Latest Discoveries

Lately, baby zen has discovered and is now fascinated by a few laws of nature:

Law of nature # 1: Gravity
Ever since he "accidentally" discovered Newton's 2nd law (he dropped a toy while being carried), he's obsessed with gravity! He would drop / push things from his high chair, from table tops, from his play pen, from his stroller, from the shopping cart and when we were carrying him... And I know he's doing it on purpose.

You see, he would first, look over from where he is and THEN drop whatever he is holding and watch it falls. After that, he would hang his head over and stare at that thing on the floor (as if he is willing it to return to him!)

I've lost count of how many times I've got to pick up things for him only to see him drop it the next second and if I refuse to give it back to him, he would scream! So, many a times, I would pretend not to notice though he would "urgh urgghh URGHHHHHH!" me to pick it up... hehehe...

Law of nature # 2: Echo
This happened when we were at the Chevrolet showroom the other day. Not that we are planning to get a new car. We were there cause it seemed like a good idea at that time, was a hot Sunday afternoon and the air-con showroom displaying the latest Chevrolet Captiva was captivating enough to us! So, we went over to check it out.

You know how car showrooms are right... closed up, large area, not many furniture... meaning if you raise your voice, there'll be an echo. The first time baby zen exercised his lungs there, he was surprised that there was "another baby" screaming back. Then he tried again... and again... he even tried different intonation and length of cry! No amount of hushing could stop him *so embarrassing* I know I was supposed to record his screams (for janicepa and nick philips) but we didn't have our phones with us... was an impromptu trip, remember... so next time ya. Maybe at another showroom, too embarrassed to return to the same one!

Worldwide Link Love Tag

This love love tag comes from my blogging buddy Martini...

~ start copying here ~

Join the Worldwide Link Love!Benefits of Worldwide Link Love:

1. Make new friends around the world.
2. Feel the Link Love.
3. Gain new readers and subscribers.

Rules:

1. Copy from ~start copying here ~ to ~ stop copying here ~ and paste it on your blog.

2. At the end of the list, put your name and the country your in, it doesn’t matter what’s your nationality just put the country where you are publishing your blog. Don’t forget to put links at your name.

3. If u have many blogs, you can link all of it, just make sure you post the same on each blog.

4. Tag eight (8) or more of your blog friends.

5. Tip for blogspot users: make sure you copy and paste the code in Compose mode.


Worldwide Link Love! Participants:

1. Julia (Philippines) 2. Catherine (Malaysia) 3. shimumsy(u.s.a) 4. Mitch (Philippines) 5. HaileySexymom (USA) 7. Liza (Philippines) 8. Sasha (Philippines) 9. Tere (Philippines) 10. Simply The Best 11. The World Wide Web Addict 12. My Daily Nourishment13. My Euro Travel and Adventure 14. Euroangel Graffiti (Germany) 15. A Simple Life (Philippines) 16. My Wanderings (Philippines) 17. Picture Clusters (Philippines) 18. Maiylah’s Snippets (Philippines) 19. Its Not a Lifestyle;Its a Weekend (Singapore) 20. Napaboaniya APAD (Singapore) 21. Our mini blogsphere 22. Rooms of My Heart (Indonesia) 23. My Memories, As Time Goes By (Malaysia) 24. Magical Milestone (Malaysia) 25.

~ End copy here ~

And to send the love along to Bluedreamer27, Dora, Night Wing

Shopping? No?

In my previous tag, I mentioned that I'm not really into shopping. I didn't expect many of you to share my sentiments! Hmm... and I had always thought I was the odd one out.

You see, many of my friends (girls and some guys too) love shopping. From window shopping to grocery shopping to internet shopping, you could see them grin like the Cheshire Cat whenever they are indulging in this hobby of theirs. I even have a girl friend who loves buying me clothes as gifts! Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining... not at all. In fact, it's great! And she's got good fashion sense and can smell a bargain a mile away. I know some of you are like her :-)

Okay, before hubby thinks that we should cut down on our shopping trips, let me say that I do not hate shopping. I do enjoy it, once in awhile... if it's not too long, maybe max 2 hours. After that, I'll start to get bored, tired, irritated... you get the picture.

Which brings me to the recent letter I've received from my credit card bank. They upgraded me to a gold card without me applying for it. So I called them up today telling them that I don't want it and will they please cancel it. They were persuasive and explained that since they are offering not to increase the annual fees for the next 3 years, more discounts and 50% increase in credit limit, they were telling me that I don't have anything to lose. And "it may be possible" that I can request to change back to my current card after 3 years. I told them I'll think about it. Sounds good... but then again... hmmm

10 Things About Me

Kim tagged me on this meme about 10 things you may not know about me... let's see..

1. When I was younger, my family used to move around quite a bit due to the nature of my dad's job so I never really have any long lasting childhood friends (you know, those friends that grew up with you and you are still in contact with them now)

2. But I'm lucky to have found a great group of friend (6 of us) who shared so many memories together... we go back more than a decade ago!

3. Sucks at singing (or so hubby says!) but baby zen seems to love my nursery rhymes and lullabies

4. Loved dancing (note the past tense... nowadays the only dancing I do is a jig to baby zen's children's songs)

5. Loves mystery novels / manga / comics

6. When I was in school, I dreaded Geography but now I love to (be able to) travel

7. Got my driving license when I was 18 but only drove when I was 21 (when dad finally allows me to drive his car!)

8. Have license to ride a motorcycle!

9. Loves to have long hair but short hair seems to suit me better... sigh

10. Not really into shopping

The Sound of Music

The weekend before last (yes, this is an outdated post... *grin*), we attended a music appreciation trial class for babies at one of the Musikgarten school. Apparently, another mummy also went for one of this class.. It was half an hour of music and movements eg bouncing and swinging to the music that baby zen seems to like... but he's a bit cool in socializing ie he didn't really wanna play with the other babies though we persuade him to. Anyway, he's what he's been up to in the class...

One of the instrument was a scarf and mummy turned baby zen into
Blue Riding Hood!

"Hmmm, this toothpick seems a bit big, don't you think so, daddy?"
Note: these were some sticks that we hit together to the beat of the music

House Warming

We were at a friend's house warming party during the last weekend. Was supposed to start at 7pm but we only managed to get there at around 8pm... had errands to run in the day and had to wait for baby zen to wake up from his nap as well as some goods exchanging to do.

Anyway, there were quite a lot of people at the party when we finally got there. We didn't know most of them except for this other couple with a 1 yo daughter but they were about to leave. So after we located the host and passing them the gift, we do what most people would do at a house warming party. No, no, not eat! Shy lah if immediately head towards the food! We requested for a tour around the house. It was very nicely done up and had major renovation too. The owner did admit that he spent quite a lot on the renovations and furnishings (can't write how much as I didn't get his approval but it was an amount that made us go "waaaaaahhhhhhhh").

Hubby and I love the kitchen most! Shows that we both love to eat! hahaha! Honestly, you would too. It's something like those kitchens at display at the kitchen specialty stores, with state of art fridge and a marble top "island" (those working top that stands in the middle of the kitchen) and a "wet" kitchen separated with a solid sliding door.

By the time we went to get the food, I was pretty hungry so the food tasted really good to me... Hubby was sweet enough to let me gobble up first while he took care of baby zen (don't worry, he did pick some food from my plate so he wasn't starved!) All in all, had a good day :-)

No Refund Allowed, Thank You

It's quite a pity that most shops here don't have a "refund allowed" or a "money back guaranteed" policy... Most of the time, when we buy certain goods, we would have to stick with those purchases regardless of whether there's a change of mind or not.. well, unless there's a malfunction... sigh..

So what happened that made me wish so right? Well, the weekend before, hubby discovered that the modem was not working or so hubby thought. Actually there was a miscommunication between hubby and I *sheepish smile*. What really happened is a long story but the gist of it was that I had switched off the modem's switch since the internet was very slowwwww (what else is new!) and I didn't tell hubby... And it didn't cross hubby's mind that I would do that. So we went to get a new modem.

And of course when we came back we discovered that the old modem was in fact working very well! So we called the shop asking if we could return the modem for a refund but they said no. The most they could offer was for us to exchange for another product of the same or higher value (sound familiar?). And no amount of pleading and reasoning could persuade them otherwise (we even spoke to the "person in charge"). Their reason was that the amount has already been banked in and it would be a hassle to do a reversal (duh?!)

And so this weekend we went to the same shop and exchange the modem with some connectors, an 8GB pen drive and a card reader! okayyyyy, maybe we could use them as Christmas presents...?

Rare Coins

Having worked for a few years in the accounting/finance related industry before, I tend to have quite a lot of ex-colleagues who are into all sorts of financial instruments and I meant all sorts! You'll be amaze at the type of investments that they are involved in and trying to get me to be interested in too. From insurance to multi-level marketing to cheese cake business to land investment in Canada! Actually, if it was something worthwhile, I do not mind looking into it like the Monaco rare coin.

Now, if you were like me, you'll say something like "All I know about rare coins are they are rare and expensive". Well, that's where these rare coins experts come in. Whether you are interested to be a collector or an investor or just thinking about buying rare coins, there's quite an impressive collection for you to check it out.

The other thing about them is that they not only show you the rare coins opportunities that are available in the market but also advises on market situation thus avoiding any unexpected pitfalls. Sounds like a good deal to me.

35 Things About Me

This long tag comes from Amidrin.. :-) thanks ya buddy..

1. Rate your life from 1-10 (1 being very miserable)
A: 8 (it's the weekend!)

2. Is your hair long or short?
A: It's longish version of short hair (my hair cut is long due)

3. Do you have many real friends?
A: many

4. Name friends you last hung out with?
A: KL, CW, BL, EM, MG, Cas

5. Do you love chicken?
A: Does the sun rises from the east?

6. Last three drinks you had?
A: water, juice, chocolate drink

7. Do you eat fish?
A: steam, fried, raw.. bring it on :-p

8. Do people mispronounce or spell your name incorrectly?
A: yes, sometimes they do

9. Who was the last person you hugged?
A: both hubby and baby zen..... it was a group hug :-)

10. Last guy you think about?
A: hubby

11. Any food that made you smile today?
A: baby zen's porridge coz it made him smile and hat made me smile

12. Name one thing you have in common with your friends?
A: sense of humor

13. Do you trust your friends?
A: yaaaa

14. How old will you be in five years?
A: 5 years older than now

15. Do you believe in love?
A: yup

16. Except for family and friends, who are you in love with?
A: SIL's shi tzu

17. Do you honestly believe you have found the right guy/girl?
A: yup...

18. Are you someone's best friend?
A: I was told that I am :-)

19. Do you love music?
A: yes

20. Last song you listened to?
A: Poetry by Danity Kane

21. What's the instrument you wish you were able to play?
A: Flute

22. Who was the last person you talked to?
A: baby zen... was trying to force, I mean coax him to sleep

23. Who was the last person to call you?
A: hubby

24. Would you consider yourself a worrier?
A: not really... it'll just make things worse

25. Do you consider yourself as a happy person?
A: yes

26. Do you believe in saving yourself for marriage?
A: saving myself as in abstinence? hmmm, I could foresee this question will lead to debates and I'm not in the mood for debates at this moment... may save this for future posts..

27. Last person that pissed you off?
A: can't remember

28. From whom have you missed the most calls in the last 5 days?
A: my insurance agent!

29. Who's the first person you call when you're having a bad day?
A: hubby

30. Last person who made you laugh like crazy?
A: baby zen (he was in a playful mood earlier)

31. Who's your greatest inspiration in life?
A: my mum

32. Are you a good guesser?
A: 50-50

33. Who was the last person to sing your current favorite song and what song?
A: okayyy... this is scary in the sense that the only songs that comes to mind at this moment are nursery rhymes! I need to get a life!!

34. Who makes you laugh the most?
A: hubby

35. What have you been telling yourself lately?
A: be patient...

Am tagging Dora, KM and Christine... thanks in advance girls :-)

Danity Kane

If I were to use just one word to describe the 5 girls that made up the group Danity Kane, it would be "talented". Not heard of Danity Kane before? Where have you been all these while? You have just got to check them out at soundcheck.

Danity Kane is made up of 5 extremely talented girls (Aundrea, Aubrey, Dawn, Shannon and Wanita) who were finalists from MTV's reality show Making The Band 3, which was produced by none other than the amazing rapper cum producer cum clothing designer P. Diddy, who had always had an eye (and ear) for great talents.

These girls are the group to look out for and I really believe they are going to make it big time! I mean, they have the voice, the look, the dancing ability... the whole package! On top of that, the girls have very good work attitudes and unique personalities. I was a little worried about those earlier speculations that they may split up and I'm glad those were just rumors and now they have come out with another album. Yippee!

Their self-titled debut album was released in August 2006 and they recently released Welcome to the Dollhouse, which is their second studio album. I'm typing this as I listen to their song Poetry, which is my current all-time-favorite song and I can't seem to get enough of them.

Homemade Haircut

Sasha commented earlier in Playtime, The Terminator Style that baby zen's hair is quite long already... Well, yes and no. Yes, it was quite long and no, it is no longer that long (at least not at the back of his head).

Yup, he had a haircut and it was at MIL's house. This is how the story goes (cue: soft music in background)... Since we had never cut baby zen's hair before, his hair had grown pretty long. Lately, he had been scratching his head, mainly from the sweat I guess, as he is now very active (read: unbelievably curious and naughty). MIL had asked us many times before whether we are going to cut his hair and had even offered to cut for him. And every time, we insisted that we will wait till it's longer before getting the hairdresser to snip them off.

So one evening, when hubby was outstation, I (unsuspectingly) was over at MIL's house and baby zen was scratching his head as usual. She pitied him and insisted that baby zen should get a haircut then and there! :-0 I couldn't really say no right? (right? right?) so there I was, carrying baby zen and she took a blunt scissors and snip off some hair at the back of baby zen's head. Luckily he was cooperative and didn't wiggle as much as I thought he would.

So what was the end result? It was slightly off, to put it politely. The left side is at the same level with his earlobes and the right side is half an inch above his earlobes... :-S MIL asked if I wanted to have the front cut too and I politely decline and as if on cue, baby zen let out a scream! (oh, one day I must write about his can-be-heard-2-blocks-away screams!)

I had wanted to take some shots and upload them but I couldn't get baby zen to stay still enough and the shots I got were too blurred. As for the head scratching, it continued...

best "before" shot...

Mystery Post

Something is not right with my previous post... Playtime, The Terminator Style... I meant what happened to the pictures that I uploaded in the post? Or are BP and I the only ones who cannot view them anymore?!

I clearly remember that they were there when I check yesterday and now, they're gone! Instead of pictures, there's only little white rectangular boxes. Hmm, anyone has this happening to their posts before? Should I rename my blog to Mystery Milestone? *grin while scratching head*

Playtime, The Terminator Style

Some people were "complaining" that I haven't posted on baby zen for quite awhile (hey, since when has he taken over my blog?! hehe...) so here's continuing from the previous post on the CEO of the house. This time it's about his playtime...

he just loves magazines and books...
though not for reading

awww... so sweet... he's checking out the world map...
hmm, maybe he'll travel around the world one day *grin*

wait! look closer and this was what he was doing to the map...
so much for being a world traveler *no more grinning*

the latest casualty...
I was trying to see how much he weigh (our weight minus my weight)
He was on the floor and was curious about the scales...
and he grabbed onto one of those metal plates and pull it out!
perhaps it was a bit loose but I honestly didn't notice it..
luckily, it was not sharp at the edges.. phew!

Houdini Wannabe

Baby zen's latest antics include trying to imitate the great escape artist... (mummy heave long sigh). So what happened? Well, I sat baby zen in his high chair and fastened the seat belt (or whatever they call those straps...!) around him and started to feed him. He was in his usual twisting and turning mood but I continued to feed while singing and talking to him... yeah, he needs entertainment while having meals else he'll start becoming difficult (another long sigh).

Anyway, he was turning and twisting and then I noticed he had managed to get one leg out of the straps and was kinda half-squatting, with one leg folded under him and the other dangling over the chair. I decided not to re-position him and continue feeding while watching for his next move... partly because I wanted him to feel uncomfortable so that he'll learn not to do that again. As if to say "dream on mummy"... the next thing I know he had the other leg out and was using his hand to push himself up to a standing position! Gosh! Immediately, I carried him out of the chair. While the straps were not as tightly fastened as I would with his car seat's belt but it was pretty tight.... or at least I thought it was. Sigh (yup, another sigh), I am now afraid that he might just twist himself so hard that the chair and him will tumble over...

Linky Love

This linky love tag comes from Hazel and Judelittle and LovelyMummy and Cendrine.. thanks for the sweet tag ladies... aww... so much love... Do tag it along if you like :-)

This is another of those Linky Love game where you only have to tagged 10 person in one post but still there is no actual limit (you can tag more if you want!). Once tagged, you have to copy paste the link in this post, and make them grow!

Do not delete any of the links and be honest to yourself!

BennyLiew
RamblingMoo
Mum & Kids In Wonderland
Judelittle

LovelyMummy

The Strategist Notebook, Link Addiction, Ardour of the Heart, When Life Becomes a Book, The Malaysian Life, Yogatta.com, What goes under the sun,Roshidan’s Cyber Station, Sasha says, Arts of Physics, And the legend lives, My View, My Life, A Simple Life, Juliana RW, The Callalily Space, Petra Summer in Blue, Confessions of an Army Wife Bless’ Sanctuary Happy Life, http://bless519.bravejournal.com/, La Place de Cherie, Chez Francine, Le bric a brac de Cherie, Little Peanut, Pea in a Pod, The Creative In Me, Me and Mine, Pinay Mommy, Expressions from the Heart, TeacherJulie, Sweetbites by Bang, Paul, Toni and Lance - Bridging the Distance, Our Growing Family, The Uncensored life of me, My Untamed World, Something Purple, A Detour, Something Purple, Wifespeaks, Changing Lanes, Bits and Pieces, My Chocolate Coated Glasses, God's Gift, Through the Rain, My Small World,My Life, My Hope, My Future, Magical Milestone

Mooooo!?

This video is hilarious! Wonder what happen when you get hubby to baby-sit the kid? The look on this kid's face at the end of the video is priceless! Enjoy...

True Love

Here's a love tag from Dora...

Here are the rules:

*Copy the questions and answer them honestly.

1> What does true love mean to you?
- Occasionally elusive, sometimes a mystery but most of the time it's a gift.

2> How do you know you're really in love?
- Because I've found the person who has made me the best person that I can be.

3> How many times in your life have you fallen in love?
- lots of times... and it's not always with a person, sometimes it was with the weather or a picture perfect scenery and there was also the bunny that I used to have...

4> Have you ever fallen out of true love because you were mad at the moment?
- At that moment I realised that it was not true love

5> Do you feel love and physical attraction are the same thing?
- not the same but complementing

6> If your true love became ill or disfigured would you continue to love them the same way?
- "For better or for worse" says it all

7> Should anyone else be able to tell you who to love or not love?
- Someone once did... but I believe we do not choose love, instead, love chooses us...

8> Do you believe people that ended up divorced were ever truly in love?
- Yes, I think that's possible

9> Would you give up something you want for someone you love?
- Hmm... the ultimate sacrifice? I think we would try to compromise, unless it's a bad habit or something similar that I would be better off without.

10> If you truly love someone do you feel it should be unconditional?
- This is a tough one... Honestly, I'm not sure... haven't given it that many thoughts yet.. so I guess the answer at this moment is yes.

Care to add / comment on my answers? It's an interesting tag so if you feel like you want to post on it with your answers, feel free to do so ya...

Food Food Food!

One thing about hubby and I when it comes to food is that we are fairly adventurous people. "Fairly" because while we are always curious about food that's unusual to us and would daringly try something new, there are some food that we do not eat eg intestine, shark fins soup or anything that are still alive and will bite (live scorpions for example... I'm a case of too many Fear Factors I think)!

Anyway, I've always been visiting my fellow bloggers' food blogs just to drool over those wonderful and delicious looking dishes and to find inspiration for what to cook for the weekend. Thank you thank you :-)

Now, there's also an another place I can visit, this website called Food Connect where it's kinda like a food enthusiasts' social site. Members can share recipes with other members as well as discuss cooking techniques. There's also a feature where recipes can also be submitted for a nutritional analysis. I found this site to be quite interesting and user friendly. The recipes are grouped under their respective categories eg appetizers, pasta, seafood, fruit desserts.

Now, let's see.. what shall we have for the weekend... there's the cheese balls that sounds delicious and easy to make, linguine with scallops which I have not had for ages, can't do without the chicken & ham soup, or the irresistible crispy honey wings, and end with a sunrise smoothie.... Hmm, sounds like this will be lunch and dinner combined!

A Break In

Our neighbor's house a few doors away from us was broken into in the afternoon/evening. Nobody was at home and I think none of the neighbors were aware of the break-in.

In fact we didn't know until we saw a police car outside their home and when we inquired their immediate neighbor, only did we find out about the break-in. One of the things that got stolen was the spare key to their car. Do you think the thieves are planning for a return job?

Actually, I would think it was partly this neighbor's (the victim's) fault that there was a break-in. You see, they never close their gate at all. Yes, never... not even at night when they go to bed! It was always left open. Their reason (so I heard) was because the gate was not functioning properly and thus difficult to open/close! Hmmm... it's like inviting trouble...

They rented this house a couple of months ago and had mostly kept to themselves ever since they moved in (didn't even know they moved in until they had a small house warming party). They were hardly seen outside except when they go in and out. They seem to have very minimal things eg a TV and some cushions in the living room (which I saw through their glass door when walking past their house) and their car is a modest one. Maybe that's why they did not bother to close the gate. So I'm thinking that the thieves were opportunists. But still, it's scary to have a break-in so nearby.

In Need of Florence Nightingales

Nowadays, people seemed to be getting older and older. I remember when I was still a kid, 60 years old is consider OLD! But not now. Many countries have an aging society, where people live to a much older age and have lesser children compared to their grandparents. One of the consequences of this is a lot of older folks end up in nursing homes. Thus the increase in nursing homes. This in turn raises the demand for Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA).

Nursing homes nowadays are pretty decent. Gone were the days where the old folks were scolded and treated badly by nurses. From what I saw at my hubby's late grandmother's nursing home, the nursing assistants have taken CNA courses in CNA schools. They are quite professional in attending to the old folks, which I supposed comes from all those CNA trainings.

Why God Made Moms

This is quite an innocent and funny email that I received... some of you may have read it before but do have a good laugh again :-) Thanks for all the nice words everyone gave when I was feeling frustrated with my computer yesterday... am feeling much better now and still sane!

************************************************************************

Answers given by 2nd grade school children to the following questions:

Why did God make mothers?
1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.

How did God make mothers?
1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.

What ingredients are mothers made of ?
1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.

Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
1. We're related.
2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.

What kind of little girl was your mom?
1. My Mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
3. They say she used to be nice.

What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?
1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get drunk on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?

Why did your mom marry your dad?
1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats a lot.
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.

Who's the boss at your house?
1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.

What's the difference between moms & dads?
1. Moms work at work and work at home and dads just go to work at work.
2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.
3. Dads are taller & stronger, but moms have all the real power 'cause that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend's.
4. Moms have magic; they make you feel better without medicine.

What does your mom do in her spare time?
1. Mothers don't do spare time.
2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.

What would it take to make your mom perfect?
1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.
2. Dye it. You know her hair. I'd dye it, maybe blue.

If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?
1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get rid of that.
2. I'd make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it and not me.
3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the back of her head.

ARGHHHHH!!!

I'm in a very foul mood now (read: really foul)! The day started off well, that is until I wanted to log onto the internet to do some blogging and blog hopping... Our internet connection has gone from bad to worse. It did improve a bit since my previous complaint but now it sucks big time... the pages doesn't load at all. I'm so tired of clicking on the refresh button and staring at that green loading indicator at the bottom right waiting for it to increase and then only to have it show "problem loading page" and "the connection has timed out". Since when does connectivity has time-outs? Next, they be telling me that the loading needs a lunch break?!

It took me 45 minutes to coax it to load properly and by now, I'm so tired... I tried shutting down, restarting, switching off/on the modem etc numerous times but nothing seemed to work. Then I made myself a cup of hot chocolate and restarted and now it's working (*crossing fingers and toes*)

Those who knows us would know that I'm usually the more patient one between hubby and I (cue: say yes or else....) but at times like this, even hubby is afraid of me!

Argh! I'm getting those "problem loading page" messages again now!! Please pray for my sanity...

I Wish...

This wish tag comes from Jo-N.

Here are the rules:

1. Think about what it is that you want more than anything, what your heart’s desire and fondest wish is, and what it is that you would wish for if you were to see the above wishing star flame across the night sky.
2. Right click and SAVE the blank graphic above.
3. Use a graphics program of your choice and place your wish on this picture:

I had a lot of wishes and was having trouble deciding which one to include in this picture. Baby zen's health is important and I do wish for a continuous good relationship with hubby as well as all those trips that I wanted to go onto. Then there was also $$$ (I'm not shy to admit that.. muahahaha!) Gee, I wonder if I ever do happen to see a wishing star, will I be so indecisive too. Anyway, in the end....... I wish for this:


How about you Chanel, Ratu Syura and Sweetiepie

Pregnant Male?

I was reading this article the other day and I couldn't help but share it here.. it's about male pregnancy. It's at "an experimental stage" and there this guy, Mr Lee Mingwei who's already the first pregnant male! I haven't finish reading it but at this moment, there's no confirmed c-section date nor do we know the baby's gender. Gee... I don't know what to write anymore, I'm speechless...

Fame and Fortune

Have a talent in singing? Not sure where to go other than to the karaoke? Want to reach out to the world and show them what you've got? If that's the case, you may want to consider live tv. Now, you've got a chance on www.blogtv.com where you are welcome to upload a live broadcast! Who knows, you could just be the next Colbie Caillat!

As for me, since I've got no singing talent at all (so says my hubby!) perhaps I'll just view other broadcasters' live shows instead. There are some interesting channels eg Travel & Places, Comedy and Arts & Entertainment and some of them are quite hilarious too. Am off to check some travel shows there...

Baby Zen's New Red Ferrari

Alright.. it's not a Ferrari. Okay okay, it's not even new... Err.. at least it's red?!? *grin*

This is what I came up with when baby zen was feeling exceptionally bored the other day. He wasn't interested in his usual toys and wasn't sleepy. I thought he wanted me to carry him but he twist and turn until I put him down and then he started to whine...

So I decided to divert his attention with this red clothes basket... Somehow, he had always seemed attracted to anything that's red and is movable (is this the same with most babies?)

He seemed to settle down after I pushed him around in his convertible. Phew... Perfect timing because any longer I would have gotten backache. Good thing he doesn't know how to demand yet and has short memory span!

Friend's New Baby

Yes, there's a new baby in town and it belonged to a good friend of mine. Hmm, I'm beginning to doubt about the "good friend" part though. You see, I didn't even know she was pregnant! I was happily checking my Facebook after missing in action for a long while when I suddenly saw an update on my friend's profile saying she has uploaded some baby pictures. So I decided to be a busybody and went over to check out whose baby it was.

And it turned out to be hers! I mean she just gave birth to kid #2 in 2006 (can't recall which month though) and here's kid #3! Can't help feeling itsy bitsy teenie weenie bit disappointed... At least she could have send an email letting me know. If she could make baby announcements, that would have been so much better and memorable.

I'm sure the blogging mothers out there would like to start lecturing me about how my friend would have needed the rest and also to attend to her family and that informing lil old me would probably the last thing on her mind... I do understand that taking care of 3 kids is no easy task (is this an understatement?) and I do wish her well. I just felt a little left out, that's all. Maybe I can convince her to send out birthday invitations instead for her kids' birthday parties using those lovely letterpress printing cards... worth a try!

Yours Technically

Dear Computer,

We have come a long way, haven't we? I know it hasn't always been you since I have known your parents and grandparents as well as your cousin Mac, but I do think over the years our relationship has improved tremendously. I do remember well the first time I got to know you when I was still in school. Boy, wasn't that a tough "first time"! Talk about complicated... you sure weren't easy and on top of that, you weren't very cooperative too. There was also the time when you've gotten the virus and as a result had amnesia! All my assignments were lost and I was supposed to hand them in on that day! You sure know how to make a girl's heart beat fast!

Thinking back, maybe I should have gone to a technical school for IT training instead. I know many friends who had graduated from tech schools who are earning good money these days and driving nice cars. And they can do so many cool things with you... But having said that, you will still stick with me won't you? After all, we've got a blog to maintain... you and me...

March Babes

You've probably seen quite a few bloggers with kids having birthdays in March, right? Well, here's another one... No, not baby zen.. but baby zen's mummy..

Yes, am a March baby too and hubby decided to take us out for lunch to celebrate my birthday last weekend. Initially, we decided to go for a Korean buffet at The Curve that we spotted some time ago. When we got there last weekend, it turned out that it was gone! And so we decided on another destination, Tony Roma's.

It was awhile since we last had ribs so it was quite a good choice. By the time we got there, it was past lunch hour and the lunch crowd had left which was great. Nowadays, being on time is a challenge, with baby zen's sleep and feedings to take into consideration. We shared a starter and a main dish.. sorry no picture this time, we were so hungry by the time the food came that we just attacked! The starter was alright (was a mixture of a few items like buffalo wings, onion rings etc) but the ribs were great. If you are into ribs and steaks, you should try them.

Later, hubby paid a quick visit to the anime (Japanese animations) shop while I headed towards Borders for some manga (Japanese comics)... hehe.. Hubby bought a couple of manga for me.. no, no make that "for us", since he also likes them.. good present ya.. This year, there's no birthday cakes or flowers, I think I'm getting too old for those already..

Hubby's Sick... Again

Poor hubby has been sick on and off since Feb... sigh.. poor thing.. First it was fever during Chinese New Year (ya.. right on the first day and hence had to miss all the goodies), then it was dry cough for more than a month which turned into coughing with phlegm and now he's got the flu. Sigh, the whole package! Really hope he gets well soon.. baby zen's missing all those playtime with daddy.

You should see the amount of medication he takes. At this rate, I think I should take up a pharmacy technician training course. At least by being a pharmacy tech, I'll be able to help him with the different types of prescription medications that he's gotten. Who knows, maybe one day I may be able to earn a pharmacy technician salary as well, considering how huge the pharmaceutical industry is and will be.

Lectures, Circuit and Temples

Continuing from my previous post on the 55 days scholarship to Japan and some photos to tempt those who have not made up their minds whether to apply or not... here are more photos of some activities to help you make that decision :-) Applicants will be applying for 2009 Spring and Autumn intake so chances are you may be able to take the 55 days leave then...

about 70% of the time are spent on
lectures, assignments, presentations, group studies, group projects.
but they have interesting topics and some are done out-of-classroom

visit Suzuka Circuit, which is just beside the hostel and lecture hall...
yes, this was the pole position *grin*

visiting the mayor's office...

since it was sponsored by Honda Japan,
naturally there's a visit to one of Honda's factory ...
watching Asimo in actionget to see quite a number of cultural performances...
school kids playing the koto

visit the many temples and shrines...
This is Todai-ji Temple, believed to be the
largest wooden building in the world,
which houses a huge statue of Buddhaenjoy Japan's nature...
the little building in the distance is said to be a temple...
I wonder how worshipers get up there (?!)