I used to think that life is sweet enough with Joshua next to me. Then along came Titus, and I realised that life could actually get sweeter.
This year I celebrated my 35th birthday as a mother to a healthy, happy baby boy and a wife to a very supportive, selfless man.
Somehow, motherhood made me appreciate my parents a lot more. The exhaustion and filth I have to endure as a time-strapped mum must be something my parents went through too, with me and my two younger brothers. So that's three times the exhaustion and filth! :)
So this year, I also celebrated my special day with my parents.
And I packed everyone off to Hotel Fort Canning, a lovely colonial style property at the peak of the serene Fort Canning Park.
It was our first family staycation in Singapore, and I am just glad everything went well (read: baby was happy and slept well).
I booked us connecting rooms, so my parents could simply skip over and play with baby any time they fancied.
The baby cot provided by the hotel was well maintained and came with two firm mattresses, a fluffy mattress topper, clean cot bumpers, two bolsters, a pillow and a blanket. I sure did not expect that, and had packed baby's blankets, cot sheets, pillows and bolsters. So, yes, I was impressed!
Once we were settled in, we left our lovely rooms and went to fill our bellies at The Salon, the hotel's only all-day dining outlet. The menu was extensive and we indulged with too many dishes for tea time. The one that rocked my boat most was fried mee siam with lobster. I would go back again and again just for this dish.
Baby dozed off on my dad's shoulders half-way through our meal, so I retreated with baby to our room and had a little snooze myself too. Any opportunity to grab forty winks is valued these days.
After he woke, we brought him for a little swim in the bath. He enjoyed wading around, but hated his neck float. His chin kept going under, causing him to ingest some bath water. Eeks.
Then it was off to dinner at Okinawan Diner Nirai-Kanai in Liang Court, one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in Singapore. It was spectacular that my brothers came to join in too, and everyone knocked back Orion beers. Everyone except me, cos I needed to breastfeed. Boo hoo.
Never mind. I will make it up to myself one day. :)
We were up early next morning - sleeping in is a thing of the past with baby around! After a quick breakfast at the hotel's buffet line, Joshua and I took a stroll through Fort Canning Park and enjoyed some time to ourselves.
When we got back to our room, I found a little birthday cake from the awesome people at the hotel.
I've travelled a few times on my birthday, both for work and pleasure, and this is the second time all these years that a service staff paid attention to my details and wished me happy birthday. It takes so little to send birthday greetings, but it means so much to the recipient AND signals great service.
So, well done Hotel Fort Canning!
We rounded off our one-night staycation with another feast at The Salon because the food was too good and there were so many other things we wanted to try. And before we left, we were already planning when to return for another meal at The Salon! How Singaporeans we were!
This year I celebrated my 35th birthday as a mother to a healthy, happy baby boy and a wife to a very supportive, selfless man.
Somehow, motherhood made me appreciate my parents a lot more. The exhaustion and filth I have to endure as a time-strapped mum must be something my parents went through too, with me and my two younger brothers. So that's three times the exhaustion and filth! :)
So this year, I also celebrated my special day with my parents.
And I packed everyone off to Hotel Fort Canning, a lovely colonial style property at the peak of the serene Fort Canning Park.
It was our first family staycation in Singapore, and I am just glad everything went well (read: baby was happy and slept well).
I booked us connecting rooms, so my parents could simply skip over and play with baby any time they fancied.
The baby cot provided by the hotel was well maintained and came with two firm mattresses, a fluffy mattress topper, clean cot bumpers, two bolsters, a pillow and a blanket. I sure did not expect that, and had packed baby's blankets, cot sheets, pillows and bolsters. So, yes, I was impressed!
Once we were settled in, we left our lovely rooms and went to fill our bellies at The Salon, the hotel's only all-day dining outlet. The menu was extensive and we indulged with too many dishes for tea time. The one that rocked my boat most was fried mee siam with lobster. I would go back again and again just for this dish.
Baby dozed off on my dad's shoulders half-way through our meal, so I retreated with baby to our room and had a little snooze myself too. Any opportunity to grab forty winks is valued these days.
After he woke, we brought him for a little swim in the bath. He enjoyed wading around, but hated his neck float. His chin kept going under, causing him to ingest some bath water. Eeks.
Then it was off to dinner at Okinawan Diner Nirai-Kanai in Liang Court, one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in Singapore. It was spectacular that my brothers came to join in too, and everyone knocked back Orion beers. Everyone except me, cos I needed to breastfeed. Boo hoo.
Never mind. I will make it up to myself one day. :)
We were up early next morning - sleeping in is a thing of the past with baby around! After a quick breakfast at the hotel's buffet line, Joshua and I took a stroll through Fort Canning Park and enjoyed some time to ourselves.
When we got back to our room, I found a little birthday cake from the awesome people at the hotel.
I've travelled a few times on my birthday, both for work and pleasure, and this is the second time all these years that a service staff paid attention to my details and wished me happy birthday. It takes so little to send birthday greetings, but it means so much to the recipient AND signals great service.
So, well done Hotel Fort Canning!
We rounded off our one-night staycation with another feast at The Salon because the food was too good and there were so many other things we wanted to try. And before we left, we were already planning when to return for another meal at The Salon! How Singaporeans we were!
