SingaporeMotherhood | Parenting
May 2014
Meet My Mum! : Jill Marie Thomas
This Mother’s Day, we’ve asked local celebrities to give us a sneak peek into the women who’ll always think of them as “my baby”. You may remember Jill Marie Thomas as the first winner of the local talent competition, One Moment of Glory, back in 2010. These days, the (now) 32-year-old live wire expands her energy as a Singer/Songwriter/Musician/Host, and as a Marketing & Communications Manager by day. On her artiste bio page at the Fly Entertainment website, Jill credits her mum as the person who encouraged and indulged her passion in music: “letting her learn musical instruments which included the guitar, piano, flute, piccolo, saxophone and various percussion instruments.” Meet Jill’s mum, Cindy Pat Thomas.
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What is your first memory of your mother?
Funnily, the first memory I have is of her tickling and “blowing raspberries” on my tummy when I was a baby. I don’t know how I remember that but I do, and laughing and screaming with glee haha.
What characteristics have you inherited from your mother?
My mother is ‘chup-cheng’ (mixed) looking with sharp features. Unfortunately, I didn’t inherit any of those. But I did inherit her singing talent, a need to make and have lists, and an organised and scheduled lifestyle.
Are you happy to have them?
Yes I am although sometimes my friends disagree because I prefer to know what is going to happen and like things to be systematic, hahaha. And of course I would be happier if I had inherited her sharp and pretty features!
How do you celebrate Mother’s Day with your mother each year?
I am usually away in Houston for work and because my mum has accompanied me on these trips for the last few years, factory outlet shopping has been our favourite way to spend (literally “spend”) Mother’s Day together!
What is the best lesson that you have learnt from your mother?
She has always encouraged, prompted and even pushed me to be sociable and outgoing, which are characteristic traits of Jill-Marie Thomas that I am known for. (My mother is the complete opposite of me. She’s reserved and an introvert, and she didn’t want me to grow up like that.)
If you were to interview your mother, what would you ask her?
Honestly, none that I can think of because my mum and I talk all the time and I think I pretty much ask her whatever I want whenever I want. Plus, my mum’s quite opinionated so she tells me what she thinks all the time hahaha.
Artiste image courtesy of Joel Low
I really love it when my mum… kisses and hugs me because she’s not a very affectionate person while I am very much so hahaha.
My mum always says to me… “Go and bathe!” Because I have a tendency to totter around the house doing things when I come home from work and wait until really late before showering. She, on the other hand, is almost obsessive-compulsive when it comes to cleanliness. She won’t let me sit on her side of the sofa… even after I’ve had a bath. Haha.
It makes her happy when… I am clean hahaha! And when I play my guitar and sing at home while she does her stuff in the house. Oh oh! And also when I clean the house without her telling me too!
My mum loves to relax by… vegetating in front of the TV, watching her Korean drama. She’s a “K-Drama Ajuma” (Aunty) haha! She also loves going “wogging” (her combination of walking and jogging) at Bishan Park because it is our ‘backyard’!
Her favourite TV show is… ALL KOREAN DRAMAS.
When my mum shops she likes to buy… my mother doesn’t really go shopping. But she likes to buy books because she’s a bookworm. (Unfortunately, that is a trait that did not rub off on me. I don’t like reading heh.)
I like it when she… “babies” me when I am sick or tired from work and all. Haha I always feel like a mummy’s girl when she does it, and don’t we all love being pampered by our mothers!
The best thing she cooks is… well my mum believes in “winging” it whenever she cooks so there are no two meals that are the same. Hahaha. I call her my “cha-per-lan” cook because she can somehow throw anything together and it tastes good to me.
If she could go on a trip my mum would go to… South Korea because she loves the food and the history of that country. One day, we will go together and be two little “Ajuma” tourists together over there.
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