Becoming a parent...

There are so many hurdles to becoming a parent, so many challenges and tests...I wonder if it's even possible to make it there. Having been reproductively challenged for many years, my husband and I sought out fertility treatments and eventually conceived via IVF. As we've never
gotten pregnant before, we wouldn't have known how my womb would 'take' to implanted embryos. Hence we had two put back in, for safe measure.

We spent weeks in a slightly agonizing wait, and then discovered we were going to have twins! We were thrilled and overjoyed, that is, until the doctor told us the extra problems that might arise due to twins. Great, he says this AFTER we had them transferred in. Don't worry we will take care of you, the doctor said. And indeed the centre did, for they put us through a whole host of tests to ensure the babies were progressing well, at the expense of making us panic and
worry.

At every step of the way there were scares. Test this test that. All kinds of abnormalities could arise and the doctors do want to ensure you know your risks before giving birth and perhaps blaming them for mis-information.

Currently, we're in between appointments and waiting for our detailed 20 week scan. We're eager to see the scans again, but in the meantime, trying to relax and enjoy the pregnancy as well. :)

Loving & Cherishing

A friend who loves and cherishes me (I'd like to think!) sent me this newsletter which was written by a friend of hers. Highly meaningful words in a small space. Do read it and reflect.

Tiring times

These are tiring times. Work has been tough lately, with many challenges thrown my way every single day. Competition has increased in the wedding stationery industry and customers are again turning to the traditional hotel card (albeit almost free but not as pretty) to fulfill their needs.
Physically I haven't been feeling all perky and energetic as well, and sometimes, life can weigh me down.

On the other hand, I have been very busy (or at least trying to!) with various projects at home and at work, and with many good things to look forward to, this age-old adage popped into my head -- "No pain, no gain".

So very true.

We complain to bond with each other

Sometime in the last ten years, I don't know when exactly, it suddenly became "cool" to complain about our country, our government, and its policies. Why I say it seems "cool" is because everyone seems to be doing it, from taxi driver uncle, to your neighbour, your friends, relatives, and perhaps a stranger on the road. If you don't "join in", you might be deemed weird and different.

Is this a sign the government is not doing its job as well as it could be, or are citizens becoming better-informed and thus, more unhappy?

I'm not one to dwell on things that irk me, but I do have gripes about my country and the way things are sometimes. However, I must admit that despite all the inconveniences, headaches, and dissension, there have been many good things happening here, and Singapore has never been more exciting.

So are citizens complaining for the sake of it? Are they truly unhappy here? Or as a friend said, every country will have its disgruntled inhabitants, sort of like a characteristic trait of any developing or developed country. I can just imagine political leaders of various countries chatting when they meet, "Are your citizens always complaining?" "Pretty much so!"

I conclude that I think Singaporeans complain to bond, to share their gripes and grievances. In sharing our joys and heartaches (hardly any joys), we draw closer to each other, our fellow countrymen. Ultimately, this is something that will never be changed, whether or not we have more freedom of speech, two political parties, sexual liberation, or even free parking for everyone for life.

Breadtalk celebrates a fantastic 10 years!

Thanks to Breadtalk and Omy.sg, I finally got to taste Breadtalk's "Fantastic 10" buns. This year is Breadtalk's 10th anniversary and as a special treat, they sold all the special buns they created over the last 10 years. Alas, due to a busy schedule, I was unable to get the buns from 2007-2009. 2001's special bun was also unavailable as it was sold out.

Here are some photos of the Breadtalk "Fantastic 10" buns. I am pleased I got to try these as I never quite made it to buy them over the past 10 years. Whilst I don't often buy buns, I would say Breadtalk is probably the most creative of all the bakeries, and were the ones who ignited Singaporean's love for bread. Nowadays, bakeries are choc-a-block. Many are inferior, although some are pretty good.

2000 Floss Bun
Because of Breadtalk, every bakery from Jurong to Pasir Ris sells buns with floss toppings now. A testament to "copying is the best form of flattery".

2001 O'Sambal
Didn't get to try this as it was sold out. :(


2002 Dinosaur
Super duper cute! I was reluctant to eat this one as his eyes were staring at me adorably. I'm glad I ate him in the end as he had ham and cheese in him. Delish~


2003 Bull Run
A great variation of the floss bread, it looks like a bull indeed!


2004 Luv Bite
Sweet white chocolate and filled with strawberry love, Luv Bite was created as a partnership with Singtel to help underprivileged children.


2005 9.0
Filled with chunks of chicken and topped with bonito flakes. Tasted a bit Japanesey which I liked. This bun was sold to raise funds for victims of the massive tsunami the previous year.


2006 KimCheese
A huge-ass piece of bread infusing kim chi, cheese and bread. Really unique!

Sadly I didn't get to try the rest of the Fantastic 10 buns, except for Merrily, Hairy Crab (2007), Peace Panda (2008), Ferraberri (2009), Leonardo+Merrily (2010)
which I ate this morning. It was nice, with chunks of tuna and onion on the inside.

Herbal Shampoo

I have been using this shampoo from Melaleuca for the past few months. It smells great and works for my hair. I haven't seen increased hairfall in the shower and actually don't drop as much hair nowadays. (I don't have very thick hair so will probably try one of those treatment shampoos from Phyto in the near future to see if I can improve my locks).

The bottle really didn't seem very big for the price, but after 3-4 months there's still half left so I'd say it's pretty value for money. The shampoo lathers up well so for my short hair I only need a blob about the size of a 20-cent coin.

Let me know if you're interested to try.

Fatty needs a home

This is Fatty. He was the biggest and fattest of all his siblings. Alas, he has yet to be adopted because two of his siblings were given away and he couldn't have gone with them because he was terrorising them all the time and making them scream. If you noticed that I said "He", it's because my mother, with her years of experience, is guessing that he's male.

So Fatty needs a home. He's really cute, fluffy and round, but still small -- he's only about 8 weeks old. Do be prepared that he might turn out to be female. But that's ok because females are very cute too. :)