Evernote from my boy

31.8.15 - Its 11.25pm now and all are in bed except me on my computer. I have just finished transferring my blogs from my handphone via Evernote. Thanks to my boy again for such a big favour.  He was watching me typing all over again the blogs in my computer and he taught me a way of doing it hassle free. He introduced me to Evernote. I have just transferred over 30 blogs swiftly a while ago.  I am grateful to him.

Earlier on, I forgotten how to retrieve the blogspot. They both helped to recall for me. I appreciate their help and honestly, this whole blogspot is a gift from them initially for me to pen down whatever I like. Now, it becomes a way for them to read my mind and thoughts too, anytime they want.

Though I am recording my life in black and white, I have realized that this blogspot is not as important as it seems. It will always be a reflection of my life and I should not dwell on the past.  I have to let go and move on so that I will have more stories to tell and pen them down.

To a meaningful life!

My new home soon

26.4.15 - it seems like ages since I last wrote on this blog.

Finally the day has come and my new house is ready for handover. I collected my keys on 23.4.15 last Thursday that is.

I remember after all the excitement over a period of 2 years wait, the day has finally came. TH and I had shared so many precious time together making plans, purchases and rushing to avoid the GST time line in April. Gosh! It was a hassle but we did our best and saved few hundreds in our bank account.

Well, on 23.4.15, we met Yus, a friendly Malay guy at the clubhouse for an official hand over. He did some explanation, got us signed some papers and off we went. V made our way down to our unit and I had the privilege to open the door to my new house for the first time. It was a swift but the excitement began to wear out as the day went by. We were both extremely exhausted. It felt like as if we have reached the finishing line in a long race.

KP and Joanne came over to visit our new house, they seemed more anxious and excited than us. They bought a townhouse and is expected to be ready in September this year. 

Works at SM 2015

29.7.15 - it's 11:30 am in SM new house and I am feeling grateful today. Grateful because God has given me blessing in abundance, while I am penning this, my man is busy running up and down monitoring the works. Today we are installing the glass awning for patio and courtyard. Though I don't enjoy the noises and the workers conquering my territory, I have to come with my man. He needs my support mentally, hehehe.

So far, he has done an outstanding job on realising my dream house. He is extremely engrossed and work hard in arranging the appointment, getting actual work done, monitoring the progress apart from having to do it alone most of the time. Though I am here with him, I am still sitting comfortably in the air conditioning living area, doing my paper work on design and surfing the net too.

As for the works done, I am pretty satisfied with my wardrobe. It's huge and nice. The polycarbonate awning at my backyard done by Ah Keong is nice looking too with the pendant lamp from the car porch at my old house. It has a little classical feel. But there are some leakage that are yet to be repaired.

Well, Verra Kitchen will start work tomorrow and soon everything will come in place.

Normally, TH and I will come to SM around 10-11am depending on the contractor schedule. If the work is done by 3pm, v will leave for Wesley together to fetch JW. Otherwise, TH stays behind and I go Wesley alone. Then, we head back to SM to pick up TH. If works are delayed further, three of us will wait for JS at SM. We pick him up at the Gombak station, less than 5 mins from here. Sometimes we will have early dinner outside before head home.

By the way, we are actually taking our own sweet time with our new house. It is still very empty here. It's 3 months since hand over, only 2 have moved in. Guess it's the journey that counts:)

A Sweet Dispute!

13.2.15 - today TH and I had an awful moment that turned out to be amusing. As I went upstairs to take my bath, he asked me to do him a favour. He asked to  throw down the toothpaste for him. As he walked away, I threw it down but it landed on the pile of boxes down below. Actually I wanted to throw it into one of the boxes but I missed and it landed somewhere in between the piles. So I told him so but he couldn't seem to find it. He started to complain what a lousy throw I made. So I got down and helped him to find. He was grumpy and kept complaining. It got into my nerves and I argued with him. Told him it was just finding a toothpaste among the pile of boxes, not needle in the sea, what was so difficult about it. He said I could have threw it anywhere on the floor, not among the piles. Told him I was not a good thrower, I just missed! Then, we tensed up and no more words spoken the whole morning.

Later, while I was bathing, I actually burst in laughter recalling it. True, I could have throw onto the floor and easy for him. Why was I so dumb. But I couldn't tolerate him making a fuss out of it as if it was so difficult to find. Anyhow I am thankful I can grow old with this man. 

1.3.14

Just came back from CW birthday party at her house. Can't sleep coz it's already past bedtime. It's 4am now. I am feeling blessed right now, thinking of my precious ones who are sound asleep. I love them very much. 

At CW house, we enjoyed karaoke and chit chatting. We talked about our plan to Europe holiday end of the year. Surprisingly, TH said he didn't feel the thrill of holidaying with friends anymore unlike younger days. He now prefers holidaying with the kids. Likewise, I feel the same.

JW kept asking us to come home early and she actually waited for us until 2:30am, then she texted us goodnight. She is adorable. JS also texted that he will wake dad up early tomorrow morning to fetch him to the stadium to train with his friend, Chang Yue ahead his school sports day. He's cool. I think the kids still don't like us to go party at night but I guess it is our only time to mix with our friends. We need some time off to spend with friends.

Actually I don't like socialising but sometimes we need to have friends in our lives.

Well, back to our plan to Europe. Cheri can only confirm in August for reason unknown and most likely she won't join us. Hmm, Joanne suggested that we go ahead and tonight Kau Kia and wife sounded like they like to join and another friend, Loon also sounded interested. Initially our party to Europe is 4 couples, HO, KP, Lai and us but now, there may be some changes. We met Lai girlfriend from China for the first time. She's a young girl in her twenties, way younger than Lai. Don't think they will last but I just hope Lai find happiness. He's a good guy.

A Letter to JS

Dear Julius,

1. Life will frustrate and disappoint you. Press on.

In life, you won’t always get what you want.

Your dad and I won’t buy all the toys and electronic devices you want. You might not get into the school you want. You might not get the job you want.

But that’s life.

Overcoming these challenges is what makes life meaningful. After all, nothing worth having or achieving ever comes easy. So press on, and you’ll emerge a stronger, braver person.

2. Looking successful is different from being successful.

We all want to be successful. But we often confuse looking successful with being successful:

- Looking successful is about achievement. Being successful is about contribution.

- Looking successful is about prestige. Being successful is about principles.

- Looking successful is about impressing others. Being successful is about adding value to others.

- Looking successful is about owning more. Being successful is about giving more.

- Looking successful is about avoiding failure. Being successful is about failing intelligently.

Don’t settle for looking successful, when being successful is what you actually want.

3. Invest in the relationships that matter most.

During your teenage years, you’ll probably think that spending time with your family is “uncool”. (I know I felt that way as a teenager!)

But remember that your dad and I are here for you. We love you unconditionally, and we treasure all the time we spend together as a family.

Throughout your life, invest in the relationships that matter most. Don’t ever become too busy that you neglect your relationships with your family and close friends.

The quality of your relationships determines the quality of your life, so prioritise these relationships.

4. Show honour to everyone you meet.

I use the word “honour” instead of “respect” because respect must be earned, but honour is an attitude of the heart.

In other words, not everyone will earn your respect, but everyone deserves to be shown honour.

Show honour to every person you meet, regardless of their age, gender, appearance, job title, social status, or educational qualifications. Be polite and considerate, whether or not you respect the person.

5. Make time to think, dream, and reflect.

As you take on more responsibilities, you’ll become busier. You’ll have assignments to do, projects to complete, errands to run, and other obligations to fulfil.

But make time to think, dream, and reflect.

Think about the path you’re on.

Think about where you want to go.

Think about what kind of contribution you want to make.

Think about the things you’re thankful for.

Think about the mistakes you’ve made.

Think about what you’ve learned through making those mistakes.

Create an inspiring vision for your life. Dare to fail. Live with a sense of adventure and enthusiasm. And always dream big.

6. Take care of your physical health.

When we’re young, we take our health for granted. But age will eventually catch up with us, so we must take care of our health.

It isn’t complicated.

Sleep eight hours a night. Avoid processed foods and sugary drinks. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Exercise at least three times a week.

Do these things and, as the research shows, you’ll think and learn better. You’ll also be happier and more productive.

7. Passion isn’t found or pursued. It’s cultivated.

When you reach adulthood, I’m sure you’ll want to have a career you’re passionate about.

Nobody wants to wake up every morning, dreading the thought of going to work. But somehow, many people end up like that.

To have a fulfilling career, you must understand this principle: You don’t find your passion or pursue it. You cultivate it.

The world is astonishingly complex, so it’s almost impossible to find what you’re passionate about. There are just way too many possibilities.

The alternative?

To cultivate passion by becoming excellent at something meaningful, which makes a difference in the lives of others.

So start exploring, start serving others, start impacting lives. Do this and you’ll cultivate a passion that will serve you well for the rest of your life.

8. It’s okay to be weird or different.

Throughout your life, you’ll face the pressure to fit in. Resist that pressure with every ounce of your willpower.

Fitting in is about being average. But what’s the average person like?

A friend of mine once said to me:

“The average person doesn’t get enough sleep, doesn’t exercise regularly, doesn’t eat healthily, doesn’t have a fulfilling career, doesn’t have many meaningful relationships, isn’t very compassionate or generous, and isn’t very happy. Are you sure you want to be average?”

If you’re not average, then – by definition – you’re weird.

And that’s okay.

In the entire world, there’s only one of you. Don’t waste your life trying to be someone you’re not.

9. Building your character is more important than building your résumé.

As you get older, people will give you plenty of advice on how to build your résumé:

- “Take up this leadership position.”

- “Do more community service.”

- “Enrol in this course.”

- “Work on this project.”

- “Do this internship.”

None of this is bad advice.

But keep in mind that résumé-building leads to temporary success, while character-building leads to permanent success. Who you are matters more than what you know, or what you can do.

So invest your time in things that will make you a person of greater courage, compassion, generosity, gratitude, patience, and perseverance.

This is an investment you’ll never regret.

10. Your habits determine your future success.

As Horace Mann once said, “Habit is a cable. We weave a thread of it every day, and at last we cannot break it.”

Your habits will impact your life more than your intelligence or abilities ever will.

Think about your goals. What habits are required to reach those goals? Have you already developed those habits? If not, what steps will you take in the coming days and weeks?

Start small and take action daily.

After all, great habits aren’t built in a day; they’re built day by day.

11. When you make a mistake, apologise.

Everybody makes mistakes. The question is: What will you do after you make a mistake?

Many people will push the blame, cook up excuses, or run away.

Few people will take responsibility for their actions, and even fewer will be humble enough to apologise.

Be one of those people. Dare to say, “It’s my fault. I made a mistake, and I’m sorry. How can I make amends?”

By doing this, you’ll earn the respect of others. More importantly, you’ll earn self-respect.

12. Be a man of your word.

Keep your promises and commitments, without exception. This applies to the small things too: being punctual, sticking to deadlines, doing the household chores.

It’s in the small things that you prove you can be trusted with bigger things. So don’t despise the mundane or the insignificant.

Every broken relationship in our personal and professional lives begins with a broken promise – someone who didn’t do what they said they’d do.

Don’t let that “someone” be you. Be a man of your word, and you’ll be trusted, respected, and admired.

13. Your attitude is your most valuable asset.

Your knowledge, abilities, talents, and personality are valuable assets. But your attitude is your most valuable one.

The good news is that your attitude is completely up to you. If you want to develop an excellent attitude, you can. It just takes time and effort.

To improve your attitude, think positive thoughts. Hang out with awesome people. Cultivate a spirit of gratitude. Read inspiring books. Watch less TV. Compliment others. Write thank-you notes.

And remember these wise words from John Maxwell: “Your attitude determines your altitude.”

14. The key to success is doing what other people aren’t willing to do.

This principle applies in every area of life. Most people aren’t willing to:

- Set specific goals and write them down

- Learn information that’s outside the syllabus

- Ask questions for fear of looking dumb

- Voluntarily attend educational workshops and seminars

- Put their mobile phone away when they’re trying to focus

- Delete the games on their mobile phone to reduce distractions

- Ask for forgiveness when they’ve wronged someone

Without a doubt, doing these things is hard.

But to achieve enduring success, you must be willing to do hard things. You must be willing to do the things that others aren’t willing to do.

15. Happiness isn’t a feeling. It’s a choice.

As the saying goes, the grass isn’t greener on the other side. The grass is greener where you water it.

How do you water the “grass” of your life, and find happiness in the process? The choice is yours.

My dearest son, you have your whole life ahead of you. May you choose to be happy. May you choose to pursue excellence. And, most of all, may you choose to lead a life of courage, contribution, and commitment.

Love always

Mom

JS Puppy Love

20.2.15 - I am on holiday to Hua Hin while penning this. I'm on a 45mins journey to a temple and have ample time to do some reflection.

My boy met his puppy love during his secondary school in Wesley. It was at his prom night, I was made aware of her existence. She is a sweet petite girl by the name of SY who has been his classmate for 4 years. After graduation, they too went to the same college in MCKL. I can see some changes in my boy in terms of maturity. It is in this year that my boy suddenly formed his own liking. He has always been a 'anything will do' alias mummy boy but not anymore. It is a good thing for him though. He knows how to take care of himself better. He takes initiative to dress up, clean up, goes for haircut which is so difficult those days. I believe it has to do with the puppy love and maturity as well. But this is also a hiccup for him at this stage of his life. God tested him with a sweet temptation and I was tested too as a mother on parenting.

Somehow he was heart broken when TH and I told him to abstain from getting into a relationship at this point in life.  He is just 17 and still young to take on a commitment like this. This is the time for him to shine in life, to find his goal, to make a mark in his academic life and enjoy his college life to the fullest. Furthermore he will go abroad to Sydney soon for further studies and cannot afford to start a relationship.

Yes, we had some minor arguments about it and eventually a good session of counselling and pillow talk before he finally understood our good intention. He is still young not to understand the consequences of it and I understand him. Love is blind and it is a beautiful experience. But it was a bad timing for him. Luckily he is strong enough to take on the hard decision and let it go.  I am so proud of him. Love my boy zillion times.

CNY Gathering with Secretary Friends 2014

6.2.14 - This CNY, Jodie suggested we meet up and last night 7 of us (Jodie, SL, GH, Adeline, Merchele, Charanjeet and me) had a sumptuous dinner at Dancing Fish in Bangsar. It was a delicious Indonesian cuisine that cost us $55 each. Well, all of us had a great time chit chatting over dinner. Wendy couldn't join us as yesterday was also 'yan yat' and she had to cook dinner for her family. It was everybody's birthday. I had a great birthday last night. I was not reluctant and lazy, in fact I look forward to meeting SL very much after so many years.  

Well, TH offered to drive me there and my friend, GH brought me home. I didn't even have to drive there, I felt pampered and it feels so good to be pampered by loved ones. I love my man.

Once I arrived, I bumped into Merchele. She was there earlier to meet up with Grace like me meeting up with SL. So, we parted briefly for our own agenda before meeting up with the rest. I met SL and it was a comfortable and pleasant one. She was a close friend of mine at Stamford and we shared many good moment together. She knew me well and most of my stories too. We spoke about our mutual friends, updated our lives and problems too. Well, She is now staying with her mom and auntie who is a weird old woman. She is a widow and they are kind to take her in. She wears clothes the other way round. She roams around travelling whole day alone most of the time. But she isn't harmful. By the way SL has ended her relationship with Alex, the Singaporean guy. After so many years together he still didn't want to commit himself, so she put a stop to it and she did it. Her dad passed away 2 years ago due to prostate cancer. It was when she wanted him badly to meet his dad in his hospital bed for the first time, probably the last too but he couldn't even meet this simple request. It was this final straw that snapped. She is still a manager at Hitachi after 17 years and has shifted office to UOA Bangsar. She is bored with her job and wish for some changes. She's still a happy go lucky gal and a tough one too. I only learnt from her that Cindy is actually her car pool mate who happen to respond to her advertisement. She isn't her friend and SL regretted at one time for having invited her to car pool as she found out that she isn't a nice girl. We talked about family, friends, guys like LCL, Goh BK and KC, etc.

Just to jot down the updates on my friends in case I forget and ask the same things again next year, hehehe. So, Adeline stays in Kota Damansara and has 2 kids, a boy and a girl aged 12 and 13 who are both studying at Chung Hwa. Michelle, I have already forgotten her details, oops! As for Charanjeet, she now works in Astro and she was the most talkative person last night. GH joined us much later about 7:30pm as she was held up the office. Luckily, she came as u depended on her transport home. So, we ended our session at about 10pm and our plan for next meeting at Adeline house where GH will make a demonstration with her ThermoMix. I really pity her actually. When we were in her car on our way home, she updated me with her lives. She is heavily in debts and she is splitting up with her husband. She sold her condo in Casa Mila and bought an apartment somewhere near Selayang High Court. Her intention is to move away from her husband. Her eldest son, Jackson is rebellious and now living away from her with her mother in law. She is working hard on her computer business and has less time for the Thermo Mix sale. Hmm, I pray that things will get better for her very soon.

Hua Hin Trip 2015

 21.2.15 - it's 8am local time on a calm Saturday on my way back from Hua Hin to Bangkok heading for the morning market at the railway.

It's also the 3rd day of CNY and my family and I are away on a holiday with parents in law, Christy, Yap, Vernie and Xinyi. There are a total of 25 people in our tour altogether.

It's hot in Thailand and walking around has not been too comfortable but still tolerable. Hua Hin is a newly developed city by the beach and has a number of tourist destinations. We visited the sheep farm, Santorini Park, king palace, Ancient City, floating market, factory outlet, night market and etc. For me, the night market stand out with impressive environment surrounded by arts and street performances. It is a huge flea market filled with interesting products and a vast variety of eateries in it. I enjoyed it the most. My boy bought a mini harmonica there and was ever since obsessed with it throughout. He looked up for the harmonica lessons in the websites and has been busy playing a tune or two. Though my gal complaint about the noises he made every where he goes, surprisingly it's music to my ears. He is a fast learner and he is truly adorable. My gal and I were busy making good buy while TH took care of mom. He is such a filial son, a loving husband and a good dad. I am so blessed with his presence in my life.

It's been quite some time since we last joined a tour for holiday. Never really like the morning calls and packed itinerary. Making free and easy trips with my loved ones has been a bliss so far. Anyway, this trip is still comfortable and I am thankful for it. Travelling with in law inspired me somehow. They reminded me that old is gold. Despite their old age, I see their strengths in terms of the strong will to work out their body and mind throughout the trip. Dad has his undying excitement every where he goes and mom is passionately  keeping up with him despite the struggle. I truly believe TH and I could be way behind them in this aspect. Alright, time to get down for toilet stop. Till then......

My gal Orientation Day 2014

1.1.2014 - It was JW orientation at Wesley yesterday. We reached school at 7:40am just in time. JW was very excited and happy that day. She wore her new uniform for the first time and she looked smart and neat with her two pony tail.  She was looking forward to join her brother in Wesley and she was also lucky to be assigned to 1W, the same class with her former classmate, Li Sze. Of course, they sat together in the class that day. We also had to be at the hall for briefing by the principal, Madam Chia. There are all together 6 classes with 35 students to a class and in all, there are a total of 210 student, an increase from previous years. I hope the standard of teaching will increase too with the numbers.

There were familiar faces on that day. We met Joanne whose daughter got into 1P, ah lai daughter got into 1K and another familiar face from FRIM whose daughter got into 1W, same class with JW.

By the way, my boy found out from the notice board in class that he has been moved up to Set 1 for his English and he was a little shock and worried too. Not me, I was proud of him and happy too that he made it finally. He was in Set 3 for the past 4 years. Madam Shirley did him a favour, hooray. Not forgetting, my gal did us proud too. She got into Set 1 for all three subjects and that is very cool. How did she do that, I wonder. Probably She got most of my genes, hehehe.

Well, today is new year day and my family started the day with a light brunch at Sri Gombak, had Yeong tau foo before we spent an hour at SM site. Then, we were off to CEO karaoke and had a blast till 7pm. It was indeed a lovely day and blissful too.

Now, everybody is in bed but I guess the kids are still counting sheep. They should be thinking about starting school tomorrow. If I am not wrong JW should be happy and excited where as JS should be a little nervous and excited as he will have his dear sister joining him at school from tomorrow onwards. Of course, there won't be any problems, in fact they will have company while taking the KTM home. They actually enjoy sharing a lot of things together.

Before JW get into bed just now, I gave her a little advice. Told her to be attentive in class all the time and that way, it will definitely help in her exam and by getting good results, she will definitely be granted her wishes to join her friends to outings and have fun. Told her to make sure she drink enough water for the day and also make sure she goes to toilet at least once. It is only normal and healthy for her to do so. Hope she understands the need to do so and not regret at old age.

This year my boy will be sitting for his SPM and it will be an interesting year for him. He is a capable boy and I have no worries. I only hope he will not be too stressed out by the exam. Time flies and in no time, he will reach the crossroads where he has to choose his way. The least that I can help is to find out as many options as possible for him to decide on. Yes, there will be two important things that I have to accomplish this year, that will be my boy's direction and our new home. Indeed, A busy and fun year for me, 2014 will be great!

My boy takes public transport!

11.9.13 For the first time this week, my boy learns to take public transport home from school.  He's been doing well so far. He boards the LRT in front of his school and transit at Bandaraya for KTM back to Taman Wahyu where we will pick him up. It is easier for us, as to avoid the afternoon jam at Jalan Kuching.

Since last week, the jam got bad and we were always late picking JW up from school and subsequently had to rush for her tuition.   My boy is being considerate and understanding when he offered try out the public transport to ease our woes. So today it is his third attempt. Actually, I worry about his safety on the road but he's already in his teen and I just have to let nature takes its course, praying to God to look after him on the road. Otherwise, he will always stay a mommy boy, so protected and wouldn't know how to survive in the outside world.  My boy is a fast learner and he is capable. I love him :)

MY gal UPSR 2013

It's 2nd day into UPSR today on a lovely Wednesday, 11.9.13. My gal is now at Cikgu Oi tuition while I am in the car at YNB waiting for TH to settle bills. UPSR started yesterday and my gal said it was easy. She has been calm and cool in her preparation. Somehow, I have confidence in her so much so that I don't really bother her much. I let her do her revision at her own pace and she has shown me her maturity when one day, I saw her note book on her desk. She jotted down the difficult phrases of English, Chinese and BM that she would probably use in her essay writing. Gee, she made an effort.

Anyhow, the night before UPSR, I told her that it doesn't matter if she couldn't score straight As in her UPSR as long as she has worked hard. I know she worked hard and it's enough. Though efforts pay off at most times, I didn't want her to have any pressure.

My boy made a good luck card for her and we all wrote our wishes on it. He was excited and concerned over her exam. Maybe they are from the same school, so they have so many common topics to share and it's great for them.

My gal came home today and said the Chinese papers were a little tough. Well, she scored a B in her trial exam. Let's keep our fingers crossed. 

14.9.13

14.9.13 - JS is now with JW in her room. He's doing her a favour actually. JW came home just now from a post UPSR celebration at Cikgu Oi house and she is now afraid of the dark. She claimed that the kids watched a horror movie there and she is now afraid to sleep alone. Again, JS is kind enough to do her a favour and they are now probably chit chating in bed. JW seems to enjoy sharing her bed with her brother. When she got home just now, she told her brother about the movie. She enjoyed sharing with her brother.

JS was reluctant to sleep as usual. He wanted to study at this time. I insisted that he should sleep and wake up early to study. It's very important for him to have enough sleep so that he could wake up fresh and energized the next morning. He must understand.  

Sunburn in Jogja 2014

16.12.14 - it's 2pm and I am on the flight home with my family after spending10 days in Yogyakarta. Well, we had the most boring trip by far and it was an apparent result of not doing a thorough study prior to it. My itinerary was half way done and incomplete.  We had so much spare time. Weather was not too kind as well as we got sunburn from our cycling tour. We were exposed to the hot sun for hours and this is the first time my skin was paining all over my hands. The sun was too hot for a comfortable holiday especially when we needed local transport. We did the horse carriage, trishaw, local bus and taxi. However the day tour to Borobudur and Mount Merapi was fun. We enjoyed the jeep ride very much. The kids screamed excitedly and the driver was happy to do them a favour. He purposely did the rocky terrains that was extremely bumpy and interesting too. We had a blast on our ride up the volcano.

We tried most of the  Indonesian delicacies like Gudeg Du Jum, Ayam Suharti, Pecel, Gado Gado, Sate, Mi Ayam, etc. The memorable one would be Teh Botol for us all.

The first 3 days at Ibis Styles Hotel was pleasant with full itinerary to cover. Then we moved on to D Omah in Bantul for another 3 days where we did cycling and fishing and watching Dvds. Though a little bored in the remote village, we still managed to enjoy watching Final Destination, Insidious and Olympus has Fallen. It was the final 3 days at Sheraton that was spent rather aimlessly and we were sort of counting days to go home except the little one. We did the Prambanan Temple on one morning and yet again, the sun didn't fail to shine on us. It was scorching hot and the most sought after items of the entire visit were shades and benches for me and my gal. We didn't even want to go into the temple but took a photo from far. But my boy was ever adventurous, his enthusiasm was at level HIGH. In fact I was suddenly struck by his statement there. While I was complaining about the weather, the mosquito, the unattractive settings, he just said let it be. Let the mosquito bites until they had enough, let the sun shines strongly, let nature takes it course and we should not care. Gosh, I truly understood his logic and started to think young again. But not for long, sad sad sad. I just cannot forget I am already into fifties in another few years time.

My boy is a gem in his own way. He is our pride in the family for his excellent achievement in studies and yet he is always foolish and playful for his age which is rather challenging to  parents like me. Guess it takes all different people in a family to bring excitement in life. He's a sanguine after all.

When we went to Alun Alun Selatan to test our luck, I told them I need not take the test as my dream has already came true. They were extremely curious about my dream. But to their disappointment, I didn't let the cats out of the bag. I was cruel ;) Well, my dream is plain simple, it was back then that I once dreamt of having a happy home with a man who loves me more than I love him, hehehe and I wished for two kids who are adorable and cute who brings so much joy and a puppy at home. Indeed, God is truly kind to me and I am thankful. Perhaps it is time to dream again.

17.3.14

It's 1:45pm on 17.3.14. It's a much better day today compared to the past 2 months. Our country is experiencing hardship and catastrophe in this difficult time. Last two months we were struck by heat waves with no rain at all. Dams are at critical point and Govt has taken measures to control the water supply to public. Most of the areas are assigned two days with water supply and two days without alternately. It has caused much inconvenience and hardship. Luckily sis and I still enjoy the water supply without interruption, poor brother but at least he is getting his supply from JL. Until yesterday we saw rain. In addition, there are a terrible haze in our country with Port Klang highest reading of more than 300. The rest of the areas recorded about 150 including Selayang and Cheras. It smells bad and smoky. The haze is due to fire caused by the heat wave and it worsen due to open burning by irresponsible people. My poor kids had to suffer the heat and smoke during their sport practices almost everyday under the sun that I wrote to the principal about it. Finally, she changed the practice time to morning instead if afternoon. Morning sun is at least better. My boy didn't get to run on Sports Day but sat on the bench as a reserve. Anyway I think he enjoyed himself cheering for his friends. His team emerged as champion this time around and he was very delighted.

Well, back to our dear country. We are struck by bad tidings one after another. First we have the heat wave problem, then drought with dam at critical level, then haze that blanket our skies and the catastrophe that we can never expect, the hijack of MH 370. On 7.3.14, MH 370 from KL to Beijing disappear in the sky after an hour into the flight. A total of 237 people are missing right up to this moment. Our Govt was incompetent and handle the crisis terribly. As a result, our country became a laughing stock to the world and we are now clearly described as a nation with 1st class facilities but 3rd class mentality. Today is already the 10th day into the crisis and there is still no progress. Most of them are Chinese. Family and friends are angry with our Govt for being slow to provide news and for being incompetent. For the past ten days, there were so much speculation in the social media. While the whole world come together as one to pray for them, some unkind soul speculate beyond limit. Now the whole episode here is about MH370 took off from KLIA at about midnight scheduled to reach Beijing about 7am. An hour after take off, the pilot calmly responded in the radio "Roger, Goodnite " and within minutes, the transponder was switched off and in the next 20 mins another transponder was switched off too which investigation concluded that someone did this on purpose to avoid radar detection. Then the plane just disappeared. It was later investigated and found out that the plane had turned back towards Malaysia heading towards the Indian Ocean. Investigation shows also that someone very knowledgeable in aviation had managed to escaped radar by flying low and had managed to fly through at least three countries. Gosh, it is scary. At this moment I am hoping that it is really a hijack and the hijackers will make a demand fast to our Govt. Sadly, experts also predicted that the plane has crashed into the Indian ocean. 24 countries are helping to search with aircraft, ships, helicopters, etc but to no avail for the time being. I really hope that lives are not lost and they will return safely to their families waiting for them at home. God bless. 

Goodbye My Spectacles 2014

17.4.2014 - Its 8am now and I am in the car park at the curve waiting for vista to open at 8:30am. TH are now in the toilet while I am penning this inside the car. Finally I have the courage to do it though am a little nervous now. I am looking forward to look good without my glasses anymore. 

Was here yesterday too to do some tests and made the payment. TH offered to pay for me and I am very surprised because the bill amounted to $10,098.  it was a sweet surprise and I felt so pampered by him. I am so thankful. Not only he paid the bill, I am grateful that he was with me for the entire session. Was here for 3 hours yesterday and today will be the same and tomorrow too for the follow up. He waited patiently for me without complaints. Love him so much.

Unfortunately, today I woke up with a bad news. Karpal Singh died in a road accident past midnight, a huge loss to Malaysian. He has been a hero fighting for justice for our country. So sad....

It's the 2nd day after my Lasik and not forgetting to pen down the post mortem of my surgery here. It's important to note that though the surgery is really painless, the torture started the moment I returned home. My eyes were so uncomfortable that I couldn't really close them to rest. It was like something went inside my eyes and causing me to shed tears and it was painful. I applied the eye drops obediently. I was given 3 types of drops ie the antiseptic, the inflammation and artificial tears. I was also given a sun glass and eyes shield for night. It was only until the next day I woke up feeling much better and took off to Vista for the follow up. Met Dr Alan, told him about the painful episode but was told it was normal and that there was nothing inside my eyes. He said I should have 90% of the resulted vision by then and the rest will stabilise in time to come, probably weeks or months depending on individual eyes condition. Hmm, though I can now read and see distance without my glasses but I can't really see the distance in between near and far like when I watch TV, I find it difficult to read the subtitles below. Will it gets better in time to come, I wonder. I can't be regretting my decision. I know I will be fine. I have to be fine.

Well, back track to what transpired on the day of surgery. While TH and I were reading the newspapers about Karpal Singh accident, I was summoned to the surgery room for preparation. TH waited outside as he wished to witness the surgery. It was allowed. When I went in, I was given a shower cap and a robe to wear. I was asked to wash my face with cleanser. Then I was briefed on the eyes drop that they will give me later on. I was asked if I needed a pill to overcome nervousness. I declined, afraid of allergy. I believe I can control my nervousness. Before the doc came, I met a young lady waiting before me. Chatted with her for a while and in no time, I was under the machines.  There were two machines that were at work. The first is to punch holes into my cornea and create a round slit while the second machine adjust the power. The doc worked on removing the cornea flap and putting them back in place. During the surgery they kept wetting my eyes with anesthetic drops to numb them, so I could only felt some pressure and nothing else. It was my heart beat that was a little worrisome. But I kept praying for strength to go through it and in no time, all was done and when I got up, I saw TH outside the windows and the doc took a picture with me, assuring me that the surgery was successful. 

JS gets to Form 5

My boy got into the same class as previous year, 5L and he also got into Set 1 for his English. He is a sport. Just 3 weeks into school, he already signed up for a race on Sports Day and surprisingly, he also signed up for a role in the upcoming concert in a play entitled Mulan. He went for the audition last Saturday and he got the role. He will act and sing on stage for us, can't really imagine, hehehe. I am looking forward to it so much.  So proud of him. Though many of his friends didn't join the play because of the year end SPM, I think he will manage them well. All work no play make J ulius a dull boy. As this is his final year in Wesley, it's now or never, that he participate in a play and have good exposure and not forgetting plenty fun too. It's a golden opportunity of a lifetime for some cool people. Yeah, he is cool.

Well, as for now, he's excited about the race on Sports Day. He undergoes tough training at school and comes home with muscle pain, hehehe. No, he's not complaining, he's just having fun so far. He even ask dad to take him to the stadium to train with his friend. But sadly, he is only assigned as a reserve on the bench, haiz. I know he wants to run badly, what a disappointment for him. Anyway, not all wishes come true easily. He is learning to accept no as an answer. Yes, he was never a sports man but he dares to take up the challenge and train hard for it. Yeah, my boy is stronger now than before. 

Hats off to TH

18.11.14 - recalling it makes me feel so grateful to my dear TH. I tested his tolerance to the highest level so much so that I am feeling a little guilty too.  

We or rather I have been very indecisive of the ID plans for our SM house. In fact I have been changing the plans so much so that he got so fed up with me at one point. The problem is that we have already paid deposits for some furniture and due to the changes I made, we have to find ways to settle it. Either we choose another item from the particular shop or lose our deposit. First it was a 10ft sofa bed that we have paid deposit, next it was a 13ft TV rack.

In fact, He has been very supportive of my ideas all the while even when I was indecisive and make changes most times, he would still happily shared my ideas. Until lately he was tested yet again, he complaint and did not want to hear about my changes anymore. It's been a week now and today, I brought it up again. Either he has forgotten the mess I made which is not likely or he chose to pardon me, he heard me out and supported my latest plan. He even brought me to the shop to settle the exchange. Luckily, all went well, I managed to choose my item and have it replaced successfully. I was satisfied and he was happy for me.

Actually right now, I have another second thought in mind. Gosh, I feel like I am his devil, making life difficult for him. No way I am telling him that, at least not for now........

Mooncake Festival 2013

19.9.13 - I am going to bed tonight  feeling disappointed on this Moon cake Festival day. What supposed to be a happy day turned out to be otherwise.

I went to the market early morning  today for a simple steamboat celebration tonight. I was quite excited over the steamboat and the thought of enjoying the moon with tea, durian moon cake and lantern with Lassie too perhaps like last year.

Sadly, all didn't work out that way. Someone at home misbehaved and threw tantrum again like a spoilt brat.

When TH and I happily went to school to fetched JW this afternoon, our day was ruined. In the car, we asked the gal about her day at school. She just gave one word answers to all our conversation. She was so uninterested to talk to us. Then, she closed her eyes and ignored us. What's wrong with her? Told her if she's tired, she can say so and we will understand and leave her alone. But she didn't and she was just throwing tantrum. So, we ended up coming home with sour faces. I couldn't tolerate her bad behaviour, so I banned her from using the iPad for the day.

In the evening, We just had a quick steamboat dinner as there was no sign of her repentance. She didn't feel remorse at all. I was waiting for her to show better attitude but it didn't happen. Just before bedtime, she showed me a birthday invitation from her classmate, Elly on this Sat. I told her that I won't allow her to go if she keep on misbehaving. Almost immediately, she did it yet again, threw tantrum, packed up and went upstairs to bed, didn't wish us goodnite, haiz.

This time, I must keep my words, no means no. She must learn to behave well. She must show that she is willing to change for better. She must accept her wrongdoing and apologize. She must have control of her temper.

Unless she improves her attitudes, no more green light for her. What an awful day!

JW Graduation Trip 2013

2.12.13 - I m in the car waiting for TH and d kids at NSK. I didn't go down due to my menses cramp. It's been a long long time since I last suffer bad cramp. Last night it was so severe that I recalled those days that I hid in the toilet and cried painfully. I suspect this time it happens because of the whole bag of preserved sour lemon slices that I had recently. Anyway, they are in NSK to shop for JW snacks for her graduation trip to Singapore and Johore tomorrow. TH does me a favour by getting the eggs and vegetables for tonight.

In fact, I am quite  worried to let my gal travel without us but on the other hand, it will be her last trip with her good friends and I don't want her to miss this golden opportunity. Hmm, I really pray that she will do fine and take good care. Among all, I hope she will have a memorable trip and enjoy herself as much as possible.  

I think I will ask her to replace those shorts with longer ones as it will be dangerous for her to expose her long legs, hmm.

In fact, last Saturday we went to Tropicana Mall and bought her new hand phone, Samsung galaxy grand and also a new digital camera. It was a reward for her good job in getting excellent results in her UPSR. She deserved it. She always wanted to bring along but we don't allow. Actually, I have second thought, I know how fun it will be to have a smart phone on a trip, hmm. But how is she going to keep it safe when she travel around, when she goes for rides.

Now that my menses is here, I am relieved as it will not disrupt my Osaka holiday next week. In fact, knowing that Osaka is extremely cold, my excitement is just not up to par right now. I really hope we will enjoy the trip anyhow admist the bad weather. 

Mr. Obama Prank

24.4.14 - gosh, still can't believe  I be meeting Mr Obama this Saturday. It's midnight now and I am just too excited over the good news.  It's a dream come true for almost everyone except my ignorant kids. I don't even dare to dream of it and it will be happening this Saturday.

Well, just before the kids call it the night, my boy suddenly uttered very leisurely that Mr Obama will be coming to his school concert this Saturday. I was really shocked and I doubted it. But they both insisted that he will come and the whole of first row will be given to his delegation. Hey, I will be just 3 rows behind him, seriously tell me that I am not dreaming. He is the most important person in the world right now and he is coming to my kids concert. I am so excited. I can't get over it. I'm a fan.

Though I Hope this excitement will not supersede the excitement of watching my kids perform on stage, especially my boy who is going to act as a cast member in Mulan. I will definitely have a good laugh and shed tears. No worries, that's tears of pride and joy. Of course, I look forward to seeing my gal dance on stage too, though for a short 40 seconds, I am still proud of her. She will be a lovely dove.

So terribly excited.......

I have to pen this down. It was not real. The kids played a prank on me and I was the dumb dumb here. Still don't know why they did this but I got fooled and so did my sis and bro. I told them the excitement and they too believed me. Haiz, I was the greatest fool of the year. Thanks to my darlings. It caused me one sleepless night and few days of high adrenalin. Gosh!

My gal made it to Wesley!

25.9.13 - It's 5 : 30pm now and I am extremely happy. My gal got a place in Wesley. JS brought home the letter just now and they accepted her. I am so happy for her. She did a great job and she got it. I need not worry further about plan B. Phew, so relieved.

Just this morning, a baby cobra showed up in Lassie kennel. My brother said that snake brings Ong to us. Gee, now I am thinking of that snake. Luckily, it didn't hurt Lassie. I managed to take its photo before it slide down into the drain. Hehehe, thanks baby snake and thanks my boy and my gal and most importantly thanks God for granting us a great life.

I believe my gal will do well and learn to be a good person in that school. More so, my boy can take care of her in her 1st year there and I need not worry too much. I hope she will enjoy her school life there as much as her brother. All the best to my beloved gal:)

Will be celebrating tonight at The Ship for her efforts and achievement. She's one of the 160 successful students out of 590, hip hip hoorah.....

27.12.13

27.12.13 - it's almost end of the year and surprisingly, I am having a good ending to 2013. I really wish the feeling will last and be even better in the new year. I thanks God for each good moment I have.

Since back from Japan, I became a better person. Probably, I am no longer stressful with life and I had quality time with my family. I am so contented now. On Christmas eve, took the kids to the pool at Christy house and had a blast. I played monkey with the kids and Vernie while TH enjoyed a few lapses. I felt so good and energetic too. I should also be grateful to TH and the kids for that healthy morning. The kids have persuaded us to take them swimming since holidays started and since it's nearing the end of holiday, it's now or never, hehehe, so to say. But TH was not in the mood for swimming, so I pressured him to go with us and as usual, he's accommodating. Love them.

Then, towards the night, we celebrated Christmas eve with friends at the pub. HO, KP, TH, lCL, Boon, Aik and ladies. It was a nice meet up after some time but it ended with the two ladies complaining about life, hmm. Guess all of us have our own problem. I pray that they will get over it soon.

Then, on Christmas, my bro and sis wanted to meet up for lunch but TH and I were having a hangover, so we didnt go. I'm a little guilty, hmm. Towards the night we celebrated Christmas at Ah Soh house. We had simple dinner, Brian and Cindy took effort to preach the love of God, played some games and sang gospel songs. Then, we took a group photo for good memories.  It's acceptable coz I am half Christian and I believe in Jesus and almighty God. JW didn't join us as she celebrated with her friends at a friends house.

Back to this moment, I am in my bed penning this while waiting for the new fridge to arrive. TH is waiting downstairs. Well, I read an interesting  article in the paper today. It is about the emptiness in life. It helps to know that we should learn to focus on the things we do like sweeping the floor, cooking, ironing, etc and not let our mind wonder off as it will create stress in life. I think it makes sense. I will try it. I thought I will get my family to try it too, maybe we all draw a picture together and focus entirely on it, see what happens. Gee, fun

27.2.14

It's exactly midnight at 12am now while the rest are all sound asleep. It has been a while since I last wrote. My gal came back from tuition at 9pm and started on her homework until late. I accompanied her. I read a spiritual book while waiting. We had a cup of hot milo each. She is doing a school project but she said she is compiling something which she doesn't fully understand. Hmm, guess I have to trust the school system whatever it is.  

My boy will be staying back at school tomorrow for his Leo Club camp. He will be putting a night at school and he has packed everything he needs on his own, his sleeping bag, etc. This year, he is extremely busy with a lot of events he took up and I am worried he may be distracted from his studies, especially in this year of SPM. He said he needs to participate as much as possible in order to have a presentable testimonials. He assured me that he can cope with his studies. He is taking part in Mulan concert, Sports as a reserve in 400m run, Leo Club, etc. However, I see his efforts in burning the midnight oil though with his hand phone by his side. I need to trust him. 

These days, I am so attracted to TH once again. I feel like I am in love with him all over again. I am so thankful for his existence in my life. He has been caring and very protective of me. He takes care of most things at home and I begin to feel that he is indispensable. I admire his efforts in doing tasks swiftly and seriously. He is hard working and he acquires some business intelligence. He tends to have solutions to business matters and he actually handle them all by himself. He will go further to gain the personal touch. He is eager to learn. He even pushes me to greater limit at times. He made me exercise every morning. He reminded me on the timely collection of rental. He paid my bills timely. He even checked my groceries on the expiry and make sure I used it before hand. He prepares breakfast for my kids. He is my chauffeur. He runs errand for me. That day, when we were waiting for the kids in the car, I was so thirsty and he got down and bought me a bottle of fresh orange juice. I enjoyed it so much. I felt his affection. I truly love this man. 

A day at Home @ 27.9,13

27.9.13 - It's drizzling now on this Friday afternoon. The kids are at school while TH is out in Sekinchan to meet up with his business friends and to buy fresh fishes from the fishermen there. Buying those fishes for home cooking is fresh but not cheap though. I guess he was a little bored at home and took the opportunity to meet some friends. After all he's a man, he can't be sitting at home feeling redundant like me.

Well, I am bored too at home and just now, I made a call to Helen at her office for a chat. Though I didn't speak much, I felt nice and comfortable to hear her voice. It's like having a moment with a good friend. V both had few moments of silence in our conversation but it was a comfortable one. We updated each other with our well being, our kids, etc. She asked if I remember her ex boyfriend, G which I sadly don't.  She said he called her for a friendly chat and that he's now a director in a public listed company. She further asked if she had made a mistake for choosing the wrong partner.

We also spoke about life now. We are stagnant in living our lives. It's all about our family and nothing else. Looks like we are all bored too. Hmm, at least right now, I feel I am blessed with her existence in my life. She will always be a part of my life. I pray for her that she will continue to live happily and positively. 

My boy SPM 2014

3.11.14 - It's the first day of SPM for my boy and it was not a good morning to begin with. He broke his glasses when he woke up. I tried to fix it by using the super glue but due too time constraints, he had to use his old glasses as alternative. He was calm when handling the broken glasses and so did I. It's believable that misfortune always deemed to happen on a very important day like this, so guess not entirely his fault.

But what annoyed me was the attitude of my boy. He was so concerned about his revision until he overdid it somehow. Every where he goes he has notes with him even until the last minute at the breakfast table he acted as if he ran out of time so desperately. Told him to relax and sleep early last night and he complaint. He needed to be in good condition both mentally and physically for his exam. Hmm......

Anyway, the day ended well. I fixed his glasses and he did a good job on his BM paper. He thinks he can get an A for it. That's good news.  

My boy new found hobby

3.7.14 - Nowadays my boy is down with fever. It's Ukelele fever. He wanted a Ukulele for his birthday this year and it cost us $400 for his new found love. Thought he wanna try out new things in the market and it would be a short lived hobby. But it has been 2 months now and he is still very passionate about it. It is like a favourite toy to him. He never fails to play on it everyday. Even when he finishes his homework late, he will still bring it up to his bedroom and strum on it before sleep. He's still adorable, hehehe. He learnt popular songs from the Internet on his own and surprisingly it was entertaining to hear him sing with it. Though at times he cannot hold back his playfulness and make noises with it that can be hurtful to our ears. But I am still happy for him for picking up this hobby. It does not only bring music to our home but it helps him to release some stress from his heavy study for year end SPM. That day, I recorded him singing with his Ukulele, felt so proud of him, yet again. Love him so much :)

Sunway Open Day 2014

4.7.14 - I am recalling the day when we went to Sunway University Open Day. It was last Sunday. All of us accompanied our dear boy to the University to seek information as his friends didn't want to go. He was still uncertain about his choice of career. He will be graduating this year after SPM and he needs to know where it want to pursue further studies.

He spoke about his friends going to Taylors University and maybe he too like to join them. We thought Methodist College in Brickfields is suitable for him as it is an old reputable school. Furthermore the monorail is just at its doorstep. But we also heard that HELP University has the best lecturers in the market so far. Well, nothing is certain yet.

So we were there touring around the University and attended a 1 hour talk about Actuarial Studies. We were seated in an Auditorium like students attending a lecture. It was fun. I mean the atmosphere only as I haven't really been to a University before and likewise TH seemed to enjoy the environment too. The speaker was not up to par that day. He said he was not feeling well and he didn't really make an effort. It was not a good talk.

Anyway, we spoke to a lady there, Ms. Tan who provided a lot of information about Actuarial Science. Well, at least all of us left with satisfaction.  

My gal coming home 2013

6.12.13 - my gal will be back home in an hour time from her school trip. She has been to Singapore and Johore for 4 days with her school mates. She has been away and she brought her new Hp with her. Thought she can easily communicate with us during the trip but surprisingly, she didn't text us as much as I thought she would have. Probably she was too busy enjoying herself with her fun filled tight schedule. Indeed, she reached hotel only at 11pm every nights. That was the only time she could find wifi to WhatsApp us in Singapore. Then quickly she would have to take bath and according to her, they will play in the room until late. Even our Goodnite I love u, she has forgotten to wish before sleep, hmm.... guess she was too carried away with her friends. anyway, I miss her very much (the same feeling when mom used to travel overseas with dad those days). I am happy that she enjoyed herself there. I am just a little disappointed that she didn't seem to miss home. It's alright, I just want her back safe and sound. Nothing else matters.

-sorry:( 

Secretaries Gathering 2014

6.2.14 - This CNY, Jodie suggested we meet up and last night 7 of us (Jodie, SL, GH, Adeline, Merchele, Charanjeet and me) had a sumptuous dinner at Dancing Fish in Bangsar. It was a delicious Indonesian cuisine that cost us $55 each. Well, all of us had a great time chit chatting over dinner. Wendy couldn't join us as yesterday was also 'yan yat' and she had to cook dinner for her family. It was everybody's birthday. I had a great birthday last night. I was not reluctant and lazy, in fact I look forward to meeting SL very much after so many years.  

Well, TH offered to drive me there and my friend, GH brought me home. I didn't even have to drive there, I felt pampered and it feels so good to be pampered by loved ones. I love my man.

Once I arrived, I bumped into Merchele. She was there earlier to meet up with Grace like me meeting up with SL. So, we parted briefly for our own agenda before meeting up with the rest. I met SL and it was a comfortable and pleasant one. She was a close friend of mine at Stamford and we shared many good moment together. She knew me well and most of my stories too. We spoke about our mutual friends, updated our lives and problems too. Well, She is now staying with her mom and auntie who is a weird old woman. She is a widow and they are kind to take her in. She wears clothes the other way round. She roams around travelling whole day alone most of the time. But she isn't harmful. By the way SL has ended her relationship with Alex, the Singaporean guy. After so many years together he still didn't want to commit himself, so she put a stop to it and she did it. Her dad passed away 2 years ago due to prostate cancer. It was when she wanted him badly to meet his dad in his hospital bed for the first time, probably the last too but he couldn't even meet this simple request. It was this final straw that snapped. She is still a manager at Hitachi after 17 years and has shifted office to UOA Bangsar. She is bored with her job and wish for some changes. She's still a happy go lucky gal and a tough one too. I only learnt from her that Cindy is actually her car pool mate who happen to respond to her advertisement. She isn't her friend and SL regretted at one time for having invited her to car pool as she found out that she isn't a nice girl. We talked about family, friends, guys like LCL, Goh BK and KC, etc.

Just to jot down the updates on my friends in case I forget and ask the same things again next year, hehehe. So, Adeline stays in Kota Damansara and has 2 kids, a boy and a girl aged 12 and 13 who are both studying at Chung Hwa. Michelle, I have already forgotten her details, oops! As for Charanjeet, she now works in Astro and she was the most talkative person last night. GH joined us much later about 7:30pm as she was held up the office. Luckily, she came as u depended on her transport home. So, we ended our session at about 10pm and our plan for next meeting at Adeline house where GH will make a demonstration with her ThermoMix. I really pity her actually. When we were in her car on our way home, she updated me with her lives. She is heavily in debts and she is splitting up with her husband. She sold her condo in Casa Mila and bought an apartment somewhere near Selayang High Court. Her intention is to move away from her husband. Her eldest son, Jackson is rebellious and now living away from her with her mother in law. She is working hard on her computer business and has less time for the Thermo Mix sale. Hmm, I pray that things will get better for her very soon.

Julius turns 17

6.5.14 - Yesterday was my boy's birthday but we had his birthday dinner last Saturday in advance of his exam this week. We had dinner at Fish & Co in Pavilion. Earlier that day, we went to Homedec to buy beds for the kids. After that, the kids went over to KLCC to watch Amazing Spiderman. Yes, just two of them on their own for the first time. They have grown up and are ready to get independent. Of course I made sure my boy will take good care of his sister and I trust him. So TH and I proceeded with our shopping at Homedec until they finished the show. We met up and walked over to Pavilion for dinner.

As for the birthday cake, we had it on previous night in advance too as they had tuition yesterday. My boy chose a Chocolate Truffle from Secret Recipe and we celebrated it after dinner. Early that morning I went to market to buy a fish for dinner. My boy loves to eat fish. All went well and we took some pictures and posted them on FB.

JW and I got him a card from Selayang Mall. My gal was very excited over it. She spent time searching for the right card and finally settled with it.  She had a plan, she wanted to put the card in his school locker yesterday as a sweet surprise for his brother. She was very thoughtful. She was the first to write and make sure we write on it and hand over to her. Early morning on my boy birthday, she actually asked me if I wish him Happy Birthday and gave me a serious stare. Wow, she took over my role. Previous years I was the one who make sure everyone did that but now.... she's grown up but still adorable.

Well, my boy was very happy on his birthday. I went to school to fetch them and he said he was thrilled by our birthday card. He also received a present from a few close friends. They gave him a hand phone cover. Friends sang birthday song to him. 

A day before Phuket Trip @ 7.6.14

It's 11:30pm now and in another 5 hours we will be on our way to the airport for our holiday to Phuket. Two unforeseen circumstances affected our plan. My gal has her menses this morning and it basically ruin her excitement of swimming at our private pool and in the sea at Anantara Vacation Club.  And my boy was down with stomach ache just an hour ago and it looks pretty severe. After giving him some traditional medicine and massage on his stomach with nutmeg oil, he's in bed now. Hopefully he will get well soon and fit for the holiday. Hmm, it's my fault, I should not have suggested to go for the street food in Pudu for dinner just now. It would be wise to avoid eating at a less hygienic place prior to a trip. A lesson to learn for this time.

Well, today we went for a show, Maleficient at KLCC. Earlier I thought TH may not enjoy this type of Disney movie, so I suggested to opt for the more action packed one starring Tom Cruise, The Edge of Tomorrow. Surprisingly, he chose the former and wanted to watch the 3D version. Hey, our man here has a soft spot for Disney movie. And he actually enjoyed it, hehehe. In fact we all enjoyed it, probably because of the remarkable acting by the beautiful Angelina Jolie. Then, I had another surprise, I bumped into Henry Tee and his wife and children. Gosh, he doesn't age too well with a bulging body. Anyway, we greeted each other and chat briefly. My boy bought a Converse shoe just now. I actually let him choose and manage to hold back all my ideas. Even when he asked for my opinion, I had good control. Honestly, that's not my choice but again, it is  a good choice as long as he likes it. Yeah, I did it. Next, it was my gal turn to choose for her watch.

Unexpected Joy!

I cannot resist a smile recalling the amusement I had with the kids just a day ago. I decided to play a role in my gal studies since she did poorly in her final term exam. On that day, I was at the table with her doing Maths, Science and English. It supposed to be a stressful session with her until my dear boy turned it around and ended up a blissful session.

Well, it was when my gal was tackling the science question on how to separate sand and salt. She knew the answer but was not able to give a proper written explanation since it was a subjective question. So I got her to memorise the sample answer. It was still tension until my boy came along to the table and leisurely I asked him to give his answer since he is a science genius. True enough, he knew the answer but due to his playful nature, he gave me his answer playfully. And due to my serious nature, I demanded for a proper answer. So, told him to write it down and read it out. He wrote it down but not able to read it out properly because he was still engaged in a playful mood with his sister being his fan, giggling at his endeavours. It was uncontrollable until he really couldn't read it out properly without bursting into laughter. Until I gave him an ultimatum that if he couldn't read it out in 3 attempts, his hp will be confiscated for the day. He tried but to no avail coz it was too late, everyone at the table was out of control including me. I too was carried away with him and couldn't resist laughing at him.  It was his last attempt and it was so intense yet so funny. We tried not to look at him to help him out but he just couldn't carry on. The whole scenario was joyful because of him. It took a while until he finally regained control. And of course, he made it.

Gosh! What a day. He made me shed tears so unexpectedly. It's tears of joy!

JW studies is dropping

30.10.14 Had just browsed through my gal final term exam papers and to my dismay, she has faired terribly. Carelessness added up to her flop. She blamed it on the toughness of the papers. Scolded her badly and will banned her from using the electronic gadgets for good, at least until she improves. She did badly in her Maths and Science. Overall result is not good either. Ever since getting into Methodist, her life has been carefree and relaxing and furthermore she has stop tuitions for quite a while now. I know she is smart and she can achieve better results. But she lacks discipline and efforts. At primary school, she was in the top class under a strict teacher with lots of homework. Now, she comes home with less homework and do her own revision in her room for an hour. It doesn't work for her, sigh:(

Guess it's not too late. She needs help and I will source tuitions for her and keep a close eyes on her studies from now on. She needs more practice on Maths. Will get workbooks for her soon. Hopefully without her gadgets, she will be more dedicated to her studies. I know she can do it, she only needs to put in some efforts. She is smart and intelligent. With good results, she will have a good future. She should understand. 

JW gets to Form 1

Well, u got to say she is doing fine at her new school. She seems to be excited about school everyday. Of course, she is lucky to have Li Sze as her partner in class 1W and they sit together with two other boys face to face. Funnily, the students sit in a cluster of four. She sits in front and she is happy. Her room teacher is a young Indian lady and according to JS, she's friendly and nice. It's already 3 weeks since school started and things are getting on smoothly. Now, JS and JW will meet up after school at 3:15pm and they take the LRT in front of the school to Bank Negara station before transit to KTM back to Batu Caves Station. We pick them up from there. It was a breeze for all of us. JW classroom is in a block opposite JS and sometimes she spots her brother along the corridor. I can feel her excitement when she relates to me. My boy is taking good care of her and they share a great deal about school. Sometimes they will open each other locker to get the umbrella as they know each other padlock password, hehehe. It is sweet of them to share secrets, I mean the padlock password.

As this is the year that Girls Brigade is made compulsory, my gal has no choice but to join. Hopefully she will pick up some exposure from it. They will be having a cycling trip to Taman Botani Negara in Shah Alam next month. Told her today to write me a short essay on the reason why she wanted to go. She wrote pretty well and she earned it. Told her I worry that she will fall from her bicycle as she has not master it yet. She said if she falls, just let it be. Wow, she has a point there. Ok, I must learn to let go, she's no longer a small kid, she must learn to fall and get up again on her own, she has plenty to learn out there. I can only pray for her safety at home. Well, she has also signed up for the concert participation and I am happy for her. She will have a great time practising the dance with her new friends.

Till now, she still has 3 more books outstanding. She missed her lunch when she queue up at the bookstore for the books and ended up with no stock, haiz.....poor thing. 

My boy is Chien Po

TH and I dropped the kids off at school around 5pm in preparation for the concert this evening. Then we headed home. The kids were truly excited over the concert. My boy was casted the role of Chien Po in the Mulan play. He was a real sport. Not only that he didn't look nervous, he actually looked forward to it. And my gl was very overwhelmed with her brother performance and I think she was the happiest person on that day. She has been a fan of her brother all the while and now she was happy to watch her idol performed.

The concert started at 8pm and we were seated on the 3rd row in front. I had good view of the stage and I enjoyed the show as well as doing the recording with my hand phone. My gal was the first to perform. She did a dance in Warrior of Erhu. Though it was just a mere 40 seconds act for her, it was a good start. She enjoyed herself and she danced gracefully. I am proud of her too. Though she is quite a shy gal, she managed to put up a brave front and did a good job.

Then my boy came on stage, he acted as a soldier and concubine. He was a little stiff but he pulled it through with his two other good friends, Roy and Chang Eu. They were the three soldiers who played important roles in the play. They were funny too. They acted and sang happily together. My boy gained good exposure that night. He added colors to his life and he will forever remember the remarkable episode of his life. So do I, he's always my pride. From young until now, he has been and he knew it. But life may not be so perfect, maybe one day he may fail in his endeavours and I have to make sure I will  be there for him no matter what.

When the concert ended, my gal and her friends; Li Sze and Shun Xuan went up stage to join her brother. We took pictures of them for good memories. It was a great night for everyone. The kids were happy and we were happy for them. Surprisingly TH watched the whole show with enthusiasm though he couldn't quite understand their English speaking. The kids actually briefed us beforehand and got us together to watch the animated version of Mulan on TV. Therefore dear TH understood the storyline well. He's touched by the kids performance too.

My boy diagnosed Scolosis!

16.9.13 - JS was feeling unwell since last week and has been taking salt water for his sore throat. But eventually he was down with bad sinus with nose blockage. It was bad and I insisted that he goes to the doctor. So, I took him to clinic 2 days ago. As the Indian doctor was friendly, I also consulted him over my boy's bony chest. He told him to take off his shirt and he diagnosed his case as a slight deformation of the rib that is a little similar to pigeon chest. However he also pointed out another issue that my boy has, his back bone is not in the correct posture that should be, straight that is. He showed me and yes, it was not straight. It slightly tilted to the right side which is not supposed to. This problem is called Scoliosis which could lead to back pain at old age. He told my boy to try to walk straight and don't hump. He also told him not to carry heavy load on one side of the shoulder but to balance it out on both sides of his shoulder to avoid his problem from getting worse. Hmm, am I worried for him. But, it's better to know early than be sorry later. Now that he knows his problems, he has better change his habits from now on. I can help out by reminding him but it is important that he helps himself. I pray that my boy will be fine and get better. Lord, please bless my boy.

My boy can drive!

14.1.15 - hooray! My boy passed his driving test just yesterday and came home with a lot of interesting stories. He and his friend Taeho took the company van along with others to Puchong early in the morning at 6am. He thought that if he could finish fast, he will make his way to school for classes. Unfortunately, he underestimated the duration. There were over 100 candidates and he was placed 90 something. It took him almost the whole day, just waiting most of the time. Luckily he had TH with him as company. He came home about 5pm and was delighted to share his endeavours of the day. I am proud of him, this time for his ability to overcome problem with ease and also the ability to relate the whole ordeal to us. He has certain humour when he speak and that is interesting.

Actually, I did not get involved in the whole driving episode. I wanted him to learn to be accountable for his own life. Luckily his dad was with him on this, so I was just an observer for the very first time. Yes, they handled it well and surprisingly a swift too, yay! (my gal favourite word)

He will be getting his P licence in a week's time and he is eager to go behind the wheel. That makes me very nervous. Well, he is my boy and I have to trust him. Looking forward to it too:)

My kids show courtesy

My gal bought a baju kurung for her school project for Social Studies. She put her baju kurung in a plastic bag and put it besides her school bag the night before so that she remembers to bring it.

That morning, my gal finished her breakfast late and my boy took her bag and put it in the car boot. Then, off we went. When we dropped them off at school, my gal turned back and said something about her clothes which we didn't really understand. But when we asked further, she said nothing. So we left and we figured out in the car that she may have left the baju kurung behind.

At home I actually wanted to send it to her but second thought, I should let her learn to deal with blunder like this. Moreover when she didnt insist further, it means it is not too urgent.

So my boy actually did her a favour and it's his favour that made her forgot her baju kurung that morning. When they came home, we talked about it and to my surprise, they apologised to each other for the blunder. They understood and they were courteous. So happy and proud of them.

Phuket Trip 2014

This is our third trip to Phuket already and this time I was reluctant to leave this place. It's now like a second home to me. My family and I are quite familiar with the place now. We stayed at Anantara Vacation Club in a 2 bedroom pool suite and it was so relaxing.  

In fact this trip was indifferent from the previous ones. This is the first time my kids enjoyed the hotel facilities independently. My boy made an effort to wake up early to work out at the gym alone. Then he proceeded to the pool where we met up with him for a swim. Poor JW had menses, couldn't get into the pool but she didn't waste any precious holiday time. She rented a bike and cycled alone. She cycled around us and we could actually see her from our pool. It was a joy.

In Phuket, we did a lot and have beautiful memories. We cycled in the club vicinity and nearby to the beach. We searched for good food and has unconsciously became regular customers. We enjoyed food at Jakkajan on the beach with a beautiful view, Kin Dee, MK steamboat, Ko Ta Chicken Rice, Swensen Ice cream, beach huts at Naiyang, The Coffee Club etc. The kids found a new liking this time, the ice cream at DQ (Dairy Queen) that won't drop even if u turn it up side down. It was glued to the cup, interesting. They love it. We had plenty fun at the Trick eye Museum and taken loads of pictures. My kids acted very real in those 3D pictures and they are photogenic. I like taking photos of them. TH also enjoyed himself like a child:)

We also made our way back to Naiyang beach, walking down the memory lane way back in 2011. We strolled along the beach and into the National park nearby. Our kids had fun with the waves and got themselves semi wet. Meanwhile TH and I enjoyed some drinks on the beach while watching over them. It was so joyful to watch them growing up enjoying each other company happily.

My boy bought a Brazil World Cup 2014 t-shirt at the Adidas outlet. He wore it to play a football golf game with us but somehow that place was closed on that day, so my boy didn't get to show off his skill, what a disappointment. Then, we went shopping at Central Festival where we bought a new luggage to replace the broken one which we brought there. It cost us $500. We also bought some plastic colorful tableware for our new home.

Overall, it was a great holiday and all of us agree to return again in the near future.

This time we actually left Lassie at home in the back yard with 3 buckets of water and an edible bone. She was in good shape when we returned. It was a bliss when all of us worked together to tidy up and within 30 minutes, all is in order. I am so thankful for my family. They are now in their teens and it makes a difference, a good difference. Live them. 

Actuarial Science for my boy!

I have mixed feelings today. I have helped my boy to make a decision and I am happy for him and yet, I feel uncomfortable. Uncomfortable because I don't want to bid farewell, I don't want to let him go. I will miss him badly. When I stared at him just now, I felt like crying, hmm... my boy has grown up and it's time he needs to learn independence.

Well, I have written a letter to him yesterday. I have sourced information through the Internet over the last few days and compiled a comparison report of 5 types of career pathway.  He wanted a career that has to do with Maths and Science which are his strong subjects. So, I did a research on Actuarial Science, Chemical Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Civil Engineering and Pilot. He chose AS. I respect his decision.

The plan for AS is that he will study a year at HELP and three years eight months at Waterloo University in Canada. It is a co-op program by HELP. He will have the opportunity to work eight months in Canada to gain working experience in AS industry. If he is good, the company may want to take him in after graduation and that will be a golden opportunity. Canada allows students to work for a maximum of 3 years after graduation as long as he study in Canada for 3 years.

I am indeed happy and excited for him but when the thought of him leaving home for so long makes me sad.