Little Cozy Corner

This weeks shot is somewhat of a walk down memory lane for me. I’m not used to showing off parts of me but I guess this is an exception because it’s so special and I was proud to be spotted with this load.

This is a shot of my baby bump at 19 weeks. Mind you, I was showing until I was well into my 6th month! Some people at my old office didn’t even know I was pregnant. *lol* Was really funny and sometimes I felt as if there was something wrong with me since the ladies at my pre-natal classes looked as if they were ready to pop even though it was still way to early. Actually, because of the way they looked, I was to a certain extend glad that I didn’t ‘grow’ to that size. Stretch marks hurt and are really an unpleasant sight!

And this is me at 35 weeks and just about to pop. I think it was about a week later that Arianna arrived. Comparatively, I think I wasn’t huge at all. In fact, I could still wear some of my pre-pregnant clothes in this stage. That blouse I have on is one of them though can’t say much for my jeans! *lol* My MIL always told me that I looked ‘neat’ when I was pregnant for which I am totally thankful for. I really didn’t want to be overweight because putting on too much also meant that shedding it would be hell!

Hope you enjoyed that - have a great weekend!

It’s been awhile since I last put up some pix so I thought that it was about time. Here are some of the latest shots.

Our first shot together at the new unit - celebrating autumn. It was darn cold that day!

What can I say - I take better shots! *lol* Arianna here with Daddy

This is her ‘What you looking at?’ look - like very tu lan right?

This is Arianna’s signature look - almost every picture I take she will pull this face.

What a tease!! When she was in this position, I thought that she was going to make her first attempt. But sadly, she pulled a big bluff on me!

This is another one of my favourites - she just loves to show off her 2 teeth. *lol*

Arianna enjoying some sun on our balcony while having her morning tea - Farley’s rusk all the way from Kulim.

Being typical girly girl, Arianna is turning into quite a vain pot! *lol* She absolutely loves to stare at herself in the mirror. Most of the time, she’s trying to beat the heck out of her image in the mirror! ‘Who is that baby wearing my clothes?!’

Another one of my favourites because of the close up shot. I try to capture the color of her eyes but photos just don’t do her eyes any justice. But this is one of Ted’s favourites and is currently my desktop background.

Arianna gave me this look when I called her ‘cheekums’. It’s something Ted came up with. I think it’s got a cute tingle to it - ‘cheekums’ and ‘cheekyboo’. I like!

I will be adding more pix especially those taken during our hotel stay in Penang.

Gosh! I’ve missed so many PH themes because I have been so busy packing up for our big move [We are officially new home owners today - we collected our keys these afternoon!! YAY!!] and also the fact that I’m currently on holidays away from Sydney, catching up with family is time consuming but in a very positive way, of course. And so, today, I finally found the time to join in.

Theme for today is ‘high’. I don’t count myself afraid of heights but surprisingly, I’m not a fan of rollers coasters, I think it’s the speed that puts me off it. Gone were the days when I used to thrive on speed. Now I prefer to stop and smell the flowers. :heart: My high shots were taken during one of my tours that I organized for my aunt and uncle when they were down for my wedding in August 2006. The place is a tourist attraction, in the small town of Kulim, Kedah, located in the northern region of Peninsula Malaysia. It’s the longest canopy walk in world and it’s called Tree Top Walk, Sungai Sedim.

This shot was taken by my uncle and it clearly shows the high, metal walkway.

And this is my shot where I was trying to be all artsy-fartsy - did it work? :tongue: I believe this was the highest point of the whole canopy walk.

Now, I know I missed out on at least the last couple of weeks themes but since I had already prepared the pictures in advance, I thought I’d take the chance to share it anyway.

PH : Metal

Traditional pipe organ at church - check out those metal pipes!

Statuette of a Hindu goddess, Kali, I think….have to clarify with a friend.

PH : I Spy…..

A blue tongue lizard!! Can you see him? I was waiting to share because I knew it would be fun to see who has a keen eye. Click here to see if you found him.

And finally, PH : Different

This is a kolam that was outside the reception hall at my best friend’s wedding. This decorative design was done by her hubby who is a VERY talented and creative man - I wish I had just a fraction of his talent! It’s truly God-given. And I personally think it’s really very different.

Well, have a great weekend!

You know for a fact that man has has meddled in the ecosystem and the animal kingdom when you see this….

Monkeys invading your home and can be found jumping and ruining your gutters, ransacking your rubbish bins and worst of all, terrorizing your kids! Ok, so it wasn’t as bad as the monkeys scaring the bejeebers out of my aunt’s grandkids but they did scare them when the monkeys daringly came forward to grab the bananas out of their hands. As to why they were eating bananas in fronts of those monkeys is beyond me. It’s like dangling a carrot in front of a donkey and expect it not to eat the carrot - impossible!!

Anyway, it was a real shocker for me to see these wild monkeys in abundance in the taman [housing estate], Taman Desa in Kluang to be precise and we’re not talking a mere handful, we’re in tens that could reach a hundred! Jokes aside, I was so afraid that they’d jump at us while we watched them climb over the the neighbors gate and into their house rummaging for food. The poor things really….I mean, the only reason that they have resorted to coming in such close contact with humans is most likely because they have no choice. Only the strongest and the smartest, not to mention the most daring will live.

There was a whole jimbang there right from tiny baby monkeys to the great-grandparents, all walking along the roadside, sitting on vehicles and swinging from the branches in the nearby jungle. It was such a scary sight especially when you’re so close to the wild ones. It’s different if you’re in a zoo and in a controlled environment. I was actually very afraid but I kept my distance. Lord knows what we will see next! O, I also caught a glimpse of an iguana - huge bugger! But it slipped away into the drain….or we would have had it for lunch! *lol*

My aunt says that if you don’t disturb them, they won’t disturb you. But like us humans, they are unique and have their own temperaments so you really wouldn’t know what to expect from these wild animals. And just because they have been in close contact with human on a certain level doesn’t make them any more safe. I personally think that it is a worry but it was quite obvious that the people who live in the area are quite accustomed to these monkeys roaming freely around the taman. And just as we were talking about the huge number of monkeys in the area, a huge pack of stray wild dogs come running down the road!

Boy, what a learning experience for Arianna*…. It was like she was on a safari - saw many animals up close and personal : cicak [lizards/geckos], Margaret the fish, monkeys, dogs, flies and mosquitos. *lol*

*I’ve uploaded some random pix, go check it out.

I’m not too sure if I’ve mentioned this or not….most likely I have, but we own a 1973 [or maybe older model] of the Volkswagon. It was my Dad’s first and only car, and it was bought first hand, with only one owner - him. Today, my Sis drives it around campus as her mode of transport. As you can tell, this will always be ours to own as we are not planning on selling it. We’ve had dozens of offers to get it off our hands but nup, we love her to bits and we don’t intend to sell it at all.

Recently Sis got into 2 accidents - one where a drunk driver knocked into the back bumper and the other,  a more scary and serious accident was when a trailer smashed her on the side. Praise the Lord that she didn’t have a single scratch on her despite the major damage done to the side of the car. To be more precise, her side of the car. Many say that she is lucky to be alive - I say it’s a miracle, divine intervention, that the Lord always looks after His sheep.

With such extensive damage done, we decided that it was time to give the ol’ girl a new face lift and she was given a new coat of paint along with some un-denting works. This VW has always been white from the time she was purchased. So seeing it in a different colors was really weird for me personally but I guess you get used to it…..

Then :

And now :

So, whaddaya think?  :cool: 

Christmas came and went in a blink of the eye. All the anticipation and then you blink, and now it’s another 363 before Christmas comes again. So, how was your Christmas? Mine was quiet as it was last Christmas but the bonus if that we got Ella to celebrate it with. Partying started with a Christmas Eve party at Ted’s friends place and Ella got loads of toys there. It was rather claustrophobic [sp?] for me coz there were SO many kids running around. It was like a mad house! Good thing that Ella handled it VERY well and was only tough trying to get her to sleep being in a strange place and all but tiredness gave in any way. Ever seen what a place looks like after 10 odd kids have stripped their presents opened? Well, here’s what it looked like anyway…

After we got home, there was still one more present to be opened, so I opened it for Ella - Daddy had the chance to open the rest at the party.

On Chrismas morning, it was pressie opening time and this is what I got from Mum.

Very creative!!

Then it was time to get over to have Christmas lunch at Grandma’s.

Ella was suppose to wear this dress but it was a little chilly that day so she had to wear something else BUT the cute pink ribbon is still there! Btw, that yellow jumper she’s wearing was knitted by Grandma - talented Grandma!

Grandma roasted quails for us but had the ham and turkey bought and prepared, I think. Lunch was great but the presents were better!

She was obviously thrilled and so am I! She’s got a lot of clothes now so I don’t have to buy those cutes ones for now. We also got a train set from Grandma’s friends, it’s gorgeous!

It was about 5pm when we left for home, all happy and contented. Well, at least it was that way for Ella coz she was grumpy during lunch.

Chilling out with Uncle William’s [also known as Bill, my brother in law who was the one carving the leg of ham] teddy….all ready to go home.

Hope your Christmas was fun. Happy New Year!!!

Ps. If you’ve never seen a ‘drunk’ baby - be sure to check out more Christmas shots of Ella over at Kecik’s blog.