Happiness is... having a well-deserved break

School holidays are always worth looking forward to because they are usually jam packed with lots of fun activities. I always think that it is a well-deserved break for the kids after working so hard for the whole semester. As for myself, I much appreciate not needing to wake up early every morning and love that we are able to do what we want and go where we want as a family. 

It might sound weird but I also love having everyone at home even if it means living in chaos every single day. Yes, it's definitely very noisy and rowdy and full of endless bickers but deep down, I know these are the things I will miss when the kids are all grown up and move into their own nests. That is when I will feel the peace, the quiet but also the emptiness. 

In this post of "Happiness is...", it's about having a well-deserved break and making the most of the June school holidays.

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We went on a mum-and-kids boat ride and it was such a beautiful afternoon as we felt the warm sun rays on our faces. The kids and I enjoyed the sea breeze, we saw some of the north-eastern islands like Pulau Ubin, Coney Island and Pulau Tekong, and we also visited Smith Marine which is a floating restaurant and the kids loved feeding the fishes there. I always love going on such first experiences with the kids because they make some of the best memories ever. That is also I make sure we make videos and upload them to YouTube to remember such moments - it's like a legacy that I will pass on to the kids when I am gone, you know what I mean?

The biggest highlight of our June holidays was our overseas vacation where we made our way to Desaru in Malaysia as a big family of 10 - yup, we brought our parents along to join in the fun too! While we might not be able to afford luxurious holidays and bring them to faraway places, I hope they know how much we love them and how we cherish having them around. 

We rented an apartment to stay together, we squeezed in a 7-seater car to make our way around, we fed ostriches, rode on ATVs, went on a firefly tour, saw crocodiles, ate seafood meal after seafood meal, visited the Waterpark and more! I will be sharing more about our trip in the next post so stay tuned for that if you are keen to find out more.

Indoor playgrounds are still a big hit with the kids and I know it won't be the case when they get older. Like in Angel's case, she wouldn't have joined us had it not been for the fact that Ansel is still a toddler and she loves that she can take care of him and play with him when we are out. So yes, this happy little boy gels the family together and I can only count my blessings that he is ours.

We also had play dates with our friends and one of the parks we visited was the newly revamped Pororo Park in Marina Square. With its mini train, small cars and kiddy shows, it's a park suited for younger kids so Ansel had a blast there. The funny thing is the rest also enjoyed it because they played tag and did crazy things like doing a catwalk down the slide. Sometimes, it's not so much of what we do but we are with, right? 

One slide for each kid! Seeing them like that makes me wonder how they all popped out of my tummy, haha, but it's honestly my greatest blessing to be a mum of four. Yup, life feels complete for me at this point and I just want to enjoy seeing them grow up because the years are too fleeting when you have kids.

We also love water playgrounds and are thankful to see that the rooftop ones at shopping malls have finally opened up after being closed during the pandemic. The eldest is not a fan of getting wet, like how she much prefers running to swimming, but the rest of the kids still love water play and that is the good thing about having more kids - they are usually not alone and have each other for company.

The kids love playing at the arcade and every time we go, I have to remind that it is a privilege and a treat and they cannot take such visits for granted. I mean, here we are spending hard-earned money away on electronic games and it's not something I did in my childhood so I feel the need to educate them about this. We try our best to wait and make use of the best deals when it comes to topping credits, like how Timezone had a get $500 worth of credits with $200 top up and it lasted us for over a year which is quite a good deal considering I have four kids who all love to play. We also visit the 'cheaper' arcades and one of them is Paco Funworld at Kallang Wave Mall.

The littlest loves all kinds of ball games so since it was the holidays, he also enjoyed a treat when we saw a popup carnival near where we live. By the way, every day is still a holiday for this boy because he doesn't go to school yet! Haha. Yup, he is turning three next year so that's probably gonna change when the time comes but for now, I love having him at home 24/7 and I love waking up to his lovely face every morning.

Do your kids love Ninjago too? My kids love watching the cartoon series and also taught me the names of every character. They were happy when I surprised them and told them we were going for a Ninjago event and even more thrilled to see Kai in person and give him high fives too.

Movie invites are rare and few these days but we are thankful for each one that comes knocking on our door. The kids love watching movies in cinemas and this one we caught turned out to be better and more meaningful than expected because it touched on family ties and what it means to be a teenager's mum. 

We also caught Baby Shark Live on Stage and it was a treat for Ansel whose first birthday was a Baby Shark themed party. Look, he even brought his plushies along! It was a little too kiddy for the rest of the kids but as usual, they were there to accompany Ansel and it just feels nice that we still go on lots of mum-and-kids outings since the hubby is mostly busy at work. I really love taking the kids out on adventures and will continue to do it for as long as I can.

Theatre shows are something that we enjoy very much and they are usually animated, meaningful and educational. We caught Adventures with Andi on stage which is a story about ants and even got to meet the author, who is non other than our amiable and beautiful Minister Sun Xueling. She was so nice as to ask for the names of all the four kids and penned them down in her autograph on our book.

While he doesn't go to school yet, he loves his weekly Heguru lesson and has benefitted tremendously from it in the past year. It's plain to see how much he enjoys all the activites, especially the puzzle and memory games, and he also like to do the crafts too - for instance, he did a cute popcorn card for Father's Day.

Talking about Father's Day, we had a family gathering to celebrate this day and it's a little ironic because the chefs were the hubby and my father-in-law even though it was a time to celebrate them. Yup, they are the best cooks around and I really can't imagine what we will eat without them. Probably catered food, haha. But nothing beats home cooked meals and I am truly thankful that we hold such gatherings regularly and come together as a big group to chat and catch up with each other's lives.

The elder three are still keeping up with their Taekwondo lessons and honestly, I didn't expect them to come this far when I signed up for the class as a holiday activity over one and a half years ago. Well, if they are serious about wanting to achieve the black belt, I will definitely give them my fullest support. I am so thankful for such PA courses that provide affordable rates (ours cost $5/kid per lesson) and even if means training in void decks instead of air-conditioned studios, it's a low price we are very much willing to pay.

Having Ansel was one of the best things that happened not just for me, but for Asher too. He sometimes feels like an outcast when the two sisters leave him out of their secrets but having a little brother changes that. I love seeing how they have their brotherly moments too, such as when they have fun in the bath tub and play together. I keep reminding him that this might only last for another year or less because Ansel is growing up so fast these days so while he could still do it, treasure it. I know he does. 

I took these photos because I heard him singing to the little brother and the lyrics were along the line "You are the best, best, best brother in the world..." which melted my heart. They also exchanged hugs and kisses which was a heartwarming sight to see as I know they will soon outgrow this phase too. For now, I love seeing how they bond as the best brothers in the world and hope they know how much of a gift they are to each other.

Oh, on another note about the brotherly bond, the toddler can't really scoot by himself yet but loves to be on it so the big brother loves sharing this small scooter with him even if it means he has to squeeze and put his foot sideways. Whenever we go out these days, they will ask to scoot together and it's yet another fond memory that will be locked in our hearts. 

We love having Japanese food but usually go for the cheaper ones like at food courts or Genki Suship. This was at Tampopo which we deem as expensive - the total bill can amount to over $110 - and it only happens once a year for us because we use up our CDC vouchers on a lavish meal like this. Yup, that is why we needed to take a photo. Haha. 

Holidays usually mean we spend a little more than usual and another treat we had was to dine at Slappy Cakes since the kids wanted to have fun and make their own pancakes. Can you see what character we were trying to draw for Ansel on his plate? Well, it's his favourite JJ from Cocomelon! We also drew animals like rabbits and Ariel was so sweet as to make pancakes that resembled a mother and daughter and she said it was me and her. Awww.

So you see, we don't always need to fly to another continent or go on luxurious holidays just to enjoy a well-deserved break. Why, we don't even need to dine at expensive restaurants or receive exquisite gifts in order to be happy. 对我而言，幸福其实很简单，只要和爱的人在一起，心中就自然快乐. I had a good month of June and it was because of one simple reason - I spent it with the people I love and we made so many memories together. 

Good times won't last, I know, like how this toddler will soon outgrow the carrier and I might not even be able to piggyback him anymore. I will miss this feeling of having him snug against my chest, I will miss the sweetness of breastfeeding this last baby of mine (I still am!) and I will miss being able to lift him up into the air and cradling him when he's tired. 

So yes, it still boils down to the same reminder every time - cherish while it lasts. 

Till the next post on happiness!