My first super delicious, super yummy breakfast

"Do you want to help mummy to prepare my breakfast so I can bring to work and eat?" and I get a very excited Yes! from Gracia... : ) First comes the peanut butter.


Next, she decided she wanted raspberry jam on the other piece of bread (while I do not prefer that, I do not bear to spoil her enthusiam and creativity)...





Packing the bread nicely for me.



When I reached the office, I took it out and it tasted super delicious and yummy! & I think I like raspberry afterall. : )


Posted by Lina

The cheap cheap style of floral arrangement

Last week, I brought Gracia along with me to Daiso and bought some plastic flowers, floral sponge and a floral basket to let her try her hands on floral arrangement. *Smilez..*


Work in progress... seriously arranging the flowers....


Nicely done! $2 per basket! Anyone?



Gangsterdad were surprised and asked if she did everything by herself and yes dear! I did nothing to help her except getting the flowers and basket ready for her. : )

Posted by Lina

You Are My Strength

You are my STRENGTH, strength LIKE NO OTHER. strength LIKE NO OTHER. Reaches to me.
You are my HOPE, hope LIKE NO OTHER. hope LIKE NO OTHER. Reaches to me.

A little note to my little girl when you have grown up: At times when the cross gets too heavy for you and you needed the strength, not physical strength, turn to God. He will give you the strength..... and if you ever backslide, read, Jeremiah 3:6. He is forever faithful & merciful.



This song touches my heart.




Posted by Lina

Finally a complete family outing

Ever since I started driving a cab, we haven't had a family outing with Gracia complete with both parent. It's either Lina and Gracia on weekdays till Sat, or Daddy with Gracia on Sunday while mummy needed a break after 6 challenging, stimulating and really taxing days. Am I overstating??? (you won't know until you become a mom).

While I had to clock long hours on weekdays to made a decent income, considering I am a lone hirer of my taxi with a $103 a day rental burdening on my shoulder, I needed a supporting wife whom can scarifies taking good care of Gracia and household issues with effectiveness so that I can have no worries and be able to focus at work.

Though, we both needed some time to adjust our new responsibilities and roles. I am glad to say that the sensitive and adapting period is over and we are both somehow settled down with some balance of family, work and personal time. Nevertheless, negative and conflicting things like tiredness, Gracia tantrum etc will still arise and try to irritate anyone of us to start another vexation, still it will not split us apart. In fact, it'll only made us and this family stronger, after all we'd gone through so many episode of obstacle and is still closely together as a united family.

Yesterday was really a happy Sunday esp for Gracia because Lina decided she would Join us and have fun together after such a long while. We decided not to drive as usual and take public transport instead. We took a train, alighted at City Hall, have a stroll from MRT station to Supreme Court then to Art House and finally had a cruise ride along Singapore River... Oh, I told Lina we just pretend to feel like a tourist... hee... (actually I just want to save money to a real holiday) hee hee hee... don't let her know ok?... kakaka....

Passion, career or get a life.......

Since resigning from my job as a newspaper distributor, I've been thinking a lot about being a full time taxi driver 'which i am currently doing'. I'm at the point now where there are two opposing options in my mind, and I'm wondering which path to follow. Like the Robert Frost poem goes "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and sorry I could not travel both."

On the one hand I am thinking of finding an interesting, challenging job, in an environment that could be called "difficult" or, if one was to be optimistic, "an adventure". A job that could excites me and I can see how it would lead on to other things in the future.

And on the other hand is what I have been doing and I refer it as The Replacement Choice for my long expired newspaper job, since I had never wanted to be a taxi driver all my life.

I've been trying to work out if I am the kind of person who can live for the lifestyle alone, and have yet to come to any satisfactory conclusion. Going off to work each day to a job that I find "okay" but is not my passion makes me wonder what the point is - am I just wasting my time and talent? (ya, a self proclaim talent) And for God sake, I had already wasted 10 over years of talent as a newspaper man.

Glad to say I am a happy blessed family man with a really nice wife and a beautiful girl. But at the same point, since I am not alone I don't think I wanna take any irresponsible risk, and as long as money is concern, I've got to be practical and realistic.

I'm also wondering why work has to have that special meaning for me - surely I can find meaning in my life outside of just what I do. Being a really really fantastic father and a good husband who will not follow the foot step of "Tiger" who? and "I NOT STUPID" who? lol.....

And my passion and talent for photography and expressing my thoughts will stay a legacy in this blog for the generation to come....

And I thought Gracia will love this blog when she grow up, and i also thought I have some secret fans who love reading my blog... like my elder bro... thanks bro.. that's a compliment as well as an encouragement.

Anyone else? lol....

Bananas Bananas!!

Banana with chocolate is definitely yummy! With no chocolate in stock, mummy decided to use cocoa crunch for me to make my own banana boat. Yummy! Yummy! Eating banana has never been so fun for me! Happy!





Now Who Said Bananas Are Not Good For You?

Brain Power: 200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

PMS: Forget the pills - eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood (daddy, take note! :P)

Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body; so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief. (San yi, this is for you & your baby in tummy)

Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people
suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach

A banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare bananas to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around. Maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, "A banana a day keeps the doctor away!"

So....bananas must be the reason monkeys are so happy all the time!

Posted by Lina.

Weaning from breastfeeding

2 years, 8 months & 11 days. That's how long Gracia has been spending time in my arms nursing to her content and where our relationship grow ever so close together. As she is growing taller and heavier and my milk supply is really low by now, I have decided it's time to wean her off & partly because our mornings became a struggle when I have to rush for work and she wants to nurse from me. : ) I have never thought weaning a child off breastfeeding will be easier than I thought. All thanks to my friend Joan, who has creatively came out with a weaning method of her own and has success with her son that I decided it's worth a try on Gracia as she too, has a dislike for hair and would request for me to remove it when they are caught in her hands or in the bathtub. Her weaning method can be read from this link, http://petitehome.wordpress.com/category/breastfeeding/
That night when Gracia saw the hair, she was very shocked and asked gangsterdad why there was hair on mummy's ******. This couldnt stop me and gangsterdad from laughing. The next thing she asked was, "Mummy, can pull it out?" and a simple explanation like how eye lashes grow on both our eyes and it will be painful if we pull it out made enough sense to her. She accepted it very willingly and I did not have to wait for long before she fell asleep on her own. For the next few nights, Gracia would still request to be nursed and when I reminded her of the hair, she would tell me, "Let's check it out ok. We have to check it out everyday". Lol! Now, into the 2nd week of her weaning, she would only occasionally asked to be nursed at night and would fall asleep on her own happily without nursing when I reminded her of the hair. I am glad there are no more morning milk struggles when I am rushing for work and as a mum, the happiest thing I felt from here are that I have given Gracia the health and emotional benefits from breastfeeding. Even till now, I am still missing the way she would smile shyly when I play with her and missing the way she would look into my eyes while she was nursing. Definitely did not regret for persisting when breastfeeding was so difficult initially for me. :)

Posted by Lina