Bienvenue 2021

2020 went by in a jiffy. It was a blur to me. Days and weeks and months melded together. 

While there were losses, there were gains as well and more importantly, I think the gains outweighed the losses.

I started working from home in March and my last day in the office was 21 March 2020. Circuit Breaker started in the first week of April and it was madness for that 1-2 months. Home-based learning took alot out of me. Juggling Nadya's online and offline schoolwork, with Alyssa's offline worksheets, and my own work brought me numerous challenges. I was a frantic octopus, kancheong spider and impatient bull all rolled into one. I suddenly had to deal with meal planning on a daily basis too, not just the weekends. And not just one meal a day but at least 2 out of 3 main meals.

April and May were challenging alright. I lost count of the number of times I made Nadya cry early in the morning when I was trying to supervise and guide her in her work. Math was especially challenging and my BP must have been higher in those 2 months too.

It was a big relief when June came and schools were allowed to reopen. No more videos for kindy lessons and no more primary school online lessons. No more lost tempers lol.

Other challenges included things like not having a proper work desk and chair, not having access to aircon the entire day, having discussions via concalls and video-calls, handling new bosses, etc. There was a period of time I was working on my bed everyday. Till I had various aches. I ended up with a very small desk and a swivel armchair that I managed to squeeze into a corner of my bedroom. The rest of the issues...well, you just live with things and get used to to them.

And...the good stuff that happened in the year that I am thankful for.

1. The girls learned how to cycle in the May/June period. They had their existing bikes and balance bikes. With nowhere else to go, they were on their bikes in the carpark most evenings. K eventually ordered kiddy bikes from Decathlon and the girls very quickly learned how to ride them.
2. I didn't have to contend with my anxieties of taking public transport to and from office. And I saved a ton of time with commuting out of the picture. Easily 2hrs plus of my time each day was freed up. And not having to go into office meant I didn't have to dress up or put on make-up or make sure my hair was nice enough. :) That saved time and effort too. 
3. I had to experiment and come up with some new stuff for meal plans. One of the best things I experimented with was rice balls haha. Delicious. Alyssa loves them and K does too...:)
4. I went off my anti-acid medication, having taken the last Omeprazole pill on 23 Mar 2020. Most of my meals are now home-cooked ones. My stomach feels better and I can take more things compared to the middle of last year. 
5. I got more time and flexibility and went for more (and longer) walks. I hope to continue this though and build up on it. 
6. K got to experiment with his baking stuff. We went ballistic and made tons of banana cakes over a week. One or two a day...lol...and gave them out to relatives and friends. 
7. We tweaked our daily schedules and now K fetches the girls back home from school everyday, instead of us heading to my inlaws' place for dinner. Now we settle everything at home ourselves. 
8. I took on a new challenge at work, expanded my portfolio by a considerable amount, inherited 3 new staff, hired another new staff for my team, and am learning and growing in terms of work. Blessed and thankful to have 2 good members on my team who are steady enough. The other 2 junior staff are a handful sometimes and miss the mark but...I'll see how it goes. Thankful too for the big lady boss who thought of me for the expanded role, the big boss who supported the idea, and my immediate boss who also supported the idea and has given me alot of support and encouragement. 

There are definitely some other good stuff that I am thankful for but I'll stop at these main ones...

May 2021 bring an abundance of good stuff to the girls, K and I. And may we stay blessed, happy and healthy always. Onwards and upwards!! Huat ah!