Comfort food

We will be heading home for Christmas, according to Ann, another seven more days to go (she has been counting down). I have been working very hard to keep fit because, it is feasting time! Still, when we see food which reminds us of home, there is no stopping….


In a cold winter…a cup of hot milo with prata and curry…humble meal but enough to warm the heart. So far, I think this is the best prata in Shanghai!

They will never get it

Kai is having his mid-year exams and Ann is having her continuous assessment. Kids will never understand why mama is so stressed when they are the ones taking all the tests and exams! Haiz…

Real cutie

Bought some gold fish mould for trying out nian gao when I head back to SG. But before that, I must play with it….


These are yam agar agar with a layer of coconut sago. Of course, they are yummilious!

Watching the kids in action

The school had an open house…to see what the kids do during their CCA class.




Ann is in the art class







Kai is in the ceramic class

Yes, both of them are very much into the art. I often remind the spouse, perhaps we should start an art fund!

In her own world

I am very thankful that I have two kids who so love reading. I spend more time reading to Kai than to Ann. Reason is very obvious. Kai was the first child and apart from him, it was still him. Much time was spent going to the library and letting him explore the world of books. I sent and fetch him from school and the best thing about not having a car was that I was reading a lot to him on the bus, on the train and in the cab.

When Ann came, my attention has to be divided between the two of them. Many times, I regretted that I couldn't spend as much time with Ann. Having a brother who reads ferociously kind of influence her. She has also picked up the habit of reading. Yes, I am so looking forward to heading home, at least, there are a lot more books and more choices for them. There will be the library for them to spend the whole day there. At the rate they are going, there will be no more books left for them to read here and no more money for me to spend on myself. *Wink*



Ann in her own world. She didn't even know mama took her picture!

Nothing can do what a book can do. Lifts you out of your life... to a whole new world, whole new perspective... Dave Kellett

(SCREAM….)



First visible white hair plucked out from my head. Age fast catching up…thank God there is this thing call HAIR DYE! And they come in beautiful colours.

Phone call…

The one phone call which you do not wish to receive is the one from school…more so when you are in a foreign land. The school called and Kai was having pain in his throat. His molar is erupting and the gums are swelling so badly that it affected his throat.

Kids are forever our babies…teething never ends.

give

I am not your typical mum!

I was really fed-up with Ann's ballet teacher.

Last week, she forced Ann to do the split and it hurt her terribly. Ann's threshold for pain is very high and I mean, really high. When she was two, she was burnt by the oven, five blisters on her little palm. Only a short cry and she was back to her usual self. When she was about three, she fell at home and had a bad cut. Her two front teeth pierced through her lower lips but soon, she was bouncing again. No stitches needed, the wound just healed by itself, even our family doctor was surprised. Remember her big swollen bruise on her forehead a few weeks back? So  when Ann cries, it means it is really bad. The split must have hurt her quite badly.

Yesterday, at the ballet class, the teacher scolded her and said that she was not flexible. She started comparing Ann with an European kid who is in the same class. This European kid has gymnastic background, of course she is more flexible than Ann. Moreover, she started learning ballet way before Ann.  What made me really mad was she compared Ann with that kid. While waiting outside the class, I could hear the teacher yelling at Ann and saying so and so is more flexible! *MAD*

I am a believer of an individual's uniqueness. I drill very hard in my kids that they are special, they are beautiful, they are different.  I don't want my kids to grow up thinking that they are not good enough.  If my kids misbehaved, I am all for discipline but I will never allow my kids to be put down verbally because of a shortcoming. Everyone's flexibility is different. I know some takes a longer time to learn and to master it.

At the end of the class, the teacher came out and told me that I couldn't depend on the once a week class. I must do more for Ann, blah, blah, blah...

I am not a tiger mum and I am not the typical mum.  I send Ann for ballet class because her school teacher commented that she has a flare for dance and I want to see if her interest is there. I send her there to do something different instead of all books and school. I am not training her to be a Russian ballerina (if she becomes one, God bless her), if her interest is there, if her talent is there, she will bloom. That's how I function!

Ann loves ballet and in spite of the pain last week, she never asked to quit. She went to class happily yesterday. The last I want is to have a teacher who demoralises, demotivates, robs her of her cheerfulness, her love for dance and her thirst to learn something different. If she thinks I am the typical Chinese mama, who pushes her kid to the limit so that her kid can be some Olympic star, she's got the wrong person.


Notes : Spoke to a ballerina friend, she said that she has NEVER been forced to do the split. Further research on the internet found that some teachers are not aware of the safety issues on doing splits. It can cause damage to the hips.

PSLE or iPSLE

Have been squeezing my brain juice, cracking my brain, analysing what is the best choice for Kai.

Logistically speaking, iPSLE is not the way to go. Travelling time to the exam center will take one hour on a normal day. If it is a jammed up day, it will most likely take more than one hour but less than two hours. If it is a not-moving-at-all day, it can take eternity to reach there. Yes, traffic conditions can be that bad here. It is a big risk to take. The advantage of taking the iPSLE is that Kai can approach the school of his choice personally, have a face-to-face interview and convinced that he is worthy to be part of the school.

Of course, taking the PSLE means that the traffic conditions are no longer an issue. It will be battle it out with everyone and may the best wins. I am quietly confident of Kai being able to produce good results. He is there and with his Higher Chinese training, I think Normal Chinese should not pose as a huge obstacle. But I am not telling him just in case he falls into the trap of complacency. He only knows that he is good but others are better. *wink*

PSLE or iPSLE? Actually, does it really matter at all. Hmmmm…..

Ondeh Ondeh

What is ondeh ondeh?
"Easy sweet potato balls with sweet filling for tea time. Serve while it is still hot and the sweet filling will ooze out as you bite into it." - All recipe. The sweet filling is palm sugar.

Why this colour?

I didn't use any colouring and pandan leaves are prized leaves, if I can do without them, then I will do without them. Grated coconut is unheard of, I have to make do with dried coconut.  Really, nothing in life is too difficult. These are desserts which I take for granted when living in SG. Hop down to the nearest market and I can satisfy my cravings. Over here, everything is 'Made in Shirley's Kitchen'! A fellow mama commented that I can now open my own cafe. Yeap…selling quiche, durian puffs and nonya kueh…what a combination!