Hokkaido (final)

And we came back last week from our winter holidays. Overall the girls were in their bestest behaviour.. not sure if its bcoz the winter made them more lethargic or having to take public transport, but they didnt seem to have so much energy to pick on one another while we were there. In fact, they all helped one another, for which I'm thankful.. Hahahah..

Becoz some, if not all of us, were sick, the trip was further scaled down..so that we could just enjoy each others presence..had wanted to go to more places but the weather was either too cold, or the girls simply took too long to get ready..  I'm not kidding when I say we probably take 2 hrs to get ready each day...lol..

白い恋人 was one of the places we did coz all of us were fans of the famous biscuit. The girls also did some baking while we were there but it's really a tourist attraction la..

If anything, I have to give credits to them for ever so willing to q for food.. probably bcoz seats were always avail while queuing.. the good thing abt traveling in japan is there are no misses when it comes to food. Whatever we had, was always good or super good..hahah..

Pictures while queuing 

Otaru - beautiful small town. The place where we took a cab back to the train station coz we were too cold and tired by the end of the day. The girls were so grateful for the ride.. did it made them more appreciative of our car when we came back to sg? I wished.. hahaha..

Asahiyama Zoo - I realized that in recent yrs we tend to visit the zoo when we are overseas. My favourite gotten be the penguins. Majestic and in control, they weren't intimated by the many cameras. It was a pity that the penguin parade was cancelled that day. But nevertheless, we were thankful for the smooth journey.

The highlight for me personally has got to b the Doraemon park at the airport. It was like a dream come true, to be able to take photos with the crops/ sets while we were there.. n I'm glad that the girls obliged.. hahaha..

And this wraps up our trip. The girls first time seeing/playing in the snow; Joy mastering sking and uncle choo finally buying a real winter jacket while we were there. It was really a nice experience, and we are considering if we should bring them for another ski/ winter holidays next yr. But we shall see la.. 

hkk day 3-4

Thank God for papa choo, for being the anchor and compass today! We finally managed to see a doctor today bcoz there wasnt any at the ski resort.. lol..there is so many things to be grateful for today.. grateful that it didnt snow! Yeah! Bcoz if it had snowed, travelling from the bus station to the sapporo hotel would have been crazy! Grateful that papa choo is so good with his directions! We didnt need to do any 冤枉路 and we manage to take the train and walk to the hospital.

The hotel staff was v helpful in checking if the hospital had any translator around. Bcoz in japan, there are pretty strict abt this. U basically cant see a doctor unless u know japanese or there is a translator for u. All in all, the excursion at the hospital took an hr! For which I'm thankful. So thankful that William could entertain the twins while me and joy went to see our respective doctors. (Coz the hosp insisted she should go to paediatric even though she looks v much like a full grown adult) 

Had a good ramen after that and some light shopping just to top up on some lip balm etc.. actual itinerary probably starts tomorrow.. william says it's going to b light light coz we are still sick but I do feel so much better hrs after I had the meds.. yeah! Thank God for his protection on us! 

grace having a nose bleed after we got back and vera being her nurse..

then there is finally the powdery snow yday bcoz it snowed ! (Finally!) At least before we leave the ski resort, we could experience the powdery snow.. the kids were thrilled by it..n if they are happy, I'm happy.. hahahah.. 

see how cold we have become! 

HKK Day 2

It hasn't been an easy day caring for 2 sick kids and trying to prevent the healthy lonely one to be infected but we just wanna pray and give thanks that for all things, God has a plan and we only need to lean onto Him and Believe that in the end, everything is gonna b okie..

Us in the morning when Grace's fever had gone "shopping" (in her own words) 

The weather was beautiful, not too cold. It was bright and sunny. I know the girls are disappointed that they have yet to see Mr. SNOW yet.. and to be honest, I was getting a little worried too, that we would miss out like our last trip to Korea. But william reminded me again that it is all in Lord's hands and that He would know what's best. So simple and sweet. Indeed, it is always best to focus on God and His plans than our own. And with that, this little anxiety is too, gone with the wind.

我的避风港，我的oppa..hahaha

Joy had a full day of ski class, and I'm thankful that she managed to enjoy herself and really learn how to do it. By the end of the class, she could take the chair lift to the higher mountain levels and ski down. I'm glad she enjoyed it, even though we almost had to forfeit the whole lesson coz she was unwell. But she said she could n wanted to do it. I reminded her that she could end it anytime she felt the need to.

this was the only photo her coach took for her..lol.. oh well.. 

像发烧的小孩吗?

probably the only free activity in the resort..  the twins took so many times of it..lol..

if anything, the food at the ski resort has been mind blowing... hahaha.. I've been to 2 ski resorts (korea) and the food were "attraction" standards.. but the food here is soooooo good.. that it kinda made me forgot how expensive this winter holiday is. Hahahaha..  thankful la.. that food is good..

Give thanks to the Lord , for he is good; his love endures forever.

1 Chronicles 16:34 NIV

Winter holidays Day 1

09/12/19 2pm

Less than 10 hrs before we head to the airport and begin our winter holidays. Feeling excited yet jittery. Praying that the trip would b good, I would survive the night flight with enough sleep, praying that the girls would b in their best behaviour, and we wont b too overwhelmed by the cold weather. 

We are using more bags instead of the luggage bags this time round bcoz uncle choo says it would b difficult to lug them around on the snow ground. I'm praying that the logistics / transportation of us/luggage would b smooth; that we would b able to find the landmarks/hotels with ease. Praying that I wont go berserk on the trip bcoz of the endless bickering.. 

09/12/19 1030pm

Waiting for the cab to pick us up.. the girls are starting to fall sick with grace having a full fever now..  praying that they will recover quickly and that God will make them well! 

The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him,

Nahum 1:7 NIV

 chilling at the lounge before the flight 

Doraemon! Hopefully we have the chance to visit the cafe when we head back to chitose airport.

On the 2hr bus ride to our ski resort 

And we finally arrived!

Joy and grace are officially sick, both with fever and sore throat. Praying that they will get well tomorrow. The kids are super excited abt seeing snow. I do hope we be able to see snow-ing action tomorrow. Trying to take things easy with 2 fever kids. Not sure how joy is going to start her ski class tomorrow (which is non refundable) but we shall see. Praying that God will heal the girls in super speed; and that we be able to spend some time together as a family. Thankful that in spite of the circumstances, things were pretty smooth sailing today. Looking forward to day 2!

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 8:12 NIV

环岛追追追 II

Now that the PSLE results are out, and Joy is probably going to a far far away school. So has the search for a house began..

We went for our 1st viewing last sun. There were 3 contestants: A) super old but huge penthouse condo which is in serangoon; B) new 4 bedroom condo at bartley and C)2 storey terrace house near the twins school. All 3 contestants carry the same price tags but the living conditions are vastly different. For people who prefer an "ang moh chu", taking up opt C) might be a good choice. But landed being landed, it's super far to the nearest mrt. At best, its walking distance to the nearest bus stop. Nah, it's not for us. We all concluded that we prefer B) bcoz it's new and its sheltered walkway to bartley mrt. 

But we probably do more viewings before we decide further. 

          

Since then, we decided to do a trial of the actual time taken if we were to stay at B) and joy going to sch etc vs the time the twins take to go their sch too.. thus began our adventure today.. hahahaha 

We parked the car at nex; took the train to bartley and walk to that condo. Then from then, we walked back to the mrt, took the circle line; changing for downtown line and eventually arriving at king Albert park.

The duo continued to walk up to the sch while vera and I rested af KAP. I was exhausted. Time taken: 45mins. That wasn't v near. I had hoped it to b under 30mins. Oh well. 

We headed back to nex, have lunch and took the car. Drove to the condo, and started the time from the place to twins sch. 

Time taken: 3mins 

It would have been perfect if joy stayed on at pl.. while we were discussing the various options etc, Vera blurted out "otherwise chek chek can go pl sec ! Why must u go other schs when u can go pl sec 🤣"

Such wisdom..  hahaha..(I agree too) but I want to believe that God has plans for each girl and probably Joy will b happier with her choice. And if that's the case, then we will try to make it as comfortable as possible for each of them. It would have been nice if she had stayed in PL and she could enjoy the proximity as well. 

We were all exhausted by the adventures today, even Joy. I told her that she would have to do it everyday when sch starts and probably the knowledge is finally going to sink in her now..

Praying that God points us to a place that's most suited for us to stay. Praying for wisdom to make the right choice. 

I need a nap. William is right. Nap is an option if I work full day. But it is a necessity if I'm a mama full day. Hahaha

环岛追追追!

今天是陪妈妈环岛追追追工作日!

The Choos are out in tow to bring me everywhere for my appts today. It was not intended to be this way initially. I had only planned to spend the morning with them at home while william head over to the old house to settle some stuff. But he was delayed and by the time he was done, I had to zip down to novena for my 1pm appt. He offered to drive me down bcoz if I drove, I probably need a lot more time. And thus began the start of the "tour". 

I feel bad when they travel alongside with me for my appts. I feel like its wasting their time. But uncle choo always feel that its impt to let them know that 妈妈赚钱辛苦， and that's the least he could do so (driving me around) so that I could just concentrate on the appts itself and not worry abt parking; traffic etc.. 

The novena appt ended on time and I'm now at parkway parade waiting for my 3pm appt. The kids and papa choo are somewhere in this mall. The girls are equipped with their story books and entertainment. Hopefully this appt end early and I can drop them all home before going for my last appt. 

Very thankful that they are here with me, that they have grown to understand that this is part of my work. Probably treat them to bubble tea later.. hahaha.. looking forward to our holiday! Yeah!

This is me and my llao llao.. ever since they opened an outlet at sengkang, I know I can kiss my clean eating goodbye. 

Appt kena shifted to 1 hr later, so the glutton me decided to stop here for my afternoon snacks before heading there. After all, I had cried my eyes out with my morning squabble with uncle choo..

That's what we humans do right..  whenever we wanna win or feel right..  we think of reasons to support our cause.. 

I feel like a goldfish with my eyes swollen from the morning showers.. tired and sleepy... 

The sugar treat didnt do much to lift my spirits. Should have gotten 幸福堂 instead.. lol.. feeling tired and crappy.. praying that God gives me wisdom and strength to carry on for the appt.. 

The PSLE results would b out by next week (finally). Praying for clarity, that God plant Joy in the right school for her, and with that, the right place for us to shift to.. in Jesus name I pray, Amen!

A heart filled with thankfulness

I burst out laughing @ "one big round".. hahahah.. after all, I've tried to convince them that I should/deserve to eat kfc today..hahaha..but oh well, they are da best..so blessed to have both of them as my BFFs.. each time I feel down or tempted to eat crazy calories, they are here to cheer me up and stop me to do things I probably regret when the mind is clear. 

It has been a crazy Oct and I'm exhausted even before Nov ends. Thankful for such blessings in my life; William is bringing the girls to chinatown to have dinner with me just so that we could have dinner tog right after my appt.. my heart is so full with blessings and Thanksgiving.

Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up.

Proverbs 12:25 NIV

https://proverbs.bible/proverbs-12-25

Morning me

And we made it in time (714am) to school today! Yeah! Praise the Lord! Missed the alarm at 6am and only woke up at 635 by the helper vacuuming noise. So thankful that the twins managed to get ready in double quick time. Though there was some traffic along the way, I'm glad that we managed to arrive in time.

Enjoying my breakfast at Hong Lim now. The osaka team are on the plane back to sg! Yeah! It feels so long that they are away. Haven't been able to zzz well since we camped at my mama place after the cruise. The body is sleepy but mind is too awake... hopefully things will get better when they are back!

Haven't been so close to the twins for so long. We showered together; slept together and chatted before we zzz.. there was a little drama during the sleeping time yday and both vera and I cried for stupid reasons. I was hurt by her remarks but oh well.. I guess it's part of parenting. There were episodes being replayed in my mind, exploding or scolding/bulldozing my way thru. But I didnt. I was tempted. (Haha!) She is lucky to b my 3rd kid where I've mellowed so much in my parenting style. I've learnt to exercise control with my temper/anger mgmt. I've learnt to empathise more and expect less. I've learnt so much from these girls, to which I'm thankful for. 

Today's mad rush made me realize how much william does for the girls in the morning..coz I'm usually still in Lalaland when they leave for school. Probably should do this once a while.. prepare bf for them, bring them to school etc and let the man sleep in..hahaha..  

Wanna try to squeeze in a trip for the 2 of us before the end of the year.. hahaha.. but our schedules are pretty packed.. shall see how.. there is HKK in dec for the entire village too.. which the girls are so looking forward to.

We are going IKEA for lunch later just bcoz the twins loved it.  Hahaha..

The twins and I

On the 2 hr bus ride back to the port. We are into the 4th day of the cruise. Decided to do a 6D5N cruise with the twins and my mama since william will b going Osaka with Joy and I can't work much since J is on leave too..

My sleeping beauty who zzz 10 mins into the bus ride, on both ways of the trip. Thank God! Hahaha...

Thankfully we manage to do some shopping with the twins buying quite some stuff too. Hahaha..

Checklist: After you - simply loving their desserts.. 

Sugar treats motivation

Thankful that these few days on the cruise have been awesome. Stopover at redang on the 2nd day and even though the twins didnt want to disembark initially, I just wanted them to see the beautiful beach. And I'm glad that we all enjoyed ourselves that day too..

Pretty!

The weather was pretty and so were their moods.. thankful that they have been pretty cooperative all these while.

The tattoo they made at redang..

Bento for lunch on board! 

Ice cream again! Becoz it's only $1.50 per scoop, so we had to have it everyday. Hahahah.. we later realise that we could have it for free at the palace lounge..🤣

While on this cruise, there were many times when the twins only wanted to stay at the kids club 0r in the room bcoz the last few times when they were here with their grandparents, they literally had TV / sweets buffet.. but bcoz I'm here this time round, I wanted them to try out more things. Thus we went to the beach and shopping at BKK today..

Lovey dovey.. may they continue to be close buddies even when they grow up 

I also managed to have many one to one occasions with vera. Usually when Joy / papa choo is around, they are her default choices to go to. But this past few days, we probably hang out tog more often than for the whole of this yr. I now know that she doesnt like prawns or soya milk, but she loves beef and lobster. Shes more of a meat person and her love language is quality time now instead of touch previously.

Thankful for the opportunities to create memories with my family. Looking forward to tomorrow's activities on the cruise.

*******

*waiting at the lounge for the twins to finish their "kidzania" activities*

Hello captains!

Them as butlers..

Seriously, I'm dead tired by late afternoon and there are probably a few more activities before this end.. its their 3rd time doing it but its still pretty fascinating for them, which is good enough for me.

Thru the activities, Grace is always the vocal one, willing to say her thoughts and views to the trainers while Vera is the reserved one. She is able to vocalise, but given a choice she would stand behind her sister and wait. It's something that we already knew, and slowly but surely, given the right opportunities, she would be able to grow her confidence.

*Pizza making*

*cheers to fruit punch*

We did 1 last swim; had dinner and packed our bags. It was time to go home tomorrow. The kids are at the kids club for one last time while the dowager is doing her final sprint at her casino, trying to recover her losses. I finally have some me time alone in the room. Yeah!

Overall this trip has been fun, they have been amazingly cooperative; and even though there were little spats, they always managed to patch up without much interference. I'm glad that we came for this trip. It was good bonding for the girls and me; n for my mom with me/them too.

While waiting for the train home, I received a text from one of my PSLE mummies..

"All the best to our 3 Piglets tomorrow for their first Major exam,  Jia You 💪"

Oh.. tomorrow is PSLE.. oops.. no wonder my work BDM text me saying that she was on half day bcoz she needed to do revision with her P6 kid.. she was surprised when I told her I'm working..  but I didnt realize tomorrow was D-day and I told her that my objective is to R&R with joy so that she doesnt burn out by then.. (which I still stand by my point).

Reached home at 1030pm and all 3 girls are sound asleep..I know some kids are still rushing the midnight oil.. but I think the school has drilled whatever that is required liaoz la.. whatever can b absorbed/ learnt has been absorbed.. whatever can't will not b possible anyway..hahaha..

Then I saw this on my fb feeds and couldn't agree more..

https://biblical-parenting.org/articles/trusting-god-with-our-childrens-exams/

Perhaps I should wake up early tomorrow just to assure my P6 kid that everything would b fine.. just do her best and entrust that God will do the rest..

Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. - Psalm 37:7

Bible verse

But you, Lord , are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high.
Psalms 3:3 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/psa.3.3.NIV

So timely is His word, and so wonderful are His words.. Becoz I have Him, and so all things are possible bcoz of Him. Praying for strength and wisdom as I carry the day on. Praying for directions, as we need to make a few decisions; be it for the family or for my work. May Lord give me the wisdom. In jesus name I pray amen!

Egypt

So glad to be back in the House of the Lord. Feeling recharged and light whenever I'm back in church, enjoying my favourite toast and kopi.

The trip went well. I didnt kill my mama. Hahaha..weather was Super hot but thankfully neither mama nor I fell sick while we were there. I was down with high fever on the night I reached home but that was it. So thankful that it didnt happen when we were there etc.

Egypt felt like M'sia in the 80s. Nothing wrong or bad abt it. Its untapped, not v touristic. But the country is also in poverty. Kids as young as 10 were working as camel-boys or selling souvenirs, just so that they could bring some monies home. My heart goes out to the kids when I see them labouring. Every time I travel, my sentiments when I come back remain the same. How blessed we are, staying in peaceful singapore. Safe country, roof over our heads, and food / water easily available. Obviously safety was a HUGE concern on this trip. There was a body guard on each of the 12 tour buses on the trip, and 2 police cars following the entire convoy throughout the entire trip. I've never been to a  country where I felt so "protected".

Bucket list ticked. It's a magnificent sight, despite the hot hot weather. I stand in amazement of the world wonder. It is so beautiful. How did the people then did it? The guide explained that it's most likely not by slavery but people who truly believed in the importance of the afterlife. Strong belief thus the results/ final product.

Thankful that I got to visit the Coptic Cairo while we were there. It's like visiting history in the bible! Its believed that the Holy family stayed here during their journey.

It was also good to reignite old ties.. hahaha.. for the first time since we joined this industry, we happened to be at the same convention!

We've known each other for more than 16yrs now. But we have never been on the same trip before. My BFC mate/mj kaki/BFF. He was also my 姐妹 for my wedding.. hahaha.. kinda funny when I think of it. But he's one person whom I'm thankful to have 认识 in my life.. always so generous and helpful in so many many ways. I told my mama that he used to send me home every week when we stayed at bukit panjang, before dropping YP at balestier and then his home at hougang.. hahaha.. those were the days.. 简单的友情让我十分珍惜。

The other person that I'm so happy to meet up with is her - Katherine Cheong. A sister in Christ, ever so ready to share her testimonies and touch lives. Even when things weren't always smooth sailing for her, she is always so cheerful and encouraging. I'm v thankful to have first known her when I joined PIAS. I was a young mama then, struggling to balance between being a mama and doing sales. But she taught and shared so much with me during that chance encounter that I continue to practise it til this day forward. So thankful to have met this lady and mentor! Praying that God continue to use her to touch lives and cover her as she continue to be His lighthouse!

Of course I'm thankful that my mama is still healthy. As much as it is tiring and boiling at times, I hope that she will b healthy always so that we can continue to go traveling la..

Thankful to God for the opportunity to bring her for the trips , thankful for everything. I'm glad to be home too! Hahahah..

May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.
2 Thessalonians 3:5 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/2th.3.5.NIV