Since the 2 boys came into my life, the one thing I will definitely never do is leaving them alone without spending adequate time with them.  Perhaps, I do not have a choice since I do not have the fortune of having good “childsitting” help from mum, mum-in-law, siblings and spouse (who is working in a distant land) OR it is simply my own guilt at work if I had to leave them alone. 

How do I find time then to pamper and enrich myself?  Friends ask me how I manage to take up the heavy burden of important responsibility at work and home alone and yet still bother about self-care.  Though a little constrained, I have learned that a mother’s life can remain colourful as long as we choose to paint it the right colour and add a little tint of rainbow to it.  So here is a simple story of how I live my personal life, enjoying my personal moments of rejuvenation, enrichment and simply enjoyment.

 Shopping

Shopping sounds like a woman’s top past time activity and the main thing I did during my free time before I got married.  Shopping has not become a past tense for me except I shop now not only for myself but for everybody in the family and not only buy attires but also groceries, household and kids’ stuff. SALES (which have been a big and scary luring driver in the past), however, has reduced (take note I use the word “reduce”) its temptations on me as I have learnt to be a prudent shopper. With the little time at hand, online shopping has become a new mode of shopping and lunch hours are almost indispensable now as it has become a productive hour to shop, do banking and run many many errands. The available time while waiting for our kids during their enrichment classes have become very useful hours to shop too!

Beauty At Work

How is it ever possible for a woman regardless of age to resist the temptations of packages offered by these beauty saloons and manicure/pedicure saloons?  These free and discounted trial facial, spa, massage services offered by banks and shops have become so common and it is only natural that I get hooked up to the package signed rather than the services. So while the kids are having their enrichment classes or when Papa Ed is taking over my duties of childsitting, I am comfortably tucked in the chairs or beds of these saloons…..Unfortunately, I am also one of those victims who have been persuaded to buy different skincare products from Head to Toes and it is no wonder why we take such a long time to settle down after each bath compared to our spouse.

Exercising

It is a common excuse to shun exercise since it is so tiring after work and there is hardly any time.  Exercises like Yoga can be relaxing instead of tiring. I disciplined myself by taking up a group session on Yoga weekly and keeping the family fit too by involving them in exercises like  swimming, brisk walking and cycling over the weekends.

Coaching

COACHing, not teaching but rather looking and eventually tempted to buy Coach brands of handbags, wristlets etc., has become such an addictive hobby. That is the problem with working in Town where there are so many shopping centres and boutiques and the eventual way of snapping the habit is to make myself busier of course so that I end up doing other things during the short lunch hour.

TV Moments

Just when most people are preparing for sleep, my moments have just begun. A good way of unwinding my tired mind and spending moments with Papa Ed is to hide behind the movie screen or before our big TV screen, munching our titbits to watch our favourite movies or TV series — all only after kids are soundly tucked in their beds.  If time permits, a night drive to the airport and 24 hour restaurants/cafe to enjoy a quiet and warm cup of drinks is a good opportunity for me to recollect my life, read a good book and provide inspirational moments for me.

World of Technology

My new found hobby in blogging has kept me busy but entertained while waiting for kids during their classes, at night and opens up a window to my family and friends to understand me better. Now Papa Ed and Brendan blog too and it is a common sight seeing us more bonded together discussing our blog issues. Having no time to spend with friends? Facebook and other messenging features have enabled busy mummies like me to catch up with old friends, right in the comfort of home.

Nature

Never notice that nature could be so beautiful until I became a mother. Why spend hours playing hide and seek with our children and screaming our heads off at a busy shopping centre with our children when we know that the least thing that excites our family is having to wait for us while we hop in and out of fitting rooms trying on the clothes. After some years, I have to accept the fact that our family definitely is happier (and not only mummy) if we spend out times together doing things that the children can enjoy and benefit from. It has become an exciting part of life to plan different exciting places to visit each weekend. The result is a closer touch to nature, a widening experience and we never fail to capture our happy moments spent at these areas by capturing them in photographs. To make each trip even beneficial, I make it a point to understand each destination well before the visit and we truly enjoy ourselves “chancing” on different places in Singapore that we would never have imagined going to before our marriage. To make this experience even more worthwhile, I am happy to share my new blog at http://knowsingapore.blogspot.com which I share these interesting places in Singapore, photo gallery and I am still slowly building it up overtime.

Diet Planner

How  can motherhood be complete without wokking out delicious and nutritional meals for the family? Having no time to cook and why bother to cook when we have domestic helper? Well, I believe in doing my part too by planning the daily healthy menu and trying out new menu that makes eating a pleasure for the family each day.

 Planting

What can be more pleasing than sit back and relax at home and watch the colourful plants beam healthily?

One Response to “Who Says A Mother Cannot Have Her Own Life?”