I’m pretty sure that I had mentioned in one of my previous post (or was it on FB) that I was having issues trying to get Arianna to have her bath everyday. In fact there were many times, not just once that I was so tempted to just list her on an online auction site just to be rid of her but of course, I would never do it – never ever!! Just the feeling…the thought, you know? At first I thought it was just a fluke thing that she refused until it became a daily (painful) task trying to get her to have her bath. Everyday we would have a major drama happening with me screaming my head off and close to having a brain aneurism from all the stress I had to keep in until one day, my Mum the genius came up with this brilliant idea!

Get the kids to sit in their chair and have their bath!! Sounds so simple, I still kick myself for not thinking of this or more so, for thinking outside the box with it comes to kids. All this time, I had them standing up and I would shower them down. KR was more than happy to have her bath any way but Arianna was a whole different story. She’s like a mixed bag of pre-packed beans – you don’t know when you’d get a rotten bean!

KR having her shower in a chair – her BLUE chair.

Arianna’s turn….note that she’s in a RED chair – must not make the mistake of sitting if someone else’s chair ok?

A nice, clean bundle of joy! ^_^

It didn’t take much after that to get Arianna to bathe coz she was excited about the whole idea having seen KR bath that way and me….not only I was less stressed, I avoided that backache I was experiencing when I was bending over showering them down. Thanks Mum, you are indeed a genius!!

Instead of our annual family getaway to Parkroyal Penang, we decided to take our (complete) family in KL. Actually this was a 2-in-1 plan as I had to go to KL anyway to sort out my Visa since I renewed my passport and in order to avoid any complications at Gold Coast airport upon arrival back in Australia, I had to have my passport revalidated and updated in the system. So a visit to Australian High Commission was the main agenda for the trip. We took MAS on the way there but Air Asia on the way back, and lets just say that although everyone CAN now fly AA, most of us prefer not to (and you’ll know why in Part 3).

Waiting for the plane in Penang Airport

Thankfully there was no delay at the airport and Arianna was pretty good as well. I was stressing out thinking back to how bad it was when we first came over. How my sis and I suffered!! Thank goodness my tummy was still small at that time and I could still carry Arianna, if not…Lord knows how things would have been. She was a pretty good traveler and didn’t cause much trouble at all. By the time we got to the hotel, we stayed at KLCC Impiana, it was way passed their bedtime and they were hungry. So we quickyl gave them their bottle and they had a quick nap.

Cheeky poser pulling the same pose as Arianna did once upon a time in Parkroyal, Penang.

Checking out the bed

The room itself was alright but I wasn’t too happy when told that they didn’t have 2 baby cots as requested many months ago when I first booked the room – there was only one. This meant that Arianna would be in bed with us, between us. :/ I was more afraid that she wouldn’t be able to fall asleep but apparently this was no problem at all. The only thing was that when it was bedtime/naptime, she wanted us BOTH in bed with her. So we’d both go to bed with her and pretend to be asleep. The problem with this was that more often then not, Ted would really fall asleep!! lol BUT the worst news was when reception called again and told us that there were NO cots at all and that they only had a matress for KR and I was like, WHAT??? But what can you do? If I had paid full price for the room, I would have kicked up a HUGE fuss seeing that I booked in a long time ago, BUT since we were there on a special rate, I didn’t want to pull my weight and just stressed out about it, internally. But surprisingly and praise God, there was one cot in the room after we got back from some shopping. Phew! So KR could at least sleep at the same level as we were.

We spent the first day just taking it slow and it was then that I realised that I had forgotten to bring their milk with me! >.< Imagine my shock, my horror....a quick, short walk to KLCC Suria solved that problem since we had to go get some other stuff as well.

Here’s proof they were at KLCC, at least they can say, I was there!

After our shopping, it time for bed and just before that, I bravely decided to let the girls have their bath together. This was the first time in a long time since they had shared a bath and I was a little worried that Arianna might try and drown poor KR. But surprisingly, the girls enjoyed their bath together!! The first time I put them in together back in Sydney was a major disaster! Arianna was totally upset about it and was close to shoving KR out of the bath. Poor thing didn’t know what was happening…

Needless to say that everyone was in bed by 9pm under protest nonetheless…but it had to be done. Although it was suppose to be pretend sleep, there was nothing to watch on TV plus switching it on would disturb the girls so, everyone turned in early. Plus the next day was going to be a busy one.

I actually have a toddler at my feet as I’m typing this out. KR woke up an hour earlier from her arvo nap and I guess she’s just enjoying some time by herself not having to fight over every single toy in sight. I reckon its a nice change for her. After all, she looks and sounds happy from where I’m sitting!

These days (as I’m growing bigger with JR), everything seems to be a juggle for me. I can hardly find any ME time and everything I do seems to revolve around the kids, if not, housework/cleaning/cooking. Such is the life of a SAHM and for most times, I wouldn’t really be complaining. Seeing that I’ve been both a SAHM and a working mum, I know what it’s like living both kinds of life. While I love working and having time away from screaming/whinging kids, I cannot help but admit that I did miss them loads while at work. You sort of miss the laughter and the giggles mostly but what you experience is actually more of the crying and whinging of course! lol

So what is life as a SAHM? Please don’t think it’s all just sitting around and doing nothing. Unless you have a maid at your beck and call, it ain’t a bed of roses at all! You pretty much handle everything from the moment you open your eyes till you lay your head down to sleep. I am not so fortunate as some of my friends/relatives who are SAHM and have maids to help out. For me, it’s all me, myself and I. So I do the laundry, the cooking, the cleaning & ironing (I hardly do these coz I hate them both with a passion – I avoid whenever I can), I try to stay sane when the kids try to kills themselves and of course, to help me keep sane, I sew. It’s a lot on my plate but this is merely the tip of the iceberg. Soon JR will be here and it will be 3x the trouble! lol A friend said that she can hardly cope with her 10 months old and she thinks I’m a super woman being able to handle 2 toddlers and another baby on the way. I am modest and always say that I’m not the only woman with 3 under 4 but more so, I think I was merely insane or at least I can plead temporary insanity when we conceived JR. lol But now that the deed is done, there is no turning back but more importantly, there are no regrets. It’s always a gift from God when one is blessed with a child. I always remind myself that there are millions of women out there who want a child but cannot conceive hence I should always be thankful for what He has given us. Plus, He wouldn’t have allowed this to happen if He knew we couldn’t handle it. So if He has confidence in us, then I reckon it’s only right that we put our trust in Him. After all, He’s got it all planned out for us.

And as a working mum, I was blessed in that Ted was home during this period. While I was merely on assignment work (just a few months), he was able to adjust his work shifts to suit mine hence he stayed back with the kids and became a SAHD (Stay At Home Dad). I can honestly say that he really enjoyed it and given the choice, he would gladly stay home. He pretty much did everything I was doing when I was at home which meant that when I came home, dinner was (most of the time) ready and dishes were washed up after and he cleaned the house – more than I ever did anyway! And I actually enjoyed this time away from the kids because I didn’t have to face the ‘music’ all day, everyday. I had the freedom to blog (when I had the time of course) and actually read some books (during lunch breaks and on the bus). It was good to bring some of the bacon home and to know that you amounted to something at the end of the day. I always feel more empowered and independant when I’m working and bringing in the money. It makes me feel more financially stable and well, all in all, I don’t feel like I’m wholely dependant on Ted, financially. Hence I’m glad to a certain degree that I have something to do (which I enjoy doing) that help bring in a little bit of spending money for myself. Thank goodness I’m not a shopperholic! Just a tad bit nutty when it comes to fabric. LOL

So while I try to continue this crazy juggle of what my life encompasses, I may whine and bitch (most of the time in silence) about how sometimes life is just so unfair or how I wished I had more of everything (except kids of course), I always remind myself that I must be thankful that I have a roof above my head, food on the table everyday and a warm bed (and body) to come to every night. Mostly, I must be thankful that I met and married a good provider and father, Ted. It may just be the simple things in life, but they are the most important. At least to me.

It’s been just 10 days since we got back from our holidays in Malaysia and I feel as if I’ve been home for more than that!! Feel as if it’s been AGES since we last step foot in Malaysia…lol And although I am not really missing the Malaysian sun, I must say that the winter coldness is no friend to my skin. My legs are so dry and so are my hands that my thumb has a tiny split it in from the dryness. Ouchies!! Anyway, I finally got on top of clearing out the bags from our holidays, sorted out the kids clothes due to the change of season from all-day-summer-everyday weather to winter back here in Sydney and suddenly I realise…..

I’ve got to start packing my labour/hospital bag!! *slaps forehead* Although I consider myself a mildly organised person, I am a little paranoid with the hospital bag. I rather pack and get ready early than to rush at the last minute and miss out certain things. Although I am only some 31 weeks now, I think I’ll start packing my bag next week or at least chuck in the things that I won’t be using at the moment like the maternity pads and such. It will keep my mind busy thinking about what I need to pack so I won’t forget.

On an unrelated topic, I actually got a couple of baby shower invitations in the mailbox recently and it made me realise how pitiful I am. No one’s throwing me one and I’ve never even experience one myself! This is an event friends arrange for you and not something you throw yourself so since I’m pretty much ‘alone’ here in Sydney, I won’t ever be getting one. How pitiful right? But that’s ok…it’s a pity but what can you do right? What I do need to do now is figure out what to get for these girls…perhaps I’ll whip something personal up for them say a baby romper or a receiving blanket….what do you think?

Man, Ted’s been busy, busy, busy!! Since he’s got reassigned to another job at work, he’s been so busy at work that he hardly comes back early from the office. It’s not like he stays back till midnight or anything like that but he does stay back a bit. I’m only glad that he is back in time for dinner or he’d be starving, poor dear! So since he’s been busy with work and all, he’s delegated the job of getting our insurances in order to me. Boy, he’s trusting, he is! lol

I reckon this is a good thing for me since now I have a good reason to find out more about online insurance quotes that a lot of my friends keep talking about. They seem to prefer this method of getting more info than any other so I guess it’s the best way for me to go by as well. I’ll have to get stuck into as soon as possible before Ted starts chasing me for it so I’ll do it as soon as the kids are in bed and I can concentrate on what I’m doing. At the moment, I’ve got a toddler playing at my feet and another screaming in my ear for something to chomp on!! O.O

Aaaahhh….bliss! *NOT!!*

We decided to celebrate Arianna’s 3rd birthday in Kulim and I’m glad that we did. We are not fans of having big parties so this one was more of a close friends and family members only kind of party. The turn out was just perfect albeit a few people who chose to inform us at the last minute that they couldn’t make it (giving rather unconvincing excuses at that too!). But that’s ok, the most important thing was that Arianna totally enjoyed herself. I’ll leave the following pix to speak for themselves.

Cake preps

Sis and Mum were the main people preparing both food and cake. I really can’t imagine pulling this off on my own!! Sis baked the cupcake while Mum baked the birthday cake but all the decoration was done by Sis. She is simply excellent at it! I reckon she now knows her other career option should she choose to change it! *lol*

Cupcakes prior to any decorations.

Sis in the midst of decorating

The birthday (fruit) cake

Sis working on the icing for the cake

Now finishing up the writing

Taa-daa, the completed project!

Showing off the hardwork

Cake cutting

Cake all lit up – yes, note the Parramatta Eels candle, it’s a family tradition! *lol*

1, 2, 3…BLOW!

Cutting the cake

Whole family watching on…must be so tension!

Family pix – take 1! (Pinch Daddy’s nose!!)

Family pix – take 2! Perfect… Almost anyway.

The FOOD!

Thank you Mum & Yvette for getting the food ready too!

Mum’s fav Apam Malaysia

Pulut (glutinous rice) coated with dried prawn kerisik (grated coconut)

My fav – fried twirly pasta. Only thing missing was chillies! Or sambal belacan or cili potong!! lol

Broccoli with garlic & oyster sauce – YUM!

Chicken devil curry

Sis’s famous Shepherd’s Pie (gone in minutes!!)

A must have – fried chicken

Just having fun

These are shots mostly of Arianna having fun.

Having a run around the garden with cousin Nicole and new friend Amanda

Amanda being a sport & holding her smile!

Pure love!

KR trying to play with a new toy

Checking out Arianna’s new toy from Granduncle William Gomez

More fun with cousins, Eryka & Nicole

All tired out and resting on the human cushion, cousin Kimmy.

Although we held Arianna’s birthday party on 08/08/2010, her actual birthdate is 12/8…which also happens to be our wedding anniversary. Yes, this year we celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary! Can’t believe it’s already been 4 years…..looking forward to many more years together, baby. Love you…..