Happiness is... using time wisely

If there's one thing I wish money could buy, it would not be youth or happiness, but TIME. No, I'm not asking to rewind the clock because I'm thankful to be where I am today, but I'm just hoping that I can have more time on my hands every day.

Time to play more with my kids, time to teach them more things, time to try out more new things, time to bring them out more often, time to laugh more, hug more and kiss more. It's ironic that as a stay-at-home mum, I should have all the time in the world to do the things I want to do. Yet on most days, I end up with a feeling of "Where did that 24 hours just go?" and I sometimes hope I could find a way to create more time.

It can be scary just how fast time flies, right? I mean, I still remember the day when I turned 21, how my family met my in-laws for the first time to have a steamboat, how I had a big party in a bungalow chalet with dozens of my friends, how we played, laughed, drank and got drunk. It can be a little hard to believe that a decade has passed ever since. It's the same for parenting. It still seemed like yesterday when I had that huge belly and was waiting for my firstborn to pop. In the blink of an eye, I've been into this motherhood journey for over five years already.

Not one for routines and strict bedtimes, but rather one who doesn't wear a watch and likes to be spontaneous, I think I will score badly if there is a module called time management. Wait, I'm not saying it's necessary a bad thing, but I do know that I can better manage and use the limited amount of time I have every day.

In this month's "Happiness is...", it's all about making the most of time.

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I had a nice morning with Ariel at IKEA where we had fun eating, shopping, playing and just enjoying each other's company. It was also quite an achievement that between the two of us, we bought and carried back a stepping stool, aprons, curtains, long curtain rods and other odds and ends. Yes, curtains! Angel had been sleeping in her room without a proper curtain for over two years and I thought come this CNY, it was high time to get her a pair and make plans to refurbish her room.


So, I took over a week's time to tidy up the room, working hard day in and day out to spring clean and declutter. Eventually, we donated more than 10 bags of toys, appliances and stationery and the room now looks much cleaner and presentable though an uncle still commented that with all the stacking of boxes and containers, it still looks like an warehouse. In any case, I'm very pleased with what we have achieved and soon, we will get a nice bunk bed and study table to make this a cosy room for the kids.



What do you do with the kids' drawings which might look like a mess yet you can't bear to chuck them? I take time to turn them into memories for keeps by laminating them and I have to say this laminating machine was one of my best bargains ever (bought from Popular at around S$40 with 100 free pouches!). I've also started making flashcards again for Angel and I'll be sharing more on a project that I did in the upcoming Creativity 521 post.

Going to carnivals, playing fishing games and riding in mini trains might seem plain boring when you are a grown-up with no kids. However, when you are a dad or mum, it's totally different. While time might never go back and childhood will always remain a memory, the good thing about having kids is they remind us it's never too late to feel like a child again and there's always time to relish in the simple joy of life.

No matter if the hubby is in town or not, I tell myself that it need not and shouldn't matter as to whether I want to bring the kids out to places further from home, or if we are going to engage in water play, or if we are going to stay out longer and end up having to take the bus home late at night. I always enjoy our 3-girls date and so this month, we went out more often than usual, just a mum and two kids, and let fate decide where we should end up.

In my best effort to achieve the 15 things I said I will be doing differently this year, I am also trying to craft more with the little one and right now, we are using painting to learn about shapes, colours and numbers. Kill two birds with one stone, right? Angel and I also had a fun session where we made our DIY Chinese New Year Firecrackers!

One big achievement this month is that Angel completed her 5th run! And this time, she ran 2.8km! Yes, we did the Safari Zoo Run 2015 and I'll be sharing more details about it next month as well as share with you why we love to participate in these family runs.

Another meaningful activity we did was the Hope-Bricklet project where you can buy a small brick-making kit for $10, make the bricklet by yourself (the only thing you need that is not inside the kit is water), and the volunteers at Habitat for Humanity Singapore will embed it in an actual house they build for the less fortunate. How cool, right? It was a good opportunity for the kids to be reminded of how lucky they are, and more importantly, how they can start from young to help others in need.

It was also a fun weekend where we made time to visit VivoCity to support the SAF50@Vivo event. I think it's really important to let children learn more about the occupations of their parents and take pride in that. So, while they might not understand torpedoes and sonar, I'm still glad that these two are very proud to have a submariner for a Dad!

One evening, we were at a pasar malam and saw these beautiful lanterns of the 12 animals of the Chinese horoscope. We took half an hour to stroll past them one by one, making use of the chance to recap and learn about the animal sequence, and of course stopping to take pictures with our own horoscopes.

Last but not least, our Chinese New Year celebration this year was nothing short of fabulous! All the feasting, gatherings and reunions only serve to remind us on how we are so blessed to have family and friends who love and care for us.


I guess happiness is really not about taking time to find every rose in the garden, it's about taking time to smell the ones that come across in your path of life.

What are you happy for this month?

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What are you HAPPY for this month? 

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