Do you remember how you celebrated Mother’s Day when you were still a little child?

I remember it clearly.

Mother’s Day celebration has always been a simple affair ever since I was small. I would wake up extra early just to clean the entire house for Mak. I would sweep the floor, mop it till I could see my reflection, wash the dishes, fold the clothes, and clean Mak’s room even. Back then, we did not have a helper, so I knew it was my responsibility to do something that would make Mak happy; and I reckoned keeping the house clean would make her the happiest. Yes, my mum is that easy to please because her life is really all about us. On every Mother’s Day, I would be at my best behaviour, and try my very best to not make her raise her voice. No fights with my siblings, no nothing. Mak was queen for a day, and we were angels for a day. Well, almost a day. So hard to not fight with one another over the simplest thing. LOL.

I miss those good old days when everything was less complicated.

I miss being a little kid.

I miss growing up.

I miss having lesser responsibilities.

I miss being so carefree.

I miss spending time with Mak.

Mother’s Day seems to be so complicating these days, man. There’s always the dilemma of deciding whose mother we’re celebrating first, second, and third. In fact, Tatek and I are already cracking our brains on how we are going to celebrate Mother’s Day tomorrow. First, there is ME! LOL. Secondly, Mak. Thirdly, my mother-in-law. Sometimes, I really feel like we need an expert just to arrange a schedule for each mom on the exact same day. How many hours are there in a day again, excluding bedtime?

Actually, as ironic as it may sound, Mother’s Day is all for the children. It is not so much for us mummies.

Kids, they are forever eager to show that they love us and that they can take good care of us.

My girls have been saying things like,

“Mummy, I love you so much. Thank you for taking care of me.”

“Mummy, you are the best mummy!”

“Mummy, I will always make you happy. I will never make you cry.”

Just look at my bag. It is filled with cards that my girls have been making for me non-stop for the past few days or so. I am not kidding you or exaggerating but they keep filling my bag with cards and letters every now and then, some of which they did in school!

“Nah Mummy. Happy Mother’s Day!”

It is always so easy to fashion a statement out of construction paper and glue and fill it with lots of hearts and glitter for mummy dearest when you are a kid. I mean, what else can you do to show how much you appreciate your mum? You express it best through your drawings and all. You put your heart and soul into those handmade cards.

However, I was so tempted to tell them,

“Okay, enough already. I have no more space to keep your cards!”

But I cannot possibly be saying that right? I must be appreciative, especially when they are always so happy to give me these handmade gifts. LOL.

As kids get older and subsequently turn into adults like us, it will become harder to express how much we love our mummies because our lives are now filled with something else like never-ending duties and obligations. The once in a week phone call or visit will then be our way of saying “I am here now, and I still remember all that you have done for me.”

What am I saying here?

When we grow up, we need to find a new way to express our love to our mums.

And as mothers, we too need to be able to hear or see what our children are subtly telling us. They will not make it that obvious most of the time due to a little something something huge called EGO. It may no longer be a flimsy or super gluey handmade card but a perfect looking store-bought card instead. So what? They may not say they love us so very much anymore in the card but they will say they appreciate whatever we have done for them instead. So what again?

Knowing that your kids spent those few minutes to buy the card before writing a little something for you is enough to tell you that you still matter in their lives. Or is it not?

Being a mother is a very challenging job, as we all know! What’s new, right? It does not come with any kind of training book. Okay fine, they do sell those guide books which I love to read, but honestly, those books are just for my pure entertainment. I do not read them to learn how to be a better or perfect mum. There is no correct way to be a perfect mum, and we all learn how to parent on the go. Most of the time, we take that leap of faith and we experiment while we are at it. Should we fail, we have no time to give up or cry for days/weeks/months. We have no choice but to pick ourselves up again almost immediately, and just keep trying to to do the best that we can for our children.

Know that while we think that we may not be the best mummy yet for our children, we are always the best in their eyes.

Sure, we do not need a specific day to celebrate our role in society. But doesn’t it feel super good to know that there is a day to celebrate our existence as mummies? After all, it is just a day of recognition and appreciation.

If every day is Mother’s Day, when then can we feel extra special?

When can we really take a break from everything just to spend that time with our children?

It hurts when I get super busy at times to even talk to my girls. 

It hurts when my girl has to grab my face between her hands just so that she can have my full attention.

It hurts when my girl has to try hard to look at me directly into my eyes just to tell me this.

“Mummy, I love you.”

Happy Mother’s Day. <3

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EH WAIT, DID YOU GO TO THE CORRECT BLOG?

Oh yes, this is THE REVEAL.

Don’t worry, you are at the right blog. It’s still me!

And no, not pregnant.

NOT PREGNANT.

NOT PREGNANT.

Say, how are you liking my new blog?

I LOVE IT SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!

CONGRATULATE ME QUICK. SEND ME ROSES, CHOCOLATES, OR ANYTHING TIFFANY. 

What if I tell you that the same person was responsible for my new blog layout and the pictures you see here? Who is he or she? How can he/she be this talented?! So unfair, right?

Relax. Don’t get so worked up. 

KEEP CALM & READ ON. 

I was staring at my blog the other night, looking for ideas for a particular blog post. Suddenly it struck me.

“What am I doing daydreaming nightdreaming? I need a new blog layout fast.”

I was in love with my previous blog design for the longest time because of the colour pink, and how it reflected the supposedly soothing nature of my blog. But at the same time, I was itching to tweak my layout and experiment with a different colour scheme for my blog post. A blog design is just like life. You need to keep progressing. You need to be fresh. You cannot be stuck in a rut. Sometimes we get too used to things till they finally become stagnant. -_-

I decided that my blog design should go for a fresh change and colour. What colour?

TIFFANY BLUE LAR OF COURSE!

And so I started planning. Before I could change my blog layout, I had to take new photos. I had to check my husband’s availability. I had to arrange for a studio session. I had to shop for clothes.

But most importantly, I had to find the perfect photographer.

I started checking out different photography companies but a particular photography company caught my attention immediately. For my new blog layout, I was actually looking for something different in terms of the pictures. I did not want to settle for the normal kind of pictures.

I am sorry to say this but I needed something more.

ZEE & MARINA PHOTOGRAPHY fits the bill perfectly! 

Let me now introduce you to Zee & Marina’s photography niche, PORTRAIT IN PANO.

PORTRAIT IN PANO(RAMA) LOOKS LIKE THESE.

“In photography there is a reality so subtle that it becomes more real than reality.”

Actually, the photos do not even need a story or explanation to back them up. They speak for themselves, I believe. But at the same time, I think you would be interested to hear the story behind them, right?

Firstly, want to know the mastermind behind Portrait in Pano?

HE IS NONE OTHER THAN FAUZI ANUAR.

Fauzi Anuar specializes in on-location lifestyle portrait, be it indoors or outdoors.

According to Fauzi, Portrait in Pano is a collection of portraits (taken in sequence) to depict a story or timeline.

“It is definitely a pull away from conventional portraits, and shows modernism in current pictorials. It involves the use of image manipulation techniques.”

Let me tell you a bit more about Fauzi Anuar. Let me tell you how awesome he is.

- He is qualified master photographer as awarded by The Master Photographers Association UK.

- He is 2 Star Exhibitor as awarded by The Photographic Society of America

- He won a couple of Honorable Mentions at the 2012 International Photography Awards

- He was awarded a merit at the Master Photographers Association’s 2012 Diamond Jubilee Awards

- He was one of the top 8 finalists in The Big Shot Season 3

And what’s more, Fauzi Anuar is really good at web designing too! Hence, this blog layout for me.

WOW. SO I KILLED 2 BIRDS WITH ONE STONE, DIDN’T I?

Do you want to know how Fauzi Anuar actually started taking an interest in photography? It’s pretty cute actually, the story. When he told me, I was laughing quite hysterically.

So here goes. First things first, Fauzi did not have an interest in photography initially. No passion whatsoever even. So I would like to think that he has his wife to thank for where he is now. Had it not been for her who requested for a DSLR camera (out of so many gifts!) during their wedding anniversary, he would not have taken an interest in the camera till now. Now, you must be thinking that the wife must be a pro to have asked for a DSLR camera, right? I thought so too. Well, here’s the thing; she did not how to use the DSLR initially! Laugh now, it’s so funny! See la, asked for DSLR but don’t know how to use. Truth be told, she just could not be bothered to read the entire instruction manual. Tell me about it, I hate reading instruction manuals too! Like, what are they written in? German?

So like it or not, Fauzi had to learn how to use the DSLR in order to teach his beloved wife. The things you would do for love, right?

And that was how everything started, my friend. From a simple (or not so simple) experiment with the DSLR to his own photography company!

GIVE HIM A ROUND OF APPLAUSE PLEASE. 

You must be curious to know how Isda looks like right?

NAH. PROMOTE HER A BIT SINCE SHE IS SO PRETTY. HELLO ISDA!!

CAN YOU NOW TEACH ME HOW TO USE THE DSLR, ISDA? SHARE & CARE. #LOL

I actually tried to do some research on Portrait in Pano but the search result showed Zee & Marina Photography only. Does that mean that only Fauzi is doing this in Singapore at present? I think so! Correct me if I am wrong, but hey, I am usually right. HAHAHAHAHAH.  I mean, have you seen any other photography companies doing this? Now, imagine having the Portrait in Pano in your living room for all your guests to admire and be in awe. Every guest of yours will be impressed! Forget new curtains, beautify your house with your own Portrait in Pano instead!

And hey, check out the CD case which Fauzi surprised us with! So impressive and outstanding, right? You can have yours personalized like this too! I’ll tell you more later.

I can tell that Fauzi is extremely particular about creating a good first impression, and this can be seen from our first meeting with him to the first studio session to the short time he took to produce the end product. I thought he did not take long to show us the edited pictures, considering the fact that he had a lot to do before we could get our very own PORTRAIT IN PANO. We were so impressed by his passion, efficiency and dedication. What am I saying? I am still impressed by his passion, efficiency, and dedication. Working with Fauzi was such a breeze and sooooooooo easy.

During the studio photo shoot, my girls were initially quite stiff and shy, if I were to be frank with you. And because they were pretty shy, the pictures taken initially did not exactly depict the real bubbly them. Fauzi was really patient and took the effort to get to know them better first. In fact, he was not even rushing to get everything done. He was like sitting down with my girls, playing with them, and kept creating conversations with them. Within minutes, he was already able to differentiate my twins! Big deal okay because until now, my dad is still not able to identify my twins correctly sometimes despite seeing them every single day.

So little kids, you will definitely adore Uncle Fauzi!

And parents, don’t get all worked up trying to get your kids to smile for the camera because Fauzi can handle that part pretty well, I am sure.

Now the pressure’s officially on you, Fauzi. HAHAHA.

Want to know something about Portrait in Pano? Fauzi will be the one telling you to come up with a certain pose. So, you don’t have to crack your brains while figuring out how to go about posing. In the case of our Portrait in Pano, I was asked to pretend to jot down whatever the girls were doing for an upcoming blog post. Tatek had to hold the camera and pretend he was photographing the girls for my blog post. The girls were told to play with toys and Lego; Sharleez was asked to pretend that she was chasing after Myreen. Myreen had to hold on to the toy plane and pretend that she was looking at Sharleez. And Mysha had to pretend that she was playing with a toy car, and observing the antics of Sharleez and Myreen while she was at it.

THESE ARE THE PANO PARTS.

See how every part produces the Portrait in Pano when put together?

TELL ME PORTRAIT IN PANO IS NOTHING BUT AWESOME, QUICK!

Looks easy, doesn’t it? But trust me, it involves a lot of work!

Fauzi has an eye for what matters in a photograph. His post-production skills are exceptional. I think Fauzi really has the right spirit for the job. He did an amazing job of keeping my girls engaged and himself energized. He set us at ease and kept us laughing throughout the studio session. So I reckon the reason why Fauzi gets the best out of his subjects is because he brings his best to the job. That’s really important, I feel. I appreciate his energy and how he can attain the perfect shots without putting so much pressure on us, the kids especially.

And the end product? He managed to bring out the best in every daughter of mine.

Let me tell you something else. Fauzi actually had only three days to work on my blog design. Despite the short period of time he had, he was able to come up with whatever that I had in mind. Gosh. I cannot reiterate enough how super efficient this guy is. And let’s not mention the fact that he is very good at web designing. Wait a minute, I think I already mentioned it earlier. Web designing can be deceptively difficult, and it’s not just a matter of coming up with a beautiful design. Contrary to popular belief, how your blog looks has little to do with the blog design. It’s not about being fancy actually. It’s about having a cohesive blog design. I believe Fauzi has successfully created one for me!

AND JUST IN CASE YOU MISSED WHAT I TYPED EARLIER, LET ME SAY IT AGAIN.

I AM SO IN LOVE WITH MY NEW BLOG DESIGN!

Such a privilege to have had the chance to work with Fauzi Anuar from Zee & Marina Photography.

And guess what, he is now a friend of ours. The kind that I can joke around with without feeling awkward or anything like that, just like the rest of them who I have worked with before.

He is such an easygoing person, really. No airs at all. So I did not put on airs too. LOL. That’s the thing about me. Once you get to know me and once you are in my good books, working with me will be soooooo easy and fun plus stress free!

RIGHT OR NOT FAUZI?!!

So okay, since Hari Raya is just around the corner, why not book a studio session with Fauzi Anuar from Zee & Marina Photography, and have your very own Portrait in Pano?

I HEARD ZEE & MARINA PHOTOGRAPHY HAS A PROMOTION FOR ALL MY BLOG READERS IF YOU WERE SIGN UP NOW!

THE FIRST 30 CUSTOMERS TO SIGN UP FOR PORTRAIT IN PANO PACKAGE WILL RECEIVE THE EPRSONALIZED CD CASE (WORTH $50) WHICH I SHOWED YOU EARLIER.

THE PACKAGE INCLUDES:

1. 1 HOUR OF STUDIO SESSION

2. SOFT COPY (WEB RESOLUTION) OF FINAL IMAGE & INDIVIDUAL IMAGES USED FOR THE PANO.

And beside Portrait in Pano, ZEE & MARINA PHOTOGRAPHY also offers the following services:

• Single/couple/family portrait

• Outdoor photoshoot

• Newborn/baby photography package with 24×16 inch canvas wrap

A family portrait looks something like this! 

Sorry but it’s us again. HAHAHAHA!

AND OH MY GOODNESS! JUST LOOK AT THESE!!

AWWWWWWWWW MAN.

And oh oh oh, if you are looking for someone to design your website or blog, you can approach Fauzi Anuar too! Just don’t choose the colour tiffany, okay?

THANK YOU SO MUCH FAUZI ANUAR FROM ZEE & MARINA PHOTOGRAPHY FOR THIS GORGEOUS BLOG LAYOUT AND FOR ALL THE BEAUTIFUL PHOTOS YOU TOOK OF US. TRUST ME, YOU WILL BE SEEING MORE OF US.

DETAILS NOW! GO DISTURB FAUZI QUICK! 

FAUZI ANUAR

Mobile: 9656 0662

Email: zee@zeeandmarina.com

Web: www.zeeandmarina.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/zeeandmarina

Photographing A Minute Part Of Reality

“I love photos because the best thing about it is that it never changes even when the person in it does.”

AND FOR KEEPING YOU IN SUSPENSE FOR A FEW DAYS ABOUT THE REVEAL, THE VERY LEAST YOU COULD DO IS TO CLICK LIKE BELOW, YOU KNOW? 

<3

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Encouraging our children to read is probably the best education we can give them as a parent.

But it can sometimes be an uphill struggle too, so do not worry too much if you are finding it hard to get your kids to enjoy reading, or if your kids are not able to read books on their own as yet.

Here’s the thing, when you enjoy something, there can never be the force factor. Younger children like nothing better than to snuggle up with their parents to share reading time! So just keep reading to them, and without you realizing it, you will find your children reading to you instead in no time!

My girls love reading so much that they can read anything and everything. Their most favourite moment will be when I show them new books for them to read. They always look forward to that part.

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When it comes to choosing the lifestyle and home products for my house, I try to choose something that is unique looking, or rare to find.

I am sure most of you are like that too, right? I mean, why be common when we can be different?

This reminds me of one of my favourite quotes this far.

“You laugh at me because I’m different, I laugh at you because you’re all the same.”

HAHAHA. 

So anyway, with regards to #ProjectFunhouse, there is one more awesome company that I have yet to mention.

Yup, I’m sure that name rings a bell, there has been much hype and excitement over Reebonz’ latest brainchild, Kwerkee!

(Pronounced ‘Quirky’ – pun intended!)

Quirky means to be weird, in a good way. It is sometimes used to describe a person with an excellent talent for mind-reading and has psychic abilities.

So as the name goes, Kwerkee by Reebonz is an online shopping website that offers you the coolest, cutest and most interesting home and lifestyle products cherry-picked from all around the world. Similar to its sister site, Reebonz, that offers you discounted pricing on luxury goods, Kwerkee offers you equally as fantastic deals on their specially hand-picked products at 70% off retail!

Awesome right?!

How I got to know about Kwerkee was through my little sister Ili Diyana. If you know Ili, she is a big fan of anything artsy, fun, cute, quirky and unique! Like a little girl, she excitedly showed me Kwerkee’s website one fine day and I felt myself getting equally as excited as I scrolled through their products! It is so true, the items featured by Kwerkee are really very unique, the kinds that you can’t find anywhere else!

Here is a quick preview of their seamless and easy to navigate website as well as some of the current sales / events they are having:

It’s a FREE MEMBERSHIP website and Kwerkee keeps things hassle-free for its buyers by providing a quick seamless sign-in via Facebook!

Okay, so coincidentally we were shifting to our new place then, so I’m sure you can imagine the excitement when we saw all the amazing home, kitchen and lifestyle products that Kwerkee had to offer. Trust me, it was so hard to choose which items we wanted due to Kwerkee’s amazing selection of products so we ended up wanting everything!

Eventually, after much deliberation, we decided on the following items:

JEALOUS MUCH?

Now do you believe me when I say how awesome their products are?! Needless to say, Kwerkee’s delivery service, like everything else about them, is equally as efficient. Our first item, the Wild & Wolf 1930′s Lobby Phone arrived very quickly. Check out Kwerkee’s super cool and catchy trademark packaging!

NOW THAT’S DOPE!

I tell you, the whole process of receiving Kwerkee’s package and seeing what was inside was so exhilirating! I think it had a lot to do with the fact that everything was done so efficiently and nicely. Also, the items that arrived were exactly as depicted in the website, perhaps even better in real life! So thumbs up Kwerkee!

Due to the bulky nature of our order, we arranged to have the rest of the stuff delivered to our new place. The items arrived exactly on our move in date!

WHY SO EFFICIENT ONE, KWERKEE? <3

LOOK MA! I AM SEEING TRIPLE OF MAMA E!

If you have liked everything in this post as much as I do, don’t forget to click on the LIKE button to show your love.

Also, head on down to Kwerkee from 5th – 15th April and enjoy a 10% discount upon checkout when you use the discount code ‘ETRANGLE’ 

“Never apologize for being unique, gorgeous, smart and quirky KWERKEE. Never apologize for being you.”

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Our Saturday is going to be jam-packed with shows!

I AM NOT COMPLAINING!

Now, there is this one show that my girls have been raving about ever since they saw the big poster at Downtown East.

“MUMMY, PLEASE CAN WE WATCH IT?”

“GO GET THE TICKETS, MUMMY!”

“MUMMY, I REALLY, REALLY NEED TO WATCH THE SHOW. IT IS URGENT.”

WHAT SHOW?

Looney Tunes Live! Classroom Capers

Date: 2 TO 24 MARCH 2013

Time : Fri: 7.30pm, Sat: 11am, 3pm, 7.30pm, Sun: 3pm

Venue : D’ Marquee, Downtown East

Ticket Price : $38, $48, $58, $68 (exclude $2 booking fee)

Ticketbooth Hotline : 6296 2929

Or you can just CLICK HERE to purchase the tickets online.

Can you imagine how jubilant and gratified my girls were and felt when I told them that I finally have the tickets to the show? It feels so good to be able to make them so happy, really. And I only have Mediacorp VizPro to thank for making their wishes come true! <3

Honestly speaking, I am pretty excited myself to watch the Looney Tunes gang live  because this will be their first ever visit to Singapore!

So what can you expect to see for Looney Tunes Live! Classroom Capers?

Well, it goes something like this.

The teacher is running late for class at the ACME Academy so the Looney Tunes gang each decide to take turns as the substitute teacher – which quickly becomes a textbook example of how things can easily get out of control! Don’t miss this up-close and personal lesson in classic gags that has made Looney Tunes a perennial, must-see class act starring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweet, Sylvester, Taz, Marvin the Martian and Porky Pig.

Who is your favourite Looney Tunes character, by the way?

Actually,  I am still torn between Tweet and Taz! Tweet is like too cute. And I only found out at the age of 30 that Tweet is male! OMG. Taz, on the other hand, is mischievous but yet oh so adorable. So can you see why it is so difficult for me to decide? I have been deciding since I was like, 5? And now I am like, 32 and still very much undecided.

Maybe after watching them live, I will be able to finally decide. Wish me lots of luck.

So hope to see you there! We will be watching the

11 am show on Saturday, 23 March 2013!

Photos courtesy of MEDIACORP VIZPRO 

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