The time of the year

I just looked back at some old photos and just love these so much. With Chipsy taken last Xmas and Marcus hugging me early this year.

I often get really emotional and reflective towards the end of every year. I like to take stock of what I have achieved in the past year compared to what I set out to do and reflect on my experiences and lessons learnt. There are new goals to set and exciting experiences to look forward to.

I imagine 2009 will be a fun year for me. Our plan so far is to place Nicholas in the same school as Marcus and he will start in May for 3 hrs daily. It means a good 3hrs every weekday morning kids-free to hit the gym, practise yoga, pick up tennis and catch up with friends. Marcus will also attend extended hours at least twice a week till mid afternoon which means more bento-ing required (yippee!).

Many mums I meet at the school have been discussing their boredom and wish to return to work. Everyone who plans to, will leave their kids home with their live-in maid. Marcus' school is full of expats so most have no extended families here to depend on. Just like us. Till now, I am still adamant on not rehiring a maid, so that option is out for us. When the CEO of a conglomerate I used to work for called with a really attractive offer (ie head of dept post, exciting job scope, little travelling and matching last drawn pay with incrememnt) recently, I was seriously tempted. But I knew I could only accept if I:
1. pull Marcus out of current school and place him in daycare with Nicholas; or
2. place Nicholas in daycare (I found one nearby, not ideal but better than average) and let Marcus continue in his current school, take school bus to my aunt's place for a few hours and I pick him up after work before collecting Nicholas.
3. And E has to be the one to drop both kids at daycare and school every morning since I would have to leave home before 7am.

But when E travels (and can be really frequent some months), I will have a problem. Also if the kids are sick and have to stay home, there will be no one home to look after them. Above all, I am most reluctant to place little Chipsy in daycare. So I decided the career can take the backseat for another year despite the attractive offer. I figured if I have already kissed the 6-figure salary goodbye for 4 yrs, I can do it for another year without missing it badly.

The day I decided, I felt a certain contentment and happiness. I even found myself skipping a little on the way to pick up Marcus. I am far from being a bored stay-home mum, in fact I am enjoying most bits of my time home with the boys and I love it that I play a big role in their formative years. It helps definitely to have a supportive hubby who brings home a big dough, so I never have to worry about finances nor feel we need to stinge on luxuries. So for now, I can't be more pleased that the path for the next 12 months or so is set and I can focus on the milestones that I am setting for the new year.