online purchases

being 8-9 months pregnant made me highly immobile when preparing for the home :/ this was when i truly appreciated the internet! christmas shopping, research for the home, and even purchases were made online. thank God for the internet, which has become a blessing in this case. many little things in our house were found online because we were not able to source them from anywhere else, or because they were cheaper :) 

take for example, this chair. ever since we started research on our home, i was especially taken by the simplicity of this chair, also known as the eames chair or the eiffel chair. see the inspirations here. little did i know that it was so common :/ nonetheless, it was comfortable, clean in design and fit the theme of our home. at first, i planned to purchase the chair from here or here, but to my joy, i stumbled on this link :) it is the cheapest version i have seen thus far, and with some hesitation, we decided to order 2 pieces, one for our craft area (above), the other for the iMac area. delivery met with some hiccups because i forgot to state my preferred time slot. thank God the two chairs arrived safely nonetheless and we are rather pleased with the quality :)

sometimes it is all about the details. PP and i spent a long time scouring for suitable wardrobe handles for the wardrobe in baby E's room. Mr A actually suggested some cute "bear bear" handles, haha. we quickly told him we would try to source for our own. to our dismay, they can be hard to find! we had no idea where to get them locally. most of the handles (e.g. in IKEA) are metal and not to our liking. we saw some really special ones on etsy but they were rather costly too. after some searching, we finally decided on these :)

these lights were originally for the master bedroom but when they arrived, they were so lovely that we decided to place them in the dining room instead. it all worked out, as the lamp we got for the dining area fit nicely in the master bedroom too :) (more on that later as well, hehe). initially, i thought that we could just do with simple LED down lights, hehe. no regrets getting these from this lovely shop :) part of what made these lamps so special were the bulbs!

they are known as thomas edison bulbs, also found online here :) love the unique light patterns created by these bulbs...truly one of a kind. apparently, this person can make any kind of bulbs as long as clear specifications are provided!

these are our wall hooks and this is where we got our trash bin :)

6 months of happiness

6 months, my dear! that makes almost half a year, and we are enjoying you more than ever!

you are so fun-loving and ever curious about this world that surrounds you. everything intrigues you - you reach out for everything that is strange to you, including your toes :)

your smile, as always, is my highlight for every morning. it is not difficult to make you smile - you are such a happy boy :) how we pray it stays that way and you will learn to rejoice in the goodness of the LORD as you grow :)

my dear baby boy, you are growing so fast that you leave mama and papa breathless sometimes :) there are just so many milestones that you have made and we would have trouble recalling them all if not for the help of photos and videos. you have learnt to roll back and forth - it's your main mode of transportation now. suddenly, your world has expanded and you have realised how there is so much more to explore as you roll here and there. even in your sleep, you are practising and more than once we have found you awoken, calling for help as you wake up stuck on your tummy. thank God for a new skill accomplished so skillfully! there is little we have done as parents to help you attain these milestones. little by little, somehow, you just progress and amaze us :)

you have also learnt to sit for brief seconds on your own, using your hands as support. everytime we carry you and place you in a sitting position, you squeal in excitement as though saying, "wow, the view here is so much better! what took you so long, mama and papa?" 

as your awareness of your surroundings grow, it seems like the separation anxiety is setting in. papa says it's because when we are out of sight, it seems like we cease to exist in your eyes. i have always been exasperated by how "sticky" you can be - just taking a few steps away from you can cause you to protest. however, putting myself in your shoes - if God were to seem to forsake, and stop proving his love and existence to me, i think i would be very much devastated too. and so, i patiently stay by you, and pray that one day, you will realise that many others do love you too and i, as a mother, am more than happy and committed to stay by you and take care of you. this reminds me of how God has promised that He "will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Heb 13:5

this post comes late because it has been such a hectic mid year. we went for church camp in JB, and we took your very first plane ride to penang! wow! thank God for this privilege to fly to penang, where you met your great-grandmother for the first time. it truly warmed my heart that you could be used by God to cheer her spirits at such an old age. she is 93 this year. mama is truly thankful that she has been granted more time by the LORD, so that she can meet you. 

we started you on your solids! you just cant wait to gobble them up :)

we can see your little tooth peeking out on the bottom left side of your gum. is that why you have been waking up so often at night? the possibilities of why you don't sleep well confound us. at times, mama is tempted to search for answers - maybe you are overtired, or undertired, or maybe its the solids. maybe i should shift your nap later, or earlier, etc. at the end of the day, i really just need to let go... pray that God gives us wisdom to decide what to do, to learn to pick up your cues and to give you what's best. 

the faster you grow, the more we want you to slow down. we know fully well that this year will fly by and before we know it, you will no longer be a baby anymore. so day after day, we just want to treasure each moment God gives. the sleepless nights, the poop, the fussing n trying to get you to sleep - these all will pass. but that will mean you're growing up. so we will bear with them as much as we can, trusting that God's grace is sufficient for each day.

we love you so much, little ezra boy. 

tots on parenting/housekeeping #5

(the happiest kind of laundry)

i don't deny that care-giving and being a housewife and a stay at home mom is more difficult than expected. yes, we do meet with our challenges and there are unexpected difficulties each day, but the biggest struggle is actually the mundaneness of it all. 

since a long time ago, i always knew that this would be my end state if God ever gave me a child. i knew how important it was to mother the child, to bring him up in the ways of God, to be there everyday for him and fulfill the calling of a mother. i've sort of looked forward to it, thinking that it would be fulfilling and there would be no better calling. 

alas, it is alot more glamourous in my imagination :)

i struggle so much...sometimes muttering and murmuring - am i supposed to feel accomplished by how clean i mop the floor? how well i do the dishes? what have i condescended to?

God showed me and comforted me through this passage:

"Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD." Jeremiah 9: 23-24

God reminded me that my pride and all the accomplishments i hold on to are but dust. my glory and my joy should come for this: striving to know and love the God who loves me so and has been so real in my life... and then showing my understanding of His will in my life by doing what He wants me to do and being exactly where He places me. 

tots on parenting #4

when my child is sick ...

this is probably one of the greatest trial that God can put in the life of a mother. the fear that the child does not recover, the heartache that comes from seeing your child suffer, and the impatience for the child to quickly recover are all overwhelming emotions that one needs to deal with, in the midst of all the frantic physical care-giving. it's been tough, but there are a few lessons that God has taught me through this:

1) Ezra is not mine. He is given by God, and under the care of God Almighty.

"But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows." Luke 12:7

2) Don't think beyond tomorrow, for it can be too much to bear

"Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." Matthew 6:34

3) Trials like this can come, to build our faith and teach us how important it is to trust in Him.

"Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass." Psalms 37:5

4) I need to learn to suffer long, and be contented with whatever state God places us in

"Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." James 1:3-4

 

5) I am thankful for the fellow prayer warriors who committed Ezra to God in prayer when he was ill.

" Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." James 5:16

thank God that we can bear one another's burdens :) (pun intended :)

5 months

my dear baby, 

this month has passed in a blur and we are sooo sleep-deprived. what is going through this little mind of yours, that causes you to wake up ever so frequently when you used to be a sound sleeper? we do wonder, and at times, despair... but thank God that day by day and with each passing moment, strength we find to meet our trials here :) 

on a happy note, perhaps it's because you really are growing. suddenly, you seem so engaged and active, so easily excited and acutely aware of your surroundings. mama has become a familiar face to you, such that you don't want her out of your sight (especially when you are feeling cranky). you are chattering and blabbering, to people, soft toys, lights and fans. your legs, the moment you awake, are on non-stop action. kick kick kick! 

as we look back on this month, i think the biggest thanksgiving is how God has seen mama and papa through, for it has not been an easy month. papa has been especially busy at work, and sometimes, returning to find you asleep. mama has been "forced", or "trained" (by God) to learn to be independent in taking care of you. and she has made some milestones! walking to the nearby food centre is a breeze now, after we have taken the mrt and taxi :) mama has even taken you for a drive in the car..... which sometimes you take to while other times.....hmmm.... let's just say you missed mama too much ;)

you also have a few "firsts" :) first time you rolled intentionally from front to back, first haircut, first two nights away from home during the yaf retreat :) 

your personality is emerging. you have fussy peculiarities and when not given your way, will make your displeasure known. for example, you seem to dislike wearing clothes?! sometimes, we are confounded as to when we ought to scold you or discipline you. may God give us the wisdom to do so :) without anyone teaching you, you learn to get angry, throw tantrums, and make your desires known. why? its our sin nature. ( For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Rom 3:23) how we pray that one day you will quickly come to know our Saviour, Jesus Christ, the only one who can deliver us from the bondage of sin. 

nevertheless, my dear, we love you more than ever. you have brought so many smiles to our faces and God has used you to teach us so much. we can't quite imagine life without you anymore :)