Musings of Star Awards 2010

It was an interesting showcase of personalities at the Star Awards 2010 held last Sunday, (or was it that Dear2 has become more critical?  Hmm…).

The awards presentation started with the old time newscaster Zeng Yueli standing up from her seat when her name was announced as the Best Current Affairs Presenter.  Happy as she was, she stood up and shook hands with the people BESIDE her, as well those some BEHIND her, extending her hand even BEFORE these hands came to congratulate her.  Was is a display of over-happiness, or simply as a show to show the viewers that people are happy for her?  Hmm…..

The next spoiler was how Felicia Chin REFUSED to hug Mark despite coerces from Li Jing, when all the other female artistes played along.  A show off that she is different from the other females artistes?  Bleh…

Joanne Peh’s revealing dress, not bosom, not butt, not thigh, but breast, and the underside somemore, yet again displayed her super weird (or trendy?) fashion sense.  The body hugging black dress entirely covered her from cuff to calf, only revealing her waist and the 2 blobs.  It was hard not to stare, and while at that, you start to think of her as a spider, 蜘蛛精。Ee….

Mark Lee is still my favourite artiste.  From a trash bin to an established host, Mark never fail to bring laughter to the viewers.  His ernestness and humbleness with respect to his master Jack Neo was also promininently evident year after year at the Star Awards.

Talk about what the media or public always (mis)interpret artistes’ actions, rocket rookie Elvin Ng had to clarify himself that there was no rabbits and he just wanted to surpass himself.

Presenters’ role in the awards presentation was usually boring, reading names and shaking hands, so Mediacorp decided to get super-personality Li Jing to present the Top 10 Female Artistes  Award. With “No Time” always on the lips, it was a wonder why nobody asked her to shut her tramp up and stop tormenting the poor Mark Chao with all the hugs and paws.  Mark was nice enough to play along, what a display of good showmanship as compared to Jing.  Yucks.

It was a night of victories for the veterans with all the acting awards going to those old-time names.  Perhaps this will be the last year where these seniors ever get to attend the Star Awards again – it just looks like Mediacorp is trying to give something to the 12 years, 16 years, 22 years so that next year, it’ll be the stage for the young people.  Just look at the list of Top 10 Favourite Female and Male Artistes, how many of them belong to the young generation.  You seriously wonder why will anyone vote so hard for Zheng Ge Ping and not Terence Cao, and Xiang Yun and not Ann Kok. :(

– Dear2

Singapore Motherhood Forum

Singapore Motherhood Forum – you can find everything you need to know regarding motherhood here.  And you can buy almost everything here as well.

How I love the Singapore Motherhood Forum.  During pregnancy days, Dear2 will spend sleepy afternoons browsing through the long lists of threads to equip with pregnancy and baby know hows.  From looking at reviews of gynae, to how to cut baby nails, all those previous posts posted from all over Singapore served as a useful source of information and knowledge.

How I love the Singapore Motherhood Forum.  Excited mtbs create threads once the double line on the pregnancy test kit shows, and start their pregnancy journey detailing the growth of their foetus as well as their cravings for mee siam and what-have-yous for their daily lunches.  Disregarding these bo liao information, ‘Yes, I am having nausea during first trimester’ and ‘Oh, I am having a show, perhaps it’s time to admit to hospital, baby is coming!’ do provide valuable know-hows that all the symptoms that Dear2 was experiencing are actually common pregnancy woes.  Come February when all the Feb MTBs had popped, it was ‘Yes, my baby’s poo is greenish and PD says it’s normal’ and ‘Oh no, so the 9pm to 1am incessant crying is due to colic’ gave us new parents assurance that Baby1 is growing healthily and all her growth milestones are in line with what the other babies born around the same time are experiencing.

How I love the Singapore Motherhood Forum.  The spree and bulk purchase threads offer so many nice and interesting buys, cheaper than retail prices and all at the comfort of sending a few emails and internet fund transfers.  How convenient!!  From maternity wears to baby clothes, from breast pump to breastshields, from swimming tub to second hand MIM sling, and now a pretty Coach bag and a fancy scarf, Dear2 is starting (or has already started!?) to enjoy online shopping, keke……

How I love the Singapore Motherhood Forum.  It relieves me of boredom during those moody days staying at home all day long, and it gave me strength when I was despondent on the low milk supply.  It’s nice to see how others have given others encouragement when they barely know each other.

But, I hate the Singapore Motherhood Forum as well.  There’s toooooo many cute stuff to buy online now, and it’s always ‘stop, think, and discuss with Dear1 first’ before commiting to any buys.  The lure is too big, the addiction too strong for the Dear2-who-hardly-step-out-of-house-becos-of-Baby1.  Urgh…..

And beware!!  人云亦云.  A few people may share some common practices, then ‘teach’ this to those who dunno, and very soon, the whole village starts to adopt the same practice.  See the pitfall?  Beware of falling prey to what others are doing/buying  just becos a few people are doing/ buying it.  Always ask yourself, ‘Is this what you want?’ rather then simply adopting it just becos the others are doing it.

I love the Singapore Motherhood Forum.  It is indeed a useful resource for all parents, and a rewarding marketplace for mummies *wink wink*.  I’m gonna Favourites my favourite pages.  :)

– Dear2

So Stressed

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by the coming exam.  When there is only 6 more weeks to go and 6 unread books, it’s surely gonna be a goner.  But I’m just so going to be hack care about it, just give my very best shot during the exam, and everything else we’ll leave it to fate..

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by having to eat well, drink lots and sleep plenty so that my body can produce the breast milk that my baby needs.  Sleep and latch are really the 2 most important things in establishing a good total breastfeeding regime, but with the hot hot hot weather now, how to sleep without aircon; and with Baby1’s constant need to be carried, how to ensure maximum sleep?

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by not eating enough greens and fruits cos they are just so troublesome and time consuming to eat.  But without these fibres, it’s gonna be pain pain pain when the piles act up.  Urgh, ouch!!!!!

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by the piling unwashed laundry, and the piling dirt on the floor day by day.  Can laundry not be washed; can the floor not be mopped?  Haiz… What to do?  I’ll just tell myself that “Doing housework builds character”.  And pray there be sun so that the clothes can dry fast, and pray there be time so that I can finish the never ending housework.

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by having to cut/ file Baby1’s nails.  Her nails do grow so quick, and now that she has ‘discovered’ her hands, lick lick smudge smudge, I worry that she’ll scratch her pretty face and leave unsightly scars.  But it’s always such aaaaaaaaaaa challenge to get her to give me her dormant hands for nail cutting, shh shh…

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by the tummy that makes me look still 5 months pregnant.  But how to exercise when dumping Baby1 aside for even an hour to go jogging is impossible?  I’m surely not able to fit into all my normal work clothes, and even those pregnancy clothes will be impossible cos they are not pumping-friendly.  Oh dear, do I need to spent $$$ and revamp the wardrobe?  (Oh, nooooooooooooooo!)

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by the thought of having to go back to work in 1 month’s time.  I so wish that I can be with Baby1 to witness all her growths, how she discovers her left hand, and then her right hand, and then her thumb, and all her other discoveries. Baby1 is really the sweetest thing in the world and I so wish that I can be by her side all the time, but…. haiz………………………………….

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by the hot and humid weather.  D#mn it, why is the weather sooooooooo humid?  Hot is okay, but humid is insufferable.  Even NEA weather forecast cannot catch up with the fast changing climate, the 3 hour Novcast is down again today, haha.  Oh groan, I hate the humid climate in Singapore.

I am so very stressed, so very stressed by the little things that will bother me.  Perhaps I am just stressing myself unduly, so I’ll just rant a bit here and tell myself that “It’s okay mummy”.

– Dear2

The Aircon Disaffinity

I’m writing this from the comfort of the air conditioned study room. Dear2 and Baby1 are asleep in the non air conditioned bedroom. So, who’s the one with the aircon disaffinity? It’s Baby1!

The weather these days are so hot. It’s that time of the year again when the hot and humid spell hits and we would be sweaty and sticky the whole day, including the nights. There are some advantages, such as the sun moving over to our side of the kitchen and our laundry dries faster than usual. But the hot weather meant that we bath about 3 times a day and can only get a good night’s sleep in an aircon room. And that’s what we did, three of us all sleeping in our aircon bedroom every night since the hot weather started.

It turns out that several days ago, we noticed a trend that Baby1 sleeps longer in a non-aircon environment compared to an aircon one. In particular, we can hear her heavy and noisy breathing as if her nose was blocked. And she wakes up multiple times each night and gets rather fussy. However, she would calm down when carried outside the room for a walk in the living room or the kitchen. Maybe she didn’t like the aircon? We decided to put that to the test.

The next night, we slept without aircon. It was horrible. Dear2 couldn’t fall asleep as it was so hot that she was sweating. We had three fans in the room (we bought a new standing fan from Courts just for this) and they all circulate hot air over and over. I bathed twice in the middle of the night cos I’m all covered in sweat. Grr… However! Baby1 has a good night. She slept well, breathed softly, and wasn’t fussy. So she didn’t like aircon, I see. But mummy and daddy had a terrible night!

So we devised a plan. Remember we had a sofabed in the study room? Well, we decided to transform it to bed mode. The plan is to turn on the aircon in the study room and off the aircon in the bedroom. Baby1 will sleep in the bedroom since her cot is there. Dear2 and I will take turns sleeping in the aircon study room using the sofabed while the other person sleeps in the bedroom to look after Baby1.

It worked well so far. Baby1 is really enjoying sleeping without aircon. She even slept for 5 hours straight these past 2 days. Dear2 and I are taking turns in the aircon study room. The sofabed is smaller and harder than our king size bed but at least we won’t sweat in the study room. But sleeping in separate rooms is so unromantic.

Some nights, when the weather gets really hot, we would both end up in the study room, leaving poor Baby1 to enjoy her fan circulated bedroom by herself. Other nights, we would all gather in the bedroom if the weather is cool enough. Whenever no one is in the study room at night, the aircon is switched off and we can save on some electric bills. In terms of the number of hours, we’re definitely using lesser aircon than before (having it on the whole night in the bedroom), so that’s a positive note.

We also seldom have our hot milo late night supper anymore these nights. The hot milo will only add fuel to fire to our already hot and sweaty bodies. Sigh… But that will be the plan for the time being. At least we know Baby1 is having a good night’s sleep and that’s all that matters.

It’s late, time to sign off, turn off the aircon, and go to bed with Dear2 and Baby1 in our ‘warm’ bedroom. :)

-Dear1

Our NOT Lamp

Some months ago, Dear1 and Dear2 went shopping at IKEA after Dear2’s regular gynae visit. Yes, that was during her pregnancy time.

We went there for a few reasons. First, we wanted to use of IKEA friends card to enjoy the discounted Swedish meatballs for lunch. Second, we wanted to buy some new lighting for our house. We had decided to rearrange our master bedroom so that we can place the baby cot together in our room. The rearrangement resulted in a small dead-space between our bed and the window. So we decided that we can get a tall standing lamp to fill in that space. It can both act as a decorative item and provide some indirect light that we can use when feeding baby late at night. And the last reason we’re visiting IKEA is becos of the free parking for IKEA friends if we spend some minimum amount there, which we will be since we’re buying the lamp.

After our hearty Swedish meatballs lunch, we shopped around looking for the ‘perfect’ lamp. We chance upon this decent looking, tall and slim standing lamp. The lamp shade is in the shape of a bowl which meant that the light will be shone upwards and bounced off the ceiling for the soft indirect lighting feel. Great, this is exactly what we wanted. Now, how much is it? $19!?! OMG, just $19. That’s really really cheap for a roughly 1.8metre tall standing lamp. Looking around the display area, other standing lamps are selling for at least $39 and sometimes going up to $159. And this one is just $19! We decided on this one without much second thought. The lamp we bought was the NOT Lamp.

The NOT lamp came in this small compact package that makes it easy to transport. Assembling was also a breeze, the instruction booklet was not needed at all.

Once home, we quickly set up the lamp in its intended position. It was perfect. The base footprint was very small, just around 30cm in diameter. We positioned the lamp such that part of the base was under the bed and part of it was under the air con ledge space. In effect, the lamp squeezed into a nice little corner flanked by our bed and the window.

We coupled the lamp with a low wattage yellow light energy saving bulb. It worked wonderfully. The indirect light bounced off the ceiling and cast a nice warm feel in the room without being too harsh. Our Grono lamp was also in the bed room. However, the Grono lamp was not as effective in dispersing the light, coupled with it’s low stature on the bed side table, resulted in a much harsher atmosphere which was not very pleasant late at night. Since then, the NOT lamp has officially taken over as our choice of late night lighting.

While we were at IKEA, we bought another small Knubbig table lamp @ $12 for our study room. It was also for the purpose of night feeding. We wanted to make sure that we have some form of soft lighting in every room so that we have the flexibility to feed baby anywhere in the house during the night. Of course, these soft lightings can also be useful to add a romantic touch to our nights of passion. Keke… So you see, it’s a multi-purpose lamp, hence high on the value-for-money scale.

So, back to the star of today’s post, the NOT lamp. We think the NOT lamp is a no-frills, minimalist, and decently elegant standing lamp. At a cost of $19, it is definitely a steal. Do consider it if you are looking for a simple standing lamp for the house. It will surely work as well in any room.

-Dear1

p.s. Even the breastfeeding room at level 3 at TMC is using the same NOT lamp, do check it out the next time you are at TMC. :P

Everything Pigeon

Oh dear, Dear1 and Dear2 have unknowingly become Pigeon’s fan.

Our entire collection of Pigeon products!

Avent, Medela, Ameda, Tollyjoy, Tommee Tippee, Pureen, NUK, Dr Brown, Kodomo, Pigeon, these are common names that any parents will come across when shopping for baby products.  And like any brand, every individual will have their personal preference towards certain brands.  For Dear1 and Dear2, it seems to be Pigeon.

Over the past few months, we have stock up quite a few Pigeon items, with the latest and biggest (by number of items) damage from the recent 20% discount at Metro.

Pigeon Sterilizer – At $95 that time when we bought it, it was a steal until Metro started offering $99 which includes a Step 1 weaning set as well :(

Pigeon Wet Wipes – By far the most user-friendly wet wipes that we’ve used, with it’s one hand system (trust me, a wet wipe that can come out easily really is a life saver when you are changing the diaper of a screaming infant).  The free wet wipe box that came together with the $9.50 for 3 packs which we bought sometime back, opens up very beautifully too, making one wanting to keep pressing the lid open, haha…

Pigeon Pacifier – Dear1 and Dear2 introduced the Step 1 pacificer to Baby1 only recently, and it seems that she’s not too keen on it.  Nonetheless, we went ahead to get Step 2 and 3 as well, :p, as the different shapes at different stage apparently caters to different parts of baby’s growing months as well.  Hmm, interesting….

Pigeon Nasal Tweezer and Nasal Pump – These were the only 2 items NOT purchased at a discount (apart from the consumeables cos any discount usually dun apply to them…) cos that time Dear1 was so worried about the congestion in Baby1’s nose and we frantically purchased these with the hope of helping Baby1 remove her nosedirt.   

Pigeon Toothbrush – Haha, Dear1 and Dear2 got the Step 1, 2, 3 training toothbrush for Baby1 already.  A tat too early, but since she’s going to need it anyway, might as well just get it first since there’s offer. Wahahaha…

Pigeon Mag Mag – How cute!!  Even the mag mag comes in Step 1 to 3.  Dear2 was so excited that she almost got all the 3 mugs, meaning mugs x3.  Luckily the rational brain functions at the last minute to realise that actually the cup itself can be used throughout, so just only need to get the different spouts.

The brightly colored (and cute) Weaning Bowl, Dish and Plate that we decided not to get. :(

Pigeon Weaning Set –  Finally, the most ‘insane’ thing that Dear1 and Dear2 almost bought: the Step 1 and Step 2 weaning set.  Excitedly, Dear1 and Dear2 compared the price of the package to that of the individual items and concluded that buying the individual items was slightly cheaper.  Happily, we proceeded to the counter for payment, but at the last instance, Dear1 asked, “Why do we need the weaning bowl?”  At $10+ and $20+ for just a brightly colored (and cute) bowl, dish and plate, these plastics seemed a bit expensive.  Bowls are just bowls and I’m sure we can get $2 bowls plastic bowls too, no need expensive ones lah.  And so, we dropped the bowls and just got the Step1 and Step 2 weaning spoon and cutlery.  :)

Unknowingly, Dear1 and Dear2 have become Pigeon’s fans.  Let’s see, how many Pigeon products have we bought so far?  Keke…

– Dear2

Mummy’s Food of Thoughts

It has been a long long while since Dear2 wrote about anything.  Yes, you’ve guessed it, taking care of Baby1 is really taking a lot of time and energy off Dear2.  Here’s some food for thoughts from the past few weeks.

1) Supply does seem to be equal to demand

Earlier, Dear2 ranted about the hardships of breastfeeding.  Only mummies who have been there done that will really appreciate why is it called ‘difficult’.  With perseverance to just give Baby1 whatever low breastmilk that mummy has, Baby1 has been happily sucking her BM up till now, her 10 week old birthday.  And it does seem that mummy’s supply is catching up with baby’s demand, cos the initially ~4 formula milk feeds per day have reduced to 0 in the past 4 days.  Let’s hope that the good work continues.  And Dear2 shall continue to test the SS = DD theory. :)

2) Food is meant to be savoured, not devoured

With Baby1 always threatening to cry once she is NOT carried, having a meal has become a very tedious task for Dear2 if no one is carrying Baby1.  Dear2 has since developed a habit of GOBBLING food down – food is only meant to fill the stomach and to provide energy.  How pathetic!  Like everything else, food should be meant to be savoured and enjoyed, and not merely as a routine.  So Dear2 tells herself to chew slowly and to enjoy the rich flavours of the food that she is eating.

3) Sweeping the dust under the sofa

Come on you guys, own up, how many of you have been sweeping the dust under the sofa, literally? Dear2 discovered that Dear1 has been doing that for the past dunno how many months, from the time Dear1 took over the task of sweeping/ mopping of floor from Dear1 during pregnancy, until confinement and beyond.  So when Dear2 is finally fit enough + cannot tahan the dirty floor and got her hands on the mop, viola, what a thick mess of BLACK dirt exist under the sofa!  Dear2 was in shock, to think that Dear1 has been doing that all the while!!  (Dear1: I didn’t… I just didn’t extend my mop fully under the sofa, that’s all… ;P)

Instead of lashing at Dear1 immediately, Dear2 took the afternoon to calm down, and then ‘confront’ Dear1 later in the evening.  Ok, sweeping the dust under the sofa was not much of a big deal actually, except that the dunno how many months old dust has been sitting beside us and Baby1 in the living room for dunno how many months already.  I should really be grateful that Dear1 has been such a dear in helping to do the household chores all this while.  Thank you Dear1.  But no more of sweeping the dust under the sofa ok?  Or if you really did that, then please let me know so that I can prepare to mop up the dirt instead of being caught by surprise by the black mess, haha.

4) Holding hands

A recent article in 1 of the magazine did a  1 week test of a couple holding hands.  In short, for all couples, fresh or old out there, please hold your partner’s hand as often as you can.  And for Dear1 and Dear2, it’s more hugs and kisses and touches too.

– Dear2

Baby1 Shower

We organized Baby1’s baby shower about 1 month ago. It was a simple affair as both Dear2 and I don’t have much spare energy to do anything more fanciful.

First, we decided that we will not use our house as the venue. Firstly, our house is too small and too messy with baby’s things. Secondly, we do not want to clean up after the party. Remembering from our house warming 3 years ago, cleaning up after a party is truly exhausting, and we won’t have the energy. So, it was decided, the baby shower will be held at Dear1’s parents’ house.

Next, we sent out SMS to the people we are inviting. Once they have confirmed their attendance, we proceeded with ordering the food. We ordered food for 50 people despite having more guests than that. Experience tells us that people dun eat much at such house parties. It was to be an afternoon affair from 12pm-6pm.

Our traditional full month cake from Gin Thye consists of a 700g cake + 2 red eggs + 2 ang ku kueh.

Then, we went to Gin Thye to order the full month cakes for our relatives. We liked Gin Thye because we prefer the traditional cakes to those modern chocolates and tarts that many people serve these days. We ordered the $9 cake with consists of a 700g cake + 2 red eggs + 2 ang ku kueh in each box. We decided not to deliver the cake by hand. Instead, we will distribute the cakes to the relatives at the baby shower and then deliver the remaining cakes to relative who were not able to attend the party.

And that’s it for preparations.

Come the actual day, we woke up early to bath Baby1 and to prepare her essentials for the day. As usual, things are unpredictable with Baby1 and we ended up late for our own event; we arrived at my parents’ house slightly late and some guests had already arrived before us.

Frustratingly, the caterer did not arrive until 12.30pm and by the time everything was set up, it was already 1pm. Finally, our hungry guests can have their buffet lunch.

Meanwhile, Baby1 slept through most of the day despite the noisy environment. We have brought her Capella stroller to the house and used it as her temporary bed in the living room.

Throughout the day, we hardly have much time to ourselves. We entertained all our guests and share with them our new experiences of parenthood, stopping only to feed Baby1 her milk. It was quite a tiring day hosting all our guests.

We wrapped things up at around 7.30pm and came home. Then we bathed Baby1 and ourselves and got ready to rest for the night.

And that’s our very simple baby shower. :)

-Dear1

Encore: One interesting thing that we noticed was that a surprisingly small number of guests (iirc 3 or 4) gave us actual presents. The rest simply gave baby an auspicious congrats ang bao, which is a good thing! Initially, we were slightly worried about receiving many duplicate gifts because we had already bought a lot of baby’s equipment ourselves. Luckily, the few gifts we received were clothes and toys which are always good to have. The cash ang baos will definitely come in useful for baby and us. We used the ang bao money to pay for the catering and cakes. Then we gave $1000 to Baby1 and deposited it in her first POSB Kids savings account. We then deposited the rest into Baby1’s CDA account for her future use and also to start earning her $1-for-$1 baby bonus. :)