My Love & Joy

Bloom

2015-06-20T22:32:00.003+08:00

Even though it's winter now and the weather has been wet and gloomy the last few days, the house is full of laughter and happiness, as if the spring is in full bloom. I love listening to Sabina's laughter and watching Elena's cute little smiles. My heart melts every single time when I looked at them.

Anyway, enough blabbering there because I can go on and on talking about my kids. Yes, they are the center of my universe, they mean the whole wide world to me.

Now, back to the main point of my post, I'd like to show you another FO (finished object). Woohoo!!! I'm on a knitting frenzy!!! I finally finished knitting the Bloom dress a few days ago. The lace section was a breeze but don't get me started on the ribbing section. Did I tell you I dislike knitting ribbing a lot? They're a PITA.

Pattern: bloom by Georgie Hallam
Needle: 3.25 mm, 4.0 mm and 5.0 mm
Yarn: Bendigo Woollen Mills Luxury 8 ply in Baby Blossom

Even though I knitted this dress in the medium size, which is suitable for 6 months to 4 years old, I couldn't wait but put it on Elena. I think she can start wearing it now :)

Don't you think she looks super cute and adorable?

10th Baby Surprise Jacket

2015-06-19T12:14:00.000+08:00

As Elena has just turned 3 months old a few days ago, our normal daily lives are back into routine as I readjust our lifestyles with 2 kids. I'm still learning to juggle everything but I'm glad to say, I'm doing OK so far. In addition to that, I even managed to squeeze in some knitting time too!!!

Believe it or not, this is the 10th Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ) that I've knitted. It's definitely one of my favourite baby patterns to knit and it's the first time I've knitted one for my own kids. Yeap...Sabina didn't get one. Oooops...sorry Sabina!!!

I managed to finish knitting this little jacket 2 months ago, just in time for the colder weather. Elena seems to be happy doing some modelling shots too!!! Do note that these photos was taken about 2 months ago. Did you notice that she's gotten really chubby?

Here's the project info if you're interested:

Pattern: Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmermann
Needle: 4.0 mm
Yarn: Bendigo Woollen Mills Harmony in Coral

I'm so glad to be back in my knitting mojo although progress is a little bit slow. However, at least I get to have a little bit of some "me time". Always remember, no matter how busy you are with your family, you must set some time aside for yourself. Most of the time, mothers tend to forget about themselves, always putting others first. We need to learn to reward and treat ourselves, once in awhile. After all, a happy Mummy = happy kids and family :)

Introducing Elena Xu

2015-05-27T16:07:00.002+08:00

Firstly, so sorry for the short 2 months hiatus. I'm sure most of you all know that I have a good reason for that. Not long after my last post, I gave birth to my second daughter.

I would like to introduce you to my second beautiful princess, Elena Xu.

Sabina has been really good with her, as you can see from the photos. She absolutely adores and loves her little sister!!!

Now, we have become a family of four. I can feel my heart is bursting and overflowing with love!!!

The little one is already growing so fast. Just so you know, she's already 2 months old now!!!

It's the Final Countdown

2015-03-02T10:32:00.000+08:00

This second pregnancy has gone by way too quickly. Without realising it, the final countdown has now begun. I'm going to be 37 weeks pregnant in a few days time, meaning there's only less than 4 weeks to go before baby pops. However, realistically she could come out earlier too, just like Sabina, who was born 11 days earlier than her due date.

We went for a maternity photo shoot 2 weeks ago and initially, I was a bit apprehensive how Sabina would behave during the photo shoot as I would really love her to be in it. Both hubs and myself were totally impressed as Sabina was so cooperative and did everything as she was told. Here's a sneak peak of our family portrait. Can't wait to see more soon!!

We're nearing the end of the Chinese New Year as we welcome the Year of the Goat. Better late than never, I'd like to wish everyone Gong Xi Fa Cai!!! Wishing you and your family a happy and prosperous year of the Goat.

Also, for the first time in years, we finally managed to have a family reunion dinner together with my family as they flew over for Chinese New Year. In case you're not aware, reunion dinner is usually held on New Year's Eve.

We had a little feast of our own. It was absolutely delightful and delicious. We had stir-fry vegetables, steamed fish, sweet and sour prawns, roast pork (air fried), braised mushrooms with scallops and abalone, and last but not least, lotus root and red dates soup with pork ribs. I feel like having another mini feast now :)

Air Fried Turmeric Chicken Wings with Curry Leaves

2015-01-22T22:03:00.000+08:00

I know that about 2 months ago, I got the fancy kitchen gadget called Thermomix. Not long after that, I bought another kitchen gadget...Ooops!!

Please welcome my latest addition to my kitchen family, the Phillips Avance Collection Airfryer XL. Eating healthier and frying without oil. That got my interest!!! I must say, I've been using both my gadgets a lot and I kept telling my hubs that they're the best things that I've ever bought last year for my kitchen!!!

I was trying out my own recipe last week with the Airfryer, where I would traditionally have to deep fried it with lots and lots of oil. This time, with the Airfryer, I did not have to use a single drop of oil. Did I say that I am super impressed?

You can try this recipe with either chicken wings or drumsticks, but I personally prefer the wings. My only tip is, do note that the curry leaves will fly and might get stuck at the top grill. Make sure you get them out when you've finished cooking, otherwise they will get burnt when you use the Airfryer next time!

Air Fried Turmeric Chicken Wings with Curry Leaves
Recipe by Michelle Lee
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 21 minutes
Total time: 26 minutes

Ingredients

1 kg chicken wings
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground paprika/chilli
A pinch freshly cracked black pepper
A handful fresh curry leaves

Cooking Directions

Cut the whole wing into sections; which are drumette, middle and tip. Discard the tips.
Marinade all the ingredients except for curry leaves, preferably overnight.
Preheat AF at 200 deg C for 3 minutes.
Air fry the chicken wings at 200 deg C for 8 minutes.
Throw in the curry leaves and air fry the chicken wings at 180 deg C for another 10 minutes.
Serve with steam rice.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2015-01-02T11:09:00.003+08:00

Hope everyone had a great Christmas and is looking forward to the new year!! I know I am!!!

We had a lovely Christmas Day with lots of good food and surrounded by friends. In fact, we even had two Christmas meals in a day!!! Christmas lunch at our friend's place and Christmas dinner at our place!! I'm sure all of us were in some sort of food coma that night!!!

Anyway, for the first time ever, I've decided to cook a traditional Christmas meal, sort of. This was our menu:

Christmas Honey and Marmalade Glazed Ham
Bread Rolls
Coleslaw
Potato Bake (cooked by my dearest friend)

I actually bought the leg of ham from Woolworths just a few days before Christmas and was frantically looking for recipes on how to glazed a ham as I've never done it before. I think I was a little bit too ambitious and was stressing myself at the same time with "What if it doesn't turn out ok?", "What if it taste yuck", and so on. Did I tell you I've never made bread rolls before too? I was trying to do a lot of things from scratch with my new Thermomix and I'm just glad everything turn out ok!!!

Also, all three of the dishes that I prepared were all made with my Thermomix. I must say, it has been used quite a lot lately and I'm absolutely loving it. It definitely has to be one of my best purchases for the year 2014.

Last but not least, happy new year to all of you!!! Wishing you lots of love and happiness. Thank you Lord for blessing me with a wonderful husband, my lovely daughter Sabina and another baby on the way. Can't wait to start the new year as a family of four.

Learn, Live and Hope

2014-12-16T22:15:00.001+08:00

In light of what is happening lately, we must remember to learn from yesterday, live for today, and continue to hope for a better tomorrow.

I pray that the Lord will comfort the hearts and bring peace upon the families and those who are affected by this tragic event in Sydney.

First Day of December

2014-12-01T22:09:00.005+08:00

For once, our Christmas tree is up on the first day of December. All it needs now is a nice tree topper, a tree skirt and lots of presents beneath the tree! Ho Ho Ho!! Have you all put up your tree yet? Do you have any Christmas tradition?

This year I've been quite organised compared to the previous years as I've almost completed my Christmas shopping!!! Just a few more presents to buy and I'm done!!! I'm actually quite proud of myself this time around as I'd normally leave it till quite last minute and then it's panic mode!!!

However, with a toddler now, I do find it hard to leave things to the very last minute. Planning ahead and being organised do make things a lot easier, and I have to find that out the hard way.

Speaking of some home-made presents, I've been searching the internet for some nice recipes that will make small Christmas gifts. Do you have any go-to and fail-safe recipes to share?

My Latest Kitchen Gadget: Thermomix TM5

2014-11-20T22:14:00.000+08:00

Yes, I've jumped on the Thermomix bandwagon and I'm really glad I did. I've been wanting one since I attended a demo quite awhile ago when they were still selling the old model. My dearest Mum decided to give me her Thermomix since she hardly uses it and I used that opportunity to trade it with a brand new model TM5.

I placed my order in the beginning of October and it was an agonising 6.5 weeks wait for it to arrive!!! Boy am I glad when it did arrived and guess what I cooked as our first meal a few days later?

I knew what I wanted to cook as my first meal after I attended my second Thermomix demo as I was completely blown away. It was the Salmon Velouté Meal. I love that dish so much because you're actually cooking 3 dishes at the very same time!! You get a really nice potato and leek soup, a side of vegetables, and the beautiful Salmon, served with a lovely sauce. Even Sabina loves this dish!! She kept asking for more!!

Since I had my Mum and Sister with us at the same time, I decided to cook the Chilli Mussels with Thyme and Tomatoes, and also prepare the Lemonade drink. It was a total hit among my family.

I can't wait to try out more recipes with my new gadget. What's your favourite Thermomix recipe?

Princess Sabina's 2nd Birthday

2014-11-12T21:53:00.001+08:00

Happy 2nd Birthday to my beautiful Princess Sabina!! I can't believe you're now 2 years old and that you're no longer a little baby but growing up to be a cute little girl!!! Time has certainly flown pass by way too quickly the last 2 years. I still remember clearly when I was planning your first birthday party!! In fact, I still remember clearly the day you were born!!!

For her 2nd Birthday, we decided to have it outdoor in a park. The weather was lovely and nice, apart from being a little bit too windy!!! Hence the hair in my face photo below LOL (and it was the only family photo of us DUH).

My Mum flew over to visit us and of course, was able to join us in this wonderful celebration. Sabina has been spoilt quite a bit since my Mum has arrived but I guess that's what grandparents always do!!

Now, the highlight of birthday parties are always the cake and this year, it's a Peppa Pig cake!!! Those of you who knows my daughter well enough, will know that she loves Peppa Pig and is a huge Peppa Pig fan. This cake is made by the talented lady, Kerry and if you ever need a cake, you contact her at Rainbow Designs. Not only does her cakes look amazing, they are actually really yummy and delicious too!!

Sabina has been very blessed by all our friends and family. Look at all her presents!! Thank you all so much for coming to her party and showering her with gifts. I hope everyone of you had a wonderful time :)

It's a Girl!

2014-11-01T22:16:00.002+08:00

As mentioned on my previous post, I went for my 19th week scan yesterday. I didn't really sleep well the night before. Maybe that's because I was too excited and couldn't fall asleep!! Anyway, hubs is really really happy with the news because that's what he wished for. Every single day, hubs would tell me, "I really want another girl". Thank you Lord for blessing us with another beautiful daughter into our family.

Pregnant and Being Sick

2014-10-28T21:11:00.003+08:00

Being pregnant and coping with morning sickness was bad enough. Furthermore, my morning sickness this time was a lot worst. However, nothing prepared me when I was down with glandular fever and suspected bronchitis at the same time.

It had been quite a horrible past few months with me being quite sick. Firstly, I had been trying to get rid of a chest infection since June but it was so stubborn, it won't go away. Then I had glandular fever middle of September. I've never felt so sick in my life before and it is definitely one of the worst feeling ever. One moment, I'll be freezing cold and the next minute, I'm boiling hot as if I'm on fire. I was down with high fever continuously for a few days and after numerous blood tests, urine tests, etc., I was finally diagnosed with glandular fever. Prior to that, I've never even heard of this sickness before!!! It is awful. I had no energy and constantly feeling exhausted. My hubs had to take time off from work just to look after both Sabina and myself. There were times I feel so hopeless because I was unable to do anything at all. Most of the time, I'll be either sitting on the sofa or just lying in bed. It took me more than a month to recover and feel ok again!! I do not want to get this glandular fever ever again. Had it once is definitely more than enough. It is definitely an experience I do not wish to go through again.

On a positive note, here's my first bump shot when I was at 17 weeks pregnant. It was still a tiny little bump last week. Thank God morning sickness is over now and I've got my appetite back. Hopefully I'm beginning to put on some weight now as I've lost quite a bit of weight when I was sick.

I'll be having an ultrasound scan this coming Friday and will be able to find out whether I'm having a little girl or a little boy. Stay tuned if you want to find out :)

MIA and an Annoucement

2014-10-19T07:57:00.002+08:00

Firstly, so sorry for the lack of posts and the unannounced 5 months hiatus and missing in action (MIA). A lot has happened in the short 5 months and there will be too much to update in just one post. My daily live has sort of taken over and zapped out all my energy and being sick for a month was not fun at all either, but I'll update you all on that some other time.

The most important announcement for this post is this:

Yes, I'm having another baby!!! We are all very excited and I can't wait for the next scan end of this month, where we will be able to find out whether I'm having another girl or a boy. DH wants another girl badly and he's been telling me that every single day. However, Sabina's already a "Daddy's little girl" so I myself am hoping to have a "Mummy's little boy". However, having said that, I'll be happy with either a boy or girl, as they are greatest gift and blessing from God.

This is my favourite ultrasound scan for now. Love its little feet!!!

Hello, I'm Peppa Pig!!

2014-05-05T22:39:00.002+08:00

Did I mentioned to you before that "Peppa" was one of Sabina's first few spoken words? Everyday at 5 pm I would switched on the ABC for Kids channel on TV for her, so that I can prepare and cook dinner without having her clinging onto me like a little koala bear. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. But I do notice that she tends to like Peppa Pig. One day, when the Peppa Pig programs started, she shouted, "Peppa"!!! I was soooooooooooooooo amazed and of course a little bit jealous at the same time too because she hasn't said the word "Mummy" yet!!

Anyway, I think that's when I started buying Peppa Pig items/merchandise for her. Her very first item was a Peppa Pig handphone. That was a very impromptu purchase actually. We were shopping for nappies at Big W when I saw the handphone. It was a big mistake when I showed it to her. That's because, she wouldn't give it back to me!!! Therefore, I had no choice but to buy it!! HAHA!!

Second Peppa Pig purchase was again made at Big W but I initially wanted to get her a Peppa Pig jacket but the smallest size they have available was a size 2 and it was way too big for her. I was a little bit disappointed because I did drove all the way there and didn't want to leave empty handed. Therefore, I decided to check out the books department to see if there's anything suitable to add to her little library. Lo and behold, Peppa Pig books on sale for just $8 each!! I showed Sabina the book and asked her "Who's this?" and she answered "Peppa!!" What a smart cookie. 2 books ended up in my shopping trolley and we were happy.

3 weeks ago, there was a "Peppa Pig" appearance at Target and of course, I took Sabina there so that she can have a photo with her favourite character!! She was so happy when she saw the Peppa Pig mascot from a distance. However, when it was our turn to take a photo, she cried!!! LOL

Anyway, my sister asked me the other day if Sabina likes Peppa Pig more or I like Peppa Pig more. Erm...I think I might have a slight obsession with Peppa Pig now??

Lastly, I know this is a little bit late but I hope all of you have had a nice Easter break. I still haven't eaten our Easter eggs yet, I meant Sabina's Easter eggs :P

PS: Did you notice the bucket is a Peppa Pig bucket? LOL

Lovely Easter Long Weekend

2014-04-20T22:18:00.001+08:00

I really love spending the long weekend with my little girl but it's so much better when DH is home to be with us during the same weekend!! I normally try to maximise the time that we can spend together as a whole family especially when he's home as the time is so precious. I must admit that having a DH that works away is very hard but you just got to learn to manage and deal with it. It's not easy but it always makes you treasure every single moment even more.

We had a really lovely day yesterday even though our outings were all very impromptu. We started the day with a little bit of shopping. I personally think she had more fun than us!!! She insisted on carrying one of the shopping bags, although I must say, she should carried it since it was her pair of shoes!! LOL

She really enjoyed walking around the shopping centre. She was even stopping and pausing at the shops, literally doing window shopping!! Starting them young eh?? :P

We also stopped at Myer's children department for a short while and I love it that they have a little table and chairs, with papers and crayons!! Sabina was really enjoying herself and seems like she loves to draw too!! Looks like it's about time I should get a small table and chair for her!! Does anyone have any recommendations?

Finally, we ended our fun filled day with a ride on the swings :)

The weather at the moment is absolutely beautiful. I'm looking to many more beautiful days like this :)

Doors

2014-04-12T22:36:00.000+08:00

Sabina has a thing for doors. Everywhere she goes in the house, if she comes across a door, she must close it, without fail.

It is sort of our little morning routine now, where she will play peekaboo with me. I'll be getting ready in the bathroom and she will close the door. If after awhile, I still don't open the door, she will shout for me, as if saying "Hey Mum, open the door!!"

And when I do open the doors, this is the cheeky face that will greet me :)

After smiling at me, she will quickly close the door again. And this goes on and on and on until I get out of the bathroom.

Isn't she cute!!! I just can't get enough of her and I just want to kiss her all the time!!! There are times I wonder if I'm being a little bit too crazy in love her!! I'm a crazy Mummy!!

Coco is Recovering Well

2014-04-07T22:21:00.001+08:00

It has been a few days since Coco had her surgery to remove the bladder stones. I'm so glad that she is recovering very well and is back to her usual self. Didn't even lose her appetite at all!! Well, she never really ever say no to food actually, apart from raw veggie.

As mentioned previously, they managed to take out all the stones in her bladder and the vet sent some off to the laboratory to do some testing, in order to determine what type of stones they are. That way, we can then plan what's the best preventive measures we can take so that the stones will not reoccur again. Well, good news is we got the results today and the stones are struvite stones.

Now that we managed to identify the type of stones, next step is to put her on a special diet. For the rest of her life, she will need to be on a special diet because of her condition and for the time being, the most suitable for her is the w/d Canine Low Fat-Glucose Management-Gastrointestinal Hills Prescription Diet. Haha yes....low fat diet, because she's a little overweight too!!! 9.6 kg!!! Almost one sack of rice!!!

Anyway, it's so good to have her home as she's always by my side, my little faithful companion. She follows me everywhere I go, just like a little shadow :)

Poor Little Coco

2014-04-03T22:16:00.004+08:00

Bad things always seem to happen all at the same time. I really do hope that I can see the rainbow soon.

Coco's been unwell when we noticed she started having pee accidents inside the house. Initially we thought it was just old age and that she couldn't hold her bladder. However, I later found out her pee was bloody and she was having a difficulty in peeing too!! That's when I took her to the vet straight away. First diagnostic was definitely a bladder infection but there's also a possibility of bladder stones reoccurring again. She had them before back in 2011 and they were surgically removed.

We had to do an x-ray on her to determine whether she had bladder stones or not and OMG!!! I was shocked at what I saw. Her bladder was full of stones!!! She must have been unwell for quite a while!!! My poor baby :(

I drop her off for surgery today to remove stones in her bladder and was told by the Vet that the surgery went very well. They found 5-6 big stones (largest was 1.5 cm in diameter) and lots of tiny stones. I hope she will have a speedy recovery and will be able to come home tomorrow.

The house feels a little empty without her. She's always by my side every where I go.

Stressful Week

2014-03-30T23:41:00.000+08:00

It has been a stressful week but I'm just glad that it's getting better. Poor little Sabina was getting feverish last Wednesday and started coughing a little too. She didn't look very well yesterday morning and was very unsettled. Even though we had already seen our GP on Wednesday and Friday, you can't help feeling worried and stressful. I had to take her to the Princess Margaret Hospital for Children just to get her checked out.

I must have seem really worried or even shaking a little because when the Triage Nurse was taking down our details, she kept telling, "slow down and clam down, you're little girl is okay". We didn't really have to wait that long to be seen by a Doctor but we did spent a long and exhausting 6 hours at the hospital because we needed to get a pee sample from the little one, and somehow, on that particular day, she decided that she didn't want to pee nor drink much fluids!! In the end, we had no choice but to use a catheter instead. Poor little bubba, I felt so bad putting her through that but at least we know, she didn't get any UTI. Therefore, the conclusion was she must have caught a viral infection. There isn't really much I can do and the Doctor said she will not need any medication. Only thing I can give her are just Panadol or Nurofen. I seriously feel very helpless at times.

I was a little relieved when she did gave me a smile and drank more water last night just before her bedtime.

She was a lot better today too although she wasn't that keen on breakfast. Towards the afternoon, she was happy to snack on some rice crackers and even played with some toys. Hopefully, she's on the mend to a speedy recovery.

Lots of hugs, cuddles and kisses to my baby!! Get well soon little girl!!! Mummy loves you a lot!!!

Ballet Flats Shopping Haul

2014-03-27T21:28:00.003+08:00

Those of you who know me well, are aware that I have a weakness for shoes. I used to love heels a lot!!! But of course, lifestyle do change when you have a kid. I haven't wore my heels much since Sabina was born. They are all sitting prettily in a cupboard, waiting to be worn. I tried wearing them again to work but somehow, I don't find them as comfortable as they used to be!!! :(

I only have a few pairs of flats and I literally wore them to death as they are my go-to-shoes every single day when I'm out an about now. Therefore, you can imagine why I went just a little bit crazy today. They were on sale and I got them at a really good price. Can't resist!!

Here are some close-up photos of them. They're so pretty and comfortable!!! I do wish they have the kids design in adults sizes!!!

However, do note that only two pairs are for myself. The other two pairs are for my little girl when she's a little bit more grown up :)

Having Fun at the Playground

2014-03-26T23:59:00.000+08:00

There is one thing that I do love about the summer and it's the long days. Long days for me means I get to do more things in the evening before it gets dark, for example. taking my little girl to the playground!! I am still currently enjoying our new home (well, technically we've moved in for about 15 months now) and one thing that I look forward to in the evenings are taking Sabina out for a walk around our neighbourhood.

I took her to the playground for the very first time back in January and it was a good 30 minutes walk (Good exercise for Mummy since I hardly do any)!! Initially I was a little apprehensive as I don't know what to expect and whether she will like it or not. I decided to put her on the swing and she absolutely loved it!!! She really enjoyed swinging backwards and forwards while I was making silly sounds to her like "wheeeeeeee" every time she swings forwards.

After awhile, I put her down on the sand and brought out her beach toys. I even took off her shoes so that she can feel the sand in between the toes. I showed her how to use the little spade to scoop up the sand and pour it into the bucket. She tried to scoop up some sand but with not much success. In the end, she sort of gave up because she was more interested and fascinated in playing with the sand using her bare hands. I think she loves the way the sand trickles through her fingers.

All in all, both of us had such a lovely evening. I just love seeing her happy smile while exploring new things. By the way, it wasn't just her who was playing in the playground!! I myself was playing with my new toy the whole time!!

Yeap, I got myself a DSLR during the Boxing Day sales last year. I'm still learning how to use it and the photos above are taken using my new camera. They were the first photos too!! I reckon they're not too bad!!!

Food Friday: Home Cooked Char Kuey Teow

2014-03-21T20:53:00.001+08:00

If you ever speak to any Malaysian/Singaporean, one of our favourite street hawker food is Char Kuey Teow. After years of ordering this particular dish from restaurants, I've finally decided to try and give it a go at cooking this dish at home.

I've followed the recipe from Rasa Malaysia but I must admit that I did not make the chilli paste myself. I just used store bought sambal belacan (and I forgot to include it in the picture below) which is good enough in my opinion. Another ingredient that I've omitted is the bloody cockles as I'm not a fan of them at all!!! My Mum and Dad loves it with their Char Kuey Teow but I'll always ordered mine without.

So what's my verdict of this recipe? Taste wise, I actually think it's pretty authentic!!! Only mistake I made was I poured hot boiling water to the fresh flat rice noodles I bought and soaked it for 20-30 seconds, even though I was following the packet instructions!! The noodles ended up soggy. If I were to cook this dish again, I'll definitely not pour hot water over the noodles but will just separate the noodles using my hands instead.

Have you ever tried any recipes that didn't quite turn out ok the very first time? Or are you just a brilliant cook where every single dish you cook turn out perfect? :)

Throwback Thursday: Sabina - 1 Month Old

2014-03-20T21:42:00.000+08:00

I still remember the first few weeks very clearly when Sabina was born. It seems like as if it was just yesterday but let me remind you, Sabina is now 16 months old already. Yes, time flies, too quickly I feel. There are times I just wish time would slow down just a little bit so that I can savour every single moment.

My memory aren't that great and there are times, I'm super duper forgetful. I guess that's one of the reason why I take lots and lots of photos of Sabina, since she was born. I love looking through all her photos and I'll probably share some of my favourite ones along the way.

For today, here's a photo of my little princess when she was just one month old. I had to put that cute little flower headband on her for this special occasion.

Don't you think she's adorable? Ah...I miss the newborn baby smell!!!

A Bold Move and a Milestone

2014-03-15T23:29:00.004+08:00

Those of you who have known me for the last 10 years or so, you would probably noticed that I've only ever have to hairstyles. You will only see me with long hair or a bob cut. Since pixie cut got popular a few years back, I've been wanting to get it done but always chicken out at the very last minute. Also, it doesn't really help when my DH always discourage me from doing it (he likes long hair). He even joked that I will probably end up looking like an onion if I ever get a pixie cut as he reckons that hairstyle does not suit my face at all.

I've been growing my hair for the last 2.5 years and it's almost waist length as you can tell. I finally bite the bullet and made an appointment with a Daniel from Tao of Hair, recommended to me by my dearest sister. When I got there, I showed the hairdresser the pixie cut hairstyles that I like and asked for advice. I told him to do whatever he likes with my hair and that he's given free reign, a blank canvas to work on.

As I sat there nervously, waiting, not knowing how it will turn out, I just prayed that I will look ok. After he has finished cutting my hair, I was ecstatic!!! I absolutely love my new hairdo!!!!!!!!!!! I'm actually so glad that I made this bold move and just get it done!!!

Next thing I was worried about was will Sabina recognise me? When my DH came to pick me up, Sabina just stared at me but after a few seconds, she couldn't stop smiling at me :)

My little princess just turned 16 months old a few days ago. Don't you think that we looked more alike now after my new haircut?

Labour Day Long Weekend - Part II

2014-03-09T21:36:00.002+08:00

Before the start of the long weekend, my friend and I decided to plan an outing for our little ones. So we took them to the Cuddly Animal Farm in Swan Valley and the kids had a blast!!! I love the opportunity of being able to introduce Sabina to the little furry animals like guinea pigs, rabbits, etc.

Since Sabina grew up with two doggies from Day 1, I assumed that she will be excited to see these cute little animals.So first thing we did was bring her to the guinea pigs and rabbits area where we can actually feed them with carrots and cabbages, touch, pat and play with them. Erm...I was wrong. She was actually a little bit scared and wouldn't want to be near them at all. We tried to stay there for awhile and maybe let her warm up to the animals. It didn't work. Oh well.

After that, we let the little ones walk around and they absolutely love it. There's goats, pigs, emus, cows, and many other animals but they seem to be interested in the gravel road? Haha.

As the morning was getting warmer, we found a perfect spot under a shady tree and had a lovely picnic. The little ones had so much fun running around, chasing one another. It was an absolute joy seeing them having such a great time.

I highly recommend this place if you have little ones. I would definitely bring Sabina back one day and hopefully by then, she will not be afraid of the guinea pigs and rabbits any more :)

Lastly, I find it so hard to take a decent photo with Sabina lately!! She's so active and cheeky!!!