Marriage – KEEP CALM AND READ ON

December 31, 2019

we survived 2019!

Woohoo! Another year had gone by just like that!

Many times this year I felt that time was crawling.. but to look back.. where have all the time gone?
2019 started out pretty rocky. I remember falling ill a number of times. Oh.. the tiredness and the anxiety of taking care of a toddler!
Motherhood is tough. I find it so hard to find a good balance with my own personal time, work and being a mum.

To think about it now, 2019 is a good year.
I was resentful and upset about Meghan. I was anxious about her allergies and eczema. Things did get better.
We received help from family in Singapore, many miles away. I hate to get help because it makes me feel weak. The help we received helped me to free up some time to bond with Meghan. It makes me want to be with her more.

2019 is also the year that Meghan achieved many milestones:
1) she took her first steps
2) said her first 4 syllabus word ‘Alligator’
3) formed her first sentence ‘Mama read Meghan storybook’
4) tell us/ demand what she wants
5) gained independence – she love school!
6) tell us about her day in school

It is amazing how 1 year makes a huge difference in a child’s life. Ahh.. my sweet sweet child. We love you so much and yet afraid that you are going to be so spoilt.

AND of course, our loyal and faithful Ringo who is always hungry – he is tolerant towards Meghan and we are thankful for that!

We also traveled to Singapore in 2019 – an epic trip BUT worthwhile. We all came back with BAD jet lag. Meghan’s skin suffered in the heat. However, Meghan grew so much during/after the trip. She enjoyed Char Siew, Chicken rice, Roti Prata … and was extremely happy to know that she’s got cousins to play with! Maybe we will be back again in 2020? We’ll see…

2020 – I wish that our family will remain healthy and happy. Meghan will grow up well, learn more and be kind. Ringo to be a less greedy dog. Bing to use his phone/computer less. As for me? I hope to survive again.. Deep in me, i really want to have a real full-time job BUT i know that’s will take a whole lot out of me. Maybe, I can be a stand up comedian instead? haha 😀

Happy New Year!

April 14, 2018

Just the beginning

If you think birth and labor is hard, try taking care of a new born.

Since the first week, Meghan does not have good skin. Instagram seem to have a nice way of covering skin flaws. I thought it would go away within weeks but it only got worst. First, it was ‘cradle cap’ – her scalp is flaky and dry. Then came the rashes on her body, which doctor diagnosed it as eczema. I was devastated. Why does only my baby have this issue? What did I do wrong or didn’t do? There’s no such thing as flawless baby skin for my baby. I was beyond upset and embarrassed to bring my baby out.

According to the doctor, eczema could be genetic or due to food allergy. We both do not have eczema, maybe its food allergy since Meghan is taking breast milk.

There are many allergens to eliminate. This makes eating very difficult and troublesome. I wanted to feed Meghan the best – breastmilk but I harmed her instead. You have no idea how much tears I wept. I looked at her innocent face as rashes spread through her small body. My heart breaks. As she grows and when she knows how to scratch, that’s when these rashes will get worst. I have to keep them under control.

It’s been 2 weeks with my new diet. We have been using cream on her. The rashes are still there. Yes, it did get a little better, just a little but it’s mostly still there. Cradle cap situation also makes her skin peels and just simply look bad.

With breast feeding, you need the extra calories for milk. Changing of diet just changes the dynamics of my breast milk and even hurt my supply. What am I going to do with the breastmilk I painstakingly froze before I go with this new diet?

I feel so angry and resentful – mostly with Bing’s family. If we didn’t have Meghan we will not have this issue. We are now stuck with her and her skin problems. Who knows what else we will face?

Next step, to see an allergist and the dermatologist.

I am feeling so hopeless and wish that nothing like this ever happened.

December 31, 2017

Big changes in 2018

I took a last look at my favorite dress and stored it away… “Maybe I can fit into it again..”

I gave away some of my clothes as I do not think I can wear them anymore.

I teared when i see my new weight on the scale. How am I going to lose all this weight?

I cried quietly as I realised that I might be doing all my favorite things for the last time.

Things will never be the same again.

May 26, 2017 was the day I found out that I was pregnant. It was a few days before my flight to SG for a short vacation.
I had mixed feelings… and didn’t know what to expect. Bing was surprised too.. his reaction was “So fast???” and awkwardly gave me a hug.

My first instinct was my in-laws got their wish.. they must be so happy that i will be suffering and going through this pain alone. What if the baby is not perfect? What if there’s something wrong? What if they are upset about the gender? Me, as the mother, will be bearing all the responsibilities. Everybody will fault me. Well, I still feel this way.

I tried to hide my condition for as long as I can. I didn’t really want anyone to know… It’s weird when people congratulate me… Congratulate me for the future sleepless nights? for sore nipples? for having to deal with a fussy and whiny kid?

On the other hand, Bing is always busy. It’s just hard to get him to go to doctor’s appointments with me. He tries to come along but I feel that he’s 1/2 hearted. I still cook and do the groceries – he is too engrossed with his work to help. On most days, I felt that I am not getting the support and love I need. It’s like he couldn’t care less that it’s the last few months/weeks/days that it will be ‘us’.

The day is drawing near.. I am not looking forward and dreading the day… I know it’s gonna be difficult. I have all these worries about baby – its a whole lot of unknowns! In the states, we only have the ultrasound once. I had it twice because the first one was not clear. This makes me even more anxious :/ I can only pray that baby will be just fine and all my worries are unfounded.

So, how’s 2018 going to be for you? I know it will be challenging for me. Not only 2018 but the years ahead for me. Bing had been really busy with work.. sure, he said he will help.. but I know he will still let work take over his family life.

I guess getting pregnant was the BIGGEST thing in 2017 for me. I thought I will get a new job and jump start on a career in 2017 but it did not happen. I was miserable … now I don’t think it is going to happen anytime soon. In 2017, my joy came from Ringo, our sweet boy! He had a grand total for 3 dog trick titles this year! He is now an advanced trick dog!! Sadly, I am unsure if we can continue with this next year. He also recently developed an allergy on his right eye. We had been bringing him to the vet for the past few weeks and there’s not much improvements. I hope he will get better soon and be a healthy+happy dog in 2018 and years to come.

That’s all for now. Happy New Year!

March 22, 2016March 22, 2016

It’s been awhile…

Everything’s great!

Ringo had been so far so good.. he get naughty at times but who don’t?! Dogs got their mood swings too! 🙂 Sometimes, I look at Ringo and wonder how did I survive the past many years without him? haha.. feeling blessed that he came into our lives!

Time flew by quickly this year.. almost 1/4 of the year is gone! Nope,I did not achieve much. In fact, I am thinking of quitting my job and staying home – just like the good old days…I’m just not sure if that’s a good idea 🙁 I mean.. my work isn’t that hard…

This week I did myself a favor and took the rest of the week off. It feels good to be out when most people are at work 😀 BH also took the day off. Yayness! We went for a nice lunch at Barking Frog. It’s ‘Dine Around Seattle’ promotion now. We had 3 course meal for $18! After which, we headed to a nursery to look at plants. Then, came back and did some gardening… Life is good!

Here’s what I did.. yes… can’t believe that it took so long just to find these plants and put them in a pot!

Now…. I hope that the plants survive!!!

If you ask me what I think BH and I will be doing when we are retired? I can imagine us gardening and/or probably arguing about how we are going to put up the Christmas lights in front of our house..hahaha..

Getting late… till the next post!

January 17, 2016January 17, 2016

2016!

2015 had been a wonderful year! So many things to be thankful for and I feel very blessed!

I’m sad that 2015 ended..

I am pretty sure 2016 will be inferior compared to 2015.

So far….

1) Ringo is a wonderful puppy… except that he chewed on our TV remote, his raincoat and collar… what can you except from a growing pup right? Overall.. he’s a good boy.. Bing and I are still trying to train and socalise him as much as he can 🙂 I guess my biggest wish this year is for him to be healthy and happy… ohh… my wildest dream is for Ringo to be featured in Buzzfeed or even better…be in some pet product commercial 😀 It is really hard to go to work, knowing that Ringo is alone at home. We usually crate him but who likes to be in the crate?! I am actually thinking of not working and being at home… I really missed the times when I just stayed at home – I work because my job isn’t that bad really!! Having some kind of financial independence is really important to me..

2) Work for me have been great! My boss is wonderful…. the workload isn’t bad! My work hours are quite flexible. Honestly, I haven’t been very focused on work lately as I am always worried about Ringo 🙁 Maybe I should really quit.

3)New job?! Haha.. out of curiosity..I also tried to apply for new full time position… I went through 1 phone interview and will be having another next week… I am hoping that I will NOT get any offers for any positions. The interview part was just for exposure and knowing the salary scale. Accepting another new job will mean that Ringo will need to be in daycare! 🙁

I am really not expecting 2016 to be a wonderdul year… I have no idea why am i so pessimistic… I guess… all the wonderful things happened in 2015 already!!!

Till my next update!

November 5, 2015November 5, 2015

Almost 1 month of Ringo!

Ringo had been amazing.. He is a super sweet puppy.. We are so blessed to have him… Of course, there’s a number of ups and downs..

1st week-
It was tough… We had a lot of difficulties trying to crate him. Crating is important as it will give us a peace of mind when we leave home for work and when we sleep. We literally had to talk softly and persuade him to go to crate. Many nights, we just carried him into the crate.

Our breeder gave us a lot of support and suggestions. She’s amazing!

Ringo ears are still not standing. One of them is floppy ( until now!) .. Breeder actually came to our home to tape his ears… We were scared that she wanted to bring Ringo home… Phew…. Ringo’s still with us.

2nd week-
We are still trying to crate train him. We began just throwing random treats in the crate and even also tied a rawhide to the side of the crate. Gosh… It worked!! Ringo learnt really fast and was soon really excited to go to his crate. This makes us feel so much better when we are away and can’t bring him with us.

Ringo is really cute… He literally just zoom into his crate when it’s sleeping time… To think that we were having so much trouble and headaches thinking of how to crate-train him on the first week.. Haha

This is also the week that we started going for puppy lessons. This is a 6 weeks class, teaching owners how to train their puppies. Bing and Ringo did well (most of the time) in class 😉 I also feel so glad that the breeder had actually trained Ringo pretty well as he is already well behaved.

3rd week-
We went for our first outing together with Jo and her dog, Mandy. We also sat outdoors, so that the doggies could join us.

Our first family picture

4th week-
Halloween with Ringo. He was really well-behaved when kids knocked on the door for treats 😉 Here’s our lion…

(He really didn’t like his outfit)

So far, we are really happy … May Ringo always be a good and healthy puppy.. And we plan to bring him for Agility lessons soon!!

October 10, 2015

Hi Ringo!

Today, we welcomed our first pet. It is a Cardigan Welsh Corgi, named Ringo. BH and I had been thinking of having a dog for a super long time.. And it’s surreal that it finally happened.

We or rather I wanted a Red and White corgi – it was hard to find a good breeder! Finally… We found a fabulous Breeder near us.. About 1 hour away..

We visited the breeder once but still did not know which pup is available to us. Usually, the breeder would pick the dogs for show potentials then the remaining ones would go to pet homes. Well.. The batch of pups available were tri Color corgis, not what I was looking for.. But you never knew which doggie will steal your heart right? So we went a long with it…

To tell u the truth, the moment I arrived at the breeder’s place, I was attracted by the 3 red and white corgis ( which were pending home or for show dogs) .. I didn’t think much of it…. But just knew that such doggies won’t come to us…. Who knows…….Our breeder got back to us about a month later and said that RIngo didn’t turn out to be what she wanted… His muzzle is too big… I was ‘stunned like vegetable’. Also on the other hand, another tri Color pup was available too. We were torn, not too sure which to choose….(in my heart, I hope Ringo works out)

This morning, we visited the breeder again….. Who knows!!! Our car can’t start!!!! Murphy’s law! Gosh…. Luckily, we have a wonderful neighbour, who came in to help us.. And we also have AAA membership and the battery tech came in about 30mins..charged the car battery and off we went.

We finally arrived at the breeder around 2pm. The first pup that came to us is Ringo!!! The other tri colour pup didn’t even want to come to us. The breeder also thought Ringo was good fit for us,’breeder instinct’ she says.

Ringo was really quiet and mostly still on the car ride. He is super laid back.. When he is home, he just wanna stick close to us. Our worry now is… He has not poop or pee!!!! He also don’t seem to be enjoying his meals.. I literally have to feed him bits by bits…

Well… The journey continues… We will need to work on the leash training tomorrow. New beginnings for us…

*Ringo is on trial period for 1 week.. Really hope he works out for us*

Here’s the picture of the day…

September 13, 2015September 14, 2015

7th 6eptember!

*This is a belated post*

I was chatting with some friends a few weeks back, telling them that this is our 7th year of marriage and on top of that we have been together for 13 years! wow! you know how the ” 7 year itch” is a term that suggests that happiness in a relationship will start to go down after around year 7?! Gosh.. how scary! and how the number 13 is not a good number?! and to think that ….we are at this point now! *shivers*

Well, BH and I are still very happy together. I am not sure about BH but at least, I wake up everyday feeling blessed and contented. When I get irritated or upset, I will snap myself out of it, give myself a pinch and think “Sheesh… why did I deprive myself of being happy for X minutes!” You know… life is so precious… who knows what’s going to happen in the next second!

For this year, BH and I headed to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for our anniversary! It’s a short 4 Day, 3 nights trip. I’m not too sure if I mention this before…but BH had some mileage on Southwest and travelling to Mexico is the best way to utilize the miles (since it is considered a International flight) + I travel for free as I’m on companion pass.

Took a super early flight out on 5 September and arrived in the evening around 6pm (after a flight delay due to technical repairs). We stayed at Secrets Vallarta Bay. The resort was really nice… it was like a fortress by itself.

Imagine this… as the taxi approach the resort, there is a HUGE gate with a guard house… the taxi stops and the guard comes out to make sure that the resort is expecting you… then the gate opens…your taxi drives up an elevated S-curve driveway… and you are bedazzled by the amazing view…. then you realized… you are in paradise!

Of course, we were tired and hungry…. so we checked in. Our room was nice but it’s just too near the elevators. We can actually hear people walking in and out of the elevators. Also, the *beep beep* warning sound from the elevators’ doors. We were too tired to take any pictures or ‘complain’ so we just accepted the room.

The first thing we did at the resort was… to go for dinner!

Food was good but the portion was small… well… I guess, it’s good.. as we can eat however much we want since it’s ALL-INCLUSIVE!! Oh yes, beverages and alcohol included!

The next morning, besides getting woken up by the noise outside our room… we also heard the sound of the sea waves – so serene! We got changed, had a light breakfast and hang out by the pool… just chilling.. I love such vacations… no specific places to go…just enjoying the food, drinks and view. (I got to add.. the beach at Cancun looks cleaner and more ‘blue’… the infinity pool at Sun Palace was way nicer than this one….but it’s still good.. at least it’s less crowded)

In the afternoon, we decided to take a stroll at Broadwalk.. which was a short cab ride away. It was way tooooooooo hot… regretted it the moment we got out of the cab.. gosh… took a few pictures and headed back to the resort…

When BH booked the room, …we informed the resort beforehand that it’s our anniversary! we received champagne in our room and breakfast in bed the next morning!! wooohoo!! 😀

Every day, the chambermaid will put a program sheet in our room, telling us the various activities happening in the resort… LOOOOK! Bing’s name was on it!! They forgot my name though… haha..

Basically, we just spent the next day eating, drinking, soaking in the pool, spending time with each other ( and with our phones + ipad , internet connection was fabulous!) It was sooooo relaxing… everything I want a vacation to be… Feeling so blessed to be able to come this far and enjoy life together!!!

This resort actually have pretty good night entertainment activities.. there were fire shows, casino night and acoustic live singing on each respective night we were there ! BH and I would hang out in the lobby… have some drinks and just chat while enjoying the sea breeze and view. It was monsoon season.. so it did rain heavily!! Fortunately , it usually stops after an hour or so…

Our vacation ended when we had to go back to work on Wednesday. There’s a 2 hour time difference between Mexico and Seattle. Ever since we got back, we are always hungry at the wrong time.. still trying to get used to the fact that food/drinks/good service is no longer a phone call or a hand wave away!! hahaha.. Hope to go back soon!!

If you ask me… Cancun or Puerto Vallarta? I will say……..Cancun if you love beaches. Puerto Vallarta if you wanna get away from the crowds.

It was a fabulous trip nevertheless!! Happy 6eptember to us and many more to come!!

August 11, 2015

Who’s reading?

wooo.. my super neglected blog 🙁

well… everything’s the same.. the good kind of same….

I guess..something worth blogging about is…BH and I recently started talking about having kids and I just don’t feel ready…

It seems like we have a few things on our hands that we need take care off first.. before u start speculating… we do not have any health issues .. ok.. wait… we have high cholesterol which we are trying to control.. The biggest concerns are:
1) Our HDB in Singapore
2) BH’s family health history ( any genetic issues?)
3) BH’s ability to be a responsible/hands-on dad! I seriously have not seen him play with a toddler or held a baby before!

So, we are working towards preparing ourselves to get started… 1 of the things is… to fulfill our long time wish of having a dog! I think a puppy will be a good start to preparing ourselves.. it’s like a baby you know.. and also the 1st living thing we are going to take care of together…

we will see how this goes …

January 1, 2015January 1, 2015

Amanda’s 2014 review

I know I had neglected my blog again. It had been a long while since I blogged 🙁

It’s the first entry of year 2015!! Happy New Year! This year we went to a friend’s place to welcome the new year. Guess how we spent the 1st minute of the new year? Of course, we drank champagne! So as the saying goes or rather the Amanda’s theory – “If you spent the first minute of the new year drinking champagne, you will be drinking champagne for the rest of the year!!” May this be a prophecy for all who still reads my blog!!! *cheers!!*

2014 had gone by in a flash. Let me try to recall some highlights-

Jan/Feb
The first 2.5 months of 2014 was spent in Singapore. Little would i know that this will be the LAST long vacation I will have for a long long time. I had an enjoyable time with family and friends. BH and I finally spent CNY in Singapore and gave out angbaos for the first time since we are married!! We also redeemed our expiring Krisflyer miles and traveled to Bali in Business Class! I love our Bali vacation so much.. probably the best vacation ever!!

March
We returned to Seattle and decided that we can no longer stay in the crappy apartment.We found a fabulous new community to move to. The rent is expensive but we decided that we wanted to enjoy our lives and save on other areas, so we moved. I think God had planned for this all along. After committing ourselves to the new apartment lease, we received good news of our PR status. This means that I can work and help out with saving more! The fear of increased rent was uncalled for! Just when I thought looking for a job will take me a long time…. someone sent an email within the Singaporean Meetup group, saying that his firm have a job vacancy. I applied and started working the next week! This is the reason why I can no longer go back to Singapore for long vacation already. By the way, that was the first resume I sent!!! (I am still working for him now.. my boss is by far the BEST I have ever had!)

April
Hosted Keurig Houseparty – I received a Keurig coffee maker for free!!! so happy to get selected!

May
Stopped volunteering to focus on my new job. Other than that, I can’t recall anything much

June
Trip to Napa Valley!! The first trip we took since I started working!

July
Bing and I discovered that our apartment have 2 fancy grills. We were like grilling steaks every 2 weeks! so delicious!
We also went to Seattle Sounders game with friends.

August
We finally took our post wedding pictures! The pictures turned out great!! Happy that I have 1 thing off my bucket list! 🙂
We also went on a trip to Alaska with Dave and Jo!! Travelling together was so much fun- we will remember this adventure for life!

September
Happy 6th wedding anniversary to us! BH was busy with work but he still spend time to create an album with our photos!

October
Nothing exciting? Bing was working alot

November
Also nothing worth mentioning…

December

Went for Health check and was told that I have high cholesterol!! It is amazing how much I neglected my health when I start working 🙁
Our vacation to Cancun, Mexico!! Such a relaxing trip!! I really love the all inclusive resort experience!!!

I guess that sums up my year in 2014!

In 2015, I will
1) go to work on time and leave work on time everyday
2) go to the gym or zumba at least 2 times a week
3) blog at least once a week
4) study hard to get my paraplanning certification

Just like last year, I hope that more good things will come our way and that our family&friends will stay healthy and happy!
Happy New Year! 🙂