I spent the last day of 2015 struggling to keep my eyes open. Pretty apt considering this is how I felt on most days over this particular year.
In all honesty, I’m glad to see the back of 2015. It was not a great year on most counts as it was, for me, a year of lost time and health issues. Not health issues for me personally, though I got sick a bit more than I would have liked. But I lost an uncle, a dear old neighbour and a friend over the course of the year, all of whom I grieved for. As a country, this was also the year we mourned the passing of a great man.
Closer to home, my MIL had a severe health complication that left us grappling. After going in for what was to be straight-forward day surgery, she unexpectedly collapsed the next day with a life-threatening condition. She beat the odds to come through, but she remained hospitalised for over 4 months and is still making the slow journey to recovery. Since she’s been discharged, she’s been living with us and well, it hasn’t been the easiest or most comfortable arrangement for all of us but that’s the way it is. At the moment, I still don’t know where this will lead in 2016 but I’m trusting in the Lord for the grace to see us through.
2015 was not without it’s highlights. The biggest milestone was Primary School with Noey entering P1. It was a lifestyle change for all, having to wake up at 6am and having two kids in two different schools with different schedules. That is going to be the story of the rest of my life so I guess I should get used to it! But there was a good deal of adjustment and a lot to get used to, like late lunches, homework and tests. And the occasional teacher’s call! I scrambled more than I would have liked on several occasions and I breathed a sigh of relief when we emerged at the other end. In between he made some friends, got well-acquainted with the library and joined the school choir. Academically, he breezed through P1, but P2 might be more of a challenge.
January 2015: Now, a proper school boy, he is.
One of the highlights of his school year – and his Daddy’s – were the Father-Son trips that were organised by the school’s Dads group. Together, they went on their first overseas fishing trip to a kelong in Malaysia, camped out in tents on the school grounds and rounded out the year with an overnight stay at the SEA Aquarium. Some experiences were better than others, but the bonding time was most precious. Noey is at an age when he seeks out his Daddy’s company more and I’m glad my boys had the opportunity to spend more time together.
March 2015: Kelong Fishing Trip — Their first catch!
March 2015: Noey’s first fish, one that he hooked and reeled in all on his own.
May 2015: Camping Out and the tent is up!
May 2015: Cooking his own dinner.
November 2015: Touring the Maritime Museum
November 2015: Drifting off to sleep in front of the largest viewing panel in the world!
Another unexpected bonus is that DD met some Dads that he clicked with, so now he has folks to talk to at class gatherings too, which is really great news for me!
Mei on the other hand was in Nursery, more self-assured, steady and according to her teachers, a real pleasure in the classroom. From a little girl who would squirm when under the spotlight, she’s grown in confidence, enough to sing solo for her year-end concert. We were so proud of her! She’s also become really tight with a bunch of her classmates (all boys!!) and we’ve had quite a few playdates and meetups for them over the course of the year. She’s looking forward to starting school and seeing her friends again. I am too!
Nov 2015: The playground gang!
2015 was a year where we travelled and took staycations more than we usually would. We were blessed with a stay at the Legoland Hotel in February, before we headed to Rasa Sentosa for two nights in the March holidays. Then during the June holidays we took for for 10 days to Gold Coast with the pair of Scoot air tickets that I had won from the Fly Socialathon for SAF50. I turned a year older and we all had a fab time in Australian sun, even in winter! In October, DD and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary with a trip down memory lane at the Intercontinental Singapore, where we held our wedding banquet 10 years ago! We had a super stay and the kids were so impressed, esp Mei, who declared that she would be getting married in the same hotel in future! We also took some fun pics that I HAVE to get round to sharing with you all soon. Finally in December we headed down under again, this time to Sydney for a family wedding. The kids got to spend a bit of time with the Australian side of the family — perhaps more than they anticipated as DD and I took off for our first solo holiday EVER. We flew up the coast to the Whitsunday Islands for 3 nights and it was all sorts of awesome.
Mar 2015: Kids loved the room at Rasa Sentosa!
June 2015: Feeding Kangaroos at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary at in Gold Coast.
Oct 2015: Celebrating 10 years back at the Intercontinental Singapore!
Dec 2015: At Rach & Pat’s wedding in Sydney
One thing I particularly glad I did manage to achieve in 2015 was to meet my friends. Slipping out for breakfasts, lunches and dinners to meet different groups was food for my soul. The kids would moan and sigh, and I would have to extract myself from a teary Mei to leave but I went anyway. It was just good to get away and just TALK. The husband was pleased too or I would be talking to him!
Dec 2015: Hai Di Lao gathering with friends who are my daily life support.
I just went back to read my closing post for 2014, and to my dismay, everything I’ve written still applies! In other words, I made no progress in my bid to simplify and slow down. Instead, I let 2015 run rough shod over me and it really wasn’t pretty. I told myself to simplify but I still found myself playing catch-up as I said yes to more things than I could handle, bit off more than I could chew.
So this year? It’ll be time for me to put words into action and simplify my house and life. A job opportunity I was keen on fell through and I was pretty disappointed about it but now I think maybe it is also God’s way of telling me to focus on what is important — my work at home and with my family. My house has been a mess for far too long and it’s time to do something about it. (And now that it’s in print, I guess I’d better start!)
Hello 2016. I do hope you will be kind.
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