The Last Weekend of 2007

Saturday saw me waking up at noon with a really heavy head, shoulder aches, sore throat, cough, phelgm and the additional gift of a much sexier but nasal voice. Waited for 1.5 hours at the clinic before I saw the doctor, who explained that my symptoms were the result of a blocked nasal passage. He prescribed 6 types of medicine, and fortunately I don't have to fork a single cent cos medical fees are covered by my hubby's firm (I always tell my friends this is one benefit of being married). Then it was MOS burger for lunch, before I headed home to snooze under the effect of the medication.

So it was probably one of my most boring Saturday (I actually planned to go shopping!) in 2007, but both my hubby and myself found it rather interesting that despite my germs-infested body, I could still crack funny jokes and behaved pretty normally. Hmmz, maybe it was the fever =)

Anyway, I felt much better on Sunday, although I woke up with a horrible sore throat. Downed lots of pi-pa-gao before meeting my friends for a sumptuous buffet lunch treated by Mr & Mrs Su (thanks pals!). It was then when my aunt messaged me to inform me of the auspicious days I can shift home. There wasn't much choice..either this coming Sat, end Jan or early Feb. And I want to shift before my school starts, so I'm going to try for this coming Sat. I dunno how realistic it is going to be, but anyway, it's going to be done. Honestly, I don't believe in such stuff, but I'm doing it for the sake of my loved ones and for them to have peace of mind.

With our shifting fixed for this coming Sat, my hubby and I spent the rest of the day packing our stuff. Poor him, think he caught my virus so both of us were sniffing away as we started on our 1st round of packing. I'm pretty amazed at how much clothes I have...4 luggage full of clothes, and I still have 2 more racks of clothes. And this is excluding my handbags and my shoes. Now I know why he complains I have too much clothes. Hee, it just never occurred to me till today.

Tomorrow marks the last day of 2007. Guess it will be another day of packing, although I better start throwing in some time to study. Gosh, 1 week of my school holidays have just flown by!!

A quiet New Year spent packing and watching celebrations on TV. Much as I would like to be out for some fun, the reality of shifting home is going to keep me at home. Nonetheless, while I can't claim I'm going to have an interesting New Year, at least I'm still spending it with one of the dearest person in my life. And for that I'm thankful.

Happy New Year to all, and may you too spend an extra-special day with that special someone(s) in your life! =)

My Home - Work in Progress Part IV

Finally, I can write about my home renovation again. Why so long? Haiz, my ID lah. There was no work done at my place for almost 2 months, then suddenly, when the deadline was approaching, renovation works started again.

The original deadline for my home renovation was 24 Dec, so that we can shift home in time for New Year. But we subsequently agreed to postpone it to end 2007, and by the looks of it, renovation will probably be completed only 1st/2nd week of Jan. And I've been chasing my ID and giving "gentle" reminders. So I think my ID gets the idea, and promised to complete the renovation by next Sat. Hopefully he keeps to the deadline cos it has been a really long time.

Anyway, my hubby and I are generally pleased with our new place, except for some really impractical locations of the light switches on which we were not consulted. Haiz, can fume when I think about it cos our choice of applicances and location of certain stuff are affected, but what to do?

Living Area
Breakfast Counter + Wardrobe
Kitchen
Study area

Wardrobe (ex-doors)
My new sink!
Outside master toilet
Inside the loo
Uncompleted bedframe
View from master-room

CHRISTmas Thoughts

It's one of those queer days. At 654am on 23 December 2007, I'm actually feeling awake after only about 4 hours of rest. This is wierd. I've been a night owl the past week..sleeping at about 3/4am, and totally immersed in dreamland till my functional funky red alarm clock rings at 10am. It has been 1 solid week of studying, well, not entirely solid I must admit. There were sneaks of rest to watch TV, or just to stare into blank space..all in the name of all work and no play will make Stella a dull girl.

Anyway, after 21 weeks of school and ploughing through 10 subjects, I'm finally at my halfway mark and the start of my 3 weeks break! It has been a gruelling 21 weeks of school with 3 examination periods, and at least (from the positive side), my glass is now half full. I've another 21 weeks to go after which I can finally bid goodbye to life as a student and recommence my worklife which I have been missing.

There are a whole lot of activities planned for this coming week, and the most important day of all has to be Christmas! The season of giving and receiving (hee), and a day for us to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ - the King of kings who gave it all to be born in a stable on a quiet night many years ago. God could have chose to be born in a palace, to be born to parents influential, rich and famous. But He didn't. He chose to be born in a stable, and to parents who were just commoners with simple faith in God. His choice, I believe, reflects His love for the commoners like you and I. To show us that nobody is ever too poor, ever too weak, when we know Him. For He chose to be born in one of the most humble places ever (which of you as parents, would ever want your child to be born in a place that is only befitting for animals?),and chose a manger for His first bed. Such humility and love displayed on that Christmas many years ago.

This year, I'll be spending Christmas with my family. Just a simple dinner at my aunt's place with some cousins. And the sugar-addict me have placed order for a Christmas pastry from The Patissier - Xmas Xmas Little Stars. I surely hope the cake will taste as delicious as it sounds =)

Christmas day kicks off attending the ritual Christmas church service, followed by lunch with friends. The rest of my day will probably be spent furniture and light hunting. Yes, I'm finally moving soon! My interior designer is targeting to handover my place to me by end 2007 (oh dear, I'm gonna be 1 year older soon!), and he is chasing me to purchase the lights, heater and main door. So it's gonna be major cash outflow the next few weeks, but I believe both my hubby and I will be happy to spend the $$. We have been wanting to shift home for the longest time, and after saving up for the house renov for 2 years, our dreamhome is finally just a small step away!

So this year will be a simple but meaningful Christmas, I hope. It's time to sit back, relax (I better relax these 3 weeks before school starts..although I still have to entertain Stochastic Calculus during these 3 weeks), and just reflect on the year's passing and be grateful for the many blessings I've had in 2007.

You know, it is so easy to overlook the little blessings we have until they are taken away from us. For instance, I was having this really bad ulcer for the past few weeks..the ulcer was so bad it was literally eroding my gum away and hurt everytime I yawned (which was often - those who are students will empathise). It was so bad I resorted to applying salt to the ulcer for a few consecutive nights. I was desperate for the ulcer to go away. And when it finally did, it took me a few days before I realised that the ulcer was gone. My life was back to normal - I can finally yawn in peace - and it just didn't register that my ulcer has been healed. It was only when it hurt that I truly appreciated those non-ulcer days, and regretted my daily indulge of Almond Rocca. But when the ulcer disappears and life reverts back to normality, I barely noticed.

This is a stark reminder to myself that we can overlook our many blessings so often - I've driven to and fro from school accident-free for the past 2 terms. I've not seen a doctor for the last couple of months. My chest pains are less frequent nowadays despite my dearth of exercise. I have wonderful family and friends whom I love. I am blessed with a nice litte Acer laptop to pen my blogs on an infrequent basis. The little counts and adds to a lot if we think carefully.

To appreciate the things we have in life always, and not to value these things only when they are taken away from us, requires cultivation of a contented and optimistic lifestyle, and simple faith in God. If only I could have faith like that of a mustard seed, mountains will be moved! I'm still learning, and I'm still trying.

At this point, my thoughts are with a dear relative who is not feeling well. He was on my mind earlier when I woke up, and I was thinking of him while lying on my bed. If there is anything I wish for, I wish for all my friends and family to be well and healthy, and for them to know Jesus. It has not been easy for him, and although I don't contact him that much, I really care and really wish him well. It has been tough-going, and I guess there is no other way about it. Except I wish he knows Jesus, and I pray to God that he will know Jesus eventually. I wish him speedy recovery, and pray that if God wills, God will heal him in the most spectacular manner ever. But God's ways and thoughts are higher than mine, and I just pray that God will touch Him in a very very special way.

You may ask: Why don't I approach him and talk to him about God, about my church's miracle service? But I'm just not that kind of person. I care and God knows I care. But I hate being pushy or too preachy. I don't know if that's the right attitude. I come from a pretty superstitious family that is rooted in taoism/buddism...in fact if some of my family members were to read this blog, they would be jumping mad at me. So talking about Jesus is pretty taboo to most of my family members, although I'm glad that some of relatives have gotten to know Him too, and hopefully we can create an impact in our family.

You know, when I was younger, I used to be realy envious of others. Why can't my family be like that, why can't I go for holidays, why can't I be rich, prettier, smarter, blah blah blah. That was the age of ignorance and immaturity - failing to appreciate my blessings in life. But now, I wouldn't exchange any of my friends or family members for anybody else. Yup, I love them all. Maybe God nurtured in me a heart to love them when I accepted Jesus Christ in my life. Although I don't keep in contact with them that often, I really do care. And I really want to help in anyway that I can. I guess it's time to put action into words. I'll try, and I just hope that my busy study schedule will not take time away from leading a more meaningful life in 2008.

Anything

It's been a long while since I've written. Cos have been loaded with numerous projects and homework for the past weeks..especially the stressful computing project. Finally they are over, but another form of stress is taking over - exams!

It's always around this time that I take to blogging to destress. This is my 3rd consecutive mini-term, and with no breaks in the earlier terms, I'm feeling a bit burnout, a bit sian, wondering why is studying taking up a huge part of my life. Can't wait for my 3-weeks break that starts officially on 22 December 3:31pm =) Although I'll have Stochastic Calculus to manage then, I'll prolly enjoy myself first before worrying about it.

Sighz. Previously when my hubby was studying alongside with me, I had more motivation. But now, a bit more difficult. My hubby is off for an overseas business trip these few days - good & bad.

• Good - No distraction, I can fully concentrate on studying. At least I wun be tempted to join him in front of the TV the next few days.
• Bad - I'm so sian. It'll prolly be dinner ta-baos and more dinner ta-baos.

Distracted me was watching Asian Idol over the weekend. Jaws dropped when Hady was announced as Asian Idol. Honestly, I don't think it was a meaningful win, becos it is obvious that the various Idols come from different cultures and each possesses varying singing styles that would probably appeal more to his/her own country than to others. Nevertheless, I was pretty impressed with the Indonesian Idol, and thought he performed really well when he sung "Angels brought me here" with Guy Sebastian - Austrialian Idol.

Oh, the sky looks a bit dark and think it's gonna pour again. It has been raining almost everyday for the past few days...perfect weather to take a nap. But I must resist!!! I was hoping to go for a short run in the evening, hopefully the afternoon drizzle will cool the air and make it an easy breezy jog.

Actually, what's heavy on my mind is the message that Pastor preached in church yesterday. He quoted a media article that covered global warming and how sea levels will rise. And with the rise in sea levels, it is a matter of time before an island nation like Singapore will be inundated with water. Apparently, Singapore has engaged Holland to prepare for this crisis. It is a scary thought. Yet I know, and I think many know too, that global warming will not cease. We probably can try to be more environmentally friendly, and with concerted effort, try to slow down global warming. But the damage has been done, and its scary what will happen in the future. I'm actually by nature an optimist, although I don't sound like one right now. But faced with reality, and knowing that it is probably out of man's hands, what can I do?

Get down on our knees to pray! The encouragement that Pastor gave is that if God can part the Red Sea, He can also protect Singapore if we go on our knees to pray and ask Him. When things go out of control, when I'm at a loss on what to do, when i'm facing the darkest of moments....I pray. And God has been my refuge and strength. He is the Rock that shall not be moved. And I am thankful that the storms can come and toss the boats all around, but He is there and at His word, the storm will be calmed. That God has stretched out His hand to me, and I have decided to place mine in His to walk the rest of this life together. I know the Lord will never leave nor foresake me. And its great to know that I can always rely on Him!

Ok its time to get back to my books. It has started to drizzle...actually I love rainy weather but only when I'm indoors =) Going to attempt to derive some meaning and love for my time series analysis readings. Wish me luck.

Frustration

I'm someone who doesn't like to depend or be indebted to others. So it was really frustruating when something that was out of my control happened and ruined the day for people dear to me. I was helpless and hopeless - the feeling that I hate most. And the most upsetting was that this situation affected others. If it happened to me, I'll try to manage it somehow, but the circumstance was directly inflicted on others. The solution? I prayed. I prayed and tried, prayed and tried..read the bible, prayed and tried, but still the miracle didn't occur.

But I believe in a miracle-generating God. So where is the miracle, I asked. And what do I need to give for a miracle to occur? As I read the bible this morning, I noticed that the reading for the next day was titled "Don't Worry". An extract of the reading is as follows:

It’s easy for us to panic when we face serious concerns...So we pray.

And we get busy.

We start doing everything we can think of to move forward in a positive way.
And we worry.

We know it’s a waste of time.

Yet a lot of us find ourselves in this dilemma—we know we should trust God, but we wonder just what He’s going to do.

That's me, the queen of paranoia. And I can't help but worry cos this situation is going to affect others, not me. And its my fault this happened. If only I did this, if only I did that. If only I really did, the situation could have been avoided. So many "if onlys", but its all too late.

I can only continue to hope for a miracle, and ask God for the faith and hope so that I can trust in Him for a miracle. God, I really need a miracle. What ingredients do I need for the miracle to occur? Honestly, I would rather this situation happened to me than to them. But I must face up to reality and face it the way it is now..hoping for the best, but prepared for the worst. Easier said than done.

I wonder whether it was God speaking to me via the abovementioned Quiet Time reading.

If that is how God clothes the grass of the field,

which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire,

will he not much more clothe you,

O you of little faith?

So do not worry...

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness,

and all these things will be given to you as well.

I believe in a miracle-generating God. The One who heals the sick and feeds the thousands. The One who listens to all our prayers. And I want to have the faith and hope to believe that a miracle is in sight. How God will respond, I dunno. But I am really hoping for the miracle. Only God knows how I am feeling now. "Come to Me...you who are weary and heavy laden."

Honestly, my heart is heavy, and I wish this nightmare is untrue. And I am trying to avoid toking about it cos pure tok is not going to solve the problem. I can only hope a miracle will come by in God's own way. I want to continue believing. The earth is the Lord's and everything in it. God is in full control of everything...and although I'm not sure why this situation occurred I want to believe that He is a miracle-generating God and this situation is in His hands.

This situation was also a path to self-discovery. It made me realized the reason why I avoid certain people and feel a tinge of discomfort when I see certain people, beneath a front that says everything is alright. You may not understand what I am blogging, but that is the whole intention. This paragraph is only for me to remind me of this part of me I've figured out recently. I just hope that the list will not get longer, and hopefully the list will shorten with time as time heals all painful memories.

A New Beginning

November marks the beginning of married life for 2 of my good friends with their prince charming.
It was great fun getting together with my friends and seeing my sisters so often - especially since my hectic school schedule has left me with minimal social life for the past months. So these few weeks have been really fun and gave me an excuse to slack in my studies, although its time for me to pull up my socks, and get the study engine going!

Lottas of nonsense and unrestricted laughter were shared at the dinner table...not to mention the numerous photos we took with one another (gals are ultimately vain mah).

We girls literally grew up together, and I'm really happy to know that my 2 sisters have each found the ONE who will take care and love them for the rest of their lives. And I would just like to wish both of my dear friends a beautiful, blissful, blessed and God-centered life ahead with their special someone. N I hope that our friendship and bonding will stay strong always too!




PS: The first photo in this blog is my artistic attempt to capture the bridal car decoration done by my fren's sister. The car decoration was so beautiful and unique I just had to include the pic in the blog.

Hen's Nite - Loo Loo and See See

I think it gets worse with age and experience =)

2 of my good friends are getting married over the next 2 weeks, and we had our hen's night celebrations just over the weekend.

Celebrations started with the routine checking-in into a hotel suite (this time round at Marina Mandarin), and a sumptuous treat at Spaghetties by the 2 lovely brides-to-be.

Then back to hotel for briefing and a trial dress-up in our dresses to figure out how we would all look on their BiG day(s).

Finally, it was time for the highlight of the evening's programme!

Here are the 2 brides before their transformation..

Scissors and stones to determine who has priority in choosing their accessories...

Presenting..Loo Loo and See See!
The obvious gameplan was to head to a busy area to showcase our 2 ladies, and we decided Clarke Quay would be a suitable location.

The challenge for our 2 head-turning ladies was to approach guys from different races to pose for pictures. Not too difficult for the pretty ladies...

Challenge completed !

Hotel sweet hotel..zzz

It's always great to loosen up and be crazy once in a while...thanks to Loo and See for being sporting and fun! For now, I'm looking forward to their BIG day(s) when they will walk down the aisle with their chosen prince charming(s). An advanced welcome to the club, sisters!

Exams and Miracles

I'm usually in sleep mode this time of the night. But still feeling really bloated from the late supper I had with classmates earlier, so right now I'm fighting the sleep monster in a bid to avoid those extra calories that are reputed to load on when one sleeps with a full stomach.

But boy am I so relieved!!! Term 2 exams are just over...well class officially starts again this Sat, but I'm just glad there are 2 days for me to just relax, rot, daydream and in short, to do anything and everything except study!!

2 days of break seems like my school is a scrooge when it comes to school holidays, but at least this is way way better compared to mini-term 1 where we were back in the school lab in less than 12 hours after our last paper so as to complete a school project.

In any case, I'm just happy. Finally I don't have to go bed with numbers and formulas floating in my head...which has been the case for the past few days.

I've had the rest of my week all planned out. I'm finally going for a haircut tomorrow (after dunno how many months), a massage on Friday, and there's a hen's party on Sat evening! Really miss my galfrens and can't wait to spend the night out with them...and Ruth will be back from Australia too, so I'm just looking forward to Saturday....hmm (wrenching my fists) its my turn to get back at the brides-to-be..hmmz *evil laughter*

It has been a trying and pretty stressful week, as it always will be when exams are around the corner. But I must thank God for being with me, and MANY THANKS AND MUACKS to the dear friends who kept me in their prayers.

I've been feeling abit heaty for the past week, and one of the obvious signs is a super dry throat when I wake up in the mornings. But on Tuesday morning, I woke up with a nagging headache , and was pretty worried when the headache refused to ease (my first exam is that same evening), and I was apprehensive about consuming painkillers as I'm pretty prone to their drowsy effects. So prior to leaving home, I went on my knees to pray for healing and then left for school not thinking much about it. I didn't notice, but my headache was miraculously healed. It was only when I went to bed that evening that I recalled how I had a headache in the day, and how I didn't feel the ache one bit after my prayer.

And just this morning, I've had some minor stomach upsets and was feeling abit uncomfortable the entire day. Worried...I prayed again. Although it didn't clear immediately, my condition became better as the day progressed, and I was completely well before I left for school for my exam.

Some of you reading this blog may take the view that the above are just pure coincidences. Perhaps. But perhaps not cos these are not the only times they have happened. I recall how during my undergraduate days, there was once when my stomach was sending me to the toilet every few minutes up to just an hour before my paper. Even though I wasn't an enthusiastic Christian then, I was so desperate and coming to my wits end that my final solution was to pray, and the problem just went away, and affected me no bit during the exams. Similar situation was also encountered just before my GMAT test.

And I believe that the many times God stretched His healing hand on me cannot be pure coincidences. It takes faith to believe and claim these are miracles, and honestly, I never dared to recognise these as miracles, preferring to chuck them in the corner of coincidences - where they will be forgotten with time.

But yesterday's Quiet Time's reading gave me a different insight. The passage was about how Jesus fed the 5000 and walked on water. If we claim to believe in the bible and the miracles that Jesus did in past, shouldn't we also believe that such miracles can exist today and in our lives? Its just an amazing revelation that miracles can actually occur in my life, a life filled with imperfections and flaws. And I want to pen this down, so that I can remember God's goodness in my life. When I sit down to think about the blessings in my life, there are really plenty..although my life has its downs, I still have many many things, friends and family to be thankful for.

The many blessings, and the fact that we can be worthy to be called His children and to receive miracles in our lives is really a privilege and honour. And I really really hope that all around me can choose to take up this privilege.

Exams

No good, the exam stress bug is biting me again. Exams are next week, hyiaks!

Woke up slightly earlier this morning at 845am ( I know that's not really early, but my red retro-looking alarm clock usually sounds at 930am, and I'm only out of bed half an hour after that). So its quite an accomplishment today...but i'm yawning away now as I'm typing this blog..is it the effect of waking up earlier? Or is it the Stochastic Modelling that is wearing me out?

Sighz, no mood to study and am stressed. Often at times like these I ask myself, what made me sign up for the programme and subject myself to unnecessary exam stress? I enjoy learning, but definitely not exams..if only there can be learning without exams..

Anyway, I came across these verses some weeks back, jotted them down on a small card, and have been reading them almost everyday...to know that God is there for me is a relief, and to know that we can cast our cares on him is a privilege that I'm really thankful of. Seriously, I dunno what I'll do if God didn't exist. I know I'm not going through some big trials (some may just say, its only exams duh..most people has gone through it anyway), but nonetheless, it really great that I can just lean on the Lord for strength anytime.

Fear not, for I am with you;

Be not dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you,

Yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand

(Isaiah 41:10)

Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength;

They shall mount up with wings like eagles,

They shall run and not be weary,

They shall walk and not faint.

(Isaiah 40:31)

The funny thing is that even though I'm a standard product of Singapore's education system, having gone through it for 15 years, exams is still something that takes getting used to. Because of exams, I'm missing out on some pretty important events happening over this weekend:

• Justina is back from China and flying off this weekend. Friends meeting up this Fri, but I'm not joining cos of exams. I'm thinking of asking them to meet me for dinner for an hour or so. But will how on this first.
• Another friend, Margaret is tying the knot this weekend and I'm skipping probably the most important day in her life again because of my exams. But will certainly meet up with her after she is back from her honeymoon!
• My hubby's frens from UK are transiting through Singapore this coming Sunday and I probably can't join them again because of the BIG E next week.

Aiyo..between exams and friends....given any time, I'll gladly choose the latter, but for practical and stress reasons, I've chosen the former.

So for now I can only send my best wishes to Margaret! May she and Yongkang have a wonderful and blissful marriage =) And for dear Justina, its been a long time since I've met her..may she stay sweet cheerful and pretty always! As for my hubby's frens, I hope they'll enjoy the day trip to Singapore (& I'm sure my hubby will try to be the best host possible).

It great to be able to "destress" myself via blogging. Now I feel a bit more awake..maybe its the blogging, maybe its the green tea, or maybe its just becos I'm away from my books =)

On the irony though, despite the negative stress from exams, I believe that somehow exams have a good effect cos it makes me contemplate and think more about life. But before I get carried away, and switch to the philosophical mode...it's time to hit my books again. Can't wait for exams to be over, so that I can finally meet up with my friends and get some life!!

My Home - Work in Progress Part III

After yesterday's failed attempt to enter our home, we went back again today to try our luck - this time round clad in our oldest & dirtiest slippers, just in case we had to trek though wet cement..we were ready for an adventure, and determined to get in the house..just to ensure there are no hidden surprises for us laterwards.

Lucky we made that trip back. Once we set eyes on the tiles in my master toilet...we knew that it was not what we wanted. We love the copper-looking tiles, but the grey tiles just look terribly out of place. After staring at the half-completed toilet for what seemed like almost half an hour, we decided a change was a must. Oh dear, my ID is not going to like the bad news. And my dear hubby decided to task me with the unpopular task of conveying the news to my ID. According to him, I have better rapport with the ID - maybe its becos I enjoy toking nonsense. But anyway, my ID was really quite nice about it...he initially misunderstood and thought we wanted to change all the tiles, and sounded relieved when I told him only the grey tiles had to go.

That's the master toilet. The copper tiles are there to stay, but we will be removing the grey tiles.

Looking into toilet from the pretty (but dusty) mosaic table

That's my hubby standing inside our wardrobe - deep in thought about our toilet.The bricks for the mini-wardrobe in my masterroom is up! Fantastically messy view from the kitchen. That's my fav slanted wall on the left. And of course, my hubby's fav mosaic table deserves mention too.

My absolutely open-concept kitchen!View from the living room into kitchen. How I wish the brick-look of that wall will be a permanent feature.The practical and cool hollow wall in living roomPosing for a shot right in front of storeroom, hee

My Home - Work in Progress Part II

Guess what! For the 1st time in my life, I'm blogging outdoors! The other exception was when I was so frustrated during my computing class that I was blogging from my school's lab...but I"m now seated at Starbucks sipping a cup of java chip frap, and logging on!

Call me a laggard..I dun deny I'm a techie idiot..never the first the own the latest gadget in the market. Partly becos of the practical side of me (or you can also say the cheapo/thrifty side of me). Good or bad that's me..and the not so-tech advanced me is using SG wireless for the first time....well at least I've progressed lah hor.

Just went to pay my new home a visit earlier...but the workers were doing some work on the floor (laying cement I think), so we weren't able to step into our place. So the following pics are all taken from the main door/window view =) A pity I can't see my wardrobe which was being constructed when I was there last week.

Nonetheless, quite a fair bit of progress I must say. The tiles for my kitchen and study are already laid. My hubby's fav mosaic table is up, and I love the slanted wall right in the centre of the mosaic table! Only gripe is that my place doesn't look as open as I expected...especially the wardrobe area..but I guess it's a sacrifice I have to make cos I needed more wardrobe space..despite my ID's persuasion, I knew that 4 wardrobe doors just weren't sufficient for me lah. So no choice, more space for shopping to make up for the reduced space.


This is the view from my 3rd bedroom. The hollow wall on the right is my fav feature of the house (although I kinda have a new fav now too - the cool slanted wall - love it!). Anyway you are looking pass the kitchen tothe yard, and the window at the far end is where my yard is.

This is taken from my main door, and looks directly into my living area. At the far end is my study area (where the slightly raised platform is). And that rectangular structure is the pretty mosaic table - my hubby's fav part of the house!

Another view of my living room, but this time round, you can see the hollow wall that serves to block out my corridor window.

This is taken from the corridor window just in front of the hollow wall. If you look carefully, you can see the other side of the mosaic table, and of course, the cool slanted wall! Looking at this pic just makes me smile..really excited about my new place...can't wait to shift in soon. Sighz, but I'm reminded I'll have to go through 2 more exams before my place is ready.

Celebrations

Attended my cousin's wedding on Sun (14 Oct). Had a lovely time catching up with my relatives and realised how much my cousins have grown in a span of a few months (the last time I saw them was probably during Chinese New Year), especially the boys. They seem so mature now.

The title of 'tallest in the family' has now shifted to my cousin Xinkai. My brother used to be the tallest in the family (partly becos he is the oldest), and then other cousins overshot him, and now the title has to be transferred yet again. Its amazing how time flies..and it made me realise how old I am now despite my occasional kiddish antics.

I'm hoping to post some photos from the wedding, and will do so once I get hold of the pictures. The wedding was held at Sheraton..food was good, company was great, and the wedding couple looked really blissful and loving. And my aunt (my cousin's mum) looked stunning that evening! My aunt is someone who doesn't usually dress up..but when she did that evening, she received compliments from everyone! Her make-up, hairdo, dress...she looked really pretty and so different. And she was so happy and excited that evening...probably becos this is such an important family event. This is one of the wedding dinners that I truly enjoy...partly becos I had the opportunity to catch up with my cousins, and also becos I could feel the joy that was radiating all around, especially from my aunt.

My cousin's wedding is actually just a day before my wedding anniversary - 15 Oct. For the first time in many weeks, I had a truly relaxing and enjoyable Monday evening. Was rushing to complete my tutorials on Monday afternoon, and thankfully managed to complete them. Otherwise, I might not have the guts to spend the evening out if my homework was left uncompleted.

We had dinner at Robertson Quay - this Japanese restaurant right next to Shunjuu. Its called Susi..something - can't remember the name. We wanted to try the restaurant as we noticed many Japanese eating at the restaurant (a sign that the food is authentic and delicious) the last time we dined at Shunjuu. True enough, most of the customers in the restaurant were Japanese. Even the chefs and some of the service staff were Japanese. It felt like we were in Japan. The sushi was fantastic, my hubby loved the ramen and was slurping off every bit from the bowl..although my teriyaki chicken was so-so only..but the miso soup was delicious! Considering that the price was pretty reasonable (ramen cost $10, my bento set only $15), we decided we will be back again.

After dinner, I just had to visit one of my favourite dessert shops - Chocoloate Factory. I was dying to eat both the blackforest cake and the shop's famed chocolate tart..but my hubby, having slurped up every bit of his dinner, was too full to share 2 desserts. So sad me had a tough time making a decision and eventually, with much hesitation, chose the blackforest cake instead. The cake looks really yummy...but did not taste as nice the last time I ate it..hmmz, wonder why. Since it was our wedding anniversary, we requested one of the shop staff to help us take a photo, but were informed that photos were not permitted in the shop. Wonder why is that rule necessary? Anyway, I still managed to sneak some shots...

The delicious-looking cake, that somehow didn't taste as delicious

Celebrations must be commerated with photos and many many photos..so after dinner, we took a short walk and found a good spot for photos. The background is supposed to be this colourful looking bridge, but guess my Nikon Coolpix not powerful enough to capture the background.

First, a normal shot

Then, an attempt for a funny bunny shot..Attempt failed...and vain him pushed me out of photo! After several tries..mission completed!

My Home - Work in Progress Part 1

Went to check out my place on Sunday..and noted progress in the renovation works (*happy*).

This wall is my favourite part of the house - both aesthetically as well as practically. The corridor window is actually just behind the constructed wall - which allows me to look out of the house, and yet gives me the privacy. Well-meaning relatives have indicated that the walls will probably trap dust...but I'll think of a solution to that next time. For now, I love this wall!

The contractor had actually built up the wall to the spare room wrongly..and after I told my interior designer on Fri evening, I was pretty surprised that the wall had already come down when I went to visit on Sunday evening. Their efficiency is quite commendable =)

The brick wall is where my TV will be mounted..just behind the brick wall will be the kitchen area....which as you can tell..is not really fit for cooking just yet.

That is my wardrobe at the far-end (just beside the window), made of concrete...my place will have minimal carpentry, mainly the kitchen cabinets, shoe rack and tv console. Otherwise, we are using alternative materials such as bricks, cement, concrete - which is good cos I'm not a fan of wood. I even suggested having my main door made out of glass, but was shot down by both my hubby and the interior designer. So guess there goes the cool main door.

As HDB ceilings are not exactly very high, we decided to do away with false ceiling (a feature that I'm also not fan of) for most of my new place, and will have black electrical conduits running across the walls/ceilings instead. Initially, I was a little apprehensive..but my hubby and I were beaming away when we saw the black tubes traversing our walls - cool!!! One more thumbs-up to my ID.

No Pain No Gain

A friend sent me this...very meaningful. May it serve as a note of encouragement to all (me included) who are feeling the 'pain'!