A family day and her first aerial hammock class - Angel is 15!

As the kids get older, they outgrow the need for themed parties but we always make it a point to spend time together and do something fun on their birthdays.

I remember as a teen, my birthdays were spent celebrating with my close group of friends in secondary school. But my parents and grandma never forgot it too and it made me eternally grateful to know that I was loved by my family. So although I know my big kids don't need a fanciful celebration anymore, I hope they know how their birthdays will always have a very special place in my heart and I want them to always be happy and feel extra loved on this day.

Angel turned 15 in November and we had planned a simple day out for her just doing the things that she likes, including going for her first aerial hammock class. Here's sharing more about the highlights of her special day.

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Although the hubby was flying off to Vietnam for a football retreat on the day of Angel's birthday, he managed to have lunch with us first and the birthday girl was happy to have mookata! She has been helping Papa to cook in our last couple of mookata visits which I guess is a sign of her growing up. We all love mookata because it is just very shiok to eat and super tasty too.

i wanted us to sing the birthday song for her and let her blow candles and make a wish before Papa rushed off, so I hurried to get some cupcakes for her and managed to do it just in time before the hubby had to rush to the airport.

That also meant that I was left with the kids on my own for the rest of the day, woohoo! 

Before I forget, I wanna mention the gifts that we presented to Angel when she woke up, especially this set of super adorable SKZOO (each animal represents a member of Stray Kids) handmade squishies made with love by meimei Ariel. She spent lots of time on it and I truly admire her creativity, drawing skills, effort and thoughtfulness. The little brothers also gave 大姐 their handwritten cards and I hope she felt all the siblings' love for her.

As for me, I got her a Sylvanian set because she says she still likes them after so many years. So now she has a new fennec fox family to add to her collection.

After our mookata lunch, we made our way for the highlight activity of the day - Aerial Hammock. Ever since I told the kids about my experience at Milan Pole Dance Studio, they said they wanted to try too, especially Angel who seemed the most enthusiastic about it. So I booked a private class for the three older kids to try it together while Ansel and I cheered from the side.

Although it was an entirely new experience for them, I must say they nailed most of the poses and did a really good job. The girls' dance experience and flexibility helped them and they seemed to be able to move about with ease. Asher was a little scared initially but the more he tried, the more confident he became and he especially loved doing the frog pose and hanging upside down.

They also did the mermaid, inverted straddle and dancer poses which looked pretty cool and considering we only had an hour, I think we accomplished quite a lot for a first try. I was relieved to hear that the big girl thought it was quite fun and glad that she had the chance to try something new on her special day.

After class, we made our way to the arcade since this is something that never fails to excite and delight the kids. Oh well, just a treat once in a while, okay? While I love that the kids got to play their own favourite games, it was also nice to see them playing together especially how the big sisters would accompany the toddler and go on kiddy rides with him.

For dinner, Angel wanted to eat at Saizeriya so we made our way there. We usually eat the same things pizza, pasta, hotdog, chicken wings and mushroom soup but that day, we added a hot lava cake just for the birthday girl.

Was that all? Well, not really. As you know, we are quite the late owl family and it was way too early for the kids to sleep. So we made our way to the cinema and caught "Red One" starring Chris Evans and Dwayne Johnson. It was a light-hearted, hilarious and entertaining show which was the perfect choice for our mood that night.

Finally, it was time to head home at nearly 11pm and although we were quite exhausted, we still chose to take the bus home. A memorable incident was how we saw the bus coming and thus all of us sprinted to the bus stop, even the toddler tried his best to dash fast too and yeah, we made it! That concluded our family day out and it was one filled with mostly joy and lots of precious memories.

As always, we also celcebrated with the extended family too , thanks to the hubby and father-in-law who helped to cook dinner. Ye Ye made Angel her favourite chicken wings while the hubby treated everyone to homecooked chilli and black pepper crabs. Yummy! 

Her birthday cake was a chocolate flavoured one and I hope even if time flies and things change, some parts of her would stay the same - like her love for chocolate cakes. We love you, Angel!

As part of her birthday, I also planned a mum-and-kids retreat to Bintan as the hubby was away. It was  fantastic 3D2N stay we had at One of a Kind Resort and I will share more in details next time in a separate post. Here's a sneak peek of what we did and as you can expect, it was very much about connecting with nature in the outdoor, something that Angel loves to do and I truly wanted her to feel happy.

Dear Angel, 

Happy turning 15! It's hard to believe that one and a half decades have past since you made me a mum in Sweden.

We've gone through so much together, haven't me? From the Europe travels, cruises, our days in Karlskrona where we stuck together 24/7 for three long years, going through a miscarriage, moving back to Singapore, started school, having your first, then second and then third sibling, shifting house, going through PSLE, and now, you are in Secondary 3 already. Time truly flies.

We both know how things aren't easy all the time and we've gotten into so many arguments too, now that you are a full blown teenager and I am still trying to navigate being a first time mum to a teen. Like you said, you didn't ask to be born first but that is why how life decided it to be and you will always be my dearest firstborn, the one that is wiser beyond her years and will always be the 大姐 in our family.

Thank you for trying your best, for always making sure I get to eat, for taking care of Didi Meimei, for piggybacking Ansel when we are out and being his little Mama, for being the straightforward one who doesn't mince your words, and for letting me know that there is still so much for me to learn and grow as I try my best to be a mum that you can be proud of.

It's hard to picture that in another decade, you might have spread your wings to soar and leave this nest that's just another thing I have to learn - to let you go when it's time to. Just know that we are always here to lend a helping hand, a listening ear,  a hug or anything you need because we are family and that's what families are for.

I hope you enjoyed your birthday to the max - thank you for saying you have no request and don't need much - and that you had fun at our Bintan retreat too. We love you to the moon and back, always and forever.

Love,

Mama

Happiness is.... showing that you care

There are people who show their love through words, people who prefer to use action and others who tend to keep their feelings to themselves.

I have always been one who likes to say "I love you" to people who matter to me, I like giving hugs and kisses and receiving them, and I want to make sure that those people I care about can actually feel the love I have for them. Since becoming a mum, I find it even more important to express my love, not by extravagant or fanciful means, but through loving words and caring deeds every now and then.

I mean, you never know what life has in store for each of us tomorrow and it is really important that we try to make the most of each day, hold our close ones near and live with minimal regrets.

In this post of "Happiness is...", it's about showing our love and our care in the little ways we can.

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As we counted down to P6 prelims and PSLE for Ariel, I knew she was looking forward to receiving her care pack because we did one together for Jiejie three years ago.

So I took time to search around for a backpack in a shade of purple that I knew she would love and started feeling it up with stationery, useful items, her favourite figurines and handwritten encouragement notes just for her. She loves unboxing stuff and had lots of fun revealing each of the items, and her joy was plain to see.

Besides clearing my work desk in my room to let her use as a study table - she shares a desk with the sister and it is usually in a mess - I also set up a magnetic board filled with positive thinking and growth mindset quotes, as well as printed out her exam timetable and a cute revision timetable template for her to fill up.

I also made homecooked chicken essence for her by tenderising and steaming chicken breast meat for over two hours every time. She loves it so much more than the bottled ones and would finish every drop of it every time. It's not just about the nutritional benefits; it's also about the love that goes into it.

While we recognise the importance of PSLE, we also know that rest and play are also equally important for the well-being of both parent and child. I don't want either of us to be overwhelmed by stress and I still want my kid to enjoy carefree days and happy times. 

Ariel has a special affinity with Ansel and I am glad it had remained intact in this busy year and she still makes time to play with him, draw with him, read with him, watch TV with him and dance with him. It is a form of destress for her too, isn't it?

We also still make time to exercise and I like that my girls are old enough to go the gym with me now. In fact, they are fitter than me and I am usually the one who gasps for breath and stops running first. Haha. Oh well, 岁月催人老, but we can still try our best to live healthily and stay strong and fit, especially if we wanna see our kids grow up and not be a burden to them.

The kids are still going strong in their Taekwondo classes and in fact, the girls have become assistant coaches after getting their black and poom belts. As for Asher, he is black tip now and is also taking his poom belt grading test. Yup, time flies, I know.

Anyway, I always accompany the kids for their grading and will be cheering for them by the side as they do their sparring and poomsae. That is also a form of showing support and care, right? Since the girls did not need to take their grading this time round, I was there with Asher through as we waited for hours till his turn. He successfully passed his grading and will be getting his junior black belt soon, woohoo!

I like our weekends to be carefree and happy, and since none of the kids attend any tuition class up to this point, we are still able to hang out and do fun things as a family.

We went for a cooking workshop at Pastamania where the kids made chocolate chiffon cakes and banana milkshakes. It's always nice to let them try new experiences and baking is something that we do not enough of at home.

Ariel especially enjoyed it because she likes to cook and bake and I'm not sure if she will outgrow the love for parent-and-child cooking classes but I am gonna cherish them for as long as they last.

Back at home, while I am tired to cook on some days and will order takeaways, I also still want the kids to taste the goodness of home cooked food. It's one of the ways I show my care for their wellbeing and though I am not sure if they take it for granted, I hope one day when they think and look back, they will remember the love behind all the 家常便饭 we had at our dining table together.

Due to the nature of his military work, the hubby is rarely around but when he is, he still makes an effort on weekends to eat with us, bring us to places and also do fun activities with us like hiking in nature reserves and even dancing too. Well, the dancing part happens once in a blue moon but when it happens, the kids remember it and will talk about it. Doing things that our kids enjoy is also another way to show that we care for them.

We still like to visit the cinema once in a while and this month, we watched Inside Out 2 which was a pretty nice, meaningful and entertaining sequel to the first movie. The kids will always ask for some popcorn and nachos and I think we are quite lucky in that even the toddler is able to sit throughout long movies - it's pretty much because we trained them well since young. I still hope for movie outings and home movie nights to continue even when all my kids have turned into teens or young adults, but it's a dream that might or might not come true, so let's cherish whatever we have now.

Hello, Minions! We saw these mascots at Jewel one day and managed to take a photo with them. You know, the older kids are in the awkward adolescence phase where they are torn between being kid and adults, and some things might seem too childish or just out of place and uncomfortable for them, including taking photos with mascots, going on merry go rounds and other kiddy rides, watching theatrical productions meant for young kids etc.

But the fact that they do it stems out of their love for their siblings, especially Ansel who is still very much a toddler and loves all things cute and cuddly. I do not take this for granted and always remind the littlest that he is so blessed to have siblings who dote on him and love him to the moon and back.

We make it a point to eat with our parents regularly and better still, we come together to have a meal, chill out and chit chat. It's nice that our parents can get along and still have much things to talk about after so many years and it's a bond that we treasure very much. Our parents are very simple folks and a zi char meal will make them very happy instead of dining at expensive restaurants - and I guess we take after them in the sense. It's really the company and not the food that matters at the end of the day, in our view. After our Desaru trip together, we are planning for a trip to Bali at the end of the year and will share more then!

We also brought my Dad to S.E.A. Aquarium since he loves marine creatures and seldom ventures out to tourist attractions like this. He has glaucoma and can barely see in one eye and it pains me to see like that but I know how hard he tries to still join in our activities and interact with the grandkids - I also hope my kids will learn to empathise and care for Ah Gong more, especially when he walks and trips over, I hope they will always be there to hold his hand. 

My Dad is very easy-going when it comes to food and he eats all kinds of cuisine so he always lets us make the decision on where to go. It's a different case when it comes to my Mum who much prefers Chinese cuisine and needs her bowl of rice for every meal and can't take Western fare much because she can't take anything buttery or creamy. I still love to bring my parents out to eat so it's about understanding, striking a balance and once again, showing our care and love in every way we can, right?

It's the same with the kids too, like they love xiao long baos at Ding Tai Fung and love western food like pasta and pizzas, so we try to take turns to choose, to respect each other's likes and dislikes and to show our appreciation whenever we get to eat a more expensive meal and not take it as a given.

It's been a couple of years since we attended any NDP Preview and this time, I kind of asked the hubby if he could get tickets for our family and he actually managed to, woohoo! We brought my father-in-law along as the eldest was going with her school mates already and it was nice that he got to enjoy the fireworks, military showcase and exciting performances with us.

While it's still nice to watch the live telecast of NDP on television, nothing beats that sense of patriotism when you are at the venue itself and I can't tell you how much pride we felt when we stood up to sing our national anthem, recite our pledge and witness the flag flypast. We love you, Singapore!

While we are all leading very busy lives, my Jiemeis and I still make it a point to meet up for birthdays, even if it is just for a quick brunch or supper. It matters that we try and put in effort, right? There is always so much to catch up on and so much to talk about whenever we meet and I treasure these gatherings so much. Even if I sometimes bring the youngest along (so that I do not have to rush off at 11am just to pick him from school) and have to keep an eye on him, I am still very thankful to have this bunch of sisters who keep me sane and let me know I am not alone.

Last but not least, a big highlight for Ariel and Asher this month was seeing their documentary showing as part of Ocean Fest 2024. In fact, this was how we managed to get tickets to S.E.A. Aquarium - it was part of the reward of them being part of the cast. They did the filming in May and we finally got to see the entire end product this month - which was pretty cool and I think they both did a really awesome job. It was a good learning experience for them too and we welcome any more filming projects that may come our way in future, yeah?

That marks the end of an eventful month of July and as we prepare for the year end, I know there's gonna be lots more to share in the next few months. Let's all remember that it is important to show our love and care and not assume that the people that matter to us know it deep down and that we do not need to do anything to remind them. 

We all love to be loved and sometimes, when we are feeling a little lost in life, all we need is a hug, a kiss, a cuddle and reassuring words like "It's okay", "I've got you" and "I'm always here for you".

Till the next pensive post of "Happiness is...". Please know that you are very much loved and that you've got this.