New Manchesters

I went to the post Christmas sales and bought these classy sheets and quilt set. All 500 thread count of cotton sateen luxury. The salesman claimed that they were the very same ones used in certain 5 star hotels. I'm going to be so paranoid about stains and spills. But note the black colour just in case Bryan draws on them.

Last Trip of the Year

On the last weekend of 2008, Bryan decided he wanted to go back to the zoo. To the new children's playground. Again. This time he went for a pony ride. It's the first time he's actually been on a horse. He wasn't scared at all.


Then we met one of my hubbie's colleagues there. And Bryan made a new friend.

More Photos...

Christmas Presents

And of course Christmas is really not Christmas without the presents. And Bryan had one of the largest ones under the tree. It's a Playmobile Noah's Ark set. We thought Bryan deserved it after behaving so well in school this year. His pre-nursery teachers said that he's so much more well behaved this semester. I'm really proud of my boy.


It's been a really lovely Christmas this year. I hoped everyone else had a good Christmas too. But let's also remember the real reason behind Christmas, when God came down as a man to save all of us. Merry Christmas! And God bless!

Baby's First Christmas

This Christmas was spent at home with the family. But we had traditional Christmas stuff like turkey, ham, chocolate log cake, candy cane. And even a gingerbread house. I didn't want to eat it but the children loved it.


One of my best friends gave Gabriel this lovely christmas sleep suit. And he wore it the whole day since it was so cool that day. He's so red and cute in it.

It's really nice to have the whole family over. There'll be three whole families, with a total of 5 children and 3 babies. It can get quite noisy and messy. But I love the company. And they keep Bryan happy and busy.

Bathtime

Gabriel absolutely loves taking a bath now. He would lie down patiently and wait for the bath to be filled to the right temperature. Then he'd smile and enjoy lying in Mommy's arms in his bath. He'd be very quiet too when he's being pampered with baby lotions and diaper creams. I wish I could take a bath everyday like him. It's so relaxing...

Zoo Outing Part 2

After a very tiring time at the zoo play area, there are two choices to get from the other end of the park to the zoo entrance. The tram or the new boat ride. Both costs the same. But with totally different scenery and routes. We took the boat this time. It was windy and so relaxing. Too bad it was only 20 minutes long.

And Gabriel slept through pretty much the whole zoo trip. He had fallen asleep somewhere between the zebras and the giraffes.

Zoo Outing Part 1

I took my two boys out to the zoo today. It was a lovely sunny/cloudy day so it wasn't too hot. Our main goal was to get to the new rainforest playground. On the way there we saw a baby rhinocerous, tall giraffes, hungry zebras and lions basking in the sun.

The playground was big compared to the old one. Especially the waterplay area. There were fountains, watersprays and lots of waterslides. If you didn't have a change of clothes, there was lots to do too. There was a zipline, water crossing, a dry playground and a petting zoo. Hungry? There's KFC and Ben and Jerry's. Want to relax? Take a horse carriage ride. The whole family could spend the entire day there.

Cousins

From left to right: Gabriel, Samuel and Luke.

We have a family dinner once a week. That's when all the cousins come together. Bryan would be busy playing with his favourite cousin, Katelyn. And Gabriel would share his cot with Samuel and Luke. Meanwhile, the parents would be exchanging notes on how much each baby is sleeping, feeding and pooping. A big highlight of my week since I'm still on maternity leave.

Scraps

I'm so behind on my scrapbooking. And Christmas is just around the corner. Each page takes me a couple of hours. A couple of hours which should be spent reading my notes and studying for my exams next year. But somehow I managed to find some time to scrapbook a few pages.

Also a big 'Thank You' to one of my best friends who gave me lots of lovely scrapbooking stuff for Christmas, including an empty calendar. Now I have more things to put on my 'To Do' list.

My hubbie recently bought a brand new printer which I will put to very good use printing out photos for my scrapping. Thanks dear.

2 Months

Gabriel is now 2 months old. He's very responsive and very alert when he's awake. We have the silliest conversations together. He'd listen intently while I tell him about the day's itinerary. And then he'll agree with whatever we'd be doing. And once in a while, he'd smile as if to say he's having the best time ever. That is just the cutest!

An Early Christmas

My darling hubbie bought me a gorgeous new wallet from Kate Spade for Christmas. Thank you! It even came in a box with a pretty little bow.


The wallet is actually brown in colour on the outside with pink on the inside and lined with brown polka dots. The photo doesn't really do it justice.

Kate Spade designs not only bags and shoes but lovely papers, wallets and clothes. There is even a range for the men, Jack Spade. Her designs are fresh and modern. She plays with bold colours and simple patterns. And it's not too pricey either. Perfect for a Christmas or birthday present.

I also love her simple diaper tote bags as well. But as it is, I already have quite a few diaper bags of my own. I do have my eye on a bag or two for next year's Christmas present. :)

Pilates

I had my first pilates class at my club this weekend. It's the first time in months that I've exercised on purpose. It felt really good. Pilates is a set of exercises based on dance training, It improves strength and flexibility. And it also helps the core muscles, posture and balance.

The class isn't very big, with only about 14 students. The coach is a petite lady who is quite good. She explained each exercise and which muscles it's working. The class is easy enough for beginners to understand yet also can be easily modified for advanced students. Some of the poses can be really difficult to hold. For example, you can try this...

Get down on all fours, hands directly below shoulders and knees below hips. Keep your back in neutral position, which is somewhere between arching the back and rounding the back. Then hold your core body muscles as still as possible, raise your right leg in the same line as your back. And raise your left arm to the horizontal position. While you are desperately trying not to shake too much, the instructor goes, "breathe, breathe". I felt like a cat trying to balance on a clothes line while giving birth.

I think it will be great to attend the class right after a quick cardio session. It would then be a all round workout session. If I can find the time...

Meanwhile, I'm quite happy with my weight loss. After delivering Gabriel, I gained 7kg. Since then, I've lost 3kg in 2 months. I'm hoping to be able to lose another 1kg or so by Christmas. I'm also starting to fit into my old clothes, which is really great. Even my wedding ring fits.