Places To Visit, Food To Taste

Bread Maker

2009-06-25T17:14:00.007+08:00

I have always wanted a bread maker and have been inquiring about it from my friends who have bought one. One of my friends has even made bread using her bread maker for me to try before I decide on getting one.

A few weeks ago, I was back in hubby's home town and saw my mother in law making bread with her bread maker! I got so excited and got the chance to make my very first loaf of wholemeal bread with her bread maker. It was awesome! Hubby loves the bread and I know from then that the possibility of me getting a bread machine is quite high.

So, now, we are on our hunt for a bread maker. Searching.......

Win A Chef Bonnie Weekend Getaway

2009-06-15T12:11:00.003+08:00

I’m a person who can’t cook well but it does not mean I don’t appreciate food. In fact I love eating good food. If given a chance to eat food cooked by a good chef, it would definitely make my day.

If you follow the program “Hell’s Kitchen”, you would know Chef Bonnie Muirhead, runner-up of the 2008 Fox TV’s Hell’s Kitchen. Now, over the internet at VacationRentals.com, there is a chance for you to win a Chef Bonnie Weekend Getaway worth USD3,000 in South California where you get to meet Chef Bonnie in a vacation rental home you may choose among the many vacation homes at VacationRentals.com and most of all, have the most wonderful dinner of your life cooked by Chef Bonnie herself solely for the winner and his or her three companions.

Sounds good, doesn’t it? If you are a US resident residing in the 50 United States and D.C. and Canada (excluding Puerto Rico and other US territories and the province of Quebec) aged 21 years and above, you would be eligible to enter the sweeptakes. The sweeptakes is rather simple. All you need is the internet access, hop over to VacationRentals.com, fill in the weekly deal alerts form during the sweeptakes period or refer three friends whom you think would be interested by filling in the Refer-a-Friend form and submit your forms.

The contest ends at 11:59:59pm on 4 August 2009. You do not need any purchase to enter the sweeptakes. So, quickly, hop over and get yourself started.

Family Vacation Budgeting

2009-06-06T11:13:00.001+08:00

Having children means no more traveling on our own like we did during our honeymoon but losing that also means gaining something else namely family vacation. Family vacation with the kids can be fun and different too.

What’s most important before going on a vacation with our loved ones is to have our family vacation budgeting done. The least thing I want is to have debts after a vacation. So, planning can be done over at Consolidatedcredit.org where you can use a roadmap to plan your vacation. There are various tips to guide you along when planning a trip and it enables you to save money and to travel within your budget. I think that’s what I’m going to do the next time I plan for a trip.

Talking about vacation budgeting, I heard over the radio one day about how people spend beyond their earnings. Rich people complain not having enough money to spend. Well, I thought it’s very true. Our riches cannot be valued through our earnings but our savings. Many people get into debts and do not know how to get out of it. These people should get some advice and debt counseling at Consolidatedcredit.org, the one stop debt solution center. Well, if there is someone to give you credit counseling, debt consolidation and financial education, why not? It would mean getting the burden and stress off you!

So, if you need credit counseling or merely to know more about money management for any purpose be it for a wedding, holidays or home buying, hop over to Consolidatedcredit.org today.

Bread Today

2009-06-05T11:33:00.001+08:00

I love bread and this love has been in me since I was young. A few weeks ago, my friend told me about how unhealthy modern day bread is. Another friend showed me an article on bread. It seems that there are many unseen additives in bread and these bread are seriously depleted of nutrients (quoted from an article from Utusan Konsumer).

Now, what would you do when you read about this? Bread is something my family and I consume everyday and if we are swallowing all the chemicals without any nutrients, I better think twice.

What do you think?

The Right Night Light

2009-05-23T21:40:00.004+08:00

My sons have been co sleeping with me until a year ago when they finally moved into their own room. It was not easy at first as they would run over to my room every now and then and find excuses to sleep in my room.

With some persistence, my husband and I managed to train them to sleep by themselves without me lying down with them. Off course, we did some ground work as in buying them a night light and turning on the music so that they would not feel the darkness and the loneliness.

Their first sensor night light was too dim and they kept complaining about it. Then, my brother bought a Japanese style table lamp for them. It was just the right lamp for my sons and they love it so much. However, after several months, their favorite lamp couldn’t work anymore and into the rubbish bin it went. At that very moment, we were thinking of what type of lamp to buy for the boys. Should it be a night light, a table lamp or a floor lamp? It can't be a low voltage halogen lamp, can it? One thing is for sure, the brightness must be just nice to enable them to drift into sleep but at the same time give them some courage to sleep in their own room without daddy and mummy.

Starting a family and owning a home is really not easy. We have to see to every detail and ensure that we make the right choice. Our next investment would be a desk lamp as we have just set up a study place for our son.

Fried Pasta

2009-05-12T20:20:00.001+08:00

Since I'm starting to cook now, I often opt for simple food for several reasons:

1) I can't cook well

2) I can't spend too much time in the kitchen

3) I'm lazy to prepare too many types of ingredients

Here's one of the type of food which I find easy to cook.

Adults' version with otak-otak from Muar (the best I have ever tasted), egg and carrot.

Children's version with home made fish paste (Mother in law's recipe), egg and carrot.

Cucumber and Zucchini

2009-05-07T07:00:00.002+08:00

This is the way we eat our cucumber and zucchini.

First way: Cut the cucumber or zucchini into strips and soak them into salt water. Serve fresh and eat fresh.

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Second way: Cut the cucumber or zucchini into slices, then wash them with salt, rinse with drinking water, add garlic, red chilli or cili padi, sugar and sour plum, then mix well.

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Third way: Cut the cucumber or zucchini into cubes, together with fresh seaweed, mixed with sesame oil, olive oil and a pinch of salt or soya sauce.

How do you eat your cucumber or zucchini?

Online Shopping

2009-04-19T22:39:00.006+08:00

When I go for a tour to a different country, I love to sign up for the free and easy package where we don’t have to rush from one destination to another. We can take our own sweet time roaming each street and shop, looking at different people, different things and different fashion.

My biggest regret is that I have not been on a tour for a long time ever since my first child was born but thanks to the internet, I still have the opportunity to browse online for the latest trend and fashion.

Roman Originals is a site I find very fascinating. The wide range of attire offered at Roman Originals includes blouses, skirts, coats, dresses, jackets, trousers and knitwear. The collection that they have caters for all seasons and the design will leave you with the urge to return after your first purchase.

If you are living in UK or Northern Ireland and if you are looking for an evening blouse, be sure to visit Roman Originals for special discounts on many of their evening blouses. Delivery is free for purchase over £75 and you even have a chance to enter a weekly contest and win £250! All you need is one minute of your time to enter the contest.

If your worry is that the blouse or dress won’t fit, you may refer to their size guide and measure yourself before making a purchase. Leave it to the professionals for they know exactly what you need.

So, why wait? Visit Roman Originals today.

Our Latest Addiction

2009-04-15T08:00:00.003+08:00

Our latest addiction is sandwich and it is very delicious and nutricious. We can eat it for lunch or dinner, replacing rice.

Let's take a look at the ingredients:

Bread. We saw the Europeans buying this and we too bought this to try. Once tried, we never stopped! This is bought from The Baker @ Ikano.

Lollo Bionda and Momotaro tomato

This time we use fried egg. Sometimes, we use ham or chicken slices.

Margerine, cheese and Japanese Mayonnaise

The healthy sandwich. We just love this!

My Most Recent Bento

2009-04-12T16:37:00.001+08:00

It has been ages since I last prepared bentos for my children and I know they have missed the bentos. From time to time, I received inquiries such as: "Mom, can we have bento today?" or "Mom, when can you prepare bento for us?"

Oh, I'm so sorry children, since the attack I got on my hand way back in December last year, I have not been cooking very much. Recently, after the purchase of "Animal pasta" and "Vehicle pasta", the children requested for a pasta bento and so I obliged. Here's my most recent bento without frills:

Content: Pasta, cucumber, steam carrot, steam baby corn and cheese cubes

JO-N's Restaurant

2009-04-07T12:30:00.001+08:00

Since December, I had not been cooking. My right hand had let me down and it was so bad that I couldn't even hold a pen. So, we had been dinning out very frequently, everyday, I would say.

Last month, I felt I could step into the kitchen again so one day, I started to prepare some simple food, the all in one type of dish.

That day, when I picked my children up from their school, they asked me the familiar question: "Mom, which restaurant are we going to?" My answer: "JO-N's Restaurant" They didn't get it at first but when I repeated, Karl said: "Oh, I know, we are going to mummy's restaurant!"

For several days after that, I had been cooking. One day after school, Karl came back and asked: "Mom, where's my lunch?" When I pointed to the packed food bought as I didn't manage to cook that day, he was disappointed. Hey, son, you are telling me you like the food I cook? That's great news!

So, with my children's support, I would try to cook whenever I can. I think I'm going to like cooking!

She Wants To Go To Australia

2009-03-27T09:53:00.002+08:00

Yesterday, my sister called from Australia and talked to my little daughter. This little girl of mine told her aunt that she wants to go to Australia.

Before the telephone conversation, she was telling me: “Mom, lets go to Australia tomorrow.” I told her: “We can’t just go to Australia anytime we want to. It’s not like traveling back to grandpa and grandma’s house. We have to plan for the trip, you know, like booking the air ticket and hotel room, getting ready some suitable clothing like Berghaus jackets and walking boots, and most importantly, we got to choose a school holiday to visit Australia. We can’t just go there on Saturday and return on Sunday, you know. If we want to visit your aunt, it has to be five or seven days. Australia is so far away.”

It is always my dream and wish to travel all around the world, to visit different countries to experience different food and to learn the local culture. Australia would top the list of countries I wish to visit and it would be a family trip with my mom and dad. Since my sister worked in Australia, they never had the chance to visit her. We would only see her once a year. She would be delighted if we visit her for once.

This morning, I was talking to the children about visiting their aunt and took the opportunity to tell them that they had to fulfill three main criteria before qualifying for the visit. Firstly, they have to learn how to behave themselves; secondly, they must know how to take care of themselves as in doing things like a big boy and girl without babying around and thirdly, they must be able to help mummy. Let’s see if this could motivate them to change their behavior.

Recipe

2009-03-12T14:20:00.007+08:00

If you have read my previous post on "Home Cook Western Food", you may be wondering about the ingredients and how to cook it.

Here's dedicating the recipe, written by my sister in her blog, to Chinnee and Miche who requested for it.

Home Cook Western Food

2009-02-25T10:00:00.001+08:00

After a LONG break from cooking and bentoing, I finally step into the kitchen again but this time around, I was the assistant to my dear sister who came back from Australia to celebrate Chinese New Year with us.

This sister of mine has gained some interest in cooking and baking and has been cooking and baking a lot in Australia. I would say, she is much better than me in this area. Kitchen is NEVER a place for me!

So, sis decided to prepare a western meal with chicken as the main course.

Here's what we cooked:

This is still raw. If you are wondering what's inside, it's chopped spinach, ham and cheese wrapped inside chicken breast meat / chicken thigh meat.

This is the end product. It's delicious!

Carrot and potato as the side dish. We had garlic bread too.

The meat was very filling and we didn't manage to finish all. So, sis sliced the meat up and we had chicken sandwich for dinner and chicken and spinach fried bee hoon (see following photo) for lunch the next day.

The children love this as much as the chicken sandwich.

Thank you sis for the wonderful meal. Now, I learn two new dishes that I would be able to try in future.

Chinese New Year

2009-01-24T09:52:00.005+08:00

Have you been baking? I bet all the cookies are ready for Chinese New Year. Here's to wish all my friends a very happy Chinese New Year. The four words above means may you be safe whenever you come in or go out.

Our First Camping Trip

2009-01-15T21:45:00.003+08:00

Our very first two day one night camping trip to “Gunung Senyum” went on rather well. Although I have camped many times when I was a student, this is definitely different.

The camping trip required some preparation as in hunting for the suitable outdoor clothing and camping equipments. The children were very excited even when they were told to try on some jackets and track bottoms.

The campsite belongs to the government and the government charges RM1 per person as rental of the campsite. Pretty cheap! The place is clean and there are bathrooms and toilets even mattresses! With the mattresses plus the exhaustion after one day of walking, it’s impossible not to sleep well but that was what happened. Hubby and I just couldn’t sleep well for two reasons. Imagine squeezing two adults and three children in a tent for two with mosquitoes hovering and ants crawling. While hubby and I twisted and tossed, the children slept well. That was the greatest relief!

That night, my friend cooked and the children had their very first candle light dinner with the moon and the stars above their heads. It was the first time they witnessed the building of a campfire too. While children played their game, the mothers gathered under the tree to discuss and talk about parenting issues. We exchanged experiences and views and it was really interesting to know how other mothers discipline their children.

Overall, it was rather a good experience for us as well as for the children but I think hubby prefers his big bed rather than the tent.

No More Bentos?

2009-01-13T07:05:00.008+08:00

I wish I have more time to prepare better bentos for my children but I can only prepare simple bentos for them without frills right now. Well, if you know what I mean, there is no baran separators, no silicon cups, no shapes, just simple food arranged in a lunch box.

Karl was asking for a bento just now but when I told him I would let him bring steam dumplings and guava but do not have time to decorate the bento, he was happy enough to accept. Thank goodness!

I think I need some time to adjust to my life without a maid and a right hand with allergy.

Welcome 2009

2009-01-01T14:45:00.003+08:00

Happy New Year Glitter Pictures

2008 has finally gone and here comes 2009. For me, I wish I could have more time for bentoing and I wish the condition of my hand would not get worse or I would not be able to cook, not to mention preparing bentos.

Happy new year everyone and happy bentoing!

It's Christmas!

2008-12-24T11:42:00.007+08:00

It's Christmas tomorrow! I wished I could bake so that I can bake some Christmas cookies or ginger bread man but I can't! My children would have to make do with those that I bought.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Merry Christmas Glitter Graphics

Tim Sum

2008-11-20T21:53:00.001+08:00

This is a place my husband brought us one day to have tim sum, a restaurant in Kuchai Lama named "Restoran Chuai Heng". The food there is pretty nice, especially those in the following pictures.

The restaurant looks pretty old from the outside but the inside looks good.

I would never know how to cut that duck!

Pecking Duck

Salt and pepper duck.

Golden Sand Pau

Recently, we found another good place that serves good tim sum in PJ. I have been there several times but always without the camera. The next time I visit, I must remember my camera.

Bento After Addition of Bento Accessories

2008-10-24T00:01:00.000+08:00

After my shopping spree at Daiso Singapore and also some online purchase from Market Place, the additional accessories boosted up my bento spirit a little. So, I began preparing bento again after my maid left.

Here are some bentos I have prepared recently:

Bento 28: Bread skin formed the base with Japanese mayo in between and some garlic bread on top cut into shapes using my new dolphin and turtle cutter.

Bento 29: Japanese rice molded, corns in butter, cheese sausage and grapes

Bento 30: Sushi, corn in butter, ham rolled up with lettuce as base and some grapes

Bento 31: Japanese rice with seaweed and Japanese Mayo in the peguin silicon cup, corns in butter and grapes.

Bento 32: soba topped with seaweed, grilled chicken on skew, cucumber-carrot-apple salad (my own creation) with a grape on top.

A must visit island - Sentosa

2008-10-23T09:00:00.001+08:00

How can one not visit Sentosa when they visit Singapore? So, to Sentosa we went with one aim in mind – to go for the famous “Songs of the sea” show. That day was the second day of Hari Raya (Malay New Year) and the whole island was packed with visitors. We saw many Indonesians. Instantly, I thought of Trinity and imagine her speaking Bahasa Indonesia. Oh, how I wish June 2009 will come quickly and we will meet by then.

Songs of the sea entrance

There are many attractions in Sentosa but we decided to go for the luge and skyride, which appear to be something new to us. All of us including the children enjoyed the rides. Wayne and Nyn were too short to ride on their own and so, they had to co-ride with hubby and I. Karl was very excited but he couldn’t really ride that well in the beginning. I rode near him, giving him instructions at the same time, shouting my lungs out: “slow down!”, “turn right!”, “turn left!”, “pull back!” Phew, trying to control my own luge with Nyn in it and at the same time concentrating on Karl was a tough job! Karl got the hang of it at the end and took a second luge ride with his father and brother riding by his side. Great job, Karl!

Karl on the luge

After the luge, we had to take the skyride to return to the original location and to go on the skyride, we had to be very fast when we get on the continuously moving seats. The children were happy while hubby and I were busy holding them tight, telling them not to move and asking them what would happen if they fall. What an experience!

Skyride

We headed to the beach where Songs of the sea would take place in the evening and luck was not on our side. We failed to get the tickets for both shows and ended up with sand play at the beach! Guess that gave us an excuse to visit Singapore again.

An enjoyable visit to Jurong Bird Park

2008-10-22T08:00:00.001+08:00

Before our trip to Singapore, we have made a trip to KL bird park and I actually like KL bird park but I thought the bird show was not that good. Stepping into Jurong bird park, I have to admit that they are much better than us in many ways.

Firstly, I just love the environment in Jurong bird park. There is greenery everywhere and it's pretty cooling and relaxing strolling along the trails.

The main entrance to car park of Jurong Bird Park

Next, the Birds and Buddies show is very good, at least they are much better than the bird show in Malaysia. What make me like their bird show more than ours is that it is livelier and the person who hosts the show is much better. There are certain tricks which are similar but one thing which I found interesting is that they are all for recycling. Even the birds can segregate the garbage into the right bin!

The pools amphitheatre, the perfect place for the bird show

There is a nice place inside Jurong Bird Park, a place just beside the playground for the children to splash and get wet. My children did not bring extra clothing and so, they made themselves very comfortable at the playground instead.

A relaxing place for children

There are a great variety of birds and we did not manage to see all. It would take a whole day if we were to see everything. One type of bird which cannot be seen in KL Bird Park is the penguin. We were lucky as we made it in time for penguin feeding, not by us but by the keeper who threw fishes and we saw how the penguins swam towards the fishes.

The Riverine

Talking birds

There is another interesting session – the dinosaur descendants namely ostriches and emus. If you would like to hear the sound made by the male emus and the female emus, there are two buttons on the description board. It was pretty interesting for my children. The boys were excited when they saw dinosaur fossils. Digging dinosaur fossils in Jurong Bird Park? Yup, although it was man made, it was pretty much a lesson for the kids, don’t you think so?

This is something you can't see in Malaysia.

Dining in Singapore

2008-10-21T08:00:00.002+08:00

When you go to a different country, what would you eat? For us, off course we would like to try something different which we can't find in Malaysia but then, Singapore is our neighbor and the food is similar. So, these are what we ate in Singapore, something which we convinced ourselves that they were somehow different.

(A) We went to a famous shopping complex called Takashimaya in Orchard Road and had a simple yet wonderful lunch.

S$0.70 rice

Chicken (similar to satay) to go with the rice

I think it's korean sausage

Not sure what this is

(B) SIL brought us for a buffet dinner just before we went to Ling's house and I thought the food was quite good. Here's some photos:

The shop

These were quite special and my children love the one with a chocolate stick.

Dessert

This was what we saw beside the restaurant and it's something special, maybe to us who have not seen such thing.

Apple dippers and apple juice in Happy Meal

(D) I'm not sure if we can see this in Malaysia but I personally have not tried one before.

Rice burger (the bun is replaced by rice)

Geylang – Singapore red light district

2008-10-20T08:00:00.001+08:00

We were out of our mind, bringing the kids to Geylang, Singapore red light district, but it was merely a ride in the car without us getting down.

You know, it was an eye opener for us as we have never thought or imagine that we would see scantily dressed girls lining up beside the road waiting to close a business deal. Most of them are very pretty and have the perfect body to become a model! Men of all races were flooding the street too!

The children didn’t see anything as they were busy watching their favorite cartoon in the car. We took a few rounds and headed back to the hotel.

There are many shops selling food there and the business is extremely good. There are many hotels there too and the rate is low. One question: Will you stay in those hotels with your children and why? Whether it is a "YES" or a "NO", that's another parenting issue.