On the last day of the year

2007 was, for me...

a time for old friends...

... and some new ones.

As 2007 draws to a close, I'd like to reflect on the year gone by - recollect the good times, trash all the rest.

I have ALOT to be thankful for - blessings I sometimes think I scarcely deserve. I thank God for His goodness and grace upon me, my family, my friends.

The advent of every new year always brings with it some measure of uncertainty. Questions unanswered, next steps unsure, unknown. But (I'm sure) we'll find our way as we go along...

I don't usually do New Year resolutions. But I am making an exception this year.

It didn't take me long to come up with this one, although I admit, being a better wife, better mother, better daughter popped into mind frequently.

My resolution for 2008 is simple.

I want to know Him more.

Because in knowing Him, everything else will fall into place.

Danielle, a new che-che, holding Zach's hand

Royal Threads

A Big 'Thank You' to Gonggong & Grandma for the fancy princess threads for the cheeky one. As you can tell, HRH's as pleased as punch. And looking absolutely regal et très très chic!

Thanks also to our family & friends for all the lovely and thoughtful Christmas gifts for Danielle - some sent via snail mail, some tumpang-ed through my MIL/Doreen. We're very grateful and touched by everyone's gesture. Cheeks was thrilled with EVERYTHING she received!

You may rise...

Love is a losing game

I am not out of love. Nor am I terribly jaded by it. Yet, I can think of so many reasons to love this song.

The haunting vocals of Amy Winehouse. That powerful, smokey soul-baring voice.

The torrent of feelings she outpours make pain & melancholy - that are so often associated with heartbreak - irrepressible.

Then, there are the lyrics.

The words are simple, yet reveal the (sad) truth about emotional complexities when Love is lost.

It is a good testament that a song need not be padded with florid words to bring out depth of feeling.

It's hard to escape the draw of Amy Winehouse while living in the UK. Stories and pictures regarding her are splashed all over the tabloids every other day.

But putting aside her personal life and its demons, this is one artiste definitely worth listening out for.


Love is a Losing Game

For you I was a flame
Love is a losing game
Five story fire as you came
Love is a losing game

One I wish I never played
Oh what a mess we made
And now the final frame
Love is a losing game

Played out by the band
Love is a losing hand
More than I could stand
Love is a losing hand

Self professed... profound
Till the chips were down
...know you're a gambling man
Love is a losing hand

Though I'm rather blind
Love is a fate resigned
Memories mar my mind
Love is a fate resigned

Over futile odds
And laughed at by the gods
And now the final frame
Love is a losing game

* I thought of putting up the music video but decided against it because I didn't want the moving images to distract from the song. It can hold its own. (But for those interested, see it here. Also listen to her cover of The Shirelles ' "Will you still love me tomorrow". Beautiful.)

Treats, por favor

'Vi hoy a esclavo hacer más de gran alcance que el emperador de Roma!'

And my obviously brilliant riposte:

Si, si, muy bien, gracias, lo hicimos, buonas noches, rapido! and every other friggin Spanish exclamation I picked up from 'Dora the Explorer'!

HA!

The husband is watching 'Gladiator' in español now. I'd like to refer to him in the '3rd person' from now on, if that's alright with you? It is? Oh, I knew you'd understand. Muchos gracias!

We live in strange times.

I, live in strange times, with, I might add, a very strange man.

The choice of Spanish for an English language movie eludes me. He says it's to help him sleep. I say conversing with me should do the trick.

...

And here is where I digress...

In a season where overabundance and overindulgence take precedence, our family has certainly been spoiled rotten with a plethora of treats.

Take for instance, Saturday.

FREE TREAT: We met Yumiko, Yuki, Mari & Kensei at Empire in Leicester Square for a free movie. Yumiko had secured free tickets (from the good people at Dolby. Husband's friends) to the screening of Dreamworks latest animation flick, Bee Movie, and had kindly invited Danielle and me along. This marked Danielle's first experience watching a movie at the cinema, and my 1st ever cinema visit in the UK!

The movie was hilarious! But, I'm going to leave it at that in case I blabber out spoilers.

Post movie, we went for bubble-tea as was Yuki's favourite drink eversince I introduced it to her months back. Mari and Kensei tried it for the very first time. Everyone was bubbly chewy smiley.

And very hyper after.

Yuki & Cheeky

Kensei slurping his Taro pearl milk tea

COMPANY's a TREAT: Hopped onto bus 29 towards Camden for tea at V's. She was leaving for Stockton that evening so was eager to pass her Mabes' & Zach's gifts so they could unwrap them at Christmas. We always enjoy V's company as she's so unpretentious and unwittingly funny. Danielle made herself right at home in V's room - helping herself to pens and whatnots for doodling, strumming Angela's (V's flatmate) guitar and coercing V to sing 'Baa Baa Black Sheep' with her. Repeatedly. And oh, she asked V to show her how to draw people with 'no clothes' after flipping through V's life sketchings. Which, I'm happy to report, V failed to comply.

doodlin'-a-doodlin'

And finally.

SWEET SEXY TREAT: After V's, we returned home to an errant but repentant Papa (who stayed home nursing a hangover brought about by the office christmas party). I wanted to make a fresh batch of Christmas cookies for Val's steamboat do on Sunday so whipped out my cookie cutters and began readying the dough. This time, Papa happily chipped in - probably hoping to absolve himself from his unacceptable drunken stupor which had me fraught with worry and barely 2hrs of sleep! Gaaah!He turned out to be quite the cookie decorator, creating many a 'fanciful' icing embellishment, like this blog-stopper:

There's no mistaking it - my man's bringing sexy back this Christmas. Oh yeah Santa baby yeah...

* realise this doesn't quite explain the excess we've been indulging ourselves in. I'll try to illustrate that in my next blog entry. Probably in español .

(en)Raptured by Richmond

Although it was rather misty & grey, I still think this a pretty shot of the River Thames running through the borough of Richmond.

Cheeks and I ventured to Richmond today to catch up with Cassandra and her baby Gabby. Although we had to endure 2 Line changes, the journey continued largely unfrazzled. Cheeks amused herself doodling princesses, kings with crowns heavily bedecked with jewels, tall pointy towers, and men with long, long, looong beards. There's been a recent obsession with fairytale folk, see.

As Cass walked us from the train station to her house, I took in the sights surreptitiously amidst conversation. Richmond High Street is awash with a hodge-podge of shops - independent speciality shops juxtaposed with mega chainstores, quaint cafes opposing dime-a-dozen coffeechains and fastfood outlets. A fantastic trawling ground, thought I, as we weaved in and out of major streets and minor alleys. Not unlike Northcote Road in Clapham Junction, only bigger.

Rory, Cass' almost 2YO, was away at nursery so Cheeks had full access to his toys. She explored the living room - taking time to acquaint herself with his musical Thomas the Engine, then sighting his masak masak toys, promptly emptied the lot and began playing chef. And once Gabby woke up from her nap, she asked eagerly if the wee babe could play with her.

It was heartwarming seeing her interact with 4mth old Gabby. She took a genuine interest in the sweetpea, stroking her hair and oh-so-puffy cheeks, talking to her in gentle hushed tones, even linking their fingers together the way I do with her when we're reading stories in bed. I think my daughter would like to be a che-che soon. So please God, hear our prayers...

After a comforting meal of spaghetti bolognese (a recipe by River Cottage ?), I took the opportunity to leaf through some of the MANY recipe books Cass has in collection - Jamie Oliver (practically the whole series!), Nigella Express, River Cottage etc. Spoilt for choice, I finally decided on Nigella's, simply because...well, I like her. She is rather pretty, isn't she?

Before we headed for home, Cass brought me to a tea place she likes to frequent called The Tea Box.

It was perfect.

From pretty hanging chandeliars to heavy, wooden antique furniture, the newly-opened cafe offered more than a welcome respite from the blistering cold. Its vast range of teas and irresistable array of home-made cakes made the experience unforgettable. I ordered a Vanilla Black tea which was smooth, sweet and smelled absolutely gorgeous. Each sip from the brew was so warm and comforting, I felt like I was all tucked up, nice and snug, in a woolly blanket. Cheeks nodded off to sleep on the way to the cafe leaving Cass and I to enjoy our cuppas and chat in peace.

As we parted ways, and Cheeks and I made our way slowly back to the station, I took one last lingering look at Richmond and promised myself that I'd be back. Soon.

With its romantic riverwalks, sprawling heath, secluded cafés, and pretty bespoke shops - it's hard not to fall in love with a place like Richmond.

And, another one because it's Christmas...

'Tis the season to be...Gruffa-local?

A mouse took a stroll through the deep dark wood...

Continuing my 'series' of festive postings - since it is 'the season to be jolly' - we Gruf-fa-la-la-la...la la la la....-ed!

Today Cheeks & I, together with Val & Luke, went to see a play/musical adaptation of Julia Donaldson's, The Gruffalo's Child, at London's West End.

Luke & Cheeks
Cheeks - demonstrating how 'strong' the
BIG BAD mouse is!

Me & Val
outside the teeny-weeny theatre

Tucked away rather inconspicuously between galleries and cafes along Great Newport St, the Arts Theatre - due to its small venue - has in recent years, been commonly used for childrens' theatre productions. I found it cozy, and sufficient for its purpose.

We were seated on the second row from the stage. Very up-close despite the discounted tickets! (thanks Val for scouring the internet for bargains!) But any closer and we'd have been pelted by the perspiration (and saliva? Eeeuw.) from the sweaty actors in their furry garb!

The musical lasted about an hour and it was vastly entertaining. Tall Stories (the theatre company), succeeded prodigiously in bringing the story to stage in the most delightful, funny, and rip-roaring way! We enjoyed ourselves tremendously! I recommend it to any family!

Because it's staged for children, the atmosphere was relaxed, at times interrupted with yell-outs by inquisitive and slightly alarmed kids (probably spooked by the sight of the big bad mouse! It wasn't scary. Really.).

The stage props and costumes were minimalistic (compared to big budgeted musicals), but they delivered the desired effect. I liked that the script was exceedingly engaging and witty (which I think ALL the adults appreciated), the songs were catchy, and there was audience involvement. All in all, fun for all the family.

a stop at the christmas carnival
@ Leicester Sq b4 settling our bellies

After the musical, Val and I had plans to have a spot of quintessential English tea. We had in mind Liberty, or F&M. But our plans were waylaid, with NO room for dissension, by our local palates.

While tootling our way out of Leicester Sq, we got to talking about a Malaysian-run eatery called C&R. We'd both heard 'rave reviews' that the local Asian food there was good. As we stood surveying the menu outside the joint, line after line of Laksa, Ipoh Hor Fun, Mee Goreng, Tahu Goreng jumped out at us, taunting us with promises of gastronomical pleasure. So, in an almost 180 degree turn of events, we swapped our English tea plans for a spot of good ol' Teh Tarik.

But it was well worth it. We shared a plate of Singapore-styled fried bee hoon, a bowl of Assam Penang Laksa, a glass of teh tarik each. And the kids had fishball soup. Shiok!

We were in the mood for local today, I guess. Because the aftermath of the chilli-laden afternoon left me incredulous over the draw of scones and clotted cream. In comparison, they sound utterly insipid and bland?

Sod English Tea (for today)!
Assam Penang Laksa is the dish du jour!

Luke & the kweh kweh he
badgered Mummy Val into buy for him.
Local boy!

Our First Noel (Biscuits)!

BEFORE

The Bold...
(conspicuously charred around the edges)

The Better...
(getting there, getting there)

...and The Beautiful
(my modesty knows no bounds?!)

AND AFTER

heh heh, these were done by Cheeks

Rockin' and Rollin' @ 3

Blustery winds moving in velocities of 90mph have been hurricaning their way through the UK. Check out the traditional Norwegian Christmas tree at Trafalgar Square. We might as well 'ave been in Italy coz a 'leaning tower' jingle-jangled its way to the heart of London, albeit decked in christmas lights and looking strangely green and fir-like.

In spite of the v disagreeable weather, we refused for it to dampen our spirits as we bustled our way to Val's house in North London for Luke's 3rd birthday party.

Yes, we've been attending a slew of them it seems. But you know what? Kiddy parties, they raaaawwk.

Perhaps it's all to do with being a parent now, I find myself positively ebullient seeing my daughter enjoy herself at party dos - playing with other kids, participating in party activities, eating waaay too much cake (ok, am not partically thrilled with this but... oh, what the hey) - simply, being a party trooper.

And of course, there's ALWAYS good food by the host parents (chicken rice, Mrs Lee's Sambal Goreng Java, with quail eggs! What a droolsome treat!), convivial company, a gorgeous 'Tammy Gordon' sachertorte- like cake, topped off with sinful Waitrose choc ice-cream, green&blacks strawberry cheesecake ice-cream(?) and... and... you get the raaawwk factor now, don't you?

Val, Alan, Luke - we had a blast! It was a really nice and cosy party. Thank you sooo much for including us.

Now, pictures!

Luke, the 3YO train&track dude

A touch of Snow

Tonight, we brought Cheeks for her first-ever musical - Raymond Briggs' 'The Snowman'. We've always wanted to take her but felt she wasn't old enough to appreciate or understand a performance.

That, was then.

Now 3 and always eager for new experiences, we decided it was time to bring her for one. But we kept our fingers crossed it wouldn't be money down the drain.

Staged at Peacock Theatre (near-ish Holborn stn), the playhouse was jam-packed with parents and kids. We'd gotten the cheapest tickets but thankfully the seats (still) offered us an unobstructed view of the stage. Cheeks was quivering with excitement waiting for the show to begin. I'd bought the cartoon version on DVD so that prepped her for the show. A good thing too, because she was able to follow the story, scene by scene. She was so thrilled to see the 'real' boy and Snowman, upclose and personal (well, not literally of course, but you know what I mean).

When the musical's theme song 'Walking in the Air' came on, everyone cheered riotously. It was pretty magical seeing the boy and his Snowman flit gracefully across the stage. I turned to the dozing Papa ('what, no dialog'? Zzzz... pooh, the B-grader!) and told him that having seen the cartoon version, I marvelled how the producers worked on props and scene changes with such limited space.

It meant alot to us, bringing our daughter for her first musical. I think her Papa and I found greater pleasure watching her enthralled, clapping to the music, cowering in her seat when evil Jack Frost appeared, than seeing the musical itself.

As the curtains fell and the crowds ambled out of the theatre, we walked hand-in-hand, humming the theme song, happy and blessed by the experience.

ice-cream during the interval

positively ecstatic, especially after Papa
bought her a Snowman memorabilia

After the show. A quick snap before
the curtains fell

thank you for bringing me, Papa...

Carnations are NOT only for Mummies

When I picked Cheeks up from nursery this afternoon, she eagerly thrust a tiny bunch of flowers infront of me (2 carnations + 1 daisy). Feeling rather smug to be the ONLY mother presented with flowers, I cooed:

M: Are these flowers for me?
D: (aghast) Noooo, they are for me!
M: (crest-fallen) How come? I thought they were for mummy!
D: They are not for you. I need them. To marry Sebestian!
D: I need to stick them in my hair for the wedding.

Yes, and I'll ready the dowry, while papa sets up the lie-detector machine (think Ben Stiller in 'Meet the Parents'). Tell Sebestian to be afraid, be very afraid...

Feeling Christmas

Frost has not yet settled in London. But it's cold and wet, and the Sun makes fleeting appearances during the day, if at all. Fallen leaves litter the pavements. The trees are stripped bare, their twiggy branches resembling old, shrivelled hands as temperatures continue to ebb.

It's hard to feel the warmth of Christmas.

Yet in the unlikeliest of places, I do.

Sitting at a table in Starbucks, waiting for my Gingerbread latte, I hear strains of Sinatra beckoning me to 'make the Yuletide gay'.

I survey the cafe - I see people taking slow slips from their grande-sized caffe-something, childrens' mouths rimmed with chocolate from yule logs, shelves stacked with bags of Christmas blend and seasonal gifts, the red hanging lamps that illuminate a warm, orange glow.

And as Dee advances towards me, bearing the ubiquitous red paper cup, I feel my lips curl into a smile.

In one quiet moment, I sit there watching him and Danielle, loving them.

And I let that warm fuzzy feeling that is Christmas take over...

A League of Our Own

I am trying VERY VERY hard to blog but am finding it difficult to multi-task. You see, I have a slice of my friend Roslyn's pandan cake sitting seductively on a plastic IKEA plate infront of my keyboard. It's squashed up from being in my bag but nevertheless delish. The cake is sooooo good I need all my digits to pinch out bite-sized portions for myself, just so I don't finish it too quickly. But there in lies my dilemma - I want to blog about today's wonderful adventures yet I can't type. Resort to using pursed-up lips to tap on keys? There's an idea...No wait, I can't. Need lips to be ajar as is only passageway to mouth, which, pandan cake must make its descend into. Ok, what about toes? Too challenging. Drats. Hang on, I'll just savour the light green morsels and get back to y'all....soonish.

Ok, have finished 1 of 2 slices of Ros' pandan cake. Darn, am tempted to have the other slice but promised Ros I'd share with Dee. But he doesn't know of cake. Yet. So maybe...? Oh crumbs. Am blogging thoughts. He will know of said cake. Must get rid of evidence somehow.

What?!!

Okok, enough facetious sproutings from me.

Perhaps we should divert our attentions to
THIS.

No prizes for guessing what was served at Ros' today. I imagined myself home, tucking in to my all-time fav local delight at some dingy Al-Amin joint in Bt Timah.

It was that surreal.

Oh I worship you, O Kitchen Goddess disguised as an accomplished SAHM with 2 kids! *katow katow katow*

There are so many nice things to say about today's get-together, it's ironic how I'm finding it difficult to put them down to words. But I'll try.

This morning, Cheeks and I took a South West train from Waterloo station to Surrey for a playdate with our Singaporean friends, Ros & her daughters Louisa and Lavigne. Besides us, Ros had also invited another Singaporean mum, Cassandra and her adorable 4mth old Gabrielle. Ros and Cassandra got to know each other through a thread Ros had created on a Motherhood forum, and they were meeting for the first time today.

Cassandra (or what we can see of her) & her
cherubic little pumpkin, Gabrielle!
I love her pillowy cheeks!

I'll let you read more about our time together here because Ros has put up such a lovely post.

We really enjoyed ourselves, Cheeks and I. Although it was (only) our 2nd meeting with Ros & family, there was a warm familiarity and I found myself completely at ease with them. Conversations were relaxed and ran smoothly, we chuckled over our children's antics, shared mothering woes and nerve-wrecking episodes. And I found myself in complete awe of the ladies - both mothers with 2 kids, surviving well in a foreign land with no family support. I wondered whether I would have been able to cope if I had had no. 2 here.

enjoying a fried rice lunch with Lavigne

Part of the visit included a trial lesson for Danielle at Lavigne's Music and Dance class. Although it was Cheeks' first experience, I was happy to see her uninhibited and game to try all the moves the teacher demonstrated. I hope to find something similar for her in our area - seeing how she enjoyed the session and all - but I haven't seen anything quite like it, really. And that teacher was brilliant. He really engaged both children and adults alike. I was impressed by how he managed to meld everything so seamlessly. The kids were exposed to all sorts of different sounds and instruments, taught to mimick movement and move to a beat, and sing catchy tunes.

After the entertaining lesson, the 4 of us (Cass had to tend to a rather unsettled Gabby, unfortunately) went to pick Louisa up from school, then headed back to Ros' for a quick cup of tea and pandan cake. Before long, we were getting our coats and on the train back to London. It's so true how time whizzes by when you're having fun!

Getting Louisa from school.
She must've been thrilled so many people
came to pick her up!

Louisa & Danielle watching 'The Sound of Music'
and snacking on yummy pandan cake

Now besides Cassandra, Ros has also introduced me to Val, who's in the UK with hubby Alan and very-soon-to-be 3YO, Luke. We first met Val & Luke at Lavigne's party and managed to catch up with them again some 2 weeks back. They ventured to our side of town for a 'exploratory' walkabout so Cheeks and I took them to some of our haunts - the pond where we feed the geese at the Common (sorry 1 nipped you, Val!), showed them our usual walking routes. We enjoyed a chat over a curry lunch at an Indian eatery nearby, and had a cuppa at Starbucks. They also stopped by our flat to shelter from the blustery winds, and warm up over a cup of tea. I feel blessed knowing another little family - better yet, a Singaporean one - and look forward to calling at Val's soon! (actually, I will! This Saturday, YAY!)

our day with Val and Luke,
beginning at the Common, feeding the bold & snappy geese!

Val reading Thomas to the kiddos

Some thoughts on Ros...

Her sincere desire to reach out to Singaporean mums here is truly - for lack of a better word - commendable. Being a SAHM herself, she understands how lonely it can sometimes get - how frustrating and lost a woman can feel being away from family and friends - so she takes it upon herself to look out for, and get to know other Singaporean mums living in the UK, then connect them.

Before I knew her, I didn't know of any other SAHM from Singapore. We joined SUKA but even that couldn't connect me to other Singaporean mums in the way Ros has. She has made, all of us who know her, part of a coterie - one that shows promise of meetup sessions, playdates for the kids, and chats with someone who knows exactly what you mean when you say you miss 'bar chor mee' . Even though we don't know each other all that well yet, just knowing there's someone from our home country who's in the same boat as us, fighting similar battles, experiencing the same joys and fears, is somewhat... comforting.

I am also in constant awe of Ros' boundless energy. Besides caring for her 2 daughters and hubby, she still finds time to blog, read blogs, do digital scrapbooking, and is adept at baking, cooking and gardening. She truly is a rare find.

People like Ros ought to receive awards for being the wonderful, generous people they are. But doing that would somewhat denigrate their efforts, and make it look like they're out for recognition and personal glory. Ros, you are so deserving of a stone-carved plague that expounds your many achievements as wife, mother, friend. But I have none to give you. Instead, I offer you my friendship and hope it blesses your life as much as yours has blessed mine.

Have a safe and fruitful trip back to SGP! See you when you get back. Steamboat!

+++++

Ohoh, and another thing! It's my gorgeous girl, Mabes' bday today. And Pekpek's too! Happy Birthday to you both! Muack muack muack!

The Beautiful and the beautiful

McHoratio recruits yet another defenseless spawn
for his crime-fighing pursuits!