yes, we are at home. We are not at some happening New Year's eve shindig. We, the Selva family, are at home. And I am watching tv, Facebooking and blogging .. while putting Calista to sleep.
*sigh*
I am not one to make resolutions .. my hubby was busy making them for me earlier over dinner. He said his was to lose some weight and looked at me pointedly. I am perfectly fine with the way I am, I told him .. while taking a swig of my Coke .. hahaha! ... And he said, he was going to get me a pair of inline skates.
Blardy hell.
I did try to learn how to inline skate LONG AGO. Like way before I had Claudia. I tried inline skating like once .. then shortly after that, I was pregnant, had Claudia .. then we left for the States when she was 3.5 years old. Then I got rid of the skates before we came back cos they were really too bulky and we were kinda short on shipping space .. lol.
Anyway, I am not keen now. Hubby wants me to pick it up. DAMN.
2009 has been a very hectic year for me. The year kinda whizzed by. WIth 4 growing girls, there was a lot to do. Most of it chauffering them around for their classes and such. And taking care of a newborn was tiring too .. rewarding but tiring :p But I've been really blessed. God has been good to Stanley and I. To our family. Our girls are happy and healthy and Stanley and I remain in love .. and it's been 18 years for us :p Yeah, sure the man makes me agitated on and off .. but I know I'm really happy and glad to have him as my husband. He has been there for me always. For me and for the girls :) He loves me unconditionally and he puts us first always.
Here's hoping 2010 won't go by as fast so we get to enjoy it more as a family.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
A new vac and a dry cabinet :)
For all of u looking for a vacuum cleaner, u need to consider this. Where can u buy the bags for the thing? I didn't consider that factor when I bought my last vacuum cleaner .. a Rowenta Balloon, and for 9 years ... (except for the 2 years that we were away) .. we had to go to some corner of Singapore where the Rowenta service centre was to get the damn bags.
What's the big deal, you ask? .. huh, when you're down to the last bag in the box, and you don't have the TIME time to drive down to get the bags from some out-of-the-way place, then you'll know what I mean. Ditto, if u have to send the thing in for servicing.
So this time around, I decided to get a vac which was either bagless OR if it uses bags, then to make sure that the bags were easily available at Courts etc.
I went with Electrolux this time around. And it's bagless. It's not really super silent, just average .. but I didn't want to spend more than $300 for a vacuum cleaner that my maid would be handling. Simple to use. Not too heavy AND it's NOT MADE IN CHINA. A lot of the stuff out there is made in China. My old Rowenta WASN'T made in China .. it was made in UK .. and see, it lasted 9 years. This new one is made in Hungary.
I remember when I first bought that Rowenta Balloon 9 years ago, my hubby was quite against it cos it wasn't cheap .. though I can't recall the price now (lol) .. but SEE, IT LASTED SO DAMN BLARDY LONG.
My old Rowenta hasn't died by the way. It's still alive, just that some parts here and there have broken off over the years .. and it's gotten really noisy. But it has served us well. Just that it is kinda a pain to have to drive all the way down to the CBD area just to get the bags (the office has moved a few times over the years). For Electrolux, the service centre is in Toa Payoh - not too bad.
Anyway, hope this new vacuum will last. I'm hoping for at least 3 years. That's all I'm asking for.
We also bought a dry cabinet for my 7D ... so now, the damn thing has it's own little glass cabinet that controls the humidity and temperature so as to protect the camera and the lens. And it's digital :) AWESOME !!
What's the big deal, you ask? .. huh, when you're down to the last bag in the box, and you don't have the TIME time to drive down to get the bags from some out-of-the-way place, then you'll know what I mean. Ditto, if u have to send the thing in for servicing.
So this time around, I decided to get a vac which was either bagless OR if it uses bags, then to make sure that the bags were easily available at Courts etc.
I went with Electrolux this time around. And it's bagless. It's not really super silent, just average .. but I didn't want to spend more than $300 for a vacuum cleaner that my maid would be handling. Simple to use. Not too heavy AND it's NOT MADE IN CHINA. A lot of the stuff out there is made in China. My old Rowenta WASN'T made in China .. it was made in UK .. and see, it lasted 9 years. This new one is made in Hungary.
I remember when I first bought that Rowenta Balloon 9 years ago, my hubby was quite against it cos it wasn't cheap .. though I can't recall the price now (lol) .. but SEE, IT LASTED SO DAMN BLARDY LONG.
My old Rowenta hasn't died by the way. It's still alive, just that some parts here and there have broken off over the years .. and it's gotten really noisy. But it has served us well. Just that it is kinda a pain to have to drive all the way down to the CBD area just to get the bags (the office has moved a few times over the years). For Electrolux, the service centre is in Toa Payoh - not too bad.
Anyway, hope this new vacuum will last. I'm hoping for at least 3 years. That's all I'm asking for.
We also bought a dry cabinet for my 7D ... so now, the damn thing has it's own little glass cabinet that controls the humidity and temperature so as to protect the camera and the lens. And it's digital :) AWESOME !!
Monday, December 28, 2009
So I am now 36 years old!
*sigh*
gosh, that's OLD. My friend on Facebook was telling me that it's JUST A NUMBER. Yeah, right. No matter how old you look, your age is your age. Zoe Tay can try to LOOK young .. but man, that woman is past 40 and actually looks it now.
And so yes, I am 36 :( blardy hell. My maid, loyally said I didn't look 36 (yes, I know .. I PAY her money every month, so I am not stupid enough to believe her .. lol !) - nah, I am more than happy if people guess my age right rather than say I look older than that. People who guess younger often are people who can't really tell to begin with .. and they just take a stab in the dark. lol ! I have this friend who was telling me sometime ago that some of her younger friends said she looked to be in her 20s .. and I didn't have the heart to tell her that young people (her friends here were in their late teens - some kids she used to tutor) ... didn't KNOW HOW TO TELL AGE properly .. not that she didn't look YOUNG .. just that she looked her age lar, which is a year younger than I am. I did later hint to her that we all looked our age and that it was better than looking older, like 45 or more.
Anyway, to my horror .. I realized that I still like cutesy things even though I'm 36. Like what you ask? .... er, Hello Kitty is one of them. HAHAHAHAH!!
While I'm not INSANE enough to carry, say, a HK handbag around (heaven forbid) ... I'd be more than happy to have a HK coin purse (I have one already) or a HK pen .. something NOT obvious. I'd carry a HK bag .. but it would contain Calista's things .. so it would essentially be a baby bag .. which my maid would carry anyway.
My girls unfortunately, do not like Hello Kitty or Disney Princesses .. or even Strawberry Shortcake. I am now trying to rectify that sad situation. At least I get to buy the cutesy pink stuff for them if they like it .. !! They MUST like Hello Kitty. They HAVE TO. lol !!
Anyway, guess what I received on my birthday ? Yeap, these lovely, lovely flowers .. and no, they weren't from my dear husband.
They were delivered in the morning and so were waiting for me when we got back from church. I think they're gorgeous. I love flowers.
Thank you dear Lisa for your really thoughtful, extravagant gift. You are loved! :p
gosh, that's OLD. My friend on Facebook was telling me that it's JUST A NUMBER. Yeah, right. No matter how old you look, your age is your age. Zoe Tay can try to LOOK young .. but man, that woman is past 40 and actually looks it now.
And so yes, I am 36 :( blardy hell. My maid, loyally said I didn't look 36 (yes, I know .. I PAY her money every month, so I am not stupid enough to believe her .. lol !) - nah, I am more than happy if people guess my age right rather than say I look older than that. People who guess younger often are people who can't really tell to begin with .. and they just take a stab in the dark. lol ! I have this friend who was telling me sometime ago that some of her younger friends said she looked to be in her 20s .. and I didn't have the heart to tell her that young people (her friends here were in their late teens - some kids she used to tutor) ... didn't KNOW HOW TO TELL AGE properly .. not that she didn't look YOUNG .. just that she looked her age lar, which is a year younger than I am. I did later hint to her that we all looked our age and that it was better than looking older, like 45 or more.
Anyway, to my horror .. I realized that I still like cutesy things even though I'm 36. Like what you ask? .... er, Hello Kitty is one of them. HAHAHAHAH!!
While I'm not INSANE enough to carry, say, a HK handbag around (heaven forbid) ... I'd be more than happy to have a HK coin purse (I have one already) or a HK pen .. something NOT obvious. I'd carry a HK bag .. but it would contain Calista's things .. so it would essentially be a baby bag .. which my maid would carry anyway.
My girls unfortunately, do not like Hello Kitty or Disney Princesses .. or even Strawberry Shortcake. I am now trying to rectify that sad situation. At least I get to buy the cutesy pink stuff for them if they like it .. !! They MUST like Hello Kitty. They HAVE TO. lol !!
Anyway, guess what I received on my birthday ? Yeap, these lovely, lovely flowers .. and no, they weren't from my dear husband.
They were delivered in the morning and so were waiting for me when we got back from church. I think they're gorgeous. I love flowers.
Thank you dear Lisa for your really thoughtful, extravagant gift. You are loved! :p
Saturday, December 26, 2009
I'm dreaming of ....
a Russian apple pie. The one Blue Magnolia makes rocks!! .. I've tried a couple of their cakes, and I hafta say that their stuff is GOOD. I still love The Patissier but Blue Magnolia is quite awes0me as well.
I wanted to order their Russian Apple Pie for my birthday ... but alas, it's too late now :(
So have a go. Try their stuff. Especially the Russian Apple pie. Have it with good vanilla ice cream.
*drool*
I wanted to order their Russian Apple Pie for my birthday ... but alas, it's too late now :(
So have a go. Try their stuff. Especially the Russian Apple pie. Have it with good vanilla ice cream.
*drool*
Santa loves me.
Yes he does. He brought me a camera for Christmas !! .. I initially wanted to buy a Canon EOS 500D for myself .. cos it's an entry level DSLR camera and since I ain't no pro .. I thought that would be more than enough for me. At the end of the day, I mostly take pics of my girls, my girls and yes, my girls. SO .. I was really shocked and surprised when hubby presented me with my gift on Christmas morning and I unwrapped it to find it was the Canon EOS 7D instead. Shocked because, up till a few weeks ago, he was dead set against me buying a new camera for myself. He had insisted that my current camera was more than enough.
As I had complained in an earlier post here, my camera is a Canon Powershot G3 .. it's like freaking 7 years old and is only 4 megapixels. *sigh* The rubber grip on the front of the body has disintegrated. Thing is, since I am quite careful with my possessions, the darn thing is still working perfectly fine otherwise. I haven't had to send it in for any kind of repair AT ALL in the 7 years I've had it .. and I've lugged it everywhere ... Disney World, Grand Canyon, up a mountain in Colorado Springs .. through cold winters (where the buttons actually became stiff for a bit in the cold) .. and it's still working perfectly.
sigh. And so the man refused to let me get a new camera.
I think we've had the argument a few times already and recently I had decided that I was going to get it and pay for it myself whether he liked it or not.
Guess he changed his mind and decided to get it for me instead. And he upgraded it to an even better model .. semi-pro actually, Now I am afraid of damaging the darn thing knowing he paid so much for it. And this was one of the reasons why I wanted to pay for it myself.
LOL :p -- it's like he can't win either way, huh? .. Get it for me, not happy. Don't get it for me, also not happy. WTH.
As I had complained in an earlier post here, my camera is a Canon Powershot G3 .. it's like freaking 7 years old and is only 4 megapixels. *sigh* The rubber grip on the front of the body has disintegrated. Thing is, since I am quite careful with my possessions, the darn thing is still working perfectly fine otherwise. I haven't had to send it in for any kind of repair AT ALL in the 7 years I've had it .. and I've lugged it everywhere ... Disney World, Grand Canyon, up a mountain in Colorado Springs .. through cold winters (where the buttons actually became stiff for a bit in the cold) .. and it's still working perfectly.
sigh. And so the man refused to let me get a new camera.
I think we've had the argument a few times already and recently I had decided that I was going to get it and pay for it myself whether he liked it or not.
Guess he changed his mind and decided to get it for me instead. And he upgraded it to an even better model .. semi-pro actually, Now I am afraid of damaging the darn thing knowing he paid so much for it. And this was one of the reasons why I wanted to pay for it myself.
LOL :p -- it's like he can't win either way, huh? .. Get it for me, not happy. Don't get it for me, also not happy. WTH.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Our new sofa ...
yes, as usual, it's from IKEA and it's leather. We find that with kids .. leather is the way to go. And the leather sofas at Ikea are pretty cheap considering there are leather sofas out there that cost more than 5k at Harvey Norman for example. We got the 3 seater one from Karlstad .. tufted black leather. We paid a bit more to change the legs from wooden to metal ones cos we thought the metal ones looked cooler with the black leather.
The sofa arrived today ... quite comfy. We are happy with out choice. And it was only 1.7k !! Alright!! .. On average, our sofas last about 2 years or so .. so the price is alright :)
It fits just nicely in our living room :) ... Now, we have to change the tv console. Our old one is looking rather ... er, old .. lol.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
So ....
the man has been home on leave since like a week or two ago ... I don't recall exactly when it is he went on leave cos counting only serves to remind me just how long the man has been at home IN MY WAY.
lol !!
ok lar, it's not like I detest him being around. I love the man. It's just that he can be a pain sometimes. hahahah :p And be in my way of doing things. I guess that's what it is. He has his way and I have mine .. and sometimes they don't match.
I really really need to go to Orchard to finish up my Christmas shopping. And it's already the 16th and I have yet to do it. Of course, he wants to know WHY I need it to be TOWN. I told him it's cos I LIKE BEING IN TOWN during the Christmas season. What's wrong with that? All the decorations, the Chrismassy stuff ... I like it. After all, HE was the one who gave me extra money to spend during Christmas .. and now he's making it hard for me to even spend it. wth. It's like some cruel joke. lol :p
Uncle of course is not really a fan of the whole going-to-town-story. Firstly, of course, there's the town erp charge *me rolling my eyes* ... and then the exorbitant parking in town *me rolling my eyes again - cos I've parked in town for hours on end .. did all my shopping and incurred a 20 dollar parking charge BUT I DROVE outta town HAPPY cos I completed my shopping .. this was 2 years ago - before Calista* .. I mean I can save on fuel and erp and parking ... but then how am going to lug all my shopping home on the MRT?!! I need my MPV man.
lol :p
Anyway, December is coming to an end ... then the man goes back to work. While I am regretful that he has to go back to work .. cos then the girls don't see him all that much .. SO DO I. hahahahah :p
I was watching an old episode of "Everybody loves Raymond" and Debra said to her husband, Raymond ... "I want you to want to be here ... but not actually be here"
EXACTLY, man .. especially when I'm trying to get my Christmas shopping done.
lol !!
ok lar, it's not like I detest him being around. I love the man. It's just that he can be a pain sometimes. hahahah :p And be in my way of doing things. I guess that's what it is. He has his way and I have mine .. and sometimes they don't match.
I really really need to go to Orchard to finish up my Christmas shopping. And it's already the 16th and I have yet to do it. Of course, he wants to know WHY I need it to be TOWN. I told him it's cos I LIKE BEING IN TOWN during the Christmas season. What's wrong with that? All the decorations, the Chrismassy stuff ... I like it. After all, HE was the one who gave me extra money to spend during Christmas .. and now he's making it hard for me to even spend it. wth. It's like some cruel joke. lol :p
Uncle of course is not really a fan of the whole going-to-town-story. Firstly, of course, there's the town erp charge *me rolling my eyes* ... and then the exorbitant parking in town *me rolling my eyes again - cos I've parked in town for hours on end .. did all my shopping and incurred a 20 dollar parking charge BUT I DROVE outta town HAPPY cos I completed my shopping .. this was 2 years ago - before Calista* .. I mean I can save on fuel and erp and parking ... but then how am going to lug all my shopping home on the MRT?!! I need my MPV man.
lol :p
Anyway, December is coming to an end ... then the man goes back to work. While I am regretful that he has to go back to work .. cos then the girls don't see him all that much .. SO DO I. hahahahah :p
I was watching an old episode of "Everybody loves Raymond" and Debra said to her husband, Raymond ... "I want you to want to be here ... but not actually be here"
EXACTLY, man .. especially when I'm trying to get my Christmas shopping done.
Monday, December 14, 2009
oh shucks ...
I just realized that the EOS 500D ... it being a DSLR and all ... doesn't have a movie mode. DAMN.
Now, I may have to rethink my choice. I would rather my camera have the movie function ... cos as parents, we sometimes like to take short clips and not just stills all the time.
HOW??!!! I know I can buy a digital video camera ... but I don't want to lug 2 cameras around.
hmmmmmmm.
Now, I may have to rethink my choice. I would rather my camera have the movie function ... cos as parents, we sometimes like to take short clips and not just stills all the time.
HOW??!!! I know I can buy a digital video camera ... but I don't want to lug 2 cameras around.
hmmmmmmm.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Blardy hell.
We got a new CPU. It's a kickass one. SUPER fast and silent. We went down to Sim Lim and had them fix it up .. we just chose the individual stuff inside ... the memory, the graphics card, the motherboard etc. Hubby FINALLY got sick and tired of our DELL. I swear that thing, it's like freaking 5 years old or so .. and it's so slow ... u can start it up, go to the loo, make your coffee and bread and come back to sit in front of it, and it would've just started up. BUT, it was still ok for general surfing and emailing and stuff. But if you start playing Facebook games on it .. or try to open more than one application at a time, then woe to u. It can either hang or just move really slow. Like snail slow. lol !
SO now my new CPU is so super fast. I lurve.
Only thing is it runs on Windows 7. And because of the amount of memory hubby installed, he opted for the 64bit version thereby making a lot more of my external devices not compatible. BUMMER, man. Luckily, my printer and router were installed just fine.
And of course, I can't seem to find the driver for my camera anywhere ONLINE not even the Canon website. Now I can't download my pics into my PC. I would use a card reader .. but guess what? .. My camera is soooooooo ancient, it's using the now rarely seen Compact Flash card. yeap, blardy hell indeed. Now I gotta figure out how on earth I am going to retrieve my photos from the camera.
I TOLD MY HUBBY THAT I NEED A NEW CAMERA.
huh. Now I guess I have to buy one. I was looking at the Canon EOS 500D at Alan Photo at Sim Lim when we were there getting the new CPU ... but it was out of stock and he didn't have a definite date for me. He tried to get me to buy the Nikon D5000 instead ... but I prefer Canon :)
Will wait for stock to come in then go down and get it.
Yay, I can't wait.
SO now my new CPU is so super fast. I lurve.
Only thing is it runs on Windows 7. And because of the amount of memory hubby installed, he opted for the 64bit version thereby making a lot more of my external devices not compatible. BUMMER, man. Luckily, my printer and router were installed just fine.
And of course, I can't seem to find the driver for my camera anywhere ONLINE not even the Canon website. Now I can't download my pics into my PC. I would use a card reader .. but guess what? .. My camera is soooooooo ancient, it's using the now rarely seen Compact Flash card. yeap, blardy hell indeed. Now I gotta figure out how on earth I am going to retrieve my photos from the camera.
I TOLD MY HUBBY THAT I NEED A NEW CAMERA.
huh. Now I guess I have to buy one. I was looking at the Canon EOS 500D at Alan Photo at Sim Lim when we were there getting the new CPU ... but it was out of stock and he didn't have a definite date for me. He tried to get me to buy the Nikon D5000 instead ... but I prefer Canon :)
Will wait for stock to come in then go down and get it.
Yay, I can't wait.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Home made pizza :)
Well, ok I admit .. I didn't really MAKE the pizza ... I more like assembled it .. lol ! ... The pizza base was from Melvados, the sauce from Prego .. canned pizza sauce, the grated mozzarella cheese was from QB .. the sliced salami pepperoni was from Cold Storage.I assembled it and put it on my humongous Dansk pizza baking stone (Yes, I have one .. bought it when we were in the States) and dumped it in my oven with the pizza on top ...And voila ... homemade pepperoni pizza. LOL !!
My girls loved it :)
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Speaking of new curtains ...
I strolled into the curtain shop the other day looking at their new stuff ... I'm kinda sick of the curtains we have on our hall windows .. especially the day curtains. They're not as white as they were when we first got them no matter what kind of detergent I use.
SIGH.
So I figured we could use a change. I went into the store and asked the sales assistant for some help. He let me look through some samples .. and one fabric caught my fancy.
HUH. I HAD to pick the expensive one. DAMN. For the day curtains alone, it'll cost $800 plus. JUST FOR THE HALL.
No way hubby would go for it. He'd have a FIT. lol !
SIGH.
So I figured we could use a change. I went into the store and asked the sales assistant for some help. He let me look through some samples .. and one fabric caught my fancy.
HUH. I HAD to pick the expensive one. DAMN. For the day curtains alone, it'll cost $800 plus. JUST FOR THE HALL.
No way hubby would go for it. He'd have a FIT. lol !
Monday, November 23, 2009
Hubby is HOME !!!
The man is back ... yay!! .. For one thing, he brought us load of gifts .. lol ! .. And for another, he's back so HE can take the car for waxing this month .. hahahaha!! ..
Anyway, my other girlfriend, Mel .. whose hubby was on the same trip, informed me that she was going to fetch her hubby from the airport ... the man was being "manja" she said and wanted her to pick him up .. LOL !!! .. I had earlier told her that Stanley was taking a cab back from the airport (since taxi fare is claim-able ... and my gas isn't .. CHE) .. and she had told her hubby to get a cab back home too. But since he WANTED her to fetch him, she decided to give in and promptly asked ME to fetch Stanley too so we could meet up earlier for coffee or tea and catch up. LOL !! ..
So I agreed. Left the house at 10.30pm and drove to Terminal 3 and we had coffee at Ya Kun .. I quite like their kaya toast btw although it's kinda light .. I had four and it felt like a drop in a vast ocean of my tummy .. LOL !! ..
Calista was with me btw .. she was fast asleep in her stroller .. :) but of course, she was HOLLERING all the way from our house to the airport in the car. sigh.
Anyway, the aim of showing up at the airport to fetch Stanley was to surprise him since he was supposed to be taking a cab home .. but alas, the man with his excellent vision spotted me attempting to hide behind a pillar. Eh, it was a big pillar ok?! lol.
He was happy to see me even though he said I shouldn't have come :p cos it was so late and I had Calista with me ..
As we were walking back to the carpark, hubby asked "Eh, where did this stroller come from?" ... ah yes, my new stroller ... I laughed and said it was a good deal and he didn't scold me cos I think he missed me a lot and he was happy to see me .. HAHAHAHA !!! ..
Of course when got home, another surprise was waiting ... I had thrown out a couple of pieces of furniture that I had deemed to be ugly or old or just plain clutter - our coffee table and a little telephone table cum shoe storage thing (both from Barang Barang) .. and my teak chaise lounge. Now, the 2 items from Barang Barang were still fine but with the Little Tikes table and bench .. the coffee table was just in the way .. My teak chaise lounge too was in excellent condition .. well, the wood anyway since it was teak .. but it needed reupholstering .. I had asked around and for a 3 seater like mine, it would've cost $450 .. and frankly speaking, we don't have to the space to keep it.
With 4 kids, I'd rather the house be clutter free .. more space for them to play :) SO hubby came home to a noticeably neater and emptier hall. I had taken the opportunity to chuck those items out when he wasn't around cos he had objected to me getting rid of them .. he said they were perfectly usable so why get rid of them ? .. we had argued numerous time about it ... and finally, I decided enough was enough ... what can he do if I just go ahead and throw it out? ... lol .. of course, he complained and said he would've liked me to tell him before getting rid of things .. but why ask when you already know the answer? .. hahahah :) I did feel slightly guilty when I threw out those things but seeing my hall devoid of these items ... making it more spacious and neater was worth it.
Now ... hmmmm I think I need to change the curtains .. lol !! ..
Anyway, my other girlfriend, Mel .. whose hubby was on the same trip, informed me that she was going to fetch her hubby from the airport ... the man was being "manja" she said and wanted her to pick him up .. LOL !!! .. I had earlier told her that Stanley was taking a cab back from the airport (since taxi fare is claim-able ... and my gas isn't .. CHE) .. and she had told her hubby to get a cab back home too. But since he WANTED her to fetch him, she decided to give in and promptly asked ME to fetch Stanley too so we could meet up earlier for coffee or tea and catch up. LOL !! ..
So I agreed. Left the house at 10.30pm and drove to Terminal 3 and we had coffee at Ya Kun .. I quite like their kaya toast btw although it's kinda light .. I had four and it felt like a drop in a vast ocean of my tummy .. LOL !! ..
Calista was with me btw .. she was fast asleep in her stroller .. :) but of course, she was HOLLERING all the way from our house to the airport in the car. sigh.
Anyway, the aim of showing up at the airport to fetch Stanley was to surprise him since he was supposed to be taking a cab home .. but alas, the man with his excellent vision spotted me attempting to hide behind a pillar. Eh, it was a big pillar ok?! lol.
He was happy to see me even though he said I shouldn't have come :p cos it was so late and I had Calista with me ..
As we were walking back to the carpark, hubby asked "Eh, where did this stroller come from?" ... ah yes, my new stroller ... I laughed and said it was a good deal and he didn't scold me cos I think he missed me a lot and he was happy to see me .. HAHAHAHA !!! ..
Of course when got home, another surprise was waiting ... I had thrown out a couple of pieces of furniture that I had deemed to be ugly or old or just plain clutter - our coffee table and a little telephone table cum shoe storage thing (both from Barang Barang) .. and my teak chaise lounge. Now, the 2 items from Barang Barang were still fine but with the Little Tikes table and bench .. the coffee table was just in the way .. My teak chaise lounge too was in excellent condition .. well, the wood anyway since it was teak .. but it needed reupholstering .. I had asked around and for a 3 seater like mine, it would've cost $450 .. and frankly speaking, we don't have to the space to keep it.
With 4 kids, I'd rather the house be clutter free .. more space for them to play :) SO hubby came home to a noticeably neater and emptier hall. I had taken the opportunity to chuck those items out when he wasn't around cos he had objected to me getting rid of them .. he said they were perfectly usable so why get rid of them ? .. we had argued numerous time about it ... and finally, I decided enough was enough ... what can he do if I just go ahead and throw it out? ... lol .. of course, he complained and said he would've liked me to tell him before getting rid of things .. but why ask when you already know the answer? .. hahahah :) I did feel slightly guilty when I threw out those things but seeing my hall devoid of these items ... making it more spacious and neater was worth it.
Now ... hmmmm I think I need to change the curtains .. lol !! ..
Friday, November 20, 2009
So hubby turns 35 today ...
or rather yesterday, the 19th of Nov .. which also means that after Christmas, I turn 36 !! .. That's so super depressing, man .. lol !!
Yes, my man is a year younger than I am ... no big deal to me or him .. but of course, he has said that for this month and the next till my birthday, we are the same age .. like duh, who is he kidding?!! .. Anyway, although he isn't around, I told the girls that we will get him a cake and celebrate it when he gets back past midnite on Sat .. (er, that makes it Sunday) ..
Today is the last day that he had to chat online with me via Live Messenger .. and the girls all had a ball of a time waving to him via the webcam and also seeing their Daddy. Calista too, suprisingly, recognized him and was shrieking and pointing at the screen and trying to say De de ... so farneee.
The man may have been gone a month but I saw him close to everyday via webcam ... lol. He would come back really late and force his eyelids open so he could get onto the net .. go on the Starhub web sms website .. and send me an sms saying he was online. I would then get onto Live Messenger and we would chat awhile. I kept telling the man to go and get his sleep but he was only too happy to see me and chat with me awhile.
Truthfully, it was er, inconvenient sometimes. lol !!! .. For example, I would be outside picking Lauren up at school and would have to rush back so that we can chat online .. cos I felt bad that he was staying up just to catch me online to have a short conversation with me ... so thank god he's coming back home .. LOL !!! Chatting online via Live Messenger means that we incurred ZERO overseas calls .. all he paid for for the whole month was the rental of the modem .. which was about $70USD .. so that he had internet access. It's really awesome having internet access wherever u are in the world cos u can send an sms or chat online ..
It didn't take me long to adjust to having to do everything myself and with my vertigo completely gone, I am more than capable of handling everything on my own .. I DID take the car to be waxed, now didn't I? .. All I have to do tomorrow is to bring the car down to Honda to have the tyres pumped with nitrogen (I think that's what it is) ..
Like I told my friend the other day .. just leave me with cash, credit cards, car and maid .. and I can survive. LOL !!! ..
Yes, my man is a year younger than I am ... no big deal to me or him .. but of course, he has said that for this month and the next till my birthday, we are the same age .. like duh, who is he kidding?!! .. Anyway, although he isn't around, I told the girls that we will get him a cake and celebrate it when he gets back past midnite on Sat .. (er, that makes it Sunday) ..
Today is the last day that he had to chat online with me via Live Messenger .. and the girls all had a ball of a time waving to him via the webcam and also seeing their Daddy. Calista too, suprisingly, recognized him and was shrieking and pointing at the screen and trying to say De de ... so farneee.
The man may have been gone a month but I saw him close to everyday via webcam ... lol. He would come back really late and force his eyelids open so he could get onto the net .. go on the Starhub web sms website .. and send me an sms saying he was online. I would then get onto Live Messenger and we would chat awhile. I kept telling the man to go and get his sleep but he was only too happy to see me and chat with me awhile.
Truthfully, it was er, inconvenient sometimes. lol !!! .. For example, I would be outside picking Lauren up at school and would have to rush back so that we can chat online .. cos I felt bad that he was staying up just to catch me online to have a short conversation with me ... so thank god he's coming back home .. LOL !!! Chatting online via Live Messenger means that we incurred ZERO overseas calls .. all he paid for for the whole month was the rental of the modem .. which was about $70USD .. so that he had internet access. It's really awesome having internet access wherever u are in the world cos u can send an sms or chat online ..
It didn't take me long to adjust to having to do everything myself and with my vertigo completely gone, I am more than capable of handling everything on my own .. I DID take the car to be waxed, now didn't I? .. All I have to do tomorrow is to bring the car down to Honda to have the tyres pumped with nitrogen (I think that's what it is) ..
Like I told my friend the other day .. just leave me with cash, credit cards, car and maid .. and I can survive. LOL !!! ..
Sunday, November 15, 2009
obsession ...
yes, I admit it. I have an obsession with strollers. While other people I know can use the same stroller from Baby No.1 right up to Baby No. 3 .. I can't. I love seeing NEW strollers, new models, new colours.
And that's how I ended up with MULTIPLE strollers. And not the cheap ass types too, mind you. Well, not the top of the line either .. I think my hubby will truly club me over the head if I buy the Stokke Explory -- ahh I love that one.
So anyway, I bought another MacLaren Quest .. this one is Black and Scarlet. Awesome! . I love the colour combination. Now I have 2. Well, granted that the one I already own is not new .. it's about a couple of years old .. and some features are different. The one thing i hated about it ... the colour. When I bought it years ago, they didn't have nice colours .. at least I don't remember there being any - mine is totally grey. UGH. I know that shortly after that, they came up with the very sweet ones with the pinks, and browns .. ARGHHHHHH! .. I felt DAMN cheated of course.
So now, I am satisfied. And I also have to find somewhere to HIDE it. LOL ! . from HIM of course. He has NO clue that I bought it. After my Quinny Buzz, he banned me from buying anymore strollers. yeah, whatever.
Anyway, I am thinking of selling my Buzz cos it blardy takes up a lot of space. I told hubby that if I were to accidentally get pregnant with Baby No. 5, I am buying a Bugaboo Bee to make myself happy. lol !! .. Hubby cannot understand my obsession with strollers. Neither can my friends.
And that's how I ended up with MULTIPLE strollers. And not the cheap ass types too, mind you. Well, not the top of the line either .. I think my hubby will truly club me over the head if I buy the Stokke Explory -- ahh I love that one.
So anyway, I bought another MacLaren Quest .. this one is Black and Scarlet. Awesome! . I love the colour combination. Now I have 2. Well, granted that the one I already own is not new .. it's about a couple of years old .. and some features are different. The one thing i hated about it ... the colour. When I bought it years ago, they didn't have nice colours .. at least I don't remember there being any - mine is totally grey. UGH. I know that shortly after that, they came up with the very sweet ones with the pinks, and browns .. ARGHHHHHH! .. I felt DAMN cheated of course.
So now, I am satisfied. And I also have to find somewhere to HIDE it. LOL ! . from HIM of course. He has NO clue that I bought it. After my Quinny Buzz, he banned me from buying anymore strollers. yeah, whatever.
Anyway, I am thinking of selling my Buzz cos it blardy takes up a lot of space. I told hubby that if I were to accidentally get pregnant with Baby No. 5, I am buying a Bugaboo Bee to make myself happy. lol !! .. Hubby cannot understand my obsession with strollers. Neither can my friends.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
My dog ain't no teacup yorkie ...
Isabel, my Golden retriever mix goes to the groomer, at least once a month to get her nails and fur trimmed .. and to get a nice bath too.
In between that, we bathe her here in our condo cos she needs to be bathed with some expensive medicated shampoo for some skin condition she has ...
I swear the shampoo costs more than my Head and Shoulders shampoo, man .. blardy hell. Lol ! 25 bucks a pop. And it doesn't even last a month since Isabel ain't teeny.
Washing her is like washing a Kia Picanto .. and no, we don't bathe her in our bathroom .. her fur will clog up the drain - we do it in the basement carpark .. where lots of residents wash their cars. They wash their cars .. we bathe the dog.
It's back breaking and you swear and curse and perspire a lot while doing it. But it has to be done ... she needs her medicated bath every 4 days or so. It's actually hubby's responsibility .. but since he's away, guess who has to do it ... *blardy hell*
Anyway, I bathed her on Saturday .. took me a whole hour. She is really good and just stands there obediently while u scrub her and then hose her down ... but it's still tiring.
We also bought this pet dryer from the States that we use to dry her .. it's kinda like the hair dryer we use ... but this one doesn't give off any heat .. it just blows room temp air. It's really powerful .. we bought it online off the net and had it shipped from the States. Even with overseas shipping, it was still cheaper to buy the thing from there THAN HERE ... huh .. go figure.
So hubby says since I seem to be so pro at washing and bathing Isabel (he takes 1.5 hours as opposed to my 1) .. I should take over the job. Needless to say, there is not a chance in hell of that ever happening in this lifetime or the next.
Once the man is back, he's bathing the dog. I don't care if his back hurts. As long as it ain't mine.
In between that, we bathe her here in our condo cos she needs to be bathed with some expensive medicated shampoo for some skin condition she has ...
I swear the shampoo costs more than my Head and Shoulders shampoo, man .. blardy hell. Lol ! 25 bucks a pop. And it doesn't even last a month since Isabel ain't teeny.
Washing her is like washing a Kia Picanto .. and no, we don't bathe her in our bathroom .. her fur will clog up the drain - we do it in the basement carpark .. where lots of residents wash their cars. They wash their cars .. we bathe the dog.
It's back breaking and you swear and curse and perspire a lot while doing it. But it has to be done ... she needs her medicated bath every 4 days or so. It's actually hubby's responsibility .. but since he's away, guess who has to do it ... *blardy hell*
Anyway, I bathed her on Saturday .. took me a whole hour. She is really good and just stands there obediently while u scrub her and then hose her down ... but it's still tiring.
We also bought this pet dryer from the States that we use to dry her .. it's kinda like the hair dryer we use ... but this one doesn't give off any heat .. it just blows room temp air. It's really powerful .. we bought it online off the net and had it shipped from the States. Even with overseas shipping, it was still cheaper to buy the thing from there THAN HERE ... huh .. go figure.
So hubby says since I seem to be so pro at washing and bathing Isabel (he takes 1.5 hours as opposed to my 1) .. I should take over the job. Needless to say, there is not a chance in hell of that ever happening in this lifetime or the next.
Once the man is back, he's bathing the dog. I don't care if his back hurts. As long as it ain't mine.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Entrapment ..
Some 2 weeks ago, at about midnight, hubby's phone beeped .. it was an incoming sms. I picked it up and read it ... it was from a colleague of his who was in Paris at the time on course and had sms-ed Stanley to ask if he wanted to get anything from there.
Specifically, he asked if Stanley wanted to buy a handbag for me cos it was way cheaper over there apparently. I read the sms and SNORTED to myself.
The next morning, my hubby calls from work and asks me "so how? do u want anything from Paris? Any handbag or something? Obiwan says the handbags there are cheaper .. some lady colleague on the same course bought a Miu Miu bag for 1.4k .. apparently the same model here is 2k" ...
Eh, do I look dumb? Of course I told him "it's ok - I don't want anything" ... It's plain suicide if I were to say I want for eg, the LV Monogram Canvas Gailliera ... lol !! I know my hubby ...
ENTRAPMENT. That's all I can say. He was waiting for me to say yes .. then I would've gotten an EARFUL about buying expensive handbags ... if I want to buy expensive stuff, I usually do it on my own without him knowing and preferably in cash (no paper trail). I wasn't born yesterday.
Specifically, he asked if Stanley wanted to buy a handbag for me cos it was way cheaper over there apparently. I read the sms and SNORTED to myself.
The next morning, my hubby calls from work and asks me "so how? do u want anything from Paris? Any handbag or something? Obiwan says the handbags there are cheaper .. some lady colleague on the same course bought a Miu Miu bag for 1.4k .. apparently the same model here is 2k" ...
Eh, do I look dumb? Of course I told him "it's ok - I don't want anything" ... It's plain suicide if I were to say I want for eg, the LV Monogram Canvas Gailliera ... lol !! I know my hubby ...
ENTRAPMENT. That's all I can say. He was waiting for me to say yes .. then I would've gotten an EARFUL about buying expensive handbags ... if I want to buy expensive stuff, I usually do it on my own without him knowing and preferably in cash (no paper trail). I wasn't born yesterday.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Lawton, Oklahoma
Hubby is leaving early Sunday morning for Lawton, Oklahoma .. for a month. Well, ALMOST a month. He gets back on the 23rd of Nov. He'll miss his 35th birthday but will make it back in time for Calista's FIRST on the 30th of November.
It would've been nice to accompany him on his trip ... not that I've always wanted to visit Oklahoma, but he'll be living on the base and not in a hotel so if we went, we'd be pretty much on our own the whole time. And seriously, I'd rather NOT be stuck alone with ALL my girls ALL the time .. with no maid.
Yes, I am dependent on my helper. Actually, I just need SOMEONE to help me .. 3 young ones to wash, feed and dress EVERYDAY ain't easy AND with the housework, the cooking and the dogs *sigh* ... and I realized that a helper is the best option as opposed to family cos you can INSTRUCT a helper to do things the way you want it done but not so much with a family member. LOL!
Speaking of helpers, I sms-ed my ex-maid in Indonesia just to ask her how things were ... and she has been really busy in the fields she said ... and that it's really tiring and that she felt like fainting everyday. I replied that I would've keeled over and died right there in the fields had I been a farmer. seriously. Or rather, a farmer's wife.
So anyway, back to hubby ... I will miss him LOTS. Plus, it also means that I will be the only one on driver duty while he's gone. Aw man ... I feel tired already. I have prepared a list of things he can buy and bring back ... but this time around, he won't be anywhere near the factory outlets *dammit* Nevermind, there's always TJMaxx .. lol !
It would've been nice to accompany him on his trip ... not that I've always wanted to visit Oklahoma, but he'll be living on the base and not in a hotel so if we went, we'd be pretty much on our own the whole time. And seriously, I'd rather NOT be stuck alone with ALL my girls ALL the time .. with no maid.
Yes, I am dependent on my helper. Actually, I just need SOMEONE to help me .. 3 young ones to wash, feed and dress EVERYDAY ain't easy AND with the housework, the cooking and the dogs *sigh* ... and I realized that a helper is the best option as opposed to family cos you can INSTRUCT a helper to do things the way you want it done but not so much with a family member. LOL!
Speaking of helpers, I sms-ed my ex-maid in Indonesia just to ask her how things were ... and she has been really busy in the fields she said ... and that it's really tiring and that she felt like fainting everyday. I replied that I would've keeled over and died right there in the fields had I been a farmer. seriously. Or rather, a farmer's wife.
So anyway, back to hubby ... I will miss him LOTS. Plus, it also means that I will be the only one on driver duty while he's gone. Aw man ... I feel tired already. I have prepared a list of things he can buy and bring back ... but this time around, he won't be anywhere near the factory outlets *dammit* Nevermind, there's always TJMaxx .. lol !
Monday, October 19, 2009
In my past life ...
I can say with some certainty that I wasn't a fisherman or a fishmonger.
Last night, my brother-in-law dropped by and gave us 4 fishes he had caught fishing at the reservoir .. ie they were fresh water fish. He had called me in the evening to tell me that he was coming down later that night to pass them to me .. so at about 7pm. my maid was instructed to go downstairs to meet him with a empty pail.
She put the pail on the kitchen counter .. and man, I hate the smell of fish. I knew without asking my maid that she had never cleaned fish before. SO obviously, the unpleasant task fell on me to do it. DAMMIT. I told her to stand with me so I could show how it's done. Actually, it was a needless exercise since I ALWAYS buy fish from the supermarket .. all nicely descaled and cut and packed on nice styrofoam plates. Even if I did buy fish that needed cleaning, errrr, I usually ask the Cold Storage fish uncle to do it for me.
So ... I haven't cleaned a fish in YEARS. There is a reason for that. I hate doing it. I hate the smell, the icky stuff that comes out of them .. and later the stink that is left behind in my kitchen sink (not really, but I am sensitive when it comes to smells) ..
But this time around, there was no way out. I had to do it. I cursed my brother-in-law in my head while my maid lined the sink with a plastic bag and tipped the fish out into the sink. UGH!!! Plus what made it worse for me was knowing that barely a few hours ago, they had been ALIVE AND SWIMMING. AAAAAAAAAH! .. At least with the supermarket fish, I KNOW THEY HAVE BEEN DEAD AWHILE but these fish, who knows when they died. I'm betting it was under 2 hours ..
All, I can say is, thank goodness for the rubber gloves I had bought at Carrefour last week. It really helped a lot knowing my fingers weren't going to smell horribly after cleaning the fish out. My girls of course, were fascinated with the fish .. cos they were unlike any of the fish we had bought from the supermarket. Of course, for one thing, they were in ONE WHOLE PIECE, head, tail and all .. and for another, I've never seen this particular fish in ANY MARKET (ok, so the last time I went to a wet market was when I was 7) ..
I hope to high heaven they taste good when my maid fries them up tomorrow.
And yes, I'll take supermarket cleaned fish ANYTIME.
Last night, my brother-in-law dropped by and gave us 4 fishes he had caught fishing at the reservoir .. ie they were fresh water fish. He had called me in the evening to tell me that he was coming down later that night to pass them to me .. so at about 7pm. my maid was instructed to go downstairs to meet him with a empty pail.
She put the pail on the kitchen counter .. and man, I hate the smell of fish. I knew without asking my maid that she had never cleaned fish before. SO obviously, the unpleasant task fell on me to do it. DAMMIT. I told her to stand with me so I could show how it's done. Actually, it was a needless exercise since I ALWAYS buy fish from the supermarket .. all nicely descaled and cut and packed on nice styrofoam plates. Even if I did buy fish that needed cleaning, errrr, I usually ask the Cold Storage fish uncle to do it for me.
So ... I haven't cleaned a fish in YEARS. There is a reason for that. I hate doing it. I hate the smell, the icky stuff that comes out of them .. and later the stink that is left behind in my kitchen sink (not really, but I am sensitive when it comes to smells) ..
But this time around, there was no way out. I had to do it. I cursed my brother-in-law in my head while my maid lined the sink with a plastic bag and tipped the fish out into the sink. UGH!!! Plus what made it worse for me was knowing that barely a few hours ago, they had been ALIVE AND SWIMMING. AAAAAAAAAH! .. At least with the supermarket fish, I KNOW THEY HAVE BEEN DEAD AWHILE but these fish, who knows when they died. I'm betting it was under 2 hours ..
All, I can say is, thank goodness for the rubber gloves I had bought at Carrefour last week. It really helped a lot knowing my fingers weren't going to smell horribly after cleaning the fish out. My girls of course, were fascinated with the fish .. cos they were unlike any of the fish we had bought from the supermarket. Of course, for one thing, they were in ONE WHOLE PIECE, head, tail and all .. and for another, I've never seen this particular fish in ANY MARKET (ok, so the last time I went to a wet market was when I was 7) ..
I hope to high heaven they taste good when my maid fries them up tomorrow.
And yes, I'll take supermarket cleaned fish ANYTIME.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
recycling ....
The last time I was downstairs around my condo taking a stroll, I noticed that the management had finally decided to put up bins for recycling .. glass, plastic and paper - so now, I feel slightly better .. I use enough baby wipes on a daily basis to cause deforestation somewhere I'm sure .. lol .. so it's nice to know that I can do my little part by recycling other things .. like Coke bottles and Heinz glass jars and paper ... of course, my maid is the one making these trips to the bins to chuck them in .. lol ! ..
Speaking of whom .. it was her birthday on Monday .. she turned 20 .. I got her a small cake for the girls to sing her the birthday song and I gave her an angpow cos I didn't know what to get her .. the girls love celebrating birthdays and sang her the birthday song happily. I'm really glad that they have adjusted to her quite easily and enjoy her company and at the same time, they do respect her and treat her as an authority figure somewhat. She is still Miss Blur Queen .. I still don't ask her WHERE things are in the house but she does her work fairly decently and I have no complaints there. I don't want to vacuum and mop the house myself. EVER.
lol :p
Speaking of whom .. it was her birthday on Monday .. she turned 20 .. I got her a small cake for the girls to sing her the birthday song and I gave her an angpow cos I didn't know what to get her .. the girls love celebrating birthdays and sang her the birthday song happily. I'm really glad that they have adjusted to her quite easily and enjoy her company and at the same time, they do respect her and treat her as an authority figure somewhat. She is still Miss Blur Queen .. I still don't ask her WHERE things are in the house but she does her work fairly decently and I have no complaints there. I don't want to vacuum and mop the house myself. EVER.
lol :p
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Why I haven't been blogging ..
This has taken over my life. Lol. I kid u not. It's a game on Facebook .. and it's addictive. Well, I am addicted. Actually, there are a few games on Facebook that I am playing currently. Pet Society, Country Story and now, Cafe World. The games have sort of taken over my life .. so in between helping Claudia to revise and taking care of Calista, and managing Lauren and Emily, I am now glued to these games.
sigh. Who'd have thought I'd be a gamer of sorts. Lol !!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
My happy weekend ...
*sigh* ...
I fully admit I love shopping. While I do enjoy window shopping, there's NOTHING like BUYING things to add to all the other stuff you already have at home .. lol !
And yes, I love a good bargain. You don't get that a lot here. Here the prices are marked up before they are marked down during a sale. It's horrible. I love shopping while I was in the States ... u get good bargains all the time. There was this one time, the departmental store in our town, Dillards had a massive clearance of their ladies' shoe dept. It was AWESOME. My friend and I almost went into a frenzy .. I think I bought more than 10 pairs of shoes including 2 pairs of BOOTS .. lol !! .. One ankle high and another pair, knee high .. this was AFTER winter so they were going for guess how much ? ... US$14.99 EACH !! Both by the brand Mudd ... really well made. Still have them .. aw come on, I think I would get LAUGHED at wearing them here in sunny Singapore. *sigh* My friend and I visited that shoe dept in Dillards everyday for a few days straight cos they were clearing out everything and we didn't want to miss a thing. My friend picked up a pair of Cole Haan pumps which unfortunately were too big for her and too small for me .. we sat there for a full 10 minutes wondering who on earth we could buy them for .. but seriously, how many of us can actually say we know what size shoes our friends wear? .. lol !!
So yes, I love good bargains ... and last week, an ad in the paper caught my eye. Shoehaus was having a clearance sale at Orchard Plaza .. I remember walking into their store at Suntec some years ago ... their shoes were nice .. from Germany, but expensive .. all at least $160 and above. What I liked about them was that they came in BIG sizes .. My shoes size is 10 (US) .. and it is a PAIN shopping for shoes here. For the longest time, I could only buy shoes from Marks and Spencers and the brand Rockport from World of Sport cos I couldn't find shoes in my size ANYWHERE ELSE. Even the branded ones went up to max size 8 or 9 but the cutting would be on the small side. These days, it's much better cos I can just buy online .. and I still have a TON of shoes that I brought back from the States that I haven't gotten around to wearing .. lol.
ANYWAY ... we went down to Shoehaus and I got 2 pairs of leather sandals ... AWESOME !! They are so comfy ... one is a Josef Seibel pair and the other .. Romika and they were going for so cheap ... 70 bucks per pair !!!! .. I was really happy !! ..
sigh. I love shoes ... GOOD shoes.
I fully admit I love shopping. While I do enjoy window shopping, there's NOTHING like BUYING things to add to all the other stuff you already have at home .. lol !
And yes, I love a good bargain. You don't get that a lot here. Here the prices are marked up before they are marked down during a sale. It's horrible. I love shopping while I was in the States ... u get good bargains all the time. There was this one time, the departmental store in our town, Dillards had a massive clearance of their ladies' shoe dept. It was AWESOME. My friend and I almost went into a frenzy .. I think I bought more than 10 pairs of shoes including 2 pairs of BOOTS .. lol !! .. One ankle high and another pair, knee high .. this was AFTER winter so they were going for guess how much ? ... US$14.99 EACH !! Both by the brand Mudd ... really well made. Still have them .. aw come on, I think I would get LAUGHED at wearing them here in sunny Singapore. *sigh* My friend and I visited that shoe dept in Dillards everyday for a few days straight cos they were clearing out everything and we didn't want to miss a thing. My friend picked up a pair of Cole Haan pumps which unfortunately were too big for her and too small for me .. we sat there for a full 10 minutes wondering who on earth we could buy them for .. but seriously, how many of us can actually say we know what size shoes our friends wear? .. lol !!
So yes, I love good bargains ... and last week, an ad in the paper caught my eye. Shoehaus was having a clearance sale at Orchard Plaza .. I remember walking into their store at Suntec some years ago ... their shoes were nice .. from Germany, but expensive .. all at least $160 and above. What I liked about them was that they came in BIG sizes .. My shoes size is 10 (US) .. and it is a PAIN shopping for shoes here. For the longest time, I could only buy shoes from Marks and Spencers and the brand Rockport from World of Sport cos I couldn't find shoes in my size ANYWHERE ELSE. Even the branded ones went up to max size 8 or 9 but the cutting would be on the small side. These days, it's much better cos I can just buy online .. and I still have a TON of shoes that I brought back from the States that I haven't gotten around to wearing .. lol.
ANYWAY ... we went down to Shoehaus and I got 2 pairs of leather sandals ... AWESOME !! They are so comfy ... one is a Josef Seibel pair and the other .. Romika and they were going for so cheap ... 70 bucks per pair !!!! .. I was really happy !! ..
sigh. I love shoes ... GOOD shoes.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
To give or not to give ...
My maid is 19. And her eating habits are worse than my girls.
She doesn't eat ANY vegetables or fruits. Not even durians. She claims that she's allergic to seafood too. I'm not so bothered by the seafood thing. More prawns and crabs for me I say. But the no veggies and fruits thing .. now that bugs me to hell.
My 3 year old eats vegetables. Well, not ALL vegetables .. but some. And she LOVES most fruit we give her. Claudia and Lauren also take fruits and vegetables.
But here, we have a fully grown woman refusing to eat ANY ...
sigh.
She likes chocolate though. And she doesn't take tea or coffee. So she drinks Milo .. I'm fine with it since it will give her energy to do housework. I just thought it was rather kiddy-ish of her to prefer to drink Milo than tea or coffee.
Anyway, I've been toying with the idea of getting her Vitamin C pills. If she doesn't take any fruits or vegetables .. then how is she going to get her Vitamin C (for starters) ? .. No Vitamin C means she's likely to fall ill ...
And I don't want that. So, I'm going to get her Vitamin C so she can at least get the recommended daily dosage.
Yesterday, she lost her condo access card. I was quite upset ... I didn't scold/yell at her ... (not my style with my maids) .. but I nagged. I asked her how on earth did it get lost and I told her that the next thing she better NOT lose are the housekeys. And that I will not be replacing her access card .. she can stand at the gate and buzz the bell and ask the guards to release the gate lock. While I understand that it was an accident that the card in a cardholder fell out of her back pocket, my previous maid, Khalimah .. held onto that card for 3 years and didn't lose it. Newbie took just 5 months to lose it. She could tell that Sir was really agitated about it and that she would've gotten hollered at had I not been there. And she would've deserved it .. really careless of her, I felt. CLAUDIA who is all of 10 years .. has yet to drop things outta of pocket like that.
dammit.
She doesn't eat ANY vegetables or fruits. Not even durians. She claims that she's allergic to seafood too. I'm not so bothered by the seafood thing. More prawns and crabs for me I say. But the no veggies and fruits thing .. now that bugs me to hell.
My 3 year old eats vegetables. Well, not ALL vegetables .. but some. And she LOVES most fruit we give her. Claudia and Lauren also take fruits and vegetables.
But here, we have a fully grown woman refusing to eat ANY ...
sigh.
She likes chocolate though. And she doesn't take tea or coffee. So she drinks Milo .. I'm fine with it since it will give her energy to do housework. I just thought it was rather kiddy-ish of her to prefer to drink Milo than tea or coffee.
Anyway, I've been toying with the idea of getting her Vitamin C pills. If she doesn't take any fruits or vegetables .. then how is she going to get her Vitamin C (for starters) ? .. No Vitamin C means she's likely to fall ill ...
And I don't want that. So, I'm going to get her Vitamin C so she can at least get the recommended daily dosage.
Yesterday, she lost her condo access card. I was quite upset ... I didn't scold/yell at her ... (not my style with my maids) .. but I nagged. I asked her how on earth did it get lost and I told her that the next thing she better NOT lose are the housekeys. And that I will not be replacing her access card .. she can stand at the gate and buzz the bell and ask the guards to release the gate lock. While I understand that it was an accident that the card in a cardholder fell out of her back pocket, my previous maid, Khalimah .. held onto that card for 3 years and didn't lose it. Newbie took just 5 months to lose it. She could tell that Sir was really agitated about it and that she would've gotten hollered at had I not been there. And she would've deserved it .. really careless of her, I felt. CLAUDIA who is all of 10 years .. has yet to drop things outta of pocket like that.
dammit.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Good times ...
are the ones I remember from living in the States ... it was a very happy 2 years there. We lived on a airbase so it was safe, and we had other Singaporean families there with us as well .. the ones I was close to were a couple of other pilot wives .. we met when we were posted there with our hubbies .. and a few of us even get pregnant about the same time ..
We all came back to Singapore in 2004/2005 .. and yet, through the years we've managed to find some time to always meet up .. even if it's only a couple of times a year. Last year's Christmas party was held at my house .. and recently we all met up again at Michelle and Forest's daughter's birthday party at the Keppel Club.
This time around, we didn't have the time to reminisce about those good old days in the States ... but given enough time, we usually end up talking about it. Our husbands have all told us at some time or another to GET OVER IT now that we've been back so long ... but we just love to talk about those times.
I remember all of us taking turns visiting each other's homes and just having a potluck lunch or tea together .. or even dinner if the squadron was night flying .. and a lot of times, especially when Michelle, Weng Yee and myself was pregnant, we would make the rounds at Wal-mart etc and eat out ..
We ate out A LOT ... lol .. not only when we were pregnant, mind you. Since we all lived quite near each other, I would volunteer to be the driver and pick everyone up (Weng Yee lived just a few doors away from me) .. and then go off straight to town ... we'd either eat at Red Lobster or Guadalajara for lunch ... or we'd have ice-cream at this quaint little ice cream parlour in town .
heh. And then we all had our babies ... for the longest time, Weng Yee and I both wanted to name our girls "Ashley" .. hahahahah!! .. But we had a change of heart and named our girl "Lauren" instead and used "Ashley" as a middle name ... When Michelle had Beverly, Lauren was about 2 months old ... We were close to being there for 2 years already and it was time to go home ...
I can never accurately describe how I felt as the place touched down in Changi Airport after a 28 hour flight ... and it was NOT happiness. I was really bummed about leaving the States .. lol !!
We all came back to Singapore in 2004/2005 .. and yet, through the years we've managed to find some time to always meet up .. even if it's only a couple of times a year. Last year's Christmas party was held at my house .. and recently we all met up again at Michelle and Forest's daughter's birthday party at the Keppel Club.
This time around, we didn't have the time to reminisce about those good old days in the States ... but given enough time, we usually end up talking about it. Our husbands have all told us at some time or another to GET OVER IT now that we've been back so long ... but we just love to talk about those times.
I remember all of us taking turns visiting each other's homes and just having a potluck lunch or tea together .. or even dinner if the squadron was night flying .. and a lot of times, especially when Michelle, Weng Yee and myself was pregnant, we would make the rounds at Wal-mart etc and eat out ..
We ate out A LOT ... lol .. not only when we were pregnant, mind you. Since we all lived quite near each other, I would volunteer to be the driver and pick everyone up (Weng Yee lived just a few doors away from me) .. and then go off straight to town ... we'd either eat at Red Lobster or Guadalajara for lunch ... or we'd have ice-cream at this quaint little ice cream parlour in town .
heh. And then we all had our babies ... for the longest time, Weng Yee and I both wanted to name our girls "Ashley" .. hahahahah!! .. But we had a change of heart and named our girl "Lauren" instead and used "Ashley" as a middle name ... When Michelle had Beverly, Lauren was about 2 months old ... We were close to being there for 2 years already and it was time to go home ...
I can never accurately describe how I felt as the place touched down in Changi Airport after a 28 hour flight ... and it was NOT happiness. I was really bummed about leaving the States .. lol !!
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Thank goodness ...
vandals have awful handwriting ...
We were in one of those handicapped lift things that u find at Suntec Fountain Terrace cos they have these steps which makes it impossible for the handicapped and also mummies with strollers to get up and down .. so they had to install these lift thingys ..
and as the thing moved down .. and we were all staring at the door, I noticed some graffiti written on it ...
Claudia was also staring at it .. and attempted to read it out aloud ...
"For a leisure time, call XXXXX" .. I kept quiet and didn't correct her ...
It wasn't "leisure" .. it was "lesbian" ..
hahahahahahahahah. But it was written quite illegibly to my utter relief.
I don't want to explain the meaning of "lesbian" to my 10 year old just yet.
We were in one of those handicapped lift things that u find at Suntec Fountain Terrace cos they have these steps which makes it impossible for the handicapped and also mummies with strollers to get up and down .. so they had to install these lift thingys ..
and as the thing moved down .. and we were all staring at the door, I noticed some graffiti written on it ...
Claudia was also staring at it .. and attempted to read it out aloud ...
"For a leisure time, call XXXXX" .. I kept quiet and didn't correct her ...
It wasn't "leisure" .. it was "lesbian" ..
hahahahahahahahah. But it was written quite illegibly to my utter relief.
I don't want to explain the meaning of "lesbian" to my 10 year old just yet.
Friday, September 11, 2009
COMEX 2009
Arghhhh! I want to go to COMEX but I can't ... or rather I don't want to. I lurve gadgets but I can't possibly buy everything there right?..
SIGH. Technically, I don't need anything right now except my Canon EOS 500D. I have to save up for that one. Other than that, nothing else I need right now. I just got my netbook - the HP Mini and my Omnia is fine too. It's not about "needs" sometimes .. I just love ogling everything I.T. ... am tempted to just go but actually scared I'll end up hankering for things.
Bummer.
It's like I'm experiencing withdrawal symptoms.
damn.
SIGH. Technically, I don't need anything right now except my Canon EOS 500D. I have to save up for that one. Other than that, nothing else I need right now. I just got my netbook - the HP Mini and my Omnia is fine too. It's not about "needs" sometimes .. I just love ogling everything I.T. ... am tempted to just go but actually scared I'll end up hankering for things.
Bummer.
It's like I'm experiencing withdrawal symptoms.
damn.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
disappointed ...
Drove to town to meet up with my friend for lunch today. We met at the new Orchard Central.
Gotta say, man ... there is nothing nice there. Well, what I saw of it. I don't think I'll be walking in there again .. well, maybe to have lunch at Quiznos .. which is what we did today. I love these sub shops .. when we were in the States, and pregnant, I would eat Subway sandwiches almost everyday .. lol !! I would share it with Claudia but get different toppings for each half cos I'd order olives and jalapenos that she didn't like eating ..
And on Sunday, hubby and I with the girls took a stroll down Clarke Quay and also visited the other Central .. that is also another hopeless place to visit - Central I mean .. NOTHING to see there.
I haven't been to Iluma .. but I have my reservations. ION Orchard is so-so .. not a place you'd visit ALL the time .. especially for moms like myself with kiddies in tow. Give me Takashimaya or Suntec or Vivocity anytime !!! .. lol.
Gotta say, man ... there is nothing nice there. Well, what I saw of it. I don't think I'll be walking in there again .. well, maybe to have lunch at Quiznos .. which is what we did today. I love these sub shops .. when we were in the States, and pregnant, I would eat Subway sandwiches almost everyday .. lol !! I would share it with Claudia but get different toppings for each half cos I'd order olives and jalapenos that she didn't like eating ..
And on Sunday, hubby and I with the girls took a stroll down Clarke Quay and also visited the other Central .. that is also another hopeless place to visit - Central I mean .. NOTHING to see there.
I haven't been to Iluma .. but I have my reservations. ION Orchard is so-so .. not a place you'd visit ALL the time .. especially for moms like myself with kiddies in tow. Give me Takashimaya or Suntec or Vivocity anytime !!! .. lol.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Sorry, what did you say?
You know what?! My maid and I .. we have language issues ..
For all those of you who think Bahasa Indonesia is the SAME as Malay ... come, let me whack you on the head with my Tommy Hilfiger clogs. It isn't. Some words are similar. Most aren't .. and the language is just different. And before you say .. well, that should be enough to issue instructions - it isn't. Really.
I swear my maid probably only understands A LITTLE of what I'm telling her .. and the same goes for me. When she starts chattering to me about something, I have close to no clue at all about what she's telling me. SIGH. As long as I don't hear relevant words like "blood", "fall", "knife" etc .. I don't ask her to repeat her story.
SIGH. My previous maid, Khalimah ... did a 2 year stint in Brunei before coming to Singapore so she understands Malay very well and she can even speak it the way Singaporean/Malaysian/Bruneian Malays do .. so it was a piece of cake working with her.
Newbie speaks with a strong Indonesian accent. And she understands ZERO Malay. I think most of the time when I ask her to do something, she understand just 40% of my instructions and justs wings it. Damn.
Thankfully, Khalimah did manage to impart quite a bit of info to her those few days before she left and so, the situation isn't THAT desperate. I overheard Stanley trying to tell her something the other day .. and of course, she got it wrong much to his annoyance. hahahah!! I HAD already told him NOT to try to instruct her to do anything. Just tell me and I'll let her know but uncle decided to be clever ... anyway, his instructions were given in really really bad Malay ... cos of course, he can't actually speak proper Malay just the usual 20 words or so .. lol .. and even then it's the type of Malay u hear being spoken by the old Chinese aunties and uncles ... cos he learned it from his mother.
Anyway, I've decided that it's easier for me to use her Indonesian words so she can understand me quicker, so I've started saying "mobil" rather than "kereta" ... which is "car" in English (for eg) and I'm picking up words here and there from her and using them. Hopefully, I'll get to speak Bahasa Indonesia soon so SHE can understand me PROPERLY finally.
One can hope.
For all those of you who think Bahasa Indonesia is the SAME as Malay ... come, let me whack you on the head with my Tommy Hilfiger clogs. It isn't. Some words are similar. Most aren't .. and the language is just different. And before you say .. well, that should be enough to issue instructions - it isn't. Really.
I swear my maid probably only understands A LITTLE of what I'm telling her .. and the same goes for me. When she starts chattering to me about something, I have close to no clue at all about what she's telling me. SIGH. As long as I don't hear relevant words like "blood", "fall", "knife" etc .. I don't ask her to repeat her story.
SIGH. My previous maid, Khalimah ... did a 2 year stint in Brunei before coming to Singapore so she understands Malay very well and she can even speak it the way Singaporean/Malaysian/Bruneian Malays do .. so it was a piece of cake working with her.
Newbie speaks with a strong Indonesian accent. And she understands ZERO Malay. I think most of the time when I ask her to do something, she understand just 40% of my instructions and justs wings it. Damn.
Thankfully, Khalimah did manage to impart quite a bit of info to her those few days before she left and so, the situation isn't THAT desperate. I overheard Stanley trying to tell her something the other day .. and of course, she got it wrong much to his annoyance. hahahah!! I HAD already told him NOT to try to instruct her to do anything. Just tell me and I'll let her know but uncle decided to be clever ... anyway, his instructions were given in really really bad Malay ... cos of course, he can't actually speak proper Malay just the usual 20 words or so .. lol .. and even then it's the type of Malay u hear being spoken by the old Chinese aunties and uncles ... cos he learned it from his mother.
Anyway, I've decided that it's easier for me to use her Indonesian words so she can understand me quicker, so I've started saying "mobil" rather than "kereta" ... which is "car" in English (for eg) and I'm picking up words here and there from her and using them. Hopefully, I'll get to speak Bahasa Indonesia soon so SHE can understand me PROPERLY finally.
One can hope.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Fabulous find !!!
Check out the wide variety of Halloween decorations !! .. You'll never guess where I found them ..
Gosh, if I lived in a house and and not an apt, I would be buying all these up to decorate my front yard ...
Ah yes, you can find these decorations at Daiso ... YEAP, MY Daiso .. my all time fav store. LOL !!
And everything u see is 2 bucks each !! So blardy cheap !!
Saturday, August 29, 2009
3 little words I dread hearing ...
It started with Stanley .. he was sooooo used to asking Khalimah (my previous maid) where anything and everything was in the house, that he took for granted that newbie would be the same too .. when Khalimah first arrived at my home, one of the first things she did was to recognize what went where in the cupboards and even rearranged most of the stuff in them to maximise space and to also make it neater. So basically, she more or less, KNEW where most things were.
Stanley would just have to ASK her ONE time and she'd know where it was ... or if she forgot, she'd have a rough idea WHERE to look for it.
Newbie .. well, that's just it .. she's newbie .. and she's blur-ie, and when he asked her a couple of times whether she'd seen this or that .. he'd get the answer
I DON'T KNOW.
hahahahahah !! It's fine and dandy hearing that once in a while .. but everytime he asked her where something was or whether she'd even SEEN it on the table/shelf etc ... her answer would be that.
And said with a smile too !! ..
It just KILLED him. He was soooo annoyed with her, he'd complain to me no end about how useless she was.
hahahahahah! ... I gave him a very simple solution. I told him to quit asking her anything. Or at least stop asking her where things were. I told him she had no clue. He'd probably be better off asking Emily where it was. HAHAHAHA !!
Anyway, I never ask where anything was if I wanted to find it. I just go looking for it myself. Or if I ask, I'm already mentally prepared to hear that standard answer from her. When I ask, it's more rhetorical than anything.
SIGH.
And the worst thing is, she doesn't help u to look for it. Khalimah would. She would try to remember the last time she saw it and search for it there.
Newbie doesn't have initiative. At all.
Anyway, I've been looking for my Canon camera charger for days. I usually keep it in my study drawer .. but must've put them somewhere else this time when I was rushing off somewhere. The problem is trying to recall WHERE that somewhere is .. so I spent a half hour today hunting around for it. It was at the tip of my tongue to ask newbie if she had seen it at all while cleaning up. But the thought of hearing those 3 words from her stopped me in my tracks.
I'll take my chances looking for the damn thing on my own.
Stanley would just have to ASK her ONE time and she'd know where it was ... or if she forgot, she'd have a rough idea WHERE to look for it.
Newbie .. well, that's just it .. she's newbie .. and she's blur-ie, and when he asked her a couple of times whether she'd seen this or that .. he'd get the answer
I DON'T KNOW.
hahahahahah !! It's fine and dandy hearing that once in a while .. but everytime he asked her where something was or whether she'd even SEEN it on the table/shelf etc ... her answer would be that.
And said with a smile too !! ..
It just KILLED him. He was soooo annoyed with her, he'd complain to me no end about how useless she was.
hahahahahah! ... I gave him a very simple solution. I told him to quit asking her anything. Or at least stop asking her where things were. I told him she had no clue. He'd probably be better off asking Emily where it was. HAHAHAHA !!
Anyway, I never ask where anything was if I wanted to find it. I just go looking for it myself. Or if I ask, I'm already mentally prepared to hear that standard answer from her. When I ask, it's more rhetorical than anything.
SIGH.
And the worst thing is, she doesn't help u to look for it. Khalimah would. She would try to remember the last time she saw it and search for it there.
Newbie doesn't have initiative. At all.
Anyway, I've been looking for my Canon camera charger for days. I usually keep it in my study drawer .. but must've put them somewhere else this time when I was rushing off somewhere. The problem is trying to recall WHERE that somewhere is .. so I spent a half hour today hunting around for it. It was at the tip of my tongue to ask newbie if she had seen it at all while cleaning up. But the thought of hearing those 3 words from her stopped me in my tracks.
I'll take my chances looking for the damn thing on my own.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Anaconda ...
So we were at Marks and Sparks at Wheelock this afternoon looking for a swimsuit so that I can go down with Stanley and the girls ... Yes, I don't have a swimsuit .. well, I did have one but I gave that away recently (cos the thing didn't fit well at the chest area) and so I was swimwear-less.
Anyway, yes .. I shop at Marks and Spencers cos I am BIG. lol. And those shops selling teeny little swimsuits .. yes, they won't fit me. EVER.
So we were looking at my choices .. and boy, there wasn't much ... cos strangely enough .. even though the swimsuits were meant for bigger sized women like myself ... you'd have THOUGHT that they'd be more modest at the boob area .. I mean come on, if you're a big lady .. WHY would men want to stare at your boobs anyway? ... I thought it was bizarre that a lot of the swimsuits had fronts that revealed quite a lot of boob. HUH. There was ONE swimsuit that had a fairly modest front ... but guess what? .. It had this weird ass serpent like pattern on the front ... sort of like a snake's belly ...
I took one look at it and my heart sank. I was PRAYING my hubby wouldn't insist I get that just cos the front wasn't revealing. I'd rather die than look like a GINORMOUS ANACONDA.
hahahhahaha. Come on, don't u remember that awful movie in 1997 which had Jennifer Lopez in it ... getting chased by a giant anaconda in some Brazillian rainforest??!!
Anyway, I decided to just try it on. And true enough, even hubby had to agree that I looked like a snake cos of the design .. plus it blardy cost 110 bucks!
Thank GOD he didn't insist that I get that one. We settled on a plain black one with a pretty black and white design under the bust area .. yes, the front is a bit low but it isn't that bad. It wasn't $110 ... but $99 ...
And no .. there is NO WAY ON THIS EARTH I AM GOING TO POST A PIC OF ME IN IT .. lol.
Anyway, yes .. I shop at Marks and Spencers cos I am BIG. lol. And those shops selling teeny little swimsuits .. yes, they won't fit me. EVER.
So we were looking at my choices .. and boy, there wasn't much ... cos strangely enough .. even though the swimsuits were meant for bigger sized women like myself ... you'd have THOUGHT that they'd be more modest at the boob area .. I mean come on, if you're a big lady .. WHY would men want to stare at your boobs anyway? ... I thought it was bizarre that a lot of the swimsuits had fronts that revealed quite a lot of boob. HUH. There was ONE swimsuit that had a fairly modest front ... but guess what? .. It had this weird ass serpent like pattern on the front ... sort of like a snake's belly ...
I took one look at it and my heart sank. I was PRAYING my hubby wouldn't insist I get that just cos the front wasn't revealing. I'd rather die than look like a GINORMOUS ANACONDA.
hahahhahaha. Come on, don't u remember that awful movie in 1997 which had Jennifer Lopez in it ... getting chased by a giant anaconda in some Brazillian rainforest??!!
Anyway, I decided to just try it on. And true enough, even hubby had to agree that I looked like a snake cos of the design .. plus it blardy cost 110 bucks!
Thank GOD he didn't insist that I get that one. We settled on a plain black one with a pretty black and white design under the bust area .. yes, the front is a bit low but it isn't that bad. It wasn't $110 ... but $99 ...
And no .. there is NO WAY ON THIS EARTH I AM GOING TO POST A PIC OF ME IN IT .. lol.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
reorganizing ...
So yes, that's what we did today ... I made her take every single thing out of my girls' wardrobe then I used a laundry rack with wheels and slowly hung the their dresses back up ... taking out the ones which either didn't fit or was old looking or just didn't look nice to me. Then made her roll it into the room to hang it back up in the wardrobe .. also instructed her on which way to hang the clothes up so that they all faced the same way .. and to hang them according to length for the dresses. While I was doing the sorting, I told her to wipe the whole cupboard interior. Like I said, my maid is not lazy ... just that she doesn't know A LOT OF THINGS and she lacks initiative. Anyway, I don't care. I am up to training her .. even if it KILLS ME. I don't want to have to do it MYSELF WITHOUT A MAID (like I stupidly did for many many years) .. lol !!
I have a super bad habit of NOT recycling clothes from one child to another. I just cannot stand seeing it being worn again ... so boring. There are like a gazillion clothes out there in the stores just waiting to be bought and worn so I refuse to reuse ... I chucked out dresses and tops and bottoms ... there are a few that I really really like that I keep .. either cos Lauren only wore it once or twice and I know I won't mind seeing Emily in it but other than those few pieces ... I packed up the rest to give away.
And now the wardrobe looks so much neater !! And I can tell that the girls can do with more clothes !!! YAY !!!! It's SHOPPING TIME !!!
Ah yes, the benefits of being organized ... u can tell what u need more of and what u need to throw out ... :p
I have a super bad habit of NOT recycling clothes from one child to another. I just cannot stand seeing it being worn again ... so boring. There are like a gazillion clothes out there in the stores just waiting to be bought and worn so I refuse to reuse ... I chucked out dresses and tops and bottoms ... there are a few that I really really like that I keep .. either cos Lauren only wore it once or twice and I know I won't mind seeing Emily in it but other than those few pieces ... I packed up the rest to give away.
And now the wardrobe looks so much neater !! And I can tell that the girls can do with more clothes !!! YAY !!!! It's SHOPPING TIME !!!
Ah yes, the benefits of being organized ... u can tell what u need more of and what u need to throw out ... :p
Frustration ...
While my new maid isn't lazy or anything, she has zero organizaional skills. ZERO. She has no clue and no initiative to say, clean up and organize cupboards. So imagine my horror, when I opened my girls' wardrobe and saw the state it was in. Everything was more or less hung with no sense of anything. They were not hung according to length, type or even whether it was Lauren's or Emily's. I could see Lauren's school uniform just hanging in between some party dresses and such.
sigh. It's only been THREE months and my cupboards are fallin apart ... not literally, but the stuff inside. She cleans and cooks and irons fine .. except for minor stuff here and there .. but she won't do anything extra unless tasked to. One thing is mainly, she seems to have no time .. ah, that's another thing she has ... BAD TIME MANAGEMENT. really bad. She's always rushing to do this and that. I don't know why cos my previous maid had tons of free time to sit down and play with my girls. Newbie can barely get things done and at the end of the day she looks frazzled and tired. While I do pity her and try to cut down on her chores ... the basic stuff still has to be done.
My maid is lucky I am not the screaming sort. I have never yelled at or hollered or screamed at ANY of my maids. I consider it counterproductive. Yes, I feel like doing it but I don't. I just nag and remind and nag and remind till the cows come home. And I look resigned. This is just with my new maid. My previous maid was SuperMaid. Never had to remind or nag her about anything.
My previous maid used to tell me that if I ever decided to yell at a maid in my big ol' voice, the maid would pee in her pants (this was when she heard me yelling at my dog one day) .. hahahah !! This was of course after a few years with me so she could speak plainly to me ... I have never had any need to yell at anyone except my hubby and kids. Ah that group of people, I yell at a fair bit of time. Not really hubby though unless he yells first when we argue then I just holler back out of anger and retaliation. The kids I do too once in a while if they're really naughty and won't listen to reason. Actually, I mostly just raise my voice. Not really scream or yell.
Anyway, I'm taking the opportunity to use the cupboard cleanup to also look through my girls' stuff to chuck out stuff they've outgrown or stuff that looks either drabby or worn or I just don't like anymore.
What a way to spend my Saturday afternoon. Blah!
sigh. It's only been THREE months and my cupboards are fallin apart ... not literally, but the stuff inside. She cleans and cooks and irons fine .. except for minor stuff here and there .. but she won't do anything extra unless tasked to. One thing is mainly, she seems to have no time .. ah, that's another thing she has ... BAD TIME MANAGEMENT. really bad. She's always rushing to do this and that. I don't know why cos my previous maid had tons of free time to sit down and play with my girls. Newbie can barely get things done and at the end of the day she looks frazzled and tired. While I do pity her and try to cut down on her chores ... the basic stuff still has to be done.
My maid is lucky I am not the screaming sort. I have never yelled at or hollered or screamed at ANY of my maids. I consider it counterproductive. Yes, I feel like doing it but I don't. I just nag and remind and nag and remind till the cows come home. And I look resigned. This is just with my new maid. My previous maid was SuperMaid. Never had to remind or nag her about anything.
My previous maid used to tell me that if I ever decided to yell at a maid in my big ol' voice, the maid would pee in her pants (this was when she heard me yelling at my dog one day) .. hahahah !! This was of course after a few years with me so she could speak plainly to me ... I have never had any need to yell at anyone except my hubby and kids. Ah that group of people, I yell at a fair bit of time. Not really hubby though unless he yells first when we argue then I just holler back out of anger and retaliation. The kids I do too once in a while if they're really naughty and won't listen to reason. Actually, I mostly just raise my voice. Not really scream or yell.
Anyway, I'm taking the opportunity to use the cupboard cleanup to also look through my girls' stuff to chuck out stuff they've outgrown or stuff that looks either drabby or worn or I just don't like anymore.
What a way to spend my Saturday afternoon. Blah!
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Clovis, NM ... I miss it :(
here u go .. a pic taken somewhere in the town of Clovis, NM .. yes, it is a teeny town 3 hours away from Alburquerque. It took us 28 hours to get there from Singapore .. and the last flight we took was on a small plane that seated barely 20 people and we could see the pilot flying the plane. ha ha ha !! But it was home for 2 years and we (Claudia and I) loved it there.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Change ...
yes, I changed my blog template again. Decided that I didn't quite like the last one ... it was a bit too flowery .. lol.
Anyway, my blardy blardy vertigo is back again. I was ok for a mere few days only. I am so bummed. It's NOT back full force ... just a bit. But still.
I am going to make an appt to see an ENT specialist .. I really can't take this.
Anyway, my blardy blardy vertigo is back again. I was ok for a mere few days only. I am so bummed. It's NOT back full force ... just a bit. But still.
I am going to make an appt to see an ENT specialist .. I really can't take this.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
I am vertigo free !!
Finally, on Friday ... I was back to normal. It was a BIG relief. I was getting sick and tired of feeling dizzy.
I was waiting for a friend to pass me something last week .. here is a pic I snapped with my Omnia. Still hate the camera resolution ... bah! .. My old Nokia N73 took better pics even though it was 3 megapixels. Just that the N73 didn't have Wi-fi ... that really sucked.
Heh, I was sitting on some steps here at the foot of my friend's block ... I actually got out of my car. hahahah !!
I was waiting for a friend to pass me something last week .. here is a pic I snapped with my Omnia. Still hate the camera resolution ... bah! .. My old Nokia N73 took better pics even though it was 3 megapixels. Just that the N73 didn't have Wi-fi ... that really sucked.
Heh, I was sitting on some steps here at the foot of my friend's block ... I actually got out of my car. hahahah !!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
seriously ...
it looks like my vertigo is here to stay ...
sigh.
I'm still having it .. it's been almost 3 weeks now. really really very bummed out. It's not super bad now .. but there are days when it's not so bad .. and days when it's really really awful. And those days, it's really very hard to NOT feel grumpy cos everytime I move my head wrong or suddenly, I feel the earth spinning. It's almost debilitating I swear.
My doc says that it's likely I'll have it for life. I kinda thought it'd go away and come back periodically ... but that hasn't happened so far.
Anyway, today, I witnessed maniacal driving IN THE BASEMENT carpark of the Woodlands Civic Centre when I dropped Lauren off at kindy. The fella was driving really fast and taking the corners fast too. Blardy idiot. How dangerous. As he parked his little teeny car and got out, I got a look at him. Blardy skinny dude. He obviously felt he was HOT and was a good driver to boot.
Huh.
I decided to leave him a note on his windscreen. I thought it was damn blardy good of me not to use words that rhyme with "clucking" and "lick" ... I decided to be courteous and wrote down plainly and politely that his driving was dangerous and that there was absolutely no need to drive fast in a tiny, cramped car park. I'm sure he read my note and threw it away in disgust .. but at least I told him his driving sucked. lol !!!
My hubby feels that one day soon, I'm going to get into a fight with another driver and that will either result in our car getting scratched or worse, me lying dead in a ditch ... and I always have the kids with me .. so it's kinda irresponsible to get into a fistfight in front of them ... And let's face it, if it's a fight with a guy .. skinny or puny he may be .. he'll still win .. and I seriously don't want to get hit. Or spit on.
*shudder*
sigh.
I'm still having it .. it's been almost 3 weeks now. really really very bummed out. It's not super bad now .. but there are days when it's not so bad .. and days when it's really really awful. And those days, it's really very hard to NOT feel grumpy cos everytime I move my head wrong or suddenly, I feel the earth spinning. It's almost debilitating I swear.
My doc says that it's likely I'll have it for life. I kinda thought it'd go away and come back periodically ... but that hasn't happened so far.
Anyway, today, I witnessed maniacal driving IN THE BASEMENT carpark of the Woodlands Civic Centre when I dropped Lauren off at kindy. The fella was driving really fast and taking the corners fast too. Blardy idiot. How dangerous. As he parked his little teeny car and got out, I got a look at him. Blardy skinny dude. He obviously felt he was HOT and was a good driver to boot.
Huh.
I decided to leave him a note on his windscreen. I thought it was damn blardy good of me not to use words that rhyme with "clucking" and "lick" ... I decided to be courteous and wrote down plainly and politely that his driving was dangerous and that there was absolutely no need to drive fast in a tiny, cramped car park. I'm sure he read my note and threw it away in disgust .. but at least I told him his driving sucked. lol !!!
My hubby feels that one day soon, I'm going to get into a fight with another driver and that will either result in our car getting scratched or worse, me lying dead in a ditch ... and I always have the kids with me .. so it's kinda irresponsible to get into a fistfight in front of them ... And let's face it, if it's a fight with a guy .. skinny or puny he may be .. he'll still win .. and I seriously don't want to get hit. Or spit on.
*shudder*
Monday, August 10, 2009
Started a new blog ....
yes, this one is for us to spree together !!!
My first spree will be from Drugstore.com .. their Lil Critters vitamins .. all on sale. I also want to order Spiffies toothwipes for Calista ... well, in anticipation of her cutting her first tooth anyway. lol. And Sambucus .. which is cheaper online.
I'll be organzing other sprees .. Gap etc .. just bookmark my blog and look out for new sprees !!
http://spreewithkristalangel.blogspot.com/
Happy shopping everyone !!
My first spree will be from Drugstore.com .. their Lil Critters vitamins .. all on sale. I also want to order Spiffies toothwipes for Calista ... well, in anticipation of her cutting her first tooth anyway. lol. And Sambucus .. which is cheaper online.
I'll be organzing other sprees .. Gap etc .. just bookmark my blog and look out for new sprees !!
http://spreewithkristalangel.blogspot.com/
Happy shopping everyone !!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
In a place called "Vertigo" ....
no not the U2 song ...
I have vertigo for real ... darn it .. and my docs tells me that I seem prone to it and it will probably come on and off all my life.
I can't believe my luck.
Of all the things to be afflicted with, it had to be this one. I absolutely hate the feeling of being dizzy ... Wikipedia defines it as such ... Vertigo (from the Latin vertigin-, vertigo, "dizziness," originally "a whirling or spinning movement," from vertō "I turn"[1]) is a specific type of dizziness, a major symptom of a balance disorder. It is the sensation of spinning or swaying while the body is actually stationary with respect to the surroundings. My vertigo is not due to a bacterial infection BUT a problem in the inner ear balance mechanisms (vestibular system) says my doc.
I first had it in March this year .. that was a bad episode ... I threw up a couple of times ... it went away and then came back 2 weeks ago .. I was finally on the mend then it came back again a few days back.
WTH.
I can't swivel my head fast .. I can't look up and down suddenly .. and I have to lie down slowly ... it's killing me man.
Before you ask how I drive my Odyssey with this, well ..
Driving is not a problem cos I pretty much am looking straight ahead most of the time ... I just flick my eyes over to the side mirrors and turn my head slightly to check my blindspots so it's actually quite bearable.
Everything else is not. I was giving Calista her bath and had to pick her up from the bath tub .. I nearly toppled as I looked down and then tried to look up after picking her up.
sigh.
I am not on any medication currently as I am breastfeeding .. my doc urged me to stop temporarily and take the meds but Calista isn't trained to drink formula from a bottle so I'd rather not. So now I suffer ... the doc told me that without medication, it'll take longer for it to get better.
I have vertigo for real ... darn it .. and my docs tells me that I seem prone to it and it will probably come on and off all my life.
I can't believe my luck.
Of all the things to be afflicted with, it had to be this one. I absolutely hate the feeling of being dizzy ... Wikipedia defines it as such ... Vertigo (from the Latin vertigin-, vertigo, "dizziness," originally "a whirling or spinning movement," from vertō "I turn"[1]) is a specific type of dizziness, a major symptom of a balance disorder. It is the sensation of spinning or swaying while the body is actually stationary with respect to the surroundings. My vertigo is not due to a bacterial infection BUT a problem in the inner ear balance mechanisms (vestibular system) says my doc.
I first had it in March this year .. that was a bad episode ... I threw up a couple of times ... it went away and then came back 2 weeks ago .. I was finally on the mend then it came back again a few days back.
WTH.
I can't swivel my head fast .. I can't look up and down suddenly .. and I have to lie down slowly ... it's killing me man.
Before you ask how I drive my Odyssey with this, well ..
Driving is not a problem cos I pretty much am looking straight ahead most of the time ... I just flick my eyes over to the side mirrors and turn my head slightly to check my blindspots so it's actually quite bearable.
Everything else is not. I was giving Calista her bath and had to pick her up from the bath tub .. I nearly toppled as I looked down and then tried to look up after picking her up.
sigh.
I am not on any medication currently as I am breastfeeding .. my doc urged me to stop temporarily and take the meds but Calista isn't trained to drink formula from a bottle so I'd rather not. So now I suffer ... the doc told me that without medication, it'll take longer for it to get better.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Complacency ...
Hubby was grilling Claudia on her spelling earlier this evening ... she was fine and got all the words correct.
Stanley ... ever the encouraging father ... *me rolling my eyes upwards here* .. told her ... "hmmm good. Don't get complacent. Remember the last time we got complacent? .. Mas Selamat escaped" ...
I burst out into laughter and said .. "That's because we weren't on duty that day guarding him" ..
LOL !!
Stanley ... ever the encouraging father ... *me rolling my eyes upwards here* .. told her ... "hmmm good. Don't get complacent. Remember the last time we got complacent? .. Mas Selamat escaped" ...
I burst out into laughter and said .. "That's because we weren't on duty that day guarding him" ..
LOL !!
Monday, August 3, 2009
Scraping the bottom of the barrel ...
yes, we have hit rock bottom.
out of sheer boredom, we drove to Singapore Expo on Sunday after church (we had lunch at the airport first though) .. to see the SKC Dog show.
sigh.
Yes, we have run out of things to do. Anyway, my friend was there with her puppy .. a little Yorkie and I thought it'd be nice for the girls to see other dogs. The girls did have fun looking at other people's doggies .. and there were PLENTY of them there ... nice ones too .. small ones and huge ass ones. I bet those generate GINORMOUS piles of poop. EW.
I say it now ... DON'T get a dog. A dog is a lifetime commitment and responsibility ... and they take up quite a bit of time and money.
My girls love our dogs. Yes, PLURAL. We have 2 dogs. Isabel, we brought back with us from the States .. she's a Golden mix and Kimmy, our Maltese, we got when we returned cos we though Isabel would be lonely.
Although I bathe Kimmy once a week ... and hubby bathes Isabel once a week too .. we still have them sent to the doggy groomer once a month to be groomed ... nails cut, fur trimmed etc. And because we are firm believers that feeding premium dog food will result in better health, my dogs eat good food.
Kimmy actually has to eat prescription food from the vet cos she's susceptible to gallstones ... she had surgery a year back to remove some teeny gallstones in her bladder and the doc informed us that it might recur. blardy hell. anyway, so far so good and the prescription food helps with her skin as well.
So anyway, yes .. having dogs is troublesome. While I do love my dogs and treat them well, I usually advise people NOT to have any. Especially if they have kids. Or are planning to.
Anyway, back to what we did on Sunday, ... we went to IKEA Tampines after that. That life-force sucking place ... I ALWAYS spend money there. Why? Why? Why?
So that was how we spent our Sunday. We need new lives. Seriously. Or at least an overseas posting again .. I'm dying to go back to the States.
out of sheer boredom, we drove to Singapore Expo on Sunday after church (we had lunch at the airport first though) .. to see the SKC Dog show.
sigh.
Yes, we have run out of things to do. Anyway, my friend was there with her puppy .. a little Yorkie and I thought it'd be nice for the girls to see other dogs. The girls did have fun looking at other people's doggies .. and there were PLENTY of them there ... nice ones too .. small ones and huge ass ones. I bet those generate GINORMOUS piles of poop. EW.
I say it now ... DON'T get a dog. A dog is a lifetime commitment and responsibility ... and they take up quite a bit of time and money.
My girls love our dogs. Yes, PLURAL. We have 2 dogs. Isabel, we brought back with us from the States .. she's a Golden mix and Kimmy, our Maltese, we got when we returned cos we though Isabel would be lonely.
Although I bathe Kimmy once a week ... and hubby bathes Isabel once a week too .. we still have them sent to the doggy groomer once a month to be groomed ... nails cut, fur trimmed etc. And because we are firm believers that feeding premium dog food will result in better health, my dogs eat good food.
Kimmy actually has to eat prescription food from the vet cos she's susceptible to gallstones ... she had surgery a year back to remove some teeny gallstones in her bladder and the doc informed us that it might recur. blardy hell. anyway, so far so good and the prescription food helps with her skin as well.
So anyway, yes .. having dogs is troublesome. While I do love my dogs and treat them well, I usually advise people NOT to have any. Especially if they have kids. Or are planning to.
Anyway, back to what we did on Sunday, ... we went to IKEA Tampines after that. That life-force sucking place ... I ALWAYS spend money there. Why? Why? Why?
So that was how we spent our Sunday. We need new lives. Seriously. Or at least an overseas posting again .. I'm dying to go back to the States.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Feeling better today ...
and yay, I killed no one on the road with my Odyssey .. lol.
I'm still not totally well ... BUT I need to get my eyebrows trimmed at the salon .. I was very tempted to go this afternoon, BUT the lady who does it needs for me to lie down ..
SIGH
And that I still can't do that without feeling slightly woozy.
I contemplated just doing it cos I can't stand the sight of my messy, untrimmed eyebrows ... but man, I don't think the aunty would be happy if I puked all over her salon floor after she's done .. worse still if I throw up just after she does ONE eyebrow ...
hahahah!! ... so now, here I am with my messy eyebrows sitting up at 2 am cos I'm hesitant about lying down on my pillow ... and feeling dizzy.
bummer.
I'm still not totally well ... BUT I need to get my eyebrows trimmed at the salon .. I was very tempted to go this afternoon, BUT the lady who does it needs for me to lie down ..
SIGH
And that I still can't do that without feeling slightly woozy.
I contemplated just doing it cos I can't stand the sight of my messy, untrimmed eyebrows ... but man, I don't think the aunty would be happy if I puked all over her salon floor after she's done .. worse still if I throw up just after she does ONE eyebrow ...
hahahah!! ... so now, here I am with my messy eyebrows sitting up at 2 am cos I'm hesitant about lying down on my pillow ... and feeling dizzy.
bummer.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Why I love my labeller ...
Yes, hubby thinks I'm mad .. but I love using my labeller .. I labelled my plugs a few months ago .. it makes things so convenient .. cos you ALWAYS know which is which ...
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Harry Potter and the half-blood prince ...
watched the movie with hubby and Calista today ... good movie !! Well, it would've been boring for those of you who aren't fans and who haven't read the books .. yes, I have read every Harry Potter book in the series .. loved them all. And I enjoyed the movie immensely. I was sure glad that Calista decided to sleep almost throughout so I could watch in peace .. thank goodness.
My vertigo hasn't disappeared btw. Damn thing. Who would've thought that the amts of calcium deposits in your both of your inner ears could get imbalanced and cause you to feel dizzy and affect your sense of balance. I still can't sleep flat down ... I need to keep my head at a 45 degree angle. Bummer, man. And it seems like everytime, my medication wears off, that's when I start to feel lightheaded and a bit dizzy ... not outright dizzy but just disoriented.
sigh
not like life can come to a complete standstill while I recover from this. My doc warned me that it could take up to 2 weeks or more for it to go away .. and guess what?!!
It could recur since I seem to be prone to it.
Blardy hell. The last time I got it was in March .. that was a particularly bad episode .. I couldn't swivel my head AT ALL without feeling nauseous. I threw up a few times that time around.
This time, while it isn't so bad ... it is taking its time to get better.
Until then, staring at the tv and computer screen is heaven since I don't need to turn my head left of right ...
My vertigo hasn't disappeared btw. Damn thing. Who would've thought that the amts of calcium deposits in your both of your inner ears could get imbalanced and cause you to feel dizzy and affect your sense of balance. I still can't sleep flat down ... I need to keep my head at a 45 degree angle. Bummer, man. And it seems like everytime, my medication wears off, that's when I start to feel lightheaded and a bit dizzy ... not outright dizzy but just disoriented.
sigh
not like life can come to a complete standstill while I recover from this. My doc warned me that it could take up to 2 weeks or more for it to go away .. and guess what?!!
It could recur since I seem to be prone to it.
Blardy hell. The last time I got it was in March .. that was a particularly bad episode .. I couldn't swivel my head AT ALL without feeling nauseous. I threw up a few times that time around.
This time, while it isn't so bad ... it is taking its time to get better.
Until then, staring at the tv and computer screen is heaven since I don't need to turn my head left of right ...
Monday, July 20, 2009
I love mushrooms !!
Got this from Carrefour on Saturday ... King Oyster mushrooms from Korea ... just arrived that same day claimed the auntie promoting them ... I got my maid to cook them up ... yummy !! They were really cheap too .. $2.95 a pack .. I bought 4 packs ..
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Mummy, you don't love me ...
declared my 5 year old sticking her hand out under my nose while I was staring my at PC screen checking my email.
I looked down at her little hand and opened my mouth to ask why she said that ... but immediatedly noticed that the little aunty's fingernails were nice and LONG.
oh dear.
That's the other thing ... my previous maid did things like that for my girls .. not only did she cook and clean but she also took care of and played with the girls and clipped their nails for them.
sigh.
I got the clipper out of the drawer and proceeded to cut Lauren's nails for her.
After I was done, I told her .. see, mummy loves you.
lol!!
I looked down at her little hand and opened my mouth to ask why she said that ... but immediatedly noticed that the little aunty's fingernails were nice and LONG.
oh dear.
That's the other thing ... my previous maid did things like that for my girls .. not only did she cook and clean but she also took care of and played with the girls and clipped their nails for them.
sigh.
I got the clipper out of the drawer and proceeded to cut Lauren's nails for her.
After I was done, I told her .. see, mummy loves you.
lol!!
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Miracles do happen
Her treatment in the US will cost US$350 000 (that's about S$500k) .. and I've just been to her godmother's blog for her and they've managed to raise that money !! Awesome !!
I think it's just wonderful that even in this downturn, there are people out there that have donated money to help this little girl.
Her story was first reported in The New Paper on the 14th of June, 2009 - read article here then shortly after that, readers raised some 40k for her - read article here. Football stars also pitched in to raise money for her - read article here.
Miracles do happen. All the best to Charmaine in New York.
If you'd like to make a cash donation, read how to go about doing that here
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Photos !!!
Finally, hubby agreed to have photos taken .. I usually go without him and even without him knowing .. lol ! Cos I know he'll complain that it's a waste of money. I usually tell him that if he doesn't want nice photos with his kids .. that's his problem .. I like it .. they always turn out so nicely.
These are the 6 that I chose. Love them all :)
We also went to watch Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen today .. awesome stuff !! Go watch it !! We brought all the girls with us ..
~~~ btw, these awesome photos were taken by The Studio Loft.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
I dunno about your husband ...
but mine cannot change a poop filled diaper if his life depended on it .. he is the first one to go running out of the room and exclaim that it stinks etc. Yah, like his poop smells like potpurri (NOT!)
Anyway, Happy Father's Day to all you Dads !! ..
Anyway, Happy Father's Day to all you Dads !! ..
Thursday, June 18, 2009
The pedal bin saga ....
Men are strange. ok, scratch that ... MY man is weird. I (stupidly) mentioned that I wanted to change the bin sitting outside my bedroom to a pedal bin .. I wanted those stainless steel step pedal bins .. ok, why u ask? .. cos it looks nicer than my current PLASTIC bin .. which I have been using for YEARS .. Calista is now very mobile in her walker and without fail, she'll wheel herself to the PINK PLASTIC bin to try and push the swivel lid. The damn lid inevitably clatters to the floor cos it's not tightly fitted .. and lo and behold, the trash is exposed. She can't reach it but of course, it bugs me no end that the cover keeps falling onto the floor so easily. Plus it's just plain UGLY .. dunno why on earth I bought it many years ago .. I think it was because it was cheap and for heaven's sake it was a trash receptacle .. I didn't think it would matter to me WHAT it looked like.
Boy, was I wrong.
I swear I hate the thing. I can't chuck it out just yet .. I need to buy a replacement first. I need a nice, stainless steel pedal bin. I don't care if it costs me $90 .. I want one. At least then, I will finally have a decent looking dustbin to chuck my trash in .. lol.
There is just ONE obstacle standing in my way.
Hubby.
Damn. The minute I told him I was looking for one, uncle took it upon himself to look for one that was CHEAP and good.
Now, I've learnt looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong ago, that most cheap things .. well, they aren't good. Decent, maybe ... built to last ... hell, no.
So there we were at Plaza Singapura last weekend hunting for a bin that wasn't expensive but would last.
How futile is that? I have been with the man for almost 18 years so I tried to keep my mouth shut ... we found a bin that I thought was fine. It was from a store in PS that sold bathroom stuff ... the 12 litre one I liked with a matt finish cost only $35. I thought it was CHEAP and wanted to get it there and then. Uncle thought we should look around elsewhere first. Had I been there without him .. I'd have a nice new bin sitting in my corridor NOW. But noooooooo, he wanted to "look around" ... WTH.
So on Monday, while he was at Causeway waiting for Claudia to finish her ballet lesson, he went into Homefix to have a look at the bins they have ...
$89.90.
He smsed me to say .. we're not in a rush .. we can wait until the next time we go PS to get the one we saw.
Where's the knife? .. I feel like slitting my wrists NOW. lol !!!
Boy, was I wrong.
I swear I hate the thing. I can't chuck it out just yet .. I need to buy a replacement first. I need a nice, stainless steel pedal bin. I don't care if it costs me $90 .. I want one. At least then, I will finally have a decent looking dustbin to chuck my trash in .. lol.
There is just ONE obstacle standing in my way.
Hubby.
Damn. The minute I told him I was looking for one, uncle took it upon himself to look for one that was CHEAP and good.
Now, I've learnt looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong ago, that most cheap things .. well, they aren't good. Decent, maybe ... built to last ... hell, no.
So there we were at Plaza Singapura last weekend hunting for a bin that wasn't expensive but would last.
How futile is that? I have been with the man for almost 18 years so I tried to keep my mouth shut ... we found a bin that I thought was fine. It was from a store in PS that sold bathroom stuff ... the 12 litre one I liked with a matt finish cost only $35. I thought it was CHEAP and wanted to get it there and then. Uncle thought we should look around elsewhere first. Had I been there without him .. I'd have a nice new bin sitting in my corridor NOW. But noooooooo, he wanted to "look around" ... WTH.
So on Monday, while he was at Causeway waiting for Claudia to finish her ballet lesson, he went into Homefix to have a look at the bins they have ...
$89.90.
He smsed me to say .. we're not in a rush .. we can wait until the next time we go PS to get the one we saw.
Where's the knife? .. I feel like slitting my wrists NOW. lol !!!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
In denial ...
Hubby and I are in denial right now. We have said, "When Khalimah comes back ..." a few times already. HAHAHAHAHA! Khalimah of course, is my ex-maid ... wa, she has been gone for not even a month and it feels like forever.
Our new maid is not bad. She's just not solid like Khalimah. No one will ever be I suspect.
So we live in denial everyday ... hoping that MAYBE SOMEDAY SOON, Khalimah will come back and work for us again.
Not likely though ... I just sms-ed her asking how she was and she happily told me that she started a business selling vegetables and she bought a motorcycle "just like Sir's .. except it's red" .. my hubby rides a Honda Super 4 bike .. and yes, Khalimah has a riding licence apparently.
SIGH
Our new maid is not bad. She's just not solid like Khalimah. No one will ever be I suspect.
So we live in denial everyday ... hoping that MAYBE SOMEDAY SOON, Khalimah will come back and work for us again.
Not likely though ... I just sms-ed her asking how she was and she happily told me that she started a business selling vegetables and she bought a motorcycle "just like Sir's .. except it's red" .. my hubby rides a Honda Super 4 bike .. and yes, Khalimah has a riding licence apparently.
SIGH
Monday, June 8, 2009
A twisted right ankle ..
damn it. I really can't wear heels which are too high .. even WEDGES. How retarded is that? I twisted my right ankle on Sunday while we were at Raffles City and now I can't walk properly. I'm hobbling around.
so unglam to hobble. Not that I am damn glam to begin with .. but hobbling looks awful.
When I twisted my ankle .. we were at Level 3 of Raffles City .. at the FP fair. The girls were playing with the toys and I was walking around .. suddenly, my right ankle twisted and I nearly fell ... thankfully the cashier counter was right next to me at the time so I held onto it for dear life .. I saw stars and nearly passed out from the shooting pain in my foot. There was actually nothing for hubby to do except to stand next to me and pat my shoulders confortingly while I stood there trying not to cry .. lol .. yes, it was hurting very badly when it happened ..
Our car was parked at Suntec and we still had stuff to do .. so I suffered till nearly evening .. I refused to hobble outright .. and insisted on walking normally .. (LOL) .. I took small steps .. my friend said she would've just taken off the shoes and walked barefoot ... but she knew I wouldn't .. and I didn't, preferring to suffer till we were on the way home a couple of hours later.
Shopping for groceries at Carrefour has never been more painful. I had trouble remembering what I needed to buy cos I was preoccupied with the pain in my ankle .. and sure enough, my final bill came to a mere $400 .. a far cry from the usual $800 .. well, at least I bought the essentials like diapers and milk formula and rice.
When we finally sat in the car .. I was about to DIE. Upon reaching home, I collapsed on my bed and hubby rubbed my foot and ankle and after applying deep heat .. he wrapped it tightly. I was convinced that I would be a temporary invalid for days ... if not weeks. lol.
After a night's rest, I'm still hobbling somewhat .. and had to cancel our buffet lunch with Haslynda .. (damn it) .. cos while my ankle is much better than yesterday .. it's still slightly swollen and I can't really walk properly. I was worried that I would have trouble stepping on the accelerator and brake so I opted to stay home and asked her to come over instead.
Of course, I'm totally blaming the shoes.
so unglam to hobble. Not that I am damn glam to begin with .. but hobbling looks awful.
When I twisted my ankle .. we were at Level 3 of Raffles City .. at the FP fair. The girls were playing with the toys and I was walking around .. suddenly, my right ankle twisted and I nearly fell ... thankfully the cashier counter was right next to me at the time so I held onto it for dear life .. I saw stars and nearly passed out from the shooting pain in my foot. There was actually nothing for hubby to do except to stand next to me and pat my shoulders confortingly while I stood there trying not to cry .. lol .. yes, it was hurting very badly when it happened ..
Our car was parked at Suntec and we still had stuff to do .. so I suffered till nearly evening .. I refused to hobble outright .. and insisted on walking normally .. (LOL) .. I took small steps .. my friend said she would've just taken off the shoes and walked barefoot ... but she knew I wouldn't .. and I didn't, preferring to suffer till we were on the way home a couple of hours later.
Shopping for groceries at Carrefour has never been more painful. I had trouble remembering what I needed to buy cos I was preoccupied with the pain in my ankle .. and sure enough, my final bill came to a mere $400 .. a far cry from the usual $800 .. well, at least I bought the essentials like diapers and milk formula and rice.
When we finally sat in the car .. I was about to DIE. Upon reaching home, I collapsed on my bed and hubby rubbed my foot and ankle and after applying deep heat .. he wrapped it tightly. I was convinced that I would be a temporary invalid for days ... if not weeks. lol.
After a night's rest, I'm still hobbling somewhat .. and had to cancel our buffet lunch with Haslynda .. (damn it) .. cos while my ankle is much better than yesterday .. it's still slightly swollen and I can't really walk properly. I was worried that I would have trouble stepping on the accelerator and brake so I opted to stay home and asked her to come over instead.
Of course, I'm totally blaming the shoes.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
My lovely Odyssey ..
Yes, I still haven't gotten over my wonderful vehicle. Isn't she so sleek and lovely? See the sun roof? See the tinted windows? .. She is very easy to drive and is very comfortable.
Oh yes, this was taken at the flats nearby my place .. I was waiting for Claudia and decided to take pics of my girls and the car. Couldn't help it. lol.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Yes, I lurve my Nintendo DS Lite .. !! lol :)
Yes, and I bought it in Metallic Rose ... isn't it awesome?!! Who would've thought I would like the darn thing .. but I do !! I initially got it for myself so that Lauren can play on it .. Claudia has one .. but I didn't want her to think she has ownership of the thing in case she thinks she can play on it as and when ... so I told her I'm getting one for myself and that I will allow her to play on it ...
She is happy with the arrangement cos I bought an array of kiddy games that she can play ...
So when do I have time to play this ? ... Well, in the dead of the night of course !! lol.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
I'm more busy nowadays ...
Now that I've lost my right-hand man .. my life has been rather hectic .. well, it was hectic before .. now it's just worse.
My new maid is really inexperienced and rather young .. (she hasn't yet turned 21), unlike my previous maid who really managed my household like a pro .. this new one is just trying hard to keep her head above water.
She has burnt dinner 3 times since she's joined us.
So yes, at the moment, I am preoccupied trying to make sure she doesn't
a) burn down my kitchen OR
b) burn down my whole freaking house OR
c) kill us by making us eat burnt food so often.
SIGH.
3 years I've never had to nag or scold my previous maid.
I STILL don't screech and yell at newbie. I just nag and nag and remind and remind and I do raise my voice in utter exasperation sometimes .. but you know what? .. It's tiring. It's like having another child around and not a responsible adult.
I miss my ex-maid. *sob*
My new maid is really inexperienced and rather young .. (she hasn't yet turned 21), unlike my previous maid who really managed my household like a pro .. this new one is just trying hard to keep her head above water.
She has burnt dinner 3 times since she's joined us.
So yes, at the moment, I am preoccupied trying to make sure she doesn't
a) burn down my kitchen OR
b) burn down my whole freaking house OR
c) kill us by making us eat burnt food so often.
SIGH.
3 years I've never had to nag or scold my previous maid.
I STILL don't screech and yell at newbie. I just nag and nag and remind and remind and I do raise my voice in utter exasperation sometimes .. but you know what? .. It's tiring. It's like having another child around and not a responsible adult.
I miss my ex-maid. *sob*
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Thank goodness ...
Some guy contacted me about my car stuff a few hours after I put it up on Ebay ... ah yes, Ebay ... wonderful invention that is. I managed to sell off the whole set for $900. Well, I paid twice that probably or slightly more .. but no matter. I was actually going to leave it in my Stream when the dealer took it .. but hubby said it would be dumb to leave it there for them. Oh well .. I got rid of the thing for $900 ... thank god. I was half worried it would be left in my house for eternity. Anyway, there was no point pricing it higher .. I used it for about 1.5 years .. I think I'm really lucky I got $900 for it rather than nothing.
The guy who bought it from me was a nice chap too .. he said his friend was getting it .. turns out we go to the same auto shop .. lol !! So he was rather relieved knowing that I had gotten it from Darren's shop (he's the owner). I highly recommend his shop cos unlike those other dodgy looking car audio shops .. his is well, not so dodgy lor. hahaha !!
I was just there yesterday .. hubby and I changed the horn on the Odyssey cos we didn't like how it sounded .. lol !! Aw come on, you want a car horn that sounds decent when you have to horn at some idiot driving. Apparently, he sells the horn that sounds like dogs barking .. (that's what hubby's fren claimed) but I didn't go into the shop to verify that .. hahahah !! Who in HELL would want a car horn like that ??!!!! Ok granted, if they ever invent a horn that either says "Get out of my way you freaking idiot!" .. or "You SUCK!!" or "F%%% idiot!" ... ah that would be the horn I want .. but barking dogs ? .. I don't think so .. lol !!
The guy who bought it from me was a nice chap too .. he said his friend was getting it .. turns out we go to the same auto shop .. lol !! So he was rather relieved knowing that I had gotten it from Darren's shop (he's the owner). I highly recommend his shop cos unlike those other dodgy looking car audio shops .. his is well, not so dodgy lor. hahaha !!
I was just there yesterday .. hubby and I changed the horn on the Odyssey cos we didn't like how it sounded .. lol !! Aw come on, you want a car horn that sounds decent when you have to horn at some idiot driving. Apparently, he sells the horn that sounds like dogs barking .. (that's what hubby's fren claimed) but I didn't go into the shop to verify that .. hahahah !! Who in HELL would want a car horn like that ??!!!! Ok granted, if they ever invent a horn that either says "Get out of my way you freaking idiot!" .. or "You SUCK!!" or "F%%% idiot!" ... ah that would be the horn I want .. but barking dogs ? .. I don't think so .. lol !!
here's a decent pic of my Odyssey ..
So now I am left holding the Alpine touchscreen DVD player .. sigh .. it cost me $1388 just for that head unit. See when the dealer took our Stream, I removed all the extras since I had paid for it to be installed in there in the first place ... we replaced the head unit with a cheaper set though cos you can't have a hole where the CD player is supposed to be, and we couldn't remove the drop down screen cos, well, if they take it out, there'll be a hole there where they had to cut it to mount it. Anyway, that drop down screen didn't cost that much .. about $250 or so I think.
Anyway, now I am left with one Pioneer active subwoofer, an Alpine 6 disk CD/MP3 cd changer and of course, the head unit .. also Alpine. Gosh, I spent more than 2k installing those items in my Stream about 1.5 yrs back.
Bummer, man. Now I have to try and sell the stuff off .. *sigh* I've already had some inquiries for the items on Ebay .. I'm looking to sell the head unit (ie the Alpine touchscreen DVD/CD player for $800 and the other 2 for $200 each.
A friend asked me yesterday why I didn't just transfer it to my Odyssey ... told her the previous owner had spent WAYYYYYYYYYYY more than me on his speakers and subwoofer and amplifier and head unit ... lol .. that it was no point transferring mine over.
SIGH.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
So we switched cars again ..
after driving our new Stream for a year and a half, we decided to get something bigger ..
Yeap .. we got an black Odyssey .. a friend of hubby's wanted to get an Audi so he took his car to the dealer and got a quote then called us - he offered us the same price the dealer offered him ..
It is an awesome price considering the fella is very very car obsessed. You name it .. he's done it to his Odyssey .. he sound-proofed the undercarriage, he added extra sound-proofing to the doors, he did the window tinting, he installed 10k worth of speakers and 3 screens in there .. and there isn't a single nick or scratch on the vehicle .. cos he hardly drove it. AND the plastic on the bottom - u know where kids step on to hoist themselves into the car .. ? .. yeah, the plastic is still on there. And the thing has a sun roof .. not so great for people like me that loathes the sun .. He also had a body kit put on and tv mobile put in. So I can watch my Channel 8 serials while I'm driving. NOT.
lol.
So I sat in the driver's seat today when they delivered it tonite .. he had the whole interior cleaned and polished for us ... and I switched on the music. OMgosh, the sound system is awesome! Definitely a 10k sound system there !!
The ONLY thing is .. the thing is really much longer and wider than my Stream.
Stanley will so kill me if I get so much as a scratch on the damn thing.
I will have to drive like a snail till I get used to the vehicle. I am so dreading it. Here's a really lousy pic of my booooootiful Odyssey ... 
Yeap .. we got an black Odyssey .. a friend of hubby's wanted to get an Audi so he took his car to the dealer and got a quote then called us - he offered us the same price the dealer offered him ..
It is an awesome price considering the fella is very very car obsessed. You name it .. he's done it to his Odyssey .. he sound-proofed the undercarriage, he added extra sound-proofing to the doors, he did the window tinting, he installed 10k worth of speakers and 3 screens in there .. and there isn't a single nick or scratch on the vehicle .. cos he hardly drove it. AND the plastic on the bottom - u know where kids step on to hoist themselves into the car .. ? .. yeah, the plastic is still on there. And the thing has a sun roof .. not so great for people like me that loathes the sun .. He also had a body kit put on and tv mobile put in. So I can watch my Channel 8 serials while I'm driving. NOT.
lol.
So I sat in the driver's seat today when they delivered it tonite .. he had the whole interior cleaned and polished for us ... and I switched on the music. OMgosh, the sound system is awesome! Definitely a 10k sound system there !!
The ONLY thing is .. the thing is really much longer and wider than my Stream.
Stanley will so kill me if I get so much as a scratch on the damn thing.
I will have to drive like a snail till I get used to the vehicle. I am so dreading it. Here's a really lousy pic of my booooootiful Odyssey ...
Friday, May 15, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
So far ...
my new maid .. I shall refer to her as newbie from now has been with me a week already. Not really a week cos she had my maid helping her till Sunday.
When she came to me, she was supposed to have had 2 years experience in Saudi .. that turned out to be a lie (on the recruiter's part) cos she told me she was there only a year. I asked my maid to find out why she hadn't finished her contract there and my maid said she couldn't cope. Gee, how that reassures me of her commitment to her contract here with me .. lol.
damn.
And for some strange reason or another, we have no clue WHY she can't do anything if she had been in Saudi a year. My maid trained her for the few days before she left and I have to say, my maid did a superb job. Newbie can now cook the stuff we usually eat and she has a good grasp on what needs to be done everyday .. the daily routine; the chores, the housework the cooking. Just that right now, she seems to be rushing to cope. But she is improving everyday and I help her out where and when I can.
Of course her English is almost non-existent and Bahasa Indonesia is actually very different from the Malay language we use here so I have to talk to her slowly, clearly and use visual aids if needed.
Friends tell me to just change maids .. but u know what ? There is absolutely no guarantee I'll get anyone better. As for newbie .. she already knows what she has to do everyday and I have already told her to just work towards paying off her loan first .. then she can get her handphone, go on her offdays etc. Hopefully, that is incentive enough for her to continue learning and being diligent here. She isn't dumb or stubborn I find .. just a bit blur. But trainable.
I just find it difficult to hold a conversation with her while I'm driving etc cos I also find it difficult to understand some of what she says in Bahasa Indonesia. A far cry from my maid who did a 2 year stint in Brunei so she could talk in and understand Malay.
If anyone throws in the towel, it'll be newbie not me. LOL.
When she came to me, she was supposed to have had 2 years experience in Saudi .. that turned out to be a lie (on the recruiter's part) cos she told me she was there only a year. I asked my maid to find out why she hadn't finished her contract there and my maid said she couldn't cope. Gee, how that reassures me of her commitment to her contract here with me .. lol.
damn.
And for some strange reason or another, we have no clue WHY she can't do anything if she had been in Saudi a year. My maid trained her for the few days before she left and I have to say, my maid did a superb job. Newbie can now cook the stuff we usually eat and she has a good grasp on what needs to be done everyday .. the daily routine; the chores, the housework the cooking. Just that right now, she seems to be rushing to cope. But she is improving everyday and I help her out where and when I can.
Of course her English is almost non-existent and Bahasa Indonesia is actually very different from the Malay language we use here so I have to talk to her slowly, clearly and use visual aids if needed.
Friends tell me to just change maids .. but u know what ? There is absolutely no guarantee I'll get anyone better. As for newbie .. she already knows what she has to do everyday and I have already told her to just work towards paying off her loan first .. then she can get her handphone, go on her offdays etc. Hopefully, that is incentive enough for her to continue learning and being diligent here. She isn't dumb or stubborn I find .. just a bit blur. But trainable.
I just find it difficult to hold a conversation with her while I'm driving etc cos I also find it difficult to understand some of what she says in Bahasa Indonesia. A far cry from my maid who did a 2 year stint in Brunei so she could talk in and understand Malay.
If anyone throws in the towel, it'll be newbie not me. LOL.
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