Monthly Archives: April 2010

Hiking up the price won’t really make a difference

Posted by Misty Mom on 30/04/2010 None comments

Today, the PM, Kevin Rudd announced that the price of cigarettes will be going up by approx $2 from tomorrow and they are also thinking about making the boxes plain looking to deter kids from buying them. You can imagine the mad rush for smokes today! It was even mentioned on the news. *lol*

Anyway, I reckon he is doing this to help cut down on the ever increasing number of smokers but in all honesty, nothing you could do would make these hardcore smokers stop smoking unless they want to. Just like liquor in Malaysia as well as here, hiking up the price does not decrease anything at all. In fact, people are merely buying cheaper alternatives instead of going cold turkey and giving up. I reckon it will be the same with cigarettes. Smokers need smokes and they will do almost anything to get some. Hence, one can foresee more petty theft following this plan and that is just the tip of the iceberg!

I really don’t see how this move is going to help anyone at all. :/

14 weeks+2days and counting

Posted by Misty Mom on 30/04/2010 None comments

I recently had my last appointment with my doc here in Sydney before I head out to Malaysia. I can’t believe that I will be 29 weeks when I get back! The appointment went on as scheduled with me getting on the scales and getting my weight (80.4kg – up by only 400g, normal or not?) measured. Then while waiting my turn, doc rushes out coz someone is about to have a baby. I thought it was funny coz here we all were waiting to see him, and he’s off! More funny is how casual the receptionist was while telling up that doc’s gone to deliver a baby and it won’t be long, about 1/2 or so. She even suggested we go for a coffee which we did.

I got a call not even half hour later saying that doc was back and so off we went and I was called in next. During the scan, he told me that he knew the gender and was 60% sure what it was and asked me if I wanted to know. I said, ‘Yes pls!!’ and he told me. But I won’t be revealing that until the 19 weeks morphographycal scan to be absolutely sure what it is. So don’t try prying it out of me! :P

Everything else is growing well and all is good. I’m just hoping that I can get in touch with someone back in Malaysia who can run this scan for me as well as the sugar test at 26weeks. I’m not sure who I can really rely on so if you know anyone who’s done this, pls let me know.

Yvy’s Crispy Choc Flakes

Posted by Misty Mom on 30/04/2010 None comments

Did I mention that my recent attempts of making some sort of choc dessert was a hit, especially with the kids at KR’s birthday party? *beams proudly* Actually, Ted thought it was pretty fantastic given the fact that it was my first attempt at making something that was other than banana cake! *lol* You see, I’m no Iron Chef….heck, I’m not even a good cook. I cook to live and if I could avoid cooking, I normally do. Do you see why this was such an achievement for me? :)

I can’t take full credit for this recipe as this is my efforts at ripping off Nigela Lawson’s Cripy Rice Cakes. When I saw it on tv, I knew it was just too simple to not work and I was dying to try it. I love Nigela’s recipes especially her desserts because they are really simple that even a dodo like me could pull it off with minimal effort and get maximum results :D Word of advice though, these recipes are not for anyone who is currently taking any diet supplements or weight loss drinks. Her dessert recipes are sinfully delish and oh so fattening too….they are heavenly!! Anyway, for anyone who consider themselves simples chefs like me, here’s my recipe for them Crispy Choc Flakes.

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Ingredients:

200g of dark choc
3 medium sized choc Easter eggs *We still have so much leftover that I took Che-cheh’s advice!
2 tablespoons of honey
150g soften butter
Vanilla essence *Optional
3 cups Corn Flakes
Mini paper cupcake moulds

Makes approx 68 pieces

Method :

1. Combine all your choc and butter together over slow fire and continuously stir until they are well combined.
2. Add the honey and continue to stir to ensure the choc doesn’t get burn.
3. Add Vanilla essence and mix well.
4. Add the corn flakes and turn it so that the corn flakes get well coated. Don’t over mix of they will break up into small pieces and you’d want them in chunks.
5. Scoop the combined mixture into your paper moulds and refrigerate them for at least 20 minutes. I had them in for about 1hr before the party and I think that would be a better idea.

This is an extremely sweet desserts and I reckon only kids or adults with a sweet tooth could really enjoy it. While I love sweet things, this was a little too sweet for me however, Ted thought it was perfect! ;) I think they were even too sweet for Arianna coz she couldn’t even finish one! *lol*

Anyhoo, good luck and if you do try this recipe, pls link me up so I can see your outcome. :)

When tv is actually educational and not a stupid box

Posted by Misty Mom on 30/04/2010 None comments

I know that for most parents, TV is the enemy. Lots of kids these days can live on TV alone and I can understand why that is. I am rather ashamed to admit it but Arianna does watch a fair bit of TV but the one good thing is that the shows she watches happens to be shows that she can actually learn from. She’s totally grown out of In The Night Garden when once upon a time, she was absolutely nutters over it. I suppose its also because she’s growing up and honestly, although it’s gentle and all, I feel its got no educational purpose but merely colorful and entertainment. The characters don’t even speak properly, just sounds that you’ve got to figure out.

These days, it’s mostly Playschool which I think is the best children’s show ever! It’s been an Aussie production since 1966 and if I could relocate the tv to our balcony, I reckon Arianna could easily spend the whole day watching tv outside on those outdoor cushions I recently made – they have birds on them! :P Playschool is excellent because it is interactive and gets the kids to join it, lots of singing especially nursery rhymes, lots of activities done and they are very good at using recycleable stuff. The things they come up with is just fantastic! Needless to say that the other show she loves is Sesame Street. And I swear, she is REALLY learning so much from it!

Just this evening she proved that watching TV is not all that bad…she got this puzzle from Grandma which is an alphabet cut-outs on a board. And they were all in small letters which I hadn’t started teaching her yet, but she surprised me by idenfying so many of them on her own!! I was REALLY truly surprised but it was a pleasant surprise. She’s also been more vocal in singing and dancing. It’s really nice how she can sing on demand although her choice of songs are rather limited.

We’re thinking of getting a poster of the solar system because Arianna can actually identify earth…. :D And she’s also into insect so getting her a little bug thingamajig is definitely on my list of to-buy for some day. I’m actually really glad that I let her watch tv. I reckon if she keeps watching that ‘Simple Chinese’ program that comes on for an hour every morning, she could be teaching me one day! ;)

Considering preschool

Posted by Misty Mom on 29/04/2010 None comments

I’ve been putting off thinking about preschool for Arianna until she turns 4 but with MIL shoving multiple brochures of the various preschools in and around the area, I am sort of forced to think about it now. There are so many choices and options to look at and compare, that it reminds me about picking the best suited life insurance rate! It’s not that we don’t want to or plan to send Arianna to one but I never really got to thinking about it until recently. I am a little shy to admit that I wasn’t too sure what the difference was between childcare and preschool until I plucked up enough courage to ask a couple of friends. In a nutshell, childcare is where the child is literally being cared for and spend most of their time playing in the sandpit the whole day (as one mum explained to me – lol) while preschool is more education based and gets kids ready for Grade 1 and is like from 9am to 3pm . The thing is the government here has scraped the idea of building more childcare centres and the vacancies are limited and you got to register quick or they are just snapped up just like that. With preschool, the government has actually allocated a spot for each 4yr old child so we are not too worried about that bit. It’s just that preschool is more for older kids and if both of us went back to work once Nibbles turns 1, then both Nibbles and KR will have to be in childcare while Arianna goes off to preschool.

It’s a rather messy situation but I’m sure other parents face this too and I reckon it’s better that I start getting my head around how things work now than to stress out and go bonkers when the time comes, if you know what I mean. Also, Ted wants to enrol Arianna in some private school which he thinks is the best in the area and we’ve got to find out when we need to put her name in or we’ll miss out on that too. Aiyo, who ever said parenting was easy must be nuts!!! Making kids, very easy….it’s the bits after that that is so hard to cope with! =.=

Everything garlic…..

Posted by Misty Mom on 27/04/2010 None comments

I don’t know what it is but I bet it’s mostly the pregnancy but I am gone absolutely nuts over garlic bread! It all started when we had some at MIL’s place a couple of weeks ago and it was just SO good. A few days after that meal, I just had to make my own and we only made 1/2 dozen of those mini dinner rolls. They turned out pretty good keeping in mind that I am no Master Chef! *lol* In fact, it was so good, we didn’t have enough of it! Even Arianna enjoyed it…. :D

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Cooking in my FlavaWave

So a week later, the same mini rolls were on special but it was the value pack of a dozen for only $2 so I grabbed them and we had another 1/2 dozen but I kept the rest for those just-in-case moments. :) The garlic butter I made ended up in the fridge coz I made too much but it was not wasted. Heh. After KR’s birthday party on Sunday, we brought back some decent size bread rolls and hence, when I had that crazy cravings happening that night, we had garlic bread at 10pm that night! *LOL* Crazy or what??

Anyway, I thought I just share my simple, impossible to fail recipe for garlic butter. ;)

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Just out of the oven – smelled heavenly!

Ingredients : Butter as much as you’d like and even more garlic than you can think. :P

Method :
1. Once butter is soft, add your finely chopped fresh garlic to the butter.
2. Really slop the garlic butter on your bread.
3. Bake your bread at 175deg for approximately 15minutes or until golden brown.

*I know you can add chopped parsley as well but I have not tried it yet as I keep forgetting to get it. And not I’m not too sure if you add it to the garlic OR after the bread is done. You try and let me know. :)

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Ready to eat!! Yummo…..

Have fun!

So stressing!

Posted by Misty Mom on 26/04/2010 None comments

As much as I am looking forward to the trip back home to Malaysia, there is the issue of our flights which is causing me major stress. Let it be known that this is the absolutely LAST time I ever travel by Air Asia. :/ I haven’t even gotten on the flight and I’m already stressing about it. Come to think of it, it’s not surprising why I’m getting such a *fantastic* acne break out now! I wonder if I can bill them for some of the acne creams that I need to get to get this breakout under control.

Ok, so you get what you pay for but still, crikey…..I’ve yet to hear a proper good compliment about the airlines and all this happened after I got my tickets. We actually got them on some promo so the price was a good one although when I think about all the extra money that we need to put in ie. overnight hotel room at Gold Coast, taxi trips and etc., I think taking a proper connecting flight on MAS or SIA would have been a better idea. AA is after all a point-to-point airlines so you’ve got to book the connecting flights yourself. Thank goodness they informed me about the sudden change of flight details for my sister for when she comes out here. They actually pushed up her flight from Penang to KL from 5.25pm too 11pm!!!! Crazy right?? Thank goodness I could change that flight to something earlier that she could catch her flight from KL to Gold Coast. *sigh* So stressful man…..BUT I will keep an open mind about it and once I am in Malaysia, I shall document how the flight went and I dare say that if it need be, I WILL rant to my hears content!

Our new *poison*

Posted by Misty Mom on 26/04/2010 None comments

There are a couple of things that I absolutely love and at this moment, other than garlic bread it’s this sugee rusk that I normally get from Farmer’s Growers. It is my absolute poison! And I think I’ve got Arianna and KR on the bandwagon too. *lol*

It is actually somewhat similar to those cake pieces that the bakery rebakes and then sells in packets but this is more like rebaked bread with a little bit of sweetness to it. I think that’s the sugee bit in it. And it goes SO well with my tea that I just HAVE to have it at least once a day. In fact, for the past couple of days or so, Arianna, KR and I have been having it for brekkie! *lol* Yea, I bribe Arianna to have her milk first only then can she have ‘Mummy’s biscuit’ with me. And while I dip ours in my tea, KR just chomps on it as is. It makes for a great rusk! ;)

I think I might have gotten her addicted to it as much as I am addicted to it. =.= Thank goodness I can get it quite easily but the only thing is, we hardly go to FG these days as we normally shop at another place. I guess in the long run it is not really a bad thing coz honestly, when I make my tea….it *has* to be sweet, REALLY sweet only then do I get a kick out of it and at the rate I’m going, it won’t be long before I’ll be on Lipofuze! :/

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I love this!

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KR enjoying a chomp. ;)

KR’s 1st birthday (Part 1 with pix)

Posted by Misty Mom on 26/04/2010 1 comments

KR must be the happiest little girl in the whole world as she will celebrate her birthday 3 times and get 3 birthday cakes! *lol* She will also be getting just as many presents and I’m wondering how Arianna is going to take it. HHmmm….anyway, the first party was a joint birthday party with James who is the son of one of Ted’s friends. He had invited us to jon the family since the kids shared the same birthdate hence, we had the party at his place.

It was a nice party with bbq and kebbas, a small number of adults and thankfully, just a few kids as well. ;) We brought with us the sausages, bread rolls, my lame attempt of making a salad which was suppose to be coleslaw and for the kids, I whipped up a rip-off of Nigella Lawson’s Choc Crispy Cakes. *lol* I reckon it was a pretty good effort seeing that I not only winged it, it was my first time trying it out!! *lol* I’m just glad that it was a hit with the kids although surprisingly, Arianna couldn’t even finish one!

Anyway, here are the pix I promised to share. ;)

Pass the parcel
Arianna playing pass the parcel

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KR’s turn at pass the parcel

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KR’s birthday cake – don’t you just LOVE the candle? :P

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Waiting to light the cake

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Sparklers!! :D

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Such a pitiful face right? Apparently *someone* else was being a busybody and wanted to blow out the candle for KR. :/

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Love this shot! lol What a perfect stabbing grip she has….

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The birthday girl and Mummy. [Don't mind the hair, no professional stylist could copy this style!]

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Yvy’s special Choc Crispies

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Arianna had some the next day and didn’t think much of it which I found surprising….

I’ll share my recipe for the Choc Crispies in my next post. :) TFL!!

KR’s 1st birthday party (Part 1)

Posted by Misty Mom on 26/04/2010 None comments

I call this part 1 because she actually has 2 more ‘parties’ to attend to which only means, 2 more birthday cakes!!! =.= For someone who does not have a sweeth tooth, this is actually a nightmare for me! *lol*

Anyway, yesterday we had a joint party with a friend’s of Ted’s whose son also celebrates the same birthday as KR – 28/4. So we had 2 birthday cakes and loads of food and thankfully, not that many other kids around. The ones there were already a handful!

Anyway, the girls had a lot of fun especially Arianna coz she was dancing like mad and playing with the other kids outside. Despite the drop in temperature, I doubt that girl felt it BUT it did make my runny nose worst. *sigh* We had a couple of presents from the friends who turned up but we had a tough time figuring out what to get Jamie who turned 4. I thought of getting a couple of custom mugs for him coz he like the Wiggles and Ben 10 but in the end Ted settled for this workbench for kids that came with complete set of tools!

It was really cool!!! Heck, the minute the opened it, all the boys there pretty much began setting it up and started to play with it. I think the older boys were having more fun than the birthday boy. *lol* Even Arianna joined in though the twins boys there were not very nice to her. They were sort of bullying her but she didn’t bother about them and totally ignored them. KR was enjoying herself by just minding her own business and playing on the floor with whatever she can reach. *lol*

I do have pix and vids but havent had the time to upload them, will get it done as soon as I can find the time!