escapade - Tioman, 19-21 Mar 2010

Posted on March 31, 2010

We decided to go to Tioman Island for our annual dive trip this year. We were supposed to go to Manado but Air Asia cancelled their flights to Manado so we made do with Tioman. After so many years of diving, never did we ever step foot on an island looking like this!

 

And it rained throughout the time we were there! You may ask what difference would it make if it rains anyways? Well, the sea was choppy and with the rain, it’d stir up the sea bed causing the visibility to be very poor. I thought I got it right. I checked the moon and all and it was supposed to be a good time to dive but I didn’t check the weather report (but I never had to check the whether report anyway during diving season). Anyway, instead of 6 dives, we managed to do 3 dives that weekend. It wasn’t the greatest but overall, the break was fun!

Ironically, the weather cleared up on the day we left the island. 

 Didn’t take any photos underwater since I forgot to borrow the underwater camera casing from my friend. Didn’t miss out much anyways. This dive trip certainly didn’t satisfy our dive cravings for the year. We are definitely going out there again!

Lil Miss Stressed-up Missy

Posted on March 26, 2010

27 Feb 2010 - Ashley doing a Marilyn Monroe number on one of the tv stands at a friend’s house.

SInce this year, we have enrolled Ashley in a Mandarin class at school which is on three times a week. Although I noticed that she has picked up several Mandarin words, phrases and songs, the lil missy seems to be stressed on days that she has Mandarin classes. Everyday, she’d ask me whether she has Mandarin classes the next day and the day after.

Ashley : I don’t like chinese. It’s too complicating

Mommy : Why? Is it because you don’t understand what the teacher is saying?

Ashley : She keeps asking me lots of questions

I assured her that if she didn’t know the answer that it was ok to say ‘I don’t know/understand’. I’m trying to make her learning experience as fun as possible.

So I spoke to her kindy Mandarin teacher and indeed, the teacher said that Ashley goes mum when the teacher asks them questions during serious learning time but when it’s learning through play, the teacher said that Ashley is less stressed and does very well.

Now that we’ve signed her up to attend a Chinese Primary school (which she will start in 2 year’s time), I wonder if this Lil Missy will be able to withstand the pressue she’s gonna get from the chinese school.

As MUCH as I detest the ways of the chinese education methodology (i.e. learning in fear, teacher’s having the cane handy etc), I’m going to try my best to instill in her that

- it’s ok to make mistakes

- it’s not ok for the teachers to humiliate her if she makes any mistakes in school

- it’s ok to speak out and fight for what she believe is right!

So to the Chinese school which Ashley is going to go to (if she gets accepted in it), watch your backs. I will be one of those nosey parents who WILL interfere if you interfere with the values I am instilling in her.

Sometimes I do wonder if we made the right choice in enrolling her in a Chinese school. *sigh*

it’s not fun if you don’t get to see your kids having fun

Posted on March 26, 2010

1 Mar 2010 - The kid having fun at the pool with Grandpa

When my parents are in town, everyone’s happy.

We are well taken care of in terms of food (mom cooks yummy dishes!).

The kids get to play with their grandparents for a change.

Ashley complained to me the other day that i didn’t allow her to swim in the pool as long as Grandpa. Tough. My response? “Am I grandpa? No. I am Mommy.”

Tough love.

One of the advantages of being a work-from-home mom for an MNC company is that I can work from anywhere as long as there is an internet connection and I am contactable by phone (and OF COURSE as long as my objectives are met, my assignments are completed on time). So one sunny afternoon, I didn’t want to miss seeing the kids having fun at the pool with their grandpa so I decided to work from the poolside. (Yes there was an internet connection).

Indeed, it’d not fun if you don’t get to see your kids having fun.

So my office furniture that afternoon were the poolside table and chair

Nice!

studying online

Posted on March 26, 2010

These days, with the wonder of Internet Technology, resources are unlimited! Everyone can have information at their finger tips. It’s also amazing that at this day and age, there is such a thing as an online university where you can obtain an online mba from. Western Governors University offers a list of programs  that you can choose from ranging from  Teaching Licensure to Business, IT and Health Programs. Who knows, when it’s time for the kids to further their studies at a university in the future, getting online degrees from an online university be a norm in 20 odd years’ time. We’ll see. At least my kids don’t have to travel so far and be away from us (Aww, am already having separation anxiety!)

the fAll

Posted on March 23, 2010

16 Feb 2010 - The kids under the glass coffee table. Kids….they find thrills in the slightess things. As the Kadazans would put it - tagas!

2 weeks ago, I fell badly! I fell down the freaking staircase in my house! I was working in my study room located on the 2nd floor and Aidan suddenly cried out as though he was in pain. So i rushed out of my studyroom and ran down the staircase. I slipped on a wet patch on the stairs and landed 6-7 stairs later on my left butt followed by my left elbow. The pain was sooooo $#%^  intense on my left butt and my left shoulder! My elbow was fine cause that’s like the hardest part of the body i suppose but my left shoulder suffered from the impact from the elbow.  Luckily the pain on my shoulder was gone after 4-5 days otherwise I would have to look around for joint pain remedies. Because my left butt landed on the edge of the staircase, that left me with a HUGEEEEEE blue-blacktill today!

Why was there a wet patch on the staircase? It was raining and the roof above the stairs was leaking!

Thank God I wasn’t preggers.

Thank God I didn’t land on my tail bone or spine.

Thank God it happened to me and not the kids!

girls just wanna have fu-un…

Posted on March 18, 2010

 

12 Feb 2010 - Girls just wanna have fu-un! Oh girls just wanna have fu-un!

Do the 2 girls in front of Ashley look familiar?

Yep! They are Zaria and Zara.

ZMM and I attended a mutual friend’s kid’s birthday party. When the kids met up, all they did that night was play! and while the kids played, the adults chatted. What a win-win situation don’t you think?

Kids in a confined area i.e. in a house - free to play to their hearts content.

The adults got to sit down, eat and  catch up and didn’t need to worry about kids geting lost.

No nappy bags or Bob revolution strollers needed to be lugged around.

Perfect! Everyone gets to have fun.

On the way back home, the kids had burnt all of their energy they had that day and fell asleep in their respective car seats.

stuck on you

Posted on March 16, 2010

 

1 Mar 2010 - Aidan and Grandpa - having fun at the pool. Looks like Grandpa has to resort to glucomannan perhaps? because he didn’t get a chance to swim in the pool. Aidan was stuck to him like a koala bear!

I mentioned before in one of my Facebook shoutouts that my night conference calls are always jinxed with Aidan crying for mommmmyyy! ..and it happened again last night. My conference call started at 11.00pm and lasted for 1.5 hours. In the middle of the call, Aidan woke  up, noticed that I wasn’t next to him and started crying out for mmommmmyyyy! Hubs couldn’t pacify him although he was lying down next to Aidan. After about 15 minutes of crying, I couldn’t stand it any longer. I went into the room and scooped him up into my arms. His cries immediately subsided and stopped within the minute. I had to sit him on my lap while I sat in front of my computer with my headset on - trying to focus on the conference call (luckily I wasn’t hosting the conference call). After a minute, I asked him whether he wanted to lie down to which he nodded his sleepy head and I placed him down on the mattress (I have a spare mattress in my study room for moments like these when the kids just want to me with me while I work). He slept like a baby after that - knowing that he was in the same room as me.

I admit I did feel abit inconvenienced at that moment.

Talk about bad timing.

But after taking a step back, I am glad that he still wants his mommy

I dread the day when he will push me away when I try to hug or kiss him in front of his schoolmates.

my china doll

Posted on March 16, 2010

12 Feb 2010 - Gong XI Fa Cai

I love this color on Ashley. I think it makes her glow.

This photo was taken early one morning before she went to school to celebrate CNY.

She woke up bubbly and cheery that morning and was all psyched up for the school CNY party that day.

I purposely pleated her hair that morning - which she protested at first but gave in after awhile.

She expected Lion Dances and lots of goodies -  which she did have that day.

Although I love dressing her up in cheongsams during CNY, I myself didn’t wear one. I loved to wear cheongsams - during my pre-kid days. Now, I gotta work extra hard to stay in shape (still trying very hard) so that I’d look presentable in one. Despite all the colonix reviews, I am determined to exercise more and hopefully it’d pay off real soon!

p/s I once commented on a friend’s baby girl that she looked like a cute lil china doll. It was a compliment but he took offense in it and didn’t quite like it and sounded his displeasure. Would you be offended if someone were to comment that your baby girl looked like a china doll?

green shopping

Posted on March 16, 2010

16 Feb 2010 - Aidan, looking annoyed because I asked him to look up to smile at the camera while he was concentrating on his cars.

I did mention earlier on sometime back that I am into online shopping.  I work from home and only go out during the weekends to get whatever that we need. Hence the idea of online shopping is so darn appealing to me! I have done my fair share of online shopping - and I still do! But now, there is even more justification to do online shopping because it’s now considered ‘green’ to do online shopping. By doing online shopping, you’re actually green shopping - doing your part to reduce your carbon footprint on this earth that we temprorarily live in. So it’s a good start in doing our part in going green for your future generations dontcha think?

Next is get eco-friendly products by green shopping.

Checkout my latest loot from my green shopping spree!

when is it enough?

Posted on March 16, 2010

We’ve recently joined a club which is a 5 min drive away from our home.  It has an Olympic-sized pool for the adults, a really fab pool area for kids and it also has indoor tennis courts, badminton courts, futsal courts, squash courts where you can either play squash or play ping pong in if you set up the ping pong tables in the squash courts.

The kids now have a choice to either go to the neighbourhood playground or to the club to swim in the evenings. No prizes for which place the kids have been favouring lately. The kids have been opting to swim at the club every single day for the past one week. Due to the frequent visits to the pool, Ashley has learnt how to swim on her own and she has finally enough  courage to jump into the big pool and swim! (with arm floaties but still, it’s a milestone for her. She used to be so afraid of going into the adults’ pool)

Aidan on the other hand still isn’t comfy being in the water. He’d be using his arm floaties and will insist on clinging to either Hubs or me. This is a 180 degree change from the first time we dipped him in the pool. Hopefully he’ll build up his confidence with time.

Meanwhile, scared or not, the kids will be in the pool until their fingers and toes go all wrinkly and I’d usually be pulling 2 cranky kids out of the pool when it’s time to go cause it’s never enough for them. When is it enough?

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