Outing with friends from overseas

Sometime last week, daddy took out a friend from Netherlands out for dinner at a Chinatown cafe in KL together with the kids and mummy. Uncle Robert, as the kids call him, was here for a working assignment with daddy's company.

We were later joined by the kids' favourite Uncle Dejok, an engineer from Frammersbach, Germany and Uncle Kwan, daddy's colleague.

It was the kids' first outing in a very long time and so, they enjoy the sights and sounds in Petaling Street and KLCC.

Uncle Dejok, fostered a close friendship with the kids, making them paper planes in various types and even tried performed some magic tricks. Uncle Dejok is also known as Magic Andy in Frammersbach as he sometimes performs magic shows in children's party and in schools.

It was a short but fun night for the kids who enjoyed going out instead of staying at home most of the time.

Garbage Enzyme

This morning, a friend told me of a garbage enzyme workshop workshop which contributes to a better earth friendly environment.

I was my first time hearing of such thing. With the changes in the climate and the many waste thrown into garbage, I was listening attentively to her, when I found out that we can contribute to the climate change through a simple DIY formula using kitchen waste (fruits' skin and unwanted vegetables).

This not only helps in protecting our ozone layer and lower global temperature, but actually provides a natural and environment friendly way to use the enzyme liquid as a household cleaner, air purifier, laundry and floor detergent, shampoo (yes, shampoo!!), body care, car care and or course as an organic fertiliser.

It removes odor, molds and grime, it's antibacterial and anti-viral.

It's all natural, and in fact, it doesn't even smell and actually acts as an insecticide as well!

The dilution ratio for usage is approximately 1:1000 to use enzyme as insecticide, 1:100 for pesticide, diluting it 200X to be used as air-refreshener and 500x as hormones for plants to get more fruits or flowers.

1 Tbp of enzymes for 1 litre of detergent water/dish washing liquid/shampoo (or 1tsp for 500cc) will help reduce the side effects in chemicals and enhance the nutrients.

The ratio of making this would be mixing 3 parts of the unwanted fruits and vegetables to 1 part of brown sugar (not sure whether this is gula melaka or that special brown sugar for making desserts) with 10 parts of water.

Keep these in an airtight container and leave it unopened for 3 months. After that, you can pour them into individual containers for your daily household usage and personal care.

Chin Nee's beautiful twins

I received an sms from Chanel who forwarded me Chin Nee's sms that she has delivered her twin baby boys via c-sect. We were communicating via sms asking when to visit her and where about is she before I decided to contact a few other mummies to see if anyone is keen to join me to visit her.

So, Chanel and Liz finally confirmed to meet at my house in within the next one hour and I drove us all to visit her. She's got a gorgeous set of twins and they're so sweet. They look a little different from each other and yet so alike at certain angles. I'll leave the birth story of the babies to the mummy.

See you soon, Chin Nee and meanwhile, take good care of yourself and remember to eat and "bou" yourself!

Never-ending homework

There seems to be quite a number of homework to do for Brendan. There was one time, when he came back with 5 homeworks - English writing, BM writing, numbers writing, coloring and chinese!

Before Brendan started his daycare, he used to dread doing his homework at night. I tend to lose my cool when I wanted to do my own things and he was getting tired of his homework.

Eversince he started daycare after school, he finished his homework in school with the personal guide of his teacher.

After daycare, he can actually asks for more colouring homework to do! He enjoys doing homework now though I only limit him to basic reading and colouring. I wonder what got into him. Maybe my teaching method is wrong, or maybe I'm just plain lazy and impatient to go through this homework.

Brendan is bad in spelling and reading, but loves painting. He took after both daddy and mummy in the arts department cos' I love drawing and painting when I was young. Daddy is also a good artist as well. Well, afterall, I took after my dad who is a superb artist.

Eryn, on the other hand, also took after me in the music and sports department. Eryn can really run, and run, and run, so unlike Brendan who is always complaining of getting tired.

Oil price increase again!!

I pumped RM30 petrol at around 5pm and before I headed back home today. My phone battery was dead and by the time I got home, I recharged my phone and received 5 missed calls from one friend.

When I called her back, she was telling me that the price of petrol will increase tomorrow! I didn't have trouble pumping petrol earlier on as there was no queue. After cooking, I fetched Brendan from daycare and took him for a drive to the nearest Shell petrol station and was I extremely surprised at the tons of cars queueing up to pump petrol!!

Brendan had the urge to pee and so I stopped at the road side for him to do his 'business' and overheard a man telling one driver that the queue has not been moving for more than half and hour as there was a deadlock at the petrol station.

Brendan actually helped saved my time by not engaging in that stupid struggle to get into the petrol station. Since I was already out, I decided to head to BHP nearby but it was the same predicament. Deadlocked. I decided to try for the third time to Petronas not too far away and somehow manage to squeeze my way through the many, many oil pumps available there.

I've never joined in the crowd when it comes to petrol price increase, but now that I'm no longer in the full-time workforce and budget is a constraint, and inflation chocking us up, I have to be kiasu today and join in the crowd. Well, there's always a first time! It won't be the last time as well. Luckily I had Brendan to talk to or else I will be cursing my lungs out.

Unfortunately, I didn't take my handphone out or else I will have started snapping pictures of all petrol stations all over the place! hahaha

Real-life situation

Over the weekend, we made a trip up to Penang and stayed overnight at my sister's place. It was basically eating and eating and eating.

The kids were spoilt by my sis and my brother-in-law who bought Brendan a battery-operated racing car and Eryn a little cooking set!

We had to travel from Penang to Kota Bahru the following evening and gosh, I do dislike travelling all the way there, especially when the journey is so looooooooong. I simply dread going to KB!!

We were there for two nights and on Tuesday, we left after lunch about 1pm+ and arrived home just before midnight! We were stuck for a very long time at Karak Highway.

There were around 7-8 ambulances that came from the direction of KL driving fast to make a u-turn far behind us to go to a stop by the ravine which we later found out in the papers today, that a bus has plunged deep 10 metres below. 2 people died in that freak accident and knowing that we were stucked in a jam due to that accident brought shivers down my spine.

It saddens me to think of the victims stucked in the bus, deep down the ravine, under the rain, while lots of rescuers were frantically trying to save the victims.

I read of these news everyday, and it's just simply that - news.. These people just never imagined how one single move can just change their lives forever.

Ask yourself this question : Are you prepared to go through the road ahead when your life turns 360 degrees? Be it for the better or for the worst?

Turning 3

Eryn is officially 3 years old. Born on 1st June 2005, she displays such a warm outburst that never fails to impress all at home with her antics and her very talkative stories - on the whys, the hows, the whos, the wheres and a whole bunch of wierd stuffs. Oh my, she can really talk and talk and talk...

Her sudden display of emotions always catch me by surprise.

One moment, she'll come squeezing me by the neck and hugging me, saying "I love you, mummy" and continue hugging and patting my back and another moment, she'll throw a tantrum and says "You don't be like that ar!! I don't like you!"

She's so full of grace and so cute with her baby-like voice and yet so tomboyish and behave like a boy.

She definitely develops fast, having learning to stand at 9 months and walking at almost 11 months, I think. Babbling at around one year old, and speaks in sentence by one and a half year old. She went off her diapers much later than Brendan. Brendan voted off the diapers at less than two years old while Eryn got slept without her diapers at around age 2.

We happened to be in Penang on her birthday this year and we didn't celebrate it much due to the travelling and eating and visiting.

Eryn wasn't a planned pregnancy, but she has brought me joy and tons of challenges in motherhood, in coping with 2 children with a close age gap of one and a half years old.

This post is specifically dedicated to Eryn, wishing you a life full of joy and laughter as it has always been for you. Your unique personality and expressions are a beauty to behold. While you can be naughty and 'stubborn', you certainly gives the aura, so cherub-like in times of darkness in mummy's life...

Wishing you lots of love and kisses unlimited, just like the one you so warmly display to mummy out of the blue, just when mummy needs it.

Eryn and her yoga poses

I've noticed Eryn doing some exercises and poses which looks like some yoga pose. She'll be showing off her stretching and posing in front of us whenever we sit down and watch TV.

I believe it's the "influence" or should I say, copy-catting her nanny at the nanny's place. Eryn does it so well, having no problem bending backwards, in a u-shape with her hands and legs behind her, or stretching her body out to touch her toes! I tried doing that and almost hurt my back! haha..

I took the opportunity to take some pics of her when she tried showing it off again.

"Lei, on de lei, on de lei...."

When the kids and I went back to my parents' place recently, my dad taught Brendan to sing a verse from "The Lonely Goatherd", a well-known song sung by Julie Andrews in the movie, The Sound of Music.

If you know the first two lines of the song, it goes like this :

High on a hill was a lonely goatherd
Lay-ee odle lay-ee odle lay hee hoo

The first time I heard him sing it I couldn't stop laughing...

I tried correcting Brendan but he keeps insisting to sing it his way! Boy, oh boy!! so stubborn, but it's so funny..

Mother's Day weekend

My sis and I decided to make a last minute trip back to our hometown last weekend. My sis took a flight to KL and from there I fetched her from the airport and proceeded to drive back to my parents' place with the two kids.

It was a weekend of catching up and lots of chatting and eating!

It was also the same day as my sis-in-law's birthday and also my mum's birthday 2 days later. So, my brother made us all a tray of original authentic Italian home-made tiramisu. My brother can bake very well - chocolate cake, blueberry cake, bread, etc...

He was sent to Italy to work for a year before and from there, he got to know an Italian colleague who taught him to make tiramisu. He made it without any rum or alcohol since the kids are eating as well. Brendan simply loved it, calling it an ice-cream cake!

Unfortunately, my brother last made in 10 years ago, and didn't fold the ingredients properly, causing it to collapse a little. It still taste nice though. It is advisable that the original Italian marcapone be used to have a better texture and flavour.

Then, my dad made 4 dishes of homemade otak-otak, using fresh ikan merah with all-natural ingredients and spices. It was simply yummy. Mum cooked us 3 different type of soups over the weekend and made us her special yam cake which we all ate to our hearts' fulfilment! She bought back some papayas which my sis said were "super-sweet". The tree was only as high as Brendan but the papayas were abundant and very, very sweet.

Gosh, I feel like going back again for more home-cooked food! Didn't even get to eat the botak curry me and the beef noodle. sigh!

Tag : Of the 2

I got a tag, from Sue. Just like her, I haven't been doing tags for a while, so will start doing this again. This one is way, way over due by 6 months! *grin*

Two names I go by :
1. Sharon
2. Mei Lin

Two things I am wearing now :
1. Clothings-lah
2. Hair clip

Two things I want (or have) in a relationship :
1. Appreciation - thanks for appreciating me, but I think I can make do with more, dear..
2. Romance - more it if as well :-D

Two things I like to do :
1. Lepak?
2. Shopping?

Two things I did last night :
1. Met up with Anthony Mitchell from Australia.
2. Had dinner at 9:30pm with one mummy, Liz Wong.

Two things I ate today :
1. Bread with butter and jam for breakfast
2. Butted fish with garlic rice and coleslow for lunch

Two people I last talked to :
1. Shereen Wong, over the phone, asking for help on a previous project I did
2. Hubby

Two things I am doing tomorrow :
1. Attend my weekly BNI meet at 7am
2. Making some phone calls to set appointments for next week.

Two favourite days of the week :
1. Saturday
2. Sunday

Two favourite holidays :
1. Chinese New Year
2. Christmas season

Two favourite beverages :
1. Coffee. I'm a die-hard coffee fan
2. Fruit juice

Two things about ME, things you may never have known :
1. I play the piano extremely well
2. I enjoy being alone sometimes, despite giving the impression that I always around people.

Two jobs I have had in my life :
1. Assistant Manager in a broadcasting TV station for 8 years
2. Head of Airtime sales.

Two movies I would watch over and over :
> Why would I want to watch a movie over and over?

Two places I have lived:
1. My hometown somewhere in Johor
2. Bandar Sunway

Two of my favourite foods :
1. Thai -tomyam, kerabu,
2. Japanese - sushi, sashimi, shabu-shabu

Two places I would rather be right now :
1. in my hometown, eating and eating and eating
2. in a spa, having a good massage

Since this is an overdue post, I'm not tagging anyone :-)

Grocery shopping??

Imagine this - it's raining, you have lots of groceries to buy, the kids are cranky, the queue is long and it's running late. What do you do?

We were on a recent trip to a hypermarket when the kids started to whine and throw a tantrum. We decided to just get only a little bit of what we wanted on the long list of things to buy, and proceeded to queue up with whatever little things we have in our trolley.

"Zzzzzzz", the kids were sleeping already, what can we do but to move out quickly to get home and when we are home, their eyes were opened wide!

Happy Mother's Day

Wishing all mummies out there a Happy Mother's Day...

Heaven?

A few days ago, while we were having dinner at home, Brendan suddenly blurted out about his friend's daddy who has just "gone to heaven".

Brendan : My friend, ................. (name protected)'s daddy just gone to heaven.
(daddy and mummy was shocked stared at each other)
Mummy : Heaven? Why do you say that Brendan?
Brendan : Because my friend's daddy died and that's why after he dies, he goes to heaven?
Daddy : Why did your friend's daddy die?
Brendan : I dunno (his favourite sentence). He just died and cannot wake up anymore, so he went to heaven.

Hmm....... food for thought....

Professions

One day, when I took Brendan back from school, the teacher told me something really amusing.

The topic for that day was "Occupation". The teacher asked Brendan whether he would like to be a doctor when he grows up, so that she could go and visit Brendan and she is old and sick. Brendan immediately answered, that he doesn't want to be a doctor. "Why?" his teacher asked.

"I want to be an engineer like Uncle Kim Leong", says Brendan.

Now, daddy is also an engineer, but he'd rather be an engineer like Uncle Kim Leong (my brother) than like his daddy! How comforting that is to daddy! haha.

Brendan's teacher then asked him, "What is your mummy's occupation?"

Brendan replied, "My mummy is a boss".

Gosh, he was the talk among the teachers with that innocent reply.

Seriously, I do not know where he get that from. Hmm.....

Harvynna's birthday

The kids went to a birthday a Gymboree about 2-3 weeks back. It's their first birthday party at Gymboree and also their first time at Gymboree.

It was something out of the norm as all the chidlren had so much fun playing and laughing away. Harvynna was a really pretty girl. She is really tall for her age. With lovely locks and a sweet face, she'll definitely attract lots of attention when she grows up some day.


Our kids have grown up so fast. As I look back at a photo when Brendan and Harvynna were together, they were just tiny little tots - Brendan in his napkin and Harvynna in her diapers, playing alongside together, but no words of communication at all. Eryn was just a little baby then.

Time flies...

ang mo slang.

The other day, Brendan's teacher told me something which really made me laughed.

She said that Brendan's chinese pronounciation got an ang mo slang. There are times when she wants to laugh in class but has to control it so as not to embarass Brendan and also the fact that she's teaching in the class.

Brendan's speak Mandarin quite fluently though we rarely speak Mandarin at home. Eryn hasn't start preschool yet, but she and Brendan can communicate with each other in Mandarin pretty well.

It's pretty wierd where Brendan gets his ang mo slang from cos my side of the family speaks Mandarin without the slang.

Anyway, the teacher has long controlled her laughter and when she relayed the story to me, we both exploded into laughter.

We later heard Brendan saying good bye to his teacher, "Lao3 shi1, Zhai4 Zhuan4" (if you understand han yi pin yin, notice the pronounciation for zhai4 zhuan4). Gosh, why does he has to roll his tongue to make it more complicating... hahaha

Little mousey gone

Further to my earlier mouse story, I do wonder where the mouse has gone to. The last I saw it, it was hiding behind one of the pails in the downstairs bathroom. I quickly locked the bathroom doors and didn't open the doors for 2 days, waiting for DH to come back to catch it as he was outstation.

When DH came back and opened the door, the mouse is nowhere to be found! One of my friend mentioned that it could have climbed out of the window, which was actually locked. He also said that it could have the tendency to swim through sewerage, so I'm wondering whether it took a swim down the toilet bowl into the world of shits out there.

I noticed that the mouse could have gnawed at the rubber piece at the bottom of one of the door. Still, I wouldn't think that it's possible for it to squeeze through the very tiny hole, which again, my friend mentioned that it could actually flatten its body to go through tiny holes. Eeww....

It's totally gone.

I found out that burnt sotong makes good bait to catch mice. Something I learnt while experiencing the little mousey situation at home.

Single Daddy

I had dinner today with one of my ex-colleague, Sam (name has been changed to protect his privacy).

I've known Sam for about 8 years now I think. We used to work together and were quite happy in the old environment where everyone truly work hand-in-hand as one feel good family.

I didn't know that Sam is already in his mid 40s as he looks like he is only in his mid 30s. He is a very nice and humble malay guy, ever so patient and always so accomodating. He is also a single father.

Now, this is a very unique case cos I've never come across anyone such as Sam cos he is not married, neither is he the real father of the 2 children that he's caring and staying with in his apartment. Sam adopted 2 son, age 3.5 years old and age 10 months.

The eldest son came from a family in extreme proverty and was thus given up for adoption since he was a baby. He even looks very much like Sam. His friends and relatives have commented that the close bond between them has somehow have created that psychological perception that they are biological father and son.

His second son came about when a young uni. student from UITM got herself pregnant. The girl's boyfriend dumped her when her tummy started to show at 3 months. One month later, she missed classes and eventually dropped out of class. Her friend is a relative of Sam and told Sam about her case. Sam took the interest to adopt the unwanted baby and even took the young girl in to stay with an aunt during her pregnancy until she delivered. In her 3rd week, she went back to her kampung and began life anew, lying to her family that she decided not to continue with her studies. None of her family members know about her delivery at all.

Sam made arrangement for adoption and took in this very beautiful and charming baby boy as his own son. He has large round eyes, a sharp chin and a very beautiful smile. Apparently, the baby's mother has the look of an actress model and the baby has inherited her beautiful looks.

Sam is unlike most fathers and even mothers that I know. He personally care for them, feed them, change them, and does everything single thing a mother does. He single-handedly manage both children after work and juggle between work and home like a supermom, literally leaving his bachelorhood overnight. Come to think of it, I don't think I can be as good as Sam.

His devotion and unconditional love for his 2 adopted sons should win him the award for the father of the year and no doubt passing the mark as the superdaddy-mummy hero.

As I drove back home after the dinner, I am reminded how fortunate I am to be put in circumstances which test my patience, love and devotion to my own children.

Today, I am glad I actually made the right move to move out of my comfort zone, leaving a wonderful job to focus on other priorities in life, to build a new business for a future that I desire, to move on with life despite having other people asking why do I leave a career for something that is not so stable.

I may look back and cherish my past career but I have no regrets choosing the unknown path. The journey may not be easy, the road may not be tarred, but as I walk further down the dusty road, I see little flowers starting to bloom and a rainbow at the end of the road...

I cried hearing Sam's struggle as a single parent, his struggle with work stress that had recently taken a toll on his life, his feelings and emotions and I believe, deep down, a wholesome family life that only time can tell.

Sam, you showed me little things in motherhood which I've sometimes taken for granted and I'm glad that you gave me the motivation and inspiration during dinner last night.

Thank you, Sam!

Smelly Ant

The kids have always been fascinated with the little ants in our house.

Brendan has his scientific term for the different kind of ants - Red Ants bite people. Black ants are nice ants cos they don't bite. Flying ants can fly but you don't hit it because it may be a bee. Smelly ants you don't touch because afterwards your hand chao-chao.

I personally hate those 'smelly ants' cos they really smell when I try to take the cloth to wipe them away. If Brendan is nearby, he'll go "Aaahhhh!!! Smelly ant! Chao-Chao!!"

hahaha..... I'd better go get ant bait before we all faint with the terrific smell!