Em's First CNY

The few days of CNY visiting really upset her sleep schedule and after the first full day out, we paid the price when she wailed and screamed non-stop for about 15 minutes in MJ's arms before settling down. This one's a screamer and when she's uncomfortable or unhappy, we are exposed to her full blast, which isn't the problem. It's seeing her so traumatised with her cute mouth turned upside down, tears flowing that really tugs at the heart. Just when you think one episode like that is enough, it happened again, but less severe, the next night. There was really no way around it as we HAD to finish some 'must-visit' friends and relatives. Thank God it's all over and we hope that when the next CNY arrives, history won't repeat itself.
This is not exactly a CNY dress but it was such a pretty hand-me-down, I couldn't resist putting it on her.

This is obviously not Meg's CNY clothes but her PJs! However this was shot during CNY.

'Nose, nose' is our favourite expression to her so she'll stay still when we bring our faces right up to her to touch her nose with ours very lightly.

40

I recently hit this number of years of existence and, like most people who hit it, I was not thrilled. Middle age. The BIG FOUR-O. Mid-life crisis. Closer to 50. All these thoughts floated through my mind. I've never been one to bother much about my own birthday nor what age I am. But somehow, turning 40 got me melancholic and a little depressed.
You know you've hit 40 when...
01. Your preferred radio station is 90.5 instead of 95.00
02. You've given up on that dream waistline
03. You start worrying if you've got enough money for retirement
04. You can't read anything that's closer than an arm's length
05. Getting out of your car is an effort after you've driven for more than half an hour
06. Getting out of your seat in the office is an effort after you've sat down for more than half an hour
07. You dare not jump down from a ledge that's more than two feet high
08. There's no hope of people calling you sister when you buy food from the hawker centre. It's now always auntie...
09. You try not to look at yourself in the mirror too much
10. You start upping your insurance...
11. You don't bother plucking your white hairs anymore
Sigh...40...the only bright side of it is...at least I'm not 41 yet!

Sick Meg

Last year, she fell ill during Chinese New Year. This time, with a little reprieve, she suffered an asthma attack ten days after the New Year. The entire family's been sick for awhile. I welcomed 2011 curled up in front of the TV, wrapped in a blanket with my daughter snuggled up to me while I nursed a fever. The virus must have been doing "pass the parcel' as one by one, we all fell ill, including Em. It was late yesterday afternoon that Meg started feeling breathless. She had been coughing constantly all day, and I should've realised that it might be the onset of an asthma attack as that's one of the symptoms but it's been quite long since her last one and I thought it was just a nagging cough. We took her to the GP downstairs who said her lungs were clogged and immediately nebulized her. However, I know that the GP is not equipped to prescribe a course on the nebulizer as they don't have the equipment to rent out nor do they have the expertise. The doctor proclaimed Meg 'much better' after a short course on the neb, which MJ knew wasn't enough.

She was still coughing after it was over and true enough, within an hour after seeing the GP, Meg suffered another attack and panicked when she could not breath properly. We rushed her to KKH, a routine we're all so familiar with. Only this time, we have a baby to consider in the scheme of things and decided to drop her off at my mum's for a few hours and come back for her on our way home. We expected that it would be just a few hours and we'd be back home, asleep on our own beds. Little luck. After the oxygen level in her body was borderline, the doctor recommended that she be warded. I was very reluctant to have her warded, as she seemed fine with no more breathing difficulties for the moment. I had to work the next day and we had to pick Em up...Meg just couldn't be warded! But for her sake, we had to do it and I'm glad we did. Her breathlessness recurred while she was in the ward and her heaving chest was rising and retracting like an old, gaunt person struggling for a breath. She had to have the ventolin puff administered every 15 mins which is a serious situation and was almost moved to the high dependency ward. Fortunately, after one day, her condition improved and there was no need to transfer her. She was warded for three days and missed the entire week of school. Ultimately, health and not wealth is best thing one can pray for. Without good health, life would be miserable.
Old school and new school. (L): What would we do without technology? (R): Ah, the good ole book!
The poor thing...
All better!