220TH POST!

Haha ... wasn't my intention, to write about the the 220th entry but it had a nice ring to it. Besides, this will be probably my last entry for 2009, so I just wanna end it on a nicer figure ... haha! Yes, I know ... lame excuse.

My other excuse ... is to put up pictures of my 2 boys. They have given me some cute poses lately, so I just wanted to put them up here ... to round up my year.

Although life has been extremely tough, both of them make .... everything worthwhile. We may have our rough patches, we may have our disagreements, we may have our arguments ... but I love them both, with all my heart & soul. I don't know where I'll be, without them .... in my life.

To my two darlings, I love you both ... more now, than ever! Please stay the course with me & I know .... we will make it through, on the other side!

(P.S : Yes ... I'm being nostalgic & mushy. So sue me! )

S IT NEW YEAR'S EVE ... ALREADY?

Oh my God! Where did 2009 go? Has it been a year already? It really went by lightning fast! I can recall nearly a year ago, (when) we just celebrated Ryan's 2nd birthday ... & soon we will be celebrating his 3rd! Oh my gosh! I can't believe that my boy is turning three (very) soon. Ok, so he's still small-sized ... but he's been making great steps forward (more on his developments in an another entry).
As I look back on 2009, I feel rather tired ... & a tinge of sadness. It has been a very trying year for me (& my family) but I know I have a whole lot to be thankful for. Eventhough life has been pretty damn tough for us this year, we are still together, alive & kicking! We made it through (barely) ... but I am glad we are still here, stronger than ever! Although 2010, is expected to be (yet) another tough year for us, with Hubby changing jobs & money being tight ... I pray, that we will make it through. I hope God is looking out for us ... protecting us. I hope He senses our (urgent) needs & I hope He will shower us with His Grace & Blessings. I pray for my family's happiness & health, I pray for enough funds to feed, clothe, & shelter us. I pray for a better life ahead ...
I realised although December is nearly over, I still have a lot of back-log to clear & even more pictures to upload. I haven't even blogged about my birthday nor our short trip to KL. I am quite bogged down with stuff these days. With what ... you might ask? Errm, with stuff ... haha!

With hubby at home these past few weeks (he's clearing his annual leave), I have been busy feeding both him & my boy. I tell you ... cooking & cleaning up, 3 times a day (plus the usual mundane daily chores) .... is no joke! Just when you finish one meal, you have to start preparing the next meal. Of course, you also have to figure out the next day's menu. Also the grocery shopping that goes with all the cooking ... errm, hey its no fun at all! I wonder how some people do it?! I really thought it would be a total breeze for me (as I have definitely been cooking more these days) to prepare & cook everyday but I have to admit .... its been damn tiring! Not to mention the endless menu that I have to think up ... so that the family won't get bored eating the same old thing everyday. Trying to think up the various ways to make (boring) chicken wings extremely delicious is extremely ... taxing, to say the least! Trying to keep things simple (easy) & under budget is also a given, knowing that we have to tighten our belts pretty soon.
Arrgh! I pray that God will keep me sane, during these trying times ....


If I don't get the chance to meet everyone ... just wanted to wish ... one & all - Happy New Year! May 2010 bring better times ahead - lots of luck, love & health. Stay safe & treasure your loved ones!

A POSE LIKE NO OTHER

Just wanted to get this photo up. Its so DAMN cute! ... I think it deserves a page of its own. Haha! My Ryan comes up with the weirdest of poses, this is only but one of many, he has created thus far.

Is this kid made for better things ... or what? With a personality like that, only the stars are impossible, ya?

WE'VE BEEN BUSY, BUSY .....

Aha! We've been kept busy the past two weeks. Apart from our usual routine, we've been busy :

1) Running endless errands/buying stuff
2) Hubby's been painting the house - its yellow!
3) Preparing for Ryan's birthday party in early January - party deco, goody bags, cake, menu, presents, etc.
4) Cleaning up & clearing up the home (lots of junk to clear!)
5) Registering & gearing up Ryan, for his playgroup (nope, its not nursery)
6) Celebrating my brother's & my birthday in December
7) A short trip up North - yes! we left the country!
8) A personal family crisis - still unresolved!

So, as you can see ... we've been pretty busy lately. As usual, I have a big bunch of photos to go with our hectic schedule, especially of Ryan's first official holiday overseas! I will try to update as much as I can ... but I am acutely aware that I will probably not be able to finish all my updates before the year is up.

As I am celebrating my birthday this week, I foresee more photos & memories created ... yes! more for me to update.

I leave you with a funny-face photo of my two lovable boys. They never fail to amuse me & brighten my cloudy days. How can you not love them? I know I do ... more then they know!

Hope everyone's enjoying their year end activities & holidays! Looking forward to 2010!!!

TO THE FISH FARM WE WENT

P.S : I blogged about this here, earlier. So here's the long version, folks! Yes ... its full of photos, haha!
We have been to Qian Hu a couple of times before but I managed to get many nice pics, this time round. This time we remembered to drop by earlier, so we didn't have to rush. This was a last minute outing as we had earlier wanted to go to Ikea (to survey something) but cancelled it at the last minute.

What a coincidence, Ryan was wearing his "Fish" shirt on that day! It was easy to decide on the place because it was nearby plus the entry & parking was free. The fish food however was not ... haha! Oh well, you can't have everything free ... I guess!

At the entrance, the kids started getting excited about seeing the fishes.
My niece, Ayra ... starts to pose for me. Ryan ... he's busy looking at the kois.

Wow! So many fishes.

The two cousins, enjoying the view. They were getting very excited ... just looking at the kois in the special pond.

A quick pose!

Aaah! Now we have some food for the fishes.

Hubby, giving the kids a helping hand. Aiyah! the man in green, stood too close to my niece ... spoilt my photo!

Ayra, smiling for me.

Photo's a bit blur (blame my digicam!) ... but they still look cute ya?

Ayra : Nah! Fish ... I give you some more food.

Ok, one last burst of food for them. Let's move on to the other stations.

Well, here we are at the turtle pond. Hey ... where are all the turtles? (I realised that I didn't take any photos of the green turtles. Oh well, there's always next time. By the way, their pond was dirty & a bit disgusting though .... )

Hubby : Take some for the turtles, Ryan.

Ryan : Let me count the pellets ... one, two, three ...

Ryan, taking a handful from Daddy (lucky its just fish food pellets & not money huh .... haha!)

Hubby ... looking at something rather interesting?

Ryan's turn to look at something interesting, whilst Ayra keeps doing her thing.

Can you see Ryan's Fish T-shirt (from Osh Gosh - cheap, less than 10 bucks)? Its says "Genuine Fish" ... haha ... so funny & apt, rite?

By this time, we have bought 3 packs of fish food. I think a packet is a dollar (not cheap ok). I think they can easily make a "fortune" every weekend, if you see the crowds of kids there.

More please, Papa.

Hubby : This is how you throw the food!

Can you see in the foreground, a group of ladies sitting on the ground. Errrm, you won't catch me doing that! Besides I'm too busy snapping photos & I have to stand to get nice ones .... ok, excuses excuses. To tell you the truth, I find sitting on the floor in a public place too dirty for my comfort ... so there, sue me!

  Ayra, stays true to her peace sign ... whilst Ryan acts nonchalant (as usual).

Seems like Ayra was trying to get Ryan interested in the peace sign but my boy, ain't buying any of it! Can you see his bo-chap attitude? Complete with legs on the bench ... so ah beng rite?

Ayra still smiley ... but Ryan's getting really bored with all these photo-taking ... haha!

Ok one last pose kids! Ayra gives me a sweet pose & Ryan finally manages to smile ... aiyah, the ah beng pose is still there!

More feeding ... I think this is a new packet of food. Lucky fishes!

Look how tall my girl has grown!

Yes, I'm counting ... Papa!

Oops! I dropped some ... into the pond!

Yeah! I give the fishes some ...

I need more Papa ... I need more, can't you see!

Looking spacey, I see.

Them lucky fishes. Some are rather chubby ... & why not?

Hubby : My supply is running low, kids.

The two kids grabbing what few precious pellets are left.

Ayra, throwing some love to the kois. Doesn't she look pretty here?

Eh! I need more ....

Whilst the kids are busying themselves, Hubby was on the phone ....

Let's grab more, since he's not looking!

Ryan (must be) looking at his Daddy ... & giving a cheeky smile!

Ryan walking back for more fish food. Can you see in the foreground (the kid in orange), lying down on the ground, yep! he's catching the poor longkang fish ... commando style!

Well, its time to admire the tanks of fish.

Ayra giving the small (shorter) boy a lift.

Hi, Sucker Fish! Its just me, Ryan ... & Kakak Ayra!

Ryan : Oooooh! What's that Mummy?
Mummy : Its a sting-ray, darling.

Too cute to eat rite? Besides, its too expensive lah! Better as a pet.

Ok, look at these strange creatures ... at first I thought they were mutated, but then there's a whole tank-full of them. So I guess its a species? Don't know the name though. Is this God's work? Or the work of people ... who wanna make money-business from odd looking fishes? Beats me!

Another look at those strange looking fishes. They look like they have bent-out-of-shape bodies. No they weren't wriggling or contorting themselves, they were shaped that way! I was pretty amazed & kept looking at them.

A lone ranger?

See how much they cost each? Not cheap huh? I guess you have to pay ... for being weird & different!

Another sting-ray.

This giant fake arowana fish was atop the entrance of the air-conditioned room that the real expensive arowanas were in. Yep, that's the luxury you get to taste, if you are born a arowana ... you get to stay in a special room that's fully air-conditioned, in tropical-warm Singapore.

From another angle.

At the exit, I made the kids pose awhile (yes, I do that sometimes. I know ... its evil isn't it). Ayra's always game for a photo, whilst my son ... is not! Oh well!

Ayra gives me a sweet pose, as usual Ryan cannot be bothered to look at the camera (so what's new?).