Jo quotes some verses

Jo turns 2 years 3 months (27 months) on November 5th. It's a routine that before i give her milk at night we go through some Bible verses. She picks them up quite quickly and I've recorded her saying some of her verses. In case you can't hear them clearly they are
1) Love one Another
2) With God Nothing is impossible
3) I will enter Your gates with thanksgiving in my heart
4) Bless the Lord Oh my Soul, let everything that is within me bless His holy name
5) When I am afraid I will trust in You, my God in whom I trust
6) For God so loved the world He gave His only son
7) Let everything that has breath Praise the Lord.

To listen to Jo saying her verses, go here Recording of Jo and click on "Download verse2" to download. Will take about one min. (wma format)

Hope you enjoy listening. :)

Before I end today, Nel asked me 2 questions today. 1) will I have to brush my teeth when I get to heaven? 2) Will God give me a Husky when I get to heaven? I really want one. Do dogs live in heaven?

P.S while waiting for audio to download, you can try this really cool IQ Game . I enjoyed it! It's trying to get everyone from one side of the river to the other, but only taking 2 at a time without having certain people kill others.

Some random statements and questions by Jo and Nel

Nel: Mum, what is that bag of thing? (pointing to the pack of sanitary pads)

Me: Well....it's ummm....it's like diapers...where big women wear.

Nel: Why do big women wear diapers?

Me: Well..we only wear it once a month, coz ...coz... you know mummy's womb where you came from Nel? Well...when there's no baby there, the womb cleans itself out by releasing some blood. (I know, not very accurate answer right? too lazy to go into fertilization etc etc...)

Nel: (with a frown) Blood? (more big frowns...)

Nel: I see..... Mum? why is it, only mummys can have babies?

Me: Nel, it's not that only mummys can have babies. Anybody can, but when you have a baby, THEN, you become a mummy.

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Today Jo decided to follow me into the toilet and climbed onto the toilet seat.

Jo: Mum, Jo want to pangsai, poop poop.

Me: ok, but take out your diapers. (Jo is not yet toilet trained.)

Jo: (with a serious look..one finger pointing at me) Ok, but mum, please leave, go outside and leave Jo alone. Don't disturb Jo ok? Mummy go outside and play with your toys quietly.
(these are my exact words to her when she comes rushing into the toilet when I'm inside!)

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Jo: Mum read the book please (Jo asks me to read books a hundred times a day I get so tired!)

So I read to her as she asked questions. Finally, I put my hands on the book and looked at her with a smile on my face and admiration and love in my heart and said "You're so cute Jo."

Jo frowned at me, pushed my hands and said with a frown "Move MUM! Don't block Jo's book."

so much for a little tender moment! hahaha

Tee Tee
Fluffy

Teetee has a new friend, Fluffy. In my opinion Teetee should be called Fluffy coz he is REALLy fluffy. Oh well, Nel's choice of names. :) Well, every evening I put both Teetee and Fluffy in an enclosed area in my little garden.

Usually the kids insist they wanna go in with the rabbits so yesterday I let them.

Well about 15 minutes passed and Nel and Jo started getting rough with each other. Being confined in a small area for a long time tends to bring out the aggression in them as they fight for space, and who gets to feed/pet which rabbit etc.

Eventually Jo gave Nel a little push and Nel reacted by pushing her back. Nel being bigger gave a rather hard push which led to howling from Jo and this led to more shoving and pushing from both parties. So I lifted Nel out of the area and told her to stand by the gate with hands crossed for a while and to think about her actions.

Then I realised well, Jo had part of this fight too. So I lifted Jo out too, who protested and cried with all her little strength. I told her to stand by the gate too with hands crossed, which she did though she had tears streaming down her eyes.

As they stood there, Nel looked and Jo, and Jo looked at Nel. Both looked funny with hands crossed over shoulders.................and then......they thought the situation funny and started laughing a little first amidst tears, and then real roll on the floor laughter! hahahahha.....

Don't they look so pitifully cute? Especially Jo with her overfull diapers? haha.... you have to see the faces with tears frowning, then smiling and eventually laughing ...hahaha...I have to admit, I started laughing myself...and in the end we just ended everything, kept the rabbits and went for our little walk in the evening breeze. :)

Thank God we're safe

I just wanna give thanks to God that me and the kids are ok. What happened today....
well, first I sent my husband to the airport coz he's gonna attend his nephew's wedding back in his hometown. The airport is a good 1 hour away, and today it was just raining endlessly and HEAVILY!

So after I dropped him off, we drove home in heavy torrential rain. So heavy I could barely see more than 30-50 meters ahead of me. Since we were so far from home, I wanted to maintain a reasonable speed to get home quick and out of the horrid rain. I was on the fast lane most of the time, little Jo asleep in her car seat and Nel almost dozing off.

About 20 mins before home, I slowed down thinking I'd come to the exit, but it wasn't, so I kept on the left lane, and I thank God for that, for at that my moment, my car started hydroplanning It was pretty scary, I admit. coz all of a sudden I lost control of the steering, it wouldn't respond, and no matter what I did, my car kept skidding to the left. If I had been on the fast lane as I had been most of the journey, surely we would have collided with another vehicle and my little girls and I would be in a pretty bad shape. (shivers)

Well, when I lost control of the car, it kept skidding towards the left no matter what I did....and common sense told me not to hit the breaks too hard or we might just summersault altogether over the very short barrier into the monsoon drain. What I did was to ease off the accelerator and to step very lightly on the breaks, a little at a time...till it slowed a little. Still we inevitably crashed into the barrier. I thank God, we did not overturn. Little Jo's side of the window smashed to bits, and I Thank GOD, my little girl was not hurt. Sure, she was jolted from her slumber and cried unconsolably for a while.

We waited about half hour before my bro came to help us (in the very heavy rain). I suppose I am a little shaken....and still a little jittery.... but again, Praise God, we're all ok.

here attached is an excerpt from an online website..should you face the same situation.

Car response
What the driver experiences when a car hydroplanes depends on which wheels have lost traction and the direction of travel.
If the car is traveling straight, it may begin to feel slightly loose. If there was a high level of road feel in normal conditions, it may suddenly diminish. Small correctional control inputs will be ignored by the car. If the drive wheels hydroplane, there may be a sudden audible rise in engine RPM and indicated speed as they begin to spin. In a broad highway turn, if the front wheels lose traction, the car will suddenly begin to drift into an outer lane. If the rear wheels lose traction, the back of the car will begin to slew out sideways into a skid. If all four wheels hydroplane at once, the car will slide to an outer lane. When any or all of the wheels regain traction, there may be a sudden jerk in whatever direction that wheel is pointed.

Recovery
To recover, never turn the steering wheel of the car or apply the brakes. Either action could put the car into a skid from which recovery would be difficult or impossible.
Instead, with no change in steering input, gently ease pressure off the gas; control should then return. If braking is unavoidable, use light pumping actions on the brakes until hydroplaning has stopped.
With a manual transmission, immediately when you notice that you are hydroplaning, press the clutch down so all wheels can roll freely; this will restore grip.

Marriage

They say, if someone wants to be a writer, that person better write something everyday, doesn't matter how long they work at it, as long as they write something. I used to have thoughts to write about almost everyday when I had that MSN blog.... but somehow, my motivation to keep blogging has waned... and though I have random thoughts here and there, I'm not motivated to pen it down.

so here I am, forcing myself to write something, less my brain becomes lazy. Life is moving at such a fast pace. Was it just yesterday that I said goodbye to someone who was leaving for some country far away for a couple of years. Fast forward, and boom, I just saw the same person and 2 years have passed. 2 years, and I thought it was just yesterday I said goodbye. The person is sitting in her same old favourite chair at church, a little fatter a little fairer, but she's back and you wonder where the heck has time gone.

Talking of time, Sunday marks my 7th wedding anniversary. Seven?? my gosh...and I realise next year marks the 10th year since I got back from the US. I tend to think I'm only in my 20's till I check the mirror and realise I'm in my 30's. I'm just writing randomly and aimlessly today. but as I hit mid 30's the issue of time is a lot on my mind. I feel sorta in between, not old, not young.

Anyway, speaking of marriage, I'm blessed with a wonderful husband. He's not perfect, but neither am I. There are days when I ponder, question about stuff.... but then, surveying and analysing my life, I know God has given the best for me. He (my hubby) is patient, and able to tolerate me as I am, my ups and downs. thank God for that, for I really need a patient husband. haha...
He's not the fast pace goal seeker who's always going for the money. He's one easily contented, reliable, consistent, and loving. :) (sometimes tooooooo patient!)

As for me, I"m still working on me. There are days when I tend to let my tongue wag a little more than it should...(I mean negatively), then I'm reminded to hold it back. Yeah...you know, some people think if you don't like something, "speak it out and take it off your chest!". From my experience, that only results in terrible arguments, exchange of heated careless words that cut, hurt and sting.

In my opinion after 7 years of marriage, YES, disagreements and negative feelings must be voiced out, but in a proper way at the right time. Those who believe in leting it all out of their system without considering the other, are only gonna cause damage to their marriage. It only feeds the anger and ego of the angry spouse, it's a very self centered approach.... to me, it's like throwing glass at your spouse without considering how it's gonna hurt.
Sometimes it causes damage which lasts a long time, and leaves words that haunts the memory for a long time.

I've learnt to control my tongue, but still to voice things out...in a way that would get to him, hopefully without hurting him, and my husband has done the same. I suppose that's why we're still married and happy to be with each other. :) There's so much to be learned....so much more of myself to improve...... but yeah, me and hubby, we love each other (though there are moments we cannot stand each other! hahaha....but that is not often)....and with God as the center of the marriage...this family is mostly happy. :)

ok, I'm rambling..........................

Jo and mess!

As we were all just lazing around in the livingroom, Jo jo came up and said "Mum, I pangsai (pooped)." Before I could take her to the toilet, she did the unthinkable. (well not unthinkable for a 2 year old), she stuck her hands into her diaper!!!!!!!!!! Eeewwwwwwwwwww!! I jumped up and yelled "Jo, take your hands out!," hoping her hands had not touched her poop. Alas, she took out her hands and yeah, stuck to the tips and all her nails was the stinky, brownish poop!!! Urrrghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

"Off to the toilet!!" "don't touch the sofa!" "don't put it in your mouth!" ....and I had to keep saying all this commands as we marched to the toilet! arrghh! yukk! The joys of motherhood! hahaha.....
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This morning Jo had bread and jam for breakfast. She undid the sandwich and wiped the jam on the floor and said "AIYOH!" (Malaysian for Oh No!) "JO!!" I jumped up again. You must be wondering why I'm always jumping up? well, actually I'm down with a horrid flue....and trying to rest when she has to create all these little scenes for me. *sigh*..... anyway, since I have absolutely no energy today, I gave her a series of commands to follow.
I told her "Jo, put that sandwich in the dustbin, go to the kitchen and get the cloth."

So pitter patter, went her little feet. After a while I hear a "thud" sound, and assume it must be JO throwing the sandwich in the dustbin. Then I hear her sweet voice calling very loudly from the kitchen "Mum, where is it?" (meaning the cloth). I yell back "By the sink!"

A few minutes later, she emerges with cloth in hands, wipes the mess up. and asks "mum, could I...have...milk?" So I replied "first, put the cloth back, next to to the toilet at the back and wash your hands, then come back and pick up all your toys."

I listen intently...and yeah, I heard the "plop" sound (cloth in sink), then I heard the tap water running (washing her hands) and then tap water off, then she appeared picked up her toys and said "I've washed my hands ady, and pick up toys ady (already)."

"very good Jo", I smile at her and gave her the milk. (No, I've not managed to wean her yet). *sigh*

but....yeah, children are a blessing, life is interesting with them around. Though all those instance were REALLY messy, they make nice memories. Nel is currently at Chinese class. Will have to go pick her up soon.
ciao.