I'm so touched by God!

It has been many years since I've intentionally bought Chinese New Year's clothes since I believe that I've enough clothes to wear and I usually shop on a need basis. However, this year is somewhat special.

When I went to Tom and Stephanie to buy some baby things, I saw the beautiful cheong sum for baby girls on display. I was disappointed that there wasn't anything like that for baby boys. It inspired me to get a tang zhuang for Joash since I've so far only bought one rompers for him. (The rest of his clothes are hand-me-downs) But I thought it would be difficult to get something suitable. So almost casually, I prayed to God that I'll be able to get one somehow. Sure enough, as I was passing by Tiong Bahru Plaza on my way to church for worship practice, I saw the perfect suit for him!!!

It was then I started toying with the idea to get the traditional Chinese costume for both Joshua and I to match him but it would be tough to find something matching. Nevertheless, I committed it to God and went on my way. That Sunday, I was shopping at Jurong Point for a bouncer for Joash and thought since I was already at a mall, I'll look around for my top with a Chinese collar. And you know what? I really found it at This Fashion!

Spurred by the elation of finding my CNY clothes, I went on to look for the tang zhuang for Joshua but alas, it proved to be more elusive than I thought. However, God has already answered my prayer the first two times, why not the last one? I prayed once again.

I was shopping for grocery as usual in the morning at West Mall's Shop and Save when I passed by some CNY stalls in the plaza. And yes, you've guessed it! I found the matching costume for Joshua there! So now we would have matching CNY clothes to wear as a family... I am so touched that God would be so concerned for me about such a trivial thing. Indeed nothing escapes His attention.

"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered."
Matthew 10: 29-30

Contentment

Philippians 4:11-12
"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. "

Last Saturday, Joshua and I did couple devotion and the passage was on the issue of contentment. Yesterday, my quiet time with God focused on the same topic. Just when I am losing patience in enduring my lack of fellowship, God reminded me that the secret to being content is resting in Him and trusting Him to provide. Furthermore, I was encouraged the Sunday that has gone by to count my blessings through the worship during service. And true enough, my heart is full of joy and gratitude as I remember the blessings from God. Even though it takes extra effort on my part to visit other young mothers, things could have been worse. What if Joash doesn't take well to going out like some babies I know? What if I don't even have friends to visit? What if I am physically unable to travel? I thank God for being so merciful and I know that He will never test me beyond what I can bear.

Not only that, I can't believe that I am truly living out the vision that God had placed in my heart so many years ago. I can't imagine a more wonderful husband than Joshua and he loves me more than any other person on earth through his words and action. As I see Joash grow each day, becoming more and more responsive to me, (And yes, he is now able to squeal in delight when he sees me, as I have hoped for in my previous blog entry) I can't help but feel so fortunate to be his mother. Through the generosity of many people, we are able to pay off our marriage debt as of this month. (Praise the Lord!!!) Joshua and I may not be as financially well-off as others we know but we are still able to get by comfortably with prudent planning. I don't even suffer from the common struggles that many new homemakers experience such as feeling acutely the loss of financial independence, finding much difficulties in managing baby+housework+cooking alone and missing going to work.

What's more importantly, I am content with what I have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5b

Baby Farm

Babies Galore!

Today, a few of us fellow mothers met up for a playdate. With 7 children under one roof, it's babies galore!!! Since my church has absolutely no one at my life stage, I am seriously starved for such quality time with fellow young mothers. We had so much fun sharing about our kids, laughing over their silly antics and discussing about our concerns. It is really lonely not to have peers to interact with in church, especially when we often are there twice a week which adds up to a significant amount of time. The love and kindness from churchmates of various life stages are wonderful but nothing can replace the closeness and comfort of girlfriends who can identify with what I'm going through in this time and age. I had been looking forward to the homemaker's ministry meetings with a group of young moms but it has yet to start. In the meantime, I can only trust that God will meet this very real need in His time.

Fun times

Joash: Yipee! I've a cute girl beside me!

I went over to my friend's place today to fellowship with her and someone I recently got to know while Joash gets to see her daughter again! Though they are still too young to really notice and play with each other, I think it must be fun to have someone the same age as a playmate during childhood. A pity my friend will be going back to work in a few months' time or else it would be so cool for us to visit and keep each other company during the day...

Here's another silly video I've created. I hope you can catch what's going on... hee hee... *wink*

We have a PR baby!

Our family photo at Hotel Grand Copthorne
celebrating a friend's birthday

Joash is a really wonderful baby to bring out. He enjoys the company of just about anyone and does not mind anybody carrying him or playing with him at all. He behaves himself and seldom fusses, which is so unlike him when he is at home (maybe because he knows that the home is his own territory... :P) He is so friendly and is even able to sleep in his pram or any flat surfaces when he really wants to nap. This causes everyone, even perfect strangers, to praise him and call me blessed. I'm so proud of him!!!

Our first wedding anniversary

Since we did not manage to catch the DHL balloon ride on our wedding day last year (our wedding committee actually planned to blindfold us and bring us to the balloon as a surprise gift but could not do it in the end due to time constrains) Joshua and I decided to take it ourselves to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. It was really fun as we even packed takopachi and toriyaki to picnic at the balloon site after the ride. Then, we went to Virtual Land at Bugis Junction to play some arcade games. The drums machine and Time Crisis were our favorites. A pity we "game over"-ed all too quickly... Boy, are we rusty! At first, we even wanted to try the guitar game, inspired by the Japanese anime "BECK" (it was about a rock band) we watched together recently. Guess what... we "game-over"ed within a mere few seconds!!! Talk about being 不自量力！

I really cherish that few hours of couple time with my husband especially since the rest of that day was quite miserable for me. There were many things that happened which upset me a great deal. But I must count my blessings. It is indeed wonderful of my mother-in-law to help us take care of Joash while we enjoyed ourselves. Thank God for the beautiful afternoon with my husband!

ZH "Gor Gor"

Last Friday, I went over to my ex-colleague's place to visit her and her baby son. ZH is two months older than Joash. The both of them look so much like brothers... ha ha ha... It sure was fun to have the company of a kindred spirit and it is indeed a fresh experience of the usual daily "你看我，我看你” routine between Joash and I. I'll be so sad when they move from Clementi to Toa Payoh... Sigh... So far away...

Face-off Round 1 *Tink tink tink* Joash verses ZH!

ZH: What's that you are sucking on? Looks delicious...
Joash: Drumsticks. You want some?

The First Babbling

Talking with Joash is no longer one-directional... He is responding with his first babbling! Even though the sounds he makes are still far from intelligible, he seems nonetheless enthusiastic about conveying his baby thoughts. Here's a video of his "speech" to me. Usually, I will respond verbally to his sounds but in order to capture his voice clearly, I have refrained from making any noise during this video-taking. Notice how he gets more and more emphatic towards the end in his attempt to get my response...

P/S: Throughout the entire clip, his whole body was moving constantly, i.e. legs kicking vigorously and fists flying excitedly... What an active boy!

Baby Dedication

6th of Jan 2008 was Joash's baby dedication service. Joshua and I pledged before God to bring Joash up in the ways of the Lord with our family and churchmates as witnesses so that they can also keep us accountable. I am so glad my Mum came and I really wish that someday, she'll not only see Christianity as a religion which has done me good but to also take hold of the wonderful salvation that God has prepared for her. Please do pray along with me if you are willing. :)

Joshua 24:15b
"... But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

My Mum

My best friend who agreed to be Joash's godmother... Yeah!

My In-Laws

God's blessings...

Joash is now 8 weeks old and it is such a joy to see him grow everyday. He makes a new sound each day as he experiments with his vocal cords. He can now steadily hold up his head and shoulders while on his tummy and even manage to crawl an inch or two. When we place a small hankerchief over his face, he does not cry and is able to use his hand to snatch it away from his face after 2 minutes. He smiles a lot when I play with him but has yet to laugh so I'm waiting for the day he can squeal in delight when he is having fun.

I am glad that he can now sleep on his own in his cot, without anyone rocking him or me nursing him to sleep. We have never thought to sleep-train our baby but after the sleeplessness the whole family suffered for more than a month, we decided to listen to the advice of a trusted couple. Even though he is still not yet sleeping through the night, I am grateful that he can sleep at 7pm after the bedtime routine, wake up to drink milk only twice at night (11pm and 3am) before the next morning at 8am. This is, to both Joshua and I, a great relief already as compared to last month when he needed to be carried, rocked or nursed to sleep which can take an average of half an hour and nurses every two hours round the clock. And of course, the next momentous accomplishment would be sleeping through the night. I've heard of other babies doing that at one month old but I guess every baby is different. I'm sure Joash will do that when he is ready according to God's perfect timing.

It has become so enjoyable taking care of Joash that I am thinking of having my next child! But don't worry that I've gone crazy cos I'll probably start trying to conceive only after Joash has learnt to walk. heh heh... I do hope it will be a baby girl next time...