Walking in a winter wonderland!

Hello snowy December!!

We had a blizzard on Saturday - 17 inches of snow! Troy and I did the smart thing and stayed home all day, watched Monk and Jeff Dunham on Netflix, played the new games I got him for Christmas, did a puzzle.. :)) All we need is a fireplace.

Love the holiday season! I had so much fun making holiday jars last night for our friends as gifts. I'll have to take a picture.

We fly out on Sunday!!! We'll be in Tokyo 3 days before we fly back to Singapore for about a week. Looking forward to our vacation! And all prepared for the flight with a new book, magazine, DS game, card games... :))

See ya all back in Singapore!

Happy November!

Can't believe its year end already!

It's pretty warm out still. Snowed all of last Saturday but hasn't snowed since.

Life's going good. Troy's lost 22 lbs! :) Flat belly diet is working well. Also our grocery bill has gone down by about half since we started the diet! Crazy I know.

We're looking forward to our trip in Dec. Troy wants to go to the night safari and also have breakfast with the orang utans at the zoo. LOL. Also planning to go to Disneyland in Tokyo - yay! :)

Wow, it's warm

This time last year, it was already snowing. Instead this year it is warm as can be! I haven't had to put on a coat for about 2 weeks, and the kids are still wearing shorts and t-shirts to therapy. ;)

So, life is pretty darn awesome. I love my hubby, he is wonderful. :) We are finally getting our apartment together - threw some stuff out, put things away, getting organized. We spend most of our Target giftcards that we got from our wedding on STORAGE. Got some shelves for our "pantry". Got a lot of big plastic containers for my barang barang. We still have a pile of unopened wedding presents in the living room, which we can't use yet because we don't have the room for it!

CANNOT WAIT TO HAVE A HOUSE!

We're socking away about $1200 a month towards our house down payment, so hopefully we will be able to buy one sometime in spring/summer of 2012. Hopefully house prices will still be LOW then! I've been checking out houses online and right now we can get a 3-4 bedroom house for about $140,000 in a pretty decent area. I am really thankful we live in a very affordable state!

Work is still going good. I think I am getting better with more experience, so my job actually gets better all the time. I work with really nice people, I work 40 hours a week, pay is decent, so really can't complain too much. I only get 2.5 weeks of paid vacation time now, but if I stay with the company for 4 years then I will get 3.5 weeks which will be very nice indeed! :)

We are excited for our upcoming vacation in December! It will be our first vacation together so that will be very nice indeed. Plus 10 days off work sounds awesome!!! I haven't had a long break since starting work. Haven't been back to Singapore in 2 years, and looks like there's been a lot of changes! Am looking forward to checking out Universal Studios, Helix (?) bridge, Singapore Flyer, and the resorts (maybe). It's been so long since I've been back I don't even know the names or locations of these new places, but looks pretty cool from my friends' fb pictures. ;)

I can write what I want, its a free country

I resent being labeled a "quitter". I traveled 5000 miles by myself to a country I had never been to before, and where I knew absolutely nobody. I had to find my way around, learn this new culture and language, live on my own, make new friends, do well in school, and get a job in this economy. I had to learn everything from scratch. I am a SURVIVOR okay?? Keep calling me an ungrateful Singaporean and see if I still want to keep being one.

Why is the gahmen deaf to voices of young Singaporeans? How long do they think they can get their way with threats, lies, blackmail, secrecy, and coercion? What disappoints me the most is 这么多年来，一点长进都没有... The world has moved on and yet some people are still living in the past. This is not our parents' generation anymore. Wake up.

It's Fall

The summer has just zoomed by. I love each of the four seasons, but always feel some sadness and withdrawal during these transition periods.

Looking on the bright side, I do love Fall. Tomorrow I am going apple and pumpkin picking, which I am really excited about! Have always wanted to do that. I love Honey Crisp apples from MN and PUMPKIN is quite possibly my favorite fruit. I adore pumpkin pie. :)

And... FOOTBALL SEASON!!!!!!!!! :)) Which means lazy Sundays on the couch with my hubby, watching 3 games back to back. LOL.

I love the four seasons. Each one is so special and enjoyable in its own way. And also it helps me remember when things happen. ;)

Oh, I forgot to mention that one of the funniest wedding moments was when Troy's friend Shag went up to my dad, Troy's dad, and me separately to tell us how Troy was the nicest guy he knows and Troy's the man he would introduce to his sister. We both thought it was really sweet of him, but also sooooo funny. :) Shag felt bad for Troy because everyone at the wedding kept saying how lucky Troy was, and he felt the need to stick up for Troy. ;)

Ok I confess I am still a little high from the wedding. ;) Avery's mom emailed to say she and his dad were also still high from how good Avery was at the wedding, and they are very proud parents. :)

I cleaned up the apartment some this weekend. Took out some boxes to the trash. We still have a stockpile of wedding presents in our living room though, but we'll probably leave them unopened until we have our own house. We both can't wait to have a house!!!!!! Me because I want a place to call our permanent home, start decorating it, and have lots of friends over. Troy because he wants dogs and a MAN CAVE in the basement. :P

I started a smartypig savings account for us today! Our first savings goal is a trip to ROCKY MOUNTAINS, COLORADO next October for our first year anniversary. OMG check out these gorgeous cabins with an OUTDOOR HOT TUB overlooking the mountains?!!? HELLOOO??? http://www.cabinsofcolorado.com/index.htm

And, because I'm a person who always plans ahead.. my latest interest is researching citizenship. Being a green card holder married to an American citizen, I will become eligible for US citizenship in 2013. Thing is, when I first started this immigration process several months ago, I had absolutely no intention of taking up US citizenship. I had always planned to retain my Sg citizenship so that our kids could be dual citizens. Sadly, due to DON'T-MAKE-ANY-SENSE GAHMEN, this plan is now foiled.

Why? Well, gahmen has this absolutely ridiculous law that states male dual citizens are not permitted to renounce their citizenship until age 21. Which means our sons will be called up for NS at age 18 just like any Singaporean. I would be fine with it if they were actually in Singapore. However, since Troy and I plan to stay in the USA, our poor sons will have to leave their entire lives in the USA and return to Singapore all by themselves to serve NS for 2 years. Following NS, they would then have to renounce Sg citizenship at age 21 because Sg does not permit dual citizenship. UMM, HELLOO??? At the end of the day, they would still NOT be dual citizens, just wasted two years of their lives. Which parent would inflict this torture on their child???

Does this policy make sense to anyone???

I'm a married woman!!

Being "married" makes me feel about 10 years older. Oooooh I'm a grown-up now! With a real job and everything! ;)

I HAD THE BEST WEEKEND OF MY LIFE!!!!!! I enjoyed every single minute of my wedding and prepping with the boys+girls the day before. It was a blast!! I was still high for 2 days after... ;)

My girls were just wonderful in helping in every way and making it all a breeze for me. I really enjoyed having them stay at the Inn with us, it gave us some nice time to catch up while making centerpieces, cocktails, decorations... And the boys!! If you look under their jokey exterior, they are the kindest souls. :)

And boy am I glad I bought those bubbles and hired a DJ! Those bubbles kept the kids entertained ALL NIGHT long, and really got Avery and Bekah going! I was really worried about Avery being bored, but omg the kids became little DANCING MACHINES once the music came on. It was hilarious to watch.

Am sooooo soooooooo glad Troy convinced me to get a DJ and have a dollar dance. I was pretty hesitant since 1) I can't dance to save my life, 2) I'd never even heard of a dollar dance. IT WAS SUCH A BLAST! I loved loved loved it, it was awesome to chat and slow dance with so many guests, plus how cute were Caden and Avery (both 6) when they bashfully came up and asked the bride to dance! It was adorable. Bekah (little bride in the making) kept coming up to me every 5 minutes to ask me something, (Umm.. Meijie? Can I have more bubbles? Can I have a crane? Can I have another crane?) which also cracked me up. ;) And then I had to stop talking to my coworkers because this little 5-year-old insisted I teach her how to make a crane at my wedding, LOL.

And the toasts were just wonderful! We have funny friends. :)

Anyway, what made it even better was everyone telling me after that what a fun time they had. Johanna said it was the funnest wedding she had ever been to, and my coworker said it was one of the nicest. :) Awwwwwwww, ain't that the sweetest things anyone can say! And everyone we talked to had a blast, and we got compliments on the venue, cookies, food, flowers, little handmade details... Troy said his dad was impressed with my organization skills. ;)))

Am soooo glad we had an intimate wedding. 60 turned out to be the perfect number of people there. Can't wait for the pro pictures to come back! In the meantime, check out fb for pictures. :)

LOL, again

The baby's been pretty curious about Singlish, so last week I pulled up a video on YouTube to show him what Singlish sounds like. It was a clip from the movie Singapore Dreaming.

He watched it 3 times with a really confused look on his face.

Me: So, what do you think?
Him: What do you mean?
Me: Did you understand what they were saying?
Him: Oh... you mean they were speaking in ENGLISH???

1 week away!

Wowee, time flies! Can you believe the wedding is ONE week away??

Our little apartment is stacked full of boxes right now. There's about 10 boxes that we need to bring with us to the wedding.. and in the other corner we have all our wedding presents! Opening presents has been TOO MUCH FUN. LOL. My coworkers at preschool and Capernaum very sweetly threw me a wedding lunch and a wedding shower last week. I was very touched.

I've been having quite a bit of wedding panic these two weeks, mainly worried about if I forgot something, or if I should have done such-and-such differently. I'm trying to remind myself that the world won't come to an end if I have ugly centerpieces. :P I'm really praying for good weather.

Am also looking forward to life after the wedding. It will be my last week at preschool next week, then I am starting at Global Academy, which is K-8th grade. Mostly Muslim students, children of recent immigrants from Somalia, Iraq, and the middle east. I certainly identify with the adjustments that recent immigrants have to make! I am very curious about Somali and Iraqi culture and am looking forward to learning about it.

Community ed classes are starting in September, and I am most likely signing up for yoga. Have been wanting to do yoga for a while, and these classes thru the Minneapolis schools are pretty cheap.

Am also contemplating starting up my own small business online on etsy. I've had fun DIY-ing some parts of my wedding, so I figure I might be able to sell some of my crafts online. Some extra income would be really nice, since we'd like to get our first house in about a year. I've been thinking about what kind of part time job I'd like... don't really wanna do more speech therapy, 4.5 days a week is enough. Don't really wanna work as a waitress, sales person.. kinda boring and pay's not great. Soo... if I could get my etsy shop going, that would really be perfect.

Troy is planning on going to grad school next Fall, for a Masters in School Counseling. He is pretty psyched about becoming a school counselor, because it means weekends and summers off!! THREE whole months in the summer to bum around and do nothing. And if I get a job working in the schools too, that means 3 months off a year for the BOTH of us! ;) So yeah, we've been researching grad school options around here.

Oh, and I also ordered the Flat Belly Diet book and cookbook, on the recommendation of my coworker. She said she and her husband lost a bunch of weight and lowered their cholesterol after starting the diet, and also have more energy to boot. So, Troy and I plan to get started on it after the wedding. Since we have a family history of heart disease on both sides, can't be too careful really.

Fall's a-coming, and this year I am determined not to miss out on pumpkin and apple-picking. I LOVE FALL. I love pumpkin pie. I love halloween. I love the beautiful colors and gorgeous weather. I love Thanksgiving. I love football. I love having the four seasons.

So, lots and lots of plans ahead!!!! :)

My baby cracks me up

Was rather bored last Sunday, so I dug out my 放羊的星星 DVDs that I bought from Taiwan a couple years ago.
Troy's first exposure to Taiwanese drama!

Our conversation:
Him: Why do they keep calling him Tianqi?
Me: Because that's his name?
Him: But... I thought his name is Vernon.
Me: It is.
Him: Huh??
Me: His English name is Vernon, his Chinese name is Tianqi.
Him: I'm confused.

*Me laughing hysterically because its so duuuuhh!* My poor baby's going to be so confused when he goes to Singapore. ;) I already told him to go read angryangmo.com, which is written by a German in Singapore.

And later...

Him: Even though I don't understand what they're saying, they're all really bad actors.
Me: Hey!!! Don't talk about my childhood idol that way. I've liked him since I was 10!
Him: If you had a choice between him and David Duchovny, who would you pick?
Me: Uhhhhhhh... ummmmm..... dunno. Can't decide.

;)

We went to watch Myq Kaplan at the Acme Comedy Club last night. He was 5th on Last Comic Standing. But I was quite disappointed in his performance because I'd already heard half his jokes on TV! The 2 other comedians were REALLY REALLY funny though! Quite sad that the sidekicks upstaged the headliner huh? We had a great time, only $15! Definitely going back. We'd probably go check out the comedy club at the Mall too sometime.

To be or not to be?

http://singaporedissident.blogspot.com/

Although I don't agree with everything he says, I am quite an avid reader of Gopalan Nair's blog. In many ways, it reminds me of why I left Singapore.

Troy often wonders why I don't like Singapore. I told him it's too long and complicated of a story. It is not the usual tale of the immigrant leaving some poverty-stricken third world country. In fact, the Singapore gahmen is far richer than the US government. And I think the unemployment rate is a fair bit lower.

BUT, I could never shake the feeling that the gahmen doesn't give a sh*t about me. At all. It only wants me NOW because I am a young, healthy, well-educated person who has quite good ability to contribute to the economy. If you are old or in poor health or unemployed or have special needs or for some other reason "don't belong" (e.g. homosexual), the gahmen pretty much can't wait to get rid of you, even if you are a citizen. THEY DON'T FREAKING CARE.

My first day of school at my alma mater Victoria Junior College, the principal said, You guys are the cream of the crop. I want you to get as many As as you can at the A levels, for the glory of our wonderful school. (In other words, I don't give a sh*t about you or your aspirations or your personal growth, just make sure you get all As so that we can still be Top 5 JC.) -- does that totally exemplify the gahmen's attitude or what! I still look back at VJC days as the most traumatic 2 years of my life.

Some day I am going to be old. Some day I may be unemployed or have medical needs. Some day I may have children with special needs. (A family I know emigrated to Australia to get special needs services for their son.) Even if my kids didn't have special needs.. if they are anything less than "very smart", they are pretty much screwed. I DO NOT feel that I can count on the gahmen to come to my assistance if needed. They will only do what is the best for them, end of story. I am just a little cookie in a cookie-cutter land. If I am somehow non-satisfactory, they will crush me, destroy me, and import another cookie to replace me.

Yup, so that's reason number 1. I have a lot more.. I am writing all of this down because it helps me sort out my thoughts. I don't know if anyone who reads this will understand the way I feel. I often feel very misunderstood, like the wedding invitations hoohah. Maybe I just don't think like other Singaporeans, which is why I never belonged in Singapore. Who knows.

I am a PERMANENT RESIDENT of the USA!!!!!! :))

Joy oh joy, we had our interview today and got APPROVED! :))))))) The whole thing lasted less than 10 minutes, and was probably the easiest interview I've ever had in my life. ;) So much for all the horror stories eh?

We waited about 15 minutes in the waiting room, then got called. Followed the officer to his office, where he had my USCIS folder in front of him. Wasn't too thick, unlike some of the others in his office. ;)

Asked Troy:
Full name, address, phone number, place of birth, social security number?

Me:
Full name, phone number, place of birth, social security number, parents names, my profession?

Asked me if I have ever been arrested, deported, involved in terrorism, claimed to be a US citizen, etc. (All NO, obviously!)

He asked us, where did you meet?

He asked to see Troy's driver's license and my passport. Asked if I brought anything else I WANTED to add to my file. He didn't appear to want anything. I gave him our phone bill and a more recent bank statement. I showed him about 5 pictures - told him we didn't have too many because Troy hates pictures. He laughed. He didn't look at the phone bill or bank statement, just took them. He glanced at the pictures and gave them back.

Then he said, well, it looks very straightforward. You're approved and you'll get your green card in the mail in about 2 weeks. We said, great thanks!

No trick questions or anything! Approved in 2.5 months - how speedy is that?!

Can't wait to get my green card, which allows me to live and work in the US indefinitely, plus travel in and out of the US anytime I want!!!! No more of that %#$*@ work permits and visa paperwork!! No more waiting in the LOOOOOONG "aliens" line at the airport and dealing with grumpy I-think-you're-a-terrorist airport officials! No more fear of being denied entry into the US!!!!! (Last summer I was afraid of crossing the border to Canada when we were at Niagara Falls).

Whole process cost me something like $1800 though. Could have been a Disney World or Caribbean honeymoon, but alas it was not to be. :P

Updates!

It's been a happening week!

Finally mailed/gave out all the invitations!!! And people are starting to respond already - WOOOO!! :) We have friends who booked their flights to fly in from several different states, makes me feel so touched and loved. :) And of course my parents are flying halfway across the globe. AND my brother might be able to come after all - yay!

I got many compliments on how cute the invitations are *braaaag*. Haha. Quite happy with the way they turned out, especially since they are quite low-budget. :)

Also, my mom sent us a very generous ang pow, which couldn't have come at a better time really. And my super speedy bridesmaid Dianamari also got us our very first wedding present - an indoor grill, which arrived yesterday. :)

And people have been so great about helping out. My dear bridesmaid Charlotte sent me pearl earrings from Indiana (because I mentioned I needed some to match my necklace), and my MOH Johanna's mom very sweetly made a veil for me out of my MIL's veil! It was just mailed to me this week too. MIL's veil (that her mother made for her) was too long and umm.. a little old-fashioned, so Johanna's mom helped to alter it for me. I have NO sewing skills. :p

So yeah, I feel very loved.

Also I received notice that my employment auth is extended for another year - yay. :) Although I won't need it once I get my green card, but at least I don't have to worry too much about when the GC arrives. I am becoming quite the expert on immigration paperwork. :P

Outrage!!!

Article from the ST:

Jul 6, 2010

Help for problem preschoolers

If you read the article, you realize that what this particular journalist is talking about is really preschoolers with learning difficulties, or developmental delays. Instead of calling them that, she refers to them several times as "problem kids". OMG!!!!!!!!!!

I am appalled.

59 days?!

I spent the last couple of days updating our wedding website, and now it is finally (almost) done! For those who are curious, it is at: http://www.weddingwire.com/MeijieandTroy

The "About Us" and "The Proposal" parts took me a couple of hours to write, but am pretty pleased with how it turned out. It's been quite a while since I've done any kind of creative writing, and I'm surprised by how much I still enjoy it! Sometimes I still fantasize about being a writer.. Could still happen I guess. ;)

I finally completed my Clinical Fellowship yesterday, so I'm now a certified speech-language therapist! YAY!!! Pending all the paperwork, I am excitedly looking forward to a raise!!! (I've been too paiseh to ask how much of a raise though :P) And actually, I think my job is getting better every day, as I get more experienced. An unfortunate side effect of my job is that I now don't feel like playing with kids outside of working hours! Playing with a kid now just seems like work, and I don't want to do it without being paid. Hah!

Oh, and I also started a group on Facebook to connect with Singaporeans in the MN. We had our first meeting last week, there's about 6 of us around here. It was fun, but hanging out with them also reminded me of all the reasons I left Singapore. My pet peeves:

1. People who think everything bad that happens to them is because the other person is "racist", e.g. "I didn't pass my driving test because the tester was racist." Erm, did you ever think that maybe your driving just sucks?! Or maybe so-and-so just doesn't like YOU as a person, and your race has nothing to do with it!

2. People who complain that Americans don't know where Singapore is. Erm, do YOU know where every single country in the world is???? Where is Trinidad and Tobago? Or Bahrain? In fact, most Singaporeans have not the slightest clue about USA geography. Most Singaporeans would not be able to pin Minneapolis on a map of USA. Bet they could not even pinpoint NYC, California, Florida or Texas. I have friends who ask me, hey I'll be going to the USA, want to meet up? Erm, Arizona is about 30 hours away from where I am. Or, I heard there's a school shooting, are you ok? Erm, considering its about 3 states away, I think I'm ok.

BTW, I'm not saying I expect Singaporeans to know US geography. I'm just saying that everyone knows the geography of their OWN country the best, so stop saying Americans are dumb just because they don't know where Singapore is.

So yeah, now you know my top 2 pet peeves. :P Think there's more but I'm too lazy to think of them now. I'm just going to watch tv and laze around. Heh.

Summer time

Hello summer is here! Official start of summer is June 21, which is my birthday, which was Monday. ;)

Had a little celebration with the man. Went to Olive Garden, which is one of my favorite Italian restaurants, then to the schnazzy new movie theater in St Louis Park to watch Karate Kid! Troy's been wanting to take me there since his friend told him about the BAR in the movie theater. Haha! Movie, popcorn, and boooze - perfect combo, no?

Anyway I can't decide which Karate Kid I like more. I thought Mr Miyagi was funnier than Jackie Chan, but I thought the portrayal of Beijing was pretty cool. Sure makes me want to go to China!

There were 20 - yes TWENTY - tornadoes in Minnesota last Thursday and it killed three people. :( None of them actually hit the Twin Cities, which is lucky because I'm sure the destruction and death toll would have been much higher.

My green card interview is scheduled for July 26! Think Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds in The Proposal. ;) Anyway my application has gone pretty smoothly so far, and really isn't taking too long at all. With any luck I'll be a permanent resident in 1-2 months - Woo!!

Friends for Asia

Read about Friends for Asia on CNN yesterday and have been thinking about it since. Its a program in Chiang Mai that plans and provides lodging for foreigners to volunteer for 2 weeks or longer, at orphanages, shelters, elephant camps(!), etc etc etc!!!!! HOW AWESOME IS THAT. I am really excited about elephant camp!

So anyway, we'd like to go some time in the next 2 years. Whenever we save up the money and have the time, I guess. Can't wait can't wait can't wait. I haven't had a real adventure in sooooooooo long. So glad my baby wants to come with! I love my man.

Happy Memorial Day!

Ok I know nobody who reads this blog celebrates Memorial Day, but you guys get a long weekend too for Vesak Day right? ;)

Sooo, if you have been following me on fb, you'd know that I've been spending every weekend GARAGE-SAILING!!!!! OMG! Can't believe I've been in the US almost 4 years and never discovered this before!!! Although quite possibly there just aren't as many garage sales in Indiana as there are in Minnesota.

My latest acquisition is the Who Wants to be a Millionaire board game for $2. Troy and I have been having fun with it. ;) Also a bunch of vases for the wedding for 25 cents. Woooo!!

And of course a truck load of toys. HAHA. Most of them are 25 cents to $1, and they're in GREAT condition!! My preschool kids just LOVED the airplane I bought last week. ;)

Anyway, we're driving up north today to spend 2 days with his family and friends. So, happy long weekend!!!

Almost June

Hello, only 100+ days to the wedding!

The engagement pictures turned out well, I'm pleased. We ended up going with the "cheap" photographer ($1000 plus tip), so I was a little worried. But out of the 104 pictures, about 65 are decent and there are about 10 I really really like. :) Also my photographer's really sweet and easy to get along with, and super fast with getting back to me with the pictures!

My MOH Johanna and her sister Andrea visited us in MN this week, and we had fun doing some wedding stuff together. We went cupcake tasting with my awesome baker - she's CHEAP ($15 per dozen cupcakes), gave us 12 free cupcakes to taste, and is sooooo fast with replying emails, and free delivery!!!

All my vendors are pretty darn awesome so far, keeping my fingers crossed.

GARAGE SALES have started!!!! My new hobby is going to garage sales every weekend and getting a bunch of great bargains!! Last week I bought the cutest vintage Campbells mug for a quarter (its selling on ebay for $5), 5 ice cream glasses ($1), 4 jar mugs ($1), and a bunch of other glassware for $5. I'm going to use them for wedding centerpieces. I also bought some Little People toys for $2, and also got a Disney princess playdough set for free!!! Oh and I bought the cutest vintage Kodak brownie camera for $3, worth about $15. Troy and I are thinking of having an ebay business selling all our steals but I've been too lazy so far. ;)

Sooooo, life is good. Almost too good - it makes me fear that some calamity is going to strike soon. I mean, there are all kinds of horrible disasters on the news every night, I try not to let my imagination run overtime. :P

It's May!

Wow, the year is almost half over. It'll be my birthday soon... TWENTY SEVEN! *gasp*

I am torn between feeling ooooold, but I'm also one of the youngest at work. And I'm still in my twenties. Soo.. I'm not really sure what I feel.

On the bright side, life is pretty much as I envisioned for 27. I've always wanted to get married at 26 or 27. Check. Got my Masters degree. Check. Job that I find meaningful and not too bad paying. Check.

Marrying my American white boy wasn't quite anticipated, but 人算不如天算, right? ;)

So, what lies ahead? We definitely want to buy a house as soon as possible since we'd like to stop renting and have our own home. It will be nice to not change addresses every other year. Also, Troy is absolutely dying to have a dog. I'm looking forward to the decorating and having an awesome kitchen. :)

I always planned to have 3 kids when I'm between the ages of 30-35. However, I am now kinda worried that the older I get, the harder the weight will be to lose, and pregnancy will be more complicated. Most American women have kids really young, and I REALLY don't want to be the old chubby mommy. I guess that goal is now revised to 29-34? Maybe we'll adopt some of our kids though so I don't have to worry too much about my biological clock tick-tocking away. Who knows??

Other news.. I filed my Permanent Resident papers yesterday. With any luck, the green card should arrive in my mailbox by the end of this year. I'm still planning on keeping my Singapore citizenship though, you know, just in case I want to apply for dual citizenship for the kids or if we move to Singapore. Both seem quite unlikely at this point, but again, 人算不如天算. IF (a very big if) we move to Singapore, it probably makes more sense to get PR.

Wedding planning is coming along fabulously, especially since I'm the only one planning it. :))) Life is so much easier sometimes without everyone giving you their unsolicited advice on what should be done. We are taking our engagement pictures next Monday and I'm excited!! I'm also getting my hair/makeup trial on the same day. Both my photographer and makeup artist seem awesome at this point, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Also, I am surprisingly allergy-free this Spring. I usually get hit BAAAAD for 2-3 days in April. Maybe I'm not allergic to the pollen in Minnesota. That's what I'm hoping anyway. Or maybe it just hasn't hit yet.....

Springtime!

The warm weather is here!! The weather has been just beautiful these last two weeks. :) I need to unpack my summer clothes.

Troy and I went to Red Wing last week to put the $1,100 deposit down for our Sept 5 wedding. :)) I also met with a photographer for $1,000 that we are very likely to go with. And we found a Chinese restaurant that will cater for $8.50 per person!!! Ok, obviously it won't be fancy schmancy food, but it'll have to do! We'll just have to get more booze to make up for it. ;)

Went to H&R Block today to have a "tax professional" file my taxes for me. I've done it myself in previous years, but 2009 is just too complicated - having lived in 4 states!!! Anyway, I had to pay him $320 (ouch!!!) to file my taxes for me, but I'm getting $900 back in federal returns, $330 back from the state of Minnesota, and I owe the state of Indiana $8. I got to claim some tax credit for my internship in California and moving expenses, which I am very pleased about!!

Anyway, despite us both being employed now, we are still very poor. Boooooooooo. And we have to pay Uncle Sam $1,500 for my green card - oww oww ouchh!!! Will be VERY GLAD when this wedding is over and we'll actually have money for some other things.. like furniture! And fun stuff. I haven't bought clothes or had a haircut in almost a year??!

Oh, and I can't wait till we have a house! I am quite into watching Home Buyers and Moving Up and all the other homebuying shows on TLC. ;))) I'm dreeeeeaminggg....

It's almost the end of Feb... whaaaaat????

It's hard to believe February is almost over. But that means spring is a-coming!!!!

After 5 months of living here.. I declare that I really do like MN. Minnesotan winters really aren't as bad as everyone claims. The in-laws and coworkers all tried to freak me out by telling me I needed to heated jackets and long johns and snowpants... but pffffft. The only new things I got this winter are my boots and a warmer pair of gloves. Some people are just pussies. Ha!

I'm kidding. The cold doesn't bother me that much because I typically only spend 10 minutes outside a day, just long enough to run from the parking lot into heated buildings. On sunny days though, I spend up to a half hour playing out in the snow with the kids (and catching up on my lost childhood ;)). IT IS SUPER FUN. Now I understand what Troy means about MN having enough snow to do snow things, because in Indiana we get a couple of inches and its not enough to do fun snow things like go snowmobiling, make snowmen, snowangels, snowballs...

Not that I actually make snow angels of course. I worry too much about getting my clothes dirty and wet. I just watch the kids do it -- oh to be a happy carefree kid! ;))

Life is going very well. :)))) The fiance is recently employed - WHEEEEEE!!!!! We went out to Fridays to celebrate yesterday. As a special treat we got a full 3-course meal each, I got a tropical mojito, he got a white russian, and I even let him get a cherry coke! HAHA. Anyway, either the fiance is extremely talented or he somehow voodooed the interviewer, because he went to JUST ONE interview, got called back to a 2nd interview two days later, and the day after that got offered the job! I am impressed.

Soooo he's starting work soon and I am saaaaaad. No more hanging out on weekends and him doing the chores! He works loooong days Wed-Sat as a house manager for a home for disabled adults. Its not his dream job but it does give him some nice managerial experience, and given this economy, can't really be too picky! And of course its nice to have the extra income. :)

We are going to a CNY potluck at a Chinese church tonight. I am making a fried egg, tomatoes, and cucumber thing from my recipe book and I hope it turns out well! It looked the easiest to make. ;) Troy and I went to the service last week and there were these families coming in all dressed up in their traditional costumes and it was sooooooo cute. We'll get one tailored for him when we go back to Singapore. HAHA.

More wedding updates

We now have our absolutely adorable ringbearer and flower girl!!!

Avery's always been very very special in my heart, since I spent soooo much time babysitting him when I was at Purdue, and I've really watched him grow up. I've been there for (almost) half his life! He will be 6 in March.

I asked Shelby his mom if he could be my ringbearer, and she was so touched she cried! Awwwwwwwwwwwww.
And here is a picture of Bekah, the daughter of one of Troy's best men, Jesse. As you can tell, she's 5 and a sassy little redhead. ;) Watch out Avery!!
So far I have my maid of honor (Johanna) and one bridesmaid (Dianamari), and am looking to add 1-2 more bridesmaids. Troy has his two best men Jesse and Thor.

Oh and I found an amazing florist that was highly recommended to me by my coworker Sara. I've just been emailing her but I am very pleased so far. I asked if it was possible for her to do my flowers for $300+ (which is quite unheard of since most places start at $500 for silk flowers and $700 for fresh!), and she sent me quotes that came in BELOW budget - OMG!!!!

Sooooo, it looks like I will have gerbera daisies and roses mix, which I love and are cheap to boot. :))))) Our wedding colors are red, pink, and white.

I haven't ordered it yet but I'm getting this cuuuuuute customized cake topper for our cake. :)

We going to meet with photographers soon. I found two, one who is charging $1,600 and another for $2,500. Right now I am STRONGLY leaning towards the $2,500 one because I just LOVE her pictures. I mean, the pictures are going to last a lifetime so obviously I need to find a photographer who will make everyone look gorgeous, right? Right?

Oh oh oh, and also our wedding venue is just 12 miles away from the Treasure Island casino, and they have free transportation there, SOOOOOO thats where we're having our (optional) after-party. Everyone we've told so far has been super excited. :))) And they have a bowling alley and live bands there for non-gamblers. It will be FUUUUUNNNNN.

Ok gotta go watch the Super Bowl. I really don't know who I'm rooting for. I'm still bummed because the Vikings should be there!!!!! Pffffft.

We're engaged!

So, for the people who haven't heard.. Troy and I are officially engaged! :))))

This is my ring that I picked out because I wanted something a little more unique than a solitaire. I like the three stones representing our past, present, and future. And the trinity. Makes it a little more meaningful I think.Everyone wants to hear the proposal story, but I think I'll save it for when I set up the wedding website. Or tell them in person at the wedding. ;)

Things we've done so far:
1) Bought my dress - $299
The fiance and I went to David's Bridal in Richfield last Friday, and I found the peeeeerfect dress. It was my size, my color, everything I want, AND $300 off!!! WOAH. It was the first and only dress I tried on and we bought it. We were in and out of the store in 20 minutes. Absolutely no one can believe how speedy I was. :) What can I say? I know what I want and I get it. :)))2) Ordered my wedding band - $129.99
Again, going for a little more unique. I think plain bands are boring, and almost everyone I know who was recently married has a diamond eternity band. I couldn't find a ruby ring I liked, so sapphires it is! I think it'll match my engagement ring well, but we'll see. I'm eagerly anticipating it in the mail. :))

3) Venue (The Golden Lantern Inn) - $2300
We haven't put down a deposit yet, but we went to visit this place (that I've been eyeing online forever) yesterday. It is a very cute little B&B in Red Wing, MN, which is about 1.5 hours drive southeast of where we live. We are planning to have a garden ceremony and reception on September 5, 2010. We were back and forth between Sep 4 or 5 for a while, but now I think we're sticking to the 5th because its a Sunday and $300 cheaper. Its Labor Day weekend so Monday is a holiday and people can rest after the drive home. Red Wing is about a 7-hour drive from up north where most of Troy's family and friends will be coming from, and 8 hours from Indiana, where most of my friends and some of his extended family will be coming from.

The plan is to have the bridal party stay with us at the house, that way its easier for us to set up before the wedding, have rehearsals, etc. and we don't have to go anywhere else after the reception. Plus we get to spend lots of time with our friends, which will be awesome since we don't get to see them that much.

There are two little inns just a block away, so we'll probably put our families and other guests there. Unless we block rooms at a hotel downtown, or possibly at the Treasure Island casino that is 10 miles away. ;) We haven't decided on that yet.

We are paying for the wedding ourselves and since we are both fresh out of school and hence very poor, it will be a very small, intimate, but hopefully still a BLAST of a wedding! :))) Our biggest expenses will probably be the venue, photographer, and DJ. But photography is one of THE MOST important things (to me anyway) so I have to find an awesome one, even if it sets us back some $2500! :P

Happy 2010!

I'm thankful for:
1. Having a roof over my head
2. Having a job
3. Being loved
4. My car!!! Without which I would not survive in this country!
5. 3-digits hopefully 4 soon) in my bank account again. Boy did it suck to be poor as a church mouse. (At least it helped me empathize with the poor folks out there :P)

And I got A TON of Christmas presents this year from Troy and his folks. I feel very spoiled. ;) So now we're all set for our future plane trips to Singapore, with my lime green Nintendo DS and his Ipod Classic. ;))