My baby turns 3 !

Time certainly flies when you're a mother of a toddler & travelling every month! Obsessed with Spidey, we decided to throw baby G a "Super Hero" party for his 3rd birthday! Two years ago when we celebrated his 1st, it was pouring...and this year, the same!! Maybe the chinese saying that the sky brings down water for those blessed ones!?

Despite the heavy precipitation outdoors, a dozen and half toddlers were dancing, crawling, acting and enjoying the 2-hour fiesta with the one and only - Spidey Gavin!!

Happy birthday my sweet honeyboy...mommy loves you sooo much and you're so good -- you only had a "little bit" of cake!

Short summer vacation - Part 1

We managed to squeeze a quick 4-day vacation to expose baby-G to the world of Disney in Tokyo... though I've never been to the one in HK, everyone is telling me that after Tokyo Disney, there is no need to step inside HK Disney (which is an investment by all taxpayers!) Talk about lucky - we arrived at Narita & it was drizzling, overcast and just miserable. By the time we got to the hotel, it was 6pm and no use going anywhere...

Next morning when we're wide & wake with full gear running, the blue skies shone brightly as we opened the shoji curtains in our Hilton Tokyo Bay "parkview" room. YES!! After a quick breakie down in the Starbucks, off we went on the Resort Line to Disney. Baby-G's body was in awe of the crisp air, and light breeze...he was actually breathing clearly! As soon as we stepped inside, we were greeted by the famous ducks - Donald & Daisy and their canine friends Pluto & Goofy. We scanned around & saw the line up to the famous rodent - Mickey. Snap Snap Snap...a few pics with the characters whom G has never seen before, and we rushed in.

The Japanese, as organized as they are...was in full mode here in Disney. I was amazed at the number of babies & toddlers present...but more importantly at how organized the strollers were parked!! Throughout the 3 days we were here, I did not encounter one piece of garbage on the ground nor did I smell one nasty bathroom! I felt safe to actually sit on the toilet...but of course, disposable toilet seat covers were always in stock in every stall (unlike most HK toilets!)

We were amazed at how many rides baby G managed to get on! We started with a Pirates of the Caribbean ride...but then again, he wouldn't know the difference between a pirate and a normal man, I guess. The only time his heart somewhat pounded extra hard was in Alice's teacups -- thanks to daddy turning the wheel to make the cup go faster! In the end, our brave boy shed no tears & actually managed to smile a bit leaving!

More to come...stay tuned.

Life is so unfair

Yesterday's news about the FEDEX plane that bounced up & down Narita's runway and then bursted in a ball of flames sent shivers down both mine & my husband's spines. Why? Almost every month, I go down that same runway and in the past few months, the turbulence as we near Narita has been pretty bad. That wind shear could have affected any aircraft... now I will make sure I do follow instructions and buckle up when I'm supposed to. I feel badly for the widows of the two pilots who braved the terror. Life was just too short for them...may they rest in peace and may their families eventually find peace without their loved ones.

Why do bad things happen to good & decent people while the crazy Austrian incestual, abusive father stays alive & have the opportunity to live in a cell? At least he's still living. So unfair...but his daughter and children need to live with this horror for the rest of their lives.

On another scale of evil are the greedy AIG executives. Now that they're willling to give back some of the money, I think they're doing it out of fear. Fear that they will need to repay in "other means"... these greedy bastards don't realize how many lives they've affected directly and indirectly. The list could go on forever about the implications of greed. That could be my next blog topic.

Musty March

Spring is dawning upon Hong Kong and you could surely feel it in the air. It's about 90% humidity level, drizzling, and all you smell is mustiness. I dread this time of the year...my clothes don't dry properly so we spend a fortune buying disposable dehumidifier packets for the closets! Otherwise, mould will start to form & the next thing you know, we have to throw out clothes/bags that are speckled with green fungi!

Still contemplating whether we should cut my son's hair -- it is getting a little long, however, he looks so cute. I don't want him to have the short buzz cut (though practical in this weather) because then he'll look like the rest of the boys in his class...I guess all mothers want their children to be special?

Speaking of children in HK - I never thought I would succumb to the craziness of toddler interviews, however, my 2-year old has gone through 2 rounds of interviews already and he tasted his first mouthful of "rejection". Well, not total rejection -- but he's on waiting list for the NURSERY (yes, i repeat...NURSERY) of his choice. We like that one because it's only a 15 minute walk from our home and just extremely convenient! Plus, the reputation is quite good. Now we'll have to cross our fingers that they will end up with some space by May or June. Nonetheless, i've applied for another two -- unlike other mothers who apply to about 10! Guess I'm still not that crazy.

The reason for this craziness is that it is ultimately very critical they get into a good kindergarten because that could dictate the type of primary and then high school they get into! Sigh...I wish I could just throw him into Canadian International, however, my husband is against it and wishes for him to experience the local education system. Moreover, it is very valued in our family that we keep our mother tongues.

Keep everyone posted on the outcome of the interviews...

Behavioral-based interviewing...for a 2-year old?

It never fails to shock me that the education system in HK is so f**ked up. My little one is going to nursery in September this year -- and to me, nursery is not all that important. However, it is quite the contrary here in HK. Nursery is an important stepping stone, not only for the development of the child, but MORE IMPORTANTLY a stone to get into a good kindergarten and thus, a good primary school.

The pressure starts now...being a working mom and quite oblivious to the requirements, I managed to miss most of the nursery application deadlines. Now I'm left with two choices ! I could stick with the playgroup kindergarten however, I'm not willing to fork out close to HKD6500 for NURSERY! For Chrissake...all they do is play, sing songs and learn the simplest of words. 6500 could feed alot of people...and buy quite the number of necessities.

Anyways, after submitting the application, I was informed that I would be notified when the interview is. Interview??? What on earth could they ask a 2 year-old who barely speaks, and in front of strangers?? After asking some more experienced parents who went through this nonsense...all said that it is rather subjective and it is by luck. Luck -- because it depends on how your toddler feels that day. G-r-e-a-t. So, my son's future education will be based on how he feels that day of the interview. I guess there is no need to role-play an interview questions... so much for pre-training!

Short vacation with the men in my life

What a great week I had...spending it with my 16-mth old and 40 year old! After 3-4 consecutive weeks of travelling and/or being in training, I savored in the 4 days I took off this week. June 9th was Dragon Boat festival anyways, so we had a long weekend.

Tuesday - spent it running errands--renewing my passport, having lunch with my galfriends, strolling around Central (which I seldom do nowadays due to such a hectic worklife), people watching as I sipped my chinese style milk tea in HK's most expensive "cha chan teng" (tea house).

Wed - sans passport but in dire need to getaway for a few days to bond with the men in my life without a helper & dogs, we opted to take a 1-hr ferry ride over to Macau - Asia's Vegas! We ended up staying at Venetian, which is bigger than the one in Vegas! In between walking around the vast complex of Canal Shoppes, we managed to just 'hang out' in the suite (all suites here!) and just play with Gavin. He just loved jumping / rolling around in the king-size bed with all the pillows...felt just at home! We did try to put him in the hotel crib..but to no avail, the duvet & feather-like pillows were much more attractive to this kid.

We met up with my cousin who just moved there for work...had dinner with her on both evenings. Caught up with an ex-student of mine who now works at Westin Macau as Training Manager..so proud of him that he is following in my footsteps of getting into training. He's such a sweet lad and I hope he does well in his career with Starwood!

Although it was uneventful (meaning, no partying, no drinking), the moments spent with my son these past two days are priceless. We had him all to ourselves! He slept in between us...few slaps on my face, a foot in my stomach, but that didn't matter...he slept like an angel and was our alarm clock at 1015am!! (We had to get the breakfast buffet before 11am!)

My poor husband was exhausted because Gavin clung to him so much & with my bad back, it was mostly he who was holding him in his carrier whenever he didn't want to walk or sit in his new stroller. I guess i don't blame the kid -- I'd want to be carried too & snuggle up to my mommy or daddy!

Even though it was a gloomy, rainy day in Hong Kong, the sunshine is still shining in my heart because we had him all to ourselves for a full 48 hours!

A tribute to my Tickles - Entry for May 22

May 22, 1992 - a beautiful little sable sheltie was born in the east end of Toronto to Patricia Freeman's two showdogs. Two months later, a young woman drives up the long winding driveway to the farmhouse to meet Pat Freeman, who introduces her to the four sheltie pups. He caught her eye right away -- wearing his little white bootie and being ever so playful. He may not have been the best looking, but it was something about him that told her, he's the one.

Two weeks later, the little sable sheltie entered our lives. I can't remember his dad's name from the top of my head, but I decided to name him "Tickle My Fancy" and that is exactly how I submitted it back to the Canadian Kennel Club pedigree list.

Tickle My Fancy became Tickles in my family. Through his frolicking, his tenderness, his intelligence and warmth, he enriched our lives for 15.5 years. On May 22, 2008, he would have been 16 years old. Although I did not spend too much time with him due to me moving to Asia, Tickles would remember me every time I go home. His barks of delight, his fan-like tail whipping about, and his tender kisses are still so vivid to me.

Tickles baby, I miss you and will always remember how you lit up our lives. I love you always....

Reflecting on the circle of life and 'worrying'

I just finished my good friend's blog and she talked about the circle of life and worrying about our parents used to worry about us -- but now it's the other way around. I know exactly how she feels because our parents are about the same age.
My parents used to worry about us doing well in school because they never had the opportunity to be schooled. Worried about us having enough food in our stomach because they had to work all day long to put food on the table for themselves and their siblings. Worried whether we'd grow up and turn into gangsters (highly unlikely!), about our health, what type of friends we'd have, boyfriends/girlfriends....
I often worry about how my parents are back home because I cannot be there with them most of the time. My brother lives in the same city but only goes home a few times a month. Thank goodness our parents' health is okay and they are pretty independent.
When or how do I find time to spend more time with them? 2 weeks at home does not help because it makes me miss them more when we depart. Moving them to HK could be a possibility but I'd have to be financially secure enough to support them and I certainly am not there yet.
They have taught me so much in my life and I know they want me to be happy...and i thank them from the bottom of my heart for giving me the education, the food, the guidance, the discipline and most importantly the unconditional love...to make me what I am today. Mommy and daddy...I love you always.

Total Ignorance of a Dumb Blonde

Fourteen days ago in Sichuan province, China, a 7.9 richter scale earthquake rocked this scenic part of China. Government troops, foreign workers, volunteers made all attempts to find & save victims...it's been 14 days...it is unlikely anymore victims would be found.

Three days of mourning occurred last week across the nation. Regardless of race, everyone stood still for 3 minutes to mourn for these innocent victims of a painful, target-less natural disaster.

One day ago, dressed in designer duds at a posh Cannes festival event, a passe actress who still thinks she is an "it" girl (NOT), makes a bloody ignorant comment that the earthquake is karma for China. Reason is because she did not like the way the chinese were treating the tibetans. If she read a bit more, listened a bit more, and not be an ignorant ditz, she should know that natural disasters could occur anywhere, anytime. As I said, these things do not have targets. If she thought it was 'karma', then I guess she believed that thousands of innocent Americans died in 9/11 due to karma. She should be ashamed of herself and if I were her, I'd go into hiding because for someone who is supposed to represent human rights (by being good friends with the Dalai Lama), she is not very "human". She should bow down to the innocent victims and their families. Total disgrace.

It's been so long...

The last time I wrote in here was sitting in an airport lounge in KL...numerous meetings and other airport lounges later, here I am again.

To make what would have been a very long "catchup" post, I'm just going to be lazy and bullet point some key highlights in my life since the last entry:

• went to small claims court with that ex-landlord of mine. We didn't proceed to the next step of actually seeing the judge because the thought of having to see her & her dreadful husband once more nearly made me throw up. We met an adjudicator and settled on deducting another 10% from what she owed me. I forbid myself to talk in detail about this day because my blood rises..
• my mom came back to visit for about 3 months -- great to have her help out but not so good for my husband since he has to sleep on a cot in the den. Also having NOT lived with my parents for a long time, she could some times drive us up the wall with her nagging. There were a few times that we argued--over how she fed my son salty food, coffee, sweet drinks and how she was extremely particular with my husband's habits
• Gavin turned one on Feb 3--we threw him a small party at my friend Anna's art studio. I don't think it will be memorable for him, but he was such a superboy that day...napped for only 20mins and did not miss much from the party! The kids had lots of fun because there was an artwork session, then drama, then cake! (Barney)
• Work has been hectic as usual and i was a little close to resigning... only because the travel was getting too much and I missed Gavin every time I had to walk out the door with my Samsonite
• Godmom also came to stay with us for 2 months, right after my mom left. So again my husband had to resort to the foldup cot! Poor guy. He will be glad when we have no visitors for awhile!

Gavin started walking 3rd week of April - he looks so cute because he still loses his balance sometimes! Teeth remain at 4, but he picked up this super wicked smile where he squints his eyes & just shows his teeth. Daddy mimicks him and he does it right away!!

Spring has certainly set in Hong Kong -- flubug is rampant due to the change in weather & nurseries are taking every precaution to prevent germs from spreading. When Gavin goes to playgroup on Saturdays, his temperature gets taken & hands get sterilized. We joined a new playgroup last week and I think I washed my hands with him about 5 times in a span of 1.5 hours. I'm not complaining!! It certainly trains him to keep himself clean.

I love spending time reading my friend Linda's blog -- it just makes me laugh/smile because I can picture her saying it! She's such a supermom and sometimes I wish I could be 20% of what she is because I am just so undomesticated! She can tend 3 kids, cook, clean and manage to see friends/relatives! She makes a mean banana cake, in addition to brownies & other yummy stuff...sometimes I wish I could move back to a more tranquil life in Toronto. Sigh...some day....

A grey cloud looming over

It's funny how time flies when you're so busy. In the past few months, work has been crazy (nothing new!)..luckily life at home with Gavin has been healthy & happy.

Unfortunately we had come across some unfortunate events which has left me feeling very pessimistic to this year end. Could it be feng shui? Could it be that this year, people born in the year of the Rooster has offended the Tai Shui God will face some challenges? Or is it a test to see how strong we could stay together? How to stay sane when faced with people you thought would not exist in this world?

Our ex-landlord is one of them. A woman in her mid-50s, about 150cm tall and 150lbs heavy...she weaved this grey cloud into our lives in the past 2 months. We gave her 1.5 months notice advising her that we were ending our rental contract one month early. No objections from her & a date was set to "clear" the house & return keys / security deposit.

The day arrives & after checking the emptied apartment (which my husband even swept!), she then queried why we never fixed the wooden tiles in the hallway. FLASHBACK 1.5 years ago: my husband had already told her that the tiles were starting to heave up due to humidity or dampness. We then found out that a number of other households had the same problem... it was a drainage issue in the bathroom. We proceeded to tell her that it'd be a huge amount of work & where could we go with a baby?

To make a long story short, she then mentiioned we still had one month to go in our contract & said that we had to pay for that month (meaning she would deduct one month's rent). Over the next hour, we argued with her, her so-called husband (whom she does not admit is her husband)... we disagreed to paying even 50% of one months rent & just asked them to leave because if they wanted to play by the books, so would we.

After staying in the apartment for a little while longer, we left but found the landlords, property agent & landlord's accountant downstairs waiting for us. They finally agreed they would deduct $2000. from our security deposit (this was an offer I had made upstairs). So, in agreement, we expected they would have a cheque -- NO! They did not even bring a cheque book... knowing very well that this is part of "return of the apartment" process. At first we refused to hand over the keys, so they drafted up a written agreement noting that the payment would be deposited in 2 days (Monday). I was hesitant but then the male landlord said that it's based on trust & "why would I cheat you?" The property agent also affirmed that.

Low & behold by Monday, nothing. Tuesday, nothing. After several phone calls to the landlord, the male landlord finally said, "It's not as if I owe you $100,000, take it easy. I'm so busy, that's why I have not had a chance to deposit it." By Wednesday, they still did not deposit it....so it was obvious they were not going to return our security deposit.

About to board a flight to Langkawi.... to be continued because the story gets more interesting!!!

A.

Headscratching...

It's been nearly 3 months since I've written in here! I'm still a "dummy" at blogging...I wish I spent the effort to upload more interesting pics or banners. Nonetheless, Gavin is now 7months old yet one constant is he still enjoys scratching his head whenever he gets cranky & sleepy. He looks like a little monkey!

3rd wedding anniversary has come and gone...I feel like I've been married for 30 years already because someone the romance is just not there. My husband just is not the type...and makes you wonder how we're going to go forward!? Are other couples like this? I get very frustrated and feel that making more efforts on my part won't make it any better - just makes me feel "why should I do everything?" OH well...

The happiest time in my day is waking up to the sounds of my son's babbling & coming home to see him curled up in his crib, sucking his pacifier. His eyes are getting bigger...but then again, it could be because his face seems smaller? I love the expressions he displays when I make funny noises or change my expressions. He is just in awe and in love with me...

Now I really know what motherly love feels like...it is like melted chocolate on vanilla ice cream times 1 million times!! Unexplainable but I'm sure many mothers out there know what I mean. I shall endeavor to write more.... this certainly clears my head -- then I can sleep better amidst the stress and hectic life in HK.

Procrastination II

Interestingly enough, I am learning alot when it's 320am here! I can almost hear my mother's voice telling me that I procrastinate alot ... I hope I do not pass this bad habit down to baby G.

Calling it a night since tomorrow is our day together...before I head off to Shanghai for 5 days!

Until next time...

A.

Finally getting started...

It's been about two months since I've set up my account, chosen the template & settings...but just not ready to start blogging! Why is it so difficult for me to enter this new trend of jotting down our thoughts & possibly sharing it with the rest of the world? I've got so much to write about... and I keep saying that I need to buy a nice diary so that I can write a diary about my baby Gavin. sigh...that's another project that I have to start.



Whoever reads this probably wil be bored? Bear with me...I'm new at this & I promise I will have interesting insights to share as I get used to it. I promise!



Basically this week has been stressful & exhausting at work -- though a short week due to the Dragon Boat Festival, it still seemed very long. It's Friday night & I come home straight from work to see my son -- but of course, he's always sleeping from 7-10pm. I quickly devoured my dinner, checked some emails & hit the bed for a snooze before Gavin wakes up for his bath & feed. I almost did not hear him until my husband comes in to get something from the bedroom. I tear myself away from the comforts of my bed..to cuddle with my ultimate comfort nowadays... my tired eyes quickly brighten to see a wry smile from my son upon saying 'mommy' - I do believe he recognizes me now!

We play for about an hour & then back to bed again for him. My angel, my sweet angel...have a wonderful night of peaceful sleep. See you tomorrow & look forward to spending the entire day with you -- it's Saturday..our day of adventures!

p.s. I almost thought I lost this blog -- after playing around with the settings & trying to figure out how to post pictures up to make my page a bit more interesting! Ok, anyone have any tips for me?