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Everyday is So Precious

2 Mar

As time ticks away until M1 leaves for college, everyday spent with her is so precious. Suddenly, there is still so much to do, see and eat. Things that we have always taken for granted suddenly has been elevated to become a priority. So we’ve been cramping in as much as we can.

This reminds me of my time when I was leaving for college, dinosaur years ago. Mom and Dad spent as much time as possible with me – taking me to do this, see that and eat just about everything.

Funny how life repeats itself when one becomes a parent and now understand what their parents did for them.

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Letting My Baby Go

27 Feb

It is inevitable. M1 turned 18 early this year and it is college-bound year. Hubby and I have decided for her to go overseas for a four-year course, letting her go early instead of doing a year or so locally. She leaves in three weeks.

In short, we have to learn to let our baby (and Humphrey) go off, on her own (but with Humphrey), to college as a freshman and learn to be independent and be an adult.

Sob, sniffle and bawl…

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What’s with the Hair?

29 Jan

When I was little, I had short hair. When I grew up, I still have short hair. My mother never made a fuss about my short hairstyle. Fast forward to me being a mother now with two girls.

And long hair!

Eeeks! Where did they get that inkling to want long hair? My mother has short hair, my mother-in-law has short hair and my hubby hardly has hair. Yet both M1 and M2 have abundance of hair! The ironic part is they chose to have it long yet they complain about how it takes forever to blow-dry after a wash; sometimes even questioning how come mine dries so fast. Gee, I wonder why.

I feel it’s cumbersome to have so much hair to wash and maintain especially for young people. So it’s a constant battle when it comes to grooming. I am always threatening to have 4 inches off their heads while they would negotiate for it to be only an inch or two off. Someone will always end up unhappy leaving the salon, I tell you.

Amazingly, last week when M2 made a trip to the saloon, she agreed to have 4 inches off but wished it was another inch or two cut off after coming home! Interesting.

Maybe she has come to her senses to have shorter hair. Dare I hope she may want a short hairstyle like me? It remains to be seen. M1, however, still has her precious locks intact.

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A Birthday and A Blundstone

20 Jan

Monday was a good day. Two significant things happened; one being my parcel from Blundstone arrived from Tasmania, Australia when I least expected it. What can I say? Customer service at its best here. Thank you!

The second being my M1 turned 18 years old.

Gosh. Wasn’t it just yesterday I was seated at the sofa in mom and dad’s home watching Mulder and Sculley in action in yet another weekly X-Files TV show? Then I had my contractions. Uh-oh… It’s time.

The next thing I knew, I was at the hospital, ready to welcome my firstborn. Scared, excited, anxious, nervousness all rolled in. Hubby was like, “Don’t breathe that in!”

That, being the laughing gas. I was in too much pain then to curse him and passed the point for an epidural (I did, cursed him that is, the second time around when M2 came along). Then wham, bam, kabam, we became parents to a 3.04kg bundle of joy. Wow.

The last 18 years has been a roller coaster ride. The many emotions felt dealing with a very strong minded child… yet despite the challenges, we have been very blessed with a very smart child.

All grown up now and ready for college and the world. I can just feel another white hair readying itself to sprout out from my crown…

Okay enough, I am going bawl my eyes out.

The parcel arrived!

The parcel arrived!


So exciting!

So exciting!


Happy birthday to you!

Happy birthday to you!

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The Joy of Driving, Part 1

19 Jan

Towards the end of last year, M1 started driving lessons. Soon she will be able to drive and take us out for a spin. She was telling us, over dinner one night, her experience on the road. In short, she thought it was scary.

And this reminded me of my time when I first drove in town after returning from college. Unlike her situation on a crowded road, mine was in a parking lot in a very crowded area. It may have been dinosaur years ago but I still remember vividly, I was parked on a roadside downward slope and had to reverse out from the parking spot. In short, I thought this was scary.

I couldn’t coordinate the clutch and the accelerator well and was revving up a storm. MY little manual car died several times. Embarrassing! And when it didn’t die, it hardly moved and beads of sweat were building up on my forehead!

Thank goodness, that moment was short-lived (but felt like forever) and I survived to tell the tale. Well, I hope M1 would overcome her scary moments and enjoy driving well into the future. She sits for her driving exam today after clocking in enough hours in lessons.

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The Working Life

5 Jan

Soon after her exams were over, M1, together with her cousin, came to work for hubby and I at the office. Although workload has been quite easy, I managed to find things to keep them occupied.

The family insisted we assign them things to learn or keep them busy to understand the hardship of real work; even if it means cleaning the store room.

It’s been over a month already that the both of them worked for me and cleaned the store room they did. However the timing of their employment, being the year end, I have to plan their time well as a lot of projects are either completed or pushed to the new year. I shouldn’t allow the both of them to just twiddle their thumbs in the office, painting a false picture of the work environment. Nor can I have them surfing the internet, on YouTube or whatever, doing unproductive computer activity. Both are, after all, on the payroll by the hour.

So cleaning the store room was apt.
Store1
Store2

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There’s No Free Lunch But There’s Free Dinner!

19 Dec

It’s awkward when etched-in-stone philosophies imparted on our young ones are challenged. I was just talking (and writing) about no free lunches to M2 and guess what? I was proven wrong. It is almost quite embarrassing…

Yesterday, I went to the mall (number one) with M1 after work to buy something. We walked past the supermarket and M1 said she was hungry—as it was close to dinner time—thinking maybe we could enjoy some free food samples from the supermarket (having learnt from my post the day before). Unfortunately the timing did not allow us as we had to make our way to mall number two to purchase something else which mall number one did not have.

At mall number two, we walked into Tesco and tadaa, right in front of us, there were several booths with free food samples! Hungry and unabashed, we both tried the spaghetti bolognese, beef soup, curry chicken, chicken-flavored rice and tempura onions. We even had coffee!

What can I say? Burp…

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There’s No Free Lunch

18 Dec

Recently, I sent M2 to the mall for a friend’s birthday party and she was happily saying it was a free lunch. I was in one of my moods and decided to correct her about free things in this world.

“There’s no free lunch. Nothing’s free in this world,” I tried to instill the worldly reality into my child.

“Yes there is,” she countered.

Sometimes innocence can be a blessing.

“Really? Name me one thing” I challenged.

“Well… Oxygen is free.”

“Go on…” I probed.

“Free food samples in the supermarket!” She beamed at me.

I think it will be tough to instill the worldly reality into M2.

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Goodbye Forever

24 Nov

So I kept to my word and handed over to M2 the iPhone4, which amazingly has been still surviving well without battery issues after I upgraded to the iPhone5S. Hubby even upgraded the SIM card and had the old mobile number reactivated for use. Like a giddy child on Christmas morning, M2 began customizing my old iPhone4 to her liking.

The ‘Angie’s iPhone’ ID has been renamed to reflect her ownership. The layout of the pages have been moved around with most of my stuff either filed away or deleted. Slowly, my presence on the phone was reduced and her preference put in.

I guess this is really goodbye forever to my old iPhone4. No more relying on it for my Farm Heroes! Oh no. But thank goodness for the latest update of it on the iPad, the game is now more stable.

Old as it may be to me, the iPhone4 is a new phone for M2, a new beginning. Goodbye iPhone4, be good to M2 and serve your new owner well.

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Where Did Time Go?

31 Oct

It’s a significant milestone today not because it is Halloween but my firstborn, M1, has graduated from high school. Where did 17 years go?

It seemed like only yesterday when I was waddling like a penguin and pregnant with her, dizzily happy that our little family was about to grow. Wasn’t it just two days ago, when my heart cracked a little as we sent her off to kindergarten, teary-eyed and frightened yet putting up a brave face? And when M2 came along, the labor pain was all worth it.

Gosh, although living through 17 years may be a long time but looking back and reliving it is not. The journey has had its fair share of ups and downs, from dealing with a demanding baby to boisterous toddler and defiant teenager to matured young adult, you name it, we went through it.

To many more years to come, M1, I love you.

Okay I think I’m gonna bawl…

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