(Wow, it's been a really really good day today.)

Happiness is... waking up to see a beautiful blue sky and blooming purple Magnolias along the street. Hearing "Mami-ah?" from behind EggEgg's room. Seeing Cola's first smile of the day, a mouth that's stretched into a triangular shape anchored by 2 precious teeth.

Happiness is... having a voracious appetite, discovering new food, and chomping down each mouthful with glee. Cola had yogurt+Weet Bix for breakfast, 1 whole banana for lunch and carrot puree (new!) for dinner. EggEgg had nut cluster cereals (new!) for breakfast, chicken nuggets for lunch and Tonton's Korean style stir fries for dinner.

Happiness is... having a helpful hand with housework. Dishwashing, laundry and vacuuming is no longer a lonely activity. An extra pair of hands to stack the dishes, to hang the undies and to unwind the vacuum cleaner cord.

Happiness is... hearing new words from EggEgg: "Mami 壞! (bad)". Pleasantly surprised that he can name a few alphabets: A, B, O, S, T and most of the common animals: 牛馬雞貓狗鼠豬蛇羊.

The hard work with home speech therapy has bore fruit in just 4 months.

Happiness is... seeing Cola bounce on his bum, flapping his hands in the air, knocking a toy on EggEgg's head.

Happiness is... going down for a nap without protests. Reading the Target toy-sale catalog, singing Wiggles songs and cuddling each boy with one hand.

Happiness is... waking up from an afternoon nap on the large family bed, rolling and tumbling over each other. "Baby, horse!" "Nana, cow!"

Happiness is... everybody sitting on stools in the kitchen, admiring Tonton cooking and sharing stories of the day.

Happiness is... having exciting plans for the rest of the week. Yummy dinners ahead (roast lamb tomorrow, steamboat on Thursday), schools and friends to look forward to.

Happiness is... a warm bubble bath in a tub that's large enough to fit 3. Shooting with water pistols, sailing boats, pouring pretend fruit juices.

Happiness is... catching Tonton eating chips and drinking beer behind our back while we are not looking.

Happiness is... a day without nags, threats, whinging, crying from anyone. Giggles and laughter and silly jokes fill the relaxed air.

Happiness is... having no mess to clean, no poo and wee accidents, no food spills, no snotty noses to wipe.

Happiness is... sharing a bowl of sweet ripe strawberries on the couch after dinner. Popping them into Tonton, EggEgg and Cola's mouth one after another.

Happiness is... teaching EggEgg how to play a new boardgame, inventing rules along the way. The joy in seeing EggEgg earnestly "bury the dead soldiers", and Cola trying to crawl onto the board in swimming strokes.

Happiness is... putting on EggEgg's oversized PJ and reading him a "Curious George" story. Patting his Tiger and Teddy buddies and giving EggEgg one final big hug.

Happiness is... holding Cola to sleep under the warm quilts, hearing his peaceful snores and tip-toeing out of the room.

Happiness is... sipping tea together with Tonton, discussing various topics from camera lenses to world economy, while keeping our toes warm with a hairdryer under the quilt.

Happiness is... going online after everybody is asleep, playing computer games, catching up with friends on facebook.

Happiness is... thanking God for loving us. And thanking friends who loved us too by reading our blog.