I like to eat ...

and fruits (strawberry, grapes, longan, apple, banana), yoghurt, pasta with cream sauce, lasagne, sausages, cheese, fried rice, egg tart, pizza, burger, chicken pie, scrambled eggs and soups. And he is born into a traditional Chinese family living in Singapore who love typical local dishes and hawker food. Strange.

Small Talk

It's delightful to have conversations with toddlers; it gives you a different perspective on stuff and an inkling as to how their brains are wired.

I was ending a conversation over the phone with Sweet Potato and I asked,

Give mama a kiss.

Mama, I cannot reach you.

Here is another one on growing old. It was drizzling and I drove my mum home:

Where is Auntie Wati going?

It's raining, Auntie is walking with popo with the umbrella; without the umbrella, popo will run and she may fall. Popo is old and will be badly hurt if she falls.

No. Popo is not old.

Why?

The uncle in "Up" (the Pixar movie) is old. He has black glasses and his hair is white.

Beauty is but skin deep

8 June 2010

Sure. Honestly, it's something I subscribe to more and more as each year passes by. So does this tai-tai who was interviewed by the Straits Times and then the article was dominated by how she spent the entire day preparing for a gala event. And her daily routine goes like this: she wakes up at about 11am (and mind you, that's notwithstanding she has 2 young children attending primary school in the morning), goes to 'work' at the jewellery shop her husband owns for at most 2 hours, meet up with her customers at external venues (read: shopping, meals, afternoon tea, exchange gossips) but made it clear that she sees herself as a business woman and not a tai-tai. This woman is obviously in denial.

I have made a concerted effort to wear some form of make-up to work. Why ? Well, I was made to stare into a 'reality' mirror under bright lights yesterday when I on impulse, gave in to an enthusiastic young South African lady's request to apply mineral foundation powder on my face. All the undeniable signs of aging which the various beauty ads touted to be able to erase or reduce with their much researched miracle anti-spots/anti-wrinkle/whitening products were markedly visible. I figured I have a few quick make over options - wearing a mask, go under the laser or do a cover-up job with make-up. The decision was obvious although I do have quite a few superhero masks to choose from.

So this morning I asked my no. 1 beauty consultant, Peanut, how I looked. He is usually a lot more foregiving than my no. 2 beauty consultant - my spouse. When I need a dose of flattery, I go to Wati - she has the lowest standard. Sweet Potato? Oh, he has no views of his own, he is a 'contrarian'; meaning he will just adopt a view contrary to his gor-gor's.

Is mummy pretty? (Yes, blatant cheating ... hoping to get the answer I want)

No.

Why?

You have purple eyes.

Well, at least he didn't say 'panda eyes' ...

The Monotonous, the Mundane and the perfect bliss

Oh dear ... it has been more than 2 months since the last blog entry. No, not because I'm thinking of abandoning my blog again. And not because I have nothing to update/say - on the contrary, there's lots. So, be warned, the next couple of entries will be back-dated.

I have been busy spending and spending on stuff like Pulmicort, Combivalent, Seretide, Rhinocort, Sterimar, Priniton, Controloc ... even acquired a nebuliser machine - medication and inhalers for lung infection (shortness of breadth, headaches, restless sleep) bronchitis and rhinitis. Here are the numbers:

1. No. of GP visits: 6 + 2 (1 for each child)
2. No. of specialist visits: 7.
3. Aggregate no. of days of medical leave: 15 over a period of 3 months
4. No. of bottles of suppressant (cough mixture) consumed: 3
5. No. of X-rays taken: 4
6. Total bill: $2000 (not counting those paid for by the company)
7. Weight loss: 2000g (I could have said 2kg, but when one crosses a certain age, I am of the view, that it is more meaningful/appropriate to measure weight loss by grams. Not unlike how one uses "weeks" when talking about advancement in pregnancy or refers to the age of an infant in "months". Weight gain, on the other hand, should strictly be measured in terms of kilograms.)
8. No. of nights spent sleeping separated from my beloved sons: 5

Quite a record but the only number of significance was the last. The next morning, though well rested, I would wake up totally disorientated, wondering if I were in a hotel in a foreign land. It's of course liberating to have the bed to myself, not having to be awaken in the middle of night by cries, dream-talking, pj soaked in u**** or forceful kicks (All courtesy of Sweet Potato). But somehow, there's also a feeling of loss, incompleteness of the soul.

Last week was my 1st full week back at work and of course, there was much work to clear. And amidst this period of ill health - we went for a holiday at Langkawi, celebrated my mum's birthday at our place and nursed 2 sick kids. Peanut had a fever for 2 days whilst Sweet Potato's high fever (which hit 40 at its highest) lasted 5 days. And here's one more number for you. What is the difference in body temperature with and without diapers?

0.9 degrees Celcius. My poor baby was one hot potato. I am not joking, I was diligently alternating between sponging and temperature taking. I learned that the blood vessels are close to the skin at the forehead, armpits and groin area so heat transfer and hence reduction in body temperature is most marked by sponging these areas. And so diapers can and do make a difference.

Things have finally settled down and I'm so relieved to be able to report that life reverts back to normal humdrum. Normal can be so blissful.