RYAN'S CHU-CHUT

Last week, I managed to pack some of Ryan's old baby clothes to pass on to my Sis' friend. I gathered some stuff (mostly home clothes for the yet-to-arrive baby boy) & found 2 unopened pacifiers (or chu-chuts, that's what we called them at home). The pacifiers made me laugh now ... Ryan used to be so attached to them, that he could never fall asleep without it in his mouth. I was wondering how I could wean him off it, without creating World War 3 (at home). Surprisingly, it was relatively smooth sailing when I decided that the chu-chut should go MIA (missing-in-action). He created a small ruckus, cried a little but it was actually easier than I expected. The draining nightly feeds was much tougher to drop though. As he gave up the pacifiers rather easily, I thought (assumed) that the night feeds will be a breeze too. Errm ... it wasn't! .... but its still much better than I anticipated. Phew!

Whilst looking though some old photos, I discovered one of the last photos of Ryan "sucking" on his pacifier (whilst napping in the car), taken in December 2008. I could have sworn that he gave them up much earlier but the picture proves me (dead) wrong ... haha!

I was glad to give away them pacifiers. Its a stage that Ryan has long passed ... & giving it away is a sign that me boy is no longer a baby ... he's a toddler now! Well, just gotta make him give up his (baby) bottle for a real sippy-cup-thingy (its been an uphill battle so far). Well, wish me luck, ya!

YES ... I'M STILL ALIVE

Yep! Still alive & kicking ... just not in the mood to blog much. Have been taking pics too but its still in backlog land. Don't know why ... just seem gloomy these days. Is it because of the weather? Its been sunny one minute, cloudy the next. Thundery on some days, scorching on others. That's been me ... these couple of weeks. Just can't pin down whats wrong though ...

Our wedding anniversary is coming ... this weekend to be precise. Its been 12 years (yep! a dozen) since we've been married, though we've been together for much longer. Am I in a celebratory mood? Nope, not really! We've been together for so long ... I guess its just another year to notch up. I don't know ... when I was younger I thought being married for more than a decade seems great, an achievement even ... but the reality is ... marriage is a lot of hard work. Its more than 2 people being together ... its a lot of compromises, sacrifices, negotiations, heartaches, etc. Do we have any plans? Nope ... being on a budget, well what can you do? No special dinners, no special getaways, no special gifts ... I kinda got used to the life that we've lived these couple of years that we don't do anything grand on any special day. Its like any other day, I guess.

I've been thinking a lot about our future ... in the coming year of 2010. As we will be making major changes in our lives, I don't really know what to expect. Our routine family life will change & although I hope its for the better, there is a LOT of trepidation on my part. I don't know what to expect or whether we will make it through but I know that we made this decision as a family ... and we will have to stand strong & be brave ... in facing our new life together. I hope we made the right decisions ... coz there's no turning back now .... just to look and move forward. Whatever the future brings, we will face it head-on ... we will be strong, we will still stand tall & survive ... like we always do!

I FEEL RATHER "STUPID" ...

Yep! When compared to my son ... I feel a little stupid. I did not remember when I was young, being able to talk or yak like him at 2 and a half (nearly 3). Nor do I posses his memory & deftness at such a young age. Yes, I know ... all parents would like to think that their offspring are geniuses but even if Ryan does not grow up to be Singapore's next Einstein, he is DEFINITELY smarter than me (& his Daddy) ... I can vouch for that!

Of course, I dearly hope all these "smartness" will translate to book-smarts when he goes to school but only God knows! Ryan definitely has the smarts in the memory department & I am also pleased to report, he is also quick at picking up things, is extremely hands-on & very directional & "driving" savvy ... all of which he has inherited from his Papa! I'm glad ... coz I'm none of that ... & many many more.

I do hope he takes after me in the language department - in spelling, vocabulary & memorization. I also hope he picks up more than a couple of (third) foreign languages (French, Spanish, Japanese?). I hope he loves to read. I hope he does better academically ... than both his parents. I hope he does better in life ...

Here is the pic that inspired this ("stupid") post. I caught him placing the numbers (magnetic numbers we placed on the fridge, for him to play with - bought from Daiso) in this order, so I decided to take a pic of it. He was in between changes ... errm, that's why he was shirtless ... haha! Maybe its a fluke ... hell, who cares! All I knew was that, I was happy I managed to get it in print. Yes, though the numbers are not in the right order, its pretty good for a less than 3 year old, who's yet been to pre-school. Don't ya think?

There is hope yet ...

HARI RAYA CELEBRATIONS 2009

Well, it was an extremely tiring day ... as usual, but I hoped everyone in the family enjoyed themselves. As from the many pictures (that I have managed to take this year), you can see the happy family that we have. Though our family is far from perfect, we never fail to have a good time & we always revel in the closeness. Hope we can stay close, for many years to come!

By this time also, I was rather sick but I had to suck it in & forced myself to enjoy the day, as I don't wanna spoil the day for anyone, especially for my son, Ryan. I must have contracted the stomach flu from Ryan & though I'm extremely glad that my son had recovered (except for a lingering cough), I felt like a sick chicken. I wasn't really up for the celebrations but I knew ... the day had to go on. Oh well! I wasn't gonna die that day ... so might as well enjoy it, haha!

We were all in red this year (well variations of red, I guess). I started the day with shots of my munchkin, on the bed. He was raring to go! Though he does not really understand the significance of Hari Raya, he knew something was going on when I dressed him in the red shiny outfit. He kept smiling & even said "nice" ... but soon after he realised that the outfit made him perspire, he kept muttering "change Bumbee" - he wanted to get out of his baju kurung outfit & into his Bumble Bee T-shirt that was hanging nearby. I told him - no, no Bumbee today, tomorrow ok? He didn't look pleased at all! Well, what can you do ... I know most kids can't stand wearing the baju kurungs because its long sleeved & pants combo, together with the usually thick material made the outfit a "torture" to wear for most t-shirt & bermudas wearing teenagers. But its been a tradition to wear the bajus during Hari Raya & that's not about to change anytime soon.

I personally don't fancy wearing the baju but I wear it - once a year, just to celebrate the happy occasion of Hari Raya. Yep, I'm not your usual baju kurung clad Malay gal, who relishes wearing the traditional dress of the Malays. I'm more of the T-shirt & pants variety, if you may. Well, I recently found out that my Hubby actually likes to see me wearing the traditional baju kurung (??!) ... Errm ... who is this man & where did he come from ??! After close to 2 decades with him, I only found this out a few months ago. Hhmm ... must be a new development, I guess. Well, Hubby must be in "purgatory" then coz I only wear the baju kurung about once a year ... haha! Maybe I should wear it more often ... now! Well, we'll see ....

My boy smiling away!

Father & son (plus Starscream, in little one's hand)

Errm ... don't know why I took this pic so lop-sided.

Ah! This one's better!

Mother & son (yes! still with Starscream in tow)

Now at my younger sis place, waiting for the whole gang to arrive. Surprisingly, we were very early this year but it was intentional (as we were always the last to arrive the past 2 years).

They look so adorable together!

Ryan looking cute! Notice Hubby's feet in the foreground.

Hubby getting ready to catch the ball thrown by Ryan.

Here's Ryan, getting ready to throw the ball!

Papa ... there's something in my mouth!

Being cheeky as usual.

Playing with the digicam cover .. again!

See Ryan's hair ... blown by the fan ... or was it the wind?

Errmm ... Mama, I'm sooo bored! Can we go home now?

Papa ... let's play over there!

The gang finally arrived!

The kiddies hanging around.

Hubby ... standing tall!

My brother's family having a go at my mom's delicious cooking, while the chef herself (dearest mum) looks on with pride ... urging everyone to eat more, eat more!

My dad ... in the kitchen.

Ryan playing with his cousins, whilst Hubby looks out for them.

My boy, posing for me.

I'm here Mama!

Ryan, showing his cousin, Shauqi, his favourite - Starscream.

Ayra ... looks bored here. She has the straw plastic cover in her mouth.

Still enjoying the food.

A good pic of my two boys together.

My "hero" nephew, Shafiq ... sitting for his PSLE exams this year. I hope he does well in his exams. Hubby & me promised him a reward if he manages 4 A's ... yes yes I know ... its a lot to ask of any kid. But we can hope & dream, can't we ... as we all want our kids to do well in their studies. This is no exception!

My parents ... I don't know why mum looked so glum in most of this year's photos ... hhmmm, maybe she's just tired ... I hope thats all it was.

Everyone sitting around.

My brother & his lovely wife. My SIL is a hardworking, tireless mum who takes care of her 4 boys ... with lots of patience & love. Sometimes I wonder where she gets her strength & energy ... Me? I get tired taking care of just 1 kid!

Finally, a family potrait!

A close-up of the three of us!

My cuddly nephew Fuddin, sitting around.

Some of the boys in the family.

More boys ...

Fuddin, wrestling with the giant Barney.

Me & my mum (at least mum is smiling here).

Ooh! The two red lovers!

Me & my adorable niece, Ayra (Don't I look gigantic compared to her ... haha!)

My brother & family.

This was supposed to be a pic of only the adult ladies in the family. But ... as usual, my munchkin & my niece, Ayra ... had to have a go at the photo too ... oh well, why not?

Grandma with Ayra & Ryan.

Ayra with Ryan. They had a similar pose last year ... haha!

Ryan, trying to look dainty?

My parents, with their grandson, the huggable Fuddin.

Uncle Asni, has a photo op with his mum & nephew (whilst Grandpa is in the background).

Hubby got a photo of Ryan, giving me a hug ... awww!

Papa ... you have teeth!

Ryan, sitting on his Papa's lap. My uncle is in the background.

Walking to my aunt's place.

They look so cute together. Whenever we bring Ayra with us on our outings, a lot of strangers mistaken Ayra & Ryan as siblings. I guess I do see the similarities ... although they are only cousins.

Two best friends ... walking on Hari Raya!