grace that is sufficient

the past week had been an extremely difficult one. even though the haze had thankfully dissipated (mostly), the baby and I were still battling the effects of it on our health. I probably felt it more, considering how the phlegm stubbornly stayed in my lungs and coughing left me breathless and tired. What made it worse was that Asher began to teeth and slept horribly in the nights, leaving me utterly exhausted and desperately needing to recover and just, REST.

and so i broke down yesterday. after the MIL brought Asher out, I let loose the dam that was bursting at the seams. I let it out, howling (literally) my exhaustion and helplessness out. I managed to get an hour's nap after that and rationalized that I couldn't stress myself any further wondering if it was the teething or insufficient food that had kept the baby up before. I'll hafta take it one night at a time.

I reminded myself multiple times that His Grace is sufficient for me, and I don't think it's a coincidence that the hubby prayed the exact same words over us last night.

There's a slew of events facing the physically exhausted hubby this week, I sprained my back this morning and am a little stressed over the MIL's ideas of feeding the baby solids (which conflict somewhat with mine). While I try not to worry about how I will settle both my and the baby's meals in the near future, I again turn to His Promise, that His Grace IS sufficient.

It often feels like the mundane take up so much of my time and energy, yet in this I have found joy and precious moments that linger and bring tears to my eyes. Like how one morning in my sleepy state, I peeped through my eyes to see the baby, refusing to nap, grinned at me in delight and buried his face into my arm as his form of adoration. Moments, precious ones.

THE Bag

I'm so happy with my new bag that I've decided to blog about it (:

I must first explain that while I'm not short on the number of bags that I own (as many girls do), I'm talking about THE ONE that you'll choose over the rest, the most carried and used cuz it suits the occasion, outfit or purpose. And I had that, a white shoulder bag from Hong Kong H&M at only S$20-25 bought in 2008. Which was flaking horrendously all over my clothes and body as it shed its skin from being overused :( I was wearing it out till its fullest but needed to find a replacement as I can't have the bag flaking all over Asher in future. A few relatively cheap purchases failed to live up to my expectations and needs of THE BAG.

SO...after foolishly toying with the idea of splurging on a 2nd hand Fossil Bag from e-bay (ya, what was I thinking right? gonna have a kid and still can afford that kind of splurge. pfft) and almost buying a handmade bag from Thailand through etsy, I chanced upon a bag shop at Plaza Sing when I met j. for prata dinner. And I almost didn't buy it! Cuz the zipper's direction was created for right-handed bag people. I'm a right hander but I carry my bags on the left shoulder. Thank goodness j. convinced me that it was a silly reason not to get it and I must say, I'm glad I listened to her (: So here it is!!

Ok, the color is prettier in reality cuz I think the office fluorescent light just kills photos. It's definitely bigger than what I had initially wanted but hey, it means I can probably throw in Asher's things too when I dare to venture out of the house with him in future.

beautiful nature

the recent weather (long periods of scorching sun and sporadic rain) has allowed many of the trees and plants to produce flowers in intense blooms. and i smile everyday at these lovely sights.

sharing at a cell meeting that seeing such pretty works of His hand helps to perk me up led the hubby to say somewhat bewilderedly, "It does nothing for me!"

Oh but even the frailty of a drying rose brings much cheer to my soul. I'll enjoy the flowers while they last.

:)

i like...

to gently massage Asher's fist/foot when he pokes it upwards and i can see/feel a rounded shape in my abdomen

how pregnancy is such a lovely gift despite its inconveniences

watching the wobbles in my tummy whenever Asher moves about inside

the father-son bonding whenever the hubby leans to my tummy to talk to our son

family hugs-me and the hubby and our arms around my tummy (:

how interesting it'll be to see Asher take on different characteristics from each of his parents :P

maoiliosa's shop

i found this on etsy.com and absolutely love this lady's creations! i'm not a fan of japanese stuff but her creations are so very pretty! just check out this picture below, little fridge magnets. and there's loads more at http://www.etsy.com/shop/maoiliosa :)

i am...

thrilled every time i feel baby poh kicking, punching or somersaulting inside the womb. though at wee hours of the morning at times, i cherish it as it's a special connection that i have with him. and for only a few more months before he enters the world.

irritated at increased sensitivity of my skin, especially between my fingers. the perpetual itch almost feels like eczema, all red and scaly and dry :(

feeling all stuffed in my nose and wishing that my nose and ears would clear for good. really soon.

a bit dismayed to see that designers cater a lot more to baby girls than boys in their merchandise. c'mon, boys can wear nice clothes too y'know.

thankful for the beautiful greenery that S'pore has. just seeing how well trimmed they are, or the way the plants flower or bear fruit always makes me feel better, no matter what mood i'm in. it's almost like a reminder that God's at work, even when i think He's being rather silent.

hoping to go for a dip soon, to exercise the muscles a bit.

wondering if my nose will allow me to make it out of the house for the wedding tomorrow :S

looking forward to meeting joey soon. whenever that is (:

missing the hubby already, even though he just flew off last night. :P

sunday

was a rarity that i enjoyed. the hubby and i woke up without the alarm going off, an hour earlier than intended. we had the luxury of time to get ready before leaving the house for breakfast together. i must explain that this was a rare time that the hubby wasn't serving in church, so i really relished the time we had (: even waiting in line for 15min for our bee hoon breakfast was worth it.

since breakfast was rather filling, we decided to skip lunch and strolled our way to catch a bus to the extra storage space the hubby's stuff is stashed at. i like such walks (: of course, it was a plus that we went to daily scoop thereafter for the much needed a/c and yummylicious waffle+gelato :D

it was a nice way to spend the sunday, and definitely a memory to keep before the craziness of work stuff commences tomorrow!

dancing+baby

last night i enjoyed watching a dance performance with the bride-to-be and came away feeling a little amused at myself.

there were mainly classical acts, with two contemporary ones which i must say, were actually my favorite. i don't know if it's cuz the usual excerpts of classic pieces are performed so often that i've become a little bored with the choreography (since the choreo can't divert too much cuz well, they're classics) OR i'm just dying to see the full story being performed.

OR it could be that i'm just more naturally intrigued by the challenges choreographers take upon themselves to pair non-classical songs with renewed creativity, producing refreshing pieces over and over again. while i love the fine lines and grace that ballet embraces, the way that contemporary and modern styles dare to break new ground and challenge the use of space, time and the human body is always exciting for me. yet there really is no better training (in terms of foundation) than what ballet is able to offer for a dancer.

that said, there were 'interesting' moments last night too.

a spectator who used flash photography during the performance who later had the camera confiscated (like, hello!!?? where's your manners and sense of respect for fellow audience and the dancers??)

a not so little girl seated in front of us putting her foot onto the railing before her, thereby blocking our view and confounding me when her mum didn't do anything about it.

highly enthusiastic members of the audience who kept applauding at totally inappropriate moments, drowning out the music that the dancers needed to hear and spoiling a few moments of suspense inherent in the piece.

i was also a little amused at how much the bride-to-be fussed over me so much :P the hubby just smiled when i told him about it. hee.

****

i feel a little perplexed at this stage of pregnancy: i'm not supposed to feel anything in the womb yet but last night every time i turned in my sleep, i could feel the shift in weight at the tummy. makes me wonder if i made baby poh giddy :P

my tummy's hurting again too. it happened the first time on sunday morning, when short sharp pulls in the right side of the tummy made it real uncomfortable. a friend said it could be the baby pulling at the umbilical cord or the womb's expanding, as it happened to her in her first pregnancy. this morning, the pain's in the left side. and still is happening as i type this.

with the number of things that can go wrong in a pregnancy, how did women in the past survive with the little knowledge they had? gosh.

the miracle of creation

i had signed up as a member of babycenter.com and every week they'll send me an email to tell me how the baby's growing inside the womb, and what unseen changes are taking place. here's what it says of week 13.

Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head -- which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce. As you start your second trimester, most of your baby's critical development will be completed and your odds of miscarriage drop considerably

3inches is about 7.5cm, a growth of 1.5cm from last week. how in the world does 7.5cm contain all the organs??

it's real cool that the fingerprints have been formed :)

and i didn't even know we're capable of 2million eggs. but if we (i.e. gals) ovulate from say...13-50, that still makes it less than 500 eggs being used. what happens to the rest of the 1.9million eggs?? 2million eggs in a 7.5cm foetus??

don't even try to sell me the idea that evolution is the way man. nooooo way. this, has to be the work of an amazing God (:

desirables

thelittlehappyshop-it really has so many pretty pretty things...i only wish their prices are more affordable...

oh i absolutely love this bag!!

a walk in the park

the wind blows across the sea

its waves now stirred, come sweeping in

the breeze wraps around my skin

whispering softly to the trees

city lights dot the skyline

as boats gently bob in its wake

it's a sight to behold

pure bliss, this tranquil scene

we step away from beauty's call

the night curtains well-nigh to fall

i slip my hand into my love's palm

the warmth familiar, a soothing balm

the sweet surrender of the night still hangs

tempting any to yield to its charm

the moon peeked up to say good night

and i in return bid adieu

no reservations

hubby2be and i watched the show on vcd just now, having bought it at less than the cost of 1 movie ticket. i was surprised at how drawn i was to the show, especially cuz i read the less than impressive review of the movie when it was first released. 

catherine zeta jones is really pretty, and the little girl 'zoey' too, with her huge eyes and her amazing ability to bring across the heart wrenching emotions required of her orphaned character. the food didn't make me drool; in fact, i heard about food being called across the kitchen more than seeing it being prepared (ok, i should tune in to anthony bourdain if i really want that). it was a nice sweet show, with eckhart's reel persona challenging every rule that slowly but oh so surely gains him entry into the heart of 'kate' (: i love romantic shows. 

it's the weekend. looking forward to a dip in the pool if the weather bodes well, and maybe whipping something up. and seeing the bridesmaid (: