My Obsession

I have this thing for ballpoint pens.

I collect pens every opportunity I get. Not the fancy expensive Mont Blancs, but simply your plain old ballpoint. I buy them, take them from hotel check-in counters, from hotel rooms, from restaurants, from seminars I attend and anywhere else I can get them. I have a house full of ballpoint pens, yet I can't seem to stop myself from collecting more.

I think it might be a disorder, albeit not a serious one. I hope. After all, some people collect stamps while I collect ballpoint pens!

There has to be a reason why I am so obsessed with pens.

When I was growing up in this big house, we had everything we wanted and needed. We had two TVs, a piano, air-conditioning (back in the days when it was a big deal) but we had no ballpoint pens! For some reason, I could never find a single ballpoint pen in the house. Sure, we had a few pens. But most, if not all of these were not working, had no ink, or were simply broken. We had pens with dried and caked-up ink, or pens with half broken or cracked casings.

I figured it must have due to this imperfection in my childhood that has caused my to be so taken by pens. This is going to be something that I will carry with me right into my ripe old age. So if you're wondering what to give me for an occasion, forget expensive gifts - go buy a ballpoint pen. That is, if you really want to make my day!

The Tooth Fairy

Little A lost his first tooth a week into his sixth birthday. Coincidentally, it was the same one that popped out when he cut his first baby tooth at six months old.

Initially he was really sad. "I don't want people to laugh at me," was all he said, even after we had assured him that all his friends would go through the same stage.

And so, mommy had to spin a tale about the tooth fairy. I told him that after his tooth fell, he would need to put it under his pillow and the tooth fairy would come visit him. She would then leave him 50 sen in exchange for the tooth.

He was so taken by the whole story, he couldn't wait for that little tooth to fall out. Daddy told me later in the day that he repeated this tale to him after I had left for work.

When we picked him up from school that day, the wobbly little tooth had fallen out. Little A had kept it in his bag. "Don't forget to put it under my pillow, mommy," he said.

He went to bed without much fuss that night and was actually happy to sleep early. And later that night, the tooth fairy did come - she didn't take his tooth but she left 50 sen anyway :)

School Holidays

The last couple of weeks have been crazy.

Between work, the kids, and managing the house I've had to creatively stretch time, stealing a few hours here and there to get stuff done. And then came the week-long school holidays and that left no time for anything else.

I was consumed with guilt about not having taken the boys anywhere for the holidays. It was tough enough staying home, let alone going out anywhere with two boisterous boys! Towards the end of the holidays and against my better judgement, I decided we should go for a movie.

The boys had been to the cinema several times before and most times it's been manageable. Save for the constant runs to the bathroom.

We decided on 'Charlotte's Web' since Little A had seen the trailer on TV and wanted to watch it. "Its about a spider and a pig, mommy," he piped.

Off to the cinema we went. Bright and early on a Friday, before the crowds got there. We got our tickets and popcorn, and the mandatory visit to the bathroom before the movie. After all the ads and trailers, just as the movie was about the begin... Little J, in a whisper "Mommy, I have to go toilet". Maybe if I pretended not to hear he will forget.

"Mommy..." It got a little louder. Ignore, ignore. And then Little J started chanting, "have to got toilet... have to go toilet... have to go toilet..." Jeez. I gave in and took him.

The rest of the movie went rather well by my standards. Little A had given his opinion throughout the show, or had asked questions, and made comments, most of which were met with my "Uh-Huh." Which meant, 'OK, whatever you say...just as long as you keep quiet and not bother other people.'

After the movie we walked about the mall a little. Several times Little A thought he'd lost me, and would yell at the top of his voice, "Maaaa-mmmmeeeee!!!" People walking past wondered whose child this was, making all that ruckus. Save for those few times, which I regard to be nothing extraordinary, the day went quiet uneventful.

The next day, we took the boys on their first picnic. A lot of thought went into the planning; I was up at 5.30am on Saturday making egg sandwiches. I had the picnic mat, thermos of milo, water, wet wipes, hand cleanser, snacks, just about everything except the kitchen sink.

We woke the kids up after we loaded up our car, and promptly made our way to my sister's house. Auntie B, Uncle AD and Anya were all ready to go, so off we went!

The skies were looking a little gloomy on our way to the Lake Gardens. Undeterred, we forged ahead. I wasn't calling this off, not on the count of a few dark clouds. Heck, not after all that planning and packing!

We got there just before 8am. We found a little spot near the playground where we set our stuff down. The boys ran off immediately to the play area. Auntie B and I started laying out the food with Baby K and little Anya watching the birds and pigeons around us. It was turning out to be quite fun.

About 30 minutes later, Auntie B and I decided to send Daddy and Uncle AD on an errand - to get us some nasi lemak Tanglin.

The boys took a break from playing to have some egg sandwich and milo, while Auntie B and I had a tete-a-tete. Halfway through having fun, we felt a few drops of rain on our head. Before we knew it, more drops! Next thing we knew, we were grabbing and packing up everything we had in sight, and running to the gazebos nearby.

Daddy and Uncle AD had just bought the nasi lemak, and was coming back when the rain started. Daddy brought with him umbrellas and promptly took us all back to the car. And just in time too. Once we got in, it rained cats and dogs!

We went back to Auntie B's place, and had our nasi lemak on the balcony, while the kids played and watched Hi-5 on TV. It was nice to enjoy the rain indoors while we chatted the morning away.

Well, at least we got an hour of picnicking in before we got rained out. One thing for sure, we'll attempt it again soon - possibly the next school holidays?

Cameron Highlands

I love Cameron Highlands.

When I was little, our family used to spend every Christmas vacation up in the highlands. We'd go in a big group and stay in a colonial bungalow. We would have warm scones with fresh strawberry jam for tea, followed by piping hot steamboat for dinner. The objective was to lepak and eat.

Wanting my kids to have a similar experience, I surfed the net looking for a bungalow with a big enough garden for the kids to run and play. Then I found Hilltop. It was exactly what I had in mind. The housekeeper, Mrs Chong, is a great cook and she makes fantastic scones.

We stayed three nights and it wasn't enough. We'll be going back again this year end.

Happy Birthday Little A!

Little A was born exactly six years ago yesterday.

I recall how we had anticipated the birth of our firstborn with delight and trepidation. Two carefree adults thrown into the tumultuous world of parenthood, armed with stacks of "How To..." parenting books. You'd think after six years, and two kids later, we've got this parenting thing down pat. Hah! I say again - just when you think they grow out of a stage, they get into another. It's constant and never-ending.

We love our kids, they are our pride and joy. As any parent will tell you, there's probably very little what we wouldn't do for them. Parenting is a journey and we are still learning. We have more fun these days because we are now more tolerant (have learnt to ignore whining and wailings) and patient (desensitized to whining and wailings).

Happy Birthday Little A, we love you!

My Friend Kash

I can't exactly remember when Kash and I became friends. It seemed like a long time ago though.

Kash was the one person I would call my best friend during those schooling years. As cliche as it sounds, she was there each and every time I called or popped in unannounced to tell of yet another one of my juvenile relationship break ups. Or after I've had a yelling match with my father or suffered any teenage troubles on the home front.

I could talk for hours on the phone with Kash, and she would just be there listening, often saying little, if anything. I took comfort in knowing she was at the end of the line, empathizing and saying just the right things at the right time. Kash was already practising active listening long before the days I even knew what it meant.

We continued being friends through college but we lost touch a couple of years later. Kash went on to make a life in the US, while I was back here - on opposite sides of the world. During this time, she was always in my thoughts but because we both were so caught up with things we needed to get done, we barely kept in contact.

Kash came back six weeks ago.

I saw her last about six years ago, after I had Little A. Between then and this visit, so much time had passed. I have had two more kids since, she's just had a baby. She's just given up her job to be a stay-at-home mom; I've just gone back to working part-time.

Whilst it seems like our lives are on different planes, timezones, phases - literally worlds apart, we still have our friendship. And that will see us through it all. Like a friend once said, "We haven't grown older, we've just grown up."