Time

I just checked my blog and I'm shocked that my last post was to celebrate Liana reaching 6 months. She's now 10 months. My life with her is full of joy but I also have very little time to maintain all of the projects I had before she was born.

Last semester was really brutal. I was constantly taking work home in the evenings and weekends. During exam week, I actually pulled an all-nighter for the first in 15 years in order to get all of my grades entered. I also felt alternately guilty, depressed or angry about all the things undone and how dirty the apartment was.

The next semester is starting in August and I want not be on such an emotional roller coaster. So, I have decided to hire a cleaner to come at least twice a month so that I don't feel angry about all the chores Leo is not doing, or depressed about all the chores I'm not doing. I won't track how much I've spent in various categories in an Excel file. And I'll stop posting on the blog indefinitely. I will keep updating people about what's going on with us and posting pictures but I will be doing it on Facebook. Writing a sentence in the "What's on your mind" box better suits my life than the blog.

When I restart the blog, I'll let you all know... on Facebook.

Six Months

I know it's a cliche but it's amazing how much she has developed since she came home with us 6 months ago. She now can twist like Chubby Checkers (as long as she's lying down), sit up and has a whole repertoire of expressions. Check out the pictures below.

Mermaids

Leo and I take turns deciding what we will do during the weekends. Of course, the person who decides also pays for it. This weekend belongs to me. and I have been feeling like we've been rushing around for far too long and I've been spending too much money. I decided that I'm not leaving the neighborhood the entire weekend and the afternoons should be spent at the condo.

Now it is Saturday night and so far it has been a great weekend. Before Leo's evening tennis classes we went down to pool with Liana. At first I put in the really shallow water. She enjoyed it but was not that enthusiastic. Then I took her into the jacuzzi. BUBBLES make everything fantastic. Liana loved being so buoyant in the water. She went nuts splashing around batting the bubbles. It was the most fun I've had in the pool for a long time. Probably since I was a kid.

Putting resolution into action

Leo and I got a letter labelled ON GOVERNMENT SERVICE. All caps just like that across the front of the envelope. As a letter, wouldn't you feel a bit puffed up to have such a title printed on the envelope?

Leo opened the envelope and called me at work. After 4.5 months the Singapore Government has accepted our application to be Permanent Residents. Provisionally...

The provisional part means that we still have numerous tasks to do before we actually get the new ID cards, such as getting medical checkups for the three of us, filling out numerous forms, getting ID photos, beign fingerprinted, etc.

I enjoy living in Singapore and plan to be here for many more years so I'm glad that the PR application has moved one step along the government bureaucracy. The PR card will open a few benefits for me like a free library card, greatly help Leo in his work by eliminating the need to apply for work permits, and save us a lot of money once Liana starts school. Even though it won't bring me as many benefits as it does Leo and Liana, I'm still glad I have got it. I feel a connection with Singapore and want to have it officially noted.

Jnauary 2010

One of my perennial resolutions is to keep in better touch with my friends and family. This blog was created to do that. Unfortunately, I keep going through busy periods when I post nothing. Now is definitely one of those periods with so much going on at home with Liana and interesting new developments at work. And the period looks like it has no end. The bright side of having little time is that I have a lot of things to post.

Since I'll never have enough time to write proper posts, I'm just going to post short updates with the occasional picture.