Wandsworth Common & Abbeville Road

In my continuing quest to explore the Clapham district, I decided to explore 2 places that are frequently mentioned by mums here.

Wandsworth Common
Yet another common (aka park) and Wandsworth is just brimming with them! But I'm not complaining coz it's really good for both me and Danielle. Gives us new places to visit every time. This common took us a good 1/2 hr walk methinks?!

Our neighbour, Mark, says the Wandsworth borough (which Clapham South is situated in) is sometimes known as 'Nappy Valley' due to the huge family community that resides in the district. And it's true, coz it's not uncommon for me to share pavement space with another 3 or 4 mummies pushing their McClaren prams! Anyway, at Wandsworth Common, it (also) has a One O'clock Club, quite a huge playground and extensive grassland for children to run about and play. There's also a pond there, not unlike the one at Clapham Common (Southside). But I reckon the geese/ducks look happier at Clapham Common :)

I took the initiative this time to speak to a mother while I was there and as it turned out, she wasn't English but from Sydney, Australia! That made it easier for me to speak with her somehow. Her name's Beth (another chio bu like Silke!) and her daughter's Scarlett. Scarlett is coincidentally exactly one month younger than Danielle (her DOB is 20 Sept). Beth told me she found it hard to make friends in England coz she didn't find the English as inviting or friendly as Australians. I agreed whole-heartedly! I told her I found the people here generally more guarded and less warm. Anyway, we exchanged numbers as well so let's see whether we pick up from there. Err... I sometimes dunno what to do with the numbers I've gotten from these mums? I feel quite pai say to call? What to say ah? Stressful.

Abbeville Road
Danielle and I explored Abbeville Road yesterday. It's about 7 mins walk from our place. Mark was actually the one who encouraged me to check this place out, said there are a lot of nice cafes and quaint shops there. It's actually not a very long street but I did like what I saw there. There were some charming cafes (including a Starbucks), lifestyle shops, 2 bespoke boutiques, a florist and a couple of restaurants. Mark says the Italian Ristorante there is v good. Maybe we'll try it out one day? I had a peek at the menu and the prices looked okay. Worth considering if we want to treat ourselves to a special night out. :)

I went into a shop called Cook which does packaged meals-to-go. They have pre-packed meals for 1 pax, 2 pax or even a family. They were giving out samples of their freshly made Banoffi Pie so Danielle & I shared some. I've heard of the pie before but never eaten it so it was a good thing I walked into the shop! The pie was mouth-wateringly delish! A fantastic blend of toffee and banana (and hence its name). The consistency is somewhat similar to tiramisu I think. Anyway, Danielle and I enjoyed it lots, even tho' it was a small sample!

What's in the porridge pot?

Porridge- Danielle's staple meal here. Once in awhile, she'll have a sandwich or spaghetti bolognaise. Seems quite 'cham' hor, eating porridge and drinking plain water day after day. Of course there are variations to the ingredients lah. The porridge du jour is cooked with long beans (diced), mince meat, 1 egg, garlic and ginger. Papa says die-die must put garlic inside to build body resistance to illnesses.

The 'I did it!' girl and her other little phrases

Danielle's vocab has grown exponentially since she's been here. I am constantly amazed at what she picks up and what she says to me daily. Today it was 'big squid'. Heehee.

Her favourite phrases at present are:
'I did it!'
'Perfect'
'Too high/heavy/cold/hot'
'I don't think so!'
'Bubble mixture' (the kind for blowing bubbles)
'Oh my gosh!' (she learnt it off one of her books)
'Where d'it go?'
'All gone!'
'Can I have some?'

She sings alot too and loves to recite nursery rhymes. Her all-time-favs are 'I'm a Little Teapot' (with actions!), 'Polly Put the Kettle On', '2 Little Dickie Birds'. I must try to capture her reciting these on camera soon. And once I am able to figure out how to upload onto YouTube and onto this blogsite, can share them with all of yoos.

Here's Danielle blowing bubbles at Clapham Common today.


And my mum will be proud to know this - Danielle can fit ALL the bears onto this puzzle already!

No ink on my quill, no fight in my spirit

I didn't blog over the past few days coz I was really disappointed with myself. And very frankly, wanted to go into recluse. A frequent 'escapist' mechanism I use on myself.

The weekend that just passed was actually a long weekend in the UK. They call it the 'Bank Holiday weekend'. We were supposed to spend a lovely weekend together, and hopefully attend the annual Notting Hill Carribean Carnival.

But we didn't.

Instead, I was busy moping and feeling like shit. And poor Danielle and Dee got the brunt of my raging emotions.

What sparked off this emotional reaction? Very silly-ly (and I say this only on hindsight), it was a comment someone made abt me. Heard from a friend that a friend had considered Dee and myself 'tao'. Oh man, you will not believe my reaction after that. All hell broke loose, and dams overflowed??!!

I really don't know what came over me. Was it just THAT time of the month (and it was) or had something been brewing within me, rearing its ugly head whenever there was even the slightest provocation?

Anyway, as expected, once I spiralled, I went down. ALL.THE.WAY.

I felt all my insecurities resurface and culminate to this great ugly mesh of self-denigration/self-deprecation of the worst kind.

In essence, these were the thoughts that ran through my mind (no chronological order, I might add):

I was upset I have been reduced to a brain-less housewife.
I was upset that I am not working = not earning money.
I was upset that I may not be confident to find work again coz am now brainless.
I was upset that now not only brainless, but still cannot make it as stay-at-home mum.
I was upset I am not a good enuf mum.
I was upset I have such low self-esteem.
I was upset I give up so easily, have no fight in me.
I worry that becoz of the way I am, Danielle will have no fight in her too.
I was upset I am sooo easily affected by things and what people say.
I was upset I still cannot control my emotions.
I was upset that Dee doesn't think my food is SUPER (???)
I was upset he didn't thank me everyday for cooking for him.
I was upset I forgot God's goodness in the midst of my self-afflicted misery.
I was upset that all these prove I am a hypocritical Christian and thus not worthy to spread God's word.

And to think that just a few days back, I was glorifying God for His goodness towards my family! How easily I forget. How easily I dismiss. And how I have hurt God...

I read this on Geri's blog just today and was overcome with shame again:
'Sometimes in the midst of a bad day, it can be easy to forget how blessed we are... and it is easy to succumb to our worries'. (How rite you are, Geri!)

I am a worrywart. And I dun even know why I bother? I mean seriously, why can't I just whole-heartedly commit it to God? I know 'what folly' it is to not submit to God's plans and let Him lead.

For the past few days, I know God's been prompting me with the following verses in God's Minute.

On 30/8, it read:
We are all Architects of our own future! The thoughts we
have today dictate what our future holds for us tomorrow.
Therefore a person who has positive thoughts shall have positive
results, just as a person who has negative thoughts shall attract
negative results in their life.

Therefore if we start our day by counting all of our blessings,
and then try to have positive thoughts all day, our hearts will be
indeed merry! And as it is written, "A MERRY HEART MAKES
A CHEERFUL COUNTENANCE, BUT BY SORROW OF THE
HEART THE SPIRIT IS BROKEN." ( PROVERBS 15:13 )

And today 31/8:
FINALLY, BE STRONG IN THE LORD AND IN HIS MIGHTY
POWER. ( EPHESIANS 6:19 ) For God has said "DO NOT FEAR,
FOR I AM WITH YOU; DO NOT BE DISMAYED, FOR I AM YOUR
GOD. ( ISAIAH 40:10 )

Despite reading all these and receiving love and reassurance from Dee and friends, I still struggle. I struggle to commit, but even more so, I struggle to have FAITH.

However, I am mindful of what Clara said to me. God does not influence free will. He gives us choices and He lets us decide. But no matter what, if we call on Him, He will be there to protect and guide.

With this, I am somewhat comforted that even as I struggle, I am not alone. The Lord is holding out His hand to me. Waiting for me to latch on.

And I hope I do.

And then there was 1...

Received an email from Mel today, reliving our good ol' days. Days where 'The 3 Stooges' - Mel, JH and me, had late-nite coffee sessions at McCafe Westcoast, prata at Fong Seng, xiao long bao at Din Tai Fung (extra ginger pls!) and who can forget, chickie wings at IKEA. Although all our gatherings seem food-related, I think the meals were more like peripherals that complemented the enjoyment of each others' company. Sometimes, the meet-ups were long, sometimes short. But we always had fun listening to each other's grouses, giving JH the 3rd degree for not hving found a gf yet, rolling eyes at the 'darn-est' things Mel said...hahaha.

With the conveniences of modern technology today, I know it's not hard to keep in touch. But internet chats can simply NOT replicate the physical closeness of sitting next to your mate, putting a hand on his/her shoulder or glancing at them and sharing a smile. I sure do miss going out with you guys.

JH, you hold the fort in Singapore for now. One day (hopefully soon), we'll continue from where we left off.

One of the greatest inventions of all time!

Along with air-conditioners, the microwave, cellphones, the computer and most electronic items known to Man, here's a consumer 'must-have' (actually, only if you're a housewife living in carpeted housing lar).

Presenting(drumroll)...Glade's 'Shake n Vac' scented powder (elimates smells and keeps your house citrusy fresh! Do I sound like an ad yet?)

Was introduced to this by Mei Ling, so bought myself a bottle just to try out. Purchased it at an Indian (no surprises here) convenient store down Balham High St for 79p but realised later was 'ripped off' coz TESCO selling at 69p! Oh, woe to me! Sad is the day a housewife doesn't get the best bargain!! :P But the product is pretty good methinks, though scent doesn't last the whole week.

Monday was vacuuming day so here's a look at my 'trusty' Hoover (left here by the landlord). Seriously the world's oldest and bulkiest unit around! *rolleyes*

And he's back!

After 4 days and 3 nights without my man, he's finally back from his course in Birmingham. Woo hoo! And just in the nick of time as Ms Terrible 2s struck yet again! Had mummy almost tearing her hair out in angst!

Dee arrived home around 7ish pm but Danielle and I had just popped out to the shops (oh, am I sounding British here, pardon me!) to buy groceries for the coming week. And unfortunately for him, what met him later was a grumpy, frazzled wife, muttering some 'good words' under her breath. Danielle was literally over the moon at the sight of her half-naked (just out of the shower lah) papa. After putting the groceries away , I managed to regain my poised, housewifey composure (if there's even such a thing!) and finally gave the Mister a well-deserved welcome snog...Goodnite everyone!

Touched By the Hand of God...

As I read the entries to my own blog today, I was suddenly humbled. All the chapters of my life in the UK have been peppered with tiny blessings. Oftentimes, they were 'blink-and-you'd-miss-it' kinds. And I have, ashamedly, forgotten to thank the one power whom I owe everything to - God.

Just before we left, I shared with many of my family and friends, the fears and doubts within me. And many a time, I would be comforted by a word or an email from someone who would remind me that God would be with me. All I needed was to have faith the size of a mustard seed, or merely touch the tailends of His robe and all my insecurites would melt away. What folly to never 'Let God be God' and leave my life in His planning!

As I continue with life here, I hang on to this favourite verse of mine, taken from Jeremiah 29:11~13 :

11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

'She caught my eye...'

I was actually approached by a mum at the library reading session today. I had seen her on probably 2 other occasions and she walked over to say "hi" to me today. Naturally, I was very surprised as I didn't expect to make any friends anywhere. Her name is Silke Hoppe (pronounced as 'Silka' and last name 'Hopper' ) and she's German, an architect and has a very sweet, warm face (I noticed that the first time I saw her actually). Her baby is 9 month-old Nelson. Silke told me that she was very taken by Danielle who had 'caught her eye' by looking so 'gorgeous' and 'intelligent'. She then thought to herself that if the child was this articulate, the mother couldn't be all that bad. And get this - she told me she'd mustered her courage to speak with me! Gosh, I've never had an 'ang moh' tell me that before! This is definitely a first for me. Coz usually, I feel the Caucasians kinda hesitate to talk to me for fear that I may not be able to speak English? And here's a mum confessing that she'd had to pluck up her courage to approach me! Unbelievable! Anyway, had a nice chat with her for about 1/2 an hr and then exchanged numbers. She told me that perhaps we could arrange for a walk together in the future. Awfully nice of her. It really does 'pay' to have a daughter like Danielle! She even introduces friends to mummy! Hehehe...

I got my TESCO card today and already own a Boots Loyalty card and a Nectar card (from EDF, the Energy co in the UK) that's used at Sainsbury, Debenhams etc. Am on my way to being a full-fledged, loyalty point collecting housewife!

We went to Clapham Common Southside again and Danielle had a nice time 'terrorising' the poor ducks (or are they geese from the looks of it?). We spent abt 3/4 of an hr at the playground, then to TESCO to pick up some bread then home sweet home for mummy's pasta.














* That's librarian, Lili, in the photo on top. She's not as good a story-teller as Pat but she's funny in her own way. Mel, here's some evidence that even the librarians are Indians! They're everywhere! :P

I love my sunny island

Was going through Geri's blog and saw that she had put in some videos (via YouTube) of the NDP fireworks and some national day songs by our local artistes like Tanya Chua, Stephanie Sun and Kaira Gong (who dat???). Anyway, when I watched the MV by Tanya ('Where I Belong'), I literally teared? Gosh, am I that patriotic or do I just miss Singapore? There is no place like home I guess. Wherever I am, I will always be proud of being Singaporean. Sure, we ban chewing gum, we cane errant teenagers who vandalise, we still practise capital punishment and periodically, we have 'Be Courteous' campaigns. But I guess all these just make us the people we are - kiasu, rigid (for some), sheltered and 'aksi' (especially to Malaysians... hohoho). But we are also people who know how to have our own brand of humour (mrbrown, Phua Chu Kang etc), our own language (lah, leh,hor!) and our own kind of fun. I miss my Singapore.

Thanks Geri for putting them up on your blog. For a moment, I really felt closer to home. (If you can find 'Home' by Kit Chan, would be super). Thanks babe!

*Photo of fireworks taken by JH. Think it was last yr's though.

Am I getting creative or what? :P Did this 'aquarium' with Danielle today. I drew/coloured whilst she glued the pictures on. Had quite a bit of fun till she started making a mess with the glue. *Shakehead* I can't stand mess but how to avoid when you have a 2YO? Must 'tahan'. Tough, tough.

Went to the newly-renovated TESCO at about 4pm. Had to have a looksy at what we had to wait 10 days for. The 'new' TESCO has a delicatessen, more Asian goods (read: Indian) and a better stocked wine aisle (good for Dee?). Check out the price of MILO man?!!! Small tin some more! *Faint*

Went to Clapham Common (Southside) after TESCO. First time we were at the Southside and to think Clapham Common is the nearest to our house! I didn't know where the playground was till I met a mother (Julie, with daughter Carrie) at Clapham Common Northside. So off we went to explore today and I think it is by far, the prettiest playground amongst the others I've visited. The surrounding area is quite picturesque, I must say. Park benches, wide open spaces, people feeding pigeons, and a pond with ducks swimming happily inside it. At this playground, I also met 3 other Asian mummies! I know I sound like I'm looking out for Asians but it can seriously get quite 'lonely' being the only Asian in the playground all the time. So I think I will come to this park most often in the future! Danielle 'made friends' with 2 older boys today - Jamie (at the playground) and Jameld (at the pond). She really enjoyed the pond and running after Jameld, who was quite the 'expert' at ducks. He was there with his binos and all. He taught Danielle how to check the water's depth by using a twig. Cool stuff. It started getting chilly though. So we went home to have our nice, steaming hot porridge!

Hui, Ah Yee sure does miss you

Danielle's asleep now and I was reading a mag in the living room when I glanced up and happened to see a picture I have of Huihui on the alcove. Sigh, I really miss her. Especially the way she calls me 'Ah Yee, Ah Yee'. My sis told me recently over email that Huihui had said she 'wanted to go to the Zoo with Ah Yee' and that made me feel so sad. Even though 2 yrs is a short time, I will still be missing out on many of Huihui's milestones. I wonder whether she will even remember her 'Ah Yee' after these 2 yrs? I remember vividly when she first arrived in Singapore after being delivered in Sydney. I was working at Planet Marketing then and because we did jobs for CAAS, Rob (who was with me) and I were able to get my sis and Von from straight off their plane. Huihui was this tiny thing then, reddish and oh-so-quiet. It was love at first sight for me. Not only because she is my dearest sister's daughter, but she is and will always be, my first niece. I know I will ALWAYS love her like my own. And it is my wish that she will be close to Danielle. I sure do miss you Hui...

You've Got Mail?

Every day at ard 10ish, the postman will come by. And every day I wait to receive mail, any mail, from anyone.

Today I was fortunate to receive 1 mail - a wedding invite from my ex-Sony mate, Joanna. She's in NY now and after a whirlwind romance, was proposed to (with a 1 carat Tiffany's ring, no less!) by a Frenchman named Emmanuel. They seem happy so am real glad for her. The invite was v tastefully done, lots of khaki colours like camel brown and ivy green. C'est beau!

Anywayz, this is my TIMEOUT from Danielle now. She was being such a fusspot after lunch. Insisted on holding onto the wet wipe. And when I took it from her, started screaming on the floor! I would not stand for such behaviour of course and switched on a video for her, left her with a stern warning to sit down and started blogging to calm my nerves... sheesh.

Danielle's 2nd birthday!

20th August was Danielle's bday but poor girl didn't have a party, unlike if she were in Singapore. Instead, she had a fruit tart and mee sua for dinner. That, in essence, was all there was to the celebration. Well, better than nothing I guess? Dee was feeling all sorry for her becoz her cake (sorry, it was more like a smashed up tart!) wasn't huge like it was last year. He reassured Danielle he'd get her a humongous cake when we finally got back to Singapore. That set me thinking - Danielle's actually a very blessed little girl, big cake or not. I mean, at 2, she's already living in the UK, has travelled by plane to Australia and Bangkok and has gone on a cruise 3 times!

I remember when I was in Primary School, a boy classmate of mine, Rodney, told me his parents never once celebrated his bday and it was treated like any other day. I felt very sorry for him then and I feel sorry for any child out there who's never had a birthday or doesn't even know when he/she was born. Sadly, there are many of such children out there but many of us don't know just how blessed we truly are. I hope that Danielle will have many more happy birthdays like the one we had yesterday, regardless of size of cake. God knows she enjoyed herself simply by blowing out her 2 candles yesterday, oblivious to the fact that she had no presents from her parents nor other party guests to sing her the bday song.

God makes beautiful things

Doesn't everybody smile when they see a rainbow? I do. And when I see one, I am reminded of how great God is and how wonderful it is to be alive.

Yesterday (19 Aug), we went to visit Dee's JC friend, Mei Ling, who lives in Harpenden , Hertfordshire. It's a v quaint town an hour away from our house (door to door). I love it there coz there are many lovely little shops and people are generally friendlier as compared to those in London. The town is more populated by Caucasians unlike in London city where you see more black, Indians and Pakistanis. Mei Ling was back in SGP recently and she helped bring back some stuff for us, mainly chinese herbs and a tin of Danielle's milk. To return the favour, we bought her a delicious (yum!) chocolate cake and treated her to lunch. Lunch was at a place called Lily's Cafe, near Mei Ling's house. We'll be attending Mei Ling's wedding in Ireland next month (Sept 14). Her husband-to-be, Andrew, is a pilot and a sweetheart. We always enjoy ourselves when we're in Harpenden.

Transforming into Dad

I've always known I'm more similar to my dad as compared to Ian or Chichi but living in the UK further establishes that fact! My dad has this thing about wiping the cabinets after my mum has fried food. And I see myself doing that now, religiously wiping my cabinets and white goods in the kitchen after a day of frying. No good. I mean, it's a good habit I guess but it's also a bane! Now I cannot get by without picking up hair from the carpet or dusting stuff every few minutes! Arrrrgggh!!!

Shh... the mouse is sleeping

Unbelievable. We found a mouse in one of the kitchen cabinets today. Dead. Actually it was Danielle who found it since yesterday but I thought she was just exercising her imagination again when she turned to me and said ' shhh, mouse is sleeping' and gave a little giggle. I was busy cooking so took no notice of her 'discovery'. But today, when she said it to me again, I decided, what the heck, I'll just humour her and look into the cabinet. And what a shock I got. There, at the end of the cabinet (which we dun use, thank God!) was a little grey mouse carcass. I knew it was dead coz I poked it a little bit. Then I had to explain to danielle that it was not sleeping but dead. Soon, she was repeating to herself ' mouse dead, mouse dead'. She wanted to touch it even (cute little bugger it was) but that was a definite No-no from me!

We took a REALLY long walk today. Abt 3 hrs' long. Explored Tooting, which turned out to be a mini 'Little India'! Felt so out of place, being the only chinese mummy with toddler in tow. Went into one of the grocers and was pleasantly surprised (and a little relieved) to see 3 other Chinese people buying their groceries. Things there are a bit cheaper so I may take a bus down the next time to buy some fresh produce. Also found the budget outlet 'Primark' that Zubeyde was telling me about. Ok good, now I know where to get those nice white stockings that Danielle can wear during winter. Think will explore that area more another day. Take some photos too for Mel who can't believe that there are soooo many Indians in the UK! I swear it was saris and tandoori take-out galore there!

Been have quite a bit of probs with the comp. Need JH's expertise! Dee will prob drop him an email to ask for further advice. The internet surf time we have on this comp is getting shorter and shorter. Dammit.

Anyway, didn't post any msgs for 16 August but just wanna add that we ventured to Tooting Bec Common, which is abt a 15~20 min walk from our house. It's a charming park with a nice playground and another One O'clock club. May toggle going to this one and the Agnes Riley Gardens.

An achievement for danielle today too! She pooped and shee-sheed in the potty! Ok, baby steps in potty training. Not the easiest thing to do when I sometimes have to carry a screaming toddler to the bunny potty! But success nonetheless so am pleased.

Cooked 'claypot rice' today and happy to report that it was a success. It's D's 1 mth anniversary of starting work here in the UK! 1 mth already! Geez!

Danielle and the Balham Library

Went to the library again today but Danielle was very difficult and it was a struggle getting her out of the house. Once out though, it was a different story. The past 2 days have been a MAJOR battle to keep calm and patient. She's displaying traits of the Terrible 2s and absolutely INSISTS on her way else you'd hear no end to her screaming. *rolleyes*
There are always more kids at the 11am reading session on Tuesdays. The weather was holding out better too and there were moments of sunshine (hurrah!). Still, I have been dressing danielle in two layers of clothing, long warm pants and socks. Just in case.

D was quite stressed at work last night and today. His big boss, one of the partners, is quite a hard man to deal with. Have to pray that God lead him through this one.

Dinner was horrendous today. Hahaha. Attempted 'sweet & sour pork' but becoz I didn't fry the meat enough (trying to be healthy here), it wasn't as good. And I think the carrots were underdone too. Well, pratice makes perfect and I'll have 2 yrs here to practice my culinary skills. Let's hope I make it! kekeke

Tmr I plan to explore more of the area. Probably try Tooting Bec. and look for that childrens' store Zubaidah (the Turkish mum) was telling me about. Need to buy some children's stockings for danielle and maybe an extra pillow.

The Agnes Riley One O'clock Club

Made progress today and finally brought Danielle to the 'One O'clock' club although when we arrived, it was the tail end of the session. The reason why I haven't been able to bring Danielle for a proper session is coz she always takes her nap about 11ish or 12ish and wakes up about 2ishpm. The 'One O'clock' club near my place is abt 10¬15 min walk from our flat and is located in a little white hut at the Agnes Riley Gardens. And in accordance with its name, it begins at 1pm...

The club is filled with all kinds of toys, paints, art and craft for children aged naught till abt 5. I think it shd be quite fun coz I even saw dress up costumes. When I opened the gates to the club, Danielle literally charged for the nearest play thing she saw. She didn't really mix much and spent most of the time either observing the other kids or playing by herself. She still has 'anxiety attacks when she doesn't see me coz when I stepped away to get myself a chair and she didn't see me leave, she started bawling when she couldn't 'find' me. By the way, her fav word since yesterday is 'OK'. She answers a 'Yes' or 'No' question with an 'OK'. Sometimes cute, sometimes infuriating! Ok, back to her time at the club. She was 'harrassed' by a little boy! This 3 year old named Edward seemed to take a 'fancy' to Danielle and kept wanting to 'cuddle' (I quote him verbatim!) her. He hugged and kissed her at least 5 times in the 20 mins that she was at the club. Hahaha. Quite cute actually. Unfortunately, didn't catch it on camera in case his mummy didn't like him to be photographed. After the club session ended at 4pm, I brought her to the playgrd, also located at Agnes Riley Gardens. We played at the sand pit and the swings and Danielle picked up a nice white rock in the pit. I actually wanted to bring it home to start a 'treasure trove' of things for her. But I forgot to pick it up. Hai... never mind lah. We will go to the playground again next week. :)

Something from God's Minute

Didn't have internet connection for almost 2 weeks and was not able to look into my emails. When I finally got connected on 7th August, oh man, I felt liberated! Anyway, everyone's asleep already and I am going through more emails (I had 143 to begin with!). I chanced upon something in 'God's Minute', a Daily Ministry thingamy that I subscribe to. Something I read on one of them that I'd like to share:

'Now they say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour
to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then an entire life to
forget them. So take the time to keep in touch with your friends, you never know when you'll need each other.'

I thought this was so applicable to me especially when I'm so far away from so many of my dear friends. I sometimes wonder to myself who are the ones worth holding onto as well. But when I read such passages, it makes me think it doesn't harm me to be kind or give a smile to someone who may not return in kind, but as long as my gesture has made that someone feel special, I am content. Hope to continue to live by this mantra, though hard.

I sure miss all of you, my dearest gal pals.

Living life on a schedule

Today's... God, I dun even know what date it is! Life just goes on day by day. Anyway, it's a Thurs afternoon in the UK now and Danielle's hving her nap earlier today. I need her to be up by 130pm latest to get ready for a library reading session at Balham Library. That's abt 10~15 min walk from our flat.

Since moving here, and first time being a stay-at-home mum and all, have had to rely alot on Community Services. The Library is a great resource and through it, I found out alot about playschools, pre-schools, creches, day nurseries etc. In fact, I realised that there are quite a few community-based services I can make use of in the UK. I now bring Danielle for reading sessions on Tues and Thurs to Balham Library (as mentioned previously).

With Dee's encouragement, we also decided that the best way to go about organising my days with Danielle are to have a sort of time-table. So at any time of the day, there'll be something for her to do. That goes for me too. Currently, my 'rest times' are when Danielle has a nap or is watching her fav Hi 5 (kindly taped by my dad from Kids Central with no commercial breaks!). So any time any of you see me online, it's coz Danielle is busy doing something that frees up my time!

Came back from the library session at 4-ish pm. The reading session started at 2:15pm and actually ended at 3pm but I thought I'd walk around the area. Went to Boots (quite a good pharmacy here), bought a gingerbread man for Danielle from Gregg's that kept her quiet and well-behaved for a good length of time after, then walked back to Clapham South, stopped over at Clapham Common for Danielle to run around a bit then to TESCO for some grocery shopping. The TESCO at my place is going to undergo some minor renovation so will be closed for 10 days. As I shop there most often, thought I'd stock on some meats and other stuff for next week. Yep, very house-wifey eh?

At TESCO, Danielle began to fuss quite abit and started screaming at certain times. We had finished the gingerbread man by then so I had nothing to soothe her with, other than keep her occupied aisle after aisle whilst I picked up stuff along the way. At some point, her screaming really started to peeve me, so I ended up buying a bag of baby gummies to shush her. I had to literally open the bag first and pay for it later. Not proud of it, dun wanna do it too often but sometimes, you just need to do something to shush the child up for that moment.

And so, another day passes...

My maiden blog

Ok, so I've Finally done it. I'm officially a blogger. Welcome all who read my postings from henceforth...

Let us begin.

It's almost 11pm in the UK but in Singapore, most would still be sleeping. By the time someone gets online, I'd probably be in Zzz-land. It can be such a bane, this time difference.

For all my family and friends who are sleeping right now - Good night, sleep tight and I'll see you guys online soon...