BEAUTIFUL LIFE
• Friday, December 30, 2005 - I'M MOVING AGAIN
• Thursday, December 29, 2005 - UPDATE ON DINKY
The vet confirmed that her hind legs are unusually long, which could attribute to either a birth defect or an accident and thankfully, she isn't in pain now. Whether she will be in much pain later, we don't know and she might even suffer from arthirities. However, she is very undernourished and underweight (only 1.9kg), thus the task now would be to fatten her up before we neuter her, x-ray, vaccinate (last of the three courses) and pluck out her baby teeth. (Her adult teeth have grwn out without pushing out her baby teeth, thus she kinda looks like a pirahna with two rows of teeth on the top.)
We've been given liquid multi-vitamins and medicine for her diahorrea. She has diahorrea bcos she hasn't been eating much, possibly from being scared in a new environment. We have also de-wormed her.
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• Wednesday, December 28, 2005 - AS I MATURE
• Monday, December 26, 2005 - NEW ADDITION
We had been talking about it since Toto's departure. It would be a wonderful Christmas gift to Shandy if we have an addition to our family. Thus, we got another doggie.
Everybody, meet Dinky - dinky ears, dinky walk (which I will explain in abit).
We had the initial intention to adopt a mongrel, thus headed out to the pet farms in Pasir Ris because some friends had adopted a sweet mongrel from Animal Lovers Legue. We first stopped at Ericsson Pet Farm and some guy working there overheard that we wanted to adopt a dog, so he said that he had a really sweet Papillon for 'adoption' and that if we wanted her, to just pay a token sum. While I had my heart set on a mongrel, I decided to keep an open mind.
The guy told us that she is a really sweet dog and that he just wants to find her a good home since her brothers and sisters have been adopted and she was all alone. He went on to say that she was just 5-6 months old. Because of the earlier comment, I suspected at once that there was something wrong with the dog, which he was not telling me. I later also noticed that she had funny hind legs.
Now, it is not that papa and myself are not going to take a dog that has physical defects. Infact all our furkids have defects somehow or rather. But we would prefer if he had been honest with us. Anyhoo, before we left, he told us that the 'token' sum was $500 but for us, just $388. I wasn't keen because I had originally intended to just spend $100+ in adopting a mongrel.
So we headed off to other pet farms and then to Animal Lovers League (ALL) who happened to be closed! Even after speaking to the people about my genuine interest in adopting a dog, they did not entertain my questions much. Thus, we had to scratch that and decided to go back and ask about the Papillon.
Also, I realised that the mongrels in ALL seemed more happy/contented than the Papillon stuck in the tiny enclosure. An observation I made, possibly to find reasons to adopt her!
Papa and I headed back to speak to the guy working there again and countered offered for the dog. It was not that we were not willing to pay for the dog, but we were most unwilling to pay good money to people who tried to pull many fast ones on us. He even went on to say that I had such good chemistry with the dog, when all the dog was doing in the cage was to look majorly depressed.
I was straight up with him and told him that I was genuinely interested in 'adopting' the dog, but I needed to know what her problems are. And I was pretty sure that her left hind leg was one. He went to speak to someone else then came back to me and told me that one of her hind legs is indeed longer than the other. I also asked for her birthdate - 22 March 2005, which makes her 9 months and NOT 5-6 months as originally told ... bloody hell (because most times, pet shops have a hard time selling dogs of this age). I also said that the cost was too high.
Anyhoo, to cut the super long story a little short, we managed to get a slightly cheaper price for her, he even threw in a free collar and a 10% discount on her food, and the dog is now ours. We decided to adopt her because we did not want her to fall in the hands of an unsuspecting person, who finds out much later that his dog had a leg problem only to dump her. Truth be told, if she was in good shape, we wouldn't even consider getting her because we know that she would easily find a home. So I guess, we felt that we had to 'save' her from the evil clutches of money making dog traders.
Back to the doggie. She walks in a damm weird way! That's why papa chose to call her Dinky - that she walks in a dinky manner. And because her ears are so huge, they are so dinky too! My mama says that she must be a cross between a Papillon and a kangaroo. We are going to take her to the vet tomorrow to get her checked out, and hopefully, the vet tells us that she is not in pain. If she is, we'll see what we can do to alleviate her situation. My mama thinks that we are crazy to get her because Dinky looks really pathetic when she walks. But well, Dinky takes up near to negligible space in the house and we will definitely shower her with more love and attention and care than the average owner would.
The cherry on the icing is that Shandy loves her. He is so sweet and gentle with her. He did not growl at her, instead, he licks her all over her face, sniffs her occasionally to check on her. Suddenly, he is this sweet, big brother who is looking out for the younger one.
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• Sunday, December 25, 2005 - INSENSITIVE
How insensitive can anybody get? It's Christmas Day for crying out loud! Do we NEED to see Durai's face on the front page of the papers the first thing on Christmas morning? Seriously, I was very affected ... so damn affected that I pasted post-its over every photo in the paper...
We had a Christmas lunch over at Wendy's place. I made gingerbread people for the kids and they didn't turn out too bad. Although, the icing I made was alittle too runny. All in all, it was a great afternoon.
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• Saturday, December 24, 2005 - MERRY CHRISTMAS
Have a lovely Christmas everyone!
Hope you all take the opportunity to hug a loved one, sit back and relax.
xxx
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• Tuesday, December 20, 2005 - ANOTHER CHRISTMAS PARTY
Brought Keegan to a Christmas party. He was sooo happy and had soooo much fun. Happy, as in ... UNCONTAINABLE EXPLODING BUM SHAKING GLEE.
I think it was most likely the combination of balloons, games, prizes, streamers, presents for everyone and fun-sized chocolate bars ... not to mention five tables full of deep fried finger foods and desserts. He was in kid heaven man! I decided to let him enjoy himself and not be too strict on what he ate. I figured ... once a year can't hurt la, right.
Most of the program was designed for much bigger kids, thus for most of the evening, Keegan and I just doddled around, watched and chatted about stuff. He was good sport, excellent company and genuinely interested in everything that was going on around us.
At one point he found some other children his age and they ran around like giddy lunatics. It was nice to watch ...
By the way, I'll be moving to my new home @ www.irenegwen.blogspot.com soon. But I'll still be keeping this weblog and have it on going. I did not include 'comment' mode in my new home thus please send me an email (on the right hand side) if you want to honk at me.
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• Friday, December 16, 2005 - WHAT CHRISTMAS ORNAMENT ARE YOU
• Wednesday, December 14, 2005 - I'M DONE WITH CHRISTMAS SHOPPING
       
Finally ... finally i got all my kids a present for this Christmas.
Though ToTo has left me, he will always be in my heart and soul. He loves rubber duckiesss of any form. Hence I got him yet another rubber duckie and place it next to his photo. Shandy, i got him a nice cute Ruby Reindeer Holiday soft toy. My cats, i got them both a Catnip Blanket. As for my rabbits, i got each of them a Peek a Boo Toy Box. And as for my hamsters, i got them both a Crinkle Ball toy.
Now ... i'm broke ... really broke.
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• Tuesday, December 13, 2005 - SHOES
Was yaking with Diane and Teni last night about bags and shoes which somehow reminds me of when I was a kid, every so often my parents or relatives would go holidays. And for some reason, they had this "thing" about buying shoes for all the kids back.
Hence, the night before they'd leave, each kid would get a sheet of paper, a pen and instructions to trace an outline of our feet. Both left and right. With our names written neatly within each foot outline. It seemed so dumb. But failure to obey brought on a wrath none of us were willing to explore.
I guess in a way, it made sense. Considering the differences in numerical shoe sizes between different countries.
Yeah ... those were the days.
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• Sunday, December 11, 2005 - WHAT A HUGE DIFFERENT
Was going through some of my pictures. Oh gosh! How time flies!
Year 1999 when we got married
Year 2005 after we became parents
Year ???? after we become grandparents?
Sigh ...
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• Saturday, December 10, 2005 - TAKE A BREAK
• Tuesday, December 6, 2005 - MIXED FEELINGS
Here we are, on the brink of the final month in the year. Keegan will be going to pre-nursery next year! (Pardon me if you find me repeating again and again… it’s a sign of aging…)
I’m anticipating the BIG day with mixed feelings.
I felt happy that my boy is finally entering another new stage of his life, that he will soon develop special friendships with his peers.
At the same time, I dread to think that very soon, he will be on the road to independency!
I want his school life to be fun and fulfulling, yet I know that he is bound to face some setbacks along the way!
Though he has always been the apple of our eyes, I can't deny the fact that he might not be the class favourite or the teacher’s pet!
How will I be able to let him go, and entrust his care to his teachers for three hours a day, five days a week? Will they be able to tolerate his nonsense as I do?
How will the teachers deal with his anger, his stubbornness and his disobedience?
Though he can be cheeky and would create havoc when he is in his naughty moods, he is in fact timid by nature. Will he get bullied by his classmates?
He takes a longer time to warm up to others and I know he gets panicky when being left with a room full of strangers! How will the teachers help him fit nicely into his class?
I know I have to learn to let go, I know I have to help him to be an independent big boy, I know I have to trust the professionalism of the teachers; and I know he can sense my anxiety if i continue to worry so much. But ... I can't help it!!
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• Saturday, December 3, 2005 - PAPA'S BIRTHDAY
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU ...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU ...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO PAPA ...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
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• Saturday, December 3, 2005 - CHRISTMAS PARTY
    
We were at the Christmas Party this afternoon and it was absolutely fantastic! There was a bouncy castle and there was live music, face painting, balloons, drinks, sandwiches and snacks. There were stores selling various type of muppets and toys. I arrived, completely prepared to spend a fortune on the muppets. In fact I WANTED to spend a fortune - ANYTHING which would please my little monster!
Keegan went on the bouncy castle, ate some sandwiches, got his face painted, had a candy floss!! YES!! CANDY FLOSS!!! I know is sinful but hey (!!) is a party!!
The sun began to set. The crowd grew bigger and bigger. And there was a Santa!! Yes!! Santa Claus was there to give out presents to the kids! Keegan was so excited and waited patiently for his present.
Towards the end of the party, Keegan turned to me and said, "Mama, Keegan like this party. Thank you very much! I am really happy." It melted my heart. It was truly a lovely moment.
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• Thursday, December 1, 2005 - BARNEY'S MUSICAL CASTLE
Brought Keegan to Barney's Musical Castle show this evening.
This year performance is definitely a much better show with a live-action stage show featuring the backyard gang in a medieval-themed, musical fantasy adventure with kings and knight and an enchanted forest.
Keegan had a really great time shouting, singing and dancing along with Barney ... it was truely a magical moment coming out from the musical castle with Barney and Friends.
I LOVE YOU, YOU LOVE ME.
WE ARE HAPPY FAMILY.
WITH A GREAT BIG HUG.
AND A KISS FROM ME TO YOU.
WON'T YOU SAY YOU LOVE ME TOO. 
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• Wednesday, November 30, 2005 - GOOD NEWS
There you have it...
Singaporeans! Listen up!
As long as you are rich, you/your sons won't have to serve NS.
Just cough up S$33,000...
Rita mama sent me this :
Price of dodging draft: $33,000
Besides a $3,000 fine, pianist Melvyn Tan, who failed to fulfil his NS duties, also lost a $30,000 security bond
SINGAPORE-BORN pianist Melvyn Tan, 49, now a British citizen, had to pay a $3,000 fine for failing to do national service nearly 30 years ago. He also lost a $30,000 security bond which was pledged as a guarantee that he would return to serve NS.
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I really don't know what signals the Singaporean government is trying to send to its citizens. I can just imagine a doting parent spending S$33K to free their son from NS. What's S$33k nowadays to the middle class? It's a snap to raise that kind of money, just borrow it from the bank if you don't already have that kind of liqudity.
So now we know in Singapore, S$33K buys one of the following set of items:
1. 2 relatively good quality 2 carat diamond rings 
2. 66 pairs of Ferragamo shoes
3. 11 alligator skin LV bags
4. 2 diamond rolex watches
5. A small car
6. 2 C-section births and hospitalisation
7. FREEDOM FROM NS
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• Tuesday, November 29, 2005 - GET IT RIGHT
You know what freaking pisses me off? When people call, they go, “Hello, can I speak to Miss Aileen-Grand please.”
I will then correct them and say, “Irene-Gwen.”
Then they will say, “Aileen.”
I repeat, “Irene.”
And they promptly proceed to ignore me, without so much of an apology for bastardising my name. Having to deal with a lot of strange people of late (delivery of my furnishings, HDB service), this problem has been occurring at an alarming rate - alarming because my blood pressure is right now at an all time high and am ready to go into teacher mode and force the poor sod to repeat after me till he gets it right.
How would Peter (whom I was speaking to on the phone earlier) appreciate it if I call him Beater, or Peteer, or Asshole!
Get it wrong the first time, I forgive. Get it wrong despite me correcting you and then proceeding to ignore me, deserves a swift big kick on the butt!
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• Monday, November 28, 2005 - MERRY RED SUPER EXPANSIVE CHRISTMAS
Now that the new multi-storey carpark is finally open, I dared to venture into Holland Village for shopping.
Here are the offerings from Lim Arts (think of a price, multiply it by 3) ... Merry Red Super Expansive Christmas!
The tiny jewelled Christmas tree (front row, third from left) is mere S$200!! Siao!!
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• Saturday, November 26, 2005 - A TWIST OF FATE
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I was so looking forward to this one at the Esplanade.
Being a member of the Singapore Peranakan Association, I got complimentary tickets to A Twist Of Fate (Stars Laura Michelle Kelly - Laurence Olivier Award Best Actress 2005 and music by Dick Lee) and it was awesome!
It is a comedy of twists and turns, false clues and dastardly deeds, set against the backdrop of a Peranakan family in Singapore. Dark and stormy nights, midnight rendezvous and aiyo (!!) an inconvenient murder makes this play so interesting to watch! Adrian Pang is so hilarious!! Just couldn't stop giggling whenever he appeared!
Aiyeh! If only Keegan is old enough to join us. Knowing him, I'm sure he would enjoy watching Adrian Pang's silly moves!
Okok, got to go. Needs to take off my nonya kebaya. Feel so damn uncomfortable wearing it!! Uggrrrr ...
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About Me
Life is precious and short. I pray you receive a blessing as you browse through my life ... my loves ... my pictures. May GOD richly bless you and keep you safe.
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