11 months of Ringo

I really wanted to blog but somehow time just slips by quickly.

Ringo is great! He is everything we wanted and more for a dog… It’s amazing how smart and good looking he is. Haha.. Sorry to be bragging about Ringo but… I don’t know how else to put it. Sometimes, I just felt that we are not giving him the best in his short life. Could he be happier in someone else’s home? 

It came to a time that we need to neuter him. We had been putting this Off for a very Long while. The breeder was fine with us neutering him when he is 2 years old. However, we enrolled in a health plan with a vet… And the plan includes neutering. We need to neuter him before the plan expires in October. We scheduled to have him snipped on September 11. He is about 15 months old.

I was extremely worried and scared. He needs to be on anethesia. I know it’s a common surgery but still there’s a whole lot of ‘what ifs’. I cried for a couple of nights knowing that I am about to make Ringo undergo the pain… He was such a good dog… No issues whatsoever…. 

On the day, we dropped Ringo off at the vet. He was so excited when we got on the car. He thought we were going somewhere fun. We left him with the vet tech reluctantly. I already had tears in my eyes. I didn’t dare to turn back. As we walked out of the clinic, I can’t hold back my tears anymore. I felt so silly. I think I saw BH wipe his eyes too.

Waiting for the vet to call was nerve wrecking. I can’t do anything right… Ringo was constantly on my mind. It’s amazing how that important call always reach you during the few minutes when you are unable to pick up. ( we were in a underground carpark and there’s no reception) The vet left a voicemail saying that the surgery went perfectly! I was relieved!

We promptly picked Ringo up. It was Super crowded at the clinic. We waited awhile. The moment the vet came out with Ringo… I had to hold back my tears again. Ringo looked sad, groggy. His eyes were oily and wet (like he cried but I learnt that it’s some oil the vet put on his eyes for the surgery) . His ears were down. Worst of all, he is in a cone! He looked at us with the ” what did I do wrong? Why must you put me through this pain? ” eyes. Ouch… It hurts me. I was heartbrokened. Nope.. I am the master… I can’t show it!

That first night after the surgery was tough. He did not eat dinner. Neither did he poop… Maybe he didn’t even pee. He was crying/whining for the whole night. Bing had to gently stroke him to sleep. I was Too heartbrokened – I drifted in and out of sleep… Straining my eyes open once in a while to check on him. It was a Long night… But we survived. Ringo’s first night home vs first night after surgery  – which is worst? I guess first night after surgery was slightly better. I am pretty thankful I took the week off.

This marks Our first experience taking turns to care for a baby. It will be 100x worst if it’s a human baby!

Ringo was still recovering the day after surgery. He did eat but still no poop. The following day… He was back to his usual self πŸ™‚ I am extremely relieved.

As I am typing this, Ringo is sitting right under my feet – Just chilling and spending time with me. 

Now, the recovery period will take about 2 weeks. We will need to restrict his activities.. No jumping or running. That’s Super hard…. I hope the 2 weeks will fly by soon enough.

2016!

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

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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 πŸ™‚ 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 πŸ˜€ 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 πŸ™ 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! πŸ™

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!

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 πŸ˜‰ 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

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

(He really didn’t like his outfit)

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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!!

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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…

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Amanda’s 2014 review

I know I had neglected my blog again. It had been a long while since I blogged πŸ™

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! πŸ™‚
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 πŸ™
Our vacation to Cancun, Mexico!! Such a relaxing trip!! I really love the all inclusive resort experience!!!
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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! πŸ™‚

Crazy month of March

It’s been a while since I last updated. I meant to update more often but I was just too tired and busy.

The month of March had been extremely challenging for me or us. I am glad that it’s over! Now we are starting everything anew!

Here’s the updates –

Wisdom teeth

On the last day of February, I extracted my wisdom teeth. Everything seem fine. However, I noticed that the left side of my mouth/ jaw area is numb! I was horrified. It just does not feel the same as before. I went for my post-op exam and the dentist told me that one of my tooth was pretty near a nerve. The nerve could be bruised during the extraction and there is nothing I can do except to wait for it to heal by itself. Gosh! Anyway, it’s a month after the surgery and the numbness indeed wore off. I still feel the numbness at times but it’s getting better πŸ™‚ Will be going for another post-op later this month

Mr Hyde

It was injured!!! Heart pain πŸ™ Someone in BH’s office reversed into its rear. Luckily the impact was low. The guy is at fault and his insurance paid for our damages. We managed to get it fixed! Still, it was a painful experience.

We moved

Finally!! Moving is very tiring, we still have things which we have not unpacked. I am enjoying this new place except that the toilet sink is leaking πŸ™ The maintenance team came to have it fixed.. hopefully, they did a good job.

I turned 30

I thought I was going to enjoy my birthday by doing my hair, going for pedicures and pedicures, eating something good. Turns out that we need to move because BH is going to a conference. I technically didn’t celebrate my birthday. We had cake though. Shall blog more on this.

Home alone

This month also marks the FIRST time ever in the states that I stayed alone as BH went for a conference in Utah. I am glad that we moved, staying home alone at our new place feels so much safer.

Green card + work

The biggest and best news! We got our Green Card status on the last week of February. This means I can officially work. The week after, I got a job offer and I accepted it! I am working now! The working hours are Mon-Fri 10-4,so I can still come home to cook and do housework. My boss is very kind and understanding so far, I am really happy. He is also cool that I leave earlier on Fridays for volunteering! Pay wise, it is on the low side but I am entering a new industry and learning something new! Really relieved that I can find a job! What more can i ask for?! Thank you God for answering my prayers and opening this door for me!

Pulled over by police

On the last day of March, when I thought March is going to be over…….The police pulled me over on my way to work!! Well, it’s a FIRST time for me. I was super scared!!! Turns out that my car license tab had expired. He gave me a warning. Thank God!

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Eventful March right?? Shall take it slow from now on….

 

Back!

We got back on 13 FEB and still battling jet-lag. Jet-lag is a huge monster I tell u!! We fell asleep at the wrong time, get hungry at the wrong time. Gosh… So I decided to cook to overcome the jet-lag. Works well so far! πŸ˜€

Vday was spent at home enjoying each other’s company. That includes grocery shopping, cooking, washing, unpacking. How exciting!!! I was delighted that BH volunteered to clean the place for us – the best Vday gift! I cooked a simple meal of Lotus root soup and sambal stinky beans. Home cook meal is the best! Just when we thought we could relax and catch up on tv shows we missed, Justin came over to our place! Followed by Jo&Dave and Ron! We shared a cake and spent our evening chatting away! Hahaha… It was a pleasant surprise! Really happy to have a mini get together after awhile! Who say vday is for lovers??!! It’s for friends too! πŸ™‚

Today, BH went to work and came home super early at 5pm! I love it that he comes home early and smiles as he walks into the door. I don’t know why but it’s heart warming especially on a super cold day! Hahaha..

I seriously have so much to blog about!!! Will update with pictures soon!!

So far in SG…

I am loving the weather in SG now. It is not as warm as I remembered. In fact, I can sleep without the aircon!! Amazing right?? It is either because my family installed a powerful ceiling fan or the weather is just right!! Actually, I am extremely glad to be out of the COLD USA

Most days, I spend time at home with my family and Bambi! Really embarrassed to say this but… I love being looked after after my parents. It is wonderful not to think about what to cook, doing the housework… Blah blah… I do help around in the house but my mum have her style of housekeeping… So u get the idea but I still help her when I can

Some other days, I meet up with my friends! It’s amazing how each and everyone had grown and moved on with their lives! I m happy to see my friends with their fellow partners, their small family, successful career. I m glad that throughout the years our friendship remains constant! To think about it, I do feel a little sad for myself as I have not achieve or done anything great over the years. At the same time, I also can’t help but to think of the many ‘what-ifs’ scenario. I only know that I m a much happier person than before now πŸ™‚ well, i guess that’s all that matters

Remaining other other days, I am excited to decorate our home for the first time for CNY! It is gonna be simple but I haven’t had a chance until now! I also found myself actually counting down the days to BH’s arrival in SG! Btw, 20 more days!

So many things to look forward to…. ^.^

Amanda’s 2013 year in review

It’s the time of the year again! Time for the end of year report card! Haha.. Well, this year I will be spending the start of the New Year away from BH – I hope that he won’t forget to write his review!!

Last night, after a fabulous night out with an old friend, I came home to my sis surfing Facebook ( not usual.. Haha) she was reviewing her year through her timeline. Out of curiosity, I went to review my timeline and the most memorable moment for me was….. When I purchased some 12 count, 3 ply toilet paper for $2.99! Haha.. How auntie! Facebook is not an accurate measure of my year, maybe my blog is better πŸ™‚

Just like other years, there are many ups and downs. Let’s see…

Jan
-Our small group of closely knitted friends in Seattle lost a game khaki suddenly to heart attack. It was a huge shock to us. We were deeply saddened but learnt to treasure each other and be more health conscious. This unfortunate event deserve a better post but I just can’t find the right words or courage to write it.
-BH and I went for our first vacation of the year to Los Angeles. It was the first time we attend a Chinese concert ( MAY day) in the USA . It was a cool experience. The view at Griffith observatory is probably the BEST sight I have ever seen this year!

Feb
-BH and I went for painting class together. It was such a fun vday activity!!

Mar
-Moved into a new apartment which became the BIGGEST regret of the year. Sigh!

Apr/May
– BH and I went to Vegas for a short getaway. We won a mini jackpot of US$200 !!! The biggest win so far! If you are wondering, the $ was ‘returned’ to the casino shortly. Hahaha

Jun
-Arrival of Mr Hyde! Our joy and best purchase of the year!
– started volunteering at a children’s museum! BEST decision ever! Why did it take me so long to take up volunteering!!!

July/Aug
-My loving hubby decided that maybe we should look for a new place since I was upset and uncomfortable about the apartment. We were looking at buying a place but DID NOT because of our SG commitments. We saw a place we really liked – the kind that you will want to grow your family in, the kind that gives you the AHA moment the minute you step foot in but we got to let it go. It hurts a lot because you know what you want but you can’t pursue it further. It took awhile for the heartache to go away but we still believe that other good things will come our way. You just got to be patient… Right? ηŸ₯θΆ³ηš„εΏ«δΉε«ζˆ‘εΏε—εΏƒη—›
– BH and his team participated in a Hackaton and emerged the Seattle champion!

Sept
– BH and I celebrated our 5 years anniversary!! I am soooo happy that we r still in love and on the same page ( most of the time.. Haha) I just feel so happy that i don’t want our relationship to change. I still wish that BH will be able to put me ( family) above his work

Oct
-nothing worth mentioning

Nov
-we went to San Jose for Hackaton finals! Though BH and team did not win the grand prize, I m still proud of his achievements!

Dec
-We finally received news of something important to us. We did what we needed and hope for the best. We will only know the result next year. I am looking forward to this!
-I cashed out my first blogger paycheck on nuffnang. I earned $66 for 5 years!!! Obviously not blogging hard enough πŸ™ Still waiting for the cheque to reach me…
-I came back to SG for Xmas and New year – leaving poor BH alone for the first time during this time of the year… Boooo… Will meet in a few weeks time! πŸ™‚

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Overall, Its been a relatively happy this year. I really regretted the rental we are staying in now – wish that time will fly by so that the lease will end soon.

In 2014,
– I will continue to eat healthy, go to the gym ( really missing ZUMBA and cardio tai box now)
– Volunteer
– blog more ( post entries with more substance)!
– save more money for future home
– be happy, worry less

Hopefully, more good things will come our way πŸ™‚ Happy New Year everybody!!

Binghuan’s 2013 Year In Review!

Numbers just keep adding up doesn’t it?
Things were sort of chaotic this year.

1) We move to an older place. First time we compromised our living conditions in hope of savings. We did save more alright but not sure if its worth our sanity.

2) I changed teams for the first time in MS. Sort of change since I rejoined my old lead and another colleague. I don’t think that was a mistake, leaving my comfort zone. It also made me realize how much more I like Kirkland compared to Bellevue. Still love Redmond too..

3) We went out of our way to look for a home for us. We were really serious and I think we found a place (Took months cause we were soooo picky) that we know we would love only to finally decide against it. I will put that blame on me. Won’t go into details why but we just didn’t.

4) We didn’t go for any travel at all (beside San Jose which I will go into later). Once again, to save money…

5) I won a Hackathon! My very first one too, the Paypal Hackathon was an eye-opener. I got to visit Paypal HQ, meet new people, play with new technology. It was tiring but I have no regrets. The final for the big money was sort of a let-down, the other teams that placed in top 3 was okie and I thought we did well enough to place but apparently not. Maybe it was the MS connection that pulled us down.

6) Lots of savings! I just calculated and it was incredible the amount we saved this year. It is hard to see the amount as it is spread across a few accounts but I was really glad the compromised above wasn’t for nothing.

2014 will be a super exciting year, I cannot even wait!
1) GC process is finally moving to the last stage. Which means I will get GC, Amanda can be free to choose what she wants to do! For me is probably more of a job security as I can jump to other places but I can’t really decide if I want to. I have some friends here, and Seattle isn’t that bad besides the cold weather. San Fran would be nice but property is so expensive there that I can’t really put myself through moving all the way there.

2) We might just decide to move to another rental if the HDB appeal failed. No point suffering, and lots of new places around so maybe we will just move to enjoy 1 more year of rental.

3) I do want to return to Vegas with Amanda. We skipped it for 2013, lets return to our annual routine. πŸ™‚
We will also be flying first class to… BALI haha on SQ. Okie, short trip but hey still first class! Can’t wait for that too.

Some longer term goals?
1) I really want to go Peru and visit Machu Picchu. Not sure when but soon I hope. If not too old to climb… πŸ™

2) The elusive home that we can grow our family in. I really hope appeal goes through and allow us to sell our hdb.

3) Maybe a cute dog? πŸ™‚