Our little baby girl is ONE!

One year ago, this little miracle was born and we were just embarking on our new journey as a unit of 4 instead of 3. Brandon was a real trooper. He took it in his stride that he would no longer be the center of his parents doting attention. Instead, he'd have to share it with his little sister. He helped to look after her, watch her and even carried her at times. Now that the little sister is older, he is even playing with her and carrying her around! I think I must be the luckiest mom around. Most kids would likely rebel and demand more attention. Brandon just goes with the flow and bumbles around happily like before. Maybe he's a little sad that he no longer gets all our attention and love, but he seems alright with it. I must also remember occasionally that he is just an 8 year old boy and still needs my love, care and concern.

Even though this post is all about Brianna, I must salute the little trooper, Brandon!

Our Girl (Ikea Photo Frame)

Brianna (Happy Birthday)

This lovely LO was done by good friend and scrapping pal, Jaz. As usual, her brilliant style shines through even in this simple LO. I love the cutout flowers and the simple and effective layering.

Brianna's First birthday celebration (meaning that there'll be a 2nd one!!)

Check out the fantastic spread of food that my mother in law prepared with her helper, Ling.

Chinese believe that we should have an egg that is dyed red for good luck. And Bri was busily and happily cracking hers against the container! Then when she discovered that the shells could be removed, she slammed it even harder against the container and then tried to dig out the egg that was inside! We all watched her and let her put the eggs and the shell into her mouth! It was amusing to see her spit out the shells!

Finally, the cake cutting! Even though the cake was rather small, we all enjoyed it throughly!

And that is the end of the wonderful and warm birthday celebration at my in-laws place!

Next up will be her birthday celebration at my house! And that will be even more of a blast cos so many more people will be turning up on that day! Yipee! (Why am I so happy anyway? It's not my BD celeb what.....)

Almost one...

Today, we're celebrating Brianna's chinese birthday. On the lunar calendar, she's already 2 years old as the Chinese take it as the child is already one from the day that they are born as they were in the mother's womb for 10months. That already counts as a year.
We'll be popping over to paternal grandparents place for a quiet celebration with family only. It should be fun cos they really love her little antics and as the only bb in the family currently, she's the most pampered one. I have picked out a really lovely dress for her. Initially, I didnt even think of buying a new dress as she already has so many clothes lovingly passed down from friends and relatives. Many of them were so new, I thought that I'd just let her wear anyone of those. A friend reminded me that even though she has so many clothes, most of them were hand me downs and no matter how new, I should at least get her a new set for her birthday. A girl only celebrates her one year old only once and when she grows up, at least there are photos of her in a lovely dress that was not a hand me down! I caved in and got her a gorgeous Korean mini dress. It has lovely hand stitched flowers and a pretty little bow on the front. The soft chiffon material had me caressing it for a long time! (I dont even dare think of how much I paid for it, safe to say that I myself had never even paid so much for a dress of my own!!)
So, tonight is the night for the little princess and even though I know she'll never remember this day, I will take photos, videos and make little notes to remind myself and her of this milestone!
Till next Sunday then! When the little princess celebrates her "English" birthday with the rest of family and friends at our home!

Funny photos!

First, she enjoyed herself clinging onto the railings. She smiled and squealed, laughed and chuckled.

Then, she got a little bored. She wasn't smiling so much, but she wasn't crying either. She was beginning to wilt a bit. Tired from all the laughing and chuckling I guess......

But what I didn't expect was THIS!! Hahahahaha! I was so amused by her! She was really tired and could not cling on any longer. Yet, her parents still put her "behind bars" and tried to make her look cute! This was the result of "force" photo taking!
Hope you enjoyed this series of amusing photos! Have a great weekend and a fantastic week!

Made it back in one piece

We planned and planned for this one week hol. Should we go Bintan? Hong Kong? Malaysia?
In the end, decided that we should self drive to KL. Coz of bb, we had so much more luggage to lug. So, borrowed an MPV (can put more stuff and still be comfortable) packed in our stuff and family and set off rather excitedly on Tuesday morning, 6.30am. Drive was smooth and comfortable. Some rain and fog along the NS highway but it wasn't anything hubby couldn't handle.
The real trouble started when we reached KL and checked into the hotel. We arrived slightly earlier than expected and the room wasn't ready. No prob, we thought. Just leave the luggage in car and take only what we need. So, unfolded pram and off we trooped. Went around the back to Sungei Wang and BB Plaza. Traffic was rather horrid and weather sticky. After lunch, Brandon started drooping and whining. He was getting sicker. Coughed almost non-stop and sneezed his nostrils off. Poor guy, we said. No choice, hubby said. Let's get back to hotel. From there, everything started going downhill. BB didn't want her food, big brother just lay on the bed like a sick droopy flower, daddy tried giving meds, mummy tried coaxing food into BB. 2 hours later, we all collasped with exhaustion. BB from screaming, Brandon from illness, daddy from driving and mummy from eveything!
I nearly wanted to drive back the next day. Things didnt get better. Only worse. Brandon was getting sicker and BB kept spitting out her food. Mummy could not get any shopping done and Daddy was the only sane one. Thank god for Daddy's calming influence or else I would have left the BB by the roadside and chucked Brandon into the dustbin!! I was that frustrated!! She kept refusing to sleep, eat or poop! Brandon kept wanting to sleep! All I wanted was to do some shopping but I could not! Could not even eat a proper meal or have a decent rest at night!
Sigh..... I learnt a lesson.... BB was simply too young to bring anywhere simply coz she could not eat our adult food. And as she was still BF, I became her only source of nutrition and that really frustrated me coz she wanted to suck every 2 to 3 hours.
Never mind..... It was only 3d2n..... and what a frustrating 3d2n it was.....

Bri's 10 months already!

How time flies! This must be the most oft sprouted phrase when it comes to little ones. They really seem to make time fly. Even though I have been the one looking after her, I still feel that the time has really sped by. I often think back to the time when she had just appeared to say hi to the world. The joy, the pain, the miracle..... Now, at 10 months plus, she is still my bundle of joy, just not so little already!
She can do so many things now. I have this tendency to keep comparing her to Brandon. He was such a sweet natured baby whereas she's a little spitfire. Brandon was relaxed and sedate; she is easily bored. Bran could sit and play by himself for a long time while Bri needs constant attention. Bran always sat quietly in the car seat and pram; Bri puts up a fight almost every time. Bran's motor skills developed quite late; Bri could switch toys from hand to hand at 5months! Bran didn't really speak clearly till almost 16months; Bri can already call Mama, Papa, "mum mum" (eat) Ah Ma. Bran didn't really understand commands till about 13 months; Bri can already point, ask for things, shake head for no and nod for yes, babble and reply when you talk to her, move her hands away, and a whole lot more.
I'm constantly surprised at the progress she has made. Her level of understanding is just simply beyond that of a 10 month old baby. Most of my commands, even the more complicated ones, she can comprehend and follow. Actually, at about 7months, she could already understand simple commands like nod and shake head. Bump heads. Dance dance. Move move. No no. Yes yes. Does she really understand? I ask myself. So test after test is done on her. Get her to do this, get her to move that.... And again, she surprises the hair off my head!
I have learnt not to underestimate the innate intelligences of very young children. She is a very special child, just like every child out there, and as her mother, I have to make sure that this innate intelligence is carefully and lovingly nurtured.
Have a great week ahead one and all and remember to have a smile for the young baby, child that you meet! Dont forget the mother too!!

Love is.... Always True

A challenge LO for Webster's Pages, InspireMe. It's Jaz's challenge and I thought it would be fun to take part in it cos the rules were fun and simple to do. So here's my take!

Love is ... Always True

The flower hides the journalling that's underneath!

Remove the pin and the flower and the journalling opens up! TFL!!

Brushes of Love

I bought this wooden palatte a really loooong time ago and never got round to scrapping it. I've always liked the altered art side of scrapbooking. I enjoy making albums from scratch and altering almost anything that's available. So here's my Brushes of Love! TFL!!

Brushes of Love

Inspiration from a good scrapper pal!

Righto! Here's two of my "Jaz inspired" layouts. Hmmmm... recently, I seem to be copying her alot leh! Hahaha! But then again, imitation is the best form of compliment!
Jaz loves to cut and cut and cut and layer and layer and layer. I dont have that kind of patient nor skill. But I love how she mixes the different elements and textures on a single art work. The skill with which she expertly puts one embellishment on top of another is simply genius! Over here, I have taken K&Co's newest line (jeez, I cant remember the name!) and cut out the many gorgeous flowers and trims. I have layered as much as I could before I got fed up and tired of cutting! The result was a fairly successful mix of my usual linear style and Jaz's layered shabby chic.

A Perfect Moment In Time

Over here, I took a Creative Imaginations shaped pp and cut out the center. I used cardboard to line the frame to make it "pop". (again, jaz's idea!) Then I cut out the designs and layered it all over the LO. I'm actually quite happy with this LO. I really like the group of smallish photos of Brianna. The photos chronicles the journey of the little baby to the cutey "Fat Fat" she is today! The circle shaped pp represents the eternal circle of life.

A Collection Of Beautiful Memories

February Layout for Groovie Blog!

At last! CNY madness is almost over! We're onto the month of February and we have another thingy to celebrate. Thank goodness Valentine's Day does not require copious amounts of cleaning, scrubbing and all sorts of unpleasant but necessary housework!

I love the month of Feb. Maybe coz it's the shortest month of the year and we can get paid after only working for 28 days! Hahahaha!


This month is especially memorable for me coz Edleen asked me to be her February's Guest Designer for her Groovie Blog!! So happy and honoured! I came up with a "Love" layout and there's a fantastic RAK prize for the winner! I really haven't got the time to take a photo of the RAK that I packed but believe me, it's gorgeous! So come on to the groovie blog and play along!

Simply create a layout using the word "Love", have a heart shape anywhere on the LO and show a little, or alot, of the colour RED on your LO!! That's it! Fun, simple and gets your juices flowing for that special someone on Valentine's Day!

Click on this link or the one above or the Groovie link on my sidebar to join in the fun!

Kreative Award

This is such a cute award! I like! Thankx Sharon, for the nomination!

But, errrrr, I'm such a lonely blogger, I dont really have anyone to nominate for this award leh. But to all you super creative gals (& guys) out there, pls give yourselves a slap on the back and loud applause from me ya!!

3 LOs in just 4 hours!

Here's a couple of layouts that were done by a friend when she came to my house to ask for "help". She was at a loss as to how to use certain techniques and patterned papers. So she brought all her "barang barang" and we had a blast that day! She was such an enthusiastic learner and she was so keen to learn! Wish that I had more friends like that.



This LO used crackling. My friend saw this technique on one of my LOs and she fell in love with it. She quickly bought the crackling medium but had no time to try it out. So I taught her how to do it and she did this all by herself! This LO is still not quite completed coz we had no time. This was already our THIRD layout!! Fantastic huh?!

This was our 2nd LO. We worked on this coz she said she didnt know how to use transparency PP. It was a lovely transparency by Creative Imaginations and we had no problems figuring out how to use it.

This was the very 1st LO we worked on. My friend saw this lovely PP, again by CI and she just had to buy it!! However, she had no idea what to do with it. It was a circular shaped PP and was a little challenging. I recalled how one of my favourite "copy cat friend" (I copy her work!), Jaz, cut out the PP and raised it to make it look 3D. So I did the same thing. I got my friend to cut out the center portion of the PP, raise it by putting cardboard behind, put cardstock and then stuck everything together. Voila, we had a totally new look! Then we just cut and cut and cut the swirls on the remaining PP and stuck them all round the photos. It was a simple way of making the LO look stunning! I love it and so did my friend

So that was how 4 hours just zoomed past. I guess it was a great achievement to create 3 LOs in just 4 hrs! And we had soooo much fun!

It's been almost ONE MONTH!!!

OMG!! I have been soooooo busy I cant even find time to do my fav thing! Scrap!
December has been the craziest month. I barely have time to breathe and I think I haven't visited the loo in days! Hahahaha! Just kidding! Anyways....I'm happy to be back at my blog even though I know only hubby and a few good pals read it! Hehehehe! Good to be famous or better to be invisible? Hmmmm.... Who doesn't want to be famous? I would LLLLOOOVE to be well known, but I dont think so I'll cope too well with "famousdom". *Chuckle*
I know of people who are so out to make a name for themselves and they become so shallow as a result. Why make yourself miserable by trying to be something you're not? If you are good enough, you will naturally be well known in your chosen field. Otherwise, why make yourself and the people around you sick and tired of you??!!
Maybe I'm just too cynical. But I really like the little world that I've created and I dont need other people to know how good or how fantastic I am. Just the people that I treasure and the ones I call friends. They're all I need really. It's fun to be well known, but there is no need to chase after it like doggies chasing after their tails.
Take scrapbooking for example. I'd love to be well known and well liked like Ali Edwards, Mara May, Lisa Bearnson etc. Or our local celebs like Aida Haron, Jaq Yeo, Edleen, Jaz, Sharon etc. But knowing myself very well, I know I cant do it. I have my own little talent and it's just not at that level. But I'm ok with it. I still love SB very much and I scrap from my heart. I will never give up this hobby just coz I've not been chosen for some design team or other. I hope that aspiring scrappers out there can scrap for the love of the hobby and not for some misguided need to be well known. The enormous amount of work, sweat, and tears put in by these talented people are oftentimes not known. I applaud their dedication to this wonderful hobby and I salute their absolutely perfect time management!
Coz I know that I am simply unable to keep up!
Cheers all! Have a wonderful 2009 and scrap from your heart!

Inspiration Hit Me!

I've not done any of my wedding photos at all. (Shame shame!) So, after the inspiration attack when I was at Jaz's place, I came back and dug out a sepia toned photo of our wedding 8 years ago!
So Jaz, here's my simple take after seeing all your layered works of genius!

Here's another one for the sketch challenge over at Ed's Sketch Got Stamp? It's using an animal stamp on the LO. I've got so many birds and butterflies stamps and I use them so rarely, so this challenge comes at a good time for me to use those stamps!

My Sleeping Child

Here's another LO to share. I actually did this some time back but didnt post it. Thought this was a good time coz I'm feeling so down and this is such a cherry and uplifting LO! Enjoy!

Me, myself and I

There's no layouts, no altered art, no nothing today. I just wanna de-stress and grumble on my blog. I mean, its not like THE blog where the whole world reads about me. So I guess its safe to grumble...... (Coz a fren of mine nearly got sued by the sister in law for grumbling about the mother in law....jeez...)
I am deleting and deleting what I type. This is the fourth time I'm "throwing" my post into the bin. I really dont know where to start. Most of my headaches and troubles are the results of decisions that I've made and I'm not happy that I've made these decisions. But how do I get out of it? I really dont know if I've made the correct decisions and whether I can get out of the situation I'm in if the decision I've made is really wrong.
But do we always make the correct decisions? What happens when whatever we've decided turns out to be wrong? How come I keep making the wrong choices my whole life? Is it me? Do I have a problem making decisions? Why did a seemingly good idea become bad? Have I been misled or did I mislead myself? Am I delusional? All the questions and no apparent answers.
I like a carefree life. Some call it lazy life. I dont see anything wrong with it. I am not the kind to make big bucks or climb coporate ladders. I dont like to work very hard. I work because I have to, not because I like to. Lazy? Yeap, for sure. But I'm happy. But now, I am facing a crisis. I cant get out of the work that I have to do because I promised I'd do it. But I was not shown the whole picture of what I had to do. I am capable of doing it. I just dont want to. Dilemma, is what I'm in right now. Getting out, is what I'd like right now.
Sigh..........

I got it! I got it! I got it!!!!

I cant believe I managed to buy it at last!!!! Arghhhh! No words can express my utter joy and satisfaction at having bought the current love of my life! Yipee!

Here's the story......

I called a certain LSS and asked the staff to reserve it for me. They told me (without checking) that it was already OOS. I was extremely disappointed. If they had bothered to check and reserved it for me, I'd have bought it from them ages ago. So, I waited and hoped that the other LSS would bring it in. I called and check too. This time, because it was my favourite LSS, the staff there knew me and was willing to check their stock, their warehouse and their shipping list to see if it was on the way here. Unfortunately, they were unable to find it in the warehouse but were quite sure it was on its way here, just not sure when. So I waited patiently. Finally, I could not wait anymore and decided to go down and make use of their excellent discount vouchers of up to 40%!! And to cut the long story short, when I was there, the goods actually arrived at the store!!! I hopped up and down and squeaked (Sharon said I was squeaking alot that day!) myself hoarse! The new arrivals included my Amy Butler Tote!!! I nearly died from happiness! It was so 'fresh' that it was warm. I chose pink finally (and a whole lot of new stuff too!) So, here's my Amy Butler Tote all lovingly filled up with my SB tools and stuff.

And the best thing? I paid for the tote with a whooping 40% discount!! And if the other LSS had been willing to check and reserve for me, I'd have bought it for only a 25% discount using my friend's card. So I guess it was fated that I get the tote from my favourite LSS at that fantastic discount.

Look what came in the mail!

I actually received this package some time back. Was ecstatically cutting up the tape on the box to reveal the goodies in it and then was too engrossed with it (and of course the other stuff in my life). Finally, 2 weeks later, I managed to find time to post this and thank the sponsers, Indigo Mill, for their prize!
It was a whole lot of die cut papers by Rhonna Farrer, DCWV, KI Memories. I just could not stop gazing at the lovely papers!

Amy Butler's Tool Tote

Don't you just looooove this bag??!! The 1st time I saw this, I knew I gotta have it! I don't usually fall in love with stuff like that, but this tote just called out to me, ya know what 'cha mean?
So, I called up our LSS and made enquiries. Imagine my disappointment when one said they didnt bring in this bag and the other said it was SOLD OUT!!! Arghhhhhh!!!!
Now, I need to figure out how to get my greedy hands onto this lovely lovely creation by Amy Butler!
Anyone wanna sell??!! Hee hee!

2 sketches defined for Rough Draft

Sketch 2

Sketch 4

I've been madly running around recently and although I did the sketches some time ago, I didnt manage to take photos of it till now. So here's Sketch 2 and 4 for Rough Draft.