[advertorial]

or rather, the best birthday present for my son, jerry.

in the same week that Jerry celebrated his birthday, 3M sent us the latest 3M^TM Polarizing Light, the BL5100. it's the latest 3M lamp that uses the trademark Polarizing Light Technology which incorporates 3M Innovative Polarizing Filter that helps to reduce glare so it is less straining on the eyes. i can't tell you how excited i am about it!

so is my son...


is this for me???


drooling over it (literally).


yeah, it's mine!

some of you might have read about how i went out and got Jerry a whole bunch of books when he was just 2 months old to kickstart his reading journey. kiasu? yes. but i am very much a book person myself so i would really wish the same on my kid and start him early. his book collection has since grown quite a bit because i kinda went crazy when i went to the states last year but i really do hope he'll become an avid reader like me someday!


i love it when he picks up a book. awwwww...

but the thing about reading is, too much of it could strain the eyes. Coupled with bad lighting/insufficient lights, it's a recipe for bad eyesight, which is not what i want for Jerry. i am often being mistaken for wearing contact lens, just because its pretty much the norm. almost everyone around me has to wears glasses/contacts (ok, minus those who has done lasik) so i really can't blame people when they tell me about contact lens promotion or ask me to co-share the contact lens solution that they want to buy. the truth is, i have normal vision (or what others term as 'perfect eyesight') because i'm really really anal about protecting my eyes!

growing up, my dad had often emphasized the importance of maintaining a good eyesight. he nagged and nagged about my bad reading habits (i love reading lying down), often tells me to take a break every 30mins and stand at the window to check out the trees and surroundings (eye relaxation strategy to focus on items faraway). i remembered i used to mandate myself to consistently stop whatever i was doing, close my eyes and do rotational exercises, look around and focus on items far and near, before going back to what i was doing before. i also ensure that i hold the book at least 30cm away from my eyes and ensuring there is enough light on my reading materials. Having sufficient light is very important because it allows our eyes to see!

so, imagine my excitement when i knew that we are going to receive a reading lamp from 3M - the BL5100, which is a really good table lamp for reading! its a great start to eye protection and its a very practical gift for the kiddo. its never too early to start protecting your kids' eyes!! it pleases mummy me very much, for i am the very anal parent (i can feel the husband nodding in agreement) when it comes to all things jerry.

how then is this lamp different from the ordinary table lamps out in the market? Because of 3M's technology in its Polarizing Filter which effectively reduces direct glare and blocks out UV, it makes reading more comfortable thus provides better protection for the eyes. plus it helps to dissipate heat faster! have you ever experience reading/studying and feeling the heat from the table lamp? especially in our hot, humid environment? I really hated it when i was a student (that was a long time ago) as it gets really very uncomfortable and definitely not a conducive environment. in fact, it can get pretty frustrating. do you also know that glare can cause eye strains, fatigue and headaches? now, it makes me wonder why i am always tired when i study for exams in the past!!! HAHA.

Here's jerry reading with the lamp! I'm pretty impressed! Minimal reflective glare on his book as compared to normal lighting.


mummy, can you read to me?



and reading...





the BL 5100 Lamp also has higher luminance as compared to an ordinary lamp that provides optimal light for reading activities. Do you know that it is equally important to have the room's main lights on as well on top of your table lamp because too much contrast in the lightings will cause the eyes to be more tired.

and did i mention that my boy equally loves chewing the books as well? he tore up & chewed so many magazines of mine (some before i started reading) that i really didn't quite know whether to laugh or cry at his love for 'books'.





I also found out something really alarming. in Singapore, more than 50% of all school-going children are myopic by the time they are 12 years old and the number increases to 75% by the time they are 18. It's scary. When i was 12, kids who wear glasses are the minority in the class but it seems that the numbers are steadily climbing. my guess is that technology is the culprit. We are so reliant on technology these days.. tv watching, computer, ipad/tables, smart phones.. which makes protecting the eyes a lot more important now and its never too early to start! practicing good eye care habits will help protect against and/or slow down the onset of myopia and that includes using a good reading lamp!

now for the exciting part!!

*drum roll*

YOU CAN NOW WIN ONE FOR YOUR KID!! (or yourself)!

3M is giving away 5 (yes, FIVE!) 3M^TM Polarizing Light (BL 5100 Lamp) worth $189!
Simply tell us in a 100 words or less, why you need a 3M Polarizing Light (BL 5100 Lamp)?

Send your answer, name, I/C number, mobile and email address to officebiz@mmm.com by 17 Jun 2012 and indicate which blog you have seen this contest (that's me, cherieladie).

Winners will be announced on the 29th June 2012 via email or call so, what are you waiting for? Open up your mail client and start typing that email now.. and give your kids a good start in eye care!

( Terms and conditions )

could you tell how happy jerry is?

I was swimming. I saw the end of the pool while on the first lap. I swam harder and grabbed the end of the pool anxiously. I stood up, brushed back the hair, adjusted the goggles, breathing hard. Second lap, I saw the end when I was further away. I reached for it. I stopped, panting. The time was 15:02. 

*



I finished Eleven Minutes. A little out of the ordinary. I like Paulo Coelho's style. There's nothing complicated with the words but the story ended up feeling wholesome. A story about a prostitute who saw the world through her job. Just a year, nothing more and nothing less. The detailed sexual scenes depicted with words. Well that's not the point. Sadomasochism, also quite interesting. 



Me studying for one of my last papers. 



I love this cheese thing.



Sunset after the last paper.



Chicken on skewer.



Not so brave.



Some spicy rice.





Last paper over, went to eat at Nando's. Felt both happy and sad. I think I find one paper extremely hard I'm sooo afraid I'll fail it argh. 



After FYP presentation, phew... The presentation itself was rather okay. The Q&A wasn't so. 



















These are the photos from my iPhone at Papa Palheta and Paul. I want the ice cream holders (filled with ice-cream) at home! I will keep scooping from it and be happy.

I am now watching Forensic Heroes III, exciting. I realized that hk dramas are now having story lines advancing faster and faster. Unlike the old hk dramas which used to focus on feelings between humans, now its just cases after cases. Hard to explain, if you knew what I meant. 



Cupcake for babies.



Snail mailed a card I drew (with words of course). Okay, I know there's an error in 'there' I corrected it but didn't took the final picture.



Found this after a swim.



At forty hands.



Mushroom and cod sandwich.















Chanced upon the Loof, or was it not called the loof. That's my short term memory for you.



When I am rich I will buy these babies and put em in my home. 



Yes. I'm sure most have heard of the only man that escaped the North Korea's prison alive. There's this link going around. I think the story fascinated me because North Korea fascinated me. I thought the entire country was like a Truman Show, but the prison was worst. The prison was another world, another system, except, no one gets out of the system. The superior prison wardens were probably worst than any. Life was indeed cheap there. 



I eat a lot.



Blueberries pancake and spicy spaghetti.

*

I continued..........

Finally, I made my way out of the pool. The water dripped. I grabbed the towel and sat where my bag was. Hungry, empty.
Drained. I thought I was adventurous. I thought nothing was difficult. You wouldn't even admire until it was proven that you can't do it. 

*

Sometimes, you wouldn't know...

Nice as it sounds, we’ve all heard of the tale that pregnant women glow but sadly, that’s not true at all! Not all pregnant women are lucky enough to attain that all-natural glow. Quite a number of soon to be mums suffer from pregnancy breakouts. Here are some quick-tips on how to cover up your acne during your pregnancy.

Camouflage Ahoy!

Many women experience acne during pregnancy due to hormonal changes and increased oil production. While it might be difficult to avoid acne during pregnancy completely, there are natural ways to treat pimples and prevent future breakouts. (picture of Jessica Alba taken from here.)

A clean slate - Keep your skin clean. Wash with a mild, oil-free cleanser twice a day. After cleansing, gently pat your face dry with a towel and follow with an oil-free moisturizer if needed. Be sure to remove all make-up before going to bed. During the day, blot your skin with oil-absorbing sheets or paper to remove any excess oil.

Do not under any circumstance take prescription drugs like accutane, retin-a and tetracycline. According to the Organization of Teratology Information Services (OTIS), approximately 25-35% of infants born to women exposed to Accutane during the first trimester of pregnancy showed a pattern of birth defects. This pattern includes craniofacial defects, heart defects, and central nervous system defects. There also is an increased risk of miscarriage and infant death associated with use of Accutane during pregnancy.

A light hand – If you wear make-up, use products that are labelled non-comedogenic and water based instead of oil based. These sort of products won’t clog your pores. Also, apply sparingly. Remember, less is more. You don’t want to make your blemishes more obvious by layering on gunks of make-up!

The best thing to do is to enhance your best features. Line your eyes for a striking and dramatic approach, or go for a bold lipstick colour.

A fresh start - Drink plenty of water to keep your skin hydrated. Also, including a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet can help with acne during pregnancy.

When I didn't have Emma yet, I use to get annoyed by those moms who were constantly taking pictures of their child and WORST STILL, want you to look at the gazillion shots of their child. The poses were all the same - child sitting, child standing, child eating, child playing with toys, child pointing at something, child in new clothes, etc. I think you get the "Picture". 

Recently, Emma was eating her cereal and was listening to some nursery rhymes on babytv. She started to do the actions and moving her body to the music. As quick as lightning, I whipped out my ipod and started clicking. After that I changed the mode to movie and recorded her antics. (Below, she's doing her actions to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star")



OMG! I've turned into an annoying mom!

I have a few thousand shots on my ipod alone and 7/8 of it are photos of her - sitting, standing, eating, etc. You cannot imagine how hard it is for me not to flood my FB with her pictures. At least I try to restrain myself. Not everyone want to see gazillion shots of Emma.

I've even succumb to putting her picture as my profile picture on FB. Now, I try to put at least a picture with both of us in it. After all, the FB account is mine and not hers. :P

Her face is still my screen saver on my phone and background picture on my pc. 

I think every mom is obsessed with their kids. It would definitely explain all those screaming moms and dads at children's sports day. 

So to all those people out there with gazillion pictures of your baby, single people are not really interested and don't really care. For all those single people out there who don't want to see those pictures, I say, just pretend to see them and make some nice comments. Every mother just beams when someone says their kid is cute. Trust me, I know!!! 

finally made a trip down to USS! after it's opening in 2010 :/ very slow, i know. but considering i'm actually not a fan of theme parks, i actually did enjoy myself there :D

bright and early in the morning, we made our way to the theme park. actually not, i had lazed in bed because of a stay over at the festive hotel the night before. so i didn't have to get up bright and early :D but the weather was so uninviting. and we had to rent lockers to keep our bags for the day because of my ukulele and luggage from my stay over at the hotel :/ so after pacing up and down the locker area, we decided to just go ahead with our initial plan.


we actually didn't know where to start from because it was really our first time there and we don' t know what each ride is about. the descriptions in the park map weren't useful at all. and so were those at the entrance to the rides. but still we managed to go round the park in sequence and try not to miss out on any fun rides.


then we had lunch with a turkey leg and corn dog before going back to check on our locker since we only rented it for 3 hours. bad idea, but thankfully, they extended our rental automatically to a full day rental and we only had to top up $4. really worth it :D 


then we headed to the "get wet" ride. while queueing, we saw so many people in raincoats/getting raincoats from the vending machine. yes, they actually had vending machines in the queue but they cost $3 each. so expensive :/ since we weren't willing to part with our money, and we didn't think we would get very wet, we braved through the ride. and poor me, i was the wettest because i was on the side which fell into the water first :( 


we took the revenge of the mummy the last cos i was being a wuss. i didn't dare ride it because my sis said the graphics would scare me real bad. but she also did mention later that since with my night blindness, i'll most probably not catch anything cos it's too dark. which was true, because during the ride, i couldn't see anything after the initial fire thingy. and for our photo captured, i had hair all over my face :( but i think we were most afraid during the walk in to the ride area because we were the only ones and they were playing eerie music. to make things worse, it was kinda dim and there were so many mummies on the walls :( if anyone caught us walking in, they must have laughed at us.


and we actually rode the flyway roller coaster thingy thrice. the first time we were seated at the last row so it was most exciting. the second time was much later and we were seated in the middle so it was just meh. and to make it more exciting, we ran out and in again to ride one more time. this time at the second last row. so so fun! when it's not exciting enough, take it twice in a row! hahahaha! a pity though, we didn't get to ride the battlestar galatica. we wasted too much time on watching this monster musical show which saw us wasting 30 minutes on the show and another 30 minutes before that trying to kill time by riding silly rides. i was whining about how i want to go on the transformers again while killing time but the boyfriend refused, saying we wouldn't make it for the show. so we went on the carousel where i got kicked by an indian man in my stomach when he was getting off ._. and during the monster musical....... well, guess who fell asleep? obviously not me.

still, it was a fun day out for us both. like we spent so much time together and since there were so many foreigners around us, it felt like we were overseas alone. haha! guess the $95.20 was well-spent. 

after taking a shower to wash away the day's woes, i kinda reflected on the day and just thought i could have handled stuff better. 

and just as what my mum said, just be wary. and cautious, and careful of the things around me, and know how to reserve my comments. 


i must stay true to myself, and not let others affect me. i need to learn to filter and not to just absorb everything that was said. i need to be discerning, and be mindful of my behaviour. 

i will learn! 

if you are an Ikea friends member, you would have received the new card and a 10% voucher.
we decided it is high time to replace our balcony light. 
the original one we bought came with a defect and in the end we could only hand up the bulb @@. super ugly =(

so on saturday evening, ssr, jc, dear dear and i set off to ikea at Alexandra for meatballs, chicken wings and shopping! 
i dunno about you but going to ikea always makes me a happy girl =)

after dinner, we came across this baby doll at the kid's section... we were all remarking about how REAL they look that it's kinda disturbing...


and just as i was touching it, seirye suddenly exclaimed we are wearing the same clothes...
resulting in the below disturbing pic... lol

we ARE dressed the same!!!! omg... 
they wanted me to carry this doll as we shop ikea but i refused... pple would think i'm CRAZY!!!!

we bought several useful stuff for the kitchen and also this!

bright pink cushions for the chairs! what absolute love! 

and guess what? we didn't get the original objective we went for... balcony lights!
keke... dear dear did find one he like but it was out of stock =(

well, looks like we'll be back again!

on another hand, dear dear and i have decided to not continue with our cha cha lessons for now. well, mainly, we don't really enjoy the dance much (doesn't help that we missed 2 lessons) and also we feel that we really need to practice more before we continue. we have stopped going to social for some time now so basically that meant 0 practice... :p if we were to continue, it would be a waste of our fees, so we decided to just put a pause to it. 

meanwhile, we have just signed up for Rueda! it'd be fun. we'd learnt it 3 years back but stopped due to work commitments... now forgot almost everything liao... *cough*
lessons will start on coming Friday, looking forward to meeting new salsa friends =)

speaking of which, i'd made quite a no of new friends recently. not sure if i mentioned it before, but dear dear and i are now in our school's junior performance team. it's a great honor to be invited for this new project they are doing... the group of us have been training every Sunday for a month now... about 4 hours each time. i feel like i'm back to my secondary school days, training for chinese dance... just that i am super lacking in flexibility and stamina now...haha.... 人真的是不能不认老... my pack of old bones can't stretch no more...  just ask ssr, who listened to all our groans and muscle aches after every session... but slowly, the aches are getting lesser... so hopefully, my body is getting conditioned =)

alright, will continue with my honeymoon trip ... maybe later tonight after the launch...
ciao~