Wednesday, July 25, 2012

10 Reasons Why I Am Glad I Quit My Full Time Job



It has been about 4 months since I left my full time job... and I am glad I did. Here's why...


1) I can stumble out of bed, take a shower and slip into my t-shirt and shorts, and not have to fuss over make up.


2) I can send my kids to school, and be the one to pick them up when they are done for the day... which means... I get to see their delighted looks when I peer thru the classroom window... have them run up to me with a big hug... and get to hear first hand the exciting things they did in school that day.


3) I get to lunch with Nathan... there are good days and bad days with this... some days, he feeds himself, eats fast, and we have small conversations over a leisurely lunch... some days, he takes ages to chew and swallow one mouthful of food.


4) I get to start my very own business, and dictate the hours when I should be working. Flexi-time! :) Though it might mean I put in more hours in total, I love what I'm doing.


5) I get to work at Coffee Bean or Macs, while I wait for the kids who at having fun at some enrichment class.


6) I get to shop when it is less crowded.


7) I get to see the husband more... on days when he's working at home as well.


8) I get to spend more time with the kids, reading books, painting, colouring, writing, eating ice cream, going to the playground.


9) I get to go on school excursions with the kids and participate in other school activities with them, without worrying about missing important meetings at work.


10) I save time commuting to and from work since I can work from home or anywhere I like.


Well... yeah... so it's been good. Sure there are downsides now that I don't have a full time job. Maybe I'll write a top 10 list of things I hate about not having a full time job next week.




Linking up with Many Little Blessings' Top 10 Tuesday.


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

A Brown Bear, A Moon and A Caterpillar. Treasured Stories By Eric Carle

Nathan and I went to watch Eric Carle's Treasured Stories that was presented by Mermaid Theatre. He really enjoys seeing his favourite characters on stage, and I can tell that he really enjoyed this play. He was laughing a lot and shouting out the names of the characters / fruits as they appeared on stage. I guess it helped that he's read the stories multiple times, and knows them by heart.

brown bear

The props used were really simple - mainly boards painted with flourescent paint that showed up real well in the dark. I liked that they used the illustrations right out of the book, so the kids could recognise them.

I was amazed that the entire play was put together by just 2 puppeteers. They were really skillful, manoeuvring the various props so seamlessly. The kids got a chance to ask questions at the end of the play, and the puppeteers showed us how some of the 'tricks' were carried out.

eric carle

The play runs till 29 July, and tickets are availabe from Sistic. A real treat for the kids! Grab your tickets if you have not done so. :)

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Splash!

Nathan and I visited the Animal Resort at Seletar Farmway today. It is a rather small setup nestled in the suburbs of our urbanised city. For once, we are not surrounded by HDB flats or commercial buildings. As we entered the farm, we were greeted by the smell of animal dung. Nathan was really excited about seeing geese upclose. It was his first time having such close encounters with animals.

He kept asking to feed the animals, and was delighted when we were given packets of food for the various animals. First stop - fishes. The pond was rather shallow, and he kept trying to inch his way forward, so I had to make sure he doesn't step into the pond. After awhile, he decided to squat, and was happily throwing fish pellets into the pond. Since he was squatting by the pond, I thought he was safe... so I decided to take my camera out to snap some pictures... the next thing I knew, he lost his balance while leaning forward, and did a forward roll right into the pond. Splash! And the first thing he said after I pulled him out of the water... "mommy, I want to feed the fishes"... and only after that he went... "mommy, my t-shirt is all wet!" This is definitely something that we'll talk and laugh when he's older. Thankfully, I always have a spare set of clothes for him, and so I got him cleaned up and changed into his dry clothes. The only thing I did not have is dry shoes/slippers... which means that I had to carry him for the rest of the outing. 

feeding fishes

Other animals we saw at the farm...

The crown crane. It is supposedly found in the African savannah and eats insects, vegetables and small animals like frogs. It has a beautiful crown of stiff feathers on its head.

crown crane

The peacock. Peacocks can fly and they like to eat grain, fruits and seed. The peacock we saw did not open its tail feathers despite the kids repeated asking. It was also kept behind a cage, so I did not manage to take any nice pictures of it. Many more of these to see at Sentosa, and they roam freely on the island.

The goose. These were roaming freely by the pond, and they were making an awful lot of noise when the kids offered them food. To tell a goose from a duck, just look at its neck. It is distinctly longer. Nathan used to get these 2 birds mixed up, but now, he is able to tell the difference.

The rabbit. There were quite a few rabbits at the farm and they were happily chewing on the food that the kids were giving them. They were all kept in cages so that they won't run off and dig holes outside, where they can get eaten by snakes. Here's one thristy rabbit...

rabbit

The goat. There was a rather hungry goat that was kept behind a fence. I wasn't keen on letting the goat eat out of Nathan's hand, so I let him put the food near the goat, who promptly picked it up and gobbled it down. A goat can supposedly carry materials up to 30% of its own body weight, and is a good climber, even on steep mountains. It has a reputation of eating anything it can find. In the same compound as the goat was a cassowary. It is a large flightless bird, and it lives in tropical rainforests.

The horse. This was the biggest animal we saw on the farm. It was happily chomping down hay and Nathan was thrilled when the horse ate the piece of bread he offered it... the horse took it right out of his hand and finished the entire slice in 2 seconds.

horse

Though I am not really an animal person, and wouldn't normally opt for a farm stay holiday, this short visit was worthwhile. Nathan managed to see the animals upclose, and really enjoyed feeding them. The farm is open everyday including Sundays and public holidays. There is a sheltered cafe where you can rest your tired legs, have drinks and snacks, and also ride a motorised horse for only 20 cents. :) Bring your kids down before it gets taken over by tall buildings... just remember not to let them squat near the pond, less they roll into it like Nathan.

20 cent ride

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Four is Way Better

For Dean... a loving husband and a doting father...
As I re-read my post on our first wedding anniversary 4 years ago, I am reminded of all the blessings that God has showered upon our family all these years, and I am filled with thankfulness.
It has been 5 years since we said our marriage vows, and now, I realise that not only is two better than one (Ecclesiastes 4:9-11), four is way better!
We went from this...
wedding kiss at the altar
To this...
basketful of kids
In the last 5 years, we moved into our first house, became parents twice over, witnessed first steps, heard first words uttered, shared lots of fun, joy, laughter... carried each other's burdens, shared each other's victories, agonised over difficult decisions, joined hands and hearts as we learnt to be good parents to Nathan & Noah. There were ups and downs... and I am just glad that we are on this journey together. Thanks love!

To mark this special day, I decided that we should do a family photo shoot... we had fun running around Marina Barrage and thanks to Steph Tan, we have these lovely photos to show.
blowing bubbles

blowing bubbles
our first born
happy
mommy and son
daddy and son
sitting on daddy's shoulder
brothers blowing bubbles
watching each other's back
sitting in a basket
father and sons
family
family
lying on the grass
marina barrage
Maybe we should do a photoshoot every year... :)
The boys' red little man's shirt is from Elly. Elly is a Singapore startup that is owned by two sisters. Elly sells dresses and shirts for the little people we love. I discovered them by chance when I won a Facebook giveaway, and was pleasantly surprised when I realised that one of the owners was actually an ex secondary schoolmate of mine.
I like their choice of fabrics... all the designs are oh-so-cute! Looking at their dresses made me wish that I had a daughter to dress up. Think it's nice to have the siblings in matching outfits. For the upcoming National Day celebrations in school, the boys are supposed to wear red and white. No prizes for guessing what they'll be wearing. ;)