Super Moth

COnversation with Nel today:

Nel: Mum, why can't my dolls and teddy bear talk like the ones in the story book and cartoons?

Me: coz, that's all imaginary, they're only in stories and on TV, they're not real.

Nel: Mum, is someone watching us on TV?

Me: Why do you ask that?

Nel: well, we watch people on TV all the time, so surely someone else must be watching us on TV.
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Conversation with Jo while reading a book on farm animals:

Jo: Look mum, baby cow likes to drink mummy's milk, and baby Goat likes to drink mummy goat's milk.
(Jo turns the page)
Jo: Look mum, baby chicks like to drink mummy chicken's milk.

Me: No, Jo, baby chicks don't take mummy chicken's milk. they eat grains. Look at this Jo, the mama chicken can lay eggs! lots of them.

(Jo looks....and after a moment says)

Jo: Jo cannot lay eggs. ....... but Jo can Eat Eggs!!! yummy. :)
(Jo turns the page to look at a picture of a lady milking the goat)
Jo: Mum, why is the lady.....why is she pulling the the..... the...... the....... the............ milk?

Me: She's milking the goat, when she pulls the milk comes out.

Jo: (thinking hard...) Mum, is it pain? Is it pain when the lady pulls it like that?
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Anyway, today we met a Super Moth! Actually this Super moth came by our house last night and hovered around the porch light.

This morning, while driving the kids to school, I looked in the rear view mirror to see Super Moth stuck to the back window! I told the girls "Look, the moth is stuck on the glass!" The girls got REALLY excited!!
After 10 mins of speeding down the highway, it WAS STILL THERE! "Wow," I said in a screechy high voice pretending to be the moth, "I wanna go school, I wanna go...wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee this is fun!! wooo hooooooooooo"

Then the moth started sliding slowly towards the edge of the car. I told the girls to say goodbye to it, but Super Moth decided to hang on!!!!!! and it DID!!! I dropped the girls, drove back another 20 minutes, and the moth was STILL there stuck fast on the back glass! Simply Amazing! So I grabbed my camera, and then proceeded to see if I could get it into a glass container. That's when Super MOth decided to say adios, and it flew off. I admit, I missed it when it left, for it sure created a super morning for us all. haha...

Dear Moth wherever you are, I hope you don't end up as bird's food.
now I must go google Moth to find out about it's amazing ability to stick on glass through wind, turns, bumps and brakes. It must be an adrenaline junkie!

Super Moth
Super Moth on edge of car, but hanging on tight.

Pretty aint' it?

Close up of its beautiful wings

here's a weird conversation with Jo which I had yesterday. In my younger cousin's terms, the conversation would be described as "Lame." haha....

Well, it all started coz I have a dog named Camel. My friends have asked if I was crazy to name my dog Camel coz it might confuse my kids. Plus, at one time I too had a cat named "Dog" and a rabbit named "Kitty."

So it was over teh tarik "pulled tea?" while waiting for Nel to finish ballet class...

Me: Jo, do you have a camel in your house?

Jo: Yes, camel is in my house.

Me: A Camel in your house???!!!!! (eyes opened wide in shock and horror....)

Jo: Yes, and it's in my kitchen.

Me: In our kitchen?????? Oh my gosh, how can that HUGE camel get in our kitchen??? A Camel is supposed to live in the desert or in the zoo....

Jo: My camel can run and fetch balls and it likes to lick me, like this! (sticking out her little tongue)

Me: A Camel that runs and fetches balls??? Jo????? How can a camel do that???? (and here I whipped out a paper from my handbag and began drawing a big picture of the real camel, and a picture of my tiny poodle named Camel.)
Me: So Jo, which Camel are you talking about? which camel do you have in your house?? the big one or the smalllll one?

Jo: (pointing to the poodle) This one of course! my camel has curly hair. But I like the Big Camel. I want! I want! I want! My daddy took me to the zoo to look at the camel and I gave him grass to eat. I want that big camel mum. Can you buy me one???? I want I want!

Me: staring at her and wondering why on earth does she want a camel. and ok...trying hard to control my laughter, coz I had to look very serious about this matter of having a camel in the house!

Anyway, the people sitting near us must've thought we were crazy, or my daughter was over imaginative talking about a camel that can run and catch balls and which lives in our kitchen. :)
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Camel

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BTW, it'z crazy how hormonal changes wreak havoc in our bodies. Couple that with certain geneticically related tendencies...it creates some miseries for a 30 somethin.
One is the ballooning body. most female in my family are pear shaped. Ok, so Jennifer Lopez is supposedly pear shape, but she's fit and trim and has extra padding on the top. Problem with this body is with a lack of exercise, that pear is gonna turn into a plump plum!!

hormonal changes.....arrghhh.....affects lustre on skin, thinning hair, temper changes, and for women, sooooo many many many changes as we age. SO many of my friends are going for laser skin treatment, slimming treatment, hair treatment...... boy the cost of living for a 30 somethin is REALLY high isn't it? I have yet to splurge on such treatments... but may consider a few in the near future haha...

weaning

Well, the election has come and gone...was my first time voting. thought, I had to do my part as a citizen of this country...
The results are out, and really, it's just mind blowing, the way the results have turned out. :) the people have spoken, the message is clear, and I just pray that things in this country will start to improve. HOpefully the opposition will carry out the things they've said. Otherwise, I suppose things will swing the other way again in 2013. Nuf bout that. http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/ (<<-- go here to read more about it.)
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Some updates on ze kids.

Jo's still strong headed as ever. I'm finally REALLY trying to wean her. The last few attempts were half hearted attempts...as I didn't want to loose that special bonding that comes with nursing. I've refused most of her requests for mummy's milk...and she kinda understands. Although she still begs for JUST one...and so I give in to just one.

There's mixed feelings in weaning.... first it's relieve that the sleepless nights will soon come to an end. Currently she wakes about twice a night instead of the usual 5-7 times. On the other hand...there is a tinge of sadness that she's no longer a baby...the baby that snuggles close to mama several times a day to be very close to mama. She loves to go off on her own to play now. However, the bonding which nursing brought about is still strong. Even when playing on her own, she returns every now and then to give me a hug, or say "I love you mum." :)
One drawback is, it is so VERY difficult to make her sleep nowadays. With nursing, that little girl is sedated in a very short time. Without nursing, it takes almost an hour to put this little monkey to sleep. She's very active.

Also, little Jo's imagination is very vivid and wild. The other day, I was about to just drop on the bed after a tiring day when she shouted "DON'T SIT!" I jumped up and asked "What????"
Jo replied "There's an ostrich on your bed, don't sit on it!"

oh well...blah blah blah. Nel's coping well in kindy. She loves it, and the teacher loves her. :) She's still struggling with the Chinese language.... but excels in all other subjects. ok, will end here....

or the kids will grow very wild soon without my supervision. :)

more 30 somethin thoughts

I woke very early this morning.....grudgingly, with creaky, squeaky sounds in every joint all over my aching body. It's been like that for a long time. the shoulder pain and the back pain is perennially there... Yeah, I've been recommended intensive physiotherapy by the doctor, but never got around to starting it.

Anyway, stepped into my bathroom to brush my teeth before starting my job for the morning which is driving my daughter and niece to kindy. I looked at the very large bathroom mirror which stretches from one end of the wall to the other. In the reflection I see the rising sun shining its very gentle and mellow rays through the shutters. The rising sun's ray is so kind as it casts a very beautiful glow on everything it touches, including me. It hides all the flaws which comes with age, and for a moment, I really look like I'm 18 all over again. *sigh* :) hahaha..

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ok, before you accuse me of being vain, admit it, if you've been mid 30's before...surely there have been moments when you noticed the changes in the body, and yearn for younger days. right? :) hmmm.....is this mid life crisis?
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on another note...have you ever gone to bed with a pair of undies which keeps getting stuck between the butt? it's horrible experience. No matter which side you roll, one side keeps getting stuck and you have to yank it out. It really causes imsomnia and sleeplessness. I'm gonna throw that one out today.

Shots from trip to Kuching, and the Story of how I saw the Rafflesia

As promised some shots from our recent trip back to Kuching. Hope you enjoy the pictures and stories.

Here's some from the Sarawak CUltural Village It's a place where you get to experience a bit of the ethnic diversity found in Sarawak. The children really enjoyed this place. They tried all sorts of ethnic musical instruments...tasted diff goodies, and Nel even went up on stage to dance the native dance and you'll see in one of the pictures, she got dressed up like them too. :)

One of the houses...Bidayuh i think?

a native lady showing us how weaving is done.

It was drizzling while we were there....


what used to be a headhunter's house



Man playing the Sape. I SO want to get, buy one of it, but the man said, the ones he had were booked already. Sigh...perhaps next time.

See all these half made sapes? fully booked. The shop outside only sells souvenir ones. I would like to get a real one. He said to try on my next trip. Fingers crossed, I'll be the proud owner of one next time.

My little Nel, all dressed up in native costume. She looked beautiful. :)

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Here's some shots from the town of Sematan, almost at the tip of West Sarawak (about 3 hours drive from Kuching.) A really sleep little town with hardly anything except for a row of shop houses and REALLY cheap seafood. Well, there are also private chalets, isolated peaceful beaches, pepper farms and padi fields. A piece of heavenly tranquil on earth.

the only row of shops we saw there

Heavenly seafood for very very cheap. Half of what we pay in town.

Tranquility.... not a soul in sight except us....and the sand flies. haha...

The Red House... by a beach near Lunduk
Nel...my free spirited girl...running by the waters...into the sunset...

Here's some from Gunung Gading National Park located near the town of Lunduk, about 2 hours from Kuching. This is a park famous for the growth of the very rare Rafflesia flower. However, the Rafflesia is not always in bloom, and if they do, it only lasts for a week. I've a story to tell here.

We hiked 2 hours in the thick, humid rainforest only to face disappoinment. Not a Rafflesia in sight. Park rangers, said there was none in bloom. :( We even risked crossing a no entry sign to walk the Rafflesia route which was closed for repair of broken boards. I've to say, my kids were WONDERFUL. They walked those hours with us, Jo was carried every now and then when it got a little too dangerous. Finally, we decided, it was getting dark, thus time to head home. I refused to give up, and in desperation prayed "God, I came here..to see the beautiful Rafflesia... Please, let me see, just one. Amen."

I finished saying that prayer, and 2 seconds later, these 2 burly men with tatoo all over their bodies appeared. They looked at me and asked "enjoying your hike?" I replied "...well, I came to see the Rafflesia, and didn't see any." They replied "We know where there is one!"

I jumped in excitement and said "I'll follow you!" 5 minutes into the walk, I began to wonder if they were robbers or something...even my husband started wondering...... 10 mins passed, then they showed us a narrow trail off the main one. I began worrying a little. Then they man said "here it is!" I followed, looked behind a large tree, and there it was. :) A medium sized one....about 6 days old...but that man who showed us the way, wanted to move some sticks and he broke some of the petals!! grrr...... still I thanked him profusely...and was just so overjoyed at the sight of the Rafflesia. It's amazing how God answers simple prayers. :)

In the forbidden path. No one in sight, except us...me, my hubby, children, niece and nephew. We were looking for the Rafflesia.

Nel had watched Tarzan and asked if she could one day climb a vine. this one was PERFECT for climbing and so she climbed. :)

One of the many beautiful waterfalls found in this park. There are altogether 7 waterfalls in this park.

A Rafflesia bud which the men showed us. The rafflesia takes 9 months to bloom! and when it blooms, it starts decaying within 7 days.

The Rafflesia that took my breath away coz I was just so thrilled and overjoyed at finding one.

Me and the Rafflesia. As mentioned...petals broken by the careless men. *sigh* Nevertheless...still beautiful in my eyes.

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Kuching Town. Padungan Street, famous for it's Chinese New Year sales of flowers, fresh fruits, etc etc etc.

Nectarines and Peaches! Though expensive, i had no choice but to buy them. The temptation was unbearable. I just LOVE nectarines.

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Chinese New Year. As usual, the crazy, deafening, bombing sounds of fireworks, fire crackers and fire "bombs" and thick smoke permeated the air....to almost an unbearable level on New Year's eve.

New Year's day was "happening" with an endless stream of people visiting the house, angpows, lion dances, gambling (for some) and EATING.

The lion dance troupe. I took this shot from upstairs. here's the young boy, checking ME out. haha...
The lion dance that Nel found intriguing and entertaining. However, Jo thought otherwise, when she told me "mum, carry me, run, lion coming!!!!" I had to show her later, how they were only people inside... I suppose the music itself is already scary.

Lion dance in the house.
Well that's it for this album. Hope you enjoyed the pictures. :)

oh yeah, there were several other places which we visited like the Semenggok Orang Utan Sanctuary. That was nice when the kids saw the orang utans swinging HIGH up in the trees, and then directly above us!

We also found a famous seafood Kolo Mee restaurant. All fishballs handmade, as in, the lady used her hands to make them. Umm...seeing her make these fishballs, certainly made the noodles suddenly seem less appetizing. It's the way she was squishing them out of her palms.

Finally.........the time spent together as family was the best part of the whole trip. Also time for my children to be free...to experience nature as it is helps them appreciate the mighty God who created all things. :)

Am finally back from the wonderful trip to Kuching. At first, I really dreaded the thought of going back for the annual celebration of Chinese New Year.

In the first few years of our marriage, going back to his hometown, was a torture. They used to think that my hubby had brought back an "Ang moh" wife (white/European wife). It didn't matter that my skin showed I was Chinese, fact was that my Chinese language was hopeless and I had little knowledge of the Chinese culture.

WHenever we go back, we stay with my hubby's 4th brother. That big village house is home to two families - 2nd brother and 4th brother, and mum. Each family has 4 children, thus making a total of 13 people. I say I stay with 4th brother, coz they've kinda divided the house into 2 zones, and I stay in 4th bro's zone. Why they've divided it? go figure yourself.

During my first few years, 4th bro's wife was...let's say, not very friendly. I will not specify in what way.... but ....needless to say, it created negative thoughts in my mind concerning my hubby's hometown and I spent many days in the guest room wishing I was home.

My mum in law, however, is a precious gem. Wise, calm and loving. Whenever my Chinese was lacking, we conversed in Bahasa Malaysia. haha..... My company there in the initial years before I had my my own children, were the children there. They made my visits there tolerable. They used to poke their heads into my room, and before long, I became very good friends with them. :) We've had really good times together doing all sorts of fun things. :)

In the years that followed, through my close friendship with the children...and my decision to remain polite and calm no matter what,...... things began to change for the better. This Chinese New Year, I'm happy to say that I got on very well with the entire family, partly because my Chinese has improved somewhat since then. :)

I even cooked some dishes for them, which they enjoyed. :) The trip was really wonderful. We did about 5 days of travelling...mostly to beaches and National Parks, and 5 days of visiting with friends and family. Their kids, now teens and qualified drivers, did the driving. :)

I've to say that this time, I came away, missing that place and the wonderful people and the wonderful in laws very much. :)

It's really a "happening" place, in the sense that there's always people around...I mean, it IS that way because out of the 8 children my mum in law has, 5 of them and their families and their children's children, live on the same street. That's why it is so "lau juak" - a Hokkien word meaning,........err....meaning.....warm and crowded with people you love to be with.

ok, will try to get some pics up. and will put them up soon. In the mean time, Happy Chinese New Year, or Lunar New Year to my friends who celebrate it. :)

some random things this week

-When reading the Bible...Nel asked some questions.
1) Mum, if Noah took so many animals on his ark, how come the lions and tigers didn't attack him?
2) Mum, why didn't God get married?

-Nel came back from school and said, "Mum, today I learnt that there are 5 bowels." I replied "what? what did you say?" Nel said "Five Bowels mum, A E I O U." :)

-Today, Jo grabbed a pretend mike and danced and sang like she was song leading in church! absolutely cute and adorable. I had to try hard to control laughter. tooo cute. :)

- Jo sang "Do a deer a fin-dar deer, Ray a cho-co-late sun, Me a tin I owe myself, Fa a chocolate song, So a chica-chicaha... La a chichichica-ah, Ti- Oh Oh Oh OH Oh oh.... that will bring us back to do...

_Jo asked for a painting brush today. I gave her one and continued talking to Nel. When I turned around, she had lifted her shirt and was painting her belly button!

That's it folks. Will not post for a while. God bless. :)

today, me and my children held a little recital of our own. :) I switched off all the hall lights, leaving the light above the piano on. So my little Nel and Jo took turns performing, bowing each time before a piece was played.You should've seen the way Jo bows, drives me to fits of laughter. hahaha...

They played, "improvisations" based on picture books placed on the piano. haha... I was just thoroughly entertained. In between, they sang songs, quoted Bible verses, ending each performance with more bows! haha...

As the recital progressed, Jo got creative. She did her cutest bow, climbed up the piano stool, and began playing the piano with her nose, then forehead. Hearing our laughter, she was further encouraged to try playing the piano with other body parts, like her cheeks, elbow and ears. The grand finale was when she stopped to pick the booger from her nose. hahahaha...

Finally, this mama decided that the recital wouldn't be complete without a performance from me. So I took my bow, went up to the piano to perform a classical piece.

I ended the recital by playing and singing a lovely song which I've sang to my children since the day they were born. I sing it to them almost every night.... "May the Lord Bless you and Keep You" by Twila Paris. So imagine this, as I played the piano and sang.... my little Nel got up and started dancing the most beautiful, touching dance in the dimly lited hall.... she and I seemed so connected then...

I just felt like she was a baby in my arms all over again...it was beautiful... I had tears in my eyes at the end of the performance....looking at my beautiful children...and knowing that yeah, they're truly a blessing from the Lord.

strong will

Of late Jo’s been a really strong willed child. I suppose that’s not altogether a bad characteristic. She’s probably going to be very goal orientated, focused on things she does…which is already apparent in some of the things she does.

Only thing is…sometimes it gets overboard. I feel that as a parent, I cannot give in to her every whim and fancy …and sometimes she has to learn that things will not always go her way.

Yesterday for instance,…. Were were ready for nap when Jo said “mum, move away, Jo wants to wipe the bed.” I thought move???? Alright, so I got up and moved away. As soon as I moved away, she began crying (her VERY high pitch cry…which sends blood rocketing into my head so it pounds…) and said “Mum, I want you to come back now. Back to this bed!”

I decided this was one of the times I had to “teach” her that she cannot always have her own way. So I told her firmly “mummy is staying right here. You told me to move, I moved.” What proceeded was ONE hour of screaming and insisting that I move back to the bed. It was so difficult. I felt like my head was gonna burst. Finally after 1 hour, she calmed down and said “sorry mummy.....sorry” And she came by me and settled down. Phew………..

Some other incidents….after finishing her potty…she says “mummy flush.” As soon as I’ve flushed she cries “Why mummy flushed? Jo wants to flush, why mummy flush? why mummy flush?” and starts with her crying again. I get so frustrated. Sometimes I just let her be and leave. I tell her "when you’ve done crying, you come to mummy". She’ll come crying….and screaming! Hahaha….

Sometimes if it’s reasonable, I give in. She’s been like this for 2 weeks now. I’ve no idea why….I hope it’s just a passing phase, coz it’s tough. Nel was never like this, always easy…though mischievous.

Can you believe it, we’re only in 2nd week of school, and she’s been already punished 3 times! Well, twice it was the boy next to her who started it, but she reacted and so got punished too. The third was when she got caught playing with water in the toilet. Haha….. but she’s like that. I dropped her off at her Chinese class yesterday, and typical her, while all the kids walked obediently in, my little Nel had to go hide behind a teacher’s car so they had to look for her. Then she pops out and shouts “boo!” ah, that mischievous streak. Life is fun with her. :)

Any suggestions for Jo? She was such a good baby...just till 2 weeks ago. *sigh*

Nel's First day at Kindy

Well...finally Nel is in kindergarten. She will be 6 in May and I figured, better let her have one year in kindy before she starts standard (grade) 1 next year. As mum, I admit I was a little anxious. Some of my friends laughed at me...coz to them it is no big deal. They say their kids are "professionals" at attending school already, coz they've been in kindy since 3 or 4 years old.

Well, I've held my girl back, teaching her myself when I wasn't working. but the years of holding back have finally come to and end...and yeah, it's time now to let my child go out to a real school.
Funnily, she kinda felt sad too. I guess, we have some pretty strong bonding between mum and child. :) and the years spent at home have been worth it, coz she's really close to her little sister too.

One day before school began, she looked seriously at Jo and said "Jo,...che-che (sister) is going to start school already.....are you going to miss me? I'm going to miss you." I thought that was pretty touching. Well, as mum, my prayers have always been that my daughters would love and care for each other.

Anyway, day one came, and she and cousin Lyd went together. :) they had so much fun. :) Yeah, she totally enjoyed it. Only thing is she sits next to a boy who has lotsa bad words in his mouth. but since Nel has been home with me all these years, she knows she's not supposed to say certain words. So when she came home she said "Mum, you know, I don't like J. He sits next to me. and today he said "stupid"."
I said "what did he say Nel?" coz she was whispering the word. hehe...
Nel replied "he said the "S" word..."

Well, we talked about it, how to deal with it... and bla la bla....
ok...gonna head to bed now. I'm used to waking up a little late, coz I sleep late. but with recent early mornings everyday...i'm tired. *yawn*
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ohhhh and update on Jo, she started potty training, and she got it right on the first day itself. :) so now I get to safe up on diapers! hooray. :)
goodnight folks.............and here;s to tomorrow. cheers.

Happy NEw Year everyone. We just got back from Sabah on New Year's day. It was a wonderful trip with family and extended family, about 30 something of us. We were actually there for my cousin's wedding. In between we did lots of shopping, sight seeing and eating. Sabah is really known for its incredibly fresh and wide variety of seafood. So of course, we ate and we ate and we ate. The wedding was lovely...romantic, emotional and joyful. Congrats my dear cousin on your wedding. :)

Well they say a picture speaks a thousand words...so here are some shots taken from that beautiful "land beneath the wind."

Lots of seafood here, dried and fresh. (Sea Cucumber...very expensive if purchased from the city.)Fresh seafood in abundance! we ate and ate and ate.....not very good for health I know...but hard to resist...
My cousin Vincent and his bride Angel saying their vows...they make a very beautiful couple.

We had to try this species of durian..very different from the usual ones we get in the city.

A fisherman's boat

Some of the stuff you get at the Phillipino Market. Actually most of us bought baskets, batiks and Pearls. I got myself some really lovely pearl necklaces....after spending close to an hour bargaining.
Stalls by the ocean Night market coming alive. We bought some of these lovely delicous grilled chicken
MOre fisherman's boats...
sunset
Part of the mountain. I climbed it in 1999 and hubby plans to climb again next year.

kundasang...very cool mountain area with fresh veges. Lovely place...I plan to stay here for a few days on the next trip.
by the pier
This is me after I fell into the mud. Since I'm the photographer, no shots of my mud packed butt. :) Basically I was standing there telling everyone, "Be careful, slippery, careful careful...." and then whooopps....I WAS in the MUD! haha...

Some of the very beautiful Padi Fields At Ranau. Really so beautifully green as seen in the picture. Lots of water buffaloes too.

Anyway, if you have an acc at Facebook, you can view the whole collection. and no, this is not and add for facebook. :)

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From now on comments will be moderated. So if you don't see your comment appear immediately, don't worry, it'll appear after I've read it and know it's from a friend and not stranger. God bless.