Banquet Dinner
And so we had to attend a relative's wedding...all decked in finery, eh...for the little lass, and casual chic blue for the little boy (who wore his smelly thomas crocs, alas), we went to the hotel at Changi Airport for the banquet.
the groom's colleague was extremely talented and made these balloon sculptures!
It was a Sat so mama had classes till 6pm. The two kiddos went earlier for the ROM and tea ceremony with ah gong and ah ma.
Simply the apples of their eyes.
And oh what a good looking family.
So in between dishes, the munchkins went dancing, strutting and posing on the stage...
This little swan looked set for the stage, a natural performer with an innate desire to shine
Disney show - Three classic fairy tales
So the show was at MBS at 630pm on a Sunday. Perfect timing, the kids came to have dinner with mama after her church. The little gal changed into her flowy Elsa dress...and she had to piggy back bear bear who was all exhilarated about catching the show.
The little one was knocked out as he did not nap at ah ma's house.
Daddy was always trying to match his clothes with the boy, oh so new age with the bright pink. Papa did not exactly ...adore the little boy when he was young. Eh, tong was...erm...more tenacious in demanding for things...he was a tad more prone to outbursts...
but, but, but...tong had blossomed beautifully. Jie jie always praised him for being a gentleman whenever he lent her his stuff, like his potty for her to use as a stool climb onto the big potty...he came up with solutions when he yearned for something which was unacceptable...
And he could talk really eloquently now...albeit, sometimes we still could not make out what he said, which made him utterly frustrated and cantankerous...like tonight, he told mama about some white steps and he was very dismayed he could not step on them...after much talking, mama finally understood he meant the white markings at the pedestrian crossing on the road. He held his tantrum in though he was extremely annoyed and upset...
So...papa had grown fonder of this little sack of potatoes.
Yeh...and of course, he would say his little princess IS the prettiest girl in the world...ahem...
We tried consciously to NEVER compare and state, "Why can't you be more like XXX?" We believed that you two ARE special and gifted individuals and we work and learn as a family...though inherently, tong seemed to have this visceral desire to be like his jie jie, he often antagonized her, I felt coz he felt he was not living up to his sis' standards.
And I would remind him that God made him very special, and that God gave him the role as a little bro, and he needed never be like his sis. And for xun who always whinged about having to take care of a little bro, we told her that God made her very special and God gave her the role as a big sis coz He trusted her to do an excellent job...
So...we each had our callings, there was no need to compare and fret, we each should do our best and answer to God...
It was a pity that mama's camera was not fantastic so I could not take all those beautiful shots of the characters. There were Cinderalla, Snow White and Belle. The backdrop was stunning, the costumes were dazzling...SIGH...
We bought a $15 ($&*%(#!!! so ex) candy floss, after much earnest beseeching from jie jie...it came with a crown! The crown was of a much better quality than the flimsy mickey mouse hat we had from the previous show...
The baby was up and munching on SUGAR...arghhh...
Well, would make do with these photos on public sources...
DORA show at United Sq
So, Auntie A could not come with us as her relatives came unexpectedly and disrupted the kids' nap routine.. oh well, we would still go ahead, though it would have been more fun with friends.
Took public transport...yeh, we loved buses and trains...
Oh DORA!
The story was cute, about how the animalitos (ooo we learnt spanish words) got blown away by the wind so they had to go to the river, garden and moon (laluna) to find them.
We loved all those animal mascots.
Oh, the MAP!
Even Diego came along.
After the show, we took the animal ride...it was irritating when the animal ran out of "energy" nowhere near the docking station all the time, mama had to lug the cumbersome creature back...
Well, you said papa always allowed you to play on this after dancing class...I did not think it was much fun...but I supposed it was entertaining for you two.
Went scootering and looking all pensive...you and your bridal veils.
Oh, the Christmas Tree!
Yes, we bought this last year as you wanted a PINK christmas tree. and oh, tong did like pink too, I thought maybe coz he really wanted to be like jie jie.
Enthusiastically hanging all the baubles..
Eh, but tong aborted his mission halfway and went to play, leaving jie soldiering on alone
All DONE.
Changed out of PJs, all ready to go out to play! Wait, let us take a photo with our newly adorned PINK christmas tree. Woah, xun would be taller than the tree very soon.
Ya, we had told you kids about our decision to try for a third child...mama used to be very hesitant about it...though I really liked kids. Erm...the life that we were so comfy with, which was so fun and finally easier, would be disrupted and..there were some very dicey issues, like did we need a maid, who would take care of the three kids, do we split you three up to be taken care separately by wai po and ah ma, could mama continue working...and...sigh...
mama used to tell people that the main reason why i did not want a third child was coz i treasured my marriage enough...a very sobering note, but my children, marriage IS very hard work. It takes a lot of conscious effort and work into making it work, it takes a lot of sacrifice and devotion, it exposes the worst in us...
Mama used to feel that papa did not pull his weight in parenting...that he would just work and leave all the parenting and taking care of the house to me...actually it was not all true...there was a lot of mis-communication,misplaced expectation and selfishness on mama's part...
It took a long time before mama could see her sinful nature...and...ya, grow in wisdom and learn to respect and honour papa, in the way Christ extorted...and there is still a very long way ahead before mama could become the virtuous wife that was described in the bible...
mama was also very thankful that...God really placed His divine touch in putting us at the right place and right time...while papa had to take quite a big pay cut to go to the new work place, his whole demeanor and spirit changed. He was MUCH happier, he became kinder and more patient with us, he took initiative with the chores at home and he apologized when he was harsh...
Then that set mama thinking, that his previous job probably exacted so much from him that he was totally depleted when he came home. Feeling broken and enervated, he did not have much to give, yet he tried, he tried his very best, only to be rebuked by mama for not trying even harder...mama was not understanding and mature enough...mama was...self-centered. well...papa had his foibles too, let us not put him on a pedestal...but in our very imperfections and brokenness, Jesus could make something beautiful and meaningful out of it...
So...it was good that we did not go to USA for the 2 year study. It was good that papa changed his job. And it would be good that we decided to have 3 kids, for a 3-fold cord is not easily broken. doubts plagued mama, I worried if the third one would be healthy and normal, if you two would adapt...I worried about the finances...
but you know, God is in the midst of all these...and He would reign..and give us great peace. And He would shine His favour on us and He would make all things good. So...let us keep trusting, my little ones. Know that I love you so much, so dearly, so deeply...that when I cuddle with you every night and feel your warm bodies and smell your sweet breath, know that...my heart has NEVER been fuller, my spirit never been so uplifted...knowing that God sent me TWO angels...and one more to join us. Good night, my babies. Good night, my hunny.
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