The Quest for the Christmas Spirit

Ubiquitous twinkly lights, omnipresent Christmas trees, pervasive mistletoes, all-embracing Christmas carols....I can literally smell the Christmas ambience! People are walking with a bit more spring in their jaunts, smiles are wider and spirits are more buoyant with the approach of the holidays.

Our family went on a quest for christmas trees and twinkly lights on Saturday night. We drove from Orchard, the beginning of the lights, to Marina Square, before ending up with a leisurely stroll in the Esplanade.

The lights in Orchard are magical this year - silver, whitish-blue, just like starlight. Although Big Bee told me she would much prefer the sunny golden lights found along Bras Basah Road. And Little Bee was entranced by the infinite blanket of lights overhead.

We also played spotting the Christmas trees with Big Bee. There were many along the roads, monumental triangles of brilliance in all sizes. Some beckoned to us with millions of fairy lights, others seduced us with bewitching ornaments.

The canopy of fairy lights overhead emanate an ethereal glow of imminent joy, hope, giving and love. I am so glad Christmas is here again.

Salsa!

Hubby and I had taken up a red hot sizzling hobby - salsa dancing! Last night, we went for our 3rd class in salsa, and my god, can we really rev up the temperature with turns and swivels! We worked up a sweat, gyrating to the sensational rhythms of sexy latin music, and truly enjoyed the rare couple time together, holding each other, learning to feel each other's movements, anticipating our next steps, and following the other's moves. I would highly recommend salsa dancing to couples who had been married for a while to add the fun and intimacy back into marriage - this is the perfect chance for us to observe each other closely and get back to the roots of loving attention to each other's body cues!

The Art of Finger Pointing

Little Bee is communicating effectively with us these days. No, she still cannot go beyond that few happy shrieks, gagas, "mum-mums" and contented gurgling. But yes, we now know what she wants better because she is using her little forefinger to point at whatever her heart desires. Pointing to her favourite toy lying beyond her reach so that we can retrieve for her. Even pointing to where she wants to go...first this way through the hallway, then pointing right at the door of our bedroom, and then finally pointing with a gorgeously happy smile at me!!!

Stardust

We watched Stardust on Saturday, and I was enthralled by it. It's my usual favourite fantasy epic movie genre, and I was so happy to be immersed in another fantasia world of magic, chivalry, stars, love and eternal happiness. Escapism into another world, another universe.

Ballerina

Big Bee had her first ballet examination on the morning of Friday, 9 November. We brought her to the centre early to do up her hair, and boy, was the transformation amazing! She had her hair all gelled up into a sleek ballerina bun with a pristine white ribbon on it. Her radiant face shone beautifully and she looked like a professional ballerina alright. Her ballet friends were all styled in the same mien and when they milled around, it is so bewitching to see the delicate juxtaposition between innocent exuberance and polished elegance all rolled into one form in their 5-year-old bodies. Breathtaking indeed!

Nevertheless, Big Bee was very nervous before her exams but after the whole shebang, she did wonderfully well :)

Fantasy Turned Reality

The art of balance - learning to ride a horse backwards!

My elder princess, Big Bee, is a girl full of passion for things she really loves. She always dreams about riding on horses, being close to them, and indulges in some flights of fancies with white horses and unicorns. Which is why when we enrolled her into a horseriding course at Gallop Stables in Pasir Ris Beach, she is ecstatic beyond words.

By 9am last Sunday, we were close to the sea, in the midst of verdant greenery, watching her stroke the horse’s mane and neck (today, her horse is Charlie. Last week, it was Jasmine, a dazzling white horse!). She could not stop grinning dreamily at the horse, interspersed with smug peeks at us. I am wondering what sweet nothings Big Bee is whispering to brown Charlie, when I overheard her saying somewhat shyly to Charlie as she was atop the saddle “Walk on”. In front of our astonished eyes, she then started riding the horse all by herself, without needing the instructor to pull the reins for her! She can even make the horse turn left or right! Amazing. Before long, we caught her trotting at a faster pace with the horse, with a remarkable grin on her face. Truly beautiful.

And all these were witnessed by us and Little Bee while eating a sumptuous breakfast simultaneously.

Life is pretty charming after all ….

The Dissipation of Vile Frustrations

It was a really long day - hectic day at work followed by a somewhat dreary MBA class from 7pm to 10pm. My last module of MBA is held in the centre's brand new premises - all the way in ulu Bukit Merah. Gosh! Getting there was breezy. BUT, when lessons finished at 10pm sharp, and I rushed off to catch a cab at the main road (Hubby's away for work), it was the most tortuous 45 minutes of standing by a quiet and lonesome road, having my eyes blinded by incessant oncoming glaring headlights of all kinds of vehicles except for empty cabs. So, instead of waiting foolishly, I decided to call for a cab. And to think that 2 cabs assigned to me dashed off into the darkness because they could not find me in that remote ulu area. The third cab came finally at 10.45pm. I was on the verge of tears and tremendous frustration.

I got into the cab and immediately called Hubby who was overseas, sobbing quietly out my frustrations. I know it all sounded really trivial now, but I felt like being dunked into a deep, dark abyss filled with vicious, embittered mud at that point of time, having stood like a foolish statue for 45 minutes.

Surprisingly, Hubby was very understanding (not his usual reaction to these typical outbursts of mine!). And after ranting and raving on to his listening ears, I felt a load off my shoulders, visibly lightening my anger. Thank you, Hubby.

Upon reaching home, I dragged my still heavy heart and feet back up the flat. And when Mom opened the door to the flat, I saw a pair of large angelic eyes peering at me, and then a wide grin ensued. Little bee’s still awake! The final vestiges of my odious aggravation dissipated, melted, vanished as I carried little bee into my arms, playing with her, hearing her chuckle gently, feeling her soft fingers poking my face tenderly yet playfully.

Home – what a warm and wonderful place indeed.

Birthday Joys Part 2

I took leave on my actual birthday to spend time with the children. After fetching Nicole to school, it's the second half of my birthday celebration! We spent a good half of the afternoon settling some administrative stuff and then proceeded to Taka where hubby brought me to choose my birthday present. I selected something I really wanted for a long time - a classic Cartier watch with a leather strap, and it was beautiful.

We proceeded for dinner at Coca restaurant and it was sumptuous as usual. After some basic shopping and walking about, hubby mysteriously fetched me somewhere. He brought me to the Arts House and I soon realised we were going to watch a movie there! Wonderful! It seemed like it's back to our uni days of courtship again, away from all the blustering commercialism that had invaded our lives of late.

We watched an animated film "The Triplets of Belleville" which was an entertaining and amusing little showcase. But it was the thought of him racking his brains to come out with a different experience for me during my birthday that touched me.

Birthday Joys

I think I might have the most memorable birthday ever. The hubby gave me 2 full days of wonderful surprises, and the happiness experienced these days is the catalyst for starting this blog. To record moments of happiness in case we feel angst or pettiness next time, hence forgetting that there are joys in our marriage.

The surprises started the night before my birthday. He brought me to a resplendent restaurant at Dempsey - Oosh. It is lush, filled with the luxurious foliage of ageing trees, with whispering leaves and sighing branches. We settled down in an alfresco setting where a cool breeze caressed us constantly. We ate a most delicious dinner of fish and salad plus soup. All throughout, couples and friends spoke softly, exuding an air of mystery and enigma in the darkening blanket of night. We also shared some precious heart-to-heart conversations, rare in these days of non-privacy while living with my parents and with our kids springing on us constantly.

After dinner, hubby walked me to an exquisite trellis, a rustic shelter with heavenly sofas that sink in and ensconced us in their cosiness. It was dim with romantic lighting all around, and we chatted quietly with Margaritas as our companions (mine's a non alcoholic one!), visibly relaxing after a wonderful dinner. The trellis is highly private without anyone around us, so we're really in a world of our own.

Soon, I can see flickering of candles gradually approaching our trellis, and hubby told me "Look there". It was the waiter holding my birthday cake with (too many) candles on top, dancing gaily to the rhythm of the wind. I was very pleased, and proceeded to close my eyes and wish for something I really hope for. We gleefully dug into the delicious chocolate cake from Bakerzin. Apparently, he secretly passed the car key to the waiters and get them to bring the cake out! Hubby suddenly asked me to close my eyes. Oh my, made me think of our proposal in Nepal all over again! I had a wild idea he might re-propose to me again. Instead, when my eyes are shielded from the light of the world, I heard soft tinkling music just beside my right ear, gently caressing my senses and embracing my awareness. The music is that of the Wedding March! The more I heard, the more touched I was...my being was filled with an overwhelming aura of love and emotions. But before I could be further engulfed by these rising emotions, luckily, my hubby stopped the music.

My opened eyes chanced upon a tiny gramophone, one so minuscule yet being able to produce such sweet music and saccharine emotions. We need to use our fingers to twirl the handle of the gramophone in order for the music to be exuded - a strong analogy of us working hard at things to create joy from them.

We snuggled together and felt the blessings of the night. I tried hard not to think of depressive matters, and it was so easy for me to lose myself in the dark comfortable shroud of night.

What a beautiful night indeed....

A New Beginning

It's been a while since I last blogged. In fact, it was 2004. And now, it's 2007. My previous blog was under the address of mommyoga.blogspot.com, and for those of you wondering why I did not use back the same address, it's because I completely forgot about my user name and password! What a bummer.

Anyway, the reason why I wanted to start this blog again is to jot down all the little beauties in my lives, and the lives of the members of my family. It is not for public reading, but hopefully, my 2 daughters will be able to read this when they are older, and know that Mummy and Daddy had a fruitful and wonderful life.

Joy is never far from reach. It is how we reach out to joy that will make a difference in our lives. I had met many people who cling to misery for the wrong reasons, myself included. And they simply forgot that sometimes, to live and breath is the purest of all joys. Hence this blog. To remind myself and my family of how joyous it is to be just living, walking and breathing in the air (albeit sometimes polluted!) of this wonderful planet.