Vote wisely, Vote responsibly

I am very happy to know that I am entitled to vote for this election 2011, and not only that most of my friends, relatives and many fellow Singaporeans are also given this “privilege” to vote, and for many of them, they will be voting for the very first time! For example, my parents-in-law, who have lived in Singapore all their lives and are in their 50s and 60s are casting their votes for the very first time!

This election is the most exciting and most hotly contested since the 1980s and I am very glad that my vote WILL make a difference in the making of the future of Singapore.

I am not here to indicate my personal political preference but just to share my excitement and anticipation of a hotly contested election. I am grateful to the ruling party, which has enabled Singapore to thrive and advanced from a 3rd world country to a 1st world country within 2 generations. Because I am born in Singapore, I have gotten the chance to be educated, to work overseas for 2 years and travel around the world. Because I am born in Singapore, I see how my standard of living has greatly improved as compared to my grandma and my mother.

But moving forward, how will Singapore be for my Little Beanie Girl, who has yet to be born? What about my future grandchildren, if I am lucky to have any?

For the past years, I have been a volunteer in some organizations and have seen for myself how some Singaporeans of the lower income and less unfortunate group live. Although Singapore’s GDP has been strong for the past 5 years, these groups of people did not benefit from our country’s strong growth.

Is there help for these people? The answer: Yes, but the procedures and process is long and complex, full of red tapes, and most of the time, one has to bulldoze to get things done.

Some brave (but some said foolish) Singaporeans have stepped forward to offer us a choice. I urge all Singaporeans to vote wisely and responsibly. Keeping the past, but most importantly, our future in mind and how we want our country to progress socially, economically and politically in the next generation, and many more generations to come.

Cookie in a box

Cookie's latest obsession is a box. In fact, it is a really small box that can barely contains her. But, of course that fact doesn't bother her and she continues to squeeze into that tiny, little box, pretending it is her safe haven for many, many nights until the box finally went "SPLIT" last night.

I was sitting on my bed laughing at her when the box gave way and as you can see, she seemed rather embarrassed.

Cookie got a bit upset that her safe haven wasn't as snug as before, and she decided to come sulking on my bed instead. Although I taped up the box for her, but it wasn't good enough for this fussy little cat.

Anyway, I will leave the box as it is and I wonder whether Cookie will return to her safe haven once more.

My place is in a magazine!

Dry kitchen on the left and a close-up shot of my dinning area on the right.

My frangipani was still full of leaves then... ...

Home and Decor (a lifestyle magazine) did a feature on my place in their new magazine, "Renovate" this month. Renovate is a brand new magazine, which featured homes that had gone through a major overhaul.

Hub told me to buy a few more copies to keep, so that we can show/give away to prospective buyers when we intend to sell the place in the future. He thinks we can get a better price just because we were being featured in a magazine... ...

Then I told him that I wana stay here for AT LEAST 10 years. By then, buyers might find our design passé!

O well... in anycase, I really do love my flat. ;) Looking forward to be home everyday.

p/s: if only the frangipani can be well again and sprouts more new leaves!

My Gardening Woes I have no idea what is the name of this plant, but I call it the "heart-shape leaves" plant. I have quite a few of these. At least they are doing well. The wrinkled leaves of my Frangipani.

The "botak" brunch. ;( And there are some mealybugs on the new buds.

Help! Not many leaves on my Frangipani Tree... ;(

I have a serious case of mealybugs infestation, especially on my Frangipani tree. I have been battling these bugs for the past few months and they seem to be winning the war!

Most of the new leaves of the Frangipani are wrinkled and some of the older leaves are full of these pesty mealybugs!!! I used white neem oil to spray on the leaves every 3 days or so, but it didn't seem to be working.

So out of desperation, I used my own home-made pesticide, a concoction of olive oil, dishwashing detergent and water. But I guess I was overzealous with the amount of oil used and I ended up killing the leaves instead of the bugs instead!

Almost all of the leaves of the Frangipani withered and dropped off. But I figured that the bugs would die with the leaves right?

Unfortunately that wasn't the case! Once the new leaves appear, I began to see the same irritating mealybugs on the new shoots again! ARGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, I am back to spraying white neem oil on the leaves once again. To make matters worse, some of my other plants within the same planter box are also showing signs of the same infestation.

These mealybugs are driving me nuts. What else can I do to rid these horrible mealybugs???

Please help!!!

Little Beanie is a girl!

Tiny fingers, Tiny toes,
Little ity bity clothes.
Dresses, ribbons and hair to curl.
We 're so thrilled to have a girl!

Went for my 20 weeks Detailed Scan yesterday and finally my gynae could proudly annouce (with conviction) that Beanie is a girl! Previously, Beanie has been very shy and blocked the view everytime when I went for a scan. She is growing well and her scan result is normal, which is a huge relief.

Although I still suffer from morning sickness and still puke practically every morning, but my appetite is much better and I can start eating decent meals without getting the urge to vomit all the time. I've also finally gained 0.5kg from my pre-pregnancy weight and I do hope that I can continue to gain some weight so that Beanie will be a healthy baby.

Hub is very, very happy to have a baby girl, he has always wanted to have a daughter to dote on. ;)

Now I can finally start buying cute, little pink dresses, and think of a name for Beanie. ;)

Still in Hong Kong

I was supposed to fly back to Singapore on Monday, 28 Mar at 11 am. But I missed my flight because I was still warded at The Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong. And how did I end up there? Here's the story... (a really long post though)

I arrived at Hong Kong on last friday, 25 March 730 pm as planned and everything was fine. The flight was smooth and uneventful but my only grouse was that I had to carry my own luggage while walking down the flight of stairs from the plane, and then up the bus to the main terminal. Nobody offered any help, so there I was, lugging my luggage while being 18 weeks pregnant.

I was very happy to see Hub and we had a pleasant dinner. Hub said that he had some friends (whom I know as well) in town and the plan was to go hiking on Saturday morning. We would take the beginner's hike and it should not take more than 2.5 hours. The idea sounded good, I've always enjoyed hiking and the thought of some fresh air, greenery and exercise should be good for both me and Beanie.

So, the very next morning, we headed towards "Shek-O" village to hike the famous Dragon's Back Trail. The weather was great, sunny yet cool; and the trail started out really easy. We were happily walking, chatting and enjoying the view, the breeze and each other's company. Then we reached the Dragon's Back, where there were 3 "humps", ie: 3 little hills to climb, and each hill had a flight of rocky steps (at times, rather steep). If I weren't pregnant, these 3 hills would be a piece of cake, I have had done harder trails before. But this time round, with the additional weight of Beanie, things were different.

By the start of the 3rd hump, I began to feel uncomfortable, my tummy felt a little crampy and I was getting a bit worried. However, it was too late to quit, I had to proceed because I was basically stuck in the middle of nowhere! Everyone was getting worried for me as well, we all slowed down and took frequent breaks. I really took my time and had help from both Hub and another guy friend to continue the rest of the hike. Finally after almost 3.5 hours, we finished the trail and headed back to Hong Kong Central for lunch. I felt ok then, tired but fine. Cramps had lessen and by the time lunch was over, things seemed normal. Nonetheless, Hub and I headed back to his apartment to rest while his friends proceeded to do some shopping.

Hub was very sweet to arrange for a cosy dinner with 2 very dear friends who are currently based in Hong Kong and I was really looking forward to it. We were just preparing to dress up and I was just about stepping out of my shower when suddenly I felt a gush of warmth below and saw fresh, red blood. I was bleeding and bleeding A LOT. Fresh blood was flowing out of me and I was in shock. I screamed for Hub and he rushed over. He saw all the blood and went completely pale. I shouted that we had to go to the hospial immediately, and he reached for his phone, called up his friend to ask for the location of the nearest hospital. Meanwhile, I tried to reach for the dressing table to get some tissue and all this time, I was still bleeding. There was so much blood that there was a trail of blood from the shower to dressing area. Hub came over, saw all the blood on the floor and I saw his hands began to shake. At this point, I lost it and started crying and I was so scared that I was going to lose my baby...

We got dressed as fast as we could, rushed down and thankfully hailed a cab within minutes. The cab driver realised that this was an emergency and drove as fast as he could. In fact, he even dashed across a red light just for us. Finally after 10-15 minsutes, which felt like forever, we arrived at The Queen Marry Hospital's A&E department. Although it was rather crowded, but I was put on a bed immediately and soon, a doctor came by to check on me. She used a fetal doppler to check for Beanie's heartbeat, which thankfully, was beating strongly. By then, the bleeding had lessen. When I heard Beanie's heartbeat, I finally managed to calm down. During the short journey on the cab, I was filled with dread and was going through all the worst cases of senarios in my head...

The A&E doctor advised that I be warded so that a Gynaecologist can check on me, and also to do an ultrasound to check on Beanie. And so, I was warded for 3 days 2 nights. During this period, the doctors checked that my cervix was still closed, Beanie's heartbeats were strong and the placenta seemed normal as well. I still had spotting and light cramps for the first 2 days but thankfully by the third day, things had stabilized and I was able to be discharged. The doctors weren't too sure what had caused the massive bleeding, except that my womb or cervix might had been irritated by the strenuous exercise during the hike.

So now, I am still in Hong Kong, resting and not moving too much. It's almost like being under House Arrest. Other than taking very short walks to buy lunches or dinners, I will stay at Hub's apartment, reading, napping, watching TV, basically REST. I can feel Beanie's tiny movements and have been talking to Beanie, telling Beanie to be strong and hang on to Mummy until he/she is ready to be born.

This episode had really scared the hell out of me. I will not attempt such "dangerous" activities anymore. I just want to have a safe flight back to Singapore on Friday and be a considerate mummy, bearing in mind that Beanie can be really fragile.

I am just so so so grateful that Beanie is fine. That's all I ask for.

Beanie’s tiny movements

So I think I finally felt it last night. Beanie’s first tiny kick/nudge.

Although from previous visits to the gynae, I could clearly see Beanie wriggling around all the time, but its movements were too weak and small to be felt then.

Then last night, as I was falling asleep and suddenly, I felt a distinctive “POP”. Like a bubble bursting in my tummy, then a very slight little squirm.

It felt kinda weird actually but it brought a smile to my face…

I’ll be seeing the gynae in another 2 weeks’ time and by then, I’ll be in my 20th week and hopefully I’ll get to know whether Beanie is a girl or a boy!

Meanwhile, I’m looking forward to more nudges from Beanie. ;)

Impressed with Jetstar Asia

Budget airlines and I do not really get along well. Especially that particular one with stripes… horrible services where my flight got cancelled without pre-notification, took forever to speak to a customer service officer, thus I swear that I will NEVER take that airline ever again.

Then yesterday, I decided to fly to Hong Kong to visit Hub this weekend. Yeah, a last minute decision to go check on Hub. So, went to Jetstar.com to book my ticket.

I’m usually a merticulous person, but somehow I got my flight details all wrong and I didn’t realised my mistakes until I had PAID and confirmed my flight?! Instead of 3.45 pm flight to HK on 25 March, I somehow clicked on the 9 am flight, as for my return leg, instead of 28 March… I booked 28 MAY instead?!?!

DANG!!!! Mini heart attack…

So, I immediately called the service hotline and prayed that Jetstar would allow me to change my flight details (hopefully FOC). Super crossed my fingers…

I waited patiently for 10 mins, which was reasonable because I had previously waited almost 30 mins for that airline with “stripes”. The customer officer, his name was Mark, was very pleasant and even asked “how was your day, Mdm?” WOAH.

He noted my mistakes and changed both of my flights without any additional charges and kept assuring that I was not an idiot… (because I started the conversation wailing that I was such an idiot to make such silly mistakes while booking a ticket online).

And within 2 minutes, the new itinerary was sent to my mailbox.

Wah… I was super impressed.

Ok, Jetstair has given me faith in budget airlines once again!

So I will be heading to Hong Kong this weekend! Whoopee!

I thought I killed a bat AGAIN!

I have a part-time helper who will come over on every Saturday to help me with some housework. As she usually arrives at my place by 8 am, which is very early for a Saturday (to me), I will usually open the door for her and I’ll hop right back into bed for another hour of snooze.

Last week, as I was snoozing away, I heard a short but sharp shriek; I rushed to the kitchen and saw Auntie with a broom, trying to sweep something black and smelly out of the window.

“What’s that???”

“I don’t know!?!? It was wedged between the windows, dead, smelly and covered with ants when I tried to open the windows. Seemed that you have killed a small bat by accident…”

“Argh…. I’ve killed a bat?!?!?!” and the smell was so bad that I went hiding in my bedroom.

Thankfully Auntie was around to help me clear the mess.

Then last night, while I was closing the windows again, the super blur me didn’t realize that “something” once again was resting at the corner of the window, and I hastily slammed the window panes.

And I heard a soft “crash”… Then I saw “something” with wings was crushed between the window panes!

Argh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I gave a scream and ran away, thinking that I killed another small bat.

Why the hell were these bats doing at my windows anyway?

Cookie heard the scream, came over to check me out, seeing that I’m technically ok, she went back to sleep.

As for me, I was horrified that I was a bat murderer FOR THE SECOND TIME, and was too terrified to face with the potential blood and gore that I started bawling my eyes out.

I immediately texted my next door neighbours for help but atlas, both of them were away in Malaysia and I had to deal with a crushed, dead bat on my own.

I tried calling Hub in Hong Kong for some moral support but he wasn’t picking up the phone, and Cookie was just snoozing away on the sofa without offering any moral support either!

I was suddenly overwhelmed by the notion of clearing a bloodied bat carcass that I was holding the broom and crying in the kitchen for a good 5 mins or so, until I finally calmed down.

Finally with a little bit of courage, I opened the window again, and the intention was to sweep the “something” out of the window ASAP.

Then I realized that the “something” wasn’t a bat, but a moth.

Phew… …. Nonetheless, it was a big-ass moth!!! As big as my palm!

I was soooooooooo relieved that I felt so silly for being such a scaredy cat. I am usually very gung-ho ok! Must be the pregnancy hormones…

Anyway, I swept the dead moth out of the window, drank a cup of warm water to calm my nerves and headed for bed.

What a night!

Cookie's first accident...

A mini-saga happened early this morning.

Cookie all along has been a relatively well behaved cat. She doesn't scratch my furniture, and have so far only vomited hairballs ONCE on my carpet. She eats all her catfood (although she is very fussy about the brand of catfood), and so far, has never peed or pooed in my apartment ever.

Until 2 am this morning.

She usually sleeps at the corner of my bed and will usually wakes me at by 7 am to have her breakfast. But last night, she became restless in the middle of the night, and tried to wake me up by coming to me and whimpered ever so softly by my ear.

I didn't know what she was after, so I ignored her and concentrated on getting back to sleep. Then I heard her jumping off the bed, and a few seconds later, I heard FARTING sounds...

What the hell?! I immediately jumped out of the bed, switched on the lights and saw the sheepish Cookie trying to cover her shame. She had diarrhea on my bathroom mat (the one that she is lying on, in the picture above)!

Being 2 am in the morning and hadn't really woken from my slumber yet, I went ballistic and really overreacted. I screamed at her and carried her outside towards the door. Maybe she was really sick or I had really frightened her, she struggled free, dropped to the ground, and vomited out her dinner from earlier this evening. She was still in my bedroom.

ARGH.... you naughty cat! First you pooed, then you puked in my room!

I went a bit crazy and carried her out of the house, and left her outside. She vomited again just outside my door, looked a bit hurt but walked away shortly.

I was too overwhelmed by the smell and the mess to think coherently. After cleaning up the all the mess inside my room and outside the door, I realised that I had been a HORRIBLE cat mummy...

Cookie had already tried to warn me that she really needed to go but I didn't recognise her signals. She must have tried her best to hold it in but diarrhea, being diarrhea, she couldn't control it anymore but to relieve herself in the bedroom. At least she was smart enough to pooed on the bathroom mat instead of my bed.

I felt sooooo bad and guilty, at the same time worried about her since she was most probably not feeling too well. But it was already almost 3 am in the morning and I had no idea where did she run to.

Haiz, so I couldn't really fall back to sleep after that. Woke up in the morning with a headache and light sorethroat instead... most probably due to the lack of sleep.

Hopefully Cookie, being the smart and hardy semi-stray, will self-medicate herself with grass or herbs to sort out her digestive system. Meanwhile, I will be keeping a lookout for her, and bring her to the vet if she is still unwell.

To bring her to the vet, will most probably be another major saga, coming from the previous experience! I really hope that she will get well soon!

The big S-T-R-E-T-C-H

When I first broke the news about Beanie to my girlfriends, almost all of them asked the same question: “Hrm…Have you bought your stretch mark cream?”

“Eh…. No? Do I need to apply now? I’m still in my 1st trimester and my tummy is still flat wat…”

“OF COURSE!!” All answered unanimously. Prevention is way better than cure!

Okay…. …. ….

But deep down inside, I just thought that my fellow girlfriends are just being kiasu and forgot all about creams and lotions while I was battling fatigue, nausea and dizziness.

One particular girlfriend couldn’t believe how nonchalant I am about the “horrible” stretch marks and my impending doom that she bought me a tube of Clarin’s Stretch Mark Control Cream as a gift. Supposedly the best and one of the most expensive in the market.

“Nah… don’t say don’t have. You are going to thank me for this! Use it RELIGIOUSLY EVERY NIGHT from now until the end of your confinement period. Do you understand??” she barked.

Woah. So fierce.

Well, since it was a gift, so I started applying it religiously after my showers day after day. Although currently my tummy is barely a small bump, but at times, I can really feel the skin across my tummy stretching, similar to the feeling of my face tightening when I do not put moisturizer immediately after cleansing.

Then 2 days ago, I met up with another girlfriend who is now a proud mummy of a 8 months old boy and we were just chatting about pregnancies and babies. Of course, the topic drifted to stretch marks and she lamented she wasn’t “hardworking” enough in applying her creams and now, she has to bear the consequences of her “laziness”.

And she showed me her hips and OMG……………………………………… grayish, spidery lines were clearly visible on her hips and they really didn’t look very pleasant at all!

“The stretch marks were previously red and angry, and by the time I started on the anti-stretch mark cream, it was already too late”

Woah. Ok, that’s a wake-up call.

So I immediately went down to Robinsons today during my lunch break, and bought another tube of the cream, together with a bottle of Body Treatment Oil. 20% discount on all Clarin’s products +7% of GST absorbed by Robinsons! Yay!!!

Now I’m all ready to combat against stretch marks!

Random: My beautiful dinning chairs...

The above color combination: sunny yellow with barley white, is my favourite.

A few weeks ago, my interior designer requested for some pictures of the dinning chairs that she has custom-made for us. "For records purposes" she said. Then she added sheepishly that she had forgotten to take note of the color schemes and fabric used, and needed some pictures to refresh her memory.

Haha, no problem.

So, I happily took some pictures and it just hit me that.... my dinning chairs are, indeed gorgeous!

Each color comes in pairs, and so I have 10 of them in total. These beautiful chairs have added some vibrance to my dinning area, which is mainly in steel, bricks and wood.

Seeing these chairs make me happy again... ;)

Top 5 Baby Items to buy!

Heard that there will be a few Baby Fairs in the month of March, so gotta start shopping around for the items that I absolutely must have!

*Ok, friends who are reading my blogs, I’m not trying to hint what Baby Shower pressies to buy, in fact, most of these items cost a few hundred dollars a pop, so… I’m just sharing with fellow friends and bloggers about the stuff that I need. *no pressure* ;P

1) Miracle Blanket

One particular friend SWEARS by this product. This piece of blanket has bought her precious hours of uninterrupted sleep. Anything that can buy me extra hours of sleep when screaming Beanie arrives, I’ll buy it. PERIOD. In fact, I'll most probably buy 3, in case Beanie pukes or poops in the blanket, which I can so see it coming...

2) Medela pump Free-style

This is a duo pump that according to my friends, is one of the best in the market. This piece of gadget does not come cheap but my rationale is: if I had already spent a bomb on a breast pump, I jolly well stick to breast-feeding to make my money worthwhile. Die die must breastfeed!

3) Ergo Baby Carrier

Remember the Koala mummy mantra? From my research, Ergo Baby Carrier is one of the few carriers that will allow me to wear my baby in the front or on my hip or on my back, ala “Ninga Turtle” style. And most importantly, Ergo carriers support a natural sitting position for babies, so allowing babies to be comfortable. Moreover, the design also balances the weight of the baby on the parent’s shoulders AND hips, saving the parent’s back muscles. For very young babies, I just need to buy a “baby insert” that can provide the required support to a newborn’s head. Viola, instead of carrying the baby around, I can have BOTH of my hands to run my errands and do my chores.

4) Cloth Diapers

Did I mention that I’m a tree hugger and I wana be a Koala mummy? So, I must live to my mantra right? Using cloth diapers save the environment AND money… so, I’m definitely going to give these modern cloth diapers a try. There will be mountains of poop to wash, so wish me luck!

5) ) Arm’s Reach co-sleeper

I’ve been searching high and low for this co-sleeper. But it seems that many shops no longer carry this product. I guess I just have to find a cot that can be adjusted to my bed’s height, and place the cot right next to my bed instead. I have the intention the let Beanie co-sleep in the bedroom for the first few months, I figure that night feeds will be easier for the both of us where I can just scoop Beanie from the cot (next to my bed) and breastfeed Beanie instead of running to the nursery every 2-3 hours.

There are still so many other items to buy, eg: stroller, bathing basin, bips, towels, baby's clothes, Baby's carseat, ear plugs, massage chair (for me, of course), slimming wraps... ...

Ok, buy the top 5 first!

15 hrs a day, how long can you last?

I’ve always wondered how do some people work 15 hrs a day, EVERYDAY?

We are talking about a competitive and intense environment where you eat at your desk during lunches AND dinners, with non-existence breaks. The only break is to dash to the toilet for 30 seconds and you are back slogging away at your desk.

We are talking about fellow colleagues being mean to each other and yelling at each other because everyone is just so overworked. The vicious cycle goes on and on… … …

How do these people do it?

I can maybe do something like that for say, 2 weeks max, and yes, I have had pulled such hours in my younger days, but not EVERYDAY. Only when I need to meet a deadline… …

But now, Hub is working 15 hrs everyday, Monday to Friday. The only consolation is that his weekends, so far, have been free. *touch wood*

Every time when I facetime Hub using the Iphone 4, I can tell that he is looking more haggard day by day and he is getting grumpier by the day.

I would also pull a black face if I have to work from 8.30 am to 11.30 pm EVERYDAY, with lunches at 3 pm at my desk and dinner at 10.30 pm at my bloody desk again.

I want to tell my husband that we don’t need a lot of money to be happy.

I’ll rather that we spend time with each other, stay in a HDB flat, and don’t drive a car (not that we have one anyway). We’ll just take occasional holidays to M’sia but we’ll be happy. I don’t need expensive handbags or shoes or any stupid diamonds.

Beanie doesn’t have to go to those branded childcare or expensive enrichment lessons.

I just want my husband to be his jovial self again. Less stress, less angst, more love and awareness towards himself and his loved ones.

I can’t wait for his posting in HK to be over. Haiz… 10 more months to go.

Preggy or simply a Telly Tubby?

Now that I have just a very tiny bump, I’ve encountered a few rather funny incidents while taking the MRT.

Firstly, I must applaud that most Singaporeans and fellow passengers are really quite considerate and gracious to give up their seats when they notice a Preggy is on board. So far, many had given up their seats for me, although some were unsure whether I’m pregnant or simply… a Telly Tubby.

Incident 1

I was on the train and stood in front of this gentleman. He took a look at me and immediately had this constipated look. I could literally see a bubble above his head, “Preggy or not? Hmm, I do not want to offend this lady by giving her the seat but only to have her snapped back at me because she isn’t pregnant!”

So to end his dilemma, I decided to help him out a bit by pushing out whatever tummy that I had and did a REALLY exaggerated rub on my tummy. Very theatrical, I know… but I really do need the seat ok!

He got my cue immediately and sprang up from his seat to offer it to me. So, we had a happy ending, he was feeling pleased about himself, being a considerate gentleman, and I was so glad to grab a seat.

Incident 2

So, once again I was on the train, standing just right in front of the priority seat. The train was really full and passengers who had seats were busy playing with their Iphones. I was feeling rather good until a man got into the train with a bad case of BO. On any other normal days, I doubt I could smell anything. But now, I have become Wolfverine and can smell a fart from 2 km away.

The BO was so bad (at least to me, everyone else didn’t seem to smell anything or simply too polite to make any faces), I couldn’t help myself but to gag… hrm, rather loudly. But it was totally unintentional lah.

Sorry dude, but… you were making me puke.

Thankfully the lady in front of me saw me gagging and immediately gave up her seat. I took it gratefully. With a seat, I could fish out a tissue paper to cover my nose and breathe through my mouth, and concentrate very hard NOT to vomit on the train. So, another happy ending, although a bit smelly.

All in all, I am very grateful to all those who had given up their seats to me. Thanks fellow passengers!

The weirdest way to lose weight

For the longest time, I've been trying very hard to keep my weight under 50 kg. At my fittest and leanest, I was 48 kg and that was when I got married. After all, I gotta be a pretty and svelte bride right?

Unfortunately, since then on, my weight had always been slightly above 50 kg, usually just a few kilos more, but enough to cause some anguish and motivation to hit the gym on a regular basis.

But ever since I got pregnant, I’ve been losing weight. I went down to a low of 48.5 kg, and as of this morning, my weight was merely 49.4 kg. The nurse, who took my weight, frowned at me and asked whether I was a heavy smoker.

“I do not smoke?!?!”

“You gotta eat more, young lady” as she stared at me with her disapproving eyes.

Trust me, I used to be SUCH A PIG before I have Beanie. I live to eat and I love my food. So much so that, it’s always Hub who has to remind me NOT to eat like there’s no tomorrow.

But now… I can barely look at food without gagging.

I miss my old, piggy self who can eat a big bowl of Bah Chor Mee, plus 1 bowl of Ching Teng and can still wolf down a medium scoop of Yummi Yogurt.

I’m really trying VERY hard to eat healthy and nutritious meals but unless I cook these meals myself, I just have to depend on take-aways and even with the take-aways, I can barely eat half of the portions.

Whenever I am slightly hungry, I can only eat a few mouthfuls and I simply do not feel like eating anymore. If I force myself to eat more, I will throw up the entire meal and that’s really counter-intuitive.

I know I should eat small meals, and that’s what I try to do. I’ll eat a banana here, a yogurt there, or some cornflakes with milk.

I just want to gain my appetite back! ;(

Volkswagen Commercial: The Force

Haha... after watching this commercial, I do want a boy! A mini Darth Vader is so cute!

Who’s going to look after Beanie?

Singapore’s workfare scheme is becoming too successful. So much so that, both my in-laws and my mother are all working either full or part-time in their so-called “retirement years”.

Both my mother and mother-in-law are in their late 50s and my father-in-law is in his mid-sixties. Both ladies are still actively contributing to our Singapore’s economy and even my father-in-law is working on a part-time basis.

Previously when my mom was bugging me for a grandchild, she volunteered to be the main care-giver and would babysit my kid(s) to encourage me to start a family.

Now, she is having cold feet.

“Hmm, actually my current company is treating me rather well…”

“My company recently sent me for many training sessions, y’know. And I learnt many new things…”

“Eh, nowadays got Infantcare centres and govt got subsidize rite…?”

“Hrm, I’ve not taken care of babies for a long time and I think I’m out of touch…”

Argh!!! Seems that my mother is having second thoughts about being a Babysitter to Beanie. She is still currently considering her options…

I’ve always thought that my mom’s current job is rather hectic and stressful. Now that my youngest brother has already started working, I’ve suggested to my mom to take things easy, either convert to a part-time basis or simply retire.

But with the highly successful campaign of “work-till-you-die-because-your-CPF-isn’t-enough-for-your-retirement-even-if-you-have-children-who-are-willing-to-support-you” scheme, my mom proudly declared that she is going to work till she’s 68 yrs old or until she dropped dead?!

I’m sure her job gives her a great sense of fulfillment and her interaction with fellow colleagues keep her busy and entertained. In addition to the fact that she can be financial independent as long as she keeps her job.

Not to short-change my mother financially, I’ve mentioned that I would pay her according to “market rate” for being a care-giver to Beanie. However, the notion of being a SAHG, stay-at-home-Grandparent comes across more as a sacrifice than a blessing.

Grandparents, no longer want to look after their grandchildren anymore. Yet, at the same time, they bug us for grandchildren for them to play during their “off-days”.

So, who’s going to look after the children during normal working hours?

A maid? I am very uncomfortable with that idea. Especially an unsupervised maid alone at home with a wailing baby.

Myself? I cannot afford it. Being a SAHM, stay-at-home-mom is out of question. Unless I can somehow run a small business that can at least pay for the mortgage, and yet allows me rock the cradle at home.

A Nanny? A super rare commodity in this time and age, especially a good nanny who is willing to take care, love and discipline your child as her own, is really, really, really difficult to come by.

I guess Infantcare will be the last resort. Times like this, I really wonder why the hell do I bother to have any children at all.

I need MORE Baby Bonus

I'm just into my 11 weeks and I've already spent S$2500 on Beanie. Those weekly visits to the Gynae, medication of progesterone pills, in addition to the twice-weekly-injections and the blood tests and scans... ALL ADD UP!

And you wonder why Singapore's fertility rate is only 1.16?

As long as Beanie is healthy and growing well, as a parent-to-be, I don't really have a choice but to pay up and pray that Beanie will ultimately be a healthy baby. That's all I ask for.

But I am now fully aware of the cost of bringing up children in Singapore and Beanie is not even born yet?! Think I really gotta start saving like mad and forsake all types of luxery in life because I seriously do not think that I can afford raising a kid in my homeland.

So, I am really looking forward to the Budget on 18 Feb this year, as well as the National Rally. Hoping that more financial incentives can be given to young parents-to-be, ie: me.

For a start, how about upping the Baby Bonus to at least $5000 instead of the current $4000 for the 1st and 2nd child? And maybe throw in FULL deduction from medisave for gynae, delivery and hospitalisation charges, instead of the current partial.

Seriously, as new parents-to-be, we really need FULL FINANCIAL support from our beloved govt. Or else, at this rate, I think I can only afford to have just ONE Beanie.

The Tiger Daddy vs The Koala Mommy

So, many fellow bloggers, journalists and friends have made many comments about Amy Chua, the Tiger Mother and her parenting style.

I personally will not make any comments on her style since she is the mother of her children and she can do whatever she wants with them. Her methods might deem as extreme but I believe that it stems from the fact that she loves her children very much and wants the best for them.

I, myself is not a Tiger mommy. In fact, if there’s any animal to describe my parenting style, it will most probably be a Koala Bear. Yup, a tree hugger, take-it-easy, extremely laid-back to the point of almost lazy, Koala Bear.

I’ll most probably focus on teaching my kid(s) how to look as cute as possible like a koala, so that everyone else will be at their beck and call. This is an extremely important life skill that many parents have neglected. I’ll also bring them to parks and beaches to appreciate plants and open spaces, will also teach them how to climb trees since I, myself was a tree climbing expert in Primary School. We’ll just spend a lot of time hugging and cuddling each other, making each other laugh. We’ll learn music, dance, poetry, art & crafts because it will be fun. We’ll also do sports like tennis, golf, cycling, karting, wrestling or sailing because they are fun, fun fun.

I’ll urge and encourage them to put in their best effort in everything that they do, and hopefully they will want to excel because they take pride in themselves instead of using threats and canes. But of course, Koala Mommy will need to discipline the little koalas if they are naughty or misbehaved. Have u seen how a real Koala Mommy discipline her cubs? She will grunt and bellow like a cow. Imagine, a cute koala suddenly yelling at you like a cow… scary rite?

As for Hub, he is the classic Tiger Daddy. He’s very competitive, has super high and unrealistic expectations, and expects his cubs to ace every single academic subject and represent Singapore in some International Mathematics and Science competition. He and Amy Chua can be best friends.

End of the day, I just hope that the kids will eventually turn out to be a koala on the outside but a tiger in the inside! Best of both worlds!