Happiness is... getting used to the mayhem

I know, half of the school holidays has gone by in a flash and we are nearing mid-December already! How can it be, right? That means we only have a few more weeks to enjoy the mayhem and have the luxury of being able to sleep in and going anywhere we want in the day.

It's been hard trying to find time to blog because I've been busy with the trio 24/7 and yes, looking after them day in day out does wear me out. But I hope you've been keeping up with our updates on social media though, especially all the birthday parties we've had and all the fun places to visit during the holidays.

A part of me is looking forward to the new year because that means I will have a couple of hours of free time in the morning to get back my rhythm in blogging as well as catch up on doing all the growing up videos of the kids (I have YEARS of pictures and videos to compile for them). I'm also motivated to have more homecooked meals for the kids and perhaps finally find time to try out more new recipes too - preferably recipes that are fuss-free or one pot meals because I know I will still have dozens of chores to complete each day. #choreshavenoend

But, a bigger part of me says that we simply love the holidays because we have absolute freedom and I get to be with this noisy bunch all the time. Do they drive me crazy? You bet. Are they good all the time? Of course not! Do they bicker? Every day lor. Nonetheless, school holidays is a time where we get to spend so, so much time together and I think that is one big benefit of being a stay-at-home mum. So, even though there might not be a moment's peace and it's constant chaos in my house recently, I'm still really loving this time and cherishing this privilege to be here.

In November's "Happiness is...", it's about getting used to the mayhem. And enjoying it.

Water play is one of the kids' favourite things to do and it's nice to see how the three of them can play together now. The big sister usually takes the lead and the rest of them follow, or sometimes, they just invent their own silly games and ask me to give them some tasks to do - like walking in zigzag lines or doing a silly dance.



It's so heartwarming to see how the sisters take care of their little brother, especially the elder one who rushes to him at his every whimper. Yes, I think they spoil him lots, yet I wouldn't have it any other way. Take for instance at this free bouncy castle we happened to pass by, the boy would ask the big sister to carry or piggyback him every time he came down the slide. She would willingly do it and give up on the chance to slide and instead, kept waiting for him to slide down and then carry him back to the starting point. He can be a bully at times to them but it's also nice to see how much they dote on him and protect him so fiercely too. I guess he's really blessed to have not one, but two older sisters and I hope he realises it.




Talking about this boy, he seems to have grown so much in the past few months and everyone who sees him is amazed by how much he can talk now. Yes, he can even talk back to me already lor. Haha. He's also getting cheekier by the day yet remains the sweetheart who will run over to give me a hug and plant kisses all over my face. It's still hard to totally wean him off because he demands for Mama's milk at bedtime but we're slowly but surely getting there. In a sense, I think I find it hard to let go too because he might jolly well be my last. Awwww.





The girls went for their first ever Spartan race and it was such an awesome and memorable one! Check out our highlights in this video here. I really think it is good for them to get muddy and wet once in a while and more importantly, be in the face of obstacles so that they can build up their grit and be able to overcome them.



I took the girls for a dental check up and wanted the boy to have his first experience too but failed because he insisted that he didn't want to. It seemed like the big girl is not brushing her teeth well and while none of them has any tooth decay for now (I don't too at age 35 and I'm quite proud of that, haha), I'm glad the dentist highlighted the issues to us.





We celebrated my mum's 65th birthday over a steamboat at her favourite place in Golden Mile as well as a homecooked dinner by my in-laws. I'm still very thankful to see how our parents get along so well, they always have so many things to chat about and they still go for karaoke sessions on their own! Amazing, right?

School holidays also mean there are usually a bunch of events we get invited to and we are thankful for every one that comes into our mailbox. It doesn't mean we get a lot of 'freebies' or that these things fall from the sky because bloggers and influencers do need to work behind the scenes to help publicise these events. I think many people still fail to see that and think that blogging is such an easy way to earn. In any case, I just hope to have more good stuff to share with you and I thank all of you for your support in the giveaways too!

Last month, we checked out the beautiful "Poinsettia Wishes featuring Disney Tsum Tsum" Christmas floral display at Gardens by the Bay and I have to say it's one of our favourites so far! The festive blooms are so pretty and the Tsum Tsum make wonderful photo opportunities too. The display runs till 6 Jan so do go catch it if you have not!

We also checked out the newly opened SuperPark which is located in Suntec City (#02-477, Tower 1). With over 40,000 sqft of play space, it is by far the biggest indoor park we have visited and the best thing is the games are suitable for the whole family to play together! Two hours of play was seriously not enough for us to explore everything and we are hoping to make it back again soon. The kids enjoyed the ball games, the pedal cars, the obstacle course, the rock climbing walls, the trampolines and basically every activity!



The kids and I also made it to 4D AdventureLand in Sentosa and they had the chance to try out every single ride! It's been something that we've always wanted to do and I'm glad we did it. Yup, amazingly the boy who is usually scared of rides also made it through everything with us and I think that's a milestone for him! If you are planning to go, do check out the new Haunted Mine ride or the Log Ride because we think these two are the most exciting ones!

It's nice to see how the hubby tries to make time for us despite his super busy work schedule. Yup, I'm very used to his volatile and long busy hours because that's what happens when you are a navy wife. But the kids are not and they always wish to see more of their Papa, especially now that it's the school holidays and they have lots of free time. He took the big girl on a daddy-and-daughter bowling date, thanks to the Dads for Life organising committee, and they even managed to go behind the alley to see how the machinery works. How fun, right? While they were busy, I brought the younger ones for a nice dinner before we made our way to meet them for supper. It was so cute to see how the big sister tried imparting them her new knowledge of bowling techniques right away and here they were, trying to practice their bowling stances.

At nights when the hubby is not around, I still make it a point to bring the kids out and we usually head out to scoot and check out our neighbourhood playgrounds. It's amazing how many we can discover and I bet there are many, many more out there too. School holidays means we can all sleep late, right? So we even have late movie nights in our home - thanks to Netflix - and end up sleeping past at 1am. I know, not very healthy lar, but once in a while, I guess it's okay.

We finally renewed our zoo passes too! Oh wait, it's the 4-park pass so we can visit any of the parks or safaris whenever we want. Woohoo! We made it to the zoo as well as the night safari (which made the big girl very happy as it was her birthday) and the kids were happy to be with all the animals once more.

A big highlight of November for us was the little sister's graduation! Yes I know, I already blogged about it because it deserves a post of its own and there were so many emotions running through my head that I needed to pen them down somewhere. Seeing her shine on stage made me beam with pride and joy and I still find it hard to believe that my baby girl will be turning six just before Christmas. Mummy hopes you know how super proud I am of you and I wish you all the best in your primary school journey, yeah?

November also marks the time of the big girl's birthday and she turned nine! Yeap, just one more year left before hitting the double digits. How fast does a decade fly by and how big this baby of mine has grown! She requested for a spy themed party when I asked her what she would like this year and we had a small party for her and her close friends in the comfort of our home. I love how almost her whole costume came from our wardrobes. Haha. It was such a blast and the games were a hit with all her friends! Just let me find the time to blog about it soon because I have so much I wanna share.

On her actual birthday, we went for art class as usual and had a cake cutting ceremony with her teachers. It's been six years since she started on her art journey with heART Studio and she is still very much in love with it, so we are here to stay. She was so happy that Papa could join us at the last minute and we had a spontaneous trip to Night Safari - something which always thrills and delights her. Happy turning nine, my dearest Angel!

Right, all my babies are year end babies so this time of the year is a truly busy, somewhat chaotic, period for me with all the party planning and festive gatherings. Yet, I've gotten used to it and even enjoy it because I think I do like the freedom of coming up with my own decor, games and favours for these parties. The last day of November marked the little sister's last day of preschool *bring me the tissues* and we celebrated her birthday in advance with her classmates - for the last time. Yup, no more cake cutting in school once she hits Primary One so I am glad we made this extra special with a super yummy chocolate logcake from Eatzi Gourmet Bakery, snacks and farewell gifts for her friends, as well as tokens of appreciation for her teachers to thank them for all their guidance.

We still have a handful of parties coming in the last month of the year and I'll be sharing more about them very soon. Can you even believe that 2018 is coming to an end? Well, let's make the most out of the remaining school holiday period and be thankful for messy houses and noisy kids. Have a great festive month ahead, people!