Motherhood – Deardyan

Nadya’s 3rd

December 19, 2017 Dyan

Nadya is turning 3 in January and this crazy over-achiever mummy decided to throw her a birthday party & i have only 2 weeks to plan for it. Need i also remind myself that i’m currently 36 weeks pregnant? I’ll be 38 weeks pregnant during the party so yes just hoping Adik can stay in there until after the party. U nak keluar the malam after the party pun i tak kisah k adik. U kasi your kakak chance feeling dulu k.

We’re keeping the guestlist really small though, unlike her 1st Birthday where i invited most of my relatives since i didn’t do any cukur rambut for her & all. So this one will be small & cozy. Just our immediate family & close friends.

I showed Nadya all the cartoon characters she loves although deep inside I know which one she’ll choose tapi i nak try my luck jugak and as expected, she chose Frozen! urgggh. I’m so done with Queen Elsa to be honest but the girl loves her Frozen and it’s her birthday so Frozen it is then! I actually hate cartoon characters themed birthday parties but when u have a toddler, it’s inevitable and this is the last “single” birthday party she’ll have. She’ll have to share the limelight with Adik the next time muahahaha.

I actually don’t have much to plan lah since it’ll be a small one. We are reusing some of her decoration stuff from her 1st birthday and then i found some cheap party stuff at Carousell so that should be it. Also arranged for food to be catered & favors for kids to be pre-packed. So there will be really minimal susahkan diri sendiri. Lol

2017 will be over soon & i honestly can’t wait for 2018 to happen.

Motherhood

Another Exhausted Mom.

December 12, 2017 Dyan

Some people just don’t realize how tiring it is to stay at home & take care of your kids on your own full time. You see your kids 24/7. The moment u wake up & sleep, your entire day revolves around them.

I have no idea why people think SAHM shake leg at home because i think that’s one thing we can’t afford to do. You’re always needed somewhere to do something for your kid.

I’m not complaining though cos this is what i chose and though tiring, i find satisfaction in it. Just like how some people find satisfaction in acquiring a new contract at work etc.

My point is, we are all struggling as mothers. SAHMs are not perfect mummies just because we stay home & be with our kids 24/7 and it u’re a FTWM, don’t look down on SAHM macam we’re good for nothing and if you’re a SAHM, don’t judge a mom for wanting to work for her own money. You & me, we’re both struggling as mothers. Only difference is we have different sets of struggles. But they are struggles too.

I’m just exhausted today. From being a mom & being pregnant. Had to wake up earlier today to send & pick Nadya up from school & them clever me took the train instead of just Grab-bing home. I had to clean up the kitchen upon reaching home & then do the laundry after that. Settle Nadya’s lunch & then get her to clean up the mess she made with her toys. Getting her to clean up is more exhausting than cleaning it up myself but girl gotta learn to clean up after herself.

So yeah that’s why i’m ranting in this post and also because i chanced upon a FB post by a mummy saying she feels like people look down on her cos she’s a SAHM & surprisingly so many others can relate to her & it feels so sad. Why are people judging others on their life choices?

Why can’t people just mind their own business? So yeah that’s the whole gist of this post. K bye.

Motherhood, Nadya Raessa, School

Homeschooling

October 30, 2017 Dyan

I’ve been thinking of homeschooling Nadya many times but I wasn’t sure if I can actually execute it on my own and I spoke to a friend recently about it & she told me that executing it is possible if I can manage my expectations and keep to a timetable.

I can manage my expectations (when u have a kid, you’ll more or less master this) but keeping to a timetable is slightly harder but with another child coming, I think we can somehow keep to a “loose” half-day timetable maybe? For a start. I’m not one to be tied to a schedule cos I love doing things at my own pace.

But I also firmly believe social interaction is essential for kids so I might put her up on weekly classes but not sure where & what kind of classes.

And no, I’m not that ambitious to homeschool Nadya all the way. It’ll only be till she starts formal education (Kindergarten) cos I’m keen on sending her to the MOE Kindergarten near our place, which I really really hope she can get into cos we’re only 500m away & will be given priority but… Nadya is a SG50 baby and we all know there’s A LOT of SG50 babies (hahahaha) so yeah, keeping our fingers crossed.

For now, the plan is to start off with 2-3 times a week, for 2-3 hours a day at a fixed timing. I’m still reading up on Homeschool Curriculum & Lesson plans we can follow. But if you know of any local mummies who homeschool their Pre-kindergarten kids & blog extensively on it, let me know?

I’m honestly still on the fence about it and might need more convincing on my part (and Rusly’s) cos he feels like I might have too much on our plate when the baby is out.

Just a disclaimer, I’m not anti-preschool or anything. Lol. I just cannot find a school I like within our area. The ones I’m considering (10-15mins away) only offer full-day programmes, which I’m not keen on. There is one I like which offers half-day programmes but it’s at least 30mins on public transport and they don’t offer transport services, which is a bummer and I really don’t want to send Nadya to preschool somewhere convenient just because she has to conform to society’s standard cos to me, formal education starts from kindergarten onwards. Before that age, play-based learning is still the best for them. But that’s just my opinion as a mom and I’m not an educator so don’t take my word for it. Hahaha.

Motherhood, Nadya Raessa, Our Little Family

Weekend Play

October 16, 2017 Dyan

We finally did something productive for Nadya last Saturday. Productive cos i’ve been really tired so she has limited outdoor play unless her Papa is around.

First stop was the Baby Fair. We came at 1.00pm and left by 2.00pm. Not kidding seh. I knew exactly what i wanted so i zoomed in straight to the booths & chop2 purchased everything. To be honest, we didn’t get much. I got the Babysafe newborn essential set for $55 which is such a steal! Consists of the newborn pillow, bambeanie & mattress protector.

We also did bottle trade-ins for Comotomo. Nadya is still using Comotomo bottles so adik will also use them later cos I just love the bottles. They’re easy to wash cos of the wide opening & Nadya never got any colic etc from it when she was younger. So i’ll just stick with that brand.

I also borong the Pureen bottle cleanser cos that’s the only formula i like. (I hate the Pigeon one!) Also got boxes of the clothes detergent for babies. Nadya sekarang pakai normal detergent je. But of course for babies, i’m more careful cos they have delicate skin & all. Collected some preorders & left the place promptly to get my nutella-filled doughnuts!

Got these from YazKitchen & they were so good! Anything with nutella is good lah to me.

Since we were at the East area, i thought it’ll be nice to finally drop by The Artground! Wanted Nadya to explore the Down the Rabbit Hole art installation before they change it to another exhibition and they also had this Slime Attack workshop which i know Nadya would love cos she loves Crafty stuff like this! Anything that involves hands-on activities, she suka!

The place itself is not that huge but i like it cos there’s enough space for Nadya to run around without bumping into another kid. Everything is open-ended. It is up to the kids how they want to play & explore.

We went in for the workshop at 3.30pm and Nadya had fun, as expected. I didn’t expect her to actually sit down for the entire 30minutes though cos girl got short attention span. It has to be really really fun for her to sit through anything. She was also the youngest there. Lol

She had fun mixing the slime ingredients & watching it turn from liquid to this stretchy & squishy little thing. It was so worth it!

Admission to The Artground is free but the workshops are at $10/- for a parent-child pair and they have different workshops every weekend for different age groups. You can check out more details here.

We then head over to East Coast Park since it’s nearby.

She’s currently very into her skate-scooter and been scootering the whole house. Lol.
We need to bring her swimming very soon though. She kept asking to go swimming but i don’t know if i can still fit into my swimsuit. Hahahaa.

I slept through the entire journey home cos it was so tiring but i know Nadya had fun so it’s all worth it. Well, i had fun too actually but it would be even better if the weather was kinder. Lol

Motherhood, Nadya Raessa, Our Little Family

Nadya Turns 2 (Day 1)

January 24, 2017January 24, 2017 Dyan

Yes melampau, siap ada (Day 1) because we went out for 3 consecutive days with her. No big party for her this year cos honestly too lazy to plan for one this year.

Twinning with my baby girl! our little black dresses & our Puma Basket Heart in White!

With her favourite boy! It’s so cute how she always demand attention from Rusly when he’s around. Nak pimpin, nak dukung, only with Papa. So endearing but also menyampah cos tetiba the mummy mcm invisible pulak. And yes, we were all dressed in black for her birthday. So HAPPY birthday eh? Lol

Nadya is 2! Can u believe it? Sometimes i also tak percaya. Especially when i re-read my IVF entries (nak revise homework! lol), macam still in disbelief it has been 3 years since i was actively TTC-ing! This girl dah 2 years pun. Alhamdulillah, really thankful that Allah blessed her with great health for 2 years because really that’s all i want for her.

So for Day 1, we kept it really simple, we brought her out to have Waffles & Ice Cream. Our favouriteee! Tried Two Plus One at Woodlands since we’re heading there to collect her Birthday Cake from my friend. Nice waffles & ice cream but quite pricey for a neighbourhood cafe.

Charcoal Waffles with Thai Milk Tea Ice Cream & Bubblegum Ice cream. No idea why that day i mcm terlebih adventurous. I’m usually very safe with my desserts. Most of the time it’s Chocolate / Caramel / Gula Melaka. That kind of safe.

This is Rusly’s safe Choc Chip Waffles with Hazelnut & Creme Brulee Ice Cream. I LOVE the Creme Brulee one seh. So sedap and i think the Choc Chip Waffles lagi sedap than the Charcoal one. Can u hear me silently cursing myself for being adventurous sangat?!

Ice Cream treat! i’m pretty relaxed about the food she takes, now that she’s 2. Last time, everything also cannot. Now, gasak kau lah nak. janji kau diam. hahaha. But u still need to tell me before u feed her anything please.

We head off to my mom’s place after collecting her birthday cake. Mom cooked Nasi Rawon for us. So sedap lah!

A rainbow cake for the girl who brought in tons of colours in our lives ❤

As expected, the cake cutting session was kecoh cos she couldn’t figure out how to blow the candles. Should have practised with her beforehand lah eh? So funny how she’ll auto sing Birthday song when she sees cakes though!

Gifts from her Uncles, Aunties & Grandparents! Gift unwrapping session pun so kecoh lah and she loves everything they got for her. It’s hilarious. Nadya is really blessed to have so many people who love her as much as we do!

Happy birthday my sayang! ❤

DIY Project, Motherhood, Nadya Raessa, Our Little Family

Nadya’s Pink House

January 12, 2017January 11, 2017 Dyan

So we spent our New Year’s Eve at home building a cardboard playhouse from scratch for Nadya! Initially i wanted to use several medium sized boxes from Fedex and stack them up etc but Rusly found a huge box from our last fridge purchase in our storeroom and it was perfect!

My only regret, tak sempat nak document the entire process of making this.

But we created the roof successfuly, taped it up and tutup with mahjong paper before creating the door & windows.

I then did a quick run to BPP to buy spray paints. Got 2 cans in Pink and 1 can in Blue. It was just enough!

Also chose Spray paints over painting cos it’s much easier and we don’t have to wait too long for it to dry completely.

I then made a Mail box, decorated the door & windows by pasting white paper on it. Also made picket fences because too cute!!!

So this is how her new play area looks like. She really love the house. It’s where she keep all her soft toys and yesterday i caught her sleeping inside the house with all her toy friends. So adorable!

Motherhood, Nadya Raessa, Playdate, Uncategorized

Cool De Sac Playdate

January 11, 2017 Dyan

So overdue but i still want to finish up all my overdue entries!

It’s Nadya’s 2nd time at Cool De Sac. Didn’t mind it at all cos she had fun the last time she was there and also i don’t know of any other Indoor Playgrounds at Town / Central area which is more convenient for all us.

Had lunch at Pappa Rich, ordered this Nasi Lemak Combo which is so huge! Obviously tak dapat habiskan ah. Habis lepas tu nak gi main indoor playground lagi. Dah macam ular seh.

As always, Nadya’s favourite. Mesti nak masuk ball pit 1st. But i had to pull her out of it after that cos there was a boy, about 5yrs old who kept diving in the ball pit repeatedly. The mom pun mcm no brain. You know there were few toddlers in the ball pit, tell your toddler not to dive in ah. You don’t just sit in the ball pit and laugh with him. Some parents, really one kind.

We played at the main area for a while but it was a little rowdy, partly cos it’s the school holidays so there were many older kids.The main area is not padded so when the older kids knock her down, she’ll fall on the concrete floor and after that incident where she fell flat on her face because an older boy knocked her down during waterplay, i get really paranoid! But i also don’t want to be a helicopter mummy and hover around her all the time. Then i remembered there was a hidden toddler area right at the back.

Just perfect cos everything is toddler-sized and the area was padded so i let Nadya run free without worrying a bigger kid will knock her down and even if she jatuh ke apa, it’ll hurt lesser? lol

Ni ibarat rumah studio flat tapi ada 10 orang pindah masuk. hahahhaa.
This small playhouse is such a hit!

Hahahaha i cannot tahan this picture. Nadya posing tak leh angkat!
Oh and it’s so difficult to get the the 3 of them to take a group picture.

Probably the best out of the 1754 pictures i took. -____-

One with the mummies! The babies knocked out after the whole thing. Thank goodness!

DIY Project, Motherhood, Nadya Raessa

Homemade Play Dough Recipe!

December 19, 2016 Dyan

So i made some play dough for Nadya last week and got a lot of request for the recipe.
To be honest, this is the best recipe i’ve tried so far! It’s really easy & quick and most of the ingredients are things you can already find in your kitchen.

The texture of the Play dough is also the best. It’s soft & pliable but does not stick to your fingers. The first recipe i tried, i had to knead it like crazy, i was sweating like a mamak prata. But this one was done in less than 10mins!

Obviously i also had my hands on it too. That’s a bowl of Mee Soto, Epok2, Pizza and fishballs. HAHAHAHAHA.

Recipe & also how to do it is in the video below!

Motherhood, Nadya Raessa, Playdate

Busy Tables

December 14, 2016December 14, 2016 Dyan

The other playdate we did last week, this time with Asyura & Yusuf!
We went over to Busy Tables at Rochester Mall! Been wanting to try this but it was quite a distance but when Asyura asked if anyone in the group was interested, i instantly said yes!

Thumbs up to this place for it’s great learning resources! They have practically everything and also great for me to agak2 which ones Nadya love playing with and then consider getting it for her.

and guess which one was her favourite?

Not surprising actually cos Nadya is a touchy feely kind of girl. She loves her Sensory play sessions, loves exploring new things using her sense of touch so she spent most of her time here.

She also love the Teepee & the tent! It’s so cute, she just masuk dalam & lepak cam rumah sendiri. lol

The place is smaller than expected but they managed to put so many learning resources / activities at every corner of the room so there’s always something for them to try.

Also love this light box room! I’ve always wanted to DIY a light box for Nadya but too busy to get started with it and so far, this is only place we’ve been to that offers the light box!

If u’re keen to explore Busy Tables, they’re located at Rochester Mall, which is across Star Vista.

Admission fee is $15.00 for 2hrs of play.

Motherhood, Nadya Raessa, Playdate

Kids STOP!

December 13, 2016 Dyan

It was a busy week! We had two playdates for Nadya last week and one of it was at Kids Stop with Ain & Zafran. I LOVE THE PLACE!!

I’ve never thought Science Centre would be interesting for toddlers (apart from the waterplay area) until we tried Kids STOP.

Kids STOP is great for Pretend Play cos they have different Exhibition Galleries and most of them are suitable for toddlers 18mths and above. I guess as long as they can walk on their own, it’ll be fun for them to explore the place.

This is the Built Environment so they can pretend play as Construction workers. So adorbs lah, them with their construction uniform. Lol

This is the Human Body exhibit where older kids can learn more on what the human body can do. Thing i like about Kids STOP is, the exhibits are really interactive & informative. Great for the older kids since the young ones probably won’t be interested except to touch & role play. They have a clinic theme here, so they can be doctors!

Nadya’s favourite exhibit! She spent most of her time here! They have this Supermarket area where they can pick out their own groceries and place them in baskets. They can also play cashier here, which is one of the kids favourite area cos it’s always crowded! lol

Also one of her favourite area is the Kitchen! And look at the uniform! So geram!!!

They have so many more areas for them to explore.. I think we spent 2 hours in Kids STOP and even i had fun!

I’ve made a short video here to show more on the place & the exhibit galleries they can explore. This is one place you should bring your kids to especially toddlers!

I know it’s pretty similar to Kidzania but i probably won’t be bringing Nadya to Kidzania till she’s much older cos i don’t think the entrance fees would be worth it for her now since she don’t really understand all these pretend play? She’s only interested in playing but she don’t really know she’s supposed to be a doctor etc? So maybe Kidzania would appeal to her more when she’s older. For now, Kids STOP would be a great alternative!

Operating Hours:
They have 2 sessions per day.
9.30am – 1.30pm & 2.00 pm – 6.00 pm
So you can choose either session.

Admission Charges:
18 mths – 8 years old:
$5.00/child (Mon – Fri)
$10.00/child (Weekends / PH & School Holidays)

Adults
$2.00/child (Mon – Fri)
$5.00/child (Weekends / PH & School Holidays)

The rate above is for Singaporeans & PRs only.
Please check here for other visitors.

Kids Stop!
Singapore Science Centre
21 Jurong Town Hall Road
Singapore 609433
Website