Our idyllic Sunday

We had an idyllic Sunday today. This morning, Lucas woke up again at 530 a.m but this time I didn't go get him and he went back to sleep soon after. He finally woke up at 9 this morning -yay! Fred took Lucas for a walk in the country while I went for a walk myself in the Sunday markets. Then we reconvened at home at noon where we had a chat with my BFF on skype about her wedding plans.
We met up with mamy Anita for lunch at McDonalds - Lucas threw a tantrum in McD's when we put him in the highchair for his happy meal. He didn't want to eat and preferred to play in the playgym instead. So Fred took him in the gym, watched him for a while, then a 6 year old girl named Luna decided that she will take charge of Lucas. She told Fred that she is 6 years old and will watch out for Lucas :) From where we were sitting we could see Lucas quite clearly so we left him happily playing with Luna while we had lunch.
When we got home Lucas finally started eating his happy meal. AND he finished all 4 chicken nuggets, his 33cl Evian water and most of the fries. Nutritional benefits aside, we were just happy and relieved to see him eating something without any chocolate in it for once. He's been on a chocolate fix for the past couple of weeks, eating chocolate brioche, chocolate crepes, chocolate cereal, chocolate pancakes and drinking chocolate milk.

Lucas went without his afternoon nap today. I reckon he'll be really tired by 7 p.m tonight and will go to bed soon after :)

Another milestone - Lucas now wants to take his shower like mama and papa - standing up with the shower in the shower stand. (previously he would sit in the tub and I would hold the shower for him or he will hold it himself) Now that he wants to shower this way, washing his hair is no longer a hassle!

Off day for mama!

Fred gave a day off today. He took care of Lucas while I went to school, and in the afternoon, I went out for coffee with my friends. When I got home at 430p.m, the apartment was empty. Fred took Lucas out to walk in the countryside. When Fred came home at 6p.m he was totally exhausted. At least he now understands why I am so tired everyday since I not only take care of Lucas, but I clean the apartment (numerous times a day), I do the laundry and I cook.

After my day off, I am fully recharged. Lucas was being his hyperactive self and starting to be naughty but I took it all in stride. Guess I just needed some time on my own...

2010 - the year of the metal tiger forecast from JY

We have officially entered the Year of the Metal Tiger on February 4th, 2010, which was the first day of the Chinese solar calendar. The forecast for 2010 is determined by reading the BaZi (Chinese Astrology) chart for the year of the Metal Tiger.

All of us will be affected differently by the elements represented by both the lucky and unlucky stars that are present in the solar orbit. Here is the annual outlook for 2010 from Joey Yap to help you plan and align your course of action with what the year ahead has to offer you.



Tiger (1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998)
With the Grand Duke Star in your chart this year, Tigers must put in more effort to gain recognition at your workplace. To reduce the effects of the Hidden Corpse Star, you need to be more patient, respectful and flexible in your dealings with customers and clients as well as in your personal relationships.

Rabbit (1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999)
Thanks to the Sun Star, the Rabbit will have ample opportunities for wealth! Therefore, strategise cleverly to grow your investments for the long term. This very auspicious star also ensures greater success for you through teamwork and collaboration with others. The Annual Sha Star, however, requires you to take all necessary measures to boost your immunity and reduce your stress levels.

Dragon (1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000)
Dragons are advised to go on trips for business, work or travel abroad for your future success. You should also persevere to hone your skills at work. These are some ways to help reduce mental anxiety caused by the Sky Cry Star. The Month Sha Star is an indication for you not to take long-term personal relationships for granted. Pay special attention also to road safety, and seek early treatment to prevent future health problems.

Snake (1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001)
The Snake stands to benefit from the very auspicious Moon/Great Yin Star! This means that you will not be short of assistance, especially if you are involved in female-centric businesses. In addition, there are unexpected opportunities for you to generate passive income. The Piercing Rope Star and the Hook Spirit Star may make you overly aggressive, argumentative and uncertain. Therefore, it is best for you to plan new ventures carefully. In spite of the Solitary Star, if the single Snake is sociable, there is a good chance you will get a marital partner this year.

Horse (1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002)
The Three Stages Star and the General Star will endow Horses with the magic touch in your interactions with others. This will lead you to getting plenty of assistance. As you also have the Golden Lock Star in your chart, you will have increased opportunities to acquire wealth. The White Tiger Star makes you more prone to accidents and injuries, so you should invest in medical insurance.

Goat (1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003)
The Goat has the Monthly Virtue Star in your favor to help you expand your social circle. This in turn can benefit your wealth pursuits and career tremendously. The Sky Happiness Star will bless you with all the good luck this year in finding a potential partner, tying the knot or welcoming a new addition to the family.

Monkey (1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004)
The Sky Horse Star plays its part in ensuring the Monkey will be able to acquire wealth through frequent travel for work and business. The presence of the Earth Relief Star and the Eight Seats Star means that you can use your problem-solving gift to help others first, and you will then be rewarded with career advancement. The Earth Relief Star is also a harbinger of a higher rate of success in solving your medical problems this year.

Rooster (1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005)
Happily for Roosters, the influence of the Emperor Star and the Dragon Virtue Star will help you to ascend the career ladder and command authority and respect. Be wary of the adverse effect of the Robbery Sha Star and the Brutal Defeat Star. Judge for yourself what is right and you will not have to worry about loss of wealth or reputation. The Broken Star cautions you to be humble and forgiving so that your relationships can go a long way this year.

Dog (1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006)
The Elegant Seal Star can help bring about successful creative output for Dogs involved in the artistic fields. As you have to contend with the Flying Chaste Star and the White Tiger Star this year, you must avoid all forms of aggressive athletic activities and exercise caution while driving.

Pig (1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007)
The Pig has many opportunities to advance in your career and professional life in 2010! This is primarily due to the presence of the Prosperity Star, the Heavenly Virtue Star and the Grand Duke Combination Star. You will therefore be rewarded with more income and increased authority. Be sure to use your mentors' advice to make investment deals. Improve your dietary habits and exercise routine as the Robbery Sha Star has a negative effect on the small intestine.

Rat (1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008)
Rats will be better off this year when you focus on improving your own standards of work. Invest in travel insurance and take proper precautions while travelling for work because of the Calamity Sha Star. The Solitary Star may make you feel unstable and detached from your loved one. Try to be patient and do not expect too much too soon.

Ox (1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997)
The presence of the Red Matchmaker Star and the Heavenly Noble Star makes 2010 a good year for the Ox. Focus on building stronger ties to enjoy happy outcomes and reap financial benefits. At the same time, you need to improve your mental and emotional health because of the adverse effect of the Mo Yue Star and the Lonesome Star.

Bad day

Today I totally lost it with Lucas. I am at my wits end and really don't know what to do anymore. Today Lucas pushed me to the limit. And I am ashamed to say I retaliated. I took Lucas over my knee, took a plastic toy that he threw at me and spanked him hard.
Fred came home at lunchtime and found me crying in the kitchen while Lucas was playing on his own in his room. Just before Fred came back, I'd calmed down and explained to Lucas that I didn't mean to spank him and that he'd gone too far with his tantrums this time.
This is an accumulation of the stress from the past 4 days - Lucas has, once again started his tantrums. This time, he throws anything he can find when he gets angry (when he asks for something, like cereal just before lunch and I say no) including sweeping all the cutleries from the table, toppling chairs and today he took the cereal box from the pantry and emptied it all on the floor. When Lucas gets angry he has also started hitting me. All the time outs which used to work is no longer working. When I tell him to sit in his chair in the naughty corner, he sits for a while and then he gets out and plays by himself, like he's not being punished.
When he empties out the tea bags or the sugar cubes, I tell him to pick them up, he walks on them instead and runs away. He defies me everytime. When I tell him to stop when he's doing something dangerous like climbing on a chair and opening the window, he starts a screaming fit.
Fred says Lucas needs to get out of the apartment and run around to expand his energy. This morning I took him to the playground for an hour, and thought he would calm down when we got home. Instead, the minute I drive through the security at our apartment he starts screaming. It was hard enough to get him into the car when it was time to leave the playground, its harder to get him out of the car and juggle with opening the security door and climb up 2 flights of stairs with a wriggling screaming toddler in my hands. When we finally got into the apartment, he started throwing whatever he could get his hands on to show me that he was angry.
The final straw came when he asked for cereal and I said no, since we were 10 minutes away from lunch. He threw the cereal on the floor. Then when I was cleaning the floor, he toppled the chairs. AND he swept his drinking glass off the table. I took him and deposited him in his room, and told him to sit in his naughty corner. Instead of doing what I asked he took his books and threw them on the floor, and took his toys and threw them at me when I opened the door. That's when I saw red and spanked him.
Now I am miserable and feeling guilty. My heart is breaking because I hate having to spank him. But I really don't know what else to do anymore. I want to be a laid back mom, cool and relaxed and happy and just enjoy my baby. I really do. Instead I am strung out and angry and frustrated.

Menorrhagia

Once a month, for 2 days I am indisposed. Since my 34th birthday, I've been suffering from really bad cramps, irritability, PMS and extremely heavy bleeding. The pain is so bad that I take anti - inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) every 4-6 hours just so I can function normally. 2 days a month I dread going anywhere and I just want to curl up in bed and sleep. The reason why I dread going out is because of the extremely heavy flow. I need to change my extra heavy protection every hour or so. The bleeding comes with large blood clots.
Normally my menstrual cycle lasts up to 10 days, out of the 10 days, 5 would consist of heavy bleeding. Yes, I am anaemic because of that. I am tired all the time, I get shortness of breath if I feel too stressed out, headaches, and I sometimes get a twitch in my right leg.
My gynae tells me that there are a few treatment I could take if its disrupting my life. But he advises me that if its not too bad, to just bear with it. This is because all treatment include hormone therapy or surgery and is not advisable if I wanted to try for another baby.

Ever since I started eating olives everyday - about 20 olives a day, I've noticed that my menstrual cycle is shorter. Its now heavy bleeding for 2 days, then for the 3rd day I can use light protection, and then brace myself for one more day of heavy flow before it stops completely. But the pain is still constant.
Yesterday was the 4th day that I forgot about, and when I was picking up Lucas from creche I started bleeding. Even after all these years I still feel alarmed with the heavy flow. I managed to get home without anyone noticing that I'd bled out, but this is what I mean when I say it totally disrupts your life.

Menorrhagia is an abnormally heavy and prolonged menstrual period at regular intervals. Causes may be due to abnormal blood clotting, disruption of normal hormonal regulation of periods or disorders of the endometrial lining of the uterus. Depending upon the cause, it may be associated with abnormally painful periods (dysmenorrhea).
Me, I have both menorrhagia and dysmenorrhea. Menorrhagia has an impact on many women's lives, not just mine. One in 20 women aged 30-49 years consults her GP each year with menorrhagia. Menorrhagia may be a sign of an underlying disorder such as endometriosis or hormone imbalance.
I reckon my condition is more of a hormone imbalance and I am trying to include more salads (for vitamin K), broccoli and olives into my diet. I have also been advised to take bak foong pills everyday to regularise my hormones but since I can't get them here, I can only try when I go home in October. Anyway, the bak foong pills will not work overnight. I need to take it everyday (yuck...!) for a few months at least before I can see results.
I felt a need to blog about this because I know a lot of women out there are suffering in silence. Its not only painful, its embarrassing (my husband tells Lucas that his mama wears diapers as well...because we need extra heavy padding) and it is disruptive. Tampons no longer work for me - the maximum time it last is 15 minutes before a change is needed. In a way I am glad I no longer work, as I used to worry about having to go every hour, especially if I was in a meeting.
My gynae tells me it will all go away if I get pregnant again, but then it will come back after I stop breastfeeding. The only sure way to get rid of it is a hysterectomy or I could wait for menopause to set in.
This is a bit silly but I keep thinking I won't survive 30 days in a remote island as a survivor candidate in this condition :) Not that I would want to but I'd like to have that option at least, wouldn't you?

Potty training Lucas

My new books have not arrived yet and Fred is hogging the TV watching the Winter Olympics, so I am going to write about Lucas' potty training (or lack of...)

A few months back we tried to let Lucas runaround the apartment bottomless, but my MIL insists that its too cold for us to do that even though the apartment is heated constantly at 20 degrees. So my 2nd best option was to take away diapers and put on his pants sans diapers. We have taught Lucas that if he wants to do the deed he has to tell either one of us. He has caught on pretty quickly. He knows he SHOULD go to the potty. But knowing something doesn't mean he's actually going to do it.
Up til recently he would still sit on the potty, with his clothes on. But the past 2 weeks, he has regressed. He tells me "pee pee" and he points to the "potty" , the same with "kaka" he also points to "potty". But when he needs to do the deed, he tells me "kaka" but refuses to sit on the potty, prefering to "kaka" standing up in a corner (by the time he tells me "kaka" he either has done it in his diapers or if he hasn't, I take off his diapers and bring him to the potty where he breaks free and runs away elsewhere to do the deed). As for his "pee pee" he doesn't tell us when he is diaper free, he just pees and then calls me to clean up. When he has his diaper he cleverly tells me "pee pee in potty".

Today after his shower he told me he wanted to "kaka" but he struggled so much when I tried to sit him on the potty I decided to put his diaper on him. Even then he was screaming and struggling and didn't want his diaper on. In the end, I had to clean shit off the floor.

I feel I have to start his potty training all over again somehow. I try to make him sit on the potty and give him a book to read or switch on Barney but its not working. Fred & I let him see us in the toilet, but Lucas is still resistant.

Do you have any potty training tips for me? How do I get Lucas to sit on the potty? Should he be going bottomless again, as a start?

Roni - The Dowdy, Shabby SAHM

Of late I've come to realize that since I became a SAHM, I've put myself into a rut when it comes to my personal appearance.


My hair has not seen a hairbrush in the last 6 months or so since Lucas hid my hairbrush; straight after I take a shower I quickly blowdry my hair and put it in a ponytail. I don't wash my face properly anymore - I am using soap on my face now and I don't tone or moisturise before bed. And don't get me started on my nails. My monthly facials and weekly manicure and pedicure sessions in KL have become a thing of the past. Now, I hardly wear makeup, my toenails are really ugly to look at and the last time I tried to wax my upper lip, I got a nasty rash after.

There are days when I do not have classes and do not need to go anywhere that I lounge in my PJs all day. Even after my shower, I put back my PJs.

Last night Fred came back from Auch with a bottle of yummy smelling dry oil for my hair and that made me realize that I was kinda letting myself go a bit. Normally I'd be the one getting all these beauty products and making sure that I clean my face properly with soap free products and use the toner and moisturiser afterwards, together with eye cream. And masque and exfoliate at least once a week. I used to have so much beauty products in my cabinet that there'd be no space for anything else.
So, I decided to make an effort and put my false eyelashes and all my other beauty products to good use. I gave myself a pedicure, cleaned and scraped away all the dead skin and calluses with my PedEgg, I washed  and exfoliated my face and put on a masque for deep cleansing and then another masque for moisturising, I took a shower, exfoliated, conditioned my hair twice and slathered on self tanning lotion. So far so good, but then to keep up with this maybe a problem - not because I'm too tired or haven't got the time to do it; I'm just plain lazy and not too bothered!

But I did say that I will make an effort, so this is what I will do for myself from now on:
1) I will not use soap to wash my face
2) I will tone and moisturise my face everyday even when I am staying home
3) I will comb my hair
4) I will masque my face once a week
5) I will not lounge in my PJs all freaking day
6) I will make full use of the tubs of body moisturiser I have in the bathroom cabinets
7) I will use hand cream and take care of my nails
8) I will wash my face every day, twice a day (washing in the shower doesn't count!)
9) I will not forget to use eye cream
10)I will exfoliate my skin twice a week

From now on I strive to be a stylish, chic SAHM :)

MAS travel fair 2010

Its the Malaysia Airlines Travel Fair again! This year, booking starts tomorrow 22nd  Feb - 7th March for travel between March and January 2011.
I will try to book tickets for Lucas & I to go home in October. The fares are all inclusive and Paris - Kuala Lumpur one way is RM1,549. Not too bad for a direct flight home, Lucas & I will pay approximately 1,300 euros for our trip, but this does not include the flight from Toulouse to Paris and an overnight stay at the airport hotel as our flight to KL is an early morning flight...

Toulouse - Paris return for 2 = 400 euro
Paris - KL return for 2 = 1,300 euro
Spending a month with family & friends  = priceless!

The above prices are an approximate only. Prices for Toulouse-Paris fluctuate according to airline and time of booking. Please check the Air France  or Easyjet website for more details.

My funny little man

Yesterday Lucas climbed onto our bed, got under the covers and pretended to sleep - with his eyes closed, mouth open and little snoring sounds :)
He has started to mimic almost everything he sees and repeats every word he hears. He sticks stickers in his sticker book and says "oh, so nice" everytime he sticks one sticker.
His latest antic is feeding us food saying "try, try". Lucas insists on pouring his own juice out of the carton (VERY messy!) and now refuses to drink his milk from the bottle except for his night bottle. He wants to try everything, including his papa's wine.
I even caught him with 2 coins in his mouth (when my friend Elizabeth told me that happened with her daughter Gracie, I was like OMG!!!!!! ) and voila! it happened with Lucas as well. God only knows how long he'd been sucking the coins for and all that bacteria... yuck!

Let's talk recycling!

In France, everyone recycles. And everyone should - for our future generation. As it is global warming is causing havoc on earth - winters are exceptionally cold with lots of snow this year and where it is tropical the heat and humidity is scorching! All this is caused by pollution and by not recycling we are contributing to the destruction of mother earth. I don’t know everything about recycling and I certainly cannot do everything, but I try to do my part. Even when I was in Malaysia, I made sure that my maid put aside glass and plastic items separately for recycling. No matter how little we do, small things do add up and they CAN make a difference.
I am not trying to be an expert on living green - I’m not sure I want to become a vegan and ride my bicycle everywhere, wearing clothes made out of hemp, and relying on solar powered lights and heating.  I have not changed all my lightbulbs to energy saving ones but here are a couple things that I do for recycling:

I drink tap water instead of buying all those plastic water bottles
I recycle vegetable bags from the grocer to bag and freeze my meats in the freezer.
I use reusable bags when I go to the grocery, market and even when I am shopping. "pas de poche, SVP" is my mantra...
I use reusable children’s plates/bowls/cups instead of paper/plastic
I try to take short showers and turn the water off when I am brushing my teeth
I turn off the lights when I am not in the room and the heater when we go off for the day
I donate clothes and toys to the Secours Populaire
I recycle my cans, paper, glass and plastic
I recycle day old bread by feeding it to the birds
I use old cartons/ cardboard for Lucas' art paper
I wash only full loads in the washing machine - in cold water
Whenever possible, we try not to use the car and walk instead or take public transport
I use biodegradable plastic bags for the garbage
I bring my used batteries to the shopping mall for recycling
I close all the shutters to conserve heat in the apartment by 6 pm every night
I boil only as much water as needed


The only biggie for me now is Lucas' disposable diaper - did you know that a disposable diaper takes 500 years to decompose?  We are trying to potty train Lucas now and while he tells us when he wants to "pee" or "kaka" he refuses to sit on the potty... so for now most days he goes without the diaper when he is at home. And YES, accidents do happen, and the cleaning up sucks but is a small price to pay for mother nature.

A poem for Lucas

I stumbled upon this beautiful poem and just had to share it :

I Wanted You More

I wanted to be rich

But I wanted you more.

So every time I paid the doctor's bill

I lightly stroked the tiny bulge

That was my priceless treasure -You.

I wanted to live a life of passion

But I wanted you more.

And since you came to me

I've felt a love I've never known,

Flowing out of me

To you.

I wanted to see the world

But I wanted you more.

So I set aside my traveling

And discovered a world
Right outside my door,

Through your eyes.

I wanted to be carefree

But I wanted you more.

And now I spend my days

Looking at clouds and chasing butterflies

And losing myself

In your laughter.

I wanted so many things

And I got them all,

Because I wanted you.

~ Barbara Nicks

My little copycat

Citroen has a slew of new adverts on TV, all featuring Sebastien Loeb saying " I LOEB (while pointing at himself) gagne (winning).
Lucas started imitating the advert; he improvises and says I LOEB MAMA! and points to himself. Sometimes he says I LOEB BooBoo, and he also says I LOEB PAPA.

Nothing compares to hearing your child tell you he loves you - its music to my ears and is like a ray of sunshine peeking from behind the clouds! Especially when it comes with a big hug :)

CNY Reunion dinner

It is an important tradition for chinese all over the world to have the family get together for a feast the night before the Lunar New Year.

As we are far from my family and friends this year I decided to make steamboat for my MIL and her partner, Roger. I'd shipped over a steamboat contraption and have yet to try it.

This year the Lunar New Year also coincides with Valentine's Day so its a double celebration for us. I asked for red tulips instead of the predictable red rose; and got some beautiful tulips from Fred.

I'd started on the soup for the steamboat early so by the time dinner came around the soup was already nice and tasty. My MIL turned up without Roger who was not feeling well as he'd started his radiation therapy for his cancer. This is my MIL's first chinese steamboat, and I'd set the table with new blue and white chinese cutleries (from China, naturally) and chopsticks.

For the steamboat, I added tiger prawns, unpeeled straw mushroom, sliced chinese mushroom, pork, chicken, tofu, chinese cabbage, mussels, crabstick, calamari and fish. After we finished eating we added egg noodles into the soup. Lucas was on his best behavior last night. He loved the soup. He drank a lot of my soup which was liberally laced with chilli.

We have a lot of food leftover which we will have today. Fred said we should have invited a few other friends and I had to remind him that our table only sits 4. When we move to Auch mid year we will have a big reunion dinner there to usher in the year of the Rabbit instead.

I found rambutans and pinepple in a can and we had that for dessert. After that (so typical french) we had yoghurt and coffee.

Lucas was happy as he was allowed to stay up til 9 p.m and he slept throughout the night (thanks to the antihistamine the doctor gave for his cold) waking up only at 8 this morning!

Gong Xi Fa Cai

I am waiting to see which of my friends will send me some long yok and pork floss for Chinese New Year...

Gong Xi Fa Cai !

Missing all the CNY goodies, family and friends in Malaysia.
Missing going to buy CNY decorations in Chinatown.
Missing pomelo bath on CNY day.
Missing the kuaci from TMC.
Missing reunion dinner.
Missing numerous loh sang with friends.
Missing mandarin oranges.
Missing giving ang pows.
Missing the empty streets of KL during the CNY holidays.
Missing the gambling sessions where I always lose my hard earned money.
Missing get togethers at friends' homes.

CNY is making me homesick...

Winter is here!

Winter has finally arrived at Tarbes. Today is one of the coldest days this year in Tarbes - at least to me, it is.
When I left for my french class yesterday it was -4 degrees with strong wind chill. It was snowing tiny little granules of snow - perfectly formed little round balls that were so beautiful to look at. Needless to say I was frozen by the time I walked into my class. My Russian classmates were laughing at the thunderous expression on my face when I walked in - they know this is my first French winter and like to tease me about the cold.

Thursday afternoons are my time off from Lucas for a couple of hours, so after dropping Lucas at the creche, I went to the Asian Grocer in town to see if they had some CNY stuff. The owners are Laotian Chinese but are not big on CNY. However I was delighted to find fresh tofu (I asked where its from, and got a weird look back and a curt "France") and ham choy (pickled vegetables). The tofu was a bit expensive - I paid 3,50 euro and the ham choy (from Thailand) was 2 euro.
I also bought honey pomelo from LIDL for 1,49 euro which I thought was a steal until I opened the pomelo today and found that it was rotten inside. What a huge disappointment! I am going to go exchange it for another one tonight.

If I thought yesterday was cold, today was farking cold (pardon my french... hehehehhehehe).  And according to the meteo, its going to get even colder this weekend so the CNY steamboat was a great idea after all!

I hope that Roger will be able to make it for dinner tomorrow night. His cancer has come back with a vengence and has spread to his brain. He is getting forgetful and has recently twice, lost his house keys and once he got locked out with a pot of pasta boiling on the stove last week. He is still upbeat and optimistic and is adamant that no one treats him like an invalid. He has not let his sister or his daughter know about his condition and wants to keep it that way. In a lot of ways we are also his family as he is the only paternal grandfather Lucas has ever known, and we see him a lot more than his daughter or sister.

Roni's Top 10 Chinese New Year treats

1) Bee Cheng Hiang's long yok (barbeque pork slice), chinese sausage and pork floss
2) Mom's pineapple tarts
3) TMC black watermelon seeds - totally addictive, buy an extra pack cos 1 is not gonna be enough!
4) Chinatown's salmon yee sang
5) Ah Yat restaurant pau yi (abalone)
6) Braised chinese mushroom with brocolli, pacific clams and fatt choy
7) Shredded turnip with shrimp and sotong and pork wrapped in lettuce
8) Nin gao with coconut or with yam & sweet potato slices
9) Mandarin oranges
10) Chye boi - my grandma used to make the BEST!!!!

My Malaysian baby

Its now confirmed. Lucas is 100% Malaysian. He surprised me today when he said "aiyo"! And he likes his food with a bit of spice - curry chicken, bak kut teh, spicy thai fried rice and his favourite cucur udang...
I can't wait for our Malaysian holiday to see if he will like nasi lemak and char koay teow :)

Central gas heating

As if things could not get any worst, I woke up last night at 2 a.m, freezing! Tried to turn up the thermostat but it was not working. So I had no choice but to wake Fred up to see if he could get it to work. By 3.30 a.m we'd given up, bundled Lucas with extra polaire blankets and went back to sleep.

This morning Fred had a major meltdown when he found out that he had to get the landlord to call the gas company as the landlord did not sign an all inclusive contract for breakdown of central heating. He can be such a drama queen, complaining that he'd hoped to sleep but was woken up, and all the bad things are happening and why, why, why.

Also that he'd planned to go to the spa on Thursday morning but his mother messaged him to say that she is not available to babysit and could he go in the arvo instead.

I didn't really want to spend all morning listening to the tirade so I quickly took Lucas to the creche where it was warm and came back to find that Fred managed to call the landlord who managed to get someone to come look at the heater. All that energy wasted and all that stress from Fred - all for nothing. Geez... I really need to get him a chill pill!

The repairman took a mere 5 minutes and voila - central heating!

Since I'd taken the day off from school, I started with some cleaning and finally am kicking back with a book and my asam laksa maggi mee while waiting for the rice to cook (for lunch). All quiet in the apartment. Bliss :)

8 months and counting

Its been slightly more than 8 months since Lucas & I got here.

After all this time I still get palpitations when I need to manouver the car through the cramped roads and through roundabouts. The french really love their roundabouts. There is one every 100 metres or so here in Tarbes. The reason why I get so nervous is that you do not stop at roundabouts, unless there is a car coming at you at 70km/hr. You are just supposed to wedge your way through preferably without stopping or some people might tell you, without even slowing down. I forget how many times I've gotten flashed or honked when I stopped at the roundabout!

I am also not used to the "priority to the right" rule here. Many times I've forgotten about this and have not given way. Same with pedestrian crossing.

I am still in the Malaysian driving mode - if the light turns orange, go faster! Stop at roundabouts. There is no such thing as giving priority to cars coming from your right - seriously, even on a straight road, if you see a car coming out on your right, you have to stop and let that car pass.

I have also found myself driving on the wrong side several times when there is no other car on the road, cos I don't have other cars to guide me. I get confused sometimes.

In my 8 months here I still don't get why the french insist on drinking coffee and tea from bowls instead of mugs. I don't get the hype about saucisson - everyone loves it; WHY????? The same goes with Cassoulet. And the national obsession about Nutella - c'mon, have they never tasted peanut butter? Incidentally peanut butter is almost impossible to get here in Tarbes; I have a jar that is guarded very closely in my pantry.

Why does each meal have to be accompanied by bread (even when we are already eating potatoes or rice), cheese and yoghurt? In that exact order please...

Did you know that the french listen to English and American songs all the time - BUT they do not understand what they are listening to as they do not speak English? I found this out at the hip little cafe with really good music from the owner's laptop and I tried to speak in English and got a blank stare back. I was with a Moroccan friend who has lived in Tarbes for the past 12 years and she explained that in her school everyone listens to English songs but cannot speak the language.

I can't say the same for Paris and other regions but here in Tarbes, one cannot really differentiate the rich from the poor. Not by the car they are driving (Fred's truck driver colleague is driving an X5) or by the clothes or designer bags they carry (almost none or very discreet brands).

I also found out through Bee's blog recently that the french social security system is so good that if you give birth in France, you get a birth bonus; and childcare allowance from the Government as well as a monthly stipend for your baby!

So France may have its quirkiness but it seems to me that its a pretty good place to be, especially for Lucas.

A bout of gastro

Our spa plans had to take a backseat as Fred & I had really bad food poisoning Saturday night. It was so bad that Fred was more or less comatose, and when I was not asleep, I was vomiting and feeling so dizzy I couldn't get up. Poor Lucas had to more or less fend for himself all of Sunday. We made ourselves get up on Sunday and literally crawled out of bed to change Lucas, give him his milk and cereal. But we slept through lunch and didn't wake up til past 3 p.m. All day Lucas was playing around the bed, reading and singing, amusing himself while we slept. He managed to push a chair against the pantry and got food (cereal, biscuits and bread) for lunch - all by himself. Fred says we are horrible parents for neglecting Lucas but the truth of the matter is - when you are away from friends and family, in time of need, there is really no one to help.
And even when my MIL knew we were both sick, she didn't come over with chicken soup or anything at all. Its times like this I really, really wish to be with my family where being a family means just that - love, comfort, support.
When I was in KL, besides mom & dad and my sister, I had wonderful neighbours who were kind and thoughtful. I could always rely on Chrissy to make some porridge or soup and Debbie for some fried rice or sandwich. Even Chrissy's housemate Moi would have cooked something for us if she knew we were so sick we could not get out of bed.
My MIL came over today and I told her (nicely) that Lucas was left on his own and he managed to find his own lunch. I hope she felt bad and I think maybe she did, as she stayed with us all afternoon. But when push comes to shove, in this foreign country, we have no one else to rely on but ourselves... Now if only I can convince my parents to migrate over here...

Spa time at Bagneres de Bigorre

My husband just told me that he will be bringing me to a thermal spa in Bagneres this Sunday and has arranged for MIL to babysit Lucas :)
He also went to Decathlon to buy a pair of swimmers for himself and came back with speedo shorts :(  eeewwwwww... when I complained he says that in France the men wear speedos and in public pools are not allowed to wear boardshorts. Well, I will go to that spa and see if any men there are wearing boardshorts...
Anyway we are going to the Aquensis Spa and I looked at the website to check out the facilities and am now pretty excited about going though I have to wear a bikini which means I need to wax my underarms... (hey, its winter, OK - no one sees my underarms in winter cos I am always in long sleeves..!)
http://www.aquensis.fr/

Lucas at 28 months

Lucas is now 28 months old!!!! In the past 2 weeks he has surprised us once again, many times over.

After we started disciplining him and cutting out TV time, Lucas has been an angel, both at home with me and also at creche. On Thursday when I picked Lucas up from creche, Emmanuelle looked shellshocked because Lucas sat down and had his goutez for the very first time!

Lucas also navigated his way up and down the stairs by holding onto the rails when we went out.

When we are about to go out, he brings me his coat and his shoes.

When my mobile phone rang and I was in the shower, Lucas brought the phone to me. If it was the home phone, he sometimes answers the phone by saying "hewwo".

Lucas knows how to change the CDs in his CD player and knows which button to press "play".

2 weeks ago, Fred & I decided that Lucas' TV time should be severely limited. I argued that it was through Barney and Sesame Street that Lucas can now count 1 to 10 and can sing and dance to several nursery rhymes and also he learnt his ABC with Barney. But because he was exposed to so much TV at home, he was getting irritated at creche where there was no TV at all to occupy his time.

So since I was the one exposing him to so much TV, it was up to me to stop it. And I did, by the grace of God. It was damn hard. I didn't do it slowly. It was all done cold turkey. Lucas kept asking for TV but I stood firm and said no. It took many temper tantrums until he realised that I was not going to budge.

Its been 2 weeks. Lucas stopped asking for TV days ago. Now he asks for a story instead of the TV. And he is starting to play by himself in his room more.

Yesterday Lucas brought over his "Feelings" book (its a baby sign language book) and surprised me by reading it to me and signing each word. The book teaches babies how to express "happy", "sad", "hungry", "excited" and "sleepy". Lucas managed to say and sign all 5 words, yes, even "excited"!!!!

He has been imitating everything I say and especially Fred and now has started calling me "bebe" (like his papa) instead of "mama".

He knows how to ask for water when he wants a drink or milk, he says "down please" if he wants to get down from his highchair. He tells us when he wants to pee (he says "pee") but refuses to use the potty without his diapers.

His eating habits have improved. He had porcini risotto this arvo for lunch. It was by chance that I found some tea time goodies from Carrefour (the hypermarket decided to change several of their packaging to Mickey and friends) and I bought the brioche and pancakes for Lucas' goutez. He latched onto the packaging and happily ate whatever had Mickey in it....

I am still trying to feed Lucas his veges tho. He is stubborn about his veges, he used to love green peas as a baby but now refuses to eat them. Same with tomatoes, brocolli, spinach, long beans, corn... He eats potatoes and a little bit of carrot. I have tried to place the veges artistically on his plate, tried mixing them up with other food but nothing works...

And now, since yesterday Lucas has refused his milk. He's asking for chocolate milk for breaky instead and he didn't want his nightly bottle.

40 and counting...

Wow, its been 10 days since I last blogged. Time really flies! Seriously, I was a young, carefree, single career woman in my 20s having the time of my life and then, with a wink of an eye, I am now a 39 year old SAHM to a beautiful 2 year old tackling laundry everyday...Sometimes I wish I could slow down the time or even stop time. I don't want to be 40, but I have to face facts that I will turn 40 in May. I don't feel 40, in fact I still feel like I am in my 20s. Am I experiencing mid life crisis? Is this it?
I am not about to do anything drastic though - not like a lot of people going through mid life crisis and I am relatively content with life, but I just don't want to be 40. The thought of going through menopause is scary...

Soon there will be added headaches for me to handle - to have another baby before my eggs shrivel up or not? To get back on track with my career here in France or just get a part time job? To start worrying for my twilight years or not? To botox or not?
So many questions... so little time!!!!!!