To the zoo with friends

This morning, we went to the zoo with some friends since all of our husbands are away on business. It was good to get out of the house on a Saturday when it's usually family time. It was hot, but we had a good time looking at the animals as we made our way to the kidzworld to play in the water. These are the fake otters, but Juliana had a blast climbing on them and posing with them...

Sophie, Miriam and Juliana chatting with the otters...

Juliana loved the tigers. She wanted to climb in their area with them!!! So, I just held her while we admired the beautiful animals...

The majority of the morning was spent at the water park and this was the first time we've been to this part of the zoo. She loved it and probably could have stayed for hours!

Swinging on the ropes and that's her friend Elyse all the way to the right, in pink...

She kept getting down on her belly to "swim" in the water...

These animal sprinklers never get old and they are the same ones at IMM where we often go to play in that water park...

Having a blast! She kept running out to say, "Mommy, look" and then ran back into the water to show off!

After lunch, we made our way back out the exit and they were handing out these free masks which Juliana loved!

It was good to get out of the house and help get through the day faster. Jacob got to call and talk to Juliana tonight before she went to bed, which helped. She's been asking for him a lot and I keep reassuring her that daddy is far away at work, but will be back soon and that he loves her very much. I've been slowly getting her used to the idea of me working too and she's been very clingy, making it harder to face the fact that Monday morning, I will be leaving her for work. I know she's in good hands though and I think she'll handle it a lot better than me. I guess working moms feel this guilt no matter how old their children are!

Potty time!

As far as potty training goes, it's a slow process. Juliana isn't completely ready for it, so I haven't been pushing it. When she does ask to sit in the potty though, I get excited! She'll stay there and read books...once in a while she'll go and other times she won't, but it's a start. Most of the time when I ask her if she needs to sit on the potty, she'll just say "No," so I don't want to push her. When the time is right, she'll let me know she's ready. Such a cutie! When she does go in the potty, she is so proud of herself! I'm anticipating the days when she really is ready and we can get going on the whole potty training process, as hard as it may be at first.

Hugs and kisses for daddy

After being on skype with Jacob this evening, Juliana kept talking about him after we hung up. I asked her if she missed him and got a "YES!" and then she wanted to send him a big huh...
And blew him kisses too...

In her words, "Daddy, daddy, we love you." Can't wait to have you back here with us!

A quiet day

After another difficult night with Juliana up at about 3am with another fever, I also woke up this morning feeling very sick. It was coming, because I had a sore throat and was congested at the beginning of the week, but I just felt absolutely horrible this morning. Turns out I have a throat infection, a head cold and laryngitis. What fun!

With Juliana, she's perfectly fine during the day without any symptoms, so I'm not really sure what the fever in the middle of the last two nights is about. But to be safe, we're avoiding the pool for a couple days in the hopes that she doesn't get sick.

She's such a precious little girl, having fun with her toys. When she's in a good mood, it's the most amazing thing and she lights up my world! Not that she doesn't always make me happy, but those tantrums are exhausting and she's very emotional this week with all of the changes going on.

Whenever she pulls out this Pooh and friends Piano, she talks about her Nana and Nanny since she got it from them...Yes, she is a good little musician!Minnie was one of her Christmas gifts from my mom and she enjoys changing her clothes. She is a lot more into her dolls these days...I asked her to sit down with her friends and it worked, yay!

Thankfully, she and I both got some rest this afternoon and I'm just hoping tonight goes well and she sleeps through the night. Fingers crossed! I also hope that the medicine I started today kicks in fast, so I can get out of the house all weekend instead of being stuck home, feeling miserable.

Skype with daddy

Yesterday was a tough day here. Juliana is missing her daddy and keeps talking about him and she's terrified of me leaving too now. Even going upstairs to change can lead to a cry...it's just been hard. I know a lot of the changes in emotions are part of her age, but she's also been a lot more emotional the last few days and having tantrums over the smallest things, which I think is in part due to Jacob leaving and her being confused as to why he left and where he is. She's very clingy with me, not that I mind, but sometimes, I just don't know how to console her. I end up just holding her while she cries. She's also been spiking a temperature, figures. Wouldn't you know that when Jacob goes away, she would get sick...typical!

Right before Jacob called on skype last night, Juliana had set up a picnic (after we already ate dinner) on the carpet for us to have. She "cooked" some hamburgers and cake and took her time setting it all up with tea too.
Then Jacob called and she turned into a completely different girl. She was so excited to talk to him and I brought the computer over to her picnic, because she told him that she made him dinner! She wanted Jacob to herself...

We got to talk for a bit, but Juliana was very demanding of daddy's attention! She did the same things, hugging the computer, saying how much she loves him and that "daddy is far far away." When we had to say good night, she was getting sad, so I made sure to read her some books and give her lots of hugs before putting her to sleep.

Unfortunately, it was a bad night. Juliana woke up just after midnight with a severe temperature. From experience, I knew that the best option was to give her the fever medication and wipe her down with a cool cloth. I brought her to lie down with me for a while, rubbing her back and after a while, she finally started to settle down. I eventually brought her back to her crib so that she would get her rest. She tossed and turned all night and woke up cranky and tired this morning. The fever is better, but still there, so I just hope she gets more rest today and feels better soon.

He's safe!

So, Jacob landed in Sydney last night and he's safe and sound! Phew. He got to call on skype and talk to us after he checked in to his hotel. Juliana was hugging the computer, saying "I love you so much daddy" and "Come home daddy." Breaks my heart! But she did okay for the night and I just pray that the rest of this week and next goes as smoothly as possible. Jacob has a lot of work to do, so Juliana and I will keep praying that he's safe, gets the job done and comes home to us as soon as possible!

Yesterday morning, after we knew Jacob got on his flight, we headed down to the pool. Juliana is becoming such a great swimmer and she actually let me put these on her arms... Okay, but they didn't last! She likes to be independent and does well on her own. As I wrote before, she can dunk her head under now, so as long as I'm with her in the kiddie pool, she does fine without anything to help. The big pool, well that's another story.

She found this tube that another kid must have left behind and had so much fun with such a simple thing!It's amazing to watch her in the pool, because for the first few months that we lived here, she was afraid of climbing up the steps or going down this slide. Now, she can't get enough of it... She also loves to splash!! We are trying to fill up our week as much as possible to make the time go faster until Jacob comes home. I just hope she does well each day and that we get to talk to him as often as possible. Love you hunny!

She loves her daddy!

We found out a few days ago that Jacob will be traveling for work for two weeks, possibly more. Insert DEEP SIGH here. I am also starting a new job in a week and have lots of trainings this week, so this trip comes at a very busy and stressful time for all of us. I'm happy for him, but it's the first time he has had to be away for business and I'm not even sure how Juliana is going to handle it. On top of that, I'm excited and nervous about my new job as well and just hoping that everything goes well. I have a feeling Juliana senses something though, because when we took her out this morning, she was very clingy to her daddy, just like she's been all week with me. She just wants his full attention at all time and even said to me, "Daddy's been gone so long" when he went to get acupressure for just 40 minutes. They are so precious together and I am not looking forward to him being gone for a few weeks, but at least things will be busy here to make the time fly by!

Here's where I ask that all of just keep us in your prayers. I know I'm not the first mom to have a husband that travels or the first one to start a new job, but it's new to me. The job is something I prayed about and God may not have answered in the way I would have liked, but he did answer and I am just trusting that he is guiding me and giving me the strength I will need. I know Juliana is in good hands and fortunately, I still have lots of time with her every day, but I think it's just part of who I am to worry, worry, worry!

Playdate at the Science Centre

Yesterday morning, we headed over to the Science Centre with Chris, Sophie and Miriam to meet up with some other friends. It's been a very long time we took Juliana there since she was far too young to enjoy it for the first several months after moving here. But she had a blast this time and clearly, we need to go back!

I didn't bring the stroller, but decided to use the buggy for a bit since it's free (shocker for Singapore!) and all of the girls had their eyes on it.
We were waiting for the other moms and kids to arrive, so the girls enjoy exploring. Juliana liked this, but mainly because she could push the ball around and click on different parts of the screen...

I really don't think this was intended for climbing on, but Juliana is such a little monkey. She'll climb on anything she possibly can...

Miriam's turn! The girls had fun taking turns riding and pushing one another along...

Whenever Juliana gets together with her friends, especially Sophie, there's a lot of screaming (all in good fun of course) going on. So this Echo Tube was perfect!

We had a good time with all the other moms and kids and Juliana enjoyed the Sound room and Discovery Zone. We need to go back for the Eco Garden, among other things. After lunch, she spent a bit of time playing outside with the life size chess board, but since everything was wet from the rain, we'll have to do the rest of the outdoor activities during the next visit!

There never ever ever was a tale like....

....Veggie Tales! Juliana loves these guys a lot lately and we have some more DVDs now and a few books. She even got a Larry hat!

I enjoy their stories, because it has been teaching her a lot more about God and the stories of the bible. We are praying were her each day now too and she will remind us out of the blue to bow ours heads and say a prayer!

Fun at the park

So, before I get into anything else, Juliana adores this t-shirt since it came from the gym that her "big sister," Tati goes to back in New Hampshire. When we put it on this morning and I told her, she couldn't stop talking about Tati all morning!
This is her, "Check me out" face! We've been teaching her a lot more about faith, God and prayer lately, so she loves to bow her head now and pray. It usually starts with, "Mommy, daddy, Amen" and then she bows her head in preparation...

Little climbing monkey...

Back on the swings and balancing so well...

Ah, time to relax!

Juliana is a big ball of energy lately, so it's been a lot of fun and a lot of work to keep up with her! She's growing so fast, learning like crazy and always on the go. I've been putting together some preschool activities for her to do at home and she loves to be outside as much as possible...in the pool, at the park or playing with friends. It seems that half of the people residing here at Summerdale know her well, even people I don't know. She's got such a bold and lovable personality. God bless her!

Time to paint!

Yay for painting!
I love these hand prints :-)

She's always so proud of her work!

So maybe she got the artistic (and music) bug from her Uncle Justin, because it never caught on with me! I'm just happy she loves it so much.

Do you need a doctor?

Thanks to Aunt Niki, Uncle Jason and Sydney, Juliana got this great Doctor's kit for Christmas with scrubs and all! We pulled it out this weekend and she loved it. Here's Dr. Juliana checking daddy's ears and eyes... Then it was time for his shots...

And using the stethoscope, after we taught her the proper way to do so, to make sure his heart was beating okay...

This was her showing off the name tag that says, "Kiddie Hospital" and her band aid...Then, I finally got a picture with the glasses on!! She kept putting them on and I couldn't get a good snapshot of it, but I finally did this morning!

Dr. Juliana Stephen is on duty, in case you need her! Thanks to our family for the wonderful gift we can't wait until she puts on the scrubs too.

Oh and Claudia, maybe you'll have a little helper someday!

All or nothing

Okay, I admit it, I am overwhelmed! I can't seem to just take one thing at a time. It's all or nothing lately, so now I have committed to numerous things besides the role of wife, mom, and part time ESL teacher. MOPS is amazing and I plan to continue to attend and devote my time to help out as a DGL (discussion group leader in case you were wondering) and coordinator for outings for as long as I can. I am going to be working a lot more with a new job that I will get into at a later time and I'm writing more. Also, Juliana is getting older and aside from her enrichment classes, I'm working on preschool activities at home and as if that weren't enough, I've added a few more things to my plate recently. Phew! I also need to fit bible study in there somewhere and all of my professional trainings. Can I do it? We shall see!! But I would like to think that it's going to work out and I just keep praying for God to lead me and enable me to fulfill my duties. I prayed long and hard and when the time came to make decisions, I felt like he was leading me. I just hope that I can keep up with it all! Adjustments will just have to be made as I go and learn what works and what doesn't.

My main concern though is Juliana. I have never really been a "working mom" and it makes me anxious that I will be leaving her more often. I know she is in good hands, but I can't help but worry about it. I think my separation anxiety is now worse than hers! Fortunately, it's not a full time job and I will still have time for some of her classes and lots of time in the afternoons for swimming, playing, etc. But I guess for those of you working moms out there, if you have any advice, please share! I've gotten some great advice and support already, but there's no such thing as too much.

Will keep you updated about the job as it unfolds a bit more!

Just some thoughts

Now that Christmas is over and we are settling into the New Year, it's time for a lot of self-reflection. I'm not a big believer in New Year's Resolutions, but Jacob and I did sit down and write a few realistic goals we would like to achieve this year, as individuals, as a couple and as a family. I think the most important goal for me is to begin to love and appreciate myself more, to build my self-esteem and confidence, especially to be a good role model for my beautiful daughter. I am who I am and whether or not people like it, shouldn't matter. Of course, as I've learned in my bible study, it's important to act on my freedoms while also taking into consideration how it affects other people in my life, but also not to turn away from what God is calling me to do. I find that when I quietly and calmly listen for His guidance, He is very clear about His intentions for my life. It's when I get caught up in the circumstances of my every day life and forget to look up that I get lost, confused, frustrated and inpatient. I know that just like everyone else, I'm a work in progress (just like a piece of clay!) and always will be, since there is no such thing as perfection. God created us in His image, but He also gave us free will and flaws. Despite it all, He will always love and accept us, which can be one of the most comforting thoughts in the most difficult times. He calls us to serve Him, be humble and touch the lives of others ones along the way to the goals he has set for us.

May you find peace in your days, happiness in your duties and inspiration in your relationships. As I wrote before, just look up when you're feeling lonely, stressed or confused. Easier said than done, but believe me, when you can commit to doing this, it works!

Everyone has a voice...

...and it's time to use it! Advocate for children with special needs, to provide them with the skills and support they need to grow and prosper in their every day lives. Each and every individual can and will flourish with the love and support of friends, family, teachers and a dedicated support staff. As a mom, I know that I would want all the best for my daughter, so why should I expect any less for another child. Speak up and speak out! Each voice matters, no matter how small you may think yours is.