A New Year Dawns

Time flies, the past year’s events seemed to have sped by and we have stepped into another brand new year.

As I read my thoughts at the start of 2009, I reflected on the experiences my family has had in the past year and all I can say is that God was with us through it all. Several major events still linger vividly in my mind and together with many other small seemingly insignificant incidents, they create a tapestry of God’s faithfulness and goodness.

To list some of the memorable events in 2009 here will serve to journal the milestones of 2009.

• Hubby’s eventful year in the marketplace – I am reminded of how we have grown in the Lord and the effective usage of prayer as both a weapon and as a shield.

• My adventures in the kitchen – I am surprised that I have a genuine lasting interest in cooking and baking

• Our selection as parent volunteers at a preferred primary school for Big Buddy – the song “God will make a way” rings loud and clear.

• My onward journey as a Christian leader in my church – I am once again a carecell leader

• New selling strategies in my business – God opens windows when the doors seem to be closed.

• Our 10th Wedding Anniversary celebrations – a second honeymoon and a family photo-shoot session commemorate the special year for us

• Christmas parties with a personal touch – for the first time, I added personal touches to the invitation, menu and program as hosts for a large party


The woven threads of colourful past experiences culminates in a trust that 2010 will be a sweet year in the Lord. There are several decisions to be made this year in conjunction with how my family life will evolve this year. I harbour dreams and desires that in the course of the year, I hope to see come to past. Dear God, I know not how but I know that You can make it happen.

Let the year 2010 surely be a Year of Celebration for my family!

Floating Lotus

Over the past two months, I had been in the kitchen occasionally, baking brownies as gifts for friends and cooking some simple dishes. However, it has been quite a long while since I last whipped up something new and my fingers are starting to itch again.

The thought of making something Thai is tempting but nothing too exotic as I am but an amateur in the kitchen still. This recipe seems simple enough and the ingredients called for are easily available.

It tastes a little like Bubur Cha Cha and it brought back nostalgic memories of the time I made that sweet dessert in Home Economics class during my secondary school days. In those days, my class usually treated these lessons with little seriousness, indulging instead in much chatter and laughter as skills like cooking and sewing were the least on our young minds then.

Little did I know then, that I would one day willingly step into the kitchen to cook for my family with such positive anticipation and joy…



Floating Lotus


Ingredients

½ cup thai pumpkin
½ cup taro (yam)
1 cup sticky rice flour
½ cup coconut milk (use only the cream if using fresh)
¾ tsp salt
2 cups pandan-infused water
1/3 cup white sugar


Method

1. Steam the pumpkin and taro until soft, between 10-15 min.

2. Mash the pumpkin, then mix equal parts pumpkin and sticky rice flour together until a uniform paste. Do the same to the taro (separately).

3. Roll into small ¼ ″ – ½ ″ balls and set aside.

4. Boil the balls in hot water until they float. Remove with a slotted spoon and put into a bath of room temperature water.

5. Boil the coconut milk with the water, sugar and salt. Add the balls and serve.

Reference : Real Thai Recipes

To the movies

Last Saturday marked the first cinema visit for my two boys.

We were given tickets to watch Transformers – Revenge of the Fallen last Saturday and since the men in my family are crazy over Transformers, I thought it would make a great family outing. On the other hand, I had my apprehensions too.

I had heard that the movie was a marathon 2½ hours long and was in fact wondering if the kids would be able to sit in the cinema for that length of time. Would they fidget, stand on the seats or talk loudly and disturb the other patrons or clamor to be let out? Would they be frightened by the loud sounds or the darkness of the cinema and end up with nightmares at night? Oh my, such a long list of considerations you may say until you know my boys.

Big Buddy is fearful even of Tom and Jerry cartoons when it turns a tad violent. You will never catch him watching thrillers, he heads for a hiding place when suspenseful music comes on to up the ante. Little Buddy is braver but he can be unpredictable. While he usually has no issues with watching suspense thrillers, he refused to sit in for a 5-minute show when we were at the Army Museum two weeks ago because it had gunfire.

Well, I decided to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. In the worse case, we will just leave the cinema should the children get too difficult to handle.

And I am glad we went for the movie, the kids thoroughly enjoyed the whole movie experience. As for the loud noises…Little Buddy slept through the last 30 minutes of the movie ;-)

Is there school today?

Big Buddy would ask me this everyday till he finally understood that school is out. The mid-year school holidays will come to end in a day’s time when school officially starts on Monday.

It had been a whole four weeks of fun and play for both boys. Little Buddy enjoyed having his elder brother at home to play with and at Big Buddy’s instigation, gets into a whole lot more mischief than usual. To balance out, I try to set some semblance of routine with time set aside for some holiday work, otherwise it will be tough for Big Buddy to settle in to school when term resumes.

Due to the quick and rampant spread of the H1N1 pandemic, we decided not to travel overseas for a vacation. While it is not really deadly for most, we will definitely not court it. Moreover, it is a hassle to have to declare our travel itinerary to schools and offices on our return. We also limited mall shopping, preferring time spent outdoors and at less crowded places.

It had been a great break for Big Buddy but I think he looks forward to seeing his friends again. This past week, he had been counting down to next Monday and I daresay, I too, will be glad when school reopens : )

All things nice and beautiful

I pride myself as someone with relatively good taste and discerning enough to appreciate the finer things in life. Not that I am good at creating lovely things, but more of being able to recognise a well-designed item when I see one.

During my moments of web-surfing, I sometimes chance upon some fabulous blogs. They exhibit such a refreshing style of artistic flair in the writing, layout or design that gets me all inspired. So much so that, I have decided to bookmark them at the new column I created at the left.

So if you happen to know of any other design-worthy blogs, do drop me a line. For now, do enjoy these.

Should I set up another blog?

Looking at my recent posts, I seem to be documenting my exploits in the kitchen more often than not…which has set me thinking…

There are several people I know who maintain more than one blog. They compartmentalise different facets of their lives and journal them separately on different blogs. This approach has its benefits since it allows each blog to have its own distinct flavour with a sharper focus, thereby attracting a more targeted group of readers.

I am contemplating grouping all my recipes into a separate blog. It will certainly be neater and more reader-friendly. People who are into meddling around in the kitchen may not necessary be interested in the tidbits of my life. While friends interested to know what is going in my family may hardly be bothered with what I am cooking/baking, unless of course they are coming over for dinner.

On the other hand, one more blog means double the effort in upkeep and double the discipline and diligence in posting regularly. Otherwise, one of the blogs will most definitely be neglected or left to collect dust somewhere in cyberspace.

Sigh…I have yet to decide so I will probably chew on the idea some more. That is until either impulse on the spur of the moment will push me over and I set up my recipe blog tomorrow or I procrastinate long enough till the idea dies a natural death.

Who says heroes must be superhumans?

Several years ago, I got to know a young lady through some friends in church. My first impression of her was someone with more grey matter in her brain than she chooses to let on. She was quietly confident, without a need to shout out her presence in large groups.

My contacts with her over the subsequent years have been brief and sporadic. She was an acquaintance but yet somehow she never strayed far from my mind. Perhaps it is due in part to how she chose to conduct herself in situations that most would have responded in the extreme opposite way. Over time, I discovered that she was jovial without being boisterous, talented without being boastful and kind without making a big deal out of it. Instead of the proverbial “an eye for an eye”, she chose to let go and let her talent and tenacity speak for her.

Today, she is one of the anchor teachers at Rus Art Studio, an artist with hundreds of paintings sold all over the world and recently, a business owner of her newly opened shop at Crown Centre #02-15. Take a peek at Artokoro and be refreshed by a whole new perspective of what art is.

My friend is Chun Wee Ping – an accomplished artist, a passionate teacher and an inspiring cancer survivor whose story has been published several times. She is a role model to her students, an inspiration to many and a strong testimony to the world of God’s faithfulness and goodness.

Thank you Wee Ping, for touching my life with your bravado and inspiring me. God bless you.

You dare call yourself a doctor?!

Last Friday, Big Buddy’s fever rocketed upwards and my instinct told me that something was not right. What with him being ill for close to three weeks with a runny nose and phlegmy cough.

Actually he just went to the pediatrician last Monday with the same symptoms but the pediatrician was adamant about not prescribing antibiotics. I was fine with that decision that time as I am not particularly into dosing young children with antibiotics unless it is necessary

The first thing that irked me on this repeated visit was the counter staff. Big Buddy’s medical records were misplaced. I tried to help them narrow their search by informing them when my son last visited the clinic, thinking that perhaps the attending nurse that fateful evening had stuffed it into some allocated cubby hole that they could then check. The response was a frosty stare, along with a casual instruction to her colleague to prepare another blank folder for my son.

Was I being impertinent? No, I did not think so. My tone was polite enough without a hint of accusation. I did not like her nonchalant attitude but tolerated it as Big Buddy really needed his medication.

When we finally went into the consultation room, I gave the pediatrician a factual run-down of Big Buddy’s condition since there were no medical records to refer to and finished by expressing my concern over the prolonged period of illness. In the next instant, I was totally shocked by the pediatrician’s reply.

He said that he does not trust what parents’ tell him, that parents tend towards over-dramatization of symptoms and he will usually disregard what parents tell him. All this said in a high whiny voice in imitation of how parents must have sounded to him, with hardly a hint of apology but with lots of eye-rolling and a smirk on his smug face.

I was incredulous and utterly disgusted with his holier-than-thou attitude. Granted that some overly-anxious parents do paint a worse picture about their child’s condition, but should he not understand that it probably stems from worry more than anything? As a trained physician, should he not have sifted out what he perceived as facts and at least maintain a professional image by not offering his biased views? Finally should he not seek to reassure patients and their parents rather than belittle others and make known his obvious disdain?

This is not the first time I patronize this clinic because it happens to be the pediatrician nearest to where I stay. Friends of mine and I have groused over his lack of bedside manners but this time, he has really gone overboard by displaying a total lack of respect for others. Coincidentally, this pediatrician is located in E**** Mall, the same place where another terrible doctor practises. What is it about this mall that attracts less-than-desired doctors?

Since last Monday, I have brought Little Buddy to another pediatrician. Her charges may be higher but at least, she, along with her staff, offers assurance along with medical intervention and none of the rudeness of the former!

Sniff sniff cough cough

A week before Chinese New Year, a very strong conviction came upon me to pray for my family’s good health. It continued to weigh heavily and did not let up for several days despite that good physical, social, emotional and spiritual health has always been part of my nightly conversations with God.

Then 3 days before Chinese New Year, Big Buddy and then Little Buddy were badly bitten by mosquitoes. This was followed by Hubby falling victim to a flu which sparked off a series of un-wellness causing various ones of us to seek some form of medical attention. Till date, the children are still on their medications and it seems I am coming down with something again.

While the sudden onslaught of illnesses can be blamed on the changing of seasons, I am also choosing to recognise the hand of God at work. Because He first laid upon me the conviction to pray, I had not been caught off guard when we succumbed to the recent bout of illnesses. More than that, it has further assured me that God’s eye is upon my family and we are significant enough to warrant a special heads-up from Him.

With the current worldwide uncertainty about economies and jobs, I am reminded that my omniscient God knows my family intimately, our fears and concerns, our joys and pains. He has always met Hubby and I during the times we need Him most. Just like yesterday…

We were on the way home. Hubby was sharing with me the challenges at his workplace and lamenting how tough the marketplace has become. We reminded each other that before Hubby accepted the job offer, both of us had prayed and each had been separately convinced that God was leading him to the new job. Just at this point, we saw a car right in front of ours, sporting a huge car decal on its hind windscreen, declaring TRUST in huge bold letters.

Thank you God, for your reassurance once again. We will trust in You and Your plans for Your ways are higher than our ways.

Mango Pomelo Sago

Some friends commented that I got bitten by the cooking bug recently which explains my new-found interest in creating new dishes. My family is not complaining and I am just glad that they have been so receptive to my contributions to the dinner table.

Even though I have a domestic helper at home, I found it a joy to personally make or cook something for my loved ones. Big Buddy has been a great supporter of my efforts, game enough to try everything that I churned out thus far and giving his thumbs-up for his favourites. Hubby too has been a great encourager, making me blush to hear some of the things he said. As the saying goes : The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach – I am happy to speak this love language too :)

Today, my brother and his wife returned from their honeymoon and to commemorate the event, I made this yummy dessert with some remaining pomelo in the fridge.

This recipe is definitely a keeper in my family.


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Mango Pomelo Sago


Ingredients

2 ripe mangoes
250 gm sago pearls
100 ml Carnation Low Fat Evaporated Milk
100 ml fresh milk
500 ml Marigold Peel Fresh Mango juice
3 wedges pomelo
3 tbsp sugar
150 ml water


Method

1. Boil 150ml of water and sugar until sugar dissolves. Leave syrup to cool.

2. Cut mangoes into cubes.

3. Peel pomelo wedges into small pieces.

4. Put sago pearls into a pot of boiling water. Stir and cook until transparent. Pour cooked sago pearls into a sieve. Rinse under running water and drain.

5. Mix syrup, mango cubes, sago pearls, evaporated and fresh milk in a bowl. Add pomelo and mix well. Serve chilled.


Reference : scrapabee

Boats, boats, boats...again

In a bid to raise the number of local visitors to certain attractions on our sunny (and hazy?) island, the Singapore Tourism Board launched the 2009 Reasons to Visit Singapore promotion. Now in case you are wondering, I do have better things to do than to be surfing the STB's Uniquely Singapore website! I got to know of this promotion through an online parenting forum that I participate in.

With the free tickets, it would be a wonderful opportunity for the family to enjoy an afternoon at the Singapore Flyer. However, to our dismay, when we arrived in the afternoon, we were met with posters declaring that all tickets have already been redeemed. I had entirely misjudged the capability of my fellow citizens to stake their claims way before opening time. I was told the queue started on Friday night and all tickets were given away by Saturday 9:00 am!

I forgot that for most Singaporeans, anything with the word FREE or LIMITED EDITION draws crowds and queues. For those uninitiated to the amazing Singapore queues, have a look at the Hello Kitty dolls craze, iPhone 3G Launch and the rush to buy an apartment.

So, we went for the Singapore River Cruise instead. It proved to be a treat for Big Buddy and Little Buddy with their ceaseless fascination with transportation. Their joy brought smiles to our faces as we marvel at the simple pleasures that childhood dreams are made of.

School days

Big Buddy came home with this photo and pointed out his pals in school.

You know your child is growing up when he starts having his own bunch of friends and talks about going to so-and-so’s house or inviting so-and-so over to play. The realization that he has grown so much since his toddler years hits me as I think about the way his personality and character has formed and matured since he started school last year.

Previously quite easy-going, he is now very vocal about his likes and dislikes. He exhibits maturity in his conversations with adults and displays keen problem-solving skills in the face of a set of challenges. He has outgrown his shyness with unfamiliar faces and calls out a friendly hello to people he meets on the streets and in the lift. He is also slowly finding cheeky ways to out-maneuver Mommy.

It warms my heart and infuses it with a sense of parental pride and achievement to witness my elder son’s development. Truly I look forward with anticipation to the years to come.

Carry on growing son, the whole world is waiting for you!

New sheets next to the skin

I love shopping at Robinson’s for bed-linen because of their huge variety and excellent customer service. We recently retired an old set of bed-linen and with the newly-launched Shopper Relief Measures as an added incentive, it was time to shop!

Amidst the riot of prints, patterns and colours, I threaded my way past shelves and wagons filled to the brim with sheets. It helped that I already had an idea of my choice - white or light earthly neutral tones (but not browns, beiges since I already have those), something neither too masculine nor too feminine, absent of embroidery and with at least a 500 thread count. With that in mind, it was fairly easy to shortlist my options from the galore of offerings.

My special thanks go to the sale personnel who attended to me. She was extremely patient in catering to my requests to pick and match various options to create a combo that I was finally satisfied with and so finally, I settled on a cotton sateen set in white and grey from Oasis Living’s Signature series.

All ready for the Chinese New Year

How do you like my toe-sies all done up for the Chinese New Year in festive red and mini floral blooms? I had them done yesterday at a little shop at Orchard Plaza for a meager $30 for the whole works!

It was an enjoyable day out yesterday with lots of ME time. After the pedicure, I pampered myself with a heavenly 2-hour facial with eye, face and neck masks and an upper body massage. What bliss it was to be able to indulge one-self!

Next, I proceeded for some retail therapy at City Plaza. My impression of that place had always been shops selling auntie clothes, mobile phones, knick knacks that would mostly appeal to youngsters or domestic helpers (considering the crowds of Indonesian foreign workers milling around that place on weekends). The avid shopper that I am, I decided to give City Plaza a second chance after someone told me that it was clothes haven.

The majority of the shops still hawk clothing that can hardly be ranked on my scale of appeal. However, after 3 hours of patient scrimmaging and sifting through the various stores and racks of clothes, I was pleasantly surprised to be able to score some good buys. My booty for the day included two dresses, a skirt and a blouse, all for just $100.

That rounded up a wonderful day for me :)

An infestation of the six-legged kind

Last night, I opened the kitchen cabinet and to my horror, I was greeted with millions of ants large and small crawling inside! Some are even winged!

If you must know, yes I am a scaredy-cat when it comes to creepy crawlies and when there is a congregation of them crawlies, my skin literally crawls.

So in haste, I emptied all my kitchen cabinets of their contents while Hubby armed himself with a can of Shieldtox Odourless and sprayed machine-gun-like liberally over the undulating mound of crawling ants. Only when they all remained still, did I dare to wipe them off with wet tissue. After that, I coated the cabinets with Sheltox before wiping it all off several times over.

I honestly have absolutely no idea where they came from though I caught a few small ones crawling on the counter top for the past few days. In fact, I opened that same cabinet that same afternoon but there was no sight of any ants. My mother said that they were probably shifting nest since there were ants of all sizes and she even saw some whitish substance which she said were ant eggs. Good grief!

Today, I was paranoid enough to repeatedly open the cabinets to check, double-check and triple-check them for ants. I saw a few lone ones still crawling around but thankfully nothing like what I witnessed last night.

Hopefully, that is the last of them. Eeks!

Here we come, 2009

Here we are, well into the third week of January 2009 and here is my first blog entry for the year. Forgive me for my tardiness, my days have been really really busy – my new domestic helper has not yet arrived…

There is usually much talk about new year resolutions round about this time of the year and the cliché predictions about how people never fulfill those goals by New Year’s Eve. I never had the habit of making new year resolutions and but this year, I had thought long and hard about my expectations and outlook for 2009.

Newspapers and analysts round the world are predicting gloom and doom for the next few years. It is not difficult to be pessimistic about the future, worrying about job security and the economy. There is so much depressing news that it just builds a climate of fear and despair.

As I thought about 2009 and what I expect to see, God brought me on a journey of my family’s experiences in 2008. On hindsight now, I see the hand of God leading us through paths that were still murky when treaded then. I had questioned and debated with God, anguished over events that did or did not happen and half fought my through 2008 with God. Now that the mist has cleared, His works and promises fulfilled become apparent.

And because I saw His faithfulness displayed time again, I am imbued with a quiet confidence that God will see me and my family through another year. I believe that my family will be kept secure in the eye of the storm. We will not just survive 2009 but we will be triumphant. We are stepping into the Year of Abundant Living and we are going to reap its abundance!

Where in the world is she?!

That was my first reaction at the airport two days ago. Then it dawned on me that I might have been played out.

My ex-maid's contract would have ended in early January 09 and she indicated countless times that she wanted to renew her contract with me. She went for her home leave and was due to return two days ago. However, when we went to fetch her from the airport, she was not there and has remained un-contactable since then. Initially I had wondered if perhaps something might have happened to her but as the days passed and still no telephone call from her, I am convinced that she has pulled a fast one on me.

I simply cannot understand why she had to do this MIA thing. If she did not want to tell me face-to-face that she has changed her mind about renewing her contract with me, she could have called me from Indonesia, cook up some story if she wants to and say she is not coming back! Then I could have gone ahead to find another helper instead of waiting her.

She had been a great help around the house while she was with us but the whole pleasant experience with her has soured with how she has chosen to end the 2-year relationship. If she had been forthright, we could have said our goodbyes properly and wished her well.

As things are now, I am now urgently sourcing for another domestic helper. So here I am, running around various maid agencies, hoping to find a helper who has the potential to be a good fit for our household.

Someone told me : Without a maid, headache. Employ one, also headache. Sigh…

Wedding bells a-ringing

Well-wishes are instore for my brother and his long-time girlfriend who will be tying the knot end of the year. It has been a dating marathon of many years for them and all of us are happy that they have finally made up their minds to get hitched.

Their good news brings back memories of my own wedding nine years ago. The hectic preparations prior to the event brings a smile to my face as I recount the countless decisions that needed to be made. We were blessed manifold by our wonderful family and friends in so many ways and we truly had a fantastic wedding, just the way we wanted it done.

Come next year, Hubby and I will be celebrating our tenth wedding anniversary. I am fully convinced that I married my soulmate, a man whom I will still choose if I have to choose a life partner again. In many ways, he is the opposite of me and in that same number of ways, he is my balance. He brings a calming balance to my vivacious side, an analytical mind to my passionate nature. He takes on the role of a creator of beautiful things to my appreciation of beauty, an ocean of thoughtful ideas to my outbursts of emotions. Dear, I love you.

I am pondering over how we will commemorate the special year. Nothing too fanciful but definitely something meaningful. Perhaps a studio photo session with our kids? A pair of couple watches? Or a nice dinner celebration with the extended family? Maybe a second honeymoon for just the two of us?

Hmm.....something to think about.

Tainted milk

This picture in today's edition of The Straits Times brought tears to my eyes. It so poignantly speaks of the plight of thousands of Chinese infants in the latest China tainted milk scandal.

I read with horror at how thousands of infants developed kidney stones and other related health problems after consuming formula laced with melamine. My mind recoiled at the atrocities committed against such helpless and dependent victims, unable to fathom the impetus for putting innocent young lives at stake for selfish gains.

As a testament to how inter-linked the world now is and how processed many foods have become, the chain of affected food products has extended to products manufactured outside of China. I did a quick check of my fridge and ditched several 'Made in China' products into the rubbish bin. However, I remain wary as it was reported that Singapore food manufacturers use non-branded milk powder and dairy products from China. As tests continue, who knows what else will be found to be tainted too.

As a precaution, my family will be staying away from as much dairy products as possible, probably limiting ourselves to those produced in countries with their own cows.

Your son has been chosen

Big Buddy came home with this small card tucked into his bag. Subsequently, his nursery teacher confirmed that he has been selected to be the emcee for his class item for the school concert. So, the purpose of the card is for us to help him memorise the scipt.

I admit I am secretly pleased and proud that Big Buddy is given the opportunity. At the same time, I wonder how he will react in front of so many people as he tends to be rather shy in the presence of crowds.

This brought to mind the time I was asked to audition for an emcee role in my junior college's production by the Chinese Literacy Drama and Debating Club. On the encouragement of my Chinese class teacher, I joined the club to improve my Mandarin. I remember standing tongue-tied on stage while being prodded and exhorted to say something to introduce the production. No prizes for guessing how that audition turned out for me.

I strongly hope Big Buddy will fare way better than his mother did then.