Home

Ask me what I miss most about Singapore and I'll tell you - hand over heart, barring family and friends - it's the ability to come out of the shower, dripping wet, with absolutely no fear of catching a chill.

Honest to goodness.

I ain't loving the return of the goosebumpy chicken skin reaction that surfaces post shower.

Apart from that, it's good to be home. Here. Although, quite ironically, London isn't home, nor is this old Victorian conversion flat our very own pad. Yet, everything feels safe and familiar. Everything is just as it was. My plant is still stubbornly on strike, refusing to flower. It's all bendy windy, with stalks careening towards the kitchen window trying to catch some sun. Our laundry sits dry on the horserack. My towel is draped over the radiator. And I can still catch whiffs of our 'beddy scent' in our room.

It was, afterall, 12 short days. Even then, I did miss home and life here.

This trip to Singapore was something of a foretaste of life back on our sunny isle. A family life chockablock with social commitments and activities.

We were forever zipping somewhere, filling time with something, perpetually meeting with people. We scarcely left time for ourselves - moments where it was just us. The 3 of us. Of course there were pockets of time where we'd (individually, unfortunately.) spend time with Cheeks - Dee brought her swimming, I brought her almost everywhere with me and utilised transport time to catch up with her, talk to her.

But aside from such moments, well.

In case I sound like I'm griping, I'd like to qualify by saying I know we had a choice. We could've lain low but Hubs and I - with our proclivity for social activities - chose to meet with people close and dear to us. So we did.

And it felt as though we'd never left. Apart from the new buildings, new facades, new attractions, new T3 - the constant strive for progress that's expected of Singapore - nothing else felt new.

The kids squealed at the mere sight of each other, smiley faces abound, uncontrived conversation - our 12 days were filled with raucous, side-splitting laughter, tears of joy, sentimental moments, great catchups, overindulgence, joyous celebrations, eager pursuits of the baby trail.

Come July, this may well be the sort life we lead henceforth.

Yet, a little part of me wonders whether I'm prepared to embrace it all again.

We've quickly eased back to life here. Hubs has left for work, I resumed my daily routine with Cheeks, I packed her off to the nursery, I did the laundry and ironing, picked Cheeks up, we played, read stories, ate dinner, slept.

Life here, though markedly quieter, is wholly ours. Time is ours. And it's just us. Just the 3 of us.

With a mere 3 odd months to go - whilst I'm excited & eager to return to all whom I love and hold dear - a part of me is sad to let go of this life. My home, here.