Happiness is... chasing dreams and celebrating milestones

October was an eventful month for us and one filled with celebration, joy and dreams come true.

For one, it marked the end of PSLE for Ariel and considering this is a major milestone, of course we had to party and celebrate. With a stroke of luck, we happened to get a sponsored cruise trip that considered with the PSLE marking period so I brought the three younger ones on this short but sweet dream vacation.

As always, we gathered as a family to celebrate Halloween and this year, we dressed up as mummies, played games and danced to "APT" and "Bye Bye Bye".

One crazy thing I did was bringing the littlest to an autograph session and squeezing with thousands of others for hours just to get my concert tickets autographed and to see my idols up close. As for who, well, read to the end to find out.

This month, "Happiness is..." all about celebrating milestones and chasing dreams.

Thanks to Genting Dream, we had a fun-filled 3D2N getaway packed with lots of kid-friendly activities and yummy food. I was only offered three weekday sailing dates so it was really lucky that one of them coincided with the PSLE marking period. If not, it would have been a one-on-one trip for just me and the toddler, since he is the only one who can still skip school, haha.

You can read all about our highlights in my detailed post here, which includes activities we did like bowling, foam party, obstacle course, rock climbing, water slides, sports and recreational games, and more.

The kids said we did so much in the short two-night stay and I totally agree! We even managed to dine in five different restaurants and enjoyed the food immensely too.

What others might not realise was how we had to literally film everything we did since this was a work trip, which made it more exhausting than if it was a leisure one. I had to trouble my kids to help out, like how Asher had to stand in the sun to record the sister and I going through the obstacle course, or how I had to wait at the water slides patiently just for the kids to emerge. All while handling the needs of a toddler who can be fussy and have a short attention span.

Nonetheless, I really did have a good time and especially cherished the fact that I could celebrate the end of PSLE with Ariel on board. We had lots of foam covering each other with foam at the foam party and also set a new mum-and-daughter achievement by overcoming a high element course and a zipline in the middle of the ocean.

We still make it a point to visit attractions in Singapore and go for fun family events even if it means travelling to the opposite side of the island. This time, we made it to KidsStop and Snow City. It isn't always that the kids get to see snow and I always feel like I shortchanged the younger three considering how the eldest had the chance to live in Scandinavia and experience winters, ski trips and reindeer sleighs.

Anyway, we had lots of fun going down the slippery ice slides which were longer, faster and more thrilling than we imagined. It was also our first time going on the ice bumper car ride which was a highlight for the kids too.

October is also a time where I would conjure my creative juices to do handmade cards for the kids. This time, I did a colour-changing card and used transparencies and paper to draw their favourite things and used an insert to create the colour changing visual effect. They were all amazed by it and thought it was pretty cool, woohoo. I also penned a heartfelt message to each of them at the back of the card and hopefully they will remember my words for years to come and know that they are deeply loved.

I've shared the details of our Halloween party so hop over to have a read if you have not. I love our Halloween parties but with the kids getting bigger, I'm not sure for how long more would they wanna join in such games and be willing to dress up too. Plus, it also takes lots of effort to make it happen and I am the sole party planner. Well, let's just take it a year at a time and see how it goes.

The girls made effort to add in bakes this year and we had cupcakes and chocolate. I thought the ghost design was pretty cool and maybe we can do something special every year too. And yeah, we used up lots of bandages for our outfits this year but at least we only needed this one material.

On another note, I've officially hit 11 full years of breastfeeding my four babies and judging by how this toddler still refuses to let go, we are in for even a longer ride. I am not complaining though because I love the feeling of breastfeeding and how it made me bond to each of my babies. Truly, truly blessed and through it all, I learnt to be a more patient and determined mum too.

We went for a family shoot with Our Second Studio and I must say it is one of my favourites so far. The studio, with its earthy colours, minimal set up, fireplace and reindeer, reminded us of Scandinavia and thus it was the perfect theme for us. These photos are so priceless and the good thing is they last for a lifetime so we can always remninsce these years even when the kids are all grown up.

A Yole treat? Yeah the kids love having their frozen yoghurt with toppings so we still go for it from time to time, usually on Fridays. It's like a celebration of yet another tiring but happy week that passed us by.

I had time for a one-on-one lunch with Asher and brought him to Yakiniku because he loves to cook. It's really hard to carve out time for each kid, and it's not always that they say yes to hanging out with Mama, but I will just have to keep trying.

Making time for friends is also important and I met up with my jie meis to have a Sichuan high tea to celebrate the bestie's birthday. All of us are busy with our own lives and each of us has a different story to share. The good thing is we still make time for each other and I hope this will continue even when we are all old and frail. 29 years of friendship and going strong!

We had a belated birthday celebration for my Dad and had a family meal at Lao Huo Tang. The hubby was out of town and my kids had to choose this day to kick up a fuss and throw tantrums. Haha. It's funny how my parents always witness these moments when I am barely trying to hang in there but I hope they know I am trying my best and being a stay-at-home mum to four kids isn't as bad as what it seems.

So after lunch, I asked my Dad if he would wanna try indoor climbing with the older ones and he gamely said yes. So while they were busy climbing, I took the youngest me to meet....

ENERGY!

Yeap, it's probably one of the craziest things I've done with a toddler in tow because we had to crowd with thousands of people. At the end, where we were queueing to go on stage for the autograph session, it was a tight squeeze as everyone tried to get to the front and so I had to carry the boy for a long time for fear that he would be stepped on if I let him down. Yup, so 咬牙切齿 and eventually, we got there and he got to talk to 牛奶，Shuwei, 阿弟 and 坤达. Woohoo! His favourite is Toro who unfortunately had to skip the autograph session as he was feeling unwell.

I must tell you it was just so fated because I had already planned for a lunch with my parents who stay in Tampines before the publicity for their autograph session was announced. And yup, guess what, I was dumbfounded when I read that the session was going to be held in Tampines Hub on that EXACT same day and anyone with concert tickets could get their autographs. I already had two concert tickets with me so it was really 命中注定 that I showed up for the session.

The boy was really well-behaved despite the long waiting time and he also sang to some of Energy's songs, much to the amazement of other people around us. I guess that's called 爱屋及乌, right?

Anyway, so why do I like them so much? I think I am just very inspired by the pure fact that they got back together after a over 20-year hiatus and have chosen to keep dancing, singing, performing and holding concerts. They are my age so it really motivates me to keep chasing my dreams too and also, to keep working out to stay fit and healthy.

See how my kids drew me this portrait of them? Yeah, I love it lots. So yeap, can't wait to attend their concert next month and share more in my next post of "Happiness is...".

It's never too late to 追梦, yar? If you still have any unfulfilled dreams, do think of ways to keep pursuing them and not let motherhood stop you totally. For me, writing has always been one of my biggest dreams so even though this is not a paid job, I just hope to keep writing from the heart, keep sharing and keep it real.