next time we’re there then. Psst: the lure of omakase burger and the newly opened pasarbella will probably get us back before we finish checking out other play spaces (have some in mind to make a visit to).

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The Bo & I recently converted our dining table to our temporary work station (because the little guy sleeps with us and we’ll do anything not to break the STTN charm). And back then when I used to work till late nights in the office (often alone or with another colleague) – I would often blast the music on the radio at the desk and bop to it just to… you know to make the night easier to bear.

It worked wonders. Singing along to songs I knew the lyrics to. More often than not, it helped refreshed the mind like an internet browser and whatever mental block I was facing for that moment would eventually turn into a lightbulb moment.

So post-dinner this evening as I sat by the comp to complete some stuff, I asked the Bo – who was having a bit of a writer’s block himself while drafting an email – if I could blast the music. He said “sure!” and within seconds I was humming and he was swaying to the beats.

Amidst of music being blast through the dining/living/kitchen area for some 2 hours, the lovely husband took a walk to get us some teh-tarik, we reveled in favourite songs that were being played and what d’ya know – we coincidentally finished our to-dos at about the same time.

Despite the vast differences in the nature of our work, I love how he makes such a great pseudo-colleague.

Each time I get into a self-meditative mode, I start reading past journals/entries/posts which only I’m privy to.

And I surprise myself every single time.

Just 2 years back, I seemed like a confident soul. My skin was glowing despite the exhaustion of going through pregnancy planning and making trips to & fro to see the first gynae I’ve ever seen in my life. Nothing seemed to be able to conquer me. Not even the blank faces on a pee stick. Not even disappointing fertility related news over the phone.

Maybe the combination of working & continually enriching myself with books of all sorts (the theme then was: God’s plan for pregnancy and everything else revolving that topic) were the magic dust. I enjoyed reading about my past thoughts. I relished the zest I placed in everything. Even in the negative that I wrote about. There was hope in the depressing news I received. And in hope I felt so alive.

Each word was honest. Genuine. Informative. Uninhibited. Something I ironically can’t seem to replicate on this blog despite wanting to countless of times.

Probably because anonymity didn’t warrant the need for a facade. The lack of photos meant that every word had to be thoroughly thought through & accurately used. No disclaimers nor explanations were needed. Who cared if anyone judged. You didn’t have to edit photos to reflect partial truths. Everything you wanted to write about, could be as is. No battles were waged from quivering hearts.

If you’re wondering where this sudden loom is coming from, it’s from some news I received today. Not the end-of-the-world worrying sort, but something that shook me up for a bit because yet again I took my health for granted. And during such precarious moments, I usually over-medidate and seek solace in myself (through past posts).

I need to start having faith in myself.

It was one of those evenings. Where motherhood was more trying.

The little boy threw a tantrum because I wouldn’t let him cruise around his pram in the train nor in the supermarket.

So I did what I thought best could pacify him. I held him closely in one hand, pushed the pram with the other while stopping to pick things that I needed from the various shelves in the supermarket intermittently. But that didn’t suffice. He wanted to do something which he had so much fun doing with papa just 2 days ago  He wanted to keep pushing the pram on his own till it hit a wall/someone/came to a halt. (Psst: the Bo apologized the moment I related the incident to him, knowing that he attributed to Liam wanting his way with the pram)

I completed ignored his plea & fuss of course. I just wanted to pay for the groceries quickly, hope to get a taxi despite the heavy downpour and get him home where he cruise himself silly.

And that’s when it became even more trying.

In between trying to grab my groceries with one hand from pram basket to counter and paying… the little fella started to cry, arch his back, kicked and pushed me away. “Tsk tsk”, I started to hear other people make sounds around me. I ignored those very unnecessary, judgmental sounds.

Then there was the long snaking taxi queue which put me in bigger misery. It was raining, I couldn’t get through the lines of the 3 taxi companies for a good 10 minutes, the chungkin was crying & screaming because I wouldn’t let him snatch the phone from me. Some folks tried to conveniently cut the queue thinking that the lady-with-a-pram-full-of-groceries-and-a-wailing-baby would be too busy to notice. But they were not worth my effort and depleting energy to manage with. My 9.6kg son was. Thank goodness some 12 minutes later of listening to music on loop, we finally got a taxi booking!

While on the journey home, I reflected on my actions. Perhaps I could have handled the situation better instead of ignoring Liam. Perhaps I shouldn’t have zoned out and focus on finishing my tasks and should have made an effort to soothe the wailing and whining that was probably irritating everyone else instead. I probably deserved those unforgiving looks. But hey, I did what was best for us both at that time. At 13 months, I don’t think the little fella would have any patience for one of those “learning to deal with frustrations” talk.

Ironically I used to be one of those people who wondered which parents could actually bring themselves to ignore their wailing kids. Till I became a parent myself. Managing kids’ tantrums are without a doubt difficult situations to be in. And what makes it more challenging is that it’s often unintentional because they don’t yet have the skills to express themselves in other desired ways hence the sudden outburst. Yet sometimes we lose our cool too quickly.

Definitely, there will be more tantrums coming my way as the boy grows up. During those moments of “why oh why!”, I hope to remind myself to: take a deep breathe, think happy stuff, nurture the positivity out of the situation and say OHMMMMMMMMM.But if all fails, at least I tried!

Meanwhile, what made my day today was seeing my little fella opening his eyes and putting his arms around me the moment I was home. He’s getting soooo good at tugging those heartstrings.

These days, I rarely sling buttery soft leather bags I used to grow a collection of.

Instead, my ‘IT bag’ is a machine-washable ju-ju-be diaper bag (gifted from the SIL) which doubles up as my everyday bag simply because it’s so lightweight, functional and combos up well with babies’ (psst: no needing to be upset that little fella’s splatter from lunch might permanently stain the bag since a wipe is all it takes to get it back to stain-free status).

I get nagged by the Bo whenever he volunteers to help me pack the bag on some weekends. On how messy I am. On how many nonsensical, unnecessary stuff is in there. But really, take a look..it’s not THAT bad, ain’t it?

In random order:

1. Ju-ju-be Be All messenger diaper bag + diaper changing pad

2. Owl printed wet bag to contain diapers, diaper cream, a hanky, extra clothes for the little fella

3. Socks for the impromptu visits to indoor playgrounds/play gyms which happens ever so often

4. Pacifier clip & cover – with a missing pacifier. I’ve trying to wean him off these days (to no success yet) and so I just couldn’t be bothered to remove these items out.

5. iPhone

6. 7-yr old Coach keypouch. Love how it can contain a bunch of keys nicely without bulging.

7. Pack of tissue. Not for choping seats of course. But good to have, just in case you suddenly noticed that the toilet roll holder next to you in a public toilet is…empty.

8. Container of the little man’s snacks. A must-have.

9. Breath spray, so that I can indulge in my garlicky chicken rice whenever I like without worrying that the person I talk to next is going to faint from holding his/her’s breath.

10. Burt’s Bee lip balm for my easily chapped lips.

11. Ezlink card for public transportation needs

12. YSL card holder gift from the Bo for my ever-growing stash of membership cards since becoming a mom. Why can’t retailers just tag our memberships to our mobile or ID numbers instead.

13. BabyGanics Foaming Hand Sanitizier, because other moms would give me cold stares if I didn’t sanitize my hands each time before carrying baby. Okay, I’m joking. This was one of the products that was highly recommended and it was really cheap buying in bulk at iHerb.com (I still have my stash from my previous purchase during 2nd trimester).

14. A BV Spring edition wallet which was a wedding anniversary gift from the Bo 4 years ago.

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I didn’t celebrate my first Mother’s Day last year because sneaking in as much rest in between feeding/washing/cleaning/latching/pumping duties & figuring out our newborn took precedence over everything else.

Regrettably, it was also the first time that I didn’t celebrate it with my mom like we always do – be it a hug & a kiss or bonding over a simple meal. All she got was a text message about how exhausted I was about waking up several times through the night followed by a “Happy Mother’s Day to you too!”. I know, what a self-centered idiot, right? But of course I made up for it as soon as I realized that the world didn’t just revolved around my newly minted “mom” status.

And mom being the kind, generous, loving lady that she’s always been was quick to forgive & forget about it (she wasn’t even angry at her ill-mannered daughter) and even asked how else she could help to ease our tensions in addition to the moral & physical help that she was already contributing.

Our moms are always the best in our eyes and mine is no exception.

“You’re taking me for granted!”, she used to say in a shaken voice during one of those adolescent-induced arguments. Deep down inside, somewhere somehow, after calming down, I knew she was right.

Since my earliest memory as a child, I often assumed that my mom rather pursue her career than enjoy spending time with me. I was angry that my other classmates could boast that their mom stayed at home with them while I was sent to my grandma’s place to be looked during the day. I was angry that my mom had to ask her younger brother (who was staying at my grandma’s then) to help me with/check my homework because she had to work till late again. I was angry that she had to attend night classes instead of hearing about my day at school. I was angry that she wasn’t there to pick me up from school like my other classmates’ moms, except when I was ill and am sent home.

I was quite the troubled child. I had so many questions that I didn’t get the answers to. But thankfully my frustrations were also short-lived. When it came to weekends or days off or end of a long day, mom was 200% mine and would listen earnestly to what I had to share.

And it wasn’t till I realized that my dad couldn’t be bothered whether he had a family or not to care for, that mom was busy making ends meet all along. In addition to being both mom & dad. In addition to needing to soothe my often-emo temperament on having a dysfunctional family. In addition to making sure I didn’t feel shortchanged in any way when it came to education & learning. In addition to dealing with my constant question of why I didn’t have any sibling(s) (because it was too costly as much as she would have loved to).

As sole bread winner , she took on night classes & sit for exams in order to be considered for a better job position (which demanded for a higher salary naturally), and took on extra jobs. And blessed her/us abundantly, the Lord graciously did.

Recently mom shared that the reason why she continues to pamper both me & the bub by sponsoring some fun classes for us to enjoy, and is so supportive of me being a SAHM regardless how temporary is because she wants me to have the opportunity she never had. My eyes welled up in tears of gratitude as I heard this. I now know why her face lights up like a million watts every time she sees the chungkin. She always looks forward to seeing him, hearing about him, seeing photos/videos of him, and would make her way to see him right after work 3-4 times a week even if it was only for 20-30mins before his sleep time. And she relishes these moments spent with him. Even managed to single-handedly take him to an outing to Hokey Pokey recently because she knew how much he’d love cruising around freely.

She loves & pampers the chungkin a lot – sometimes to fault but yet I know that it’s because she never had the chance to experience anything more than a “weekend mom” with me. And I relent.

So even though I’ve been a mom for about over a year, Mother’s Day to me is & will always be about celebrating the wonderful lady that holds a very special place in my heart. The lady that continues to give me immensed strength, love and positivity during my down days, even when she’s having one herself. The lady who never fails to pick up a cue on my moods no matter how hard I try to hide. The lady whom I used to talk about my BGR woes freely with. The lady with the smile. The lady who treats her son-in-law like her very own. The lady whom most of her team colleagues often endear her as “mama”.

You get the drift. My momma & me, we’re more than BFF-tight. :)

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The weekend, oh sweet weekend!

This weekend was made special as we celebrated mom’s ever-28th birthday. Or so she claims to be celebrating every year whenever someone asks how many years young she is.

As always, I had mischief up my sleeves when it comes to birthdays. This year we caught her by surprise when a gorgeous table arrangement of her favourite tulips and a delicious birthday jelly cheesecake were delivered to her office at consecutive hours (she didn’t think I would know her new office address since I didn’t ask. But of course, BFF google was my go-to pal) to celebrate with her colleagues on birthday eve.

On her birthday, we celebrated over a hearty meal (we had super peking duck which was succcccculent!) as a family. And guess who took precedence over the birthday girl at the table this year?

{birthday grandmama insist on feeding the hungry little man despite my offer to feed so that she could enjoy her lunch in peace}

And guess who had the most fun entertaining himself throughout the celebratory meal?

{very amused with himself for cruising against the mirrored-wall}

Looking at the photos, sure looked like we celebrated the chungkin’s birthday instead. :D

{chungkin looking like the birthday boy here}

Happy Birthday Mom!

Wishing you another year of blessings as awesome as you are.

We love you so so so so so so so much.

{Pssssst: this is going to be a long, long post!}

When Liam was born, I told myself that I would work on those baking skills (since I was going to be a stay home mom for a bit) and hopefully bake him his very first birthday cake.

But of course, that didn’t work out (who knew motherhood would be so time consuming!!!) –  my baking was still decent only with the involvement of a premix or under the guidance of an experienced baker.

And so I reckon that if I couldn’t bake him his first birthday cake, I’d conceptualize & throw him his first party instead!

****

The theme:

I started reading books to Liam on a daily basis when he was 3 weeks old. And it was easy to see that he had his favourites based on his consistent coos & giggles according to the book that was read. He enjoyed Eric Carle’s books a lot – The Very Hungry Caterpillar in particular and another book that was gifted titled “Liam Lion”.

The initial idea was to throw a safari-themed party with the limelight on ‘Liam the lion’ (adapted from his storybook). Firstly it was a relatively easy theme to manage, with all sorts of animal-themed partyware readily available at the local party stores. At the same time, there happened to be another mommy who was willing to let go of some preloved jumbo lion mylar balloons along with unused animal-themed partyware & decoration with a gorgeous DIY scenesetter that she had used at her son’s recent first birthday party at a STEAL (hullo, savings!) !!!  It felt like things were falling into place seamlessly without me needing to source or do much. We were all set. And this was 5 months before party day.

But I’ve never been one to prepare anything way in advanced (hello, spontaneity!) . So when we misplaced the ‘Liam Lion’ book one day and Liam didn’t seem to miss it & show a continued preference for the Very Hungry Caterpillar (VHC) book by picking it up and putting his tiny fingers over the ‘holes’ in the book as I read through the pages, laughing especially hard whenever I read out loud “and he became a beautiful butterfly”, I knew that a VHC party was going to be “so him”.

Plus I loved the concept of metamorphosis in the VHC story. Indeed my little baby was transitioning to a little toddler.

The Invite: 

I’m a huge fan of Carle’s art, so naturally I wanted the elements of the colourful dots, some of the food the caterpillar ate, the caterpillar of course and the smiley sun to be reflected in the invite. Colourful chalk fonts were also used to evoke a sense of fun. We were after all celebrating a one year old’s birthday.

As tempting as it was to rhyme “how fast a year has pass and our little caterpillar has grown so fast” in the invite, I kept the details as simple as possible. Perhaps it was part of the ex-job hazard but my ex-boss’s words kept ringing in my head:  KISS (keep it short & simple). Clients Guests appreciate specifics (i.e.: venue, time, contact details, what would be served), he would often say.

{the invite – minus some details which was omitted for this entry of course}

The Decor: 

Being the closet Tutera fan that I am, I was excited about this portion.  VHC-themed partyware and balloons were not as available with the online party stores and so it was time to let the creative juices flow.

I gained inspiration from my familiar online habitats and knew that I wanted to make a DIY caterpillar centrepiece. It was easy to make, considering the art klutz that I am and I didn’t have to spend too much money.

Loved the outcome!

{6 lanterns was all it took, and a really tall ladder to hang these up}

 I like my kid’s party to be bright & cheery and so I hung colourful  lanterns & balloons practically everywhere!

Reorganizing Space:

Most of our party guests have 2-3 kids/family and so reorganizing space was a huge part of the set-up. The BR came over the night before together with mom to help us in pushing furniture around (we tried not to involve the Bo as much as possible due to his bad back injury previously) and after 2 hours of trial & error, we managed to optimize the play area for the babies/kids thanks to Bo’s suggestion.

{we shifted all furniture out of dining area out and lined up 3 playmats side by side for the little ones to play on instead}

Our guests were pleased that they could leave their bubs to entertain themselves or play with other bubs in a safe, cushioned space while they busied themselves with food & catching up with friends.

The Food:

Apart from catering a hi-tea spread for the adults and bigger kids (I heard the fried mee siam goreng was such a winner that it was wiped out before end of the party), a VHC-themed dessert/sweets table for the kids was set-up too. It was my first time putting together a dessert/candy table and I had so much fun.

Food wise, following what the caterpillar ate in the book was a good starting point. Getting hold of fruits that the caterpillar ate (apples, oranges, plums, pears, strawberries) was easy. I did make some adjustments though, replacing the not-too-popular food items such as pickles and swiss cheese with other colorful, easy to manage candy such as fruity marshmallows and fizzy cola gummies (that were a hit!).

And because it was the Easter weekend, I had to put out some chocolate easter eggs from Cadbury (my all-time favourite, which was snapped up in no time too).

{L-R: homebaked chocolate fudge brownies with a cherry on top, marshmallows, homebaked macaroons, homebaked mini cupcakes with lemon cream}

{3 supermarket sweeps later, we found 13 bags of cadbury mini eggs}

{cake pops in the shape of the fruits featured in the VHC story book!}

It was sooooo nice hearing lots of great feedback from both adults & kids on enjoying the spread of sweets laid out for them. I guess this means… more kiddie parties!!! :)

The Entertainment: 

I was really really really hesitant to hire any entertainment for the party apart from a DIY ballpit only because I managed to snag a large swim pool from the recent ELC sale at a steal and a kind friend was happy to loan me some 800 plastic balls.

I didn’t want to turn a cozy birthday party into some sort of event and create awkward formalities between us and the guests.  But when you have a very very very talented grandaunt who does balloon sculpting professionally & dotes on you and your child sooooo much; and was such a big hit with the guests at your kiddo’s one month celebration, connecting with practically every kid and parent out there – how can you not include her in the party?!

Needless to say, grandaunt Joan (aka. the “balloon lady” as referred the guests) was amazing as usual. She made lots of amazing balloon sculptures for lots of little ones at the party – even created a very special VHC-themed balloon hamper  for the birthday boy – and guests that had seen her before at the Liam’s one month recognized her and gave her the thumbs up yet again!

And then there was the kids’ entertainer that was hired just 2 weeks before party day.

It all started when the cousin & I were chatting about party preps post-pilates grub when she asked what activities I had in mind for the older toddlers & kids. Being a mom to a 3yo, she shared insight on how it might be good to have another activity to spread out 60 active kids instead of having them all crowd around my grandaunt.

 Letting kids run wild & free would have been ideal but as  someone put it to me bluntly, I didn’t have a big house with ample running space; and kids running about in the crowded indoor when there’s food, furniture and babies involved? BAD IDEA.

I thought of a craft corner like what we did for the recent Enchanted Christmas Party (had a few craft activities in mind!) but of course getting manpower to run it and coordinating several kids arrival time wasn’t in my favour. The idea of hiring an kids’ entertainer then came to mind. We had just booked him for our Enchanted Christmas Party so I generally knew what to expect. So hire a comedian magician we did. He was thoroughly entertaining (till today the kids who attended still remembers the party), and did a fab job of hosting the cake cutting ceremony. He practically gathered all the troops for us and led in the singing of the birthday song in both English & Mandarin.

The goodie bag:

I almost did away with this one because I didn’t want to give the kiddos more sweets that I knew their parents would probably consume themselves since the little ones would probably have had their sugar overload at the party. But someone told me that some kids come to parties & look forward to goodie bags and what’s a party without goodie bags. And so I voted for it within the last 3 weeks of preps too. It was a mad rush because on the morning of the party, I was still packing them!

I wanted Liam’s friends to take away something that they’ll be able to use or enjoy and not get confiscated from the sugar contents and so this was what I packed in each goodie bag:

kiddos below 5:

• a wooden photo frame to put the photo they took at the party
•  organic raisins (this should pass by the parents, I think)
• VHC stickers to decorate their photoframe
• bottle of bubbles (I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like bubbles)
• party blow-outs (because it’s a partay!)
• a story book from World of Happy (I love spreading positive and uplifting books, winners of 2011/2012 practical parenting awards to boot!) 

kiddos 5 & above:

• a DIY science experiment which the Bo can’t wait to try with Liam in the distant future…
• yummy gummies & candy (approved by 4 primary-school going kids BTW)
• Dr. Seuss story book (haha, I had some kids running up to tell me how they enjoy reading Dr. Seuss)
• party blow-outs + wooden photo frame
• VHC stickers to decorate the frame

Being the hoarder of all things eye candy ESPECIALLY when they are on SALE, I had a bunch of bright-coloured kraft bags which I decided to use to contain the goodies. But I still wanted these bags to stand out even more and that’s when I got in touch with the talented Mabel from Ribbons and Tape for her creative skills. She was quick to throw me suggestions on creating 3D bag tags for that pop-out effect despite being introduced to VHC for the first time. I valued how she took effort in quickly getting references on things we do that related to the theme and got back to me on various options within 2 days.

Working with her was a breeze. She was so efficient in getting what I wanted with very little turnaround time and even made more tags at last minute notice and passed them to me just hours before the party started even when she had a family emergency (which made me feel so bad).

Liam got slightly cheesed-off during the birthday-singing-and-cake-cutting portion because all he wanted to do was to go back into the ball pit. We didn’t manage to get a decent family shot of the birthday fella smiling with the cake, but at least I knew everyone enjoyed the chocolate overload + lemon cake.

It was such a fun day and we had an awesome time! 3 hours of partying flew by too quickly!

Much appreciation to family & friends for attending and sharing our very hungry caterpillar’s special birthday with us. Liam was on cloud 9 as we unwrapped the presents but we’re going to introduce one new toy every 2 months thing so I guess this means we’re pretty covered in the toys department for a long time. :p

To those that came and thanked us personally for a wonderful time, sent us text messages conveying how much you & your kids enjoyed themselves, thank you so so so so so much for the lovely feedback. It’s definitely a confidence boost to organizing more kiddie parties in the future, and I definitely host you again (have a few themes in mind!).

Happy weekend folks! It’s going to be another weekend of celebration as we say “Happy Birthday” to mom!

SO. I haven’t been updating much on the blog.

It’s been hard to, when things you don’t anticipate to happen, happen. Hitting you in the face amidst motherhood firsts. And needing to deal with unfamiliarity such as the repercussions of a fleeting venture gone awry for other’s immediate gains.

But yay, I survived those rough nights. Literally paid a hefty price tag of a lesson learnt. Closure happened. And April came to an end.

Hullo May!

Amazing stuff have been happening since, unfolding it’s glory one after another, recharging me full with inspiration, joy & gratitude. I thank the Lord for that.

There’s so much I want to share and explode here on the blog albeit sounding potentially incoherent.I don’t know where to start. I don’t even know if I should. There’s this wee bit of hesitation for now but perhaps time will keep those worries unfounded.

In motherhood news: The little boy turned 13 months yesterday (whose counting?!) along with his ever-growing bag of tricks. He’s gained more confidence in taking a few steps just hanging on to my left or right pinkie which is so exciting when it happens! Though most of the other times, he trust going on all fours more than anything else. This week was also the first time I bade the little fella a “see you later!” as I left for the office one morning. He didn’t quite know how to respond except to wave bye back to me with his usual wide grin.

Yep, I’m officially a WAHM/PTWM now although only temporarily and so far it’s been good!

Initilaly, I was a bunch of nerves wondering how it’d be, leaving Liam for 4 hours and focusing on doing stuff that doesn’t revolve around him. But know what? Everything worked out way better than I feared. My moms have been utterly amazing in taking such great care of him – to the point of pampering him with lots of outdoor time that I had nothing to worry about at all… maybe except for the time when I got a little bored in the office loo and decided to log on to live feed to see how he was doing only to find that no one was at home (gasp! oh, turns out they went to the coffeeshop for some teh-tarik).

Being back at work after a long break has been a breathe of fresh air. I get to wear some heels, wear a dress on some days, carry a bag that doesn’t contain any diapers, put on makeup without worrying that my little man’s hands would smudge it across my face, people-watch gorgeous people in the heart of CBD, have colleagues, be able to joke and chat with colleagues anything not relating to parenthood/babyhood. And all these while not compromising on my care giving duties with Liam has been making me one happy mama. I even got to blowdry (not airdry) my hair for the first time since motherhood!

I’m still gobsmacked at the very awesome work arrangement, fusing my yearn to get the brain active with work + still being able to care for & bond with my son like before. Indeed God works in mysterious ways.

I didn’t know what was in store for me after dealing with the tail-end of April but on hindsight, those trials & tribulations were necessary in allowing me to appreciate the better things that happened ahead of them. I hope this quote gives you as much hope as it did for me.

Have a blessed May, everyone!

I haven’t been feeling very inspired to blog of late due some unpleasant & unexpected experiences which occurred recently.

God knows how I felt & dealt with everything that happened, and in Him I confided.

To add on to the series of not-so-great events, the little fella’s health also hit a low twice – once, vomitting twice in the wee hours of the night for no reason (there was a moment I froze and didn’t know how to react) / second time occurring exactly one week later, at about the same time as the week before, when we were greeted with explosive diahorrea, twice. Thanks to ru yi oil which made the night more than manageable till we got to a PD in the morning.

Definitely milestones-of-a-different-kind that weren’t welcome, I was so relieved that the chungkin remained his active, cheeky self throughout both incidents.

Like a rebellious child, I have been taking a break from everything, post-valiant effort of offering apologies (accepted) and doing closures on my part. And with the heed of a good o’ proverb, my body has been healing with play, my mind with laughter & my spirit with joy.

A door He closed out of my life, many windows He then opened, with the roof ripping off the top taking the icing on the cake. The recent good news has been overwhelming. God is more than good -  and I wish I say and believe it in more often.

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will winsome unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere, people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

- Mother Teresa

Draft entries on the one year milestone, recent adventures have been on the back burner but I promise that I’ll work on them :)

On the eve of little man’s first birthday, I got really emotional.

The photobook, our birthday present to him, which I painstakingly sacrificed 1.5 weeks of decent sleep (& TV marathons with the Bo) for arrived just hours earlier.

And as I went through it in enjoyment & detail, savouring page after page of captions and notes to my little man that I had written for every month & milestone he celebrated along with the photo collages; tears started to well up in my eyes.

Admittedly I was exhausted after having spent the evening moving an entire living & dining area of furniture in preparation for the party. But these tears, they weren’t caused by exhaustion. They were tears of joy, pride, love that synced with familiar, beautiful memories that I got to experience with the little fella in the past year.

{our birthday present to the little man – a photobook filled with personal messages and memories of his first year}

Watching Liam grow from baby to the toddler that he is today has been nothing short of amazing and a very, very blessed privilege – thanks to  three very special people who love us both so dearly and made this possible, even to the extend of making some personal sacrifices.

And because I’m aware how I’m often quick to brush things off and slow to express enough how appreciative and thankful I am to be able to enjoy motherhood the way my mom wished she could but never had the chance to due to our situation then, I just wanted to document it here officially to 3 very special people who are also my 3 biggest readers – THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU’VE DONE FOR US.

Each of you have made a positive impact in my life in more ways than you know, and I can’t thank you enough for all the love you’ve showered us with and will continue to shower us more with; for all the contributions, sacrifices, the prayers, the advices, the pampering, the support. Having you in my life was definitely part of HIS perfect plan for I’ve experienced & been overwhelmed by His grace  & love through you.

Being the current stay-home mom that I am, there are times I look back on my career years in hindsight & wished I made a more serious effort to save more for the future, for the family I have now, instead of being the closet hippie I was & attempting the “living-in-the-now” with whatever I earned. But of course, we were all careless with our finances once upon a time. My weaknesses were definitely buying cult jeans, shoes, sunglasses and beauty products. Who would have knew I had to give up on very decent income to become a mom and not have the best of both?

Yet in spite having to work around a budgeted allowance now that I’m a resource sucker, the little one & I have been blessed to still be able to have the occasional nice meals out, explore kid-friendly playgrounds & play gyms, attend all sorts of music, art & other fun social interaction trials – in addition to the wallet-friendly activities that we already do such as walking around the neighbourhood, visit our little friends’ homes for a playdate, visiting the nearby (water)park.

It hasn’t been easy,  adjusting my heavily-influenced-by-media-colleagues-lifestyle around an allowance after being a decently-salaried employee since graduating from school yet the little guy & I do get our regular dose of pampering whenever possible (notwithstanding their nags).

Granted some cost-cutting measures are necessary, such as frequent holidays that we used to go on are frequent no more, along with others – I’m still thankful & grateful for these 3 deeply-loved people in my life.

Thank you Lord for them!

My little man wasn’t the only one who turned ONE in March.

Singapore Mom Bloggers, this awesome community of local moms + blogs & shares their parenting tips, stories & experiences with so much passion (and I’ve been blessed to be part of that community for the past year) turned ONE too!

And to celebrate, we were invited to a style workshop by Style Essence - founded by  fellow mommy blogger, Flo Mummy

I was really excited to attend this event because…

1) ever since being introduced to the importance of personal grooming/image over a decade ago during one of the ex-company’s “staff workshops”, I’ve always been a sucker believer in looking decent/presentable as much as possible whenever out of the house (it also reaffirmed mom’s nagging during my baggy-jeans-and-tees-getup phase :p)

2) the ex-job taught & showed me how first impressions played a big role in representing one’s self

3) since becoming mom, I’ve (unfortunately) been gently nudged by closed friends that it’s okay to dress up even if it’s just for fun (short of saying, can you wear anything else besides your comfy tees & shorts which we are always seeing you in since you became a mom?)

4) I miss my pre-preggy & preggy effort-to-put-on-a-dress-or-some-accessories-or-even-some-lipgloss self

5) some me-time to pamper oneself  is always a good thing right?

6) I definitely wanted to learn the tricks to looking effortlessly stylish, without much effort of course (because I’ve not been successful in being able to get ready without needing to attend to the bub once)

7) finally meeting the moms behind those blogs that I frequent? How cool was that!

I didn’t quite know what to expect prior to arriving at the venue since the last time I attended a “beauty workshop” organized by the ex-co, it felt like one of those parenthood seminars where one sits among a sea of audience, try to take notes quickly before the next slide jumps in, wonders what’s for tea break and try not to fall asleep for most of the time.

But this session, it was so engaging & interactive that I didn’t even have time to do anything else apart from paying attention.

Before the workshop started, I was told to get my measurements taken to find out what body shape I belonged to and was pleasantly surprised to find out that I was an ‘hourglass’. Hah!!!!!! Which meant that I’ve finally lost some of ‘em stubborn pregnancy weight and for the first time, I have an obvious waist!, even if it’s not necessarily a small one. (unimportant tidbit: I used to be a ‘pear’ shape and then was probably a ‘column’ shape which I was told is quite common among new moms).

{we were each given a card of our current body shape.

I love the thoughtful illustrations on what clothes will flatter this bodyshape at a glance!

Doesn’t it make shopping for/trying on clothes that much easier?}

After everyone had an understanding of which body shape we had, the stylemeister herself, Flo mommy commenced the session.

I enjoyed how natural & witty she was in her delivery & how she connected with us. Needless to say there were no awkward silences (except when we were all hard at work during our hands-on segment) during the entire session.

{Flo kicking off the session by thanking SMB’s founder and co-organizer of this lovely workshop, Rachel with a token}

I’ve recently reignited my love for colours (been purchasing shades of yellow & blue for myself and orange for the little man) in my wardrobe again (is it an age thing as they say?) since motherhood (they say, black is not a colour :( ), so when Flo showed us what some colours meant, I couldn’t be more pleased with those purchases.

{what colors are you usually dressed in?}

Do you sometimes wonder why someone comments that you look tired when if you’ve had a good night’s rest or compliment that you are looking really good even if you didn’t do different from your usual? Or can’t decide between a blue or orange top because they both look fabulous on you but you want to pick out the better of the two? That’s because some of us suit either “warm” or “cool” tones (ignoring the fact that there are also the lucky ones who can take either tones!)

And depending on which tone you suit better, these are some colour guidelines to help you look your best!

{And so I found out I’m a “cool” tone. No wonder everyone kept asking if I slept enough whenever I wore a brown dress to work}

But of course how would you know whether you’re a warm or cool? Here’s a simple test Flo did for us: throw on a “warm” and “cool” coloured shawl (in this test we did brown vs. black) and ask an audience of closed and honest friends which colour lets you look your best. (psst: if you don’t have both warm & cool shades in your wardrobe, you can do your ‘test’ at the shop with your friends too, try not to be alone with pushy salespeople who just want to make a sale)

{Flo asking which colour looks better on Evelyn}

We were then shown hair styles that suit the various face shapes. I enjoyed this segment because I’ve been contemplating chopping off my hair for a long while now because I was getting bored with it (been wearing the same hairstyle for a long times now) and I’ve been wanting to attempt a bob but wasn’t sure if I could carry it off because the last I had short hair was when I was 12 years old and the husband laughed (at the photo on my IC) and said short hair made me looked like a boy.

Flo also kept us abreast with the latest trends for the various face & body shapes and taught us a tip which I’ve been wanting to know…how to find that perfect shade of foundation! I rarely put on foundation unless the occasion calls for it but it was interesting & startling to realize that I’ve been taken for a ride during those times I was purchasing a foundation when the salesperson merely smeared various shades on my cheek, saying all 3 shades suit me. Not cool!

{and to think those times I applied foundation, I did it wrongly. That probably explain the random breakouts}

Next segment was exciting! It was time to get our hands-on experience and as much as I was reluctant to strip my face of the concealer and powder which I’ve been  hiding my bare complexion beneath since I left home, I couldn’t be more thankful for learning the correct way of washing my face and applying make-up.

{removing the layers of undereye concealer I piled on using Mary Kay eye makeup remover}

So apparently my method of plastering my filled-with-facial-cleanser palms to my entire face and just rubbing and splashing water has been wrong. There’s a reason why facial therapists dot your face with facial cleansers and gently massage them in using their third & fourth finger. Because that’s the correct way. And if you’re facial-deprived like myself, this is definitely one handy tip to achieving a healthy looking complexion without needing to trade an hour at facial salon. It did sound bothersome to me initially but I got to admit, a week into reminding myself to wash my face using this new method and I do feel the face is a lot cleaner than just slabbing foam and rubbing it in hoping that all grime gets washed away.

After cleansing, we were given a sample of the Botanical Effects Mask to try on. I was rather bummed when we were told to apply to only half of our face so that we could see the immediate benefits because I really liked using this product, though admittedly, comparing the results before & after side by side was definitely more convincing than a mental comparison of a before and after.

{while waiting for our masks to do its magic. With the cousin}

{guess which side of my face felt more taut?}

Next, it was hands-on make up time! Flo did a demo on Pauline showing us the correct method for makeup application. Tip from Flo: always remember to apply sunscreen  and apply it sideways so that it doesn’t clog up your pores.

I’ve always wanted to practice how to do proper make-up apart from my usual 4-step routine: concealer + powder to set + blush + mascara and it was here that I got to dabble with some shades of eye shadow & lip colours under the guidance of a pro!

{choices & more choices}

And this was my DIY makeover:

{ah-soh no more!}

NOW, the highlight of this workshop? Remember when I mentioned earlier that I was somewhat bored of the long hair especially now that I was more aware of my face shape and body shape, and what would suit it? I asked Flo for suggestions and without hesitation, together with the rest of the moms present, I was encouraged to cut a short bob. These mamas could obviously read my mind on wanting a chop it off and wanting a bob. But what convinced me to step into a hair salon next was how they said it – full of camaraderie, candidness, the willingness to help each other up our style essence quotient.

And so I did the deed. 

{I love it}

GIVEAWAY TIME! – 3 MAKEOVER WORKSHOP WITH STYLE ESSENCE PASSES (worth $150 each) TO BE GIVEN AWAY! 

I have 3 makeover workshop passes with Style Essence (worth $150 each) to give away. Please leave me a comment (with your name & email) and state why you would like to win it. Winners will be picked randomly and will be contacted by Style Essence.

Closing date: 14 April 2013, Sunday at midnight.

 RESULTS OF GIVEAWAY: 

Congratulations to Chor Ee, Serene Seah & Tiredmummy for winning the makeover workshop passes! Style Essence will be contact with you shortly :) Do update me on your “makeovers”! 

P/s: Lynn, was informed that you won the giveaway in another blog giveaway hence the re-draw. :)