To be mother woh! Why not, if you're a Familee member with an infinite flow of $$$ from the Peasants?
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>My calling: to be a mother <!--10 min-->
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Mrs Joni Ong with her husband whom she met in JC. -- PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE ONG FAMILY
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"-->SHE is a celebrated career woman and sits on the boards of two community groups and a school committee, but her five children, says human resource consultant Joni Ong, 48, are her biggest achievement.
'My big calling was to be a mother,' says the warm, friendly woman who grew up in an extended family of 21.
<TABLE width=200 align=left valign="top"><TBODY><TR><TD class=padr8><!-- Vodcast --><!-- Background Story --><STYLE type=text/css> #related .quote {background-color:#E7F7FF; padding:8px;margin:0px 0px 5px 0px;} #related .quote .headline {font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:10px;font-weight:bold; border-bottom:3px double #007BFF; color:#036; text-transform:uppercase; padding-bottom:5px;} #related .quote .text {font-size:11px;color:#036;padding:5px 0px;} </STYLE>Mother-of-five Joni Ong
Mother of five Mrs Joni Ong, 48, is a human resource consultant.
She conducts leadership training courses for chief executives and students alike.
An articulate advocate of motherhood, she is also president of I Love Children which was set up to encourage people to have more babies.
She is also deputy chair of the National Family Council and chairs the management committee of the Fairfield Methodist Girls Schools, her alma mater.
She is married to MP and lawyer Ong Kian Min, 48.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>This, she acknowledges, would not have been possible were it not for the fact that she was lucky to find the right mate. Her husband is lawyer and Member of Parliament from the Tampines GRC Ong Kian Min, 48.
How did you meet Mr Ong?
We were school mates at the Anglo Chinese Junior College in the late 1970s. We knew each other and I liked him, but we were just friends. He denies it now, but he was quite a 'player' - popular with the girls.
I was pragmatic, thought with my head not my heart, and knew we both must go for higher studies. We remained friends after JC - and stayed in touch while he studied law in England and I studied neuro-anatomy in Australia.
We reconnected in 1984, when we were both back here.
Do you remember your first date?
Oh yes! He always had a special place in my heart so that first date was critical (laughs).
When I drove up, he was draped on the bannisters of the Tanglin Shopping Centre, holding a single rose in a little vase.
We went to a grilled seafood place on Battery Road for dinner. That first date, I did not eat much, in order to create a great first impression!
The next day I told my friends, I think I've met the man I am going to marry.
We got married three-and-a-half years later.
Whose idea was it to have five kids?
I always wanted many children. He came from a small family, but loved my big noisy family. One day, when we were discussing how many kids we should have, he said, 'Your Mum has five, so why don't we have six?'
(They have five children, including a set of 18-year-old twins)
What are the some of the advantages of having a large family?
The older ones can look after the little ones - they learn about sharing, loyalty and responsibility. And you don't pin all your hopes on one child - and risk possible disappointment.
Can you share some mistakes made while raising your kids?
When the twins were hitting their teens and starting to be interested in boys, and vice versa, I made a rule: 'No one-on-one dating till 17! Going out in groups is fine.'
So they went underground!! They would go out in a group and then pair off for little dates.
Of course, they got found out. Harmless, but still I was not privy to their little heartaches when things did not work out. After heart-to-heart conversations with each of the twins separately, I realised my folly.
I'd rather be there for them whenever they need to talk about matters of the heart. They said, 'Mum, your 17 is the new 15.'
This rule doesn't exist any more - in fact, in February last year, Daddy was around to support the older twin when she decided to break up with her then-boyfriend.
He dropped her at the dinner and returned to pick her up, with her all tearful and upset.
These days, the four girls are comfortable to openly discuss boy-girl relationships at the family table; seek advice and perspectives from Mum or Dad.
We know who the boyfriends or boy friends are and have even invited them home to dinner.
This was a great lesson for Kian Min and me. Trust your children to make smart relationship decisions and be there to support them.
Lesson #2: When the twins were much younger, I would discipline them by using my hand to beat their butts or arms or hands. One day, I reached out my hand to 'sayang' (stroke with affection) one twin but she cringed and side-stepped, thinking that I was going to beat her!
I was so hurt and sad, realising then that my hand cannot be used to both love and discipline
I then resolved that I would only use my hand to love my children. The cane was then introduced as a discipline tool - this way, the kids are not confused. Read The ST Interview: Mother Courage
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>My calling: to be a mother <!--10 min-->
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=330>
</TD><TD width=10>
Mrs Joni Ong with her husband whom she met in JC. -- PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE ONG FAMILY
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"-->SHE is a celebrated career woman and sits on the boards of two community groups and a school committee, but her five children, says human resource consultant Joni Ong, 48, are her biggest achievement.
'My big calling was to be a mother,' says the warm, friendly woman who grew up in an extended family of 21.
<TABLE width=200 align=left valign="top"><TBODY><TR><TD class=padr8><!-- Vodcast --><!-- Background Story --><STYLE type=text/css> #related .quote {background-color:#E7F7FF; padding:8px;margin:0px 0px 5px 0px;} #related .quote .headline {font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:10px;font-weight:bold; border-bottom:3px double #007BFF; color:#036; text-transform:uppercase; padding-bottom:5px;} #related .quote .text {font-size:11px;color:#036;padding:5px 0px;} </STYLE>Mother-of-five Joni Ong
Mother of five Mrs Joni Ong, 48, is a human resource consultant.
She conducts leadership training courses for chief executives and students alike.
An articulate advocate of motherhood, she is also president of I Love Children which was set up to encourage people to have more babies.
She is also deputy chair of the National Family Council and chairs the management committee of the Fairfield Methodist Girls Schools, her alma mater.
She is married to MP and lawyer Ong Kian Min, 48.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>This, she acknowledges, would not have been possible were it not for the fact that she was lucky to find the right mate. Her husband is lawyer and Member of Parliament from the Tampines GRC Ong Kian Min, 48.
How did you meet Mr Ong?
We were school mates at the Anglo Chinese Junior College in the late 1970s. We knew each other and I liked him, but we were just friends. He denies it now, but he was quite a 'player' - popular with the girls.
I was pragmatic, thought with my head not my heart, and knew we both must go for higher studies. We remained friends after JC - and stayed in touch while he studied law in England and I studied neuro-anatomy in Australia.
We reconnected in 1984, when we were both back here.
Do you remember your first date?
Oh yes! He always had a special place in my heart so that first date was critical (laughs).
When I drove up, he was draped on the bannisters of the Tanglin Shopping Centre, holding a single rose in a little vase.
We went to a grilled seafood place on Battery Road for dinner. That first date, I did not eat much, in order to create a great first impression!
The next day I told my friends, I think I've met the man I am going to marry.
We got married three-and-a-half years later.
Whose idea was it to have five kids?
I always wanted many children. He came from a small family, but loved my big noisy family. One day, when we were discussing how many kids we should have, he said, 'Your Mum has five, so why don't we have six?'
(They have five children, including a set of 18-year-old twins)
What are the some of the advantages of having a large family?
The older ones can look after the little ones - they learn about sharing, loyalty and responsibility. And you don't pin all your hopes on one child - and risk possible disappointment.
Can you share some mistakes made while raising your kids?
When the twins were hitting their teens and starting to be interested in boys, and vice versa, I made a rule: 'No one-on-one dating till 17! Going out in groups is fine.'
So they went underground!! They would go out in a group and then pair off for little dates.
Of course, they got found out. Harmless, but still I was not privy to their little heartaches when things did not work out. After heart-to-heart conversations with each of the twins separately, I realised my folly.
I'd rather be there for them whenever they need to talk about matters of the heart. They said, 'Mum, your 17 is the new 15.'
This rule doesn't exist any more - in fact, in February last year, Daddy was around to support the older twin when she decided to break up with her then-boyfriend.
He dropped her at the dinner and returned to pick her up, with her all tearful and upset.
These days, the four girls are comfortable to openly discuss boy-girl relationships at the family table; seek advice and perspectives from Mum or Dad.
We know who the boyfriends or boy friends are and have even invited them home to dinner.
This was a great lesson for Kian Min and me. Trust your children to make smart relationship decisions and be there to support them.
Lesson #2: When the twins were much younger, I would discipline them by using my hand to beat their butts or arms or hands. One day, I reached out my hand to 'sayang' (stroke with affection) one twin but she cringed and side-stepped, thinking that I was going to beat her!
I was so hurt and sad, realising then that my hand cannot be used to both love and discipline
I then resolved that I would only use my hand to love my children. The cane was then introduced as a discipline tool - this way, the kids are not confused. Read The ST Interview: Mother Courage
