Dreamt of Lift Again....

It has happened again. I dreamt about being in a lift. I was in a glass lift at a unknown MRT station, which served B2 to Level 3. I wanted to get out of the station but the lift went all the way up and opened its doors at Level 3. I stepped back, wondering which button I was supposed to press to get to the correct floor. In the dream, I did not know if Level 1 or 2 was where the exit of the station was.

This is the third time in recent years that I dreamt of being in a lift. Coincidentally, the previous 2 times happened when I was making career choices. In one of the dreams, I recall, I was in my office lift which sped all the way up to 56-storey (my office building has only 30 floors) and it moved laterally out of the lift-shaft and floated in the air! How strange! I checked for interpretations of such dreams, and read that I could be seeking directions in my life and was confused. How apt!

I did a quick search on Google again this afternoon and here's what I found....

"...Commonly, these types of dreams occur in females between the ages of 30 and 40. This dream is associated with you trying to accomplish something in your life. This may be connected to your career or alternatively a relationship; in order to find the true meaning of which situation is bothering you it is important to think about what is worrying about in your waking life.....

This dream is a sure sign that you are spiritually being grounded. It’s time to come back to reality in life. If the elevator or lift is not working correctly then this shows the emotions you hold have become out of control. As mentioned in the opening paragraph above this dream is popular in regards to your work or career life. Maybe you are feeling stuck in a job? If you do not know what floor you actually want to go to or are confused about how you're going to get out then this indicates that the future is not clear. It is important to step back in a situation and reconsider and evaluate your profession...." [Extracted from www.auntyflo.com]

Yup yup yup!!! Accurate to the dot! I need to step back and consider my life now. So many uncertainties in the months ahead!

First Hair Cut

Chloe has so little hair - she did not need a hair trim until now. For the past week, I kept preparing her for the haircut and reminded that she would have to keep very very still during the process. I was so worried she would wriggle around in the chair and risk having her ear snipped off by the hair-stylist.

My fear was unfounded......

She started to cry the moment she was put on the high chair.

Can you see the tears streaming down... so poor thing!

The hairstylist was probably used to wailing babies, so she started to snip away, pretty cool and unaffected throughout, while Mummy and Daddy tried all ways to coax the little girl with toys. Chloe continued crying and only opened her eyes, 3 minutes later, when the ordeal was over.

So that's it. Three minutes and it was over. The hairstylist said there was not much hair to cut except to trim the uneven wisps at the back. That costed me S$20!

Chloe happy again....

iPhone Craze

Many many people are using the iPhone now - it's almost become the standard handphone. Once I was in the MRT, and I noticed at least 5 persons within my sight tapping their iPhones away furiously, playing with the Apps, games or listening to music. To rub it in, there are Ah-Soh iPhone owners amongst them. The last straw came when I spotted an Ah-Mah (around 60+ years old grandma) using the iPhone too! I have to get one!!!

Hubby bought me the iPhone and I have been using it for 3 weeks. Honestly, I don't think it's much better than my Samsung Jet! Ok, I must qualify that I'm not into Apps for everything i.e. checking maps, monitoring stock market, getting suggestions where to eat, what to wear etc. I use my phone primarily for calling, sending text messages, managing my appointments using the calendar, playing games, and last but not least, the camera to take impromptu pictures. Apart from being extremely responsive, I really don't find much benefits of iPhone over Samsung. Let me explain:

Ringtone and Volume - I don't like the fact that the best you can do when you go for a meetings is to switch the little switch at the side to activate the vibration mode. Otherwise you have to go to Settlings > Sounds and make your selection there. Why so inflexible?!! With my Samsung, I could select Normal, Meeting, Silent, Driving, Outdoor, and within these options you could vary the ringtone, volume and intensity of vibration. I usually choose to put my incoming calls on vibration and a ringtone for incoming messages. With the iPhone, it'll be loud all the way!!

Camera - This is my greatest grouse. The iPhone camera is only 3 mega pixels (compared to 5 on my Samsung), and it does not have a flash, nor a zoom function, nor any function allowing you to adjust the colour mode, scenary etc. Why so lousy?!! Most of the photos taken on my iPhone are not very nice. And because it's touch-screen button, it's quite difficult to balance the phone in one hand to take a self-portrait.

SMS - I can't quite figure this out. While I like that the messages with one party appear in an individual string of conversation, sometimes the time-stamping does not appear. I'm not able to trace what time a particular message was sent or received.

Bluetooth - Apparently you cannot bluetooth photos or other files in the iPhone to other non-iPhones. This is so frustrating as it does not facilitate sharing of my photos with my sister or Dad, who are using Nokia!

Disappointing! While I can still live with my iPhone, I do miss the convenience of Samsung Jet, which is really super user friendly come to think of it. It's a pity no one really raves about Samsung Jet, while half the world is converting to iPhone already..... : (

New Hairstyle

I've worn this new hairstyle for 4 days but have not gotten used to it. 50% of the people I meet don't notice any change in my hairstylte. Maybe in their eyes, its not a drastic change, so I should not feel so conscious about it.....

Seek God

James 4:8  Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

As charismatic Christians, we believe in the living word of God and the works of the Holy Spirit. When I say 'living', it does not only mean God's words that you read in the Bible, it includes hearing God's voice. I have so many times witnessed the manifestations of the Holy Spirit at church gatherings.

God spoke to Moses out of the bush fire. He spoke to Abraham and Joshua and so many others. God does not only speak in the Old Testament. He spoke to me before. At cell meetings, my spiritual leader used to urge us to open our hearts and listen to God's word. She said that if we can't hear, it's not because God is not speaking, it's probably because we're not listening!

Indeed there were a few desperate moments in my life when God answered my prayers. One of the moments happened as I was doing my Quiet Time (QT) at my roof terrance (at my old condo) early one morning, praying and crying out to him. Another time happened when I was on my knees praying and seeking an answer from God for my predicament. Yet another time he spoke to me through a dream. When God speaks, it happens in a split second, in a clear voice, and in a flash, with a message impressed upon your heart. You'll know it when it's God speaking to you.

Jeremiah 29:11 'For I know the plans I have for you’ declares the Lord,

‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’.

There was also a time when God gave me a direction in an unusual and funny sort of way. A few years ago, I was contemplating whether to quit my job because I was feeling terribly weary and was whining about the lousy public sector pay. It was a Sunday morning, and I was praying in the car on the way to church, for God to give me a 'clear direction' for my career. During sermon that morning, the Pastor flashed some powerpoint slides and lo and behold, in big and bold red print, were the words "DON'T QUIT". Immediately I felt a tugging in my heart I knew that was a message for me. It couldn't have been more obvious! A few months later, I got a promotion and a substantial salary increment.

These days, with a demanding daughter who depletes my time and energy at home, I hardly have QT. Given her inclination to snatch anything off my hands, books, magazines or Bibles alike, I resort to reading short passages of the Bible every night after she sleeps (like at 11pm) under a miserably dim book-light. I long to spend more time with God, but sometimes I knock-out in the middle of my prayers. (Super guilty!) As James 4:8 suggests, God can't draw near to you if you don't draw near to him. I have not heard God speaking for sometime as I have not quieten myself down and seek His voice. I really hope to hear clear directions from God on how I should deal with the challenging situation at home and at work in the coming months. I need to get back into the QT routine.....

Fun with Sunglasses!

Daddy bought Chloe a cute pair of retro-looking sunglasses in pink. She probably liked the shaded look of the world and enjoyed putting them on and taking them off. When I said she looked so cool, she went "Mummy take photo!". I whipped out my new iPhone and asked her to make the victory sign and smile. She however had difficulty holding up 2 fingers, so she ended up looking like she's ready to fight. LOL! 

"Don't Mess with Me OK?!"

Chloe posing for the iPhone

Happy 11th Anniversary!

Yesterday was our 11th wedding anniversary. We had planned to have a nice dinner together. However, as Chloe's running nose hadn't cleared up after 2 days, we decided to take half a day off in the afternoon to take her to the PD.

As the PD appointment was at 3:30pm, we still had time to do a nice lunch, at Pasta Brava along Craig Road. 

Nice ambience.... food was good.....

Chloe was anyway overdue for her 18-month injection. Usually, she cries because she is forced to lie down on the examination table, and not because of the pain of the injection. Yesterday, she cried a fair bit because it was an unfamiliar PD who administered the injection for her (her regular PD was not around).  Poor girl....

Chloe crying in Daddy's arms.....