We won our first baby's popularity contest

To be honest, before joining one ourselves, I have never understood why parents were still busy rallying for likes/ votes despite lagging behind. We didn't start off strong and I could feel the stress. LOL! Our friends were barely on Facebook and we basically relied on my network of contacts to make it there. (Note: The husband couldn't remember his Facebook password and just decided to not vote instead, wtf)

Such contests are usually very successful because parents don't really /can't live with themselves if they fail to "try" for their kid. I was joking I can be unpopular but not my kid, haha. We made it eventually in the end, but I can ensure you it was so paiseh to rally. And so, this might be our last popularity contest. 

Oh and here's the funny thing, we don't even really want the prize cos it is some silly bedding (not even a full year supply of milk). So from a outsider's point of view, this is irrational and ridiculous. My husband and father have even offered to buy me the prize, LOL! They concluded it was easier than rallying/ monitoring. 

I guess when you sink in too deep, there is no way out. Guess we only want the winning glory. :P

My experience with Wishtrend Products

I have always been reviewing Wishtrend, in particular Klairs products. But this time round, I wanted it to be a bit different. Here's a close-up of my face so you know how the products have been working for me. I am actually very proud of my eyes, which shows no signs of ageing. I do have a bit of the natural puffy lower lids (卧蚕) which the Chinese really love. But honestly, if it is not a filler, it is easily prone to wrinkles. The only way to lessen its impact is to spam eye products. And I have been using the Fundamental Nourishing Eye Butter ($24)

I heard a lot of good reviews on the Freshly Juiced Vitamin Drop ($23) so I have incorporated it into the regime. I feel that it is a morning version of the Midnight Blue Youth Activating Drop ($30). I will probably be sticking to the Youth Drop because I usually do my skincare at night since mornings are usually quite a rush for me. 

The only non-Klairs item I used was the Rovectin Aqua Soothing UV Protector ($29). To be honest, I would prefer using Klairs products simply because it is trial and tested on my skin. However, Klairs is always out of stock and I really needed some sunscreen badly now we are out more often. Rovectin isn't bad, it does its job and doesn't cause any break-out. It is just that I am a sucker for Klairs haha. 

Trimester 2 Woes: Severe diastasis recti - hernia, stretchmarks, giant tummy

We finally reached trimester 2 and can I proclaim how much I love this trimester. As a second time Mum, I pretty much know what I am in for (I think). This time round, I still managed to check myself in to A&E because apprently, I got a Hernia. 

Most people are familiar with the term - diastasis recti which is the weakening and separation of the muscles as a result of pregnancy. I actually didn't know I had a hernia until I casually mentioned to my gynae about a dull pain near my belly button. Turn out I had a 1 cm tear. I had a a freak accident one day and was in so much pain that I couldn't stand/walk and was tearing non-stop. So I checked myself into A&E.

Generally, though the truth was hard to bear, it doesn't really cause much issues in my lifestyle. I just had to stop doing intense tummy exercises which could worsen the issue. And any corrective action (i.e. surgery depending on the situation then) could only be done after labour. 

My tummy was a lot bigger this time round. My tummy was of this size at 27 weeks during the first pregnancy, but at 16 weeks, this was basically the size of my tummy lol. If you are wondering why there is so much lesser photos of myself this pregnancy, I think I am a lot more occupied this time round. Most of my photos are still of my firstborn, haha. And he still takes the focus over myself. 

During the first trimester, I also had to ask to work at home and was more absent at work because of the nausea. (To FTM, don't be afraid to seek special arrangement during the early stage of the pregnancy, cos it is usually 4-6 weeks max and most people are very understanding.) During the second trimester, I basically tried to catch up the lost time and pave the way so that I can slow down before labour. 

Another reason why I don't like taking photos of my belly was because of the ugly stretch marks. During my first pregnancy, I didn't have any. They only came post-partum and hit me hard. Unlike what the internet states, my stretch marks actually faded very nicely. They resurfaced during the 2nd pregnancy, which I somewhat expected. I am just bothered that the maternity shoots will be ugly lol or maybe I just need to take it from some other angles. 

This is not my tummy, but mine is as bad now. But because I have been through worse (postpartum one was way worse), I know that recovery (though non laser method is possible) so maybe that's why I am quite chill about it. Not in point form this time round, but hope this post let other mothers know that there are mothers who don't go through the perfect pregnancy/ post-partum, but better days are ahead/ So stay strong!

Hungry for mooncakes

Mooncakes are so sinful, especially for a pregnant lady like myself, I really shouldn't be eating so much. The truth is I love mooncakes and I am those idiots that can eat half a piece myself daily. This pregnancy is very different from the last. My son kept me pretty slim throughout. Although I am much more active this time round, I am so much fatter. T_T

So less, mooncakes this time round. Nonetheless everyone at home sort of bought a box and I had so much to try. I decided to do a post on it cos there is one very disappointing one and it was bought by me :'(

1. Golden Moments ($60/ box of 4)

Everybody is here to know is shitty here goes...This crap sucks. I definitely got it at the lowest possible price cos I bashed them on my social media (and from the replies I got, this price was the lowest possible one) But you know what it is not even worth $15. I only tried the Mao Shan Wan Durian Snowskin and the Docello Hazlenut Mao Shan Wang Durian Snowskin, which I preferred the less famous latter. The packaging is terrible too, it was a tacky golden cooler bag in a similarly tacky golden box. 

I don't know whether this was a case of overly-high expectations. I admit I cave in to buying it because of the reviews of Food King which Aiken was raving how good it was. Dude, stop acting cos the durian puree is good but not that divine. And the snowskin just didn't make it for me. It was just too gooey. Don't waste your money and calories on this, durian puree itself is so much more satisfying.

2. Awfully Chocolate Chocolate Truffle Mooncakes ($48/ box)

It was on one-for-one and we found someone to share. We bought this because we were very curious about it. We are actually impressed with the packaging cos they gave us a wooden box for it. In fact, a lot of people asked if we wanted the box cos they wanted it LOL! It is a very nice piece of chocolate, but I can't really taste the truffle. And the 3 brown mooncakes taste alike to me...

I don't think I will be going for it again next year because I think I am more used to the original snowskin/ baked mooncakes. I don't really want to eat a whole piece of chocolate in the shape of a mooncake if you know what I mean. 

3. Yuen Fatt Mooncake

This was the best I ate this year and I am absolutely in love with it. My BIL bought it from Shopee but I don't know the price and which shop to buy from. After I told my friends/ followers how good this was, everybody wanted to know more information about it. But I don't have info on it and I was too paiseh to ask my BIL. I only told him to buy again this year. 

This is the sort of mooncake I can eat 1/2 to 1 whole piece daily. Initially, I did judge it cos it looked so long and weird but after I ate it I would always open to box to check if anyone had cut and allocate the pieces. The filling is really good and I can safely say the same for all 3 flavours. 

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Generally, this year's mooncakes are quite disappointing. Am not sure if I will do a part 2 because we have a lot of different brand mooncakes at home. Is just that my husband's family don't have the habit of waiting to take nice food photos. They attack the mooncakes very fast so the photos in this series look the most unflattering so far HAHAHA

Bosch Freestanding Countertop - We Love It!

**I found this photo online and was inspired by this. 

And so we finally set up our dishwasher. All along we actually wanted to incorporate a dishwasher into our kitchen, but our ID was worried that since the dishwasher and sink would be sharing the same water outlet, if a choke were to happen, it would render our kitchen sink useless as well. So the idea was scraped. 

Sadly, I developed post-partum eczema on my fingers in particular. Might have been allergic to some of the dishwashing liquid used and so the husband took over the cleaning. And boy did he complain, so he entertained the thought of a dishwasher again, this time stacking on top of the washing machine. 

And boy, I love our dishwasher. We got our Bosch Freestanding Countertop at around $800 during a sale. Although it came with a Y Pipe to split the water source from the washing machine, it didn't exactly work and our plumber had to get us another part so that the Y pipe would work. He also cut the pipes so that it would fit nicely into outlet pipe. 

For our wash, we always use the eco-friendly version because I just can't kill the Earth any more. (What I can do, I do. What I can't - like overbuying baby clothes, I reduce and bless it out). It takes about 2-3 hours but that just means we have to plan our cleaning early. It doesn't really matter because we have a lot of cutleries at home (which happen to dishwasher friendly). Note: You might have to replace your cutlery sets if they are not dishwasher friendly. For us this includes our wooden chopsticks, chopping board/ knives and some cups.) 

With the dishwasher, we managed to reduce the dishwashing time after a meal to a mere 15 minutes. I even had time to watch TV and do a post up. The washed items came out sparkling clean and I was sort of insulted because it sort of made me appear to be a terrible homemaker. There was a bit of smell after the washing in the machine but it soon dissipated with a bit of airing. 

Money really well spent, and I have been flexing to everyone ever since. The only thing we really needa figure out now is how to arrange the dishes optimally and where to get cheap cleaning tablets. Now with this aid, I feel a little more ready for our #2. 

Kids-Friendly Cafe in the East

I decided to pen up this post because I realise as a parent a lot of my meals have been taken rather hurriedly. I feel like I can I finally understand why some working mothers relish going back to work. I used to hate eating alone (because somehow I feel it seems loserish), but not anymore. I actually enjoy the silence and that I can finally think and not be disturbed. 

We have been exploring the East quite a bit lately and these are my friends' (who live in the East) recommendations. Oddly, they ain't parents themselves but their recommendations are pretty dope!

1. Little Rogue Coffee

This wasn't initially our first choice but my father missed the turn to ECP and he was getting incredibly frustrated at my brother's navigation so we came here instead. It is a very typical cafe (pet friendly too) which serves really good coffee and food. It was quite packed when we were there and we came slighty after lunch hour. It is quite a noisy place too if you want a nice conversation. 

What we really love was the small play area for the kids. The little one would just grab a bite and then past his time playing in the pretend play area and the rest of the adults could have a breather. We got for him a chicken noodle soup ($12) and a plate of fries ($14.40). Realistically, he didn't finish all his food (obviously I overordered), so usually for us, the adults would finish his leftovers. 

Sorry, I didn't really take a photo of the menu so I can't remember the price, but we did try a good variety there.

• Flat White: My father and brother said the coffee was really good. 
• If you are expecting too, you can go for Karma drinks (doesn't contain caffeine) and Spicy Beef Linguine ($30)
• Soft Scrambled Eggs & Ikura ($19.50) and Seafood Linguine ($30) were chef's recommendations. The linguine are well executed with good texture and the ikura made the typical breakfast set more unique and atas LOL!

It is isn't exactly the cheapest cafe in town, but the ingredients used were pretty exquisite which explained the price. 

2. Commune (East Coast Park)

This was the place we wanted to go and wow, the husband and I just fell in love with the chill, relaxing vibe at our first step. The high ceiling even made the husband go "let's get a one-story landed property" haha. In fact, we short-listed this place for the kiddo's next birthday party. Similarly, it also had a small play area with a see saw, toys and books for the kids, complete with a children's changing room. 

Tips for parents, sit close to that area and your kid just run back and forth. The cafe truly gave me the "child-friendly" vibe because the waitresses would help to eye on the kids while you make your orders and grab a bite. I was so relaxed I ended up spending more more LOL. My kid was also pretty comfy, he offered the waitresses food and in the end grab a sticker pack home. He even held it tightly in his hands when he knocked out on his stroller. 

And yes we ordered a lot of food:

• For the baby we offered him: Petit Pancake ($10) - it was not our thing . The kid rejected it and we could barely finish it ourselves. Mozzarella Cheese Sticks ($10) - He ate like at least 4 himself. 
• For the expecting, you can go for the Beef Ragu Pappardelle ($19) - super love the pasta by the way, Smoked Barramundi Sourdough Sandwich ($19) - the Husband and I agreed this was the best sandwich we ever had in our lives and the Lychee and Mint Ice Tea ($7.50) - unsweetened and caffeine-free
• Flat white - go for the bigger cup cos it is more value for money at an additional $1
• Desserts - Hazelnut single scoop ice cream ($4.50) and Earlgrey Lavender Tea Cake ($8) - Totally not our thing too, shouldn't have ordered although I see lots of people grabbing one.

Huge damage to the wallet, but it was all so worth it :P 

The Fourth Trimester

To refresh our memories of the "painful fourth trimester", the Hubs and I took the opportunity to watch a play by the Checkpoint Theatre. Personally, I felt the most painful trimester was the fourth - the confinement, the continuous sweating from the confinement food (which was missed out in the play, haha) and the breastfeeding (gosh I hated it and it went on for 10 months). Lack of sleep and the changes in the body was also pretty difficult to bear. 

Interestingly, now that the little one is nearing 2, I have pretty much forgotten these dark days and the play sort of reminded me what was coming (again). The script is highly relatable at so many points and the strong cast managed to bring out quite a bit of emotions in me. I did sniffle at a few parts because it did feel like we were looking at our own story.

If you are a parent yourself, you will know that no birth story is the same. However, they tend to share a lot of similarities which is why women bond when they talk about pregnancy, childbirth and their kids. The stage and props was also very realistically set up. The never-ending laundry that is waiting to be folded (still the case) just triggered me somehow. There was a point I had an urge to storm on stage to fold them. LOL!

The Hubs, I have to say, probably educated himself very well during the first pregnancy - pointing out the Spectra to me and even commenting on some baby's gear such as the rocker, white noise soother which could have the made the screen parents life easier. Did I say maybe he had a bit of guilt too because he even offered to help out a lot more at home after watching the play!

The show was truly quite an enjoyable watch for us and we would recommend to all parents/ parents to-be if you would like a teaser of what is to come. The show was slightly longer than what we preferred because it touched base on too much scenarios and thought maybe 2 of ladies' characters could be combined into 1. 

The play is showing until 14th Aug and the price range between $40 to $80. If you have passion card (which I have cos it always give great discounts), you can get 10% off your tickets! 

How to survive a Baby Fair - Daddy's Edition

 

We went for our first Baby Fair and I think I thrived pretty well. I won't say the same for the Hubs who honestly looked half-dead most of the time. I think we or maybe more accurately I managed to snag a few good deals and looted home quite a bit of samples/ freebies. 

Generally, the baby fair seems more like a Mum's thing cos most husbands did look like soulless shadows lurking at the corner staring aimlessly into space. So the husband decided to share some survival tips with the other husbands out there to make their life easier. LOL! Let the Hub take over...

1. Just pick one! There will be numerous fairs, just pick one to go because the deals are pretty much the same for most. Just pick the one which is the most convenient. We picked the one at MBS.


2. Jio a friend along. Misery enjoy company. Your wife and your friend's wife can discuss and influence each other and the 2 of you can finally take a step back, talk and just be literal bag holders. 


3. Don't listen to influencers. The deals they share are sponsored. The best deal we found of the day was by NTUC. Free delivery above $200, on top of great freebies thrown in. Any influencers mentioned them? Not a single one. 
   
   


4. Create a list before going down. Don't let your wives walk and venture too much. The more they walk, the more they get sucked in and spend. The more they spend, the more you have to carry back. 


5. Check what is available at the with-purchase freebies at the start. Honestly, you are bound to be disappointed if you are only there for the freebies. Focus your wives on the important things, we are here to snag the good deals. Freebies (if any) is a bonus. 


6. Bring a luggage (not the kids): She did bring one and an Ikea bag so that made lugging the stuff around a lot easier. Kids are literally liabilities at fairs. Don't bring them because with them you can't shop fast and furious.

Gender Reveal: Using Clothes from Little BB Love

 

Me being me, I don't try to repeat my surprise. Haha. So this time round, I decided to use clothes instead to surprise the family. Special thanks to Little BB Love for making it happen. Usually, they would provide a nice bag when you make any purchase from them. But this time round because we didn't want to let my Mum want to see what was in the bag, it came in a typical polyester plastic. 

Personally, I am actually quite happy with using clothes as the surprise because (i) they are very functional, I know our little one is going to wear them for sure and (ii) our kid has worn a lot of pieces from Little BB Love so we know how good the quality are. 

I tried the first gender reveal on my parents as they are the easiest.. I used a very pink sleepsuit. (Sorry guys, it is no longer available. Little BB Love is always releasing new designs and from experience, almost never restock. So, if you see something you like, you needa grab them fast.)

Basically, I made my firstborn carry the bag with clothes in it to my parents. He was pretty cooperative that day so this was quite a roaring success. My parents and kid were obviously very pleased with the gender of this baby. 

Because I had a little slip of tongue of the gender with my husband, I had to do his gender reveal fast and furious. To confuse him, I picked the most ambiguous piece in the selection - Glittery Necklace ($22). Under the light, the pink looked a little whitish, so the husband was very confused. That was how I wanted to leave him because I was kinda of annoyed I let it slip (and he kept teasing me about it) so I took it out on him, LOL!

The photos look a bit blurry by the way because it was a video and I just took snip-shots so that I can share them here. The last piece was used on my in laws. It was Sailing the World ($35). I am a huge fan of blue so that confused them too, my MIL had to open the whole piece to see the skirt and headband to affirm the gender. The husband was watching at the side too so that he can be sure, LOL!

The last gender reveal was an absolute failure - not because the dress wasn't pink and instinctive, but because my son turned back and attacked my phone when I was recording because he wanted to watch Cocomelon. Oh Gawd! The footage was pretty raw and funny but if you really want something curated, please pick frilly pink clothes if you are having a girl and boyish blue if you are having a baby boy. People want to know the answer at first glance, haha and not be pranked. 

Just for my readers only, here's a deal. Quote "FF-LBBL", you get $5 off the first purchase with a minimum spend of $50. It's not that hard to hit because they do have a lot of nice pieces.