My in laws have been in town for the past two weeks. Prior to them coming I was dreading all the clean up and also all of us squeezing into our small house, I was hoping it wouldn’t be too uncomfortable for all of us. Luckily it’s all been good and time has flown by. The kids love having both sets of grandparents to spoil them and my in laws seem to be enjoying themselves despite us not taking time off work to bring them around. I think partly it’s because my ‘village’ have been very welcoming with my parents and siblings all being very lovely hosts.
The crazy girl who changed between green and blue all night when she was supporting the Matildas’ women’s World Cup.
Grateful for home cooked dinners every night. My fil’s cooking is very different from mine so it’s nice to have a change and also nice to not have to cook dinner :).
My pretty made up girl had her first dance concert. We couldn’t spot her during the performance because there were so many kids but I hope she had lots of fun nevertheless.
Hello Emma, this year’s book week.
My giraffe, her class had Lion King as the class theme. Her papa made the tail and sewed it on her pants.
Feels like it’s been all very full on and busy, I’m hoping our holidays come soon, I think I’ll be ready for one by the time it comes around.
R’s birthday conveniently falls within the WA Day long weekend so there’s always extra time to have a special celebration. This year I booked us a family staycation in Mandurah. The weather was terrible during the long weekend, but thankfully it didn’t hit until our last night there.
Making memories with my little girls who are not so little anymore. I wonder whether they will look back at our little trips and staycations around Perth with fondness when they grow up. My parents brought my siblings and I around the world when we were kids, and I think we are all the better for having travelled the world at a young age and understanding there is a world outside of Kuching. These little trips for us are not far away, not even a plane trip away and mostly a short car ride away, but there are golden memories for me, time to get away from technology, work and the hum drum of everyday life. I really needed this trip to be a kind mum to my kids again, because I’ve been sick, I’ve been so cranky, grumpy and impatient with them. My poor suffering children.
Amazingly they are very forgiving and love me regardless. How I wonder? Will they stay this pure and sweet forever?
The pool is always a highlight during our staycations, this one was heated but not hot enough for the cold weather that struck this weekend. I think they still had fun regardless but I was glad to get out ๐
A memorable dinner at the Italian next door, the food was delicious, the service even better. The girls ate really well and finished all their dinner and dessert. I was glad that the restaurant was noisy enough to mask any coughing fits. It’s a slow road to recovery.
Waking up the birthday papa with their cards and cuddles. Surely that’s the best way to wake up on your birthday? Happy birthday R. My mum had cooked him the traditional birthday meal of long life noodles and chicken soup the day before, I’m grateful for my mother who continues the birthday tradition and generously extends it to her son-in-laws.
The sun was out but so was the chilly wind. Playground time by the foreshore.
They were delighted to be reunited with their cousin and also happy to be indulging in marshmallow monsters.
A day of shopping later, we braved the rain for R’s birthday dinner. The steak was stupendous and so was the wine and sides. I think R enjoyed his birthday dinner, the kids and I sure did! The heavy rain added adventure to the dinner.
Always some kind of noodles for this girl who is a noodle monster.
I knew she would miss rice after a few days and I was right. But Saitaoha’s favourite food is pizza, maybe she was an Italian in her past life?
Wonder what was his birthday wish?
The best way to spend a birthday with your children in your arms. I hope he felt loved and celebrated.
It’s been hard to get out of this downward spiral. I think we are generally a family of worrywarts and we have lots of anxiety. I was worried about not being able to be in the office, when I was in the office, I was worried about coughing at work. I was worried about juggling work and family commitments, not being there for my father when he goes for his medical procedures and appointments. I was worried about my father being worried about coughing during his procedure, then was worried that he would be disappointed when his procedure got cancelled. I am anxious that it is taking me so long to recover, concerned about my overall health and long term health condition.
It just feels like ‘adulting’ is just filled with anxiety all the time and because I’m caught up in fearing for the worst, I can’t move a step forward and I’m just anxious and grumpy and guilty all the time. Why is being an adult so difficult sometimes?
Hopefully this bout of illness is over soon and this wave of stormy weather passes over soon.
Just like that our much awaited Melbourne trip is over. Kids are back at school today and we’re also heading back to work, sigh, I guess it’s back to regular programming for us. For some reason the first quarter of the year has been jam packed for us.
The Melbourne trip didn’t go quite as well as I wanted, there were little mishaps along the way, mostly to do with my lack to attention of detail, my Achilles heel. There was the airport parking which ended up wasting up a lot of our time and energy, the hotel wasn’t perfect (l should have skipped the views and opted for location convenience), and Ah pa had a bad back. The funniest thing was when I asked the kids what they liked best about the trip, their answers were daily bath bombs, the balcony and views and the pool! Nothing about Melbourne at all! Next time if I ever plan a family trip again I will try to factor in fun kids outings like going to the aquarium. But I am glad they liked our apartment stay because I wanted them to stay on a high rise overlooking harbour views for a change.
Highlight was the wedding, who knew we would end up going to my cousin’s wedding and the cousin that we are probably least close with ! But I think it meant a lot to my uncle that his brother, my Ah pa was there. It was an important family event and I’m glad we made it there.
The girls had lots of fun at the wedding, they enjoyed dressing up and even went on the dance floor!
Wedding grounds were beautiful but it was too sunny for all of us so we didn’t venture far out from the venue.
I hope my parents had a nice time catching up with my relatives.
I had all these grand plans to bring my parents for yummy food in Melbourne but they all didn’t come to fruition because my Ah pa hurt his back and the kids weren’t keen on walking around the city. They wanted to stay home most of the time so we ended up eating at home. We managed to finish a whole carton of eggs in five days g๐
Another highlight of the trip was my father meeting up with his old friend from his hometown. I could tell that he likes my father a lot and who can blame him? My Ah pa is a great friend to have.
Best meal of the trip was at Old Beijing @ QV, a treat from my father’s friend. The food was so delicious, I wish we had something like that in Perth, would bring my parents to eat all the time.
I think the kids had the best time, ice cream almost every night , bath tub with different Lush bath bombs every night, spoilt and indulged by their grandparents and parents.
It wasn’t the perfect trip that I wanted for my family but I think it was a memorable trip, one that we will reminisce for years to come.
We were shocked when we realised the piggy banks that we bought the kids were so small! Luckily they still loved them and have been talking about saving up.
Thankful that I still get to walk the girls to school every now and then. We enjoy our walks a lot! This is them and a pink bottlebrush tree, the more common ones are red!
Close up taken by Saitaoha.
It was Teacher’s Day so we bought some flowers for the kids’ teachers. I think Saitaomei’s teacher Mrs H is amazing and so hardworking, she was also Saitaoha’s teacher.
I was glad that I could still walk the girls to school, I’m hoping that even when work gears up I will still have good work life balance which allows me to be more involved in their school life and also give my parents a break! R works every Saturday but has one Saturday off every three weeks, we always look forward to that Saturday because it means ample family time.
Every now and then R and I like to have a home cooked steak and red wine meal. It was a relaxing Friday night just chatting and laughing about work and the kids.
Spending the Saturday with my sister’s family. It’s almost ๐ Halloween, not that we celebrate it but the decorations are fun.
I love going to Broadway Fair and Nedlands in general because it reminds me of my uni days. There were hard days during uni but I think of my uni friends and housemates fondly. This place just brings a smile to my face !
Jo and my fav chicken chop and fried rice with sambal egg. Why does it still taste good after a decade ?! I don’t miss my uni days or even my uni friends, but I have an affection for them and my university memories have a special place in my heart.
We had Koko Black for afternoon tea, my hot chocolate with orange was lovely.
Sigh Sunday tomorrow already, but the work week promises to be good so I’m feeling ok about it. That itself is also refreshing.
The kids had a lovely night at the Frozen musical but konked out in the car on the way home.
Meanwhile it’s 10.45pm and I should be joining them in bed but I’m preparing R’s work lunch bentos and also our picnic lunch tomorrow. Many times I look at our messy house and my many undone house chores and I really think I’m such a terrible mum and wife. But at times like this I think I’m not that bad after all. I should stop beating myself up all the time.
Our last minute decision to book a staycation in the Perth CBD was a great idea.
The kids were so excited when they found out and we had such a good time!
The hotel wasn’t fancy but it was comfortable and clean and the location was great for us.
They only heat the pool in winter so it was too cold for Saitaomei!
Saitaoha was game thought and we had two fun days of icy swimming haha.
My beautiful first born is growing up way too fast for me.
We even spent some time at their gym, I’m amazed the kids managed to self entertain.
The kids had cup noodles for the first time and enjoyed it tremendously.
My favourite part of the staycation was exploring the city at night with my family.
We took lots of pictures
I hope they remember this when they grow up, weekends of exploring the city with their parents.
The Perth city library is a favourite place for us.
It is remarkably beautiful.
The kids favourite floors is the round play area with all the dogs.
So many wombats!
My little girls
We had lovely food throughout the long weekend, there was our trusty pho from Viethoa.
I haven’t had broken rice for a long time, it was delicious.
Hakata chicken ramen was really nice too, R loves ramen and he enjoyed it a lot.
Luckily our girls are big noodles lovers too.
The girls had desserts for both days, the first night was Maccas sundaes, tonight we had shaved ice from Dessert Garden.
If you ask them they will say their favourite part of the holiday was the ice creams !
Making memories with R and my beautiful daughters, I will only have these golden days for a short time and I’m cherishing every single moment with them. I love you Saitaoha and Saitaomei
Tumble dryer and washing machine constantly running. Piles of washed linen and bed sheets stacked up in the corner. Sad and miserable kids curled up on the bed or sofa. Frazzled and exhausted parents who automate between jumping up and rushing the kids to the toilet, stripping sheets and cleaning up vomit or comforting sad kids.
Sigh gastro is in the house. I spent the night alternating between the beds of Saitaoha and Saitaomei who all wanted to sleep with mummy. Luckily I think they slept most of the night away, tired out after a full day of vomiting and diarrhoea.
This morning I was torn between going to work and staying at home with them. But my laptop wouldn’t start up properly and all the work that I had grand plans of ‘finishing up’ this weekend came crashing down on me. When I left Saitaoha at my ah ma’s she started tearing up and I felt myself tearing up too. This is ridiculous having to have a make a choice between work or tending to sick kids. Yet so many mothers do this every single day.
I’m hoping I can power on and finish up early today so I can rush home and see the kids. Here’s hoping. SIGH.
This weekend I did lots of cooking for the family. My mum’s outdoor kitchen is really great, lots of prep space and less mess and so much easier to wash up.
I haven’t posted #daitaohalunchbentos for a long time. Cantonese style fried noodles topped with a sunny side up, R loves this type of noodles.
Vegetarian beehoon, another simple lunch that he enjoys.
Teriyaki hambagu, I didn’t keep any for ourselves, these went to my sister and ah ma, Jo likes these and I haven’t made them for a while.
Also cooked chicken rice for the whole family and they seemed to enjoy it very much, chicken rice is very popular in our family. I think I’m getting the knack of it and after many tries, have the timing for the chicken and rice almost perfect.
It’s the first day up at the Ivory Tower today. I wish I felt a bit more excited and upbeat about it. I will have to put aside my worries and put on a positive face on before we set off today though, the team feeds off my energy and if I don’t start us off on a good note it doesn’t bode well for our future.
We need to hit the ground running. We will become even more resilient and will come out of this better and brighter.
The kids have been on a painting spree for the past couple of weeks which started when I bought them an Easter painting kit. It was supposed to be for the holidays but I made the mistake of showing it to them early. Luckily my parents bought them kits too so I hope they managed to save those for the holidays.
Any guesses for what Saotaomei was painting? It’s a painting of us at the beach. I’m guessing I might be the blob of pink? Anyway she’s been asking for us to go to the beach for ages. Sweet child never pesters us but will ask nicely and when I say ‘ok next time’ she will just say ‘yeeeah!!!’. So trusting ah my daughter. But I will bring her to the beach this Easter, just for a day out.
I love forward to my weekends, because it means being able to hang out with my family, sometimes means catching up on work, but it’s not that bad because at least my kids are around me whilst I’m working. I love it that they can get so much joy out of pretending to be camping at the outdoors shop.
Pretending she’s on the beach!
They like to take photos especially my vain Saitaoha and will ask to see them after I’ve taken them. These photos are very important to me and also posting them here, it’s so I don’t forget these days, the days when the work days are long but seeing them at the end of the day and the burst of happiness is real.
Papa giving Saitaomei a haircut
When I was young my ah pa used to cut my hair but I didn’t enjoy it much because I always hated my haircuts. Thankfully my girls don’t seem to mind their papa cutting their hair and even enjoy the process!
Funny face
She has the smallest cutest little face and all these funny expressions. She’s really our ๅผๅฟๆ.
Saitaoha is sick so there won’t be school for her tomorrow. I hope she gets better in time for her school photo to be taken on Wednesday ! luckily she has been in good spirits and we’ve just mostly stayed at home all weekend playing board games, painting and dancing.
And the weekend ends again just like that. I’m hoping I will have a productive work week and get lots of stuff prepped and ready, I’m looking forward to Easter because I get to be with my girls for the long weekend. Praying that my mum and kids get well and we all stay healthy for the holidays ๐๐ป.
daitaoha 