A HAND-ME DOWN JACKET

Ryan is a lucky little boy. He gets tons of hand-me-downs from family & (Mummy's) friends. And in return, when Ryan's outgrows the many clothes or toys, we pay it forward by giving away these toys to other family & friends. Many a times we have given them to charitable organisations too.

Its my way of passing on & blessing others with the many blessings bestowed on us. These items may not be new but they are still in good working condition. Besides, kids outgrow clothes & toys within a blink of an eye that it'll be such a waste to buy brand new when you can get them as hand-me-downs.This also works out for us as we are trying very hard to be ultra-frugal these days. 

I am not a parent that scorns at second-hand goodies. Nor am I vaguely embarrassed to admit openly that my son wears a LOT of pre-worn clothes & plays with a huge variety of wonderful pre-loved toys. 

The fact that Ryan has so many hand-me-downs stuff ... shows that so many people around him ... love him, right? See .. I told you Ryan is one lucky kid!

Ok, so ... the hooded-jacket was given to Ryan by my friend, Lisa (used to be her kids'). Ryan looks cute when he raises the hood to his pretty little head. Here I got some nice pics of him at home.

SO PEACEFUL

Don't all kids look peaceful when they sleep?

The only time that my Ryan can be quiet & still .... is when he sleeps. He's so hyper-active & talkative that sometimes its hard to keep up with him. Try spending a day with this small boy & you'll understand why me & Hubby tire easily these days (of course it doesn't help that we are cranky old folks).

I love to see my son sleep (& rested). It means that I can now have some semblance of peace & quiet ... even if its for a while ...

I love you baby, sweet dreams!

ROLLING WITH TRANSFORMERS

Remember when Ryan used to be sooo obsessed with The Transformers. The obsession may have lessened considerably but he loves those robots still. We bought these Transformers mats at Toys R Us when they were on sale.

Yes ... we spoil our little Ryan but he loves us so much ... in return. 

I'M ON A ROLL NOW ...

... with updating my pics & blog.

These were taken in waaay-back February this year. As usual, whilst waiting for our ride at my sis' place, I can't help but whip my digicam out, to snap a few pics of my boy.

BREAKFAST WITH MY DADDY

Ryan just loves his egg prata. And since our Precious loves prata for brekkie, we as a family have to suffer eat prata too. I've taken many photos of father & son having their usual morning pratas, here are two of them.

They both look very happy here - looking at them in the photos, puts a smile on my face.

Big smiles all around!

Aren't we feeling happy today!

SAY CHEESE ...

Recently, I've cultivated a rather "bad habit" of snapping photos of my son (under our humble block) ... whilst waiting for Hubby to get the car from the carpark. He'll say to me "Mummy, I say cheese". Yep, my son is so prone to my trigger-happy ways that whenever he sense a photo opportunity for me, he will remind his Mummy to snap away by saying the secret-code words : "SAY CHEESE".

If you think about it ... it's quite funny ... haha, to me anyway!

Ok, here are some random photos I've taken recently.

Nothing significant about them ... just Ryan acting out some of his moves & poses, that's all (he's full of them, these days!).

He loves this blue T-Rex (dinosaur) T-shirt. 

Ryan is soooo much into Ben 10 these days. Here he is twirling his Omnitrix, pretending he's Ben ... haha!

OF SPIDERS, SNAKES & CREEPY CRAWLIES

Do all boys love creepy crawlies?! I was under the impression that they all do. Evidently, my Hubby said "No, not all boys love insects & other creepy crawlies. Don't know why Ryan likes them".

So when my boy recently displayed a keen interest in things that make my hair stand on ends (yucks! I can't stand insects), I was willing to overlook my sheer & utter disgust of all things insect ... just to humour my kid.

Isn't that what we call ... love? ... hehe!

For a while now, there has been a small black spider that lived in our toilet (haha ... yep you read that right!). She has since made herself very comfortable in our loo. How did I know that it was a female spider? Well, she has since reproduced 2 baby spiders. Ryan just adore his pet(-roam-free)-spiders. Every morning he will never fail to greet them "Good morning, Spider!" before he starts his morning shower for school. Yep, that's the innocence of a 3 year old. Lately, the Mummy spider seem to have gone AWOL. My boy has been asking me - "Where's Mummy spider?" Errm ... I just don't have the heart to tell him that she might be dead. I don't think spiders got a long life span. Now that she spawned offsprings, she can go to Spider Heaven peacefully. Amen!

I don't so much love spiders but I was brought up not to kill or harm them. So this mum taught her son the same. So now Ryan just loves spiders too ... well, only the small ones (he's still petrified of huge spiders like tarantulas). He's also into snakes, ladybugs, snails, butterflies, etc.

So whenever we come across a bookstore, I will never fail to drop in to see if they have affordable books on sale. I've always loved reading so I am not at all aghast at spending a small fortune to encourage my son to read & explore his current interests. If snakes & spiders are what he likes right now ... that's what I am willing to encourage him on.

Busy showing his Daddy the finer points in insect study ... whilst waiting for our breakfast prata to be ready.

Ryan : Daddy, come read my book with me!

ANOTHER MONTHLY BIRTH-DAY?

Yep! You read that right!

If you have been reading this blog, ahem ... rather diligently, you might have seen some "oh-so-lame" yet rather impor-tant cake-blowing sessions that we have for our family ... well, it's just for the naughty munchkin (haha! not for the adults).

Yep, just like most kids his age, my Ryan enjoys blowing birthday candles. Errm ... not so much eating the cake though. Ryan seems to dislike any sort of cake these days ... I really don't know why. So this time round, I had this "brilliant" idea to buy a sugar-glazed donut instead. Donuts (among other things) are his new favourites, especially ones topped with chocolate or chocolate sprinkles.

Let's not forget the lone candle!

Smile for the camera!

A single blow will do it!

Will we still do this monthly cake-blowing-thingy in the future? I think we will. As long as Ryan still loves it & enjoys blowing the cartoon-decorated-cake, we will still humour him, with a candle. I think its just a simple act to show to our kid ... that we love him! That every month we spent with him ... is worth celebrating! And although its rather lame for most people, we still do it! I admit that we don't do it every single month ... due to forgetfulness & busy-busy days, but when we decide to do it, we usually celebrate it with little fanfare ... just that lone candle & cake for my angel, Ryan.

How do you celebrate the joy ... your kid brings to you? It may not be that cake or donut or eclair (or presents?), but I am sure every one of us have our own way to commemorate the happiness our children bring to our lives. I know me & Hubby will still keep on doing it, for as long as we can.

JUST MORE PICS TO SHARE

Since I didn't know where to begin on my loooong overdue posts, I guess the simplest way is to start from the present & ... go back & forth randomly. I will try to update the very recent photos but will "return to the past" whenever I can.

Don't get a headache reading the posts, ya?

This particular new red OP T-Shirt (bought during their seasonal sale) had a logo of a "fierce" blue eagle. Ryan refers to it as the "eagle shirt". Haha, that's originality for you!

Ryan looks rather grown up (and serious, no?).

Ok, its time for a cheeky smile for Mummy!

Another cheeky smile before we go!

Oh ... he also wore this same colour-coordinated outfit for the small National Day party at his playgroup. Bright red shirt, light khaki pants ... yep! I definitely wasn't gonna buy a pair of white pants just for that 1 day (duh! didn't want to be wasteful!). Besides, it doesn't matter that the pants are white (or not), what matters most is that Ryan enjoyed himself in his first National Day Party, at school. That's good enough for me : ) !!!

LATEST RANDOM PIC

We had a chance to go the the Jurong Bird Park recently, so I just wanted to share a cute picture of my mischevious munchkin, on the Ben & Jerry's cow mascot at the Park entrance. Ryan thoroughly loved the outing & a bunch of thanks goes to my pal, Lisa for giving us free invites. We also went to the Singapore Zoo too! Haha, so you can tell that I've got a huge bunch of photos to upload soon. Until then peeps ...

MY TWO PRECIOUS BOYS !

The title says it all, ya!

They are both oh so precious to me ... but I'm sometimes ... their harshest critic, & at times ... push them the hardest.

Why do we do that?

Why are we the worst critics, of the ones we love most?

I guess its because we want only the best for them, nothing less! I am far more guilty of that, than most people would like to admit. I know I have to be strong ... & let them make their own mistakes, some-times. I know that its better to be loving & supportive than be destructive verbally but most times, its hard for me.

"Hold thy tongue ... & let love show you the way."

MY BOY

Yep, just some pictures of my boy - this time as a collage. I think I might do more of the pics in collages next time as I've already used up a ghastly 45% of my Blogger photo quota thus far. As I don't see myself stopping taking photos of my family anytime soon, I think I need to re-size or choose my endless photos wisely. I don't want to have the need to pay (extra internet storage space) for my blogging hobby - that just doesn't make sense to me!

Anyway, this collection of photos of my boy (taken in January 2010 - on the busy streets of Orchard Road, no less!) ... now adorns my PC. Yep, I get to see his cheeky smile ... everytime I boot-up the computer. What a joy!

P.S : Just click on the photo, to see the bigger version of it.

Doesn't he look cute? Yes, I'm extremely biased ... so sue me !!!

BUSY AS A BEE

Yep! That's been an understatement! We have been kept busy with the usual stuff & more. Since Ryan started playgroup this year & it was also his birthday, we've been kept busy since the first days of January. Is this how 2010 will be? Busy as can be?? One consolation is ... time does pass very fast when you are busy. Bad thing ...? You are always so damn tired & there's never enough time in the day .... to do the million other things on your Task List. Duh!

Ok, I've been a BAD blogger & I haven't been updating regularly. Not only haven't I finished updating last year's backlog, I have further created a new "monster" ... with the arrival of 2010, comes with it more photos & stories, yet untold. I promise I will get to them somehow ... some day. Haha ... when? I can't promise you ... but I will get them all done, really!

Meanwhile, I wanted to put up a adorable pic of my munchkin taken recently in downtown Orchard (on the first day of 2010). His hair was still long here ... errm .... does he look a little like a girl? Yes!! my boy has been mistaken for a girl ... many a times during his lifetime (especially when he grows out his hair). Does he look like a "pretty" girl to you? Oh well, whatever!

He looks kinda cute here (he was holding his newly bought orange Yo-yo) & was being rather co-operative ... so the photo turned out quite well (nice natural lighting too). My boy .... is 3 now! I can't believe it! I love him more each day ... & eventhough he's still a little mischievous rascal, I can't imagine my life without him!

This photo now adorns my PC, as the wallpaper. Everytime I switch on the computer, I see Ryan's smiling face. Awwww!!!!!

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?

I LOVE MY NEW GOGGLES

After our latest swim (in the previous loong post), Ryan seems enamoured by the latest "toy" ... his blue, shiny goggles. When he saw me taking them out, he insisted on modelling them (at home). Oh well, what's the harm?

Giving Mummy a happy smile, whilst modelling his favourite goggles.

Looking rather cool ... if I may say so myself ... haha!

Is that a scorn, I see?!

Or are you just trying on another one of your brooding, model-like pose?

TRANSFORMERS, TRANSFORMERS ... EVERYWHERE!

Yes ... my boy is obsessed with Transformers. Yep, when I say obsessed I really mean O-B-S-E-SS-ED! He can watch the 2 Transformers movies all day, his record was 3 full movies in 1 day! He plays with his Transformers figurines every single day, I tell you! Yes! he even kisses them sometimes ... just to show me (or whoever's available) ... that he looo-ves them plastic robots. Yes, other robotic machinery are called "row-bot" (robot) but Transformers (which are "special" robots), are "blessed" (by Ryan), with the name of - "Mem-mem".

By now, friends & family know what Ryan means when he says "Mem-mem" ... & that excites him even more, I guess. When people amuse him by acknowledging his interests, he gets very excited & proceeds to gush about his "love-affair" with them "Mem-mems". My sis even said once - "Isn't he a bit young for Transformers?". I (really) never thought so ... as Ryan liked them, almost immediately, at 2 + years old. I only realised my sis comments were true, when I started searching for some accessories for Ryan. I had wanted to buy a small haversack with a Transformers picture (of Bumble Bee) or logo for his nursery class next year ... but all I could find, were bags that were sized for a primary school-er. Way too big for my tiny boy! We searched high & low for the bag & nearly gave up. Finally, we settled on a ... errm .... "replica", in a local pasar malam ... & it cost us only a mere 6 bucks!

I used to be a big snob about buying fakes (still am, I guess). Things that were not original, were shunned big time by me. I guess that's why I over-spent BIG time, in my previous lifetime (yep, the lifetime before Ryan was conceived & born)! Now ... I'm not too sure. I still don't fancy fake stuff ... sorry, their quality is horrible & the workmanship is downright disgusting (most times). But these days, I'll rather get a look-alike than buy a fake good that tries to pass off as the original thing. Yep, Ryan has used shoes that looked like Crocs (but they are not fake Crocs, ya!), Winnie the Pooh face towels, Thomas the Train bathing towel, etc. Things that are subjected to a lot of wear & tear & won't be able to last that long. Don't wanna spend money on things that get tossed ... just after a few months wear. Well, that's just me .... these days!

One thing that I refuse to buy fake - his Transformers! Almost immediately after the 2nd movie, the fake Transformers popped up in several small shops. Of course, Ryan never fails to point them out to me ... hehe, I guess in a hope that I'll buy them for him? Nope! ... Never have, never will! If I had to spend a small fortune to buy a toy that's supposed to transform from a shiny yellow Corvette to a COOL robot alien, then I'll rather spend my money on the REAL ones. So there! Yes, they are rather expensive but we've been lucky that we did not spend a large amount of money on his Transformers figurines, as we had a bunch of (free) Takashimaya vouchers, that needed to get used ... so we purchased my son's obsession with them. Thank God!

These pics were taken in the cavernous Vivo City. The 1st four photos were taken in the huge Toys R' Us, one of Ryan's favourite store (but of course!). There has been an Optimus Prime at the entrance, for the longest time (since the 1st movie?) but as Ryan didn't fancy Optimus ... until recently, he never wants to get his picture taken with the Prime. Now its sooo different! He's come to love & admire the Autobots leader sooo much, that he sometimes picks the Prime over the lovable Bumble Bee. Haha! kids ... they love one thing now ... another, the next minute! Luckily, I took the pics with Optimus this time (way in October), as Toys R' Us recently changed the huge figurine with a Ben 10 one! (Yucks! never liked Ben 10!)

All hail the leader, Optimus Prime!

Isn't Optimus handsome, Mummy? Can we take him home? Please ... pretty please???

These were taken in the store. Sshhh! I'm sure photography is not allowed but I kinda secretly snapped these 2 photos, as I knew Ryan loved them.

Mummy, I'm a Transformer too! ... Yes???

Well, we had some time for Ryan's old favourite (hehe, old ... as in just a couple of months old) ... Thomas The Train.

A jeep ... with Dinosaurs (& an egg) on top.

Hhhm ... looking a bit tired, I see.

This photo of Ryan on a carousel, looks rather dark (just like the previous 2 pics too). I really don't know why? Sigh! must be my digicam acting up again!

Same ride ... but a much better photo, rite? My silly camera is playing tricks on me again!

A GREEN RIDE IN JB

Sometimes my parents (mostly just my Dad) join us, on our (at least, once a month) grocery trip into Johor Bahru. No, no ... not so much to buy groceries themselves (coz we can do that for them, easily) ... but mostly just for the simple outing instead. They are always welcome to join us ... as long as they don't mind the numb-ing of their bums ... whilst waiting to pass through (both) the checkpoints, hehe!

I took these, whilst my boy was on his (usual) rides in JB. My Dad tried to amuse his grandson, as Ryan was busy going round & round aimlessly. These rides are so much cheaper in Malaysia, so I try to indulge him whenever we are in JB, rather than back home.

He tends to (always) chose the same ride, at the same venue ... he's (always) never tempted to change his fav "vehicle" ... unless its already taken by another rider. Most times, he ends up choosing a scooter or bike rides, seldom cars or jeeps, etc. Hhhmm ... I do wonder why? Well, maybe its just Ryan's preference, that's all .. nothing more.

Is that Hubby's finger I see?

Grandpa ... amusing his grandkid.

My Dad ... trying to make Ryan come to him.

Ryan, making the most of his short ride ... by going further ... away.

IT'S BREAD TIME

We enjoy our simple cuppa (of tea, usually) every so often. When we get the chance to have a leisurely chat, over some toast(ed) bread ... we will indulge (ourselves), whenever we can.

These were taken at Ya Kun (our favourite roti place). Whilst waiting for our serve of roti, we let Ryan listen to his fav (over-played) song by Linkin Park (see here ... on why this song is constantly on the re-wind). I got some funny pics from my son, this time ... hehe!

My two (cheeky) boys ... looking cute!

More cheeky antics!

Look at Ryan's pose ... is that a cheeky look or what? He's coming out with some funny moves, these days. Gosh! I don't know where he learnt them from ...

Another funny pose! Can you see Hubby's handphone near the plate of bread? Can you guess what song, its playing?

Ok, this photo ain't pretty but ... I just had to include it. So unglam rite? Haha!

Another not so pretty photo. It looks like Ryan ... lost all his baby teeth.

Not a good look on him, ya?

Ahh! This one's better!

UP DOWN, UP DOWN ...

Have you ever seen the "Little Einsteins" from the Disney Playhouse Channel? If you have, you might have heard this phrase before ... by June (I think) when asking Rocket ... to move "Up down, up down" (in a sing-song tone).

As you can tell, Ryan is a rather big fan of the toon. He picked up these phrase & uses it every so often ... in his daily life. I managed to capture his actions, of mimicking those words in photos. If you look at the photos, & imagine saying - up ... down ... up ... down, whilst doing the said action, you can see the sequence in the pics. So (very) lame ... but nonetheless cute (at least for me) ... haha! Enjoy!

Looking contemplative or serious? Ermm ... I can't really tell.

Is it my imagination ... but does everyone look fatter ... lying down?

Ok ... here we go!

Ready, set ... go!

Up ...

Down ...

Up ...

(Oops! Another) Up ...

No more "down" Mummy! ... I'm done!

All smiles!

I'm giving Mummy, one of my brooding model-like pose!

One last shot, for Mummy!