Fire in the Kitchen | "How are you doing?" | Mother's Day JB Kidz Republic

Brayden 8Y2M19D

Bevlynn 3Y11M12D

It was an eventful week. I took half-day off from work for the whole week to give some cooking guidance to Lov. On her 2nd cooking attempt, the oil spilled and fire quickly built-up on the induction cooker. She was shocked and quickly moved away. I was surprisingly calm; swiftly looking for a wet cloth to cover the flame that almost reached the kitchen hood. 

The children were overly excited though; shouting out like a celebration over a campfire. The moment they saw their Mommy saving the day with the small undersized piece of cloth, their cheers turned to a tinge of sadness. Why? Because Mommy burnt Bev's FAVOURITE kitchen towel! I never even knew she had a favourite until this day. I think she might have took pity on the kitchen towel; as we stared at the melted, slowly diminished dark piece of cloth. The whole house was filled with thick black smoke afterwards...  Such drama. 

I watched an interview of an actress from Emerald Hill. She was describing her episodes of depression from acting in the villian role. The thing that really caught my attention from her interview was, she looked very professional in her acting. As an audience, I could not tell she was in depression. Also, she described how in several months, from a cheerful person, she fell deeply into this emotional state. And a "How are you doing?" from her director helped her release her pent-up emotions. 

That interview showed me how depression can be so hidden yet so painful, especially for someone who has to be strong for the world to see. It could happen so quickly. And it is very difficult for one to share this burden to anyone else. So by asking them "How are you doing?" at the right moment might just be the door opener for them to pour away the negative thoughts. It is not weakness to share, it is okay to not be okay, they are just strong for far too long.

It was Mother's Day. But it was the children's Play Day! 

We went to JB Kidz Republic Indoor Theme Park. This dinosaur theme indoor playground had some new play area. This was Bev's first time there. They played the whole day. Their favourite include the large Lego building area, the mini car race area, the ball pool, the soft sponge pool, trampoline, sand area (to dig for dinosaur bones), colouring, etc, etc... It was worth it. It is a good thing there's a Hailam Cafe right next to the playground; where I could get some kopi to boost some energy level. 

Look at how tired they were at the end of the day. They K.O. at the JB customs.