Monday Musings

Outside Good Cho's in Taipei

On traveling as a kid

‘It was either an overseas trip every year or owning a car,’ my mum recalled.

Being a single parent, she did not want our childhood experiences to be any less than normal kid’s. She’s completely outdone herself, with my brother and I having hit 10 countries before even taking our O level exams. Disneyland in America, Sea World in Australia, skiing in Korea . . . everything an average Singaporean kid could ask for and really so much more.

Thus I blame my itch to travel every year on her upbringing. Even in the year I had a severe bronchitis attack, I still went to a nearby Southeast Asian country for a short getaway.
Here are my thoughts on we ought to travel with children (though it can such a pain) –

Saturdays

photo source

Blazers: Do or don't?

Having totally overslept this morning, I scrambled to put an outfit together when J.G. suddenly suggested a brunch cafe for lunch rather than our usual coffee shop go-to. I'd half forgotten that I could no longer fit into any of my shorts, neither could I squeeze into my skinny Levis, which is a nightmare story for another post.

Either way, I pulled a simple cotton t-shirt dress over my head and rolled my eyes at how shabby I looked in comparison with his work outfit (yes, he works on weekends).

Whenever I feel the need to be a little more 'dressed up', my first instinct is always to grab a blazer. Here's why -

Gender Poll: let the voting begin!

make your vote here!

It's been a guessing game so far, humblet has been abashedly facing his/her back to us so the doctor can't tell if its a boy or a girl. But next week we're due for the detailed scan and so the gender WILL BE REVEALED. You can place your votes here.

Everyone around me seems pretty psyched up. Is it a boy? Should I buy pink clothes and ribbons? Can I teach your kid football? But I'm pretty indifferent about the whole thing, good friends insist I'm pretty indifferent about everything. . . Seriously, my kid went through a two hour operation and survived, do you really think I care whether its hair bands or machine guns?

Now that the gender reveal is impending, I guess I ought to think about it more earnestly. . .

Honestly, I'm rather afraid of having a daughter. This was the conclusion I gathered upon some brutal self-examination. What if my girl turns out to be just like me? I find that thought horrifying. I resisted school all the way till I was about six, screaming and clinging on to the school gate for my life, refusing to enter the compound. Another thing I vehemently rejected were girly clothing; dresses, skirts and the like. They were too delicate and impractical for a kid who loved football and climbing trees.

No, I don't think for a moment that having a boy would be easy, just possibly easier by comparison to my preschool self. If humblet were a boy, I could let him run naked till his third birthday. But I might have to deal with teenage angst, computer aging and other potentially frightening issues.

--

Whatever the case might be, I'm grateful for humblet. Quietly growing inside of me. We've decided that we will enjoy every stage in gratitude rather than spending time looking forward to future stages. We're thankful now for like flutter like movements, small weight gains and what looks like humblet giving us a fist bump during the most recent ultrasound.



Do you think humblet is a boy or a girl? Tell us! We'd love to hear your thoughts.

Grateful, 

Amy

Monday in Mourning, March 23rd, 2015

Lee Kuan Yew 1923 - 2015

'You're asking the wrong question',
He firmly told the young reporter.


'So?'
He challenged the new minister.


'When it is time, I will know.'
He concluded of his retirement.





Yesterday, it was as though a dark cloud was cast over our sunny island. The radio channels and TV stations eerily sent his voice booming through old telecasts, as though that were their way of prolonging his time with us.

The image chosen for the Wall Street Journal Tribute, a telling one. 

After a day has past, I find my thoughts gravitating towards my country, Singapore. And it is with her in mind, I fumble to pen down the words to this eulogy -

He's gone, you say, who's gone?

The one who's in my head. 

His voice I could not shake,

but now I stand forlorn.

He's gone, I say, he's gone!

The hero once that day,

Merdeka! He proclaimed,

on shoulders like a god.

He's gone, they mouth, its true.

The media wouldn't lie, 

coffee shop talk ignite,

a legend has withdrew.

Singapore's still here, you know?

I meekly raise my head...

The nation remains a state.

She's here, you know, not dead. 

--

Gratitude is the only political stance I am willing to take. I cannot condone the misdeeds, neither can unread some of the things he said, he did. But I find no justification in condemning either, as my nation remains academically successful, highly sought after, deeply respected (I cannot deny) in part, because of this man's insistence on the way things should be done. Presidents and statesmen recognise him as an national icon, the older generation fear him as a leader and I have much to be grateful for.

Fare thee well Sir, Singapore lives on.

Grateful,

Amy

Monday Musings

My face when I'm woken up on Monday

Monday blues are certainly a pain, every single week. . . Instagram reminds me of it. The office atmosphere stinks of it. The zombies I pass in the train and bus on the way to work tells me its MONDAY. But, do they really have to be so blue?

To be honest, Mondays were hard enough to handle already. After which, J.G. had to have his off day adjusted to Monday, resulting in greater inertia (already sloth-like) part. Here are some ways I beat those blues -

Baby Bumps

Decided to do a series on humblet since many have been asking about the progress, my state of health and the baby's well-being etc. It'll be just me answering some simple questions every other week/month, if you have any questions to suggest, feel free to drop a comment below!

humblet bump at week 18

humblet's growth:
He/she weighs about 172 grams at the moment and is about 15-18cm in length <<< much squirming on his/her part made this measurement impossible! Never mind. So think. . . small pomelo or large tomato.

likes / dislikes for food:
Nope not really. Been eating a lot of fruits though. I'm not fruit lover, but I guess it's a good change. 
Eggs though. . . I've been really put off by hard boiled egg yolk which I used to love. Oh well. 

pregnancy blues:
Emotionally I'm still chirpy, happy and overall optimistic. But health wise there are ups and downs. I haven't been throwing up as much lately, which is great. Time to put on weight! Down side is I get more dizzy spells, just waves of giddiness when I stand for too long or walk too much. 

mum to-do list:
Since I'm staying at my mum's, its been difficult to plan for the nursery. Time to get started on at least some preliminary designs and furniture. Also time to sort out my own wardrobe, since I can't wear more than half of it by now, and won't be needing them at until next year. 

the best part:
Humblet is relentless to say the least. His/her growth continues healthily despite some blood clots we found last week and me fainting the week before. We're so grateful and amazed at how active he/she is during each check-up. He/she's like hollering, 'I'm okay! I'm good! Don't worry.'


If you'd like to, you can read the First-trimester post here.

Grateful,

Amy

A new blog header!

In case you haven't noticed, humblet has been gifted with a brand new header. I don't know about you, but I like it very much. This other version you see here was also in the works, so I wanted to make sure it'd see the light of day as well!

The designer, Cherie, was also the one who did our wedding invites, which I might showcase in another blog post. Point being, we love her style. Whether its calligraphy or personal tastes in fashion or her silly sense of humour. I guess this is also a shout out to her for being simply amazing!

Thank you Cherie!

p.s. for those who are wondering about little humblet, we are doing a detailed scan soon which should tell us humblet's gender. And just for fun, we'll be doing a vote on facebook / instagram soon ^^

Saturdays

As seen on pinterest

Blogging in bed because its Saturday!

--

My Bed: a love story

I'm not a very fussy sleeper, perhaps ravaged by the years I've backpacked, I'm able to sleep almost anywhere. On a chair, under a table, on the mountain road in a bumpy van and sometimes. . .very extremely rarely, in the toilet. But ever since we've been married, I've been spoilt rotten by this posture-pedic, customised, two-meter in length, thirteen-inch mattress that J.G. ordered.

Never would I have admitted to that fact, until I got hospitalised and had to move back in with my mum for several weeks. At first, I blamed sleepless nights on the cramps and pains from the operation, but when those went away, I still found it really hard to sleep. That's when I knew something was really wrong with me. . .

Here are my scattered takes on beds and bedrooms, if you'd like to read -

The ugly truth about readers (and English Teachers)

This hilarious bookshelf by Tom Gauld

The short post would be -

The ugly truth about readers is that they are more like 'book-buyers' in reality. Sorry to disappoint.

But if you'd like, you can read on. . .

Monday Musings

More here

On dream jobs

I read about 10-15 resumes a day and many of them begin or end with this line - 'I hope you can seriously consider my application as this is my dream job'. How do you know it is going to be your dream job before you even start work?

Are you currently in a job you love or still looking for that dream job? This post is for you.

Saturdays

Frankie Sunglasses by Quay

Take cover!

In Singapore, apart from a few bouts of temperamental showers, we experience Summer all year round. If there were an area in my life I could deem as vaguely fashion-worthy, that would probably be shades. Tortoise shell, jade or matte black. Wayfarers, aviators and their counterparts. The moment I walk past an optical shop with an open display I must try a few, just for the fun of it.

Million Dollar Children

strange posed photographs in the 90s, check out the car behind us!

When the newspapers published an article that it took about a million dollars to raise a child in Singapore, I was completely appalled. Nope, not having children. But they also told me a wedding would cost about fifty thousand dollars, whilst ours cost about a quarter of that. 

I'm scared, really scared about this whole insane motherhood journey. Yet, one thing I know for sure - J.G. and I want to maintain the discipline of living off one suitcase worth of belongings and we'd probably bring up humblet in the same way. 

The importance of play time

wooden train set from Taiwan

We've probably seen or heard them in trains, at restaurants or on the streets. These tech-savvy kids with their smart phones, tablets etc. The moment the gadget is removed, all hell breaks loose and screams can be heard like a surround sound system. What ever happened to play?

Monday Musings

wild flowers from a village in Chiangrai

On Death

It was during  the Christmas season that year I was staying at this village. While walking to school one day, I came across these and told my host I'd gather them on the way home later. She gave me a very bewildered look and asked why I would do such a thing. Flowers, she explained, die the moment you pick them. If we left them as they were, everyone could enjoy them. The conversation came back to me this week after three deaths and two funerals, if you'd like to have a read...

Saturdays

photos suspended on our bedroom wall

HOUSE RULES

Most Saturday mornings are spent staring out the windows while J.G. sleeps... We have an unsaid agreement to sleep in on Saturdays, but I am plagued with this condition called - a morning person. Prior to being married, I would normally wake up at five in the morning, fully energised and ready to go. That being said I'm also usually in bed by nine, nine-thirty every night. Yes, its been alluded to me many times that I have the same sleep pattern as a five-year old. Point is, a new home meant new house rules, unspoken or not. Does your home have house rules? 

The First Trial-mester

'Dear, I think the second line is appearing. . . ' said J.G.

Here is the full account of the first trimester, because of the huge amount of content, I've put in sub-headings to aid you. For those who are not interested in the details, feel free to scroll down to read the triumphant ending~ For all who visited me or sent me your well wishes, thank you, my heart was strengthened by your love.