7 more days to my Big 37!

Haha! Please tell me you don't believe I am turning 37 in a week's time! At least I don't! :P

Well, time flies.. really flies... another year has passed and so many things had happened in this one year. But I am glad all that had happened are good things. My life had finally changed for the better. I believe many more good things will come along in the next one year! 

正能量，来吧！

As usual, I always like to do a recap before my next birthday. So as to remind myself to treasure what I had achieved that did not come easy, and continue to work hard to retain what I have...

Still Slim and Pretty!

I always use my photo which I took in 2013 to "scare" myself and to remind myself what I had been through back then. I am glad I am still slim and pretty.

For those who forgot what I had been through may read about my "iVain: Obasan to Hot Mama Journal"

http://jolene428.blogspot.sg/search?updated-min=2013-01-01T00:00:00%2B08:00&updated-max=2014-01-01T00:00:00%2B08:00&max-results=50&m=0

Before Slimming (64kg)

After Slimming (48kg)

Don't be shy if you wish to find out more about the TCM Slimming Programme I went through in year 2013 to slim 16kg in 3 months. It is definitely achievable for everyone who sets his/her mind to slim down. 

Email me your queries at jolene428@gmail.com and I will reply within 24 hours. ^^

Let It Go

I still remember how unwilling I was to say Goodbye last year to the workplace I was so attached to, but yet also the workplace that had tormented me emotionally since 2011...

But I knew I had to leave because it was not doing good to my self-esteem and self-worth. It took me a few months and lots of tears to finally let it go.

I now learnt that we should only work hard for bosses who are worthy of us, who can make us feel proud of ourselves and who knows how to unleash our potential and polish us into gems.

I also accepted that Life was not all that unfair to me afterall. I did suffer injustice for 3.5 years but Life was kind to me towards the end of my career in that workplace. Life had introduced me good colleagues, good bosses and new good friends...:)

Life gave me the chance to leave my unhappy career with happy new memories...

A New Beginning

Ending of an unhappy career usually means a new beginning in my work and life...

This new beginning did not come easy. But it makes me realized that, by keeping my options open, opportunities will come along. 

I am happy and thankful in my new career. Work is busy but I really love the busyness, because I am working for someone who appreciates what I can contribute to the organisation.

My new career is definitely not perfect. There are office politics and there are 小人 too. But at least I know that my new bosses have "eyes". I know I can trust that they are unbiased and with good characters. I also know that the majority of my close working colleagues are kind and want the best for the organisation. 

Missing My Travelling Sprees

Suffering withdrawal symdrome from my travelling sprees last year. 

I definitely can feel the itch for not being able to travel this year, as much as I did last year. But I know I have an empty piggy bank to fill up again before I can plan for my next long trip.

I am thankful for the opportunities "to see the world" last year. I enjoyed the visits to BKK and KL to catch up with my long-lost friends, and I had fun spending a good 10 days in Taiwan with Qiuling.

My trip to Taiwan was especially fruitful. Not only, we covered the north-west part of Taiwan, bought tonnes of food and beauty products, I also make a new Taiwan friend. It was also addictive to experience travelling alone. 

Pinky and Me on plane alone

I don't mind sharing that I do have plans to travel alone again by end of this year. And I am determined to make more friends around the world, so that I have more opportunities to travel alone to visit them :P

But I also do not mind travelling with new travelmates too, because I always believe travelling with different people helps to make me a more accommodative, understanding and considerate person.

Jamie goes to Primary School

Time flies and my baby girl is already in Primary 1 now. She is still not reading well but at least I see progress. 

Jamie's K2 Graduation

Jamie 6yrs old birthday party

I was thrilled to hear and see her reading the books brought from the LSP.

We still believe she can catch up with her peers when she is ready to hit her milestone for her reading skills.

Jiayou Jamie! One day, you too can write your own blog! ^^

James Can Talk

In fact, these days we felt that James talks too much. Hahaha... But we are glad that the siblings can finally communicate with each other. 

James' first concert performance

James' big 3 birthday

Goodbye to a Long-term friend 

Ace was like an old friend to us because we had been through so much together with him. Laogong and I had our fair share of scares too during the last few months of Ace's life. We were grateful that Ace survived till his COE expired.

Thank you Ace, you had been a good friend! 

Goodbye for a Better Future

We could not bear to rent out our first love nest but it is not economical to leave it empty. Yet it is not big enough to fit 4 adults and 2 children comfortably. 

Hence, we will be renting it out for a better future for our children. 

Addicted to Staycations

We are busy filling up our empty piggy banks, hence unable to go for long trips. However, it does not stop us to become addicted to staycations (be it couple trips or family trips), especially staycations across the borders. 

Enjoying good currency exchange rate for the past one year had given us opprtunities to try other JB hotels other than KSL and Hotel Jen @ Puteri Harbour. We especially loves DoubleTree Hilton now for the good rates and friendly staff. But we really do not mind trying out more JB hotels to compare their service quality. 

I even thought of going on roadtrips with Laogong to different parts of Malaysia by public transport, like those "good old days" again when we were young and "poor" but adventurous.

Panda Supermum Reporting

This April happens to be the once every two years "supermum peak period". Once again, I am challenged and stretched to my max to test my endurance and time management. 

Lucky for me this round, because my new boss is extremely understanding. 将心比心, I will give her my best within my means even when I am tied up at home. 

I always treasure this opportunity to bond with my children and to train them to be more independent. I know we had been blessed so far with a good helper, but sometimes we really never know if she may change her mind suddenly. 

I also treasure the opportunity to cook for the family. Many people may have forgotten that I actually can cook. Maybe I cannot cook as well as my helper but I believe I can cook well enough for my children to finish up the food I prepared for them. 

However, having to spend more time for my children's routine work eg bathing, eating and putting them to sleep etc, also means sacrificing my Me and Sleep Time. Hence, I totally look like Panda Supermum now! Hahaha! 

Looking forward to be a Princessy Supermum once again :P

My Scheduled Belated Birthday Celebrations

Previous years, I would meet up my friends before my actual birthday to have a meal or/and some activities.

But this year, due to my helper's home visit leave, I could not agree to any birthday meetup before my actual birthday. Instead, I had to pack all my birthday celebrations on the long weekends from 28 Apr to 2 May 2016. 

28 Apr 2016 - I will be on Birthday Leave so I will be having a joint birthday celebration with my nephew, Keith, again! This year, we are trying out the newly opened Punggol Safra Indoor Water Playground! Look out for my review about it! 

29 April 2016 - Birthday High Tea with Uni Friends at Vintage High Tea @ Dempsey. Will do a Food Review! 

1 May 2016 - Helper will be arrived in Sg in the afternoon, hence Night Time should be going out with Laogong

2 May 2016 - Lunch Buffet @ Swissotel and KTV at Teo Heng, Suntec with 好姐妹. Will do a Food Review! 

7 May 2015 - Mothers' Day Lunch/Dinner with my mother

8 May 2015 - Mothers' Day Buffet Lunch @ Carousel with mother-inlaw.

21-22 May 2016 - Joint Birthday Staycation with Yvonne @ M Hotel

Who else want to chope me in May? Hahaha! 

Goodbye is for a Better Future...

Guess I am always the one who is more emotional when comes to saying goodbye. 

Laogong was sure from the start that we have to do this. Actually I also know we have to do this. Being a 4 bedroom 5A flat located in Bishan, my mil house definitely has more rooms to fit everyone comfortably. It is also more accessible to Laogong's work place, Jamie's primary school and many parts of Singapore. We had agreed from the start that eventually we will move back to take care of the old folks and our Punggol house was merely a good investment. 

I don't mind staying with my mil too because she is a very docile and easy-going person. She is also not calculaive and is always willing to help out. She even changed her working shift to help out for this month. She has every right to be like many other grandma these days who just want their personal time and space but she didn't. I am very grateful I have a nice mother-in-law. 

But I cannot help but feel a little sad that our first little nest which we "built" from scratch is now going to be someone's else home. In a way, I should be happy that it will no longer be an empty house but will once again be able to bring warmth to its new occupiers.

Yah, we are renting our Punggol house out. The house where we spent 2.5years; where I did my 2nd confinement; where Jamie and James grew up...

But I know this is the start to a better future... With the extra income, we will be able to give the family a better life... We can even look forward to do a full renovation for my mil house in 1-2 yrs time or a second property in 3-5 yrs time.

So yes, we have to do this! 

May the new occupiers will take care of our house like if it is their long-term home...

We just did our last packing and cleaning of the house and had moved out the last boxes of our personal items. 

Will share the rental procedure experiences in the next blog posts...

Home Sweet Home

It had been 10 days since we moved into the new house. But it felt like a very long time.

However, we definitely have alot more things to learn. We have to learn how to live without our inlaws, learn how to accommodate with each other's difference in handling household matters and learn how to manage the home finances.

It is definitely very different from the previous 3 years of our lives. We were once very sheltered under my MIL's roof and did not have to worry about the utility bills. We simply need only to give my MIL an allowance every month and never asked if the allowance was sufficient to pay for the utilities and food at home :P

Now it's always about dollars and cents. We need to ensure we don't waste electricity and tried many ways to save and recycle the dirty water. We had to educate our helper that electricity and water in Singapore is very expensive. We had to ensure the house is always in tip-top shape before the house warming LOLz...

But then it's our own home afterall~ Whenever we thought about this, we felt it's worth it going throuhg the details and worried about the home finances.

We can design the house the way we want. We can do housework the way we want. We can eat the type of food we want. We can do anything we want :D Most importantly, our friends can visit us whenever they want :D

Well, welcome to our new nest any time :D

Trying to cope...

I had thought moving into a new place will give me more peace. But I guess I was not ready for the series of changes, new adjustments, unexpected illnesses and increase in household expenses.

I finally realised why we should salute housewives. I think they 'work' as hard as any one of us out there in the office as they do at home. Not only there are tonnes of repeated housework to be done daily, there are also lots of hair-dropping issues to think about = Where to get the cheaper groceries, What to cook tonight and How to save electricity and gas?

We never had to worry about all these before we settled into our new nest. It was as easy as giving a lumpsum alowance to my MIL and leaving the rest of the calculations to her. But now, we have to do the calculations ourselves. And the amount is getting bigger everyday :(

I guess soon, and I really mean very soon, I need to start making the choices, what I have to save on and what I cannot...

But of coz we are much more fortunate than many so we really should not complain. We have a good helper who cooks well and loves Jamie ALOT. So we can continue to have our couplehood and social life. Though there aren't many amenities around, but we have at least a sheng siong and a 24hr coffee shop that serves good food, a bakery, a hair salon, a DIY shop and a clinic. NTUC and Popular is also reachable by LRT now. But of coz I will appreciate the Punggol Central and Bigger shopping malls are setup faster than planned. As we get more crowded in Punggol, I forsee the patience of the Punggolians will drop further...

But many will tell me, that's the 'speciality' about living in Punggol. It's a quiet and youthful estate, unlike the cluttered mature estates... But of coz after living in a kampong style Yishun that has Chong Pang Market just 5min walk away for 20+ yrs + another 2+ yrs in the all accessible Bishan, I really need more time to get used to living in a non-happening and ulu Punggol lolz...

However, I am grateful I have great neighbours and the neighbourhood is brightly lit. I will appreciate there are less irresponsible investors who rent their new homes to foreigners though... Please think about the safety of others too, especially those with young children...

Other than us trying to adjust ourselves, I can see Jamie's frustration and stress too. So much so she fell badly ill. Her fever had been going up and down like roller coaster, however she looked perfectly sober and active. I can only think that she is fighting her own anxiety in her own ways... It's really not easy for a little child like her having to go through the change of a new home and a strange place called school...

Having to cope with insecurity and fear of being left behind is really not easy. I feel really guilty to put her through all these. But my hubby thought this can make Jamie stronger if she can adapt to it faster than expected. However, she is just a young child.. I really hope I am not doing the wrong thing...

I guess other than ourselves and Jamie, my poor helper had a hard time coping in the new home too. The chores are never the same now in the new home because the materials the house is made of and the design is different from my MIL. My MIL doesnt have a built-in stove or hood. She doesnt have kitchen cabinet or vanity. So it's all new to both me and my helper. We are thankful that our design Sean is willing to go through the hassle to teach me how to maintain all these materials in the house. Thanks Sean!!!

He is really a trustworthy and reliable ID who is more than an ID to us now! He is now our friend too!!! And I always to joke about how my hubby will be nagged by Sean for 'destroying' his design concepts of the TV consoles by messying it up with cable wires :P

I guess I feel better already talking about all these stress... Though it takes time to adapt and adjust, I believe we can do it de :D And we can do it well.. building and maintaining and protecting our very own nest...

Trying to cope...

I had thought moving into a new place will give me more peace. But I guess I was not ready for the series of changes, new adjustments, unexpected illnesses and increase in household expenses.

I finally realised why we should salute housewives. I think they 'work' as hard as any one of us out there in the office as they do at home. Not only there are tonnes of repeated housework to be done daily, there are also lots of hair-dropping issues to think about = Where to get the cheaper groceries, What to cook tonight and How to save electricity and gas?

We never had to worry about all these before we settled into our new nest. It was as easy as giving a lumpsum alowance to my MIL and leaving the rest of the calculations to her. But now, we have to do the calculations ourselves. And the amount is getting bigger everyday :(

I guess soon, and I really mean very soon, I need to start making the choices, what I have to save on and what I cannot...

But of coz we are much more fortunate than many so we really should not complain. We have a good helper who cooks well and loves Jamie ALOT. So we can continue to have our couplehood and social life. Though there aren't many amenities around, but we have at least a sheng siong and a 24hr coffee shop that serves good food, a bakery, a hair salon, a DIY shop and a clinic. NTUC and Popular is also reachable by LRT now. But of coz I will appreciate the Punggol Central and Bigger shopping malls are setup faster than planned. As we get more crowded in Punggol, I forsee the patience of the Punggolians will drop further...

But many will tell me, that's the 'speciality' about living in Punggol. It's a quiet and youthful estate, unlike the cluttered mature estates... But of coz after living in a kampong style Yishun that has Chong Pang Market just 5min walk away for 20+ yrs + another 2+ yrs in the all accessible Bishan, I really need more time to get used to living in a non-happening and ulu Punggol lolz...

However, I am grateful I have great neighbours and the neighbourhood is brightly lit. I will appreciate there are less irresponsible investors who rent their new homes to foreigners though... Please think about the safety of others too, especially those with young children...

Other than us trying to adjust ourselves, I can see Jamie's frustration and stress too. So much so she fell badly ill. Her fever had been going up and down like roller coaster, however she looked perfectly sober and active. I can only think that she is fighting her own anxiety in her own ways... It's really not easy for a little child like her having to go through the change of a new home and a strange place called school...

Having to cope with insecurity and fear of being left behind is really not easy. I feel really guilty to put her through all these. But my hubby thought this can make Jamie stronger if she can adapt to it faster than expected. However, she is just a young child.. I really hope I am not doing the wrong thing...

I guess other than ourselves and Jamie, my poor helper had a hard time coping in the new home too. The chores are never the same now in the new home because the materials the house is made of and the design is different from my MIL. My MIL doesnt have a built-in stove or hood. She doesnt have kitchen cabinet or vanity. So it's all new to both me and my helper. We are thankful that our design Sean is willing to go through the hassle to teach me how to maintain all these materials in the house. Thanks Sean!!!

He is really a trustworthy and reliable ID who is more than an ID to us now! He is now our friend too!!! And I always to joke about how my hubby will be nagged by Sean for 'destroying' his design concepts of the TV consoles by messying it up with cable wires :P

I guess I feel better already talking about all these stress... Though it takes time to adapt and adjust, I believe we can do it de :D And we can do it well.. building and maintaining and protecting our very own nest...

What's for Dinner Today?

In the hope to keep up with my blogging, I am adding in more 'Talking Points'!

One of which will be Makan Thrills - 'What's for Dinner Today?!' Will share about all the nice home-cook food or nice restaurants I visit ;) And of coz will take and post lots of nice photos on-the-go!!! So sit back and enjoy the yummy photos ^^

So what am I having for dinner tonight? Thanks to the bad jam, I am only having dinner now :( But what's in front of me really cheers me up!

Ta-Da!!! Home Made Kuay Chap!!! Thanks to my clever helper who likes to try new recipes whenever I bring her to try different food :D

I can see eggs, Tao pok, pork and pig small intestines!!! She said big intestines is too expensive ($7 for a small palm size) so she didn't buy this round... Hope I try it with the big intestines next time ^^

Yummy! 我开动了!

House Warming... (09072011)

First of all, I will like to thank everyone who attended my house warming on 9th July 2011 (Saturday)!!!

I understand that Saturdays are really precious to many and hence all the more, I appreciate everyone who reserved their special Saturday to share our joy in our new nest :)

Thank you once again!!!

And for friends who did not managed to make time last Saturday but still like to visit us, feel free to drop us an email/SMS or phonecall to let us know when you are dropping by :) We love playing host and Welcome visitors :D Jamie loves playmates too!!!

Thanks for all the gifts too :D We really like them very much and will make effective use of them :D

Too many photos to share le :P Please browse from my Facebook instead :D

Trying to cope...

I had thought moving into a new place will give me more peace. But I guess I was not ready for the series of changes, new adjustments, unexpected illnesses and increase in household expenses.

I finally realised why we should salute housewives. I think they 'work' as hard as any one of us out there in the office as they do at home. Not only there are tonnes of repeated housework to be done daily, there are also lots of hair-dropping issues to think about = Where to get the cheaper groceries, What to cook tonight and How to save electricity and gas?

We never had to worry about all these before we settled into our new nest. It was as easy as giving a lumpsum alowance to my MIL and leaving the rest of the calculations to her. But now, we have to do the calculations ourselves. And the amount is getting bigger everyday :(

I guess soon, and I really mean very soon, I need to start making the choices, what I have to save on and what I cannot...

But of coz we are much more fortunate than many so we really should not complain. We have a good helper who cooks well and loves Jamie ALOT. So we can continue to have our couplehood and social life. Though there aren't many amenities around, but we have at least a sheng siong and a 24hr coffee shop that serves good food, a bakery, a hair salon, a DIY shop and a clinic. NTUC and Popular is also reachable by LRT now. But of coz I will appreciate the Punggol Central and Bigger shopping malls are setup faster than planned. As we get more crowded in Punggol, I forsee the patience of the Punggolians will drop further...

But many will tell me, that's the 'speciality' about living in Punggol. It's a quiet and youthful estate, unlike the cluttered mature estates... But of coz after living in a kampong style Yishun that has Chong Pang Market just 5min walk away for 20+ yrs + another 2+ yrs in the all accessible Bishan, I really need more time to get used to living in a non-happening and ulu Punggol lolz...

However, I am grateful I have great neighbours and the neighbourhood is brightly lit. I will appreciate there are less irresponsible investors who rent their new homes to foreigners though... Please think about the safety of others too, especially those with young children...

Other than us trying to adjust ourselves, I can see Jamie's frustration and stress too. So much so she fell badly ill. Her fever had been going up and down like roller coaster, however she looked perfectly sober and active. I can only think that she is fighting her own anxiety in her own ways... It's really not easy for a little child like her having to go through the change of a new home and a strange place called school...

Having to cope with insecurity and fear of being left behind is really not easy. I feel really guilty to put her through all these. But my hubby thought this can make Jamie stronger if she can adapt to it faster than expected. However, she is just a young child.. I really hope I am not doing the wrong thing...

I guess other than ourselves and Jamie, my poor helper had a hard time coping in the new home too. The chores are never the same now in the new home because the materials the house is made of and the design is different from my MIL. My MIL doesnt have a built-in stove or hood. She doesnt have kitchen cabinet or vanity. So it's all new to both me and my helper. We are thankful that our design Sean is willing to go through the hassle to teach me how to maintain all these materials in the house. Thanks Sean!!!

He is really a trustworthy and reliable ID who is more than an ID to us now! He is now our friend too!!! And I always to joke about how my hubby will be nagged by Sean for 'destroying' his design concepts of the TV consoles by messying it up with cable wires :P

I guess I feel better already talking about all these stress... Though it takes time to adapt and adjust, I believe we can do it de :D And we can do it well.. building and maintaining and protecting our very own nest...

New House Almost Ready!!!

Past few weekends had always been about the new house.

Am really happy and grateful to my ID who rushed the work for us so as to meet our targeted dateline. But seriously looking at the amount of work to be done, we are really surprise he could complete the reno in less than a month. Most importantly, the job was really well done :D

We really like what we see...

THE RENOVATION PROGRESS

We took 2-3 weeks to confirm the reno design because we went on a short trip during the Labour Day long weekend plus we took some time to think through about the ceiling design to achieve the ambience we want.


17/05/2011 (Tues)
1. Confirm reno design, materials and colours

19/05/2011 (Thur)
1. Measurement for carpentry works
2. Fabrication started in the back end after the measurement

21/05/2011 (Saturday)
1. Bought sink, stove, hood, taps, toilet accessories etc
2. Bought all lights and ceiling fans

23/05/2011 (Mon) to 27/05/2011 (Fri)
1. All Wet Works are done (kitchen base, washing machine base, bathroom kerb etc)
2. All Ceiling Works (living room, dining room and master bedroom)
3. All Painting
4. Acid Wash
5. All Electrical Works and Piping Works
6. Select the grilles and wallpaper we want.
7. Vanity overhead panel

















30/05/2011 (Mon) to 03/06/2011 (Fri)
1. All Carpentry done - kitchen cabinet, master bedroom wardrobe, master toilet vanity, living room cardboard, bomb shelter, bay window, tv console in living room and master bedroom.
2. All Lights up and working
3. Bought roller blinds for 3 bedrooms
4. Aircon installation
5. All Ceiling Fans installation





















Seems that the house is all ready for move in?

Just a bit more till the official move-in date :D

1. Wallpaper for living room and master bedroom
2. Rubber lamination for 3 bedroom
3. Windows and grills for service balcony
4. Grilles for 3 bedrooms and living room
5. Mounting the top layers of the kitchen cabinet and vanity cabinet in master bathroom
6. Installing of stove and hood
7. Installing of sink pipes and taps
8. Paint touch-up
9. Buy basic electrical appliances like rice cooker, electrical flask
10. Buy basic utensils and cutleries

So looking forward to see everything done next week :D