Welcome 2011!

After all the eating and outings over Christmas, we decided we'd have a low key New Year's eve. With 2 young children in tow, a big party with loads of people around is just simply insane. So we decided it'd be just us 4 ushering in 2011.

We started our low key celebration over at a friend's, who have 2 sons that were fairly closely aged to our girls. They kindly took out their waddling pool for the kids and as it was a warm day, the kids were excited to get into the water and out of the heat. Poor Rachel could only watch from the side because it was not long before the water splash fights began. It was nevertheless short lived as Annabel's princessie girly side took over and we all had to play nice to avoid mega tear bombs.

After lunch and a cup of tea. We headed home for an afternoon snooze and dinner before heading out again for the 9pm kiddies fireworks. The streets were dotted with party goers coming out for a peep at the early sparkles. And the atmosphere was festive. There were heaps of families out too with children all dressed in their pjs like our girls. Some even brought poppers and had their pretend midnight shout outs!

The girls really enjoyed the fireworks. Even Rachel whom we reluctantly woke because we did not want her to miss out. The warm day had mellowed into a cool night. And the girls were fast asleep mid drive home, quickly concurring their over stimulated senses. It was just a perfect end to the day. A perfect end to the year.
Here's looking forward to yet another amazing one. Happy New Year to you all.

Our Christmas Week

Christmas Eve Morning: Went to watch a play for kids at the Sydney Opera House.

Than hang around the city before attending Christmas for kiddies service.
Had a cuppa while the girls have their afternoon snooze.

Christmas Day: Morning, the girls opening up their presies. And we had a festive lunch with friends and family.

Boxing Day: Drove up to the coast to spend the day with family who were holidaying at Magenta Shores.

A couple of days later: Soaking in the sun at Taronga Zoo.

It has been an awesome week.

Merry Chirstmas Everyone!

Remembering our Lord Jesus Christ.

Little G

Mel's Mum, Sister and her little toddler had been over visiting past couple of weeks. It was great catching up with them and to finally meet Gracie. Up till last week, our only coorespondence with her has been through Skype. I was so delighted that Annabel and Rachel took to her instantly. And the love was reciporated by little G too.

It's that time of the year...

I cannot believe it's almost the end of the year. This year past by way too quickly for me. I know I say this every year, how I always struggle to fit everything in. And how I am almost always chasing after lost time. But this year really did go by SO quickly. Too quickly.

Perhaps having 2 growing and demanding children speeds up the clock a little. And going back to work does make the weeks go by that much faster. But I also noticed that as I age. Time just seems to elude me at almost lightning speed.

Do you feel that way too? Or is it just me.

This time of the year, I like to reflect on the year gone by. The good and the bad. The lessons learnt. And remembering the ones I had forgotten. I like to reflect on the blessings. And remember to thank God for them. I tend to forget them too quickly.

I also try to do some baking. Just so my poor cookie cutters and rolling pin don't feel too neglected. (I know I know. Once a year is not nearly good enough. I am certain if they had legs, they would have ran away by now.) And last year I was too sleep deprived nursing a new born. So this year, I made up for it.

In one night. I had baked over 40 vanilla christmas cookies. A small army of gingerbread man. And used up all my black bananas on a yummy banana yogurt cake. I had turned baking manic.

So here I sit. Close to midnight. Wrapping up some christmas cookies for some friends. Feeling tired as hell. But quietly happy. For me, I couldn't think of a better way to slowly end the year with.

And here's my little helper.

Annabel's Body Guard

I need one because I'm so darn freaking cute.

Bejeweled blitz

It has been a while since I last posted. The mother and sister-in-law and her super duper cute toddler have been visiting. Thus we have been busy.

However the main reason for this void, very sadly, was not really that. It is our addiction to Bejeweled Blitz. Yes. I am hopelessly and shamelessly hooked.

It is awful. The soonest we got the kids to bed. Out comes our iPad. And that addictive "bling bling" begins.

This game is not new to us. In fact, this love affair started about 3 years ago. Before Annabel was born. And it has seen me through sleepless nights when I had to stay up to feed Annie. But it was mainly to pass time and some light entertainment.

But now. With the easy accessibility of the iPad. And the option to compete with friends over cyberspace. It has become irresistible! I simply cannot stay away. I think I need to join some AA club for finger tapping addicts or something.

Anyhoo. I will be posting pictures of what we had been up to soon. The "bling bling" awaits.

Couch art

We were doing our usual sing and dance routine of dinner rituals. Feeding the kids. Feeding ourselves. Washing the dishes. Catching up on each other's day.

The whole time through. The kids would hang around the living room playing with whatever toys left over from the day. Nothing unusual. But we did notice Annabel running busily through and fro from the kitchen to the living area.

Than we saw this on our couch.

Now. We have absolutely no artistic fibre in our bodies. Back at school. I strive to just pass in arts. My best art projects were 3 dice made from clay. And perhaps a pencil sketch of some office buildings.

So naturally I never did have any idea in helping the kids develop. Artistically.
Seeing this tonight made me realise I should do something. We may have a little artist on our hands.

My weekend past

We had a couple of friends visiting from Perth last weekend. It was great catching up with old mates. And fantastic to know that time does not dilute friendship.

Over the last 3 days, we visited the Hunter Valley, the Rock's market, ate seafood at Prymont fish market and comb the restaurants lined street of Darling Harbour. We did touristy things like taking pictures of the Opera House and watched a British lady street performer squeeze into a box.

The the kids love the new house guests too. They were so chatty and happy and well behaved. AND. They love hanging around them all the time.

We generously gave the willing pretend parents many "practice" hours. And spent most of that time carefully concealing how ecstatic we were that we had found two baby sitters for the weekend.

In my Inbox

Baby Porcupine

Cuteness Overload!

(Almost) kids free weekend!

Hubby's good mate and his girlfriend are visiting over the weekend. We have the friday off and will be dropping the kids off at mum's before heading down to Hunter Valley for the day. Dinner has been organised for Saturday, without the kids.

I simply cannot wait!!

Our new pad

It was such a whirlwind experience searching for a new place to live. We had loved our first home very much and have grown very attached to it. We had so many happy times there.

The many gatherings with family and friends. The meticulous assembly of furniture. Memories of Salem. Of bringing Annabel home from the hospital. The tears and laughter that made hubby and me a stronger unit.

All the wonderful memories condense into that little space. Our familiar surroundings and neighbours who have become friends.

But alas. We need more room for our growing family. A backyard so the kids could roam and discover the world of worms and spiders. We knew it was time to move on.

The search was exhausting and many a times, out right frustrating. Needless to say, we weren't the only ones looking. Which meant, the good ones are usually very quickly snapped out, or are bought at a much higher value.

But we finally found the one. And it was within our asking price. So it was a huge relief as I was than so heavily pregnant. The whole packing, moving and unpacking took us almost 3 months. Thankfully all we needed to do was to give the house a fresh coat of paint. So we managed to just settle in before Rachel arrived.

It has been just over a year now and we are loving our new pad. The extra room was definitely worth the while. And we love our backyard with the huge gum tree. They say pictures speak a thousand words. So I'd better share some I took a year ago.

Annabel Tang

Since I haven't blogged about Annabel for such a long time. And with my last post about Rachel. I thought it be fitting that I update you all with my no 1 as well. AKA Cheeky Monkey 1.

Annabel has grown into a bubbly outgoing toddler. She is just under 3 and has recently started kindy. She is quite a homely child and genuinely enjoys staying indoors if not encouraged to head out into the sun. And like her mummy and daddy, she enjoys her food. And to our delight, vegetables too. She speaks fluently and is capable of expressing herself quite clearly. And excels in parroting most sentences very well. That includes all the intonations complete with full on dramatic facial expressions. And she loves to sing.

Together with cheeky monkey 2, Annabel attends a weekly swim class with Daddy. In the beginning, it was perhaps not her most favourite thing to do. But in the 6 months she's been attending, she has grown fond of the pool and now manages a confident full head submission dip. We are such proud parents.

Asserting her independence is apparently her thing now. She wants to do everything herself . Wear her own clothes. Brush her own teeth. Put on her own shoes. Choose her own shoes.

It all sounds great except for one thing. Her love relationship with one 2 letter word. You know what it is. The dreaded "NO".

And it's no to everything too. Even things she wants. Sometimes it manages to slip out before a question is even finished! And it is driving us. Absolutely. Insane. But all in all, she is a great kid who loves to laugh. Who enjoys being a girly girl and is all softy in and out. And we love her very very much.

Rachel Tang

Let me introduce my second daughter. Rachel Tang. Aka - Cheeky Monkey 2.

She was born last November on the 7th and has just turned a year old. Rachel is a very cheerful baby and loves getting into mischiefs. Amongst her many attics, she enjoys throwing things around and watching you pick them up the most.

And she points. To everything. To foods she wants to eat. To new things she sees. To places she wants you to take her to. And she also grunts if her demands are not met.

She has not learnt how to walk yet, but is sprouting an ultra-cute bud shift crawl. And when annoyed, could belt out quite a scream in protest. She could arch her back really well and would often throw herself backwards just for the fun of it when carried by Daddy. That act is also reserved for when she throws a tantrum, which is not fun at all, for Daddy.

Rachel loves her elder sister Annabel and finds her amusing. Especially when Annie is throwing a hissy fit and is all upset and crying. Of course, this sentiment is not reciprocated by the elder sister and often sends her deeper into her little abbys. But most other cheery moments, they do enjoy each other's company and loves laughing at each other over nothing at length.

Like her elder sister, Rachel is a fairly easy going baby and has learnt the art of sleeping through the night since 9 weeks of age. She is growing well and has hit most of her major developmental milestones. She has recently moved on from semi-solids to solids and is extremely loving trying out all the different textures of food. She has yet to utter a real word but has mustered up a faint "ma ma" to which we are unsure whether its food or mummy.

And with that, I shall end (though quite abruptly) with pictures of my cheeky monkey. 2. Enjoy!

1 Day

1 Month

3 Month

6 Month

7 Month

8 Month

10 Month

1 Year

A fresh new look and long post. You have been warned.

If you had read my blog in the past, you would notice I had changed my blog template. I thought it was fitting seeing how it's a fresh start and all. I have not decided on whether I really like this look yet so it may go through a couple of changes before I finally settle on one.
Let me know what you think?

So, in my last post. I mentioned many wonderful things happened since I last blogged almost 2 years ago. I would like to share our highlights and one low-light of our lives, so be warned as I'll be ending with the latter. It deserves a special mention.

But let's start with the bright and cheery news. The most exciting being I have another baby girl! Rachel came into our lives a year ago and our little family of three is now an even four.

Unlike Annabel, my first who is passive, extremely cautious and determined. Rachel is loud, fearless and has quite a temper. Perhaps not the best choice of words to introduce her by. She is also very cheery, bubbly and full of life. And very quick on learning new tricks.

We had just celebrated her first birthday so I'll be posting some pictures we took soon. And also sharing more of her progress through her first year milestones. But for now, I would like to share more to bring you up to speed from where I last left off.

Besides having another baby, the next great news is moving into our new house. We had upgraded from our 2 bedroom apartment to a 3 bedroom house with a child friendly backyard. It also has a wood fireplace and is only 2o mins drive to the city. During non-peak hour traffic of course.

One great feature of our new suburb is the great restaurants and food shops. Amazing Korean food and a buzzing fresh food market just at our doorstep. Not the mention the selection of good shopping malls just 5 to 10 mins drive away. It has been a year since the move so we are fairly settled in. I will share some pictures soon.

I had been on maternity leave for over 9 months and have recently gone back to the work force only a month ago. This is my second time doing this returning to work after birth thing so the transition was a fairly smooth one. Especially since I am only working 4 days a week. It is nice having to get all dress up again. Call me nuts but after having worn 9 over months of mainly tees and jeans, I am ready to get all uncomfortable in business attire again.

Of course I had to go out and buy me some new stuff to update my sad lifeless wardrobe. But because I love talking about fashion and sharing my latest loot, I thought I'd safe that for another post.

We also managed to squeeze in a trip to Singapore whilst nursing a new baby and toilet training Annabel. It was to attend my cousin's wedding and grandmothers 92nd birthday. Needless to say, the trip was awesome and we, true to our fashion, ate ourselves silly. The shopping was amazing and I had a great time catching up with the family and friends.

The holiday spanned over 5 weeks, including stopovers to Perth, so again, I will leave the details to yet another post.

One last thing I'd like to share. And it is with a heavy heart as I write this because I am still recovering from the loss. Salem my dear cat and furry companion of 7 years has passed on. Even now nearly after more than 6 months since his little heart stop beating, the tears still flow. Sometimes uncontrollably. The slightest reminder of him. His bowl. His toys I found while vacuuming under the couch. His pictures. The spot under the tree where we said our goodbyes. It is all too painful sometimes to bear.

But I had loved my little guy. And have fought oh so hard to keep his life comfortable and normal since we found out the horrible news. Keeping him happy was my focus for so many months. And when it finally ended. Althought I knew it was coming. It left me devastested.

But I knew I did my best. And he left hopefully happy knowing he had been so loved and treasured.

The bible never spoke of life after death for animals. And I know it's silly to even think that way. But I sure hope I will see him again one day. Till I find out, I will be comforted knowing he will always be part of our family in our hearts.

Goodbye my dear friend. You will always be in our thoughts.

Am I really back??

It has been one year and eight months since I last blogged. Many a times I do catch myself entertaining the thought of blogging again. But time never quite got on my side and I often postponed the notion to blog again to a more “suitable” time. Of course that time never did come by and before you know it, a year and some months has passed by.

So here I sit in my office this afternoon, having a cup of tea and a little break. I decided to pop in my digital diary for a visit.

And it occurred to me how much I used to love jotting down all the amazing and wonderful events no matter now big or small of our lives. And scrolling through it page after page, I realised how great it was for me to look back and remind myself of the many blessings God has thrown my way. And how good I feel reading all our happy moments and watching Annabel grow and journeys we took, the good and the not so good.

So there leaves a few questions. Do I really want to get back into blogging after (let’s face it) a few weak attempts in the past? Can I really spare the time? Will anyone fancy reading yet another blog about a stranger’s life?

I don’t know.

But I do know how I feel after reading just 2 pages. And how much more grateful and thankful I am. I think that is good enough a reason for me to start blogging again. If not for anyone out there, but for us to look back in years to come, of the wonderful lives we had lived.

So please watch this space if you’d like to go on this little journey called life with me.

Sighing off for now. But hopefully for not too long.