Matthew 20:1-16 (parable of the workers in the vineyard)

This parable reminds me of how conceited we can be and how we completely forget the goodness of Christ when we first tasted it. In our everyday lives, especially during work, we complain. I for one, whine a lot. We compare ourselves with our peers and even our previous work circumstances. Times may be tough and things change, not for the better but for the worse. It brings out the worst in me becos I complain; losing sight that it was me who first prayed for open doors. God may give seemingly different rewards, which at times may seem unfair by society's standards, but in all if it, God knows what He's doing! We won't know but God is good! This is a reminder from today's Daily Bread reading.

Quote from Daily Bread: All you need to know to be contented us this - God is good.

What a nice start to the day knowing that God sent a nice lady to tell me not to take the MRT station's lift becos it is unstable. So often that city dwellers like us just move quickly without taking a moment to just be gracious and extend social grace to strangers around us. What that lady said wasn't a big gesture but it really remind me about what a Christian ought to be. :) Have a good day!

Life is precious. And nothing is so real as God's hand and might in the creation of life.

Heard that a dear colleague of mine was told by her gynae that they couldn't detect the heartbeat of her 7wk old fetus.. :( she was told to perform a procedure tomorrow but we are asking her to obtain a second opinion.

If God so decides that they should have a child, I'm sure a miracle can happen! Besides, the gynae could be wrong because there can be times where baby's heartbeat are less readily detected.

My prayers goes out to her and her hubby.. Pls let baby stay! They have been trying hard for it

I hope it will be a slower pace of work life in Switzerland.. This is not sustainable man..

Can't believe I keep seeing packed-like-sardine trains even though the frequency is up. Bleah.. Still waiting to board..

Dearie and I are going to welcome our 3rd wedding anniversary and 7th dating anniversary!! :) :)

We've come a long way to be here. Haha from our dates Haji Lane's Teh Tarik to being parents.

Dearie, thanks for being the love of my life! :)

Glad that I've synced Christian songs onto my phone so that I can listen to them on my commute to and from work.. It's a good reminder to start and end the crazy workday with God.

A mother and daughter pair in front of me this morning on the train reminded me of the challenges and sacrifice of a parent with a special needs child.

The girl is a young adult. Think she has sight, hearing and speech difficulties. Possibly also slightly low on intelligence but more or less quite normal.

So mummy was rubbing daughter's fingers with thick cream because she has bad eczema. Daughter looked at mummy with her smiling eyes and kissed mummy twice on the train, expressing her thanks in the way she knows. When mummy was about to leave the train for work before daughter alighted at a subsequent stop, they conversed in sign language and daughter lovingly nudged mummy to quickly get off the train before the door closed. They then signed to each other again - one still in the train and the other on the platform, oblivious to the wave of busy commuters trying to get on and off the train.

To think that both mummy and daughter were sad to leave each other for a few hours; even if this was probably a daily routine.

So angry with the bosses! I need a life! It's Friday and so let people go have dinner!

Thumbs up for an awesome MIL who made lovely 肉骨茶 for the family and looked after Jon. Even tho I'm finishing up dinner late cos I had to coax Jon to sleep, it's ok cos poor MIL is soo zonked out that she slept after washing the dishes while I was in the room with Jon.

Interesting how my nose stops sneezing and giving me a break when I hit an air con environment on a rainy day.. Weird nose

Spent the last hour of Jon's 18mths birthday flipping through his photos on the phone. Amazing how much a child grows and changes over a short 18mth..

Witness how a simple lady grabbed the opportunity on a packed bus to evangelize. It all started with an empty seat which another passenger moved in to ease standing space on the packed peak-hour bus. Seeing that the lady was seated, this Christian sister picked up a gospel track and used John 3:16 to share God's love to the fellow passenger. The passenger took the gospel track, smiled out of courtesy and took a cursory read on the bus. She then went on to say that the Christian sister must have been leading a fulfilling life with God as her Lord. The Christian sister smiled with her eyes twinkling with the Lord's love and glory, and said "praise God that yes I think I lead a fulfilling life"! :) :) I stood right in front of both ladies, happy to be privileged to witness God at work through His humble servant.

Oh gosh, this man beside me on the train has been picking his nose since the time I boarded. He smears his 'nose findings' on his hands, flicks the bits that drop on his shirt, and spreads his hands over all his face. And he keeps flicking his fingers! Ahhhhh! I have nowhere to run so I'm just keeping my distance.

Up close to a fellow female passenger on the public transport system and I can't help but notice how much her nose seems to have been surgically 'lifted' and 'hard'. It's like her whole face is rock hard and stiff. I'm even wondering if she is actually a 'he' because the whole face is just.. unbelievably strange.

Some people are just not very intelligent and out of touch with the practical world..

It's very amazing to see how children grow and change in their first year. Looking our little darling. Months ago he was posing like a sweets angel. Staring at you with such innocent and 'huh?' look. So dependent on you for everything and willing to follow you because he wasn't able to express his views well.

Fast forward just a few months later. Gosh, this kid is no longer a baby but an active and very mobile toddler. Zooming around as he likes, pointing out things he see or want you to see/take note, expressing his likes and dislikes.

So humbling to be entrusted with a child of God even though He knows we are ungodly and not as equipped as He is to bring up a child in the way of the Lord. Yet it is not only a learning journey for the child, but parents and the entire 'village' of care givers too! We learn not only about the child and parenting itself, but we learn about ourselves too. To be humbled and know that while all things are not in our control or understanding, we have a heavenly Mentor to patiently teach and guide us.

Praise the Lord!

Tat boleh tahan!

My tummy is churning and aching for the past 20mins and I'm still in the loo.. :(

Noticed that a certain profile of women tend to walk v slowly, causing people to miss their trains becos they are hogging up all space. Tell them excuse me also no use. Grr.. I wanna fly home fast fast!!

So nice... My precious boys :) :) :)

The journey home is often so painfully long. I wanna be like flash and zoom home fast fast fast all the time! :)

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Thank God for dedicated Sunday school teachers. :)

Standing behind a lady in the train who is reading her Sunday school teaching materials. :) :) God bless all His workers!

Freaking nice to be leaving office when the sun is up and not dark or setting. Awesome..

Expected a crazy Monday becos some major thing may happen in the market. But I shall enjoy this while it lasts. :)

My dear says I should blog today to mark in my web history that I have stopped breastfeeding. Haha!

Our wonderfully intelligent boy tossed and turned in his sleep from one end of his mattress to the other, so that he's in the path between the windows in an attempt to 'capture' the slightest breeze. Smart ass..

Gosh, so hot.. How to sleep peacefully.. Must zen must zen. Think beyond the heat..

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Thank God for an answered prayer! I prayed that Jon could fall asleep without having to nurse to sleep, and to do so quietly without the wailing so that MIL can rest :) :) Jon did it!

Managed to notice him starting to be a bit cranky and wanting to sleep. So quickly brought him into the room, off all lights and closed the door so that there was completely no distractions or things that would alert him. Let him nurse for a while, and haha becos supply soooo low, poor Jon got a bit fed up with me and turned away. He then started getting cranky and I quickly made him 150ml FM. Let him drink quietly, and thereafter toss and turn in bed until he slept. Guess the trick is to remove all distractions in the room, let him toss n turn after a full feed and not talk to him. He will sleep after a while (max so far 30mins of tossing). Okie, he only drank 100ml but I'm cool with it becos I'll just heat and keep the FM for the next night feed.

Pray that Jon will continue to sleep well tonite! I'm so encouraged by tonite's outcome! :)

Oh and for my dearest hubby who is the only person reading this, don't worry dear, I'm fine. I just empty these frustrations and I am good :) thank you for being a pillar of support :) love u!

Thought I heard someone sniffling her cries in the ladies. Okay, so I'm not the only one. Heh..

Friggin group of tourists who hv no sense of personal space on the train. I can feel the butt of the lady. Yucks! She keeps plastering herself towards me. Can smell her perspiration. :(

Ai er nursing room so packed today. I keep having to wait for my turn :(

Our little man so tired from his first swimming session :)

Feel so blessed that I met so many considerate and generous commuters when I was pregnant. So many times when people would help me get attention so that I would have a seat.

Just met a poor lady who had to squeeze her way towards the seats on the train and ask people to offer her their seat. Poor thing.. Too bad I was a tad far away to have helped her get help.

Thank God for planting His saints to be around me throughout the pregnancy.

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My hubby so cute. Rubs his eyes like a baby in his sleep. Just like his little son. Awww... So nice to just stop and look 😍

Tempted to go Mothercare at Harbourfront during lunch today. Heh feeling pai kia. Hmmm maybe there will be some gd deals in prep for Wensi n Amy's little ones ;) I'm clearly finding excuse to buy baby things.. Jon's getting older so lotsa these kinda cute stuff are useless for him. Haha so I'm conveniently using my friends' babies as an opportunity to flip thru cute baby things

What Not to Say to a Working Mom

Recently, Amy Shearn shared a list of things not to say to stay-at-home moms. She could have just cited anything Elizabeth Wurtzel has written in the past year, but that would have been too easy. Instead, Shearn came up with a list that was funny and clever and pointed in all the right ways. Which got me thinking about questions or comments I've heard about being a working mom. I don't think anyone sets out to be rude or judgmental, but I've been surprised at what well-meaning and generally thoughtful people say to mothers who aren't staying home full-time with their children. There's a subtle hostility or judgment that comes through in some of these statements that makes me wish that everyone would, every so often, think before they speak.


(Before anyone freaks out, I completely and totally support stay-at-home moms. They work. They work hard. Their choices are valid and awesome and please stop glaring at me. There are days I envy them more than you know.)


Can't you afford to stay home?
Let's assume for a minute that I can't. Let's imagine I work to help pay the mortgage and buy groceries and send our kids to college. Where does this conversation go now? Awkward, right? Next thing you know, I'm going to be asking you how much your husband earns so you can stay home. Let's agree not to go there.


Then let's say I can afford to stay home. The question assumes the reason I work is entirely financial. Which is part of it, to be sure. If I could make money watching bad reality TV and doing yoga all day, I would. Since I can't, I work at a more traditional job -- but it's not all about the money. I value my education and the years I've devoted to my career. I think it is good for our boys to see me working outside our home so they know that a woman isn't confined to being a wife and a mother. I also know that some day our kids will be off at college or started on careers of their own and I want to keep a foot in the working world so when that time comes, I'm not staring at a big gap in my resume that makes it harder for me to get a job. I also like the equality that exists in my marriage because both my husband and I put money in the bank. That's just me. But this particular question devalues all of those considerations and, in turn, my choices. Please don't do that.

I'd give anything to get away from my kids for an entire day.
If you really mean it, I'm happy to help you polish your resume. You can be away from your kids all day, every day! Of course, along with that "freedom" you'll feel guilty about being away from them and will wonder if they're ok because they're home with a babysitter or in day care. Going to work every morning and waving to my kid from the upstairs bathroom window isn't a spa day. It's sort of like doing a triathalon. You start each day with a morning plunge into icy water, getting everyone to school/work then do an an eight-hour bike ride, all topped off with a half-marathon of dinner, homework, baths and bedtime. During your bike ride not only will you be expected to pedal hard, you'll also have to take phone calls from the school, the babysitter, and the doctor, respond to birthday party invitations, take a quick side trip to grab supplies for an art project, order groceries and a new pair of jeans and remember to return library books because it all needs to get done RIGHT NOW. If you're lucky, there's some wine left over in the fridge.


I'd miss my child too much to be away from him all day.
I know. I completely understand. You get over it. Because you have to.


The problem with this country today is that not enough moms are home raising their children.
I know! I couldn't agree more! Oh, wait. You're not advocating for paid parental leave, flexible work schedules or telecommuting, are you? You're not picketing in support for working parents (because, let's face it, some dads would like to be able to spend more time with their kids too) so they can make good choices for their families, right? You just want more moms to stay home. It's possible those families would be better off living under a cloud of financial or psychological stress to adhere to a traditional view of families, but I'm not buying it. If I see one more comment about how dual-earner families are undermining the very fabric of society I will lose my mind. Last I checked, no one in my family had shot anyone, stolen anything, cheated on a test, run a red light, or even so much as littered. Of course, I've been working all morning, so things may have changed since breakfast.


Why did you have kids only to let someone else raise them?
People have said this to me. People have said this to my friends. It's a good thing that I didn't have the power to incinerate them with my laser beam eyes. If I hear it again, I'll refer you to item no. 1 for the reasons I might work outside of my home. And then I'll just ask you to be a TAD LESS JUDGMENTAL THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I had Little Dude because every fiber of my being wanted to be a mother and we felt like our family was incomplete without another person in it. Loving and raising a child is not incompatible with having support to do that. We are grateful and proud to have wonderful people who help us -- from family to friends to teachers and babysitters. But make no mistake, my husband and I are raising our kids. We aren't home every day, but we are a presence in our kids' lives at every moment.


I don't know how you do it. It must be so hard.
It is. I don't know how I do it. But I don't think that's because I work, I think it's because parenting is hard whether you stay at home or go off to the office. I don't know how any of us do it. It's glorious and rewarding and full of love and it is the hardest thing I've ever done. Balancing kids with anything else, whether a paying job or running a household or finding time to watch Honey Boo Boo, is nearly impossible.


You must be so organized to be able to balance everything.
I have a love/hate reaction to this statement. At first, I bask in the affirmation. I believe I am organized. Then I remember -- I am one set of lost keys away from a meltdown. I have mismatched socks, my kid went to school with jelly on his face and I haven't exercised in a week. I have piles of books and clothes and god knows what else in my bedroom. I forgot a conference call yesterday and lost the planetarium permission slip. I let something slide every day. There is no balance. Only carefully controlled chaos. Pretty much like everyone else's life.

There's always time to work later, these early years are so precious.
All the years are precious. And why don't people say this to fathers?


You look exhausted.
Gee! Thanks! Wanna give me a day at the spa? And then watch my kid for me so I can relax? No? Then let's just pretend we can't see the bags under my eyes.


At least you treasure every minute you have with your son.
Well, maybe not all of them. Because sometimes Little Dude is a monster and I get home at the witching hour, just in time to force him to eat his carrots, make him brush his teeth and go to bed. Which, as any parent will tell you, is just the most relaxing time of day. This is why I keep a chilled bottle of wine in the fridge. Despite that, of course, I do treasure my time with my kids, but I have a hard time believing that would be different if I were home more.


Don't you worry you're missing out?
Every day. But then my son runs into my arms when I pick him up from school and climbs into my bed in the morning to tell me I'm the "best mommy ever," and I know it's going to be ok.


"MummySG, where every Mum is awesome."

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Article written by Devon Corneal, a lawyer and a mother, for Hufftingtonpost (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/devon-...nts&ir=Parents)

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Interesting read from the Mummy Forum. Hilarious articulation of the thoughts of a working mom. Lol!

Tonight, I seek to make a step in re-establishing myself in God's Word. It's been far too long not to be fed spiritually, and it is somehow manifesting in my life. I haven't been so short tempered for a long time, perpetually tired and not able to find true rest even when I take deliberate steps to nap over weekends. It's only when I was showering and pondering over what I've become that I realized that I've come away from my fundamental identity in Christ. I've come to rely on my own strengths to be the daughter, wife, mother and employee that I hope to be; only to find myself not being satisfied and tired. Yes, having a child messes up our once well-oiled daily routine and makes us tired, but God's grace and fountain of strength can pull me through. And I've failed to seek this everlasting source.

Well, I originally intended to write my thoughts down cos it keeps the thoughts more deeply etched in my mind. But for whatever reason my notebooks are in a cupboard elsewhere. So here I am, jotting it down online. Heh.

Anyway the specific devotional that I read today hits home God's wake-up message for me. "I will delight myself in Your commandments which I love." Psalm 119:47.

"Then let me love my Bible more and take a fresh delight by day to read these wanders o'er and meditate by night." Watts

There will be many distractions or more exciting / fun things to do, but I pray and call upon God's perseverance to keep this going. :)

Crying over split milk. Literally

1Q13 is the favorite timeline of the year. Just kill me..

Seems like I may have been a little over enthusiastic about caffeine over the weekend. Poor tummy paying the price for it..

I wonder how much pain and heartbreak God undergoes when He sees this filthy world. The people He lovingly created, yet turn completely against Him and reveling in a complete mess. The world, once pure and lovely, is now like Sodom Gomorrah; a place of disgust and injustice.

Over the past few years, and especially over the past couple of days, I've seen quite a lot of disgusting people. People with no morals, doing as they please and as if they are right. There is no integrity in their thoughts, speech and deeds.

Our world is already in such a mess. I can't bear to think about how it will be like many years down the road.

I can only pray that my family members are firmly rooted in Christ, steadfast in their belief and identity as God's children, protected for moral, spiritual and physical dangers, and kept pure in God's sight. The world will be ever more complicated and so I pray that all will draw upon wisdom and discernment from Christ to handle situations they may face in life.

Kind of funny how I'm having the jitters at the thought of presenting to the Division Heads later this morning, even though I've been presenting to Dept Heads and Deputy MD several times. Guess it's been a while since I have a smaller portfolio so not sure what to expect.. Pray that all will go well later despite being faced with a panel of people who are known to fire tough questions.

Bleah. Just when I finally found a decent yellow CNY dress to match my boys, I wasn't fast enough in clickin through and completing the online purchase and payment. Dang. The downsides of purchasing from a good online retailer who happens to have a very strong following.

Hubs and I went for Pan Pac buffet dinner again. Heh.. Ate too much and I ended up spending a whole lot of time in the washroom last nite. Yikes.. Mental note to self: do not over eat, especially if it's the last meal of the day. Let your tummy have time to rest and digest before you zonk out.

Thank goodness I decided to freeze my ice pack in another fridge and not at the nursing room today. Some frantically busy nursing mom just dropped many other ppl's ice packs while trying to manage hers. Scary sounds of tumbling ice packs in the nursing room. I froze for a moment at the sound. Haha!

Just downloaded some 周杰伦 songs from Amped. Wah I forgot how much I used to like his songs until I listened to the new album. Nice! 乌克丽丽!

I friggin walked straight into my bedroom toilet door in the darkness about an hour ago. And I still can't stop laughing at myself..

Oh no. Looks like a train breakdown.. It's packed to the brim n hot cos air con seems over worked in the crammed situation :|

Dang.. I ate too much for dinner.. My tummy is making a protest..

Hai.. Everyday is like a friggin rush to beat the clock.. I'm moving at such a pace like a speed robot that I find myself walking ever more quickly, even during personal time..

Tough life. Pray hard.

Dark clouds and a thick fog seen from nursing room. Bleah..

This is not my day. I'm having a massive tummyache and there are some colleagues chatting abt work in the ladies. Now I don't really dare do my biz. Haha dunno to laugh at my 'plight' or what..

Shucks, I'm having a tummy ache and the train keeps stopping midway and not progressing with the journey. Acks...

Omg there's a baby in the nursing room in office. Amazing..

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