School was working on this project and my colleagues were requesting for students and teachers to contribute items from the past... .

And it was because of this project that I got Mummy to help.

Daddy and Mummy have this love for anything antique and slowly over the years, their collection grew. This evening, Mummy helped me dig out these treasures from a bygone era.

This turntable was definitely one of Daddy's prized possessions. 

Treasure from Natalie Lian on Vimeo.

Every once in a while when Daddy had the time in the evening, when he was with his close friends or us, he would wind this little fellow up and play his records.

Daddy was a man of music. He would leave the radio switched on 24/7 if he could. 

The abacus that he used in the past.

This camera still works. 

We told her that this was our first "computer". 

As we brought out these treasures from the store room, C was in awe and commented that she hadn't seen any of these before. Mummy then told her that there is more; give her time to dig them out from the storage. 

If it had not been for the project my colleagues were working on, these treasures would have still only stayed in the store room quietly, forgotten. As I looked at them, tears welled up in my eyes because I saw Daddy in all of them. I was reminded of how his eyes sparkled when he talked about his collection. 

Grand Daddy passed away last week. He breathed his last after all of us arrived at the hospital and although we have had similar episodes with such close encounters in the past and we were prepared for the worst, the reality of Grand Daddy's passing still hit us like a ton of bricks.

It was difficult but we didn't want to see him suffer. Grand Daddy wasn't the same person he was. Though alert mentally, his physical body wasn't able to keep up anymore and it really pained us to see how he had become. I guess no matter how tough it was for us, it was definitely more difficult for him and Grand Mummy.

It has been slightly more than a week... . We still miss him and I am still coming to terms. I have my moments but I believe that Grand Daddy is in good hands now. At least the pain and suffering is no more for him.

I treasure the weekends especially Sundays because it is on Sundays that we visit Grand Daddy and the rest of the family. Every evening, before we retire for the night, C and I would say our prayers and on the top of our list would be to ask for God's mercy for Grand Daddy.

Grand Daddy has been fighting cancer for the past 5 years. Initially, his fighting spirit was high and he almost felt that he would emerge victorious. 5 years on, I mean, it does seem that he has? Well, it isn't quite so because docs suspect that the cancer cells have spread to his bones despite the regular chemotherapy. And over the years, Grand Daddy has been reduced to mere skin and bones. Often, he would be in bed, and hardly got up. Then there were also days where even the simple action of getting up and sitting down on his arm chair requires immense strength and determination and it hurt me to see him suffering.

Then this Sunday, he was surprising in a very jovial mood and Grand Mummy commented that he had been in high spirits for the past few days. Grand Mummy had prepared her specialty: Chicken rice and Grand Daddy ate two rice balls! That was a very healthy appetite indeed because we had seen him on days where he preferred to lay in bed and not eat.

Fong was here too and we thought it was good to just go out for dinner. We had plans to eat Taiwan porridge but the shop had closed and we ended up at another eatery. Grand Daddy wolfed down two bowls of piping hot porridge and when he was done, commented that the food was delicious! That must have been the best thing we heard in a long time. Perhaps I am getting old and feeling more sentimental (is it a Chinese trait that we have this innate desire to want to feed our family well to show that we love them?) but seriously, to hear that he had enjoyed his food almost brought me to tears. 

I didn't tell Daddy how much I appreciated him for driving us down. Daddy had been tired and although he had wanted to stay in, he relented and we had dinner out. Sundays are precious because we get to rest or not. Daddy often says that he is more tired during the weekends than his work days but still, it means a lot to me that despite wanting to just do nothing, he gave in.

I do not know how much time we have left but I still look forward to spending weekends with my Daddy.

And to my dearest husband, I am sorry if I don't tell you enough how appreciative and thankful I am and how much I love you for going that extra mile... "Thank you"

Grand Daddy's birthday falls on a weekday this year and so we decided to bring forward and give him a little celebration at Grand Daddy's favourite restaurant, Crystal Jade.

What made this event even more special was, this year, we had Asher and Fong with us. Our family has grown. :)

 

 

C was elated and she made sure she greeted Grand Daddy immediately after she saw him and sent him her well wishes.

 

We got Grand Daddy a cheese cake this year and he loved it! :)

:)

We decided to give Grand Daddy a different sort of birthday celebration this year. Previously, we dined at a fancy restaurant and this time round, we thought it would be cozy if we did it at home.

Yeah! Grand Daddy liked it heaps because he didn't have to jostle with crowds or wait to be served.

We did a little "Seoul Garden" at home and everyone, including our Precious, ate so much.

This was the longevity cake we ordered for Grand Daddy!

He was delighted and very amused with the design but most of all, he was all praise for the taste of the cake. I guess, he was overjoyed. :) and well, that was the intention in the first place.

Now that it's the school holidays, I try to catch up with Grand Daddy and Mummy more often. Cheryl was of course more than happy because she got to meet up with her precious Grand Mummy and Daddy.

Yes Baby, I know you are very tall now! *and I am not afraid now because she has her own fare card* hee

We went to Harbour Front.

and then to Viovo City.

And finally to Suntec Convention Hall for lunch!

So cute! The Precious Moments figures at the back... :) oh, and of course C too.

Cheryl, Grand Daddy and Grand Mummy loved the Christmas decorations and they are indeed very pretty and eye-catching. Hmm, we will definitely go down town more often just to capture some memories on film. :)

I thought it would be great to have breakfast with Grand Daddy, Mummy and Aunt Di so after we kissed Daddy good bye, we headed to HDB Hub to wait for the trio.

Cheryl wanted "eggs" for breakfast and we went to Ya Kun.

This was after she had eaten some noodles. We thought she would be full but she wouldn't be satisfied till she had her eggs.

Next, we went window shopping and came to this store, Cash Converter, which has lots of things from vases, to typewriters; a "You-name-it, they-have-it" store and C caught sight of these two statues. She immediately flashed a smile and told me "Mummy, please take picture."

She probably found "him" cute as I had earlier spotted her stroking his bald head and big and round tummy.

We left Cheryl with Grand Daddy, Mummy and Aunt Di as we had to return to work and what a fun-filled day Cheryl had with them.

In that short span of a couple of hours, C did a lot of things.

Aunt Di taught C how to make a Teru teru bōzu.

And she also taught her how to make mango sago.

We went shopping in the afternoon and C wanted a Bob, the Builder cake which her doting Grand Mummy got for her.

Aunt Di also did some writing with Cheryl. Aunt Di was teaching C Chinese much to our delight!

*pictures taken from Aunt Di's blog with permission.

Grand Daddy isn't a "showy" fellow and he hardly ever says "I love you". But he shows his concern for us in a different manner.

I still remember, when I was younger, he used to give me rides on his motorcycle and he would rest his chin; goatee and all on my head. He used to give me baths too and back then, I used to bath in cold water and he would take the trouble to slowly pour the water on my body so that I would not jump.

Grand Daddy loves Cheryl a lot and he likes to disturb her. But Daddy came rushing in the bedroom when we went over to Grand Mummy's and told me to capture this moment. Cheryl had asked Grand Daddy to take her outside to look at the herbs and spices that Aunt Di had planted.

:) Yes, it was definitely a tender moment for both of them.

Then C spotted me with the camera and she wanted to come back in. Of course, she had to sound the door bell first!